Alum Books

Within the liberal tradition, the physical body has been treated as a focus of rights discussion and a source of economic and democratic value; it needs protection but it is also one’s dominion, tool, and property, and thus something over which we should be able to exercise free will. However, the day-to-day reality of how we live in our bodies and how we make choices about them is not something over which we can exercise full control. In this way, embodiment mirrors life in a pluralist body politic: we are interdependent and vulnerable, exposed with and to others while desiring agency. As disability, feminist, and critical race scholars have all suggested, barriers to bodily control are often a problem of public and political will and social and economic structures that render relationality and caring responsibilities private, invisible, and low value. These scholarly traditions firmly maintain the importance of bodily integrity and self-determination, but make clear that autonomy is not a matter of mere non-interference but rather requires extensive material and social support. Autonomy is thus totally intertwined with, not opposed to, vulnerability. Put another way, the pursuit of autonomy requires practices of humility. Given this, what do we learn about agency and self-determination, as well as trust, self-knowledge, dependence, and resistance under such conditions of acute vulnerability? “The Virtues of Vulnerability” looks at the question of how we navigate “choice” and control over our bodies when it comes to conditions like birth, illness, and death, particularly as they are experienced within mainstream medical institutions operating under the pressures of neoliberal capitalism. 

A respected immunologist, allergist, and functional medicine doctor breaks down the latest science on immunity, offering a program to help you identify your unique immunotype and balance your system for optimal health and longevity. To most of us, the immune system is seemingly unknowable — it’s an invisible, complex network of cells, receptors, and messengers, and there’s no standard way to see if it’s functioning as it should. Yet in spite of this, it affects every aspect of our health, influencing (and sometimes even causing) nearly every disease known to humanity. Much has been made about “boosting” immunity, but what exactly does that mean, and what if boosting isn’t really what your unique system needs?  

“The Girl Who Talked to Paintings” is an ekphrastic collection that conceives of ekphrasis as a type of translation: as a movement between images and words, as well as between lived and imagined experiences. These poems dramatize visual art personas who come alive and become confidants for speakers who are too timid to express themselves otherwise.  

“Germs and Governance,” edited by Dupree, brings together leading historians, practitioners and policy makers to consider the past, present and future of hospital infection control. Combining historical case-studies with practitioner experiences, this volume offers a new understanding of the emergence of theories of germ transmission and containment and how these theories played out in real-world environments, networks and professional organizations.  

“Lay it on the Table: A Change Agent in Action” is the story of one man’s attempt to accomplish a milestone in the history of the American legislative process. Because of his initiative and leadership, the People’s House was given the unique opportunity to have its voice heard on the matter. Tip O’Neill asked and answered the question that still echoes decades later: If Congress has the constitutional power to declare war, can’t it also declare to end war?   

Julian Assange has, since April 2019, been remanded at a maximum security prison in London facing extradition to the United States over WikiLeaks’ groundbreaking 2010 publications. Now, in this crisp anthology, Assange’s voice emerges – erudite, analytic and prophetic. This book, edited and compiled by Karen Sharpe, provides a highly accessible survey of Assange’s philosophy and politics, conveying his views on how governments, corporations, intelligence agencies and the media function. As well as addressing the significance of the vast trove of leaked documents published by WikiLeaks, Assange draws on a polymathic intelligence to range freely over quantum physics, Greek mythology, macroeconomics, modern literature, and empires old and new.  

Lying on a rickety canvas cot night after night while volunteering in a church-sponsored emergency shelter, Elise Chase had a lot of time to ask herself questions about Jesus’s challenging command and to reflect on how new relationships with homeless men and women were changing her from the inside out. Fresh from an unwanted divorce, Elise began to realize that increasing closeness with these new neighbors was helping her both to heal from pain and loneliness and to enter a deeper relationship with Jesus. “My Neighbor, My Self” invites readers not just into Elise’s own story but also into the stories of many other people. It explores surprising ways that our attempts to live into the second great commandment can actually help us live more fully into the first as well—discovering, in the process, a more fulfilling relationship with the Lord. 

Erna Brodber and Velma Pollard, two sister-writers born and raised in Jamaica, re-create imagined and lived homelands in their literature by commemorating the history, culture, and religion of the Caribbean. The sisters write about their homeland as a series of memories and stories in their many works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. They center on their home village of Woodside in St. Mary Parish, Jamaica, occasionally moving the settings of their fiction and poetry to other regions of Jamaica and various Caribbean islands, as well as other parts of the diaspora in the United States, Canada, and England. The role of women in the patriarchal society of Jamaica and much of the Caribbean is also a subject of the sisters’ writing. 

“Walking Great Britain” guides walkers and hikers of all levels and interests to the region’s superlative trails. From easy riverside strolls to challenging mountain summits, these beautiful, classic routes span the most scenic parts of England, Scotland and Wales. They lend themselves to a good day’s walking with detail about local history, cultural and literary highlights, plus ecological and geological tidbits. 

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” Have you ever wondered what these words might mean for you in your own life? Elise Chase has. Lying on a rickety canvas cot night after night while volunteering in a church-sponsored emergency shelter, she had a lot of time to ask herself questions about Jesus’s challenging command and to reflect on how new relationships with homeless men and women were changing her from the inside out. Fresh from an unwanted divorce, Elise began to realize that increasing closeness with these new neighbors was helping her both to heal from pain and loneliness and to enter a deeper relationship with Jesus.  

A self-published book of poems relating to human life events and universal feelings. The six sections include Nature, Personal Reflections, Loss and Sadness, Rambling Thoughts from a Restless Mind, Humor, and In Others’ Words. Each chapter title includes an original line drawing from Nussbaum.