Other books that might interest you

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  Test Pilot

  Neville Duke

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  The renowned WWII RAF fighter pilot who went on to set an air speed record tells his story—now with an updated chapter and new photos.   Joining the RAF at the beginning of the war, young Neville Duke became a fighter pilot with the crack 92 Squadron at RAF Biggin Hill in 1941. That spring and summer, he survived the air battles over Northern France with the Biggin Hill Wing, often flying as wingman to the legendary Adolph “Sailor” Malan, Fighter Command’s top-scoring pilot at that time. Duke quickly established himself as one of the most successful pilots in North Africa, bringing his score to twenty-one by the end of the Tunisian Campaign, and then took command of 145 Spitfire Squadron in Italy. Leading this unit in the summer of 1944, he brought his score to twenty-eight. Earning numerous honors, he was recognized for his heroism, but the military was only the beginning of his life in aviation.   Toward the end of the war, he became an RAF test pilot—and later a member of the RAF High Speed Flight. He would go on to a successful postwar career, playing a key role in the flight development on one of the most famous of all RAF peacetime aircraft—the Hawker Hunter—and taking the world speed record in 1953.   An in-depth look at his daring exploits covering both his combat career and his postwar accomplishments, Test Pilot is now updated with an additional chapter, appendices and index, and a completely new selection of photographs.  

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  Willie Wells - "El Diablo" of...

  Bob Luke

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  The first complete biography of an important Negro League baseball player from Austin, Texas.Willie Wells was arguably the best shortstop of his generation. As Monte Irvin, a teammate and fellow Hall of Fame player, writes in his foreword, “Wells really could do it all. He was one of the slickest fielding shortstops ever to come along. He had speed on the bases. He hit with power and consistency. He was among the most durable players I’ve ever known.” Yet few people have heard of the feisty ballplayer nicknamed “El Diablo.” Willie Wells was black, and he played long before Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier. Bob Luke has sifted through the spotty statistics, interviewed Negro League players and historians, and combed the yellowed letters and newspaper accounts of Wells’s life to draw the most complete portrait yet of an important baseball player.Wells’s baseball career lasted thirty years and included seasons in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Canada. He played against white all-stars as well as Negro League greats Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, and Buck O’Neill, among others. He was beaned so many times that he became the first modern player to wear a batting helmet.As an older player and coach, he mentored some of the first black major leaguers, including Jackie Robinson and Don Newcombe. Willie Wells truly deserved his induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame, but Bob Luke details how the lingering effects of segregation hindered black players, including those better known than Wells, long after the policy officially ended. Fortunately, Willie Wells had the talent and tenacity to take on anything—from segregation to inside fastballs—life threw at him. No wonder he needed a helmet.“Willie Wells: “El Diablo” of the Negro Leagues is well researched and well written, so the average baseball fan should find it to be an entertaining read.” —Dale Petroskey, president, National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum “The story of Willie Wells opens another window on the conditions and constraints of Jim Crow America, and how painfully difficult it can be, even now, to remedy the persistent effects of discrimination. Every baseball fan will love this story. Every American should read it.” —Ira Glasser, executive director, American Civil Liberties Union, 1978-2001“Reconstructing, indeed resurrecting, the career of a peripatetic Negro League baseball player is a daunting task. Negro and Major League great Monte Irvin tells us that his fellow Hall of Famer, shortstop Willie Wells, belongs on the same baseball page as Gibson, DiMaggio, Paige, and Feller. This fine biography by Bob Luke does a wonderful job in telling us why and how that is the case. We have here a Hall of Fame telling of the story of a true Hall of Famer.” —Lawrence Hogan, author of Shades of Glory: The Negro Leagues and the Story of African American Baseball

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  Abraham Lincoln - The Prairie...

  Carl Sandburg

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  "A Lincoln whom no other man than Carl Sandburg could have given us." -Mark Van Doren, New York Herald Tribune Book Review 
   
  Originally published in six volumes, which sold more than one million copies, Carl Sandburg's Abraham Lincoln was praised as the most noteworthy historical biography of Sandburg's generation. He later distilled this monumental work into one volume that critics and readers alike consider his greatest work of nonfiction, as well as the most distinguished, authoritative biography of Lincoln ever published. 
   
  Growing up in an Illinois prairie town, Sandburg listened to stories of old-timers who had known Lincoln. By the time this single-volume edition was competed, he had spent a lifetime studying, researching, and writing about our sixteenth president. His extraordinary portrait brings fully to life the country lawyer who would become one of the most influential and beloved presidents of the American republic. 
   
