Bryson examines closely the events and personalities of the summer of 1927 when America's story was one of brawling adventure, reckless optimism and delirious energy.

A companion book to the groundbreaking PBS and BBC documentary series celebrates the pioneers and artists of American roots music--blues, gospel, folk, Cajun, Appalachian, Hawaiian, and Native American--without which there would be no jazz, rock, country, R & B, or hip hop today.

A study of the spiritual provocations found in the work of Philip Dick, Terence McKenna, and Robert Anton Wilson, this book charts the emergence of a new psychedelic worldview out of the American counterculture of the seventies. These three visionaries changed the way millions of readers thought, dreamed, and experience reality - but how did their own writings reflect, as well as shape, the seismic cultural shifts taking place in America during one...

"From the New Yorker staff writer Hua Hsu, a gripping memoir on friendship, grief, the search for self, and the solace that can be found through art. In the eyes of 18-year-old Hua Hsu, the problem with Ken-with his passion for Dave Matthews, Abercrombie & Fitch, and his fraternity-is that he is exactly like everyone else. Ken, whose Japanese American family has been in the United States for generations, is mainstream; for Hua, a first-generation...

"Essays on faith, family and being a Black woman in America that explore what we do with the legacies we inherit, the faith that shapes our responses, and how we rebuild our stories for those who come after us--from the author of the popular blog Black Coffee with White Friends. On her blog, Marcie Alvis-Walker creates spaces for conversations about cultural norms, race, faith, and womanhood that encourage readers to unburden themselves from misconceptions...

"From her idyllic childhood in the American Midwest to her Oscar-nominated performance in Sunset Boulevard (1950) and the social circles of New York and Los Angeles, actress Nancy Olson Livingston has lived abundantly. In her memoir, A Front Row Seat, Livingston treats readers to an intimate, charming chronicle of her life as an actress, wife, and mother, and her memories of many of the most notable figures and moments of her time. Livingston shares...

Includes numerous signed essays, alphabetically arranged, and written or reviewed by subject experts and edited to form a consistent, readable, and straightforward reference. Entries cover topics and persons in major areas of popular culture: film; music; print culture; social life; sports; television and radio; and art and performance (which include theater, dance, stand-up comedy, and other live performance).