Search results for ""Chicago Review Press""

An essential piece of Disney history has been unreported for eighty years. Soon after the birth of Mickey Mouse, one animator raised the Disney Studio far beyond Walt’s expectations. That animator also led a union war that almost destroyed it. Art Babbitt animated for the Disney studio throughout the 1930s and through 1941, years in which he and Walt were jointly driven to elevate animation as an art form, up through Snow White, Pinocchio, and Fantasia. But as America prepared for World War II, labor unions spread across Hollywood. Disney fought the unions while Babbitt embraced them. Soon, angry Disney cartoon characters graced picket signs as hundreds of animation artists went out on strike. Adding fuel to the fire was Willie Bioff, one of Al Capone’s wiseguys who was seizing control of Hollywood workers and vied for the animators’ union. Using never-before-seen research from previously lost records, including conversation transcriptions from within the studio walls, author and historian Jake S. Friedman reveals the details behind the labor dispute that changed animation and Hollywood forever. The Disney Revolt is an American story of industry and of the underdog, the golden age of animated cartoons at the world’s most famous studio.

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"The best, most useful book on parenting I've ever read." —Jack Canfield, author of Chicken Soup for the Soul Parents are looking for alternatives to rewarding, nagging, threatening, and taking away privileges. Redirecting Children's Behavior is their comprehensive guide to creating a family life that is close, cooperative, and respectful. Guiding parents of children from 18 months to 18 years, author and expert Kathryn J. Kvols provides: How to establish and maintain a growth mindset. Tips to help you and your child manage emotions effectively. Steps to set clear limits and follow through. How to move beyond using consequences to implement change. New ways to enhance the parent/child connection through even the most difficult altercations. And much more! Based on more than thirty years of experience teaching parenting courses, Redirecting Children's Behavior is filled with real-life examples from thousands of parents and professionals using these principles.The tools are easy, practical, and can be implemented immediately to create the family life you want and deserve.

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We have always known that reading aloud is an important way to bond with your baby and develop language skills. Now neuroscience research is showing us the long-term benefit that reading aloud has for children—all the way into adulthood. Author Rekha S. Rajan was part of current research that shows individuals who were read to more frequently as children had a measurably healthier brain in old age.This innovative and accessible book incorporates the latest research on brain development, describes how reading aloud supports language and social-emotional development, and gives parents and caretakers what they need to make read alouds a regular and enjoyable part of the family routine.

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Featuring dozens of interviews with the cast and crew, fans of the franchise, film scholars, former and current cheerleaders, fellow filmmakers, and more. Gabrielle Union, Kirsten Dunst, and Eliza Dushku have all risen to fame since their performances in the original cheer classic, but boldface names like Solange Knowles, Rihanna, Hayden Panetierre, Ashley Tisdale, and more also appeared in Bring It On films. The first-time director who helmed the movie, Peyton Reed, now has multiple Marvel smash hit films under his belt. Not bad for a movie that almost didn’t get greenlit in the first place—but went on to win the box office its opening weekend, gross more than $90.45 million worldwide, and spawn a half-dozen sequels, a Tony-nominated musical, and a whole new genre of female-led films. With the support of the filmmakers and producers, author and pop culture expert Kase Wickman accessed Universal's archives and conducted new interviews with cast, crew, and more for a full reveal of all the stories fans will love in this complete history and examination of the legacy of the greatest cheerleading movie almost never made.Beyond its 20th anniversary, the legacy of Bring It On endures. It’s time we all understood how it changed, like, everything.

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Now presented with a son’s thirty years of research to provide new context. In June 1970, Sam Melville pleaded guilty to a series of politically motivated bombings in New York City and was sentenced to thirteen to eighteen years in jail. His imprisonment took him to Attica, where he helped lead the massive rebellion of September 9, 1971—and where, four days later, he was shot to death by state police. During nearly two years in prison, Melville wrote letters to his friends, his attorneys, his former wife, and his young son. To read them is to eavesdrop on a man's soul. Determinedly honest and deeply moving, they reveal much about Sam and evoke the suffering of prisoners in America. Collected after his death, the letters were originally published with material by Jane Alpert, who was living with Sam when both were arrested on bombing charges, and John Cohen, a close friend who visited Sam in jail. Sam's letters begin with despair but end in hope and defiance. He became a leader of the prisoners' struggle for justice and humane treatment. At Attica he fought against and was a victim of the state's brutality. Those who knew Sam found him a man of extraordinary courage and determination, who rather than accede or submit to injustice and racism chose to fight against them.

