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Great Battles For Boys Bunker Hill To Wwi: Bunker Hill To Wwi
By Joe Giorello. 2016
"This book should be in school libraries everywhere…" Amazon Top Ten Hall of Fame reviewer, 5 stars Does your son…
play video games for hours but dreads picking up a book? Does he think history is just a bunch of boring old facts? What if you could give him all the excitement of screen time but also spark his love of reading and history? You can with these exciting tales of military battles written especially for boys who are reluctant readers. Popular history teacher Joe Giorello's hugely successful class, "Great Battles for Boys" is now into an engaging and bestselling non-fiction series written for boys ages 8-14. In chronological order, beginning with the Revolutionary War, Great Battles for Boys: Bunker Hill to WWI takes young readers to the front lines of American history's most thrilling clashes. Boys discover the raw truth about the colonial fight for freedom, the hardships of Civil War soldiers, the fierce battle of the Alamo, the American Expeditionary Forces winning World War I, and much more! Packed with historic photos, maps, and notable biographies, Great Battles for Boys also explores the military leaders, weapons, and strategies that won victory—or suffered defeat. If your son likes action-packed stories, authentic details, and easy-to-read but exciting chapters, then he’ll love Joe Giorello’s thrilling accounts of history's greatest battles. "He asks to read these books on his own!" — Paix, 5 stars Buy Great Battles for Boys today and take your son to the frontlines of history! Praise for the Great Battles for Boys series: "This book should be in school libraries everywhere. It is a treasure trove of information that is engagingly written that makes one feel they are in a great classroom with a great instructor sharing his knowledge in a fun way." — Top Ten Hall of Fame Amazon Reviewer, 5 starsGreat Battles For Boys The American Revolution
By Joe Giorello. 2022
Does your son understand the meaning of “freedom isn’t free?” He will, after reading Great Battles for Boys: The American…
Revolution. From Concord and Lexington to Brandywine and Yorktown, the stunning battles show young readers how ragtag colonists took on the world’s mightiest military of its time — the British Imperial Army, otherwise known as the Red Coats. History leaps off the page and captures even reluctant readers as early colonial protests, such as the Boston Tea Party, bring even more tyranny from King George III. With a declaration of war from England and the appointment of George Washington as commander of the Continental Army, the revolution’s real battles begin. In chronological order, Great Battles for Boys: The American Revolution takes young readers to the front lines of the war's major clashes such as: Long Island: British General Howe crushes Washington’s forces and proves the odds are against the Patriot forces. Battle of Trenton: Washington’s stunning reversal following his famous Christmas Eve “crossing the Delaware.” Valley Forge: Starving, broke, and battle-weary, the Continental Army hunkers down in Pennsylvania for a long cold winter — and emerges as an entirely different fighting force. Cowpens: The southern clash where Daniel Morgan’s tactics brilliantly outsmart his enemy. Yorktown: Washington’s unyielding attack victoriously ends eight long years of suffering — and win liberty for the colonies. Each chapter also profiles the Revolution’s most fascinating leaders — Benedict Arnold, Lafayette, Francis Marion, Henry Knox —and discusses the era's complicated politics, including slavery. This action-packed book will teach your son the foundational and aspirational ideas that are woven into the United States of America— such as life, liberty, and justice for all—and how those principles were won by the brave men and women who risked everything to defeat tyranny. After reading Great Battles for Boys: The American Revolution, your son will know exactly what it means when someone says, “Freedom isn’t free." PRAISE FOR THE GREAT BATTLES FOR BOYS SERIES “This book should be in school libraries everywhere. It is a treasure trove of information that is engagingly written that makes one feel they are in a great classroom with a great instructor sharing his knowledge in a fun way." — 5 Stars, Amazon Top Ten Hall of Fame ReviewerGreat Battles For Boys The Vietnam War
By Joe Giorello. 2023
Great Battles for Boys — the bestselling series written just for boys, especially boys who hate to read! From first-person…
