[bksvol-discuss] Fw: History and Current Events November 2008
- From: "Amber Wallenstein" <amber.wallens@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:30:45 -0500
History and Current Events November 2008
"If one could make alive again for other people some cobwebbed skein of old
dead intrigues and breathe breath and character into dead names and stiff
portraits.
That is history to me!"
~ George Macaulay Trevelyan (1876-1962), English historian
New and Recently Released!
The Devil We Know: Dealing with the New Iranian Superpower - by Robert Baer
Publisher: Crown Publishers
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 9/30/2008
ISBN: 9780307408648
ISBN-10: 0307408647
Though you may not agree with all of former CIA agent Robert Baer's statements,
his examination of Iran and its growing power--and his suggestions for future
interactions with the country's leaders--will be of interest to anyone
concerned with the current state of the Middle East. Among the concerns that
Baer
brings up are Iran's control of much of the world's energy resources and its
use of military force, as well as some topics that are not familiar to those
outside of Iran, like its growing youth culture. This "timely and provocative
analysis...adds an important perspective to a crucial international debate"
(Publishers Weekly).
Old World, New World: Great Britain and America from the Beginning - by
Kathleen Burk
Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Press
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 10/21/2008
ISBN: 9780871139719
ISBN-10: 0871139715
Though Old World, New World clocks in at over 800 pages, you needn't be daunted
by its size, for this history of the long and constantly evolving relationship
between Great Britain and the United States is both well written and "swiftly
moving" (Kirkus Reviews). Its length merely allows respected historian Kathleen
Burk to cover topics ranging from the establishment of the first English colony
in the New World to the near-present-day relations between George Bush
and Tony Blair. She also details the cultural gap between the two nations,
Anglophobia in 19th-century America, and even such far-flung topics as Victorian
writings and Anglo-American marriages.
The Forever War - by Dexter Filkins
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 9/16/2008
ISBN: 9780307266392
ISBN-10: 0307266397
During his years covering Islamic extremism in Iraq and Afghanistan, New York
Times correspondent Dexter Filkins has had opportunities to shadow the Taliban
as well as U.S. military forces. His experiences with both--and with others
throughout these countries--are presented here in a series of "intense, vivid,
and startling vignettes" (Booklist). His firsthand accounts portray
recognizable names, such as Iraqi politician Ahmed Chalabi and former U.S.
commander
Nathan Sassaman, but also illustrate how the lives of ordinary men and women
have been affected by the ongoing wars. Give this award-winning journalist
a try if you're looking for an accessible, immediate, and street-level view of
the two wars.
First Chapter
The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family - by Annette Gordon-Reed
Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 9/28/2008
ISBN: 9780393064773
ISBN-10: 0393064778
Ten years ago, history professor Annette Gordon-Reed wrote Thomas Jefferson and
Sally Hemings, an investigative history of the relationship between the
founding father and his enslaved mistress. Now, in The Hemingses of Monticello,
she traces the history of the Hemings family from early 18th-century Virginia
through their dispersal after Jefferson's death in 1826. Though some
controversy still attends the claim that Jefferson fathered Sally Hemings'
children,
this well-researched book reconstructs not only the lives of the members of an
influential family but the era as well. Anyone interested in early U.S.
history or African-American history would do well to pick it up.
Titanic's Last Secrets: The Further Adventures of Shadow Divers John Chatterton
and Richie Kohler - by Brad Matsen
Publisher: Twelve
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 10/1/2008
ISBN: 9780446582056
ISBN-10: 0446582050
Think you know everything about the sinking of the Titanic? Think again. In
author Brad Matsen's latest, he focuses on the recent exploits of the diving
duo made famous for identifying the wreck of a German submarine off the coast
of New Jersey. Compelled to discover why the Titanic sank as quickly as she
did, they (with the help of several experts) discovered two new pieces of the
famous ship and dived to the wreck of her sister ship, Britannic, to learn
more. From there, Matsen discusses the faulty construction decisions and
overlooked safety concerns of those in charge of sending the Titanic to sea.
In a Time of War: The Proud and Perilous Journey of West Point's Class of 2002
- by Bill Murphy, Jr.
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 9/16/2008
ISBN: 9780805086799
ISBN-10: 080508679X
In 2002, for the first time in a generation, the U.S. Military Academy
(familiarly known as West Point) graduated a class during a time of war. For
five
years after their graduation, journalist Bill Murphy followed a handful of men
and women from this class as they were deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan,
in some cases up to three times. Some married, some were wounded, some died.
All are smart, motivated, and patriotic. As an introduction to West Pointers
and Army life during wartime, In a Time of War offers a valuable and personal
perspective. For a similar read, try Rick Atkinson's The Long Gray Line,
which followed the class of 1966.
