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Our Betty
by Liz SmithLiz Smith, once called the nation's favourite fictional grandmother, is a familiar face to all TV and cinema viewers. She is most often recognised for her role of Nana in The Royle Family and has appeared in numerous productions over the years. OUR BETTY is Liz's life story - from her cosseted yet lonely childhood with her beloved grandparents (her mother died giving birth to Liz's stillborn sibling), through the war with the WRENS, marriage and children, divorce and poverty, long years working in dead-end jobs such as in a plastic bag factory, until her heavenly escape of evening acting classes provided the chance for a career. While working at Hamley's one Christmas ('I was one of those tiresome people who stop you and beg you to try samples of this and that'), she received a phone call from a young director who wanted to make an improvised film. His name was Mike Leigh and the film Bleak Moments. From that point, when Liz was 50, her career took off and she has worked with some of the most famous names in the entertainment business. OUR BETTY is, like its author, original, amusing and fascinating on the struggles, hopes and successes endemic of a life in front of the camera.
Our Billie
by Ian Clayton'An astonishing work' - Joanne HarrisEvery parent's worst nightmare became a reality for Ian Clayton. On a short holiday break in Hay-on-Wye he took his nine-year-old twins canoeing, and in a freak accident his daughter Billie was drowned. In a remarkably frank and vivid way Clayton describes what happened on that spring day, his desperate attempts to save his two children, and then what it felt like two years later to come face to face with the men who hired out the canoe.But Our Billie is not a story of bitterness and recrimination. Instead it's the story of how a family attempts to come to terms with something which makes no sense at all. Through his memories of Billie and his wonderfully affectionate portrait of the small town in Yorkshire where the family has lived for generations, he weaves a story of loss and remembering, of gratitude and forgiveness.
Our Blessed Rebel Queen: Essays on Carrie Fisher and Princess Leia (Contemporary Approaches to Film and Media Series)
by Linda Mizejewski Ken Feil Kristen Anderson Wagner Jennifer M. Fogel Cynthia A. Hoffner Maghan Molloy Jackson Philipp Dominik Keidl Andrew Kemp-Wilcox Slade Kinnecott Sejung Park Tanya D. ZukOur Blessed Rebel Queen: Essays on Carrie Fisher and Princess Leia is the first full-length exploration of Carrie Fisher’s career as actress, writer, and advocate. Fisher’s entangled relationship with the iconic Princess Leia is a focal point of this volume. Editors Linda Mizejewski and Tanya D. Zuk have assembled a collection that engages with the multiple interfaces between Fisher’s most famous character and her other life-giving work. The contributors offer insights into Fisher as science-fiction idol, author, feminist inspiration, and Lucasfilm commodity. Jennifer M. Fogel examines the thorny "ownership" of Fisher’s image as a conflation of fan nostalgia, merchandise commodity, and eventually, feminist icon. Philipp Dominik Keidl looks at how Carrie Fisher and her iconic character are positioned within the male-centric history of Star Wars. Andrew Kemp-Wilcox researches the 2016 controversy over a virtual Princess Leia that emerged after Carrie Fisher’s death. Tanya D. Zuk investigates the use of Princess Leia and Carrie images during the Women’s March as memetic reconfigurations of historical propaganda to leverage political and fannish ideological positions. Linda Mizejewski explores Carrie Fisher’s autobiographical writing, while Ken Feil takes a look at Fisher’s playful blurring of truth and fiction in her screenplays. Kristen Anderson Wagner identifies Fisher’s use of humor and anger to challenge public expectations for older actresses. Cynthia Hoffner and Sejung Park highlight Fisher’s mental health advocacy, and Slade Kinnecott personalizes how Fisher’s candidness and guidance about mental health were especially cherished by those who lacked a support system in their own lives. Our Blessed Rebel Queen is distinct in its interdisciplinary approach, drawing from a variety of methodologies and theoretical frameworks. Longtime fans of Carrie Fisher and her body of work will welcome this smart and thoughtful tribute to a multimedia legend.
