Books by John Walsh

The Shadows Rise: Abraham Lincoln and the Ann Rutledge Legend

by John Walsh

In recent decades the Ann Rutledge story has been treated as mythical rather than as an account of Abraham Lincoln's first but doomed love affair. In The Shadows Rise, the first book-length treatment of the subject, John Evangelist Walsh restores Ann Rutledge to her rightful place in the historical record.
In 1945 the noted Lincoln scholar James G. Randall stated in his Lincoln biography that no real evidence existed to confirm Lincoln's love for Ann or the tales of his profound grief at her early death. Later, in the 1990s, John Y. Simon and Douglas Wilson began the rehabilitation of Rutledge with a reexamination of Herndon's papers.
Now, in The Shadows Rise, Walsh transcends and transforms recent research, re-creating the Lincoln-Rutledge story in all its dramatic fullness and depth. Along with new material and new interpretations he supplies some old-fashioned common sense. Highlights include convincing reconstructions of Lincoln's New Salem friends and Walsh's fresh examination of the Mary Owens affair, in which Lincoln's offer of marriage was refused.

UAE - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

by Culture Smart, John Walsh

Full of people who aim to combine the ancient and the modern, the UAE is an extremely rewarding place to visit. Set on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Gulf, the country was once a poor desert land, a confederation of tribal sheikhdoms on the periphery of the Arab world, subsisting on pearl diving and fishing. It was a British protectorate until independence in 1971, after which seven of the sheikhdoms united to form a federation, the UAE. The discovery of oil in the 1950s transformed the country’s fortunes, and the UAE today is a land of contrasts—embracing skyscrapers, high-tech communications, and luxury hotels, while conservative values and religion remain strong. The UAE is a major player in the shifting alliances of the Middle East and the war against radical Islam, simultaneously seeking a global leadership position while maintaining its social systems and slowly integrating women into public life without violating its core beliefs.

The Ballad of Ronan: Part One

by Jim Walsh, John Walsh

Irish mythology gets a modern interpretation.

Long ago, a war raged to extinguish all magic from this world and magic has not been felt since. But when Aisling, an angry Irish orphan, runs away from foster care, she's going to discover that the war isn't over. And with the help of an ancient Celtic warrior, a rogue priest, and a dark fairy, she will find herself on the run from the darkest creatures of the ages. Her only hope - find out where the magic went and how to bring it back!

Action Lab presents the first volume of a new series that connects readers to the search for belonging, redemption, and the magic inside us.

Collects The Ballad of Ronan Issues 1-3.

Conan the Barbarian: The Official Story of the Film

by John Walsh

Official retrospective hardback book telling the story of the making of Conan The Barbarian, including interviews with cast and crew and featuring behind-the-scenes photography from the shoot.

“What is best in life? To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to read John Walsh’s magnum opus on the making of my film Conan The Barbarian! Crom himself would sing praises for Walsh’s great research and even greater writing.”

- John Milius

In 1982, Robert E. Howard's iconic literary anti-hero, Conan, slashed his way from page to screen after a perilous decades-long journey. With its potent mix of epic vistas and bloody battles, Conan the Barbarian thrilled moviegoers around the world and launched the career of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Forty years after its release, this cult-classic film is celebrated in Conan the Barbarian – The Official Story of the Film, a lush hardback volume that tells the full story of how the film was made. Brand new interviews with cast and crew, as well behind-the-scenes photography from the set and concept art created for the production, give fascinating insights into the development of one of the best-loved fantasy films of the 1980s.

Gladiator II: the Art and Making of the Ridley Scott Film

by John Walsh

The official behind-the-scenes companion to Sir Ridley Scott's highly anticipated sequel to Gladiator

This definitive volume takes readers deep into the extraordinary production of Gladiator II. Exploring the revolutionary special effects and breathtaking artistry that went into re-creating the grandeur of ancient Rome on a truly epic scale, Gladiator II: The Art and Making of the Ridley Scott Film features storyboards, unit photography, concept art, character and costume sketches, and an array of props and ephemera, offering a comprehensive look at the creative process behind one of the most eagerly awaited sequels of our time.

With a foreword by Sir Ridley Scott and exclusive interviews with the cast--including Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, and more--as well as insights from production designers, armorers, and the visual effects team, the book grants an insider's look at this cinematic epic and is an essential companion to the film.

Kant's Early Critics on Freedom of the Will

by John Walsh, Jörg Noller

This book offers translations of early critical reactions to Kant's account of free will. Spanning the years 1784-1800, the translations make available, for the first time in English, works by little-known thinkers including Pistorius, Ulrich, Heydenreich, Creuzer and others, as well as familiar figures including Reinhold, Fichte and Schelling. Together they are a testimony to the intense debates surrounding the reception of Kant's account of free will in the 1780s and 1790s, and throw into relief the controversies concerning the coherence of Kant's concept of transcendental freedom, the possibility of reconciling freedom with determinism, the relation between free will and moral imputation, and other arguments central to Kant's view. The volume also includes a helpful introduction, a glossary of key terms and biographical details of the critics, and will provide a valuable foundation for further research on free will in post-Kantian philosophy.