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Are You My Mother?

Are You My Mother?

A Comic Drama

by Alison Bechdel

Hardcover, 286 pages, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $22, published May 1 2012 | purchase
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  • Are You My Mother?
  • A Comic Drama
  • Alison Bechdel

Depicts the author's mother as a voracious reader, music lover and passionate amateur actress who quietly suffers as the wife of a closeted gay artist and withdraws from her young daughter, who searches for answers to the separation later in life.NPR Bestseller

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Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?

Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?

by Jeanette Winterson

Hardcover, 230 pages, Pgw, $25, published March 6 2012 | purchase
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  • Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?
  • Jeanette Winterson

Traces the author's lifelong search for happiness as the adopted daughter of Pentecostal parents who raised her through practices of fierce control and paranoia, an experience that prompted her to search for her biological mother.NPR Bestseller

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The Passage of Power

The Passage Of Power

The Years Of Lyndon Johnson

by Robert A. Caro

Hardcover, 712 pages, Random House Inc, $35, published May 1 2012 | purchase
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  • The Passage Of Power
  • The Years Of Lyndon Johnson
  • Robert A. Caro

Examines Lyndon Johnson's volatile relationships with John and Robert Kennedy, describes JFK's assassination from Johnson's viewpoint and recounts his accomplishments as president before they were overshadowed by the Vietnam War.NPR Bestseller

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Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake

Lots Of Candles, Plenty Of Cake

by Anna Quindlen

Hardcover, 182 pages, Random House Inc, $26, published April 24 2012 | purchase
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  • Lots Of Candles, Plenty Of Cake
  • Anna Quindlen

The Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and author of A Short Guide to a Happy Life presents a candid and whimsical personal account that explores what matters to middle-aged women and how they regard life stages.NPR Bestseller

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Wild

Wild

From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail

by Cheryl Strayed

Hardcover, 315 pages, Random House Inc, $25.95, published March 20 2012 | purchase
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  • Wild
  • From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
  • Cheryl Strayed

Traces the personal crisis the author endured after the death of her mother and a painful divorce, which prompted her ambition to undertake a dangerous 1,100-mile solo hike that both drove her to rock bottom and helped her to heal.NPR Bestseller

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Prague Winter

Prague Winter

A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948

by Madeleine Korbel Albright and Bill Woodward

Hardcover, 467 pages, HarperCollins, $29.99, published April 24 2012 | purchase
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  • Prague Winter
  • A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948
  • Madeleine Korbel Albright and Bill Woodward

The former secretary of state paints a portrait of her early life from 1937 to 1948 during which she witnessed the Nazi invasion of her native Prague, the Holocaust, the defeat of fascism, the rise of communism, and the onset of the Cold War.NPR Bestseller

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Unbroken

Unbroken

A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

by Laura Hillenbrand

Hardcover, 473 pages, Random House Inc, $27, published November 16 2010 | purchase
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  • Unbroken
  • A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
  • Laura Hillenbrand

Tells the gripping true story of a U.S. airman who was the sole survivor when his bomber crashed into the sea during World War II. He faced thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater. By the author of Seabiscuit.NPR Bestseller

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Hotels, Hospitals, and Jails

Hotels, Hospitals, and Jails

A Memoir

by Anthony Swofford

Hardcover, 276 pages, Grand Central Pub, $26.99, published June 5 2012 | purchase
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  • Hotels, Hospitals, and Jails
  • A Memoir
  • Anthony Swofford

The author of Jarhead describes how he found redemption from a life of drugs, alcohol, fast cars and bad relationships by taking a series of RV trips with his ailing, Vietnam veteran father and the chance encounter with his future wife.

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Barack Obama

Barack Obama

The Story

by David Maraniss

Hardcover, 448 pages, Simon & Schuster, $32.50, published June 19 2012 | purchase
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  • Barack Obama
  • The Story
  • David Maraniss

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of They Marched Into Sunlight draws on hundreds of interviews and written sources to present a richly textured account of the 44th President and the forces that shaped his character and beliefs, tracing the experiences of family members before his birth through his entry into politics.

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This Life Is in Your Hands

This Life Is In Your Hands

One Dream, Sixty Acres, and a Family Undone

by Melissa Coleman

Paperback, 326 pages, HarperCollins, $15.99, published April 10 2012 | purchase
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  • This Life Is In Your Hands
  • One Dream, Sixty Acres, and a Family Undone
  • Melissa Coleman

With urban farming and backyard chicken flocks becoming increasingly popular, Coleman has written this timely and honest portrait of her own childhood experience in Maine with her two homesteading parents during the turbulent 1970s. A luminous, evocative memoir that explores the hope and struggle behind one family's search for a self-sufficient life.