accounts to front-line battlefield action reports, boys will learn about the Vietnam War, including the politics that sent American soldiers into this deadly and disastrous conflict. Written in an engaging style and with dozens of historical photos, Great Battles for Boys captivates even the most reluctant readers. Boys learn about the military strategies, tactics, and weapons that won (or lost) the most significant battles of world history. Chapters include: The Battle of Dien Bien Phu: The 1954 fight that pushed the French Army out of Vietnam. The Tet Offensive: the pivotal and violent clash that the North Vietnamese lost but later turned into a political victory. Tunnel Rats: How the bravest soldiers survived Vietnam's treacherous tunnel systems. Plus rarely recognized battles such as Van Tuong and Fire Support Base Ripcord. Boys also learn about the difference between democracy and Communism, and how that difference helped fuel the United States’ entry into another country's civil war. PRAISE FOR GREAT BATTLES FOR BOYS: “This book… is a treasure trove of information that is engagingly written that makes one feel they are in a great classroom with a great instructor sharing his knowledge in a fun way." — Amazon #1 Hall of Fame ReviewerGreat Battles For Boys Ww2 Europe: Ww2 Europe
By Joe Giorello. 2014
"This book should be in school libraries everywhere." —Top 500 Amazon Reviewer Does your son play video games for hours…
but avoids reading? Does he think history is just a bunch of boring old facts? What if you could give him the excitement of screen time and at the same time spark his love of reading and history? Now you can, with these exciting tales of World War II written especially for reluctant readers. In his highly acclaimed middle-school class “Great Battles for Boys," author Joe Giorello has ignited a love of military history in hundreds of boys. Now with this engaging non-fiction book written specifically for boys ages 8-14, your son can experience that same thrilling adventure in learning. Beginning with Hitler's invasion of Poland, Great Battles for Boys: WW2 Europe takes young readers to the front lines of the war’s most important clashes. Boys will discover the raw history of warfare and learn the battles in chronological order. From Stalingrad’s hand-to-hand street fighting and the world's largest tank action at Kursk to the spy-led invasion of Sicily and the surprise D-Day invasion of Normandy—and many other exciting battles! Filled with historic photographs, maps, and notable biographies of soldiers, Great Battles for Boys: WW2 Europe explores the leaders, weapons, and strategies that toppled the Axis Powers. Each chapter also ends with suggestions for further age-appropriate books and movies that the whole family can watch. If your son likes action-packed accounts, authentic details, and short but exciting chapters, then he’ll love this book. And he'll never see history as boring again! Buy Great Battles for Boys today and march into the frontlines of history! "This book should be in school libraries everywhere. It is a treasure trove of information that is engagingly written that makes one feel they are in a great classroom with a great instructor sharing his knowledge in a fun way." —Top 500 Amazon ReviewerGreat Battles For Boys Ww2 Pacific: Ww2 Pacific
By Joe Giorello. 2016
"A terrific, engaging read..." Amazon Top-500 reviewer Great Battles for Boys takes young readers to the front lines of history's…
most important fights. In this episode of the best-selling history series, the story opens with the Flying Tigers, those wild American soldiers fighting Japan before the bombing of Pearl Harbor. After the deadly surprise attack on Hawaii, the battles storm across the Pacific in the lethal "island hopping" military strategy that brought Victory Over Japan. How did the Battle of Wake Island turn into "The Alamo of the Pacific"? Who figured out the first fighter planes take off from ships in the middle of the ocean? Why was the Doolittle Raid considered a suicide mission? How did the young American men survive while fighting on strange and hostile islands such as Guadalcanal, Saipan, and Iwo Jima? Each chapter of the book features dramatic true stories with historic photos, maps, and other awe-inspiring images. Written specifically for boys, with short chapters that get right to the fight, this book is sure to capture the attention of even the most reluctant readers. “In Volume II of Great Battles, author Joe Giorello paints a vivid picture of events in WW II’s Pacific Theater in a way that can make readers forget they aren’t listening to first-hand accounts of the action. Combining his uniquely conversational style with myriad historical facts, plenty of interesting photos,and lots of fascinating, little-known anecdotes, Joe takes readers 'behind the scenes' and helps them to experience this vitally important chapter in our Nation’s history. From the dark days following Pearl Harbor to victory ratified aboard the USS Missouri, Giorello covers it all – and never fails to capture the incredible sacrifice, unbelievable courage, and selfless service of America’s bravest and finest. A great book with superb additional resources; I give it a 'must read!' -- The Reverend Charles F. Reynolds Chief Warrant Officer 3, USMC, Ret.The Presidents: The Transformation of the American Presidency from Theodore Roosevelt to Barack Obama
