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Summary and Analysis of Black Mass: Based on the Book by Dick Lehr and Gerard O'Neill (Smart Summaries)
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Black Masstells you what you need to know—before or after you read Dick Lehr and Gerard O&’Neill&’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Black Mass by Dick Lehr and Gerard O&’Neill includes:Historical contextChapter-by-chapter summariesDetailed timeline of important eventsImportant quotesFascinating triviaSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Dick Lehr and Gerard O&’Neill&’s Black Mass: The New York Times–bestselling Black Mass is a groundbreaking true crime story about the Mafia, the FBI, and the Irish Mob in between them. Journalists Dick Lehr and Gerard O&’Neill expose a decades-long partnership between FBI agent John Connolly and notorious Boston mob boss Whitey Bulger. Connolly taps childhood friend-turned–Irish mobster Bulger to be an informant. But soon enough, Bulger is the one pulling the strings, convincing Connolly to cover up his dirty deeds. This corrupt deal results in a web of crimes including racketeering, drugs, and murder, all leading to an FBI rocked by scandal when the truth comes out. Shocking and enlightening, Black Mass is an Edgar Award–winning book that magnifies the fine line between law and lawlessness. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Fred & Rose: The Full Story of Fred and Rose West and the Gloucester House of Horrors
by Howard SounesThe definitive account of one of Britain’s most notorious killer couples, who loved, tortured, and slayed together as husband and wife. From the outside, 25 Cromwell Street in Gloucester, England, looked as commonplace as the married couple who lived there. But in 1994, Fred and Rose West’s home would become infamous as a “house of horrors” when the remains of nine young women—many of them decapitated, dismembered, and showing evidence of sexual torture—were found interred under its cellar, bathroom floor, and garden. And this wasn’t the only burial ground: Fred’s first wife and nanny were unearthed miles away in a field, while his eight-year-old stepdaughter was found entombed under the Wests’ former residence. Yet, for more than twenty years, the twosome maintained a façade of normalcy while abusing and murdering female boarders, hitchhikers, and members of their own family. Howard Sounes, who first broke the story about the Wests as a journalist and covered the murder trial, has written a comprehensive account of the case. Beginning with Fred and Rose’s bizarre childhoods, Sounes charts their lives and crimes in forensic detail, constructing a fascinating and frightening tale of a marriage soaked in blood. Indeed, the total number of the Wests’ victims may never be known. A case reminiscent of the “Moors Murders” committed in the 1960s in Manchester by Myra Hindley and Ian Brady—as if Hindley and Brady had married and kept on killing for decades—Fred & Rose “is a story of obsessive love as well as obsessive murder” (The Times, London).
Summary and Analysis of In Cold Blood: A True Account of a Multiple Murder and Its Consequences
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of In Cold Blood tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Truman Capote’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of In Cold Blood by Truman Capote includes: Historical context, Chapter-by-chapter summaries, Detailed timeline of important events, Important quotes, Fascinating trivia, Supporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work. About Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood: A masterpiece of true crime and literary nonfiction, Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood is the story of a 1959 multiple murder in rural Kansas. Combining journalistic research with masterful storytelling, Capote reconstructs the events surrounding the killing of the Clutter family and the crime’s aftermath—from the last day of the Clutters’ lives to the day their murderers are executed. Gripping, chilling, and suspenseful, In Cold Blood is a pioneering work of nonfiction and a highly acclaimed modern American classic. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Incident at Big Sky: The Inside Story of the Search for Two Savage Killers in Montana
by Malcolm Mcconnell Johnny FranceEdgar Award Finalist: The thrilling true story of the abduction of world-class biathlete Kari Swenson and the five-month manhunt to bring her tormentors to justice. Former rodeo cowboy Johnny France had been sheriff of Madison County, Montana, for three years when Kari Swenson, a Bozeman resident training for the World Biathlon Championship, went missing near Big Sky Resort in July 1984. Her friends feared that Kari had been attacked by a grizzly bear, but the truth was far scarier: She’d been kidnapped at gunpoint by father-and-son survivalists Don and Dan Nichols. The pair had been living in the wilderness off and on for years and hoped to make Kari a “mountain woman” and Dan’s bride. But the plan went horribly wrong from the start, and after a deadly firefight with rescuers, the kidnappers vanished into the rugged terrain of the Spanish Peaks. As Montana’s summer froze into brutal winter blizzards, SWAT teams, forest rangers, and antiterrorist units searched the backcountry but sighted the mountain men only once. Then came the call about a strange campfire on a slope above the Madison River. Sheriff France decided to go into the forest to face the fugitives—alone. The resulting showdown made him “perhaps the most famous Western sheriff since Wyatt Earp . . . a modern legend” (Chicago Tribune). Incident at Big Sky is the “exciting,” edge-of-your-seat account of a shocking crime that made headlines around the world (The New York Times Book Review). In a voice as distinctive and compelling as the Montana landscape, France takes readers on a high-stakes adventure so bizarre and unforgettable it could only be true.
