From Joya Goffney, author of hit YA romcom Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry, comes a stirring coming-of-age, best friends-to-lovers romance... Nikki's always had a difficult relationship with her mum. So when she finds herself homeless at the start of spring break, she decides to rage-quit Texas and give California a shot, to pursue her dream music career. Until her best friend and long-time crush, Malachai, discovers her plan, and convinces her to spend spring break with him, so he can show her all the reasons she should stay in Texas. But when Nikki's little sister goes missing their plans are interrupted, and Nikki is forced to face her feelings about both her mum and Mal. Can Nikki find the love she's always been missing? And will it be enough to convince her to stay in Texas?

Malalai Joya was named one of "Time "magazine's 100 Most Influential People of 2010. An extraordinary young woman raised in the refugee camps of Iran and Pakistan, Joya became a teacher in secret girls' schools, hiding her books under her burqa so the Taliban couldn't find them; she helped establish a free medical clinic and orphanage in her impoverished home province of Farah; and at a constitutional assembly in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2003, she stood up and denounced her country's powerful NATO-backed warlords. She was twenty-five years old. Two years later, she became the youngest person elected to Afghanistan's new Parliament. In 2007, she was suspended from Parliament for her persistent criticism of the warlords and drug barons and their cronies. She has survived four assassination attempts to date, is accompanied at all times by armed guards, and sleeps only in safe houses.
Joya takes us inside this massively important and insufficiently understood country, shows us the desperate day-to-day situations its remarkable people face at every turn, and recounts some of the many acts of rebellion that are helping to change it. A controversial political figure in one of the most dangerous places on earth, Malalai Joya is a hero for our times.

For over fifty years, the Japanese-born Western-trained author of this remarkable volume devoted himself to explaining Japanese traditions and customs to foreigners through his newspaper columns, talks and four short books. The all-embracing work presented here, drawn from all these sources including revised and rearranged versions of the books, deals with all aspects of Japanese life and material culture -- apparel and utensils; cures and medicines; houses and buildings; fetes and festivals; fish, birds and animals; folk tales; food, sake and tobacco; living habits; marriage, funerals and memorials; natural phenomena; plants and flowers; popular beliefs and traditions; recreation and entertainment; religious rites and social customs. With over seven hundred and thirty separate entries, this unique volume is the definitive work on all Japanese things.

• Describes the endemic plants used in traditional medicine • Includes the chemical and bioactive compounds from desertic medicinal plants • Addresses the analytic techniques to determine chemical and bioactive compounds • Represents an effort to keep the ethnobiological knowledge of communities

'A classic ... wonderfully enjoyable' WILLIAM DALRYMPLE 'The story of South Asia told with verve, wit and brilliance' ANURADHA ROY 'Chatterji writes with infectious relish' DOMINIC SANDBROOK Based on decades of scholarship, this is the authoritative history of South Asia in the 20th century Shadows at Noon tells the subcontinent's story from the British Raj through independence and partition to the forging of the modern nations of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Unlike other histories of the region which concentrate exclusively on politics, here food, leisure and the household are given as much importance as nationhood, migration and the state. Thematic rather than chronological, each chapter illuminates an overarching topic that has shaped South Asia. This format enables us to explore issues - like the changing character of the family or the 'Indian diet' - over time and in depth. Chatterji's purpose is to make contemporary South Asia - its cultural vibrancy, diversity, social structures and political make-up - intelligible to everyone. In so doing this bold, innovative and personal work rallies against standard narratives of 'inherent' differences between India, Pakistan and Bangladesh and reveals the many things its people have in common. 'Truly magnificent' MIHIR BOSE 'Wonderful' SIR MARK TULLY

First published in 2006. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

The partition of India in 1947 was a seminal event of the twentieth century. Much has been written about the Punjab and the creation of West Pakistan; by contrast, little is known about the partition of Bengal. This remarkable book by an acknowledged expert on the subject assesses the social, economic and political consequences of partition. Using compelling sources, the book, which was originally published in 2007, shows how and why the borders were redrawn, how the creation of new nation states led to unprecedented upheavals, massive shifts in population and wholly unexpected transformations of the political landscape in both Bengal and India. The book also reveals how the spoils of partition, which the Congress in Bengal had expected from the new boundaries, were squandered over the twenty years which followed. This is an intriguing and challenging work whose findings change our understanding and its consequences for the history of the subcontinent.

This two-volume set LNCS 7902 and 7903 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 12th International Work-Conference on Artificial Neural Networks, IWANN 2013, held in Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, Spain, in June 2013. The 116 revised papers were carefully reviewed and selected from numerous submissions for presentation in two volumes. The papers explore sections on mathematical and theoretical methods in computational intelligence, neurocomputational formulations, learning and adaptation emulation of cognitive functions, bio-inspired systems and neuro-engineering, advanced topics in computational intelligence and applications.

