|
History and Current Events March 2017
|
|
|
|
| Three Days in January: Dwight Eisenhower's Final Mission by Bret BaierIn Three Days in January, political journalist Bret Baier (Fox News) details President Dwight Eisenhower's last three days in office. The transition to John F. Kennedy's administration came at a time when nuclear war seemed not just possible but (to many) imminent. Reviewing Eisenhower's entire presidency through the lens of his farewell address of January 17, 1961, Baier connects the issues that preoccupied Eisenhower with later events that Kennedy faced. He also sheds light on Eisenhower's growing respect for the much younger Kennedy. For another thorough and accessible account of Eisenhower's two terms, take a look at Jim Newton's Eisenhower. |
|
|
The Pursuit of Power : Europe 1815-1914
by Richard J Evans
A latest entry in the acclaimed series covers the century between the fall of Napoleon to the outbreak of World War I, discussing events ranging from the crumbling of the Spanish, Ottoman and Mughal empires and the rise of British imperial ambition to the violent revolution in Spain and the unifications of Germany and Italy.
|
|
|
"The saddest ship afloat" : the tragedy of the MS St. Louis by Allison LawlorOn May 13, 1939, the eve of the Second World War, the MS St. Louis left port in Hamburg, Germany, headed for Havana, Cuba. Among the ship's passengers were more than six hundred Jews attempting to escape Nazi rule. But most of the visas the passengers had purchased turned out to be fake and after several days in limbo in Havana's harbour, the ship's captain turned back for Europe. Canadian and American activists petitioned their governments to accept the refugees on humanitarian grounds, but to no avail. On its return, the ship would distribute its passengers among European countries, and over the course of the war, an estimated 250 would die in the Nazi-run concentration camps. The latest in the Stories of our Past series is illustrated with photos and sidebar features on the voyage, glimpses into the lives of passengers, a look at Canada's postwar refugee policy, and memorials dedicated to preserving the story of this tragic event in Canadian immigration history.
|
|
| The Blood of Emmett Till by Timothy B. TysonThough several books have covered the 60-year-old case of Emmett Till's lynching in Mississippi, historian Timothy Tyson's new history freshly illuminates the trial of Till's murderers. He analyzes the trial transcript, which had been missing since 1955, interviews the key witness (now 80 years old) to Till's allegedly inappropriate behavior, and provides details from a recent FBI investigation. This riveting account immerses readers in the case and offers the definitive summary of its impact on subsequent history. For an absorbing study of one aspect of the case, try John Edgar Wideman's Writing to Save a Life, which focuses on Emmett's father Louis Till. |
|
|
Eleanor and Hick : the love affair that shaped a First Lady
by Susan Quinn
An intimate account of the close relationship between First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and reporter Lorena Hickok shares compassionate insights into how their more than three-decade friendship transformed their lives and empowered them to play significant roles in one of the most tumultuous periods in American history. (United States history).
|
|
| Mrs. Robinson's Disgrace: The Private Diary of a Victorian Lady by Kate SummerscalePopular historian Kate Summerscale delves once more into Victorian society's dirty little secrets. Legal divorce was made available to England's common citizens for the first time in 1858. The same year, Henry Robinson sued for divorce after finding a secret diary in which his wife had allegedly penned erotic musings about her doctor. Isabella dared to counter-sue, presenting the court with (among other evidence of marital neglect) Henry's two illegitimate children as proof of his adultery. Summerscale seamlessly weaves private letters, newspaper stories, public documents, and Isabella's infamous diary into a moving portrait of history's real "Mrs. Robinson." |
|
| Ashley's War: The Untold Story of a Team of Women Soldiers on the Special Ops Battlefield by Gayle Tzemach LemmonDuring the early years of the U.S. war in Afghanistan launched in 2001, intelligence officers couldn't collect complete information from Afghan civilians because the male personnel weren't permitted to have any contact with women. Though high-level Army leaders were skeptical, Special Operations strategists convinced them in 2010 that they needed women to gather intelligence -- and that women were capable of the stringent physical demands of Special Ops. In Ashley's War, journalist Gail Tzemach Lemmon relates the successful experiences of the first such female officer in the U.S. Army: First Lt. Ashley White. For more on women in the contemporary U.S. military, try Helen Thorpe's Soldier Girls. |
|
| The Queen's Bed: An Intimate History of Elizabeth's Court by Anna WhitelockFor Queen Elizabeth I, life at court often focused on her bedchamber, where she could be herself and entrust her hopes and fears to the ladies who waited on her and slept with or near her. In the award-winning Queen's Bed, historian Anna Whitelock depicts the queen's private daily life: she vividly describes the beds in each of her residences, including her traveling bed, and she details Elizabeth's relationships with the women close to the throne and her love affairs. This unusual study expands on the more formal view of her public life; you might also enjoy Tracy Borman's The Private Lives of the Tudors. |
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|
Lambton County Library 787 Broadway St. Wyoming, Ontario N0N1T0 519-845-3324www.lclibrary.ca |
|
|
|