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  Daughter of the Dragon - Anna...

  Yunte Huang

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  A trenchant reclamation of the Chinese American movie star, whose battles against cinematic exploitation and endemic racism are set against the currents of twentieth-century history. 
   
   
   
  Born into the steam and starch of a Chinese laundry, Anna May Wong (1905–1961) emerged from turn-of-the-century Los Angeles to become Old Hollywood's most famous Chinese American actress, a screen siren who captivated global audiences and signed her publicity photos—with a touch of defiance—"Orientally yours." Now, more than a century after her birth, Yunte Huang narrates Wong's tragic life story, retracing her journey from Chinatown to silent-era Hollywood, and from Weimar Berlin to decadent, prewar Shanghai, and capturing American television in its infancy. As Huang shows, Wong's rendezvous with history features a remarkable parade of characters, including a smitten Walter Benjamin and (an equally smitten) Marlene Dietrich. Challenging the parodically racist perceptions of Wong as a "Dragon Lady," "Madame Butterfly," or "China Doll," Huang's biography becomes a truly resonant work of history that reflects the raging anti-Chinese xenophobia, unabashed sexism, and ageism toward women that defined both Hollywood and America in Wong's all-too-brief fifty-six years on earth.

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  Soldier of Destiny - Slavery...

  John Reeves

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  Captain Ulysses S. Grant rose to become general-in-chief of the United States Army in 1864. Was it destiny? Or was he just an ordinary man, opportunistically benefiting from the turmoil of the Civil War to advance to the highest military rank? 
   
   
   
  Soldier of Destiny reveals that Grant always possessed the latent abilities of a skilled commander—and he was able to develop these skills out West without the overwhelming pressure faced by more senior commanders in the Eastern theater at the beginning of the Civil War. 
   
   
   
  From 1861 to 1864, Grant went from being ambivalent about slavery to becoming one of the leading individuals responsible for emancipating the slaves. Soldier of Destiny tells the story of Grant's connection to slavery in far more detail than in previous biographies. 
   
   
   
  Grant's life story is a tale of redemption within the context of his fraught relationships with his antislavery father and his slaveholding wife. This narrative explores the poverty, inequality, and extraordinary vitality of the American West during a crucial time in our nation's history. Writers on Grant have tended to overlook his St. Louis years, even though they are essential for understanding his later triumphs.

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  Architects of Terror: Paranoia...

  Paul Preston

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  A TIMES HISTORY BOOK OF THE YEAR 
  From the preeminent historian of 20th century Spain Paul Preston, Architects of Terror is a new history of how paranoia, conspiracy and anti-Semitism was used to justify the military coup of 1936 and enabled the construction of a dictatorship built on violence and persecution. 
  It is the previously untold story of how antisemitic beliefs were weaponised to justify and propagate the Franco overthrow of liberal Spain. 
  The Spanish military coup of 1936 was launched to overturn the social and economic reforms of the democratic Second Republic, and its educational and cultural challenges to the established order. The consequent civil war was fought in the interests of the landowners, industrialists, bankers, clerics and army officers whose privileges were threatened. However, a central justification for a war that took the lives of around 500,000 Spaniards was that it was being fought to combat an alleged scheme for world domination by a non-existent ‘Jewish- Masonic-Bolshevik Conspiracy’. Despite the fact that Spain had only a tiny minority of Jews and Freemasons, Franco and his inner circle were ardent believers in this fabricated conspiracy and spread the notion that the survival of Catholic Spain, as well, of course, of the establishment ’ s economic interests, required the total annihilation of Jews and Freemasons. 
  Architects of Terror is the story of how fake news, mendacity, corruption and nostalgia for lost empire generated violence and hatred. The book presents vivid portraits of the key ideologues who propagated the myth of the Jewish-Masonic-Bolshevik Conspiracy and of the military figures who implemented the atrocities that it justified. Among the convictions shared by these individuals was their belief in the idea that Freemasonry was responsible for Spain ’ s loss of empire and in the factual veracity of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, the notorious fiction about the global domination of the Jews. 
  This is a history that reverberates in our own political moment 
  In his latest work, Architects of Terror, Paul Preston presents a compelling narrative of the Spanish military coup of 1936, a historical event marred by paranoia, conspiracy, and anti-Semitism. The book, a must-read in the biography and historical genre, uncovers the role of fake news, corruption, and nostalgia in generating violence and hatred. 
  For fans of Antony Beevor (Arnhem), Giles Tremlett (The International Brigades), Adam Hochschild (American Midnight), Anne Applebaum (Red Famine), and Ernest Hemingway (Ernest Hemingway on Writing). 
  HarperCollins 2023

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  How Did We Get Here? - A girl's...

  Mpoomy Ledwaba

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  ‘I share to normalise talking about those shameful, hurtful things we keep hidden. I share because shame loses its power when we find safe spaces to share our truth … and when women heal, generations heal.’ 
  To her thousands of fans, Wisdom & Wellness founder, Speaker and Influencer Mpoomy Ledwaba is a symbol of strength and women empowerment. But going from university dropout to Forbes magazine’s list of 30 Under 30 wasn’t always easy – it took a lot of guts and a commitment to personal growth. 
  How did we get here? is her coming-of-age story. Looking back on her upbringing, major milestones and the challenges she’s faced, Mpoomy takes us on her journey of self-discovery. Behind the Instagram likes and thousands of YouTube subscribers is a bright girl who sometimes bit off more than she could chew. This mother of two, who is married to an award-winning musician, didn’t always have a plan and rarely fit the mould of ‘the good wife’. 
  In this frank account, Mpoomy writes openly about the hurt she’s experienced, the mistakes she’s made and some of the hard truths she’s had to learn about life, but also how her faith has been a guiding light. As a firm believer in the power of stories, she uses her personal history to show how to live a purposeful life on all levels.

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  CS Lewis: The Life and Legacy of...

  Charles River Editors

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  C.S. Lewis had an interesting and turbulent life, during which he maintained a prominent academic career and wrote fictional books that, to this day, captivate readers all over the world, regardless of their age and nationality. To understand his life, it must be kept in mind that he was a communicator at heart. He lectured at Oxford, wrote essays for wartime radio, and crafted fairy tales imbued with moral and theological symbolism. No matter which of these tasks he had at hand, his goal was always the same: convey complex ideas in an accessible manner, defend the rationality of his faith, and, most importantly, tell stories. As a result, the stories Lewis told would attempt to reveal many of the deeper truths about the human condition and experience, some of them referencing his own.  
  Though Lewis wrote his fantasy stories and theological books nearly a century ago, he is still lauded as one of the most celebrated British authors of the 20th century, and it would be an understatement merely to say that he has left a lasting impact on generations of readers. The Chronicles of Narnia have sold over 100 million copies and been translated into more than 40 languages, while his apologetic books are still widely read by believers and skeptics alike. Many popular writers in the 21st century, such as Philip Pullman (despite strong disagreements), Neil Gaiman, and J.K. Rowling have all acknowledged Lewis’ role in shaping modern fantasy. At the same time, pastors, professors, and public thinkers still quote him as being one of the clearest voices bridging intellect and faith, referring to his theological works in a variety of ways.

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  The Day I Broke My Son's Heart

  Brad Meltzer

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  Truth in a title. Here's the exact day that Brad gave his favorite book to his oldest son. Originally appeared in The Huffington Post.

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