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Personal Memoirs
by Ulysses S. Grant James M. McphersonFaced with failing health and financial ruin, the Civil War's greatest general and former president wrote his personal memoirs to secure his family's future - and won himself a unique place in American letters. Devoted almost entirely to his life as a soldier, Grant's Memoirs traces the trajectory of his extraordinary career - from West Point cadet to general-in-chief of all Union armies. For their directness and clarity, his writings on war are without rival in American literature, and his autobiography deserves a place among the very best in the genre. This Penguin Classics edition of Grants Personal Memoirs includes an indespensable introduction and explanatory notes by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian James M. McPherson.
The Personal Memoirs of General U. S.
by Ulysses S. GrantAmong the autobiographies of generals and presidents, the Personal Memoirs of U.U. Grant ranks with the greatest. It is even more impressive in light of the circumstances in which it was created: Faced with terminal cancer, virtual bankruptcy, and a family he would leave without means of support, he took the advice of his publisher, mark Twain, and went to work. He completed the manuscript in eleven months-and died a week later, on July 23, 1885. Frank and unpretentious, Grant's memoirs tell the story of his boyhood in Ohio, his graduation from West Point, and the military campaigns in the West and Mexico that ended with his disgraceful resignation and a return to Illinois, where he ran the family store. Soon, however, began the rebellion that broke the Union and recast Grant's fortune, transforming him into the leader of the victorious Union armies in the War Between the States and giving him the perspective to describe intimately the capture of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson, the battles of Shiloh, Corinth, Vicksburg, the bloody Wilderness campaign, and Appomattox. Here is Grant the tactician, the alcoholic, the plain and tough professional soldier, the ideal commander-but most of all here is Grant the writer as he assesses himself and the events that forged his character, as well as that of the nation.
The Personal Memoirs of Joffre, Field Marshal of the French Army, Vol. I (The Personal Memoirs of Joffre #1)
by Joseph Jacques Cesaire Joffre Colonel S. J. LoweFirst published posthumously in 1932, this is the first volume of two that comprise French Field Marshal Joffre’s fascinating memoirs.Volume I takes the reader on a journey of his experiences in the years before the commencement of World War I, through to the days immediately preceding the War and the various battles of 1914 that he led, including the Battle of Marne.Richly illustrated throughout with pictures and maps.“This book, written by the chief actor, unfolds the history of a great campaign upon which hung the destiny of civilization.”—John J. Pershing“Joffre was not only the greatest commander in chief of the World War, but also, as the chief of a general staff, the superior of the elder Moltke himself.”—Frank H. Simonds
The Personal Memoirs of Joffre, Field Marshal of the French Army, Vol. II (The Personal Memoirs of Joffre #2)
by Joseph Jacques Cesaire Joffre Colonel S. J. LoweFirst published posthumously in 1932, this is the second and final volume of French Field Marshal Joffre’s fascinating memoirs.Volume II picks up where Volume I left off at the conclusion of 1914 and takes the reader through to the year 1915, which included the operations in France and Belgium, through to the Allied General offensive of 1916 in Verdun and the Battle of the Somme, and, finally, Field Marshall Joffre’s resignation from politics and his subsequent mission to America.Richly illustrated throughout with pictures and maps.“This book, written by the chief actor, unfolds the history of a great campaign upon which hung the destiny of civilization.”—John J. Pershing“Joffre was not only the greatest commander in chief of the World War, but also, as the chief of a general staff, the superior of the elder Moltke himself.”—Frank H. Simonds
The Personal Memoirs of Julia Dent Grant (Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant)
by Julia D. Grant John Y. Simon Bruce CattonJulia Dent Grant wrote her reminiscences with the vivacity and charm she exhibited throughout her life, telling her story in the easy flow of an afternoon conversation with a close friend. Mrs. Grant was raised the pampered daughter of a Missouri planter, and she later remembered her girlhood as an idyll that she wished could have lasted. Many of the anecdotes she relates give fascinating glimpses into a very troubled period of American history. A dramatic reminiscence recounts the night that Lincoln was assassinated. Mrs. Grant insisted that she and her husband turn down an invitation to the theater in favor of returning home. It saved her husband s life: he had also been marked for assassination. Throughout these memoirs, which she ends with her husband s death, Mrs. Grant strives to correct the misconceptions she believed were being circulated about him. She wanted posterity to share her pride in this man, whom she saw as one of America's greatest heroes. "
Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant (Civil War Ser.)
by Ulysses Simpson GrantIntelligent, deeply moving firsthand account of Civil War military campaigns by former U.S. President and key figure in the Union's victory. Perhaps the finest military memoir ever written, the volume offers an incomparable vantage point on that conflict. Includes Grant's letters to his wife, photographs by Mathew Brady, maps, and more.
