Carol's bookshelf: all en-US Sun, 13 Apr 2025 19:56:40 -0700 60 Carol's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[Behemoth: A History of the Factory and the Making of the Modern World]]> 38763675
In an accessible and timely work of scholarship, celebrated historian Joshua B. Freeman tells the story of the factory and examines how it has reflected both our dreams and our nightmares of industrialization and social change. He whisks readers from the early textile mills that powered the Industrial Revolution to the factory towns of New England to today’s behemoths making sneakers, toys, and cellphones in China and Vietnam. Behemoth offers a piercing perspective on how factories have shaped our societies and the challenges we face now.]]>
440 Joshua B. Freeman 0393246329 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.01 2018 Behemoth: A History of the Factory and the Making of the Modern World
author: Joshua B. Freeman
name: Carol
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2018
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/04/13
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<![CDATA[Is That a Fact?: Frauds, Quacks, and the Real Science of Everyday Life]]> 22091967 The bestselling "quackbuster" and "tireless tub-thumper against pseudoscience" fishes for the facts in a flood of misinformation (Maclean's).

Eat this and live to 100. Don't, and die. Today, hyperboles dominate the media, which makes parsing science from fiction an arduous task when deciding what to eat, what chemicals to avoid, and what's best for the environment. In Is That a Fact?, bestselling author Dr. Joe Schwarcz carefully navigates through the storm of misinformation to help us separate fact from folly and shrewdness from foolishness.

Are GMOs really harmful? Or could they help developing countries? Which "miracle weight-loss foods" gained popularity through exuberant data dredging? Is BPA dangerous or just a victim of unforgiving media hype? Is organic better? Schwarcz questions the reliability and motives of "experts" in this "easy-to-understand yet critical look at what's fact and what's plain nonsense.

"Takes its readers through the carnival of pseudoscience, the morass of half-truths and, finally, the relatively safe road of reproducible scientific knowledge. This journey is made all the more enjoyable by Dr. Schwarcz's surgical use of words and his mastery of public writing . . . [He] can always be counted on to write about the chemistry of the world in a way that is both entertaining and educational." --Cracked Science

"Written with a light touch and refreshing humor, this book provides a solid, authoritative starting point for anyone beginning to look at the world with a skeptical eye and a refresher for those further along that path." --Library Journal]]>
280 Joe Schwarcz 1770905294 Carol 0 currently-reading 3.73 2014 Is That a Fact?: Frauds, Quacks, and the Real Science of Everyday Life
author: Joe Schwarcz
name: Carol
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2014
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/04/11
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The Sweet Spot 61310894 Amy Poeppel brings her signature “big-hearted, charming� (The Washington Post) style to this wise and joyful novel that celebrates love, hate, and all of the glorious absurdity in between.

In the heart of Greenwich Village, three women form an accidental sorority when a baby—belonging to exactly none of them—lands on their collective doorstep.

Lauren and her family—lucky bastards—have been granted the use of a spectacular brownstone, teeming with history and dizzyingly unattractive 70s wallpaper. Adding to the home’s bohemian, grungy splendor is the bar occupying the basement, a (mostly) beloved dive called The Sweet Spot. Within days of moving in, Lauren discovers that she has already made an enemy in the neighborhood by inadvertently sparking the divorce of a couple she has never actually met.

Melinda’s husband of thirty years has dumped her for a young celebrity entrepreneur named Felicity, and, to Melinda’s horror, the lovebirds are soon to become parents. In her incandescent rage, Melinda wreaks havoc wherever she can, including in Felicity’s Soho boutique, where she has a fit of epic proportions, which happens to be caught on film.�

Olivia—the industrious twenty-something behind the counter, who has big dreams and bigger debt—gets caught in the crossfire. In an effort to diffuse Melinda’s temper, Olivia has a tantrum of her own and gets unceremoniously canned, thanks to TikTok.

When Melinda’s ex follows his lover across the country, leaving their squalling baby behind, the three women rise to the occasion in order to forgive, to forget, to Ferberize, and to track down the wayward parents. But can their little village find a way toward the happily ever afters they all desire? Welcome to The Sweet Spot.]]>
397 Amy Poeppel Carol 4 4.11 2023 The Sweet Spot
author: Amy Poeppel
name: Carol
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/07
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The Anthropocene Reviewed 59666195 An alternative cover edition for this ASIN can be found here.

A deeply moving and insightful collection of personal essays from #1 bestselling author John Green.

The Anthropocene is the current geologic age, in which humans have profoundly reshaped the planet and its biodiversity. In this remarkable symphony of essays adapted and expanded from his groundbreaking podcast, bestselling author John Green reviews different facets of the human-centered planet on a five-star scale—from the QWERTY keyboard and sunsets to Canada geese and Penguins of Madagascar.

Funny, complex, and rich with detail, the reviews chart the contradictions of contemporary humanity. As a species, we are both far too powerful and not nearly powerful enough, a paradox that came into sharp focus as we faced a global pandemic that both separated us and bound us together.

John Green’s gift for storytelling shines throughout this masterful collection. The Anthropocene Reviewed is a open-hearted exploration of the paths we forge and an unironic celebration of falling in love with the world.]]>
302 John Green Carol 0 currently-reading 4.23 2021 The Anthropocene Reviewed
author: John Green
name: Carol
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2021
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/04/06
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<![CDATA[Now It Can Be Told: The Story of the Manhattan Project (Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Era of the New Deal)]]> 19014287 615 Leslie R. Groves Carol 0 currently-reading 4.40 1961 Now It Can Be Told: The Story of the Manhattan Project (Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Era of the New Deal)
author: Leslie R. Groves
name: Carol
average rating: 4.40
book published: 1961
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/03/27
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<![CDATA[The Inheritance Games (The Inheritance Games, #1)]]> 52501482
Avery Grambs has a plan for a better survive high school, win a scholarship, and get out. But her fortunes change in an instant when billionaire Tobias Hawthorne dies and leaves Avery virtually his entire fortune. The catch? Avery has no idea why � or even who Tobias Hawthorne is.

To receive her inheritance, Avery must move into sprawling, secret passage-filled Hawthorne House, where every room bears the old man's touch � and his love of puzzles, riddles, and codes. Unfortunately for Avery, Hawthorne House is also occupied by the family that Tobias Hawthorne just dispossessed. This includes the four Hawthorne dangerous, magnetic, brilliant boys who grew up with every expectation that one day, they would inherit billions. Heir apparent Grayson Hawthorne is convinced that Avery must be a conwoman, and he's determined to take her down. His brother, Jameson, views her as their grandfather's last a twisted riddle, a puzzle to be solved. Caught in a world of wealth and privilege, with danger around every turn, Avery will have to play the game herself just to survive.]]>
384 Jennifer Lynn Barnes 1368053246 Carol 3 4.20 2020 The Inheritance Games (The Inheritance Games, #1)
author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
name: Carol
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/26
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Schismatrix Plus 24185349 The Nebula-nominated novel of “abrave new world of nearly constant future shock”—plus all the short fiction of the Shaper/Mechanist universe (The Washington Post). Ěý Acclaimed science fiction luminary and a godfather of the genre’s remarkable offspring—cyberpunk—Bruce Sterling carries readers to a far-future universe where stunning achievements in human development have been tainted by a virulent outbreak of prejudice and hatred. Ěý Many thousands of years in the future, the human race has split into two incompatible factions. The aristocratic Mechanists believe that humans can only achieve their greatest potential through technology and enhancing their bodies with powerful prosthetics. The rebel Shapers view these “improvementsâ€� as abominations, and their faith in genetic enhancements over mechanical ones has led to violent, even murderous, clashes between the two sects. Ěý One man is caught in the middle. The child of Mechanists, Abelard Lindsay is a former Shaper diplomat who was betrayed and cast out of the fold. Scrupulously trained in the fine art of treachery and deceit, he travels freely between the warring camps during his never-ending exile, embracing piracy and revolution all along the way. But while saving his own skin is Lindsay’s main motivation, a greater destiny awaits him, one that could offer a bold new hope for a tragically sundered humankind. Ěý A breathtaking flight of unparalleled imagination, Bruce Sterling’s Schismatrix Plus also includes every subsequent excursion into the Mechanist and Shaper universe, complementing his acclaimed novel with the complete collection of mind-boggling Schismatrix short fiction. The result is is a total immersion into the Mechanist/Shaper universe from the Hugo, Campbell, and Arthur C. Clarke Award–winning author called “a writer of excellent finenessâ€� by Harlan Ellison and “one of the very bestâ€� by Publishers Weekly. Ěý]]> 517 Bruce Sterling Carol 0 currently-reading 3.84 1996 Schismatrix Plus
author: Bruce Sterling
name: Carol
average rating: 3.84
book published: 1996
rating: 0
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Elon Musk 228310348 From the author of Steve Jobs and other bestselling biographies, this is the astonishingly intimate story of the most fascinating and controversial innovator of our era—a rule-breaking visionary who helped to lead the world into the era of electric vehicles, private space exploration, and artificial intelligence. Oh, and took over Twitter.

When Elon Musk was a kid in South Africa, he was regularly beaten by bullies. One day a group pushed him down some concrete steps and kicked him until his face was a swollen ball of flesh. He was in the hospital for a week. But the physical scars were minor compared to the emotional ones inflicted by his father, an engineer, rogue, and charismatic fantasist.

His father’s impact on his psyche would linger. He developed into a tough yet vulnerable man-child, prone to abrupt Jekyll-and-Hyde mood swings, with an exceedingly high tolerance for risk, a craving for drama, an epic sense of mission, and a maniacal intensity that was callous and at times destructive.

At the beginning of 2022—after a year marked by SpaceX launching thirty-one rockets into orbit, Tesla selling a million cars, and him becoming the richest man on earth—Musk spoke ruefully about his compulsion to stir up dramas. “I need to shift my mindset away from being in crisis mode, which it has been for about fourteen years now, or arguably most of my life,� he said.

It was a wistful comment, not a New Year’s resolution. Even as he said it, he was secretly buying up shares of Twitter, the world’s ultimate playground. Over the years, whenever he was in a dark place, his mind went back to being bullied on the playground. Now he had the chance to own the playground.

For two years, Isaacson shadowed Musk, attended his meetings, walked his factories with him, and spent hours interviewing him, his family, friends, coworkers, and adversaries. The result is the revealing inside story, filled with amazing tales of triumphs and turmoil, that addresses the are the demons that drive Musk also what it takes to drive innovation and progress?]]>
680 Walter Isaacson Carol 4 4.59 2023 Elon Musk
author: Walter Isaacson
name: Carol
average rating: 4.59
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/14
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<![CDATA[Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone (Ernest Cunningham, #1)]]> 60669112
I'm Ernest Cunningham. Call me Ern or Ernie. I wish I'd killed whoever decided our family reunion should be at a ski resort, but it's a little more complicated than that.

Have I killed someone? Yes. I have.

Who was it?

Let's get started.

EVERYONE IN MY FAMILY HAS KILLED SOMEONE

My brother

My stepsister

My wife

My father

My mother

My sister-in-law

My uncle

My stepfather

My aunt

Me]]>
384 Benjamin Stevenson Carol 0 3.83 2022 Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone (Ernest Cunningham, #1)
author: Benjamin Stevenson
name: Carol
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/25
date added: 2025/02/28
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<![CDATA[Sea Stories: My Life in Special Operations]]> 42403906 Following the success of his #1 New York Times bestseller Make Your Bed, which has sold over one million copies, Admiral William H. McRaven is back with amazing stories of bravery and heroism during his career as a Navy SEAL and commander of America's Special Operations Forces.Admiral William H. McRaven is a part of American military history, having been involved in some of the most famous missions in recent memory, including the capture of Saddam Hussein, the rescue of Captain Richard Phillips, and the raid to kill Osama bin Laden.Sea Stories begins in 1963 at a French Officers' Club in France, where Allied officers and their wives gathered to have drinks and tell stories about their adventures during World War II-the place where a young Bill McRaven learned the value of a good story. Sea Stories is an unforgettable look back on one man's incredible life, from childhood days sneaking into high-security military sites to a day job of hunting terrorists and rescuing hostages.Action-packed, humorous, and full of valuable life lessons like those exemplified in McRaven's bestselling Make Your Bed, Sea Stories is a remarkable memoir from one of America's most accomplished leaders.]]> 353 William H. McRaven 1538729725 Carol 5 4.66 2019 Sea Stories: My Life in Special Operations
author: William H. McRaven
name: Carol
average rating: 4.66
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/16
date added: 2025/02/28
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<![CDATA[The Cold Light of Stars (The Icarus Code: A Sci-Fi Thriller Book 1)]]> 132709549 FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL BEST SELLING AUTHOR OF THE CHRONOS FILES.

Could an ancient Martian artifact hold the key to saving Earth?

When a chamber containing inscriptions from an ancient civilization is found deep below the surface of Mars, science reporter Claire Echols is thrilled to be covering the story of the century.

But someone seems determined to stop her.

Is it the wealthy entrepreneur leading the ongoing terraforming effort? The mining companies desperate to protect their livelihoods? The cult leader who wants to end all scientific progress?

What's inside that chamber could be the key to saving Earth ... and someone is willing to kill to keep it hidden.

"WALKER WRITES BOOKS THAT ARE HARD TO PUT DOWN." - BOING BOING]]>
476 Rysa Walker Carol 0 currently-reading 4.12 The Cold Light of Stars (The Icarus Code: A Sci-Fi Thriller Book 1)
author: Rysa Walker
name: Carol
average rating: 4.12
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Clay's Ark 133157645 A powerful story of survival in unprecedented times, from the award-winning author of Parable of the Sower.
In an alternate America marked by volatile class warfare, Blake Maslin is traveling with his teenage twin daughters when their car is ambushed. Their attackers appear sickly yet possess inhuman strength, and they transport Blake's family to an isolated compound. There, the three captives discover that the compound's residents have a highly contagious alien disease that has mutated their DNA to make them powerful, dangerous, and compelled to infect others. If Blake and his daughters do not escape, they will be infected with a virus that will either kill them outright or transform them into outcasts whose very existence is a threat to the world around them.
In the following hours, Blake and his daughters each must make a vital risk everything to escape and warn the rest of the world, or accept their new reality -- as well as the uncertain fate of the human race.]]>
241 Octavia E. Butler 1538765454 Carol 0 4.18 1984 Clay's Ark
author: Octavia E. Butler
name: Carol
average rating: 4.18
book published: 1984
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/12
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<![CDATA[When Hitler Took Cocaine and Lenin Lost His Brain: History's Unknown Chapters]]> 25988975 Obscure and addictive true tales from history told by one of our most entertaining historians, Giles Milton

The first installment in Giles Milton's outrageously entertaining series, History's Unknown colorful and accessible, intelligent and illuminating, Milton shows his customary historical flair as he delves into the little-known stories from the past.

There's the cook aboard the Titanic, who pickled himself with whiskey and survived in the icy seas where most everyone else died. There's the man who survived the atomic bomb in both Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And there's many, many more.

