false 31939 56478 1569245134 9781569245132 77 <![CDATA[Party of One: The Loners' Manifesto]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170458555m/56478.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170458555s/56478.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56478.Party_of_One_The_Loners_Manifesto 3.65 405 Self-reliant, each loner swims alone through a social world—a world of teams, troops and groups—that scorns and misunderstands those who stand apart. Everywhere from newspapers to playgrounds, loners are accused of being crazy, cold, stuck-up, standoffish, selfish, sad, bad, secretive and lonely—and, of course, serial killers. Loners, however, know better than anyone how to entertain themselves—and how to contemplate and to create. They have a knack for imagination, concentration, inner discipline, and invention—a talent for not being bored.

Too often, loners buy into society’s messages and strive to change, making themselves miserable in the process by hiding their true nature—and hiding from it. In Party of One, Anneli Rufus delivers a long-overdue argument in praise of loners. Assembling evidence from diverse arenas of culture, Rufus recognizes loners as a vital force in world civilization rather than damaged goods who need to be "fixed." A compelling, morally urgent tour de force, Party of One rebuts the prevailing notion that aloneness is indistinguishable from loneliness, and that the only experiences that matter are shared ones.

]]> 31939 3.59 473 102 2003 4598766 1585426679 9781585426676 14 <![CDATA[Stuck: Why We Can't (or Won't) Move On]]> http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4598766.Stuck_Why_We_Can_t_or_Won_t_Move_On 2.96 28 A brilliantly written tour through many lives—and a nation— stranded at the crossroads.

In Stuck the author of the highly praised Party of One: The Loners’ Manifesto identifies a rather striking social trend: many people are stuck. Be it in the wrong relationship, the wrong career, the wrong town, or with the wrong friends, some of them even say they want to make a change but . . . somehow . . . never get the job done.

A self-described “adolescent in size-ten shoes who is also a happily married homeowner with a master’s degree,” Anneli Rufus knows whereof she speaks. In this book, she draws on her own life experience as well as interviews with others who are also—in some way or another, and to differing degrees—immobilized. Tracing the many subtle ways in which American culture often conspires to keep us stalled, Rufus delivers a long-awaited diagnosis for our day and age: stuck. But there can be a light at the end of the tunnel; Rufus also tells the stories of people who managed to become unstuck and of others who, after much reflection, decided that where they are is best. After all, she says: “What looks to you like paralysis looks to others like passion. What looks to you like a rut, others would call commitment, true absorption in a topic, a relationship, a career, a pursuit, a place. What looks to you like boredom, others call commitment. And even contentment.”

Stuck is a wise and passionate exploration of the dreams we hold dearest for ourselves—and the road to actually achieving them.]]> 31939 3.59 473 102 2008 5052701 1585427179 9781585427178 5 <![CDATA[The Scavengers' Manifesto: A Guide to Freeing Yourself from the Endless Cycle of Buying More and More New(Though Not Necessarily Improved) Stuff, and Discovering How Salvaging,S]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1238381276m/5052701.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1238381276s/5052701.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5052701.The_Scavengers_Manifesto_A_Guide_to_Freeing_Yourself_from_the_Endless_Cycle_of_Buying_More_and_More_New_Though_Not_Necessarily_Improved_Stuff_and_Discovering_How_Salvaging_S 3.09 23 Destined to become the bible for a bold new subculture of eco-minded people who are creating a lifestyle out of recycling, reusing, and repurposing rather than buying new.

An exciting new movement is afoot that brings together environmentalists, anticonsumerists, do-it-yourselfers, bargain-hunters, and treasure-seekers of all stripes. You can see it in the enormous popularity of many websites: millions of Americans are breaking free from the want-get-discard cycle by which we are currently producing approximately 245 million tons of waste every day (that's 4.5 pounds per person, per day!).

In The Scavengers' Manifesto, Anneli Rufus and Kristan Lawson invite readers to discover one of the most gratifying (and inexpensive) ways there is to go green. Whether it's refurbishing a discarded wooden door into a dining-room table; finding a bicycle on freecycle.org; or giving a neighbor who just had a baby that cute never-used teddy bear your child didn't bond with, in this book Rufus and Lawson chart the history of scavenging and the world-changing environmental and spiritual implications of "Scavenomics," and offer readers a framework for adopting scavenging as a philosophy and a way of life.]]> 31939 3.59 473 102 148455 3.43 42 13 2009 648004 0312198736 9780312198732 5 <![CDATA[Weird Europe: A Guide to Bizarre, Macabre, and Just Plain Weird Sights]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176733841m/648004.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176733841s/648004.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/648004.Weird_Europe_A_Guide_to_Bizarre_Macabre_and_Just_Plain_Weird_Sights 3.62 13 148455 3.43 42 13 31939 3.59 473 102 1999 647996 0312263856 9780312263850 1 <![CDATA[California Babylon]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176733840m/647996.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1176733840s/647996.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/647996.California_Babylon 3.67 3 148455 3.43 42 13 31939 3.59 473 102 2000 648007 0062507478 9780062507471 0 <![CDATA[Goddess Sites:Europe, Discover Places Where the Goddess Has Been Celebrated and Worshipped Throughout Time]]> http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/648007.Goddess_Sites_Europe_Discover_Places_Where_the_Goddess_Has_Been_Celebrated_and_Worshipped_Throughout_Time 0.0 0 31939 3.59 473 102 148455 3.43 42 13 1991 648003 0062509128 9780062509123 0 <![CDATA[The World Holiday Book: Celebrations for Every Day of the Year]]> http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/648003.The_World_Holiday_Book_Celebrations_for_Every_Day_of_the_Year 0.0 0 31939 3.59 473 102 1994