Greetings from Amazon.com Delivers History Editor, Sunny Delaney FEATURED IN THIS E-MAIL: * What We're Reading: "Letters of the Century," "Not for Ourselves Alone," "Dr. Seuss Goes to War" * A Great Statesman: Winston S. Churchill remembers his grandfather * Big Medicine: Capturing disappearing African ceremonies * S.O.S.: Stories of shipwrecks * Bestsellers: Secret histories * New in Paperback: World War II: "The Victors," "Marine Combat Correspondent," "Slacks and Calluses" * Editor's Choice: Royal employment * Coming Soon: Start spreadin' the news * Amazon.com Presents the Best of the Century WHAT WE'RE READING ****************** "Letters of the Century" edited by Lisa Grunwald and Stephen J. Adler http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0385315902/entertainmentsit Reading the personal correspondence of others is a guilty pleasure--but justifiable when the letters relate to important national events. "Letters of the Century: America, 1900-1999" allows readers to peek over historical shoulders and read hundreds of letters written to and from Americans--the famous, the infamous, and the everyday folks. "Not for Ourselves Alone: The Struggle for Women's Rights: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B. Anthony" by Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns, Martha Saxton, Ann D. Gordon, and Ellen Carol Dubois http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0375405607/entertainmentsit If you're an American female, 18 or older, thank Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony for your right to vote. In "Not for Ourselves Alone," PBS favorites Ken Burns and Geoffrey C. Ward present a dual biography of the women who spearheaded the women's suffrage movement. "Dr. Seuss Goes to War" by Richard H. Minear, Dr. Seuss, and Art Spiegelman http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/156584565X/entertainmentsit Once upon a time, beloved children's author Dr. Seuss made his living as a political cartoonist for the New Deal liberal New York newspaper PM. He savaged the fascists with cunning caricatures, also turning his pen against isolationists. Those who grew up on Seuss will enjoy early glimpses of his later work; history buffs will enjoy this new--if playful and contorted--angle on World War II. A GREAT STATESMAN: WINSTON S. CHURCHILL REMEMBERS HIS GRANDFATHER ***************************************************************** Everyone knows Winston Churchill as the great statesman who helped sail Britain's ship of state through World War II. Less noticeable has been Churchill's contributions as a historian and author. Many of his numerous histories contain information on the United States--from America's discovery to the nation's founding and up to the mid-20th century. Grandson Winston S. Churchill has edited this work into one volume, entitled "The Great Republic," for the first time. In this exclusive article for Amazon.com, Winston S. Churchill shares fond memories of his famous grandfather. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=ts/feature/12887 "The Great Republic" by Sir Winston Churchill http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/037550320X/entertainmentsit BIG MEDICINE: CAPTURING DISAPPEARING AFRICAN CEREMONIES ******************************************************* Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher spent nearly a decade traveling around the African continent and photographing its many peoples and their rituals in an attempt to produce what the Wodaabe call "maagani yegitata"--medicine not to forget. The result, "African Ceremonies," is a stunning two-volume set capturing 43 of these rites--many of which are already disappearing. In this introduction to the book, Beckwith and Fisher explain how they came to create their masterpiece, and detail some of their experiences along the way. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=ts/feature/12897 S.O.S.: STORIES OF SHIPWRECKS ***************************** Call it seafaring schadenfreude, but Amazon.com customers seem to enjoy reading about shipwrecks--and those who later recover them. Titanic may have launched the trend, but others--such as Napoleon's Orient, the whaleship Essex, and the USS Yorktown--have joined this phantom fleet. We've compiled a list of books about these doomed ships--including "The History of Shipwrecks," which describes dozens of them. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=ts/feature/12980 BESTSELLERS: SECRET HISTORIES ***************************** "The Sword and the Shield: The Mitrokhin Archive and the Secret History of the KGB" by Christopher Andrew and Vasili Mitrokhin http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0465003109/entertainmentsit To paraphrase that perfume ad from the 1970s, if you want to get someone's attention, whisper. Or at least say you're passing along a secret. "Secret histories" are all the rage here at Amazon.com, and several appear prominently on the History Bestsellers list. "The Sword and the Shield" is a secret history of the KGB--secrets revealed when a dissident working in the KGB archive stole copies of thousands of classified documents and defected in 1992. "Hitler's