He was a brilliant teller of tales, one of the most widelyread authors of the twentieth century, and at one time the mostfamous writer in the world, yet W. Somerset Maugham’s own truestory has never been fully told. At last, the fascinating truth isrevealed in a landmark biography by the award-winning writer SelinaHastings. Granted unprecedented access to Maugham’s personalcorrespondence and to newly uncovered interviews with his onlychild, Hastings portrays the secret loves, betrayals, integrity,and passion that inspired Maugham to create such classics as TheRazor’s Edge and Of Human Bondage. Hastings vividly presents Maugham’s lonely childhood spentwith unloving relatives after the death of his parents, a traumathat resulted in shyness, a stammer, and for the rest of his lifean urgent need for physical tenderness. Here, too, are his adulttriumphs on the stage and page, works that allowed him a glitteringsocial life in which he befriended and sometimes fell out with suchluminaries as Do

To illuminate the mysterious greatness of Anton Chekhov'swritings, Janet Malcolm takes on three roles: literary critic,biographer, and journalist. Her close readings of the stories andplays are interwoven with episodes from Chekhov's life and framedby an account of Malcolm's journey to St. Petersburg, Moscow, andYalta. She writes of Chekhov's childhood, his relationships, histravels, his early success, and his self-imposed "exile"--alwayswith an eye to connecting them to themes and characters in hiswork. Lovers of Chekhov as well as those new to his work will betransfixed by "Reading Chekhov."

A fascinating history--. Literate andauthoritative--.Marvelously exciting. --The New York Times BookReview Jonathan Weiner, winner of the Pulitzer Prizefor The Beak of the Finch, brings his brilliant reporting skills tothe story of Seymour Benzer, the Brooklyn-born maverick scientistwhose study of genetics and experiments with fruit fly genes hashelped revolutionize or knowledge of the connections between DNAand behavior both animal and human. How much of our fate is decided before we areborn? Which of our characteristics is inscribed in our DNA? Weinerbrings us into Benzer's Fly Rooms at the California Institute ofTechnology, where Benzer, and his asssociates are in the process offinding answers, often astonishing ones, to these questions. Partbiography, part thrilling scientific detective story, Time, Love,Memory forcefully demonstrates how Benzer's studies are changingour world view--and even our lives.

Adored by many, loathed by some, General George S. Patton,Jr., was one of the most brilliant military strategists in history.War As I Knew It is the personal and candid account of hiscelebrated, relentless crusade across western Europe during WorldWar II. First published in 1947, this absorbing narrative draws onPatton's vivid memories of battle and his detailed diaries, fromthe moment the Third Army exploded onto the Brittany Peninsula tothe final Allied casualty report. The result is not only agrueling, human account of daily combat and heroic feats -including a riveting look at the Battle of the Bulge - but avaluable chronicle of the strategies and fiery personality of alegendary warrior. Patton's letters from earlier military campaignsin North Africa and Sicily, complemented by a powerfulretrospective of his guiding philosophies, further reveal a man ofuncompromising will and uncommon character, which made "Georgie" ahousehold name in mid-century America. With a new introduction.

In 1955, Garcia Marquez was working for El Espectador, a newspaper in Bogota, when in February of that year eight crew members of the Caldas, a Colombian destroyer, were washed overboard and disappeared. Ten days later one of them turned up, barely alive, on a deserted beach in northern Colombia. This book, which originally appeared as a series of newspaper articles, is Garcia Marquez's account of that sailor's ordeal. Translated by Randolf Hogan.

Edith Kermit Carow grew up in New York City in the same circlesas did Theodore Roosevelt. But only after TR's first wife died atage twenty-two did the childhood friends forge one of the mostsuccessful romantic and political partnerships in American history.Sylvia Jukes Morris's access to previously unpublished letters anddiaries brings to full life her portrait of the Roosevelts andtheir times. During her years as First Lady (1901-09), Edith KermitRoosevelt dazzled social and political Washington as hostess,confidante, and mother of six, leading her husband to remark, "Mrs.Roosevelt comes a good deal nearer my ideal than I do myself."

