January 2021 list by Elizabeth Hanby |
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Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics
by Dolly Parton
A 60-year celebration of the country music and pop culture legend’s remarkable life and career explores the songs that have defined her journey and contains rare photos and memorabilia that share additional insights into classic Parton lyrics.
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God's Shadow: Sultan Selim, His Ottoman Empire, and the Making of the Modern World
by Alan Mikhail
A global history that redefines the historical origins of the modern world through the life of Sultan Selim I and his Ottoman Empire. Long neglected in accounts of world history, the Ottoman Empire was a hub of flourishing intellectual fervor, geopolitical power, and enlightened pluralistic rule. Drawing on previously unexamined sources, Mikhail's groundbreaking account recaptures Selim's life and world.
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Is Rape a Crime?: A Memoir, an Investigation, and a Manifesto
by Michelle Bowdler
A Harvard-trained social justice advocate and award-wining Tufts University health director shares the story of her own experience with sexual violence while examining how rape is or is not treated as a violent crime in today’s America.
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Just As I Am: A Memoir
by Cicely Tyson
The Academy, Tony, and three-time Emmy Award-winning actor and trailblazer tells her stunning story, looking back at her six-decade career and life.
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Just Us: An American Conversation
by Claudia Rankine
A collection of essays, poems, and images examine the power of whiteness in everyday interactions and urges readers to begin the conversation and discover what it takes to breach the silence and violence.
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Mad at the World: A Life of John Steinbeck
by William Souder
Pulitzer Prize-finalist Souder explores how John Steinbeck's complicated persona and firsthand struggles through the depths of the Great Depression gave him deeply empathic perspectives that shaped his politics and his evocative characters and themes.
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Modern Warriors: Real Stories from Real Heroes
by Pete Hegseth
From the skies over Afghanistan to the seas of the Mediterranean to the treacherous streets of Iraq, these brave men and women take you inside the firefight, sharing the harrowing realities of war. Hegseth uses their experiences to facilitate conversations about the raw truths of combat, including the difficulties of transitioning back home, while also celebrating these soldiers’ contributions.
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The Next Great Migration: The Beauty and Terror of Life on the Move by Sonia Shah
Reveals how the refugee crises and unusual animal migrations of today’s world can be linked to historical migrations in earlier eras, explaining that migration should be recognized as an ancient and lifesaving biological response to environmental change.
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Surviving Autocracy
by Masha Gessen
This incisive book provides an overview of the trajectory of the past few years, highlighting the corrosion of the media, the judiciary, and cultural norms--and how within these short few years under Trump's presidency, we have changed as a people.
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