New Releases by Jim Murphy

Can a single act of love save the world from destruction? A peasant born in pre-war Vietnam has memories of a life he will live in the future. These memories offer clues as to why he must now face the horrors of slavery and war in his current life. Is karma a punishment, or is it simply a choice we make? An Dong, a peasant in French Indochina, has dreams of a life he has lived before, but the dreams are of a place and a time that no one could possibly have seen--a place in the future history of a different country. In contrast to his current life of degradation and slavery, his future life is one of freedom and happiness, at least at first. He becomes convinced that his dreams are telling him that he must take action in his current life in order to keep safe that world of the future, but what it is he is supposed to do is not clear. If such things as reincarnation and karma are real, what is their nature? What are the laws that govern them? Are they punishments for lives poorly lived, or are they choices we make?

Sam is a blacksmith in a small rural township. He has spent his whole life there and is quite content with his lot. Now, however, things are changing. For some reason a mature, red dragon has taken up residence in a cave outside the town and it has already killed Ralf and his family. As a member of the group sent to find help to deal with the dragon, Sam is leaving town for the first time in his life. And the outside world is nothing like the safe, predictable existence that he has been used to until now. He learns of other races in the world and the mighty wars between them that have shaped the whole land, wars that are still being fought and have a great deal to do with the arrival of the dragon. Can Sam and his compatriots survive the journey and find a way to rid the town of its dragon problems? That is for the reader to discover as he follows the young blacksmith through his journey and sees a completely different person end the trip to the one who had started out.

It is 1776, and George Washington''s army of rebellious colonists is emboldened by its stunning victories over the British at Lexington and Concord, and at having driven the world''s most formidable army from Boston. But now they face the threat of a brutal British retaliation. George Washington, who has little military experience, is unanimously chosen as commander in chief-in the hope that he can whip his ragtag, unruly troops into a real fighting army. As the British begin their invasion of New York City and out-battle the Americans in one encounter after another, George Washington isn''t the only one who is overcome with doubts. In a breathtaking account of this pivotal moment in the Revolution, Jim Murphy masteruflly shows Washington''s transformation from gentleman farmer to a brilliant general as he delivers the country from the blackest of times-into the brightest of futures.

TRAIN YOUR BRAIN FOR EXTRAORDINARY SUCCESS Now more than ever, you need a competitive edge to succeed-no matter what your field or profession. This step-by-step training manual from one of North America''s top performance coaches taps into the winning mindsets of Olympic stars, professional sports teams, and Navy Seals among others to help you achieve higher levels of performance than you ever thought possible. Jim Murphy''s complete program of proven mental techniques is based on life principles that easily apply to your company, your career, and everything you do. Inner Excellence shows you how to: CONNECT WITH YOUR PASSION-and run with it FOCUS YOUR ENERGY-and reach your goals BUILD ON YOUR STRENGTHS-and live your dreams GET IN THE ZONE-and achieve the extraordinary Filled with mental performance-enhancing exercises, creative goal-driven game plans, and 50 inspiring interviews, Inner Excellence raises the bar for success in business and in life. “Jim is an expert in his field. Inner Excellence transcends athletics and will have a profound effect on everyone who applies these methods in their life.” -John Kehoe, author of Mind Power into the 21st Century

In September 1862, two great armies faced each other across Antietam Creek. The outnumbered Confederate forces were led by General Robert E. Lee. The Union army was led by General George B. McClellan. Jim Murphy uses archival photographs, maps, and firsthand accounts to recreate one of America''s most important battles.

While some singularity or egotism may be unavoidable in poetry, not every poet chooses, as Jim Murphy does, to temper subjectivity with sensitivity to the world around him. Murphy''s choice-or his compulsion-to attend to his community, its geographies and histories, is a gift to all readers: this poetry concerns us as much as anything else. Over the last fifty years, American''s most visible poetry has been a poetry of ego and personality, in which the writer''s self serves as a primary subject-so much so the most readers seem to expect every poem to be a confession or autobiography. But the poetry of community-of environment, of city, of nation-the poetry of concern has also abided, albeit less visibly, as a counterpoise. Heaven Overland draws from both traditions. As it turns outward, this collection extends the ethical tradition, and as it turns inward, marries the subjective to the receptive, recalling Whitman''s work more perfectly. This is to say that this book is important, that its commitments and accomplishments are rare and always to be kept in mind.

"Drawing on Arnold''s surviving writings and on the letters, memoirs, and political documents of his contemporaries ... a fascinating portrait of a brilliant man, consistently undervalued by his peers, who made a choice that continues to reverberate through American history."--Jacket.

On his way to town to have some fun, a lazy but clever young man faces a terrible demon, who declares that his time has come.

Presents a history, based on personal accounts and newspaper articles, of the massive snow storm that hit the Northeast in 1888, focusing on the events in New York City.

In the mid-1800s, with both her father and her uncle in jail on an assault charge, Maggie, her brother, and her ailing mother rush their barge along the Erie Canal to deliver their heavy cargo or lose everything.

In 1874, Brian Doyle records in his diary how he ran away from his home in San Francisco, joined the crew of a whaling ship, and endured storms, hostile shipmates, and being stranded in the Arctic.

Ayuda a comprender y a proceder eficazmente antes los conflictos de la vida laboral.

Recreates the devastation rendered to the city of Philadelphia in 1793 by an incurable disease known as yellow fever, detailing the major social and political events as well as the time''s medical beliefs and practices.

Publisher Description

In this entertaining and informative work, former ChicagoCub and noted author, speaker, and coach Jim Murphyshares invaluable insight and wisdom from interviews with39 of the top managers in baseball. Legendary coachesSparky Anderson, Gene Mauch, Jim Leyland and many othersoffer their insight on how to build individual champions,coach the details, practice under pressure, and much,much more.

Following her father''s death from a disease that swept through her Nebraska town in 1881, teenaged Sarah Jane must find work to support herself and records in her diary her experiences as a young school teacher.

This collection represents an engagement with American history, technology, and cultures. Murphy''s poetry ranges from fairly straightforward narrations of events to experimental pieces using a variety of American-speaking subjects and several angles of vision on cultural creations--Elvis Presley, Holly Golightly, and Elmore James, to name just a few. Formal choices include the interlocking movements of the sestina and the rondau, the ebb and flow of loose blank verse, and the syncopated variety of free verse.

A biography of an Italian peasant who immigrated to America in the early twentieth century and endured poverty and the difficult life of an unskilled laborer, determined to become a published poet.

Surveys the history of the whaling industry from its earliest days to the present, focusing on the young boys who managed to sign on for whaling voyages.

James Edmond, a sixteen-year-old orphan, keeps a journal of his experiences and those of "G" Company which he joined as a volunteer in the Union Army during the Civil War