Summary and Analysis of Benjamin Franklin: Based on the Book by Walter Isaacson
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Benjamin Franklin tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Walter Isaacson’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter overviewsCharacter profilesDetailed timeline of eventsImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson: In his thorough examination of one of America’s Founding Fathers, biographer Walter Isaacson explores the life and times of Benjamin Franklin and his legacy as a scientist, writer, diplomat, printing mogul, and voice for the common man. Isaacson follows Franklin from young runaway teenager in Philadelphia, to the savvy statesman coordinating the Franco-American alliance during the Revolutionary War, to the wise, 80-year-old politician at the Constitutional Convention. In between, we learn about Franklin the person—his complicated relationships, his scientific curiosity and brilliant discoveries, and the civic-mindedness that caused him to found a library, a fire department, a university, and a hospital. Franklin’s principles of democracy and admiration for the middle class continue to be at the foundation of American society. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Love Warrior: Based on the Book by Glennon Doyle Melton
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Love Warrior tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Glennon Doyle Melton’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle Melton includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter summariesCharacter analysisImportant quotesFascinating triviaSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle Melton: Written with unflinching honesty and hard-earned wisdom, Glennon Doyle Melton’s memoir, Love Warrior, is the story of one woman’s journey from devastating heartbreak after her husband’s infidelity to a new understanding of what it means to love, to marry, and to be a woman. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Man's Search for Meaning: Based on the Book by Victor E. Frankl (Smart Summaries)
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Man&’s Search for Meaning tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Viktor E. Frankl&’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Man&’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter summariesImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Man&’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl: Written just after World War II, Viktor Frankl&’s international bestseller Man&’s Search for Meaning is both a heartbreaking memoir and a source of inspiration for millions of readers. Dr. Frankl&’s description of his time in a string of Nazi concentration camps is a fascinating, mandatory read for anyone wanting a better understanding of the Holocaust. A highly respected psychotherapist, his ideas on human emotion, the mind, mental health, tragic optimism, and the day-to-day neuroses of common people in the modern world provide spiritual guidance as each of us searches for meaning in our own lives. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of The Stranger Beside Me: Based on the Book by Ann Rule
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of The Stranger Beside Me tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Ann Rule’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule includes: Historical contextSection-by-section summariesDetailed timeline of important eventsImportant quotesFascinating triviaSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule: Among American serial killers, Ted Bundy is infamous not just for his crimes, but for the way he was able to charm his victims. Bundy’s friendly demeanor fooled many, including Ann Rule, bestselling true crime author and former law enforcement officer. Rule and Bundy met while working together at a suicide hotline. The two remained friends throughout the period of Bundy’s crimes, trials, and fight against execution. This friendship gives the reader an intimate window into a man countless psychiatrists struggle to explain. Get to know Ted Bundy, a true sociopath, and learn about his reign of terror in the Pacific Northwest, Florida, and perhaps beyond. Rule’s police background adds compelling perspective to one of the most popular, detailed, and personal books written about Ted Bundy. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Escape from Alcatraz: Based on the Book by J. Campbell Bruce
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Escape from Alcatraz tells you what you need to know—before or after you read J. Campbell Bruce’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Escape from Alcatraz by J. Campbell Bruce includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter summariesImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Escape from Alcatraz by J. Campbell Bruce: A true crime classic, Escape from Alcatraz recounts the history of the infamous prison on Alcatraz Island and the many men who risked their lives trying to escape it. Bruce’s book brings to life the grim, gruesome conditions of life in lockup on Alcatraz, and the prisoners who lived there—from notorious gangster Al “Scarface” Capone to robber Frank Lee Morris, the architect of Alcatraz’s most audacious escape. More than a tale of prison break, Escape from Alcatraz is a scathing indictment of a penal system that strives for dehumanization, rather than rehabilitation, of its prisoners. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of The Professor and the Madman: Based on the book by Simon Winchester
