". . . rarely have inventor and invention been better served than in this book." New York Times Book Review. Here, Edwin Grosvenor, American Heritage's publisher and Bell's great-grandson, tells the dramatic story of the race to invent the telephone and how Bell's patent for it would become the most valuable ever issued. He also writes of Bell's other extraordinary inventions: the first transmission of sound over light waves, metal detector, first practical phonograph, and early airplanes,...

Edwin Grosvenor writes of Bell's other extraordinary inventions: the first transmission of sound over light waves, metal detector, first practical phonograph, and early airplanes, including the first to fly in Canada. He also examines Bell's humanitarian efforts, including support for women's suffrage, civil rights, and speeches about what he warned would be a "greenhouse effect" of pollution causing global warming.

We remember Thomas Alva Edison as the craggy, rumpled inventor of the light bulb and the phonograph - a prodigy, the affable "Wizard of Menlo Park." But he also was a visionary entrepreneur who changed the world. What Edison invented was the modern age. Here is his unforgettable story.

Inferno is the compelling story of the U.S. atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the ensuing death and destruction that led to the end of World War II. The events that culminated in the fall of Japan - which forever changed the course of diplomacy, geopolitics, and warfare in the twentieth century - are vividly recreated through dramatic first-hand accounts of the major participants on both sides of the Pacific. They include: Harry Truman, the inexperienced American president ...

From George Washington's reluctant oath-taking through George W. Bush's leadership challenges after September 11, 2001, we view ambitious and fallible men through the new lens of the twenty-first century. Where did they succeed? Where did they fail? And what do we know now that we could not have known at the time?

Cast from their home country by religious intolerance, the Pilgrims' harrowing voyage to the New World was filled with hardships. But through it all they persisted, motivated by the promise of a better life in which they could gather and worship God in their own ways. A collection of ragtag ships carried them across the ocean, among them The Mayflower. Crammed into the ship's hull, 102 people made this most famous pilgrimage. Besieged by illness and Indians and, many of them believed, witc...

Here, from American Heritage, is the story of our presidents. From George Washington's reluctant oath-taking through George W. Bush's leadership challenges after September 11, 2001, we view ambitious and fallible men through the new lens of the twenty-first century. Where did they succeed? Where did they fail? And what do we know now that we could not have known at the time?

Choosing the most important moments in the long history of the American presidency is difficult. But here, New York Times bestselling historian Thomas Fleming vividly recreates many of those hours of crisis - from George Washington's fight for peace and the night Abraham Lincoln was almost shot to Ronald Reagan's plea to "tear down this wall" and George W. Bush on September 11, 2001, "the day that changed everything."

The Battle of the Bulge was arguably the most pivotal - and bloodiest - battle of World War II. From the middle of December 1944 to January 25, 1945, more than a million Allied and German troops fought for control of Belgium, France, and Luxembourg. The bitter conflict ended with more than 200,000 dead and wounded on both sides. The German counteroffensive was Adolf Hitler's last gasp, born out of desperation as he came to grips with reports that the Third Reich was losing ground in battle...

As Allied commander during World War II and later as president of the United States, Dwight Eisenhower gave America the strength of a great reputation, a fine character, and an abiding sense of mission. He also provided Americans the chance to live up to their best. Few presidents have ever given more. Here, from the eminent historian Kenneth S. Davis, is Eisenhower's remarkable story with recollections from the men who knew him best - Milton S. Eisenhower, Edgar Eisenhower, General Mark W...

The American Civil War was one of the most harrowing conflicts in history. What many of us don't know is the key role that spies played on both sides of the Mason-Dixon Line during the four-year struggle. This secret war was waged by an intriguing lineup of participants: detective agency chief Allan Pinkerton, who was said to have thwarted a conspiracy to assassinate President-elect Abraham Lincoln; Elizabeth Van Lew, known as "Crazy Bet," the operator of a Union spy ring right in the hear...

Here is the story of how the English acquired their vast domain; how they ruled, maintained, and exploited it; and how, within decades, they presided over its dissolution.Here are Britain's triumphs and also her stinging defeats, her heroes and her scoundrels. It is a full and fascinating chronicle of the growth of the British Empire and its people and of the impact that empire had on the rest of the world.