  Additional information about the author can be found at: http://www.nps.gov/carl.

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  The Cloak and Dagger Cook - A...

  Kay Shaw Nelson

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  “Delightful . . . Kay Nelson’s memoir teaches us that food is a key to unlocking and understanding cultures other than our own.” —Charles Pinck, president, Office of Strategic Services Society   Upon graduating from college in 1948, Kay Shaw Nelson, a bright young woman with a yen for international travel, joined the newly founded Central Intelligence Agency. Within months, she received her security clearance, learned the difficulties associated with the life of a spy, fell in love, and set about traveling the world on assignment with her husband. At times under the cover of a cookbook writer, Nelson sailed from one exotic locale to another, each more incredible than the last. From Washington to Turkey and Cyprus, to Syria, Libya, France, Greece, and the Netherlands, among many other ports, the Nelsons traversed the globe as Kay discovered her passion for food, developed her journalistic abilities, and honed her exceptional palate.   With humor and panache, Nelson tells of her exploits gleaning intelligence while gathering recipes and sampling the local cuisine. Kebabs in Turkey, kimchi in Korea, spargel in Germany, eels in Spain, and Rumbledethumps in Scotland were among the delightful gastronomic surprises she encountered. Dozens of unusual recipes with memorable histories pepper this irresistible memoir of fascinating events, extraordinary corners of the globe, and clandestine culinary pursuits.  “This delightful gastro-biographic guidebook starts off by sending abroad a wide-eyed CIA novice who returns an epicurean globe-trotting and seasoned intelligence officer, author, and down-to-earth sophisticate. Like a complex, silky-smooth digestif, it finishes so quickly with such a pleasant buzz, you’ll want to signal the waiter for a second round.” —Elizabeth Bancroft, executive director, Association of Former Intelligence Officers

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  One of Morgan's Men - Memoirs of...

  John M. Porter

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  This annotated Civil War memoir provides a detailed account of General Morgan’s famous battles and raids from a Confederate soldier’s perspective. 
   
  John Marion Porter grew up working at his family's farm and dry goods store in Butler County, Kentucky. He was studying to become a lawyer when the Civil War began. As the son of a family of slave owners, Porter identified with the Southern cause and quickly enlisted in the Confederate army. He and his lifelong friend Thomas Henry Hines served in the Ninth Kentucky Calvary under John Hunt Morgan, the “Thunderbolt of the Confederacy.” 
   
  When the war ended, Porter began writing detailed memoirs of his experiences during the war years, including tales of scouting behind enemy lines, sabotaging a Union train, being captured and held as a prisoner of war, and searching for an army to join after his release. 
   
  Editor Kent Masterson Brown spent several years preparing Porter's memoir for publication, clarifying details and adding annotations to provide historical context. One of Morgan's Men is a fascinating firsthand account of the life of a Confederate soldier.

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  How We Fish: The new book from...

  Paul Whitehouse, John Bailey,...

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  Paul Whitehouse and fishing expert John Bailey celebrate the timeless joy of fishing. 
  Paul Whitehouse and John Bailey have been devout fishermen for longer than they care to remember. A hobby, past time or sport – call it what you want – they have felt the pull of the water ever since they were kids and have never missed the chance to set up on the bank and try their luck. 
  In this wonderful book, the two fishermen collaborate to celebrate the rich tapestry that is fishing – from mentors to memories; from philosophy to modern jargon; from watercraft to becoming self-styled ‘Fishing Detectives’. Punctuated by brilliant stories, beautiful illustrations by Carys Reilly-Whitehouse, and recollections from fishing day trips past, How We Fish is the perfect tome for the veteran fisherman or the budding angler – warm, funny and rich in the wonders of the riverbank. 
  Paul Whitehouse and John Bailey's How We Fish is a captivating autobiography that explores their shared passion for fishing. As environmentalists and naturalists, their travelogues offer a unique perspective on nature and the sport, making it a top choice for readers interested in these topics. 
  For fans of John Gierach (All Fishermen Are Liars), Richard Blackburn (Float Fishing), Howell Raines (Fly Fishing Through the Midlife Crisis), Bob Mortimer (Mortimer & Whitehouse), and John Moorwood (The Magic of Fishing). 
  HarperCollins 2023

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