By Stephen Graubard. 2009
In this magisterial examination of the Presidency over the course of the 20th Century, the author explores the history of…
the world's greatest elective office and the role each incumbent has played in changing the scope of its powers. Using individual presidential portraits of each of the presidents of the past century Graubard asks, and answers, a wide variety of crucial questions about each President. What intellectual, social and political assets did they bring to the White House, and how quickly did they deplete or mortgage that capital? How well did they cope with crises, foreign and domestic? How much attention did they pay to their election pledges after they were elected? How did they use the media, old and new? Above all, how did they conduct themselves in office and what legacy did they leave to their successors? Graubard provides original analysis in each case, and reaches many surprising conclusions.The Penguin History of the United States of America
By Hugh Brogan. 1999
This new edition of Brogan's superb one-volume history - from early British colonisation to the Reagan years - captures an…
array of dynamic personalities and events. In a broad sweep of America's triumphant progress. Brogan explores the period leading to Independence from both the American and the British points of view, touching on permanent features of 'the American character' - both the good and the bad. He provides a masterly synthesis of all the latest research illustrating America's rapid growth from humble beginnings to global dominance.Overpaid, Oversexed and Over There: How a Few Skinny Brits with Bad Teeth Rocked America
By David Hepworth. 2020
The Beatles landing in New York in February 1964 was the opening shot in a cultural revolution nobody predicted. Suddenly…
the youth of the richest, most powerful nation on earth was trying to emulate the music, manners and the modes of a rainy island that had recently fallen on hard times.The resulting fusion of American can-do and British fuck-you didn’t just lead to rock and roll’s most resonant music. It ushered in a golden era when a generation of kids born in ration card Britain, who had grown up with their nose pressed against the window of America’s plenty, were invited to wallow in their big neighbour’s largesse.It deals with a time when everything that was being done - from the Beatles playing Shea Stadium to the Rolling Stones at Altamont, from the Who performing their rock opera at the Metropolitan Opera House to David Bowie touching down in the USA for the first time with a couple of gowns in his luggage - was being done for the very first time.Rock and roll would never be quite so exciting again.Lost Symbols?: The Secrets of Washington DC
By David Ovason. 1999
The secrets, the myths and the facts behind Washington, D.C.'s design and its Masonic significance.In this groundbreaking, original work, David…
Ovason reveals the intimate connections between the mysterious zodiacal symbols and the stellar lore of Washington, D.C. and the secret plan for the city.There are over fifty complete zodiacs in Washington, D.C., all witness to an extraordinary stellar mystery. Why did generations of architects and artists put their lives and energies on the line, when designing this City of the Stars? What was their shared secret language? What or who drove them to create a city overflowing with such esoteric symbolism? What is the meaning behind the secret symbolism of Washington, D.C.'s layout? And what does it mean for America's future?This &“revealing dual biography . . . succeeds in lifting up two underappreciated figures of the antislavery movement" (Publishers Weekly).…
In the 1820s, few Americans could imagine a viable future for black children. In Educated for Freedom, Anna Mae Duane tells the story of James McCune Smith and Henry Highland Garnet, two black children who came of age and into freedom as their country struggled to grow from a slave nation into a free country. Smith and Garnet met as schoolboys at the Mulberry Street New York African Free School, an educational experiment created by founding fathers who believed in freedom&’s power to transform the country. Smith became the first African American to run a pharmacy and used his medical expertise to refute notions of black inferiority. Garnet became a minister whose oratory reputation surpassed even that of Frederick Douglass. The sons of enslaved mothers, these schoolboy friends would go on to travel the world, address Congress, and speak before cheering crowds of thousands. The lessons they took from their days at the New York African Free School #2 shed light on how antebellum Americans viewed black children as symbols of America&’s possible future. The story of their lives, their work, and their friendship testifies to the imagination and activism of the free black community that shaped the national journey toward freedom.American Hostage: A Memoir Of A Journalist Kidnapped In Iraq And The Remarkable Battle To Win His Release