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of The Professor and the Madman tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Simon Winchester’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester includes:Historical contextChapter-by-chapter summariesDetailed timeline of key eventsImportant quotesFascinating triviaSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester: Simon Winchester’s The Professor and the Madman is the remarkable tale of two Victorian-era scholars, the English language, and the making of the Oxford English Dictionary. Recounting the unlikely bond between a criminally insane American Civil War veteran and the renowned Scottish editor of the OED, the enchanting story of their relationship illuminates the decades of the dictionary’s compilation—from A to Z. Wittily eloquent and historically incisive, The Professor and the Madman is the portrait of a friendship and, by extension, of the greatest dictionary ever created in the English language. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: Based on the Book by Brian Kilmeade & Don Yaeger (Smart Summaries)
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger&’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter summariesImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original workAbout Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger: In 1785, US merchant ships that sailed the Mediterranean Sea began to face an unexpected threat: pirates from the North African coast. American sailors were subjected to pillage and enslavement while their government tried to negotiate tributes and ransom prices with the Islamic rulers of the Barbary nations. As the Barbary conflict intensified, Thomas Jefferson saw that negotiations could only proceed if the United States showed its military strength through a naval presence and the use of force in the Mediterranean. Jefferson committed himself to this cause as he rose to the position of secretary of state and later, president of the United States. In Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War that Changed American History, authors Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger trace the exciting tale of how these kidnappings led to the First Barbary War, what transpired between the warring nations, and how Thomas Jefferson&’s decisions helped shape US policy today. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
The Truth about Belle Gunness: The True Story of Notorious Serial Killer Hell's Belle
by Lillian de la TorreEdgar Award Finalist: The true story of the female Norwegian immigrant who led a secret life as a serial killer in the early twentieth-century Midwest. On the morning of April 27, 1908, the farmhand on a lonely property outside La Porte, Indiana, woke to the smell of smoke. He tried to rouse the lady of the house, the towering Belle Poulsdatter Sorenson Gunness, and he called the names of her three children—but they didn’t answer, and the farmhand barely escaped alive. The house burned to the foundation, and in the rubble, firemen found the corpses of Belle, her two daughters, and her son. The discovery raised two chilling questions: Who started the fire, and who cut off Belle’s head? As investigators searched the property, they uncovered something astonishing: The remains of a dozen or more men and children who had been murdered with poison or cleaver were buried beneath the hog pen. It turned out Belle Gunness was one of the most prolific serial killers in American history. And when the investigation revealed that the body found in the fire might not have been hers, the people of La Porte were forced to confront the terrifying realization that Belle might have gotten out alive. Nominated for an Edgar Award for best factual crime story, The Truth about Belle Gunness is based on extensive interviews with witnesses and residents of La Porte who knew Belle and her family. Perfect for fans of In Cold Blood or The Devil in the White City, it is a “magnificent [and] brilliantly written” exploration of a highly unusual murderer (The New York Times).
Elizabeth Is Missing: One of the Eighteenth Century's Greatest Mysteries—Solved!
by Lillian de la TorreThe true story of the eighteenth-century English maidservant at the center of a fascinating criminal mystery. On New Year’s Day, 1753, Elizabeth Canning disappeared. An eighteen-year-old girl, she was unremarkable in every respect, from her appearance to her disposition, but she was about to become the most famous person in London. When she reappeared one month later, starving and ill, she claimed she had been abducted and held captive by a woman named Susannah Wells, who wanted Elizabeth to work for her as a prostitute. Based on Elizabeth’s testimony, Wells was arrested, tried, and convicted—but the case was just getting started. Convinced the young woman was lying, the Lord Mayor of London set out to uncover the truth. What followed was one of the most celebrated criminal cases of the era. The controversy, which threatened to tear London apart, revolved around one frightened, mysterious girl. Meticulously researched and irresistibly readable, Elizabeth Is Missing is the definitive account of one of the most unusual cases of the eighteenth century, a must-read for fans of historical true crime.
