Popular Nonfiction

Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summer crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie, it turns out, is also celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. They are, in fact, birthday twins. A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.

Why do otherwise intelligent individuals form seething masses of idiocy when they engage in collective action? We may think that the Great Crash of 1929, junk bonds of the '80s, and over-valued high-tech stocks of the '90s are peculiarly 20th century aberrations, but Mackay's classic - first published in 1841 - shows that the madness and confusion of crowds knows no limits, and has no temporal bounds.

Justin Brown sets off with nothing but a guitar, a backpack, and a G-string… the musical kind. Armed with charm and cheek he sets out to win a bet, one cringe-worthy doorstep at a time. From turkey farms to chip shops, posh suburbs to dodgy estates, Justin meets a cast of unforgettable Brits. Justin delivers a hilarious account of his fraught and totally unpredictable journey showing why he’s become an award-winning travel writer and bestselling author. 5 ★ REVIEW BY THE NZ HERALD By MARGIE THOMSON Blame it on the All Blacks: if they'd won their test match against Australia in August ...

In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, were digging the foundations for a new development, the last thing they expected to find was a skeleton at the bottom of a well. Who the skeleton was and how it got there were two of the long-held secrets kept by the residents of Chicken Hill, the dilapidated neighborhood where immigrant Jews and African Americans lived side by side and shared ambitions and sorrows. Chicken Hill was where Moshe and Chona Ludlow lived when Moshe integrated his theater and where Chona ran the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store.

Rolling Stone contributing editor Steve Knopper delves deeply into Michael Jackson's music and talent. From the artist's early days with the Jackson 5, to his stratospheric success as a solo artist, to "Beat It" and "Thriller", "Bad", and "The Man in the Mirror", to his volatile final years, his attempted comeback, and his untimely death, Knopper explores the beguiling and often contradictory forces that fueled Michael Jackson's genius.

Greed, arrogance and lust led Robert Anderson to kill his wife of nearly twenty years. He was a pillar of the community. He owned four Service Master franchises, he was a Kiwanis member and former President, and a former teacher and Athletic Director at Salem High School. The combination of his love for money and infatuation with a younger girl led him to the brutal beating of his wife and subsequent attempt to frame an employee and former student. The death of his wife in Lawrence Mass, was considered an extreme act of rage and was initially attributed to the violence that was pervasive in...

You're not just imagining it: People are getting more and more rude - from cutting in line, gabbing on their phones and clipping their nails on public transportation, to hurling epithets on Twitter and in real life (including a certain President who does both). And the worst part is that it's contagious, leading reasonably courteous people to stoop to new lows in order to respond to the ever-coarsening encounters we face every day.

One of Granta’s Best of Young American Novelists, Joshua Cohen arrives with his first collection of nonfiction, the culmination of two decades of writing and thought about life in the digital age. In essays, memoir, criticism, diary entries, and letters—many appearing here for the first time—Cohen covers the full depth and breadth of modern life.

Maddie is beyond done with her cousin Genesis' entitled and shallow entourage. Genesis is so over Miami's predictable social scene, with its velvet ropes, petty power plays, and backstabbing boyfriends. While Maddie craves family time for spring break, Genesis seeks novelty - like a last-minute getaway to an untouched beach in Colombia. And when Genesis wants something, it happens. But paradise has its price.

This book will change your perspective on the universe and expand your mind with its condensed breakdown of the most profound mysteries in physics and cosmology. From the nature of dark matter and dark energy to the origins of life, this book delves into the most fundamental questions of our existence, guiding readers through the latest research and discoveries in the field. Through captivating storytelling and thought-provoking discussions, this book will ignite a passion for science and inspire readers to join in the quest for knowledge. Uncover the secrets of the universe and gain a ...

What if you were flying into war with barely three weeks of training? What if your first dogfight ended with your guns still on safety? What if a single wrong turn landed you in a prison camp halfway across Europe, unsure if you'd ever see home again? This is the extraordinary true story of Ken Cam, a young RAF Spitfire pilot hurled into the chaos of World War II far from ready—but never backing down.

In 1939, 50 million Americans went to the movies every week, Louis B. Mayer was the highest-paid man in the country, and Hollywood produced 530 feature films a year. One decade and five thousand movies later, the studios were faltering....

Jen Lancaster is here to take a hard look at our elevating anxieties, and with self-deprecating wit and levelheaded wisdom, she charts a path out of the quagmire that keeps us frightened of the future and ashamed of our imperfectly perfect human lives. Take a deep breath, and her advice, and you just might get through a holiday dinner without wanting to disown your uncle.

He walked on the face of the earth over 2000 years ago and changed human history for time and eternity. Nearly 2.4 billion Christians know him as Jesus Christ, Son of God, Son of Man and Savior of the world. Other billions recognize him as a great prophet and philosopher. Drawing from the four gospel accounts and using “sanctified imagination”, this book chronicles the incredible life of Jesus. It tells the story of His miraculous conception and birth; his childhood; his magnificent ministry with a band of 12 ordinary men and his death and glorious resurrection. This book presents an ...

Discover the miraculous complexity within your skin. With sharp insight and poetic clarity, JD Arden guides you on a journey through the silent orchestra that is your own body—from the architecture of your bones to the electric fire of thought, from the mysteries of DNA to the final marvel of aging itself. Witty, no-nonsense, and always philosophical, this book is an invitation to see yourself—literally—in a new light.

Even when he was a kid, everyone thought Jeff Kinney was talented. People loved his drawings, and when he went to college his comic strip, Igdoof, was so popular that it spread to other universities! Still, Jeff faced challenges. His cartoons were rejected by syndicates that claimed his art was unprofessional. Then an idea struck: Jeff would write a journal from the perspective of a child, illustrated with doodles just like a kid might do. And so the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series was born - and it was a hit!

Did you know that there are over 393 million pets in the United States alone? Two out of every three households own a pet. That is a lot of pets! In this book, you will learn the most interesting and amazing facts and behaviors of eight of the most popular pets and the reasons why people love to have these animals in their homes.

Reilly has been with Trump on the fairways, on the greens and in the rough; he has seen how the President plays - and it's not pretty. Based on his personal experiences and interviews with dozens of golf pros, amateurs, developers, partners, opponents and even caddies who have firsthand involvement with Trump out on the course, Reilly takes a deep and often hilarious look at how Trump shamelessly cheats at golf, lies about it, sues over it, bullies with it and profits from it.

A witty, wide-ranging, and surprisingly profound cultural history of the world’s most obsessed-over muscle group: the abs. From the gleaming marble torsos of ancient Greece to the sweat-soaked montages of Hollywood action heroes and the endless scroll of Instagram #fitspo, the human midsection has always commanded attention. But why do abs matter so much? What do they really say about us? And how did a patch of muscle become the world’s favorite shorthand for sex, strength, discipline, and desire? In Washboard Dreams: The Strange, Sexy, and Serious Story of Abs in Art, Faith, Fitness, ...

★ Bowling Through India is the exhilarating true story of Justin Brown's journey through the heart of India. From the bustling streets of Kolkata to tea shops in Darjeeling, Brown takes readers on a wild ride as he and ‘The Black Craps’ navigate the challenges and triumphs of competing in slums, cemeteries and exotic locations - mostly against ten year old kids! Joining Justin in the van is a high-country farmer, a savvy businessman, a world class photographer with bowel issues, and a shoestring traveller named Blanket Boy. Together the amateur sportsmen take to the streets of India ...