At some point in our lives, we all face a tough decision and have to make a hard call. For inspiration and direction, we can look to the remarkable individuals in John McCain and Mark Salter's book, which dramatically describes the anatomy of a great decision: Branch Rickey's decision to offer Jackie Robinson a contract to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the face of public opposition. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf's decision to return to Liberia after receiving...

In the summer of 1977, Terri Jentz and her Yale roommate, Shayna Weiss, make a cross-country bike trip. They pitch a tent in the desert of central Oregon. As they are sleeping, a man in a pickup truck deliberately runs over the tent. He then attacks them with an ax. The horrific crime is reported in newspapers across the country. No one is ever arrested. Both women survive, but Shayna suffers from amnesia, while Terri is left alone with memories of...

The Almanac of World Crime chronicles the exploits of the underworld-murder, robbery, arson, torture, rape, kidnapping, extortion, and blackmail, to name only a few-and takes the reader on an iniquitous tour of the world's gambling halls, dope parlors, cathouses, and clip joints. Everything from the devastating eruption of Mount Vesuvius and Mount Pelée to the looting during the Black Plague is featured in these pages. Here are the stories of some...

Presidential historian Beschloss has brought us a saga about crucial times in America's history when a courageous president dramatically changed the future of the United States. Beschloss brings to life these flawed, complex men--and their wives, families, friends and foes, in an intimate, behind-the-scenes view of presidents coping with the supreme dilemmas of their lives. As he shows, none of these presidents was eager to incur ridicule, vilification...

Includes index.

"Winner of the 2011 Gold Medal Arthur Ross Book Award, Council on Foreign Relations" "Winner of the 2010 Paul A. Samuelson Award, TIAA-CREF" "One of USA Today's "Year's Best Business Books To Make Sense of Financial Crisis"" "Listed on Bloomberg.com by James Pressley as one of "our favorite financial-crisis books this year"" "Shortlisted for the 2010 Spear's Book of the Year Award in Financial History" "Finalist for the 2011 Estoril Global Issues...

Chicago, 1924. There was nothing surprising about men turning up dead in the Second City. Life was cheaper than a quart of illicit gin in the gangland capital of the world. But two murders that spring were special-worthy of celebration. So believed Maurine Watkins, a wanna-be playwright and a "girl reporter" for the Chicago Tribune, the city's "hanging paper." Newspaperwomen were supposed to write about clubs, cooking, and clothes, but the intrepid...

Veterinarian Melissa Shapiro agreed to foster a tiny deaf and blind puppy rescued from a hoarding situation. Then posts on Facebook of Piglet evolved into a global celebration of Piglet's infectiously positive mindset.

A true love story of obsessive love, murder and betrayal. Pat was a beautiful, willful child whose family belonged to the upper crust of Georgia society. Little Pat's parents adored their daughter and satisfied her every desire. But as Pat grew older, her pampered life took a twisted turn when she found that her beauty and spoiled demands were not enough. Now, to get everything she ever wanted, she would resort to lying, deception, robbery, and worse....