Non-Fiction

By Donald MacDonald and Ira Nadel
Shrouded in mystery and rich with history, Alcatraz draws over a million visitors each year. This enlightening volume provides the first complete history of Alcatraz told through its architecture. Learn More

By Caspar Williamson
Screenprinting has moved beyond the gig poster and the tee shirt. Centuries old and made famous by Andy Warhol in the 1960s, the craft is now enjoying a renaissance all over the world as contemporary artists and studios— including Rob Ryan, Alakazam!, and Crosshair, among others—push the creative limits of the medium in their work with textiles, posters, and more. Learn More

By Avi Friedman
The book is about a search for good places authentic ones and wondering about the disappearance of others. While visiting sixteen unique spots around the world, Friedman wondered what made strolling through, sitting in, dining at, or simply being there memorable. Learn More

By Meg Mateo Ilasco
The growing legions of crafters looking to turn their hobby into a profession can rely on the tried and true advice in Craft, Inc. In this completely revised edition of the definitive crafter’s business book, entrepreneur Meg Mateo Ilasco offers expanded and authoritative guidance on everything from developing products and sourcing materials to writing a business plan and paying taxes Learn More

By Sarah Wu, also known as “Mrs. Q”
When school teacher Mrs. Q forgot her lunch one day, she had no idea she was about to embark on an odyssey to uncover the truth about public school lunches. Shocked by what her students were served, she resolved to eat school lunch for an entire year, chronicling her experience anonymously on a blog that received thousands of hits daily, and was lauded by such food activists as Mark Bittman, Jamie Oliver, and Marion Nestle. Learn More

By Chris Baty, Lindsey Grant, and Tavia Stewart-Streit of National Novel Writing Month
This writer's block-busting workbook guides authors through planning and plotting a novel before writing it from the initial idea generation and brainstorming through character, setting, and story development. Learn More

By Thomas Thwaites
Where do our things really come from? China is the most common answer, but Thomas Thwaites decided he wanted to know more. In The Toaster Project, Thwaites asks what lies behind the smooth buttons on a mobile phone or the cushioned soles of running sneakers. Learn More

By Jessica Cassity
New Year’s resolutions have never been easier to keep than with Better Each Day. Its hundreds of tips add up to a big impact on well-being. Using the latest scientific findings from experts in the fields of nutrition, mental health, fitness, and psychology, respected journalist Jessica Cassity presents 365 proven and easy-to-achieve tips for feeling more confident, getting fit, clearing away worry and fear, improving relationships, and much more. Learn More

By Larry Rothe
In Music for a City, Music for the World, Larry Rothe shares how the San Francisco Bay Area’s love of music, rooted in the Gold Rush, gave birth to a Grammy-winning and internationally acclaimed orchestra. Learn More

By Otto Friedrich Bollnow, Translated by Christine Shuttleworth with an introduction by Joseph Kohlmaier
Following its publication in Germany in 1963, Otto Friedrich Bollnow's Human Space quickly became essential reading within a cross-disciplinary field of subject areas including architecture, anthropology, and philosophy. Learn More

By Keith Granet, foreword by Art Gensler
For thirty years, consultant Keith Granet has enjoyed helping design professionals turn their passion into profit. In his new book, The Business of Design: Balancing Creativity and Profitability, Granet debunks the myth that business sense and creative talent are mutually exclusive. The Business of Design: Balancing Creativity and Profitability provides all of the necessary tools to create and run a thriving design business - from billing and human resources to branding and project management to marketing and licensing- in one easy-to-use guide. Learn More

By Rachael Herron
In these 20 heartfelt essays, Rachael Herron—celebrated romance novelist by day, 911 dispatcher by night, and founder of the hugely popular blog Yarnagogo.com—shows how when life unravels there’s always a way to knit it back together again, many times into something even better. Learn More

By Pat Croce Illustrated by Dave Hopkins
Avast, ye! For anyone who has dreamed of hitting the high seas, manning a crew, brandishing a cutlass, or burying treasure, here’s The Pirate Handbook. Learn More

By Thomas J. Campanella
China is the most rapidly urbanizing nation in the world, with an urban population that may well reach one billion within a generation. Over the past 25 years, surging economic growth has propelled a... Learn More

By Sandra & Harry Choron
Ever made a fast buck? How about traded cowrie shells for a bride or paid for gum with a $10,000 bill? This entertaining and information-packed miscellany explains our fascination with money and how it has shaped our world. Vintage photographs and artwork... Learn More