Our Boston: Writers Celebrate the City They Love
by Andrew Blauner"Like the remarkable city to which they pay tribute, the pieces assembled in this book are diverse, engrossing, illuminating, emotional, funny — and glorious. Anyone who loves or has ever loved Boston will want a copy." — Claire Messud, author of The Emperor’s Children and The Woman UpstairsPut together in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombing, an anthology of both original and beloved essays from Boston area writers past and present, celebrating the city they love. What defines Boston? Its history? Its landmarks? Its sports teams and shrines? Perhaps the question should be: Who defines Boston? From Henry David Thoreau to Dennis Lehane, Boston has been beloved by many of America’s greatest writers, and there is no better group of people to capture the heart and soul of the Hub. In Our Boston, editor Andrew Blauner has collected both original and reprinted essays from Boston area writers past and present, all celebrating the city so close to their hearts. Boston is more than a geographic location; it is a state of mind. Whether you're getting cannoli in the North End, watching a game at Fenway Park, or journeying across the Charles River to one of the many thriving metro-area cities and towns, there is a connection between people, a sense of "Boston-ness."From Mike Barnicle to Pico Iyer, Susan Orlean to George Plimpton, Leigh Montville to Lesley Visser, Pagan Kennedy to James Atlas, here is a collection of the best essays by our best writers on one of America’s greatest cities.
Our Boys: A Perfect Season on the Plains with the Smith Center Redmen
by Joe DrapeJoe Drape's Our Boys tells an inspiring portrait of the extraordinary high-school football team whose quest for perfection sustains its hometown in the heartlandThe football team in Smith Center, Kansas, has won sixty-seven games in a row, the nation's longest high-school winning streak. They have done so by embracing a philosophy of life taught by their legendary coach, Roger Barta: "Respect each other, then learn to love each other and together we are champions."But as they embarked on a quest for a fifth consecutive title in the fall of 2008, they faced a potentially destabilizing transition: the greatest senior class in school history had graduated, and Barta was contemplating retirement after three decades on the sidelines. In Smith Center—population: 1,931—this changing of the guard was seismic. Hours removed from the nearest city, the town revolves around "our boys" in a way that goes to the heart of what America's heartland is today.Joe Drape, a Kansas City native and an award-winning sportswriter for The New York Times, moved his family to Smith Center to discover what makes the team and the town an inspiration even to those who live hundreds of miles away. His stories of the coaches, players, and parents reveal a community fighting to hold on to a way of life that is rich in value, even as its economic fortunes decline.Drape's moving portrait of Coach Barta and the impressive young men of Smith Center is sure to take its place among the more memorable American sports stories of recent years.
Our Brave Foremothers: Celebrating 100 Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous Women Who Changed the Course of History
by Rozella KennedyInspired by her own foremothers&’ legacies and the friendships formed throughout her life, Rozella Kennedy centers and celebrates the stories of 100 Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous women—both famous and little-known—who changed the course of US history. In the beautiful pages of Our Brave Foremothers, discover an intergenerational, intercultural bouquet of Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous women lifted into the significance that they deserve. • From Etel Adnan to Mary Jones, Thelma Garcia Buchholdt to Pura Belpré to Zitkála-Šá, here are 100 women of color who left a lasting mark on United States history. Including both famous and little-known names, the thoughtful profiles and detailed portraits of these women herald their achievements and passions. • Following each entry is a prompt that asks you to connect your life to theirs, an inspiring way to understand their influence and the power of their stories. To consider on a deeper level the devotedness of Clara Brown, the fearlessness of Jovita Idár, the guts of Grace Lee Boggs, or the selflessness of Martha Louise Morrow Foxx. And to be as brave as we each can be—and then beyond that.
