The essential history of the extraordinary year in which American democracy and American slavery emerged hand in hand in colonial Virginia. Along the banks of the James River, Virginia, during an oppressively hot spell in the middle of summer 1619, two events occurred within a few weeks of each other that would profoundly shape the course of history. In the newly built church at Jamestown, the General Assembly -- the first gathering of a representative governing body in America -- came together. A few weeks later, a battered privateer entered the Chesapeake Bay carrying the first African slaves to land on mainland English America. In 1619, historian James Horn sheds new light on the year that gave birth to the great paradox of our nation: slavery in the midst of freedom. This portentous year marked both the origin of the most important political development in American history, the rise of democracy, and the emergence of what would in time become one of the nation's greatest challenges: the corrosive legacy of racial inequality that has afflicted America since its beginning.
Draws on archaeological research to explore the lives and deaths of the first settlers at Jamestown and their interactions with the region's native peoples.
This Excellent Collection brings together Mark Twain's longer, major books and a fine selection of shorter pieces and Science-Fiction Books. This Books created and collected in Mark Twain's Most important Works illuminate the life and work of one of the most individual writers of the XX century - a man who elevated political writing to an art. Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name "Mark Twain", was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was lauded as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," and William Faulkner called him "the father of American literature". His novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), the latter often called "The Great American Novel". Twain was raised in Hannibal, Missouri, which later provided the setting for Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. He served an apprenticeship with a printer and then worked as a typesetter, contributing articles to the newspaper of his older brother Orion Clemens. He later became a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River before heading west to join Orion in Nevada. He referred humorously to his lack of success at mining, turning to journalism for the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise.[5] His humorous story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County", was published in 1865, based on a story that he heard at Angels Hotel in Angels Camp, California, where he had spent some time as a miner. The short story brought international attention and was even translated into French.[6] His wit and satire, in prose and in speech, earned praise from critics and peers, and he was a friend to presidents, artists, industrialists, and European royalty. Twain earned a great deal of money from his writings and lectures, but he invested in ventures that lost most of it—such as the Paige Compositor, a mechanical typesetter that failed because of its complexity and imprecision. He filed for bankruptcy in the wake of these financial setbacks, but in time overcame his financial troubles with the help of Henry Huttleston Rogers. He eventually paid all his creditors in full, even though his bankruptcy relieved him of having to do so. Twain was born shortly after an appearance of Halley's Comet, and he predicted that he would "go out with it" as well; he died the day after the comet made its closest approach to the Earth. This Collection included: TOM SAWYER SERIES · The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn · The Adventures of Tom Sawyer · Tom Sawyer Abroad · Tom Sawyer, Detective · A Tramp Abroad ALONZO FITZ AND OTHER STORIES AUTOBIOGRAPHIES LETTERS ESSAYS AND NOVELS · A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court · In Defense of Harriet Shelley · A Double Barrelled Detective Story · Editorial Wild Oats · Essays on Paul Bourget · Eve's Diary · Extract From Adam's Diary · Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven · Extracts From Adam's Diary · The Facts Concerning the Recent Carnival of Crime in Connecticut · Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offences · Following the Equator a Journey around the World · The Gilded Age · Goldsmith's Friend Abroad Again · A Horse's Tale · How to Tell a Story and Other Essays · The Innocents Abroad · Is Shakespeare Dead? From my Autobiography · Life on the Mississippi BIOGRAPHIC ESSAYS
