Books by DAVID RHODES

It is 2027. August Helm is thirty years old. A biochemist working in a lab at the University of Chicago, he is swept off his feet by the beautiful and entirely self-assured Amanda Clark. Animated by August's consuming desire, their relationship quickly becomes intimate. But when he stumbles across a liaison between the director of his lab and a much younger student, his position is eliminated and his world upended. August sets out to visit his parents in Words, an unincorporated village in the heart of Wisconsin's Driftless Area. Here, he reconnects with several characters from his past: Ivan Bookchester, who now advocates for "new ways of living" in an age of decline; Hanh, formerly known as Jewelweed, who tends her orchard and wild ginseng, keenly attuned to new patterns of migration resulting from climate change and habitat destruction; and Lester Mortal, the aging veteran and fierce pacifist who long ago rescued her from Vietnam. Together, the old friends fall back into a familiar closeness. But much as things initially seem unchanged in the Driftless, when August is hired to look after Tom and April Lux's home in Forest Gate, he finds himself in the midst of an entirely different social set, made up of wealthy homeowners who are mostly resented by the poorer surrounding communities, and distanced in turn by their fear of the locals. August soon falls head over heels for April, and different versions of his self collide: one in which the past is still present in tensions and dreams, another in which he understands his desire as genetically determined and chemically induced, and then a vaguely hoped-for future with April. When Lester is diagnosed with liver cirrhosis, Ivan comes clean on a ghastly past episode, and April makes a shocking revelation, a series of events ensues that will change all involved forever.   As approachable as it is profound in exploring the human condition and our shared need for community, this is a story for our times.

This book focuses on the paintings of Bernard Frize, an artistwhose work straddles movements and styles from Colour Field to Minimalism,Fluxus, and Conceptual Art. It provides a detailed consideration of all stagesof Frize's development, from the earliest works to the present.

This book is timely in regard to the UK Government's commitment to the Big Society, the financial crisis of 2008 and the global imperative to address climate change. All are inextricably linked. It observes that human evolution is largely and dangerously determined by an artificial niche we call capitalism rather than the realities of the Planet. Based on fundamental concepts and insights from Ashby, Darwin, Kant, Koestler, Lovelock, Malthus, Simon and Smith, it argues for a systemic change to capitalism. The book is relevant to those concerned with a sustainable future, such as the scientists, engineers and technologists who possess the means to achieve it, the economists and politicians who have the task of commissioning it, and our Society which needs it. The content crosses disciplines and provides a useful and thought- provoking text for students and those who wish to be well-informed.