"This book provides a unique portrait of life in an Irish parish, Kilfearagh, Co. Clare, in the years before the Great Famine ... [It] describes old customs, the Kilkee Races, hurling and dancing on the green and strand, the drink and temperance scenario, and faction fighting; and then there were the tourists and visitors (including day trippers) and a summer 'transplanting of a little Limerick" in the hotels and lodges of Kilkee, all nicely and humorously described."--Back cover.

*Includes pictures *Includes accounts of the famine by Irishmen who suffered through it *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading *Includes a table of contents "I have called it an artificial famine: that is to say, it was a famine which desolated a rich and fertile island that produced every year abundance and superabundance to sustain all her people and many more. The English, indeed, call the famine a 'dispensation of Providence;' and ascribe it entirely to the blight on potatoes. But potatoes failed in like manner all over Europe; yet there was no famine save in Ireland." - John Mitchel, Young Ireland Movement Anyone who has ever heard of "the luck of the Irish" knows that it is not something to wish on someone, for few people in the British Isles have ever suffered as the Irish have. As one commissioner looking into the situation in Ireland wrote in February 1845, "It would be impossible adequately to describe the privations which they habitually and silently endure...in many districts their only food is the potato, their only beverage water...their cabins are seldom a protection against the weather...a bed or a blanket is a rare luxury...and nearly in all their pig and a manure heap constitute their only property." Even his fellow commissioners agreed and expressed "our strong sense of the patient endurance which the laboring classes have exhibited under sufferings greater, we believe, than the people of any other country in Europe have to sustain." Still, in their long history of suffering, nothing was ever so terrible as what the Irish endured during the Great Potato Famine that struck the country in the 1840s and produced massive upheaval for several years. While countless numbers of Irish starved, the famine also compelled many to leave, and all the while, the British were exporting enough food from Ireland on a daily basis to prevent the starvation. Over the course of 10 years, the population of Ireland decreased by about 1.5 million people, and taken together, these facts have led to charges as severe as genocide. At the least, it indicated a British desire to remake Ireland in a new mold. As historian Christine Kinealy noted, "As the Famine progressed, it became apparent that the government was using its information not merely to help it formulate its relief policies, but also as an opportunity to facilitate various long-desired changes within Ireland. These included population control and the consolidation of property through various means, including emigration... Despite the overwhelming evidence of prolonged distress caused by successive years of potato blight, the underlying philosophy of the relief efforts was that they should be kept to a minimalist level; in fact they actually decreased as the Famine progressed." Although the Famine obviously weakened Ireland and its people, it also stiffened Irish resolve and helped propel independence movements in its wake. By the time the Famine was over, it had changed the face of not just Ireland but also Great Britain, and it had even made its effects felt across the Atlantic in the still young United States of America. The Great Famine: The History of the Irish Potato Famine during the Mid-19th Century looks at the history of the notorious famine and its results. Along with pictures and a bibliography, you will learn about the Irish Potato Famine like never before, in no time at all.

This multi-layered history of a horrific famine that took place in late-nineteenth-century China focuses on cultural responses to trauma. The massive drought/famine that killed at least ten million people in north China during the late 1870s remains one of China's most severe disasters and provides a vivid window through which to study the social side of a nation's tragedy. Kathryn Edgerton-Tarpley's original approach explores an array of new source materials, including songs, poems, stele inscriptions, folklore, and oral accounts of the famine from Shanxi Province, its epicenter. She juxtaposes these narratives with central government, treaty-port, and foreign debates over the meaning of the events and shows how the famine, which occurred during a period of deepening national crisis, elicited widely divergent reactions from different levels of Chinese society.

In the mid-1840s, potato blight ruined the crops of impoverished farmers across Ireland. Many families went hungry without their main source of food. Disease struck down people weakened by starvation as the government struggled to address the problem. Would the country ever recover? To understand the impact of a disaster, you must understand its causes. How did the system of landlords and tenants contribute to the disaster? How did British views of the Irish keep leaders from providing suitable aid? Investigate the disaster from a cause-and-effect perspective and find out!

Uncover the Hidden Truths Behind Humanity's Worst Accidents and Disasters Are you tired of feeling like every crisis is just another random event? Do you believe knowing the facts helps us be better prepared for and less fearful of the next catastrophe? Disaster Lessons: Past, Present, and Future will help you understand how technology, human actions, and natural events have led to some of the most devastating incidents in history. This book will answer your questions about accidents, wars, and pandemics, as well as provide lessons learned that we can apply in our daily lives and future planning. Here's what you'll learn in this revelatory book: - The causes of mass extinctions, such as asteroid impacts and volcanic eruptions, and how they shaped Earth's history - How nuclear, biological, and chemical accidents have shaped our understanding of safety protocols and disaster prevention - The consequences and lessons of warfare throughout history, from the ancient world to modern conflicts - The impacts of disease and famine, and how they have shaped the course of human history - The role of technology in both creating and solving disasters - How we can learn from past mistakes to prepare for and mitigate the effects of future calamities If you want to become more informed and less frightened about the world's dangers, then buy Disaster Lessons: Past, Present, and Future today.

