"Captain Bligh" is a cliche of our times for the extravagant and violent misuse of power. In fact, William Bligh was one of the least physically violent disciplinarians in the British navy. That paradox inspires the author to ask why, then, did Bligh have a mutiny? Its answer is to display the theatricality of naval institutions and the mythologizing power of history...

In the fourth volume of the acclaimed Hinges of History series, Thomas Cahill brings his characteristic wit and style to a fascinating tour of ancient Greece. The Greeks invented everything from Western warfare to mystical prayer, from logic to statecraft. Many of their achievements, particularly in art and philosophy, are widely celebrated; other important innovations and accomplishments, however, are unknown or underappreciated...

Is the “Oedipus complex” universal? This book examines the controversial question in light of its collection of 139 family complex folktales from every world cultural area and every level of social complexity, the largest such collection ever made. From back cover: “This work is one of two books that won the 1997 Boyer Prize in psychoanalytic anthropology. The award is well deserved . . ...

EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY AMERICAN ARTS. The M. and M. Karolik Collection of Paintings, Drawings, Engravings, Furniture, Silver, Needlework & Incidental Objects Gathered to Illustrate the Achievements of American Artists and Craftsmen of the Period 1720-1820. Hardcover, by Edward J. Hipkiss, published by the Harvard University Press, second edition, 1950. Like new condition, previous owner's name (Bartlett Harwood, Jr., a 1944 graduate of Harvard College) written on front free endpaper...

Absinthe era saucer from a French bar with a burgundy rim. This is an actual saucer from the late 19th or very early 20th century that was used in a bar in the Charente Martime departement in the Southwest of the country. It measures 4 7/8 inches in diameter. There is some wear to the rim decoration from long years of use. The back is glazed. There are a couple of small chips on the inside of the foot but they are really not noticeable when it is on a table or other flat surface...

French absinthe era bar saucer decorated with a light blue rim enclosed in burgundy hairlines and an attractive raised interior. We actually know the bar where this was used -- it was the Café de Paris in Saintes, a small city in the Charente-Maritime départment of France, which is about 75 miles north of Bordeaux. A scan of a postcard depicting this establishment will be sent to you on request...

We just got this great octagonal bistrot or absinthe saucer in France. It has a wonderful, bold price of 1.50 francs, a raised star (rare) in the center, and a silvered border which is somewhat worn. There is a small silver circle, also worn, in the center, making this a very elegant and high-end saucer. The saucer has a Limoges mark as well as the mark of J. Laplaine, Ste Livrade sur Lot, possibly the wholesaler...

A "like new" copy of this handsome book, signed on title page by Brock Jobe, who organized the 1993 exhibit on which it is based and who edited the book. This is THE book on the subject. Full title is "Portsmouth Furniture: Masterworks from the New Hampshire Seacoast." Paperback edition.

Great book for birders. Topics are: Tracks and Trails, Pellets, Droppings, Signs of Feeding and Other Behaviors, Nests and Roosts, Feathers, and Skulls. Bird Tracks & Sign: A Guide to North American Species by Eleanor Marks Ph.D...

Fascinating 1956 hardcover book by Arthur Judson Palmer with all sorts of information and interesting pictures. Published by Dutton, 191pp. Very good used condition with only some minor wear to dust jacket, mainly at top and bottom of spine.

Fascinating reprint of catalog from Radford Architectural Co. showing more than 250 plans for low- and mid-priced bungalows. Plans generally were priced at between $8 and $15 (very few at the high end). Dover paperback, published 1997, 221 pp. Book is new.

"Few area illustrate the evolution of American architecture,both public and domestic, so ideally as Long Island," it says on the back cover. Very interesting book published in 1992 by the AIA. This is a Dover paperback, quarto size, 205 pp. Condition is like new with some very minor wear to cover.