Holiday History

Anyone who laments the excesses of Christmas might consider the Puritans of colonial Massachusetts: they simply outlawed the holiday. The Puritans had their reasons, since Christmas was once an occasion for drunkenness and riot, when poor "wassailers" extorted food and drink from the well-to-do. In this intriguing and innovative work of social history, Stephen Nissenbaum rediscovers Christmas's carnival origins and shows how it was transformed, during the nineteenth century, into a festival of domesticity and consumerism.

Of all the stoic virtues—courage, discipline, justice, and wisdom—wisdom is the most elusive. This is especially apparent in an age where reaction and idle chatter are rewarded, and restraint and thoughtfulness are unfashionable. The great statesman and philosophers of the past would not be fooled, as we are, by headlines or appearances or the primal pull of tribalism. They knew too much of history, of their own flaws, of the need for collaboration to do any of that. That's wisdom—and we need it more than ever.

Don't miss out on this incredible holiday adventure with this special historical Western Mail Order Bride romance boxed set from #1 bestselling author and Kindle All-Star Katie Wyatt! Curl up with a cup of hot chocolate by a fire and settle down for a cozy read! Follow Sally, Amelia, Jenny, Margaret, Jane, and Bessie as they venture into the Wild West, pursuing their dreams. The road to true love never runs smooth … buckle up and join the girls on their frontier adventures—and don’t forget Christmas is just around the corner, so miracles might just happen! The Complete Christmas ...

In 1620, the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock and made friends with Wampanoag people who gave them corn. RIGHT? WRONG! It was months before the Pilgrims met any Wampanoag people, and nobody gave anybody corn that day.

Volume 1 of the gripping epic masterpiece, Solzhenitsyn's chilling report of his arrest and interrogation, which exposed to the world the vast bureaucracy of secret police that haunted Soviet society. Features a new foreword by Anne Applebaum.

Ever wonder why everyone wants to immigrate to America? Rediscovering America answers that question, and it’s like no other history you have ever encountered. More than an account of people, dates, and events, this story is about the hidden hand of a purposeful historical development where the main actors are colorful characters, participating in an American drama of little-known but remarkable events where overcoming incredible odds of failure is more unbelievable and engaging than fiction.

Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday’s Traditions reveals the surprising, quirky, mysterious, and sometimes horrifying stories behind the most wonderful time of the year.

Young listeners learn about the early traditions which have led to our present-day celebration of Valentine's Day.

When Dawn Fallon abandons her ambitions to be a professional musician and becomes a Civil Servant little does she realise she would be given a job as a VAT Control Officer - a job she struggles with on many levels, but with the help and support of her senior colleagues, she achieves a promotion, though finds the job no less difficult. The job brings her into contact with some bizarre situations and an interesting variety of business people. As she visits businesses to inspect their accounts for Value Added Tax purposes, researches whether sheep semen is taxable, grapples with solving why a ...

The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe is your map through this maze of modern life. Here Dr. Steven Novella and friends will explain the tenets of skeptical thinking and debunk some of the biggest scientific myths, fallacies, and conspiracy theories - from anti-vaccines to homeopathy, UFO sightings to N-rays. You'll learn the difference between science and pseudoscience, essential critical thinking skills, ways to discuss conspiracy theories with that crazy co-worker of yours, and how to combat sloppy reasoning, bad arguments, and superstitious thinking.

The book presents the Jewish leaders Judas, Jonathan, and Simon as devout people and has little sympathy for people who favor Hellenization, but nowhere does the text mentions divine intervention. Chapter one to two: The Hellenization of Judah and the non-violent resistance by Mattathias is covered; Chapter three to nine: Tells of the Military actions by Judas the Maccabaean ("battle hammer:): after 166 where the temple is purified.

Volume 3 of the Nobel Prize winner’s towering masterpiece: Solzhenitsyn's moving account of resistance within the Soviet labor camps and his own release after eight years. Features a new foreword by Anne Applebaum.

Volume 2 of the Nobel Prize-winner’s towering masterpiece: the story of Solzhenitsyn's entrance into the Soviet prison camps, where he would remain for nearly a decade. Features a new foreword by Anne Applebaum.

✨ 4 AMAZING BONUSES INCLUDED WITH PURCHASE - DOWNLOAD THEM TODAY! ✨ 🌟 Unleash Her Potential with These Inspiring True Stories!🌟 Wondering how to introduce your little girl to positive role models? Looking for real-life stories of perseverance and courage that won’t bore her? Want to boost her confidence and spark her curiosity? Eager to encourage her to dream big and aim high? Parenting can be tricky, but you’ve found the perfect resource. The 20 inspiring stories in this book will light a fire within her, empowering her to believe in herself and her dreams. Packed with ...

No singer has been more mythologized and more misunderstood than jazz legend Billie Holiday, who helped to create much of the mystique herself with her autobiography, Lady Sings the Blues - and this authentic biography sets the record straight. Donald Clarke was given unrivaled access to a treasure trove of interviews from the 1970s with those who knew Lady Day in all stages of her short, tragic life - from her childhood in the streets and good-time houses of Baltimore, through the early days of success in New York and the years of fame, to her tragic decline.

Why was I here? No, seriously. Why? And where was "here," anyway? I had a vague idea we were somewhere on the North Yorkshire Moors, dragging ourselves toward the Lion Inn at Blakey Ridge. But beyond that, I had no clue how far we’d come or, more depressingly, how far we had left to go. My clothes were soaked—down to my underwear, which I assure you is a deeply unpleasant sensation—and had now achieved a level of dampness previously reserved for shipwreck survivors. And my feet? Well, they too, had been wet since this morning, and by "wet," I mean they had the texture of boiled ...

In The First Christmas, two of today's top Jesus scholars, Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan, join forces to show how history has biased our reading of the nativity story as it appears in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. Borg and Crossan help us to see this well-known narrative afresh by answering the question, "What do these stories mean?" in the context of both the first century and the 21st century. They successfully show that the Christmas story, read in its original context, is far richer and more challenging than people imagine.

When Robert Catesby, the charismatic son of a Catholic gentleman, marries heiress Catherine Leigh and inherits the rich Oxfordshire manor house at Aston from his grandmother, it seems that the future happiness of the couple must be assured. However, Robert’s deep involvement in plots to overthrow the Protestant queen Elizabeth I and his increasingly dangerous behavior threaten the lives of his wife and their young son.

Not so very long ago, Yuletide was as much a chilling season of ghosts and witches as it was a festival of goodwill. In The Old Magic of Christmas, you'll rub elbows with veiled spirits, learn the true perils of elves, and discover a bestiary of enchanted creatures. Rife with the more frightful characters from folklore and the season's most petulant ghosts, this book takes you on a spooky sleigh ride from the silvered firs of a winter forest to the mirrored halls of the Snow Queen.

In recent years many claims have been made and questions asked about the origins of our Easter traditions. Was the holiday based on Pagan traditions? Was Easter created by the Roman Catholic Church at the Council of Nicaea? Where did Easter eggs and the Easter Bunny come from? How did Lent get started? Should Christians celebrate Easter, or should we be celebrating Passover? In this book we try to go back to the origins of these traditions and examine the historical evidence available to us to see where all of these traditions got started. Starting with the Bible as our guide, we work our ...