Here is one of the most important surviving works of pre-Columbian civilization, Rabinal Achi, a Mayan drama set a century before the arrival of the Spanish, produced by the translator of the best selling Popol Vuh. The first direct translation into English from Quiché Maya, based on the original text, Rabinal Achi is the story of city-states, war, and nobility, of diplomacy, mysticism, and psychic journeys. Cawek of the Forest People has been captured by Man of Rabinal, who serves a ruler named Lord Five Thunder. Cawek is a renegade, a warrior who has inflicted much suffering on Rabinal. Yet he is also the son of the lord of the allied city of Quiché--a noble who once fought alongside Man of Rabinal. The drama presents the confrontation between the two during the trial of Cawek, who defies his captors and proudly accepts death by beheading. Dennis Tedlock's translation is clear and vivid; more than that, it is rooted in an understanding of how the play is actually performed. Despite being banned for centuries by Spanish authorities, it survived in actual practice, and is still performed in the town of Rabinal today. Tedlock's photographs and diagrams accompany the text, capturing nuances not apparent in the dialogue alone. He also provides an introduction and commentary that explain the historical events compressed into the play, the Spanish influence on the Mayan dramatic tradition, and the cultural and religious world preserved in this remarkable play. Rabinal Achi ranks as a classic of Mayan literature--and a rare window on a world that had yet to be invaded by Europeans. Dennis Tedlock brings this drama to life in all its richness.

It was 1845 in Ireland when the potato famine struck. Its impact on two of the many Irish families was devastating. All they had was the potato, it was their provider until the blight came that is, then starvation and disease followed and with it the deaths of thousands of fellow Irish cottiers. To survive would be a task many would fail, but for others severe challenges lay ahead as they attempted to escape to the new world. Yet many did survive only to be confronted by further ordeals awaiting them as they crossed the sea, then in Canada and America as loved ones became separated. Would they find each other in the ever changing world of the 1850s? Who knows? Impossible things can happen.

*Includes pictures *Includes accounts of the Famine written by survivors and newspapers *Includes a bibliography for further reading "I have called it an artificial famine: that is to say, it was a famine which desolated a rich and fertile island that produced every year abundance and superabundance to sustain all her people and many more. The English, indeed, call the famine a 'dispensation of Providence;' and ascribe it entirely to the blight on potatoes. But potatoes failed in like manner all over Europe; yet there was no famine save in Ireland." - John Mitchel, Young Ireland Movement Anyone who has ever heard of "the luck of the Irish" knows that it is not something to wish on someone, for few people in the British Isles have ever suffered as the Irish have. As one commissioner looking into the situation in Ireland wrote in February 1845, "It would be impossible adequately to describe the privations which they habitually and silently endure...in many districts their only food is the potato, their only beverage water...their cabins are seldom a protection against the weather...a bed or a blanket is a rare luxury...and nearly in all their pig and a manure heap constitute their only property." Even his fellow commissioners agreed and expressed "our strong sense of the patient endurance which the laboring classes have exhibited under sufferings greater, we believe, than the people of any other country in Europe have to sustain." Still, in their long history of suffering, nothing was ever so terrible as what the Irish endured during the Great Potato Famine that struck the country in the 1840s and produced massive upheaval for several years. While countless numbers of Irish starved, the famine also compelled many to leave, and all the while, the British were exporting enough food from Ireland on a daily basis to prevent the starvation. Over the course of 10 years, the population of Ireland decreased by about 1.5 million people, and taken together, these facts have led to charges as severe as genocide. At the least, it indicated a British desire to remake Ireland in a new mold. As historian Christine Kinealy noted, "As the Famine progressed, it became apparent that the government was using its information not merely to help it formulate its relief policies, but also as an opportunity to facilitate various long-desired changes within Ireland. These included population control and the consolidation of property through various means, including emigration... Despite the overwhelming evidence of prolonged distress caused by successive years of potato blight, the underlying philosophy of the relief efforts was that they should be kept to a minimalist level; in fact they actually decreased as the Famine progressed." Although the Famine obviously weakened Ireland and its people, it also stiffened Irish resolve and helped propel independence movements in its wake. By the time the Famine was over, it had changed the face of not just Ireland but also Great Britain, and it had even made its effects felt across the Atlantic in the still young United States of America. The Irish Potato Famine looks at the history of the Great Famine and what it produced. Along with pictures and a bibliography, you will learn about the Irish Potato Famine like never before, in no time at all.

Describes the potato famine that struck Ireland in the 1840s, and discusses what life was like on the ships that the Irish took to America in order to escape the famine.

The Bible tells the story of God meeting real people in a real time and place, yet we rarely take the time to wonder, Why there? Maybe we have a hard time even picturing where there is. To begin to fully understand the Bible, we must understand the geographical settings of Scripture and how each place participates in the biblical story. With its colorful maps, The Basic Bible Atlas helps us link geography to Bible study so we can understand how place impacted events in the Bible. From Eden to Egypt, from the promised land to Persia, from Bethlehem to the New Jerusalem, The Basic Bible Atlas is a fascinating guide to the land of the Bible. Your Bible study will never be the same.