David Baer Hackman (1827-1896) a Mennonite from Millport, Lancaster County, PA, traveled west to California in 1850, seeking his fortune during the great Gold Rush. David wrote many letters home concerning his crossing of the plains by wagon and his many detailed experiences in and around the gold fields of California. A vivid writer for such a young man, David captures images of the mining communities, the boom towns of Sacramento, Hangtown, Mokelumne Hill, Columbia and Sonora and the lawlessness found there. He writes of early San Francisco, the local Indians, trouble with bears, and the great trees of Calaveras County. His journal then captures his return trip in 1854 by steam ship to Panama, across the Isthmus and then to New York City. Lawrence Berger-Knorr presents the journal and letters in sequence along with their historical context, providing corroborating accounts where available. In all, an excellent primary source and piece of social history from one of the most exciting times in American history.

A Pennsylvania Mennonite and the California Gold Rush

Lawrence Knorr

David Baer Hackman

Sunbury Press, Inc.

For three years, a Japanese concentration camp in the Philippines was home for Church of the Brethren missionaries Edward and Helen Angeny during WW II. Their tale of replacing murdered missionaries in China in 1940 and their subsequent imprisonment was aptly written into this memoir by Helen Angeny when she was 80 years old. Their internment included hunger as well as humor, frustration as well as joy, and threats as well as miracles. It also included the birth of their first child soon after imprisonment. The story ended well for the 500 civilian internees but only after MacArthur's troops accidentally came upon this POW group which had been previously unknown to the US government. Helen Angeny's reflections as well as her soul are revealed in this thought-provoking historical narrative.

Behind Barbed Wire and High Fences: Church of the Brethren Missionaries Trapped in Japanese Concentration Camp

Biographies & Memoirs

Angeny, Helen Frances Buehl

Community & Culture

Raised in the idyllic and close-knit northern California town of Moraga, Kristen Lewis Cunnane had it all at 12: a treasured family, close friends, a valued position on a variety of sports teams, and excellent grades. By any pre-teen’s standards, hers was certainly a life to envy.
Unfortunately, this happiness was to be short-lived as Kristen suffered sexual abuse at the hands of her middle school science teacher. Afraid to discuss the event with her parents or close friends, Kristen turned to a trusted female coach and teacher for guidance. When they first met, Julie Correa was seemingly the perfect role model for a naive 11-year-old. However, this woman spent years earning Kristen’s trust while at the same time manipulating her psyche. In a sickeningly ironic twist, this so-called mentor ultimately transformed Kristen’s life into one of sexual slavery over the entirety of her high school tenure. With controlling and calculated precision, Correa was able to both isolate Kristen from her family and simultaneously assault her in her childhood bedroom.
"Undoing Jane Doe" chronicles Kristen’s heartbreaking experience and the harrowing aftermath that nearly drove her to suicide. Using actual transcripts from pretexual phone calls and court records, Cunnane takes the reader through the years of prolonged abuse and the eventual takedown of a sexual predator. Haunting, insightful, and inspiring, Undoing Jane Doe showcases a deplorable side of humanity while at the same time manages to remind us of the sheer strength of the human spirit.

Undoing Jane Doe: How I Put the Middle School Coach and Teacher Who Sexually Abused Me Behind Bars