By Micah Garen, Marie-Hélène Carleton. 2005
A rare and powerful story of hope, love, survival,and the struggle to bring back alive a hostage in Iraq Micah…
Garen and Marie-Hélène Carleton were journalists and filmmakers working in Iraq on a documentary about the looting of the country's legendary archaeological sites, with their Iraqi translator Amir Doshi. In the late summer of 2004, they began to wrap up their work, and Marie-Hélène returned home while Micah remained for a final two weeks of filming. As Micah and Amir were filming in a Nasiriyah market, something went horribly wrong: Micah, who wore a bushy mustache and was dressed in Iraqi clothing, was unmasked as a foreigner and kidnapped by militants in southern Iraq. Home in New York, Marie-Hélène awoke to a gut-wrenching phone call from Micah's mother with word of his abduction. She promised Micah's mother the impossible--that together they would bring Micah back alive. American Hostage is the remarkable memoir of Micah Garen's harrowing abduction and survival in captivity, as well as the heroic and successful struggle of Marie-Hélène; Micah's sister, Eva; along with family and friends to win Micah's and Amir's release from their captors. The world watched and waited as Micah's drama unfolded, but the authors, now safely home and engaged to be married, detail the dramatic untold story. After learning of Micah's abduction, Marie-Hélène took a risky and unusual step: instead of relying on the authorities to rescue Micah, she used her recent experience in Iraq to construct a massive grassroots effort to reach out to Micah's captors and plead for his release. As fighting between Coalition forces and the Mahdi Army raged in Najaf, Micah and Amir became pawns in a terrible political game. The kidnappers released a video threatening to kill Micah unless the United States withdrew from Najaf within forty-eight hours. In response, Marie-Hélène's and Micah's families redoubled their efforts, eventually sending a representative to Nasiriyah to lobby for Micah. While Marie-Hélène worked on his release, Micah, imprisoned alongside Amir under armed guard deep in the marshes of southern Iraq, lived the nightmare of a hostagehaunted by the alternating impulses of hope and despair, his desire for survival and plans of escape. His experience reveals a great deal about the lives and minds of militants in southern Iraq. American Hostage is an engrossing and rare story of how hope, love, and communal effort can overcome war, distance, and cultural differences in Iraq.&“Compellingly chronicles one of the least studied great episodes of World War II with power and authority…A riveting read&” (Donald…
L. Miller, New York Times bestselling author of Masters of the Air) about World War II&’s largest airborne operation—one that dropped 17,000 Allied paratroopers deep into the heart of Nazi Germany.On the morning of March 24, 1945, more than two thousand Allied aircraft droned through a cloudless sky toward Germany. Escorted by swarms of darting fighters, the armada of transport planes carried 17,000 troops to be dropped, via parachute and glider, on the far banks of the Rhine River. Four hours later, after what was the war&’s largest airdrop, all major objectives had been seized. The invasion smashed Germany&’s last line of defense and gutted Hitler&’s war machine; the war in Europe ended less than two months later.Four Hours of Fury follows the 17th Airborne Division as they prepare for Operation Varsity, a campaign that would rival Normandy in scale and become one of the most successful and important of the war. Even as the Third Reich began to implode, it was vital for Allied troops to have direct access into Germany to guarantee victory—the 17th Airborne secured that bridgehead over the River Rhine. And yet their story has until now been relegated to history&’s footnotes.In this viscerally exciting account, paratrooper-turned-historian James Fenelon &“details every aspect of the American 17th Airborne Division&’s role in Operation Varsity...inspired&” (The Wall Street Journal). Reminiscent of A Bridge Too Far and Masters of the Air, Four Hours of Fury does for the 17th Airborne what Band of Brothers did for the 101st. It is a captivating, action-packed tale of heroism and triumph spotlighting one of World War II&’s most under-chronicled and dangerous operations.Deep Descent: Adventure and Death Diving the Andrea Doria
By Kevin F. McMurray. 2001
An in-depth look at the danger of diving the Andrea Doria, the "Everest" of deep-sea diving, by an award-winning journalist…