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Phantom Lady chronicles the untold story of Hollywood’s most powerful female writer-producer of the 1940s. In 1933, Joan Harrison was a twenty-six-year-old former salesgirl with a dream of escaping her stodgy London suburb and the dreadful prospect of settling down with one of the local boys. A few short years later, she was Alfred Hitchcock's confidante and the Oscar-nominated screenwriter of his first American film, Rebecca. Harrison had quickly grown from being the worst secretary Alfred Hitchcock ever had to one of his closest collaborators, critically shaping his brand as the “master of suspense.” Forging an image as “the female Hitchcock,” Harrison went on to produce numerous Hollywood features before becoming a television pioneer as the producer of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. A respected powerhouse, she acquired a singular reputation for running amazingly smooth productions—and defying anyone who posed an obstacle. Author Christina Lane shows how this stylish, stunning woman, with an adventurous romantic life, became an unconventional but impressive auteur, one whom history has overlooked.

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The Heart of Atlanta Supreme Court decision stands among the court’s most significant civil rights rulings. In Atlanta, Georgia, two arch segregationists vowed to flout the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the sweeping slate of civil rights reforms just signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The Pickrick restaurant was run by Lester Maddox, soon to be governor of Georgia. The other, the Heart of Atlanta motel, was operated by lawyer Moreton Rolleston Jr. After the law was signed, a group of ministry students showed up for a plate of skillet-fried chicken at Maddox’s diner. At the Heart of Atlanta, the ministers reserved rooms and walked to the front desk. Lester Maddox greeted them with a pistol, axe handles, and a mob of White supporters. Moreton Rolleston refused to accept the Black patrons. These confrontations became the centerpiece of the nation's first two legal challenges to the Civil Rights Act. In gripping detail built from exclusive interviews and original documents, Heart of Atlanta reveals the saga of the case’s rise to the US Supreme Court, which unanimously rejected the segregationists. Heart of Atlanta restores the legal cases and their heroes to their proper place in history.

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Martin and Bobby follows the lives and experiences of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy, showing how and where their work intersected and how their initially wary relationship evolved from challenging and testing each other to finally “arriving in the same place” as allies fighting poverty and racism. King’s courage showed Kennedy how to act on one’s moral principles, and Kennedy’s growing awareness of the country’s racial and economic divide gave King hope that the nation’s leaders could truly support justice. Young readers will be quickly engaged by the alternating details of each man’s final hours, before flashing back to compare their very different childhoods, young adult years, famous words and speeches, and rise to prominence. Full of compelling historic photos and including sidebars to extend learning, source notes, a bibliography, suggested places to visit, and a timeline, Martin and Bobby is an invaluable addition to any student’s or history buff’s bookshelf.

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A companion for anyone experiencing the effects of trauma, featuring true stories of survivors from a broad, inclusive range of backgroundsWith Pleasure: Managing Trauma Triggers for More Vibrant Sex and Relationships is a companion for anyone experiencing the effects of trauma. Through true survivor stories, expert insight, writing prompts, and grounding exercises, it explores pleasure, relationships, and community as worthy and essential antidotes in trying times. Written by trauma-informed sex therapist Jamila Dawson, LMFT, and sexuality journalist and podcaster August McLaughlin, With Pleasure provides a much-needed alternative to harmful “self-help” ideologies that instruct people to “change their thoughts” or “choose to be happy.”Instead, Dawson and McLaughlin encourage readers to respect their feelings, understand the complexities of a society and systems that fuel trauma, foster self-compassion, and embrace pleasure.

