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New York Times Best Sellers - Non-Fiction
Description: Bookshare is pleased to offer the top 10 non-fiction books from the New York Times best seller list on a weekly basis. Books are added in as they become available. The month corresponds to the first time they appeared on the list. #adults
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You Never Forget Your First
by Alexis CoeAlexis Coe takes a closer look at our first--and finds he is not quite the man we rememberYoung George Washington was raised by a struggling single mother, demanded military promotions, caused an international incident, and never backed down--even when his dysentery got so bad he had to ride with a cushion on his saddle. But after he married Martha, everything changed. Washington became the kind of man who named his dog Sweetlips and hated to leave home. He took up arms against the British only when there was no other way, though he lost more battles than he won.
After an unlikely victory in the Revolutionary War cast him as the nation's hero, he was desperate to retire, but the founders pressured him into the presidency--twice. When he retired years later, no one talked him out of it. He left the highest office heartbroken over the partisan nightmare his backstabbing cabinet had created. Back on his plantation, the man who fought for liberty must confront his greatest hypocrisy--what to do with the men, women, and children he owns--before he succumbs to death.
With irresistible style and warm humor, You Never Forget Your First combines rigorous research and lively storytelling that will have readers--including those who thought presidential biographies were just for dads--inhaling every page.
A New York Times Bestseller
The Message
by Ta-Nehisi Coates#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The renowned author of Between the World and Me journeys to three resonant sites of conflict to explore how the stories we tell—and the ones we don&’t—shape our realities.&“Ta-Nehisi Coates always writes with a purpose. . . . These pilgrimages, for him, help ground his powerful writing about race.&”—Associated Press&“Coates exhorts readers, including students, parents, educators, and journalists, to challenge conventional narratives that can be used to justify ethnic cleansing or camouflage racist policing. Brilliant and timely.&”—Booklist (starred review)FINALIST FOR THE LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, NPR, Vanity Fair, Town & Country, Electric LitTa-Nehisi Coates originally set out to write a book about writing, in the tradition of Orwell&’s classic &“Politics and the English Language,&” but found himself grappling with deeper questions about how our stories—our reporting and imaginative narratives and mythmaking—expose and distort our realities.In the first of the book&’s three intertwining essays, Coates, on his first trip to Africa, finds himself in two places at once: in Dakar, a modern city in Senegal, and in a mythic kingdom in his mind. Then he takes readers along with him to Columbia, South Carolina, where he reports on his own book&’s banning, but also explores the larger backlash to the nation&’s recent reckoning with history and the deeply rooted American mythology so visible in that city—a capital of the Confederacy with statues of segregationists looming over its public squares. Finally, in the book&’s longest section, Coates travels to Palestine, where he sees with devastating clarity how easily we are misled by nationalist narratives, and the tragedy that lies in the clash between the stories we tell and the reality of life on the ground. Written at a dramatic moment in American and global life, this work from one of the country&’s most important writers is about the urgent need to untangle ourselves from the destructive myths that shape our world—and our own souls—and embrace the liberating power of even the most difficult truths.
Something Lost, Something Gained
by Hillary Rodham ClintonWhat would it be like to sit down for an impassioned, entertaining conversation with Hillary Clinton? In Something Lost, Something Gained, Hillary offers her candid views on life and love, politics, liberty, democracy, the threats we face, and the future within our reach.She describes the strength she draws from her deepest friendships, her Methodist faith, and the nearly fifty years she&’s been married to President Bill Clinton—all with the wisdom that comes from looking back on a full life with fresh eyes. She takes us along as she returns to the classroom as a college professor, enjoys the bonds inside the exclusive club of former First Ladies, moves past her dream of being president, and dives into new activism for women and democracy. From canoeing with an ex-Nazi trying to deprogram white supremacists to sweltering with salt farmers in the desert trying to adapt to the climate crisis in India, Hillary brings us to the front lines of our biggest challenges. For the first time, Hillary shares the story of her operation to evacuate Afghan women to safety in the harrowing final days of America&’s longest war. But we also meet the brave women dissidents defying dictators around the world, gain new personal insights about her old adversary Vladimir Putin, and learn the best ways that worried parents can protect kids from toxic technology. We also hear her fervent and persuasive warning to all American voters. In the end, Something Lost, Something Gained is a testament to the idea that the personal is political, and the political is personal, providing a blueprint for what each of us can do to make our lives better. Hillary has &“looked at life from both sides now.&” In these pages, she shares the latest chapter of her inspiring life and shows us how to age with grace and keep moving forward, with grit, joy, purpose, and a sense of humor.
