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100 Diagrams That Changed the World
From the Earliest Cave Paintings To The Innovation Of The iPod
From primitive cave paintings to deciphering the DNA helix, this chronological guide describes the important sketches, plans, and drawings that had profound and dramatic effects on history and the way people viewed the world.
News and Reviews
Travels With Epicurus
A Journey To A Greek Island In Search Of A Fulfilled Life
The co-author of Plato and a Platypus describes how he journeyed to Greece with a suitcase full of philosophy books in order to learn how to achieve a fulfilling old age, explaining how he came to regard old age as a valuable life stage filled with simple and heady pleasures.
News and Reviews
Instant
The Story of Polaroid
Instant tells the remarkable tale of Edwin Land's invention of the Polaroid camera, from the first instant camera to hit the market in 1948, to its meteoric rise in popularity, to the company's dramatic decline into bankruptcy in the late '90s and its unlikely resurrection in the digital age.
News and Reviews
The Carter Family
Don't Forget This Song
In graphic novel format, tells the story of the Carter Family--the first superstar group of country music--revealing the family's rise to success, their struggles along the way, and their impact on contemporary music.
News and Reviews
My Ideal Bookshelf
Leading cultural figures share the books that matter to them most-books that define their dreams and ambitions and in many cases helped them find their way in the world.
News and Reviews
My Heart Is an Idiot
The author discusses his frequent failings at love, his many cross-country sojourns and the outrageous schemes he concocts. 30,000 first printing.
News and Reviews
Dancers Among Us
A Celebration Of Joy In The Everyday
Dancers Among Us presents photographs of dancers leaping and spinning in the midst of daily life: on the beach; at a construction site; in a library, a restaurant and a park.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
World on a String
A Musical Memoir
Including first-hand stories of famous jazz greats and popular music icons such as Frank Sinatra, Rosemary Clooney, Benny Goodman and Paul McCartney, a jazz guitarist, singer, raconteur, and the son of a jazz guitar legend shares the day-to-day experiences of a touring musician's life.
News and Reviews
The Brontes
Wild Genius On The Moors: The Story Of A Literary Family
A history of the Bronte family is based on years of research and correspondence by each family member, challenging traditionally accepted portraits of the patriarchal Patrick and revealing Charlotte's ruthless nature, in a revised edition that incorporates the newest research.
News and Reviews
Marmee & Louisa
The Untold Story Of Louisa May Alcott And Her Mother
A great niece and cousin of Louisa May Alcott draws on newly uncovered family papers to present a revisionist portrait of Louisa's relationship with her mother, discussing how Abigail May served as the intellectual and emotional center of Louisa's life.
News and Reviews
Elsewhere
A Memoir
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Empire Falls presents an upbeat personal account of his youth, his parents and the 1950s upstate New York town they struggled to escape. He recounts the encroaching poverty and illness that challenged everyday life and the dreams his mother instilled that inspired his career.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
My Husband And My Wives
A Gay Man's Odyssey
My Husband and My Wives: A Gay's Man's Odyssey is Charles Rowan Beye's memoir of a man reflecting on eight tumultuous decades at the complications of discovering at puberty that he is attracted to other men.