Meredith Hall's moving but unsentimental memoir begins in1965, when she becomes pregnant at sixteen. Shunned by her insularNew Hampshire community, she is then kicked out of the house by hermother. Her father and stepmother reluctantly take her in, hidingher before they finally banish her altogether. After giving herbaby up for adoption, Hall wanders recklessly through the MiddleEast, where she survives by selling her possessions and finally herblood. She returns to New England and stitches together a life thatencircles her silenced and invisible grief. When he is twenty-one,her lost son finds her. Hall learns that he grew up in grittypoverty with an abusive father—in her own father's hometown. Theirreunion is tender, turbulent, and ultimately redemptive. Hall'sparents never ask for her forgiveness, yet as they age, she offersthem her love. What sets Without a Map apart is the way in whichloss and betrayal evolve into compassion, and compassion intowisdom.

In a book that is both biography and the most exciting form ofhistory, here are eighteen years in the life of a man, AlbertEinstein, and a city, Berlin, that were in many ways the definingyears of the twentieth century. Einstein in Berlin In the spring of 1913 two of the giants of modern sciencetraveled to Zurich. Their mission: to offer the most prestigiousposition in the very center of European scientific life to a manwho had just six years before been a mere patent clerk. AlbertEinstein accepted, arriving in Berlin in March 1914 to take up hisnew post. In December 1932 he left Berlin forever. “Take a goodlook,” he said to his wife as they walked away from their house.“You will never see it again.” In between, Einstein’s Berlin years capture in microcosm theodyssey of the twentieth century. It is a century that opens withextravagant hopes--and climaxes in unparalleled calamity. These aretumultuous times, seen through the life of one man who is at oncewitness to and architect of his day--and

A breakaway bestseller since its first printing, AllSouls takes us deep into Michael Patrick MacDonald's Southie,the proudly insular neighborhood with the highest concentration ofwhite poverty in America. Rocked by Whitey Bulger's crime schemesand busing riots, MacDonald's Southie is populated by sharply hewncharacters like his Ma, a miniskirted, accordion-playing singlemother who endures the deaths of four of her eleven children.Nearly suffocated by his grief and his community's code of silence,MacDonald tells his family story here with gritty but movinghonesty.

Country music superstar Trace Adkins isn’t exactly known forholding back what’s on his mind. And if the millions of albums he’ssold are any indication, when Trace talks, people listen. Now, in APersonal Stand, Trace Adkins delivers his maverick manifesto onpolitics, personal responsibility, fame, parenting, being true toyourself, hard work, and the way things oughta be. In his inimitable pull-no-punches style, Trace gives us the stateof the union as he sees it, from the lessons of his boyhood insmall-town Louisiana to what he’s learned headlining concertsaround the world. Trace has worked oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico,been shot in the heart, been inducted into the Grand Ole Opry, andbraved perhaps the greatest challenge of all: being the father offive daughters. And shaped by these experiences, he’s soundingoff. ? I’m incredibly frustrated with the state of American politics. Ifthere were a viable third party, I’d seriously consider joiningit. ? If anybody wonders who the good guys are and w

Gothic, mysterious, theatrical, fatally flawed, and dazzling,the life of Edgar Allan Poe, one of America’s greatest and mostversatile writers, is the ideal subject for Peter Ackroyd. Poewrote lyrical poetry and macabre psychological melodramas; inventedthe first fictional detective; and produced pioneering works ofscience fiction and fantasy. His innovative style, images, andthemes had a tremendous impact on European romanticism, symbolism,and surrealism, and continue to influence writers today. In this essential addition to his canon of acclaimed biographies,Peter Ackroyd explores Poe’s literary accomplishments and legacyagainst the background of his erratic, dramatic, and sometimessordid life. Ackroyd chronicles Poe’s difficult childhood, hisbumpy academic and military careers, and his complex relationshipswith women, including his marriage to his thirteen-year-old cousin.He describes Poe’s much-written-about problems with gambling andalcohol with sympathy and insight, showing their connections toP

"Authorized, intimate, and definitive, Ben Hogan: A Life isthe long-awaited biography of one of golf's greatest, mostenigmatic legends, narrated with the unique eloquence that has madeauthor James Dodson a critically acclaimed national bestseller. "One man is often credited with shaping the landscape of moderngolf. Ben Hogan was a short, trim, impeccably dressed Texan whosefierce work ethic, legendary steel nerves, and astonishing triumphover personal disaster earned him not only an army of adoring fans,but one of the finest careers in the history of the sport. Hogancaptured a record-tying four U.S. Opens, won five of six majortournaments in a single season, and inspired future generations ofprofessional golfers from Palmer to Norman to Woods. Yet for allhis brilliance, Ben Hogan was an enigma. He was an American herowhose personal life, inner motivation, and famed "secret" were thesource of great public mystery. As Hogan grew into a giant on thepro tour, the combination of his cool outward demeanor an