Citizen
by Bill ClintonA powerful, candid, and richly detailed memoir from an American icon, revealing what life looks like after the presidency: triumphs, tribulations, and all. On January 20, 2001, after nearly thirty years in politics—eight of them as president of the United States—Bill Clinton was suddenly a private citizen. Only fifty-four years old, full of energy and ideas, he wanted to make meaningful use of his skills, his relationships with world leaders, and all he’d learned in a lifetime of politics, but how? Just days after leaving the White House, the call came to aid victims of a devastating earthquake in India, and Clinton hit the ground running. Over the next two decades, he would create an enduring legacy of public service and advocacy work, from Indonesia to Louisiana, Northern Ireland to South Africa, and in the process reimagine philanthropy and redefine the impact a former president could have on the world. Citizen is Clinton’s front-row, first-person chronicle of his post-presidential years and the most significant events of the twenty-first century, including 9/11 and the runup to the Iraq War, the Haiti earthquake, the Great Recession, the January 6 insurrection, and the enduring culture wars of our times. With clarity and compassion, he also weighs in on the unprecedented challenges brought on by a global pandemic, ongoing income inequality, a steadily warming planet, and authoritarian forces dedicated to weakening democracy. Yet Citizen is more than a political memoir. These pages capture Clinton in a rare and unforgettable light: not only as a celebrated former president and a foundation leader, but as a father, grandfather, and husband. He recounts his support for Hillary Clinton during her time as senator, secretary of state, and presidential candidate, and shares the frustration and pain of the 2016 election. In this landmark publication, the highly anticipated follow-up to the best-selling My Life, Clinton pens an illuminating account of American democracy on a global stage, offering a frank reflection on the past and, with it, a fearless embrace of our future. Citizen is a self-portrait of equal parts eloquence, insight, and candor, a testament to one man’s unwavering commitment to family and nation.
New York Times Bestseller
Blood and Treasure
by Bob Drury and Tom ClavinThe Instant New York Times BestellerNational Bestseller"[The] authors’ finest work to date." —Wall Street JournalThe explosive true saga of the legendary figure Daniel Boone and the bloody struggle for America's frontier by two bestselling authors at the height of their writing power—Bob Drury and Tom Clavin.It is the mid-eighteenth century, and in the thirteen colonies founded by Great Britain, anxious colonists desperate to conquer and settle North America’s “First Frontier” beyond the Appalachian Mountains commence a series of bloody battles. These violent conflicts are waged against the Native American tribes whose lands they covet, the French, and the mother country itself in an American Revolution destined to reverberate around the world.This is the setting of Blood and Treasure, and the guide to this epic narrative is America’s first and arguably greatest pathfinder, Daniel Boone—not the coonskin cap-wearing caricature of popular culture but the flesh-and-blood frontiersman and Revolutionary War hero whose explorations into the forested frontier beyond the great mountains would become the stuff of legend. Now, thanks to painstaking research by two award-winning authors, the story of the brutal birth of the United States is told through the eyes of both the ordinary and larger-than-life men and women who witnessed it.This fast-paced and fiery narrative, fueled by contemporary diaries and journals, newspaper reports, and eyewitness accounts, is a stirring chronicle of the conflict over America’s “First Frontier” that places the reader at the center of this remarkable epoch and its gripping tales of courage and sacrifice.
The Master
by Christopher ClareyWidely regarded as one of the greatest ever sportspeople, Roger Federer is a beloved as a phenomenon, a symbol of enduring greatness and yet is intensely private. But his path from temperamental, bleach-blond teenager with dubious style sense to one of the greatest, most self-possessed and elegant of competitors has been a long-running act of will, not destiny.
Based on 20 years of one-on-one interviews with Federer and with wide access to Federer's inner circle, including his coaches and key rivals, legendary sports reporter Christopher Clarey's account will be a must-read retrospective for the loyal sports fan, and anyone interested in the inner workings of unfaltering excellence. The Master tells the story of Federer's life and career on both an intimate and grand scale.