News and Reviews
Behind The Beautiful Forevers
Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity
A profile of everyday life in the settlement of Annawadi as experienced by a Muslim teen, an ambitious rural mother and a young scrap-metal thief, illuminating the way their efforts to build better lives are challenged by religion, caste and economic tensions.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Help, Thanks, Wow
The Three Essential Survival Prayers
Help, Thanks, Wow describes the three simple prayers — asking for assistance from a higher power, expressing gratitude and feeling awe — that help to deal with the hardships of daily life.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
I Could Pee On This
And Other Poems By Cats
Francesco Marciuliano, author of the comic strip Sally Forth, gives voice to the thoughts and feelings of cats in this collection of poems attributed to felines.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
America Again
Re-Becoming The Greatness We Never Weren't
The political satirist, comedian and host of The Colbert Report puts his signature humorous spin on health care, the economy and food, promising that this book will single-handedly fix an America that is broken and has lost its way.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Wild
From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail
At 22, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother's death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life. With no experience or training, driven only by blind will, she would hike more than 1,000 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington state — and she would do it alone.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Waging Heavy Peace
A Hippie Dream
Two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Neil Young presents the story of his career against a backdrop of 40 years of history. He discusses such topics as his collaborations with fellow artists, his creative process and his activist work with Farm Aid and The Bridge School.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
The Signal And The Noise
Why So Many Predictions Fail — But Some Don't
The founder of FiveThirtyEight.com challenges myths about predictions in subjects ranging from the financial market and weather to sports and politics, profiling the world of prediction to explain how to distinguish true signals from hype.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook
The award-winning blogger for Smitten Kitchen presents a long-awaited first cookbook of 100 new and favorite recipes — from Mushroom Bourguignon and Pancetta to Buttered Popcorn Cookies and Chocolate Hazelnut Layer Cake — in a volume that features adapted options for busy home cooks.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Killing Lincoln
The Shocking Assassination That Changed America Forever
Fox News host Bill O'Reilly and writer Martin Dugard focus on the life, death and legacy of the 16th president in their book Killing Lincoln. The authors reconstruct the final days of Lincoln's life and examine the plot against the president at the end of the Civil War in April 1865.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Team Of Rivals
The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
An analysis of Abraham Lincoln's political talents identifies the strengths and abilities that enabled his election and describes how he used those same abilities to rally former opponents to win the Civil War.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
In The Garden Of Beasts
Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
The best-selling author of Devil in the White City documents the efforts of William E. Dodd, the first American ambassador to Hitler's Germany, to acclimate to a residence in an increasingly violent city where he is forced to associate with the Nazis while his daughter pursues a relationship with Gestapo chief Rudolf Diels. NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
The Swerve
How the World Became Modern
A humanities professor describes the impact of the translation of the last remaining manuscript of On the Nature of Things by Roman philosopher Lucretius, which fueled the Renaissance and inspired artists, great thinkers and scientists.NPR Bestseller, Literary Award Winner
News and Reviews
F In Exams
The Very Best Totally Wrong Test Answers
Humor writer Richard Benson collects hilariously wrong test answers.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Bossypants
The breakout star of Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock gives a humorous account of her life, as well as behind-the-scenes stories from her hit shows.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)
The writer and actor best known for her role on The Office shares observations on everything from favorite male archetypes and her hatred of dieting to her relationship with her mother and the haphazard creative process of The Office's writers' room.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Catherine The Great
Portrait Of A Woman
The Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer of Peter the Great presents a reconstruction of the 18th century empress's life that covers such topics as her efforts to engage Russia in the cultural life of Europe, her creation of the Hermitage art collection and her numerous scandal-free romantic affairs.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Rin Tin Tin
The Life And The Legend
Susan Orlean chronicles the rise of the iconic German shepherd character, sharing the stories of the real World War I dog and canine performer and exploring Rin Tin Tin's relevance in military and popular culture. NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Tiny Beautiful Things
Advice on Love and Life From Dear Sugar
A collection of advice on everything from infidelity and grief to marital boredom and financial hardships from Cheryl Strayed's popular "Dear Sugar" column in the online magazine The Rumpus.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Rod
The Autobiography
A personal portrait by the legendary singer recounts his life on and off the stage, from his humble British roots and riotous years on tour, to his three marriages and decades as a solo performer.