and photographer.On a foggy July evening in 1956, the Italian cruise liner Andrea Doria, bound for New York, was struck broadside by another vessel. In eleven hours, she would sink nearly 250 feet to the murky Atlantic Ocean floor. Thanks to a daring rescue operation, only fifty-one of more than 1,700 people died in the tragedy. But the Andrea Doria is still taking lives. Considered the Mount Everest of diving, the Andrea Doria is the ultimate deepwater wreck challenge. Over the years, a small but fanatical group of extreme scuba divers have investigated the Andrea Doria, pushing themselves to the very limits of human endurance to explore her—and not all have returned. Diver Kevin McMurray takes you inside this elite club with a hard, honest look at those who go deeper, farther, and closer to the edge than others would ever dream.Deep Descent is the riveting true story of the human spirit overcoming human frailty and of fearsome, mortal risks traded for a hard-core adrenaline rush. Chronicling these adventures in his page-turning narrative and in dozens of dramatic photos, McMurray draws us deeper into the cold heart of the unforgiving sea, giving us a powerful vision of a place to which few will ever have the skills—or the courage—to go.The Clinton Tapes: Conversations with a President, 1993–2001
By Taylor Branch. 2009
Taylor Branch’s groundbreaking book about the modern presidency, The Clinton Tapes, invites readers into private dialogue with a gifted, tormented,…
resilient president. Here is what President Clinton thought and felt but could not say in public.This book rests upon a secret project, initiated by Clinton, to preserve for future historians an unfiltered record of presidential experience. During his eight years in office, between 1993 and 2001, Clinton answered questions and told stories in the White House, usually late at night. His friend Pulitzer Prize-winning author Taylor Branch recorded seventy-nine of these dialogues to compile a trove of raw information about a presidency as it happened. Clinton drew upon the diary transcripts for his memoir in 2004. Branch recorded his own detailed recollections immediately after each session, covering not only the subjects discussed but also the look and feel of each evening with the president. The text engages Clinton from many angles. Readers hear candid stories, feel buffeting pressures, and weigh vivid descriptions of the White House settings. Branch's firsthand narrative is confessional, unsparing, and personal. The author admits straying at times from his primary role -- to collect raw material for future historians -- because his discussions with Clinton were unpredictable and intense. What should an objective prompter say when the President of the United States seeks advice, argues facts, or lodges complaints against the press? The dynamic relationship that emerges from these interviews is both affectionate and charged, with flashes of anger and humor. President Clinton drives the history, but this story is also about friends. The Clinton Tapes highlights major events of Clinton's two terms, including wars in Bosnia and Kosovo, the failure of health care reform, peace initiatives on three continents, the anti-deficit crusade, and titanic political struggles from Whitewater to American history's second presidential impeachment trial. Along the way, Clinton delivers colorful portraits of countless political figures and world leaders from Nelson Mandela to Pope John Paul II. These unprecedented White House dialogues will become a staple of presidential scholarship. Branch's masterly account opens a new window on a controversial era and Bill Clinton's eventual place among our chief executives.Republic of Dreams: Greenwich Village: The American Bohemia, 1910–1960
By Ross Wetzsteon. 2003
If the twentieth century was the American century, it can be argued that it was more specifically the New York…
century, and Greenwich Village was the incubator of every important writer, artist, and political movement of the period. From the century's first decade through the era of beatniks and modern art in the 1950s and '60s, Greenwich Village was the destination for rebellious men and women who flocked there from all over the country to fulfill their artistic, political, and personal dreams. It has been called the most significant square mile in American cultural history, for it holds the story of the rise and fall of American socialism, women's suffrage, and the commercialization of the avant-garde. One Villager went so far as to say that "everything started in the Village except Prohibition," and in the 1940s, the young actress Lucille Ball said, "The Village is the greatest place in the world." What other community could claim a spectrum ranging from Henry James to Marlon Brando, from Marcel Duchamp to Bob Dylan, from Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney to Abbie Hoffman? The story of the Village is, in large part, the stories old Villagers have told new Villagers about former Villagers, and to tell its story is in large part to tell its legends. Republic of Dreams presents the remarkable, outrageous, often interrelated biographies of the giants of American journalism, poetry, drama, radical politics, and art who flocked to the Village for nearly half a century, among them Eugene O'Neill, whose plays were first produced by the Provincetown Players on Macdougal Street, for whom Edna St. Vincent Millay also wrote; Jackson Pollock, who moved to the Village from Wyoming in 1930 and was soon part of the group of 8th Street painters who would revolutionize Western painting; E. E. Cummings, who lived for years on Patchin Place, as did Djuna Barnes; Max Eastman, who edited the groundbreaking literary and political journal The Masses, which introduced Freud to the American public and also published Sherwood Anderson, Amy Lowell, Upton Sinclair, Maksim Gorky, and John Reed's reporting on the Russian Revolution. Republic of Dreams is beautifully researched, outspoken, wise, hip, exuberant, a monumental, definitive history that will endure for decades to come.General Lee's Army: From Victory to Collapse
