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  Master of War - The Life of...

  Benson Bobrick

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  In this revelatory, dynamic biography, one of our finest historians, Benson Bobrick, profiles George H. Thomas, arguing that he was the greatest and most successful general of the Civil War. Because Thomas didn't live to write his memoirs, his reputation has been largely shaped by others, most notably Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman, two generals with whom Thomas served and who, Bobrick says, diminished his successes in their favor in their own memoirs.Born in Virginia, Thomas survived Nat Turner's rebellion as a boy, then studied at West Point, where Sherman was a classmate. Thomas distinguished himself in the Mexican War and then returned to West Point as an instructor. When the Civil War broke out, Thomas remained loyal to the Union, unlike fellow Virginia-born officer Robert E. Lee (among others). He compiled an outstanding record as an officer in battles at Mill Springs, Perryville, and Stones River. At the Battle of Chickamauga, Thomas, at the time a corps commander, held the center of the Union line under a ferocious assault, then rallied the troops on Horseshoe Ridge to prevent a Confederate rout of the Union army. His extraordinary performance there earned him the nickname "The Rock of Chickamauga."Promoted to command of the Army of the Cumberland, he led his army in a stunning Union victory at the Battle of Chattanooga. Thomas supported Sherman on his march through Georgia in the spring of 1864, winning an important victory at the Battle of Peachtree Creek. As Sherman continued on his March to the Sea, Thomas returned to Tennessee and in the battle of Nashville destroyed the army of Confederate general John Bell Hood. It was one of the most decisive victories of the war, and Thomas won it even as Grant was on his way to remove Thomas from his command. (When Grant discovered the magnitude of Thomas's victory, he quickly changed his mind.) Thomas died of a stroke in 1870 while still on active duty. In the entire Civil War, he never lost a battle or a movement.Throughout his career, Thomas was methodical, careful, and always prepared. Unlike Grant at Shiloh, he was never surprised by an enemy. Unlike Sherman, he never panicked in battle but always remained calm and focused. He was derided by both men as "Slow Trot Thomas," but as Bobrick shows in this brilliant biography, he was quick to analyze every situation and always knew what to do and when to do it. He was not colorful like Grant and Sherman, but he was widely admired by his peers, and some, such as Grant's favorite cavalry commander, General James H. Wilson, thought Thomas the peer of any general in either army. He was the only Union commander to destroy two Confederate armies in the field.Although historians of the Civil War have always regarded Thomas highly, he has never captured the public imagination, perhaps because he has lacked an outstanding biographer-until now. This informed, judicious, and lucid biography at last gives Thomas his due.

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  Enough

  Angela Cox

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  Enough is a compelling account of self-determination and survival written with absolute honesty and passion. Part memoir, part manual full of tips, tricks, and rituals to integrate into your life in order to be the best you can be, Enough follows the journey of Angela Cox. After years of unsuccessful and often dangerous dieting, she needed a radical mindset shift and a floppy haired body coach by the name of Joe to finally change her own story and support others to do the same.She could never have predicted how she'd gain far more than a new body. In meeting her new self, she first had to make peace with a painful, traumatic past that had kept her under lock and key for nearly 40 years.This audioook demonstrates that the power to change your now and your forever exists inside you, if you believe that you are enough.

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  The Gambler

  Fyodor Dostoyevsky

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  In this dark and compelling short novel, Fyodor Dostoevsky tells the story of Alexey Ivanovitch, a young tutor working in the household of an imperious Russian general. Alexey tries to break through the wall of the established order in Russia, but instead becomes mired in the endless downward spiral of betting and loss. His intense and inescapable addiction is accentuated by his affair with the General's cruel yet seductively adept niece, Polina. In The Gambler, Dostoevsky reaches the heights of drama with this stunning psychological portrait.

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  Mosby's Raids in Civil War...

  William S Connery

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  The fascinating life of Colonel John Singleton Mosby, the Gray Ghost, before, during, and after the Civil War. The most famous Civil War name in Northern Virginia—other than General Lee—belongs to Colonel John Singleton Mosby, the Gray Ghost. His early life characterized by abuse of childhood bullies, a less-than-outstanding academic career, and even a brief incarceration, Mosby stands out among nearly one thousand generals who served in the war.   Even though Mosby was opposed to secession, he joined the Confederate army as a private in Virginia, and quickly rose through the ranks. He became celebrated for his raids that captured Union general Edwin Stoughton in Fairfax and Colonel Daniel French Dulany in Rose Hill. By 1864, he was a feared partisan guerrilla in the North and a nightmare for Union troops protecting Washington City.   After the war, his support for presidential candidate Ulysses S. Grant forced Mosby to leave his native Virginia for Hong Kong as U.S. consul. A mentor to young George S. Patton, Mosby’s military legacy extended far beyond the War Between the States and into World War II. William S. Connery brings alive the many dimensions of this American hero.

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  Finding Peter - A True Story of...

  William Peter Blatty

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  William Peter Blatty, the bestselling author and Oscar Award-winning screenwriter of The Exorcist, lived a charmed life among the elite stars of Hollywood. His son Peter, born over a decade after The Exorcist, grew from an apple-cheeked boy into an "imposing young man with a quick, warm smile." But when Peter died very suddenly from a rare disorder, Blatty's world turned upside down.As he and his wife struggled through their unrelenting grief, a series of strange and supernatural events began occurring, and Blatty became convinced that Peter was sending messages from the afterlife.A true and unabashedly personal story, Finding Peter will remind those in grief that our loved ones truly do live on.

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  Speak of It - A Memoir

  Marcos McPeek Villatoro

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  In Speak of It, Marcos McPeek Villatoro explores how he channeled his Latino roots to come to terms with the childhood sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of a relative in his home in Appalachia, and he recounts his ensuing struggle with trauma and mental illness.The son of a Salvadoran mother and Scotch Irish mechanic father, Marcos spent much of his life trying to break away from his Southern Appalachian past and the trauma experienced there and striving to get closer to his Salvadoran heritage. His journey includes steeping himself in the Spanish language and Latin American literature, especially the work of Gabriel García Marquez; a stint in Nicaragua with Witness for Peace, followed by missionary work in Guatemala; and social-justice work with Mexican migrant farmworkers in Alabama. Each experience brought him closer to understanding where he came from and to forging an identity as a whole self in the wake of trauma.Riveting, horrifying, moving, and inspiring, Speak of It is a testament to the healing power of language, books, and identity.

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