Celebrating Fifty Years of Picador Books Winner of the National Book Award 1990 The Apocalypse would definitely put a crimp in my career plans. Rutherford Calhoun, a puckish rogue and newly freed slave, spends his days loitering around the docks of New Orleans, dodging debt collectors, gangsters, and Isadora Bailey, a prim and frugal woman who seeks to marry him and curb his mischievous instincts. When the heat from these respective pursuers becomes too much to bear, he cons his way on to the next ship leaving the dock: the Republic. Upon boarding, to his horror he discovers that he is on an illegal slave ship embarking on the Middle Passage, the portion of the triangular trade route that saw slaves transported from Africa to the US. Staffed by a crew of criminals and degenerates, the Republic is on a mission to enslave members of the legendary Allmuseri tribe, while the sadistic yet philosophical Captain Falcon has a secondary objective: securing a mysterious cargo that possesses a terrifying and otherworldly power. What follows is a story of Rutherford's battle for survival, as he finds himself juggling loyalties between the ship's crew and the enslaved passengers, and is forced to use every ounce of the charm and cunning that he possesses to endure the desperate conditions and battle the myriad deadly forces on the high seas. A masterful blend of allegory, black comedy, naval adventure and supernatural horror, Charles Johnson's wildly inventive Middle Passage is a true modern classic. Part of the Picador Collection, a series showcasing the best of modern literature.

Captain Charles Johnson's General History of Pirates was one of the best-selling books of 1724, when it was first published. It provides a sweeping account of what has come to be called the Golden Age of Piracy. It went through four editions in two years, and without doubt owed a substantial part of its success to a dramatic writing style that vividly captures the realities of pirates' savage existence. The book contains documentary evidence of events during the lives of its subjects. In the 270 years since its original publication, Johnson's work has come to be regarded as the classic study of one of the most popular subjects in maritime history.

Buoyed by the runaway success of his bestselling A General History of the Pirates (1724), Captain Charles Johnson went on to publish a much-expanded edition of the work to include a further 80 accounts of some of the most extraordinary British criminals of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries entitled A General History of the Lives and Adventures of the Most Famous Pirates, Highwaymen, Murderers, Street-Robbers, &c. (1734). He added further pirate biographies but expanded the cast to include a ferocious band of ruthless and vicious highwaymen, murderers, and wider criminals. Johnson's volumes, featuring fictional accounts based on factual sources, are significant as the forerunners of the real-life criminal biography genre, and for their influence on such early novels as Defoe's Moll Flanders and Fielding's Jonathan Wild but equally resonate right through to the present day inspiring the fiction of Ben Aaronovich and Jake Arnott. Originally published in folio size complete with fine engravings, this new collection of rogues includes the very best of these original decorative plates but also presents a series of related illustrations, playbills, and portraits from the British Library collections.

It is 1830. Rutherford Calhoun, a newly treed slave and irrepressible rogue, is desperate to escape unscrupulous bill collectors and an impending marriage to a priggish schoolteacher. He jumps aboard the first boat leaving New Orleans, the Republic, a slave ship en route to collect members of a legendary African tribe, the Allmuseri. Thus begins a daring voyage of horror and self-discovery.

Peopled with vivid and unforgettable characters, nimble in its interplay of comedy and serious ideas, this dazzling modern classic is a perfect blend of the picaresque tale, historical romance, sea yarn, slave narrative, and philosophical novel.

Product Note:
Volume 4 of the 5 volume facsimile collection Key Writings on Subcultures, 1535-1727: Classics from the Underworld [0-415-28675-1]

Captain Charles Johnson's celebrated A General History of the Pirates (1724) is the most famous book about pirates ever written. Buoyed by the volume's runaway success Johnson followed up with the equally engrossing The Lives and Adventures of the Most Famous Highwaymen (1734) which, published here for the first time in two centuries, provides over 50 accounts of the most notorious British criminals of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. These include the famous highwayman William Davis, alias The Golden Farmer, the cross-Channel gentleman highwayman Claude du Vall, the prolific road adventurer Old Mob and the royalist carriage raider James Hind. Johnson's volumes, featuring fictional accounts based on factual sources, are significant as the forerunners of the real-life criminal biography genre, and for their influence on such early novels as Defoe's Moll Flanders and Fielding's Jonathan Wild. Originally published in folio size complete with fine engravings, this new edition of Highwaymen not only includes the very best of these original decorative features but also presents a series of related illustrations, playbills, and portraits from the British Library collections.

