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History and Current Events January 2021 |
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| Slanted: How the News Media Taught Us to Love Censorship and Hate Journalism by Sharyl AttkissonWhat it is: a sobering and provocative investigation into the ways in which modern news media is manipulated.
About the author: Sharyl Attkisson is a five-time Emmy Award-winning journalist and a recipient of the Edward R. Murrow Award.
Is it for you? Readers may see Attkisson's discussion of Donald Trump's presidential misdeeds as apologia. |
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| The Killer's Shadow: The FBI's Hunt for a White Supremacist Serial Killer by John Douglas and Mark OlshakerWhat it's about: serial killer Joseph Paul Franklin's three-year crime spree, which began with a shooting at a St. Louis synagogue in 1977.
Read it for: FBI profiler John Douglas' breakneck pursuit of Franklin; the pair's confrontation once the latter was imprisoned.
Reviewers say: "This is a must read for those looking for insight into the minds of those instigating racial violence today" (Publishers Weekly). |
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Feasting wild : in search of the last untamed food by Gina Rae La CervaWhat it's about: Challenging us to take a closer look at what we eat today, a geographer and anthropologist traces our relationship to wild foods and shows what we sacrifice when we domesticate them, including biodiversity, indigenous knowledge and a vital connection to nature. Read it For: A thought-provoking, and wide-ranging book that challenges us to take a closer look at the way we eat today |
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| Bag Man: The Wild Crimes, Audacious Cover-Up, and Spectacular Downfall of a Brazen... by Rachel Maddow and Michael YarvitzStarring: disgraced vice president Spiro Agnew, who resigned in 1973 after he was caught committing tax fraud and running a bribery and extortion ring in his office.
Why you might like it: This well-researched examination of a lesser-known political scandal, which happened concurrently (but unrelatedly) with Watergate, offers striking parallels to current events.
Media buzz: Bag Man is an engaging expansion of the authors' podcast of the same name, which was nominated for a Peabody Award in 2018. |
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| The Nine Lives of Pakistan: Dispatches from a Precarious State by Declan WalshWhat it is: an incisive debut exploring the tumult of modern Pakistan, written by Guardian and New York Times journalist Declan Walsh, who spent nearly a decade living and reporting in the country.
What sets it apart: Walsh's profiles of nine individuals (the titular "nine lives") whose experiences offer illuminating perspectives on Pakistan's ongoing ails.
Reviewers say: "This masterfully reported account deserves a wide readership" (Publishers Weekly). |
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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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March. Book One by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell What it's about: Congressman John Lewis's early life and origins in the civil rights movement, during which he served as one of the first Freedom Riders and helped found the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).
Art imitates life: Lewis relied on a popular comic book of the time, Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story, to inform his efforts in the Nashville Student Movement.
Book buzz: The third book in this powerful three-volume memoir series won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature.
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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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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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