A New York Times Best Seller
Wholehearted Faith
by Jeff Chu and Rachel Held Evans“A touching series of essays in which Held Evans, with Chu’s invisible pen, explores how one might find a path forward in Christianity beyond conservative evangelicalism” -Eliza Griswold, The New Yorker“
Evans died at 37, but a beautiful new book captures her brave outlook. . . . I could not help but notice the poetry in Evans’s prose. . . . What readers will find in these pages was someone deeply human: funny, irreverent, curious, wise, forgiving, nonjudgmental.” -The Washington PostA new collection of original writings by Rachel Held Evans, whose reflections on faith and life continue to encourage, challenge, and influence. Rachel Held Evans is widely recognized for her theologically astute, profoundly honest, and beautifully personal books, which have guided, instructed, edified, and shaped Christians as they seek to live out a just and loving faith.
At the time of her tragic death in 2019, Rachel was working on a new book about wholeheartedness. With the help of her close friend and author Jeff Chu, that work-in-progress has been woven together with some of her other unpublished writings into a rich collection of essays that ask candid questions about the stories we’ve been told—and the stories we tell—about our faith, our selves, and our world.
This book is for the doubter and the dreamer, the seeker and the sojourner, those who long for a sense of spiritual wholeness as well as those who have been hurt by the Church but can’t seem to let go of the story of Jesus. Through theological reflection and personal recollection, Rachel wrestles with God’s grace and love, looks unsparingly at what the Church is and does, and explores universal human questions about becoming and belonging. An unforgettable, moving, and intimate book.
A New York Times Best Seller
There and Back
by Jimmy ChinThe Academy Award–winning director of Free Solo and National Geographic photographer presents the first collection of his iconic adventure photography, featuring some of the greatest moments of the most accomplished climbers and outdoor athletes in the world, and including more than 200 extraordinary photographs.
Jimmy Chin goes where few can follow to capture stunning images in death-defying situations. There and Back draws from his breathtaking portfolio of photographs, captured over twenty years during cutting-edge expeditions on all seven continents—from skiing Mount Everest, to an unsupported traverse of Tibet's Chang Tang Plateau on foot, to first ascents in Chad’s Ennedi Desert and Antarctica’s Queen Maud Land.
Along the way, Chin shares behind-the-scenes details about how he captured such astounding images in impossible conditions, and tells the stories of the legendary adventurers and remarkable athletes he has photographed, including Alex Honnold, the star of his Academy Award–winning documentary film Free Solo; ski mountaineer Kit DesLauriers; snowboarder Travis Rice; and mountaineers Conrad Anker and Yvon Chouinard. These larger-than-life images, coupled with stories of outsized drive and passion, of impossible goals with life or death stakes, of partnerships forged through incredible hardship, are sure to inspire wonder and awe.
I'm That Girl
by Jordan ChilesWith a Foreword by Simone Biles.
The sensational two-time Olympian Jordan Chiles’s heartfelt, inspiring memoir chronicling her unlikely path to the podium—including the unprecedented challenges, the joy of winning, the crushing pain of defeat, and the love and support of her devoted family and teammates that helps her stay strong.
It was a rare and stunning reversal: after the judges at the 2024 Paris Olympics determined that Jordan had rightfully scored third place for her performance—following a successful challenge by her coach—she earned the bronze medal. Later, Jordan’s euphoria turned to devastation when the Court of Arbitration for Sport stripped her of that medal based on nothing but semantics. Jordan called the ruling, “One of the most challenging moments of my career. Believe me when I say I have had many.”
In her powerful, eye-opening memoir, Jordan digs deep, sharing the story of her life’s challenges—the racism she encountered as a gifted Black girl in a predominantly white elite sport, the battles with body image and subsequent unhealthy relationship with food, the grueling practices, the injuries, the moments of nearly calling it quits. Through it all, Jordan refused to give up. Through sheer grit—and the love of her family—she kept working and winning.
When Simone Biles stepped away from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after a case of the “twisties,” Jordan stepped in to play a key role in securing silver for Team USA. And in Paris, Jordan made history as part of the first all-Black podium in all of men's and women’s gymnastics.
Told with refreshing candor and Jordan’s irrepressible spirit, I’m That Girl is a glimpse of life in the psychologically and physically demanding upper echelons of women’s elite gymnastics. Exploring the deep bonds so often forged in pressure cookers, Jordan speaks openly about her relationships with her teammates, including her best friend and “big sister” Simone Biles, and how their support for one another has proved invaluable on and off the mat. With the highs, lows, twists, and turns characteristic of the sport, and featuring a 16-page color photo insert, I’m That Girl reveals how one extraordinary young woman keeps her balance in a uniquely dizzying life.
