An inside look at seven of the most harrowing and significant Special Operations missions ever. Courage beyond reason. Loyalty beyond faith. Perseverance in the face of overwhelming adversity. These are just some of the qualities of the members of the U.S. Special Operation Forces. BEYOND HELL AND BACK details the seven defining Special Ops missions that have made the Special Operation Forces the best fighting unit in the world, including: THE RESCUE OF BAT-21: The largest and longest Combat Search and Rescue mission in the Vietnam War lasted 17 days and cost the lives of 13 Americans—all to rescue one man and the invaluable knowledge he alone possessed. TASK FORCE NORMANDY: Planned in secrecy and executed with flawless efficiency, Task Force Normandy was an Army/Air Force Special Operations joint op that fired the opening shots behind enemy lines in Operation Desert Storm. OPERATION EAGLE CLAW: The devastating Special Forces operation mounted to retrieve 52 American hostages in Iran

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize. A study of the last 100 years ofAmerican history.

In retrospect, writes David Halberstam, "the pace of thefifties seemed slower, almost languid. Social ferment, however, wasbeginning just beneath this placid surface." He shows how theUnited States began to emerge from the long shadow of FDR's 12-yearpresidency, with the military-industrial complex and the Beatmovement simultaneously growing strong. Television brought not onlysituation comedies but controversial congressional hearings intomillions of living rooms. While Alfred Kinsey was studying people'ssex lives, Gregory Pincus and other researchers began work on apill that would forever alter the course of American reproductivepractices. Halberstam takes on these social upheavals and more,charting a course that is as easy to navigate as it iswide-ranging.

Uranium occurs naturally in theearth s crust-yet holds the power to end all life on theplanet. This is its fundamental paradox, and its story is afascinating window into the valor, greed, genius, and folly ofhumanity. A problem for miners in the Middle Ages, an inspirationto novelists and a boon to medicine, a devastat?ing weapon at theend of World War II, and eventually a polluter, killer, excuse forwar with Iraq, potential deliverer of Armageddon and a possiblelast defense against global warming- Uranium is the rivetingstory of the most powerful element on earth, and one which willshape our future, for better or worse.

In this groundbreaking historical expose, Douglas A. Blackmonbrings to light one of the most shameful chapters in Americanhistory—an “Age of Neoslavery” that thrived from the aftermath ofthe Civil War through the dawn of World War II.Using a vast recordof original documents and personal narratives, Douglas A. Blackmonunearths the lost stories of slaves and their descendants whojourneyed into freedom after the Emancipation Proclamation and thenback into the shadow of involuntary servitude shortly thereafter.By turns moving, sobering, and shocking, this unprecedented accountreveals the stories of those who fought unsuccessfully against there-emergence of human labor trafficking, the companies thatprofited most from neoslavery, and the insidious legacy of racismthat reverberates today.

An impassioned firsthand account of the RussianRevolution An American journalist and revolutionary writer, John Reed becamea close friend of Lenin and was an eyewitness to the 1917revolution in Russia. Ten Days That Shook the World is Reed'sextraordinary record of that event. Writing in the first flush ofrevolutionary enthusiasm, he gives a gripping account of the eventsin Petrograd in November 1917, when Lenin and the Bolsheviksfinally seized power. Containing verbatim reports both of speechesby leaders and of the chance comments of bystanders, and setagainst an idealized backdrop of soldiers, sailors, peasants, andthe proletariat uniting to throw off oppression, Reed's account isthe product of passionate involvement and remains an unsurpassedclassic of reporting.

Starred Review。 Some failures lead to phenomenal successes，andthis American nurse’s unsuccessful attempt to climb K2，the world’ssecond tallest mountain，is one of them。Dangerously ill when hefinished his climb in 1993，Mortenson was sheltered for seven weeksby the small Pakistani village of Korphe； in return， he promised tobuild the impoverished town’s first school， a project that grewinto the Central Asia Institute， which has since constructed morethan 50 schools across rural Pakistan and Afghanistan。 CoauthorRelin recounts Mortenson’s efforts in fascinating detail，presenting compelling portraits of the village elders，con artists，philanthropists，mujahideen， Taliban officials，ambitious schoolgirls and upright Muslims Mortenson met along the way。As the bookmoves into the post-9/11 world， Mortenson and Relin argue that theUnited States must fight Islamic extremism in the region throughcollaborative efforts to alleviate poverty and improve access toeducation，

Edward Said has long been considered one of the world’s mostcompelling public intellectuals, taking on a remarkable array oftopics with his many publications. But no single book hasencompassed the vast scope of his stimulating erudition quite like Power, Politics, and Culture , a collection of interviewsfrom the last three decades. In these twenty-eight interviews, Said addresses everything fromPalestine to Pavarotti, from his nomadic upbringing under colonialrule to his politically active and often controversial adulthood,and reflects on Austen, Beckett, Conrad, Naipaul, Mahfouz, andRushdie, as well as on fellow critics Bloom, Derrida, and Foucault.The passion Said feels for literature, music, history, and politicsis powerfully conveyed in this indispensable complement to hisprolific life's work.

