Books in What Everyone Needs To Know® series

Climate change will have a bigger impact on humanity than the Internet has had. The last decade's spate of superstorms, wildfires, heat waves, and droughts has accelerated the public discourse on this topic and lent credence to climatologist Lonnie Thomson's 2010 statement that climate change "represents a clear and present danger to civilization." In June 2015, the Pope declared that action on climate change is a moral issue.This book offers the most up-to-date examination of climate change's foundational science, its implications for our future, and the core clean energy solutions. Alongside detailed but highly accessible descriptions of what is causing climate change, this entry in the What Everyone Needs to Know series answers questions about the practical implications of this growing force on our world: · How will climate change impact you and your family in the coming decades?· What are the future implications for owners of coastal property? · Should you plan on retiring in South Florida or the U.S. Southwest or Southern Europe? · What occupations and fields of study will be most in demand in a globally warmed world? · What impact will climate change have on investments and the global economy?As the world struggles to stem climate change and its effects, everyone will become a part of this story of the century. Here is what you need to know.

Ever since Fidel Castro assumed power in Cuba in 1959, Americans have obsessed about the nation ninety miles south of the Florida Keys. America's fixation on the tropical socialist republic has only grown over the years, fueled in part by successive waves of Cuban immigration and Castro's larger-than-life persona. Cubans are now a major ethnic group in Florida, and the exile community is so powerful that every American president has curried favor with it. But what do most Americans really know about Cuba itself? In this third edition of the widely hailed Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know®, Julia Sweig updates her concise and remarkably accessible portrait of the small island nation. This edition contains a new foreword that discusses developments since Obama and Raul Castro announced the normalization of US-Cuba relations and restored formal diplomatic ties. A new final chapter discusses how normalization came to pass and covers Pope Francis' visit to Cuba, where he met with Fidel and Raul Castro. Expansive in coverage and authoritative in scope, the book looks back over Cuba's history since the Spanish American War before shifting to recent times. Focusing equally on Cuba's role in world affairs and its own social and political transformations, Sweig divides the book chronologically into the pre-Fidel era, the period between the 1959 revolution and the fall of the Soviet Union, the post-Cold War era, and -- finally -- the post-Fidel era. Informative, pithy, and lucidly written, it is the best compact reference on Cuba's internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.What Everyone Needs to Know® is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press.

In the aftermath of the collapse of the USSR, the American invasion of Iraq, and the Arab uprisings of 2010-11, a new Middle East has emerged. The Syrian civil war has displaced half the country's population, and ISIS and other jihadi groups thrive in the political vacuum there and in Iraq, setting a new standard for political violence. Meanwhile, regimes in Egypt and Bahrain have become even more repressive after the uprisings there, and Libya and Yemen have virtually ceased to exist as states. The hallmarks of this new Middle East are rebellion and repression, proxy wars, sectarian strife, the rise of the Islamic State, and intraregional polarization. International and regional actors stoke the flames, with the United States and Russia seeking to reposition themselves in the region and Saudi Arabia and Iran vying for supremacy. In the long term, perils including climate change, food and water insecurity, and population growth, along with bad governance and stagnant economies, will determine the destiny of the region. In The New Middle East: What Everyone Needs to Know®, renowned Middle East scholar James L. Gelvin explains all these developments and more in a concise question-and-answer format. Outlining the social, political, and economic contours of the New Middle East, he illuminates the current crisis in the region and explores how the region will continue to change in the decades to come.