By way of her unwavering tenacity, Jordan has changed the culture of gymnastics, fighting every day to ensure that the girls she inspires are not pre-judged for their hair, their bodies, or their skin color. Insightful and deeply moving, I’m That Girl is a testament to the power of perseverance and the transformative joy of doing what you love, told by a fierce and unique individual who has been and will always be That Girl—the ultimate hype woman who shows up and gives it her all. New York Times Bestseller
Mark Twain
by Ron ChernowThe #1 New York Times Bestseller!One of Barack Obama's Summer Reading List Picks&“Comprehensive, enthralling . . . Mark Twain flows like the Mississippi River, its prose propelled by Mark Twain&’s own exuberance.&” —The Boston Globe&“Chernow writes with such ease and clarity . . . For all its length and detail, [Mark Twain] is deeply absorbing throughout.&” — The Washington PostPulitzer Prize-winning biographer Ron Chernow illuminates the full, fascinating, and complex life of the writer long celebrated as the father of American literature, Mark TwainBefore he was Mark Twain, he was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. Born in 1835, the man who would become America&’s first, and most influential, literary celebrity spent his childhood dreaming of piloting steamboats on the Mississippi. But when the Civil War interrupted his career on the river, the young Twain went west to the Nevada Territory and accepted a job at a local newspaper, writing dispatches that attracted attention for their brashness and humor. It wasn&’t long before the former steamboat pilot from Missouri was recognized across the country for his literary brilliance, writing under a pen name that he would immortalize.In this richly nuanced portrait of Mark Twain, acclaimed biographer Ron Chernow brings his considerable powers to bear on a man who shamelessly sought fame and fortune, and crafted his persona with meticulous care. After establishing himself as a journalist, satirist, and lecturer, he eventually settled in Hartford with his wife and three daughters, where he went on to write The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He threw himself into the hurly-burly of American culture, and emerged as the nation&’s most notable political pundit. At the same time, his madcap business ventures eventually bankrupted him; to economize, Twain and his family spent nine eventful years in exile in Europe. He suffered the death of his wife and two daughters, and the last stage of his life was marked by heartache, political crusades, and eccentric behavior that sometimes obscured darker forces at play.Drawing on Twain&’s bountiful archives, including thousands of letters and hundreds of unpublished manuscripts, Chernow masterfully captures the man whose career reflected the country&’s westward expansion, industrialization, and foreign wars, and who was the most important white author of his generation to grapple so fully with the legacy of slavery. Today, more than one hundred years after his death, Twain&’s writing continues to be read, debated, and quoted. In this brilliant work of scholarship, a moving tribute to the writer&’s talent and humanity, Chernow reveals the magnificent and often maddening life of one of the most original characters in American history.
Cher
by CherThe extraordinary life of Cher can be told by only one person . . . Cher herself. After more than seventy years of fighting to live her life on her own terms, Cher finally reveals her true story in intimate detail, in a two-part memoir. Her remarkable career is unique and unparalleled. The only woman to top Billboard charts in seven consecutive decades, she is the winner of an Academy Award, an Emmy, a Grammy, and a Cannes Film Festival Award, and an inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame who has been lauded by the Kennedy Center. She is a lifelong activist and philanthropist. As a dyslexic child who dreamed of becoming famous, Cher was raised in often-chaotic circumstances, surrounded by singers, actors, and a mother who inspired her in spite of their difficult relationship. With her trademark honesty and humor, Cher: The Memoir traces how this diamond in the rough succeeded with no plan and little confidence to become the trailblazing superstar the world has been unable to ignore for more than half a century. Cher: The Memoir, Part One follows her extraordinary beginnings through childhood to meeting and marrying Sonny Bono—and reveals the highly complicated relationship that made them world-famous, but eventually drove them apart. Cher: The Memoir reveals the daughter, the sister, the wife, the lover, the mother, and the superstar. It is a life too immense for only one book.
New York Times Bestseller
Oath and Honor
by Liz CheneyINSTANT #1 BESTSELLER: A gripping first-hand account of the January 6th, 2021, insurrection from inside the halls of Congress, from origins to aftermath, as Donald Trump and his enablers betrayed the American people and the Constitution—by the House Republican leader who dared to stand up to it. In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, Donald Trump and many around him, including certain other elected Republican officials, intentionally breached their oath to the Constitution: they ignored the rulings of dozens of courts, plotted to overturn a lawful election, and provoked a violent attack on our Capitol. Liz Cheney, one of the few Republican officials to take a stand against these efforts, witnessed the attack first-hand, and then helped lead the Congressional Select Committee investigation into how it happened. In Oath and Honor, she tells the story of this perilous moment in our history, those who helped Trump spread the stolen election lie, those whose actions preserved our constitutional framework, and the risks we still face.