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"Soul of the Hurricane is a remarkable debut from a singular storyteller.” —David Isay, Peabody Award–winning creator of StoryCorps Nelson Simon didn’t want to sign up as a last-minute crew member to transport a Norwegian schooner from Brooklyn to Bermuda. But one thing led to another, and there he was. He told himself that it would be a sort of pleasure cruise: a week in the Gulf Stream with a gourmet chef on board, some down time on a tropical island, then a quick flight home. What did it matter that he had practically no sailing experience? The eight other crew members had plenty—they just needed an extra pair of hands. What could possibly go wrong? It was October 1991, and the ship was Anne Kristine, the oldest continuously sailing vessel in the world. What awaited them was Hurricane Grace, the southern end of what came to be known as the “Perfect Storm.”Soul of the Hurricane tells an unlikely tale that begins with an unexpected invitation and ends in the dead of night somewhere far from home, with a Coast Guard helicopter above and a dark, angry sea below.

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"If there's one thing I know, it's crazy. A lot of people have called me crazy. Crazy Kristen! For a while there, it was practically my name. Women all over the world get called crazy every day. But we weren’t born crazy—we were made crazy.” Unpacking the ups and downs of Kristen’s laugh-out-loud funny, sometimes cringe-worthy dating history, He’s Making You Crazy will hold your hand through deep self-reflection—while giving you that push to put on your detective’s hat and hack your man’s email account if you need to. From trapping your boyfriend in ridiculous lies to gathering all your crush’s security question answers on the first date, Kristen shares her no-holds-barred, hysterically funny, and hard-earned advice on men, love, and modern dating. He’s Making You Crazy will give you the motivation you need to get out of an unhealthy relationship (the one that’s making you crazy!), the wisdom to step up and admit when you’re the one in the wrong, and the courage to keep your heart open through it all.

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Dismiss the stereotype of the bearded brewer. It’s women, not men, who’ve brewed beer throughout most of human history. Their role as family and village brewer lasted for hundreds of thousands of years—through the earliest days of Mesopotamian civilization, the reign of Cleopatra, the witch trials of early modern Europe, and the settling of colonial America. A Woman’s Place Is in the Brewhouse celebrates the contributions and influence of female brewers and explores the forces that have erased them from the brewing world. It’s a history that’s simultaneously inspiring and demeaning. Wherever and whenever the cottage brewing industry has grown profitable, politics, religion, and capitalism have grown greedy. On a macro scale, men have repeatedly seized control and forced women out of the business. Other times, women have simply lost the minimal independence, respect, and economic power brewing brought them. But there are more breweries now than at any time in American history and today women serve as founder, CEO, or head brewer at more than one thousand of them.As women continue to work hard for equal treatment and recognition in the industry, author Tara Nurin shows readers that women have been—and are once again becoming—relevant in the brewing world.

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“A stirring work . . . images meet text to convey a most handsome portrait of Black barbering in America as a revered cultural practice. Honest, intelligent, poignant—You Next is brilliant from cover to cover.” —Maurice Wallace, Rutgers University An intimate photographic exploration of the ways Black barber shops operate as sites for the cultivation of Black male identity and wellness Growing up, getting a haircut was a weekly event Antonio M. Johnson looked forward to more than anything. There in that tilted chair surrounded by members of his community and totems of a shared experience, Johnson felt safe—felt like anything was possible. Barber shops are more than places simply to get a cut. They are where Black men can speak and receive feedback about who we are, who we want to be, and what we believe to be true about the world around us. The interpretation of the barber shop as community center falls short of capturing what they really are for so many Black men: sanctuaries in a hostile land. You Next is an intimate photographic exploration of Black barber shops in major US cities—Gary, Indiana; Washington DC; New York City; Oakland; Atlanta; Los Angeles; Detroit; New Orleans; Montgomery; Memphis, and Johnson's hometown of Philadelphia. These photos, interviews, and essays tell the full story of the Black barber shop in America.

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Dylan can be as evasive and abstruse as he is witty. But in the right moments, he offers candid, revealing commentary about his groundbreaking music and creative process. Dylan on Dylan is an authoritative, chronologically arranged anthology of interviews, speeches, and press conferences, as well as excerpts from nearly a hundred additional Q&As spanning Dylan’s entire career. The material comes from renowned publications like Rolling Stone and from obscure periodicals like Minnesota Daily, a student newspaper at Dylan’s alma mater. Interviewers include some of the top music journalists of our time, such as Robert Love and Mikal Gilmore, as well as musicians like Pete Seeger and Happy Traum.

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In a world filled with distractions, being a good listener has become more difficult than ever! This essential life skill helps children achieve success at school, follow safety rules, and show others that they care. The playful rhymes of Yes, I Can Listen! encourage children to appreciate the rewards of attentive listening in a wide range of familiar situations. Sweet characters and vivid illustrations make these interactions come alive.Yes, I Can Listen! also includes suggestions for parents who wish to explore fun activities that enhance listening skills with their children.

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People throughout history have written messages in code and ciphers to pass along closely held, secret information. Today, countries around the world enlist cryptanalysts to intercept and crack messages to keep our world safe. The book explores many aspects of cryptology, including famous people who used and invented codes and ciphers, such as Julius Caesar and Thomas Jefferson; codes used during wars, including the Enigma machine, whose cracking helped the Allies gather critical information on German intelligence in World War II; and work currently being done by the government, such as in the National Security Agency. Readers also will learn about unsolved codes and ciphers throughout history, little-known codes used today, and devices used over the years by governments and their spies to conceal information. This book includes hands-on activities that allow kids to replicate early code devices, learn several different codes and ciphers to encode and decode messages, and hide a secret message inside a hollow egg.

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Brooklyn to Baghdad is the true story of a retired NYPD intelligence sergeant applying his street-cop tactics and interrogation skills against a lethal insurgency that had infected Iraq. A group of retired Special Forces soldiers and law enforcement experts came together to form the counterinsurgency group codenamed “Phoenix Team.” Exposing the corruption of both the Iraqi and US governments, the team faced serious setbacks and challenges. Brooklyn to Baghdad shows the effectiveness of Phoenix Team, their ability to process forensic evidence and human intelligence gleaned through interrogations at the point of capture to provide direct targeting for follow-on missions. This memoir also illustrates the politics of Washington, DC, and the US Army in the war-fighting effort, which continually hampered complete success while simultaneously preserving career aspirations. Throughout are many humorous and emotional anecdotes that reveal the men behind the missions and the toll the theater of war takes on real human lives

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Education has become synonymous with schooling, but it doesn’t have to be. As schooling becomes increasingly standardized and test driven, occupying more of childhood than ever before, parents and educators are questioning the role of schooling in society. Many are now exploring and creating alternatives. In a compelling narrative that introduces historical and contemporary research on self-directed education, Unschooled also spotlights how a diverse group of individuals and organizations are evolving an old schooling model of education. These innovators challenge the myth that children need to be taught in order to learn. They are parents who saw firsthand how schooling can dull children’s natural curiosity and exuberance and others who decided early on to enable their children to learn without school. Educators who left public school classrooms discuss launching self-directed learning centers to allow young people’s innate learning instincts to flourish, and entrepreneurs explore their disillusionment with the teach-and-test approach of traditional schooling.

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Do ghosts exist? What about the Bigfoot, or Skinwalkers? And how will we ever know? Journalist Tea Krulos spent over a year traveling nationwide to meet individuals who have made it their life’s passion to hunt down evidence of entities that they believe exist, but that others might shrug off as nothing more than myths, fairytales, or overactive imaginations. Follow along with Krulos as he joins these believers in the field, exploring haunted houses, trekking through creepy forests, and scanning skies and lakes as they collect data on the unknown—poltergeists, Chupacabras, Skunk Apes (Bigfoot’s stinky cousins), and West Virginia’s Mothman. Along the way, he meets a diverse cast of characters—true believers, skeptics, and hoaxers—from the credible to the quirky. And in the end, Krulos leaves it to the reader to decide: are these people tilting at supernatural windmills, or are they onto something?

