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  Hermann of Reichenau - The Story...

  Maria Calasanz Ziesche

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  The amazing life story of a quadriplegic monk during the Middle Ages 
  One of the most brilliant minds of the Middle Ages, Herman of Reichenau was a severely crippled monk who, though he was marginalized and even mistreated by his fellow monks, is celebrated to this day for his groundbreaking scientific work and the beauty of his musical compositions, among them "Salve Regina." A quadriplegic since childhood and brought to the monastery at an early age, Herman lived at one of the most influential and powerful Medieval monasteries, situated on a small island in the Lake of Constance on the modern-day border of Austria, Switzerland, and Germany. As he grew and studied, investing his hope in the medical promises of the time to alleviate his physical ailments, his days meandered between deep despair and his growing faith. When his music was played and sung, an exhilarating joy entered the whole community, and the monks came to see the extraordinary spiritual strength, beauty, and true happiness coming from the weakest among them. A deeply encouraging book about the life of a man who overcame numerous obstacles, this work captures the grandeur of the human spirit.

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  The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

  Washington Irving

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  "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is an 1820 short story by American author Washington Irving, contained in his collection of 34 essays and short stories titled The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. Irving wrote the story while living in Birmingham, England. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is among the earliest examples of American fiction with enduring popularity, especially during Halloween because of a character known as the Headless Horseman believed to be a Hessian soldier who was decapitated by a cannonball in battle. The story is set in 1790 in the countryside around the Dutch settlement of Tarry Town (historical Tarrytown, New York), in a secluded glen known as Sleepy Hollow. Sleepy Hollow is renowned for its ghosts and the haunting atmosphere that pervades the imaginations of its inhabitants and visitors. Some residents say this town was bewitched during the early days of the Dutch settlement, while others claim that the mysterious atmosphere was caused by an old Native American chief, the "wizard of his tribe ... before the country was discovered by Master Hendrik Hudson." Residents of the town are seemingly subjected to various supernatural and mysterious occurrences. They are subjected to trance-like visions and frequented by strange sights, music, and voices "in the air." The inhabitants of Sleepy Hollow are fascinated by the "local tales, haunted spots, and twilight superstitions" on account of the mysterious occurrences and haunting atmosphere.

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  The Claudius Novels - I Claudius...

  Robert Graves

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  The Claudius Novels includes Robert Graves’ best known historical novels, I, Claudius and Claudius the God. 
  In I, Claudius, Robert Graves begins the story of the limping, stammering young man who is suddenly thrust onto the throne after the death of Caligula.
  Once a rather bookish young man with a limp and a stammer, a man who spent most of his time trying to stay away from the danger and risk of the line of ascension, Claudius seemed an unlikely candidate for Emperor. Yet, on the death of Caligula, Claudius finds himself next in line for the throne, and must stay alive as well as keep control.
  
  Drawing on the histories of Plutarch, Suetonius, and Gaius Cornelius Tacitus, noted historian and classicist Robert Graves tells the story of the much-maligned Emperor Claudius with both skill and compassion. Weaving important themes throughout about the nature of freedom and safety possible in a safety and a monarchy, Graves’ Claudius is both more effective and more tragic than history typically remembers him. A best-selling novel and one of Graves’ most successful, I, Claudius has been adapted to television, film, theatre, and audio.
  
  In Claudius the God, Graves continues the story, detailing Claudius’ 13-year reign and his ultimate downfall. Painting the vivid, tumultuous, and decadent society of ancient Rome with spectacular detail, Robert Graves provides a tale that is both instructive and compelling, and difficult to put down for both casual readers and students of Roman history.

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  The Blacksmith's Daughter

  Selim Özdoğan

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  A close-knit family is transformed forever when its matriarch tragically dies, leaving behind a husband, Timur the blacksmith, and their three young daughters. The Blacksmith’s Daughter follows the life of the eldest daughter, Gül, who is growing up in rural Turkey in the 1940s and ’50s. 
  When Timur remarries, the girls’ new stepmother has none of their mother’s warmth, so Gül feels compelled to take on the role of mother to her younger siblings. Their village upbringing is full of simple pleasures: summer evenings sat outside listening to the radio, games played in the street. But the world is evolving, and with an emerging focus on economic growth and prosperity as modernity creeps in, Gül’s future is unknown. Through all the hardships and uncertainty, what remains ever-constant is the close bond she shares with her father, who deeply respects and cherishes his firstborn. 
  The Blacksmith’s Daughter is an enchanting glimpse into how a young girl navigates loss, identity, and altered family dynamics, while her simple way of life is changing too.

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  Feed the Crocodiles

  Catherine Davis

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  The narrative is set against the backdrop of Uganda's transition from British rule in 1962. It explores the "blindness to change" as the initial promise of independence is gradually overshadowed by the rising instability and the shift toward the kleptocracy and violence associated with Milton Obote's first regime.
  Author Catherine Davis lived on the outskirts of Kampala as a child and wrote the book as a tribute to the place she loved, reflecting on how easily the "normal" life of a prosperous nation was transformed by the country's turbulent history. 

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  A Deed of Dreadful Note

  Patricia Meredith

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  Fifteen years before Sir Arthur Conan Doyle published A Study in Scarlet, Anna Katharine Green began writing The Leavenworth Case, inspiring the creation of detectives like Sherlock, Poirot, and Wimsey, as well as almost every device and convention we now recognize as standard in detective mystery fiction. 
  When her father's client is found murdered, Anna takes up the call to prove innocent the young girl accused of the murder. The investigation inspires many of the events, characters, and descriptions that would later be published in her debut novel. 
  A love letter to mystery and writing itself, A Deed of Dreadful Note is an homage and reintroduction to an author who was the Agatha Christie of her time but a forgotten female today. 
  This book is a fictionalized account of how Anna Katharine Green’s first novel may have come to be… 
  A Deed of Dreadful Note is Book One in the Anna Katharine Green Mysteries, the only historical fiction series featuring the Mother of Detective Fiction.

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