Washoe County Library System

Shows listeners moments throughout the nation's history, including the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the Civil Rights movements, to guide them in understanding American politics today. Pulitzer Prizewinning author Jon Meacham helps us understand the present moment in American politics and life by looking back at critical times in our history when hope overcame division and fear. Our current climate of partisan fury is not new, and in The Soul of...

Presents nine original essays examining the fractures at the center of culture today, offering insights into the conflicts, contradictions, incentives, and changes related to the rise of toxic social networking.

"Wool introduced the world of the Silo. Shift told the story of its creation. Dust will describe its downfall. Juliette, now mayor of Silo 18, doesn't trust Silo 1, especially its leader, Donald. But in the world of the Silos, there is no black and white -- everything is shades of gray. Donald may not be the monster Juliette thinks he is, and may in fact be key to humanity's continued survival. But can they work together long enough to succeed?"--...

Explains how the influences of dreamers, zealots, hucksters, and superstitious groups shaped America's tendency toward a rich fantasy life, citing the roles of individuals from P.T. Barnum to Donald Trump in perpetuating conspiracy theories, self-delusion, and magical thinking.

Immersing himself in a mid-twenty-first-century technological virtual utopia to escape an ugly real world of famine, poverty, and disease, Wade Watts joins an increasingly violent effort to solve a series of puzzles by the virtual world's creator. At once wildly original and stuffed with irresistible nostalgia, READY PLAYER ONE is a spectacularly genre-busting, ambitious, and charming debut-- part quest novel, part love story, and part virtual space...

"A trailblazing account of human history, challenging our most fundamental assumptions about social evolution-from the development of agriculture and cities to the emergence of "the state," political violence, and social inequality-and revealing new possibilities for human emancipation"--

"This A to Z children's pictorial covers topics such as Beijing, Dragon Dance, Himalayan Mountain Range, Mongolians, and the giant panda. Each subject is introduced with a simple rhyme for younger readers. Expository text is also included for older readers"--Provided by publisher.

A sequel to "Notes from a Small Island" stands as the author's tribute to his adopted country of England and describes his riotous return visit two decades later to rediscover the country, its people, and its culture. In 1995 Bill Bryson got into his car and took a weeks-long farewell motoring trip about England before moving his family back to the United States. The book about that trip, Notes from a Small Island, is uproarious and endlessly endearing,...