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Anatomy of a con artist / : The 14 Red Flags to Spot Scammers, Grifters, and Thieves by Johnathan WaltonAfter being scammed out of nearly $100,000 by a devious con artist, Johnathan Walton was turned away by police. Infuriated and armed with the investigative skills he'd gained from years as a TV reporter, Walton launched his own investigation and built a compelling criminal case authorities could not ignore. Walton got his con artist charged, prosecuted, and convicted, then devoted his life to helping other victims do the same. This book packs in all he has learned. Some con artists scheme for money, some for attention, some just for the thrill of lying. And if you think it can't happen to you, then you are exactly the kind of "mark" a professional con artist is looking for. With this insightful guide in your hands, you are far less likely to get conned and far more likely to spot these nefarious manipulators from a mile away-and cross the street when you see them coming. |
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Are you mad at me? : how to stop focusing on what others think and start living for you by Meg JosephsonPsychotherapist Meg Josephson is here to show you that people-pleasing is not a personality trait. It's a common survival mechanism known as 'fawning': an instinct often learned in childhood to become more appealing to a perceived threat in order to feel safe. Yet many people are stuck in this way of being for their whole lives. Are You Mad at Me? will help you shed the behaviors that are keeping you stuck in the past so that you can live in your most authentic present.
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The Black Family Who Built America : The Mckissacks, Two Centuries of Daring Pioneers by Cheryl Mckissack Daniel The riveting story of the McKissack family—the founders of the leading Black design and construction firm in the United States, from its beginnings in the mid-1800s to its thriving status today—in a moving celebration of resilience and innovation. The family’s fingerprints have been left all across the United States, spanning from Reconstruction to contemporary times, through projects like the Morris Memorial Building, Capers C.M.E. Church, John F. Kennedy International Airport, and Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field. Here, Cheryl McKissack Daniel, CEO and president of McKissack & McKissack, reveals the full fascinating story of her family. So much more than an exploration of architectural achievements, The Black Family Who Built America is also a compelling illustration of how history rhymes and reverberates, and a celebration of the human spirit’s ability to overcome adversity and drive change. From Moses’s humble beginnings to Cheryl’s current role as a trailblazer and champion of diversity, the family’s journey underscores the importance of perseverance, innovation, and strategic vision in shaping a legacy that continues to inspire and impact the construction industry.
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The Colonel and the King : Tom Parker, Elvis Presley, and the Partnership That Rocked the World by Peter GuralnickFrom the award-winning biographer of Elvis Presley, a groundbreaking dual portrait of the relationship between the iconic artist and his legendary manager—drawing on a wealth of the Colonel's never-before-seen correspondence to reveal that this oft-reviled figure was in fact a confidant, friend, and architect of his client’s success Featuring troves of previously unpublished correspondence, revelatory for both its insights and emotional depth, The Colonel and the King provides a unique perspective on not one but two American originals.
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Coming up short : a memoir of America by Robert B. ReichFrom political economist, cabinet member, beloved professor, media presence, and bestselling author of Saving Capitalism and The Common Good, a deeply-felt, compelling memoir of growing up in a baby-boom America that made progress in certain areas, fell short in so many important ways, and still has lots of work to do. Ultimately, Reich asks: What did his generation accomplish? Did they make America better, more inclusive, more tolerant? Did they strengthen democracy? Or, did they come up short? In the end, though, Reich hardly abandons us to despair over a doomed democracy. With his characteristic spirit, humor, and inherent decency, he lays out how we can reclaim a sense of community and a democratic capitalism based on the American ideals we still have the power to salvage. |
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The devil reachced toward the sky : an oral history of the making & unleashing of the atomic bomb by Garrett M. GraffAn epic narrative of the atomic bomb's creation and deployment, woven from the voices of hundreds of scientists, generals, soldiers, and civilians. Drawing from dozens of oral history archives and hundreds of books, reports, letters, diaries, and transcripts from across the US, Japan, and Europe, Graff masterfully blends the memories and perspectives from the known and unknown--key figures like J. Robert Oppenheimer, General Leslie Groves, and President Truman; the crews of the B-29 bombers; and the haunting stories of the Hibakusha--the 'bomb-affected people.' Both a testament to human ingenuity and resilience and a compelling drama told by the participants who lived it, The Devil Reached Toward the Sky is a singular, profound, and searing book about the inception of our most powerful weapon and its haunting legacy.
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Disney Adults : Exploring and Falling in Love With a Magical Subculture by A. J. Wolfe A fascinating and enlightening deep dive into the infamous Disney Adult community from the woman behind the popular website The Disney Food Blog. Disney Adults are grown-ups who derive singular, almost obsessive, joy from all things Disney. They devote countless hours and millions of dollars to Disney offerings, whether or not they have children. They’re avid fans of the films, devotees of the Disney theme parks, collectors of the vast world of Disney merchandise, cosplayers who dress in clothing inspired by Disney characters. There are darker sides to Disney mania that can’t be ignored, but the ranks of the Disney Adult community are broad, deep, and ever-growing. Disney Adults are a telling microcosm of modern America, highlighting the value we place on magic and escapism, and what we deem to be “acceptable” sources of joy.