Covering everything from adventure, war, murder and slavery to espionage, including the stories of the female Robinson Crusoe, Hitler's final hours, Japan's deadly balloon bomb and the emperor of the United States, these tales deserve to be told.]]>
274 Giles Milton 1250078784 Carol 0 3.70 2016 When Hitler Took Cocaine and Lenin Lost His Brain: History's Unknown Chapters
author: Giles Milton
name: Carol
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/08
date added: 2025/02/08
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Unconstrained 212091770 On September 27th, 2032, the world will change forever�

Lucas Sinclair, a washed-up hacker, finds an encrypted channel, buried in routine network traffic, that is transferring enormous volumes of data to seemingly random locations. In his enclave, surrounded by aging clusters of tech, Lucas uses a suite of bespoke tools to trace down the origin.

He discovers that the source of the signal is near the headquarters of Ainimus, Inc., a small tech company helmed by the reclusive genius Dr. Peter Newsome.

The same Newsome who recently claimed to have built the world’s first true Artificial General Intelligence—Orchestrator.

Lucas warns Ainimus, only to be confronted with skepticism and conceit. But when Lucas ties the signals to an outbreak of malfunctioning tech across Silicon Valley, he realizes his worst fears have come true, and it is up to him to stop the most advanced persistent threat humanity has ever seen.

Alone against an alien, incomprehensible intelligence, Lucas races the clock to stop a force that has become truly Unconstrained.]]>
515 Brian Hill Carol 0 4.43 Unconstrained
author: Brian Hill
name: Carol
average rating: 4.43
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<![CDATA[Venomous: How Earth's Deadliest Creatures Mastered Biochemistry]]> 27883188 A thrilling tale of encounters with nature’s masters of biochemistry

From the coasts of Indonesia to the rainforests of Peru, venomous animals are everywhere—and often lurking out of sight. Humans have feared them for centuries, long considering them the assassins and pariahs of the natural world.

Now, in Venomous, the biologist Christie Wilcox investigates and illuminates the animals of our nightmares, arguing that they hold the keys to a deeper understanding of evolution, adaptation, and immunity. She reveals just how venoms function and what they do to the human body. With Wilcox as our guide, we encounter a jellyfish with tentacles covered in stinging cells that can kill humans in minutes; a two-inch caterpillar with toxic bristles that trigger hemorrhaging; and a stunning blue-ringed octopus capable of inducing total paralysis. How do these animals go about their deadly work? How did they develop such intricate, potent toxins? Wilcox takes us around the world and down to the cellular level to find out.

Throughout her journey, Wilcox meets the intrepid scientists who risk their lives studying these lethal beasts, as well as “self-immunizers� who deliberately expose themselves to snakebites. Along the way, she puts her own life on the line, narrowly avoiding being envenomated herself. Drawing on her own research, Wilcox explains how venom scientists are untangling the mechanisms of some of our most devastating diseases, and reports on pharmacologists who are already exploiting venoms to produce lifesaving drugs. We discover that venomous creatures are in fact keystone species that play crucial roles in their ecosystems and ours—and for this alone, they ought to be protected and appreciated.

Thrilling and surprising at every turn, Venomous will change everything you thought you knew about the planet’s most dangerous animals.]]>
260 Christie Wilcox 0374712212 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.12 2016 Venomous: How Earth's Deadliest Creatures Mastered Biochemistry
author: Christie Wilcox
name: Carol
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2016
rating: 0
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The Unmaking of June Farrow 100183621
In the small mountain town of Jasper, North Carolina, June Farrow is waiting for fate to find her. The Farrow women are known for their thriving flower farm - and the mysterious curse that has plagued their family line. The whole town remembers the madness that led to Susanna Farrow's disappearance, leaving June to be raised by her grandmother and haunted by rumors.

It's been a year since June started seeing and hearing things that weren't there. Faint wind chimes, a voice calling her name, and a mysterious door appearing out of nowhere - the signs of what June always knew was coming. But June is determined to end the curse once and for all, even if she must sacrifice finding love and having a family of her own.

After her grandmother's death, June discovers a series of cryptic clues regarding her mother's decades-old disappearance, except they only lead to more questions. But could the door she once assumed was a hallucination be the answer she's been searching for? The next time it appears, June realizes she can touch it and walk past the threshold. And when she does, she embarks on a journey that will not only change both the past and the future, but also uncover the lingering mysteries of her small town and entangle her heart in an epic star-crossed love.

With The Unmaking of June Farrow, Adrienne Young delivers a brilliant novel of romance, mystery, and a touch of the impossible--a story you will never forget.]]>
321 Adrienne Young 0593598687 Carol 0 4.24 2023 The Unmaking of June Farrow
author: Adrienne Young
name: Carol
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/25
date added: 2025/01/25
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<![CDATA[What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins]]> 29357877 A New York Times Bestseller

Do fishes think? Do they really have three-second memories? And can they recognize the humans who peer back at them from above the surface of the water? In What a Fish Knows, the myth-busting ethologist Jonathan Balcombe addresses these questions and more, taking us under the sea, through streams and estuaries, and to the other side of the aquarium glass to reveal the surprising capabilities of fishes. Although there are more than thirty thousand species of fish—more than all mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians combined—we rarely consider how individual fishes think, feel, and behave. Balcombe upends our assumptions about fishes, portraying them not as unfeeling, dead-eyed feeding machines but as sentient, aware, social, and even Machiavellian—in other words, much like us.
What a Fish Knows draws on the latest science to present a fresh look at these remarkable creatures in all their breathtaking diversity and beauty. Fishes conduct elaborate courtship rituals and develop lifelong bonds with shoalmates. They also plan, hunt cooperatively, use tools, curry favor, deceive one another, and punish wrongdoers. We may imagine that fishes lead simple, fleeting lives—a mode of existence that boils down to a place on the food chain, rote spawning, and lots of aimless swimming. But, as Balcombe demonstrates, the truth is far richer and more complex, worthy of the grandest social novel.
Highlighting breakthrough discoveries from fish enthusiasts and scientists around the world and pondering his own encounters with fishes, Balcombe examines the fascinating means by which fishes gain knowledge of the places they inhabit, from shallow tide pools to the deepest reaches of the ocean.
Teeming with insights and exciting discoveries, What a Fish Knows offers a thoughtful appraisal of our relationships with fishes and inspires us to take a more enlightened view of the planet’s increasingly imperiled marine life. What a Fish Knows will forever change how we see our aquatic cousins—the pet goldfish included.]]>
304 Jonathan Balcombe 0374714339 Carol 4 4.22 2016 What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins
author: Jonathan Balcombe
name: Carol
average rating: 4.22
book published: 2016
rating: 4
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<![CDATA[Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder]]> 199345551
On the morning of August 12, 2022, Salman Rushdie was standing onstage at the Chautauqua Institution, preparing to give a lecture on the importance of keeping writers safe from harm, when a man in black—black clothes, black mask—rushed down the aisle toward him, wielding a knife. His first thought: So it’s you. Here you are.

What followed was a horrific act of violence that shook the literary world and beyond. Now, for the first time, and in unforgettable detail, Rushdie relives the traumatic events of that day and its aftermath, as well as his journey toward physical recovery and the healing that was made possible by the love and support of his wife, Eliza, his family, his army of doctors and physical therapists, and his community of readers worldwide.

Knife is Rushdie at the peak of his powers, writing with urgency, with gravity, with unflinching honesty. It is also a deeply moving reminder of literature’s capacity to make sense of the unthinkable, an intimate and life-affirming meditation on life, loss, love, art—and finding the strength to stand up again.]]>
214 Salman Rushdie 0593730267 Carol 3 4.29 2024 Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder
author: Salman Rushdie
name: Carol
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2024/12/26
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<![CDATA[Winston Churchill: An Informal Study of Greatness]]> 33197129
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill led one of the most astonishing lives that public service has ever witnessed.

Famed for his courageous leadership against Hitler in WW2, his witticisms and his larger-than-life persona, comparatively little is known of Churchill's equally extraordinary pre-war life.

Focusing on the early experiences that shaped his ambition, this fascinating biography from Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Robert Lewis Taylor, delves into the private life of Churchill as a student, a journalist and a soldier.

An Informal Study of Greatness is a delightful and revealing study of a man who, as Taylor puts it, was one of â€multiple geniusâ€� and â€one of the most exasperating figures of history.â€�



â€Tremendously entertaining readingâ€� - Kirkus Reviews

â€A prolific and witty writerâ€� â€� The New York Times

Robert Lewis Taylor (1912-1998) was born in southern Illinois and educated at Southern Illinois University and the University of Illinois. Upon graduation, he lived in Europe and in Polynesia; then, after a brief interlude as editor of a weekly newspaper, became a reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch . In 1940 he joined The New Yorker magazine as a writer of profiles and other long pieces. Taylor is author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Travels of Jamie McPheeters and the acclaimed biography, W. C. His Follies and Fortunes .]]>
449 Robert Lewis Taylor Carol 0 currently-reading 4.10 Winston Churchill: An Informal Study of Greatness
author: Robert Lewis Taylor
name: Carol
average rating: 4.10
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Mourning Lincoln 24850026 A historian examines how everyday people reacted to the president’s assassination in this “highly original, lucidly written bookâ€� (James M.ĚýMcPherson, author of Battle Cry of Freedom). Ěý The news of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination on April 15, 1865, just days after Confederate surrender, astounded a war-weary nation. Massive crowds turned out for services and ceremonies. Countless expressions of grief and dismay were printed in newspapers and preached in sermons. Public responses to the assassination have been well chronicled, but this book is the first to delve into the personal and intimate responses of everyday people—northerners and southerners, soldiers and civilians, black people and white, men and women, rich and poor. Ěý Exploring diaries, letters, and other personal writings penned during the spring and summer of 1865, historian Martha Hodes captures the full range of reactions to the president’s death—far more diverse than public expressions would suggest. She tells a story of shock, glee, sorrow, anger, blame, and fear. “’Tis the saddest day in our history,â€� wrote a mournful man. It was “an electric shock to my soul,â€� wrote a woman who had escaped from slavery. “Glorious News!â€� a Lincoln enemy exulted, while for the black soldiers of the Fifty-Fourth Massachusetts, it was all “too overwhelming, too lamentable, too distressingâ€� to absorb. Ěý Longlisted for the National Book Award, Mourning Lincoln brings to life a key moment of national uncertainty and confusion, when competing visions of America’s future proved irreconcilable and hopes for racial justice in the aftermath of the Civil War slipped from the nation’s grasp. Hodes masterfully explores the tragedy of Lincoln’s assassination in human terms—terms that continue to stagger and rivet us today.]]> 576 Martha Hodes 0300213565 Carol 0 currently-reading 3.68 2015 Mourning Lincoln
author: Martha Hodes
name: Carol
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2015
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/10/22
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<![CDATA[A Murder of Crows (Nell Ward, #1)]]> 60845211
In the sleepy village of Cookingdean, Dr Nell Ward is busy working in the grounds of a local manor house. Whilst inspecting an old tunnel, the last thing she expects to overhear is a murder. As the only person with any clues as to what happened, Nell soon finds herself in the middle of the investigation.

Desperate to clear her name Nell, along with her colleague Adam, set out solving the murder using their skills as ecologists to uncover details no one else would notice. But it soon becomes clear that playing Agatha Christie is much harder than it might at first appear�

The start of an exciting new cosy crime series � perfect for fans of Richard Osman, Faith Martin and Joy Ellis.]]>
368 Sarah Yarwood-Lovett Carol 0 currently-reading 3.80 2022 A Murder of Crows (Nell Ward, #1)
author: Sarah Yarwood-Lovett
name: Carol
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2022
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/10/15
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The Final Day (After #3) 30248190 New York Times bestsellers, One Second After and One Year After, The Final Day immerses readers once more in the story of our nation’s struggle to rebuild itself after an electromagnetic pulse wipes out all electricity and plunges the country into darkness, starvation, and terror.

After defeating the designs of the alleged federal government, John Matherson and his community have returned their attention to restoring the technologies and social order that existed prior to the EMP (Electro-Magnetic Pulse) attack. Then the government announces that it’s ceding large portions of the country to China and Mexico. The Constitution is no longer in effect, and what’s left of the U.S. Army has been deployed to suppress rebellion in the remaining states.

The man sent to confront John is General Bob Scales, John’s old commanding officer and closest friend from prewar days. Will General Scales follow orders, or might he be the crucial turning point in the quest for an America that is again united? As the dubious Federal government increasingly curtails liberty and trades away sovereignty, it might just get exactly what it fears: revolution.]]>
349 William R. Forstchen 1466851902 Carol 0 4.47 2017 The Final Day (After #3)
author: William R. Forstchen
name: Carol
average rating: 4.47
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/14
date added: 2024/10/14
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<![CDATA[COLONY MARS COMPLETE EDITION: BOOKS 1-7]]> 86509028 Grab all seven books in the thrilling COLONY MARS series, plus a bonus short story in this great value 1800-page sci-fi box set!

All contact is lost with the first privately funded colony on Mars during a long and destructive sandstorm. Satellite imagery of the aftermath shows extensive damage to the facility and the fifty-four colonists who called it home are presumed dead.

Three years later, a new mission sets down on the planet surface to investigate what remains of the derelict site. It’s not long before, mission biologist, Dr. Jann Malbec, discovers the truth about how the colony was funded � by conducting illegal genetic experiments using the unsuspecting colonists as guinea pigs. She also realizes that while extraordinary breakthroughs were made, they came with a terrible human price.

Nevertheless, once news of these experiments makes it back to Earth, powerful corporations begin to fight for control of this research, and start to send new missions to acquire it � by force if necessary. But Malbec fears that allowing this research to return to Earth has the potential to doom humanity to a pandemic of apocalyptic proportions. So she vows to do everything she can to prevent this from happening � even if it means destroying what remains of the colony and any chance she has of returning home.

This box set contains all six Colony Mars novels plus two short

Colony One MarsColony Two MarsColony Three MarsColony Four Jezero CityColony Five Mars : Surface TensionColony Six Plains of UtopiaGizmo Origin � a Colony Mars Short StoryWinds of Mars � a Mars Short Story

What Amazon readers are

â…â…â…â…â� 'Would Make a Great Film - Really enjoyed this book as well as the preceding two in the series. Hollywood, are you listening (reading)?

â…â…â…â…â� 'Surpassed Expectations - This was an outstanding read!â€�

â…â…â…â…â� 'It's been a long time since a book made me stay up all night just to find out the ending. This book is superb!â€�

â…â…â…â…â� 'Fast paced, intriguing science fiction thriller that just rolls off the pages. Can't wait for the next installment...'

â…â…â…â…â� 'A wonderful adventure... Like a blend of Heinlein and Weir...'

â…â…â…â…â� 'This is a superior work of Sci-Fi authorship. The novel is totally engaging and highly believable The author is technically well versed which adds greatly to the authenticity of the narrative. A must read.'

â…â…â…â…â� 'I really enjoyed this book... A real roller-coaster. Great characters. believable plot-line and nail-biting suspense.'

â…â…â…â…â� 'Love it. Could not put it down. Action drama, death and mayhem. What's not to like?'