The Heir of Douglas: The Scandal That Rocked Eighteenth-Century England
by Lillian de la TorreA sensational account of the Lady Jane Douglas scandal: A penniless Frenchman claimed a title and turned eighteenth-century England upside down. In 1748, Scottish noblewoman Lady Jane Douglas gave birth to twin boys in Paris. Although she and one of the boys died in poverty five years later, her surviving son was heir to one of the greatest fortunes in England, and would become one of the most important men in the empire—if his inheritance were secure. But was Archibald Douglas really Lady Jane&’s son? His mother was fifty at the time of his birth—an incredible circumstance in any century—and if it could be proven that Archibald was adopted, the fortune would pass to another. The Douglas Cause, one of the greatest scandals in English history, a legal case whose twists and turns mesmerized the British public, led the citizens of Edinburgh to riot, and threatened to undermine the very fabric of the empire. Based on six years of research, The Heir of Douglas is the thrilling, definitive account of an astonishing court case, written by a woman who &“knows her way about in the eighteenth century&” (The New York Times).
Summary and Analysis of Night: Based on the Book by Elie Wiesel
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Night tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Elie Wiesel’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Night includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter overviewsAnalysis of the main charactersThemes and symbolsImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original workAbout Night by Elie Wiesel: The gripping memoir by Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel is one of the fundamental texts of Holocaust reportage and a poetic examination of a young man’s loss of faith amid unspeakable acts of inhumanity. Wiesel was 15 years old when he was sent to Auschwitz with his mother, father, and three sisters. Wiesel recalls his horrifying ordeal, including the sadistic Nazi overseers, the death of his mother and younger sister, watching fellow prisoners disappear into the crematorium, the bloody death march to Gleiwitz, and the heartbreaking fatal beating of his father only months before the camp’s liberation. Night is a poignant representation of one young Jewish man’s pain amidst the violent details of the worst genocide in world history. It is an invaluable record of the past as well as an ever-relevant warning about the consequences of fascism and bigotry. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Shrill: Based on the Book by Lindy West
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Lindy West’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman includes: Chapter-by-chapter overviewsCharacter profilesImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman by Lindy West: A New York Times–bestselling memoir by feminist writer and humorist Lindy West, Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman follows the author’s metamorphosis from a painfully shy girl to a confidence-boosting journalist. Written in a no-holds-barred style, full of wisecracking, vulnerability, and humanity, West throws open a window and asks us to peer inside the sometimes lonely and misunderstood world of womanhood. Shrill examines how society views and treats big girls with big ideas and personalities. The discussion isn’t always pretty (touching on topics such as abortion, period stigma, and rape culture), but it’s entertaining and thought-provoking. Her story is a ballsy and provocative look at what it means to be fat and female in America. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Just Mercy: Based on the Book by Bryan Stevenson
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Bryan Stevenson book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Just Mercy includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter overviewsCharacter profilesDetailed timeline of key eventsImportant quotes and analysisFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson: Just Mercy is a heartbreaking—but not entirely hopeless—look inside the American criminal justice system. The guide on this journey to death row, judges’ chambers, and courthouses small and large is Bryan Stevenson, one of the country’s foremost criminal justice reformers and the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, the acclaimed legal aid organization based in Montgomery, Alabama. In Stevenson’s chronicle, the only thing standing between death or life imprisonment is an underpaid, overworked lawyer. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Hero of the Empire: Based on the Book by Candice Millard
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Hero of the Empire tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Candice Millard’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Hero of the Empire includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter overviewsProfiles of the main charactersTimeline of key eventsImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill by Candice Millard: Winston Churchill is a towering figure of the 20th century, but Candice Millard focuses on a much younger Churchill, whose unexpected adventures and heroics helped make him into the charismatic leader he is rememered as. With a trove of period details, a colorful cast of characters, and a deep feeling for 19th-century history, Millard’s biography recounts Churchill’s early military adventures before and during the Boer War. She then puts readers in the middle of that brutal conflict along with a young Churchill, as he rushes toward the daring escape that would bring him the admiration of the British Empire and the beginning of his legendary political career. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Hillbilly Elegy: Based on the Book by J.D. Vance (Smart Summaries)
