Potomac Books: 562 books

War stories are mostly innocent fables and understood as such by both the teller and the hearer. However, they have long been used for political and national purposes, and those about the war in Vietnam were no exception, as painfully evidenced in the 2004 presidential campaign. John Kerry campaigned...

At a time when the word “socialist” is but one of numerous political epithets that are generally divorced from the historical context of America’s political history, The Socialist Party of America presents a new, mature understanding of America’s most important minor political party of the...

Is any war a ôgood warö? In Worshipping the Myths of World War II, the author takes a critical look at what he sees is AmericaÆs dedication to war as panacea and as WashingtonÆs primary method for leading the world. Articulating why he believes the lessons of World War II are profoundly relevant...

In eleven dramatic years, Anwar Sadat changed history—not just that of Egypt, or of the Middle East, but of the entire world. As the architect of the 1973 war against Israel, he gained the support of other Arab nations and inspired the oil embargo that transformed the global economy. Following the...

In 2010 allegations of an utterly corrupt academic system for student-athletes emerged from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill campus, home of the legendary Tar Heels. As the alma mater of Michael Jordan, Larry Brown, Marion Jones, Lawrence Taylor, Rashad McCants, and many others; winner...

Approximately 100,000 deaths per year in the United States result from preventable medical errors. This figure is about twice the number of people who die in car accidents and five times the number of murder victims annually, and twenty times the number of servicemen and women killed in Iraq and Afghanistan...

Maine-born Dr. Sumner ôJackö Jackson joined the British Army as a volunteer physician during World War I. After the Battle of the Somme, he married a beautiful French Red Cross nurse. When the war was over, Jackson joined the staff of the American Hospital in Paris, where he quickly became a favorite...

Society was not prepared in 1981 for the appearance of a new infectious disease, but we have since learned that emerging and reemerging diseases will continue to challenge humanity. AIDS at 30 is the first history of HIV/AIDS written for a general audience that emphasizes the medical response to the...

All-American George Glamack was known as the "Blind Bomber" because his eyesight was so poor that he couldnt see the basket. Bobby Bailey once fouled out of a game in three minutes. The first professional basketball player, Fred Cooper, earned sixteen dollars per game. Swedish player Mats Wermelin scored...

In 1588, King Philip II of Spain attempted to return England to the Catholic fold by force of naval arms. The Spanish Armada confidently set sail for what became one of the most crushing defeats in history, due in part to the efforts of Sir Francis Drake. During the previous century, Europe had fully...

From outlawing bowling in colonial America to regulating violent video games and synthetic drugs today, Mark Stein’s Vice Capades examines the nation’s relationship with the actions, attitudes, and antics that have defined morality. This humorous and quirky history reveals that our views of...

Murder is an effective way to gain power over others. Kill its leaders, and a country can be yours. Kill the people or ruthlessly intimidate them, and you can control their territory. Kill the journalistsor the storyand the truth of what is happening can be buried. Blood on the Lens chronicles filmmaker...

Throughout time, major wars have defined historical epochs and charted the rise and decline of great powers. The U.S. global war on terror, with Iraq as the Bush administration's chosen centerpiece, is almost certainly destined to do the same. Indeed, the Bush doctrine for conducting the war on terror...

ôDr. Livingstone, I presume?ö The man who uttered those famous words was compared with Christopher Columbus in his day and became one of the late nineteenth centuryÆs most newsworthy figures. Yet, one hundred years after Henry Morton StanleyÆs death, his accomplishments in Africa have largely receded...