Counterpoint Press: 319 books

A “captivating” journey through the landscape, history, and diverse cultures of one of the world’s most majestic mountain ranges: “A modern travel classic” (Jon Lee Anderson). For centuries, the Andes of South America have caught the imagination of travelers, inspiring fear and wonder....

A man overcomes the trappings of his family’s history of suicide and addiction in this “grimly exquisite memoir that reads like a noir novel” (Publishers Weekly, Best Book of the Year). “One of the toughest memoirs I’ve ever read, at once spare and startlingly, admirably unsparing....

“Fine modern history . . . [Steele] demolishes some Western myths about Afghanistan that betray short memories and government spin.” —The Economist A masterful blend of graphic reporting, illuminating interviews, and insightful analysis. Ghosts of Afghanistan is the first account of Afghanistan’s...

The splendors of science, delightfully demystified. How do we make sense of the modern world? Science is a profoundly affecting aspect of contemporary life, and yet the gulf between experts and everyone else is widening. Colette Brooks bridges the gap by playing the role of curious layperson,...

The author of the acclaimed memoir Mother and Son creates an intimate portrait of poet Elizabeth Bishop in this “sensitive and engrossing” debut novel (Publishers Weekly)****.   “A portrait of the artist as a human—a woman of desire, contradiction, and need.” —A. M. Homes, author of The...

“An adventure story and a travel narrative, but also an excursion into memory itself.” —Booklist   When travel writer Michael Jacobs began traversing the Magdalena, a river that courses through the heart of Colombia, he was determined to leave modern conveniences aside—with the exception...

“Continues where Brown’s first memoir, The Los Angeles Diaries, left off. It’s molten stuff, the story of his efforts to control his river of rage.” —Los Angeles Times   Award-winning author James Brown gained a cult following after chronicling his turbulent childhood and spiraling drug...

“An eminent Polish physician reflects on his lifetime practice of medicine . . . A profound celebration of the human spirit.” —Kirkus Reviews There is a grand tradition of physicians who are also great writers and philosophers. When his first book, Catharsis, was published in English,...

An impassioned, thoughtful, and fearless essay on the effects of racism on the American identity by one of our country’s most humane literary voices. Acclaimed as “one of the most humane, honest, liberating works of our time” (The Village Voice), The Hidden Wound is a book-length essay...

A stunning new translation—“the best in a century, without a doubt”—of the Hebrew Bible that restores the creativity and poetry of the original text (New Republic). Whether rendering the Bible as wondrous or as strangely familiar, David Rosenberg’s “brilliant” and “truly fresh”...

A Zen Buddhist masterpiece, winner of the 2018 Thornton Wilder Prize for Translation. The Platform Sutra occupies a central place in Zen (Ch’an) Buddhist instruction for students and spiritual seekers worldwide. It is often linked with The Heart Sutra and The Diamond Sutra to form a trio...

A spiritual travelogue through the birthplace of Zen. In the spring of 2006, Bill Porter traveled through the heart of China, from Beijing to Hong Kong, on a pilgrimage to sites associated with the first six patriarchs of Zen. Zen Baggage is an account of that journey. He weaves together historical...

“A straightforward biography that thankfully avoids preaching. Readers curious about Judas’ broad effect on world history will welcome this book.” (Kirkus Reviews) In this fascinating historical and cultural biography, Peter Stanford deconstructs that most vilified of Bible characters:...

“The authoritative . . . essential set of texts from the great [Zen] master . . . edgy, practical and often funny” (Gary Snyder, Pulitzer Prize–winning author). Born in the 17th century, Hakuin Zenji is one of the greatest and most influential figures in Zen Buddhism. In addition to being...