Theodore Rex is the story—never fully toldbefore—of Theodore Roosevelt’s two world-changing terms asPresident of the United States. A hundred years before thecatastrophe of September 11, 2001, “TR” succeeded to power in theaftermath of an act of terrorism. Youngest of all our chiefexecutives, he rallied a stricken nation with his superhumanenergy, charm, and political skills. He proceeded to combat theproblems of race and labor relations and trust control while makingthe Panama Canal possible and winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Buthis most historic achievement remains his creation of a nationalconservation policy, and his monument millions of acres ofprotected parks and forest. Theodore Rex ends with TRleaving office, still only fifty years old, his future reputationsecure as one of our greatest presidents.

Robert Hughes has trained his critical eye on many majorsubjects, from the city of Barcelona to the history of his nativeAustralia. Now he turns that eye inward, onto himself and the worldthat formed him. Hughes analyzes his experiences the way he mightexamine a Van Gogh or a Picasso. From his relationship with hisstern and distant father to his Catholic upbringing and schoolyears; and from his development as an artist, writer, and critic tohis growing appreciation of art and his exhilaration at leavingAustralia to discover a new life, Hughes’ memoir is anextraordinary feat of exploration and celebration.

After two thousand years of flawed history, here at last is amagnificent new biography of Mary Magdalene that draws her out ofthe shadows of history and restores her to her rightful place ofimportance in Christianity.Throughout history, Mary Magdalene hasbeen both revered and reviled, a woman who has taken on manyforms—witch, whore, the incarnation of the eternal feminine, thedevoted companion (and perhaps even the wife) of Jesus. In thisbrilliant new biography, Bruce Chilton, a renowned biblicalscholar, offers the first complete and authoritative portrait ofthis fascinating woman. Through groundbreaking interpretations ofancient texts, Chilton shows that Mary played a central role inJesus’ ministry and was a seminal figure in the creation ofChristianity. Chilton’s de*ions of who Mary Magdalene was and what she didchallenge the male-dominated history of Christianity familiar tomost readers. Placing Mary within the traditions of Jewish femalesavants, Chilton presents a visionary figure who was fully imm

Drawing on an exceptional combination of skills as literarybiographer, novelist, and chronicler of London history, PeterAckroyd surely re-creates the world that shaped Shakespeare--andbrings the playwright himself into unusually vivid focus. Withcharacteristic narrative panache, Ackroyd immerses us insixteenth-century Stratford and the rural landscape–the industry,the animals, even the flowers–that would appear in Shakespeare’splays. He takes us through Shakespeare’s London neighborhood andthe fertile, competitive theater world where he worked as actor andwriter. He shows us Shakespeare as a businessman, and as a constantreviser of his writing. In joining these intimate details withprofound intuitions about the playwright and his work, Ackroyd hasproduced an altogether engaging masterpiece.

MARVELOUS . . . BREATHTAKING. --The New York Times Book Review "MAILER SHINES . . . Explaining Kennedy's assassination throughthe flaws in Oswald's character has been attempted before, notablyby Gerald Posner in Case Closed and Don Delillo in Libra. Butneither handled Oswald with the kind of dexterity and literaryimagination that Mailer here supplies in great force. . . .Oswald's Tale weaves a story not only about Oswald or Kennedy'sdeath but about the culture surrounding the assassination, one thatremains replete with miscomprehensions, unraveled threads and lackof resolution: All of which makes Oswald's Tale more true-to-lifethan any fact-driven treatise could hope to be. . . . VintageMailer." --The Philadelphia Inquirer "FASCINATING . . . A MASTER STORYTELLER . . . Mailer gives us ourclearest, deepest view of Oswald yet. . . . Inside three pages youare utterly absorbed." --Detroit Free Press "MAILER AT HIS BEST . . . LIVELY AND CONVINCING . . .EXTREMELY LUCI

THE LIBRARY OF CONTEMPORARY THOUGHT is a groundbreaking serieswhere America's finest writers and most brilliant minds tackletoday's most provocative, fascinating, and relevant issues.Striking and daring, creative and important, these original voiceson matters political, social, economic, and cultural, willenlighten, comfort, entertain, enrage, and ignite healthy debateacross the country.

