At 18, Zackery Bowen joined the Army in order to provide for his wife and child. After serving as an MP in Kosovo and Iraq, he was discharged, and he returned to New Orleans in 2004. Suffering from untreated post-traumatic stress, Bowen's relationship with his wife disintegrated, and he took up with fellow bartender Addie Hall. His depression and drug abuse worsened, and by 2006, both Bowen and Hall were dead--Bowen had killed himself after leaving a suicide note that explained where police could find Hall's scattered body parts. This grim but well-researched investigation into Bowen's life and death is also a vivid portrait of New Orleans before and after Katrina and a telling examination of how America's veterans can fall through the cracks.

This long-awaited chronicle of NFL player and Army Ranger Pat Tillman's life and controversial death in Afghanistan draws on Tillman's journals and letters as well as interviews with family members and fellow soldiers. In addition to providing a solid biography of Tillman, author Jon Krakauer describes the military's efforts to hide the truth about his death by friendly fire. This is sure to be a much-sought-after book, so if you find yourself looking for something else to read while you wait for it to become available, try Boots on the Ground By Dusk by Tillman's mother, Mary. For a soldier's perspective on problems in the field, try Paul Rieckhoff's Chasing Ghosts.

Health care in the U.S. is a hot topic these days, and likely to remain one for the foreseeable future. Though there are plenty of books on the state of American health care, this one takes a different perspective by traveling outside of the country and "touring" various health care systems worldwide. While author T.R. Reid finds imperfections everywhere, he also finds effective and affordable systems at work. In addition to visiting France, Germany, Great Britain, Japan, and Canada to analyze their models of health care, Reid also looks in on two countries who have recently overhauled their systems (Switzerland and Taiwan). Mixing solid research with first-hand experience, this is a "reasoned, well-balanced, highly readable account" (Kirkus Reviews).

Thanks to the way award-winning historian Chris Wickham has organized this book, you can either read it straight through or dip in and read only the sections that are of interest to you. The latter might be the more popular track to take, for the 650-ish pages of The Inheritance of Rome are crammed with information on social and political conditions in Europe during the early Middle Ages. Wickham gives a detailed overview of the fall of the Roman Empire (and its consequences) and also includes information on Muslim Spain, the Carolingian Empire, and many other regions, eras, and peoples. Don't miss it if you've read his earlier work, Framing the Middle Ages, or have an interest in this era.

In the early 1900s, Christy Mathewson was a star pitcher for the New York Giants, but he was equally known for his sportsmanship and good looks. Former player and New York Giants manager John McGraw (who retired in 1933 after 31 years on the job) was tough and often rude, and ended up being ejected from 131 games. Despite their seeming differences, the two men were close friends, and together became two of the first stars of baseball as their team and the sport itself rose in prominence. Chronicling both their careers and their era, Sports Illustrated writer Frank DeFord has created a "fine baseball book but just as fine a study of American popular culture" (Booklist).

In 1947, Jackie Robinson made history as the first African-American player in baseball's major leagues; now, 70 years later, journalist Jonathan Eig brings this groundbreaking event to life using personal interviews and historical accounts. From Robinson's actions on the field to his impact on the civil rights movement, Opening Day combines biography and cultural history to create a dramatic examination of this historic season. For more on Robinson's role in integrating major league baseball, try Scott Simon's Jackie Robinson and the Integration of Baseball.

In 2004, San Francisco Chronicle reporters Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams wrote several articles about the nutritional supplement company BALCO and the distribution of performance-enhancing drugs among top athletes. From that reporting came this book, which is as much about the use of steroids by Bonds (and others) as it is about BALCO's influence on the game of baseball, and which raises important questions about the lack of repercussions for those involved. For more, try Jeff Pearlman's Love Me, Hate Me: Barry Bonds and the Making of an Antihero or Teri Thompson's American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America's Pastime.

Published by the National Geographic Society in association with the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, this illustrated history honors Negro League baseball and its remarkable players by bringing together historical anecdotes, biographical essays, and archival photographs. Shades of Glory covers the history of blacks in baseball from the 1860s to the 1960s, including the first Negro League in 1920 and the signing of Jackie Robinson by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. In addition to familiar names like Robinson and Satchel Paige, you'll also learn about other talented players like Moses Fleetwood Walker, Cool Papa Bell, and Josh Gibson.

You don't have to be a Chicago Cubs fan to enjoy this book, but an appreciation of baseball--or American history--is a must. The year 1908 was a big one for baseball: it was the last time the Chicago Cubs won the World Series, but it was also a year full of corruption, greed, violence (one game-day riot killed two people), and plain wackiness (see Fred "Bonehead" Merkle). There were plenty of other high notes in 1908 (one player stole first base), but you'll have to read this engaging tale of an astonishing year to learn more. Sports Illustrated says that it's the "picturesque details" that make Crazy '08 "such a fun and revealing journey."