Biography & Autobiography

On July 27, 1903, spurred into action by inmate Richard ‘Red’ Gordon, thirteen men attacked their jailers and made a run for freedom.Folsom Prison had only been open for 20 years and was already one of the toughest and most brutal prisons in the country. It had one major flaw—no walls. A statewide manhunt ensued, following a deadly trail of attacks, kidnappings, and murder. Among the escapees were Joseph Theron and Frank Case, both sentenced to life in prison for robbery, and Joseph Murphy, burglar and poet. Sightings were reported from San Franciso to Reno and in the end, five of the prisoners were never found.Join author Josh Morgan as he recounts the violence and heroism of Folsom Prison’s biggest breakout.

Timber mills, coal mines and a carnival.In the late 1800s, Lake Whatcom emerged as both the key to the growth of Bellingham, Washington, and a thriving weekend playground. From steamboats plying the lake, transporting both goods and passengers, anglers seeking what was touted as the “finest trout fishing in the world,” the lake became central in the daily lives of local residents. Rail and trolley lines constructed along the shoreline supported the timber and coal mining industries and a popular amusement park drew crowds of adventure seekers. Join author H. Leon Greene as he explores the development of Lake Whatcom and how it shaped life in the region today.

A magnificent landscape of rugged peaks, impenetrable rainforest and wild coastlines, Washington’s Olympic Peninsula makes a perfect setting for the unexpected.Dive into the stories of pioneers who created wealth and celebrity out of threadbare beginnings and immigrants who found fleeting success in Port Townsend. Discover the unsavory methods of land-grabber Daniel Pullen, who became indirectly responsible for the creation of the Quileute Reservation, and the rumrunning escapades of Claude Alexander Conlin, magician and con man.Author Carol Turner shares tales of daring and desperation amid the remote towns and beautiful scenery of the Olympic Peninsula.

The untold story of the Bolsa Chica Gun Club, one of Southern California’s most important power centers.Before the rise of Huntington Beach, the Bolsa Chica Gun Club stood as a captivating testament to power and ambition. Influential figures like Jared Sidney Torrance and Henry Huntington were members of this exclusive haven where businessmen, politicians, and even stars of early Hollywood gathered to relax and socialize. Once rapid development and the discovery of oil began encroaching on the club lands, it slowly faded into memory, but its influence remains.Join author Chris Epting as he explores the remarkable and sometimes controversial events that unfolded on the club’s hallowed grounds.

Desire, Deceit and DebaucheryTombstone was a wild place during Arizona’s territorial era, with violence and criminal activity running rampant. It wasn’t just the Earp brothers’ iconic gunfight at the O.K. Corral that left behind a trail of death and destruction—lawlessness and vigilante justice reigned throughout the Old West era. Driven by tension between the sheriff’s office and the local Deputy Marshal, daily life for infamous outlaws, corrupt civil servants, and even ordinary customers of the saloons and brothels was apt to devolve into chaos at any moment.Join author Cody Polston as he brings to life the characters who walked the dusty streets and left their mark on Tombstone's bloody past.

Authors Rory O'Neill Schmitt and Rosary O'Neill share the NOLA life of Kate Chopin, the first great American woman novelist. In this epic story, Chopin becomes a Phoenix rising amidst the disgrace, death, and abandonment in the romantic desperate setting of post-Civil War Louisiana. This book, a follow up to Edgar Degas in New Orleans, presents Chopin, who lived in the same neighborhood as the Degas family during that time. Chopin celebrated in New Orleans’ great homes and mansions up River Road with their wonderland of oaks, columns, balconies. She had lived in the Garden District, watched New Orleans trolleys with their big windows roll past the Gothic mansions and Greco-Roman houses on St. Charles Avenue, strolled languidly through Audubon Park with its oak tree wonderland full of swamps and lush Louisiana foliage.

In the history of Cleveland television, there is no more formidable pioneer than Betty Cope .