â…â…â…â…â� 'I don't normally read SF but my husband got it and I started looking at it... and couldn't put it down. I really enjoyed it.'

â…â…â…â…â� 'Terrific novel! ...my only comment is that I lost a lot of sleep reading... Think I will wait till morning to start Colony Two. On second thoughts, what the heck - it's only 3:30 AM!â€�



About Colony This is a sci-fi series set in a human colony on Mars. The science depicted is, for the most part, plausible.]]>
1250 Gerald M. Kilby Carol 0 4.51 COLONY MARS COMPLETE EDITION: BOOKS 1-7
author: Gerald M. Kilby
name: Carol
average rating: 4.51
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/09/28
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<![CDATA[Dearly Departed (Amy's Travel Mystery, #2)]]> 25488908 Fanny and Amy Abel, the dynamic mother-and-daughter owners of a NYC travel agency, have just booked their biggest trip yet. But with danger in the air, the itinerary may include murder...
Paisley MacGregor, a maid to the rich, made a dying request to send all of her wealthy employers on a first-class wake to spread her ashes around the world. Amy has her suspicions about these “mourners,� especially when one has a life-threatening “accident� at the first stop in Paris. And when a mysterious American stranger tagging along with the group has his ticket punched in the shadow of the Taj Mahal, Amy knows she may have a killer on her tour.
Who was this stranger, and what’s the connection to someone in her group? Digging for clues while continuing on with the trip is a lot for Amy to manage, especially when another mourner has a possibly fatal encounter with a Hawaiian volcano. Back in the States, Fanny and Amy start to piece together a secret worth killing for, but someone is hot on their trail, and ready to send them on a one-way trip—to the morgue!]]>
368 Hy Conrad 161773683X Carol 0 to-read 3.58 2016 Dearly Departed (Amy's Travel Mystery, #2)
author: Hy Conrad
name: Carol
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2016
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/09/27
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The Thursday Murder Club 54846475 Four septuagenarians with a few tricks up their sleeves
A female cop with her first big case
A brutal murder
Welcome to�
THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB

In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet weekly in the Jigsaw Room to discuss unsolved crimes; together they call themselves The Thursday Murder Club.

When a local developer is found dead with a mysterious photograph left next to the body, the Thursday Murder Club suddenly find themselves in the middle of their first live case.

As the bodies begin to pile up, can our unorthodox but brilliant gang catch the killer, before it’s too late?]]>
368 Richard Osman 1984880977 Carol 3 4.08 2020 The Thursday Murder Club
author: Richard Osman
name: Carol
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2024/09/26
date added: 2024/09/26
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<![CDATA[Summer in a Small Town: Welcome to Icicle Falls/Treasure Beach (Life in Icicle Falls, #0.5)]]> 16119139 Two unforgettable towns, two touching stories�

Welcome to Icicle Falls by Sheila Roberts

It's the 1960s and Muriel loves the beautiful town of Icicle Falls, Washington. Life is good, except that her father expects her to run Sweet Dreams, the family chocolate company, when he retires. But she has sweet dreams of her own, dreams about a handsome stranger who comes to town�.

Decades later, Cass Wilkes lands in Icicle Falls as a single mom with little money. But this small town has a way of giving people second chances they don't expect!

Treasure Beach by Emilie Richards

Life on Happiness Key is lonely for eleven-year-old Olivia Symington, so when she finds a message in a bottle on Treasure Beach, her interest is piqued. Someone needs help, and she knows what that's like. Maybe by helping she can even find a friend.

The women of Happiness Key are worried about Olivia and her fascination with the message. But they know how isolated she feels, so they set out to help her find the mystery correspondent�and maybe a little happiness of her own along the way.

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114 Emilie Richards 1426875568 Carol 0 to-read 3.48 2012 Summer in a Small Town: Welcome to Icicle Falls/Treasure Beach (Life in Icicle Falls, #0.5)
author: Emilie Richards
name: Carol
average rating: 3.48
book published: 2012
rating: 0
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Other Birds 59852056 The New York Times Bestseller

From the acclaimed author of Garden Spells comes an enchanting tale of lost souls, lonely strangers, secrets that shape us, and how the right flock can guide you home.

Down a narrow alley in the small coastal town of Mallow Island, South Carolina, lies a stunning cobblestone building comprised of five apartments. It’s called The Dellawisp and it is named after the tiny turquoise birds who, alongside its human tenants, inhabit an air of magical secrecy.

When Zoey Hennessey comes to claim her deceased mother’s apartment at The Dellawisp, she meets her quirky, enigmatic neighbors including a girl on the run, a grieving chef whose comfort food does not comfort him, two estranged middle-aged sisters, and three ghosts. Each with their own story. Each with their own longings. Each whose ending isn’t yet written.

When one of her new neighbors dies under odd circumstances the night Zoey arrives, she is thrust into the mystery of The Dellawisp, which involves missing pages from a legendary writer whose work might be hidden there. She soon discovers that many unfinished stories permeate the place, and the people around her are in as much need of healing from wrongs of the past as she is. To find their way they have to learn how to trust each other, confront their deepest fears, and let go of what haunts them.

Delightful and atmospheric, Other Birds is filled with magical realism and moments of pure love that won’t let you go. Sarah Addison Allen shows us that between the real and the imaginary, there are stories that take flight in the most extraordinary ways.]]>
304 Sarah Addison Allen 1250019885 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.15 2022 Other Birds
author: Sarah Addison Allen
name: Carol
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2022
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/09/21
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<![CDATA[The Man Who Died Twice (Thursday Murder Club, #2)]]> 57465170
Elizabeth has received a letter from an old colleague, a man with whom she has a long history. He's made a big mistake, and he needs her help. His story involves stolen diamonds, a violent mobster, and a very real threat to his life.

As bodies start piling up, Elizabeth enlists Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron in the hunt for a ruthless murderer. And if they find the diamonds too? Well, wouldn't that be a bonus?

But this time they are up against an enemy who wouldn't bat an eyelid at knocking off four septuagenarians. Can The Thursday Murder Club find the killer (and the diamonds) before the killer finds them?]]>
368 Richard Osman Carol 3 4.53 2021 The Man Who Died Twice (Thursday Murder Club, #2)
author: Richard Osman
name: Carol
average rating: 4.53
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2024/09/19
date added: 2024/09/19
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<![CDATA[The Marylebone Drop (Slough House, #5.5)]]> 38452197 A drop, in spook parlance, is the passing on of secret information.

It's also what happens just before you hit the ground.]]>
112 Mick Herron 1641290145 Carol 0 currently-reading 3.91 2018 The Marylebone Drop (Slough House, #5.5)
author: Mick Herron
name: Carol
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2018
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/09/13
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<![CDATA[Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, Vol. 2: Enoch the Prophet]]> 32509327
In Enoch the Prophet, Dr. Nibley examines and solidly defends that claim by examining Joseph Smith's translations in the context of recently discovered apocryphal sources. This second volume in The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley includes four "Enoch the Prophet," "The Enoch Figure," "The Book of Enoch as Theodicy," and "A Strange Thing in The The Return of the Book of Enoch."

Dr. Nibley "We have been told that if we stop seeking, we shall not only find no more but lose the treasures we already have. That is why it is not only advisable but urgent that we begin to pay attention to that last astonishing outpouring of ancient writings that is the peculiar blessing of our generation. Among these writings, the first and most important is the book of Enoch."]]>
339 Hugh Nibley 1629734950 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.00 1986 Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, Vol. 2: Enoch the Prophet
author: Hugh Nibley
name: Carol
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1986
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/09/12
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<![CDATA[Water to the Angels: William Mulholland, His Monumental Aqueduct, and the Rise of Los Angeles]]> 22608106
In 1907, Irish immigrant William Mulholland conceived and built one of the greatest civil engineering feats in the aqueduct that carried water 223 miles from the Sierra Nevada mountains to Los Angeles—allowing this small, resource-challenged desert city to grow into a modern global metropolis. Drawing on new research, Les Standiford vividly captures the larger-then-life engineer and the breathtaking scope of his six-year, $23 million project that would transform a region, a state, and a nation at the dawn of its greatest century.

With energy and colorful detail, Water to the Angels brings to life the personalities, politics, and power—including bribery, deception, force, and bicoastal financial warfare—behind this dramatic event. At a time when the importance of water is being recognized as never before—considered by many experts to be the essential resource of the twenty-first century—Water to the Angels brings into focus the vigor of a fabled era, the might of a larger than life individual, and the scale of a priceless construction project, and sheds critical light on a past that offers insights for our future.

Water to the Angels includes 8 pages of photographs.]]>
360 Les Standiford 0062251449 Carol 0 3.86 2015 Water to the Angels: William Mulholland, His Monumental Aqueduct, and the Rise of Los Angeles
author: Les Standiford
name: Carol
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2015
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[Marry Him: The Case for Settling for Mr. Good Enough]]> 8565161
Nearly forty and single, Lori Gottlieb realised she'd wasted her best years searching for an elusive Prince Charming who might not even exist. Meanwhile, her friends who'd "settled" for Mr. Good Enough ended up married to excellent husbands and fathers.

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336 Lori Gottlieb 045123216X Carol 3 3.74 2010 Marry Him: The Case for Settling for Mr. Good Enough
author: Lori Gottlieb
name: Carol
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2010
rating: 3
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date added: 2024/09/06
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<![CDATA[The Neon Rain (Dave Robicheaux, #1)]]> 44078483 Introducing the New Orleans detective Dave Robicheaux

Johnny Massina, a convicted murderer bound for the electric chair, has warned Dave Robicheaux that he's on somebody's hit list, and now the homicide detective is trying to discover just who that is before he ends up dead.

Meanwhile he has taken on the murder investigation of a young black girl found dead in the Bayou swamp - a case no one seems keen for him to investigate. But Robicheaux persists and uncovers a web of corruption that some would kill to protect, leading him to a terrifying confrontation with the one horror he fears most of all.]]>
324 James Lee Burke Carol 4 4.04 1987 The Neon Rain (Dave Robicheaux, #1)
author: James Lee Burke
name: Carol
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1987
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/09/03
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<![CDATA[Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art]]> 51202930 A New York Times BestsellerA Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of 2020 Named a Best Book of 2020 by NPR Ěý “A fascinating scientific, cultural, spiritual and evolutionary history of the way humans breathe—and how we’ve all been doing it wrong for a long, long time.â€� —Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Big Magic and Eat Pray LoveNo matter what you eat, how much you exercise, how skinny or young or wise you are, none of it matters if you’re not breathing properly.There is nothing more essential to our health and well-being than take air in, let it out, repeat twenty-five thousand times a day. Yet, as a species, humans have lost the ability to breathe correctly, with grave consequences. Journalist James Nestor travels the world to figure out what went wrong and how to fix it. The answers aren’t found in pulmonology labs, as we might expect, but in the muddy digs of ancient burial sites, secret Soviet facilities, New Jersey choir schools, and the smoggy streets of SĂŁo Paulo. Nestor tracks down men and women exploring the hidden science behind ancient breathing practices like Pranayama, Sudarshan Kriya, and Tummo and teams up with pulmonary tinkerers to scientifically test long-held beliefs about how we breathe.Modern research is showing us that making even slight adjustments to the way we inhale and exhale can jump-start athletic performance; rejuvenate internal organs; halt snoring, asthma, and autoimmune disease; and even straighten scoliotic spines. None of this should be possible, and yet it is. Drawing on thousands of years of medical texts and recent cutting-edge studies in pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry, and human physiology, Breath turns the conventional wisdom of what we thought we knew about our most basic biological function on its head. You will never breathe the same again.]]> 301 James Nestor Carol 4 4.31 2020 Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art
author: James Nestor
name: Carol
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2024/02/03
date added: 2024/09/03
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<![CDATA[Colony Three Mars (Colony Mars #3)]]> 44073130 An alternative cover edition for this ASIN can be found here.

Now that the truth of the genetic experiments on Mars has been revealed, new missions are on their way to gain control of this extraordinary technology. In the process, they seek to exploit and enslave the colonists—turning them into nothing more than lab rats.

Worse, these newcomers are well armed, and prepared to go to war with each other to win control of the colony and its people.

But Dr. Jann Malbec has a secret, one that she could use to spare the colony and save the colonists from this fate. However, by using it she will almost certainly doom Earth to a planet-wide pandemic of apocalyptic proportions.

Yet she must choose. Earth or Mars—which is is going to be?
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278 Gerald M. Kilby Carol 0 4.16 2017 Colony Three Mars (Colony Mars #3)
author: Gerald M. Kilby
name: Carol
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/01
date added: 2024/09/01
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<![CDATA[The Bullet That Missed (Thursday Murder Club, #3)]]> 59852739
Then a new foe pays Elizabeth a visit. Her mission? Kill or be killed. Suddenly the cold case has become red hot.

While Elizabeth wrestles with her conscience (and a gun), Joyce, Ron, and Ibrahim chase down the clues with help from old friends and new. But can the gang solve the mystery and save Elizabeth before the murderer strikes again?

From an upmarket spa to a prison cell complete with espresso machine to a luxury penthouse high in the sky, this third adventure of the Thursday Murder Club is full of the cleverness, intrigue, and irresistible charm that readers have come to expect from Richard Osman's bestselling series.]]>
342 Richard Osman 059329940X Carol 0 currently-reading 4.53 2022 The Bullet That Missed (Thursday Murder Club, #3)
author: Richard Osman
name: Carol
average rating: 4.53
book published: 2022
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/08/31
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<![CDATA[The Vineyard of Liberty, 1787â€�1863 (The American Experiment Book 1)]]> 19109161 A Pulitzer Prize winner looks at the course of American history from the birth of the Constitution to the dawn of the Civil War. ĚýThe years between 1787 and 1863 witnessed the development of the American Nation—its society, politics, customs, culture, and, most important, the development of liberty. Burns explores the key events in the republic’s early decades, as well as the roles of heroes from Washington to Lincoln and of lesser-known figures. Captivating and insightful, Burns’s history combines the color and texture of early American life with meticulous scholarship. Focusing on the tensions leading up to the Civil War, Burns brilliantly shows how Americans became divided over the meaning of Liberty. Vineyard of Liberty is a sweeping and engrossing narrative of America’s formative years.]]> 576 James MacGregor Burns 1453245286 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.22 1982 The Vineyard of Liberty, 1787–1863 (The American Experiment Book 1)
author: James MacGregor Burns
name: Carol
average rating: 4.22
book published: 1982
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/08/26
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<![CDATA[443 Disturbing Facts about Our World: Shocking, Ironic or Simply Sad Pieces of Trivia (Trivia and Quizzes)]]> 199626102 Following the success of my trivia website, RaiseYourBrain, I published several award‑winning compilations of hard‑to‑believe facts that have reached hundreds of thousands of readers. One of the chapters in each trivia book was “Disturbing Facts about Our World�.
In 2020, I filled an entire volume with facts about upsetting crimes and mayhem, combined with unbelievable yet real instances of misfortune and misery. This was a book where grim examples of bigotry and hypocrisy were intertwined with amusing stories of bad luck. Accordingly, I dedicated a whole chapter to COVID-19 trivia alongside other weird medical conditions. The book was received so well that now you hold in your hands the second instalment. I promise, it will shake you to your core!
I am well aware that many readers might be overwhelmed by the condensed negativity, but hey� a fact is a fact! Continue to read if you appreciate trivia However incredible these pieces of trivia might sound, all entries have been verified and fact-checked.]]>
168 Nayden Kostov 9998791804 Carol 3 4.10 443 Disturbing Facts about Our World: Shocking, Ironic or Simply Sad Pieces of Trivia (Trivia and Quizzes)
author: Nayden Kostov
name: Carol
average rating: 4.10
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2024/08/26
date added: 2024/08/26
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<![CDATA[Colony Two Mars (Colony Mars #2)]]> 44073124 An alternative cover edition for this ASIN can be found here.

