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New Nonfiction Releases
July 2017 |
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Chester B. Himes: A Biography
by Lawrence Patrick Jackson
An account of the improbable life of the controversial writer explores Himes' middle-class origins, imprisonment, creative experiences during World War II and eventual escape to Europe, where he became famous for his Harlem detective series and its themes of sexuality, racism and social injustice.
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Coming of Age: The Sexual Awakening of Margaret Mead
by Deborah Blum
The startling coming-of-age story of the famed anthropologist shares insights into how her radical ideas challenged the social and sexual norms of her time, from keeping her maiden name after marriage to pursuing bisexual affairs, before her famed studies in the South Pacific and a chance encounter changed her life forever.
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Confessions of a Cartel Hit Man
by Martin Corona
The memoirs of a drug cartel assassin recount how and why he fell into the outlaw life at an early age, performing murders for the founders of an operation that dominated the southern California drug trade for decades before he assisted a large-scale DEA operation to apprehend his bosses.
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Defiance: The Extraordinary Life of Lady Anne Barnard
by Stephen Taylor
Having been given access to the private papers of Lady Anne Barnard, including six volumes of unpublished memoirs, the author chronicles the amazing life of this 18th- and 19th-century poet and painter, who lived on her own terms and defied the conventions of her day.
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Dying
by Cory Taylor
A deeply affecting meditation on dying and a wise tribute to life.
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Edward VII: The Prince of Wales and the Women He Loved
by Catharine Arnold
A colorful portrait of the playboy monarch and son of Queen Victoria describes his scandalous liaisons with a series of high-profile women, offering insight into how he helped transform the British monarchy into an enduring modern institution.
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Estranged: Leaving Family and Finding Home
by Jessica Berger Gross
The author traces her abuse-marked childhood and how her adult decision to separate herself from her family of origin redefined her understandings of estrangement, survival and healing.
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The Great Nadar: The Man Behind the Camera
by Adam Begley
A portrait of the fabled Parisian photographer, adventurer and pioneer discusses his bohemian youth, larger-than-life studio, pioneering exploits as a balloonist and photography sessions with such famed subjects as Victor Hugo, Gustave Courbet and Alexandre Dumas.
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Hannibal
by Patrick Hunt
A portrait of the ancient-world commander includes discussions of his childhood under a master strategist father, his leadership during the Second Punic War and his famed crossing of the Alps with his army and war elephants in an epic battle against Rome.
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Henry David Thoreau: A Life
by Laura Dassow Walls
Traces the life of the extraordinary poet, best known for his meditations on nature at Walden Pond, who also spent time with good friend and neighbor Ralph Waldo Emerson and worked as a manual laborer, an inventor and a radical political activist.
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In the Days of Rain: A Daughter, a Father, a Cult
by Rebecca Stott
The author describes her childhood in a mid-20th-century cult and her struggles to understand her late father's high-ranking position as a cult minister, describing the restrictions, contradictions and choices that led to numerous tragedies and her father's imprisonment.
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Jane Austen at Home: A Biography
by Lucy Worsley
A profile of the life and times of Jane Austen by the best-selling author of Courtiers tours the classic author's childhood home, schools, holiday accommodations and grand and small family estates to reveal lesser-known aspects of Austen's character and inspirations.
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Leap In: A Woman, Some Waves, and the Will to Swim
by Alexandra Heminsley
At once inspiring, hilarious, and honest, the new book from Alexandra Heminsley chronicles her endeavor to tackle a whole new element, and the ensuing challenges and joys of open water swimming.
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The Netanyahu Years
by Ben Kaspit
A portrait of the four-term Israeli prime minister examines his policies, political struggles and fight against the Iranian nuclear program, sharing additional insights into his precarious relationship with America, its Jewish population and its business magnates.
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Patrick Henry: Champion of Liberty
by Jon Kukla
An authoritative biography of founding father Patrick Henry that restores him to his important place in our history and explains the formative influence on his thought and character of Virginia, where he lived all his life.
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Putin: His Downfall and Russia's Coming Crash
by Richard Lourie
The author of The Autobiography of Joseph Stalin and Sakharov: A Biography makes sobering predictions about a collapse of Vladimir Putin's Russia, investigating potential vulnerabilities in the Trump administration that may be providing Russia with dangerous opportunities.
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Queen of Bebop: The Musical Lives of Sarah Vaughan
by Elaine M. Hayes
An account of the life of the influential jazz artist and civil rights advocate shares additional insights into her lesser-known contributions as an African-American woman, drawing on inside sources to discuss her creative process and challenge misperceptions about her character.
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So Much Things to Say: The Oral History of Bob Marley
by Roger Steffens
An author who traveled with the Wailers, interviewed Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer extensively and took iconic Bob Marley photos—drawing on 40 years of intimate interviews with band members, family, lovers and confidants, many speaking publicly for the first time—crafts a riveting oral history depicting the reggae icon's life through vivid scenes.
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Sting-Ray Afternoons: A Memoir
by Steve Rushin
A bittersweet memoir of the author's 1970s childhood nostalgically tours the era's products, history and cultural rebirth, sharing laugh-out-loud observations of his family life as it was shaped by influences ranging from the Steve Miller Band and Saturday morning cartoons to Bic pens and Schwinn Sting-Ray bikes.
