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Best Kindle Singles: History

Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine (Kindle Single)
In Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine , Claire Prentice uncovers the incredible true story of Martin Couney, the “incubator doctor.”. Couney ran his incubator facility for premature babies at Coney Island from 1903 to 1943 and set up similar exhibits at World’s Fairs and amusement parks across America, and in London, Paris, Mexico and Brazil. Claire Prentice is an award-winning journalist and the author of The Lost Tribe of Coney Island: Headhunters, Luna Park, and the Man Who Pulled Off the Spectacle of the Century.
Reviews
"I can't tell you how many times I've read about these babies at Coney Island and elsewhere while reading other things, whether it was books or magazine articles, or encyclopedias. It was very interesting...I'm always amazed at the types of things that people got away with prior to even the 1960's. Considering I've read so much about eugenics and the Nazis (and written about all of this and the disabled in papers), you would think nothing would surprise me at this point. Even though there are much stricter laws on the books concerning doctors, we still have people out there who have no degrees who present themselves as having the background and training to treat people with things like cancers."
"Dr. Couney created this innovative business model which allowed for his meticulous expensive care of preemies while not charging the parents a dime. The author's research proved he didn't go to medical school or train with preemies in Europe before coming to the US. The issue is not whether he took advantage of these infants or was a medically trained doctor but rather he proved that preemies could be nursed into healthy babies and were worth saving - against the attitude and recommendations of the medical community of the late 19th and early 20th centuries."
"Fascinating and well researched story of the incubator baby doctor, who exhibited (and saved) thousands of babies from the early 1900s to early 1940s!"
"Interesting book with a good view on the history of the baby incubator and the man who invented it."
"I would say that Martin Couney was a doctor in every sense --"First do no harm"."
"I had heard references to Martin Couney's exhibitions of premature infants for years and always been curious about how this had all happened."
"Interesting look at the precursor of modern neonatal intensive care units."
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The Secret Agent: In Search of America's Greatest World War II Spy (Kindle Single)
He hung a portrait of Hitler in his apartment and “disowned” his Jewish best friend, then flew to Berlin, where he charmed Himmler and signed lucrative oil deals with the architects of the Final Solution. All the while, he was visiting the oil refineries and passing their coordinates to Allied Bomber Command, who destroyed the plants in a series of B-17 raids, helping to end the war early. Based on newly-discovered archives in Sweden, The Secret Agent is a riveting piece of narrative nonfiction that tells the true story of Erickson's remarkable life for the first time. Though Erickson's tale has appeared before--notably in both a book and film entitled The Counterfeit Traitor --Talty's telling gets the story just right, depicting the modest, dapper Erickson and his long-classified exploits with tense pacing, surprisingly intimate details, and a reverence for this private citizen's suspenseful, tide-turning contribution to the American war effort.
Reviews
"Much to the chagrin of my wife, I wound up reading the book from start to finish in one sitting."
"I'm really not sure why this book would get less than 3 stars."
"For a book this short and at this price, one should hardly expect citations (I know, I've done footnotes and intros in some of my public domain works) but they would have been nice."
"Add to that the personality of an oil wildcatter and the desire to live up to the example of his heroic older brother, Henry, and you have the makings of an extraordinary man, the subject of an exceptionally fine biography. Eventually, he became trusted enough by the Nazis that he obtained frequent visits to the refineries and processing plants they used to create gasoline and even synthetic fuels, as their oil and gas supplies were reduced by Allied bombings and land victories. To carry off his deception, Erickson had to become plausibly pro-Nazi gradually while maintaining industrial, governmental, and social contacts in Sweden, where his own petroleum-based business was centered. The second woman he loved, Anne-Maria---an anti-Nazi German collaborator---was executed by hanging in his presence; neither he nor she acknowledged the other during the gruesome procedure, thus sparing Erickson`s life. Decades ago, the spy had been the subject of numerous journalistic interviews and even a somewhat factual Hollywood movie, his heroism an inspiration."
"My hat is off to Eric Erickson, I bow before you....my heart aches for the loss of Maria, a love that never matured and was ended so abruptly, viewed by a heavy heart, lost forever in the pages of history, but not forgotten in the heart of Erickson."
"As described by the author, the subject of the book, Eric Erickson, is no longer well known."
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Alan Turing: Unlocking the Enigma (Kindle Single)
Mathematician, philosopher, codebreaker, a founder of computer science, and the father of Artificial Intelligence, Turing was one of the most original thinkers of the last century - and the man whose work helped create the computer-driven world we now inhabit. By the age of 33, he had been awarded the OBE by King George VI for his wartime services: Turing was instrumental in cracking the Nazi Enigma machines at the top secret code breaking establishment at Bletchley Park during the Second World War. ‘Alan Turing: Unlocking the Enigma’ seeks to find the man behind the science, illuminating the life of a person who is still a shadowy presence behind his brilliant achievements. As a primer on the life and accomplishments of this intellectual giant, David Boyle's Kindle Single serves well, marking the House of Lords's long overdue pardoning of Turing's "sex crimes" in 2013 with an energetic narrative that weaves the undisputed facts of Turing's life together with an undoing of certain persistent myths and a reverent encapsulation of his import.
Reviews
"A very short biography of Alan Turing, most well-known as the scientist who was key in the British effort to "unlock[..] the Enigma", the German coding machine. David Boyle's book begins with the 2013 "Statutory Pardon of Alan Mathison Turing", in fact there was a veritable rush to effect a posthumous "statutory pardon to one of Britain's greatest scientists" and recognition of him by the British government."
"I was aware of this war time story at a superficial level but this book reveals detail and insight that had not previously been mine."
"If you want to learn more about the era and related subjects, or other interesting eras and periods, the author has written similar books which are shown at the end of the Kindle edition, and I assume the paper version as well."
"science, mathematics, computing, biography. The only thing that I knew about Alan Turing before this book was a few things about his role in cracking the Enigma Code in WW2."
"This book has very little technical detail and but spends most of its time on Turing's concepts of computers as path to AI."
"I learned a great deal about this 20th century genius and the obstacles he faced."
"I heard his name mentioned while watching the Betchley Circle."
"He was a very complex man who spent his whole life in boy's schools, very little interaction with people as a whole."
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Best Reporting

Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine (Kindle Single)
In Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine , Claire Prentice uncovers the incredible true story of Martin Couney, the “incubator doctor.”. Couney ran his incubator facility for premature babies at Coney Island from 1903 to 1943 and set up similar exhibits at World’s Fairs and amusement parks across America, and in London, Paris, Mexico and Brazil. Claire Prentice is an award-winning journalist and the author of The Lost Tribe of Coney Island: Headhunters, Luna Park, and the Man Who Pulled Off the Spectacle of the Century.
Reviews
"I can't tell you how many times I've read about these babies at Coney Island and elsewhere while reading other things, whether it was books or magazine articles, or encyclopedias. It was very interesting...I'm always amazed at the types of things that people got away with prior to even the 1960's. Considering I've read so much about eugenics and the Nazis (and written about all of this and the disabled in papers), you would think nothing would surprise me at this point. Even though there are much stricter laws on the books concerning doctors, we still have people out there who have no degrees who present themselves as having the background and training to treat people with things like cancers."
"Fascinating and well researched story of the incubator baby doctor, who exhibited (and saved) thousands of babies from the early 1900s to early 1940s!"
"Interesting book with a good view on the history of the baby incubator and the man who invented it."
"I would say that Martin Couney was a doctor in every sense --"First do no harm"."
"I had heard references to Martin Couney's exhibitions of premature infants for years and always been curious about how this had all happened."
"Interesting look at the precursor of modern neonatal intensive care units."
"Surprising that the doctor kept such a strict hygiene for all the infants, considering the date in time."
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Best Kindle Singles: Nonfiction

