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Recommendations based on In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannetteby Hampton Sides
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Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage
by Alfred Lansing
True story of a remarkable Antarctic expedition, a testament to the power of courage and tenacity.
The harrowing tale of British explorer Ernest Shackleton's 1914 attempt to reach the South Pole, one of the greatest adventure stories of the modern age. In August 1914, polar explorer Ernest ... (Goodreads)
The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics
by Daniel James Brown
An inspiring story of a rowing crew battling against the odds to win gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.
This novel is about the University of Washington eight-oared crew that represented the United States in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, and narrowly beat out Italy and Germany to win the gold medal. The ... (Wikipedia)
Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania
by Erik Larson
Exploration of Lusitania's fateful voyage and its lasting impact on World War I.
#1 New York Times Bestseller,From the bestselling author and master of narrative nonfiction comes the enthralling story of the sinking of the, Lusitania, On May 1, 1915, with WWI entering its tenth ... (Barnes & Noble)
Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President
by Candice Millard
The riveting story of the assassination of President Garfield, a tragedy of medical science and mistake.
James A. Garfield was one of the most extraordinary men ever elected president. Born into abject poverty, he rose to become a wunderkind scholar, a Civil War hero, and a renowned and admired ... (Goodreads)
Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster
by Jon Krakauer
A gripping narrative of the 1996 expedition on Mount Everest that resulted in tragedy.
When Jon Krakauer reached the summit of Mt. Everest in the early afternoon of May 10, 1996, he hadn't slept in fifty-seven hours and was reeling from the brain-altering effects of oxygen depletion. ... (Goodreads)
The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey
by Candice Millard
A daring expedition through the Amazon to uncover the secrets of an uncharted river.
At once an incredible adventure narrative and a penetrating biographical portrait, The River of Doubt is the true story of Theodore Roosevelt’s harrowing exploration of one of the most dangerous ... (Goodreads)
Blood and Thunder: An Epic of the American West
by Hampton Sides
An exploration of the westward expansion of the United States, recounting the lives of those who lived it.
A Magnificent History of How the West Was Really Won - a Sweeping Tale of Shame and Glory, In the fall of 1846 the venerable Navajo warrior Narbona, greatest of his people’s chieftains, looked down ... (Goodreads)
In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex
by Nathaniel Philbrick
True account of a whaling ship's disastrous voyage and the survivors' struggle for survival.
"With its huge, scarred head halfway out of the water and its tail beating the ocean into a white-water wake more than forty feet across, the whale approached the ship at twice its original speed - ... (Goodreads)
In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
by Erik Larson
A family's struggle to cope with the darkness of Nazi Germany, as seen through one man's courage.
The time is 1933, the place, Berlin, when William E. Dodd becomes America's first ambassador to Hitler's Germany in a year that proved to be a turning point in history. A mild-mannered professor from ... (Goodreads)
A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal
by Ben Macintyre
The true story of a legendary British spy, who betrayed his country and family.
Master storyteller Ben Macintyre’s most ambitious work to date brings to life the twentieth century’s greatest spy story. Kim Philby was the greatest spy in history, a brilliant and charming man who ... (Goodreads)
John Adams
by David McCullough
Biography of the second President of the United States and his contributions to the founding of the nation.
The enthralling, often surprising story of John Adams, one of the most important and fascinating Americans who ever lived. In this powerful, epic biography, David McCullough unfolds the adventurous ... (Goodreads)
Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End
by Atul Gawande
An exploration of the human experience of mortality and the importance of end-of-life care.
In, Being Mortal, author Atul Gawande tackles the hardest challenge of his profession: how medicine can not only improve life but also the process of its ending Medicine has triumphed in modern ... (Goodreads)
A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
by Bill Bryson
A humorous account of a man's attempt to hike the Appalachian Trail, reflecting on the beauty and history of the American wilderness.
The book starts with Bryson explaining his curiosity about the Appalachian Trail near his house. He and his old friend Stephen Katz start hiking the trail from Georgia in the South , and stumble in ... (Wikipedia)
The Great Bridge: The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge
by David McCullough
An in-depth account of the construction of the iconic Brooklyn Bridge.
Published on the fortieth anniversary of its initial publication, this edition of the classic book contains a new Preface by David McCullough, “one of our most gifted living writers” (,The Washington ... (Goodreads)
The Wright Brothers
by David McCullough
The story of the Wright brothers and their pioneering invention of the airplane.
Librarian's note: An alternate cover edition can be found, here, Two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize David McCullough tells the dramatic story-behind-the-story about the courageous brothers who ... (Goodreads)
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
by Doris Kearns Goodwin
A comprehensive study of the presidency of Abraham Lincoln, and the unique cabinet he assembled.