Our Children Can Soar: A Celebration of Rosa, Barack, and the Pioneers of Change
by Michelle CookEvery person has a purpose, a unique effect on the world around us. And sometimes a person's achievements are so extraordinary, they shape generations to come. Highlighting key figures in the African American fight for equality, this stunning picture book--brought to life by thirteen of today's premier illustrators--symbolically takes readers through a people's history. From George Washington Carver to Jackie Robinson, from Rosa Parks to Barack Obama, here are true pioneers of change. Our Children Can Soar is the story of a people rising. It is a story for everyone, for it is on the backs of our ancestors that every child is raised.
Our Country in Crisis: Britain's Housing Emergency and How We Rebuild
by Kwajo Tweneboa'Kwajo's voice is leading the call for change on behalf of a generation who have been seriously failed by Westminster.' Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester'A brilliant thinker and doer. Kwajo for Mayor of London!' Kelechi Okafor'Vital and urgent' Vicky Spratt, author of TENANTSThis may be the most important book you read this year.On 14 June 2017, Grenfell went up in flames and seventy-two people lost their lives. Three years later, two-year-old Awaab Ishak would die from a respiratory condition caused by mould. And in 2023, it was reported that we are seeing record levels of children experiencing homelessness. This is twenty-first century Britain, where millions are trying to build their lives on crumbling foundations.Britain's in a housing emergency.Campaigner and activist, Kwajo Tweneboa has been on the frontline of this housing crisis, highlighting the shocking conditions so many are forced to live with. He knows better than anyone the brutal realities the UK is facing, from the decimation of our welfare services to the rising poverty rates as the cost-of-living crisis continues.This is how we rebuild.Our Country in Crisis looks back at decades of poor decisions and highlights the modern-day the impact of the loss of social housing as a safety net. This housing emergency cuts across generations, class and education, and is devastating our health, destroying communities and ruining lives.But it is not irreversible. Radical action is possible and Kwajo Tweneboa and his urgent, ground-breaking book are leading the way. For readers of manifestos for change such as It's Not That Radical by Mikaela Loach, Poverty Safari by Darren McGarvey and Tenants by Vicky Spratt, this is the fresh new voice and perspective we need.
Our Country in Crisis: Britain's Housing Emergency and How We Rebuild
by Kwajo Tweneboa'Kwajo's voice is leading the call for change on behalf of a generation who have been seriously failed by Westminster.' Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester'A brilliant thinker and doer. Kwajo for Mayor of London!' Kelechi Okafor'Vital and urgent' Vicky Spratt, author of TENANTSThis may be the most important book you read this year.On 14 June 2017, Grenfell went up in flames and seventy-two people lost their lives. Three years later, two-year-old Awaab Ishak would die from a respiratory condition caused by mould. And in 2023, it was reported that we are seeing record levels of children experiencing homelessness. This is twenty-first century Britain, where millions are trying to build their lives on crumbling foundations.Britain's in a housing emergency.Campaigner and activist, Kwajo Tweneboa has been on the frontline of this housing crisis, highlighting the shocking conditions so many are forced to live with. He knows better than anyone the brutal realities the UK is facing, from the decimation of our welfare services to the rising poverty rates as the cost-of-living crisis continues.This is how we rebuild.Our Country in Crisis looks back at decades of poor decisions and highlights the modern-day the impact of the loss of social housing as a safety net. This housing emergency cuts across generations, class and education, and is devastating our health, destroying communities and ruining lives.But it is not irreversible. Radical action is possible and Kwajo Tweneboa and his urgent, ground-breaking book are leading the way. For readers of manifestos for change such as It's Not That Radical by Mikaela Loach, Poverty Safari by Darren McGarvey and Tenants by Vicky Spratt, this is the fresh new voice and perspective we need.
