National Network for Equitable Library Service

The story of Agrippina, at the center of imperial power for three generations, is the story of the Julio-Claudia dynasty-and of Rome itself, at its bloody, extravagant, chaotic, ruthless, and political zenith. In her own time, she was recognized as a woman of unparalleled power. Beautiful and intelligent, she was portrayed as alternately a ruthless murderer and helpless victim, the most loving mother and the most powerful woman of the Roman empire, using sex, motherhood, manipulation, and violence to get her way and single-minded in her pursuit of power for herself and her son, Nero.

The US 8th Air Force came of age in 1944. With a fresh commander, it was ready to demonstrate its true power: from Operation Argument in February-targeting German aircraft production plants-to bringing the Luftwaffe to battle over Berlin, the combined US Air Force-Royal Air Force forces' round-the clock campaign bottled up the German army in Normandy. Day after day, the American bomber boys watched their comrades burn to death in blazing bombers or be thrown out of exploding aircraft without parachutes and sink with their crippled aircraft into the freezing North Sea.

When Sharon Langley was born in the early 1960s, many amusement parks were segregated, and African-American families were not allowed entry. This interesting tale reveals how in the summer of 1963, due to demonstrations and public protests, the Gwynn Oak Amusement Park in Maryland became desegregated and opened to all for the first time. Co-author Sharon Langley was the first African-American child to ride the carousel. This was on the same day of Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Langley's ride to remember demonstrated the possibilities of King's dream.

Anna Smith Strong (1790-1812) was a fearless woman who acted as a spy for George Washington during the Revolutionary War. Recruited by Washington's spymaster Major Benjamin Tallmadge, she joined the Culper Ring, a group of American spies. General Washington placed a huge amount of trust in his spies, and Anna helped pass him important messages at great risk to herself and her family. One of her cleverer devices was to hang laundry on the line in a planned fashion so that other spies could read the "message." Had she been discovered by the British, she would have faced jail or execution.

Written by an author with plenty of experience holding a scalpel, Dr. David Schneider's in-depth biography is an encompassing history of the practice that has leapt forward over the centuries from the dangerous guesswork of ancient Greek physicians through the world-changing "implant revolution" of the twentieth century. The Invention of Surgery explains this dramatic progress and highlights the personalities of the discipline's most dynamic historical figures.

We have a glut of text and trade books on American history. But what we don't have is a compact, inexpensive, and authoritative book that will offer to American citizens a clear, informative, and inspiring narrative account of their own country. Such an account can shape and deepen their sense of the land they inhabit and, by making them understand that land's roots, and share in its memories, equip them for the privileges and responsibilities of citizenship in American society.

Telling the inspiring human story behind the creation of the Paralympics, this young listener's biography showcases a riveting narrative to honor the life of Ludwig Guttmann, whose work profoundly changed so many lives. Dedicating his life to helping patients labeled incurables, Ludwig Guttmann fought for the rights of paraplegics to live a full life. The young doctor believed-and eventually proved-that physical movement is key to healing, a discovery that led him to create the first Paralympic Games.

Behind enemy lines on the island of Saipan-where firing a gun could mean instant discovery and death-the 40 Thieves killed in silence during the grueling battle for Saipan, the D-Day of the Pacific. Now Joseph Tachovsky-whose father Frank was the commanding officer of the 40 Thieves, also called Tachovsky's Terrors-joins with award-winning author Cynthia Kraack to transport listeners back to the brutal Battle of Saipan.

In autumn 1942, Anna Goldenberg's great-grandparents and one of their sons are deported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Hans, their elder son, survives by hiding in an apartment in the middle of Nazi-controlled Vienna. But this is no Anne Frank-like existence; teenage Hans passes time in the municipal library and buys standing-room tickets to the Vienna State Opera. Hans never sees his family again. Goldenberg reconstructs this unique story in magnificent reportage.

In this startling, intensively researched book, bestselling historian Paul Kengor shines light on a deeply troubling aspect of American history: the prominent role of the "dupe." From the Bolshevik Revolution through the Cold War and right up to the present, many progressives have unwittingly aided some of America's most dangerous opponents.