'Gorgeous, vividly alive' New York Times 'Bold, honest and superbly well-written' André Aciman, author of Call Me By Your Name 'Graceful and soul-baring' Melanie Reid, The Times 'Blends journalism, philosophy and memoir... a book that everyone will be talking about' Lit Hub I am in a bar in Brooklyn listening to two men, my friends, discuss whether or not my life was worth living. So begins Chloé Cooper Jones's bold account of moving through the world in a body that looks different than most. Born with a rare congenital condition called sacral agenesis, she must contend not only with her own physical pain, but the emotional discomfort of others. It is only when she unexpectedly becomes a mother that she confronts the demand to live life fully, propelling her on a journey across the globe, reclaiming the spaces she'd been denied, and denied herself. From Roman sculptures to a Beyoncé concert, from a tennis tournament to the Cambodian Killing Fields, Jones interrogates the myths of beauty with spiky intelligence, aesthetic philosophy, love and humour, inviting us to find a new way of seeing.

Postdisciplinary Knowledge is the first book to articulate postdisciplinarity in philosophical, theoretical and methodological terms, helping to establish it as an important intellectual movement of the twenty-first century. It formulates what postdisciplinarity is, and how it can be implemented in research practice. The diverse chapters present a rich collection of highly creative thought-provoking essays and methodological insights. Written by a number of pioneering intellectuals with a range of backgrounds and research foci, these chapters cover a broad spectrum of areas demonstrating alternative ways of producing knowledge. Essays are interspersed with dialogue, encouraging a comprehensive and engaging discussion on this emerging movement. Not limited to a specific field or discipline, this will be of great interest to upper-level students and researchers in a wide range of subject areas, including: tourism, sociology, education, psychology, physiotherapy, fine arts, architecture and design, as well as those with a general interest in epistemology and methodology.

Encountering Nazi Tourism Sites explores how the terrible legacy of Nazi criminality is experienced by tourists, bridging the gap between cultural criminology and tourism studies to make a significant contribution to our understanding of how Nazi criminality is evoked and invoked in the landscape of modern Germany. This study is grounded in fieldwork encounters with memorials, museums and perpetrator sites across Germany and the Netherlands, including Berlin Holocaust memorials and museums, the Anne Frank House, the Wannsee House, Wewelsburg Castle and concentration camps. At the core of this research is a respect for each site's unique physical, architectural or curatorial form and how this enables insights into different aspects of the Holocaust. Chapters grapple with themes of authenticity, empathy, voyeurism and vicarious experience to better comprehend the possibilities and limits of affective encounters at these sites. This will be of great interest to upper level students and researchers of criminology, Holocaust studies, museology, tourism studies, memorialisation studies and the burgeoning field of 'difficult' heritage.

Wine, Terroir and Utopia critically explores these three concepts from multi-disciplinary and intersecting perspectives, focusing on the ways in which they collide to make new worlds, new wines, new places and new peoples. Wine, terroir and utopia are all rooted in natural, spatial and temporal realities, yet all are unable to exist without purposeful human intervention. This edited volume highlights the theoretical and analytical lens of diverse scholars, who critically discuss a dazzling array of intersecting realities and imaginaries - economic, political, cultural, social and geological - and in doing this challenge many of our deeply-held responses to utopia. Drawing on an impressive range of international examples from South Africa to Bordeaux to New Zealand, the chapters adopt a range of theoretical and methodological approaches. This volume will be of great interest to upper level students, researchers and academics in the fields of Sociology, Geography, Tourism, Hospitality, Wine Studies and Cultural Studies. It will also greatly appeal to practitioners and enthusiasts in the worlds of wine production, consumption and marketing.

The growth of the Chinese economy and the emergence of the Chinese middle class have fuelled the rapid expansion of China's outbound tourism market, with many destinations around the world trying to capitalise on the opportunities created by the growing number of Chinese visitors. This book specifically focuses on the demand for food and wine tourism experiences by Chinese tourists, which in recent years has become an important constituent of destination competitiveness. Looking at the different ways in which individual destinations have responded to this increasing demand, this book provides a better understanding of the preferences, motivations and perceptions that underlie food and wine consumption by Chinese tourists. It also illustrates how food and wine tourism experiences have been used in a range of international destinations to specifically attract visitors from China. Including a range of case examples from the Asia-Pacific region and Europe, this book ultimately investigates the strategic directions adopted to guide destination development and marketing initiatives. Such a perspective provides a novel contribution to the still limited body of knowledge on China outbound tourism and will be of interest to upper level students, researchers and academics in Tourism and Hospitality.

