I know what you're thinking, "Oh
great, another book about Ole Abe. Yawn." Loaded with obscure details and rich nuance, Lincoln's
Final Hours gave me a whole new perspective on what happened on Good Friday
1865 (and the following day) in a way no other Lincoln book has.
Who lay in the
bed Lincoln died in just the week prior? How much was the outrageous bill William
Petersen submitted to Congress to shelter the president for roughly 10 hours?
Why was there such a time interval between Lincoln's death and when he was
moved to the White House?
The best part of all—Canavan's accessible writing style.
It reads more like a novel than a textbook. Even if you're not a Lincoln fan, you'll devour
this book.
When John Wilkes Booth fired his derringer point-blank into President Abraham Lincoln's head, he set in motion a series of dramatic consequences that would upend the lives of ordinary Washingtonians and Americans alike. In a split second, the story of a nation was changed. During the hours that followed, America's future would hinge on what happened in a cramped back bedroom at Petersen's Boardinghouse, directly across the street from Ford's Theatre. There, a twenty-three-year-old surgeon -- fresh out of medical school -- struggled to keep the president alive while Mary Todd Lincoln moaned at her husband's bedside.
I love history, and The Diamond Eye is a fantastic retelling of Soviet sniper Lyudmila Pavlichenko’s story. Quinn’s research into Pavlichenko’s life is evident as she seamlessly weaves details about the deadliest female sniper ever into a thrilling narrative that encompasses a plot to assassinate American President Roosevelt.
Who doesn’t like a good underdog story? When we first meet Pavlichenko, she is a young, single mother with a small child working a factory job. Through sheer tenacity and hard work, she enrolls in Kiev University to get her degree, and the war breaks out. She then embarks on her remarkable military career that propels her onto the international stage and to an officer’s rank (all the while carrying her cherished university thesis).
This is the best story about someone you’ve never heard of before.
The brand-new historical novel based on a true story from the bestselling author of The Rose Code and The Alice Network
In the snowbound city of Kiev, aspiring historian Mila Pavlichenko's life revolves around her young son - until Hitler's invasion of Russia changes everything. Suddenly, she and her friends must take up arms to save their country from the Fuhrer's destruction.
Handed a rifle, Mila discovers a gift - and months of blood, sweat and tears turn the young woman into a deadly sniper: the most lethal hunter of Nazis.
Yet success is bittersweet. Mila is torn from the…
Aside from this being a fun little, twisty murder,
what drew me to this book is the clever way Horowitz presents it.
Horowitz narrates it using his real-life background, so the plot feels like
non-fiction: this story of a writer getting sucked into a murder by way of
documenting the investigator, Hawthorne. It’s a brilliant way of telling a
story, and I love (or maybe hate) the other protagonist, Hawthorne. The battle
of wits between the protagonists is almost as fun (honestly, maybe more so)
as their race to solve the mystery.
I picked up this book based on a “staff
pick” at a local bookstore and was instantly intrigued when I saw a woman pre-arranges
her funeral and is dead six hours later.
Ceremonies for honoring the deceased are crucial parts of our lives, but few people know where our traditional practices come from—and what they reveal about our history, culture, and beliefs about death.
Funeral practices are constantly changing - sometimes due to technology, respect for tradition, shifting sensibilities, or even to thwart grave robbers. Here, you'll learn about the ancient influences on American rites, how the funerals of political figures and fallen soldiers shaped our practices, answers to the most puzzling enigmas about the undertaker's craft, and much more.
Whether you're planning a funeral service or are intrigued by American burial practices, Last Rites is an informative and compelling exploration of the history —and future—of the ceremonies we use to say farewell to those who have departed.