This searing collection of photographs by LIFE photographer Bob Adelman takes the reader on a rollercoaster ride through Americas Civil Rights Movement. These unforgettable photographs of Americas dramatic journey through racial conflicts include evocative and penetrating portraits of ordinary people rallying under some of the most charismatic leaders of recent years, as well as artists and writers as diverse as Sidney Poitier, Miles Davis, James Baldwin and Ralph Ellison.

While there are many books that teach the "how-to" of photography, Science for the Curious Photographer is a book for those who also want to understand how photography works. Beginning with an introduction to the history and science of photography, Charles S. Johnson, Jr. addresses questions about the principles of photography, such as why a camera needs a lens, how lenses work, and why modern lenses are so complicated. Addressing the complex aspects of digital photography, the book discusses color management, resolution, "noise" in images, and the limits of human perception. The creation and appreciation of art in photography is discussed from the standpoint of modern cognitive science. A crucial read for those seeking the scientific context to photographic practice, this second edition has been comprehensively updated, including discussion of DSLRs, mirror-less cameras, and a new chapter on the limits of human vision and perception.

From award-winning authors Charles Johnson and Steven Barnes comes a graphic novel anthology of interconnected Afrofuturistic parables inspired by the teachings of Buddha—now in paperbackEight strangers—looking for enlightenment from an ancient spiritual teacher—are trapped in a cave high in the mountains on their way to his temple. One of his acolytes directs them to each tell a story that the group can learn from as they wait out the horrible snowstorm that rages outside the cave’s entrance.One by one, the travelers each share a story that, unbeknownst to them, is actually a morality tale representing one of the aspects of final enlightenment as taught in Buddhism. As the wind howls through the night, they tell symbolic stories of horror, dystopia, high adventure, cyberpunk, and urban fantasy. Each story is a spoke on the symbolic Dharma wheel, and each interlocking tale gets the travelers closer to their true destiny: unveiling the future of the entire human race. This remarkable collection borrows heavily from the traditions of pop culture morality anthology series such as The Twilight Zone,The Outer Limits, Night Gallery, Lovecraft Country, and the publications of E.C. Comics. Strongly influenced by the science fiction pulps of the 1950s and 1960s, this brilliant collection remixes classic social narratives, such as Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, and The Arabian Nights, through an edgy, contemporary, yet spiritually centered lens. In The Eightfold Path, our destinies lie in heeding the lessons given in every one of these entrancing tales.

Between 1760 and 1902, more than 200 book-length autobiographies of ex-slaves were published; together they form the basis for all subsequent African American literature. "I Was Born a Slave" collects the 20 most significant "slave narratives." They describe whippings, torture, starvation, resistance, and hairbreadth escapes; slave auctions, kidnappings, and murders; sexual abuse, religious confusion, the struggle of learning to read and write; and the triumphs and difficulties of life as free men and women. Many of the narratives--such as those of Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs--have achieved reputations as masterpieces; but some of the lesser-known narratives are equally brilliant. This unprecedented anthology presents them unabridged, providing each one with helpful introductions and annotations, to form the most comprehensive volume ever assembled on the lives and writings of the slaves.
Volume One (1770-1849) includes the narratives of James Albert Ukawsaw Gronniosaw, Olaudah Equiano (Gustavus Vassa), William Grimes, Nat Turner, Charles Ball, Moses Roper, Frederick Douglass, Lewis & Milton Clarke, William Wells Brown, and Josiah Henson.