This progressive and broad-ranging handbook offers a comprehensive overview of the complex intersections between politics, gender, sport and physical activity, shining new light on the significance of gender, sport and physical activity in wider society. Featuring contributions from leading and emerging researchers from around the world, the book makes the case that gender studies and critical thinking around gender are of particular importance in an era of increasingly intolerant populist politics. It examines important long-term as well as emerging themes, such as recent generational shifts in attitudes to gender identity in sport and the socio-cultural expectations on men and women that have traditionally influenced and often disrupted their engagement with sport and physical activity, and explores a wide range of current issues in contemporary sport, from debates around the contested gender binary and sex verification, to the role of the media and social media, and the significance of gender in sport leadership, policy and decision-making. This book is an authoritative survey of the current state of play in research connecting gender, sport, physical activity and politics, and is an important contribution to both sport studies and gender studies. It is fascinating reading for any student, researcher, policy-maker or professional with an interest in sport, physical activity, social studies, public health or political science.

This is the first book to take an in-depth look at parkrun - the free, weekly, timed 5km run on a Saturday morning - and to examine why its participants love it so much and why it has been such an astonishing success. Author David Hindley - a self-described 'middle of the pack' parkrunner - draws on new research, including interviews with other runners, volunteers and organisers, to shine a light on the unique combination of ingredients in parkrun's magic formula. Tracing the development of parkrun from its first event in the UK in 2004 to the global network of today, he takes a close look at themes like inclusion, volunteering, community, green space, health and well-being, and unpacks the mantra of 'it's a run not a race' that has come to define the spirit of parkrun for so many of its participants. Part sporting event, part social movement, and part public health intervention, parkrun perhaps offers a model for sustainable public participation in other areas of social life. This book is compulsory behind-the-scenes reading for all parkrunners and parkrun volunteers, and anybody working in sport development, events, recreation, public health, volunteering or community organising.

This book explores the emergent relationship between food and family in contemporary China through an empirical case study of Guangzhou, a typical city, to understand the texture of everyday life in the new consumerist society. The primary focus of this book is on the family dynamics of middle-income households in Guangzhou, where everyday food practices, including growing food, shopping, storing, cooking, feeding, and eating, play a pivotal role. The book aims to conduct a comprehensive and integrated analysis of themes such as material and emotional domestic cultures, family relationships, and social connections between the domestic and the public, based on a discussion of family food practices. These topics will not only offer academic readers a full understanding of the most innovative recent critical engagements with urban Chinese families but also provide more general readers with a broader view of food consumption patterns within the scope of domestic and family issues. This book will be of interest to sociologists, anthropologists, and human geographers as well as post graduate students who are interested in food studies and Chinese studies.

The first international book with a focus on LGBTQ issues in sport in Europe Presents results of the first online survey on LGBTQ experiences in sport in Europe (N=5.524) and additional qualitative data of the ERASMUS+ project OUTSPORT. Provides detailed insight into the situation of LGBTQ people in sport and inclusion policy in European countries by using first hand quantitative and qualitative empirical data from international academics. Provides an overview about activism and advocacy of LGBTQ and sport in Europe Written by European experts in accessible language

This is the first book to explore workforce slavery and liberation together within commercial hotel, restaurant and bar activities, the hospitality industry being particularly vulnerable to potential illegal action and reputational damage via involuntary involvement in human trafficking and sexual exploitation. Slavery is the most oppressive form of labour exploitation and is illegal in Western Europe and most of the industrialised world. On the other hand, 'neo-slavery' oppresses the powerless through low pay and employment practices that predominantly serve the interests of the employer. This book explores the most exploitative forms of slavery, 'neo-slavery' and human trafficking in the hotel industry, and offers insights into empowerment through liberative trade unions and worker co-operatives. The study's multifaceted cross-cultural approach includes in-depth chapters on Brazil and the Netherlands as well as a multitude of examples from the UK, exposing the topic as an international problem. Written by international specialists, this significant book will appeal widely to upper-level students and researchers in hospitality, and specifically, to all those interested in human resource management in the hospitality and hotel industry, as well as human rights issues and business ethics.

This book uses the emerging and cutting-edge area of leisure research to highlight the importance of sexuality and sexual activity and its relevance to leisure studies. It brings to the fore some complex issues associated with this topic using a range of substantive, epistemological, theoretical and methodological approaches. Drawing on international scholarship, the book examines sexuality from multiple, and at times, competing directions, exploring the continuum of sex from work through to carnal pleasure, and across specific sexual practices including BDSM, pornography, stripping, and sex work. Drawing on critical, feminist, queer, and post theoretical perspectives, the book charts a new direction for leisure studies and sex research, including diverse understandings of leisure practice, sex positivity, fringe and deviant sex practices. Critically, the book moves beyond merely establishing sex as a leisure pursuit to focusing on the compelling and complex intersections between sexuality and leisure. This is fascinating reading for any student or researcher with an interest in leisure, sexuality, gender, cultural studies or sociology.