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Hillbilly Elegy tells you what you need to know—before or after you read J.D. Vance&’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Hillbilly Elegy includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter overviewsCharacter profilesImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance: Hillbilly Elegy is both an honest, heartbreaking memoir about what it&’s really like to grow up in poverty and strife and a searing, thought-provoking take on the growing class divide in America. Hillbilly Elegy touches on how, as a country, we got here—and what, must be done to reverse the damage. As Ivy League–educated lawyer and Sillicon Valley principal J.D. Vance looks back on his childhood in Jackson, Kentucky, and Ohio, he recalls a youth marred by violence, poverty, and substance abuse, but also one of deep love and family loyalty. He tackles difficult questions about social class, upward mobility, and what it means to feel disenfranchised in your own country. His highly personal account guides readers to an understanding of rural conservatives, and how an entire segment of people transformed from New Deal democrats to right-wing Republicans. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Deviant: Based on the Book by Harold Schechter
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Deviant: The Shocking True Story of Ed Gein, the Original “Psycho” tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Harold Schechter’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Deviant includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter overviewsProfiles of the main charactersDetailed timeline of key eventsImportant quotes and analysisFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original workAbout Deviant: The Shocking True Story of Ed Gein, the Original “Psycho” by Harold Schechter: This true-crime classic profiles Ed Gein, the murderer and grave robber whose crimes inspired the films Psycho, The Silence of the Lambs, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Ed Gein was a mildmannered midwestern farmhand—until his horrific crimes were uncovered. After a failed attempt to dig up the grave of his dead mother, Gein became a grave robber and then a murderer. What he did with the bodies of his victims was disturbing and gory beyond all imagination, and it leaves no doubt about what Ed Gein really was: the original psycho. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Unbroken: Based on the Book by Laura Hillenbrand
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Unbroken tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Laura Hillenbrand’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter overviewsDetailed timeline of eventsCharacter profilesImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original workAbout Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand: Louis Zamperini was a true American hero: He proudly represented the United States as a champion runner in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, served his country as a skilled Air Corps bombardier during World War II, and survived more than a month lost at sea after his plane crashed into the Pacific Ocean—only to end up as a prisoner of war in Japan. When he was finally released, Zamperini was tormented by personal demons and wracked by post-traumatic stress disorder. After meeting evangelical minister Billy Graham, he became a born-again Christian and was able to forgive the captors who tortured him. More than a military biography, Unbroken is a timeless, engrossing, and inspiring story of bravery, endurance, and resilience. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Summary and Analysis of Elon Musk: Based on the Book by Ashlee Vance
by Worth BooksSo much to read, so little time? This brief overview of Elon Musk tells you what you need to know—before or after you read Ashlee Vance’s book. Crafted and edited with care, Worth Books set the standard for quality and give you the tools you need to be a well-informed reader. This short summary and analysis of Elon Musk includes: Historical contextChapter-by-chapter overviewsProfiles of the main charactersDetailed timeline of key eventsImportant quotesFascinating triviaGlossary of termsSupporting material to enhance your understanding of the original work About Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance: The bestselling biography Elon Musk offers a vigorous look at the most famous entrepreneur of our time. Ashlee Vance’s tough reporting, exclusive access to Musk’s friends and family, and years on the technology beat for Bloomberg Businessweek have enabled him to paint a picture of the most interesting man in the industry. Elon Musk is behind the modern electric vehicle at Tesla and has revolutionized the cost and convenience of spaceflight at his rocket company, SpaceX. In addition to these major business and technological success stories, Musk cofounded PayPal, which was sold to eBay for $1.5 billion, and sold Zip2 to Compaq during the dotcom boom. The summary and analysis in this ebook are intended to complement your reading experience and bring you closer to a great work of nonfiction.
