Columbus to Caravaggio: History books that span the ages on sale at NPC Book Fair Nov. 15

NPC members Marvin Kalb, Brooke Stoddard and Laurence Bergreen will join Tony Horwitz and Harold Holzer in the History section of the 2011 Book Fair & Authors’ Night on Tuesday, Nov. 15 from 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. They will be among close to 100 nationally known writers autographing and selling their books at the festive event.

Jim Lehrer will serve as the honorary chair of the event and will be one of the authors featured in the Politics and Current Affairs category, along with Pamela Constable, Ronald Suskind and Ann Coulter.

For a contribution of $25, you can become a “Friend of the Book Fair” and join fellow patrons in promoting a love of books and reading. “Friends” will receive a complimentary raffle ticket (a $10 value) for a chance to win one of a group of exciting prizes, from gift certificates to Georgetown Cupcake, Chef Geoff's, Clyde's and Cowgirl Creamery to a wine tasting at Sunset Hills Vineyard, a curator's private tour of National Portrait Gallery and Dodona Manor or a Saturday night stay at the W Washington D.C. hotel. Your generosity will support the National Press Club’s Journalism Institute, a 501 (c) (3) that provides training, research and resources for news professionals and scholarships for the next generation of journalists.

Click here to become a Friend of the Book Fair.

Admission to the 34th annual fair is free for NPC members, $5 for non-members.

No outside books permitted. A full list of participants is listed on the Club’s website: http://press.org/library/book-fair/authors-and-books

HISTORY –

Laurence Bergreen* – “Columbus: The Four Voyages” $35

There was more to Christopher Columbus's storied career than his unexpected landfall in the Americas. He also made three more journeys designed to show he could he could sail to China within a matter of weeks and convert those he found there to Christianity.

Rick Beyer – “The Greatest Music Stories Never Told: 100 Tales from Music History to Astonish, Bewilder, and Stupefy” $19.99

Rick Beyer continues his “Greatest Stories Never Told” series. Here he tells of how the FBI spent years trying to decode the lyrics of one rock song, how Watergate provided the inspiration for “A Chorus Line” and how one megahit was dashed off in a fit of anger at actor Robert De Niro.

Clare Cushman –“Courtwatchers: Eyewitness Accounts in Supreme Court History” $35.00

“Courtwatchers” provides readers with a behind-the-scenes look at the people, practices, and traditions that have shaped the Supreme Court for more than 200 years. Each chapter covers one general thematic topic and weaves a narrative from memoirs, letters, diaries, and newspaper accounts by the Justices, their spouses and children, court reporters, clerks, oral advocates, court staff, journalists, and other eyewitnesses.

Andrew Graham-Dixon – “Caravaggio: A Life Sacred and Profane” $39.95

There’s more to the mystery of Caravaggio than his artistic achievements. Using original Italian sources, Andrew Graham-Dixon presents fresh details about Caravaggio's sex life, his many crimes and public brawls, and provides his account of the painter's tragic death at the age of thirty-eight.

Harold Holzer – “The New York Times Complete Civil War, 1861-1865” $40

The New York Times, established in 1851, was one of the few newspapers with correspondents on the front lines throughout the Civil War. The “Complete Civil War” collects every article written about the war from 1861 to 1865, plus select pieces before and after the war and is filled with the action, politics, and personal stories of this monumental event.

Tony Horwitz – “Midnight Rising: John Brown and the Raid That Sparked the Civil War” $29

Plotted in secret, launched in the dark, John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry was a pivotal moment in U.S. history. In “Midnight Rising,” Tony Horwitz travels antebellum America to tell the story of Brown's uprising in vivid color, revealing a country on the brink of explosive conflict.

Marvin Kalb* & Deborah Kalb – “Haunting Legacy: Vietnam and the American Presidency from

Ford to Obama” $29.95

The father-daughter journalist team presents a compelling, accessible, and hugely important history of presidential decision-making on one crucial issue: in light of the Vietnam debacle, under what circumstances should the US should go to war?

Ronald Kessler – “The Secrets of the FBI” $26

Based on inside access, Ronald Kessler presents revelations about the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound, the recent Russian spy swap, Marilyn Monroe's death, Vince Foster’s suicide, and J. Edgar Hoover’s sexual orientation. For the first time, he tells how the FBI caught spy Robert Hanssen in its midst and how the FBI breaks into homes, offices, and embassies to plant bugging devices without getting caught.

Elizabeth Letts – “The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the Horse That Inspired a Nation” $26

Harry de Leyer first saw the horse he would name Snowman on a truck bound for the slaughterhouse. The recent Dutch immigrant recognized the spark in the eye of the beaten-up nag and bought him for eighty dollars. Their story captured the heart of Cold War–era America – a long shot story of unstoppable hope, inconceivable dreams, and the chance to have it all.

Garrett Peck – “Prohibition in Washington, D.C.: How Dry We Weren't” $19.99

In 1929, it was estimated that every week bootleggers brought twenty-two thousand gallons of whiskey, moonshine, and other spirits into Washington, D.C.'s three thousand speakeasies. Garrett Peck crafts a rollicking history brimming with stories of vice, topped off with vintage cocktail recipes and garnished with a walking tour of former speakeasies.

Eli Saslow – “Ten Letters: The Stories Americans Tell Their President” $25.95

Every day, President Obama reads ten representative letters among the thousands he receives from citizens across the land. Eli Saslow of the Washington Post explores the stories of ten people who wrote letters to which Obama responded personally.

Lewis Sorley – “Westmoreland: The General Who Lost Vietnam” $30

Lewis Sorley chronicles the tragedy of William Westmoreland’s handling of the Vietnam War. The book examines the lessons Westmoreland’s flawed strategy for Vietnam provides for America’s military future.

David O. Stewart – “American Emperor: Aaron Burr's Challenge to Jefferson's America” $30

In this vivid and brilliant biography, David Stewart describes Aaron Burr, the third vice president, as a daring and perhaps deluded figure who shook the nation’s foundations in its earliest, most vulnerable decades.

Brooke C. Stoddard* -- “World in the Balance: The Perilous Months of June-October 1940” $29.95

“World in the Balance” recounts the pivotal months Great Britain waged a heroic, and clandestine, struggle with Nazi Germany—one both psychological and diplomatic—over the fate of the world.

Margaret Wagner & The Library of Congress – “The Library of Congress Illustrated Timeline of the Civil War” $35

With striking visuals from the Library of Congress' unparalleled archive, this detailed chronological timeline of the war captures the harrowing intensity of 19th-century warfare in first-hand accounts from soldiers, nurses, and front-line journalists.

Stanley Weintraub – “Pearl Harbor Christmas: A World at War, December 1941” $24

Christmas 1941 came little more than two weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Just three days before the holiday, Winston Churchill surprised President Roosevelt with an unprecedented trip to Washington, where they jointly lit the White House Christmas tree. Stanley Weintraub writes about what it was like to live through the holiday season few would ever forget.