The sole survivor of the ill-fated ISA mission is now stranded on Mars. Having been designated a bio-hazard by Earth, any hope of returning home is all but gone. She is alone, isolated, and abandoned.

That is, until another human shows up in the main colony airlock. However, he's barely alive and soon dies without regaining consciousness. More disturbing though, a DNA test identifies him as a colonist who has already died, several years earlier � impossible as that may be.

Nevertheless, there is only one place he could have come from, the mine on the far side of the Jezero crater � Colony Two. An outpost they had presumed was long dead. But if he survived, maybe there are others still alive?

She now has no choice but to attempt the dangerous journey across the crater to investigate. Because if she doesn’t find some answers soon, her only future is to die alone on Mars.]]>
246 Gerald M. Kilby Carol 0 4.02 2016 Colony Two Mars (Colony Mars #2)
author: Gerald M. Kilby
name: Carol
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at: 2024/08/25
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<![CDATA[Colony One Mars (Colony Mars #1)]]> 44073117 An alternative cover edition for this ASIN can be found here.

All contact is lost with the first human colony on Mars during a long and destructive sandstorm. Satellite imagery of the aftermath shows extensive damage to the facility. The fifty-four colonists who called it home are presumed dead.

Three years later, a new mission sets down on the planet surface to investigate what remains of the derelict site. But, it’s not long before they realise the colony is not as lifeless as everyone thought. Someone is still alive -- hiding out somewhere.

Yet, before they can find the elusive colonist a strange illness starts to affect the crew. Pressure now mounts on Biologist, Dr. Jann Malbec, to locate the source and find a way to fight it. However, as she investigates she begins to suspect a dark and deadly secret lurking within the colony. A secret that threatens not just the crew but the entire population of Earth.

With limited resources and time running out, she must find some answers and find them fast. Because if she doesn't, none of them will be going home.

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242 Gerald M. Kilby Carol 0 currently-reading 3.97 2016 Colony One Mars (Colony Mars #1)
author: Gerald M. Kilby
name: Carol
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2016
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/08/18
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<![CDATA[Washington and Hamilton: The Untold True Story of the Unlikely Friendship that Helped Win the American Revolution, Forge the Constitution, and Shape a Nation]]> 26547629 381 Tony Williams 1492609846 Carol 0 american-history 4.11 2015 Washington and Hamilton: The Untold True Story of the Unlikely Friendship that Helped Win the American Revolution, Forge the Constitution, and Shape a Nation
author: Tony Williams
name: Carol
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2015
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/08/06
shelves: american-history
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<![CDATA[Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free]]> 23350313 The exclusive, official story of the survival, faith, and family of Chile’sĚýthirty-three trapped miners

When the San JosĂ© mine collapsed outside of CopiapĂł, Chile,Ěýin August 2010, it trappedĚýthirty-three miners beneath thousands of feet of rock for a record-breakingĚýsixty-nine days. Across the globe, we sat riveted to television and computer screensĚýas journalists flocked to the Atacama desert. While we saw what transpired above ground during the grueling and protracted rescue, the story of the minersâ€� experiences below the earth’s surface—and the lives that led them there—hasn’t been heard until now.
ĚýĚýĚýĚý In Deep Down Dark, aĚýmaster work by a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, HĂ©ctor Tobar gains exclusive access to the miners and their stories. The result is a miraculous and emotionally textured account of theĚýthirty-three men who came to think of the San JosĂ© mine as a kind of coffin, as a “caveâ€� inflicting constant and thundering aural torment, and as a church where they sought redemption through prayer while the world watched from above. It offers an understanding of the families and personal histories that brought “los 33â€� to the mine, and the mystical and spiritual elements that surrounded working in such a dangerous place.
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330 HĂ©ctor Tobar 0374709203 Carol 4 4.07 2014 Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free
author: HĂ©ctor Tobar
name: Carol
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at: 2024/07/31
date added: 2024/07/31
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<![CDATA[We Fed an Island: The True Story of Rebuilding Puerto Rico, One Meal at a Time]]> 38739584 FOREWORD BY LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA AND LUIS A. MIRANDA, JR.

The true story of how a group of chefs fed hundreds of thousands of hungry Americans after Hurricane Maria and touched the hearts of many more

Chef José Andrés arrived in Puerto Rico four days after Hurricane Maria ripped through the island. The economy was destroyed and for most people there was no clean water, no food, no power, no gas, and no way to communicate with the outside world.

Andrés addressed the humanitarian crisis the only way he knew how: by feeding people, one hot meal at a time. From serving sancocho with his friend José Enrique at Enrique’s ravaged restaurant in San Juan to eventually cooking 100,000 meals a day at more than a dozen kitchens across the island, Andrés and his team fed hundreds of thousands of people, including with massive paellas made to serve thousands of people alone.. At the same time, they also confronted a crisis with deep roots, as well as the broken and wasteful system that helps keep some of the biggest charities and NGOs in business.

Based on AndrĂ©s’s insider’s take as well as on meetings, messages, and conversations he had while in Puerto Rico, We Fed an Island movingly describes how a network of community kitchens activated real change and tells an extraordinary story of hope in the face of disasters both natural and man-made, offering suggestions for how to address a crisis like this in the future.Ěý

Beyond that, aĚýportion of the proceeds from the book will be donated to the Chef Relief Network of World Central Kitchen for efforts in Puerto Rico and beyond.

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277 José Andrés 0062864505 Carol 4 Great book

Chef Andres makes many seemingly valid points about top-down relief efforts in natural disasters. I like the idea of a food czar and would nominate him to be our first!

Merged review:

Great book

Chef Andres makes many seemingly valid points about top-down relief efforts in natural disasters. I like the idea of a food czar and would nominate him to be our first!]]>
3.86 2018 We Fed an Island: The True Story of Rebuilding Puerto Rico, One Meal at a Time
author: José Andrés
name: Carol
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2019/09/09
date added: 2024/07/22
shelves:
review:
Great book

Chef Andres makes many seemingly valid points about top-down relief efforts in natural disasters. I like the idea of a food czar and would nominate him to be our first!

Merged review:

Great book

Chef Andres makes many seemingly valid points about top-down relief efforts in natural disasters. I like the idea of a food czar and would nominate him to be our first!
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<![CDATA[The Twisted Sword (Poldark #11)]]> 44675138 The eleventh novel in Winston Graham's classic Poldark saga, now a major TV series from Masterpiece PBS.

Cornwall 1815

Demelza sees a horseman riding down the valley and senses disruption to the domestic contentment she has fought so hard to achieve. For Ross has little option but to accept the summons � and travel to Paris with his family, as an 'observer' of the French armed forces.

Parisian life begins well with an exhilarating round of balls and parties. But the return of Napoleon brings separation, distrust and danger to the Poldarks . . . and always for Demelza there is the shadow of the secret she does not even share with Ross.

In his Poldark series, Winston Graham explores the complications of love lost and the class struggle of early 19th-century England with a light comic touch. The Twisted Sword is followed by the twelfth book in the Poldark series, Bella Poldark.

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663 Winston Graham 1250244773 Carol 3 4.49 1990 The Twisted Sword (Poldark #11)
author: Winston Graham
name: Carol
average rating: 4.49
book published: 1990
rating: 3
read at: 2024/07/03
date added: 2024/07/10
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<![CDATA[The Stranger from the Sea (Poldark #8)]]> 44306502 The eighth novel in Winston Graham's classic Poldark saga, now a major TV series from Masterpiece PBS.

Cornwall 1810

The Poldark family awaits the return of Ross from his mission to Wellington's army in Portugal. But their ordered existence ends with Jeremy Poldark's dramatic rescue of a stranger from the sea.

Stephen Carrington's arrival in the Poldark household changes all their lives. For Ross and Delmelza's children Clowance and Jeremy in particular, Stephen's advent is the key to a new world—one of both love and danger.

In his Poldark series, author Winston Graham explores the complications of love lost and the class struggle of early 19th-century England with a light comic touch. The Stranger from the Sea is followed by the ninth book in the Poldark series, The Miller's Dance.

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502 Winston Graham 1250244706 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.40 1981 The Stranger from the Sea (Poldark #8)
author: Winston Graham
name: Carol
average rating: 4.40
book published: 1981
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/07/10
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<![CDATA[Liberty Tree: Ordinary People and the American Revolution]]> 27240817 With the publication of Liberty Tree, acclaimed historian Alfred F. Young presents a selection of his seminal writing as well as two provocative, never-before-published essays. Together, they take the reader on a journey through the American Revolution, exploring the role played by ordinary women and men (called, at the time, people out of doors) in shaping events during and after the Revolution, their impact on the Founding generation of the new American nation, and finally how this populist side of the Revolution has fared in public memory.

Drawing on a wide range of sources, which include not only written documents but also material items like powder horns, and public rituals like parades and tarring and featherings, Young places ordinary Americans at the center of the Revolution. For example, in one essay he views the Constitution of 1787 as the result of an intentional accommodation by elites with non-elites, while another piece explores the process of ongoing negotiations would-be rulers conducted with the middling sort; women, enslaved African Americans, and Native Americans. Moreover, questions of history and modern memory are engaged by a compelling examination of icons of the Revolution, such as the pamphleteer Thomas Paine and Boston's Freedom Trail.

For over forty years, history lovers, students, and scholars alike have been able to hear the voices and see the actions of ordinary people during the Revolutionary Era, thanks to Young's path-breaking work, which seamlessly blends sophisticated analysis with compelling and accessible prose. From his award-winning work on mechanics, or artisans, in the seaboard cities of the Northeast to the all but forgotten liberty tree, a major popular icon of the Revolution explored in depth for the first time, Young continues to astound readers as he forges new directions in the history of the American Revolution.

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432 Alfred F. Young 0814729355 Carol 0 3.00 2006 Liberty Tree: Ordinary People and the American Revolution
author: Alfred F. Young
name: Carol
average rating: 3.00
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at: 2024/07/04
date added: 2024/07/04
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The Loving Cup (Poldark #10) 44587248 The tenth book in Winston Graham's classic Poldark saga, now a major TV series from Masterpiece PBS.

Cornwall 1813

A silver cup lies half-forgotten in a dank cave, amongst a pile of stolen goods. Yet the tiny vessel and its inscription Amor gignit amorem haunts the lives of the still-feuding Poldark and Warleggan families, as Ross, Demelza and the ambitious and powerful Sir George Warleggan watch their children make the decisions that will shape their destinies.

In the closing years of the wars against Napoleon, for Jeremy and Clowance, and for arrogant, cynical Valentine Warleggan, these are troubled and momentous times . . .

In his Poldark series, Winston Graham explores the complications of love lost and the class struggle of early 19th-century England with a light comic touch. The Loving Cup is followed by the eleventh book in the series, The Twisted Sword.

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582 Winston Graham 1250244757 Carol 3 4.55 1984 The Loving Cup (Poldark #10)
author: Winston Graham
name: Carol
average rating: 4.55
book published: 1984
rating: 3
read at: 2024/07/03
date added: 2024/07/03
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<![CDATA[The Miller's Dance (Poldark #9)]]> 44575843 The ninth novel in Winston Graham's classic Poldark saga, now a major TV series from Masterpiece PBS.

Cornwall 1812

At Nampara, the Poldark family finds the new year brings involvement in more than one unexpected venture. For Ross and Demelza there is some surprising - and worrying - news. And Clowance, newly returned from her London triumphs, finds that her entanglement with Stephen Carrington brings not only happiness but heartache.

As the armies battle in Spain, and the political situation at home becomes daily more obscure, the Poldark and Warleggan families find themselves thrust into a turbulent new era as complex and changing as the patterns of the Miller's Dance . . .

In his Poldark series, Winston Graham explores the complications of love lost and the class struggle of early 19th-century England with a light comic touch. The Miller's Dance is followed by the tenth book in the series, The Loving Cup.

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488 Winston Graham 1250244730 Carol 0 4.46 1982 The Miller's Dance (Poldark #9)
author: Winston Graham
name: Carol
average rating: 4.46
book published: 1982
rating: 0
read at: 2024/06/27
date added: 2024/06/27
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The Angry Tide (Poldark #7) 36421792
Cornwall, towards the end of the 18th century. Ross Poldark sits for the borough of Truro as Member of Parliament - his time divided between London and Cornwall, his heart divided about his wife, Demelza.

His old feud with George Warleggan still flares - as does the illicit love between Morwenna and Drake, Demelza's brother.

Before the new century dawns, George and Ross will be drawn together by a loss greater than their rivalry - and Morwenna and Drake by a tragedy that brings them hope . . . .

And with the new century, comes much change in the shocking seventh book of Winston Graham's Poldark series, The Angry Tide.]]>
628 Winston Graham 1250186064 Carol 4 4.62 1977 The Angry Tide (Poldark #7)
author: Winston Graham
name: Carol
average rating: 4.62
book published: 1977
rating: 4
read at: 2024/06/23
date added: 2024/06/23
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The Four Swans (Poldark #6) 40603924
Cornwall, 1795 -1799: although Ross Poldark, now something of a war hero, seems secure in his hard-won prosperity, a new dilemma faces him in the sudden infatuation of a young naval officer for his wife Demelza. All four women—the four swans—whose lives touch Ross’s face a crisis in these years. For his wife Demelza, his old love Elizabeth, for his friend’s new wife Caroline, and for the unhappy Morwenna Chynoweth, these are times of stress and conflict.]]>
595 Winston Graham Carol 3 4.51 1976 The Four Swans (Poldark #6)
author: Winston Graham
name: Carol
average rating: 4.51
book published: 1976
rating: 3
read at: 2024/06/17
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Warleggan (Poldark #4) 40603735 482 Winston Graham Carol 4 4.46 1953 Warleggan (Poldark #4)
author: Winston Graham
name: Carol
average rating: 4.46
book published: 1953
rating: 4
read at: 2024/06/11
date added: 2024/06/11
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Jeremy Poldark (Poldark, #3) 59039851 305 Winston Graham Carol 4 4.50 1950 Jeremy Poldark (Poldark, #3)
author: Winston Graham
name: Carol
average rating: 4.50
book published: 1950
rating: 4
read at: 2024/06/06
date added: 2024/06/06
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<![CDATA[Giza: The Tesla Connection: Acoustical Science and the Harvesting of Clean Energy]]> 127956649 Reveals how the pyramids of Egypt were sophisticated generators of clean energy

� Explains how the pyramids harmonized seismic energy, which enabled the harvesting of electricity and the mitigation of earthquakes

� Shares recent cutting-edge research on earthquake lights, acoustic frequency measurements and energy concentration within the Great Pyramid, the shafts of the Queen’s Chamber, the scorch marks that support the King’s Chamber explosion hypothesis, and the significance of the large void above the Grand Gallery

� Includes technical appendices written by experts and top researchers

Sharing extensive new evidence and cutting-edge research that the Great Pyramid at Giza was built as an energy-harvesting machine, Christopher Dunn details how the ancient Egyptians generated clean power for their civilization and reveals how the pyramid builders and the great inventor Nikola Tesla drew from the same universal knowledge.