This volume reports on the encounters between hikers and wildlife on the Appalachian Trail. Based on narratives provided by trail hikers, it explores the ways in which humans relate to the animals with whom they temporarily share a home. With attention to the themes of pilgrimage, the changing perception of the animals encountered and reactions to them, risk, auditory experience, and a sense of wildness, the author considers the meaning constituted by nonhuman animals in the context of the walkers' narrative journeys. A phenomenologically informed study of the ways in which people perceive wild animals when in an unmediated wilderness setting, how they navigate interactions with them, and how they experience living among them, Blogging Wildlife will appeal to scholars across the social sciences with interests in anthrozoology and human-animal relations.

This volume is edited by leading figures in the field. The book will cover all major topics studied on a religion and sport course so will be the go-to volume for students approaching the topic for the first time. Topics covered are relevant and engaging for students.

This volume is edited by leading figures in the field. The book will cover all major topics studied on a religion and sport course so will be the go-to volume for students approaching the topic for the first time. Topics covered are relevant and engaging for students.

Competitive gaming, or esports - referring to competitive tournaments of video games among both casual gamers and professional players - began in the early 1970s with small competitions like the one held at Stanford University in October 1972, where some 20 researchers and students attended. By 2022, the estimated revenue of the global esports industry is in excess of $947 million, with over 200 million viewers worldwide. Regardless of views held about competitive gaming, esports have become a modern economic and cultural phenomenon. This book studies the full history of competitive gaming from the 1970s to the 2010s against the background of the arrival of the electronic and computer age. It investigates how competitive gaming has grown into a new form of entertainment, a sport-like competition, a lucrative business and a unique cultural sensation. It also explores the role of competitive gaming in the development of the video game industry, making a distinctive contribution to our knowledge and understanding of the history of video games. A History of Competitive Gaming will appeal to all those interested in the business and culture of gaming, as well as those studying modern technological culture.

* Combines theoretical frameworks with case studies and practitioner insights from a broad range of nations and cultures throughout the world. * Relevant as recommended and core reading for a broad range of advanced undergraduate and postgraduate Marketing, Branding and Communications courses. * The leading text in the field now fully updated by Keith Dinnie, who is a world-renowned expert on Nation Branding.

Covers all aspects of modern sportscasting, giving readers the tools to navigate the web, television, radio, and other emerging formats Gives readers the knowhow to jumpstart and maintain their careers in sportscasting Interviews with working professionals provide insight into real world of broadcasting sports An updated chapter on Future Trends and Possibilities helps prepare readers for the technical and industry changes on the near horizon

Part history, part biography, this study examines the Black athlete's search to unify what W.E.B. DuBois called the "two unreconciled strivings" of African Americans--the struggle to survive in black society while adapting to white society. Black athletes have served as vanguards of change, challenging the dominant culture, crossing social boundaries and raising political awareness. Champions like Joe Louis, Jackie Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, Wilma Rudolph, Roberto Clemente, Althea Gibson, Arthur Ashe, Serena Williams, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James make a difference, even as many in the Black community question the idea of athletes as role models. The author argues the importance of sports heroes in a panic-plagued era beset with class division and racial privilege.

Whether it's the Roosevelt administration's impact on the formation of the NCAA, the protest of the Vietnam War by Muhammad Ali, or the rise of rap and hip-hop in the 90s and its penetration of the NBA's image, American culture and politics have intersected regularly with sports. The impact of American politics and culture on the sports industry, and vice versa, is evident throughout the halls of history and, in particular, the 20th and 21st centuries mark an interesting period of time to explore this relationship. One avenue to be considered during this time is the amplification and growth of mass media and its role in framing these intersections of American pop culture, politics and the sports industry. Many of the values that Americans hold dear to their identity, such as activism and protest, capitalism, freedom of expression, and competition, are permeated through the history of collegiate and professional sports in the United States, and the media has played a role in shaping those opinions and values among Americans through its various outlets. The United States of Sport looks at how media outlets portrayed several of these intersections in politics, culture and sports, with each chapter highlighting a moment or phenomenon in American history and its direct or indirect impact on some aspect of the sports industry through the eyes of newspapers, magazines, television, radio and online news outlets.