The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant: The Complete Annotated Edition
by Ulysses S. GrantThis is the first complete annotated edition of Grant’s memoirs, fully representing the great military leader’s thoughts on his life and times through the end of the Civil War—including the antebellum era and the Mexican War—and his invaluable perspective on battlefield decision making. An introduction contextualizes Grant’s life and significance.
Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant: Volumes One and Two (Barnes And Noble Library Of Essential Reading)
by Ulysses S. GrantThe celebrated remembrances of the man who led the Union to victory during the Civil WarCompleted just days before his death, Grant&’s Personal Memoirs is a clear and compelling account of his military career, focusing on two great conflicts: the Mexican-American War and the Civil War. Lauded for its crisp and direct prose, Grant&’s autobiography offers frank insight into everything from the merits of the war with Mexico to the strategies and tactics employed by Union forces against the Confederacy to the poignancy of Grant&’s meeting with General Lee at Appomattox Court House.Beloved and bestselling since its publication in 1885, Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant is a seminal work of military history and one of the great achievements of American autobiography.This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.
Personal Narrative of a Journey to the Equinoctial Regions of the New Continent (Personal Narrative Of Travels To The Equinoctial Regions Of America – 3-volume Ser.)
by Alexander HumboldtOne of the greatest nineteenth-century scientist-explorers, Alexander von Humboldt traversed the tropical Spanish Americas between 1799 and 1804. By the time of his death in 1859, he had won international fame for his scientific discoveries, his observations of Native American peoples and his detailed descriptions of the flora and fauna of the 'new continent'. The first to draw and speculate on Aztec art, to observe reverse polarity in magnetism and to discover why America is called America, his writings profoundly influenced the course of Victorian culture, causing Darwin to reflect: 'He alone gives any notion of the feelings which are raised in the mind on first entering the Tropics'.
A Personal Narrative of Indian Massacres, 1862
by Lavinia Day EastlickThis is a fascinating, detailed firsthand eyewitness account of the Sioux Indian massacre at Lake Shetek in Minnesota that took place on August 20, 1862 by one of its survivors, Mrs. Lavinia Eastlick.“In presenting this pamphlet to the public, I have given merely a plain, unvarnished statement of all the facts that came under my own observation, during the dreadful massacre of the settlers of Minnesota. Mine only was a single case among hundreds of similar instances. It is only from explicit and minute accounts from the pen of the sufferers themselves, that people living at this distance from the scene of those atrocities can arrive at any just and adequate conception of the fiendishness of the Indian character, or the extremities of pain, terror and distress endured by the victims. It can hardly be decided which were least unfortunate, those who met an immediate death at the hands of the savages, or the survivors who, after enduring tortures worse than death, from hunger, fear, fatigue, and wounds, at last escaped barely with life.”—Mrs. L. EastlickThis book also includes photos, affidavits, and other material that were compiled by Mr. Ross A. Irish, Mrs. Eastlick nephew.
A Personal Odyssey
by Thomas SowellThis is the gritty story of one man's lifelong education in the school of hard knocks, as his journey took him from Harlem to the Marines, the Ivy League, and a career as a controversial writer, teacher, and economist in government and private industry. It is also the story of the dramatically changing times in which this personal odyssey took place. The vignettes of the people and places that made an impression on Thomas Sowell at various stages of his life range from the poor and the powerless to the mighty and the wealthy, from a home for homeless boys to the White House, as well as ranging across the United States and around the world. It also includes Sowell's startling discovery of his own origins during his teenage years. If the child is father to the man, this memoir shows the characteristics that have become familiar in the public figure known as Thomas Sowell already present in an obscure little boy born in poverty in the Jim Crow South during the Great Depression and growing up in Harlem. His marching to his own drummer, his disregard of what others say or think, even his battles with editors who attempt to change what he has written, are all there in childhood. More than a story of the life of Sowell himself, this is also a story of the people who gave him their help, their support, and their loyalty, as well as those who demonized him and knifed him in the back. It is a story not just of one life, but of life in general, with all its exhilaration and pain.
