“H.W Brands has given us the authoritative Franklin biographyfor out time.” —Joseph J. Ellis author of the PulitzerPrize-winning Founding Brothers “Like its subject, this biography is both solid and enchanting.”—The New Yorker “[A] biography with a rich cast of secondary characters and alarge and handsome stock of historical scenery.... Brands writesclearly and confidently about the full spectrum of the polymath’sinterests.... This is a Franklin to savor.” —The Wall StreetJournal “Benjamin Franklin’s life is one every American should know well,and it has not been told better than by Mr. Brands.” —The DallasMorning News “A vivid portrait of the 18th-century milieu and of the18th-century man.... [Brands is] a master storyteller.” —TheChristian Science Monitor “A thorough biography of Benjamin Franklin, America’s firstRenaissance man.... In graceful, even witty prose.... Brandsrelates the entire, dense-p

As a defender of national unity, a leader in war, and theemancipator of slaves, Abraham Lincoln lays ample claim to beingthe greatest of our presidents. But the story of his rise togreatness is as complex as it is compelling. In this superb,prize-winning biography, acclaimed historian Richard Carwardineexamines Lincoln’s dramatic political journey, from his early yearsin the Illinois legislature to his nation-shaping years in theWhite House. Here, Carwardine combines a new perspective with acompelling narrative to deliver a fresh look at one of the pillarsof American politics. He probes the sources of Lincoln’s moral andpolitical philosophy and uses his groundbreaking research to cutthrough the myth and expose the man behind it.

In this the first book ever written about the CIA's Office of Technical Service, former director Robert Wallace (a real-life Q, straight out of the James Bond films) and internationally renowned intelligence historian H. Keith Melton offer an unprecedented look at the CIA's most secretive operations and the devices that made them possible. Against a backdrop of geopolitical tensions- including the Cold War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the current War on Terror-the authors show how the CIA carries out its missions employing amazingly inventive tools. Illustrated with images never before seen by the public-and featuring everything from micro cameras to wired kitties to exploding pancakes-Spycraft is both a fantastic encyclopedia of gadgetry and a revealing primer on the fundamentals of high-tech espionage.

The former president's personal tale of political intrigue andsocial conflict during his first campaign for public office.Iluminates the origins of his commitment to human rights and bearsfurther witness to the accomplishments of an extraordinary man.

Despite all that has already been written on Franklin DelanoRoosevelt, Joseph Persico has uncovered a hitherto overlookeddimension of FDR's wartime leadership: his involvement inintelligence and espionage operations. Roosevelt's Secret War is crowded with remarkablerevelations: -FDR wanted to bomb Tokyo before Pearl Harbor -A defector from Hitler's inner circle reported directly to theOval Office -Roosevelt knew before any other world leader of Hitler's plan toinvade Russia -Roosevelt and Churchill concealed a disaster costing hundreds ofBritish soldiers' lives in order to protect Ultra, the Britishcodebreaking secret -An unwitting Japanese diplomat provided the President with adirect pipeline into Hitler's councils Roosevelt's Secret War also describes how much FDR had beentold--before the Holocaust--about the coming fate of Europe's Jews. And Persico also provides a definitive answer to the perennialquestion Did FDR know in advance about the attack on PearlHarbor? By temperament and chara

In business and in life, these principles, among others, directly affect who we are and the way in which we conduct ourselves publicly and privately. Simply, they are both guidelines for and predictors of success, as they were for the man who was arguably the greatest American leader of the twentieth century--Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In Nothing to Fear, the bestselling author of Elizabeth I,CEO and Patton on Leadership, Alan Axelrod, examines the unparalleled leadership qualities of FDR, a man who would come to exemplify the kind of decency,bravery, and relentless courage it took to lift America out of the Great Depression and steer it through the darkest days of World War II, even as he battled a debilitating illness on the public stage. The leadership of FDR transformed the most perilous years of the twentieth century into what many Americans regarded as their finest hour. Axelrod distills Franklin Delano Roosevelt's life and career into fourteen themes containing a wealth of practical lessons for

It is history on an epic yet human scale. Vast in scope,exhaustive in original research, written with passion, narrativeskill, and human sympathy, A People's Tragedy is a profound accountof the Russian Revolution for a new generation. Many consider theRussian Revolution to be the most significant event of thetwentieth century. Distinguished scholar Orlando Figes presents apanorama of Russian society on the eve of that revolution, and thennarrates the story of how these social forces were violentlyerased. Within the broad stokes of war and revolution are miniaturehistories of individuals, in which Figes follows the main players'fortunes as they saw their hopes die and their world crash intoruins. Unlike previous accounts that trace the origins of therevolution to overreaching political forces and ideals, Figesargues that the failure of democracy in 1917 was deeply rooted inRussian culture and social history and that what had started as apeople's revolution contained the seeds of its degeneration intoviolence

In House of War, New York Times best-selling author JamesCarroll argues and then proves a radical thesis: the Pentagon has,since its founding, operated beyond the control of any force ingovernment or society. It is the ultimate loose cannon in Americanhistory, and no institution has changed this country more since theend of World War II. From its "birth" on September 11, 1941,through the nuclear buildup of the cold war and the eventual "shockand awe" of Iraq, Carroll recounts how "the Building" and itsdenizens achieved what Eisenhower called "a disastrous rise ofmisplaced power." This is not faded history. Carroll shows how theconsequences of the American response to September 11,2001-including two wars and an ignited Middle East-form one end ofan arc that stretches from Donald Rumsfeld back to James Forrestal,the first man to occupy the office of secretary of defense in thePentagon. House of War confronts this dark past so we mayunderstand the current war and forestall the next.

Widely considered in his own time as a genial but provinciallightweight who was out of place in the presidency, Abraham Lincolnastonished his allies and confounded his adversaries by producing aseries of speeches and public letters so provocative that theyhelped revolutionize public opinion on such critical issues ascivil liberties, the use of black soldiers, and the emancipation ofslaves. This is a brilliant and unprecedented examination of howLincoln used the power of words to not only build his politicalcareer but to keep the country united during the Civil War.

John McCain is one of the most admired leaders in the UnitedStates government, but his deeply felt memoir of family and war isnot a political one and ends before his election to Congress. Withcandor and ennobling power, McCain tells a story that, in the wordsof Newsweek, "makes the other presidential candidates look likepygmies." John McCain learned about life and honor from his grandfather andfather, both four-star admirals in the U.S. Navy. This is a memoirabout their lives, their heroism, and the ways that sons are shapedand enriched by their fathers. John McCain's grandfather was a gaunt, hawk-faced man known asSlew by his fellow officers and, affectionately, as Popeye by thesailors who served under him. McCain Sr. played the horses, drankbourbon and water, and rolled his own cigarettes with one hand.More significant, he was one of the navy's greatest commanders, andled the strongest aircraft carrier force of the Third Fleet in keybattles during World War II.