Our Country's First Ladies
by Ann BausumThe award-winning author of National Geographic's widely acclaimed Our Country's President snow brings young readers the perfect companion piece of Our Country's First Ladies. Step inside the White House and meet the women who have played the roles of partners, confidantes, hostesses, and activists in the midst of American history. Read of fascinating lives led by the wives (and sometimes daughters, nieces, and friends) of our country's leaders. Ann Bausum introduces us to a private side of each First Lady, and connects each personality with the public persona to produce a book of uniquely revealing portraits. Each profile is accompanied by a full-page portrait and a Fact Box detailing information such as education, special interests, and children. Timelines set each tenure in the context of the course of women's history, and a Facts-at-a-Glance section is a valuable resource for trivia lovers and report writers alike. The narrative comes alive through the multi-faceted natures of the First Ladies: The Legend of Dolley Madison's Rescue of White House treasures in the war of 1812 crackles with drama; the description of Julia Grant's 29-course White House dinner will give you indigestion; the account of Eleanor Roosevelt's tireless public service and activism is awe-inspiring. Hers is one of many stories of First Ladies who embraced causes to make a difference: Lady Bird Johnson campaigned for the beautification of American cities and highways; Hillary Clinton championed the rights of children; while the librarian Laura Bush has been a tireless advocate of literacy. True to her passion, Mrs. Bush provides a special foreword for this attractive and informative volume. The book features lavish illustrations courtesy of the White House Historical Association, making it a beautiful reference and gift volume. The book's informative text has been completely vetted by American history expert Professor Robert Johnston.
Our Country's Presidents: A Complete Encyclopedia Of The U. S. Presidency, 2020 Edition
by Ann BausumRevised and updated to include the winner of the 2020 presidential election, this photo-filled and fact-packed book is a timely must-have reference. National Geographic presents the 45 individuals who have led the U.S. in this up-to-date, authoritative, and lavishly illustrated family, school, and library reference. Key features include: Information about the 2021 president-elect and the 2020 election results as of the publication date A brand-new thematic spread on the impeachment process and its history Revised terminology around the language of slavery and analysis of early presidents who benefitted from and relied on enslaved labor Comprehensive profiles of all the former presidents along with timelines and descriptions of crucial events during their terms Thematic spreads covering a variety of topics from the history of voting rights to how to write a letter to the president Full-page portraits, famous quotes, and fascinating facts to help kids get to know each leader A fascinating read and excellent reference for students and kids of all ages!
Our Country's Presidents: All You Need to Know About the Presidents, from George Washington to Barack Obama
by Ann BausumThis guide to the lives of the 42 Presidents of the United States (from George Washington to Barack Obama) provides in-depth text and historic images on the leaders of U.S.
Our Country, Right or Wrong: The Life of Stephen Decatur, the U.S. Navy's Most Illustrious Commander
by Leonard F. GuttridgeBlazing sea fights and undercurrents of intrigue: these are among the compelling ingredients of a biography that brings to life the most illustrious and formidable figure of the United States Navy. His name is carried by more than two dozen towns and cities. Here at last is a full exploration of Stephen Decatur's complex character. Reckless in youth, cool yet audacious in combat, loved by those who sailed under his command yet plotted against by rivals in the race for glory, Decatur is brought to life in this enthralling sea story.Decatur's heroism became widespread news in 1804 when, sent to reclaim a captured U.S. vessel from Tripoli in the Barbary Wars, he ordered his men to set fire to the captured vessel and proceed to attack the sailors of the Tripoli fleet in hand-to-hand combat. His brilliance continued through the War of 1812, after which he was promoted to the highest naval rank of Commodore. Decatur not only proved dauntless on the quarterdeck but amazingly effective in Mediterranean diplomacy. His spectacular dealings with Islamic powers presaged America's twenty-first century involvement in the region.Readers will also learn the identity of the woman he forsook for a sophisticated beauty pursued by suitors as varied as Napoleon Bonaparte's younger brother and Aaron Burr. Through freshly discovered documents, many official, some intensely personal, biographer Leonard Guttridge traces the elements that sped Decatur inexorably into the shadow of murder. Here, at last, is the full story of the man who raised the most memorable toasts in the history of American celebrations, when he declared in 1816 "Our country! In her intercourse with foreign nations may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong!" At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Our Dear Friends in Moscow: The Inside Story of a Broken Generation
by Andrei Soldatov Irina BoroganTwo of Russia&’s most prominent investigative journalists tell the "gripping" (Foreign Policy) story of how the hopes of their generation of optimistic Russians in the 1990s was replaced by autocracy, fear, and betrayalOur Dear Friends in Moscow tells the story of a group of young Russians, part of an idealistic generation who came of age in Moscow at the end of the twentieth century, just as the communist era imploded and a future full of potential, and uncertainty, stood in front of them. Initially, the group seized and enjoyed the freedoms of the new era, but quickly the notion that Russia was destined to join the West, and Europe, in a new partnership began to fade. At home the economy crashed, civil war stalked Chechnya, and terrorism came to Moscow. More discreetly, the new Russian government, getting angrier at the West and collecting a list of grievances, began to pull inward. By the time of Vladimir Putin&’s second and apparently endless term as president, the country had embraced a kind of ethnonationalism and was heading for war at home and abroad. The group is torn apart by the shift in Russia. Some flee; others become sinister agents of the ever more aggressive state. The center cannot hold.
