KEN BURNS

The American Civil War was the largest war of the 19th century - the bloodiest and the most prolonged - and it marked a crossroads in American history. Three million men fought in it and over 600,000 died. This book includes a narrative history of the war, essays on various aspects of the war and extracts from contemporary diaries, letters and newspapers which help to evoke the times, events and people of this period in history.

This enhanced eBook includes original audio recordings of presidential speeches, exclusive chapter introduction videos by Ken Burns and Geoffrey Ward, and special footage about the making of the PBS documentary, THE ROOSEVELTS.An extraordinarily vivid and personal portrait of Americas greatest political family and its enormous impact on our nation-the tie-in volume to the PBS documentary to air in the fall of 2014.This engaging, revelatory book is an intimate history of three extraordinary individuals from the same extraordinary family-Theodore, Eleanor, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Geoffrey C. Ward, distilling more than thirty years of thinking and writing about the Roosevelts, and the acclaimed filmmaker Ken Burns help us understand for the first time that, despite the fierce partisanship of their eras and ours, the Roosevelts were far more united than divided. All the history the Roosevelts made is here, but this is primarily a book about human beings, each of whom somehow overcame obstacles that would have undone less forceful personalities, and all of whom wrestled in their lives with issues still familiar to the rest of us-anger and the need for forgiveness, courage and cowardice, confidence and self-doubt, loyalty to family and the need to be oneself. This is the story of the Roosevelts-no other American family ever touched so many lives.

The instant New York Times bestseller thats perfect for Presidents Day!A gorgeous collection of American presidents filled with fun facts and sparkling with personality, from nonfiction master Ken Burns. This special treasury from Americas beloved documentarian Ken Burns brings the presidents to life for our nations children. Each president is given a lushly illustrated spread with curated stories and information to give readers of all ages a comprehensive view of the varied and fascinating characters who have led our nation (with the exception of Grover Cleveland--the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms--who gets two spreads!). A must-have for Kens many fans, classrooms, and anyone who wishes to gain a greater understanding and appreciation for our country. "A buoyant gallery, up to date, handsomely framed, and, in this particular election year, timely too."--Kirkus Reviews

This enhanced eBook includes original audio recordings of presidential speeches, exclusive chapter introduction videos by Ken Burns and Geoffrey Ward, and special footage about the making of the PBS documentary, THE ROOSEVELTS.An extraordinarily vivid and personal portrait of Americas greatest political family and its enormous impact on our nation-the tie-in volume to the PBS documentary to air in the fall of 2014.This engaging, revelatory book is an intimate history of three extraordinary individuals from the same extraordinary family-Theodore, Eleanor, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Geoffrey C. Ward, distilling more than thirty years of thinking and writing about the Roosevelts, and the acclaimed filmmaker Ken Burns help us understand for the first time that, despite the fierce partisanship of their eras and ours, the Roosevelts were far more united than divided. All the history the Roosevelts made is here, but this is primarily a book about human beings, each of whom somehow overcame obstacles that would have undone less forceful personalities, and all of whom wrestled in their lives with issues still familiar to the rest of us-anger and the need for forgiveness, courage and cowardice, confidence and self-doubt, loyalty to family and the need to be oneself. This is the story of the Roosevelts-no other American family ever touched so many lives.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER From the award-winning historian and filmmakers of The Civil War, Baseball, Jazz, The Roosevelts, and others: a richly illustrated, human-centered history of Americas founding struggleexpanding on the landmark, six-part PBS seriesFrom a small spark kindled in America, a flame has arisen not to be extinguished. Thomas PaineIn defeating the British Empire and giving birth to a new nation, the American Revolution turned the world upside down. Thirteen colonies on the Atlantic coast rose in rebellion, won their independence, and established a new form of government that radically reshaped the continent and inspired independence movements and democratic reforms around the globe.The American Revolution was at once a war for independence, a civil war, and a world war, fought by neighbors on American farms and between global powers an ocean or more away. In this sumptuous volume, historian Geoffrey C. Ward ably steers us through the international forces at play, telling the story not from the top down but from the bottom upand through the eyes of not only our Founding Fathers but also those of ordinary soldiers, as well as underrepresented populations such as women, African Americans, Native Americans, and American Loyalists, asking who exactly was entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.Enriched by guest essays from lauded historians such as Vincent Brown, Maya Jasanoff, Jane Kamensky, and Alan Taylor, and by an astonishing array of prints, drawings, paintings, texts, and pamphlets from the time period, as well as newly commissioned art and mapsand woven together with the words of Thomas Paine The American Revolution reveals a nation still grappling with the questions that fueled its remarkable founding.