By Janice Cole,Photographs by Alex Farnum
Chicken coops have never been so chic! From organic gardens in parking lots to rooftop beekeeping, the appeal of urban homesteading is widespread. Chicken and Egg tells the story of veteran food writer Janice Cole, who, like so many other urbanit... Learn More

By Cokie Roberts,, Susan Stamberg,, Noah Adams,, John Ydstie,, Renee Montagne,, Ari Shapiro,,and David Folkenflik
"Always put the listener first" has been NPR's mantra since its inception in 1970. Now celebrating its 40th anniversary, NPR's programming attracts over 27 million listeners every week. This beautifully designed volume chronicles NPR's storied history, fe... Learn More

By John Tingey
The first impression of W. Reginald Bray (1879-1939) was one of an ordinary middle-class Englishman quietly living out his time as an accountant in the leafy suburb of Forest Hill, London. A glimpse behind his study door, however, revealed his extraordina... Learn More

By William L. Bird, Jr.
From the Star-Spangled Banner flag to Dorothy's Ruby Slippers, the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History is home to some fascinating objects. In fact, one of the most fascinating of these, and one of the most popular, is itself a h... Learn More

By John H. Adams,and Patricia Adams,with George Black
The world's preeminent environmental organization began with a layer of soot on the windowsill of a Greenwich Village apartment. Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) founder John H. Adams, a pioneer of environmental action, was working as a lawyer for... Learn More

By Kendall Messick,Essay by Brooke Davis Anderson
Gordon Brinckle (1915-2007) seemed like an ordinary mana modest and reserved husband and father living in an ordinary 1950s-era home in Middletown, Delaware. Known around town as the night projectionist at the local movie theater, it was the unusual way... Learn More

Edited by Sam George,Foreword by Shaun Tomson
For half a century SURFER magazine has captured and defined surf culture, from the sport's epic tales and discoveries to its greatest photography and cultural icons. Marking SURFER's 50th anniversary, this impressive volume showcases the... Learn More

By BikeSnobNYC
Cycling is explodingin a good way. Urbanites everywhere, from ironic hipsters to earth-conscious commuters, are taking to the bike like aquatic mammals to water. BikeSnobNYCcycling's most prolific, well-known, hilarious, and anonymous bloggerbrings a f... Learn More

By Josh Karp
Straight Down the Middle is a humorous and insightful account of journalist and former-18-handicap golfer Josh Karp's quest to achieve inner peace and improve his golf gameall through the art of Zen. Assisted by a quirky roster of excellent prac... Learn More

By Nigel Strudwick
Egyptian hieroglyphs have long fascinated people the world over, though traditionally only specially trained scholars have been able to unlock their esoteric secrets. In Hieroglyph Detective, renowned Egyptologist Nigel Strudwick offers a histori... Learn More

By Sanjay Patel
Artist and veteran Pixar animator Sanjay Patel lends a lush, whimsical illustration style and lighthearted voice to one of Hindu mythology's best-loved and most enduring tales. Teeming with powerful deities, love-struck monsters, flying monkey gods, magic... Learn More

Poker is 10% luck, 90% psychology. This illustrated guide to Texas Hold 'Em, the world's most popular poker game, gives players the strategy and skills they need to make some cold, hard cash. An essential companion for any poker night, online tournament,... Learn More

By David Borgenicht,and Ben Winters
Fake your way through a presentation, slip out of the room unnoticed, stay awake through agenda overload, and video conference from the beach.... Learn More

By David Borgenicht,and Ben Winters
Learn to reattach a bumper, drive down a flight of stairs, and survive road rageyour own and other people's. Theessential driver's manual!... Learn More

By Jack Kerouac,Foreword by Regina Weinreich,Photographs courtesy of the Kerouac Estate
Jack Kerouac's musings on the creative process are collected together for the first time in this exquisite book. Inthe 1950s Allen Ginsberg asked Kerouac to formally describe his "spontaneous prose" method, resulting in a list of maxims called Belief an... Learn More

By James Buckley Jr.,, Jim Gigliotti,,and Sal Maiorana
This latest offering in the ever-popular Obsessed With series is the football fan's greatest trivia challenge. With more than 2,500 original questions, this comprehensive yet compact book explores fascinating facts and tempting trivia related to... Learn More