Best African American History

Relive the extraordinary Presidency of Barack Obama through White House photographer Pete Souza's behind-the-scenes images and stories in this #1 New York Times bestseller--with a foreword from the President himself. During Barack Obama's two terms, Pete Souza was with the President during more crucial moments than anyone else--and he photographed them all. "The book, which distills the 1.9 million photographs that Souza took of Obama's eight years in the White House down to about 300 images, it as once warm and nostalgic, worshipful and respectful, sad and wistful-in a sense, not so different from the framed JFK portraits that everyday Americans hung in living rooms, right through the Nixon administration. In conveying both the weight of the office and President Obama's full engagement with its demands, Souza fuels our admiration--and stokes our regret.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I'd like to say up front here that this is one of those reviews where I am struggling so hard to put thoughts into words, because of how many thoughts I have, and how difficult it is for me to express them. He was funny and personable, and every time I heard him speak I felt suddenly prouder and more patriotic. Because all the rest of that time I wasted being blind and hateful. I'm not really the kind that normally runs off to scrounge around for books they can't afford, but this is the second photography book of the Obamas I've done so for, and it captured my heart as much the second time, as it did the first. UPDATE: Thanks to so many of the kind, heartwarming offers, I have received a copy of this book."
"Well, I guess it is the idea of the unconditional love that I have personally felt by dogs.....and the fact that it least in my mind that is what our former President and First Lady gave us for 8 years. I pray that someday Obama haters or hopefully their children will view the pictures in this “must have” Obama memorabilia and appreciate not only the historical significance of this man to US and world history but also feel his unconditional love of America ; its history, culture and people in every page."
"Obama wasn't perfect, but seeing his two-term administration, not riddled by scandal or buffoonery, captured in this historic volume brought tears to my eyes."
"As I thumb through the pages, I realize how much of my vision of President Obama was formed by the photographs of special moments captured by Souza."
"In capturing the defining moments of the Obama presidency, Mr. Souza has given the common citizen a personal, vulnerable look into the remarkable 8-year tenure of the 44th president."

In this epic, beautifully written masterwork, Pulitzer Prize–winning author Isabel Wilkerson chronicles one of the great untold stories of American history: the decades-long migration of black citizens who fled the South for northern and western cities, in search of a better life. Several reviewers saw the book as an important corrective to previous scholarship on the Migration that too often grouped African Americans into a voiceless mass, that focused exclusively on the negative consequences of their move to Northern urban centers, and that often emphasized economic and sociological explanations at the expense of the personal.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Isabel Wilkerson, the Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper writer, has now come back to write a fascinating and sweeping book on what she calls ""the biggest underreported story of the twentieth century." Of course we all know the tale of the "Dust Bowl" and the "Okies", as captured by Steinbeck in words, by Dorothea Lange in photographs, and even in song by Woody Guthrie. The title of this book is taken from Richard Wright's "Black Boy: A Record of Childhood and Youth": "I was taking a part of the South to transplant in alien soil, to see if it could grow differently, if it could drink of new and cool rains, bend in strange winds, respond to the warmth of other suns, and, perhaps, to bloom." Our families became friends, as also "Miz Edna's" husband had served in New Guinea with my father (as a cook, however, remember the WWII Army was still segregated) ."
"I hope Ms. Wilkerson's book is required reading in high schools and colleges all over the United States."
"I had this book for several years before I read it."
"I have enormous respect for the author, Ms. Wilkerson's, writing style, depth of research and emotional intelligence."
"I feel better informed and more cognizant of how the internal migration of millions impacted both the South and our country as a whole."
"An excellently written education of an aspect of American history-- as told through the experiences of 3 people-- I never knew about."
"My only problem with this book, and I suspect this might be unique to the Kindle edition (but is something the publishers should check out), is that entire paragraphs that appeared in one part of the book are repeated word for word later on."
"Although I was a bit put off by the length of the book at first, I quickly realized that in order to do the subject justice, the book would have to be long."

It also includes a separate 8-by-10-inch print of Souza's iconic photograph of the President dancing with the First Lady, suitable for framing and display in your home. We see President Obama lead our nation through monumental challenges, comfort us in calamity and loss, share in hard-won victories, and set a singular example to "be kind and be useful," as he would instruct his daughters. This book puts you in the White House with President Obama, and will be a treasured record of a landmark era in American history. "The book, which distills the 1.9 million photographs that Souza took of Obama's eight years in the White House down to about 300 images, it as once warm and nostalgic, worshipful and respectful, sad and wistful-in a sense, not so different from the framed JFK portraits that everyday Americans hung in living rooms, right through the Nixon administration. In conveying both the weight of the office and President Obama's full engagement with its demands, Souza fuels our admiration--and stokes our regret.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It's remarkable the way Pete Souza was able to capture so brilliantly the empathy, wisdom, humor, and decency of Obama from behind the lens."
"Beautiful pictures and lovely presentation."
"What an excellent piece of history to have."
"Not only was Mr. Souza blessed with a job that basically allowed 24/7 access to the president, but he was blessed with the rare eye for that good shot."
"What a beautiful way to capture such historical moments."
"The photos are exceptional and I am so glad I splurged for the limited edition."
"Absolutely beautiful quality."
"Deluxe Edition is fantastic.....high quality photo book signed by Souza."
Best U.S. Immigrant History

In this epic, beautifully written masterwork, Pulitzer Prize–winning author Isabel Wilkerson chronicles one of the great untold stories of American history: the decades-long migration of black citizens who fled the South for northern and western cities, in search of a better life. A Look Inside The Warmth of Other Suns The author's father as a Tuskegee Airman George Starling as a young manThe author's mother at Meridian Hill The author’s mother at Howard University with friends A migrant man studying a mapA migrant man packing his suitcaseIda Mae Brandon Gladney as a young womanRobert Joseph Pershing Foster as a young physician Starred Review.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"As the stories of desperation, ambition and flight unfold, the reader can see just how many ways the American Dream was yanked away, hidden or otherwise made inaccessible to one generation after another. Instead, he ended up an overworked denizen of substandard housing, with broken knees and bad kidneys from all the years of picking oranges and tangerines then stacking and unloading luggage on railroad runs along the eastern seaboard. Meanwhile, his New York-born-and-raised children -- not privy to the "village" atmosphere of family and child-rearing of George's native Southland -- were left to fend for themselves in the impersonal, take-a-number concrete jungle of an overpopulated city and, with limited options, spent their energies on getting into, or ducking, trouble."
"Isabel Wilkerson, the Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper writer, has now come back to write a fascinating and sweeping book on what she calls ""the biggest underreported story of the twentieth century." Of course we all know the tale of the "Dust Bowl" and the "Okies", as captured by Steinbeck in words, by Dorothea Lange in photographs, and even in song by Woody Guthrie. The title of this book is taken from Richard Wright's "Black Boy: A Record of Childhood and Youth": "I was taking a part of the South to transplant in alien soil, to see if it could grow differently, if it could drink of new and cool rains, bend in strange winds, respond to the warmth of other suns, and, perhaps, to bloom." Our families became friends, as also "Miz Edna's" husband had served in New Guinea with my father (as a cook, however, remember the WWII Army was still segregated) ."
"I have always wondered about the much harder lives of black migrants who followed a similar path. It cannot have been easy to write a book like this without descending either into sentimentality or righteous anger. My family left for economic reasons, but I don't think it's an accident that the Southern economy of that time was so bad."
"This book was a long read, but in the end, it provided an enlightening perspective on the migration of people from the southern states to the north from the early to late 20th century."
Best U.S. Colonial Period History

This is history on a grand scale—a book about politics and war and social issues, but also about human nature, love, religious faith, virtue, ambition, friendship, and betrayal, and the far-reaching consequences of noble ideas. Gordon S. Wood The New York Review of Books By far the best biography of Adams ever written...McCullough's special gift as an artist is his ability to re-create past human beings in all their fullness and all their humanity.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"That you carry the book with you everywhere you go in the hopes you will have a spare minute to crack it open and absorb a few pages? This book is so relevant today because it helps us understand the thought and consideration Adams and other men went through when considering the construction of our government and their understanding of human nature that provided them the insight to create laws that to this day afford us the freedoms we enjoy."
"This is a wonderful reminder of what John Adams did during his life to help make America the country it is today."
"An amazing journey through this fascinating historical figure's accomplishments and personal life, "John Adams" offers a colorful portrait of the roots of American culture and the ideals permeating a newly independent country."
"Read rest of reviews for dissecting reviews."
"We all are enjoying the story and the boys are making plans to continue listening to the last 16 discs. Pause and talk about the book and how the ramifications linger today."
"Excellent story of the early leaders of this country and the hardships they had to endure to establish the United States as a sovereign nation."
"Besides a great insight into John Adams, it gives the reader a real feel for the Spirit of the time and what brought about the Declaration of independence as well as the Constitution."
"An excellent, entertaining book."
Best U.S. Civil War History

