Warren Goldstein

A magnet for controversy, the media, and followers, the Rev. William Sloane Coffin Jr. was the premier voice of northern religious liberalism for more than a quarter-century, and a worthy heir to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. From his pulpits at Yale University and, later, New York City’s Riverside Church, Coffin focused national attention on civil rights, the anti-Vietnam War movement, disarmament, and gay rights. This revealing biography—based on unparalleled access to family papers and candid interviews with Coffin, his colleagues, family, friends, lovers, and wives—tells for the first time the remarkable story of Coffin’s life.An army and CIA veteran before assuming the post of Yale University chaplain at the youthful age of 33, Coffin gained notoriety as a leader of a dangerous civil rights Freedom Ride in 1961, as a defendant in the “Boston Five” trial of draft resisters in 1969, and as the preeminent voice of liberal religious dissent into the 1980s. This book encompasses Coffin’s turbulent private life as well as his flamboyant, joyful public career, while dramatically illuminating the larger social movements that consumed his days and defined his times.

Elliott J. Gorn and Warren Goldstein show us where our games and pastimes came from, how they developed, and what they have meant to Americans. The great heroes of baseball and football are here, as well as the dramatic moments of boxing and basketball. Beyond this, the authors show us how sports fit into the larger contours of our past. For this new edition, the authors have updated the book to include discussion of performance-enhancing drugs; player salaries, unions, and the business of internationalizing sport; Title IX and gender in American sports; race, especially the entry of Latino and Asian athletes; and the corporatization of amateur athletics. A Brief History of American Sports reveals that from colonial times to the present, sports have been central to American culture, and a profound expression of who we are.

"African Soul Talk" came about as the result of Sunday email conversations between Dumani Mandela and Rabbi Warren Goldstein. This unlikely duo debates what it means to be South African and to live with dignity and integrity in a country filled with contradictions. Their upbeat discussions - and often conflicting opinions - result in spirited exchanges about politics, culture, religion and nation building, and are interspersed with personal anecdotes and day-to-day events in their lives. Like the old Clem Sunter books, "African Soul Talk" examines our South African-ness and suggests how we can understand the future in these uncertain times. Together, Dumani and Warren have suggested a moral code according to which citizens can build South Africa with faith and confidence. This is a unique dialogue between two young South Africans from very different walks of life, and reflects the hope and optimism they hold for the future of all South Africans.