"In the spring of 1984, I went to the northwest of France, toNormandy, to prepare an NBC documentary on the fortieth anniversaryof D-Day, the massive and daring Allied invasion of Europe thatmarked the beginning of the end of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich.There, I underwent a life-changing experience. As I walked thebeaches with the American veterans who had returned for thisanniversary, men in their sixties and seventies, and listened totheir stories, I was deeply moved and profoundly grateful for allthey had done. Ten years later, I returned to Normandy for thefiftieth anniversary of the invasion, and by then I had come tounderstand what this generation of Americans meant to history. Itis, I believe, the greatest generation any society has everproduced." In this superb book, Tom Brokaw goes out into America, to tellthrough the stories of individual men and women the story of ageneration, America's citizen heroes and heroines who came of ageduring the Great Depression and the Second World War and went

This riveting work of investigative reporting and historyexposes classified government projects to build gravity-defyingaircraft--which have an uncanny resemblance to flyingsaucers. The atomic bomb was not the only project to occupy governmentscientists in the 1940s. Antigravity technology, originallyspearheaded by scientists in Nazi Germany, was another highpriority, one that still may be in effect today. Now for the firsttime, a reporter with an unprecedented access to key sources in theintelligence and military communities reveals suppressed evidencethat tells the story of a quest for a discovery that could prove aspowerful as the A-bomb. The Hunt for Zero Point explores the scientific speculation thata "zero point" of gravity exists in the universe and can bereplicated here on Earth. The pressure to be the first nation toharness gravity is immense, as it means having the ability to buildmilitary planes of unlimited speed and range, along with the mostdeadly weaponry the wo

It is a tale as familiar as our history primers: A derangedactor, John Wilkes Booth, killed Abraham Lincoln in Ford’s Theatre,escaped on foot, and eluded capture for twelve days until he methis fiery end in a Virginia tobacco barn. In the national hysteriathat followed, eight others were arrested and tried; four of thosewere executed, four imprisoned. Therein lie all the classicelements of a great thriller. But the untold tale is even morefascinating. Now, in American Brutus, Michael W. Kauffman, one of the foremostLincoln assassination authorities, takes familiar history to adeeper level, offering an unprecedented, authoritative account ofthe Lincoln murder conspiracy. Working from a staggering array ofarchival sources and new research, Kauffman sheds new light on thebackground and motives of John Wilkes Booth, the mechanics of hisplot to topple the Union government, and the trials and fates ofthe conspirators. Piece by piece, Kauffman explains and corrects commonmisperceptions and analy

“Reads like a novel. A fast-paced page-turner, it haseverything: sex, wit, humor, and adventures. But it is animpressively researched and important story.” —David Fromkin, author of Europe’s Last Summer Vienna, 1814 is an evocative and brilliantly researched accountof the most audacious and extravagant peace conference in modernEuropean history. With the feared Napoleon Bonaparte presumablydefeated and exiled to the small island of Elba, heads of some 216states gathered in Vienna to begin piecing together the ruins ofhis toppled empire. Major questions loomed: What would be done withFrance? How were the newly liberated territories to be divided?What type of restitution would be offered to families of thedeceased? But this unprecedented gathering of kings, dignitaries,and diplomatic leaders unfurled a seemingly endless stream ofpersonal vendettas, long-simmering feuds, and romanticentanglements that threatened to undermine the crucial work athand, even as their hard-fought policy dec

In The Wall Street Journal, Victor Davis Hanson named With theOld Breed one of the top five books on epic twentieth-centurybattles. Studs Terkel interviewed the author for his definitiveoral history, The Good War. Now E. B. Sledge’s acclaimedfirst-person account of fighting at Peleliu and Okinawa returns tothrill, edify, and inspire a new generation. An Alabama boy steeped in American history and enamored of suchheroes as George Washington and Daniel Boone, Eugene B. Sledgebecame part of the war’s famous 1st Marine Division–3d Battalion,5th Marines. Even after intense training, he was shocked to bethrown into the battle of Peleliu, where “the world was a nightmareof flashes, explosions, and snapping bullets.” By the time Sledgehit the hell of Okinawa, he was a combat vet, still filled withfear but no longer with panic. Based on notes Sledge secretly kept in a copy of the NewTestament, With the Old Breed captures with utter simplicity andsearing honesty the experience of a soldier

Encyclopedic and panoramic in its scope, this fascinating workchronicles the rich spiritual, political, and cultural institutionsof Arab history through 13 centuries.