A Personal Record
by Joseph ConradA Personal Record is an autobiographical work (or "fragment of biography") by Joseph Conrad, published in 1912. It has also been published under the titles A Personal Record: Some Reminiscences and Some Reminiscences. <P> <P> Notoriously unreliable and digressive in structure, it is nonetheless the principal contemporary source for information about the author's life.[citation needed] It tells about his schooling in Russian Poland, his sailing in Marseille, the influence of his Uncle Tadeusz, and the writing of Almayer's Folly. It provides a glimpse of how Conrad wished to be seen by his British public, as well as being an atmospheric work of art.[citation needed] The "Familiar Preface" Conrad wrote for it includes the often quoted lines: <P> <P> "Those who read me know my conviction that the world, the temporal world, rests on a few very simple ideas; so simple that they must be as old as the hills. It rests notably, among others, on the idea of Fidelity." <P> <P> Conrad wrote a new 'Author's Note' to A Personal Record for the Doubleday collected edition of his works (published in 1920) in which he discussed his friendship with the British colonial official and writer Hugh Clifford.
A Personal Stand: Observations and Opinions from a Freethinking Roughneck
by Trace Adkins Kent Zimmerman Keith ZimmermanCountry music superstar Trace Adkins isn't exactly known for holding back what's on his mind. And if the millions of albums he's sold are any indication, when Trace talks, people listen. Now, in A Personal Stand, Trace Adkins delivers his maverick manifesto on politics, personal responsibility, fame, parenting, being true to yourself, hard work, and the way things oughta be. In his inimitable pull-no-punches style, Trace gives us the state of the union as he sees it, from the lessons of his boyhood in small-town Louisiana to what he's learned headlining concerts around the world. Trace has worked oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, been shot in the heart, been inducted into the Grand Ole Opry, and braved perhaps the greatest challenge of all: being the father of five daughters. And shaped by these experiences, he's sounding off. * I'm incredibly frustrated with the state of American politics. If there were a viable third party, I'd seriously consider joining it. * If anybody wonders who the good guys are and who the bad guys are in this world, just look at the way we teach our children as opposed to the way the fundamentalist Muslims teach their children. * Organized labor now exists for the sake of organized labor, and not for the workers it once protected. * I believe the easiest way to solve the illegal immigration enforcement problem is to go after the employers who hire illegal aliens. * As a society, we're unwilling to sacrifice our luxuries and our conveniences in order to conserve. We won't change until we're forced to. * The war on terror is like herpes. People can live with it, but it'll flare up from time to time. Brash, ballsy, persuasive, and controversial, A Personal Stand isn't just the story of Trace Adkins's life; it's the story of what life can teach all of us. From the Hardcover edition.
Personal Writings (Vintage International)
by Albert CamusThe Nobel Prize winner's most influential and enduring personal writings, newly curated and introduced by acclaimed Camus scholar Alice Kaplan.Albert Camus (1913-1960) is unsurpassed among writers for a body of work that animates the wonder and absurdity of existence. Personal Writings brings together, for the first time, thematically-linked essays from across Camus's writing career that reflect the scope and depth of his interior life. Grappling with an indifferent mother and an impoverished childhood in Algeria, an ever-present sense of exile, and an ongoing search for equilibrium, Camus's personal essays shed new light on the emotional and experiential foundations of his philosophical thought and humanize his most celebrated works.
Personal Writings: Reminiscences, Spiritual Diary, Select Letters including the text of The Spiritual Exercises (Saint Ignatius of Loyola)
by Joseph A. Munitiz Ignatius of Loyola StaffHis Reminiscences describe his early life, his religious conversion following near-paralysis in battle, and his spiritual and physical ordeals as he struggled to assist those in need, including plague, persecution and imprisonment. The Spiritual Exercises offer guidelines to those seeking the will of God, and the Spiritual Diary shows Ignatius in daily mystical contact with God during a personal struggle.
Personalities and Problems: Interpretive Essays in World Civilizations Volume 2
by Ken WolfAssuming no previous knowledge of history, Personalities and Problems is a unique collection of original essays about real people whose lives or careers demonstrate solutions to problems of their times. Each chapter focuses on a problem or issue and illustrates it by discussing the lives of two historical figures (actual or near contemporaries of each other) whose careers illustrate the richness and variety of history.
