Washoe County Library System

""Everyone who claims to be 'Christian' or else claims to be upset by 'Christianity' needs to read this book, especially politicians using people's supposed faith for their own ends."--Margaret E. Atwood. A major new work by the New York Times bestsellingauthor, arguing that the answer to bad religion is true faith that will help re-found democracy It is time says Jim Wallis, to call out genuine faith--specifically the "Christian" in White Christian...

"How to Survive Middle School: U.S. History is a highly illustrated, handy field guide that will help kids master the essential skills and lessons of middle school U.S. History. With expert knowledge presented in a bold and fun format that's easy to readand understand, students will learn the history of the United States and explore important questions of context, power, and inequality"-- "THINK U.S. HISTORY IS HARD? Make learning easy with this...

"As culture wars pit us against each other, A Great Disorder looks to the myths that have shaped American identity and reveals how they have brought us to the brink of an existential crisis. Red America and Blue America are so divided they could be two different countries, with wildly diverging views of why government exists and who counts as American. Their ideologies are grounded in different versions of American history, endorsing irreconcilable...

"This book offers the first full account of Harriet Tubman's Civil War service and the Combahee River Raid. It details how Tubman commanded a ring of spies, scouts, and pilots and participated in military expeditions behind Confederate lines. It also recounts the story of enslaved families living in bondage and fighting for their freedom, using their own distinct and individual voices. The book uses more than 175 US Civil War pension files of the...

''The best-selling classic about a mixed-race child in the Civil War–era South that "chronicles the triumph of a free spirit over many kinds of bondage" (New York Times Book Review). Jubilee tells the true story of Vyry, the child of a white plantation owner and his black mistress. Vyry bears witness to the antebellum South in both its opulence and its brutality, its wartime ruin, and the promises of Reconstruction. Weaving her own family's oral...

''A fascinating look at the most destructive wildfires in American history, the impact of climate change, and what we're doing right and wrong to manage forest fire, from a National Book Award finalist. Perfect for young fans of disaster stories and national history. Wildfires have been part of the American landscape for thousands of years. Forests need fire--it's as necessary to their well-being as soil and sunlight. But some fires burn out of...

A cultural critic and investigative journalist uncovers the full history of the Barbie doll, from her introduction in 1959 through countless transformations, makeovers and career changes to its emergence as an international pop culture icon. "Since her introduction in 1959, Barbie's impact has been revolutionary. Far from being a toy designed by men to oppress women, she was a toy invented by women to teach women what was expected of them, for better...

"In the 1870s, a Black family undertakes a perilous wagon journey westward for a tenuous shot at freedom in Nebraska"-- "1879, Mississippi. Young dreamer Lettie may have her head in the stars, but her body is on a covered wagon heading westward. Her father, Thomas, promises that Nebraska will be everything the family needs: an opportunity to claim the independence they’ve strived for over generations on their very own plot of land. But Thomas’...

"The Navy SEALs are, for most Americans, the ultimate heroes. Their 2011 killing of Osama Bin Laden was celebrated as a victory in the War on Terror. Former SEALs rake in thousands of dollars as leadership consultants for American corporations. And young men who want to join the military dream of serving in their elite ranks. But as recent revelations, like the uproar around former SEAL Eddie Gallagher, have shown, the SEALs have lost their bearings....

"A leading journalist and public intellectual explains the long, disturbing history behind the American Right's embrace of foreign dictators, from Kaiser Wilhelm and Mussolini to Putin and Orban. Why do Donald Trump, Tucker Carlson, and much of the far Right so explicitly admire the murderous and incompetent Russian dictator Vladimir Putin? Why is Ron DeSantis drawing from Victor Orbán's illiberal politics for his own policies as governor of Florida...