Whether it's the Roosevelt administration's impact on the formation of the NCAA, the protest of the Vietnam War by Muhammad Ali, or the rise of rap and hip-hop in the 90s and its penetration of the NBA's image, American culture and politics have intersected regularly with sports. The impact of American politics and culture on the sports industry, and vice versa, is evident throughout the halls of history and, in particular, the 20th and 21st centuries mark an interesting period of time to explore this relationship. One avenue to be considered during this time is the amplification and growth of mass media and its role in framing these intersections of American pop culture, politics and the sports industry. Many of the values that Americans hold dear to their identity, such as activism and protest, capitalism, freedom of expression, and competition, are permeated through the history of collegiate and professional sports in the United States, and the media has played a role in shaping those opinions and values among Americans through its various outlets. The United States of Sport looks at how media outlets portrayed several of these intersections in politics, culture and sports, with each chapter highlighting a moment or phenomenon in American history and its direct or indirect impact on some aspect of the sports industry through the eyes of newspapers, magazines, television, radio and online news outlets.

Part manifesto, part how-to, Eat Sweat Play is a hugely inspirational call to arms for women to take back sport for themselves. Long-listed for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award. Sport's for everyone . . . isn't it? Society has led us to believe that women and sport don't mix. But why? What happens to the young girls who dare to climb trees and cartwheel across playgrounds? In her exploration of major taboos, from sex to the gender pay gap, sports journalist Anna Kessel discovers how sport and exercise should play an integral role in every sphere of our modern lives. Covering a fascinating range of women, from Sporty Spice to mums who box and breastfeed, Eat Sweat Play reveals how women are finally reclaiming sport, and by extension their own bodies, for themselves - and how you can too. 'Anna Kessel's book should inspire a whole generation of women. It ought to be on the school curriculum.' - Hadley Freeman 'I'd go as far to say that this book was a life changer for my health and fitness.' - Estee Lalonde

Augmentative play is a special activity that substantially aids the pursuit of a larger, encompassing leisure activity. This approach to the study of play is unique. It recognizes the hundreds of activities in which play and leisure come together.

This book introduces predictive analytics in sports and discusses the relationship between analytics and algorithms and statistics. It defines sports data to be used and explains why the unique nature of sports would make analytics useful. The book also explains why the proper use of predictive analytics includes knowing what they are incapable of doing as well as the role of predictive analytics in the bigger picture of sports entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology. The book looks at the mathematical foundations that enhance technical knowledge of predictive models and illustrates through practical, insightful cases that will help to empower readers to build and deploy their own analytic methodologies. This book targets readers who already have working knowledge of location, dispersion, and distribution statistics, bivariate relationships (scatter plots and correlation coefficients), and statistical significance testing and is a reliable, well-rounded reference for furthering their knowledge of predictive analytics in sports.

The significance of work and leisure as elements of our social fabric have puzzled philosophers and social scientists for generations. This ambitious new study considers historical views of work and leisure alongside contemporary survey evidence about time-use and well-being. Combining sophisticated theoretical analysis with empirical research, the book presents a contrarian argument that defines leisure as a serious and stimulating challenge rather than an unqualified benefit or good. This is vital reading for anyone with an interest in the concept of time in the social sciences, work-life balance, organisational studies, or the history, philosophy, or sociology of work and leisure.

As identity and authenticity discourses increasingly saturate everyday life, so too have these concepts spread across the humanities and social sciences literatures. Many scholars may be interested in identity and authenticity but lack knowledge of paradigmatic or disciplinary approaches to these concepts. This volume offers readers insight into social constructionist approaches to identity and authenticity. It focuses on the processes of identification and authentication, rather than on subjective experiences of selfhood. There are no attempts to settle what authentic identities are. On the contrary, contributors demonstrate that neither identities nor their authenticity have a single or fixed meaning. Chapters provide exemplars of contemporary research on identity and authenticity, with significant diversity among them in terms of the identities, cultural milieu, geographic settings, disciplinary traditions, and methodological approaches considered. Contributors introduce readers to a number of established and emerging identity groups from sites around the world, from yogis and punks to fire dancers and social media influencers. Their conceptual work stretches from the micro-analytic to the ethno-national as authors employ a variety of qualitative methods including ethnographic fieldwork, interviewing, and the collection and analysis of naturally-occurring interactions. Several of the chapters look directly at identification and authentication while others focus on the social and cultural backdrops that structure these practices - what unites them is the adoption of social constructionist sensibilities. This book will appeal to anyone interested in understanding identity and authenticity.