From her entry-level position as a receptionist at WEWS in 1947, Cope rose up the ranks to become the producer of some of the area’s most memorable early local programs. Together with a group of concerned citizens, she founded Cleveland’s educational television station, WVIZ, in 1965.

Under her management, Channel 25 became one of the nation’s largest producers of instructional classroom programming. Throughout Cope’s twenty-seven-year tenure, WVIZ maintained high-quality programming standards, and she kept her station financially sound largely through the funds raised from the popular annual televised Auction. After TV, she embarked on a new career as an advocate of land conservation and park preservation./

Compiling original interviews and never-before-seen photos, author Christine Martuch tells story of one of Northeast Ohio’s most remarkable women.

Mysterious lights, mystical vortexes and the Mogollon Monster.

Go beyond the beautiful vistas and desert landscapes and discover a new, stranger side of Arizona. From the legendary cryptid that stalks the Grand Canyon to a purported alien abduction that inspired a feature film, strange happenings and weird occurrences have been recorded in every corner of the state. Join author Patrick Whitehurst as he explores tales of the odd and unexplained. 

Men of ValorIn the late 1800s, the new state of Washington promised peace and prosperity to new settlers. At least thirty-three African American men who had served during the Civil War answered the call. Paul Barrows, a former legislator from Mississippi, established the Calvary Baptist Church of Spokane. Gideon H. Stump Bailey became the first African American Justice of the Peace in Franklin. Allin Alfred Hawkins, born into slavery, became one of the wealthiest African American farmers in the Yakima Valley.Author Cynthia A. Wilson uncovers the stories of these courageous men.

Stories from an Icon of the Oregon Trail

In 1852, Ezra Meeker, his wife, and baby traveled along the Oregon Trail by ox-cart from Iowa to Oregon. In 1906, he reversed his steps and went back to Iowa, and spent most of his ninety-eight years on earth traversing the route, promoting the Oregon Trail and founding the Oregon Trail Association. Published in 1822, his memoir Ox-Team Days remains a captivating account of his days along the trail and the harrowing adventures of a life devoted to its preservation. 

Notable Quotations from President Ronald Reagan

Includes around 100 quotations about freedom, faith, war, government, politics and more from America's 40th president, whose words have inspired many. This elegant hardback features a classic portrait of the Great Communicator on the front cover with his signature printed below in gold foil.

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction." - Ronald Reagan

First published in 1920, this is one of the first and best books on the art of animation. Edward Lutz's classic contains many shortcuts to the process of film animation.

These shortscuts were a trademark of Lutz's teaching. This book offers tips on drawing anatomy and motion and gives detailed instructions on how animated pictures are made and work. Walt Disney used an original copy of this book, relying heavily on its advice and teaching. This is both a valuable guide to animation and an extremely collectible classic.

Manabi Hirasaki was a Depression era boy, Japanese American World War II veteran, savvy entrepreneur, and a generous philanthropist before his death in 2012 at the age of 89. The son of a successful Gilroy, California farmer, Hirasaki vividly recounts his enduring relationship with the world of commercially grown strawberries and his rise to become the first non-family member to lead the board of Driscoll Strawberry Associates, the world’s largest commercial strawberry distributor. A pioneer in the cultivation of the long-stem strawberry, Hirasaki’s autobiography reveals the trials and triumphs of being a Japanese American during World War II, and the post-war boom of California’s agriculture industry. This memoir, written with editor Naomi Hirahara, is a vital history of a life devoted to the American ideals of equality, entrepreneurship, and community.

Follow your faith each day alongside Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln carried in his pocket a spiritual book of days titled A Believer’s Daily Treasure, which was originally published in the mid-1800s. There is speculation that the devotional may have been given to Lincoln by his wife Mary. Applewood’s 2015 edition of the book includes an introduction by Carl Sandburg, which was first published in a 1957 edition. Elegantly stamped in a hardback edition, this title is perfect for any person of faith, Lincoln lover or history buff.