A Spy's Guide to Thinking (Kindle Single)
Bestselling author John Braddock was a case officer at the CIA. He developed, recruited and handled sources on weapons proliferation, counter-terrorism and political-military issues. A former university fellow, he now helps people and organizations sharpen their thinking about their strategy, their customers and their competition. John Braddock has been able to throw in a good spy story to show how to properly think in a stressful situation." He developed, recruited and handled sources on weapons proliferation, counter-terrorism and political-military issues. A former university research fellow, he is now a strategy consultant. He helps people and organizations think more effectively about their strategy, their customers and the competition.
Reviews
"When circumstances require action, having a habitual method (i.e a structured approach) to quickly analyze the situation and select the best response gives you an edge over your opponent. The author shows how the US Air Force analyzed ace pilots to determine why they won more dogfights, and how that discovery was generalized into a powerful behavioral approach to rapid decision-making for spies in stressful situations. This book uses the author's thought process during an attempted robbery where he, the spy, is victim as an example of his structured thought process, one that major spy agencies and the military actually use. Near the end, he analyzes the thought process he went through in deciding to write the book in comparison to a reader's decision to purchase it."
"Choosing to not be afraid is not always a choice one consciously makes or can overcome easily."
"I had read about the OODA method of dealing with conflict, but the author's take on it with his DADA version was a welcome and interesting twist on it."
"Thank you to the druggie for his patience in letting the story play out."
"Fun book to read...makes you think!"
"A Spy's Guide to Thinking is a brief but interesting and useful guide for anyone interested in the process of practical thought."
"I loved this book ..."
"Meh."
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Best Kindle Singles: Biographies & Memoirs

Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine (Kindle Single)
In Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine , Claire Prentice uncovers the incredible true story of Martin Couney, the “incubator doctor.”. Couney ran his incubator facility for premature babies at Coney Island from 1903 to 1943 and set up similar exhibits at World’s Fairs and amusement parks across America, and in London, Paris, Mexico and Brazil. Claire Prentice is an award-winning journalist and the author of The Lost Tribe of Coney Island: Headhunters, Luna Park, and the Man Who Pulled Off the Spectacle of the Century.
Reviews
"I can't tell you how many times I've read about these babies at Coney Island and elsewhere while reading other things, whether it was books or magazine articles, or encyclopedias. It was very interesting...I'm always amazed at the types of things that people got away with prior to even the 1960's. Considering I've read so much about eugenics and the Nazis (and written about all of this and the disabled in papers), you would think nothing would surprise me at this point. Even though there are much stricter laws on the books concerning doctors, we still have people out there who have no degrees who present themselves as having the background and training to treat people with things like cancers."
"Dr. Couney created this innovative business model which allowed for his meticulous expensive care of preemies while not charging the parents a dime. The author's research proved he didn't go to medical school or train with preemies in Europe before coming to the US. The issue is not whether he took advantage of these infants or was a medically trained doctor but rather he proved that preemies could be nursed into healthy babies and were worth saving - against the attitude and recommendations of the medical community of the late 19th and early 20th centuries."
"Fascinating and well researched story of the incubator baby doctor, who exhibited (and saved) thousands of babies from the early 1900s to early 1940s!"
"Interesting book with a good view on the history of the baby incubator and the man who invented it."
"I would say that Martin Couney was a doctor in every sense --"First do no harm"."
"I had heard references to Martin Couney's exhibitions of premature infants for years and always been curious about how this had all happened."
"Interesting look at the precursor of modern neonatal intensive care units."
Find Best Price at Amazon

Best Kindle Nonfiction Singles

A Spy's Guide to Thinking (Kindle Single)
Bestselling author John Braddock was a case officer at the CIA. He developed, recruited and handled sources on weapons proliferation, counter-terrorism and political-military issues. A former university fellow, he now helps people and organizations sharpen their thinking about their strategy, their customers and their competition. John Braddock has been able to throw in a good spy story to show how to properly think in a stressful situation." He developed, recruited and handled sources on weapons proliferation, counter-terrorism and political-military issues. A former university research fellow, he is now a strategy consultant. He helps people and organizations think more effectively about their strategy, their customers and the competition.
Reviews
"When circumstances require action, having a habitual method (i.e a structured approach) to quickly analyze the situation and select the best response gives you an edge over your opponent. The author shows how the US Air Force analyzed ace pilots to determine why they won more dogfights, and how that discovery was generalized into a powerful behavioral approach to rapid decision-making for spies in stressful situations. This book uses the author's thought process during an attempted robbery where he, the spy, is victim as an example of his structured thought process, one that major spy agencies and the military actually use. Near the end, he analyzes the thought process he went through in deciding to write the book in comparison to a reader's decision to purchase it."
"A short book about thinking - in my world the idea of recognizing what type of game your opponent is playing is vitally important."
"Interesting, simple model for taking the right actions in life and business."
"I had read about the OODA method of dealing with conflict, but the author's take on it with his DADA version was a welcome and interesting twist on it."
"Not too much detail but author gets his points across clearly and concisely...good read but would have been good to see more examples."
"Thank you to the druggie for his patience in letting the story play out."
"Many of us probably use this technique when faced with making decisions every day but usually have never given any thought to the actual process."
"Meh."
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Best History