Our Divide: Two Sides of Locked-In Syndrome
by LaDonna HarrisonOur Divide: Two Sides of Locked in Syndrome is the story of the other side—the side of the young, pregnant wife of a man who, at age twenty-seven, is struck down by an obstruction in the brain stem, leaving him with a rare neurological disorder called locked-in syndrome. Like Jean-Dominique Bauby of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Cleve is rendered mute and paralyzed by the syndrome—but unlike Bauby, he is unable to move at all, unable to sit up in a wheelchair or communicate by blinking an eye.Our Divide is a beautifully written, honest account of the experience of watching a loved one suffer. Harrison delivers both a peek into the world of a unique other and an intimate view of one young woman&’s grieving process. A heartbreaking story that&’s at once a grief, a coming-of-age, and a survival narrative, this genuine, honest portrayal of one woman&’s mistakes and courage while learning how to take responsibility and create a life for herself will sweep readers away.
Our East End: Memories of Life in Disappearing Britain
by Piers DudgeonThis ebook edition contains the full text version as per the book. Doesn't include original photographic and illustrated material. This oral history of London's East End spans the period after the First World War to the upsurge of prosperity at the beginning of the 60s - a time which saw fresh waves of immigrants in the area, the Fascist marches of the 30s and its spirited recovery after virtual obliteration during the Blitz. Piers Dudgeon has listened to dozens of people who remember this fiercely proud quarter to record their real-life experiences of what it was like before it was fashionable to buy a home in the Docklands. They talk of childhood and education, of work and entertainment, of family, community values, health, politics, religion and music. Their stories will make you laugh and cry. It is people's own memories that make history real and this engrossing book captures them vividly.
Our Eleanor: A Scrapbook Look at Eleanor Roosevelt's Remarkable Life
by Candace FlemingNo matter how the question is answered, one thing is clear: There has hardly been a life in the last century that Eleanor Roosevelt has not affected, in one way or another. From securing safe, low-cost housing for Kentucky's poor, to helping her grandchildren hang a tire swing on the White House's south lawn, to representing America as the first female delegate to the United Nations, Eleanor rarely kept a second of her life for herself -- and she wouldn't have had it any other way.In this stunning "scrapbook" biography, Candace Fleming, author of the acclaimed Ben Franklin's Almanac, turns her keen eye to our nation's premier First Lady. Filled with photographs of everything from Eleanor's speech at the 1940 Democratic National Convention to her high school report card, as well as fascinating stories about life in and out of the White House, Our Eleanor gives us a remarkable perspective on a remarkable woman, and presents to a new generation an Eleanor to call its own.
Our Father Who Art in Hell: The Life and Death of Jim Jones
by James Reston Jr.On November 18, 1978, an event unique in human history took place. In a remote region of Guyana, an elemental, disintegrating country just above the equator in South America, 913 followers of a captivating American preacher named Reverend Jim Jones joined in a mass suicide, drinking poison (or having it injected into them) and lying down quietly to die together. Their ritual followed the assassination of Congressman Leo Ryan, a flashy, iconoclastic California Democrat from the suburbs of San Francisco, where Jim Jones had built his church called the People's Temple ("the Temple") into a large and powerful force in the mid-1970s. Congressman Ryan is the only congressman in American history to be assassinated.
