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History and Current Events December 2018
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| In My Father's House: A New View of How Crime Runs in the Family by Fox ButterfieldWhat it's about: Using a case study of the white Bogle family of Oregon (more than 60 of whom have been arrested since 1920), this eye-opening saga of criminal genealogy reveals a sobering reality -- five percent of all families account for almost half the crime in America.
Why it matters: Timely and thought-provoking, In My Father's House interrogates long-held stereotypes linking race to crime, offering an empathetic approach to recognizing crime theories based on family dynamics. |
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| Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves by Glory Edim (editor)What it is: a stirring anthology of candid contributions from 21 black women writers (including Tayari Jones, Morgan Jerkins, Gabourey Sidibe, Jesmyn Ward, and Jacqueline Woodson) that celebrates the transformative power of being seen in literature.
Don't miss: Kaitlyn Greenidge's "Books for a Black Girl's Soul," which includes recommendations for "A Book To Read When You Wish You Could Pack It All In and Just Be Missy Elliott," among others. |
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How to behave badly in Elizabethan England : a guide for knaves, fools, harlots, cuckolds, drunkards, liars, thieves, and braggarts
by Ruth Goodman
Drawing from period-specific advice manuals, court cases, and sermons the author of How to be a Victorian celebrates one of the naughtiest eras of British history through the troublemakers, drunkards, snooty needlers and boors present in Elizabethan England.
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The alchemy of slavery : human bondage and emancipation in the Illinois Country, 1730-1865
by M. Scott Heerman
In this sweeping saga that spans empires, peoples, and nations, M. Scott Heerman chronicles the long history of slavery in the heart of the continent and traces its many iterations through law and social practice. Arguing that slavery had no fixed institutional form, Heerman traces practices of slavery through indigenous, French, and finally U.S. systems of captivity, inheritable slavery, lifelong indentureship, and the kidnapping of free people. By connecting the history of indigenous bondage to that of slavery and emancipation in the Atlantic world, Heerman shows how French, Spanish, and Native North American practices shaped the history of slavery in the United States. The Alchemy of Slavery foregrounds the diverse and adaptable slaving practices that masters deployed to build a slave economy in the Upper Mississippi River Valley, attempting to outmaneuver their antislavery opponents. In time, a formidable cast of lawyers and antislavery activists set their sights on ending slavery in Illinois. Abraham Lincoln, Lyman Trumbull, Richard Yates, and many other future leaders of the Republican party partnered with African Americans to wage an extended campaign against slavery in the region. Across a century and a half, slavery's nearly perpetual reinvention takes center stage: masters turning Indian captives into slaves, slaves into servants, former slaves into kidnapping victims; and enslaved people turning themselves into free men and women.
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Modern HERstory : stories of women and nonbinary people rewriting history
by Blair Imani
An illustrated and informative primer on the progressive social change movements of the last 60 years as told through the stories of 60 diverse female and non-binary leaders in those movements, from the Civil Rights Movement and Stonewall riots through today. Inspiring a radical and inclusive approach to history, Modern HERstory celebrates 60 modern women and non-binary people who have changed the world. From the the civil rights movement and the women's movement to the LGBT rights movement and Black Lives Matter, these trailblazers come from backgrounds and communities that are traditionally overlooked and under-celebrated despite making huge contributions to the social change and progress movements of the last century: not just women, but people of color, queer people, trans people, Muslims, and young people. Authored by rising star activist Blair Imani, Modern HERstory tells the important stories of these leaders and their movements in an easy-to-follow format appropriate for all ages, granting themthe visibility and acknowledgment they deserve, and educating readers about the people changing the world right here and right now--and inspiring them to do the same.
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| The Age of Walls: How Barriers Between Nations Are Changing Our World by Tim MarshallWhat it is: a sweeping survey of how physical barriers between countries shape political discourse and international relations.
Reviewers say: "This enlightening, shrewd assessment of the walls that separate us proves that there is actually far more that unites us" (Booklist).
Further reading: Walls: A History of Civilization in Blood and Brick by David Frye. |
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Churchill : walking with destiny
by Andrew Roberts
The best-selling author of The Storm of War draws on extensive new materials, from private letters to war cabinet meetings, in a revisionist portrait of the iconic war leader that discusses Churchill's motivations and unwavering faith in the British Empire.
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| LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media by P.W. Singer and Emerson T. BrookingWhat it's about: how extremists and authoritarian regimes manipulate social media platforms to serve as "battlespaces" for political disputes, leading to trolling, disinformation, and memetic warfare.
Did you know? ISIS' recruiting tactics include mimicking the authentic feel of Taylor Swift's Instagram posts.
About the authors: Defense experts P.W. Singer and Emerson T. Brooking are a contributing editor for Popular Science and a former research fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, respectively. |
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| The Admirals: Nimitz, Halsey, Leahy, and King --The Five-Star Admirals Who Won the War... by Walter R. BornemanWhat it's about: the first -- and so far, only -- five star fleet admirals in United States Navy history (Chester Nimitz, William Halsey, William Leahy, and Ernest King) and how their accomplishments during World War II made the U.S. a dominant sea power.
Making rank: Each commander played a key role in rebuilding the U.S. Naval fleet after the attack on Pearl Harbor and, despite persistent rivalry, all four worked together to destroy the Axis fleets. |
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| Brilliant Beacons: A History of the American Lighthouse by Eric Jay DolinWhat it is: an engaging history of lighthouses, the "national treasures" that have served as the sites of numerous political, economic, military, and technological developments since the first American lighthouse was built in 1716 in Boston.
Featuring: stories of heroic lighthouse keepers, including Ida Lewis (1842-1911), who saved 18 people during her 54-year tenure as keeper of Lime Rock in Newport, Rhode Island. |
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| The Empire of Necessity: Slavery, Freedom, and Deception in the New World by Greg GrandinWhat it's about: In 1804, Amasa Delano, a sea captain with abolitionist sympathies, found the slave ship Tryal in distress off the coast of Chile. Discovering that the 70 enslaved West Africans aboard had revolted (killing many of the crew and taking the ship's captain hostage), Delano reacted with swift violence against the mutineers.
Is it for you? Dramatic and thought-provoking, this gripping history examines the disturbing hypocrisy of the newly "free" Colonial America. |
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| Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War That Changed American History by Brian Kilmeade and Don YaegerAvailable only as an e-book and e-audiobook.
What it's about: the beginning of the Barbary Wars, instigated in 1801 when the newly elected President Thomas Jefferson refused to pay ransom to the Barbary States for captured American merchant ships.
Why you might like it: Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaegar's lively, suspenseful prose offers a page-turning adventure.
Try this next: For another accessible history of the First Barbary War, check out The Pirate Coast by Richard Zacks. |
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| The Sea and Civilization: A Maritime History of the World by Lincoln PaineAvailable only as an e-audiobook.
What it is: an ambitious expedition along the earth's oceans, lakes, and rivers that illuminates the remarkable ways in which world history has been shaped by waterways.
Topics include: how Viking expeditions impacted cultural exchange; the influence of religion on maritime law.
Reviewers say: "an invaluable resource for salty dogs and landlubbers alike" (Publishers Weekly). |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Morton Grove Public Library 6140 Lincoln Ave Morton Grove, Illinois 60053 (847) 965-4220www.mgpl.org/ |
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