In AD 476 the Roman Empire fell–or rather, its western halfdid. Its eastern half, which would come to be known as theByzantine Empire, would endure and often flourish for anothereleven centuries. Though its capital would move to Constantinople,its citizens referred to themselves as Roman for the entireduration of the empire’s existence. Indeed, so did its neighbors,allies, and enemies: When the Turkish Sultan Mehmet II conqueredConstantinople in 1453, he took the title Caesar of Rome, placinghimself in a direct line that led back to Augustus. For far too many otherwise historically savvy people today, thestory of the Byzantine civilization is something of a void. Yet formore than a millennium, Byzantium reigned as the glittering seat ofChristian civilization. When Europe fell into the Dark Ages,Byzantium held fast against Muslim expansion, keeping Christianityalive. When literacy all but vanished in the West, Byzantium madeprimary education available to both sexes. Students debated themerits

“What is the scene or incident in European history that youwould like to have witnessed-and why?” In this companion to I Wish I'd Been There: Twenty HistoriansBring to Life the Dramatic Events that Changed America , some ofour finest historical writers now turn their attention to Europe,with lively and detailed accounts of some of the most dramaticevents in history. Guided by peerless scholars such as PaulKennedy, John Keegan, Ross King, Freeman Dyson, and KatherineDuncan-Jones, readers will be transported to the signing of MagnaCarta, the Versailles Conference, the German surrender in WWII onLuneburg Heath, and other key turning points in the drama ofEuropean history. These essays encompass two millenia and an entirecontinent, addressing issues of politics, law, religion, peace andwar, science and the arts, and social change, all telescoped intofinely observed narratives. The result is an historical pageant ofcharacters and episodes that will attract and delight all readersof history.

Ireland in the mid-1800s was primarily a population ofpeasants, forced to live on a single, moderately nutritious crop:potatoes. Suddenly, in 1846, an unknown and uncontrollable diseaseturned the potato crop to inedible slime, and all Ireland wasthreatened. Index.

A source of endless fascination and speculation, the subjectof countless biographies, novels, and films, Elizabeth I is nowconsidered from a thrilling new angle by the brilliant younghistorian Tracy Borman. So often viewed in her relationships withmen, the Virgin Queen is portrayed here as the product of women—themother she lost so tragically, the female subjects who worshippedher, and the peers and intimates who loved, raised, challenged, andsometimes opposed her. In vivid detail, Borman presents Elizabeth’s bewitching mother,Anne Boleyn, eager to nurture her new child, only to see her takenaway and her own life destroyed by damning allegations—which taughtElizabeth never to mix politics and love. Kat Astley, the governesswho attended and taught Elizabeth for almost thirty years, inviteddisaster by encouraging her charge into a dangerous liaison afterHenry VIII’s death. Mary Tudor—“Bloody Mary”—envied her youngersister’s popularity and threatened to destroy her altogether. Andanimosity dr

Writing with passion and intelligence, Said retraces thePalestinian Hejira, its disastrous flirtation with Saddam Hussein,and its ambitious peace accord with Israel. Said demolishes Westernstereotypes about the Muslim world and Islam's illusions aboutitself, leaving a masterly synthesis of scholarship and polemicwith the power to redefine the debate over the Middle East.

Going beyond even the expertise of archaeologists andhistorians, world-class engineer Craig B. Smith explores theplanning and engineering behind the incredible Great Pyramid ofGiza. How would the ancient Egyptians have developed their buildingplans, devised work schedules, managed laborers, solved specificdesign and engineering problems, or even improvised on the job? Theanswers are here, along with dazzling, one-of-a-kind colorphotographs and beautiful hand-drawn illustrations of tools,materials, and building techniques the ancient masters used. In hisforeword to the book, Egypt's Undersecretary of State for the GizaMonuments Zahi Hawass explains the importance of understanding theGreat Pyramid as a straightforward construction project.