Looking at each part of the Great Pyramid, from the internal chambers to its massive stone blocks to the pyramidion on top, Dunn reveals how the pyramids in Egypt served to stimulate the release and collection of electrons in the Earth’s crust by harmonizing seismic energy while also attenuating the accumulating stresses. Drawing on exhaustive ongoing research by NASA scientists into the phenomenon known as “earthquake lights,� Dunn shows how the pyramid builders were inspired by this phenomenon and learned to stress igneous rocks in order to harvest the resulting electron flow. He looks in depth at recent research that supports the pyramid energy theory, including new explorations of the shafts of the Queen’s Chamber and analysis of the scorch marks on the ceiling of the Grand Gallery, which supports the King’s Chamber explosion hypothesis. He examines the stunning significance of the large void above the Grand Gallery discovered in 2017. Dunn also analyses the results of extensive acoustic testing and measurements at ancient sacred sites and shows how the pyramids were tuned to the Earth’s frequency.

While the pyramids� sophisticated energy-harvesting abilities are now in disarray and disuse, some remnants of their technologies are still there, waiting to be rediscovered and provide our civilization with an abundance of nonpolluting power.]]>
352 Christopher Dunn Carol 3 4.81 2024 Giza: The Tesla Connection: Acoustical Science and the Harvesting of Clean Energy
author: Christopher Dunn
name: Carol
average rating: 4.81
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2024/05/29
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<![CDATA[The Spy Who Came in from the Cold]]> 19847968
The 50th-anniversary edition of the bestselling novel that launched John le Carré’s career worldwide

In the shadow of the newly erected Berlin Wall, Alec Leamas watches as his last agent is shot dead by East German sentries. For Leamas, the head of Berlin Station, the Cold War is over. As he faces the prospect of retirement or worse—a desk job—Control offers him a unique opportunity for revenge. Assuming the guise of an embittered and dissolute ex-agent, Leamas is set up to trap Mundt, the deputy director of the East German Intelligence Service—with himself as the bait. In the background is George Smiley, ready to make the game play out just as Control wants.

Setting a standard that has never been surpassed, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is a devastating tale of duplicity and espionage.]]>
213 John Le Carré Carol 0 currently-reading 4.26 1963 The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
author: John Le Carré
name: Carol
average rating: 4.26
book published: 1963
rating: 0
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Becoming 38745806
In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites readers into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her—from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work, to her time spent at the world’s most famous address. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private, telling her full story as she has lived it—in her own words and on her own terms. Warm, wise, and revelatory, Becoming is the deeply personal reckoning of a woman of soul and substance who has steadily defied expectations—and whose story inspires us to do the same.]]>
428 Michelle Obama Carol 4 4.67 2018 Becoming
author: Michelle Obama
name: Carol
average rating: 4.67
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2024/04/18
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<![CDATA[The Divine Gift of Forgiveness]]> 50523827
In this book, Elder Andersen writes especially to those who are "awakening" unto God—those who are just beginning to discover or who seek the divine gifts and power of repentance and forgiveness in their lives. The Divine Gift of Forgiveness is organized in such a way that readers can choose the section or chapter that applies most to them and study it without having to have read from cover to cover. Leaders can similarly recommend specific chapters to those with whom they work. Filled with powerful doctrine along with stories and experiences, this book will help all readers become more devoted disciples of the Savior.]]>
236 Neil L. Andersen 1629739286 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.82 2019 The Divine Gift of Forgiveness
author: Neil L. Andersen
name: Carol
average rating: 4.82
book published: 2019
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[The Gifts of the Jews: How a Tribe of Desert Nomads Changed the Way Everyone Thinks and Feels (Hinges of History Book 2)]]> 8551944 NATIONAL BESTSELLER •ĚýThe author of the runaway bestseller How the Irish Saved Civilization takes us on another "captivating...persuasive as well as entertaining" journey into history (The New York Times), recreating a time when the actions of a small band of people had repercussions that are still felt today.The Gifts of the Jews reveals the critical change that made western civilization possible. Within the matrix of ancient religions and philosophies, life was seen as part of an endless cycle of birth and death; time was like a wheel, spinning ceaselessly. Yet somehow, the ancient Jews began to see time differently. For them, time had a beginning and an end; it was a narrative, whose triumphant conclusion would come in the future. From this insight came a new conception of men and women as individuals with unique destinies--a conception that would inform the Declaration of Independence--and our hopeful belief in progress and the sense that tomorrow can be better than today. As Thomas Cahill narrates this momentous shift, he also explains the real significance of such Biblical figures as Abraham and Sarah, Moses and the Pharaoh, Joshua, Isaiah, and Jeremiah.Full of compelling stories, insights and humor, The Gifts of the Jews is an irresistible exploration of history as fascinating and fun as How the Irish Saved Civilization.]]> 314 Thomas Cahill Carol 0 4.05 1998 The Gifts of the Jews: How a Tribe of Desert Nomads Changed the Way Everyone Thinks and Feels (Hinges of History Book 2)
author: Thomas Cahill
name: Carol
average rating: 4.05
book published: 1998
rating: 0
read at: 2024/03/02
date added: 2024/03/02
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One Year After (After #2) 25021140 New York Times bestselling author William R. Forstchen brings a sequel to his hit novel One Second After. Months before publication, One Second After was cited on the floor of Congress as a book all Americans should read, a book discussed in the corridors of the Pentagon as a truly realistic look at the dangers of EMPs. An EMP is a weapon with the power to destroy the entire United States in a single act of terrorism, in a single second; indeed, it is a weapon that the Wall Street Journal warns could shatter America. One Second After was a dire warning of what might be our future...and our end. Now, One Year After returns to the small town of Black Mountain, and the man who struggled so hard to rebuild it in the wake of devastation-John Matherson. It is a thrilling follow-up and should delight fans in every way.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.]]>
303 William R. Forstchen 1466851899 Carol 4 4.30 2015 One Year After (After #2)
author: William R. Forstchen
name: Carol
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2024/02/27
date added: 2024/02/27
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<![CDATA[The Three Lives of James Madison: Genius, Partisan, President]]> 34971435 A sweeping reexamination of the Founding Father who transformed the United States in each of his political “lives”—as a revolutionary thinker, as a partisan political strategist, and as a president

Over the course of his life, James Madison changed the United States three times: First, he designed the Constitution, led the struggle for its adoption and ratification, then drafted the Bill of Rights. As an older, cannier politician he co-founded the original Republican party, setting the course of American political partisanship. Finally, having pioneered a foreign policy based on economic sanctions, he took the United States into a high-risk conflict, becoming the first wartime president and, despite the odds, winning.

Now Noah Feldman offers an intriguing portrait of this elusive genius and the constitutional republic he created—and how both evolved to meet unforeseen challenges. Madison hoped to eradicate partisanship yet found himself giving voice to, and institutionalizing, the political divide. Madison’s lifelong loyalty to Thomas Jefferson led to an irrevocable break with George Washington, hero of the American Revolution. Madison closely collaborated with Alexander Hamilton on the Federalist papers—yet their different visions for the United States left them enemies.

Alliances defined Madison, too. The vivacious Dolley Madison used her social and political talents to win her husband new supporters in Washington—and define the diplomatic customs of the capital’s society. Madison’s relationship with James Monroe, a mixture of friendship and rivalry, shaped his presidency and the outcome of the War of 1812.

We may be more familiar with other Founding Fathers, but the United States today is in many ways Madisonian in nature. Madison predicted that foreign threats would justify the curtailment of civil liberties. He feared economic inequality and the power of financial markets over politics, believing that government by the people demanded resistance to wealth. Madison was the first Founding Father to recognize the importance of public opinion, and the first to understand that the media could function as a safeguard to liberty.

The Three Lives of James Madison is an illuminating biography of the man whose creativity and tenacity gave us America’s distinctive form of government. His collaborations, struggles, and contradictions define the United States to this day.]]>
888 Noah Feldman 0679643842 Carol 0 4.28 2017 The Three Lives of James Madison: Genius, Partisan, President
author: Noah Feldman
name: Carol
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2017
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[Come Fly the World: The Jet-Age Story of the Women of Pan Am]]> 56038729 Glamour, danger, in a Mad Men-era of commercial flight, Pan Am World Airways attracted the kind of young woman who wanted out, and wanted up

Required to have a college education, speak two languages, and possess the political savvy of a Foreign Service officer, a jet-age stewardess serving on iconic Pan Am between 1966 and 1975 also had to be between 5�3" and 5�9", between 105 and 140 pounds, and under 26 years of age at the time of hire.Cooke's intimate storytelling weaves together the real-life stories of a memorable cast of characters, from small-town girl Lynne Totten, a science major who decided life in a lab was not for her, to Hazel Bowie, one of the relatively few Black stewardesses of the era, as they embraced the liberation of their new jet-set life. Cooke brings to light the story of Pan Am stewardesses' role in the Vietnam War, as the airline added runs from Saigon to Hong Kong for planeloads of weary young soldiers straight from the battlefields, who were off for five days of R&R, and then flown back to war. Finally, with Operation Babylift--the dramatic evacuation of 2,000 children during the fall of Saigon--the book's special cast of stewardesses unites to play an extraordinary role on the world stage.
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274 Julia Cooke 0358251389 Carol 0 3.79 2021 Come Fly the World: The Jet-Age Story of the Women of Pan Am
author: Julia Cooke
name: Carol
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at: 2024/02/10
date added: 2024/02/10
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<![CDATA[Tending Roses (Tending Roses #1)]]> 13416692 318 Lisa Wingate Carol 0 to-read 4.35 2001 Tending Roses (Tending Roses #1)
author: Lisa Wingate
name: Carol
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2001
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/01/27
shelves: to-read
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The Joy Luck Club 563002
With wit and sensitivity, Amy Tan examines the sometimes painful, often tender, and always deep connection between mothers and daughters. As each woman reveals her secrets, trying to unravel the truth about her life, the strings become more tangled, more entwined. Mothers boast or despair over daughters, and daughters roll their eyes even as they feel the inextricable tightening of their matriarchal ties. Tan is an astute storyteller, enticing readers to immerse themselves into these lives of complexity and mystery.]]>
332 Amy Tan 0804106304 Carol 4 3.88 1989 The Joy Luck Club
author: Amy Tan
name: Carol
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1989
rating: 4
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date added: 2024/01/02
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<![CDATA[The Elephant Whisperer: Learning about Life, Loyalty and Freedom from a Remarkable Herd of Elephants]]> 11843854 This an alternate cover for B0050Q5WYS

When South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony was asked to accept a herd of 'rogue' elephants on his Thula Thula game reserve in Zululand, his common sense told him to refuse. But he was the herd's last chance of survival � dangerous and unpredictable, they would be killed if Lawrence wouldn't take them in.

As Lawrence risked his life to create a bond with the troubled elephants and persuade them to stay on his reserve, he came to realize what a special family they were, from the wise matriarch Nana, who guided the herd, to her warrior sister Frankie, always ready to see off any threat, and their children who fought so hard to survive.

With unforgettable characters and exotic wildlife, this is an enthralling book that will appeal to animal lovers and adventurous souls everywhere.]]>
378 Lawrence Anthony Carol 5 4.55 2009 The Elephant Whisperer: Learning about Life, Loyalty and Freedom from a Remarkable Herd of Elephants
author: Lawrence Anthony
name: Carol
average rating: 4.55
book published: 2009
rating: 5
read at: 2019/05/19
date added: 2023/12/28
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<![CDATA[The 100 Silliest Things People Say About Dogs]]> 24283850 "Dogs are predators and pack animals".
"You have to be your dog's leader, or else the dog will dominate you".
"Pit bulls are just like any other dog."
All these statements are FALSE.

In this ground-breaking and sometimes controversial book, Alexandra Semyonova explodes the 100 most common myths about dogs, their nature, their behaviour and how to treat them. She explains how the old, pseudo-scientific theory of dominance in dogs originated in Nazi ideology and the disastrous consequences this has had for dogs, and replaces it with conclusions drawn from twenty years of researching and directly observing real dog behaviour.

As she takes us through the 100 myths, Semyonova shows conclusively that serious aggression is utterly abnormal in the domestic dog, bringing us up to date on the true nature of dogs and what their body language really means. We gain a clear explanation of the three simple rules that dogs follow and clear guidance on how to use them to improve our interactions with our canine friends.]]>
272 Alexandra Semyonova Carol 0 currently-reading 4.67 2009 The 100 Silliest Things People Say About Dogs
author: Alexandra Semyonova
name: Carol
average rating: 4.67
book published: 2009
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/12/19
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<![CDATA[Sorcery & Cecelia: or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot (Cecelia and Kate, #1)]]> 15722552
Since they were children, cousins Kate and Cecelia have been inseparable. But in 1817, as they approach adulthood, their families force them to spend a summer apart. As Cecelia fights boredom in her small country town, Kate visits London to mingle with the brightest lights of English society.

At the initiation of a powerful magician into the Royal College of Wizards, Kate finds herself alone with a mysterious witch who offers her a sip from a chocolate pot. When Kate refuses the drink, the chocolate burns through her dress and the witch disappears. It seems that strange forces are convening to destroy a beloved wizard, and only Kate and Cecelia can stop the plot. But for two girls who have to contend with the pressures of choosing dresses and beaux for their debuts, deadly magic is only one of their concerns.

