National Network for Equitable Library Service

Most people can name some famous artists and recognize their best-known works. But what's behind all that painting, drawing, and sculpting' What was Leonardo da Vinci's snack of choice while he painted Mona Lisa's mysterious smile' Why did Georgia O'Keeffe find bones so appealing' Who called Diego Rivera "Frog-Face"' And what is it about artists that makes both their work and their lives so fascinating-to themselves, to their curious neighbors, and to all of us' This book presents the humor and the tragedy in twenty artists' lives as no biography has done before.

Shakespeare wrote with a feather quill and ink; Emily Dickinson wrote with a fountain pen; Isaac Bashevis Singer wrote on a Yiddish typewriter. But what did such writers do when they weren't writing' What did Jane Austen eat for breakfast' What could make Mark Twain throw his shirts out the window' Why would Zora Neale Hurston punch a fellow elevator passenger' Lives of the Writers tells all that and more.

It's no secret that Beethoven went deaf, that Mozart had constant money problems, and that Gilbert and Sullivan wrote musicals. But what were these people-and other famous musicians-really like' What did they eat' What did they wear' How did they spend their time' And-possibly most interesting of all-what did their neighbors think' Discover the fascinating and often humorous stories of twenty famous musicians-people of all shapes, sizes, temperaments, and lifestyles, from various countries and historical periods.

Jonathan and Drew Scott, known for their wildly popular HGTV shows including Property Brothers and Brother vs Brother, follow up their New York Times bestseller, Dream Home, with a highly anticipated memoir. It Takes Two: Our Story shares never-before-revealed tales of the brothers' childhood and rise to fame-from starting their first business at 7 years old, their years modeling and acting, to their first house purchase at the impressive young age of eighteen.

Most people know that Gregor Mendel, the Moravian monk who patiently grew his peas in a monastery garden, shaped our understanding of inheritance. But people might not know that Mendel's work was ignored in his own lifetime, even though it contained answers to the most pressing questions raised by Charles Darwin's revolutionary book, ON ORIGIN OF THE SPECIES, published only a few years earlier. Mendel's single chance of recognition failed utterly, and he died a lonely and disappointed man.

"Stunning." -Entertainment Weekly | "Raw and perfect." -Laura Miller, Slate"Heartbreaking yet hopeful." -Samantha Irby, Marie Claire A fierce memoir of a mother's murder, a daughter's coming-of-age in the wake of immense loss, and her mission to know the woman who gave her life. When Sarah Perry was twelve, she saw a partial eclipse of the sun, an event she took as a sign of good fortune for her and her mother, Crystal.

From the best-selling author of Fosse, a sweeping yet intimate-and often hilarious-history of a uniquely American art form that has never been more popular. At the height of the McCarthy era, an experimental theater troupe set up shop in a bar near the University of Chicago. Via word-of-mouth, astonished crowds packed the ad-hoc venue to see its unscripted, interactive, consciousness-raising style. From this unlikely seed grew the Second City, the massively influential comedy theater troupe, and its offshoots-the Groundlings, Upright Citizens Brigade, SNL, and a slew of others.

The definitive biography of an American icon, from a New York Times best-selling author with unique access to Ali's inner circle He was the wittiest, the prettiest, the strongest, the bravest, and, of course, the greatest (as he told us himself). Muhammad Ali was one of the twentieth century's most fantastic figures and arguably the most famous man on the planet. But until now, he has never been the subject of a complete, unauthorized biography.

First-hand accounts that include diary entries and personal letters describe the experiences of boys, sixteen years old or younger, who fought in the Civil War.

"Reading The Possibility Dogs is like taking an amazing literary journey with a dear friend by your side. The characters you meet will enchant you, but the storyteller will capture your heart. If you love dogs, this is a can't-miss book written by a kindred spirit."-Jennifer Arnold, author of Through a Dog's Eyes and In a Dog's Heart After a grisly search-and-rescue operation led to troubling consequences for author Susannah Charleson, she found that her relationship with Puzzle, her search dog, made a surprising contribution to her own healing.