Pulitzer Prize-winner Garry Wills makes a compelling argumentfor a reassessment of Henry Adams as our nations greatest historianand his History as the "nonfiction prose masterpiece of thenineteenth century in America." Adams drew on his own southernfixations, his extensive foreign travel, his political service inthe Lincoln administration, and much more to invent the study ofhistory as we know it. His nine-volume chronicle of America from1800 to 1816 established new standards for employing archivalsources, firsthand reportage, eyewitness accounts, and othertechniques that have become the essence of modern history.Ambitious in scope, nuanced in detail, Henry Adams and the Makingof America throws brilliant light on the historian and the makingof history.

In this unforgettable chronicle of perhaps the most famousmoment in American military history, James Bradley has captured theglory, the triumph, the heartbreak, and the legacy of the six menwho raised the flag at Iwo Jima. Here is the true story behind theimmortal photograph that has come to symbolize the courage andindomitable will of America. In February 1945, American Marines plunged into the surf at IwoJima—and into history. Through a hail of machine-gun and mortarfire that left the beaches strewn with comrades, they battled tothe island's highest peak. And after climbing through a landscapeof hell itself, they raised a flag. Now the son of one of the flagraisers has written a powerfulaccount of six very different young men who came together in amoment that will live forever. To his family, John Bradley never spoke of the photograph or thewar. But after his death at age seventy, his family discoveredclosed boxes of letters and photos. In Flags of Our Fathers ,James Bradley draws on those documents

In the summer of 1846, the Army of the West marched throughSanta Fe, en route to invade and occupy the Western territoriesclaimed by Mexico. Fueled by the new ideology of “ManifestDestiny,” this land grab would lead to a decades-long battlebetween the United States and the Navajos, the fiercely resistantrulers of a huge swath of mountainous desert wilderness.In Bloodand Thunder , Hampton Sides gives us a magnificent history ofthe American conquest of the West. At the center of this sweepingtale is Kit Carson, the trapper, scout, and soldier whoseadventures made him a legend. Sides shows us how this illiteratemountain man understood and respected the Western tribes betterthan any other American, yet willingly followed orders that wouldultimately devastate the Navajo nation. Rich in detail and spanningmore than three decades, this is an essential addition to ourunderstanding of how the West was really won.

This streamlined revision of the breakthrough bestseller byrenowned child-development expert Dr. Harvey Karp will do even moreto help busy parents survive the “terrible twos” andbeyond.... In one of the most revolutionary advances in parenting of thepast twenty-five years, Dr. Karp revealed that toddlers often actlike uncivilized little cavemen, with a primitive way of thinkingand communicating that is all their own. In this revised edition ofhis parenting classic, Dr. Karp has made his innovative approacheasier to learn—and put into action—than ever before. Combining his trademark tools of Toddler-ese and the Fast-FoodRule with a highly effective new green light/yellow light/red lightmethod for molding toddler behavior, Dr. Karp provides fastsolutions for today’s busy and stressed parents. As you discoverways to boost your child’s good (green light) behavior, curb hisannoying (yellow light) behavior, and immediately stop hisunacceptable (red light) behavior you will learn how t

In the 1930s Orwell was sent by a socialist book club toinvestigate the appalling mass unemployment in the industrial northof England. He went beyond his assignment to investigate theemployed as well-”to see the most typical section of the Englishworking class.” Foreword by Victor Gollancz.

Dazzling in its originality, witty and perceptive inunearthing patterns of behavior that history has erased, RITES OFSPRING probes the origins, the impact, and the aftermath of WorldWar I -- from the premiere of Stravinsky's ballet The Rite ofSpring in 1913 to the death of Hitler in 1945. "The Great War," asModris Eksteins writes, "was the psychological turning point . . .for modernism as a whole. The urge to create and the urge todestroy had changed places." In this "bold and fertile book"(Atlantic Monthly), Eksteins goes on to chart the seismic shifts inhuman consciousness brought about by this great cataclysm throughthe lives and words of ordinary people, works of literature, andsuch events as Lindbergh's transatlantic flight and the publicationof the first modern bestseller, ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT.RITES OF SPRING is a remarkable and rare work, a cultural historythat redefines the way we look at our past and toward ourfuture.

