Changed America

A dramatic rethinking of the encounter between Montezuma and Hernando Cortés that completely overturns what we know about the Spanish conquest of the Americas On November 8, 1519, the Spanish conquistador Hernando Cortés first met Montezuma, the Aztec emperor, at the entrance to the capital...

In November 1965, some 450 men of the First Battalion, Seventh Cavalry, under the command of Lt. Col. Hal Moore, were dropped by helicopter into a small clearing in the Ia Drang Valley. They were immediately surrounded by 2,000 North Vietnamese soldiers. Three days later, only two and a half miles away, a sister battalion was chopped to pieces. Together, these actions at the landing zones X-Ray and Albany constituted one of the most savage and significant battles of the Vietnam War. How these men persevered makes a vivid portrait of war at its most inspiring and devastating.

1919 was a world-shaking year. America was recovering from World War I, and black soldiers returned to racism so violent that that summer would become known as the Red Summer. The suffrage movement had a long-fought win when women gained the right to vote. Labourers took to the streets to protest working conditions, nationalistic fervour led to a communism scare, and temperance gained such traction that Prohibition went into effect. Each of these movements reached a tipping point that year. Now, 100 years later, these same social issues are more relevant than ever.

This comprehensive account of the meteoric rise of The Simpsons combines incisive pop culture criticism and interviews with the show’s creative team that take readers inside the making of an American phenomenon during its most influential decade, the 1990s. The Simpsons is an American...

In the years between World War II and the emergence of television as a mass medium, American popular culture as we know it was first created in the bold, pulpy pages of comic books. The Ten-Cent Plague explores this cultural emergence and its fierce backlash while challenging common notions of the divide between "high" and "low" art.

March 14, 2003, was the day the world changed forever. A wave of energy slammed into North America and devastated the continent. The U.S. military, poised to invade Baghdad, was left without a commander in chief. Global order spiraled into chaos. Now, three years later, a skeleton U.S. government headquartered in Seattle directs the reconstruction of an entire nation---and the battle for New York City has begun.

On August 28, 1963, more than 200,000 people marched on the United States capital to demand equal economic opportunities and civil rights for Black Americans. And at the end of the event, Martin Luther King Jr. took to the podium and delivered his unforgettable “I Have a Dream” speech.

On April 14, 1865, only days after the Civil War had come to a close, a gunshot rang out in Ford’s Theatre and President Abraham Lincoln slumped forward in his seat. Hours later, the United States had lost its leader. Now listeners can step back in time to learn about what led up to the assassination plot, how the fateful evening unfolded, and the ways in which one tragic day changed America forever.

On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong took one giant leap for mankind when he became the first person to set foot on the moon. Now, listeners can step back in time to learn about what led up to the Apollo 11 moon landing, how the historic event unfolded, and the ways in which one remarkable day changed America forever.

One of the “Best Books” of the year from The Smithsonian, The Washington Independent Review, and more! From bestselling writer David Kamp, the “fun, fascinating, and surprisingly touching,” (People) behind-the-scenes story of the cultural heroes who created the beloved children’s TV...

The 1930s were a tough time. The Great Depression left many people jobless and penniless. Dust storms and drought led to failed crops. Livestock died. People thought things couldn’t get much worse. Then, on April 14, 1935, the sky turned black. For hours, an enormous dust blizzard blanketed the country in darkness.

On December 7, 1941, Japan’s surprise attack on the U.S. naval base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, propelled the United States into World War II. Now, listeners can step back in time to learn what led up to the attack, how the tragic event unfolded, and the ways in which one infamous day changed America forever.

On April 9, 1861, soldiers gathered outside Fort Sumter. They were fighting for the Confederacy, which was made up of southern states that had left the United States. The soldiers demanded the U.S. Army leave the fort. Even though the fort had less than a week’s worth of supplies, the Army refused. Three days later, a fight for the fort began. That battle was the start of the Civil War. Now listeners can step back in time to learn about what led up to this historic conflict, how the costly event unfolded, and the ways in which one explosive day changed America forever.

For years, the relationship between Great Britain and the American colonists had been wearing thin. Colonists felt they were being treated unfairly. The British thought they were putting down a rebellion. On April 19, 1775, the two sides clashed at Lexington and Concord. The American Revolution was about to begin. Now listeners can step back in time to learn about what led up to the battles, how the historic events unfolded, and the ways in which one shot changed America forever.

Through the eyes and words of survivors and victims alike, as well as the careful research for which Newberry Honor Award winner Jim Murphy is known, listeners will experience one of the most devastating natural disasters in U.S. history and understand why and how life in the United States was forever changed.

On February 22, 1978, a devastating freight train derailment drastically altered Waverly, Tennessee, and its place in history. This was one of the worst train explosions of the twentieth century, killing sixteen people, injuring hundreds more, and causing millions of dollars in damage. What could have been dismissed as a single community's terrible misfortune instead became the catalyst for radical change, including the formation of FEMA, much-needed reforms in emergency response training, and the creation and enforcement of national and state safety regulations.

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY, AND AMAZON BESTSELLER America’s most effective conservative intellectual proves once and for all that Marxist radicals have taken over our nation's institutions. In the 1960s, Mao launched China’s Cultural Revolution. Cities grew overcrowded. Technocrats...

President John F. Kennedy was a popular president. On November 22, 1963, he waved to excited crowds from the back of a car as it wound through the streets of Dallas, Texas. Suddenly, gunshots rang out. The president had been shot! He died shortly after. The country had lost its leader.

The first definitive biography of Mitch McConnell, revealing an intimate look at the personal and political life of one of the most powerful senators in American history. In the long history of American government, few senators have wielded as much power as Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell. That’s...

The behind-the-scenes story of the iconic funnymen who ruled '80s Hollywood—Bill Murray, Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, and Eddie Murphy—and the beloved films that made them stars, including Animal House, Caddyshack, and Ghostbusters NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE...