Greetings from Amazon.com Delivers Politics and Current Events Editor, Ron Hogan FEATURED IN THIS E-MAIL: * What We're Reading: "Dutch," "Why They Kill," and "A Place Called Waco" * Amazon.com Presents the Best of the Century * Meet the Candidates: Pat Buchanan and Bill Bradley * Featured Excerpt: "Faith of My Fathers" * Bestsellers: "The Celebration Chronicles" and "An Affair of State" * New in Paperback: "Courage Is Contagious" and "The New Military Humanism" * Coming Soon: "Stickin': The Case for Loyalty" WHAT WE'RE READING ****************** "Dutch: A Memoir of Ronald Reagan" by Edmund Morris http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0394555082/entertainmentsit As Reagan's official biographer, Edmund Morris had unprecedented levels of access both in the White House and afterwards. But historians are up in arms over "Dutch," in which Morris imagines himself as a recurring character in the former president's life story. "Why They Kill" by Richard Rhodes http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0375402497/entertainmentsit Dr. Lonnie Athens has some controversial ideas about how and why people become criminally violent. In "Why They Kill," Pulitzer Prize-winning science writer Richard Rhodes considers the implications of Athens's "violentization" theory, applying it to cases as diverse as Lee Harvey Oswald and Mike Tyson. "A Place Called Waco" by David Thibodeau http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1891620428/entertainmentsit David Thibodeau had never been religious, but when he met David Koresh he became a believer. "A Place Called Waco" offers a survivor's perspective on the 1993 standoff between the Branch Davidians and the U.S. government--and the subsequent cover-ups. AMAZON.COM PRESENTS THE BEST OF THE CENTURY ******************************************* As the century comes to a close, Amazon.com takes a look at the landmarks in books, music, and video of the past 100 years. Selected by our editors, our lists take you decade by decade from the turn of the century all the way to the end of the millennium. But don't just take our word for it; cast your vote for the best book, video, and CD in our best-of-the-millennium poll for your chance to win our customers' 300 favorite music, book, and video titles. Books of the century MEET THE CANDIDATES ******************* Over the next few months, we'll showcase several books by and about the candidates for the United States presidential election in 2000. You can see a list of all the books at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/external-search/?keyword=presidential+candidates&tag=entertainmentsit "A Republic, Not an Empire" by Patrick J. Buchanan http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/089526272X/entertainmentsit Anyone who has caught Pat Buchanan's television appearances or heard his campaign rhetoric will be surprised at his relatively evenhanded and thoughtful tone as he writes-- often quite persuasively--in favor of the restoration of the political, military, and economic independence that largely drove U.S. foreign policy in the 19th century. With the end of the cold war, he suggests, U.S. foreign policy has become chaotic, driven by special interests; the sum of U.S. global commitments has become greater than the country's ability to defend them. "A Sense of Where You Are: Bill Bradley at Princeton" by John McPhee http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0374526893/entertainmentsit First published in 1965, "A Sense of Where You Are" is the literary equivalent of a harmonic convergence, a remarkable confluence of two talents--John McPhee and Bill Bradley--at the beginnings of what would prove to be long and distinguished careers. While McPhee would blossom into one of the best nonfiction writers of the 20th century, Bradley segued from an all-American basketball player at Princeton to Rhodes scholar to NBA star to three terms in the U.S. Senate. Next month: Al Gore and George W. Bush FEATURED EXCERPT **************** "I am sure my disdainful contemporaries and disapproving instructors believed I would become a thoroughly disreputable upperclassman were I somehow to escape expulsion during my plebe year. Most of the time, my behavior only confirmed their low regard for me. For a moment, though, I came close to confounding their expectations. That moment began when I boarded the USS Hunt to begin my first-class cruise to Rio de Janeiro in June of 1957." You can read more from Senator John McCain's bestselling memoir "Faith of My Fathers" at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=entertainmentsit&path=ts/book-excerpt/0375501916 BESTSELLERS *********** "The Celebration Chronicles" by Andrew Ross http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0345417518/entertainmentsit Andrew Ross has written a moving and subtle account of his yearlong stay at Disney's glistening suburban development in Celebration, Florida. "The Celebration Chronicles" is a masterpiece of American studies scholarship, as astute as it is readable. "An Affair of State" by Richard A. Posner http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0674000803/entertainmentsit Richard Posner is a top-ranking member of the United States judiciary and one of the most highly respected legal theorists and philosophers. "An Affair of State" is the smartest, most level-headed book written to date about what Posner calls "the whole Clinton-Lewinsky-Starr-impeachment business"; it is likely to retain that status for some time to come. NEW IN PAPERBACK **************** "Courage Is Contagious" by John Kasich http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0385491484/entertainmentsit From Amber Coffman, a teenage girl who organized a program to provide the homeless with sandwiches, to Albert Lexie, a shoeshine man who has worked his trade at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh two days a week for nearly 20 years (and donated almost $40,000 in the tips he's made there), the stories of people making a difference in others' lives collected by U.S. Representative John Kasich in "Courage Is Contagious" are uniformly inspiring. "The New Military Humanism" by Noam Chomsky http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1567511767/entertainmentsit Was the bombing of Serbia the humanitarian mission that NATO leaders declared? Or was Operation Allied Forces a "criminally negligent" and hypocritical violation of international law? Noam Chomsky sifts through the Orwellian convolutions of government leaders and mass media to get to the truth. COMING SOON *********** "Stickin': The Case for Loyalty" by James Carville http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0684857731/entertainmentsit Political strategist James Carville is at it again. "Stickin'" is a provocative reflection on the virtues of loyalty--shot through with Carville's characteristic no-holds-barred sensibility and good humor. ****** Give the Perfect Gift -- Get the Perfect Gift Does Aunt Ida send polka CDs when you'd prefer pop? Create an Amazon.com Wish List and save everyone the agony of the unwanted gift. Wish list
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