Fiction and Non Fiction

Brief Summary Growing up in a sleepy town with a beautiful mother and a father who seems to adore her, it’s difficult to understand why Frances is the way she is. Strange, manipulating, and at times cruel, she is a mystery to Marienne, her bewildered mother. But, on closer inspection, hiding beyond the white picket fence and cherry-blossom tree that umbrellas their cozy life, something dark lies heavy on both Frances and her father. Following a disastrous 16th birthday party and a grandmother found dead in the bathtub, Frances is sent away to boarding school. The Academy is a place rife with teenage rivalry, secret rendezvous, and budding friendships. And it’s here — alone for the first time — that Frances is forced to confront the true nature of her life. Intertwined with Frances’ narrative is that of her father James. Between them we discover a story of a young girl entering adulthood under the smoky weight of a terrible secret, of a life stolen and rediscovered, and, above all, of a tainted love affair and the fluid, easily traversed boundary between perversity and normality. ISBN:9781780743967 Author:Iman Verjee

Brief Summary Late one evening, investigative journalist Bastian Obermayer receives an anonymous message offering him access to secret data. Through encrypted channels, he then receives documents revealing how the president of Argentina has sequestered millions of dollars of state money for private use. This is just the beginning. Obermayer and fellow Süddeutsche journalist Frederik Obermaier find themselves immersed in the secret world where complex networks of letterbox companies help the super-rich to hide their money. Faced with the contents of the largest data leak in history, they activate an international network of journalists to follow every possible line of inquiry. Operating in the strictest secrecy for over a year, they uncover cases involving European prime ministers and international dictators, emirs and kings, celebrities and aristocrats. The real-life thriller behind the story of the century, The Panama Papers is an intense, unputdownable account that proves, once and for all, that there exists a small elite living by a different set of rules and blows their secret world wide open ISBN:9783462050028 Author:Bastian Obermayer and Frederik Obermaier

Brief summary There has never been a more important political investigation than Robert S. Mueller III's into President Donald Trump's possible collusion with Russia. His momentous findings can be found here, complete with: • The 300+ pages of the historic report, as released by the Justice Department • An introduction by constitutional scholar, eminent civil libertarian, and New York Times bestselling author Alan Dershowitz. • The relevant portions of Title 28 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the 1999 provisions written by former acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal, which establish and regulate the powers of the special counsel. • Rod Rosenstein’s 2016 order appointing Robert Mueller III as special counsel and outlining the scope of his investigation. • Attorney General William Barr’s four-page summary of the report, as sent to Congress. • Barr's explanation of the four reasons for redacting the report, and a key for identifying them in the color-coded report The wait is over. Robert Mueller, a lifelong Republican, has concluded his investigation and submitted its findings to Attorney General William Barr. Barr has told Congress that Mueller found no proof of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, and did not come to a conclusion on obstruction of justice—neither concluding the president committed a crime nor exonerating him. But Mueller’s report was over 300 pages and Barr’s summary was only four pages, raising questions about the conclusions of a historic investigation. Special Counsel Robert Mueller III’s probe into Russian influence on the 2016 election of Donald Trump—including links between the campaign and Russian interests, obstruction of justice by President Trump, and any other matters that may have arisen in the course of the investigation—has been the focal point of American politics since its inception in May 2017. Democrats in the US House of Representatives hoped to use the report to begin impeachment proceedings, with the support of those critical of the president. Media tracked Mueller’s every move, and the investigation was subject to constant speculation by political pundits everywhere. It resulted in the indictments of Michael Flynn, Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, and many others. President Trump and his supporters affirmed that the investigation was a "witch hunt” and the product of a plot by the political establishment—the "deep state”—to delegitimize his presidency. Mueller’s findings—at least according to Barr—allowed the latter to claim victory. But now, thanks to a subpoena from House Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler for the full report, a resolution from the House of Representatives to release the full report to the public (though blocked in the Senate by Mitch McConnell), and popular demand, it’s time for public to judge if that is true. The Mueller investigation will join Watergate, and the Mueller Report will join the 9/11 Commission Report, the Warren Report, and the Starr Report, as one of the most important in history. The Mueller Report is required reading for everyone with interest in American politics, for every 2016 and 2020 voter, and every American. It’s now available here as an affordable paperback, featuring an introduction from eminent civil libertarian, Harvard Law Professor Emeritus, and New York Times bestselling author Alan Dershowitz, who provides a constitutional, civil law-based commentary sorely needed in today’s media landscape. ISBN:9781510750166 Author:Robert Mueller