History and Current Events
September 2025
Recent Releases
Monopoly X: How Top-Secret World War II Operations Used the Game of Monopoly to...
by Philip E. Orbanes

Board game designer and author Philip E. Orbanes’ (Tortured Cardboard) cinematic World War II history details the lesser-known story of how Allied military intelligence concealed tools, money, and fake identification cards in Monopoly game pieces to help servicemen escape from German prisoner-of-war camps. Try this next: Rings of Fire: How an Unlikely Team of Scientists, Ex-Cons, Women, and Native Americans Helped Win World War II by Larry J. Hughes.
The Mission: The CIA in the 21st Century
by Tim Weiner

Pulitzer Prize winner Tim Weiner follows up his National Book Award-winning Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA with a richly detailed exploration of the CIA’s shifting role in United States foreign policy following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, delivering a “singular triumph” that “should be required reading” (Kirkus Reviews). Further reading: Spies, Lies, and Algorithms: The History and Future of American Intelligence by Amy B. Zegart.
The Boys in the Light: An Extraordinary World War II Story of Survival, Faith, and Brotherhood
by Nina Willner

Nina Willner's (Forty Autumns) moving tale of survival and resilience chronicles her German Jewish father’s daring escape from Auschwitz in 1944, when he and Mike, his best friend and fellow escapee, encountered American soldiers who adopted them into their company. For fans of: The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Warn the World by Jonathan Freedland.
Rope : how a bundle of twisted fibers became the backbone of civilization
by Tim Queeney

A sailor explores the history of rope through the story of civilization—from Magellan's world-circling ships, to the 15th-century fleet of Admiral Zheng He, to Polynesian multihulls with crab claw sails, he shows how without rope, none of their adventurous voyages and discoveries would have been possible.
Deadwood : gold, guns, and greed in the American West
by Peter Cozzens

Tells the true story of a notorious Black Hills gold rush settlement of its most colorful cast of characters, from Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane to Al Swearingen and Sheriff Seth Bullock.
The undiscovered country : triumph, tragedy, and the shaping of the American West
by Paul Andrew Hutton

Revisits the American West of 1755 to 1890 through the lives of four frontiersmen and three Native leaders, examining the violent realities, cultural myths, and environmental costs behind the celebrated narrative of national expansion and identity.
Cleaning house : the fight to rid our homes of toxic chemicals
by Lindsay Dahl

This gripping, science-backed exposé shows how toxic chemicals infiltrate everyday products and homes, revealing the systemic failures behind them and empowering readers with practical tools and advocacy strategies to create a healthier, safer world for all families.
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