Inyo County Free Library - New Acquisitions
November 2020 - December 2020
These are books and media new to the library and cataloged by the Inyo County Free Library.
Additional information about each title can be found in the catalog (click on the title). For older acquisition lists choose from Select another list. To request any of these titles please contact your local library branch.
Non-Fiction | Computer science, information & general worksPhilosophy & psychologyReligionSocial sciencesLanguageScienceTechnologyArts & recreationLiteratureHistory & geography |
By Farquhar, Michael Publishing Date: [2014] Classification: 900 Call Number: 947.046 FAR A lively chronicle of the passions, intrigues and scandals of the Romanov dynasty includes accounts of such topics as Peter the Great's torture of his own son and Catherine the Great's many young lovers. |
Secondhand time: the last of the Soviets By Aleksievich, Svetlana Publishing Date: 2017 Classification: 900 Call Number: 947.086 ALE "Bringing together dozens of voices in her distinctive style of oral history, Secondhand Time is a monument to the collapse of the USSR, charting the decline of Soviet culture and speculating on what will rise from the ashes of Communism. As in all her books, Alexievich gives voice to women and men whose stories are lost in the official narratives of nation-states, creating a powerful alternative history from the personal and private stories of individuals. When the Swedish Academy awarded Svetlana Alexievich the Nobel Prize in Literature, they praised her 'polyphonic writings, a monument to suffering and courage in our time, ' and cited her for inventing 'a new kind of literary genre.' Sara Danius, the permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, added that her work comprises 'a history of emotions--a history of the soul.'"--Publisher information. |
Istanbul: a tale of three cities By Hughes, Bettany Publishing Date: 2017 Classification: 900 Call Number: 949.618 HUG From the Koran to Shakespeare, this city with three names--Byzantium, Constantinople, Istanbul--resonates as an idea and a place, real and imagined. Standing as the gateway between East and West, North and South, it has been the capital city of the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires. For much of its history it was the very center of the world, known simply as "The City," but, as Bettany Hughes reveals, Istanbul is not just a city, but a global story. In this epic new biography, Hughes takes us on a dazzling historical journey from the Neolithic to the present, through the many incarnations of one of the world's greatest cities--exploring the ways that Istanbul's influence has spun out to shape the wider world. Hughes investigates what it takes to make a city and tells the story not just of emperors, viziers, caliphs, and sultans, but of the poor and the voiceless, of the women and men whose aspirations and dreams have continuously reinvented Istanbul. |
By Cotterell, Arthur Publishing Date: 2011 Classification: 900 Call Number: 950 COT "A comprehensive narrative of the 3,000 years that have formed Asia's people, culture, and global destiny. Tracing its origins in Mesopotamia to its modern role on the global geopolitical stage, historian Arthur Cotterell offers a compelling, lively, and readable account of one of the most culturally diverse, and often misunderstood, parts of the world. Beginning with the emergence of the world's earliest civilization in 3000 BC, Asia: A Concise History provides a fascinating look at the global convulsions like the rise and fall of Assyria and Persia, the medieval states that flourished after the advent of Islam, and the modern transformations triggered by the lightning conquests of imperial Japan that have shaped the continent. Covers the great events and figures of Asian history, along with a look at the monumental remains that bear witness to those times: the ziggurats of Iraq, the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall of China, the temple of Angkor Wat. Includes fascinating slices of history, including funeral arrangements for Qin Shi Huangdi in 210 BC, an extract from Lord Macartney's journal of his 1793 diplomatic mission to the Qing emperor Qian Long, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi's edict of 1587 banning firearms in Japan. Features boxed inserts of special interest like a Babylonian recipe for lamb stew circa 1500 BC. Contains over 100 illustrations, maps, and photos"--Publisher's description. |
By Fairbank, John King Publishing Date: 2006 Classification: 900 Call Number: 951 FAI A broad history of China, covering the period from the earliest archaeological records to the present. Updated by Merle Goldman from the original 1992 edition in order to include the reforms in the post-Mao period through the early years of the twenty-first century, including the leadership of Hu Jintao. She also provides an epilogue discussing the changes in contemporary China that will shape the nation in the years to come. |
By Yi, Ki-baek Publishing Date: c1984 Classification: 900 Call Number: 951.9 YI A survey history of Korea. |
India: a history : from the earliest civilisations to the boom of the twenty-first century By Keay, John Publishing Date: [2010] Classification: 900 Call Number: 954 KEA "Fully revised with forty thousand new words that take the reader up to present-day India, John Keay's India: A History spans five millennia in a sweeping narrative that tells the story of the peoples of the subcontinent, from their ancient beginnings in the valley of the Indus to the events in the region today. In charting the evolution of the rich tapestry of cultures, religions, and peoples that comprise the modern nations of Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh, Keay weaves together insights from a variety of scholarly fields to create a rich historical narrative. Wide-ranging and authoritative, India: A History is a compelling epic portrait of one of the world's oldest and most richly diverse civilizations." -- |