They're Coming for You
by Jason ChaffetzTrump may be in office, but the Democrats have laid the groundwork for permanent power.
While the Biden-Harris administration publicly stumbled and flailed, their bureaucrats and allies outside of government have been turning Republican nightmares into dystopian realities. Censoring the truth tellers. Debanking the politically disfavored. Firing the vaccine hesitant. Excluding the white, Christian, and conservative job applicants. Who needs a deep state when academia, big banks, corporations, and the healthcare system are willing to do what the deep state can’t?
Now that they’re out of power in the White House and Congress, the Democrats are mobilizing in the shadows, working to make sure an election like 2024 never happens again. In They’re Coming for You, Jason Chaffetz reveals how Democrats have been planting the seeds of political control using unelected institutions that collect and weaponize private information. Most of us know we have traded our privacy for convenience. Most of us have chosen not to worry that the government will track our Facebook posts and arrest us. But what if an online retailer does? What if companies use that data to refuse to hire us, do business with us, or ship products to us?
They’re Coming for You lays bare the frightening truth about how these institutions are collecting, buying, selling, and sharing our data without regard for our privacy, civil liberties, or national security. Republican political victories will ring hollow until this bureaucratic partnership with the nonprofit and private sectors is exposed and the power of the administrative state checked.
New York Times Bestseller
The Puppeteers
by Jason ChaffetzWhy does it feel like no matter what happens in American politics, the Democrats still get their way?
When he left Congress in 2017, Jason Chaffetz still thought elections could save us. For generations, conservatives have hoped that freedom-loving congressional majorities could turn back the tide and restore America’s liberties and prosperity.
But now, he says, winning elections will not be enough.
Increasingly, the work of government is being done by people outside the government—unelected power brokers who are invisible to the American public but who pull the strings, set the agendas, create the incentives, and write the rules we must all live by. Using both government and non-governmental institutions, leftists have bypassed the legislative process to compel institutional compliance with partisan goals. The White House or the Congress may change hands, but the left remains in power.
In The Puppeteers, Chaffetz reveals how:
• Susan Rice was put in charge of using the bureaucracy to make sure Republicans never win another election
• The federal government now could be deployed to harvest ballots from Democrats President Biden hired a Blackrock executive to run his economic agenda for the first two years of his presidency
• State treasurers planned to use billions of government dollars to “address climate change” and “racial inequality,” with almost no way for voters to stop them
• Randi Weingarten makes more decisions for the education department than people who actually work there
Electing the right leaders is no longer enough. To take back our country, the American people need to understand that they’re in a new fight. But it’s a fight that’s still eminently winnable, and Chaffetz reveals the playbook.
New York Times Bestseller
The Deviant's War
by Eric CerviniFrom a young Harvard- and Cambridge-trained historian, the secret history of the fight for gay rights that began a generation before Stonewall.
In 1957, Frank Kameny, a rising astronomer working for the U.S. Defense Department in Hawaii, received a summons to report immediately to Washington, D.C. The Pentagon had reason to believe he was a homosexual, and after a series of humiliating interviews, Kameny, like countless gay men and women before him, was promptly dismissed from his government job. Unlike many others, though, Kameny fought back.
Based on firsthand accounts, recently declassified FBI records, and forty thousand personal documents, Eric Cervini's The Deviant's War unfolds over the course of the 1960s, as the Mattachine Society of Washington, the group Kameny founded, became the first organization to protest the systematic persecution of gay federal employees. It traces the forgotten ties that bound gay rights to the Black Freedom Movement, the New Left, lesbian activism, and trans resistance. Above all, it is a story of America (and Washington) at a cultural and sexual crossroads; of shocking, byzantine public battles with Congress; of FBI informants; murder; betrayal; sex; love; and ultimately victory.