To this landmark biography of our first president, Joseph J.Ellis brings the exacting scholarship, shrewd analysis, and lyricprose that have made him one of the premier historians of theRevolutionary era. Training his lens on a figure who sometimesseems as remote as his effigy on Mount Rushmore, Ellis assessesGeorge Washington as a military and political leader and a manwhose “statue-like solidity” concealed volcanic energies andemotions. Here is the impetuous young officer whose miraculous survival incombat half-convinced him that he could not be killed. Here is thefree-spending landowner whose debts to English merchants instilledhim with a prickly resentment of imperial power. We see the generalwho lost more battles than he won and the reluctant president whotried to float above the partisan feuding of his cabinet. HisExcellency is a magnificent work, indispensable to anunderstanding not only of its subject but also of the nation hebrought into being.

A brilliant account of religion's role in the politicalthinking of the West, from the Enlightenment to the close of WorldWar II. The wish to bring political life under God's authority is nothingnew, and it's clear that today religious passions are again drivingworld politics, confounding expectations of a secular future. Inthis major book, Mark Lilla reveals the sources of this age-oldquest-and its surprising role in shaping Western thought. Making uslook deeper into our beliefs about religion, politics, and the fateof civilizations, Lilla reminds us of the modern West's uniquetrajectory and how to remain on it. Illuminating and challenging, The Stillborn God is a watershed in the history ofideas.

In his final book, completed just before his death, Edward W.Said offers impassioned pleas for the beleaguered Palestinian causefrom one of its most eloquent spokesmen. These essays, whichoriginally appeared in Cairo’s Al-Ahram Weekly, London’s Al-Hayat,and the London Review of Books, take us from the Oslo Accordsthrough the U.S. led invasion of Iraq, and present information andperspectives too rarely visible in America. Said is unyielding in his call for truth and justice. He insistson truth about Israel's role as occupier and its treatment of thePalestinians. He pleads for new avenues of communication betweenprogressive elements in Israel and Palestine. And he is equallyforceful in his condemnation of Arab failures and the need for realleadership in the Arab world.

Drawing upon dozens of other "declarations of independence"written to protest the repression of the colonies by King GeorgeIII, as well as carefully analyzing the drafts of the Declarationsigned on July 4, 1776, Maier reveals the extent to whichJefferson's words and ideas were indebted to popular politicalbeliefs.

Capital, one of Marx's major and most influential works, wasthe product of thirty years close study of the capitalist mode ofproduction in England, the most advanced industrial society of hisday. This new translation of Volume One, the only volume to becompleted and edited by Marx himself, avoids some of the mistakesthat have marred earlier versions and seeks to do justice to theliterary qualities of the work. The introduction is by ErnestMandel, author of Late Capitalism, one of the only comprehensiveattempts to develop the theoretical legacy of Capital.

"Jefferson aspired beyond the ambition of a nationality, and embraced in his view the whole future of man." --Henry Adams

Ten years after one of the most polarizing political scandalsin American history, author Ken Gormley offers an insightful,balanced, and revealing analysis of the events leading up to theimpeachment trial of President William Jefferson Clinton. From KenStarr’s initial Whitewater investigation through the Paula Jonessexual harassment suit to the Monica Lewinsky affair, The Death ofAmerican Virtue is a gripping chronicle of an ever-escalatingpolitical feeding frenzy. In exclusive interviews, Bill Clinton, Ken Starr, MonicaLewinsky, Paula Jones, Susan McDougal, and many more key playersoffer candid reflections on that period. Drawing onnever-before-released records and documents—including the JusticeDepartment’s internal investigation into Starr, new detailsconcerning the death of Vince Foster, and evidence from lawyers onboth sides—Gormley sheds new light on a dark and divisive chapter,the aftereffects of which are still being felt in today’s politicalclimate. From the Hardcover edi

A revised edition of the clasic study of American politicsfrom the Founding Fathers to FDR.

