Sofia Panina’s life was full of interesting intersections. A countess born into wealth, she became a popular political figure, only to run afoul of the Bolshevik government. Adele Lindenmeyr’s biography of Sofia Panina, "Citizen... Read More

Intrepid’s Last Secrets is an excellent biography of William Stephenson, an important participant in the real world of World War II cloak-and-dagger operations. Bill Macdonald’s Intrepid’s Last Secrets chronicles the amazing career... Read More

The career of Rod Serling—the screenwriter, playwright, and television producer best known for creating The Twilight Zone—is traced in Koren Shadmi’s graphic novel "The Twilight Man". The young Serling, after proving his mettle as... Read More

Maren Meinhardt’s biography of early nineteenth-century scientist Alexander von Humboldt shows how he came to have more places and objects named after him than any other person. The text focuses on the scientist and explorer’s... Read More

Born in 1859 into wealth and political power—his father was a Supreme Court justice; he served in Congress—George Shiras III’s long life spanned the Gilded Age, the Progressive Era, and the New Deal. James H. McCommons’s engaging... Read More

Betrothals, betrayals, and battles both domestic and political are the order of the day in Rosalind K. Marshall’s intriguing history "Scottish Queens, 1034-1714". From the mysterious but only possibly murderous Lady Macbeth to the hot... Read More

George Taliaferro was a multidimensional football player. An All-American and Hall of Famer, he achieved and inspired excellence. Dawn Knight, Taliaferro’s former student and longtime friend, saw that football was only one of... Read More

Nancy E. Davis’s "The Chinese Lady" applies historical detective work to document the life of Afong Moy, who took an unusual journey through nineteenth-century America. It reveals much about the young United States, its view of other... Read More