Prize-winning biographer Robert D. Richardson has written thedefinitive biography of the fascinating William James, whose lifeand writing put an indelible stamp on psychology, philosophy,teaching, and religion—and on modernism itself. A pivotal member ofthe Metaphysical Club, author of The Varieties of ReligiousExperience, and older brother of extraordinary siblings Henry andAlice, William emerges here as an immensely complex man.Richardson’s thought-provoking and utterly moving work, ten yearsin the making, draws on a vast number of unpublished letters,journals, and family records. Through impassioned scholarship,Richardson illuminates James’s hugely influential works: TheVarieties, Principles of Psychology, Talks to Teachers, andPragmatism. Finally, brought richly to life through Richardson’sbrilliant insights, James is given his due as a man whose influenceresonates in innumerable areas of modern life.

In Unbowed, Nobel Prize winner Wangari Maathai recountsher extraordinary journey from her childhood in rural Kenya to theworld stage. When Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977,she began a vital poor people’s environmental movement, focused onthe empowerment of women, that soon spread across Africa.Persevering through run-ins with the Kenyan government and personallosses, and jailed and beaten on numerous occasions, Maathaicontinued to fight tirelessly to save Kenya’s forests and torestore democracy to her beloved country . Infused with herunique luminosity of spirit, Wangari Maathai’s remarkable story ofcourage, faith, and the power of persistence is destined to inspiregenerations to come.

The epic life and times of one of the most important politicalfigures in our history. He was the Great Compromiser, a canny and colorful legislator andleader whose life mirrors the story of America from its foundinguntil the eve of the Civil War. Speaker of the House, senator,secretary of state, five-time presidential candidate, and idol tothe young Abraham Lincoln, Henry Clay is captured in full at lastin this rich and sweeping biography that vividly portrays all thedrama of his times. David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler present Clay in his earlyyears as a precocious, witty, and optimistic Virginia boy, raisedon a farm, who at the age of twenty transformed himself frombumpkin to attorney—a shrewd and sincere defender of the ordinaryman who would be his eventual political base. The authors revealClay’s tumultuous career in Washington, one that transformed thecapital and the country. Nicknamed “the Western Star,” Clay becamethe youngest Speaker of the House shortly before the War of 1812and tran

Saucerful of Secrets is the first in-depth biography of thisvery private group. At the heart of the saga is Syd Barrett, thegroup's brilliant founder, whose public decline into shatteredincoherence--attributable in part to his marathon use of LSD--isone of the tragedies of rock history. The making of Dark Side ofthe Moon and Floyd's other great albums is recounted in detail, asare the mounting of "The Wall"? ? and the creation of the flyingpigs, crashing? ? planes, "Mr. Screen" and the other elements oftheir spectacular stage shows. The book also explores the manybattles between bass player/song writer Roger Waters and the restof the group, leading up to Water's acrimonious departure for asolo? ? career in 1984 and his unsuccessful attempt to disolve thegroup he had left behind. Saucerful of Secrets is an electrifying account of thisground-breaking, mind-bending group, covering every period of theircareer from? ? earliest days to latest recordings. It is full of? ?revealing information that will

“I have been incredibly fortunate over the course of mycareer to have been associated with some extraordinary dramatic andmusical productions, and also some rather spectacular disasters.Looking back, I can find gifts and life lessons in everyone.” The legendary Patti LuPone is one of the theatre’s most belovedleading ladies. Now she lays it all bare, sharing the intimatestory of her life both onstage and off--through the dizzying highsand darkest lows--with the humor and outspokenness that have becomeher trademarks. With nearly 100 photographs, including an 8-page four-color insert,and illuminating details about the life of a working actor, frominspired costars and demanding directors to her distinctperspective on how she developed and honed her Tony Award–winningperformances, Patti LuPone: A Memoir is as inspirational asit is entertaining. And though the title might say “a memoir,” thisis ultimately a love letter to the theatre by a unique Americanartist. Raised on Long Island’s North Shor