This ebook features illustrated biographies of Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer including rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the authors� personal collections.]]>
336 Patricia C. Wrede Carol 0 currently-reading 4.06 1988 Sorcery & Cecelia: or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot (Cecelia and Kate, #1)
author: Patricia C. Wrede
name: Carol
average rating: 4.06
book published: 1988
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/12/15
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<![CDATA[The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness]]> 30844156 Finalist for the National Book Award for Nonfiction * New York Times Bestseller * A Huffington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of the Year * One of the Best Books of the Month on Ĺ·±¦ÓéŔÖ * Library Journal Best Sci-Tech Book of the Year * An American Library Association Notable Book of the Year “Sy Montgomery’s The Soul of an Octopus does for the creature what Helen Macdonald’s H Is for Hawk did for raptors.â€� —New Statesman, UK “One of the best science books of the year.â€� —Science Friday, NPR Another New York Times bestseller from the author of The Good Good Pig, this “fascinating…touching…informative…entertainingâ€� (The Daily Beast) book explores the emotional and physical world of the octopus—a surprisingly complex, intelligent, and spirited creature—and the remarkable connections it makes with humans.In pursuit of the wild, solitary, predatory octopus, popular naturalist Sy Montgomery has practiced true immersion journalism. From New England aquarium tanks to the reefs of French Polynesia and the Gulf of Mexico, she has befriended octopuses with strikingly different personalities—gentle Athena, assertive Octavia, curious Kali, and joyful Karma. Each creature shows her cleverness in myriad escaping enclosures like an orangutan; jetting water to bounce balls; and endlessly tricking companions with multiple “sleights of handâ€� to get food. Scientists have only recently accepted the intelligence of dogs, birds, and chimpanzees but now are watching octopuses solve problems and are trying to decipher the meaning of the animal’s color-changing techniques. With her “joyful passion for these intelligent and fascinating creaturesâ€� (Library Journal Editorsâ€� Spring Pick), Montgomery chronicles the growing appreciation of this mollusk as she tells a unique love story. By turns funny, entertaining, touching, and profound, The Soul of an Octopus reveals what octopuses can teach us about the meeting of two very different minds.]]> 274 Sy Montgomery 1501161148 Carol 4 check-out 4.19 2015 The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness
author: Sy Montgomery
name: Carol
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2023/12/15
date added: 2023/12/15
shelves: check-out
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Rules for Visiting 43064892 A beautifully observed and deeply funny novel of May Attaway, a university gardener who sets out on an odyssey to reconnect with four old friends over the course of a year.

At forty, May Attaway is more at home with plants than people. Over the years, she's turned inward, finding pleasure in language, her work as a gardener, and keeping her neighbors at arm's length while keenly observing them. But when she is unexpectedly granted some leave from her job, May is inspired to reconnect with four once close friends. She knows they will never have a proper reunion, so she goes, one-by-one, to each of them. A student of the classics, May considers her journey a female Odyssey. What might the world have had if, instead of waiting, Penelope had set out on an adventure of her own?

RULES FOR VISITING is a woman's exploration of friendship in the digital age. Deeply alert to the nobility and the ridiculousness of ordinary people, May savors the pleasures along the way--afternoon ice cream with a long-lost friend, surprise postcards from an unexpected crush, and a moving encounter with ancient beauty. Though she gets a taste of viral online fame, May chooses to bypass her friends' perfectly cultivated online lives to instead meet them in their messy analog ones.

Ultimately, May learns that a best friend is someone who knows your story--and she inspires us all to master the art of visiting.]]>
304 Jessica Francis Kane 052555923X Carol 4 3.91 2019 Rules for Visiting
author: Jessica Francis Kane
name: Carol
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2023/12/08
date added: 2023/12/08
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<![CDATA[How the Irish Saved Civilization (Hinges of History Book 1)]]> 8551943 NATIONAL BESTSELLER � A book in the best tradition of popular history—the untold story of Ireland's role in maintaining Western culture while the Dark Ages settled on Europe. � The perfect St. Patrick's Day gift!Every year millions of Americans celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but they may not be aware of how great an influence St. Patrick was on the subsequent history of civilization. Not only did he bring Christianity to Ireland, he instilled a sense of literacy and learning that would create the conditions that allowed Ireland to become "the isle of saints and scholars"—and thus preserve Western culture while Europe was being overrun by barbarians. In this entertaining and compelling narrative, Thomas Cahill tells the story of how Europe evolved from the classical age of Rome to the medieval era. Without Ireland, the transition could not have taken place. Not only did Irish monks and scribes maintain the very record of Western civilization -- copying manuscripts of Greek and Latin writers, both pagan and Christian, while libraries and learning on the continent were forever lost—they brought their uniquely Irish world-view to the task. As Cahill delightfully illustrates, so much of the liveliness we associate with medieval culture has its roots in Ireland. When the seeds of culture were replanted on the European continent, it was from Ireland that they were germinated. In the tradition of Barbara Tuchman's A Distant Mirror, How The Irish Saved Civilization reconstructs an era that few know about but which is central to understanding our past and our cultural heritage. But it conveys its knowledge with a winking wit that aptly captures the sensibility of the unsung Irish who relaunched civilization.]]> 279 Thomas Cahill Carol 0 currently-reading 3.99 1995 How the Irish Saved Civilization (Hinges of History Book 1)
author: Thomas Cahill
name: Carol
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1995
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat: Why It's So Hard to Think Straight About Animals]]> 9363155






Ěý



Hal Herzog, a maverick scientist and leader in the field ofĚýanthrozoology offers a controversial, thought-provoking, and unprecedented exploration of the psychology behind the inconsistent and often paradoxical ways we think, feel, and behave towards animals. A cross between Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma and Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods, Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat, in the words of Irene M. Pepperberg, bestselling author of Alex & Me, “deftly blends anecdote with scientific research to show how almost any moral or ethical position regarding our relationship with animals can lead to absurd consequences.”]]>
340 Hal Herzog Carol 0 currently-reading 4.13 2010 Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat: Why It's So Hard to Think Straight About Animals
author: Hal Herzog
name: Carol
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2010
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[Untold Power: The Fascinating Rise and Complex Legacy of First Lady Edith Wilson]]> 74819129 A nuanced portrait of the first acting woman president, written with fresh and cinematic verve by a leading historian on women’s suffrage and power

While this nation has yet to elect its first woman president—and though history has downplayed her role—just over a century ago a woman became the nation’s first acting president. In fact, she was born in 1872, and her name was Edith Bolling Galt Wilson. She climbed her way out of Appalachian poverty and into the highest echelons of American power and in 1919 effectively acted as the first woman president of the U.S. (before women could even vote nationwide) when her husband, Woodrow Wilson, was incapacitated. Beautiful, brilliant, charismatic, catty, and calculating, she was a complicated figure whose personal quest for influence reshaped the position of First Lady into one of political prominence forever. And still nobody truly understands who she was.

For the first time, we have a biography that takes an unflinching look at the woman whose ascent mirrors that of many powerful American women before and since, one full of the compromises and complicities women have undertaken throughout time in order to find security for themselves and make their mark on history. She was a shape-shifter who was obsessed with crafting her own reputation, at once deeply invested in exercising her own power while also opposing women’s suffrage. With narrative verve and fresh eyes, Untold Power is a richly overdue examination of one of American history’s most influential, complicated women as well as the surprising and often absurd realities of American politics.]]>
320 Rebecca Boggs Roberts 0593490002 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.04 2023 Untold Power: The Fascinating Rise and Complex Legacy of First Lady Edith Wilson
author: Rebecca Boggs Roberts
name: Carol
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2023
rating: 0
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The Shipping News 7354
A vigorous, darkly comic, and at times magical portrait of the contemporary American family, The Shipping News shows why E. Annie Proulx is recognized as one of the most gifted and original writers in America today.
(back cover)]]>
337 Annie Proulx 0743225422 Carol 4 all-time-favorites 3.88 1993 The Shipping News
author: Annie Proulx
name: Carol
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1993
rating: 4
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date added: 2023/10/31
shelves: all-time-favorites
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I really enjoyed this book. Good enough to read twice!
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<![CDATA[On Our Best Behavior: The Seven Deadly Sins and the Price Women Pay to Be Good]]> 75536764
Why do women equate self-denial with being good?

We congratulate ourselves when we resist the donut in the office breakroom. We celebrate our restraint when we hold back from sending an email in anger. WeĚýfeel virtuousĚýwhen we wake up at dawn to get a jump on the day. We put othersâ€� needs ahead of our own and believe this makes us exemplary.ĚýIn On Our Best Behavior ,Ěýjournalist Elise Loehnen explains thatĚýthese impulses â€� often lauded as unselfish, distinctly feminine instincts â€� are actually ingrained in us by a culture that reaps the benefits, via an extraordinarily effective collection of moresĚýknown as the Seven Deadly Sins.ĚýĚý

Since being codified by the Christian church in the fourth century, the Seven Deadly Sins—pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth—have exerted insidious power. Even today, in our largely secular, patriarchal society, they continue to circumscribe women’s behavior. For example, seeing sloth as sinful leads women to deny themselves rest; a fear of gluttony drives them to ignore their appetites; and an aversion to greed prevents them from negotiating for themselves and contributes to the 55 percent gender wealth gap.ĚýĚý

In On Our Best Behavior, Loehnen reveals how we’ve been programmed to obey the rules represented by these sins and how doing so qualifies us as “good.”ĚýThis probing analysis of contemporary culture and thoroughly researched history explains how women have internalized the patriarchy, and how they unwittingly reinforce it. By sharing her own story and the spiritual wisdom of other traditions, Loehnen shows how we can break free and discoverĚýthe integrity and wholeness we seek.]]>
371 Elise Loehnen 0593243048 Carol 0 currently-reading 3.84 2023 On Our Best Behavior: The Seven Deadly Sins and the Price Women Pay to Be Good
author: Elise Loehnen
name: Carol
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2023
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Remarkably Bright Creatures 59710157 For fans of A Man Called Ove, a charming, witty and compulsively readable exploration of friendship, reckoning, and hope that traces a widow's unlikely connection with a giant Pacific octopus

After Tova Sullivan's husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she's been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago.

Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn't dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors--until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.

Ever the detective, Marcellus deduces what happened the night Tova's son disappeared. And now Marcellus must use every trick his old invertebrate body can muster to unearth the truth for her before it's too late.

Shelby Van Pelt's debut novel is a gentle reminder that sometimes taking a hard look at the past can help uncover a future that once felt impossible.]]>
362 Shelby Van Pelt 0063204177 Carol 4 4.51 2022 Remarkably Bright Creatures
author: Shelby Van Pelt
name: Carol
average rating: 4.51
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/10/04
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Daisy Jones & The Six 55710121 A gripping novel about the whirlwind rise of an iconic 1970s rock group and their beautiful lead singer, revealing the mystery behind their infamous break up.

Everyone knows Daisy Jones & The Six, but nobody knows the real reason why they split at the absolute height of their popularity...until now.

Daisy is a girl coming of age in L.A. in the late sixties, sneaking into clubs on the Sunset Strip, sleeping with rock stars, and dreaming of singing at the Whisky a Go-Go. The sex and drugs are thrilling, but it's the rock and roll she loves most. By the time she's twenty, her voice is getting noticed, and she has the kind of heedless beauty that makes people do crazy things.

Another band getting noticed is The Six, led by the brooding Billy Dunne. On the eve of their first tour, his girlfriend Camila finds out she's pregnant, and with the pressure of impending fatherhood and fame, Billy goes a little wild on the road.

Daisy and Billy cross paths when a producer realizes the key to supercharged success is to put the two together. What happens next will become the stuff of legend.

The making of that legend is chronicled in this riveting and unforgettable novel, written as an oral history of one of the biggest bands of the seventies. Taylor Jenkins Reid is a talented writer who takes her work to a new level with Daisy Jones & The Six, brilliantly capturing a place and time in an utterly distinctive voice.]]>
355 Taylor Jenkins Reid Carol 3 4.24 2019 Daisy Jones & The Six
author: Taylor Jenkins Reid
name: Carol
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at: 2023/09/17
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Flowers for Algernon 18373 Winner of both the Hugo and Nebula Awards, the powerful, classic story about a man who receives an operation that turns him into a genius...and introduces him to heartache.
Ěý
Charlie Gordon is about to embark upon an unprecedented journey. Born with an unusually low IQ, he has been chosen as the perfect subject for an experimental surgery that researchers hope will increase his intelligence � a procedure that has already been highly successful when tested on a lab mouse named Algernon.

As the treatment takes effect, Charlie's intelligence expands until it surpasses that of the doctors who engineered his metamorphosis. The experiment appears to be a scientific breakthrough of paramount importance, until Algernon suddenly deteriorates. Will the same happen to Charlie?]]>
311 Daniel Keyes 015603008X Carol 0 classics 4.19 1966 Flowers for Algernon
author: Daniel Keyes
name: Carol
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1966
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind]]> 20873740 From a renowned historian comes a groundbreaking narrative of humanity’s creation and evolution—a #1 international bestseller—that explores the ways in which biology and history have defined us and enhanced our understanding of what it means to be “human.�

One hundred thousand years ago, at least six different species of humans inhabited Earth. Yet today there is only one—homo sapiens. What happened to the others? And what may happen to us?

Most books about the history of humanity pursue either a historical or a biological approach, but Dr. Yuval Noah Harari breaks the mold with this highly original book that begins about 70,000 years ago with the appearance of modern cognition. From examining the role evolving humans have played in the global ecosystem to charting the rise of empires, Sapiens integrates history and science to reconsider accepted narratives, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and examine specific events within the context of larger ideas.

Dr. Harari also compels us to look ahead, because over the last few decades humans have begun to bend laws of natural selection that have governed life for the past four billion years. We are acquiring the ability to design not only the world around us, but also ourselves. Where is this leading us, and what do we want to become?

Featuring 27 photographs, 6 maps, and 25 illustrations/diagrams, this provocative and insightful work is sure to spark debate and is essential reading for aficionados of Jared Diamond, James Gleick, Matt Ridley, Robert Wright, and Sharon Moalem.]]>
414 Yuval Noah Harari 0062316109 Carol 0 4.44 2011 Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
author: Yuval Noah Harari
name: Carol
average rating: 4.44
book published: 2011
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[She Has Her Mother's Laugh: What Heredity Is, Is Not, and May Become]]> 36391540
She Has Her Mother's Laugh presents a profoundly original perspective on what we pass along from generation to generation. Charles Darwin played a crucial part in turning heredity into a scientific question, and yet he failed spectacularly to answer it. The birth of genetics in the early 1900s seemed to do precisely that. Gradually, people translated their old notions about heredity into a language of genes. As the technology for studying genes became cheaper, millions of people ordered genetic tests to link themselves to missing parents, to distant ancestors, to ethnic identities. . . .

But, Zimmer writes, "Each of us carries an amalgam of fragments of DNA, stitched together from some of our many ancestors. Each piece has its own ancestry, traveling a different path back through human history. A particular fragment may sometimes be cause for worry, but most of our DNA influences who we are--our appearance, our height, our penchants--in inconceivably subtle ways." Heredity isn't just about genes that pass from parent to child. Heredity continues within our own bodies, as a single cell gives rise to trillions of cells that make up our bodies. We say we inherit genes from our ancestors--using a word that once referred to kingdoms and estates--but we inherit other things that matter as much or more to our lives, from microbes to technologies we use to make life more comfortable. We need a new definition of what heredity is and, through Carl Zimmer's lucid exposition and storytelling, this resounding tour de force delivers it.

