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Biography and Memoir February 2018
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| The Trials of a Scold: The Incredible True Story of Writer Anne Royall by Jeff BiggersWhat it is: an illuminating profile of writer Anne Royall (1769-1854), one of America’s first female muckrakers, who was infamously tried for being a “common scold.”
Why you should read it: Though now nearly forgotten, Anne Royall was a trailblazing traveler and investigative journalist who was critical of both church and state -- a very modern woman ahead of her time.
Reviewers say: “Captivating and thoroughly researched” (Publishers Weekly). |
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Ice Bowl '67 : the Packers, the Cowboys, and the Game that Changed the NFL
by Chuck Carlson
What it's about: For those players who remain, the scars still run deep when it comes to the infamous “Ice Bowl,” played December 31, 1967, between the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys. Players even today suffer the ravages of frostbite and lung damage from a game many of the players never thought should have been played in the minus 45 degree wind-chill (that dropped to 65 below by the end of the game), because the NFL championship, and a spot in the second Super Bowl, was on the line.
About the author: Chuck Carlson was a sports writer/columnist for more than thirty years with newspapers in Virginia, Maryland, Washington, Illinois, Nevada, and Wisconsin. He spent eleven years covering the Green Bay Packers for the Appleton Post-Crescent.
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| Hitler, My Neighbor: Memories of a Jewish Childhood, 1929-1939 by Edgar Feuchtwanger with Bertil ScaliWhat it is: Historian Edgar Feuchtwanger relates how his boyhood in a prominent German-Jewish family was affected by the arrival of a new neighbor, Adolf Hitler, who moved in across the street from his Munich home in 1929.
Read it for: Feuchtwanger’s riveting first-hand accounts of events such as the Night of the Long Knives, the Anschluss, and Kristallnacht.
Reviewers say: “An intimate look at the horror wrought by Hitler” (Kirkus Reviews). |
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Think Before you Like : Social Media's Effect on the Brain and the Tools you Need to Navigate your Newsfeed
by Guy P Harrison
What it's about: Social media has pitfalls: misinformation, pseudoscience, fraud, and irrational beliefs, presented in an attractive, easy-to-share form. It reinforces your biases by tracking your preferences: it sends only filtered newsfeeds, so that you rarely see anything that might challenge your set notions.
Why you should read it: Harrison demonstrates how critical thinking can enhance the benefits of social media, while giving readers the skills to guard against its dangers. He also suggests ways to protect yourself against privacy invasion, trolls, and the confusion over fake news versus credible journalism.
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| When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha BandeleWhat it's about: Artist and social justice activist Patrisse Khan-Cullors divulges the story of her life, from her 1980s childhood in suburban Los Angeles to her involvement in founding the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Is it for you? This passionate and candid coming-of-age memoir is for readers with a strong interest in social activism, LGBT issues, and human rights. |
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| Montaigne in Barn Boots: An Amateur Ambles through Philosophy by Michael PerryWhat it is: Bestselling writer Michael Perry (The Jesus Cow) draws parallels between his life and that of medieval French philosopher Michel de Montaigne.
Read it for: Perry’s warm and humorous tone, which might provoke laughter as he describes his (and Montaigne’s) views on aging, sex, marriage...and kidney stones. |
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Shame Nation : The Global Epidemic of Online Hate
by Sue Scheff
What it's about: Explores the phenomenon of online shaming and offers practical guidance on how to prevent cyber blunders and cyber bullies.
Why you should read it: Sue Scheff presents an eye-opening examination around the rise in online shaming, and offers practical advice and tips including preventing digital disasters; defending your online reputation; building digital resilience; reclaiming online civility.
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The Marshall Plan : Dawn of the Cold War
by Benn Steil
What it's about: Traces the history of the Marshall Plan and the efforts to reconstruct western Europe as a bulwark against communist authoritarianism during a two-year period that saw the collapse of postwar U.S.-Soviet relations and the beginning of the Cold War.
Also by this author: The Battle of Bretton Woods: John Maynard Keynes, Harry Dexter White, and the Making of A New World Order
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| The Black Calhouns: From Civil War to Civil Rights with One African American Family by Gail Lumet BuckleyWhat it is: Author Gail Lumet Buckley, the daughter of singer Lena Horne, shares the multi-generational story of her African American family, from former Atlanta house slave Moses Calhoun to the family’s arrival in Brooklyn, New York, and beyond.
Further reading: For another saga of an African American family through several generations, check out From Slave Ship to Harvard by James H. Johnston. |
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| The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace by Jeff HobbsWhat it's about: the haunting life story of Robert Peace, a brilliant young African American who grew up in the ghettos of 1980s Newark, New Jersey, but made his way into the Ivy League -- only to end up dealing drugs after graduation, which ultimately led to his death.
Author alert: The author of this compelling biography was Robert Peace’s roommate at Yale University.
You might also like: Kevin Powell's memoir The Education of Kevin Powell, another gripping and sobering portrayal of life for post-Civil Rights African Americans. |
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| Invisible Man, Got the Whole World Watching: A Young Black Man's Education by Mychal Denzel SmithWhat it is: Mychal Denzel Smith (who writes for The Nation) details the story of his life as a young black man coming of age in the United States, from his birth in 1980s Washington, D.C., to his time at the historically black Hampton University, to his life as a social activist.
Read it with: Ta-Nehisi Coates’ National Book Award-winning Between the World and Me, which also provides cultural commentary and probes the issue of race in America. |
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