<DIV><DIV><DIV><DIV>The time: 2000 to 2005, the years of neoconservatism, terrorism, the twenty-four-hour news cycle, the ascension of Bush, Blair, and Berlusconi, and the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. In this series of provocative, passionate, and witty&nbsp;essays, Umberto Eco examines a wide range of phenomena,&nbsp;from Harry Potter, the Tower of Babel, talk shows, and the Enlightenment to <I>The Da Vinci Code/</I> What led us, he asks,&nbsp;into this age of hot wars and media populism, and how was it sold to us as progress? <P></P>In <I>Turning Back the Clock,</I> the bestselling author and respected scholar turns his famous intellect toward events both local and global to look at where our troubled world is headed. </DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV>