Nonfiction World

This book interweaves two narratives. The first treats the Royal Navy's Arctic Overland Expedition of 1819, a harbinger-misadventure during which Franklin rejected the advice of Dene and Metis leaders and lost eleven of his twenty-one men. The second discovers a startling new answer to that greatest of Arctic mysteries: what was the root cause of the catastrophe that engulfed Franklin's last expedition?

The astounding story of one girl's journey from war victim to UNICEF Special Representative. As a child in a small rural village in Sierra Leone, Mariatu Kamara lived peacefully surrounded by family and friends. Rumors of rebel attacks were no more than a distant worry. But when 12-year-old Mariatu set out for a neighboring village, she never arrived. Heavily armed rebel soldiers attacked and tortured Mariatu. During this brutal act of senseless violence they cut off both of her hands.

The ghost of a weeping woman dressed in white, La Llorona, is often spotted beside bodies of water. People in Mexico and in the southwestern United States have claimed to hear her wailing in the night, crying out for her drowned children. This centuries-old legend says that if the wailing woman gets too close, she will drag you to a watery grave.

The Holocaust was perpetrated by the Germans, but it would not have been possible without the assistance of other countries. If we are to understand how and why the Holocaust happened, Götz Aly argues in this groundbreaking study, we must examine its prehistory throughout Europe. We must look at countries as far-flung as Romania and France, Russia and Greece, where, decades before the Nazis came to power, a deadly combination of envy, competition, nationalism, and social upheaval fueled a surge of anti-Semitism, creating the preconditions for the deportations and murder to come.

Considering herself unsuitable for any other contribution to the war effort, Monica Dickens opts for nursing, imagining herself gliding through the wards, serene in a pure white halo cap. On enrolment, however, she is promptly stripped of all illusions. Intelligent and headstrong, Monica struggles to submit to the iron rule of the Matron and toils over the mountains of menial work that are a trainee's lot. But there are friends among the staff and patients, night-time escapades to dances with dashing army men and her secret writing project to keep her going.

This edition of Che Guevara's diary of the last year of his life describes Che's efforts to launch a guerrilla insurrection against the military government of Bolivia. It was found in his backpack when he was captured by the Bolivian Army in October 1967.

Travel to Kenya and see if you can spot giraffes, elephants, lions and other African animals! Dinosaur bones and giant crocodile fossils discovered in Kenya reveal that the country has been home to a variety of wildlife for millions of years. Learn more about Kenya’s wildlife, and explore Kenyan culture and the diversity of people that call this beautiful place home.

An alphabetical exploration of the people, geography, animals, plants, history, and culture of Egypt.

In his first book, broadcaster Ari Shapiro takes us around the globe to reveal the stories behind narratives that are sometimes heartwarming, sometimes heartbreaking, but always poignant. He details his time traveling on Air Force One with President Obama, or following the path of Syrian refugees fleeing war, or learning from those fighting for social justice both at home and abroad.

Examines the instruments that make up an orchestra, their arrangement on the stage, the role of the conductor, and the need of the musicians to practice.

In Mules and Men, some of the rich cultural heritage of black America is revealed and preserved. In the 1930s, Zora Neale Hurston returned to her home town of Eatonville, Florida, to collect and record the oral histories, songs, and sermons, many dating back to slavery times, that she remembered hearing as a child. These highly metaphorical folktales, "big old lies", and powerful songs helped her to recover her history, and preserve an important part of American culture.

Fueled by hate, incapable of forming normal human relationships, unwilling to listen to dissenting voices, Adolf Hitler seemed an unlikely leader, and yet he commanded enormous support and was able to exert a powerful influence over those who encountered him. How did Hitler become such an attractive figure to millions of people? That is the question at the core of Hitler's Charisma. Acclaimed historian and documentary filmmaker Laurence Rees examines the nature of Hitler's appeal and reveals the role his supposed "charisma" played in his success.

By 1943, the war was lost, and most German officers knew it. What kept the German army going in an increasingly hopeless situation? Where some historians have found explanations in the power of Hitler or the role of ideology, Robert M. Citino, the world's leading scholar on the subject, posits a more straightforward solution: Bewegungskrieg, the way of war cultivated by the Germans over the course of history. In this book, Citino charts the path by which Bewegungskrieg, or a "war of movement," inexorably led to Nazi Germany's defeat.

Pedro Martin has grown up hearing stories about his abuelito—his legendary crime-fighting, grandfather who was once a part of the Mexican Revolution! But that doesn't mean Pedro is excited at the news that Abuelito is coming to live with their family. After all, Pedro has 8 brothers and sisters and the house is crowded enough! Still, Pedro piles into the Winnebago with his family for a road trip to Mexico to bring Abuelito home, and what follows is the trip of a lifetime, one filled with laughs and heartache.

Haiti is a country that has experienced many hardships—most recently, a devastating earthquake in January of 2010. It is also a country with a rich history and a culture that is famous for its unique, colorful painting and sculpture styles. Listeners will learn about Haiti’s landscape, its vibrant culture, and the work being done to rebuild Haiti today.

Stories of magic, superstition, and witchcraft were strictly forbidden in the little town of Salem Village. But a group of young girls ignored those rules, spellbound by the tales told by a woman named Tituba. When questioned about their activities, the terrified girls set off a whirlwind of controversy as they accused townsperson after townsperson of being witches.

What do King Tut, Galileo, Crazy Horse, Bruce Lee, Chico Mendes, Elvis Presley, Bill Gates, Tiger Woods, and the Dali Lama all have in common? They each left their mark on the world in a big way - and all were boys or young men when they did! This exciting and informative audiobook introduces listeners to the most fascinating boy heroes of all time and includes stories about 30 amazing individuals.

In 1941, as World War Two raged, scores of men stepped forward to answer Winston Churchill's call for volunteers for Special Service, a high-risk opportunity to undertake the most hazardous, top-secret duties of war. Comprised of some of the finest fighting units in the entire British Army, these warriors longed to leave behind their mind-numbing garrison duties for battle. A rightfully proud regiment, they were disavowed as unruly by top brass, unyieldingly vaunted by Churchill, and courageously loyal to the clandestine "butcher and bolt" raids that made their sacrifices legendary.

March 1917 tells the story of the Russian Revolution itself, during which not only does the Imperial government melt in the face of the mob, but the leaders of the opposition prove utterly incapable of controlling the course of events. The absorbing narrative tells the stories of more than fifty characters during the days when the Russian Empire begins to crumble. The anti-Tsarist bourgeois opposition, horrified by the violence, scrambles to declare that it is provisionally taking power, while socialists immediately create a Soviet alternative to undermine it.

Jeanne Mance est née en France, dans la ville de Langres. C’est lors de la grande peste qu’elle découvre sa vocation de soignante. Après de nombreuses péripéties, elle arrive en Nouvelle-France en tant que missionnaire laïque en compagnie d’une quarantaine de personnes afin de fonder Ville-Marie. Elle y occupe le poste d’économe et d’administratrice de la colonie. Elle fondera également l’Hôtel-Dieu, le premier hôpital de Montréal. Aujourd’hui, Jeanne Mance est reconnue comme la cofondatrice de Montréal au même titre que Paul de Chomedey.