South Asia's diaspora is among the world's largest and most widespread, and it is growing exponentially. In 2001, the government of India estimated that 20 million persons of Indian descent live abroad; and many more millions have roots to other countries of the subcontinent, in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. There are three million South Asians in the UK and approximately the same number resides in North America. South Asians are an extremely significant presence in Southeast Asia and Africa, and increasingly visible in the Middle East. This inter-disciplinary Handbook on the South Asian diaspora brings together contributions by leading scholars and rising stars on different aspects of its history, anthropology and geography, as well as its contemporary political and socio-cultural implications. The Handbook situates the contemporary diaspora firmly within an historical context. South Asians have travelled abroad for many reasons, in many guises, to many destinations for many centuries. The first section of the Handbook provides a historically grounded analysis of these movements of people. It includes chapters on the following themes: mobile South Asians in the early-modern world, diaspora and Empire, and the diaspora in the age of nation states. The second part of the Handbook centres on politics, culture and identity in the South Asian diaspora, thus offering the reader an overview on transnational politics and economics, culture in the diaspora and the socio-cultural impact of the South Asian diaspora on the countries where they have settled. This much needed and pioneering venture provides an invaluable reference work for students, scholars and policy makers world wide interested in South Asian Studies.

The partition of India in 1947 was a seminal event of the twentieth century. Much has been written about the Punjab and the creation of West Pakistan; by contrast, little is known about the partition of Bengal. This remarkable book by an acknowledged expert on the subject assesses the social, economic and political consequences of partition. Using compelling sources, the book, which was originally published in 2007, shows how and why the borders were redrawn, how the creation of new nation states led to unprecedented upheavals, massive shifts in population and wholly unexpected transformations of the political landscape in both Bengal and India. The book also reveals how the spoils of partition, which the Congress in Bengal had expected from the new boundaries, were squandered over the twenty years which followed. This is an intriguing and challenging work whose findings change our understanding and its consequences for the history of the subcontinent.

This two-volume set LNCS 6691 and 6692 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 11th International Work-Conference on Artificial Neural Networks, IWANN 2011, held in Torremolinos-M laga, Spain, in June 2011. The 154 revised papers were carefully reviewed and selected from 202 submissions for presentation in two volumes. The first volume includes 69 papers organized in topical sections on mathematical and theoretical methods in computational intelligence; learning and adaptation; bio-inspired systems and neuro-engineering; hybrid intelligent systems; applications of computational intelligence; new applications of brain-computer interfaces; optimization algorithms in graphic processing units; computing languages with bio-inspired devices and multi-agent systems; computational intelligence in multimedia processing; and biologically plausible spiking neural processing.

India's partition in 1947 and the creation of Bangladesh in 1971 saw the displacement and resettling of millions of Muslims and Hindus, resulting in profound transformations across the region. A third of the region's population sought shelter across new borders, almost all of them resettling in the Bengal delta itself. A similar number were internally displaced, while others moved to the Middle East, North America and Europe. Using a creative interdisciplinary approach combining historical, sociological and anthropological approaches to migration and diaspora this book explores the experiences of Bengali Muslim migrants through this period of upheaval and transformation. It draws on over 200 interviews conducted in Britain, India, and Bangladesh, tracing migration and settlement within, and from, the Bengal delta region in the period after 1947. Focussing on migration and diaspora 'from below', it teases out fascinating 'hidden' migrant stories, including those of women, refugees, and displaced people. It reveals surprising similarities, and important differences, in the experience of Muslim migrants in widely different contexts and places, whether in the towns and hamlets of Bengal delta, or in the cities of Britain. Counter-posing accounts of the structures that frame migration with the textures of how migrants shape their own movement, it examines what it means to make new homes in a context of diaspora. The book is also unique in its focus on the experiences of those who stayed behind, and in its analysis of ruptures in the migration process. Importantly, the book seeks to challenge crude attitudes to 'Muslim' migrants, which assume their cultural and religious homogeneity, and to humanize contemporary discourses around global migration. This ground-breaking new research offers an essential contribution to the field of South Asian Studies, Diaspora Studies, and Society and Culture Studies.

South Asia's diaspora is among the world's largest and most widespread, and it is growing exponentially. It is estimated that over 25 million persons of Indian descent live abroad; and many more millions have roots in other countries of the subcontinent, in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. There are 3 million South Asians in the UK and approximately the same number resides in North America. South Asians are an extremely significant presence in Southeast Asia and Africa, and increasingly visible in the Middle East. Now available in paperback, this inter-disciplinary handbook on the South Asian diaspora brings together contributions by leading scholars and rising stars on different aspects of its history, anthropology and geography, as well as its contemporary political and socio-cultural implications. The Handbook is split into five main sections, with chapters looking at mobile South Asians in the early modern world before moving on to discuss diaspora in relation to empire, nation, nation state and the neighbourhood, and globalisation and culture. Contributors highlight how South Asian diaspora has influenced politics, business, labour, marriage, family and culture. This much needed and pioneering venture provides an invaluable reference work for students, scholars and policy makers interested in South Asian Studies.

