Gerard Noel

Explores the fatal effect of the Vatican's concord with Hitler and Pius XII's failure to condemn Hitler's attempt to exterminate the Jews. This offers a portrait of a man in highest power and authority who was mother-fixated, dominated by a German nun, Sister Pasqualina, who who was ultimately more liberal and anti-Nazi than the Pope himself.

"The Renaissance Popes were statesmen, warriors and patrons of the arts, as well as churchmen. These were earthly times and the reputations of popes like Alexander VI, the infamous Borgia patriarch, and Julius 'Il Terribile' II for murder, poison, sodomy and simony vary only in degree. Meanwhile, the sin of heresy, which threatens the very core of the Catholic soul, was tirelessly targeted by two other lasting innovations of the period: the Inquisition and witch-hunts." "Alexander VI, father of the ruthless Cesare and jezebel Lucrezia, is seen to this day as the embodiment of this iniquity. But Gerard Noel shows this is injust, based on false confessions and unanswered historical myth. What's more, Alexander created the blueprint for reform - the first of its kind - that would eventually lead to the Counter-Reformation." "In his survey of the colourful reigns of these seventeen popes, set against the spectacular backdrop of the Renaissance, Noel brings to light the true legacy - artistic, political, religious - of an extraordinary time."--Jacket.

An adopted daughter who sometimes feels she doesn't fit into her large untidy English family, reevaluates her position after a visit with her real father, an African prince.

Universally acclaimed as a musical genius, Miles Davis was one of the most important and influential musicians in the world. Here, Miles speaks out about his extraordinary life. Miles: The Autobiography, like Miles himself, holds nothing back. He speaks frankly and openly about his drug problem and how he overcame it. He condemns the racism he encountered in the music business and in American society generally. And he discusses the women in his life. But above all, Miles talks about music and musicians, including the legends he has played with over the years: Bird, Dizzy, Monk, Trane, Mingus, and many others.