Mark Twain's semi-autobiographical travel memoir, "Roughing It" was written between 1870-1871 and subsequently published in 1872. Billed as a prequel to "Innocents Abroad", in which Twain details his travels aboard a pleasure cruise through Europe and the Holy Land in 1867, "Roughing It" conversely documents Twain's early days in the old wild west between the years 1861-1867. Employing his characteristically humoristic wit and flare for regional dialect,...

"An epic account of the most momentous voyage of the Age of Exploration, which culminated in Captain James Cook's death in Hawaii, and left a complex and controversial legacy still debated to this day ... On July 12th, 1776, Captain James Cook, already lionized as the greatest explorer in British history, set off on his third voyage in his ship the HMS Resolution. Two-and-a-half years later, on a beach on the island of Hawaii, Cook was killed in a...

When the self-help books just aren't helping, it's time to call in the experts: real people . . .
San Francisco Chronicle columnist Adair Lara polled her readers for life lessons learned through experience, receiving thousands of heartfelt and irreverent responses. The best are compiled here in more than two hundred bits of priceless counsel, accompanied by witty, whimsical illustrations by award-winning artist Roxanna Bikadoroff....

"A New York Times-bestselling author looks for the meaning of a good life by seeking advice from the very young and the very old"-- "What's the best way to find the meaning of life? Ask the people who know. and listen to what they say. Brad Montague spent time with the very young and the very old to discover how he might become a better grownup both for other grownups and for the kids in his life. Their timeless, sometimes surprising advice touches...

"They risk their lives every day to protect and serve our homes, families and communities. Here are their most dramatic true stories, in their own unforgettable words. These men and women are our eyes. Our ears. Our protectors. hose who wear a badge, doing their best to help people. These cops serve their communities. They serve their country. They're in the business of saving lives, even at the risk of their own. These patrol officers and K9 handlers,...