politics and government

"An epic dive into our country's history to discover the first, true Declaration of Independence, a centuries-old secret document that might just unravel the origin story of America and reveal the intellectual crime of the millennia. In 1819 John Adams came across a stunning story in his hometown Essex Register that he breathlessly described to his political frenemy Thomas Jefferson as "one of the greatest curiosities and one of the deepest mysteries that ever occurred to me...entitled the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. The genuine sense of America at that moment was never so well expressed before, nor since." The story claimed that a full 14 months before Jefferson crafted his own Declaration of Independence, a misfit band of zealous Scots-Irish patriots, whiskey-loving Princeton scholars and a fanatical frontier preacher in a remote corner of North Carolina had become the first Americans to formally declare themselves "free and independent" from England. Composed during a clandestine all-night session inside the Charlotte courthouse, the Mecklenburg Declaration was signed on May 20, 1775-a date that's still featured on the state flag of North Carolina. A year later, in 1776, Jefferson is believed to have plagiarized the MecDec while composing his own, slightly more famous Declaration and then, as he was wont to do, covered the whole thing up. Which is exactly why Adams always insisted the MecDec needed to be "thoroughly investigated" and "more universally made known to the present and future generation." Eleven U.S. Presidents and many of today's most respected historical scholars agree. Now, with Who's Your Founding Father?, David Fleming picks up where Adams left off, leaving no archive, no cemetery, no bizarre clue or wild character (and definitely no Dunkin' Donuts) unexplored while traveling the globe to bring to life one of the most fantastic, important-and controversial-stories in American history.In 1819 John Adams came across a stunning story in his hometown Essex Register. He breathlessly described it to his political frenemy Thomas Jefferson as "one of the greatest curiosities and one of the deepest mysteries that ever occurred to me...entitled the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. The genuine sense of America at that moment was never so well expressed before, nor since." The story claimed that a full 14 months before Jefferson crafted his own Declaration of Independence, a misfit band of zealous Scots-Irish patriots, whiskey-loving Princeton scholars, and a fanatical frontier preacher had joined forces in a remote corner of North Carolina to become the first Americans to formally declare themselves "free and independent" from England. Composed during a clandestine all-night session inside the Charlotte courthouse, the Mecklenburg Declaration, aka the MecDec, was signed on May 20, 1775-a date that's still featured on the state flag of North Carolina. About a year later, in 1776, Jefferson is believed to have plagiarized the MecDec while composing his own, slightly more famous Declaration, and then, as he was wont to do, covered the whole thing up. Which is why Adams always insisted the MecDec needed to be "thoroughly investigated" and "more universally made known to the present and future generation." Eleven U.S. Presidents and many of today's most respected historical scholars agree. Now, with Who's Your Founding Father?, David Fleming picks up where Adams' investigation left off. Fleming leaves no archive, cemetery, bizarre clue, or wild character unexplored as he travels the globe and shines new light on one of the most fantastic, important-and controversial-stories in American history"--.

"An intimate portrait of a small Southern town living through tumultuous times, this propulsive piece of forgotten civil rights history-about the first school to attempt court-ordered desegregation in the wake of Brown v. Board-will forever change how you think of the end of racial segregation in America. In graduate school, Rachel Martin volunteered with a Southern oral history project. One day, she was sent to a small town in Tennessee, in the foothills of the Appalachians, where locals wanted to build a museum to commemorate the events of August 1956, when Clinton High School became the first school in the former Confederacy to undergo court-mandated desegregation. After recording a dozen interviews, Rachel asked the museum's curator why everyone she'd been told to gather stories from was white. Weren't there any Black residents of Clinton who remembered this history? A few hours later, she got a call from the head of the oral history project: the town of Clinton didn't want her help anymore. For years, Rachel Martin wondered what it was the white residents of Clinton didn't want remembered. So she went back, eventually interviewing sixty residents-including the surviving Black students who'd desegregated Clinton High-to piece together what happened back in 1956: the death threats and beatings, picket lines and cross burnings, neighbors turned on neighbors and preachers for the first time at a loss for words. The national guard had rushed to town, followed by national journalists like Edward Murrow and even evangelist Billy Graham. And still tensions continued to rise... until white supremacists bombed the school. In A Most Tolerant Little Town, Rachel Martin weaves together a dozen disparate perspectives in an intimate and yet kaleidoscopic portrait of a small town living through a tumultuous turning point for America. The result is a propulsive piece of forgotten civil rights history that reads like a ticking time bomb... and illuminates the devastating costs of being on the frontlines of social change. You may have never before heard of Clinton-but you won't be forgetting the town anytime soon"--Provided by publisher.

"The Romans were the greatest rulers of ancient times, and they dominated the Western world for more than two thousand years. From the foundation of the city of Rome to the fall of Constantinople, find out how this famous civilization from the past expanded their empire throughout Europe and part of Africa and Asia. Meet the twins Romulus and Remus, Julius Caesar, Marcus Antonius, Nero, and the endless historic figures who forged the Roman civilization through great battles and conquests. Find out who the Romans were, their most famous figures, how their society was built, the role of women, and all the most remarkable historical facts"--Publisher.

Looks at the presidency of James Madison, focusing on his relationhsip with the Native Americans and the War of 1812.

A brief biography of Lyndon B. Johnson, who became the thirty-sixth president of the United States.

A brief biography of Harry S. Truman, who became the thirty-third president of the the United States.

"In stunning full color and accessible text, a graphic adaptation of the American Book Award winning history of the United States as told from the perspective of Indigenous peoples"--.

"Alexei Navalny began writing 'Patriot' shortly after his near-fatal poisoning in 2020. It is the full story of his life: his youth, his call to activism, his marriage and family, his commitment to challenging a superpower determined to silence him, and his total conviction that change cannot be resisted--and will come. Navalny recounts, among other things, his political career, the many attempts on his life, and the lives of the people closest to him, and the relentless campaign he and his team waged against an increasingly dictatorial regime"--Provided by publisher.

"A firsthand account from inside the halls of Congress as Donald Trump and his enablers betrayed the American people and the Constitution--leading to the violent attack on our Capitol on January sixth, 2021"--Provided by publisher.

"It's an open secret that voters in smaller, less populous states have more electoral power than their urban counterparts, so why are these same voters the most eager to leave behind democratic principles? In 'White Rural Rage,' political scientists Thomas Schaller and Paul Waldman explore why, with all of this extra influence, these same voters fail to see real benefits, for instance suffering worse health and education outcomes than larger states, and why they are the most likely to rage against the democratic project the moment elections stop going their way"--Provided by publisher.