Showing results by narrator "Rick Adamson" in All Categories

"You're the most famous railroad detective that nobody ever heard of," says railroad tycoon Henry Plant when in May of 1887 he hires Jimmy Lee "Choctaw" Parker to investigate the murder of his head surveyor and geologist Leon Skarvo. In a story that ranges from Tampa to Ybor City and along the Florida Southern Railroad line to Arcadia, Choctaw Parker and his colleagues battle deceitful politicians, bolita gamblers, and ruthless cracker cowboys to uncover the truth in this fast-paced mystery set in Florida during the Gilded Age.

Here is P. T. Barnum's insightful review of humbugs, scams, deceits (and self-deceits) in culture, economics, entertainment, religion, medicine, and more.

Osamah Khalil argues that the militarization of US domestic and foreign affairs was the product of America's failure in Vietnam. Unsettled by their inability to prevail in Southeast Asia, US leaders increasingly came to see a host of problems as immune to political solutions. Rather, crime, drugs, and terrorism were enemies spawned in "badlands"—whether the Middle East or stateside inner cities. Characterized as sites of endemic violence, badlands lay beyond the pale of civilization, their ostensibly racially and culturally alien inhabitants best handled by force.

Biology professor Andy Waite is finally beginning to pick up the pieces years after a drunk driver killed his wife. Between finishing his research and taking care of his young daughters, he has reasons to get through the day, and most days he does without falling apart. That is, until a young female student enters his life and turns it upside down.

From Wall Street to the West Coast, from blue-collar billionaires to blue-blood fortunes, from the Google guys to hedge fund honchos, All the Money in the World gives us the lowdown on, among other things: the all-time richest Americans, who made and lost the most money in the past 25 years, the fields and industries that have produced the greatest wealth, the biggest risk takers, the most competitive players, the most wasteful family feuds, the trophy wives.

Today Hong Kong, Tomorrow the World tells the complete story of how a city once famed for protests so peaceful that toddlers joined grandparents became a place where police have fired tear gas, rubber bullets and even live ammunition at their neighbors, while pro-government hooligans attack demonstrators....

During Burning Man, the annual event of debauchery and independent self-reliance, a woman is found dead in a high-end RV, suspected to have overdosed on drugs. Former sheriff Keenan Fitzpatrick is hired by the woman's boyfriend to discover the true nature of her death. But there are complicating factors. First of all, the boyfriend is an actor who is starring in a detective series filming in the Reno, Nevada, area. Second, the actor is a conspiracy enthusiast who sees a government plot in everything from Bigfoot to Area 51.

The surprising, rich life of tree swallows in nesting season—with Heinrich’s beautiful illustrations and photographs—by the acclaimed naturalist. Heinrich is sparked one early spring day by a question: Why does a pair of swallows in a nest-box close to his Maine cabin show an unvarying...

In this third Keenan Fitzpatrick Mystery, Fitz is called in to investigate a double homicide in the sleepy outback of Nevada. The county commission has illegally suspended the duly-elected sheriff and installed a young deputy with no tangible investigative experience. When Fitz gets to this former stagecoach stop by the old Pony Express, he immediately clashes with the locals. Soon, Fitz is butting heads with the federal government and established families that want this case to just go away.

In The Progress Paradox, Gregg Easterbrook draws upon three decades of wide-ranging research and thinking to make the persuasive assertion that almost all aspects of Western life have vastly improved in the past century--and yet today, most men and women feel less happy than in previous...

Sixty years after the publication of his first novel, Cat Man, Edward Hogland is publishing his 25th book at the age of 83. This capstone novel, set in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, introduces Press, a stockbroker going blind. Press has lost his job and his wife and is trying to figure out his next move, holed up in his Vermont cabin surrounded by a hippy commune, drug runners, farmers-gone-bust, blood-thirsty auctioneers, and general ne'er-do-wells.

The Individualization of War examines the status of individuals in contemporary armed conflict in three main capacities: as subject to violence but deserving of protection; as liable to harm because of their responsibility for attacks on others; and as agents who can be held accountable for the perpetration of crimes.

What made Franklin Delano Roosevelt an effective leader? His policies and decisions changed our nation’s and the world’s history. But more than his skill as a savvy politician and progressive thinker, FDR’s ability to directly and eloquently voice his thoughts on national concerns, social change, and humanity spoke to and reached the hearts of his people. In this selection of quotes drawn from his speeches and papers, FDR’s observations and opinions cover everything from faith, war, and peace, to religion, freedom, and the very definition of what it is to be an American.

It’s clear that in today’s era of fiscal constraints and political gridlock, we can no longer turn to government alone to tackle towering social problems. What’s required is a new, more collaborative and productive economic system. The Solution Revolution brings hope - revealing just such a burgeoning new economy where players from across the spectrum of business, government, philanthropy, and social enterprise converge to solve big problems and create public value.

In The First Fleets, Benjamin C. Schaffer reveals how, contrary to widespread beliefs, the American colonies had a long tradition of independent naval defense decades before the Revolution. He demonstrates that Anglo-American governments established and maintained significant provincial naval forces and that the history of provincial navies illuminates broader aspects of colonial history and the colonies' ultimate break with the British Crown. Based on meticulous research, Schaffer recounts the sea-borne threats that American colonies faced from the French, Spanish, pirates, and others.

There's no one more blunt, more opinionated, or more outspoken than the average teen. Except, of course, Bill O'Reilly, veteran star journalist, anchor of the most watched cable news program on TV, New York Times bestselling author, husband, father of two and former teacher. In his latest book...

Diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, a neuroscientist searches for the answer to one of life’s biggest questions: Are miracles real? After experiencing a violent seizure, Joshua W. Brown was diagnosed with an inoperable glioma—a cancerous brain tumor—just days before his wife gave birth...

In Real Americans, Jared A. Goldstein boldly challenges the conventional wisdom that a shared devotion to the Constitution is the essence of what it means to be American.

The second-century Greek physician Galen—the most famous doctor in antiquity after Hippocrates—is a central figure in Western medicine. A talented doctor, surgeon, writer, philosopher, teacher, pharmacologist, and inventor, Galen attended the court of Marcus Aurelius, living through outbreaks of plague that devastated the Roman Empire. He also served as a physician for professional gladiators. In writings that provided the foundation of Western medicine up to the nineteenth century, Galen created a unified account of health and disease.

Tired of swimming with the sharks? Fed up with that big ape down the hall? Real animals can teach us better ways to thrive in the workplace jungle. You’re ambitious and want to get ahead, but what’s the best way to do it? Become the biggest, baddest predator? The proverbial 800-pound gorilla?...