The hotly anticipated second book from Joya Goffney, author of the 2021 YA romcom Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry. Monique lives a perfect life - a preacher's daughter and the girlfriend of the town's golden boy. But it's not that simple. She's torn between her parents who want the pure virginal daughter, and her boyfriend, Dom, who wants to explore the more intimate side of their relationship. Tired of waiting, her boyfriend breaks up with her, spurring Monique to discover she has a medical condition that makes her far from perfect and she concocts a plan to fix her body and win him back. With the help of her frenemy, Sasha, the overly zealous church girl Monique's mum pushes her to hang out with, and Reggie, the town's bad boy, Monique must go on trips to unknown and uncomfortable places to find the treatment that will help her. But in doing so, she must face some home truths: maybe she shouldn't be fixing her body to please a boy, maybe Sasha is the friend she needed all along and maybe Reggie isn't so bad at all. This is a powerful story about the journey towards loving yourself, told with heart, humour and a delicious love triangle. Contains explicit references to sex and sexual health.

India's partition in 1947 and the creation of Bangladesh in 1971 saw the displacement and resettling of millions of Muslims and Hindus, resulting in profound transformations across the region. A third of the region's population sought shelter across new borders, almost all of them resettling in the Bengal delta itself. A similar number were internally displaced, while others moved to the Middle East, North America and Europe. Using a creative interdisciplinary approach combining historical, sociological and anthropological approaches to migration and diaspora this book explores the experiences of Bengali Muslim migrants through this period of upheaval and transformation. It draws on over 200 interviews conducted in Britain, India, and Bangladesh, tracing migration and settlement within, and from, the Bengal delta region in the period after 1947. Focussing on migration and diaspora 'from below', it teases out fascinating 'hidden' migrant stories, including those of women, refugees, and displaced people. It reveals surprising similarities, and important differences, in the experience of Muslim migrants in widely different contexts and places, whether in the towns and hamlets of Bengal delta, or in the cities of Britain. Counter-posing accounts of the structures that frame migration with the textures of how migrants shape their own movement, it examines what it means to make new homes in a context of diaspora. The book is also unique in its focus on the experiences of those who stayed behind, and in its analysis of ruptures in the migration process. Importantly, the book seeks to challenge crude attitudes to 'Muslim' migrants, which assume their cultural and religious homogeneity, and to humanize contemporary discourses around global migration. This ground-breaking new research offers an essential contribution to the field of South Asian Studies, Diaspora Studies, and Society and Culture Studies.

For fans of J Lynn, Jodi Ellen Malpas and Sylvia Day comes the final book in the Reign trilogy.Time is running out, who will Lana choose? One man has her heart . . . Lana's life has shattered around her. Callum and Jack have been lying to her, the truth behind her family is turning out to be darker than she'd ever have suspected and it seems as though she can't trust anything - especially her own desires. The other her soul Torn between two men and surrounded by secrets, Lana is forced to make an agonising choice, one that could destroy not only her, but the people she loves. What - and who - does she really want? An all-consuming, powerfully addictive love story, the Reign trilogy is not to be missed

A conceptually rich, historically informed, and interdisciplinary study of the contentious politics emerging out of decades of authoritarian neoliberal economic reform, The Roots of Revolt examines the contested political economy of Egypt from Nasser to Mubarak, just prior to the Arab Uprisings of 2010-11. Based on extensive fieldwork conducted across rural and urban Egypt, Angela Joya employs an 'on the ground' approach to critical political economy that challenges the interpretations of Egyptian politics put forward by scholars of both democratization and authoritarianism. By critically reassessing the relationship between democracy and capitalist development, Joya demonstrates how renewed authoritarian politics were required to institutionalize neoliberal reforms demanded by the International Monetary Fund, presenting the real-world impact of economic policy on the lives of ordinary Egyptians before the Arab Uprisings.

Political sociology is a large and expanding field with many new developments, and The New Handbook of Political Sociology supplies the knowledge necessary to keep up with this exciting field. Written by a distinguished group of leading scholars in sociology, this volume provides a survey of this vibrant and growing field in the new millennium. The Handbook presents the field in six parts: theories of political sociology, the information and knowledge explosion, the state and political parties, civil society and citizenship, the varieties of state policies, and globalization and how it affects politics. Covering all subareas of the field with both theoretical orientations and empirical studies, it directly connects scholars with current research in the field. A total reconceptualization of the first edition, the new handbook features nine additional chapters and highlights the impact of the media and big data.

Ninety-eight black and white photos, steeped in the pathos and predicament of the Afghan people, accompanied by soul-searching commentary and poetry from thirteen distinguished contributors.

Basque-born photographer Alen Silva travelled twice across war-torn Afghanistan, to places few foreigners dare to venture, to bring us these soul-searing photographs of a devastated land. Among the ruins of Kabul, of the Bamiyan Buddhas, of Soviet tanks, of Afghan society -- the hope for peace still lights the weary faces of the Afghan people who welcomed him.

Texts by Alen Silva, Alan Rachins, Bahman Ghobadi, Bernardo Atxaga, Ezzat Goushegir, Gillian Anderson, John Sistiaga, Malalai Joya, Michael Ratner, Mike Farrell, Suheir Hammad, Susan Kelly-DeWitt, Toti Martinez de Lezea, and Yasmina Khadra.