The Wordy Shipmates - by Sarah Vowell
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 10/7/2008
ISBN: 9781594489990
ISBN-10: 1594489998
So, who were those nutty Puritans who abandoned their lives in Europe to travel
to the New World? With her customary wit and wisdom, author and NPR contributor
Sarah Vowell takes a look at several prominent Puritans, their culture, and
their mores, and how all of these have affected U.S. history up through the
policies of the Bush administration. From colonial history to current events,
from lessons on the differences between Plymouth Puritans and Massachusetts
Puritans to personal anecdotes about a Mayflower-themed waterslide, Vowell's
latest will delight readers interested in a dose of intelligent humor with
their history.
Focus on: Disasters
Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America -
by John M. Barry
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 4/2/1998
ISBN: 9780684840024
ISBN-10: 0684840022
When 30 feet of water covers an area that nearly one million people used to
live on, things inevitably change. After living for months in refugee camps,
many African-Americans left the Mississippi River valley region and never
returned. The U.S. federal government, for the first of many times, provided
assistance in recovery. The plantation aristocracy was destroyed. With drama
and skill, author John Barry relates these historic events and explains the
engineering inefficiencies and downright depravity that led to--and came out
of--the flood of 1927. Many of the books written about Hurricane Katrina pay
homage to Rising Tide, so if you're curious about that modern-day disaster,
you'd do well to start here.
First Chapter
Table of Contents
The White Cascade: The Great Northern Railway Disaster and America's Deadliest
Avalanche - by Gary Krist
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 2/6/2007
ISBN: 9780805077056
ISBN-10: 0805077057
This compelling chronicle of one of the worst rail disasters in American
history describes how a 1910 avalanche in the Cascade Mountains of Washington
State
swept away two Great Northern Railway trains, killing 96 passengers and crew.
Author Gary Krist vividly depicts all aspects of this monstrous event, including
the three-day spring blizzard that trapped the trains in the mountains, the
frenzied efforts of railroad workers to free the doomed trains, the
subsequent--and
unavoidable--snowslide, and the desperation and claustrophobia of snowbound
survivors. White Cascade is a thrilling read that will appeal to fans of
survival
and disaster stories.
Table of Contents
First Chapter
Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History - by Erik
Larson
Publisher: Crown Publishers
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 9/1/1999
ISBN: 9780609602331
ISBN-10: 0609602330
At a time when Texas is once again recovering from the effects of a powerful
hurricane, it might be educational to look back at the hurricane that all but
destroyed Galveston more than 100 years ago. In 1900, meteorologists at the new
U.S. Weather Bureau were so confident in their own prowess at predicting
weather that they brushed aside troubling reports from Cuba. The resulting
devastation killed an estimated 8,000 people, making this storm the deadliest
natural disaster in U.S. history. With vivid eyewitness accounts as well as a
history of the weather service and a meteorological explanation of the storm,
author Erik Larson has written "an absorbing narrative" (Publishers Weekly).
First Chapter
Table of Contents
In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex - by Nathaniel
Philbrick
Publisher: Viking
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 5/1/2000
ISBN: 9780670891573
ISBN-10: 0670891576
Not only is In the Heart of the Sea a brilliant portrait of life onboard a
whaling ship and an unbelievable survival tale, this National Book Award-winner
is also the story of the real-life event that inspired Herman Melville's Moby
Dick. In a captivating narrative, maritime historian Nathaniel Philbrick
begins with a description of life in early 19th-century Nantucket, continues
with a discussion of the whaling industry, goes on to explain how the Essex
was chased and sunk by a sperm whale, and finally relates the dark desperation
of crew members who struggled to survive and eventually turned to cannibalism.
Prepare to be hooked from page one in this all-consuming read.
First Chapter
Table of Contents
Sudden Sea: The Great Hurricane of 1938 - by R.A. Scotti
Publisher: Back Bay Books/Little, Brown & Company
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 8/24/2004
ISBN: 9780316832113
ISBN-10: 0316832111
A native of Providence, Rhode Island, author R.A. Scotti grew up listening to
dramatic family stories about the legendary Great Hurricane of 1938, a surprise
storm that blazed a trail of death and destruction across seven Northeastern
states. In Sudden Sea, Scotti uses period newspaper accounts, eyewitness
testimony,
and archival footage to provide an in-depth account of the powerful hurricane.
Fans of Sebastian Junger's The Perfect Storm will enjoy this gripping look
at how an unlikely assortment of meteorological conditions erupted into a
record-breaking and coastline-altering storm.
First Chapter
Table of Contents
A Crack in the Edge of the World: America and the Great California Earthquake
of 1906 - by Simon Winchester
Publisher: HarperCollins
Check Library Catalog
Pub Date: 10/1/2006
ISBN: 9780060572006
ISBN-10: 0060572000
Early on the morning of April 18, 1906, the earth shifted in San Francisco--and
between the earthquake and the subsequent fire, somewhere between 600 and
3,000 people died. This account of that terrible event provides not only a
vivid picture of the devastation, but also shows how the disaster affected U.S.
history and its political and social makeup. Bestselling author Simon
Winchester also gives a complete explanation of the geological factors that
caused
the earthquake, from tectonic plate theory in general to California's unique
and complex geology--all with "fabulous style, wit, and grace" (Publishers
Weekly). Perfect for those looking for some science with their history lesson.
First Chapter
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