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To become a ninja master, you need discipline, a silent footstep, and an impressive personal arsenal. Author and toy designer John Austin provides step-by-step instructions on how to turn everyday household and office items into 37 different ninja weapons for the modern era, including: the Crouching Tiger Catapult, Paper Clip Grappling Hook, Origami Boomerang, Magazine Nunchucks, Craft Stick Katana, Pencil Top Eraser Dart, and more!Once you’ve assembled an armory, the author provides several targets to practice your shooting skills—nested paper cups become a dragon; chopsticks and a paper plate form a tripod bulls-eye, and more. Armed, trained, and shrouded in black, you are now prepared for missions of reconnaissance and sabotage and other grim errands.

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Released in conjunction with the 75th-anniversary DVD release of The Wizard of Oz, this book is the definitive story of how one of America’s most beloved movies was made and a marvelous, unprecedented examination of how Hollywood used to make movies. This updated edition includes numerous photos and shares hundreds of interviews with cameramen, screenwriters, costume designers, directors, producers, light technicians, actors, and more to reveal how the factory-like Hollywood system of moviemaking miraculously produced one of the most enduring films ever made. From the scandalous headlines of Munchkin orgies at the Culver City Hotel and the Witch’s (accidental) burning to the building of the Emerald City and the sewing of nearly 1,000 costumes, The Making of The Wizard of Oz provides a richly detailed re-creation of MGM’s production No. 1060 and a detail-by-detail, department-by-department look at the most powerful and flamboyant studio Hollywood has ever known.

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The Watchman didn’t arrive in a Batmobile but drove a tan, four-door Pontiac. He was in costume, of course—a trench coat, motorcycle gloves, army boots, a domino mask, and a red hooded sweatshirt emblazoned with a W logo. Journalist Tea Krulos had spoken to him over the phone but never face-to-mask. By the end of the interview, he wasn’t sure if the Watchman was delightfully eccentric or completely crazy. But he was going to find out.Heroes in the Night traces Krulos’s journey into the strange subculture of Real Life Superheroes, random citizens who have adopted comic book–style personas and hit the streets to fight injustice. Some concentrate on humanitarian or activist missions—helping the homeless, gathering donations for food banks, or delivering toys to children—while others actively patrol their neighborhoods looking for crime to fight. By day, these modern Clark Kents work as dishwashers, pencil pushers, and executives in Fortune 500 companies. But by night, only the Shadow knows.Well, the Shadow and Tea Krulos. Through historical research, extensive interviews, and many long hours walking patrol in Brooklyn, Seattle, San Diego, Minneapolis, and Vancouver, British Columbia, Krulos discovered what being a RLSH is all about. He shares not only their shining, triumphant moments but some of their ill-advised, terrifying disasters as well. It’s all part of the life of a superhero. As the Watchman explains, “If everyone made little changes in what they did, gave a little more to charity, watched out for their neighbors, we wouldn’t have the problems that we have.”

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This social, cultural, and culinary history charts soda's remarkable, world-changing journey from awe-inspiring natural mystery to ubiquity. Off-the-wall and offbeat stories abound, including how quack medicine peddlers spawned some of the world's biggest brands, how fizzy pop cashed in on Prohibition, how soda helped presidents reach the White House, and even how Pepsi influenced Apple's marketing of the iPod. This history of carbonated drinks follows a seemingly simple everyday refreshment as it zinged and pinged over society's taste buds and, in doing so, changed the world.

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An NCSS Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 2015Martha Gellhorn jumped at the chance to fly from Hong Kong to Lashio to report firsthand for Collier’s Weekly on the conflict between China and Japan. When she boarded the “small tatty plane” she was handed “a rough brown blanket and a brown paper bag for throwing up.” The flight took 16 hours, stopping to refuel twice, and was forced to dip and bob through Japanese occupied airspace.Reporting Under Fire tells readers about women who, like Gellhorn, risked their lives to bring back scoops from the front lines. Margaret Bourke-White rode with Patton’s Third Army and brought back the first horrific photos of the Buchenwald concentration camp. Marguerite Higgins typed stories while riding in the front seat of an American jeep that was fleeing the North Korean Army. And during the Guatemalan civil war, Georgie Anne Geyer had to evade an assassin sent by the rightwing Mano Blanco, seeking revenge for her reports of their activities.These 16 remarkable profiles illuminate not only the inherent danger in these reporters’ jobs, but also their struggle to have these jobs at all. Without exception, these war correspondents share a singular ambition: to answer an inner call driving them to witness war firsthand, and to share what they learn via words or images.

