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Biography and Memoir February 2017
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Victoria the queen : an intimate biography of the woman who ruled an empire
by Julia Baird
An account of the life of the longtime English monarch offers insight into the passionate and sensuous aspects of her character, placing her reign against a backdrop of dynamic world events while sharing insights into her relationship with Albert and her pivotal role in building the British empire.
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Scrappy little nobody
by Anna Kendrick
A collection of whimsical autobiographical essays by the Academy Award-nominated actress and star of Up in the Air recounts memorable milestones from her New England upbringing to the blockbuster films that have made her one of Hollywood's most popular actresses. Read by the author. Simultaneous.
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Born a crime : stories from a South African childhood
by Trevor Noah
The host of The Daily Show With Trevor Noah traces his wild coming of age during the twilight of apartheid in South Africa and the tumultuous days of freedom that followed, offering insight into the farcical aspects of the political and social systems of today's world.
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Settle for more
by Megyn Kelly
The top-rated cable news anchor presents a revelatory memoir that also imparts the values and lessons that have shaped her career, describing her tough-love family, her father's early death, the news events that led to her anchor position and her ongoing feud with Donald Trump. Simultaneous.
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African Americans' Biographies
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| Negroland: A Memoir by Margo JeffersonIn this "page-turning, provocative" (Library Journal) memoir, journalist Margo Jefferson explains that "Negroland" isn't a place, but rather a social category or class whose elite members enjoy significant advantages. Coming of age in the 1960s, Jefferson witnessed her parents' aspirations as they modeled the ideals of Negroland. However, the societal and political changes arising from feminism, black pride, and other movements of the era led her to question her parents, the ideals of Negroland, and herself. Candid and moving, this book offers an eye-opening consideration of the challenges facing African American women. |
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| Barack Obama: The Story by David MaranissIn this exhaustively researched, "authoritative" (Kirkus Reviews) account, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Maraniss explores the lives of Barack Obama's forebears and relates Obama's life up to age 27. Visiting Kansas, the home state of Obama's mother's family, and Kenya, his father's homeland, Maraniss sheds light on the influences that formed the man who became the 44th President of the U.S. Then he paints a vivid portrait of the young Obama's childhood, boarding school years in Hawaii, higher education, and community organizing work before entering law school. For a recent assessment of Obama's legacy as President, take a look at Jonathan Chait's Audacity. |
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| Up from History: The Life of Booker T. Washington by Robert J. NorrellTuskegee Institute's founder Booker T. Washington has been dismissed as an Uncle Tom-style accommodationist who allowed his white supporters to constrain his efforts on behalf of African Americans. In this reassessment of Washington's legacy, historian Robert Norrell details his efforts to support black enfranchisement and encourage African American economic independence. Impressively detailing the risks Washington took as he toured the South promoting education, Norrell presents him as tirelessly advocating black self-determination -- the opposite of what his detractors claimed. In a starred review, Booklist calls Up from History an "engrossing portrait of a complex man." |
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| The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks by Jeanne TheoharisThough her December 1, 1955 act of civil disobedience that sparked the Montgomery, Alabama bus boycott is often presented as an ordinary incident with extraordinary consequences, Rosa Parks had been preparing for years for the moment when she refused to yield her seat on a bus to a white passenger. In The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks, political scientist Jeanne Theoharis carefully documents the work Parks had already done as a Civil Rights activist and recounts her contributions to the movement after the bus boycott. Far from being an accidental heroine, Parks was in the forefront of the movement; Theoharis provides a fuller understanding of the changes Parks and other leaders brought to American society. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Keene Public Library
60 Winter St.
Keene, New Hampshire 03431
603-352-0157
http://www.keenepubliclibrary.org/
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