Advance praise for The Memoirs of Catherine the Great “Superb. The translation of the Memoirs is fluid, accessible, andidiomatic, while remaining accurate and as delightful as theoriginal. Students will heartily enjoy this excursion into thehistorical and literary world of the great empress.” –Cynthia Hyla Whittaker, professor and chair, Department ofHistory, Baruch College/CUNY “Several translations of the memoirs of Catherine the Great havebeen published before, but none of them can compare with thislatest edition. Mark Cruse and Hilde Hoogenboom have produced amasterpiece. Their translation fairly sings, capturing withstunning virtuosity all the beguiling wit and charm that make thesememoirs one of the most fascinating works ever penned by a Europeanmonarch.” –Douglas Smith, editor and translator of Love and Conquest:Personal Correspondence of Catherine the Great and Prince GrigoryPotemkin “Catherine the Great’s memoirs are a classic

When the British wrested New Amsterdam from the Dutch in 1664,the truth about its thriving, polyglot society began to disappearinto myths about an island purchased for 24 dollars and acartoonish peg-legged governor. But the story of the Dutch colonyof New Netherland was merely lost, not destroyed: 12,000 pages ofits records–recently declared a national treasure–are now beingtranslated. Drawing on this remarkable archive, Russell Shorto hascreated a gripping narrative–a story of global sweep centered on awilderness called Manhattan–that transforms our understanding ofearly America. The Dutch colony pre-dated the “original” thirteen colonies, yetit seems strikingly familiar. Its capital was cosmopolitan andmulti-ethnic, and its citizens valued free trade, individualrights, and religious freedom. Their champion was a progressive,young lawyer named Adriaen van der Donck, who emerges in thesepages as a forgotten American patriot and whose political visionbrought him into conflict with Pete

A gripping intellectual adventure story, Sailing fromByzantium sweeps you from the deserts of Arabia to the dark forestsof northern Russia, from the colorful towns of Renaissance Italy tothe final moments of a millennial city under siege…. Byzantium: the successor of Greece and Rome, this magnificentempire bridged the ancient and modern worlds for more than athousand years. Without Byzantium, the works of Homer andHerodotus, Plato and Aristotle, Sophocles and Aeschylus, wouldnever have survived. Yet very few of us have any idea of theenormous debt we owe them. The story of Byzantium is a real-life adventure of electrifyingideas, high drama, colorful characters, and inspiring feats ofdaring. In Sailing from Byzantium, Colin Wells tells of themissionaries, mystics, philosophers, and artists who against greatodds and often at peril of their own lives spread Greek ideas tothe Italians, the Arabs, and the Slavs. Their heroic efforts inspired the Renaissance, the golden age ofIslamic lear

Upon its original publication, Plagues and Peoples wasan immediate critical and popular success, offering a radically newinterpretation of world history as seen through the extraordinaryimpact--political, demographic, ecological, and psychological--ofdisease on cultures. From the conquest of Mexico by smallpox asmuch as by the Spanish, to the bubonic plague in China, to thetyphoid epidemic in Europe, the history of disease is the historyof humankind. With the identification of AIDS in the early 1980s,another chapter has been added to this chronicle of events, whichWilliam McNeill explores in his new introduction to this updatedediton. Thought-provoking, well-researched, and compulsively readable, Plagues and Peoples is that rare book that is as fascinatingas it is scholarly, as intriguing as it is enlightening. "Abrilliantly conceptualized and challenging achievement" (KirkusReviews), it is essential reading, offering a new perspective onhuman history.

During World War Two, 131 German cities and towns weretargeted by Allied bombs, a good number almost entirely flattened.Six hundred thousand German civilians died—a figure twice that ofall American war casualties. Seven and a half million Germans wereleft homeless. Given the astonishing scope of the devastation, W.G. Sebald asks, why does the subject occupy so little space inGermany’s cultural memory? On the Natural History of Destructionprobes deeply into this ominous silence.