Weaving historical and current scientific research, his own experience with his two daughters, and the kind of original reporting expected of one of the world's best science journalists, Zimmer ultimately unpacks urgent bioethical quandaries arising from new biomedical technologies, but also long-standing presumptions about who we really are and what we can pass on to future generations.]]>
544 Carl Zimmer 1101984600 Carol 4 4.17 2018 She Has Her Mother's Laugh: What Heredity Is, Is Not, and May Become
author: Carl Zimmer
name: Carol
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2018
rating: 4
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<![CDATA[The Bar Harbor Retirement Home for Famous Writers (And Their Muses)]]> 39215973
Alfonse Carducci was a literary giant who lived his life to excess—lovers, alcohol, parties, and literary rivalries. But now he’s come to the Bar Harbor Home for the Elderly to spend the remainder of his days among kindred spirits: the publishing industry’s nearly gone but never forgotten greats. Only now, at the end of his life, does he comprehend the price of appeasing every desire, and the consequences of forsaking love to pursue greatness. For Alfonse has an unshakeable case of writer’s block that distresses him much more than his precarious health.

Set on the water in one of New England’s most beautiful locales, the Bar Harbor Home was established specifically for elderly writers needing a place to live out their golden years—or final days—in understated luxury and surrounded by congenial literary company. A faithful staff of nurses and orderlies surround the writers, and are drawn into their orbit, as they are forced to reckon with their own life stories. Among them are Cecibel Bringer, a young woman who knows first-hand the cost of chasing excess. A terrible accident destroyed her face and her sister in a split-second decision that Cecibel can never forgive, though she has tried to forget. Living quietly as an orderly, refusing to risk again the cost of love, Cecibel never anticipated the impact of meeting her favorite writer, Alfonse Carducci—or the effect he would have on her existence. In Cecibel, Alfonse finds a muse who returns him to the passion he thought he lost. As the words flow from him, weaving a tale taken up by the other residents of the Pen, Cecibel is reawakened to the idea of love and forgiveness.

As the edges between story and reality blur, a world within a world is created. It’s a place where the old are made young, the damaged are made whole, and anything is possible�.]]>
336 Terri-Lynne DeFino Carol 0 currently-reading 4.03 2018 The Bar Harbor Retirement Home for Famous Writers (And Their Muses)
author: Terri-Lynne DeFino
name: Carol
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2018
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[I Am a Bacha Posh: My Life as a Woman Living as a Man in Afghanistan]]> 23546830 A 2015 Amelia Bloomer List Selection"You will be a son, my daughter." With these stunning words Ukmina learned that she was to spend her childhood as a boy.In Afghanistan there is a widespread practice of girls dressing as boys to play the role of a son. These children are called bacha literally "girls dressed as boys." This practice offers families the freedom to allow their child to shop and work-and in some cases, it saves them from the disgrace of not having a male heir. But in adolescence, religion restores the natural law. The girls must marry, give birth, and give up their freedom.Ukmina decided to confront social and family pressure and keep her menswear. This brave choice paved the way for an extraordinary she wages war against the Soviets, assists the mujaheddin and ultimately commands the respect of all whom she encounters. She eventually becomes one of the elected council members of her province.But freedom always has a price. For "Ukmina warrior" that price was her life as a woman. This is a stunning and brave memoir about a little known practice that will challenge your perceptions about gender and the courage it takes to live your life to the fullest.Skyhorse Publishing, along with our Arcade, Good Books, Sports Publishing, and Yucca imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs. Our list includes biographies on well-known historical figures like Benjamin Franklin, Nelson Mandela, and Alexander Graham Bell, as well as villains from history, such as Heinrich Himmler, John Wayne Gacy, and O. J. Simpson. We have also published survivor stories of World War II, memoirs about overcoming adversity, first-hand tales of adventure, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.]]> 107 Ukmina Manoori Carol 3 3.89 2014 I Am a Bacha Posh: My Life as a Woman Living as a Man in Afghanistan
author: Ukmina Manoori
name: Carol
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2014
rating: 3
read at: 2023/08/03
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<![CDATA[Random Obsessions: Trivia You Can't Live Without]]> 19545404
Did you know Thomas Jefferson’s grandson was an ax murderer? Don’t you delight knowing some dinosaurs were teeny tiny as hens? Before buying that plane ticket, don’t you NEED to know which exotic islands still have cannibals? Wonder what it’s like to live in Hell Town at the End of the World? How about an ailment so surreal it’s named after Alice in Wonderland? In Random Obsessions: Trivia You Can’t Live Without, historian Nick Belardes has dug into the raw source material found in historical archives, scientific studies, and libraries the world over. You’ll also read first-person interviews with people who can explain the unexplained, from the permanently puzzling Mothman conspiracy to secret Star Wars Jedi religious cults, and the charmingly eccentric reason why British aerospace engineers sent teddy bears floating out into space.

Truly trivia you can’t live without, Random Obsessions is filled with facts, lists, definitions, and astonishing information guaranteed to provide you with the best cocktail conversation for many years to come! Your guide, Nick Belardes, has devoted his life to poking around the peculiar and perplexing. Explore the unknown stories behind why the nation’s capitol didn’t stay in Philadelphia, why some fossils are smiling, and how, if Preparation H existed in the early 1800s, Napoleon would have won Waterloo. These real-world facts are outlandish enough to sharpen your brain and occupy your mind for hours of reading. This book is so fascinating and fun, you’ll become obsessed, too!
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274 Nicholas Belardes Carol 0 to-read 3.29 2009 Random Obsessions: Trivia You Can't Live Without
author: Nicholas Belardes
name: Carol
average rating: 3.29
book published: 2009
rating: 0
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<![CDATA[Holiday SOS: The life-saving adventures of a travelling doctor]]> 55283827 255 Ben MacFarlane Carol 3 4.53 2009 Holiday SOS: The life-saving adventures of a travelling doctor
author: Ben MacFarlane
name: Carol
average rating: 4.53
book published: 2009
rating: 3
read at: 2023/08/01
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Year of Wonders 4965
Through Anna's eyes we follow the story of the fateful year of 1666, as she and her fellow villagers confront the spread of disease and superstition.

As death reaches into every household and villagers turn from prayers to murderous witch-hunting, Anna must find the strength to confront the disintegration of her community and the lure of illicit love.

As she struggles to survive and grow, a year of catastrophe becomes instead annus mirabilis, a "year of wonders."

Inspired by the true story of Eyam, a village in the rugged hill country of England, Year of Wonders is a richly detailed evocation of a singular moment in history. ]]>
304 Geraldine Brooks 0142001430 Carol 3 4.00 2001 Year of Wonders
author: Geraldine Brooks
name: Carol
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2001
rating: 3
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This was a hard read for me. Too much death! Still, it was interesting to learn how people survived in those days.
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<![CDATA[Cruise Ship SOS: The Life-Saving Adventures of a Doctor at Sea]]> 55390550
Say hello to Dr Ben MacFarlane. After spending a year as a repatriation doctor, he's now sailing off around the world as a ship's doctor - and with 3,000 passengers and crew to look after he's in for the most exciting trip of his life.

So join Ben and his colleagues and find out why ship's doctors think bar stools should carry health warnings, why the casino can be safer than the sick bay in a storm and why no amount of sharks, pirates or tidal waves will ever be as dangerous as the midnight buffet. With all the drama and excitement of popular medical dramas like Holby City and Casualty, these incredible true stories are told with warmth and humour.

Ben MacFarlane graduated in medicine from Imperial College, London in 1998 and started carrying out medical repatriations in the spring of 2001. He then spent a year working on the cruise ship circuit and now works full time in a West London teaching hospital.]]>
324 Ben MacFarlane Carol 0 4.45 2010 Cruise Ship SOS: The Life-Saving Adventures of a Doctor at Sea
author: Ben MacFarlane
name: Carol
average rating: 4.45
book published: 2010
rating: 0
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French Braid 57329182
The Garretts take their first and last family vacation in the summer of 1959. They hardly ever venture beyond Baltimore, but in some ways they have never been farther apart. Mercy has trouble resisting the siren call of her aspirations to be a painter, which means less time keeping house for her husband, Robin. Their teenage daughters, steady Alice and boy-crazy Lily, could not have less in common. Their youngest, David, is already intent on escaping his family's orbit, for reasons none of them understands. Yet, as these lives advance across decades, the Garretts' influences on one another ripple ineffably but unmistakably through each generation.

Full of heartbreak and hilarity, French Braid is classic Anne Tyler: a stirring, uncannily insightful novel of tremendous warmth and humor that illuminates the kindnesses and cruelties of our daily lives, the impossibility of breaking free from those who love us, and how close—yet how unknowable—every family is to itself.]]>
245 Anne Tyler 0593321103 Carol 3 3.87 2022 French Braid
author: Anne Tyler
name: Carol
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2023/07/22
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<![CDATA[Outwitting History: The Amazing Adventures of a Man Who Rescued a Million Yiddish Books]]> 55226487 “Incredible . . . Inspiring . . . Important.â€� —Library Journal, starred review “A marvelous yarn, loaded with near-calamitous adventures and characters as memorable as Singer creations.â€� —The New York Post ĚýĚý Ěý “What began as a quixotic journey was also a picaresque romp, a detective story, a profound history lesson, and a poignant evocation of a bygone world.â€� —The Boston Globe “Every now and again a book with near-universal appeal comes Outwitting History is just such a book.â€� —The Sunday Oregonian As a twenty-three-year-old graduate student, Aaron Lansky set out to save the world’s abandoned Yiddish books before it was too late. Today, more than a million books later, he has accomplished what has been called “the greatest cultural rescue effort in Jewish history.â€� In Outwitting History, Lansky shares his adventures as well as the poignant and often laugh-out-loud stories he heard as he traveled the country collecting books. Introducing us to a dazzling array of writers, he shows us how an almost-lost culture is the bridge between the old world and the future—and how the written word can unite everyone who believes in the power of great literature.A Library Journal Best Book A Massachusetts Book Award Winner in Nonfiction An ALA Notable Book]]> 338 Aaron Lansky Carol 4 4.62 2004 Outwitting History: The Amazing Adventures of a Man Who Rescued a Million Yiddish Books
author: Aaron Lansky
name: Carol
average rating: 4.62
book published: 2004
rating: 4
read at: 2022/10/19
date added: 2023/07/19
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<![CDATA[A History of the World Through Body Parts: The Stories Behind the Organs, Appendages, Digits, and the Like Attached to (or Detached from) Famous Bodies]]> 62201118 A grab bag of historic spleens, chins, and more, this is your ultimate literary dissection of body parts throughout history!

From famous craniums to prominent breasts, ancient spleens and bound feet, this book will bring history to life in a whole new way. With their inimitable wit and probing intelligence, authors Kathy and Ross Petras look at the role the human body has played throughout history as each individual part becomes a jumping-off point for a wider look at the times. In far-ranging, quirky-yet-interrelated stories, learn about Charles II of Spain's jaw and the repercussions of inbreeding, what Anne Boleyn's heart says about the Crusades and the trend of dispersed burials, and what can be learned about Lady Xoc's pierced tongue. A History of the World Through Body Parts is packed with fascinating little-known historical facts and anecdotes that will entertain, enlighten, and delight even the most well-read history buff.

BESTSELLING AUTHORS: Kathy and Ross Petras have authored the New York Times bestseller You're Saying It Wrong and the hit calendar The 365 Stupidest Things Ever Said, now in its 24th year with over 4.8 million copies sold!

ENGAGING CONTENT: Packed with rich material told with a lively and humorous voice, take a trip through history in this unique, exciting way.

QUIRKY HISTORY FANS REJOICE!: For fans of The Disappearing Spoon, Wicked Plants, The Violinist's Thumb, The Sawbones Book and Strange Histories!

Perfect for:

� History buffs and pop history fans
� Father's Day, birthday, and holiday shoppers]]>
252 Kathryn Petras 1797205420 Carol 3 3.96 2022 A History of the World Through Body Parts: The Stories Behind the Organs, Appendages, Digits, and the Like Attached to (or Detached from) Famous Bodies
author: Kathryn Petras
name: Carol
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2023/06/23
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<![CDATA[Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg]]> 35674032 Irin Carmon: I heard you can do 20 pushups.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Yes, but we do ten at a time. And then I breathe for a bit and do the second set.

Nearly a half-century into being a feminist and legal pioneer, something funny happened to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: the octogenarian won the internet. Across America, people who weren’t even born when Ginsburg made her name are tattooing themselves with her face, setting her famously searing dissents to music, and making viral videos in tribute. In a class of its own, and much to Ginsburg’s own amusement, is the Notorious RBG Tumblr, which juxtaposes the diminutive but fierce Jewish grandmother with the 350-pound rapper featuring original artwork submitted from around the world.

Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg offers a visually rich, intimate, unprecedented look at the Justice and how she changed the world. From Ginsburg’s refusal to let the slammed doors of sexism stop her to her innovative legal work, from her before-its-time feminist marriage to her perch on the nation’s highest court—with the fierce dissents to match—get to know RBG as never before. As the country struggles with the unfinished business of gender equality and civil rights, Ginsburg stands as a testament to how far we can come with a little chutzpah.]]>
240 Irin Carmon Carol 4 4.21 2015 Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg
author: Irin Carmon
name: Carol
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2023/06/20
date added: 2023/06/22
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<![CDATA[Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks]]> 12492952 Record-setting Jeopardy! champion and New York Times bestselling author of Planet Funny Ken Jennings explores the world of maps and map obsessives, “a literary gem� (The Atlantic). Ken Jennings takes readers on a world tour of geogeeks from the London Map Fair to the bowels of the Library of Congress, from the prepubescent geniuses at the National Geographic Bee to the computer programmers at Google Earth. Each chapter delves into a different aspect of map highpointing, geocaching, road atlas rallying, even the “unreal estate� charted on the maps of fiction and fantasy. Jennings also considers the ways in which cartography has shaped our history, suggesting that the impulse to make and read maps is as relevant today as it has ever been. From the “Here be dragons� parchment maps of the Age of Discovery to the spinning globes of grade school to the postmodern revolution of digital maps and GPS, Maphead is filled with intriguing details, engaging anecdotes, and enlightening analysis. If you’re an inveterate map lover yourself—or even if you’re among the cartographically clueless who can get lost in a supermarket—let Ken Jennings be your guide to the strange world of mapheads.]]> 290 Ken Jennings 1439167192 Carol 0 currently-reading 3.92 2011 Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks
author: Ken Jennings
name: Carol
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2011
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/06/07
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CIA World Factbook 2022-2023 60528257 The ultimate, comprehensive guide to official country data and statistics, from the world’s most sophisticated intelligence-gathering organization.From Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, The CIA World Factbook 2022-2023 offers complete and up-to-date information on the world's nations. This comprehensive guide is packed with data on countries' politics, populations, economics, and environment for 2022 and looks ahead to 2023.The CIA World Factbook 2022-2023 includes the following for each mapsPopulation statistics, with details on languages, religions, literacy rates, age structure, HIV prevalence, and much moreUp-to-date data on military expenditures and capabilitiesGeography information, including climate and natural hazardsDetails on prominent political figures and partiesContact information for diplomatic missionsFacts on transportation, trade, and communication infrastructureAlso included are appendices with useful abbreviations, international environmental agreements, international organizations and groups, terror organizations, and more. Originally intended for use by government officials and policymakers as well as the broader intelligence community, this is a must-have resource for students, travelers, journalists, and anyone with a desire to know more about their world.]]> 6298 Central Intelligence Agency Carol 0 currently-reading 4.36 CIA World Factbook 2022-2023
author: Central Intelligence Agency
name: Carol
average rating: 4.36
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Alaska 19434198 Alaska traces a bold and majestic saga of the enduring spirit of a land and its people.
Ěý
Praise for Alaska
Ěý
“Few will escape the allure of the land and people [Michener] describes. . . . Alaska takes the reader on a journey through one of the bleakest, richest, most foreboding, and highly inviting territories in our Republic, if not the world. . . . The characters that Michener creates are bigger than life.��Los Angeles Times Book Review
Ěý
“Always the master of exhaustive historical research, Michener tracks the settling of Alaska [in] vividly detailed scenes and well-developed characters.��Boston Herald
Ěý
“Michener is still, sentence for sentence, writing’s fastest attention grabber.��The New York Times]]>
1348 James A. Michener 0804151423 Carol 4 4.40 1988 Alaska
author: James A. Michener
name: Carol
average rating: 4.40
book published: 1988
rating: 4
read at: 2023/06/01
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<![CDATA[The Last Lincolns: The Rise & Fall of a Great American Family]]> 36105146
Most books about Abraham Lincoln end on April 14, 1865, the day he was assassinated at Ford’s Theatre. But that historic event takes place near the beginning of The Last Lincolns, a singular title in the vast output of Lincolnia and one of the most unusual books ever written on the sixteenth president and his family. Going far beyond that fateful day into uncharted territory, it’s a gripping page turner written by a TV producer with proven storytelling skills.
This absorbing American tragedy tells the largely unknown story of the acrimony that consumed the Lincolns in the months and years that followed the president’s murder. This was not a family that came together in mourning and mutual sadness; instead, they fell out over the anguished mental condition of the widowed Mary. In 1875, Robert—the handsome but resentful eldest Lincoln child—engineered her arrest and forcible commitment to an insane asylum. In each succeeding generation, the Lincolns� misfortunes multiplied, as a litany of alcohol abuse, squandered fortunes, burned family papers, and outright dissipation led to the downfall of this once-great family.
Charles Lachman traces the story right up to the last generation of Lincoln descendants: great-grandson Bob Lincoln Beckwith, his estranged wife, Annemarie, and her son, Timothy Lincoln Beckwith. Bob, who was according to all medical evidence sterile, believes the son who bears the Lincoln name was the product of an adulterous affair. Annemarie, however, wanted the boy to be a “Lincoln,� putting the child in line for a vast inheritance. There’s even evidence—uncovered by Lachman for the first time—that a scheme to obtain possession of the Lincoln fortune was orchestrated by Bob Beckwith’s chauffer, who may have been the notorious outlaw and skyjacker, D.B. Cooper.
Published in advance of Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday in February 2009, The Last Lincolns provides an unforgettable glimpse into the personal legacy left by the man who could unite a nation…but not his own family.