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Johnny Appleseed

Johnny Appleseed

The Man, the Myth, the American Story

by Howard Means

Paperback, 320 pages, Simon & Schuster, $16, published April 17 2012 | purchase
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  • Johnny Appleseed
  • The Man, the Myth, the American Story
  • Howard Means

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It Worked for Me

It Worked for Me

In Life and Leadership

by Colin Powell and Tony Koltz

Hardcover, 283 pages, HarperCollins, $27.99, published May 22 2012 | purchase
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  • It Worked for Me
  • In Life and Leadership
  • Colin Powell and Tony Koltz

Collecting lessons and personal anecdotes that have shaped the four-star general and former Secretary of State's legendary career in public service, this blueprint for leadership offers wise advice for succeeding in the workplace and beyond.

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The Map of My Dead Pilots

The Map of My Dead Pilots

The Dangerous Game of Flying in Alaska

by Colleen Catherine Mondor

Hardcover, 242 pages, Globe Pequot Pr, $22.95, published November 22 2011 | purchase
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  • The Map of My Dead Pilots
  • The Dangerous Game of Flying in Alaska
  • Colleen Catherine Mondor

Explores the history of Alaskan aviation, discussing small plane piloting in the wildest territory of the United States.

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Birdseye

Birdseye

The Adventures Of A Curious Man

by Mark Kurlansky

Hardcover, 251 pages, Random House Inc, $25.95, published May 8 2012 | purchase
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  • Birdseye
  • The Adventures Of A Curious Man
  • Mark Kurlansky

A profile of eccentric genius inventor Clarence Birdseye chronicles how his innovative fast-freezing process revolutionized the food industry and American agriculture.

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Notes On A Century

Notes On A Century

Reflections of a Middle East Historian

by Bernard Lewis and Buntzie Ellis Churchill

Hardcover, 388 pages, Penguin Group USA, $28.95, published May 10 2012 | purchase
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  • Notes On A Century
  • Reflections of a Middle East Historian
  • Bernard Lewis and Buntzie Ellis Churchill

Presents the life and career of the Middle East specialist, from his professional relationships with world leaders to his accomplishments in world politics, and offers the author's analysis of the political transformation of the region.

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Mr. Hornaday's War

Mr. Hornaday's War

How a Peculiar Victorian Zookeeper Waged a Lonely Crusade for Wildlife That Changed the World

by Stefan Bechtel

Hardcover, 254 pages, Random House Inc, $26.95, published May 15 2012 | purchase
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  • Mr. Hornaday's War
  • How a Peculiar Victorian Zookeeper Waged a Lonely Crusade for Wildlife That Changed the World
  • Stefan Bechtel

Recounts the life of the conservationist, who spent his life protecting wildlife as a taxidermist and museum collector; as the founder and first director of the National Zoo; as director of the Bronx Zoo; and as an author.

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My Father's Name

My Father's Name

A Black Virginia Family after the Civil War

by Lawrence Patrick Jackson

Hardcover, 243 pages, Univ of Chicago Pr, $25, published May 15 2012 | purchase
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  • My Father's Name
  • A Black Virginia Family after the Civil War
  • Lawrence Patrick Jackson

Lawrence P. Jackson goes on a quest from Baltimore to Pittsylvania County, Va., to find the home that once belonged to his late grandfather. Part detective story, part memoir, Jackson traces his family's roots back to his grandfather's grandfather who was born or sold into slavery. My Father's Name is a detailed, historical portrait of an African-American Virginian family and a meditation on slavery and the struggles of postbellum freedom.

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Guest of Honor

Guest of Honor

Booker T. Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, and the White House Dinner That Shocked a Nation

by Deborah Davis

Hardcover, 308 pages, Pocket Books, $26, published May 8 2012 | purchase
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  • Guest of Honor
  • Booker T. Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, and the White House Dinner That Shocked a Nation
  • Deborah Davis

Traces the story of the 1901 White House dinner shared by the slave-turned-African-American-political-leader and the 26th President, documenting the ensuing scandal and the ways in which the event reflected period politics and race relations.

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A Sense of Direction

A Sense Of Direction

Pilgrimage For The Restless And The Hopeful

by Gideon Lewis-Kraus

Hardcover, 344 pages, Penguin Group USA, $26.95, published May 10 2012 | purchase
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  • A Sense Of Direction
  • Pilgrimage For The Restless And The Hopeful
  • Gideon Lewis-Kraus

Traces the author's wayward participation in three pilgrimages as part of a personal quest to resolve differences between his disciplinary skills and desires, an effort that illuminated a family mystery and gave him a greater sense of purpose.

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Moving the Mountain

Moving the Mountain

Beyond Ground Zero to a New Vision of Islam in America

by Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf

Hardcover, 225 pages, Simon & Schuster, $24, published May 8 2012 | purchase
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  • Moving the Mountain
  • Beyond Ground Zero to a New Vision of Islam in America
  • Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf

The Muslim leader best known for his contributions to the establishment of an interfaith community center near Manhattan's Ground Zero offers insight into his progressive beliefs, ambassador service and advocacy of tolerance and equal rights.