A riveting historical narrative of the heart-stopping events surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and the first work of history from mega-bestselling author Bill O'Reilly. President Abraham Lincoln's generous terms for Robert E. Lee's surrender are devised to fulfill Lincoln's dream of healing a divided nation, with the former Confederates allowed to reintegrate into American society. “As a history major, I wish my required reading had been as well written as this truly vivid and emotionally engaging account of Lincoln's assassination. Bill O'Reilly recounts the dramatic events of the spring of 1865 with such exhilarating immediacy that you will feel like you are walking the streets of Washington, DC, on the night that John Wilkes Booth shot Abraham Lincoln.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Interesting book."
"I came away disappointed in this book because I felt that, given the volume of research material available, the authors could have provided much more of a backstory to the issues that motivate men like Booth to be driven to achieve such an ignominious act."
"An excellent book, well writing, factual, including facts I had not read before."
"A very compelling documentation, told like a story, of the events leading up to the assassination of President Lincoln."
"The storytelling is gripping...a real page turner."
"O'Reilly's fall from grace, notwithstanding, he gives information about Booth's fiance, which I had not read in another book."
"I had no idea of the circumstances surrounding Lincoln's assassination or how closely it was to the end of the war."
"Great book (even though I am no fan of Bill O'Reilly's politics) and it shipped quickly."
Best U.S. State & Local History

The #1 New York Times –bestselling story about American Olympic triumph in Nazi Germany and now the inspiration for the PBS documentary “The Boys of ‘36” For readers of Unbroken , out of the depths of the Depression comes an irresistible story about beating the odds and finding hope in the most desperate of times—the improbable, intimate account of how nine working-class boys from the American West showed the world at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin what true grit really meant. In doing so, he offers a vivid picture of the socioeconomic landscape of 1930s America (brutal), the relentlessly demanding effort required of an Olympic-level rower, the exquisite brainpower and materials that go into making a first-rate boat, and the wiles of a coach who somehow found a way to, first, beat archrival University of California, then conquer a national field of qualifiers, and finally, defeat the best rowing teams in the world.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"But by taking every sliver of hope, and mixing in superb craftsmanship (from George Pocock), excellent coaching (Al Ulbrickson), and these nine perfectly attuned young men learning together........the result was perfection. It is nice to learn something you never knew, but is common knowledge to an entire set of other people. Concepts from Daniel Brown to consider that are mixed into the story to teach all of us: 1) One of the fundamental challenges in rowing is that when any one member of a crew goes into a slump the entire crew goes with him. The speed of a racing shell is determined primarily by two factors: the power produced by the combined strokes of the oars, and the stroke rate, the number of strokes the crew takes each minute. There are other great ideas to ponder in this epic almost 400 page, could-not-put-down story."
"held local discussions, and had an opportunity to meet the author locally.If you like learning about history through a good story, this is the book for you."
"But I had never read this book because I didn't think I would be interested in an athletic story, especially one about rowing (a sport I never follow)."
"Every college student should read this and stop complaining, this guy worked very hard to obtain his education, something that most young people take for granted these days."
"Even knowing the outcome did not diminish the excitement of the quest, and weaving the story of Hitler's rise to power during the 1936 Olympics captured the irony of his policies."
"The men in my life had been trying for years to get me to read this book."
"Boys racing boats?"
Best U.S. Revolution & Founding History

The Revolutionary War as never told before. The iconic anchor of The O'Reilly Factor led the program to the status of the highest rated cable news broadcast in the nation for sixteen consecutive years. He holds a history degree from Marist College, a masters degree in Broadcast Journalism from Boston University, and another masters degree from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"While an easy read and not that long, the detail of how George Washington along with his army barely escaped numerous times was enthralling."
"I am a history buff and often have to dig through wordy and complex descriptions of times and events written by well meaning historians."
"Killing England does do a nice (though superficial) job of explaining why it wasn't as simple for them as just letting the colonies go, even as the costs and losses started piling up. All in all, like all the Killing books for me, it's an effective, well written "Starter Kit" to get people into an historical topic that many just don't know about and might decide to explore further. For those already knowledgeable, it's easy popcorn reading with a "human story" slant that makes for a good page-turning re-introduction to a topic one might have stopped exploring long ago and might enjoy getting back into."
"Maybe because of all the crazy stuff with the statues, changing names of our schools, wanted to see if it is true the left wants to change the constitution."
"Not being a buff on the Revolutionary War I wasn't sure if like the book."
"Excellent review of the Revolutionary War."
"The Killing series gets better with each new book."
"I would recommend this book to every American citizen."