From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Battle Cry of Freedom, a powerful new reckoning with Jefferson Davis as military commander of the Confederacy.
History has not been kind to Jefferson Davis. His cause went down in disastrous defeat and left the South impoverished for generations. If that cause had succeeded, it would have torn the United States in two and preserved the institution of slavery. Many Americans in Davis’s own time and in later generations considered him an incompetent leader, if not a traitor. Not so, argues James M. McPherson. In Embattled Rebel, McPherson shows us that Davis might have been on the wrong side of history, but it is too easy to diminish him because of his cause’s failure. In order to understand the Civil War and its outcome, it is essential to give Davis his due as a military leader and as the president of an aspiring Confederate nation. Davis did not make it easy on himself. His subordinates and enemies alike considered him difficult, egotistical, and cold. He was gravely ill throughout much of the war, often working from home and even from his sickbed. Nonetheless, McPherson argues, Davis shaped and articulated the principal policy of the Confederacy with clarity and force: the quest for independent nationhood. Although he had not been a fire-breathing secessionist, once he committed himself to a Confederate nation he never deviated from this goal. In a sense, Davis was the last Confederate left standing in 1865. As president of the Confederacy, Davis devoted most of his waking hours to military strategy and operations, along with Commander Robert E. Lee, and delegated the economic and diplomatic functions of strategy to his subordinates. Davis was present on several battlefields with Lee and even took part in some tactical planning; indeed, their close relationship stands as one of the great military-civilian partnerships in history. Most critical appraisals of Davis emphasize his choices in and management of generals rather than his strategies, but no other chief executive in American history exercised such tenacious hands-on influence in the shaping of military strategy. And while he was imprisoned for two years after the Confederacy’s surrender awaiting a trial for treason that never came, and lived for another twenty-four years, he never once recanted the cause for which he had fought and lost. McPherson gives us Jefferson Davis as the commander in chief he really was, showing persuasively that while Davis did not win the war for the South, he was scarcely responsible for losing it. Views: 178
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. Views: 178
The first three chapters of The War in the Air relate details of the life of Bert Smallways and his extended family in Bun Hill – a (fictional) former Kentish village which had become a London suburb within living memory (in many ways similar to Bromley where Wells was born). The story begins with Bert\'s brother Tom, a stolid greengrocer who views technological progress with suspicion and apprehension (which would turn out to be all too well founded) and their aged father, who recalls with longing the time when Bun Hill was a quiet village and he had driven the local squire\'s carriage. However, the story soon focuses on Bert who is an unimpressive, not particularly gifted, unsuccessful young man with few ideas about larger things – but far from unintelligent. He has a strong attachment to a young woman named Edna, and works as a helper and later a partner in a bicycle shop. When bankruptcy threatens one summer, he and his partner abandon the shop, devise a singing act ("the Desert Dervishes"), and resolve to try their fortunes in English sea resorts. As chance would have, their initial performance is interrupted by a balloon which lands on the beach before them, and which turns out to contain one Mr. Butteridge. Butteridge is famous for his successful invention of an easily manoeuvrable fixed-wing aircraft whose secret he has not revealed and that he is seeking to sell to the British government or, failing that, to Germany. Prior to Butteridge, nobody had succeeded in producing a practical heavier-than-air machine, only a few awkward devices of limited utility such as the German "Drachenflieger", which had to be towed aloft and released from an airship. Butteridge\'s invention is a major breakthrough, as it is highly manoeuvrable, capable of both very fast and very slow flight, and requires only a small area to take off and land, reminiscent of the later autogyro. By accident Bert is carried off in Butteridge\'s balloon, and discovers Butteridge\'s secret plans on board it. Bert is clever enough to appraise his situation, and when the balloon is shot down in a secret German "aeronautic park east of Hamburg," Bert intends to pass himself off as Butteridge to sell the secret. However, he has stumbled upon the German air fleet just as it is about to launch a surprise attack on the United States - and Prince Karl Albert, the author and leader of this plan, decides to take him along for the campaign. The Prince, world-famous as "The German Alexander" or Napoleon, is a living manifestation of German Nationalism and boundless imperial ambitions, his personality as depicted by Wells in some ways resembling that of Kaiser Wilhelm II. Bert\'s disguise is soon seen through by the Germans, and – narrowly avoiding being summarily thrown overboard by the furious Prince – he is relegated to the role of a witness to the true horror of war. Views: 178
Find out how war smells, looks, and feels to fighting men—and how courage grows from their desperate will to live.In five true stories of World War II— Survival The Battle of the River Nine Men on a Four-Man Raft Borie's Last Battle Front Seats at Sea War—a famous war correspondent takes you aboard John F. Kennedy's doomed PT-109...into the horror of Guadalcanal...onto a death raft in the Southwest Pacific. Views: 178
The latest in Kathryn Lasky's hit series - a stunning spin-off set among the wolves of Ga'hoole.
A great cold has seized the Beyond. The warmth of summer, the smell of sweet grass and the great caribou migrations are distant memories. Now the wolves know only ice, dark, snow and endless cold. The order that kept the wolf clans strong for thousands of years has broken down completely.