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Lizz Free or Die

Lizz Free Or Die

Essays

by Lizz Winstead

Hardcover, 307 pages, Penguin Group USA, $25.95, published May 10 2012 | purchase
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  • Lizz Free Or Die
  • Essays
  • Lizz Winstead

In a collection of autobiographical essays, The Daily Show co-creator Lizz Winstead vividly recounts how she fought to find her own voice, both as a comedian and as a woman, and how humor became her most powerful weapon in confronting life's challenges.

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Fug You

Fug You

An Informal History of the Peace Eye Bookstore, the Fuck You Press, The Fugs, and Counterculture in the Lower East Side

by Ed Sanders

Hardcover, 424 pages, Perseus Books Group, $26.99, published December 13 2011 | purchase
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  • Fug You
  • An Informal History of the Peace Eye Bookstore, the Fuck You Press, The Fugs, and Counterculture in the Lower East Side
  • Ed Sanders

Former Fug Ed Sanders' memoir of his wild life on New York's Lower East Side in the 1960s.

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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

by Rebecca Skloot

Hardcover, 369 pages, Random House Inc, $26, published February 2 2010 | purchase
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  • The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
  • Rebecca Skloot

Documents the story of how scientists took cells from an unsuspecting descendant of freed slaves and created a human cell line that has been kept alive indefinitely, enabling numerous medical and scientific discoveries.NPR Bestseller

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The Happiness Project

The Happiness Project

Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun

by Gretchen Rubin

Paperback, 315 pages, Harpercollins, $14.99, published March 1 2011 | purchase
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  • The Happiness Project
  • Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun
  • Gretchen Rubin

Chronicles the author's year spent testing the edicts of conventional wisdom to assess their potential for improving life, describing various activities ranging from getting more sleep and singing to her children to starting a blog and imitating a spiritual master.NPR Bestseller

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Moonwalking With Einstein

Moonwalking With Einstein

The Art and Science of Remembering Everything

by Joshua Foer

Paperback, 307 pages, Penguin Group USA, $16, published February 28 2012 | purchase
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  • Moonwalking With Einstein
  • The Art and Science of Remembering Everything
  • Joshua Foer

Having achieved the seemingly unachievable — becoming a U.S. memory champion — Foer shows how anyone with enough training and determination can achieve mastery of his memory.NPR Bestseller

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Nothing Daunted

Nothing Daunted

The Unexpected Education of Two Society Girls in the West

by Dorothy Wickenden

Paperback, 286 pages, Simon & Schuster, $15, published April 24 2012 | purchase
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  • Nothing Daunted
  • The Unexpected Education of Two Society Girls in the West
  • Dorothy Wickenden

A full-length account based on an admired New Yorker article that traces the experiences of classmates Dorothy Woodruff and Rosamond Underwood, who in 1916 left their affluent New York lives to teach school on the Western frontier.NPR Bestseller

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Just Kids

Just Kids

by Patti Smith

Paperback, 288 pages, Harpercollins, $16, published November 2 2010 | purchase
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  • Just Kids
  • Patti Smith

Artist and musician Patti Smith recounts her romance, lifetime friendship and shared love of art with Robert Mapplethorpe in an illustrated memoir, with a colorful cast of characters including Bob Dylan, Allen Ginsberg, Andy Warhol and William Burroughs.NPR Bestseller, Literary Award Winner

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Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs

A Biography

by Walter Isaacson

Hardcover, 630 pages, Simon & Schuster, $35, published October 24 2011 | purchase
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  • Steve Jobs
  • A Biography
  • Walter Isaacson

Draws on more than 40 interviews with Steve Jobs, as well as interviews with family members, friends, competitors and colleagues, to offer a look at the co-founder and leading creative force behind the Apple computer company.NPR Bestseller

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Some Assembly Required

Some Assembly Required

A Journal Of My Son's First Son

by Anne Lamott and Sam Lamott

Hardcover, 272 pages, Penguin Group USA, $26.95, published March 20 2012 | purchase
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  • Some Assembly Required
  • A Journal Of My Son's First Son
  • Anne Lamott and Sam Lamott

The best-selling author of Operating Instructions and her son chronicle his first year as a teenage father and her journey as a mother and new grandmother, describing their respective experiences with changing roles, the baby's mother and poignant family losses.NPR Bestseller

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Then Again

Then Again

by Diane Keaton

Paperback, 299 pages, Random House Inc, $16, published May 1 2012 | purchase
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  • Then Again
  • Diane Keaton

The award-winning actress documents her rise from everyday girl to acclaimed performer while exploring her defining relationship with her mother and how their shared and separate dreams influenced their experiences.NPR Bestseller

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