Hemingway's Iconic Guide to Camping

In this piece from 1920—originally published as a newspaper article in the Toronto Daily Star—a young Ernest Hemingway provides solid advice to the novice camper. In his typically succinct style, Hemingway gives tips on bug avoidance, bed preparation, and offers expert outdoor cooking instructions. Any city man enjoying an open-air vacation who follows Hemingway’s advice “ought to be able to sleep comfortably every night, to eat well every day and to return to the city rested and in good condition.” This short work is part of Applewood’s “American Roots,” series, tactile mementos of American passions by some of America’s most famous writers.

The Inner Life of the Gilded Age’s Court Jester

Harry Symes Lehr was born in 1869 into a family that was neither wealthy nor socially prominent. His natural gift for entertaining and his penchant for hobnobbing with the very rich earned him entry to the powerful circle of New York and Newport social elite during the Gilded Age. Lehr hosted lavish and themed parties that captivated the social scene who dubbed him “King Lehr.” One of his admirers and patrons, Mrs. Stuyvesant Fish, introduced him to the young widow Elizabeth Wharton Drexel. Drexel was smitten with young Harry, his elegant dress, and outrageous behavior. Soon they married. 

But King Lehr had a secret. On their wedding night he cruelly dictated to his new wife that they would not live in a happy marriage nor would it be consummated. For twenty-three years Elizabeth lived in a loveless and abusive marriage. After Harry’s death, Elizabeth remarried a baron and as Lady Decies, wrote down her secret story in 1938. Incorporating Harry’s most intimate diaries, Lady Decies reveals a scandalous tale of power, desire, and deception. 

Quotes from the Trust Buster, Big Game Hunter, War Hero and Iconic President of the United States

This elegant pocket-sized hardcover gift book, part of Applewood's Quotations of Great Americans series, contains nearly one hundred quotes from President, environmentalist, father of the American Navy, builder of the Panama Canal, Nobel Prize winner, Teddy Roosevelt.

Track Your Own Personal Growth Using Benjamin Franklin’s Book of Virtues

This companion paperback to Applewood’s edition of Benjamin Franklin’s Book of Virtues offers a journal to record your own efforts in becoming a better and more virtuous person using a rubric crafted by America’s beloved Founding Father, Benjamin Franklin. 

John Singer Sargent was an American painter whop spent little time in the US. He grew up in a privileged, somewhat nomadic family living in Italy and the France. Exposure to European art from an early age guided his exquisite paintings that captured both everyday life and portraits with drama and elegance. The Short Bio series from Applewood Books features short, intriguing, and entertaining biographies of world-renowned figures. These hardback gems will become souvenirs of a favorite artist or a memorable trip to a museum. 

Notable Quotations from Lyndon B. Johnson 

This pocket-sized hardcover book, elegantly stamped with Johnson’s signature on the cover, contains dozens of quotations from America’s 36th President, Lyndon Baines Johnson. 

“Until justice is blind to color, until all education is unaware of race, until opportunity is unconcerned with the color of men’s skins, emancipation will be a proclamation, but emancipation will not be a fact.” -Lyndon B. Johnson, remarks at Gettysburg, May 30, 1963

This little collection of over 100 inspirational and motivational quotations from famous Americans is separated into two parts. The first is the Quote section in which there are the most poignant quotes on vision; the second is the Unquote section, in which the more humorous side of vision is revealed. Beautifully produced in a hardcover, with two color printing, these little gems are destined to find an honored place in every shop and home.

Essential Quotations from an Iconic Founding Father

This elegantly stamped gift edition hardback contains nearly one hundred quotations from one of America’s most important Founding Fathers, Alexander Hamilton. A senior aide to General Washington during the Revolutionary War, Hamilton founding the Bank of New York, was a major contributor to the Federalist Papers, and was the country’s first Secretary of the Treasury. Famous for fatally losing a duel with Aaron Burr in 1804, and most recently the subject of a hit Broadway musical, Hamilton’s ideas and words remain deeply influential today.