Winner of the Lincoln Prize Acclaimed historian Doris Kearns Goodwin illuminates Lincoln's political genius in this highly original work, as the one-term congressman and prairie lawyer rises from ... (Goodreads)
Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War
by Mark Bowden
A detailed account of the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, where US soldiers fought Somali militia in a brutal urban warfare.
On October 3, 1993, about a hundred U.S. soldiers were dropped by helicopter into a teeming market in the heart of Mogadishu, Somalia, to abduct two top lieutenants of a Somali warlord. The action ... (Goodreads)
Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune
by Bill Dedman
Uncovering the secrets of an enigmatic heiress and her mysterious family fortune.
When Pulitzer Prize – winning journalist Bill Dedman noticed in 2009 a grand home for sale, unoccupied for nearly sixty years, he stumbled through a surprising portal into American history. Empty ... (Goodreads)
Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis
by J.D. Vance
An exploration of the struggles of working-class Americans, and the power of family and culture to shape one's life.
Hillbilly Elegy is a passionate and personal analysis of a culture in crisis—that of white working-class Americans. The disintegration of this group, a process that has been slowly occurring now for ... (Goodreads)
Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe
by Laurence Bergreen
Exploration of Magellan's circumnavigation of the world and its implications.
Ferdinand Magellan's daring circumnavigation of the globe in the sixteenth century was a three-year odyssey filled with sex, violence, and amazing adventure. Now in Over the Edge of the World , ... (Goodreads)
The Guns of August
by Barbara W. Tuchman
A riveting account of the events leading up to World War I and its devastating consequences.
Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best nonfiction books of all time The Proud Tower, the Pulitzer Prize–winning The Guns of August, and The Zimmerman Telegram comprise Barbara W. ... (Goodreads)
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures
by Anne Fadiman
Exploring the cultural divide between the Hmong people and the medical establishment.
Lia Lee was born in 1982 to a family of recent Hmong immigrants, and soon developed symptoms of epilepsy. By 1988 she was living at home but was brain dead after a tragic cycle of misunderstanding, ... (Goodreads)
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup
by John Carreyrou
The rise and fall of Theranos, a fraudulent blood-testing startup, and the deceitful actions of its founder Elizabeth Holmes.
The full inside story of the breathtaking rise and shocking collapse of a multibillion-dollar startup, by the prize-winning journalist who first broke the story and pursued it to the end in the face ... (Goodreads)
Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History
by Erik Larson
Story of the 1900 Galveston hurricane, and one man's desperate struggle to save his city.
September 8, 1900, began innocently in the seaside town of Galveston, Texas. Even Isaac Cline, resident meteorologist for the U.S. Weather Bureau failed to grasp the true meaning of the strange ... (Goodreads)
Lab Girl
by Hope Jahren
A memoir about a young woman's journey to discover her scientific calling and resilience.
Acclaimed scientist Hope Jahren has built three laboratories in which she’s studied trees, flowers, seeds, and soil. Her first book is a revelatory treatise on plant life—but it is also so much ... (Goodreads)
Washington: A Life
by Ron Chernow
Intimate biography of George Washington, the nation's first president.
A gripping portrait of the first president of the United States from the author of, Alexander Hamilton, the New York Times bestselling biography that inspired the musical., Celebrated biographer Ron ... (Barnes & Noble)
One Summer: America, 1927
by Bill Bryson
A vivid portrait of America in the summer of 1927, featuring a host of historical figures and events.
In One Summer Bill Bryson, one of our greatest and most beloved nonfiction writers, transports readers on a journey back to one amazing season in American life. The summer of 1927 began with one of ... (Goodreads)
Seabiscuit: An American Legend
by Laura Hillenbrand
An inspiring story of the rise of champion racehorse Seabiscuit and his unlikely jockey.
There's an alternate cover edition, here, Seabiscuit was one of the most electrifying and popular attractions in sports history and the single biggest newsmaker in the world in 1938, receiving more ... (Goodreads)
Double Cross: The True Story of the D-Day Spies
by Ben Macintyre
A detailed account of British spies and their role in the secret operations of WWII.
In his celebrated bestsellers, Agent Zigzag, and, Operation Mincemeat, Ben Macintyre told the dazzling true stories of a remarkable WWII double agent and of how the Allies employed a corpse to fool ... (Goodreads)
Hellhound on His Trail: The Stalking of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the International Hunt for His Assassin
by Hampton Sides
An exploration of the investigation and manhunt for Dr. King’s assassin, James Earl Ray.
On April 23, 1967, Prisoner #416J, an inmate at the notorious Missouri State Penitentiary, escaped in a breadbox. Fashioning himself Eric Galt, this nondescript thief and con man—whose real name was ... (Goodreads)
