Collection: Politics

From Vice President Kamala Harris comes a picture book with an empowering message: Superheroes are all around us--and if we try, we can all be heroes too. Now a #1 New York Times bestseller!

Before Kamala Harris was elected to the vice presidency, she was a little girl who loved superheroes. And when she looked around, she was amazed to find them everywhere! In her family, among her friends, even down the street--there were superheroes wherever she looked. And those superheroes showed her that all you need to do to be a superhero is to be the best that you can be.

In this empowering and joyful picture book that speaks directly to kids, Kamala Harris takes readers through her life and shows them that the power to make the world a better place is inside all of us. And with fun and engaging art by Mechal Renee Roe, as well as a guide to being a superhero at the end, this book is sure to have kids taking up the superhero mantle (cape and mask optional).

Praise for Superheroes Are Everywhere

"This [book] offers a solid message: a superhero could be anyone, including you." --Booklist

INTRODUCING THE NEXT GENERATION OF YOUNG READERS TO ONE OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY'S MOST COURAGEOUS FREEDOM FIGHTERS, YURI KOCHIYAMA (1921 -- 2014).

Debut children's picture book author Kai Naima Williams -- great-granddaughter of Yuri Kochiyama -- intimately chronicles the experiences and lessons, hardships and victories, and people and places that shaped Yuri's life and influenced her activism. From Yuri's incarceration in a Japanese-American concentration camp during World War II to her participation in movements organizing for better schools in Harlem to her close friendship with Malcolm X, Yuri never wavered in her belief in the power of the people -- especially young people -- to bring about social change.

Through imaginative writing and vibrant illustrations by Anastasia Magloire Williams, THE BRIDGES YURI BUILT is sure to inspire young readers to embrace Yuri's unwavering belief that together we can build a bridge to a better world.

"The legacy I would like to leave is that people try to build bridges and not walls." -- Yuri Kochiyama

An informative guide to political systems, elections, voting and government, and issues including feminism, human rights, freedom of speech and fake news, all explained with clear text and bright, infographic style illustrations. Includes tips on how to argue and debate, a glossary, and links to specially selected websites with more information.

Featuring a new introduction from renowned activist and writer Cherrié Moraga, Waiting in the Wings (25th Anniversary Edition) is a thoughtfully tender memoir of lesbian motherhood.

A timely and paradigm-shifting argument that all members of a democracy must participate in elections, by a leading political expert and Washington Post journalist

Americans are required to pay taxes, serve on juries, get their kids vaccinated, get driver's licenses, and sometimes go to war for their country. So why not ask--or require--every American to vote?

In 100% Democracy, E.J. Dionne and Miles Rapoport argue that universal participation in our elections should be a cornerstone of our system. It would be the surest way to protect against voter suppression and the active disenfranchisement of a large share of our citizens. And it would create a system true to the Declaration of Independence's aspirations by calling for a government based on the consent of all of the governed.

It's not as radical or utopian as it sounds: in Australia, where everyone is required to vote (Australians can vote "none of the above," but they have to show up), 91.9 percent of Australians voted in the last major election in 2019, versus 60.1 percent in America's 2016 presidential race. Australia hosts voting-day parties and actively celebrates this key civic duty.

It is time for the United States to take a major leap forward and recognize voting as both a fundamental civil right and a solemn civic duty required of every eligible U.S. citizen.

The story of a family in modern China with a history of deceit, betrayal and political intrigue, and the communist party's long shadow over them, from the Cultural Revolution to today.

Following the lives of military intelligence officer Jie and his wife Moon, The Book of Secrets weaves recently found material into a narrative that not only illuminates the shadowy world of intelligence in China, but also the emotional tragedies that political extremism inflicted on those working within.

Drawing on Jie's own vivid biography of his youth, Xinran pieces together his trajectory as he joins the great hope of the Chinese young - the Communist Party - and becomes a loyal cadre until the late 1970s when, as a chief in the security forces, he makes a decision that will poison his family against him.

This is a totally unique behind-the-scenes account of a family torn apart by the Tiananmen Square massacre and the attempts of Jie to finally open up the Chinese system to the people, pieced together from an extraordinary archive of personal diaries and letters.

