Bøger af Paul Johnson

A galaxy of legendary figures from the annals of Western historyIn this enlightening and entertaining work, Paul Johnson, the bestselling author of Intellectuals and Creators, approaches the subject of heroism with stirring examples of men and women from every age, walk of life, and corner of the planet who have inspired and transformed not only their own cultures but the entire world as well. Heroes includes: Samson, Judith, and Deborah - Henry V and Joan of Arc - Elizabeth I and Walter Raleigh - George Washington, the Duke of Wellington, and Lord Nelson - Emily Dickinson - Abraham Lincoln and Robert E. Lee - Mae West and Marilyn Monroe - Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, and Pope John Paul II

"Johnson emphasizes the rarity of truly visionary artists . . . his approach is unfailingly generous. . . . Genuinely revealing." --Publishers WeeklyFrom celebrated journalist and historian Paul Johnson, an enlightening look at the imagination and drive of visionaries who have changed our world.Paul Johnson believes that creation is a mysterious business which cannot be satisfactorily analyzed. But it can be illustrated in such a way as to bring out its salient characteristics. In this companion to his New York Times bestseller, Intellectuals, he profiles outstanding and prolific creative spirits from a variety of artistic pursuits. Here are essays on such giants as Chaucer and Shakespeare, Mark Twain and T. S. Eliot, Jane Austen and George Eliot; artists such as Dürer, Turner, and the contemporary Japanese master Hokusai; architects Pugin and Viollet-le-Duc; Johann Sebastian Bach; Louis Comfort Tiffany; clothing designers Balenciaga and Dior; and masters of the 20th century, Picasso and Disney.

From New York Times bestselling author Paul Johnson, "a very readable and entertaining biography” (The Washington Post) about one of the most important figures in modern European history: Napoleon Bonaparte In an ideal pairing of author and subject, the magisterial historian Paul Johnson offers a vivid look at the life of the strategist, general, and dictator who conquered much of Europe. Following Napoleon from the barren island of Corsica to his early training in Paris, from his meteoric victories and military dictatorship to his exile and death, Johnson examines the origins of his ferocious ambition. In Napoleon's quest for power, Johnson sees a realist unfettered by patriotism or ideology. And he recognizes Bonaparte's violent legacy in the totalitarian regimes of the twentieth century. Napoleon is a magnificent work that bears witness to one individual's ability to work his will on history.

"The creation of the United States of America is the greatest of all human adventures," begins Paul Johnson's remarkable new American history. "No other national story holds such tremendous lessons, for the American people themselves and for the rest of mankind." Johnson's history is a reinterpretation of American history from the first settlements to the Clinton administration. It covers every aspect of U.S. history--politics; business and economics; art, literature and science; society and customs; complex traditions and religious beliefs. The story is told in terms of the men and women who shaped and led the nation and the ordinary people who collectively created its unique character. Wherever possible, letters, diaries, and recorded conversations are used to ensure a sense of actuality. "The book has new and often trenchant things to say about every aspect and period of America's past," says Johnson, "and I do not seek, as some historians do, to conceal my opinions." Johnson's history presents John Winthrop, Roger Williams, Anne Hutchinson, Cotton Mather, Franklin, Tom Paine, Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Hamilton, and Madison from a fresh perspective. It emphasizes the role of religion in American history and how early America was linked to England's history and culture and includes incisive portraits of Andrew Jackson, Chief Justice Marshall, Clay, Lincoln, and Jefferson Davis. Johnson shows how Grover Cleveland and Teddy Roosevelt ushered in the age of big business and industry and how Woodrow Wilson revolutionized the government's role. He offers new views of Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover and of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal and his role as commander in chief during World War II. An examination of the unforeseen greatness of Harry Truman and reassessments of Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Reagan, and Bush follow. "Compulsively readable," said Foreign Affairs of Johnson's unique narrative skills and sharp profiles of people. This is an in-depth portrait of a great people, from their fragile origins through their struggles for independence and nationhood, their heroic efforts and sacrifices to deal with the `organic sin' of slavery and the preservation of the Union to its explosive economic growth and emergence as a world power and its sole superpower. Johnson discusses such contemporary topics as the politics of racism, education, Vietnam, the power of the press, political correctness, the growth of litigation, and the rising influence of women. He sees Americans as a problem-solving people and the story of America as "essentially one of difficulties being overcome by intelligence and skill, by faith and strength of purpose, by courage and persistence...Looking back on its past, and forward to its future, the auguries are that it will not disappoint humanity." This challenging narrative and interpretation of American history by the author of many distinguished historical works is sometimes controversial and always provocative. Johnson's views of individuals, events, themes, and issues are original, critical, and admiring, for he is, above all, a strong believer in the history and the destiny of the American people.