Cunnane, Kristen Lewis

A Year of Change and Consequences

1993: A Year of Change and Consequences Mark Singel, a Johnstown native and Penn State graduate, won election as Lieutenant Governor in 1986 as Robert Casey's running mate. In 1993, Governor Casey was stricken with Appalachian familial amyloidosis, a rare and usually fatal liver disorder. The governor required multiple organ transplants, which was still experimental at that time. While the governor was incapacitated and recovering, Mark Singel became the acting Governor of Pennsylvania. This book is Mark Singel's recollection of the events that year. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Mark Singel served as Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania from 1987 through 1995 and, for a period of time, Acting Governor of the Commonwealth. The only person in Pennsylvania history to serve an extended time as Acting Governor, Singel received high marks for his stewardship. He led the state by enacting the first modern workers’ compensation reform package, refinanced the state’s park system through the “Key 93” program, and helped launch the high-tech era with landmark telecommunications legislation. He was also instrumental in reducing state and local taxes, the implementation of a statewide 911 emergency phone system, and the creation of thousands of new jobs in recycling and environmental technologies. He was the original author of the state’s mortgage assistance bill that has saved 50,000 Pennsylvania homes. Prior to his terms as Lieutenant Governor, Singel served six years in the Pennsylvania State Senate and was chief of staff to two members of the U.S. Congress. Singel ran for U.S. Senate in 1992 and for Governor in 1994. He served as Chairman of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party from 1995-1998 and was the President of Pennsylvania’s Electoral College in January 1997. He was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention five times from 1992 through 2016. Singel founded The Winter Group in February 2005 and has developed it into one of the most effective and prestigious government relations firms in the state. He continues to provide consulting services to clients in retail, hospitality and gaming, manufacturing, technology, energy, non-profits, and healthcare fields. Recent successes include a ban on public smoking, legislation to address child sexual abuse, and consumer protection in healthcare settings. Singel served as Chair of Pennsylvanians for Judicial Reform which was instrumental in bringing talented, progressive jurists to the state’s Supreme Court. Singel has served in various capacities with Pennsylvania’s governors and decision-makers and maintains strong personal and political ties with leaders at all levels today. A magna cum laude graduate of Penn State, Singel continues to teach at the Harrisburg campus and other universities. He has served on the Boards of Penn State and St. Francis Universities and holds several honorary doctorate degrees. Singel is currently active with Harrisburg University and is a regular commentator on local and statewide political broadcast programs. He is a sought-after speaker at both political and academic events and is active in numerous community and philanthropic activities. Singel has been married to Jacqueline for 40 years and has three children: Allyson, Jonathan, and Christopher. He has three grandchildren: Thomas, Felicity, and Henry Boots.

Singel, Mark

Historical

Kermit Roosevelt was family to two of the twentieth century's most revered Presidents - he was the son of Theodore Roosevelt and cousin to Franklin Roosevelt. He influenced each in a major way - as protector to one and a major risk to the other. He would accompany his father on two dangerous and demanding expeditions to remote regions of the world and later become a major threat to Franklin's administration - his story with its mysterious ending has never been published. He was a brilliant and complex combination of conflicting character traits and inner turmoil. Immersing himself in literature, languages and natural history he became compelled to engage in adventure and war with an unbridled obsession. He managed major shipping companies, discovered new and rare animal species while traveling the world and even organized an amateur spy organization for his cousin FDR as the Fascists rose to power in the 1930s. But for all of Kermit's many gifts, there was a darker side to Kermit Roosevelt. Later, at the behest of FDR, the FBI would watch him for more than a month as he disappeared while he lived in a hotel and carried on an affair with a shady woman. Alcoholism began to rule his life. His mounting indiscretions became a serious problem for the War Department and the Roosevelt Administration. And then there is the manner of his death in 1943 which the New York Times reported the cause and location unknown, although presumably it was natural. For two decades, the circumstances of his death were concealed by the government. Even into the 1970s there were efforts to suppress any information. Was it suicide, which eventually was released as the official cause of death? Or was there a more sinister reason for his demise? A thorough review of the classified government documents reveal numerous inconsistencies, oversights and implausibility's. Much conflict exists in the testimony taken from military personnel with no follow-up or corroborating testimony. His supposed manner of death is highly improbable. Even the official time of death conflicts between the autopsy report and the Army's investigation. The Army rushed to expedite and close the case with no forensics, no ballistics investigation and no follow-up questioning of witnesses. Although a President's son, and a well-known figure in his own right, the coroner's report stated: "parents unknown." Almost thirty-years later when a general officer requested information on "how he died," the government replied "Died as a result of self inflicted gunshot wound...this information is not to be released." Who was this multi-dimensional, brilliant man? Perhaps as Kermit himself wrote: "...it is when men are off in the wilds that they show themselves as they really are." Surely Kermit Roosevelt has been lost in the shadow of his family's fame. The last chapter covering details of the Iranian involvement of Kermit's son Kim presents a Roosevelt influence on the United States and the world long after the eras of Theodore and Franklin - an influence concealed for many years and little known even today by most Americans.

Lost in the Shadow of Fame: The Neglected Story of Kermit Roosevelt; A Gallant and Tragic American

History

Lemanski, William E.