By Joseph Glatthaar. 2009
"You would be surprised to see what men we have in the ranks," Virginia cavalryman Thomas Rowland informed his mother…
in May 1861, just after joining the Army of Northern Virginia. His army -- General Robert E. Lee's army -- was a surprise to almost everyone: With daring early victories and an invasion into the North, they nearly managed to convince the North to give up the fight. Even in 1865, facing certain defeat after the loss of 30,000 men, a Louisiana private fighting in Lee's army still had hope. "I must not despair," he scribbled in his diary. "Lee will bring order out of chaos, and with the help of our Heavenly Father, all will be well." Astonishingly, after 150 years of scholarship, there are still some major surprises about the Army of Northern Virginia. In General Lee's Army, renowned historian Joseph T. Glatthaar draws on an impressive range of sources assembled over two decades -- from letters and diaries, to official war records, to a new, definitive database of statistics -- to rewrite the history of the Civil War's most important army and, indeed, of the war itself. Glatthaar takes readers from the home front to the heart of the most famous battles of the war: Manassas, the Peninsula campaign, Antietam, Gettysburg, all the way to the final surrender at Appomattox. General Lee's Army penetrates headquarters tents and winter shanties, eliciting the officers' plans, wishes, and prayers; it portrays a world of life, death, healing, and hardship; it investigates the South's commitment to the war and its gradual erosion; and it depicts and analyzes Lee's men in triumph and defeat. The history of Lee's army is a powerful lens on the entire war. The fate of Lee's army explains why the South almost won -- and why it lost. The story of his men -- their reasons for fighting, their cohesion, mounting casualties, diseases, supply problems, and discipline problems -- tells it all. Glatthaar's definitive account settles many historical arguments. The Rebels were fighting above all to defend slavery. More than half of Lee's men were killed, wounded, or captured -- a staggering statistic. Their leader, Robert E. Lee, though far from perfect, held an exalted place in his men's eyes despite a number of mistakes and despite a range of problems among some of his key lieutenants. General Lee's Army is a masterpiece of scholarship and vivid storytelling, narrated as much as possible in the words of the enlisted men and their officers.Almost Worthy: The Poor, Paupers, and the Science of Charity in America, 1877–1917
By Brent Ruswick. 2012
A history and analysis of scientific charity organizations that arose in late nineteenth century America.In the 1880s, social reform leaders…
warned that the “unworthy” poor were taking charitable relief intended for the truly deserving. Armed with statistics and confused notions of evolution, these “scientific charity” reformers founded organizations intent on limiting access to relief by the most morally, biologically, and economically unfit. Brent Ruswick examines a prominent national organization for scientific social reform and poor relief in Indianapolis in order to understand how these new theories of poverty gave birth to new programs to assist the poor.“Ruswick’s well-researched monograph traces the history of the charity organization society in the US from its origins in the Gilded Age to its merging with social work in the Progressive Era. . . . Recommended.” —Choice“[This] study provides a welcome insight into the inner workings of charity organization societies and their drive to eliminate poverty.” —Nonprofit & Voluntary Sector Quarterly, Volume43, Issue 4, 2014“Almost Worthy offers a lot of interesting detail pulled from COS case files, professional conference proceedings, journals of the field, and more; some possibly fruitful hypotheses about what to make of changes in COS approaches over time; thoughtful new propositions about the relationship between scientific charity and eugenics (including some charity reformers’ apparent remorse); and a fresh, new mini-biography of Oscar McCulloch interspersed throughout.” —H-SHGAPE“Brent Ruswick wants to put the science back into scientific charity. He argues that the essence of organized charity was not its class prejudices and censorious attitude toward the poor, but rather its belief that systematic evidence-gathering could serve to improve the quality of charity work and public policy.” —American Historical Review, Volume119, Issue 4, October 2014Rights Talk: The Impoverishment Of Political Discourse