The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler's Atomic Bomb
Mr. Bascomb’s research and, especially, his storytelling skills are first-rate.”— The Wall Street Journal “Weaving together his typically intense research and a riveting narrative, Neal Bascomb’s The Winter Fortress is a spellbinding piece of historical writing.” — Martin Dugard, author of Into Africa and co-author of the Killing series. In 1942, the Nazis were racing to complete the first atomic bomb. All they needed was a single, incredibly rare ingredient: heavy water, which was produced solely at Norway’s Vemork plant. Based on a trove of top-secret documents and never-before-seen diaries and letters of the saboteurs, The Winter Fortress is an arresting chronicle of a brilliant scientist, a band of spies on skis, perilous survival in the wild, Gestapo manhunts, and a last-minute operation that would alter the course of the war. "Weaving together his typically intense research and a riveting narrative, Neal Bascomb's The Winter Fortress is a spellbinding piece of historical writing." –Martin Dugard, author of Into Africa and co-author of the " Killing " series. "Neal Bascomb's The Winter Fortress is a riveting, high-action World War II thriller with nothing less than the fate of Planet Earth on the line. In The Winter Fortress , Neal Bascomb brilliantly tells the extraordinary true story of arguably the most important and daring commando raid of WWII: how an amazing band of men on skis made sure Hitler never got to drop the ultimate bomb." “Brilliantly written, The Winter Fortress cinematically captures a commando team’s efforts to destroy one of the most important secret facilities in World War II. Bascomb’s riveting prose puts the reader into one of the more daring missions of the war and the Allies’ efforts to sabotage a crucial aspect of Germany's nuclear program. "This well-told and deeply researched account sheds light on an aspect of World War II that is little known or remembered, creating a valuable history that will be beneficial for most collections." "Bascomb, a WWII historian and former journalist, thrillingly recounts the commando effort to destroy the Norwegian Vemork hydroelectric plant . A fascinating read about how a small group of Norwegians refused to submit to the brutal occupation of their country and contributed significantly to Allied victory." “Bascomb brings this overlooked tale of wartime nuclear sabotage to life while taking care to explain the science behind the story.” -- Scientific American. .Bascomb interweaves the stories of Hitler’s ‘Uranium Club’ and of atomic chemist Leif Tronstad, who directed the Allied operation, with the thriller-esque tale of the commandos who put the plant out of action in 1943."
Reviews
"I learned a part of World War II history I knew nothing about."
"May freedom loving people always be as ready to sacrifice as these Norwegian patriots."
"This book was a little bit hard for me to get in to but once I did it was a page turner."
"Someone without that might find it a bit dry if they got hung up on heavy water and fission designs and missed the resistance story."
"The book is well written and reading about the hardships they suffered before and during the raid, you almost feel like you are with the patriots."
"Maybe too much detail,but still very interesting."
"Later, allied bombing struck the heavy water plant and limited production of heavy water."
"The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler's Atomic Bomb A great story and well-written."
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Best One-Hour History Short Reads

