Harper Perennial

Surviving an Eating Disorder: Strategies for Family and Friends

Surviving an Eating Disorder has become a classic since it was first published in 1988. It was one of the first books to offer effective support and solutions for family, friends, and all others who are the “silent sufferers” of eating disorders. This updated and revised edition provides the latest information on how parents, spouses, friends, and professionals …

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The Book of Qualities

From Beauty to Compassion, from Pleasure to Terror, from Resignation to Joy — here is an insightful exploration of the rich diversity of human qualities. J. Ruth Gendler’s evocative book has as its cast of familiar characters our own emotions, brought to life with a poet’s wisdom and an artist’s perceptive eye. In The Book of Qualities’ magical …

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Overdosed America: The Broken Promise of American Medicine

Using the examples of Vioxx, Celebrex, cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, and anti-depressants, Overdosed America shows that at the heart of the current crisis in American medicine lies the commercialization of medical knowledge itself.Drawing on his background in statistics, epidemiology, and health policy, John Abramson, M.D., reveals the ways in which the drug companies have misrepresented statistical evidence, misled doctors, …

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Vaccinated: One Man’s Quest to Defeat the World’s Deadliest Diseases

His goal—to prevent every disease that commonly attacked children—was unattainable. But Maurice Hilleman came close.Maurice Hilleman is the father of modern vaccines. Chief among his accomplishments are nine vaccines that practically every child gets, rendering formerly deadly diseases—including mumps, rubella, and measles—nearly forgotten. Author Paul A. Offit’s rich and lively narrative details Hilleman’s research and experiences as …

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Coop: A Year of Poultry, Pigs, and Parenting

In over his head with two pigs, a dozen chickens, and a baby due any minute, the acclaimed author of Population: 485 gives us a humorous, heartfelt memoir of a new life in the country.Living in a ramshackle Wisconsin farmhouse—faced with thirty-seven acres of fallen fences and overgrown fields, and informed by his pregnant wife that she intends …

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The Egg and I

When Betty MacDonald married a marine and moved to a small chicken farm on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State, she was largely unprepared for the rigors of life in the wild. With no running water, no electricity, a house in need of constant repair, and days that ran from four in the morning to nine at night, …

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A Curious Invitation: The Forty Greatest Parties in Fiction

Forty of the greatest fictional festivities as seen through the eyes of the world’s greatest writers.People love to party. And writers love to attend and document these occasions. The party is a useful literary device, not only for social commentary and satire but also as an occasion where characters can meet, fall in and out of love, or …

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The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less

Whether we’re buying a pair of jeans, ordering a cup of coffee, selecting a long-distance carrier, applying to college, choosing a doctor, or setting up a 401(k), everyday decisions—both big and small—have become increasingly complex due to the overwhelming abundance of choice with which we are presented.As Americans, we assume that more choice means better options and greater …

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