The gritty combat memoir of a Marine Corps artilleryman and forward observerAs a married man and Stanford graduate student nearing thirty, Christopher Donner would likely have qualified for an exemption from the draft. Like most of his generation, however, he responded promptly to the call to arms after Pearl Harbor. His wartime experiences in the Pacific Theater were seared into his consciousness, and in early 1946 he set out to preserve those memories while they ...

These two old guys talking about life will keep you turning pages for laughs and insights and tugs at the heart and wisdom! They have spent their lives helping others live their lives; Jack, a Jesuit priest with a PhD in both Psychology and Theology, initiated programs at Boston College enabling clerics of all faiths, from all parts of the country, to work together. Alan ran a creative group of writers and designers who developed award-winning public relations programs for colleges and cor...

**The New York Times bestselling official companion book to the Emmy® Award-winning HBO® miniseries.Look for The Pacific miniseries, now available to stream on Netflix!**Between America's retreat from China in late November 1941 and the moment General MacArthur's airplane touched down on the Japanese mainland in August of 1945, five men connected by happenstance fought the key battles of the war against Japan. From the debacle in Bataan, to the miracle at ...

1001 Conversation Starters for Any OccasionMost of us realize that raising questions is a powerful way to get interesting dialogue. But asking good ones can be another matter—they’re not always that easy to think up! That’s where The Complete Book of Questions comes in. This book is one big compilation of questions—1001 of them you can use to launch great conversations in almost any context. And many of these questions are likely to trigger other questions you may also wish to discuss. Thi...

From Robert Leckie, the World War II veteran and New York Times bestselling author of Helmet for My Pillow, whose experiences were featured in the HBO miniseries The Pacific, comes this vivid narrative of the astonishing six-month campaign for Guadalcanal.From the Japanese soldiers’ carefully calculated—and ultimately foiled—attempt to build a series of impregnable island forts on the ground to the tireless efforts of the Americans who struggled against a...

On September 13, 1998, John Scalzi sat down in front of his computer to write the first entry in his blog Whatever--and changed the history of the Internet as we know it today.What, you're not swallowing that one? Okay, fine: He started writing Whatever and amused about 15 people that first day. If that many. But he kept at it, for ten years and running. Now 40,000 people drop by on a daily basis to see what he's got to say.About what? Well, about whatever...

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The extraordinary true story of the World War II air, land, and sea campaign that brought the U.S. Navy to the apex of its strength and marked the rise of the United States as a global superpower, from the acclaimed author of The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors—with original maps and more than 120 dramatic photographs“A masterful, fresh account of the latter days of the war in the Pacific . . . Hornfischer off...

For the longest time, based on no evidence other than our own insecurity and sense of incompetence, my wife and I were convinced that we were the flat-out, no-question-about-it, least-skilled parents in the country. Furthermore, we were convinced that every other set of parents we knew was perfect. They were more thorough in going over their kids' homework, they set better boundaries than we do, didn't let their kids watch as many hours of TV as we do, raised kids who are unfailingly p...

Three days later a Japanese force landed at night. They ambushed a 26-man patrol, cutting the Marines down with hidden machine guns. The three survivors who made it back told their fellow Marines that the wounded had been hacked to death with sabres. From then on, the Marines decided they would be every bit as brutal...Read about the US Marine Landings on Guadalcanal; the desperate fight to take and defend Henderson Field; and the long bloody Final Assaults in this 3 in 1 True Comb...

Healthier relationships and personal boundaries are just one word away with this inspirational guide on embracing the power of “no”Whether in love, work, family, or the world, the need to say no is sometimes imperative. And rather than accepting another transgression or being bullied, learning to set healthy boundaries is essential for our health and well-being.The Need to Say Noincludes helpful advice on how to say no without fear—and without injury to ei...

On the morning of November 20, 1943, the U.S. 2d Marine Division undertook the first modern amphibious assault against a well-defended beachhead. The objective was tiny Betio Island in Tarawa Atoll. The result was a tragedy and near defeat turned around into an epic of victory and indomitable human spirit. Although the admirals commanding the Tarawa invasion fleet had assured the Marines that Betio would be pounded to dust by a massive naval and air bombardment the largest of its kind seen to...

***A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!*Think differently and find the courage to challenge the status quo with this mindset-shifting guide to meaningful change.**For most of our lives, we are encouraged to trudge along the well-worn paths of those who have come before us. We learn the rules – in our families, in our schools, in our workplaces, in our churches – and most of the messages we receive tell us that following the rules will allow us to arrive at the lives we des...