North America History

The French and Indian War: 1660-1763 covers much more than the few years during which the English and French fought over the division of the North American continent in one of the most neglected periods of American history. In this volume in the Drama of American History series, authors Christopher Collier and James Lincoln Collier trace how England’s other rivals for control of America were eliminated over this period until the only source of conflict left would be between the British and their own colonists.

Melissa Faye Greene stunningly unfolds the story of the Springhill, Nova Scotia, mine disaster, a drama that seems especially hard-hitting in light of more recent mine collapses. In 1958, gases were propelled three levels upward, trapping men against the ceiling and burying them. One hundred men had entered the dangerously built mine Number Two; 75 never saw the light of day again. Two groups of men did survive, although their struggle was immense and almost unbelievable.

Horizontal Vertigo: The title refers to the fear of ever-impending earthquakes that led Mexicans to build their capital city outward rather than upward. With the perspicacity of a keenly observant flâneur, Juan Villoro wanders through Mexico City seemingly without a plan, describing people, places, and things while brilliantly drawing connections among them.

The Civil War: 1860 - 1865 examines the people and events involved in the bloody war that pitted the Northern states against those that seceded to form the Confederacy.

Originaire de Champagne, en France, Paul de Chomedey sieur de Maisonneuve s’initie très tôt à l’art militaire. Mais cela ne le satisfait pas : il rêve de voyages et d’aventures. Nommé gouverneur de Ville-Marie, il fonde la bourgade avec une quarantaine de colons prêts à relever le défi. L’homme d’honneur et de parole tentera toute sa vie de surmonter les nombreux obstacles qui se dresseront sur son chemin pour assurer le bien-être et la postérité de Ville-Marie. Aujourd’hui, Paul de Chomedey sieur de Maisonneuve est reconnu comme un cofondateur de Montréal.

Against long odds, the Anishinaabeg resisted removal, retaining thousands of acres of their homeland in what is now Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Their success rested partly on their roles as sellers of natural resources and buyers of trade goods, which made them key players in the political economy of plunder that drove white settlement and US development in the Old Northwest. But, as Michael Witgen demonstrates, the credit for Native persistence rested with the Anishinaabeg themselves.

Gord Downie was more than just a musician. His music told stories of Canada. His lyrics celebrated myths. Through his songs, Canadians slowly realized the richness of their historical and cultural backgrounds. Gord Downie made his countrymen proud of being Canadians. Listen about his life story and learn from it. Begin today.

Who was Terry Fox? Why do Canadians name schools, roads, buildings, and parks after him? Know Terry Fox’s story through this educational book for kids. Be inspired by his determination, hardwork, and a spirit too strong for cancer to beat.

As a 14-year-old, he was Malcolm Little, the president of his class and a top student. At 16, he was hustling tips at a Boston nightclub. In Harlem, he was known as Detroit Red, a slick street operator. At 19, he was back in Boston, leading a gang of burglars. At 20, he was in prison. It was in prison that Malcolm Little started the journey that would lead him to adopt the name Malcolm X, and there he developed his beliefs about what being Black means in America: beliefs that shook America then and still shake America today.

Because of our shared English language, as well as the celebrated origin tales of the Mayflower and the rebellion of the British colonies, the United States has prized its Anglo heritage above all others. However, as Carrie Gibson explains with great depth and clarity in El Norte, the nation has much older Spanish roots - ones that have long been unacknowledged or marginalized. The Hispanic past of the United States predates the arrival of the Pilgrims by a century, and has been every bit as important in shaping the nation as it exists today.

On August 14, 1975, eight daring thieves ransacked 148 massive safe-deposit boxes at a secret bank used by organized crime, La Cosa Nostra, and its associates in Providence, Rhode Island. The crooks fled with duffel bags crammed full of cash, gold, silver, stamps, coins, jewels, and high-end jewelry. The true value of the loot has always been kept secret, partly because it was ill-gotten to begin with, and partly because there was plenty of incentive to keep its true worth out of the limelight.

In 1492, Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas. Or did he? Listeners will learn the full story about Christopher Columbus’s famous voyage.

This lyrical biography explores the life and art of Yoko Ono, from her childhood haiku to her avant-garde visual art and experimental music. An outcast throughout most of her life, and misunderstood by every group she was supposed to belong to, Yoko always followed her own unique vision to create art that was ahead of its time and would later be celebrated. Her focus remained on being an artist, even when the rest of world saw her only as the wife of John Lennon. Yoko Ono's moving story will inspire any young adult who has ever felt like an outsider.

Wizard of the Upper Amazon is an extraordinary document of the life among a tribe of South American Indians at the beginning of the 20th century. For many listeners, the most compelling sections of the audiobook will be the descriptions of the use of Banisteriopsis caapi, the ayahuasca of the Amazon forests. This powerful hallucinogen has long been credited with the ability to transport human beings to realms of experience where telepathy and clairvoyance are commonplace. Manual Córdova, the narrator of these adventures, is well-known as a healer in Peru.

In January of 1965, 24-year-old US Army sergeant Charles Robert Jenkins abandoned his post in South Korea, walked across the DMZ, and surrendered to communist North Korean soldiers standing sentry along the world's most heavily militarized border. He believed his action would get him back to the States and a short jail sentence. Instead he found himself in another sort of prison, where for 40 years he suffered under one of the most brutal and repressive regimes the world has known. This fast-paced, harrowing tale, told plainly and simply by Jenkins (with journalist Jim Frederick).

Do you know who Caesar Rodney is? Learn about the man who travelled an 80-mile journey on horseback in one night from Dover, Delaware to Pennsylvania, Philadelphia to deliver an important letter to the Continental Congress. His ride leads to the the life or death decision in our country's history—whether the colonies should fight for independence from Great Britain.

On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court of the United States delivered a unanimous ruling that declared racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, because separate could never be equal. Now listeners can step back in time to learn about what led up to this major milestone in the Civil Rights movement, how the landmark case unfolded, and the ways in which one critical day changed America forever.

On August 28, 1963, more than 200,000 people marched on the United States capital to demand equal economic opportunities and civil rights for Black Americans. And at the end of the event, Martin Luther King Jr. took to the podium and delivered his unforgettable “I Have a Dream” speech.

When superstar athlete Jim Thorpe and football legend Pop Warner met in 1904 at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, they forged one of the winningest teams in American football history. Called "the team that invented football", they took on the best opponents of their day, defeating much more privileged schools such as Harvard and Army in a series of breathtakingly close calls, genius plays, and bone-crushing hard work.

On November 24, 1971, a man boarded a passenger plane in Portland, Oregon. Later, he would become known as D. B. Cooper. But that wasn’t his real name, and he was no ordinary passenger. He hijacked the plane, demanded $200,000, and parachuted out of the plane with the money. He was never seen again. Who was D. B. Cooper, and what happened to him? Explore the theories behind this crime and why it has become one of history’s greatest mysteries.