A gorgeously illustrated and hugely entertaining story of Americas most popular music and the singers and songwriters who captivated, entertained, and consoled listeners throughout the twentieth centurybased on the eight-part film series. This fascinating history begins where country music itself emerged: the American South, where people sang to themselves and to their families at home and in church, and where they danced to fiddle tunes on Saturday nights. With the birth of radio in the 1920s, the songs moved from small towns, mountain hollers, and the wide-open West to become the music of an entire nation--a diverse range of sounds and styles from honky tonk to gospel to bluegrass to rockabilly, leading up through the decades to the musics massive commercial success today. But above all, Country Music is the story of the musicians. Here is Hank Williamss tragic honky tonk life, Dolly Parton rising to fame from a dirt-poor childhood, and Loretta Lynn turning her experiences into songs that spoke to women everywhere. Here too are interviews with the genres biggest stars, including the likes of Merle Haggard to Garth Brooks to Rosanne Cash. Rife with rare photographs and endlessly fascinating anecdotes, the stories in this sweeping yet intimate history will captivate longtime country fans and introduce new listeners to an extraordinary body of music that lies at the very center of the American experience.

The epic story of the buffalo in America, from prehistoric times to todaya moving and beautifully illustrated work of natural history inspired by the PBS series "American Buffalo"The American buffaloour nations official mammalis an improbable, shaggy beast that has found itself at the center of many of our most mythic and sometimes heartbreaking tales. The largest land animals in the Western Hemisphere, they are survivors of a mass extinction that erased ancient species that were even larger. For nearly 10,000 years, they evolved alongside Native people who weaved them into every aspect of daily life; relied on them for food, clothing, and shelter; and revered them as equals.Newcomers to the continent found the buffalo fascinating at first, but in time they came to consider them a hindrance to a young nations expansion. And in the space of only a decade, they were slaughtered by the millions for their hides, with their carcasses left to rot on the prairies. Then, teetering on the brink of disappearing from the face of the earth, they would be rescued by a motley collection of Americans, each of them driven by differentand sometimes competingimpulses. This is the rich and complicated story of a young republics heedless rush to conquer a continent, but also of the dawn of the conservation eraa story of America at its very best and worst.

**The New York Times Bestseller****The book of the landmark documentary, The Vietnam War, by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick**The definitive work on the Vietnam War, the conflict that came to define a generation, told from all sides by those who were there.More than forty years after the Vietnam War ended, its legacy continues to fascinate, horrify and inform us. As the first war to be fought in front of TV cameras and beamed around the world, it has been immortalised on film and on the page, and forever changed the way we think about war.Drawing on hundreds of brand new interviews, Ken Burns and Geoffrey C. Ward have created the definitive work on Vietnam. It is the first book to show us the war from every perspective: from idealistic US Marines and the families they left behind to the Vietnamese civilians, both North and South, whose homeland was changed for ever; politicians, POWs and anti-war protesters; and the photographers and journalists who risked their lives to tell the truth. The book sends us into the grit and chaos of combat, while also expertly outlining the complex chain of political events that led America to Vietnam.Beautifully written, this essential work tells the full story without taking sides and reminds us that there is no single truth in war. It is set to redefine our understanding of a brutal conflict, to launch provocative new debates and to shed fresh light on the price paid in blood and bone by Vietnamese and Americans alike.