Ever since Fidel Castro assumed power in Cuba in 1959, Americans have obsessed about the nation ninety miles south of the Florida Keys. America's fixation on the tropical socialist republic has only grown over the years, fueled in part by successive waves of Cuban immigration and Castro's larger-than-life persona. Cubans are now a major ethnic group in Florida, and the exile community is so powerful that every American president has curried favor with it. But what do most Americans really know about Cuba itself? In this second edition of the widely hailed Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know®, Julia Sweig updates her concise and remarkably accessible portrait of the small island nation--and now includes material from her 2010 interview with Fidel Castro. The new edition covers the key events of the last few years: Raul Castro's assumption of power from his brother Fidel, economic and political reforms since Raul came to power, and the changes in US-Cuba relations following the election of Barack Obama. Expansive in coverage and authoritative in scope, the book looks back over Cuba's history since the Spanish American War before shifting to recent times. Focusing equally on Cuba's role in world affairs and its own social and political transformations, Sweig divides the book chronologically into the pre-Fidel era, the period between the 1959 revolution and the fall of the Soviet Union, the post-Cold War era, and -- finally -- the post-Fidel era. Informative, pithy, and lucidly written, it is the best compact reference on Cuba's internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community. What Everyone Needs to Know® is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press.

Turkey occupies a strategic position in today's world: the only predominantly Muslim nation to be a member of NATO and an ally of Israel, it straddles both Europe and Asia. Turkey is the link between Islam and Western democracy, between Europe and the Middle East. In this concise introduction, Andrew Finkel, who has spent twenty years in Turkey writing about the country for publications such as The Economist and Time magazine, unravels Turkey's complexities. He sets the complications and transformations of present-day Turkey against the historical background of the Ottoman Empire, the secular nationalist revolution led by Kemal Atatürk, and repeated political interventions by the military, which sees itself as the guardian of Atatürk's legacy. Finkel reveals a nation full of surprises. Where else but in Turkey, Finkel writes, would secularist liberals have supported a prime minister who was once jailed for promoting religious extremism? From the Kurdish question to economic policy, from Turkey's role in Iraq to its quest for EU membership, Finkel illuminates the past and present of this unique, and uniquely consequential, country.

According to current projections, India will overtake China to become the most populous country on Earth by 2050. Its 1.6 billion people will live in the world's second-largest economy, after China but ahead of the United States and the European Union. A democracy and an open society compared to China, India's destiny matters deeply to a West whose influence in shaping the 21st century will decline as that of these two Asian giants and other emerging economies in Africa and Latin America rise. In India in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know®, Mira Kamdar, a fellow at the Asia Society and the World Policy Institute and an award-winning author, offers readers an introduction to India today in all its complexity. An ancient civilization tracing its roots back 5,000 years, the Republic of India was the first of Europe's former colonies to gain independence in the mid-20th century. With institutions of governance and a legal system inherited from the British, as well as the English language, India has the potential to function as a "bridge nation" between Asia and the West, between the advanced economies of the global North and the developing countries of the South. As such, India is set to play a critical role in how our world evolves during the coming decades.What Everyone Needs to Know® is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press.In a concise question-and-answer format, Kamdar addresses India's history, including its colonial legacy and independence movement; the political and social structures in place today; its rapidly growing economy and financial system; the geopolitical landscape of the 21st century and India's place in global politics; and the environmental concerns faced by the country, among other topics. She explores India's contradictions and complications, from its worringly narrow politics of patronage to its willingness to censor information by banning books and controlling internet content. At the same time, Kamdar celebrates the merging of India's muticultural landscape and deep artistic and intellectual heritage with the dawning of the Information Age and the expansion of mass media, which have made it one of the world's 21st-century cultural powerhouses. With clarity and balance, Kamdar brings her in-depth knowledge of the country and eloquent writing style to bear in this focused and incisive addition to Oxford's highly successful What Everyone Needs to Know® series.

Climate change will have a bigger impact on humanity than the Internet has had. The last decade's spate of superstorms, wildfires, heat waves, and droughts has accelerated the public discourse on this topic and lent credence to climatologist Lonnie Thomson's 2010 statement that climate change "represents a clear and present danger to civilization." In June 2015, the Pope declared that action on climate change is a moral issue.This book offers the most up-to-date examination of climate change's foundational science, its implications for our future, and the core clean energy solutions. Alongside detailed but highly accessible descriptions of what is causing climate change, this entry in the What Everyone Needs to Know series answers questions about the practical implications of this growing force on our world: · How will climate change impact you and your family in the coming decades?· What are the future implications for owners of coastal property? · Should you plan on retiring in South Florida or the U.S. Southwest or Southern Europe? · What occupations and fields of study will be most in demand in a globally warmed world? · What impact will climate change have on investments and the global economy?As the world struggles to stem climate change and its effects, everyone will become a part of this story of the century. Here is what you need to know.

