Washoe County Library System

"In a collection of essays, the venerated television journalist celebrates our shared values, reminds us of what matters most in our great country, and shows us what patriotism looks like"--

Traces the history of genealogy in the United States, from its early preoccupation with social status and lineage, to a nineteenth-century search for Anglo-Saxon roots, to a twentieth-century acceptance of diversity and the introduction of DNA technology.

"In a culture trapped in the present tense, how can we keep the past from disappearing? When we lose sight of the past, our ability to understand ourselves on both a national and personal level is inhibited. While exploring the darker constants in modern American life - violence, militarization, rapid technological change, inability to be truly attentive - and the disorientation these elements induce, Colette Brooks examines how the past disappears...

The rise and fall of ancient Rome has been on American minds from the beginning of our Republic. Depending on who's doing the talking, the history of Rome serves either as a triumphal call to action, or a dire warming of imminent collapse. Esteemed editor and author Murphy ventures past the pundits' rhetoric to draw nuanced lessons about how we might avoid Rome's demise. Working on a canvas that extends far beyond the issue of an overstretched military,...

Reflections on America and the American experience as he has lived and observed it by the bestselling author of The Greatest Generation, whose iconic career in journalism has spanned more than fifty years
From his parents’ life in the Thirties, on to his boyhood along the Missouri River and on the prairies of South Dakota in the Forties, into his early journalism career in the Fifties and the tumultuous Sixties, up to...

How did a Jewish state come to resonate profoundly with Americans in the twentieth century? Since WWII, Israel's identity has been entangled with America's belief in its own exceptionalism. Turning a critical eye on the two nations' turbulent history together, Amy Kaplan unearths the roots of controversies that may well divide them in the future.--

"This compelling approach to the immigration debate takes the reader behind the blaring headlines and into communities grappling with the reality of new immigrants and the changing nature of American identity. Ali Noorani, the Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum, interviews nearly fifty local and national leaders from law enforcement, business, immigrant, and faith communities to illustrate the challenges and opportunities they face....

Presents a history of conspiracy theories in American culture and politics, from the colonial era to the War on Terror.