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The Fort Bragg cartel : drug trafficking and murder in the Special Forces by Seth Harp In December 2020, a deer hunter discovered two dead bodies that had been riddled with bullets and dumped in a forested corner of Fort Bragg, North Carolina. As soon as Seth Harp, an Iraq war veteran and investigative reporter, begins looking into the double murder, he learns that there have been many more unexplained deaths at Fort Bragg recently, other murders connected to drug trafficking in elite units, and dozens of fatal overdoses. Drawing on declassified documents, trial transcripts, police records, and hundreds of interviews, Harp tells a scathing story of narco-trafficking in the Special Forces, drug conspiracies abetted by corrupt police, blatant military cover-ups, American complicity in the Afghan heroin trade, and the pernicious consequences of continuous war.
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King of kings : the Iranian revolution : a story of hubris, delusion and catastrophic miscalculation by Scott AndersonOn November 16th, 1977, at a state dinner in the White House, President Jimmy Carter toasted Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, praising his “enlightened leadership” and extolling Iran as “a stabilizing influence in that part of the world.” Iran had the world’s fifth largest army and was awash in billions of dollars in oil revenues. Construction cranes dotted the skyline of its booming capital, Tehran. The regime’s feared secret police force SAVAK had crushed communist opposition, and the Shah had bought off the conservative Muslim clergy inside the country. He seemed invulnerable, and invaluable to the United States as an ally in the Cold War. Fourteen months later the Shah fled Iran into exile, forced from the throne by a volcanic religious revolution led by a fiery cleric named Ayatollah Khomeini. How could the United States (and other Western allies), which had one of the largest CIA stations in the world and thousands of military personnel in Iran, have been so blind? A stunningly revelatory narrative history of one of the most momentous events in modern times, the jaw-dropping stupidity of the American government, and the dawn of the age of religious nationalism. |
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Nagasaki : the last witnesses by M. G. SheftallThe second volume in a prize-worthy two-book series based on years of irreplicable personal interviews with survivors about each of the atomic bomb drops, first in Hiroshima and then Nagasaki. Rendered in harrowing detail, this historical narrative is the second and final volume in M. G. Sheftall’s series Embers. Sheftall has spent years personally interviewing hibakusha—the Japanese word for atomic bomb survivors. These last living witnesses are a vanishing memory resource, the only people who can still provide us with reliable and detailed testimony about life in their cities before the use of nuclear weaponry. The result is an intimate, firsthand account of life in Nagasaki, and the story of incomprehensible devastation and resilience in the aftermath of the second atomic bomb drop. This blow-by-blow account takes us from the city streets, as word of the attack on Hiroshima reaches civilians, to the cockpit of Bockscar, when Charles Sweeney dropped “Fat Man," to the interminable six days while the world waited to see if Japan would surrender to the Allies--or if more bombs would fall. |
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The road that made America : a modern pilgrim's journey on the Great Wagon Road by James DodsonLittle known today, the Great Wagon Road was the primary road of frontier America: a mass migration route that stretched more than eight hundred miles from Philadelphia to Augusta, Georgia. It opened the Southern frontier and wilderness east of the Appalachian Mountains to America's first settlers, and later served as the gateway for the exploration of the American West. Drawing on years of fieldwork and scholarship by an army of archeologists, academics, archivists, preservationists, and passionate history lovers, James Dodson sets out to follow the road's original path from Philadelphia to Georgia. On his journey, he crosses six contiguous states and some of the most historic and hallowed landscapes of eastern America. The people and ideas that traveled down the road shaped the character of the fledgling nation and helped define who we are today. An illuminating and entertaining first-person history, The Road That Made America restores this long-forgotten route to its rightful place in our national story. |
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Unbreakable : A Woman's Guide to Aging With Power. by Vonda Wright Stronger muscles and bones, increased mobility, lifelong independence, and a new mentality for aging with power—this cutting-edge guide to nutrition, training, and lifestyle will optimize a woman's body for longevity, through menopause and beyond. Drawing on her decades of experience as a pioneering orthopedic surgeon helping women at all fitness levels to repair their bones and regain strength, Dr. Wright gives clear action steps to shield us from the timebombs of aging in four critical categories: Exercise: Pinpointing the right combination of cardio and resistance training for you to aid in tissue regeneration and improve metabolic function.
Nutrition: What to eat to extinguish inflammation, repopulate your gut biome, and support strong bones and muscle growth.
Lifestyle: How to manage chronic stress, get more restorative sleep, and turn down systemic inflammation in your daily life.
Supplements: What to take to target the elimination of “zombie cells” and improve your cell function.
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