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History and Current Events January 2021
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The grand delusion : what we know but don't believe by Steve Hagen"Robert Pirsig wrote of Steve Hagen's first book, Why the World Doesn't Seem to Make Sense, "For those who are certain that objectivity and intellect are the ground floor of all knowledge, this can be a valuable trip to the sub-basement." Now, in The Grand Delusion, Hagen drills deeper, into the most basic strengths, assumptions, and limitations of religion and belief, philosophy and inquiry, science, and technology. In doing so, he shines new light on the question Why is there Something rather than Nothing?-and shines this light from an entirely unexpected (and largely unexplored) direction.
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Battlegrounds : the fight to defend the free world
by H. R. McMaster
The retired Lieutenant General and author of the best-selling Dereliction of Duty presents an urgent call to protect America from dangerous rivals by setting aside partisan divides and helping citizens better understand ongoing threats to national security. 500,000 first printing
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Underland : a deep time journey
by Robert Macfarlane
The award-winning author of The Old Ways presents an exploration of the planet's underworlds as they exist in myth, literature, memory and geography, offering unsettling perspectives into whether or not humans are making the correct choices for Earth's future
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America Before : The Key to Earth's Lost Civilization by Graham Hancock"Could shattering secrets about the deep past of humanity await discovery in North America? Until very recently there was almost universal agreement amongst scientists that human beings first entered the Americas from Siberia around 13,000 years ago by walking into Alaska across the Bering landbridge. Thanks to scientific advances, and to archaeological and geological discoveries made in the past five years, we now know that the Americas were populated by humans for tens of thousands of years before the previously accepted date.
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| The Harlem Hellfighters by Max Brooks; illustrated by Caanan WhiteWhat it is: a well-researched, lightly fictionalized account of the Harlem Hellfighters, the highly decorated all-Black Army regiment who fought in World War I.
Art alert: Caanan White's dark and detailed artwork doesn't shy away from gory imagery, starkly conveying the chaos and violence of war.
Book buzz: This New York Times bestseller from World War Z author Max Brooks was named a Library Journal Best Graphic Novel in 2014. |
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| Tetris: The Games People Play by Box BrownWhat it is: the complicated origin story of Tetris, "the game that escaped the USSR" in 1984 after its Russian creator smuggled it out of Moscow.
Why you might like it: Bestselling author and illustrator Box Brown (Andre the Giant: Life and Legend) presents the tale in a whimsical and engaging narrative.
Art alert: Straightforward illustrations feature hard edges and minimal coloring meant to evoke the visuals of the game's earliest iterations. |
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| Verax: The True Story of Whistleblowers, Drone Warfare, and Mass Surveillance by Pratap Chatterjee; illustrated by KhalilWhat it's about: post-9/11 American surveillance and drone warfare.
Art alert: Vivid black-and-white illustrations, including informative charts and diagrams, make the subject accessible to general readers.
Try this next: For another graphic history exploring America's surveillance state, read Ivan Greenberg's The Machine Never Blinks. |
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| Rolling Blackouts: Dispatches from Turkey, Syria, and Iraq by Sarah GliddenWhat it's about: Accompanying two journalist friends and an Iraq War veteran during a Middle East trip to report on the impact of the war, cartoonist Sarah Glidden grappled with ethical quandaries as she learned about the complexity of the journalistic process.
Art alert: Delicate pastel watercolors complement Glidden's thought-provoking and empathetic insights into life in conflict-riven areas. |
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| Showa: A History of Japan, 1926-1939 by Shigeru Mizuki; translated by Zack DavissonWhat it is: the first of a four-part series exploring the personal and political history of Japan's Showa era (1926-1989), written and illustrated by beloved manga artist Shigeru Mizuki.
Topics include: the author's childhood in rural Sakaiminato; the Nanjing Massacre; Japan's entry into World War II.
Art alert: Mizuki contrasts realistic illustrations (for newsworthy events) with cartoony ones (for scenes of everyday life); fans of his previous works will enjoy the appearances from GeGeGe no Kitaro's Rat Man. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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