Michael Collins

In Francis: Bishop of Rome, Fr. Michael Collins introduced readers to the pope who has grabbed the attention and the spiritual imaginations of Catholics and others around the world. Now, in this second edition, Collins takes account of the most important events and development of his remarkable pontificate. With a focus on compassion, Francis has challenged world leaders to be more attentive to the poor, begun important reforms of the Curia and the Vatican Bank, and called for two synods of bishops to discuss pastoral challenges that face modern families. This new edition, which is 25% longer than the first, includes more details about Jorge Bergoglio’s early life and a far more expansive understanding of the pontificate of this remarkable spiritual leader.People of God is a series of inspiring biographies for the general reader. Each volume offers a compelling and honest narrative of the life of an important twentieth or twenty-first century Catholic. Some living and some now deceased, each of these women and men has known challenges and weaknesses familiar to most of us but responded to them in ways that call us to our own forms of heroism. Each offers a credible and concrete witness of faith, hope, and love to people of our own day.

Liam, a fallen angel with a bad track record, has arrived in America through the back door, an illegal immigrant stuck with the worst kind of job and a reputation for trouble. Forced on the run, he links up with another fallen star, a beautiful, pregnant girl called Angel. Hampered, yet spurred on, by Angel's lowlife boyfriend, Liam finds the wide open spaces bring him a freedom not advertised by the immigration brokers back home ' and the chance to run towards the life he had always dreamed of. Michael Collins writes with his characteristic rawness and anger about the Irish in 80s America. He brings a new poignancy to our understanding of the emigrant experience and of the loneliness of not belonging.

Carlo Acutis was a typical teen with an extraordinary heart. Born in London and raised in Milan, he had a deep love for soccer, computers, and his golden retriever. But above all, Carlo was drawn to God in a way that astonished everyone around him. By the age of seven, he was attending daily Mass. By his early teens, he had taught himself coding and created an online exhibition of Eucharistic miracles that would spread around the world. When leukemia claimed his life at fifteen, those who knew him began to speak of his holiness—and miracles followed. In this warm and accessible biography, historian Michael Collins tells the remarkable story of the first millennial to be declared "Blessed" by the Catholic Church. With sensitivity and clarity, Collins traces Carlo's early years, his surprising spiritual wisdom, and his enduring influence in the digital age. A story of faith, compassion, and grace, God's Influencer is an inspiring portrait of a modern teenager who found joy in serving others and saw the internet as a tool for sharing God's love. Fr. Michael Collins is a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Dublin and an accomplished author and historian. He has written and coauthored numerous works on literature, the Bible, church history, the papacy, travel, art, and has penned eight biographies. His publications have been translated into 15 languages, reflecting his broad international appeal. †

The debut collection of essays from one of Britain's most celebrated photographers. For many years, photographer Michael Collins had wondered what exactly it was that he found so mysterious and compelling about photography. In this series of linked pieces, Collins offers a reappraisal of photographic genres – including the humble and ubiquitous – that he believes are worthy of greater understanding. From restoring abandoned photos, whose subjects are lost to time, to a quotidian history of the studio portrait; from tracing the origins of the photographic survey within the wider field of the history of art to an experiment in portraiture using gorillas, Collins reveals what it is about photography that is so enduringly fascinating.

Explore the Star Trek universe in this anthology of 14 fully illustrated short stories collected for the first time and including an adventure written by Walter Koenig who played Pavel Chekov in the original classic series and seven feature films. This incredible collection features stories starring iconic characters from Star Trek series including Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. For the first time ever, the book will collect stories including characters from Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: The Animated Series, and Star Trek: Picard!Stories include: "Chekov's Challenge" by Walter Koenig and Chris McAuley"Jack of Diamonds" by Una McCormack "The Trouble with Jones" by Greg Cox "Sundering" by David Mack "The Kellidian Kidnapping" by Keith R. A. Candido"A Dish Served Cold" by Chris Dows "Working Miracles" by Jake Black "Forewarned and Three-Armed" by Rich Handley "Academy Acquisition" by Jake Black "A Year to the Day I Saw Myself Die" by Michael Collins"See and Seen" by Peter Holmstrom "Lost and Founder" by David Mack "Work Worth Doing" by Keith R. A. Candido"Confirmation Bias" by Michael Dismuke