The Art of War
The world’s most influential treatise on strategy. --Brian Bruya This new translation of the ancient Chinese military treatise includes chapters of historical analysis touching on its relevance to today's corporate environment.
Reviews
"It's hard to figure out which part of this is the actual writing and which is a narrative about the writing."
"To defeat your neighbor (LOL). Proof of Chinese wisdom."
"Great read and commentary on the classic war strategy book that offers advice applicable to any facet of life."
"This is the only copy of the art of war that I've come across which provides the original text in boldface type so that you can read it that having to wait three pages and pages of commentary ."
"I would enjoy a modern treatise of this book."
"This book is not for those who over-indulge in dot-to-dots, but for those willing to stop and take a look at their own lives, The Art of War is priceless."
"My second time reading this book and definitely not my last."
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Best Profiles

Alan Turing: Unlocking the Enigma (Kindle Single)
Mathematician, philosopher, codebreaker, a founder of computer science, and the father of Artificial Intelligence, Turing was one of the most original thinkers of the last century - and the man whose work helped create the computer-driven world we now inhabit. By the age of 33, he had been awarded the OBE by King George VI for his wartime services: Turing was instrumental in cracking the Nazi Enigma machines at the top secret code breaking establishment at Bletchley Park during the Second World War. ‘Alan Turing: Unlocking the Enigma’ seeks to find the man behind the science, illuminating the life of a person who is still a shadowy presence behind his brilliant achievements. As a primer on the life and accomplishments of this intellectual giant, David Boyle's Kindle Single serves well, marking the House of Lords's long overdue pardoning of Turing's "sex crimes" in 2013 with an energetic narrative that weaves the undisputed facts of Turing's life together with an undoing of certain persistent myths and a reverent encapsulation of his import.
Reviews
"A very short biography of Alan Turing, most well-known as the scientist who was key in the British effort to "unlock[..] the Enigma", the German coding machine. David Boyle's book begins with the 2013 "Statutory Pardon of Alan Mathison Turing", in fact there was a veritable rush to effect a posthumous "statutory pardon to one of Britain's greatest scientists" and recognition of him by the British government."
"I was aware of this war time story at a superficial level but this book reveals detail and insight that had not previously been mine."
"If you want to learn more about the era and related subjects, or other interesting eras and periods, the author has written similar books which are shown at the end of the Kindle edition, and I assume the paper version as well."
"science, mathematics, computing, biography. The only thing that I knew about Alan Turing before this book was a few things about his role in cracking the Enigma Code in WW2."
"This book has very little technical detail and but spends most of its time on Turing's concepts of computers as path to AI."
"I learned a great deal about this 20th century genius and the obstacles he faced."
"I heard his name mentioned while watching the Betchley Circle."
"He was a very complex man who spent his whole life in boy's schools, very little interaction with people as a whole."
Find Best Price at Amazon

Best 45-Minute Short Reads

Do You Want To Play With My Balls?
is just that kind of book, full of innocence and irreverence, and sure to make every member of your family vomit with glee. is a visually stunning treat, embellished with brightly colored images by award winning (**) illustrator Santiago Elizalde. It's a book for all occasions: baby showers, birthday parties, bed time readings, brisses... No coffee table, nursery, or kindergarten is complete without a copy. In May of 2015 a video was released of a young woman reading a copy of Do You Want To Play With My Balls?, a hilarious, children’s book parody for adults.
Reviews
"As advertised....Nice product."
"Not for kids but adults. Loved it."
"Funny!"
"Very small book for the price."
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Best The World Stage

War Hero: The Unlikely Story of A Stray Dog, An American Soldier and the Battle of Their Lives (Kindle Single)
On a July evening in 1918, four brutal years into World War I, a young American soldier, private James Donovan, stumbled on a pile of rags while lost on the pitch-black the streets of Paris. Rags’ exploits made him famous back in America, where he became one of the inspirations for the modern “war dog.” He led parades down Broadway, accepted a handful of medals and became more popular than some 5-star generals.
Reviews
"This was an great story about a soldier and a dog."
"I love dogs and books about dogs but this was special since it is a true story."
"From a priviate to the commanding general of the 1st Division, Rags won the hearts of all for his caring attitude to his great bravery."
"Very touching story based on truth about a soldier and the dog he finds in France during WWI."
"This is a well written story, about the first military dog and the effects he had on not only the men of his company but the whole of world war 1 USA force."
"Touching story of a WW I soldier and his faithful dog."
"A charming little story of a very brave little dog., !"
"Great story, well written."
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