In these masterful essays drawn from his New York Times bestsellers A History of the American People and Heroes, one of the world's most renowned and respected historians explores what is arguably the most important chapter in the annals of America: the Civil War. Enlivened with the author's trademark scholarship, verve, and intelligence, this vivid, concise history revisits the conflict that tore a nation asunder and provides portraits of the people who played essential roles in the bloody drama. Johnson's Civil War America examines the factors that led to the devastating rift in the years before the fighting?and recounts the troubled healing a wounded nation underwent in the years after the final shot was fired.

"Spectacular . . . A delight to read.”—The Wall Street Journal From bestselling biographer and historian Paul Johnson, a brilliant portrait of Socrates, the founding father of philosophyIn his highly acclaimed style, historian Paul Johnson masterfully disentangles centuries of scarce sources to offer a riveting account of Socrates, who is often hailed as the most important thinker of all time. Johnson provides a compelling picture of Athens in the fifth century BCE, and of the people Socrates reciprocally delighted in, as well as many enlightening and intimate analyses of specific aspects of his personality. Enchantingly portraying "the sheer power of Socrates's mind, and its unique combination of steel, subtlety, and frivolity," Paul Johnson captures the vast and intriguing life of a man who did nothing less than supply the basic apparatus of the human mind.

Siden det moderne gennembrud for hundrede og halvtreds år siden har såkaldt moderne livstolkninger bestræbt sig på at fortrænge kristendommen og det grundlag, som de moderne samfund hviler på. Uden at støde på bemærkelsesværdig modstand.Sekulære og ateistiske livstolkninger har domineret, og den kristne kultur er behændigt søgt forvandlet til harmløse ”fortællinger”, ligesom man har bestræbt sig på at forvise den historiske Jesus til myternes tågeland.Paul Johnsons bog er sådan set ude i et opgør med den moderne ”videnskabelige” tidsalder. Johnson fortæller om Jesus – den historiske person fra Nazareth i Galilæa, en undersåt i en fjern jødisk provins i det mægtige romerske imperium. Som er lige så historisk og dokumenteret som hans samtidige, den romerske kejser.Johnson skriver, at tilsynekomsten på jorden af en skikkelse, der både var Gud og menneske, er kristendommens kerne. På den baggrund giver han Jesus-skikkelsen kød og blod --- og meget mere. For at understrege kristendommens universelle karakter er bogen forsynet med 16 sider med billeder af hovedpersonen fra alverdens lande og traditioner.Bent Jensen har oversat bogen og forsynet den med et forord og med en personlig efterskrift, hvor han fortæller om sin indremissionske barndom i Kjellerup.

The Definitive Pocket Guide to Fairies and Elves.

Description Choose Life tells of a journey of personal growth and development, set against the realities of a stressful modern lifestyle. It shows the search for meaning and fulfilment in life, and takes a refreshingly honest and holistic approach to living the life that you want to live - one that is easily accessible, and very different from the usual 'ten easy steps to fulfilment' or promises of 'enlightenment in 30 days'. Over 260 pages.About the AuthorPaul Johnson was born in the north-east of England in 1970, and raised in South Yorkshire, where he lives with his wife and three children. He has spent the last fifteen years studying martial arts and their accompanying philosophies, and believes that we can all find a lasting sense of peace and fulfilment. Paul's interests include walking the dog, eating curry, and practical self defence, though preferably not all at the same time. Choose Life is his first book.

This book offers a series of compelling responses to the Jasmin Vardimon Company's production of Justitia, a multilayered, multimedia dance theatre piece. Through an innovative, visually annotated text, which includes the original script by Rebecca Lenkiewicz, the book attempts to record the experience of the performance. Also included are nine critical responses from scholars and theatrical practitioners who consider the performance through lenses relating to time, collaboration, writing, confession and the law.

A collection of biographical portraits of some of the greatest humorists and wits in history, including Benjamin Franklin and the Marx Brothers, Charles Dickens and Damon Runyon, W C Fields and Samuel Johnson, William Hogarth and James Thurber.

Presents author's experience of a complex variety of people who have contributed to our political, spiritual and cultural life.

The definitive life of Jesus from the bestselling author of A History of Christianity. Few figures have had such an influence on the world as Jesus of Nazareth. Paul Johnson's brilliant and powerful reading of Jesus' life at once captures his transfiguring message and his historical complexity. With a superb historian's command of his subject, a masterly writer's love of language, and a believer's passion, Johnson presents a lucid and deeply moving biography of a man whose life changed the course of history. Jesus offers readers a succinct yet lively account of the man who inspired one of the world's great religions and whose lessons still guide us today.

The castles of Britain are icons of history. They were built to mark the domains of the powerful and stood as symbols of authority. No view of great castles is as imposing and revealing as the view from above - showing off their beauty. This work shows the splendour and lasting resonance of the nation's best-loved castles.