There are few names in the annals of military history that evoke such emotion, and in some cases controversy, as the small Belgian town of Bastogne. The 101st Airborne are the best known defenders of Bastogne, but they only constituted one third of the eventual force that saved the city from total annihilation.This book digs deeper into the defense of Bastogne, revealing more details about those indomitable “Screaming Eagles” and the other units that stood with them during that punishingly bitter cold winter of 1944/45. It also presents the perspective of the German soldiers trying desperately to re-take Bastogne that desperate winter. It is a story of sacrifice, dedication to duty, and honor in the face of terrible adversity, but more importantly it’s a human story, one that encapsulates the finest attributes of humankind in the absolute direst of circumstances.

A thrilling anthology of short stories from Star Trek Explorer magazine, collected for the first time! Featuring tales by Una McCormack, Gary Russell, Michael Carroll, John Peel, Chris Dows, Chris Cooper, and Greg Cox. This incredible collection features illustrated stories starring iconic characters such as Will Riker, Benjamin Sisko, Jonathan Archer, and Kate Pulaski, plus fan-favourite alien enemies including the Borg. Stories included are: Control by John Peel A take starring Jonathan Archer and his loyal dog, Porthos. The Guardian by Gary Russell A prelude to the classic episode “What are Little Girls Made Of?” The Disavowed by Christopher Cooper The crew of the Enterprise lose all memory of William Riker! Paghabi by Chris Dows Guinan is invaded by a sinister force. Pulaski 2.0 by Greg Cox Doctor Katherine Pulaski experiences life as an android. The Expert by Gary Russell A family is torn apart when the Borg strike. Scramble by Greg Cox A return to the noir world of Dixon Hill The Mission by James Swallow Espionage runs rife aboard Deep Space 9. Things Can Only Get Better by Una McCormack Kira Nerys and Garak discuss their opposing ideologies. Frontier Medicine by Michael Carroll Doctor Julian Bashir embarks on a career defining adventure. By Special Request… by John Peel Miles O’Brien and Julian Bashir enjoy some rest and recreation… with a difference! The Victim by John Peel Garak moves in for the kill, but can he pull the trigger? You Can’t Buy Fate by Keith R.A. Candido A first contact mission doesn’t go according to plan. Summer Days Can Last Forever by Michael Collins The dull 1950’s town of Patterson creek is livened up by some unusual visitors.

2017 is the 100th anniversary of America’s declaration of war against Germany. Many historians take a diminutive stance regarding America’s involvement but it cannot be underestimated by any means. It was the reason that brought Germany to it is knees and forced them to accept an armistice that was a victory of sorts achieved over the German forces and their allies. There is global renewed interest in World War One. All the protagonists are long dead but many of their relatives are still with us. This volume will draw you into the whole experience from the home front to the hell of the trenches. These are the voices of those who were never heard but their suffering and their involvement was total and uncompromising, and now finally they can breathe again. They are not forgotten.

John Henry Newman was an important and controversial figure in the religious history of England in the 19th century. An esteemed academic, prolific author and convert from the Church of England to Catholicism, Newman was a complex and conflicted individual. Intensely loyal to his friends, highly-strung, kind-hearted and tenacious, Newman combined the best of both the Anglican and Catholic traditions. His volume of lectures entitled The Idea of a University, explained his philosophy of education. During the four years he spent in Dublin he was was instrumental in the founding of the Catholic University of Ireland in 1854; this later evolved into University College Dublin, now the largest university in Ireland. John Henry Newman was declared a saint on 13th October 2019.

2017 is the 100th anniversary of America’s declaration of war against Germany. Many historians take a diminutive stance regarding America’s involvement but it cannot be underestimated by any means. It was the reason that brought Germany to it is knees and forced them to accept an armistice that was a victory of sorts achieved over the German forces and their allies. There is global renewed interest in World War One. All the protagonists are long dead but many of their relatives are still with us. This volume will draw you into the whole experience from the home front to the hell of the trenches. These are the voices of those who were never heard but their suffering and their involvement was total and uncompromising, and now finally they can breathe again. They are not forgotten.