By Ghattas, Kim Publishing Date: 2020 Classification: 900 Call Number: 955.053 GHA "The bestselling author of The Secretary tells the gripping story of the real roots of the Sunni-Shia conflict in Middle East in the 1979 Iran Revolution that changed the region forever"-- |
The girl in the picture: the story of Kim Phuc, the photograph, and the Vietnam War By Chong, Denise Publishing Date: 2000 Classification: 900 Call Number: 959.704 CHO From the most photographed war in the twentieth century, among the enduring images is one of a little girl screaming in pain and terror after being burned by napalm in an air attack. On June 8, 1972, nine-year-old Kim Phuc ran from her burning village in South Vietnam and into the eye of history. Her photograph, taken by an Associated Press photographer, was seen around the world and helped turn public opinion against the Vietnam War. It is an image that remains branded in the memory of all who lived through the Vietnam years. This book is the story of how that photograph came to be taken and what happened to Kim Phuc after it was taken. It opens up to American readers an unknown world - the world of Vietnam after the American army left and Saigon fell to the Communists from the north. - (Blackwell North Amer) |
Art of being Tuareg: Sahara nomads in a modern world Publishing Date: c2006 Classification: 900 Call Number: 966 This volume accompanies an exhibition of the same name that was organized by Seligman (director, Cantor Center for Visual Arts, Stanford U.) and Loughran (an independent scholar specializing in the Tuareg) and displayed Tuareg decorative and decorated artifacts jointly drawn from the collections of both their institutions, in addition to other major museums. Color photographs depict jewelry, clothing, religious artifacts, musical instruments, and other types of materials displayed in the exhibition, as well as various aspects of Tuareg life and culture. Interspersed with the photographs are textual essays discussing Tuareg culture and material culture from the perspectives of anthropology, ethnomusicology, political science, art history, and jewelry design. Distributed in the US by the U. of Washington Press. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) - (Book News) |
By Brands, H. W Publishing Date: [2015] Classification: 900 Call Number: 973 BRA "From master storyteller and New York Times bestselling biographer H. W. Brands, twice a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, comes the first full life of Ronald Reagan since his death. Ronald Reagan today is a conservative icon, celebrated for transforming the American domestic agenda and playing a crucial part in ending communism in the Soviet Union. In his masterful new biography, H. W. Brands argues that Reagan, along with FDR, was the most consequential president of the twentieth century. Reagan took office at a time when the public sector, after a half century of New Deal liberalism, was widely perceived as bloated and inefficient, an impediment to personal liberty. Reagan sought to restore democracy by bolstering capitalism. In Brands's telling, how Reagan, who voted four times for FDR, engineered a conservative transformation of American politics is both a riveting personal journey and the story of America in the modern era. Brands follows Reagan as his ambition for ever larger stages compelled him from a troubled childhood in small-town Illinois to become a radio announcer and then the quintessential public figure of modern America, a movie star. In Hollywood, Reagan edged closer to public service as the president of the Screen Actors' Guild, before a stalled film career led to his unlikely reinvention as the voice of General Electric and a spokesman for corporate America. Reagan follows its subject on his improbable political rise, from the 1960s, when he was first elected governor of California, to his triumphant election in 1980 as president of the United States. Brands employs archival sources not available to previous biographers and dozens of interviews with surviving members of the administration. The result is an exciting narrative and a fresh understanding of a crucially important president and his era"-- |
Rightful heritage: Franklin D. Roosevelt and the land of America By Brinkley, Douglas Publishing Date: [2016] Classification: 900 Call Number: 973 BRI Douglas Brinkley's Wilderness Warrior celebrated Theodore Roosevelt's spirit of outdoor exploration and bold vision. Now Brinkley turns his attention to another indefatigable environmental leader--Theodore's distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt--chronicling his essential yet undersung legacy as the founder of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and the premier protector of America's public lands. FDR built state park systems and scenic roadways from scratch. Through his leadership, pristine landscapes such as the Great Smokies, the Everglades, Joshua Tree, the Olympics, Big Bend, and the Channel Islands were forever saved. Brinkley traces FDR's love for the natural world back to his youth spent exploring the Hudson River Valley and birdwatching. Forestry would soon become a consuming passion. As America's president from 1933 to 1945, Roosevelt, a consummate political strategist, established hundreds of federal migratory bird refuges and spearheaded the modern movement to protect endangered species. He deftly positioned his conservation goals as economic policy to combat the severe unemployment of the Great Depression. During its seven-year existence, the CCC put nearly three million young men to work on conservation projects--including planting trees, national park preservation, pollution control, and grasslands restoration. Rightful Heritage is an epic chronicle that is both an irresistible portrait of FDR's unrivaled passion and drive and an indispensable analysis that skillfully illuminates the tension between business and nature--exploiting our natural resources and conserving them. Within the narrative are capsule biographies of such environmental warriors as Eleanor Roosevelt, Harold Ickes, and Aldo Leopold.--Adapted from dust jacket. |