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A Stone of Hope: A Memoir
by Jim St. Germain
The co-founder of the Preparing Leaders of Tomorrow nonprofit for at-risk youth shares the story of his experiences as an impoverished alcoholic's son who participated in illegal gang activities before a rehabilitation program saved his life and gave him purpose.
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To the New Owners: A Martha's Vineyard Memoir
by Madeleine Blais
A memoir, written partly to the town of Martha’s Vineyard and partly to the ramshackle vacation house the author used since the 1970s describes the quirky charm and boundless natural beauty of the landscape and the summers spent there over the years.
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The Women Who Flew for Hitler: A True Story of Soaring Ambition and Searing Rivalry
by Clare Mulley
A dual biography of the first two women flight captains for the Nazis describes how, in spite of Hitler's dictates against women in the military, Aryan poster girl Hanna Reitsch and Jewish aeronautical engineer Melitta Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenger were awarded the Iron Cross. By the award-winning author of The Woman Who Saved the Children.
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American Fire: Love, Arson, and Life in a Vanishing Land
by Monica Hesse
The Washington Post reporter and author of Girl in the Blue Coat documents the trial of a man who was charged with dozens of counts of arson in rural Virginia county, sharing insight into the perpetrator's struggles with addiction, his relationship with his accomplice girlfriend and the impact of the fires on their community.
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Caesar's Last Breath: Decoding the Secrets of the Air Around Us
by Sam Kean
An engaging round-the-globe journey through the periodic table explains how the air we breathe reflects the world's history, tracing the origins and ingredients of the atmosphere to explain air's role in reshaping continents, steering human progress and powering revolutions.
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Castle of the Eagles: Escape from Mussolini's Colditz
by Mark Felton
Documents the story of two dozen British prisoners who used tunnels to break out of a highly fortified Italian castle-turned-prison during World War II, detailing the measures they employed to dig a tunnel, forge identity papers, craft civilian clothes and construct dummies to secure their daring escape.
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Empire Made: My Search for an Outlaw Uncle Who Vanished in British India
by Kief Hillsbery
The author of War Boy describes his search through India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nepal to discover of the fate of his distant uncle, a 19th-century English clerk who abruptly left his job with the East India Company to pursue a secret life that reflected the hidden gay history of the Middle East.
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How to Fall in Love with Anyone: A Memoir in Essays
by Mandy Len Catron
A memoir by the author of the popular New York Times essay, "To Fall in Love with Anyone, Do This," shares the love stories that impacted her life and explores the romantic myths people create, explaining how implausible fantasies limit one's ability to achieve and sustain real intimacy.
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I Need a Lifeguard Everywhere but the Pool
by Lisa Scottoline
A lighthearted collection of stories by the award-winning mother-and-daughter team features warm and witty memoir tales for women, in an entry in the top-reviewed series that includes, I've Got Sand in All the Wrong Places.
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Perennial Seller: The Art of Making and Marketing Work That Lasts
by Ryan Holiday
The marketing strategist behind the best-selling Trust Me, I'm Lying reveals to creative professionals how a classic is made and marketed, explaining how shortsighted sink-or-swim attitudes have littered the media landscape with fads and how long-term successes were deliberately built with a foundational set of innovative principles.
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Policing the Black Man: Arrest, Prosecution, and Imprisonment
by Angela J. Davis
A comprehensive, thought-provoking analysis of the key issues behind the BlackLivesMatter movement features 12 essays by some of America's most influential criminal justice experts and legal scholars, including Equal Justice Institute Director Bryan Stevenson, NAACP Legal Defense Fund President Sherrrilyn Ifill and John Jay College of Criminal Justice President Jeremy Travis.
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The Road to Somewhere: The Populist Revolt and the Future of Politics
by David Goodhart
The founding editor of Prospect, a political magazine, and author of The British Dream: Successes and Failures of Post-War Immigration investigates the political and moral fault-lines that divide Brexit Britain and Trump's America—and how a new settlement may be achieved.
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Strays: A Lost Cat, a Drifter, and Their Journey Across America
by Britt Collins
Presents the uplifting story of how homeless alcoholic Michael King rescued an injured stray cat who on shared migrations through the American west inspired him to reach out for help, achieve sobriety and come to terms with painful losses.
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The Way We Die Now: The View from Medicine's Front Line
by Seamus O'Mahony
An insightful report on how the western world addresses death and dying examines how innumerable people currently die in hospitals, often unaware that their time has come and subjected to invasive and unhelpful last-minute interventions, in a call-to-action that urges for a return to practices that enable compassionate and positive death experiences.
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Why?: What Makes Us Curious
by Mario Livio
An internationally respected astrophysicist explores the science behind curiosity to evaluate its role in human creativity, ambition and culture, drawing on interviews with scientists and students while examining the lives of forefront intellectuals to identify how curiosity manifests in the brain.
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Woolly: The True Story of the De-Extinction of One of History's Most Iconic Creatures
by Ben Mezrich
The best-selling author of The Accidental Billionaires traces the pioneering work of a group of young scientists under the guidance of brilliant geneticist George Church, who sequenced the DNA of a frozen woolly mammoth harvested from the Arctic circle to resurrect the extinct species as part of a larger effort to slow the advances of global warming.
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