News and Reviews
The Patriarch
The Remarkable Life and Turbulent Times of Joseph P. Kennedy
Historian David Nasaw draws on exclusive records to offer insight into Joseph P. Kennedy's shrewd financial talents and considerable ambition for his family, providing coverage of such topics as the controversies surrounding his character and his role in several mainstream political events.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Unbroken
A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
Unbroken 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 an even greater trial. NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Where The Heart Beats
John Cage, Zen Buddhism, And The Inner Life Of Artists
Assesses the influence of Zen Buddhism on the work of composer John Cage, exploring the ways in which Zen transformed Cage's troubled psyche, his relationship with partner Merce Cunningham, and his often indefinable music.
News and Reviews
The First Four Notes
Beethoven's Fifth And The Human Imagination
A music critic presents a revelatory work of music history that analyzes Beethoven's iconic symphony, assessing the composer's influences and legacy while challenging popular beliefs that Beethoven was deaf at the time of the Fifth's composition.
News and Reviews
Why Jazz Happened
A comprehensive social history looks at the many forces that shaped this most American of art forms and the many influences that gave rise to jazz's post-war styles.
News and Reviews
Will Oldham on Bonnie "Prince" Billy
The Americana-punk-indie musician describes his body of work over the past twenty-five years, as well as his travels and artistic influences in a series of conversations with a fellow musician, author, and friend.
News and Reviews
No Regrets
Writings On Scott Walker
Scott Walker has travelled from teen idol to the outer limits of music. From 'The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Any More' reaching no.1 through to recordings of meat being punched on his last album, The Drift, he somehow seems to have reached a passionate and committed fan base, and his impeccable critical reputation as a serious and uncompromising musician has never been under question. The recent film, 30th Century Man, had a litany of stars queuing up to praise Walker: the likes of David Bowie, Damon Albarn, Jarvis Cocker, Radiohead, Johnny Marr and Sting. But despite this, in forty years of music, there has yet to be a serious book on Scott Walker. This collection put together by Rob Young of The Wire magazine features a handful of previously published articles and newly commissioned pieces, largely drawn from the orbit of The Wire's writers including Ian Penman, Chris Bohn and Rob Young.
News and Reviews
Life Is A Gift
The Zen Of Bennett
The entertainment icon presents an array of stories that capture humorous and inspirational moments from his sixty-year career. He shares the wisdom he has gained from his own experiences and from the people he met along the way.
News and Reviews
The One
The Life And Music Of James Brown
A tribute to the life and achievements of the "Godfather of Soul" draws on interviews with more than 100 people who knew him personally or played with him professionally, providing coverage of such topics as his unconventional youth in a segregated South, his complicated family life and his work as a Civil Rights advocate and entrepreneur.
News and Reviews
How Music Works
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and co-founder of Talking Heads presents a celebration of music that offers insight into the roles of time, place and recording technology.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
Bitter Brew
The Rise and Fall of Anheuser-Busch and America's Kings of Beer
Part cautionary tale, part business manual, this engrossing book tells the story of how five generations of men took a small, bankrupt brewery on the banks of the Mississippi and turned it into an international empire.
News and Reviews
Blue-Eyed Devil
A Road Odyssey Through Islamic America
News and Reviews
The American Religion
News and Reviews
The Power of Habit
Why We Do What We Do In Life And Business
Identifying the neurological processes behind behaviors while explaining that self-control and success are largely driven by habits, a guide by a Yale-educated investigative reporter for The New York Times shares scientifically based guidelines for achieving personal goals and overall well-being by adjusting specific habits.NPR Bestseller
News and Reviews
The Saint Who Would Be Santa Claus
The True Life and Trials of Nicholas of Myra
Tells the true tale of Saint Nicholas, bishop of Myra, a man of integral influence in events that would significantly impact the history and development of the Christian church.
News and Reviews
Learn Something New Every Day
365 Facts to Fulfill Your Life
The author of All Facts Considered presents a year's worth of facts on the arts, history, language, natural history, religion and science, which will satisfy any inquisitive mind.
News and Reviews
Little White Duck
A Childhood in China
A young girl describes her experiences growing up in China, beginning with the death of Chairman Mao in 1976.