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Using everything from electric motors, balloons, and gears to water jets, steam, chemical reactions, and even gravity, this clever handbook offers a variety of choices for propelling homemade vessels across a pool. Through step-by-step instructions with clear photos, kids will learn how to build more than 20 different model boats for traveling above water and several different submarine projects for traveling below the surface. In addition to the boatbuilding activities included within, young naval architects will find instructions for building an “ocean” to test the boats and a variety of accessories, including four different water pumps, a waterproof battery and motor case, and a working foghorn. Most of the watercrafts are built from recycled and easy-to-find materials, but an appendix also lists local and online sources for wire, plastic propellers, small motors, and more. Do-it-yourselfers and kids with an interest in how things work will find hours of educational entertainment in the projects offered within.

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This sequel to How to Rap breaks down and examines techniques that have not previously been explained—such as triplets, flams, lazy tails, and breaking rhyme patterns. Based on interviews with hip-hop’s most innovative artists and groups, including Tech N9ne, Crooked I, Pharcyde, Das EFX, Del the Funky Homosapien, and Big Daddy Kane, this book takes you through the intricacies of rhythm, rhyme, and vocal delivery, delving into the art form in unprecedented detail. It is a must-read for MCs looking to take their craft to the next level, as well as anyone fascinated by rapping and its complexity.

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Lights, camera, play! With this second edition of On Stage: Theater Games and Activities for Kids, budding thespians will have fun under the footlights as they choose from more than 125 theater games that spark creativity, boost confidence, and encourage collaboration. They’ll learn all about how to make a stage performance great with improvisational games such as Freeze, Party Quirks, the Yes Game, and Gibberish; they’ll make puppets, discover makeup secrets, and design and build a set. This revised and expanded edition features 35 new improvisational games and ready-to-use monologues, scenes, and short plays. Whether playing alone or in a group, everyone can have theater fun with On Stage!

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Winner of:2014 Arab American Book Award, Children/Young Adult Category Many Americans, educators included, mistakenly believe all Arabs share the same culture, language, and religion, and have only recently begun immigrating to the United States. A Kid’s Guide to Arab American History dispels these and other stereotypes and provides a contemporary as well as historical look at the people and experiences that have shaped Arab American culture. Each chapter focuses on a different group of Arab Americans including those of Lebanese, Syrian, Palestinian, Jordanian, Egyptian, Iraqi, and Yemeni descent and features more than 50 fun activities that highlight their distinct arts, games, clothing, and food. Kids will love dancing the dabke, constructing a derbekke drum, playing a game of senet, making hummus, creating an arabesque design, and crafting an Egyptian-style cuff bracelet. Along the way they will learn to count in Kurdish, pick up a few Syrian words for family members, learn a Yemeni saying, and speak a little Iraqi. Short biographies of notable Arab Americans, including actor and philanthropist Danny Thomas, singer Paula Abdul, artist Helen Zughaib, and activist Ralph Nader, demonstrate a wide variety of careers and contributions.

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The presidential election of 1844 was one of the two or three most momentous elections in American history. Had Henry Clay won instead of James K. Polk, we'd be living in a very different country today. It cemented the westward expansion that brought Texas, California, and Oregon into the union. It also took place amid religious turmoil that included anti-Mormon and anti-Catholic violence, and the "Great Disappointment" in which thousands of followers of an obscure preacher named William Miller believed Christ would return to Earth in October 1844. Author and journalist John Bicknell details even more compelling, interwoven events that occurred during this momentous year—the murder of Joseph Smith, the religious fermentation of the Second Great Awakening, John C. FrÉmont's exploration of the West, Charles Goodyear's patenting of vulcanized rubber, the near-death of President John Tyler in a freak naval explosion, and much more. All of these elements illustrate the competing visions of the American future—Democrats v. Whigs, Mormons v. Millerites, nativists v. Catholics, those who risked the venture westward and those who stayed safely behind—and how Polk's victory cemented the vision of a continental nation.