A little history of the United States By Davidson, James West Publishing Date: [2015] Classification: 900 Call Number: 973 DAV Describes how the United States developed from the first contact between extremely different cultures to its role as a superpower and explores how a country based on diversity seeks the sometimes contradictory goals of freedom and equality. |
Beyond the Revolution: a history of American thought from Paine to pragmatism By Goetzmann, William H Publishing Date: c2009 Classification: 900 Call Number: 973 GOE From 1776, when Citizen Tom Paine declared, “The birthday of a new world is at hand,” America was unique in world history. A nation suffused with the spirit of explorers, constantly replenished by immigrants, and informed by a continual influx of foreign ideas, it was the world's first truly cosmopolitan civilization. In Beyond the Revolution, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian William H. Goetzmann tells the story of America's greatest thinkers and creators, from Paine and Jefferson to Melville and William James, showing how they built upon and battled one another's ideas in the critical years between 1776 and 1900. An unprecedented work of intellectual history by a master historian, this book will be essential reading for anyone interested in the origins of our national culture.- (Perseus Publishing) |
Man of destiny: FDR and the making of the American century By Hamby, Alonzo L Publishing Date: 2015 Classification: 900 Call Number: 973 HAM The author explores the life of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in terms of the degree to which his personality shaped his immense legacy. |
By Schlesinger, Arthur M Publishing Date: 1992 Classification: 900 Call Number: 973 SCH Examines the growing cult of ethnicity in the United States and discusses how it undermines a common American identity and results in ethnic and racial animosity - (Baker & Taylor) |
By Winchester, Simon Publishing Date: [2013] Classification: 900 Call Number: 973 WIN Acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Winchester illuminates the men who toiled fearlessly to discover, connect, and bond the citizenry and geography of the U.S.A. from its beginnings and ponders whether the historic work of uniting the States has succeeded, and to what degree. |
Valiant ambition: George Washington, Benedict Arnold, and the fate of the American Revolution By Philbrick, Nathaniel Publishing Date: [2016] Classification: 900 Call Number: 973.3 PHI In the summer of 1776, Washington's army in Brooklyn and New York City faced one of the largest invading forces ever assembled by the British Empire. After suffering a series of devastating defeats, Washington's vulnerable and dejected troops were forced to evacuate the southern tip of Manhattan Island. Three weeks later, however, near the Canadian border, one of his favorite and most talented generals accomplished a tactical miracle by stalling the British advance in a viciously fought naval battle on Lake Champlain. An American defeat would have effectively ended the war, and it was Benedict Arnold who saved his young country from ruin. Moving beyond the storied victories at Trenton and Princeton and the ordeal of the Continental army at Valley Forge, Philbrick shows how the injuries Arnold suffered at the Battle of Saratoga set Washington's greatest fighting general on the road to treason. Arnold was an impulsive but sympathetic hero whose misfortunes at the hands of self-serving politicians undermined his faith in the legitimacy of the rebellion. By 1780, he had fled to the enemy after his failed attempt to surrender the American fortress at West Point to the British. During the same period, Washington came to embrace the full scope of leadership. The book tracks the messy collision of military and political goals and shows how the deep divisions among the American people posed a greater threat to their cause than the British army. In a new country wary of tyrants, Washington's unmatched ability to rise above the petty politics of his time enabled him to recognize the war that really mattered. In his treason, Arnold may actually have saved America. By intertwining the stories of Washington and Arnold, Philbrick reveals the dark path America traveled during its revolution. This is a portrait of a people in crisis and the war that gave birth to a nation. |
By Holton, Woody Publishing Date: 2009 Classification: 900 Call Number: 973.4 HOL Prof. Woody Holton (NBA-finalist for Unruly Americans) reveals that American icon Abigail Adams was far wiser and wilier than previously known. |
Thomas Jefferson: the art of power By Meacham, Jon Publishing Date: 2012 Classification: 900 Call Number: 973.4 MEA "Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power" gives readers Jefferson the politician and president, a great and complex human being forever engaged in the wars of his era. Philosophers think; politicians maneuver. Jefferson's genius was that he was both and could do both, often simultaneously, catapulting him into becoming the most successful political leader of the early republic, and perhaps in all of American history. |