From award-winning authors Charles Johnson and Steven Barnes comes a graphic novel anthology of interconnected Afrofuturistic parables inspired by the teachings of BuddhaEight strangers looking for enlightenment from an ancient spiritual teacher are trapped in a cave high in the mountains on their way to his temple. One of his acolytes directs them to each tell a story that the group can learn from as they wait out the horrible snowstorm that rages outside the cave's entrance.One by one the travelers each share a story that, unbeknownst to them, is actually a morality tale representing one of the aspects of final enlightenment as taught in Buddhism. As the wind howls through the night, they tell symbolic stories of horror, dystopia, high adventure, cyberpunk, and urban fantasy. Each story is a spoke on the symbolic Dharma wheel, and each interlocking tale gets the travelers closer to their true destiny-unveiling the future of the entire human race. This remarkable collection borrows heavily from the traditions of pop-culture morality anthology series such as The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, Night Gallery, Lovecraft Country, and the publications of E.C. Comics. Heavily influenced by the science fiction pulps of the 1950s and 1960s, this brilliant collection remixes classic social narratives such as Plato's Allegory of the Cave, Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, and The Arabian Nights, through an edgy, contemporary, yet spiritually centered lens. In The Eightfold Path, our destinies lie in heeding the lessons given in every one of these entrancing tales.

While there are many books that teach the "how-to" of photography, Science for the Curious Photographer is a book for those who also want to understand how photography works. Beginning with an introduction to the history and science of photography, Charles S. Johnson, Jr. addresses questions about the principles of photography, such as why a camera needs a lens, how lenses work, and why modern lenses are so complicated. Addressing the complex aspects of digital photography, the book discusses color management, resolution, "noise" in images, and the limits of human perception. The creation and appreciation of art in photography is discussed from the standpoint of modern cognitive science. A crucial read for those seeking the scientific context to photographic practice, this second edition has been comprehensively updated, including discussion of DSLRs, mirror-less cameras, and a new chapter on the limits of human vision and perception.

"QBR's evolving canon is a splendid way to begin honoring black artists." -Charles Johnson, from the Foreword

"From critiques of W. E. B. Du Bois's "Black Reconstruction in America" to Alex Haley's "Roots" to Langston Hughes's "The Ways of White Folks," these short, trenchant essays stimulate and challenge."-Booklist

"A celebration of black literature. . .insightful commentary."-"Ebony"

"A rich and surprising assortment." -"American Legacy"

"Delving into a book is an entertaining and edifying way to celebrate and reflect on the rich tapestry of African American history. A great way to start is with "Sacred Fire: The QBR 100 Essential Black Books."" -"Atlanta Journal-Constitution"

Capturing the full sweep of writing from the diaspora--from Africa to the Caribbean to America--"Sacred Fire" is a soul-stirring collection of provocative analysis on 100 works of literature that have shaped and defined black culture for over 200 years.

"QBR's evolving canon is a splendid way to begin honoring black artists." -Charles Johnson, from the Foreword

"From critiques of W. E. B. Du Bois's "Black Reconstruction in America" to Alex Haley's "Roots" to Langston Hughes's "The Ways of White Folks," these short, trenchant essays stimulate and challenge."-Booklist

"A celebration of black literature. . .insightful commentary."-"Ebony"

"A rich and surprising assortment." -"American Legacy"

"Delving into a book is an entertaining and edifying way to celebrate and reflect on the rich tapestry of African American history. A great way to start is with "Sacred Fire: The QBR 100 Essential Black Books."" -"Atlanta Journal-Constitution"

Capturing the full sweep of writing from the diaspora--from Africa to the Caribbean to America--"Sacred Fire" is a soul-stirring collection of provocative analysis on 100 works of literature that have shaped and defined black culture for over 200 years.

Martin Luther King Jr is a political visionary, human rights activist, preacher, scholar and martyr. Chaym Smith is his dark mirror, a violent, cynical criminal with a mind and talent to mimic King's. When Smith begins to act as King's double at rallies, the contradictions and strange similarities between the two men set one question into sharp focus - is evil inherent or a product of circumstance? Dreamer is a multi-layered masterpiece, capturing Civil Rights-era America in a snapshot of racism and brutality, revolution and hope.