A New York Times Bestseller
The Underworld
by Susan CaseyNEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From bestselling author Susan Casey, an awe-inspiring portrait of the mysterious world beneath the waves, and the men and women who seek to uncover its secrets&“An irresistible mix of splendid scholarship, heart-stopping adventure writing, and vivid, visceral prose." —Sy Montgomery, New York Times best-selling author of The Soul of an Octopus For all of human history, the deep ocean has been a source of wonder and terror, an unknown realm that evoked a singular, compelling question: What&’s down there? Unable to answer this for centuries, people believed the deep was a sinister realm of fiendish creatures and deadly peril. But now, cutting-edge technologies allow scientists and explorers to dive miles beneath the surface, and we are beginning to understand this strange and exotic underworld: A place of soaring mountains, smoldering volcanoes, and valleys 7,000 feet deeper than Everest is high, where tectonic plates collide and separate, and extraordinary life forms operate under different rules. Far from a dark void, the deep is a vibrant realm that&’s home to pink gelatinous predators and shimmering creatures a hundred feet long and ancient animals with glass skeletons and sharks that live for half a millennium—among countless other marvels.Susan Casey is our premiere chronicler of the aquatic world. For The Underworld she traversed the globe, joining scientists and explorers on dives to the deepest places on the planet, interviewing the marine geologists, marine biologists, and oceanographers who are searching for knowledge in this vast unseen realm. She takes us on a fascinating journey through the history of deep-sea exploration, from the myths and legends of the ancient world to storied shipwrecks we can now reach on the bottom, to the first intrepid bathysphere pilots, to the scientists who are just beginning to understand the mind-blowing complexity and ecological importance of the quadrillions of creatures who live in realms long thought to be devoid of life.Throughout this journey, she learned how vital the deep is to the future of the planet, and how urgent it is that we understand it in a time of increasing threats from climate change, industrial fishing, pollution, and the mining companies that are also exploring its depths. The Underworld is Susan Casey&’s most beautiful and thrilling book yet, a gorgeous evocation of the natural world and a powerful call to arms.
The Harder I Fight the More I Love You
by Neko CaseSinger-songwriter Neko Case paints a vivid portrait of an extraordinary life—one forged through a poverty-stricken childhood, obsessive desire, bursts of comedy, and indispensable friendships—reflecting on the way art, music, and a deep connection to nature helped her become a beloved, Grammy-nominated artist.
Neko Case has long been revered as one of music’s most influential artists, whose authenticity, lyrical storytelling, and sly wit have endeared her to a legion of critics, musicians, and lifelong fans. In THE HARDER I FIGHT THE MORE I LOVE YOU, Case brings her trademark candor and precision to a memoir that traces her evolution from an invisible girl “raised by two dogs and a space heater” in rural Washington state to her improbable emergence as an internationally-acclaimed talent.
In luminous, sharp-edged prose, Case shows readers what it’s like to be left alone for hours and hours as a child, to take refuge in the woods around her home, and to channel the monotony and loneliness and joy that comes from music, camaraderie, and shared experience into art. THE HARDER I FIGHT THE MORE I LOVE YOU is a rebellious meditation on identity and corruption, and a manifesto on how to make space for ourselves in this world, despite the obstacles we face. New York Times Bestseller
When the Going Was Good
by Graydon CarterAn Instant New York Times BestsellerFrom the pages of Vanity Fair to the red carpets of Hollywood, editor Graydon Carter&’s memoir revives the glamorous heyday of print magazines when they were at the vanguard of American cultureWhen Graydon Carter was offered the editorship of Vanity Fair in 1992, he knew he faced an uphill battle—how to make the esteemed and long-established magazine his own. Not only was he confronted with a staff that he perceived to be loyal to the previous regime, but he arrived only a few years after launching Spy magazine, which gloried in skewering the celebrated and powerful—the very people Vanity Fair venerated. With curiosity, fearlessness, and a love of recent history and glamour that would come to define his storied career in magazines, Carter succeeded in endearing himself to his editors, contributors, and readers, as well as as well as those who would grace the pages of Vanity Fair. He went on to run the magazine with overwhelming success for the next two and a half decades.Filled with colorful memories and intimate details, When the Going Was Good is Graydon Carter&’s lively recounting of how he made his mark as one of the most talented editors in the business. Moving to New York from Canada, he worked at Time, Life, The New York Observer, and Spy, before catching the eye of Condé Nast chairman Si Newhouse, who pulled him in to run Vanity Fair. In Newhouse he found an unwavering champion, a loyal proprietor who gave Carter the editorial and financial freedom to thrive. Annie Leibovitz&’s photographs would come to define the look of the magazine, as would the &“New Establishment&” and annual Hollywood issues. Carter further planted a flag in Los Angeles with the legendary Vanity Fair Oscar party.With his inimitable voice and signature quip, he brings readers to lunches and dinners with the great and good of America, Britain, and Europe. He assembled one of the most formidable stables of writers and photographers under one roof, and here he re-creates in real time the steps he took to ensure Vanity Fair cemented its place as the epicenter of art, culture, business, and politics, even as digital media took hold. Charming, candid, and brimming with stories, When the Going Was Good perfectly captures the last golden age of print magazines from the inside out.