Pope: A Secret History of Pius XII" by John Cornwell http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0670886939/entertainmentsit The Catholic Church's silence during the Holocaust has long been a source of controversy. Pope Pius XII was the man in the middle of the maelstrom. Roman Catholic author John Cornwell set out to tell Pius XII's story in order to clear his name--but left the Vatican archives in a state of "moral shock," concluding that Pacelli's drive to promote papal absolutism inexorably led him to collaboration with fascist leaders. A very controversial read. "The Big Test: The Secret History of the American Meritocracy" by Nicholas Lemann http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0374299846/entertainmentsit The postwar inventors of the Scholastic Aptitude Test hoped to produce a brainier brand of meritocracy in the United States. But as Nicholas Lemann reveals in "The Big Test," the SAT hit a great many ideological potholes--and ended up creating yet another pencil-pushing elite. NEW IN PAPERBACK: WORLD WAR II ****************************** "The Victors: Eisenhower and His Boys, the Men of World War II" by Stephen E. Ambrose http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0684856298/entertainmentsit With Veterans Day rapidly approaching, we're happy to feature this selection of new paperbacks about World War II and the men--and women--who fought in it. "The Victors" is like a compilation of Stephen E. Ambrose's greatest hits, drawing heavily from his biography of General Dwight D. Eisenhower and several military histories that recount the events of the Allied push across the European continent in 1944 and 1945 from the frontline trooper's perspective. "Marine Combat Correspondent: World War II in the Pacific" by Samuel E. Stavisky http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0804118655/entertainmentsit A reader from Wyncote, Pennsylvania, wrote such a rave review of Samuel E. Stavisky's "Marine Combat Correspondent" that we couldn't help but take notice. "This is not an old vet's reminiscences of a time long passed and fondly reconstructed. Rather, this book provides stunning first- person testimony assembled from contemporaneous notes that places the reader--uncomfortably at times--directly in a foxhole next to Marines who shiver from the rain and attacks of malaria while they await the night in terror of a surprise attack." "Slacks and Calluses: Our Summer in a Bomber Factory" by Constance Bowman and Clara Marie Allen http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/156098368X/entertainmentsit Lest we forget the women who served (both on the home front and uncomfortably near the lines of battle), "Slacks and Calluses" is the story of two young teachers who spent their summer vacation working in a factory making B-24 Liberator bombers. First published in 1944, this delightful book has just been reissued by Smithsonian Institution Press. EDITOR'S CHOICE: ROYAL EMPLOYMENT ********************************* "Keepers of the Kingdom" by Alastair Bruce, Julian Calder, and Mark Cator http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0865652023/entertainmentsit Some people have all the luck. The positions detailed in "Keepers of the Kingdom" would turn anyone's head. Try Hereditary Falconer, Keeper of the Signet, or Herbstrewer to the Queen. Who wouldn't want to have Seigneur of the Sark on his business card--whatever it means. This stunning book includes dozens of Britain's traditional titles and their history, and beautiful photographs of the current holders in all their finery. Now, if I could only be named Queen's Remembrancer... COMING SOON: START SPREADIN' THE NEWS ************************************* "New York: An Illustrated History" by Ric Burns and James Sanders with Lisa Ades http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0679454829/entertainmentsit Niew Amsterdam was founded by the Dutch in the early 17th century. When the British assumed control of the port, they renamed it after James Stuart, Duke of York. The companion volume to an upcoming 12-part PBS television series, "New York: An Illustrated History" tells some of the millions of stories of America's--possibly the world's--greatest city, from its founding to its future. AMAZON.COM PRESENTS THE BEST OF THE CENTURY ******************************************* As the century comes to a close, Amazon.com takes a look at the landmarks in books, music, and video of the past 100 years. Selected by our editors, our lists take you decade by decade from the turn of the century all the way to the end of the millennium. Books of the century ****** Give the Perfect Gift, Get the Perfect Gift Does Aunt Ida send polka CDs when you'd prefer pop? Create an Amazon.com Wish List and save everyone the agony of the unwanted gift. Wish list Clueless as to what to get your Kentucky cousin for Christmas? Send him an e-Card and tell him to set up an Amazon.com Wish List so you can easily find and send him his heart's desire. Wish card ****** You'll find more great books, articles, excerpts, and interviews in Amazon.com's History section at History ******
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