Punk rock is a style of music, but it also is a way of thinking about and interacting with society. As a style of music, the influence of its energetic arrangements, distorted guitars, and anti-conformist lyrics is evident in the work of many of the most important bands from the last 25 years. As an attitude, it continues to shape (rightly or wrongly) media, design, politics, and fashion. With honesty, integrity, simplicity, and humor, What Every Child Needs to Know About Punk Rock explains this cultural phenomenon to young children, helping them to understand the modern world and, more importantly, the adults in their lives. Written by two dads — a child expert and a researcher — What Every Child Needs to Know About Punk Rock is the book for any adult who wants to help young children understand the roots of this ongoing movement.

Elvis Presley was called “the King of Rock and Roll.” His life and music transformed society in ways that are still felt to this day. With honesty, integrity, simplicity, and humor, What Every Child Needs To Know About Elvis Presley explains this pop icon to young children, helping them to understand the modern world and, more importantly, the adults in their lives. Written by three dads – a child expert, a healthcare analyst, and a veteran of the children’s publishing world – What Every Child Needs To Know About Elvis Presley is the book all true music lovers will want for their young children.

Turkey occupies a strategic position in today's world: The only predominantly Muslim nation to be a member of NATO and an ally of Israel, it straddles both Europe and Asia. Turkey is the link between Islam and Western democracy, between Europe and the Middle East. In this concise introduction, Andrew Finkel, who has spent twenty years in Turkey writing about the country for publications such as The Economist and Time magazine, unravels Turkey's complexities. He sets the complications and transformations of present-day Turkey against the historical background of the Ottoman Empire, the secular nationalist revolution led by Kemal Atatürk, and repeated political interventions by the military, which sees itself as the guardian of Atatürk's legacy. Finkel reveals a nation full of surprises. Where else but in Turkey, Finkel writes, would secularist liberals have supported a prime minister who was once jailed for promoting religious extremism? From the Kurdish question to economic policy, from Turkey's role in Iraq to its quest for EU membership, Finkel illuminates the past and present of this unique, and uniquely consequential, country.

There is nothing good about cancer. It is frightening, disrupts lives, and affects nearly all members of our society. With honesty, integrity, and simplicity, What Every Child Needs To Know About Cancer explains this disease to young children, helping them to understand the modern world and, more importantly, the adults in their lives. Written by two dads – a child expert and an M.D. and noted oncology analyst – What Every Child Needs To Know About Cancer is the book for any child whose life has been disrupted by the disease.

Turkey occupies a strategic position in today's world: the only predominantly Muslim nation to be a member of NATO and an ally of Israel, it straddles both Europe and Asia. Turkey is the link between Islam and Western democracy, between Europe and the Middle East. In this concise introduction, Andrew Finkel, who has spent twenty years in Turkey writing about the country for publications such as The Economist and Time magazine, unravels Turkey's complexities. He sets the complications and transformations of present-day Turkey against the historical background of the Ottoman Empire, the secular nationalist revolution led by Kemal Atatürk, and repeated political interventions by the military, which sees itself as the guardian of Atatürk's legacy. Finkel reveals a nation full of surprises. Where else but in Turkey, Finkel writes, would secularist liberals have supported a prime minister who was once jailed for promoting religious extremism? From the Kurdish question to economic policy, from Turkey's role in Iraq to its quest for EU membership, Finkel illuminates the past and present of this unique, and uniquely consequential, country in Turkey: What Everyone Needs to Know®.What Everyone Needs to Know® is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press.