Tutankhamen: The Search for an Egyptian King

Joyce Tyldesley. A catch-all study by a British Egyptologist of the most famous boy king of the 18th Dynasty.  Fluent in her subject, Tyldesley gives her own spin to the story in order to get beyond the sensational nonsense. She looks at Howard Carter's remarkable pinpointing of the tomb named KV 62 in the Valley of the Kings, and the facts and deceptions about the artifacts and ensuing autopsies.Tyldesley does an admirable detective job of reconstructing the boy king's narrative. Proves that there is no end to the fascination, and speculation, around this subject.--Kirkus (Check Catalog)

Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power

Andrew Nagorski. A contextually rich look at the buildup of Nazi power, revealing the feebleness of Americans' assessment of the future danger. In these seemingly casual impressions recorded in newspapers, letters, magazines, diaries and diplomatic reports, many Americans rooted in interwar Germany failed to see the menace in the increasingly inflammatory Nazi rhetoric, as Nagorski depicts in this well-marshaled study. An engrossing study of the times made more fascinating and incredible in retrospect.--Kirkus (Check Catalog)

Emancipating Lincoln: The Proclamation in Text, Context, and Memory

Harold Holzer. As we near its sesquicentennial, a distinguished Lincoln scholar examines the problematic history of the Emancipation Proclamation.  Holzer's tripartite narrative deals first with the historical context of the Proclamation. The author then moves to a discussion of the Proclamation's rhetorical deficiencies. Finally, Holzer turns to the iconography surrounding Lincoln and emancipation. A fine introduction to what promises in 2013 to become a nationwide discussion.--Kirkus (Check Catalog)

FDR and Chief Justice Hughes: The President, the Supreme Court, and the Epic Battle Over the New Deal

James Simon. This dramatic history illuminates the uniquely American conflict between constitutional reverence and popular politics. New York Law School prof Simon spotlights the struggle between a conservative Court under Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes and a frustrated President Franklin Roosevelt on key New Deal measures in the 1930s. With the present-day Court poised to rule on health care reform amid controversies over the governments power to address economic turmoil, Simons account of a very similar era is both trenchant and timely.--Publisher's Weekly (Check Catalog)

The Story of Ireland: A History of the Irish People

Neil Hegarty. Irish fiction writer Hegarty emphasizes the external political and cultural forces shaping the destiny of the Emerald Isle and chips away at the usual myths by presenting a sweeping panorama that includes the first Christian communities, Columbanuss powerful sermons, the Viking settlements, the early great documents of the new land, and the long reach of the Roman Catholic Church into Irish affairs. Without succumbing to a dry academic tone, Hegarty offers a finely researched and timely celebration of Ireland's turbulent history and conservative people.--Publisher's Weekly (Check Catalog)

City of Fortune: How Venice Ruled the Seas

Roger Crowley. The only seas Venice ruled were the Mediterranean and Black, but it dominated European trade from 1000 to 1500. While mildly neglected compared to Britain and France, Venice receives a stirring account from British historian Crowley. The author concentrates on its golden years and the wars that made them possible, passing over its great but less-pugnacious cultural accomplishments. An action-packed political and military history that will remind readers of the Italian sea power that prevailed for centuries before Western European nations arrived on the scene.--Kirkus (Check Catalog)

Vanished Kingdoms: The Rise and Fall of States and Nations

Norman Davies. Distinguished British historian Davies delves into 15 once-great, now-fallen states, from the ancient Visigoths to the Soviet Union. The author again displays an enormous breadth of knowledge in this selective yet comprehensive historical study of thriving kingdoms that eventually gave way to internal or external forces such as implosion or conquest. A fine concluding chapter, "How States Die," offers a robust roundup for the diligent reader. As usual with Davies, an exceedingly accomplished and dauntingly thorough study.--Kirkus (Check Catalog)

Pearl Harbor: FDR Leads the Nation Into War

The History Channel resident historian Gillon reminds readers that everyone expected war. Having broken Japan's diplomatic code, American officials knew that morning that Japan's embassy had been ordered to destroy its code machines. Little useful activity and no important decisions resulted, and Gillon wisely cuts away from the confusion to deliver background information and generous biographies of FDR, Eleanor and a dozen leading figures.
An excellent introduction to Roosevelt and his times with heavy emphasis on events surrounding Pearl Harbor.--Kirkus (Check Catalog)

The longest war : the enduring conflict between America and al-Qaeda

Peter Bergen. A revelatory, pull-no-punches history of the War on Terror, from before 9/11 to the present day. CNN national security analyst and journalist Bergen takes a critical look at all phases of the conflict between the West and al-Qaeda. Drawing on an impressive range of both Western and Islamic sources, the author examines the historical and philosophical underpinnings of the jihadist movement, most importantly as exemplified by Osama bin Laden. Bergen looks at the lessons learned on both sides of the war, notably the U.S. military's rediscovery of one of the lessons of Vietnam: Small units working closely with the indigenous population can achieve what large concentrations of conventional force cannot. The author concludes that, simply by surviving so long, bin Laden has created a movement likely to carry on his brand of anti-Americanism for the foreseeable future. One of the deepest and most disturbing investigations of one of the defining issues of our era.--Kirkus (Check Catalog)