Our Father's Secret: The true story of three Irish girls' struggle against abuse and their fight for justice
by Joyce Kavanagh June Kavanagh Paula KavanaghA true story of abuse. Three sisters. A shattered Irish childhood.Joyce, June and Paula Kavanagh were three sisters born to a family of ten in Ballyfermot, Dublin in the 1960s. Their father abused all three of them in the family home throughout their childhood. In 1989, the sisters made the brave decision to bring charges against their father and, in 1990, the state took a successful case against him. He was convicted and imprisoned.Click, Click is the story of their abuse; the exposure of a man prolific in his paedophilia; and an Irish childhood lost in a dysfunctional, abusive and torturous environment. Importantly, however, it is also the story of three women's healing; their coming to terms with their abuse, and their forgiveness of themselves and others.The Kavanagh sisters have refused to allow their abuse to define them. With fierce humour, insight and honesty, they now share their story and show that with love and determination, you can indeed conquer all.
Our Father's Secret: The true story of three Irish girls’ struggle against abuse and their fight for justice
by Joyce Kavanagh June Kavanagh Paula KavanaghA true story of abuse. Three sisters. A shattered Irish childhood.Joyce, June and Paula Kavanagh were three sisters born to a family of ten in Ballyfermot, Dublin in the 1960s. Their father abused all three of them in the family home throughout their childhood. In 1989, the sisters made the brave decision to bring charges against their father and, in 1990, the state took a successful case against him. He was convicted and imprisoned.Click, Click is the story of their abuse; the exposure of a man prolific in his paedophilia; and an Irish childhood lost in a dysfunctional, abusive and torturous environment. Importantly, however, it is also the story of three women's healing; their coming to terms with their abuse, and their forgiveness of themselves and others.The Kavanagh sisters have refused to allow their abuse to define them. With fierce humour, insight and honesty, they now share their story and show that with love and determination, you can indeed conquer all.
Our Fathers' War: Growing Up in the Shadow of the Greatest Generation
by Tom MathewsIt is fair to say that Tom Mathews's relations with his father, a veteran of World War II's fabled 10th Mountain Division, were terrible. He came back from the war to a young son he'd barely met and proceeded to bully and browbeat him--for his own good, he thought. In the course of puzzling out almost fifty years of intermittent conflict, Mathews came to understand that their problems were not simply personal, they were generational--and widely shared by millions of other baby boomer sons.
Our Fellow Kentuckians: Rascals, Heroes and Just Plain Uncommon Folk
by James C ClaypoolThis fascinating volume profiles thirty-nine significant figures in Kentucky history, from Daniel Boone to Loretta Lynn, Muhammad Ali and many others.For years, Dr. James C. Claypool delivered an annual talk for the Kentucky Humanities Council entitled &“Our Fellow Kentuckians,&” which profiled a wide array of individuals with ties to the Commonwealth either by birth, residence, or family heritage. This volume expands on that famous talk, offering a rich and varied sampling of the personalities that have made Kentucky the place it is. From intrepid pioneers and statesmen to legendary athletes, inventors, entrepreneurs, and film stars, the selected individuals were chosen to represent the widest set of demographics. And as Claypool says in his introduction, &“like a wine tasting, the sketches offered are meant to give readers a taste for more.&”
Our Fight: A Memoir
by Ronda RouseyFrom New York Times bestselling author and trailblazing athlete Ronda Rousey, an unfiltered chronicle of loss, resilience and finding meaning in life&’s journey. From the moment she burst onto the MMA scene, Ronda Rousey was unbeatable. She repeatedly strung together back-to-back flawless victories, racking up a collection of records and forever changing the face of sports as the UFC&’s first female champion. A superstar in her sport, she transcended athletics, appearing in blockbuster films and becoming a role model for women everywhere. Then, on November 15, 2015, it all came crashing down. In OUR FIGHT, Rousey explores the greatest challenge of her life and, ultimately, how she rebuilt her life into something better in the aftermath. She recounts how she replaced her pursuit of perfection with the pursuit of happiness and found an opportunity in disguise amongst the wreckage. Following Rousey&’s relatable journey, OUR FIGHT is a courageous narrative of career changes, marriage, motherhood, and facing your fears.
