Counterpoint Press: 319 books

“Combines art, art history, and Italian allure into a cerebral romance . . . vividly entertaining.” —Publishers Weekly The tour Elizabeth Berman is on is better suited to her late husband, a Dante scholar who’d masterminded the itinerary as a surprise for their thirty-fifth wedding...

An in-depth exploration of the innovative science and intrepid spirit behind the expeditions that led to the discovery of Antarctica. On March 8, 1912, the front page of The Daily Chronicle trumpeted “The South Pole discovered,” marking Roald Amundsen’s triumph over the tragic Robert...

“A thrilling account” of a harrowing Antarctic expedition, enriched with the historical journals of the explorers themselves (The New York Times).   Their tents were torn, their food was nearly finished, and the ship had failed to pick them up as planned. Gale-force winds blew, bitter with the...

A look at how development affects places from national parks to Napa Valley, and “an enthralling, lovely tribute to a lot of what is precious in America” (Tracy Kidder). Vanishing America recounts the author’s journeys between Washington, D.C., and Big Sur, California, as he tries to...

“A compelling and evocative read” about an all-out battle over a marine sanctuary in Northern California (Erik Larson, New York Times–bestselling author of Dead Wake). Located in that estuary was a small, struggling oyster farm. In existence for more than eighty years, it was accused...

A look at the chemicals surrounding us that’s “hard-hitting . . . yet also instills hope for a future in which consumers make safer, more informed choices” (The Washington Post). Pollution is no longer just about belching smokestacks and ugly sewer pipes—now, it’s personal. The...

How Buddhism can help solve our environmental challenges: “Though her book is dense with facts, it reads like poetry or a series of koans.” —The Shambhala Sun   We know that our earth is in crisis, but is the situation beyond repair? Are we on a path of planetary disaster where the only proper...

A “beguiling . . . passionate and funny” biography of the alphabet—from A to Z and umlauts to dictionaries—by a bestselling author “whose fervor is contagious” (Boston Globe). In Alphabetical, Michael Rosen tells the fascinating tale of how our modern alphabet—those twenty-six...

An impassioned and rigorous appeal for reconnection to the land and human feeling by one of America’s most heartfelt and humble writers. When he accepted the invitation to deliver The Jefferson Lecture—our nation’s highest honor for distinguished intellectual achievement—Wendell Berry...

A surprise-filled shellfish survey dishes up “ample oyster facts, figures and literary lore” (Publishers Weekly). When award-winning Texas food writer Robb Walsh discovers that the local Galveston Bay oysters are being passed off as Blue Points and Chincoteagues in other parts of the country,...

“Masterfully researching his subject,” historian David Carle contemplates the future of water conservation in the drought-challenged state of California (Los Angeles Times).   Imported water has transformed the Golden State’s environment and quality of life. Land ownership patterns and real...

An NPR journalist’s riveting exploration of religious fanaticism, terrorism, persecution, and confronting one’s own beliefs in a post 9/11 world.   Soon after the World Trade Center towers fell on September 11 2001, it became clear that the United States would invade Afghanistan. Writer and This...

A profound, humble, deeply introspective correspondence between two great American writers spanning 40 years. In 1969 Pulitzer prize-winning poet Gary Snyder returned from a long residence in Japan to northern California, to a homestead in the Sierra foothills where he intended to build a house...

A skeptical yet deeply curious survey of how and why human beings have worshipped throughout the ages—from sun gods and cave paintings to Mormonism.   What first prompted prehistoric man, sheltered in the shadows of deep caves, to call upon the realm of the spirits? And why has belief thrived ever...