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

New introductions commissioned from today's top writers andscholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporaryhistorical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes andendnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems,books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired bythe work Comments by other famous authors Study questions tochallenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations Bibliographiesfor further reading Indices Glossaries, when appropriateAlleditions are beautifully designed and are printed to superiorspecifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. Barnes Noble Classics pulls together a constellationof influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich eachreader's understanding of these enduring works.

On the South Branch of the Raritan River in New Jersey, BillPlummer casts his line in the hope that fly-fishing will fortifyhim in the face of a failed marriage, his father's death, and afaltering career. With the discovery of his father's fly-fishingdiary, Bill has set his mind to understanding his father's devotionto the sport and fathoming the depths of what he thought was adistant and enigmatic man. He comes to delight in the peculiarpleasures of the pastime, finding in it points of tangency to hisown son, while developing the strength for a second marriage. Wishing My Father Well is a moving intergenerational memoirwhich will remind readers of James Prosek's Joe and Me, JamesDodson's Faithful Travelers, and Mitch Albom's Tuesdays WithMorrie.

The Prince and Other Writings, by Niccolo Machiavelli, is partof the Barnes Noble Classics series, which offers qualityeditions at affordable prices to the student and the generalreader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages ofcarefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable featuresof Barnes Noble Classics: New introductions commissioned from today's top writers andscholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporaryhistorical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes andendnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems,books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired bythe work Comments by other famous authors Study questions tochallenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations Bibliographiesfor further reading Indices Glossaries, when appropriateAlleditions are beautifully designed and are printed to superiorspecifications; some include illustrations of historical interest.Barnes Noble Classics pulls together a constell

Never before has a journalist penetrated the wall of secrecythat surrounds the U.S. Secret Service. After conducting exclusiveinterviews with more than one hundred current and former SecretService agents, bestselling author and award-winning reporterRonald Kessler reveals their secrets for the first time. ? George W. Bush’s daughters would try to losetheir agents. ? Based on a psychic’s vision that a sniper wouldassassinate President George H. W. Bush, the Secret Service changedhis motorcade route. ? To make the press think he came to work early,Jimmy Carter would walk into the Oval Office at 5 a.m., then nodoff to sleep. ? Lyndon Johnson gave dangerous instructions tohis Secret Service agents and ?engaged in extensive philandering atthe White House.

In his inspiring new book, You Don’t Need a Title to Be aLeader , Mark Sanborn, the author of the national bestseller The Fred Factor , shows how each of us can be a leader in ourdaily lives and make a positive difference, whatever our title orposition. Through the stories of a number of unsung heroes, Sanbornreveals the keys each one of us can use to improve ourorganizations and enhance our careers. Genuine leadership – leadership with a “little l ”, as heputs it, is not conferred by a title, or limited to the executivesuite. Rather, it is shown through our everyday actions and the waywe influence the lives of those around us. Among the qualities thatgenuine leaders share: ? Acting with purpose rather than getting bogged down by mindlessactivity ? Caring about and listening to others ? Looking for ways to encourage the contributions and developmentof others rather than focusing solely on personalachievements ? Creating a legacy of accomplishment and contribution ineverything they do As reade

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.

Neglected by scholars and journalists alike, the years ofconflict in Vietnam from 1968 to 1975 offer surprises not onlyabout how the war was fought, but about what was achieved. Drawingfrom thousands of hours of previously unavailable (and stillclassified) tape-recorded meetings between the highest levels ofthe American military command in Vietnam, A Better War is aninsightful, factual, and superbly documented history of these finalyears. Through his exclusive access to authoritative materials,award-winning historian Lewis Sorley highlights the dramaticdifferences in conception, conduct, and-at least for a time-resultsbetween the early and later years of the war. Among his mostimportant findings is that while the war was being lost at thepeace table and in the U.S. Congress, the soldiers were winning onthe ground. Meticulously researched and movingly told, A Better Warsheds new light on the Vietnam War.

Reagan’s War is the story of Ronald Reagan’s personaland political journey as an anti-communist, from his early days asan actor to his years in the White House. Challenging popularmisconceptions of Reagan as an empty suit who played only a passiverole in the demise of the Soviet Union, Peter Schweizer detailsReagan’s decades-long battle against communism. Bringing to light previously secret information obtained fromarchives in the United States, Germany, Poland, Hungary, andRussia—including Reagan’s KGB file—Schweizer offers a compellingcase that Reagan personally mapped out and directed his war againstcommunism, often disagreeing with experts and advisers. Anessential book for understanding the Cold War, Reagan’s War should be read by open-minded readers across the politicalspectrum.