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There is more to Indiana than the Indy 500, interstate highways (seven cross its borders), and basketball! The Hoosier State is teeming with fascinating people, one-of-a-kind places, and things with unique and bizarre histories. Skip the scenic dunes and cozy bed-and-breakfasts— let Oddball Indiana, now fully updated and expanded, take you where you really want to go. See: The World’s Largest Ball of Paint, Peggy the Flying Red Horse, Square Donuts, James Dean’s Grave, Historic Outhouse Collection, Museum of Psychophonics, Brain Sandwiches, Hillbilly Rick’s Campground, A Christmas Story Town, Mr. Bendo, And Many, Many More Sites. This book belongs in your glove box—you never know when you’ll be in range of an oddball adventure!

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On New Year's Eve, 1939, a horrific triple murder occurred in rural Oklahoma. Within a matter of days, investigators identified the killers: convicts on work release who had been at a craps game with one of the victims the night before. As anger at authorities grew, political pressure mounted to find a scapegoat. The governor's representative settled on a young black farmhand named W.D. Lyons. Lyons was arrested, tortured into signing a confession, and tried for the murder. The NAACP's new Legal Defense and Education Fund sent its young chief counsel, Thurgood Marshall, to take part in the trial. The organization desperately needed money, and Marshall was convinced that the Lyons case could be a fundraising boon for both the state and national organizations. He was right. The case went on to the US Supreme Court, and the NAACP raised much-needed money from the publicity. Unfortunately, not everything went according to Marshall's plan. Filled with dramatic plot twists, Conviction is the story of the oft-forgotten case that set Marshall and the NAACP on the path that ultimately led to victory in Brown v. Board of Education and the accompanying social revolution in the United States.

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With determination and audacity, Josephine Baker used her comic and musical abilities to become a worldwide icon of the Jazz Age. This lively biography covers her outspoken participation in the U.S. Civil Rights Movement, espionage work for the French Resistance during World War II and adoption of 12 children—her “rainbow tribe.” The lush photographs, in-depth appendix, source notes and bibliography make this is a must-have resource for any student, Baker fan or history buff.

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2015 International Latino Book Awards Winner for Best Political / Current Affairs Book How do we balance border security and America’s need for a vital workforce while continuing to provide access to the American dream? Since the attacks of 9/11, the United States has steadily ramped up security along the US-Mexico border, transforming America’s legendary Southwest into a frontier of fear. Veteran journalist Peter Eichstaedt roams this fabled region from Tucson, Arizona, to El Paso, Texas, meeting with migrants, border security advocates, and communities ravaged by cross-border crime. Eichstaedt finds that despite tens of thousands of border agents and the expenditure of billions of dollars, an estimated one million Mexicans and Central Americans continue to cross the border each year. These migrants fill jobs that have become the underpinnings of the US economy. Rather than building a wall, or more and better barricades, Eichstaedt argues that the United States must reform its immigration and drug laws and acknowledge that costly, counterproductive, and antiquated policies have created deadly circumstances on both sides of the border.

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Black powder, the world’s first chemical explosive, was originally developed in the seventh century, during China’s Tang dynasty. It was a crude mixture at first, but over time chemists discovered the optimum proportion of sulfur, charcoal, and nitrates, as well as the best way to mix them so that the particles of each component were tiny and homogenous, resulting in a complete and powerful reaction. Author and chemistry buff Simon Quellen Field takes readers on a decades-long journey through the history of things that go boom, from the early days of black powder to today’s modern plastic explosives. Not just the who, when, and why, but also the how. How did Chinese alchemists come to create black powder? What accidents led to the discovery of high explosives? How do explosives actually work on a molecular scale? And though most people have a vague understanding that dynamite is more powerful than gunpowder, what does it mean to be more powerful? Boom! The Chemistry and History of Explosives goes back to the original papers and patents written by the chemists who invented them, to shed light on their development, to explore the consequences of their use for good and ill, and to give the reader a basic understanding of the chemistry that makes them possible.