Personality and Politics: Obama For and Against Himself
by Stephen J. WayneRenowned presidential scholar Stephen Wayne takes a close look at the interplay of personal character, partisan politics, and public opinion on presidential decision-making. In this systematic character study, Wayne considers how President Obama’s policy beliefs and operating style fueled his meteoric success as a candidate, but have had a decidedly mixed impact on his governance as president. Arguing that character matters, Wayne shows that Obama’s personal dimensions both contribute and detract from his policy achievements and political goals.Taking into account the environment in which he took office up through the “shellacking” of the Democrats in November 2010, the book looks at how Obama has dealt with the troubled economy and a polarized political climate. Wayne sets his study within the larger literature on presidential character and explores the broader questions surrounding presidential leadership in a democratic society: Do presidents lead or follow public opinion? To what extent do leadership skills make a difference? What kind of policy and political impact can presidents have in the twenty-first century?
Personality and Power: Builders and Destroyers of Modern Europe
by Ian KershawOne of New York Magazine's Most Anticipated Books of the FallHow far can a single leader alter the course of history?From one of the leading historians of twentieth-century Europe and the author of the definitive biography of Hitler, Personality and Power is a masterful reckoning with how character conspired with opportunity to create the modern age&’s uniquely devastating despots—and how and why other countries found better paths. The modern era saw the emergence of individuals who had command over a terrifying array of instruments of control, persuasion and death. Whole societies were reshaped and wars were fought, often with a merciless contempt for the most basic norms. At the summit of these societies were leaders whose personalities somehow enabled them to do whatever they wished, regardless of the consequences for others.Ian Kershaw&’s new book is a compelling, lucid and challenging attempt to understand these rulers, whether those operating on the widest stage (Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini) or with a more national impact (Tito, Franco). What was it about these leaders, and the times in which they lived, that allowed them such untrammelled and murderous power? And what brought that era to an end? In a contrasting group of profiles—from Churchill to de Gaulle, Adenauer to Gorbachev and Thatcher to Kohl)—Kershaw uses his exceptional skills as an iconic historian to explore how strikingly different figures wielded power.
The Personality Brokers: The Strange History of Myers-Briggs and the Birth of Personality Testing
by Merve Emre"Inventive and beguiling... The Personality Brokers is history that reads like biography that reads like a novel--a fluid narrative that defies expectations and plays against type." --New York Times"Riveting [and] far-reaching... [Emre] brings the skills of a detective, cultural critic, historian, scientist and biographer to bear on the MBTI and the two women who invented and promoted it" --Wall Street JournalAn unprecedented history of the personality test conceived a century ago by a mother and her daughter--fiction writers with no formal training in psychology--and how it insinuated itself into our boardrooms, classrooms, and beyondThe Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is the most popular personality test in the world. It is used regularly by Fortune 500 companies, universities, hospitals, churches, and the military. Its language of personality types--extraversion and introversion, sensing and intuiting, thinking and feeling, judging and perceiving--has inspired television shows, online dating platforms, and Buzzfeed quizzes. Yet despite the test's widespread adoption, experts in the field of psychometric testing, a $2 billion industry, have struggled to validate its results--no less account for its success. How did Myers-Briggs, a homegrown multiple choice questionnaire, infiltrate our workplaces, our relationships, our Internet, our lives? First conceived in the 1920s by the mother-daughter team of Katherine Briggs and Isabel Briggs Myers, a pair of devoted homemakers, novelists, and amateur psychoanalysts, Myers-Briggs was designed to bring the gospel of Carl Jung to the masses. But it would take on a life entirely its own, reaching from the smoke-filled boardrooms of mid-century New York to Berkeley, California, where it was administered to some of the twentieth century's greatest creative minds. It would travel across the world to London, Zurich, Cape Town, Melbourne, and Tokyo, until it could be found just as easily in elementary schools, nunneries, and wellness retreats as in shadowy political consultancies and on social networks.Drawing from original reporting and never-before-published documents, The Personality Brokers takes a critical look at the personality indicator that became a cultural icon. Along the way it examines nothing less than the definition of the self--our attempts to grasp, categorize, and quantify our personalities. Surprising and absorbing, the book, like the test at its heart, considers the timeless question: What makes you, you?