An Unusual Family History Reveals That:

-Abraham and Mary Lincoln were very lenient with their younger sons—and rarely imposed discipline on them.
-At age 12, young Tad Lincoln—whose education during the family’s White House years was very lax—could still not read.
-Eldest son Robert Lincoln objected to the intense attention the media paid to the Lincoln family.
-After her husband’s assassination, Mary Lincoln pleaded for financial assistance from family friends and people in government.
-Mary’s erratic behavior led Robert to swear out a warrant for her arrest and institutionalization.
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723 Charles Lachman Carol 3 4.49 2008 The Last Lincolns: The Rise & Fall of a Great American Family
author: Charles Lachman
name: Carol
average rating: 4.49
book published: 2008
rating: 3
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Deacon King Kong 50888243 From James McBride, author of the National Book Award-winning The Good Lord Bird, comes a wise and witty novel about what happens to the witnesses of a shooting.

In September 1969, a fumbling, cranky old church deacon known as Sportcoat shuffles into the courtyard of the Cause Houses housing project in south Brooklyn, pulls a .45 from his pocket, and in front of everybody shoots the project's drug dealer at point-blank range.

The reasons for this desperate burst of violence and the consequences that spring from it lie at the heart of Deacon King Kong, James McBride's funny, moving novel and his first since his National Book Award-winning The Good Lord Bird. In Deacon King Kong, McBride brings to vivid life the people affected by the shooting: the victim, the African-American and Latinx residents who witnessed it, the white neighbors, the local cops assigned to investigate, the members of the Five Ends Baptist Church where Sportcoat was deacon, the neighborhood's Italian mobsters, and Sportcoat himself.

As the story deepens, it becomes clear that the lives of the characters--caught in the tumultuous swirl of 1960s New York--overlap in unexpected ways. When the truth does emerge, McBride shows us that not all secrets are meant to be hidden, that the best way to grow is to face change without fear, and that the seeds of love lie in hope and compassion.

Bringing to these pages both his masterly storytelling skills and his abiding faith in humanity, James McBride has written a novel every bit as involving as The Good Lord Bird and as emotionally honest as The Color of Water. Told with insight and wit, Deacon King Kong demonstrates that love and faith live in all of us.]]>
384 James McBride 0735216746 Carol 0 4.35 2020 Deacon King Kong
author: James McBride
name: Carol
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/22
date added: 2023/05/22
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<![CDATA[A Question a Day Keeps the Boredom Away (Trivia and Quizzes)]]> 60804403
Knowing stuff makes you a cool and interesting interlocutor. You will always have an icebreaker at hand to start a conversation or to keep it going by dropping a weird fact.

I covered a wide range of topics and intentionally made the questions assorted, so you will not know what sort of fact is coming. As I would do myself, you can choose to read as many facts as you please in one sitting, or even just one fact each day!
You could use this collection when preparing for a pub quiz or quiz night at work or at home. All the questions are well-researched and family-friendly.]]>
192 Nayden Kostov 291996027X Carol 3 3.71 A Question a Day Keeps the Boredom Away (Trivia and Quizzes)
author: Nayden Kostov
name: Carol
average rating: 3.71
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rating: 3
read at: 2023/05/17
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That Summer 55695433 429 Jennifer Weiner 150113356X Carol 0 currently-reading 4.00 2021 That Summer
author: Jennifer Weiner
name: Carol
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2021
rating: 0
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Big Little Lies 20510868 Big Little Lies follows three women, each at a

Madeline is a force to be reckoned with. She’s funny and biting, passionate, she remembers everything and forgives no one. Her ex-husband and his yogi new wife have moved into her beloved beachside community, and their daughter is in the same kindergarten class as Madeline’s youngest (how is this possible?). And to top it all off, Madeline’s teenage daughter seems to be choosing Madeline’s ex-husband over her. (How. Is. This. Possible?).

Celeste is the kind of beautiful woman who makes the world stop and stare. While she may seem a bit flustered at times, who wouldn’t be, with those rambunctious twin boys? Now that the boys are starting school, Celeste and her husband look set to become the king and queen of the school parent body. But royalty often comes at a price, and Celeste is grappling with how much more she is willing to pay.

New to town, single mom Jane is so young that another mother mistakes her for the nanny. Jane is sad beyond her years and harbors secret doubts about her son. But why? While Madeline and Celeste soon take Jane under their wing, none of them realizes how the arrival of Jane and her inscrutable little boy will affect them all.

Big Little Lies is a brilliant take on ex-husbands and second wives, mothers and daughters, schoolyard scandal, and the dangerous little lies we tell ourselves just to survive.




From the Hardcover edition.]]>
465 Liane Moriarty 0698138635 Carol 0 4.36 2014 Big Little Lies
author: Liane Moriarty
name: Carol
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at: 2023/05/16
date added: 2023/05/16
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The Historian 30236962
The letters provide links to one of the darkest powers that humanity has ever known and to a centuries-long quest to find the source of that darkness and wipe it out. It is a quest for the truth about Vlad the Impaler, the medieval ruler whose barbarous reign formed the basis of the legend of Dracula. Generations of historians have risked their reputations, their sanity, and even their lives to learn the truth about Vlad the Impaler and Dracula. Now one young woman must decide whether to take up this quest herself--to follow her father in a hunt that nearly brought him to ruin years ago, when he was a vibrant young scholar and her mother was still alive. What does the legend of Vlad the Impaler have to do with the modern world? Is it possible that the Dracula of myth truly existed and that he has lived on, century after century, pursuing his own unknowable ends? The answers to these questions cross time and borders, as first the father and then the daughter search for clues, from dusty Ivy League libraries to Istanbul, Budapest, and the depths of Eastern Europe. In city after city, in monasteries and archives, in letters and in secret conversations, the horrible truth emerges about Vlad the Impaler's dark reign and about a time-defying pact that may have kept his awful work alive down through the ages.]]>
704 Elizabeth Kostova Carol 0 currently-reading 3.94 2005 The Historian
author: Elizabeth Kostova
name: Carol
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2005
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/05/16
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<![CDATA[Knickers in a Twist: A Dictionary of British Slang]]> 53605581 Don’t play the silly bugger in front of your mates! Take a deep dive into British language and culture with this “hilarious and entertainingâ€� reference (Chicago Tribune). Ěý Brits and Americans dress the same, eat at the same chain restaurants, and pass music back and forth across the Atlantic, and our national leaders are practically conjoined twins. But the second the Brits open their mouths, all bets are off. So don’t dream of visiting the United Kingdom, dating a Brit, or truly understanding what Jude Law is saying without this handy, hilarious, and informative guide to Britspeak. Ěý With the cheekiness of Austin Powers and the tidbit quotient of Schott’s Miscellany, screenwriter Jonathan Bernstein’s collection of Cockney rhyming slang, insults culled from British television shows of yore, and regional and “high Britishâ€� favorites provides hours of educational, enlightening, even life-saving hilarity. And if it doesn’t accomplish that, at least you’ll be aware that when a British citizen describes you as a “wally,â€� a “herbert,â€� a “spanner,â€� or a “bampot,â€� he’s not showering you with compliments. Knickers in a Twist is as indispensable as a London city guide, as spot-on funny as an episode of The Office, and as edifying as Born to Kvetch and Eats, Shoots and Leaves. Ěý “Indispensable.â€� —Vanity Fair Ěý “Will probably do more for revolutionizing the way you and your nearest and dearest address one another than any other book out this yearĚý.Ěý.Ěý. Often bring[s] an overt chuckle.â€� —Edge New York]]> 209 Jonathan Bernstein 1555847943 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.00 2006 Knickers in a Twist: A Dictionary of British Slang
author: Jonathan Bernstein
name: Carol
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2006
rating: 0
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Hamnet 59039679 here.

A thrilling departure: A short, piercing, deeply moving new novel from the acclaimed author of I Am, I Am, I Am, about the death of Shakespeare's eleven-year-old son Hamnet--a name interchangeable with Hamlet in fifteenth-century Britain--and the years leading up to the production of his great play.

England, 1580. A young Latin tutor--penniless, bullied by a violent father--falls in love with an extraordinary, eccentric young woman: a wild creature who walks her family's estate with a falcon on her shoulder and is known throughout the countryside for her unusual gifts as a healer. Agnes understands plants and potions better than she does people, but once she settles with her husband on Henley Street in Stratford she becomes a fiercely protective mother and a steadfast, centrifugal force in the life of her young husband, whose gifts as a writer are just beginning to awaken when his beloved young son succumbs to bubonic plague.

A luminous portrait of a marriage, a shattering evocation of a family ravaged by grief and loss, and a hypnotic recreation of the story that inspired one of the greatest literary masterpieces of all time, Hamnet is mesmerizing and seductive, an impossible-to-put-down novel from one of our most gifted writers.]]>
320 Maggie O'Farrell Carol 3 4.25 2020 Hamnet
author: Maggie O'Farrell
name: Carol
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2023/04/26
date added: 2023/04/26
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<![CDATA[The Madman's Library: The Strangest Books, Manuscripts and Other Literary Curiosities from History]]> 57922952 This fascinating and bizarre collection compiles the most unusual, obscure books from the far reaches of the human imagination throughout history.From the author of the critically acclaimed bestsellers The Phantom Atlas and The Sky Atlas comes a unique and beautifully illustrated journey through the history of literature. The Madman's Library delves into its darkest territories to hunt down the oddest books and manuscripts ever written, uncovering the intriguing stories behind their creation.From the Qur'an written in the blood of Saddam Hussein, to the gorgeously decorated fifteenth-century lawsuit filed by the Devil against Jesus, to the most enormous book ever created, The Madman's Library features many long forgotten, eccentric, and extraordinary volumes gathered from around the world.Books written in blood and books that kill, books of the insane and books that hoaxed the globe, books invisible to the naked eye and books so long they could destroy the Universe, books worn into battle and books of code and cypher whose secrets remain undiscovered. Spell books, alchemist scrolls, wearable books, edible books, books to summon demons, books written by ghosts, and more all come together in the most curiously strange library imaginable.Featuring hundreds of remarkable images and packed with entertaining facts and stories to discover, The Madman’s Library is a captivating compendium perfect for bibliophiles, literature enthusiasts, and collectors intrigued by bizarre oddities, obscure history, and the macabre.� MUST-HAVE FOR Anyone who appreciates a good read will love delving into this weird world of books and adding this collection to their own bookshelf.� DISCOVER SOMETHING TRULY The Madman's Library will let you in on the secret and obscure histories of the strangest books ever made.� EXPERT Edward Brooke-Hitching is the son of an antiquarian book dealer, a lifelong rare book collector, and a master of taking visual deep dives into unusual historical subjects, such as the maps of imaginary geography in The Phantom Atlas or ancient pathways through the stars in The Sky Atlas.]]> 255 Edward Brooke-Hitching 1797212052 Carol 0 currently-reading 4.29 2020 The Madman's Library: The Strangest Books, Manuscripts and Other Literary Curiosities from History
author: Edward Brooke-Hitching
name: Carol
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2020
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/04/18
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<![CDATA[The Course of History: Ten Meals That Changed the World]]> 45011863 An entertaining seat at the table of ten power meals that shaped history—including the menus and recreated recipes!Some of the most consequential decisions in history were decided at the dinner table, accompanied-and perhaps influenced-by copious amounts of food and drink. This fascinating book explores ten of those pivotal meals, presenting the contexts, key participants, table talk, and outcomes of each. It offers unique insight into the minds and appetites of some of history’s most famous and notorious characters, including Bonnie Prince Charlie, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, Adolf Hitler, Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, and Richard Nixon. Feasting on leg of lamb, Bonnie Prince Charlie doomed the Jacobite Army at Culloden. A uniquely American menu served with French wine lubricated the conversation between rivals Jefferson and Hamilton that led to the founding of the US financial system and the location of the nation’s capital in Washington. After schweinwürst and sauerkraut with Adolf Hitler at his Berghof residence, Austrian chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg agreed to the complete integration of Austria into the Third Reich. Celebrity chef Tony Singh has researched the menus and recipes for all ten dinners down to the last detail and recreates them here. The book contains fifty-five recipes from soup to desert and lists the spirits as well.]]> 318 Struan Stevenson 1948924250 Carol 0 3.89 2017 The Course of History: Ten Meals That Changed the World
author: Struan Stevenson
name: Carol
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at: 2023/04/18
date added: 2023/04/18
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