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Nonfiction Books and Essays

Featuring good writing for serious readers, Now and Then short-form nonfiction books and essays are available exclusively as Kindle booksNook BooksiPad books or ebooks for other popular mobile devices.  

Each week, we publish original titles, excerpts from forthcoming books, and reprints of work worthy of being read again. We focus on writing that is historically based but also has relevance for present day events.

Our latest titles can be found in the list below.

Henry Adams Grows Up

The Early Years of a Conspicuous American / Selections from The Education of Henry Adams

by Henry Adams

United States History, American History, U.S. History, U.S. Government, Biography

Henry Adams, whose distinguished family had a tradition of service to the nation, thought himself a comparative failure because his instincts ran toward literature and spiritual adventure. In his autobiographical Education he tried to make sense of his own path in a changing America.

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Dearest Friend

Selected Letters of John and Abigail Adams, 1774-1783

by John & Abigail Adams

American History

From 1774 to 1783, years of decisive ferment for their young country, John Adams was at the center of proceedings in the Continental Congress that were to eventuate in the Revolutionary War and the Declaration of Independence; his wife Abigail was at home on their farm in Braintree, Massachusetts, with four children—but in many ways as engaged in daily events as her husband. Their letters, displaying a keen perception and a loving devotion to each other, are unparalleled in American history.

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My Father's Girl

Recollections of My Childhood

by Jane Addams

American History

When Jane Addams founded Hull-House in an immigrant neighborhood of Chicago, it became a refuge for the poor as well as a symbol of progressive reform in an acquisitive age. Here Addams remembers her father, whom she considered a shaper of her character.

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The Capture of Adolf Eichmann

The Inside Story of the Manhunt by the Israeli Secret Service

by Michael Bar-Zohar and Nissim Mishal

European History, Military History

The most celebrated accomplishment in the hunt for Nazi war criminals was the capture, trial, and execution of Adolf Eichmann in 1960—1962. As the Nazi officer overseeing the logistics of the Final Solution, Eichmann had been responsible for sending millions of Jews to their extermination in the death camps of Europe. After World War II he had been living incognito in Argentina when the Mossad, Israel’s intelligence agency, learned of his possible whereabouts. Here is the behind-the-scenes story of Eichmann’s capture.

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The Art of Money-Getting

by P.T. Barnum

United States History, Philosophy, American History

The greatest showman of his age, P. T. Barnum was also the most gifted advocate for the Gospel of Success in nineteenth-century America. Barnum’s autobiography, The Life of P. T. Barnum, Written by Himself, which sold almost half a million copies, included the “Rules of Success.” They were also incorporated into his lecture, “The Art of Money-Getting,” which he delivered more than a hundred times. Horace Greeley thought it “worth a hundred-dollar greenback to a beginner in life.”

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How Iran Got The Bomb

The Twisted Path to a Nuclear Weapon

by Jeremy Bernstein

United States History, Political Science, European History, Military History, American History, U.S. History, U.S. Government

Jeremy Bernstein traces the circuitous route by which Iran secured the expertise to develop a nuclear capability. Since Iran’s program appears to be aimed at weapons production, he concludes, the time of decision for action is fast approaching.

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Oppenheimer's Lives

Reflections on the Father of the Atomic Bomb

by Jeremy Bernstein

United States History, Military History, American History, U.S. History, U.S. Government, Biography, Biography

Jeremy Bernstein remembers the “father” of the atomic bomb—a man unsure of his identity and scarred by the famous government hearing that took away his security clearance.

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Mostly He Won

Kubrick, Bobby Fischer and the Attraction of Chess

by Jeremy Bernstein

United States History, European History, American History, U.S. History, Sports History, Essays, Sports

The 1972 world championship chess match between Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky was an event of international importance—and a media bonanza. Out of a heady cast of characters, Jeremy Bernstein fashions a tale of large personalities involved in an intense, brainy competition.

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