An engaging and far-reaching exploration of refrigeration, tracing its evolution from scientific mystery to globe-spanning infrastructure, and an essential investigation into how it has remade our entire relationship with food--for better and for worse

How often do we open the fridge or peer into the freezer with the expectation that we'll find something fresh and ready to eat? It's an everyday act--but just a century ago, eating food that had been refrigerated was cause for both fear and excitement. The introduction of artificial refrigeration overturned millennia of dietary history, launching a new chapter in human nutrition. We could now overcome not just rot, but seasonality and geography. Tomatoes in January? Avocados in Shanghai? All possible.

In Frostbite, New Yorker contributor and cohost of the award-winning podcast Gastropod Nicola Twilley takes readers on a tour of the cold chain from farm to fridge, visiting off-the-beaten-path landmarks such as Missouri's subterranean cheese caves, the banana-ripening rooms of New York City, and the vast refrigerated tanks that store the nation's orange juice reserves. Today, nearly three-quarters of everything on the average American plate is processed, shipped, stored, and sold under refrigeration. It's impossible to make sense of our food system without understanding the all-but-invisible network of thermal control that underpins it. Twilley's eye-opening book is the first to reveal the transformative impact refrigeration has had on our health and our guts; our farms, tables, kitchens, and cities; global economics and politics; and even our environment.

In the developed world, we've reaped the benefits of refrigeration for more than a century, but the costs are catching up with us. We've eroded our connection to our food and redefined what "fresh" means. More important, refrigeration is one of the leading contributors to climate change. As the developing world races to build a US-style cold chain, Twilley asks: Can we reduce our dependence on refrigeration? Should we? A deeply researched and reported, original, and entertaining dive into the most important invention in the history of food and drink, Frostbite makes the case for a recalibration of our relationship with the fridge--and how our future might depend on it.

People organizing prison books programs have quietly gathered in basements, storage spaces, and the back rooms of secondhand bookstores for the last seventy years, reading letters written by incarcerated people and sending books in return. This diffuse and nonhierarchical movement operates on shoestring budgets with donated libraries in thirty states, and yet, there is little awareness of this long-standing social movement.

This book contains essays that explain the need for prison book programs and offer advice on how to establish or become involved with prison books programs, as well as shedding light on current challenges. While mass incarceration can make people feel powerless, this book details how ordinary people can organize and intervene in the largest imprisonment the world has ever known. The editors of this book hope it will inspire more people to realize that everyone has the power to treat each other differently and to foster a culture of care over cruelty.

Thae Yong-ho was a leading North Korean diplomat to the United Kingdom and Northern Europe--until his dramatic defection to South Korea in 2016. In this gripping tell-all, he reveals the inner workings of the North Korean regime and shares the story of his decision to leave.

Thae spent nearly three decades working under three generations of the ruling Kim dynasty after entering the foreign service as an idealistic twenty-seven-year-old "red warrior" eager to strive for the "socialist motherland." During this time, he witnessed the arbitrary and tyrannical rule of the Kim family and the enigmatic "Third Floor," a powerful group of high-ranking officials. Thae provides up-close portraits of the excesses of the North Korean elite and the depths of the cult of personality around the Kims, describing experiences such as concocting reports of Europeans celebrating the birthdays of Kim Il-sung or Kim Jong-il and escorting Kim Jong-un's older brother to Eric Clapton concerts in London. He also details the economic and political consequences of North Korea's pursuit of the bomb and the immiseration of the vast majority of the population.

Today a politician in South Korea who advocates unification, Thae offers a powerful plea for the families torn apart by the conflict--including his own, as his brother and sister likely now languish in prison camps. A best-seller in South Korea, Passcode to the Third Floor is an unparalleled look at North Korean politics and diplomacy, giving readers intimate access to the regime's innermost secrets.

A sweeping, deeply researched narrative history of Black wealth and the economic discrimination embedded in America's financial system through public and private actions that created today's Black-white wealth gap.