Our First Civil War: Patriots and Loyalists in the American Revolution
by H. W. Brands"A fast-paced, often riveting account of the military and political events leading up to the Declaration of Independence and those that followed during the war ... Brands does his readers a service by reminding them that division, as much as unity, is central to the founding of our nation."—The Washington PostFrom best-selling historian and Pulitzer Prize finalist H. W. Brands comes a gripping, page-turning narrative of the American Revolution that shows it to be more than a fight against the British: it was also a violent battle among neighbors forced to choose sides, Loyalist or Patriot. What causes people to forsake their country and take arms against it? What prompts their neighbors, hardly distinguishable in station or success, to defend that country against the rebels? That is the question H. W. Brands answers in his powerful new history of the American Revolution. George Washington and Benjamin Franklin were the unlikeliest of rebels. Washington in the 1770s stood at the apex of Virginia society. Franklin was more successful still, having risen from humble origins to world fame. John Adams might have seemed a more obvious candidate for rebellion, being of cantankerous temperament. Even so, he revered the law. Yet all three men became rebels against the British Empire that fostered their success. Others in the same circle of family and friends chose differently. William Franklin might have been expected to join his father, Benjamin, in rebellion but remained loyal to the British. So did Thomas Hutchinson, a royal governor and friend of the Franklins, and Joseph Galloway, an early challenger to the Crown. They soon heard themselves denounced as traitors--for not having betrayed the country where they grew up. Native Americans and the enslaved were also forced to choose sides as civil war broke out around them. After the Revolution, the Patriots were cast as heroes and founding fathers while the Loyalists were relegated to bit parts best forgotten. Our First Civil War reminds us that before America could win its revolution against Britain, the Patriots had to win a bitter civil war against family, neighbors, and friends.
Our Flag Was Still There: The Star Spangled Banner that Survived the British and 200 Years—And the Armistead Family Who Saved It
by Tom McMillanOur Flag Was Still There details the improbable two-hundred-year journey of the original Star-Spangled Banner—from Fort McHenry in 1814, when Francis Scott Key first saw it, to the Smithsonian in 2023—and the enduring family who defended, kept, hid, and ultimately donated the most famous flag in American history.Francis Scott Key saw the original Star-Spangled Banner flying over Baltimore&’s Fort McHenry on September 14, 1814, following a twenty-five-hour bombardment by the British Navy, inspiring him to write the words to our national anthem. Torn and tattered over the years, reduced in size to appease souvenir-hunters, stuffed away in a New York City vault for the last two decades of the nineteenth century, the flag&’s mere existence after two hundred years is an improbable story of dedication, perseverance, patriotism, angst, inner-family squabbles, and, yes, more than a little luck. For this unlikely feat, we have the Armistead family to thank—led by Lieutenant Colonel George Armistead, commander of Fort McHenry, who took it home after the battle in clear defiance of U.S. Army regulations. It is only because of that quiet indiscretion that the flag survives to this day. Armistead&’s descendants kept and protected their family heirloom for ninety years. The flag&’s first photo was not taken until 1873, almost sixty years after Key saw it waving, and most Americans did not even know of its existence until Armistead&’s grandson loaned it to the Smithsonian in 1907. Tom McMillan tells a story as no one has before. Digging deep into the archives of Fort McHenry and the Smithsonian, accessing never-before-published letters and documents, and presenting rare photos from the private collections of Armistead descendants and other sources, McMillan follows the flag on an often-perilous journey through three centuries. Our Flag Was Still There provides new insight into an intriguing period of U.S. history, offering a &“story behind the story&” account of one of the country&’s most treasured relics.