Pope Paul VI (1963-78) was one of the most important and influential pontiffs of the twentieth century. In this engaging biography, Michael Collins examines this deeply spiritual man who is remembered as a reformer, evangelizer, and pilgrim. Pope Paul’s pontificate was marked by an unprecedented series of international journeys, establishing a practice that his successors developed even further. These brought him face-to-face with modern life throughout the globe and the challenge of making the Christian message relevant in a secular world. Paul VI is regarded for his efforts to reduce poverty in the developing world, bolster the church’s rejection of artificial birth control, and foster better relations between Catholics and Orthodox and Reformed Christians. He was beatified in 2014 by Pope Francis.

Who were the first humans to inhabit North America? According to the now familiar story, mammal hunters entered the continent some 12,000 years ago via a land bridge that spanned the Bering Sea. Distinctive stone tools belonging to the Clovis culture established the presence of these early New World people. But are the Clovis tools Asian in origin? Drawing from original archaeological analysis, paleoclimatic research, and genetic studies, noted archaeologists Dennis J. Stanford and Bruce A. Bradley challenge the old narrative and, in the process, counter traditional - and often subjective - approaches to archaeological testing for historical relatedness. The authors apply rigorous scholarship to a hypothesis that places the technological antecedents of Clovis in Europe and posits that the first Americans crossed the Atlantic by boat and arrived earlier than previously thought. Supplying archaeological and oceanographic evidence to support this assertion, the book dismantles the old paradigm while persuasively linking Clovis technology with the culture of the Solutrean people who occupied France and Spain more than 20,000 years ago.

'The thinking man's John Grisham' New Statesman The body of a small girl, dressed as an angel, is discovered late one night in a pile of autumn leaves at the side of the road. At first it looks like a hit and run - after all, it's Halloween night and the streets have been full of children trick or treating. But how did a 3-year-old come to be alone on the dark streets at such a late hour? Lawrence, the policeman sent to investigate, finds himself under increasing pressure when it becomes clear that the chief suspect is the town's star quarterback. In the ensuing cover-up, Lawrence finds himself a pawn in the power games between the local mayor, the suspect's family, and an investigator with some personal scores to settle.

A rich and informative guide to the common--and uncommon--beauty of the province. The most comprehensive guide of its kind on the market today, the Field Guide to Newfoundland and Labrador features more than 900 photographs and illustrations: from flora and fauna to icebergs and weather, no stone is left unturned in this perfect introduction to the province's life and landscape. Compiled and edited by Memorial University biologist Michael Collins, with contributions from over twenty renowned experts, the guide is accessible, durable, perfectly sized, and indexed for ease of use in the field. You're ready. Now explore.

How did the 'quintessentially English' game of cricket come to be so important across Britain's Caribbean empire? As empire declined and gave way to complex patterns of migration, what part did cricket play in the life of the Windrush generation in post-war Britain? Following the work of the great Trinidadian intellectual C. L. R. James, much has been written about the profound importance of cricket for the development of social and cultural life within the Anglophone Caribbean. And yet, from at least the 1930s, Black West Indian cricketers were celebrated far beyond the Caribbean, in England and across empire. Cricket was in fact a major factor shaping imperial ideas about Black people--how they looked and behaved, what their imagined characteristics and traits were--placing the West Indies, as the Caribbean islands were then known, within a racialised, hierarchical structure of cricket-loving peoples, alongside the colonies of white settlement: South Africa, New Zealand, Australia. During World War II, Black West Indians played prominent roles in the surprisingly large amount of cricket played in England, part of a wider propaganda effort to promote the idea of a multiracial empire, united in common cause against fascism. For post-Windrush arrivals after 1948, cricket was not just a peripheral pastime or a recreational footnote. Cricket was a cornerstone of Black West Indian social and cultural life and self-empowerment in England, integral to the earliest creation of social and community groups and the development of support networks. Watching the West Indies international cricket team win on the field of play was just one part of the Windrush story. Through the late 1940s and into the 1950s, the growth of an extensive network of Windrush cricket teams and clubs, and, by the 1970s, the evolution of Caribbean cricket leagues and competitions, created a subtle and multifaceted sense of being a West Indian in England. In due course, the children of Windrush migrants would seek to play cricket for England, challenging the very notion of what it means to be English. Interweaving extensive archival and oral history research into an engaging, often surprising narrative about empire and postwar Britain, Windrush Cricket challenges a range of orthodoxies, arguing that cricket constituted a foundational, yet almost entirely ignored aspect of the way in which Windrush migrants settled and made new lives in postwar England.