The wolves have only one chance for survival. They must find their way to a new land, a land of warmth and summer. But the journey will take them over a frozen sea and through thousands of miles of perilous territory. Will the wolves trust young Faolan to lead them? Views: 177
"Christmas Classics" is proud to present you a carefully selected range of fiction and prose for the most beautiful time of the year. Besides best-known classics we also offer a huge variety of out-of-print books and titles long forgotten. You can spot them easily by the red book cover and the golden bells in the middle. A Captured Santa Claus is a story of the Civil War in which little children are the real heroes and heroines. Views: 176
The acclaimed author of "A People's History of the United States" (more than 200,000 copies sold) presents an honest and piercing look at American political ideology."A shotgun blast of revisionism that aims to shatter all the comfortable myths of American political discourse." "--Los Angeles Times" Views: 176
"The Adventures of a Country Boy at a Country Fair" from James Otis Kaler. American journalist and author of children’s literature; he wrote under the name James Otis (1848-1912).
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition. Views: 176
Get Sleighed by Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward
When my ex dumped me right before Christmas, I was left with a luxury, all-expense paid trip for two to Cabo—private jet and all. Somehow, my best friend roped me into giving away the other half of the trip as a contest prize on her podcast. Kelly won the “World’s Worst Dump Story.” She and I didn’t meet until we arrived at the airport, which was when I discovered she was actually a he. Apparently we’d forgotten to include open to women only in the rules. My trip to Cabo started as a disaster, but as time went on Kelly and I grew close. Until someone unexpectedly showed up…
Christmas in Birdville by Jewel E. Ann
Henry Bechtel’s mom is coming home for Christmas. Only, he lost the family house in a game of poker. Days before his mom’s arrival, he meets the new owner and seizes the opportunity to coerce her into letting him move back “home” for the holidays. What he doesn’t know is that she has questionable motives, too.
The Lucky One by Sarina Bowen
Finnish hockey player Ivo Halla is new in town. He can't speak the language, he can't understand the coach. Life is hell until he walks into an Italian cafe (thank God "pizza" is the same in Finnish and English) and falls for the waitress. He'd better learn the language soon, or she won't agree to date him...
First Holiday by Katee Robert
After a year of turmoil, Hades and Persephone prepare for their first holiday together.
A Cloverleigh Farms Christmas by Melanie Harlow
Christmas Eve at Cloverleigh Farms is even more exciting this year, thanks to a blizzard, a power outage, and a baby that wants to make a dramatic entrance. Catch up with the beloved Sawyer family and find out what happens when Meg and Noah's bundle of joy gives the family a wonderful—and sudden—reason to celebrate!
Have Yourself a Grumpy Little Christmas by Pippa Grant
Trevor Stafford hates Christmas. But his best friend’s little sister, whom he stupidly agreed to take in as a temporary roommate when she got a new nannying gig down the street from him, loves it.
She’s turning his house into a freaking winter wonderland of bad memories.
But the bigger problem?
He’s had a crush on her for years, and there’s no amount of annoying holiday cheer that can cure him of his attraction. If anything, watching her in her natural element is making it worse.
What’s a grump to do when the last thing he ever wanted is suddenly the only thing he needs? Views: 176
“Come, have another hand, Burgoyne.” “I’ll have my revenge to-morrow, old fellow,” I replied. “Why not to-night?” “It’s past two, and I’ve a long walk home, remember.” “Very well; as you wish.” Views: 175
High intrigue in South America, with the future of democracy on the continent at stake! Views: 175
Originally published in 1976, James A. Michener’s explosive, spectacular Sports in America is a prescient examination of the crisis in American sports that is still unfolding to this day. Pro basketball players are banned for narcotics use, while a Major League pitcher is arrested for smuggling drugs across the Mexican border. The NFL’s “injury report” grows longer every Sunday. Corruption and recruiting violations plague collegiate sports as the “winning is everything” mentality trickles down to the Little League level. With his lifelong enthusiasm for sports in evidence, the incomparable Michener tackles this subject thoroughly and leaves us amazed and appalled by what we’ve learned, yet still loving the games we grew up on.
BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from James A. Michener's Hawaii.
Praise for *Sports in America
*
“A comprehensive, controversial examination of sports as a major force in American life.”—Los Angeles Times
*
“Michener’s life was saved by sports twice. In return, he has issued a long, lovingly critical, prodigiously researched account of the passions and politics of America at organized play. Rich in anecdote, source material and his own shrewd commentary.”—The New York Times Book Review
“Like just about everything James Michener has produced, Sports in America *is a thoughtful, well-written document that’s thoroughly researched. . . . For anyone interested in how the ball bounces in the U.S. of A., the answers are all here.”—The Wall Street Journal
*
“Encyclopedic . . . amusing and sometimes alarming.”—The Washington Post*** Views: 174
Reproduktion des Originals in Großdruckschrift. Views: 174
In Doublet and Hose - A Story for Girls is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by Lucy Foster Madison is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of Lucy Foster Madison then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. Views: 174
In the mid-1920s, young children began to vanish from neighborhoods around New York City. It took the police a decade to find their abductor, an unassuming 64-year-old handyman named Albert Fish. Fish had committed crimes of unspeakable horror: He had not only abducted and murdered the children, but also tortured and, in some cases, eaten them. During Fish's trial, some of the country's most prominent psychiatrists debated the exact nature of Fish's crimes. Was he evil or insane? Who had the power to determine where one ended and the other began? At stake was not just the prospect of justice for Fish and his victims, but also the future of the new science of criminal behavior—the idea that society’s worst monsters needed to be both punished and understood. Award-winning journalist Deborah Blum tells the story of a notorious cannibal killer, the detective who brought him to justice, and the scientists who tried to make sense of his crimes. Views: 173
