Sin City

Richard Zacks mines through firsthand historical accounts to present a period of New York City's past so salacious that it makes the once-seedy Times Square look like its current sanitized incarnation in Island of Vice.

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Historical figures abound in Zacks' (The Pirate Coast, 2005, etc.), rigorous work, none more compelling than police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt, who had just enough hubris—and chutzpah—to think he could corral the carnality.   

Do you think Roosevelt was taken aback by the vice he encountered?

That’s what’s funny—even though he was born in New ...

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‘One Click’: The World of Bezos and Amazon

Richard Brandt pulls the curtain back to reveal the wizard of Amazon, the online company’s founder and CEO Jeff Bezos in One Click. A journalist by trade, Brandt (Inside Larry and Sergey’s Brain, 2009, etc.), tracks the retailer’s meteoric rise and crafts a sketch of the company’s enigmatic leader to find out what makes him click.

There's a biography on Steve Jobs out. Read our list of 10 reasons why Jobs mattered.

Can you talk about your process for writing this book?

Amazon is a very difficult company to work with, which is why there ...

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The Ugly Truth Behind Polygamy in ‘Prophet’s Prey’

In Prophet's Prey, private investigator Sam Brower pulls back the curtain on Warren Jeffs—now serving a life sentence in Texas—the leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS). The book shines an unforgiving light on the leader and his polygamous religious sect, which the author says is just like the mafia—only devoid of any family values.

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Why did you write this book?

Curiosity. I was new to Utah, never really had gone out to Short Creek. I didn't think there as such thing ...

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Joe Lieberman Talks Sabbath

While representing Connecticut on Capitol Hill, Sen. Joe Lieberman penned The Gift of Rest: Rediscovering the Beauty of the Sabbath, an earnest tribute and handy guide to keeping the seventh day of the week holy. Here, Lieberman offers recollections and advice in this politically innocuous but personal account of the sacred day—one he’d like elevated in the lives of people of all faiths. 

Read new and notable nonfiction for August at Kirkus.

Lieberman spoke to us about the importance of the Sabbath in his life, the perils of the digital age and the sensuousness of Shabbat.

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How Safe is Your Food? Jeff Benedict and ‘Poisoned’

Investigative journalist Jeff Benedict finds inspiration in microscopic subject matter in Poisoned: The True Story of the Deadly E. coli Outbreak that Changed the Way Americans Eat. Benedict, (Little Pink House: A True Story of Defiance and Courage, 2009, etc.), relies on source material and interviews to craft a hard-boiled thriller in chronicling the biggest food-poisoning epidemic in American history, which began at Seattle franchise of the popular fast-food chain Jack in the Box and went on to kill four children and infect 700 people. It’s an essential read that likely will have you ordering your next burger well ...

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Eric Felten on that vexing virtue, loyalty

Cocktail maven Eric Felten plays teetotaler in Loyalty: The Vexing Virtue, a thoroughly clearheaded examination of the enigmatic virtue. Felten, (How's Your Drink?: Cocktails, Culture, and the Art of Drinking Well, 2007) a culture columnist for The Wall Street Journal, takes a postmodern approach to tackling the importance of loyalty, citing a varied array of case studies and personalities—from Julius Caesar to Sandra Bullock—to bolster his case. Felten spoke with us about how to navigate virtue in a post-modern era, the lessons he’s learned from Al Pacino and what writing about cocktails has taught him about ...

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How to get a 'Timeless Swing' with Tom Watson

Golf legend Tom Watson set aside his five iron to pen The Timeless Swing, an instructional guide reflective of the author’s storied career. From grip to follow through, Watson (The Rules of Golf, 1996, etc.) meticulously explores every facet of the game, laying out biomechanical fundamentals for both beginner and pro alike. Here, he speaks with Kirkus about the innate qualities of good golfers, what he’s learned from golf legend and friend Jack Nicklaus and where his own game could use a bit of tweaking.

Revisit some of golf's greatest books with Golf's Greatest Championship and ...

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Passover for Couples

Ten years after their interfaith confessional From This Day Forward, Cokie and Steve Roberts return to co-author Our Haggadah, a personalized version of the Passover prayer book. The journalistic power couple—she’s political commentator and news analyst, he’s a professor at George Washington University and a political analyst—get in the holiday spirit with straightforward advice and anecdotes geared toward couples of disparate religions.

Why did you decide to write this book? Seems an unusual subject.

Cokie Roberts: Is that because there are already 3,000 haggadahs out there?

Steve Roberts: In a general sense, [we] have counseled ...

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