The assertion that 'football isn't a matter of life or death, it's much more important than that' has been verified repeatedly throughout modern history. It has bolstered tyrants and helped depose them; contributed to conflict and created ceasefires. It has been an incubator of racism at home and helped bring down a racist regime abroad; shaped cities, changed cultures and inspired resistance. Its impact is as dynamic as the game itself. In this fascinating exploration, Jim Murphy takes us...

An ALA Best Book for Young Adults: Firsthand accounts of the experiences of boys sixteen and younger who fought in the Civil War, with photos included.Winner of the Golden Kite Award for Nonfiction"Making extensive use of the actual words—culled from diaries, journals, memoirs, and letters—of boys who served in the Union and Confederate armies as fighting soldiers as well as drummers, buglers, and telegraphers, Murphy describes th...

"Murphy’s dramatic nonfiction narrative recounting of one of the first open heart surgeries ever performed is not to be missed." —School Library Journal (starred review)In 1944, a groundbreaking operation repaired the congenital heart defect known as blue baby syndrome. The operation’s success brought the surgeon Alfred Blalock international fame and paved the way for open-heart surgery. But the technique had been painstakingly developed by Vivien Thomas, ...

Discover the transformative New York Times bestseller—a step-by-step manual for mastering your inner mind for peak performance and living your life to the fullest.As a professional baseball player, Jim Murphy’s sense of worth revolved around results. He was focused on achievement but also afraid of failure. When he started coaching professional and Olympic athletes, he often encountered the same mindset. He became obsessed with learning how the best in the...

National Book Award Finalist: An account of the disease that ravaged eighteenth-century Philadelphia, written and illustrated for young readers.1793, Philadelphia: The nation's capital and the largest city in North America is devastated by an apparently incurable disease, cause unknown…This dramatic narrative describes the illness known as yellow fever and the toll it took on the city's residents, relating the epidemic to the social and p...

Two-time Newbery Honor Book author Jim Murphy writes a stunning nonfiction masterpiece about a Christmas miracle on the Western Front during World War I.On July 29th 1914, the world's peace was shattered as the artillery of the Austria-Hungary Empire began shelling the troops of the country to its south. What followed was like a row of falling dominoes as one European country after another rushed into war. Soon most of Europe was fighting in this calamitous war that could have been...

#1 New York Times bestselling performance coach and author Jim Murphy presents an interactive workbook based on Inner Excellence**, his step-by-step manual for mastering your mind for peak performance and discovering the fullness of life.**The Inner Excellence 90-Day Challenge is based on the program that has empowered athletes and developed world champions—as well as countless readers in...

By the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Inner Excellence, this book offers a transformational blueprint for building the life you long for.Each one of us has a deep need for meaningful relationships, where love is unconditional and fully reliable, and where we can rest secure, with the deepest contentment, no matter what the circumstances around us.In the chaos of everyday life, it's easy to lose sight of what's possible, of the life we w...

Philadelphia is known as the home of vibrant colonial history: the Liberty Bell, the Betsy Ross House, and Independence Hall. But the City of Brotherly Love is also home to—and less well known for—its quirky history. The country’s first quarantine station was located here. One of Philly’s clocks has a face larger than Big Ben’s in London. And a unique skill of Black abolitionist James Forten saved him from a life of West Indian servitude (and “Forten” was not even his real name).In...

“If you ever went to Catholic school, or never went to Catholic school, you need to read this funny, smart, kid-true book. It explains everything.” —Jon Scieszka, author of Time Warp Trio and The Stinky Cheese ManJimmy Murphy’s sixth grade teacher, Sister Angelica Rose, is out to get him. She humiliates him in class and punishes him when he hasn’t done anything wrong. She even forces him to perform onstage with second graders, wearing a giant green banana costume.A classic ...

Welcome to 1968 — a revolution in a book. Essays, memoirs, and more by fourteen award-winning authors offer unique perspectives on one of the world’s most tumultuous years.Nineteen sixty-eight was a pivotal year that grew more intense with each day. As thousands of Vietnamese and Americans were killed in war, students across four continents took over colleges and city streets. Assassins murdered Dr. King and Robert F. Kennedy. Demonstrators turned out in P...

When a 10-foot tall purported "petrified man" is unearthed from a backyard in upstate New York in 1869, the discovery immediately turns into a spectacle of epic proportions. News of the giant spreads like wildfire, and well over a thousand people come to view him in the first five days alone!Everyone has their own idea of his true origin: Is he an ancient member of the local Onandaga Indian tribe? Is he a biblical giant like Goliath? Soon the interests of world-renowned scientists and peop...