The direct action social protest movement of the 1950s and 1960s resulted in sit-ins, marches, and other showdowns with armed police officers and National Guardsmen. Trained in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s methods of nonviolence, young black men and women took to the streets to fight for their civil rights and sparked a social revolution. Thousands of acts of courage were undertaken in the pursuit of freedomNacts that were often photographed, leaving behind a disquieting visual record of this violent and tumultuous period in American history. Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-1968 is the most significant exhibition of civil rights photographs presented in an art museum in more than twenty years. These images were taken by many photographers-photojournalists, artists, movement photographers, and amateurs alike-all of whom seem to have had a keen understanding of the significance of their subject. This publication presents a narrative of some of the key moments of the civil rights movement, including the Freedom Rides of 1961, the Birmingham hosings of 1963, and the Selma to Montgomery March of 1965. These are the unforgettable images that helped to change the nation, increasing the momentum of the nonviolent movement by dramatically raising awareness of injustice and the struggle for equality. Julian Cox is curator of photography at the High Museum of Art, Atlanta. Charles Johnson's most recent fiction publication is Dr. King's Refrigerator and Other Bedtime Stories. He is the S. Wilson and Grace M. Pollock Professor of Writing at the University of Washington. John Lewis is a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and was a leader in the American civil rights movement."

Chronic illness and pain are now, more than ever, seen asas major problems in the current health care system. Because they are unresponsive to both antibiotics and surgery, theyr are seen as elusive and mysterious. The National Medical Expenditure Survey estimates that over 80 million U.S. citizens live with a chronic illness. The most prevalent are arthritis, diabetes, respiratory diseases, hypertension and mental illness. This book uses the novel Robinson Crusoe as an archetypal metaphor for the patients who must learn to survive on their own isolated "island" of chronic pain. This unique style is combined with a variety of in-session approaches and other tools which clients have found helpful in identifying their goals and progress. By emphasizing the importance of self-care the authors hope to diminish the sense of helplessness felt by the both the patients their loved ones.

"MLK: A Celebration in Word and Image "is an unprecedented collection of black-and-white photographs combined with stirring quotations by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
This treasured collection includes images by legendary photographers such as Henri Cartier-Bresson, Bob Adelman, and Flip Schulke, and is an unparalleled photobiography that presents intimate moments from King's personal and public journey. We see King in all his manifestations--as a new father and doting husband, as a civil rights champion leading racial protests, and as a charismatic speaker preaching electrifying sermons. Triumphant events like King delivering his "I Have a Dream" speech and marching in Montgomery are beautifully captured, as are private moments of him reflecting on his Nobel Peace Prize or working in his study.
Threaded together, these words and images chronicle how Dr. King was not only a driving force for change but also a continually evolving individual. A collection to savor and celebrate, these great photographs are an enduring testament to the life and legacy of an international icon.

One night in the antebellum South, a slave owner and his African-American butler stay up to all hours until, too drunk to face their wives, they switch places in each other's beds. The result is a hilarious imbroglio and an offspring -- Andrew Hawkins, whose life becomes "Oxherding Tale."

Through sexual escapades, picaresque adventures, and philosophical inquiry, Hawkins navigates white and black worlds and comments wryly on human nature along the way. Told with pure genius, "Oxherding Tale" is a deliciously funny, bitterly ironic account of slavery, racism, and the human spirit; and it reveals the author as a great talent with even greater humanity.

Buddhism-influenced essays, stories, and reviews by National Book Award winner Charles R. Johnson.
This wide and varied collection of essays, reviews, and short stories by the renowned author Charles Johnson offers incisive views on poltics, race, and Buddhism. Johnson notes that in his life the two activities that have anchored him and reinforce each other are creative production and spiritual practice. This book is a crystallization of what he has learned during his passage through American literature, the visual arts, and the Buddhadharma.
Essays include:
- "And if Peace Is Their Goal . . ." on the principles of enlightened politics
- "The King We Need" on the deep and sophisticated moral philosophy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and why King's teachings and example are important to all Americans
- "Why Buddhists Should Vote"--Johnson posits that voting can be seen as a way to reduce suffering
- "The Meaning of Barack Obama"--an appreciation of the man who became one of the most historic US presidents, even before his first 100 days were through
- "Why Buddhism for Black America Now?"--what Buddhism can offer the African-American community in the post-MLK era