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Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents

Includes all-new chapter for the 45th POTUS.

This updated and redesigned edition of Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents features outrageous and uncensored profiles of our commanders in chief—complete with hundreds of little-known, politically incorrect, and downright wacko facts. You’ll discover that:

• Teddy Roosevelt was blinded in a White House boxing match
• John Quincy Adams loved to skinny-dip in the Potomac River
• Gerald Ford once worked as a Cosmopolitan magazine cover model
• Warren G. Harding gambled with White House china when he ran low on cash
• Jimmy Carter reported a UFO sighting in Georgia

With chapters on everyone from George Washington to President #45, whoever he (or she!) may be, Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents tackles all the tough questions that other history books are afraid to ask: Which president claimed that God struck down Abraham Lincoln on purpose? How many of these folks were cheating on their spouses? And are there really secret tunnels underneath the White House? American history was never this much fun in school!

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The Jane Austen Handbook

Every young lady dreams of a life spent exchanging witty asides with a dashing Mr. Darcy, but how should you let him know your intentions? Seek counsel from this charming guide to Jane Austen’s world. Its step-by-step instructions reveal the practicalities of life in Regency England, including sensible advice on:

     •  How to behave at your first ball
     •  How to ride sidesaddle
     •  How to decline an unwanted marriage proposal
     •  How to improve your estate
     •  How to throw a dinner party

—and much more. Offering readers a glimpse into day-to-day life in Jane Austen’s time, The Jane Austen Handbook is the perfect companion for fans of her novels and their film adaptations, complete with detailed information on love among the social classes, currency, dress, and nuances of graceful living.

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Stacked Decks

They’ve been called wolf decks, stag decks, and plain old nudie playing cards. They’re older than poker, older than blackjack, and they offer a fascinating window into society’s ever-changing views of female beauty. Stacked Decks features images of hundreds of erotic playing cards from 1835 to the present, all illustrated with nude or seminude models, burlesque singers, flappers, 1950s pinup girls, and international superstars. Within these pages, you’ll discover unexpected celebrities, vintage advertisements, and fascinating cultural history (during the 1950s, these decks were sold primarily at drugstores). This lavishly illustrated hardcover volume is the perfect gift for fans of poker, magic, nostalgia, and vintage erotica.

Mark Lee Rotenberg, curator of THE ROTENBERG COLLECTION, lives in New Jersey. His book Forbidden Erotica is one of Taschen’s top 25 best sellers of all time.

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This Saint Will Change Your Life

Great news! Whoever you are, whatever you do, there is a patron saint who wants to help you- specifically you-with your life. There is a patron saint of booksellers. There is a patron saint of traveling salesmen. There are patron saints for vegetarians, cab drivers, and cancer patients. For astronauts, horseback riders, and dysfunctional families. For men who are physically unattractive. For families stressed by houseguests. These saints are ready to help, and their services are absolutely free!

This Saint Will Change Your Life! describes the real-life histories of more than 300 saints and explains how they have become associated with certain people, places, and professions. Also included are 300 gorgeous full-color holy cards that depict these heavenly allies in all their glory. First published in 2007, this revised edition includes a fresh new design and a sprinkling of new saints-like St. Francis De Sales, patron saint of bloggers!

Thomas J. Craughwell is the author of several books about saints. He's appeared as an expert on CNN, the BBC, and Inside Edition and has written articles about saints for the Wall Street Journal, Inside the Vatican, and Catholic Digest, among other national publications. He lives in Connecticut.

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The Art of Justice

As the principal courtroom sketch artist for the New York Times and WABC in New York, Marilyn Church covered many of America’s most infamous trials, from the downfall of John Gotti to the trial of would-be presidential assassin John Hinckley; from the conviction of Martha Stewart to the Sean “Puffy” Combs weapons possession trial.
 
In The Art of Justice, Marilyn Church takes readers into the courtroom for an insider’s view of thirty sensational cases. Experience the story behind the dramatic headlines in the legal battles of subway vigilante Bernhard Goetz, Long Island Lolita Amy Fisher, preppie murderer Robert Chambers, David “Son of Sam” Berkowitz, the bizarre child custody war between Woody Allen and Mia Farrow, and many, many others.
 
In addition to more than one hundred brilliant full-color reproductions of Church’s artwork, The Art of Justice also includes compelling trial summaries by noted television journalist Lou Young and a Celebrity Gallery depicting the courtroom appearances of Mick Jagger, Yoko Ono, Paul Newman, Caroline Kennedy, Donald Trump, and a host of other luminaries.
 
Part artistic celebration, part cultural history, The Art of Justice is the perfect addition to any lawyer’s library and essential reading for true-crime fans everywhere!

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Anti-War Quote Book

With words of wisdom by everyone from Socrates and Thomas Jefferson to Anne Frank, Alice Walker, Martin Luther King Jr., and Bono, The Anti-War Quote Book features more than 250 inspiring and thought-provoking arguments for peace. Here’s just a small sample:

–On propaganda: “The first casualty, when war comes, is truth.”-Hiram Johnson
–On empires: “Government is a tool, like a hammer. You can use a hammer to build with or you can use a hammer to destroy with.”-Molly Ivins
–On victory: “One is left with the horrible feeling that war settles nothing, that to win a war is as disastrous as to lose one.”-Agatha Christie
–On peace: “I think that people want peace so much that one of these days governments had better get out of the way and let them have it.”-Dwight D. Eisenhower

Featuring a big, bold graphic design, archival photographs of peace rallies, and images of classic protest posters from around the world, The Anti-War Quote Book is guaranteed to fuel conversations as the election of 2008 unfolds.

ERIC GROVES, SR., is a lifelong pacifist who lives in California.

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