The early 2020s will long be known as a period of racial reflection. In the wake of the police killing of George Floyd, Americans of all backgrounds joined together in historic demonstrations in the streets, discussions in the workplace, and conversations at home about the financial gaps that remain between white and Black Americans. This deeply investigated book follows the lives of seven Black Americans of different economic levels, ages and professions during the three years following this period of racial reckoning.

Drawing on intimate interviews with these individuals--three of whom are well known and four of whom most readers will learn about for the first time in the book--the authors bring data, research and history to life. Fifteen Cents on the Dollar shows the scores of set-backs that have held the Black-white wealth gap in place--from enslavement to redlining to banking discrimination--and ultimately, the set-backs that occurred in the mid-2020s as the push for racial equity became a polarized political debate.

Fifteen Cents on the Dollar is a comprehensive, deeply human look at Black-white wealth-gap history, told through the lives Black Americans as well as through the development of a new bank intended to help close the Black-white wealth gap. Seasoned journalist-academics Louise Story and Ebony Reed provide crucial insights on American economic equity, Black business ownership, and political and business practices that leave Black Americans behind. In chronicling how these staggering injustices came to be, they show how and why so little progress on the wealth gap has been made and provide insights Americans should consider if they want lasting change.

A memoir by one of America's most accomplished public servants and legal thinkers--who spent years denying and working around his blindness, before finally embracing it as an essential part of his identity.

David Tatel has served nearly 30 years on America's second highest court, the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, where many of our most crucial cases are resolved--or teed up for the Supreme Court. He has championed equal justice for his entire adult life; decided landmark environmental and voting cases; and embodied the ideal of what a great judge should be. Yet he has been blind for the past 50 of his 80-plus years. Initially, he depended upon aides to read texts to him, and more recently, a suite of hi-tech solutions has allowed him to listen to reams of documents at high speeds. At first, he tried to hide his deteriorating vision, and for years, he denied that it had any impact on his career. Only recently, partly thanks to his first-ever guide dog, Vixen, has he come to fully accept his blindness and the role it's played in his personal and professional lives. His story of fighting for justice over many decades, with and without eyesight, is an inspiration to us all.

"Achieving a world where women everywhere can fulfill their potential is the great unfinished work of today and the very work we must do to make progress. Lois Quam shows how we can build the future we envision for us all by supporting women and girls around the world."- Hillary Rodham Clinton, 67th US Secretary of State

As the world struggles against escalating crisis and conflict, there's a transformative force waiting to be unlocked-the unparalleled potential of women and girls. In Who Runs the World?, author Lois Quam imagines a world where the brilliance and capabilities of women are not just recognized, but mobilized to create a brighter future for us all.

Who Runs the World? explores what happens when we unlock the immense potential of women and girls globally-by recognizing that reproductive health and rights is at the heart of women's empowerment. Only by effectively addressing reproductive health can we unlock the untapped power of women and girls, giving global efforts the best shot at combatting major threats to survival on Earth.

Quam is CEO of Pathfinder, a global health and development nonprofit that puts decisions about women's bodies and futures in their own hands. Her book draws on the stories of Pathfinder leaders in Africa, South Asia, and the Middle East, showcasing the organization's revolutionary work to unlock the immense talent of the world's women, and the obstacles that still stand in the way. Their stories paint a vivid picture of the significant impact that women and girls can have when they drive change in areas such as healthcare, agriculture, climate resilience, and economic development.

Women's empowerment isn't just an idea-it's the key to global transformation. Who Runs the World? is a call to action for everyone who has experienced for themselves what it means to be able to choose whether and when to have children - and to be able to do it safely, with high quality health care. It is a roadmap for creating a world where everyone is free to make informed decisions about their lives and how this is the surest path to creating a better future for us all.

The Federalist Papers (also known simply as The Federalist) is a collection of 85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay in 1787 and 1788. The papers were published under the pen name "Publius". The goal of the authors was to urge the people of the state of New York to ratify the proposed United States Constitution.

Historian Richard B. Morris has described The Federalist Papers as an "incomparable exposition of the Constitution, a classic in political science unsurpassed in both breadth and depth by the product of any later American writer."

Due to the uneven publishing history of the documents, the authorship of each essay, the numbering, and the wording differ between different editions of The Federalist Papers. This edition attempts to provide the consensus arrangement.