Americas

American Bandstand, one of the longest-running shows in television history, spotlighted well-scrubbed, properly dressed dancing teenagers on every show. They mirrored the show’s perpetually youthful host, Dick Clark, who spun the music Clark often described as the “soundtrack to our lives.”
These are the memories Clark carefully nurtured as he crafted the alternate teen universe of Bandstandland during the formative years of American Bandstand, from 1952 to 1964. Bandstandland was a mythical creation by Clark, who saw the show as a springboard to immense wealth rather than a tribute to teen culture.
Clark was a relentless businessman who once had ownership stakes in 33 corporations, most created by him. He created rules to keep black teens off the show, promoted the teens that danced on the show when it served his purposes and banned them when it didn’t and effectively turned American Bandstand into his own personal infomercial.
Bandstandland sheds light on the little-known backstory of the TV program that was America’s top-rated daytime television show in its heyday and enjoyed a 37-year run from 1952 to 1989.

Bandstandland: How Dancing Teenagers Took Over America and Dick Clark Took Over Rock & Roll

Lehmer, Larry

Arts & Literature

A young couple, Camille &#8220;Honey&#8221; Shaughnessy and Don Shepard 
fall in love on the eve of World War II. As America enters the war, 
and Don is pressured into the service by his father, the two 
newlyweds struggle to maintain contact. Don becomes a hero, 
saving the lives of his comrades, but will he make it home alive?\nWhy Aren&#8217;t You Sweet Like Me? is a novel based on the actual love 
letters exchanged between the author&#8217;s grandparents.

Why Aren't You Sweet Like Me?: Based on a true World War II love story

Literature & Fiction

Nyman, Carrie

Genre Fiction

In the novel, THE DEVIL'S PALM, A West Virginia sheriff, Terrance Fowlkes, attempts to enrich himself by building an illegal casino on a beautiful piece of countryside owned by old timer, Andy Mehrhaus. Fowlkes and his bogus deputies run a car over Mehrhaus in the middle of the night. With the property in his pocket, Fowlkes attacks the locals who block the construction of his so-called family resort. Blackmail and murder clear the way, but Michael Hanover, a community leader, remains in his path. After Fowlkes thinks he has mortally wounded Hanover, he builds the casino. Fowlkes succumbs to the curse of the Devil's Palm at the resort's Christmas Eve grand opening.

The Devil's Palm

Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

Knapp, Bob

Mystery

Ingrid Newkirk (born 1949) is best known for her activism regarding animal rights. She is a British citizen who founded the organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Newkirk has spent her adult life advocating for the rights of earth's nonhuman inhabitants, sometimes in very provocative ways.Jon Hochschartner has compiled this chronicle of Newkirk's life and activism through research of the media related to her as well as through interviews with those close to her. The book provides a thorough recap of a career dedicated to action.

Ingrid Newkirk: A Biography of PETA's Founder

Hochschartner, Jon

The Fourth Nail by Paul Argentini proves an historical fact. In this stunning revelation of a compelling historical mystery, Paul Argentini's story-telling masterstroke, The Fourth Nail, is in the overlay of the interrelated actions of two men born two millennia apart. In ancient times, we follow the destined path of Marius of Rome from his start as a profligate youth, to the Mid-east where he forges and uses The Fourth Nail to change the entire world forever. His challenge is to leave the love of his life and survive the dangerous journey on the Spice Trail back to Rome where he is determined to hide this all-powerful relic from covetous hands and to fulfill pledges. In today’s world, Dr. Roberto Donadio as a matter of life and death desperately seeks to reveal the secrets of the Marius Diary. In his search he is constrained to unravel arcane codes, and translate ancient documents. It is a race against time as he travels the path of the Marius Diary on the Silk Road to an ancient lamasery past the Taklamaken Desert deep by Ancient Turkestan in Eastern China. There, before other horror-stricken witnesses, he sees the only copy of the Marius Diary Scrolls become lost forever to the winds and wilds of the mountains. Only his prescience and ingenuity enable him to learn the factual truth behind this, the greatest of all historical mysteries. This is Paul Argentini’s most tense and exciting novel ever.

The Fourth Nail: An Historical Novel

Religion & Spirituality

Argentini, Paul

Christian Books & Bibles

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