My Beloved Monster
by Caleb CarrCaleb Carr has had special relationships with cats since he was a young boy in a turbulent household, famously peopled by the founding members of the Beat Generation, where his steadiest companions were the adopted cats that lived with him both in the city and the country. As an adult, he has had many close feline companions, with relationships that have outlasted most of his human ones. But only after building a three-story home in rural, upstate New York did he enter into the most extraordinary of all of his cat pairings: Masha, a Siberian Forest cat who had been abandoned as a kitten, and was languishing in a shelter when Caleb met her. She had hissed and fought off all previous carers and potential adopters, but somehow, she chose Caleb as her savior.
For the seventeen years that followed, Caleb and Masha were inseparable. Masha ruled the house and the extensive, dangerous surrounding fields and forests. When she was hurt, only Caleb could help her. When he suffered long-standing physical ailments, Masha knew what to do. Caleb’s life-long study of the literature of cat behavior, and his years of experience with previous cats, helped him decode much of Masha’s inner life. But their bond went far beyond academic studies and experience. The story of Caleb and Masha is an inspiring and life-affirming relationship for readers of all backgrounds and interests—a love story like no other.
New York Times Bestseller
The Long Slide
by Tucker CarlsonFrom the host of Tucker Carlson Tonight on Fox News and the New York Times bestselling author of Ship of Fools, a collection of nostalgic writings that underscore America’s long slide from innocence to orthodoxy.
Thirty years ago, Tucker Carlson got his first job out of college fact checking for a quarterly magazine, and he went on to write for many other publications before becoming the primetime Fox News host he is today. In The Long Slide, Tucker delivers a few of his favorite pieces—annotated with new commentary and insight—to memorialize the tolerance and diversity of thought that the media used to celebrate instead of punish. In snapshots spanning the 1990s to today, he’ll take you on a visit to Africa with Al Sharpton and members of the Nation of Islam to stop the civil war in Liberia in 2003, inside the (not-so-) secret armies of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and on the campaign trail with Donald Trump in 2016.
In case you missed it the first time around, you’ll also learn about the aesthetic merits of British colonialism, the second shift at a baked bean factory, the unexpected charm of James Carville, and the simple beauty of rural western Maine. With his signature wit and 20/20 hindsight, Tucker investigates in this patriotic and memorable collection a question on all of our minds: Has America really changed that much in recent decades? The answer is, unequivocally, yes.
A New York Times Best Seller
Tonight in Jungleland
by Peter Ames CarlinA fascinating behind-the-scenes account of the making of Bruce Springsteen’s ground-breaking album, Born to Run – one of the most iconic records in rock history – Tonight in Jungleland combines lush music writing with unprecedented inside access to Springsteen, his bandmates, and the full story behind every song… and coincides with the album’s 50th anniversary in August 2025.
From the opening piano notes of “Thunder Road,” to the final outro of “Jungleland” – with American anthems like “Born to Run” and “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out” in between – Bruce Springsteen’s seminal album, Born to Run, established Springsteen as a creative force in rock and roll. With his back against the wall, he wrote what has been hailed as a perfect album, a defining moment, and a roadmap for what would become a legendary career.
Peter Ames Carlin, whose bestselling biography, Bruce, gave him rare access to Springsteen’s inner circle, now returns with the full story of the making of this epic album. Released in August, 1975, Born to Run now celebrates its 50th anniversary. Carlin reveals a treasure trove of untold stories, detailing the writing and recording of every song, as well as the intense and at times tortuous process that mimicked the fault lines in Springsteen’s psyche and career, even as it revealed the depth of his vision. A must-read for any music fan, Tonight in Jungleland takes us inside a hallowed creative process and lets us experience history.
New York Times Bestseller
Broken Horses
by Brandi CarlileThe critically acclaimed singer-songwriter, producer, and six-time Grammy winner opens up about a life shaped by music in this candid, heartfelt, and intimate story.
Brandi Carlile was born into a musically gifted, impoverished family on the outskirts of Seattle and grew up in a constant state of change, moving from house to house, trailer to trailer, fourteen times in as many years. Though imperfect in every way, her dysfunctional childhood was as beautiful as it was strange, and as nurturing as it was difficult. At the age of five, Brandi contracted bacterial meningitis, which almost took her life, leaving an indelible mark on her formative years and altering her journey into young adulthood.