A hopeful and inspiring biography of the historic gay activist Harvey Milk, who gave people the courage to be proud of who they are.

On a rainy day in January, on the steps of San Francisco's City Hall, Harvey Milk was sworn into office, the first openly gay elected official in the United States of America. Harvey Milk had made history.

From his childhood on Long Island, through college, his service with the Navy, and years as a schoolteacher, Harvey Milk was always popular, intelligent, and energetic. But he was also hiding a secret: He was gay. He eventually moved to San Francisco, where there was a strong LGBTQ community and he could be free to be himself. As he talked to people in his neighborhood, he realized many people who were usually ignored by the government deserved better protection: gay, lesbian, and transgender people, people of color, people with disabilities, and more. He decided to run for public office, and eventually won election to the city's Board of Supervisors. Though his career as a public servant was sadly and suddenly cut short, his pride as an openly gay man and his passion for equality has inspired countless people to continue his work. Harvey's legacy is everywhere today, especially in the hundreds of openly gay elected officials in every level of government.

One of the first picture book biographies for children about a gay leader, this is a perfect introduction to one of the most important figures in the fight for LGBTQ civil rights. Backmatter includes further details about the struggles faced by different groups mentioned in the story, other sources readers can turn to for more information about Harvey, and more books about LGBTQ+ history.

Imagine one day you receive a letter in the mail that informs you that a large energy company is planning to build a massive pipeline through your property. That surveyors will be coming out soon. That they have the legal right to do so, whether you like it or not, because this project is in the "public interest"--because the pipeline will be carrying natural gas, the so-called "bridge fuel" that politicians on both sides of the aisle have been peddling for decades as the path to a clean, green energy future.

This was the gist of the letter that Dominion Energy sent to thousands of residents living along the path of its proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline in 2014, setting off an epic, six-year battle that eventually led all the way to the Supreme Court. That struggle's epicenter was in the mountains of Virginia, where communities stretching from the Blue Ridge foothills to the Shenandoah Valley and the Allegheny highlands became Dominion's staunchest foes. On one side was an archetypal Goliath: a power company that commands billions of dollars, the votes of politicians, and the decisions of the federal government. On the other, an army of Davids: lawyers and farmers, conservationists and conservatives, scientists and nurses, innkeepers and lobbyists, families who farmed their land since before the Revolutionary War and those who were not allowed to until after the Civil War.

At stake was not only the future of the communities that lay in the pipeline's path but the future of American energy. Would the public be swayed by the industry's decades-long public relations campaign to frame natural gas - a fossil fuel and itself a potent greenhouse gas - as a "solution" to climate change? Or would we recognize it as a methane bomb, capable of not only imperiling local property and upending people's lives, but of pushing the planet further down the road towards climate chaos?

Vivid and suspenseful, gut-wrenching and insightful, Gaslight is more than the chronicle of a turning point in American history. It is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the dark, overlooked story of America's "favorite fossil fuel," and the immense future stakes of the energy choices we face today.

From New York Times bestselling author Robert Cheeke comes a new way of thinking about helping animals and the environment--and making the biggest impact possible with the resources already available to you.

When it comes to reducing animal suffering, many people aren't sure where to start or which options are most beneficial. Charitable donations? Volunteer work? Dining at vegan restaurants? Meatless Monday? But the truth is that you have far more power than you think to make a real difference.

Inspired by the effective altruism movement, The Impactful Vegan teaches readers how to audit their impact and follow methods that have been scrutinized, evaluated, and determined to do the most good for animals.

From trusted vegan activist and motivational speaker Robert Cheeke, this in-depth guide will show you just how easy it is to help animals and protect the Earth, by breaking down:

• How to identify the best organizations and volunteer efforts
• Why supporting for-profit vegan businesses is vital
• Why some approaches to promoting animal rights and veganism aren't helpful, and in fact, could be harmful for animals, despite best intentions
• How to choose a career path that aligns with your values and helps you meet your goals
• How influencers can build a personal brand and leverage it to promote veganism

Some of these actions are easier and more important than one might think, and armed with this knowledge you can put your ethics into action. This book will help you help animals every day.