Eight Is Enough: A Father's Memoir of Life with His Extra-Large Family
by Tom BradenThe true story behind the classic TV show: A father’s delightful account of raising eight free-spirited children in 1970s America. Tom Braden had a colorful career: He parachuted into Nazi-occupied France, directed the CIA’s covert operations program during the early years of the Cold War, ran for public office, owned a newspaper, served as executive secretary for the Museum of Modern Art, and cohosted the CNN show Crossfire. He counted among his friends David Brinkley, Robert Frost, Kirk Douglas, and Nelson Rockefeller. But Braden considered fatherhood both his most important job and his biggest adventure. No wonder; he and his wife, Joan, a State Department official and Washington society hostess, raised eight children during one of the most tumultuous periods in American history. In this diverting family memoir, Braden shares a treasure trove of amusing anecdotes—from the time his youngest daughter’s pet sheep interrupted a dinner party with a Supreme Court justice to the telegram US Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy sent after the birth of the Bradens’ eighth child: “Congratulations. I surrender.” (The Kennedys had seven children at the time). With wit and wisdom, Braden also addresses some of the most serious issues, including drugs, alcohol, and premarital sex, faced by parents in an era of deep distrust between generations. When ABC proposed adapting Eight Is Enough for television, Braden found the idea so preposterous he sold the rights for one dollar. The award-winning series starring Dick Van Patten and Betty Buckley ran for five seasons and launched the Hollywood careers of many young actors, including Willie Aames and Ralph Macchio. A celebration of the joys and tribulations of fatherhood, Eight Is Enough speaks with warmth, humor, and compassion to parents and children everywhere.
The Kennedy Imprisonment: A Meditation on Power
by Garry WillsWith a new preface: An “irreverent [and] entertaining” portrait of JFK, the Camelot mystique, and the politics of charisma (The Christian Science Monitor). Described by the New York Times as “a sort of intellectual outlaw,” Garry Wills takes on the romantic myths surrounding the Kennedy clan in this thought-provoking examination of electoral politics and the power of image in America. Wills argues that the much-admired dynasty, beginning with patriarch Joe Kennedy, created a corrupt climate where appearances were more important than reality, truth was discarded when it wasn’t convenient, and an assortment of devoted loyalists sacrificed integrity for the sake of reflected glory. Touching upon topics ranging from the manipulation of the PT-109 story in the media to the authorship of Profiles in Courage to the handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis to persistent rumors of extramarital affairs, Wills offers a persuasive look not only at President John F. Kennedy and his brothers Robert and Edward, but also at the bubble that existed around them and lured in some of the best and brightest of the era. From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Lincoln at Gettysburg and Why I Am a Catholic, The Kennedy Imprisonment is “a brilliant and troubling study of the Kennedy era in American politics” (The Philadelphia Inquirer).
Nixon Agonistes: The Crisis of the Self-Made Man
by Garry WillsWith a new preface: A “stunning” analysis of the troubled Republican president by the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Lincoln at Gettysburg (The New York Times Book Review). In this acclaimed biography that earned him a spot on Nixon’s infamous “enemies list,” Garry Wills takes a thoughtful, in-depth, and often “very amusing” look at the thirty-seventh US president, and draws some surprising conclusions about a man whose name has become synonymous with scandal and the abuse of power (Kirkus Reviews). Arguing that Nixon was a reflection of the country that elected him, Wills examines not only the psychology of the man himself and his relationships with others—from his wife, Pat, to his vice-president, Spiro Agnew—but also the state of the nation at the time, mired in the Vietnam War and experiencing a cultural rift that pitted the young against the old. Putting his findings into moral, economic, intellectual, and political contexts, he ultimately “paints a broad and provocative landscape of the nation’s—and Nixon’s—travails” (The New York Times). Simultaneously compassionate and critical, and raising interesting perspectives on the shifting definitions of terms like “conservative” and “liberal” over recent decades, Nixon Agonistes is a brilliant and indispensable book from one of America’s most acclaimed historians.