By Mary Ann Glendon. 1993
Political speech in the United States is undergoing a crisis. Glendon's acclaimed book traces the evolution of the strident language…
of rights in America and shows how it has captured the nation's devotion to individualism and liberty, but omitted the American traditions of hospitality and care for the community.The Ambassadors: America's Diplomats on the Front Lines
By Paul Richter. 2019
Veteran diplomatic correspondent Paul Richter goes behind the battles and the headlines to show how American ambassadors are the unconventional…
warriors in the Muslim world—running local government, directing drone strikes, building nations, and risking their lives on the front lines.The tale&’s heroes are a small circle of top career diplomats who have been an unheralded but crucial line of national defense in the past two decades of wars in the greater Middle East. In The Ambassadors, Paul Richter shares the astonishing, true-life stories of four expeditionary diplomats who &“do the hardest things in the hardest places.&”The book describes how Ryan Crocker helped rebuild a shattered Afghan government after the fall of the Taliban and secretly negotiated with the shadowy Iranian mastermind General Qassim Suleimani to wage war in Afghanistan and choose new leaders for post-invasion Iraq. Robert Ford, assigned to be a one-man occupation government for an Iraqi province, struggled to restart a collapsed economy and to deal with spiraling sectarian violence—and was taken hostage by a militia. In Syria at the eruption of the civil war, he is chased by government thugs for defying the country&’s ruler. J. Christopher Stevens is smuggled into Libya as US Envoy to the rebels during its bloody civil war, then returns as ambassador only to be killed during a terror attach in Benghazi. War-zone veteran Anne Patterson is sent to Pakistan, considered the world&’s most dangerous country, to broker deals that prevent a government collapse and to help guide the secret war on jihadists.&“An important and illuminating read&” (The Washington Post) and the winner of the prestigious Douglas Dillon Book Award from the American Academy of Diplomacy, The Ambassadors is a candid examination of the career diplomatic corps, America&’s first point of contact with the outside world, and a critical piece of modern-day history.Sunny Days: The Children's Television Revolution That Changed America
By David Kamp. 2020
One of the &“Best Books&” of the year from The Smithsonian, The Washington Independent Review, and more!From bestselling writer David…
Kamp, the &“fun, fascinating, and surprisingly touching,&” (People) behind-the-scenes story of the cultural heroes who created the beloved children&’s TV programs Sesame Street, The Electric Company, Mister Rogers&’ Neighborhood, Free to Be…Youand Me, and Schoolhouse Rock!—which transformed American childhood for the better, teaching kids about diversity, the ABCs, and feminism through a fun, funky 1970s lens.With a foreword by Questlove.In 1970, on a soundstage on Manhattan&’s Upper West Side, a group of men, women, and Muppets of various ages and colors worked doggedly to finish the first season of a children&’s TV program that was not yet assured a second season: Sesame Street. They were conducting an experiment to see if television could be used to better prepare disadvantaged preschoolers for kindergarten. What they didn&’t know then was that they were starting a cultural revolution that would affect all American kids.In Sunny Days, bestselling author David Kamp captures the unique political and social moment that gave us not only Sesame Street, but also Fred Rogers&’s gentle yet brave Mister Rogers&’ Neighborhood; Marlo Thomas&’s unabashed gender politics primer Free to Be…You and Me; Schoolhouse Rock!, an infectious series of educational shorts dreamed up by Madison Ave admen; and more, including The Electric Company and ZOOM. It was a unique time when an uncommon number of media professionals and thought leaders leveraged their influence to help children learn—and, just as notably, a time of unprecedented buy-in from American parents.&“Sunny Days is full of such nostalgic jolts…it makes the era a pleasure to revisit&” (The Wall Street Journal) and captures a wondrous period in the US when a determined few proved that, with persistence and effort, they could change the lives of millions. It is &“a lively and bewitching recounting of a particularly ripe period in television and cultural history&” (The New York Times Book Review) and, as the Los Angeles Times notes, &“a sublime book about a variety of creative people coming together not in the pursuit of fame or money, but to enrich the lives of children.&”