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Finalist for the 2020 AAAS / Subaru SB&F Excellence in Science Book exemplify outstanding and engaging science writing and illustration for young readers DID YOU KNOW... Scientists believe that mosses, the first plants, may have changed the Earth’s climate from hot to cold by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere? Many members of the cabbage family release a poison “mustard” gas to fend off grazers? Plants are used in thousands of industries, from low-cost sewage treatment to new medical cures? Young nature enthusiasts will learn these and other fascinating facts about plants in this colorful, interactive resource. Plantology contains fun, kid-friendly discussions and activities to explore many topics—from seeds, roots, and sprouts to plant skeletons, leaves, petals, and fruits. It then goes beyond the basics to delve into the unknown world of common weeds, fascinating plant defense systems, and the countless roles plants play in our lives. With encouragement to “Try This,” “Smell It,” and “Look For,” kids participate in 30 hands-on activities that promote observation and analysis, writing and drawing, math and science, and nature literacy skills. Children will keep a journal, examine and sketch plant structures, start a seed collection, make tasty vegetarian dishes, and more. Readers from any environment will start to notice the plants around them—not just in parks, gardens, and woods but also surrounding the schools, buildings, and sidewalks of their town, and in their own backyards. Useful resources include a glossary of scientific terms, a list of nature organizations and groups, and a teacher’s guide to initiate classroom discussion and investigation.

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The city of Salinas, California, is the birthplace of John Steinbeck and the setting for his epic masterpiece, East of Eden, but it is also the home of Nuestra Familia, one of the most violent gangs in America. Born in the prisons of California in the late 1960s, Nuestra Familia expanded to control drug trafficking and extortion operations throughout the northern half of the state, and left a trail of bodies in its wake. Prize-winning journalist and Nieman Fellow Julia Reynolds tells the gang’s story from the inside out, following young men and women as they search for a new kind of family, quests that usually lead to murder and betrayal.Blood in the Fields also documents the history of Operation Black Widow, the FBI’s questionable decade-long effort to dismantle the Nuestra Familia, along with its compromised informants and the turf wars it created with local law enforcement agencies. Journalist Reynolds uses her unprecedented access to gang members, both in and out of prison, as well as undercover wire taps, depositions, and court documents to weave a gripping, comprehensive history of this brutal criminal organization and the lives it destroyed.

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Maiden Flight is the true-life story of the Wright sister who in 1926 left her world-famous and intensely possessive older brother to marry newspaper editor Harry Haskell, the man she loved, and suffered the unhappy consequences. An international celebrity in her own right, Katharine embodied the worldly, independent, and self-fulfilled New Woman of the early twentieth century. Yet she remained in many ways a Victorian. Torn between duty and love, she agonized for months before making her devastating break with Orville at age fifty-two.Cast in the form of three interwoven first-person memoirs, Maiden Flight is imaginatively reconstructed from personal letters, newspaper reports, and other documents of the period—in particular, Katharine's lively and extraordinarily revealing love letters to Harry. In allowing Katharine to step outside of Wilbur and Orville's shadow, it sheds new light on the central role she played in their private lives, as well as on her often misunderstood contribution to their scientific work. Above all, Maiden Flight celebrates Katharine's abundant store of what she called ""human nature""—her lively and perceptive outlook on life, her great capacity for both love and indignation, and her acute and sometimes crippling self-awareness.

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Everyone always seems to be talking about the end of the world—Y2K, the Mayan apocalypse, blood moon prophecies, nuclear war, killer robots, you name it. In Apocalypse Any Day Now, journalist Tea Krulos travels the country to try to puzzle out America’s obsession with the end of days. Along the way he meets doomsday preppers—people who stockpile supplies and learn survival skills—as well as religious prognosticators and climate scientists. He camps out with the Zombie Squad (who use a zombie apocalypse as a survival metaphor); tours the Survival Condos, a luxurious bunker built in an old Atlas missile silo; and attends Wasteland Weekend, where people party like the world has already ended. Frightening and funny, the ideas Krulos explores range from ridiculously outlandish to alarmingly near and present dangers.

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