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History and Current EventsSeptember 2014
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"Haiti should remind us all that there is an immediate need to invest in and promote long-term development projects that are sustainable, scalable, and proven to work." ~ Bill Gates, American entrepreneur
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New and Recently Released!
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| Redeeming the Dream: The Case for Marriage Equality by David Boies and Theodore B. OlsonIn 2008, when California passed Proposition 8 in order to forbid gay marriage, attorneys David Boies and Theodore Olson agreed to represent a challenge to the California law. Redeeming the Dream describes their work on the lawsuit dubbed Perry v. Schwarzenegger, which ended with the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that Proposition 8 and the U.S. Defense of Marriage Act were unconstitutional. Boies and Olson's engaging blow-by-blow account of the challenge and resulting decision makes the legal details accessible to general readers and offers an informative companion to journalist Jo Becker's Forcing the Spring. |
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| Double Agent: The First Hero of World War II and How the FBI Outwitted and... by Peter DuffyEven before America declared war against Germany in World War II, Nazi agents operated a very effective ring of German-American spies within the U.S. When German native (and American citizen) William Sebold went to Germany in 1939 to visit family, German intelligence officers tried to recruit him. Sebold, however, contacted the FBI when he returned to New York and agreed to supply information on Nazi espionage. In Double Agent, which reads as much like a spy thriller as a work of history, journalist Peter Duffy provides exciting details of Sebold's work. For another engaging account of World War II spying, Hervie Haufler's The Spies Who Never Were relates the exploits of British counterintelligence agents. |
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| The Dog Who Could Fly: The Incredible True Story of a WWII Airman and... by Damien LewisThe Dog Who Could Fly describes how Czech airman Robert Bozdech survived a crash in France in 1939 and saved his pilot's life. The two men then rescued a German Shepherd puppy, which became Bozdech's constant companion, even in the air. As Bozdech flew for both France and the RAF, his dog, Antis, saved his life several times, and the airman also saved the dog. Mining Bozdech's memoirs and other papers, author Damien Lewis relates the enthralling, heart-stopping story of Antis' and Bozdech's adventures throughout the war. For another fascinating account of a dog's bond with his soldier -- from 2004 in Iraq -- read Sergeant Rex, co-authored by Lewis and Mike Dowling. |
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| A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal by Ben MacintyreThe revelation in 1963 that British MI6 agent Kim Philby had betrayed Britain to the Soviets for decades rocked the Western intelligence community. In A Spy Among Friends, acclaimed journalist Ben Macintyre portrays Philby's extensive career and analyzes both his motives for selling out his country and why his treason went undetected for so long. This fascinating account delves into the gentlemen's club that was MI6 at the time Philby worked there -- upper-crust acceptance of a man who was "one of us" protected Philby from exposure. Anyone interested in Cold War history or the annals of spycraft will find Macintyre's account both riveting and chilling. |
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| Virtual Unreality: Just Because the Internet Told You, How Do You Know It's True? by Charles SeifeThe Internet disseminates facts, opinions, and outright fraud, and its questionable reliability has become a significant concern in public discourse. In Virtual Unreality, journalism professor Charles Seife describes in detail how information on the Internet can be falsified, manipulated, and perpetuated. Providing concrete examples of Internet fakery, Seife serves as an engaging and witty guide through the wilderness of digital information, both reliable and fraudulent. Virtual Unreality doesn't suggest that people avoid using the Internet for research, but does provide techniques for identifying the useful and verifiable sites and services -- how to find the wheat amid all that chaff. The book concludes with an appendix: "The Top Ten Dicta of the Internet Skeptic." |
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| The Big Truck That Went By: How the World Came to Save Haiti and Left Behind a Disaster by Jonathan M. KatzJournalist Jonathan Katz was stationed in Haiti, working for the Associated Press, when a major earthquake devastated the country on January 12, 2010. He reported from the front lines of the disaster beginning the moment after it struck, and in The Big Truck That Went By he details both the immediate ruin and the continuing disaster of slow and inadequate responses by both Haitian leaders and international aid programs. He explains reasons for slow recovery and describes successful relief and rebuilding programs. Kirkus Reviews calls this an "eye-opening, trailblazing exposé." Another thorough examination of the earthquake's effects appears in Haiti After the Earthquake, edited by Paul Farmer. |
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| The White Cascade: The Great Northern Railway Disaster and America's Deadliest... by Gary KristThis riveting chronicle of one of the worst rail disasters in American history describes how a 1910 avalanche in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State swept away two Great Northern Railway trains, killing 96 passengers and crew. Author Gary Krist vividly depicts all aspects of this monstrous event, including the record three-day spring blizzard that trapped the trains in the mountains, the frenzied efforts of railroad workers to free the cars and engines, the subsequent snowslide, and the desperation and claustrophobia of snowbound survivors. White Cascade is a thrilling read that will appeal to railroad history buffs and fans of survival and disaster stories. |
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| A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge by Josh NeufeldIn A.D., author and artist Josh Neufeld mines blogs and interviews to weave together multiple accounts of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina. Most of the people whose stories he includes in this graphic format account stayed in the city through the flood, though a few were evacuated. All but one lost everything, and that resident, a doctor whose house was above flood level, opened a clinic in his home. Neufeld's drawings and the comments he transcribes -- occasionally including strong language -- powerfully represent both the emotional impact and the material losses of the disaster. A brief afterword summarizes Neufeld's thoughts and methods, which included going to New Orleans to interview and photograph the subjects. |
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| Ghosts Of Vesuvius: A New Look At The Last Days Of Pompeii, How The Towers Fell... by Charles PellegrinoWhen Mt. Vesuvius destroyed the ancient Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, people had little understanding of volcanoes. The doomed citizens went about their business until they succumbed to the eruption's rain of hot ash and gasses. Since then, scientists have learned much more about volcanoes and the causes of other catastrophes -- such as the collapse of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center on 9/11. Keeping the Vesuvius disaster as his focal point, author Charles Pellegrino engagingly discusses the science of various catastrophes and identifies information that could prove helpful in preventing or recovering from future disasters. "A compelling fusion of pioneering science and poignant reflection," declares Booklist in a starred review. |
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| A Sea in Flames: The Deepwater Horizon Oil Blowout by Carl SafinaIn A Sea in Flames, world-renowned oceanographer (and MacArthur "Genius Award" recipient) Carl Safina discusses the 2010 Gulf of Mexico BP oil-spill disaster, including the shoddy work and safety rules that caused the event and the ineffective responses by big business and government officials after it happened. He addresses the spill's environmental impact on the many animals and people nearby, as well as the negative effects on tourism and fishing that resulted from publicity. He also points to an ongoing disaster: the global effects of other environmental pollution sources, including farm and industrial runoff and water control measures such as levees. A passionate and sobering chronicle of man-made destruction leading to natural degradation. |
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Krakatoa : the day the world exploded, August 27, 1883
by Simon Winchester
Considers the global impact of the 1883 eruption of the Krakatoa volcano, documenting its cause of an immense tsunami that killed 40,000 people, its impact on the weather for several years, and its role in anti-Western Islamic fundamentalism
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