As an openly gay teenager, Brandi grappled with the tension between her sexuality and her faith when her pastor publicly refused to baptize her on the day of the ceremony. Shockingly, her small town rallied around Brandi in support and set her on a path to salvation where the rest of the misfits and rejects find it: through twisted, joyful, weird, and wonderful music.
In Broken Horses, Brandi Carlile takes readers through the events of her life that shaped her very raw art—from her start at a local singing competition where she performed Elton John’s “Honky Cat” in a bedazzled white polyester suit, to her first break opening for Dave Matthews Band, to many sleepless tours over fifteen years and six studio albums, all while raising two children with her wife, Catherine Shepherd. This hard-won success led her to collaborations with personal heroes like Elton John, Dolly Parton, Mavis Staples, Pearl Jam, Tanya Tucker, and Joni Mitchell, as well as her peers in the supergroup The Highwomen, and ultimately to the Grammy stage, where she converted millions of viewers into instant fans.
Evocative and piercingly honest, Broken Horses is at once an examination of faith through the eyes of a person rejected by the church’s basic tenets and a meditation on the moments and lyrics that have shaped the life of a creative mind, a brilliant artist, and a genuine empath on a mission to give back.
Autism Out Loud
by Adrian Wood and Carrie Cariello and Kate SwensonAN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!In this moving narrative of resilience and pure love, three mothers share their experiences and learnings about life alongside autism -- From the creators of Finding Cooper's Voice, What Color is Monday?, and Tales of an Educated DebutanteKate Swenson, Adrian Wood and Carrie Cariello are from different parts of the country and backgrounds, but they were brought together by a singular experience: they are each a mother to a child with autism. Together they have shared laughter, tears, victories and the unconditional love that molds their lives.Kate, Adrian and Carrie have children with very different autism profiles, and in Autism Out Loud they write about their unique experiences on a variety of topics, from diagnosis to caregiving, schooling and aging. Through their varied stories and lessons they&’ve learned, these incredible women provide a glimpse of what to expect on the autism journey and show parents that they are not alone. Written with honesty and heart, the stories within these pages serve as a reminder that even amid the storms of life, there is always hope and beauty to be found. A tribute to the unparalleled love of mothers, this inspiring book illuminates the joys, challenges and everyday miracles of life on the spectrum.
The Meaning of Mariah Carey
by Mariah CareyThe global icon, award-winning singer, songwriter, producer, actress, mother, daughter, sister, storyteller, and artist finally tells the unfiltered story of her life in The Meaning of Mariah Carey
It took me a lifetime to have the courage and the clarity to write my memoir. I want to tell the story of the moments - the ups and downs, the triumphs and traumas, the debacles and the dreams, that contributed to the person I am today. Though there have been countless stories about me throughout my career and very public personal life, it’s been impossible to communicate the complexities and depths of my experience in any single magazine article or a ten-minute television interview. And even then, my words were filtered through someone else’s lens, largely satisfying someone else’s assignment to define me.
This book is composed of my memories, my mishaps, my struggles, my survival and my songs. Unfiltered. I went deep into my childhood and gave the scared little girl inside of me a big voice. I let the abandoned and ambitious adolescent have her say, and the betrayed and triumphant woman I became tell her side.
Writing this memoir was incredibly hard, humbling and healing. My sincere hope is that you are moved to a new understanding, not only about me, but also about the resilience of the human spirit.
Love,Mariah
A New York Times Bestseller
The Grift
by Clay CaneAN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLERPart history and part cultural analysis, The Grift chronicles the nuanced history of Black Republicans. Clay Cane lays out how Black Republicanism has been mangled by opportunists who are apologists for racism.After the Civil War, the pillars of Black Republicanism were a balanced critique of both political parties, civil rights for all Americans, reinventing an economy based on exploitation, and, most importantly, building thriving Black communities. How did Black Republicanism devolve from revolutionaries like Frederick Douglass to the puppets in the Trump era?Whether it's radical conservatives like South Carolina Senator Tim Scott or Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, they are consistently viral news and continuously upholding egregious laws at the expense of their Black brethren. Black faces in high places providing cover for explicit bigotry is one of the greatest threats to the liberation of Black and brown people. By studying these figures and their tactics, Cane exposes the grift and lays out a plan to emancipate our future.