Washoe County Library System

In Off the Edge, journalist Kelly Weill draws a direct line from today's conspiratorial moment, brimming not just with Flat Earthers but also anti-vaxxers and QAnon followers, back to the early days of Flat Earth theory in the 1830s. We learn the natural impulses behind these beliefs: when faced with a complicated world out of our control, humans have always sought patterns to explain the inexplicable. This psychology doesn't change. But with the...

A journalist who has followed the rise of QAnon explains what it is, how it has gained a mainstream following among Republican lawmakers and ordinary citizens, the threat it poses to democracy, and how we can reach those who have embraced the conspiracy and are disseminating its lies.

A journalist who specializes in conspiracy theories draws on interviews with QAnon converts and victims, as well as psychologists, sociologists, and academics to explain the origin and growth of the movement, its embrace by right-wing media and politicians, and why it is important to understand it rather than mock it.

"“Interesting...Bowlin's calmly rational approach to the subject of conspiracy theories shows the importance of logic and evidence.”&#٬٢٠١٥؛Booklist "A page-turning book to give to someone who believes in pizza pedophilia or that the Illuminati rule the world."―Kirkus Reviews The co-hosts of the hit podcast Stuff They Don’t Want You to Know, Ben Bowlin, Matthew Frederick, & Noel Brown, discern conspiracy fact from fiction in this sharp,...

""[Corn is] a great journalist. I love the way he thinks. I love the way he writes. I'm so glad he's done a super-readable, modern history of the right...We just need smart, digestible history about this stuff right now...[AMERICAN PSYCHOSIS] is perfectly timed...Relevant history for where we are right now." —Rachel Maddow, host, The Rachel Maddow Show "With AMERICAN PSYCHOSIS, David Corn 'did the full homework to take us all the way back to where...

Blends historical analysis with on-the-ground reporting to examine the relevance of modern conspiracy theories, discussing how contemporary social conditions have created a climate of alienation and resentment that fuels suspicion and paranoia.

"Based on hundreds of hours of research, interviews, and access to exclusive sources and materials, Sandy Hook is Elizabeth Williamson's landmark investigation of the aftermath of a school shooting and the work by a group of Sandy Hook parents to defend themselves and the truth of their children's fate against the frenzied distortions of online deniers and conspiracy theorists". On December 14, 2012, a gunman killed twenty first graders and six educators...

"In January 2021, thousands descended on the U.S. Capitol to aid President Donald Trump in combating a shadowy cabal of Satan-worshipping pedophiles. Two women died that day. They, like the millions of Americans who believe that a mysterious insider known as "Q" is exposing a vast deep-state conspiracy, were members of "pastel QAnon," a subgroup of mostly middle-class educated women that answered the call to "save the children." With Pastels and Pedophiles,...

"The highest levels of government have been infiltrated by an anti-democratic Deep State that can be defeated by refocusing our national security mission and relentlessly defending the truth. A sinister cabal of corrupt law enforcement personnel, intelligence agents, and military officials at the highest levels of government plotted to overthrow a president. Even after they failed, they continue to secretly pull the levers of power without any accountability...

"Marty seems to do no wrong. Trent can't seem to get things right. When they are thrown together by tragedy, they find their futures may be defined by more than just their good intentions. Stonesmere is an English seaside suburb, defined by poignant traditions passed from generation to generation. Marty is a golden girl here, albeit one who quietly chafes against the legacy of her father's accomplishments and the care of her saintly mother - an outsider...