'Don't Make Me Go Back, Mommy'

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Don't Make Me Go Back, Mommy was published in 1990. According to author Doris Sanford:

... the words of the text and the objects and situations illustrated are based on months of intensive research into the nature and practice of satanic ritual abuse. Any child who has been ritually abused will recognize the validity of this story.

From the book's jacket:

When five-year-old Allison’s parents begin to see a change in her behavior at home, they seek professional help for her. They find that Allison and other children have been ritually abused at a day care center. Thus begins Allison’s recovery through counseling and through her parents’ affirmations that it was not her fault, that she is precious and loved, and they will keep her safe.

Vigilant Citizen via Christian Nightmares 

Digitized By Google | The School Of Venus

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The School of Venus, or the Ladies Delight Reduced into Rules of Practice, a surprisingly modern exploration of sexuality written in the form of a dialogue between a teenage girl and her more experienced cousin, was originally written in French and published in English in 1680.

The 166-page text, which has been digitized by Google Books, opens with a pseudo-dedication to one “Madam S—- W—-,” which lauds “with what eagerness you perform your Fucking excercises” and imagines “a Pyramide of those standing Tarses [penises]" to rival "that Monument of Sculls erected, by the Persian Sophy in Spahaune” ...

The main narrative then begins, introducing its two principle characters: Katherine, “a Virgin of admirable beauty” and “a Kins-Woman of hers named Frances.” Frances “come[s] to chat” with Katherine one morning, finding her alone and working “as if it were a Nunnery.” Frances reproaches her cousin for being “such a Fool [as] to believe you can't enjoy a mans company without being Married.” Katherine naively explains that she enjoys the companionship of many men (“my two Unkles, my Cousins, Mr. Richards and many others”) but Frances explains that she means something altogether different (note that the early modern 's' can sometimes look like an 'f')

Frank, explicit language and illustrations, just a click away on Google Books.

Via Jezebel

Global Map Of Publishing Markets

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The Global Map of Publishing Markets is the first visual representation of publishing around the world by the numbers. The map demonstrates the way that books and the industry behind them reflect access to knowledge and to the opportunity to dive into the imaginary worlds brought to life by written words—where books are freely available and where books are hidden behind scores of cultural, social, or economic obstacles. The map and the data behind it provide a better understanding of the opportunities, as well as the challenges, in making reading and access to books universal.

The 2012 Global Map of Publishing Markets displays a world of striking inequalities. A few countries form powerful centres of gravity, with several more–those which economists call “emerging markets”–shown at least relatively equal to their size in terms of territory and population. But the majority of markets are difficult to identify, lost in the periphery.

Source

A Vote Against A Library Is Like A Vote To Burn Books

Vimeo

The Leo Burnett/Arc Worldwide agency has won a gold prize in the Effie awards for their hoax "Book Burning Party" campaign, which is credited with saving the public library in Troy, MI. Michigan's extreme austerity measures and collapsing economy had put the library under threat, and the town proposed a 0.7% tax raise to keep it open. The local Tea Party spent a large sum of money opposing the measure on the grounds that all taxes are bad, so the Burnett campaign reframed the issue by creating a hoax campaign to celebrate the library's closure with a Book Burning Party a few days after the vote.

The outrage generated by this campaign was sufficient to win the day for the library, as Troy's residents made the connection between closing libraries and burning books, focusing their minds on literacy and shared community, rather than taxation.

BoingBoing

Thanks, Phyl

io9 | 25 Great Books By Legendary Scientists

#1. The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin

Alasdair Wilkins writes:

... here are twenty-five amazing books written by world-famous scientists. These are legendary texts, popular science explainers, personal memoirs, and controversial new theories, and they're all enduring monuments to the power of science.

The list includes books by James Watson, Jonas Salk, Richard Feynman, Margaret Mead, Jane Goodall, Richard Dawkins, Mary Leakey, and Primo Levi. The only nits I have to pick are the inclusion of The Basic Writings of Sigmund Freud [I would nominate the two-volume Principles of Psychology by William James instead] and the absence of Thomas Kuhn's The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.

Read the article and see the complete list at io9.

The Monster Engine | Dave Devries

The Monster Engine is a book, a demonstration, lecture and a gallery exhibition. The premise for all three came from one single question: What would a child’s drawing look like if it were painted realistically?

Dave Devries:

One page shows a child’s monster drawing. One page shows my painting (based upon that drawing.) Two pages contain an interview with the child about my painting. These interviews have three embedded photos of the child talking. Because the interview pages separating pages one and four, there is a “cliff hanger” aspect that leaves the viewer in anticipation of the painted transformation. This never fails to get a great reaction. Once that has occurred, children and adults alike can read the interviews for the humor and insights about the art.

Dave Devries via Neatorama