Olaus and Mardy Murie dedicated their lives to each other and to the environment with a shared passion for preserving wildlife and the natural world.

Their important work in Alaska and Wyoming continues today. Theirs is an inspirational love story – for each other and for the world they lived in. The Short Biographies series from Applewood’s Benna Books imprint features short, intriguing, and entertaining biographies of world-renowned figures. Each beautiful hardcover book includes an interesting retelling of a single person's life, suitable for young adults and adults alike. These little gems will become beloved souvenirs of a favorite artist or a memorable trip to a museum.

Pierre-Auguste Renoir filled his paintings with light and beauty. Unlike his contemporaries, plain-air painters of landscapers, he filled his canvases with human movement: the swish of a silk; the crackle of crinoline. The Short Biographies series from Applewood Books features short, intriguing, and entertaining biographies of world-renowned figures. These hardcover gems are beloved souvenirs of a favorite artist or a memorable trip to a museum. 

Wit and Wisdom from an Icon of of the American Twentieth Century

This elegantly stamped gift edition hardcover contains nearly one hundred quotations on hope, humanitarianism, and more from First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.

“People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built.”

⁃Eleanor Roosevelt, My Day, Eastport, Maine, August 1, 1941

Ride along with Paul Revere in this elegant hardback edition of Revere’s own account of his heroic ride as well as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poetic retelling, proudly printed in America.

This hardback gift edition includes the 1860 Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem, Paul Revere’s Ride, as well as Paul Revere’s own account of the events. The famous midnight ride of April 18-19, 1775 raised the alarm among Massachusetts patriots that the British were on the move from Boston to Concord. Twenty years afterword, Revere wrote a letter telling the true account of his historic ride. Eighty-five years after the event, the ride and Revere were immortalized by Longfellow in his famous, if not completely accurate, dramatic poem.

Lincoln’s Call for Freedom, in an Elegant Gift Edition, Proudly Printed in America

This hardcover edition contains President Abraham Lincoln’s landmark January 1, 1863 executive order, the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared the freedom of over three million of the nation’s slaves. Including the draft, preliminary, and final versions of the text, this lovely version is a perfect gift for any reader.

Timeless Rules of Civility and Decency from America’s Founding Father 

Copied out by hand as a young man, George Washington’s 110 rules of civility and decency in company and conversation were based on rules composed by French Jesuits in 1595 and later first published in English in 1640. Washington wrote out simplified versions of these rules as a personal guide to live by, and kept them by his side throughout his incredible life. Subjects include self-respect, how to dress in public, how to address one’s superiors, eating, walking, respect for others, and many more details of etiquette. As comity continues to face societal challenges, Washington’s rules remain essential for keeping the American republic decent and civil. 

The First American Book on Personal Finance

The Way to Wealth by Benjamin Franklin is still the best and wisest book on money and wealth ever written. Originally published in 1758 as the preface to Poor Richard's Almanack, this little gem has been through innumerable printings and sold millions of copies to those in search of smart but entertaining advice about hard work, earning and saving money, and debt.

This leather bound limited edition contains the complete text of the United States Constitution, including all of its amendments, and features short biographies and commissioned line portraits of each of the signers.

The landmark legal documents of the United States, the U.S. Constitution comprises the primary law of the Federal Government. Signed by the members of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia on September 17, 1787, the Constitution outlines the powers and responsibilities of the three chief branches of the Federal Government, as well as the basic rights of the citizens of the United States. 

Chronicles the life of Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), a New-England born American novelist and short story writer, best known as the author of The Scarlet Letter.

The Short Biographies Series from Applewood Books are intriguing and entertaining short biographies that tell the details, insights and stories of renowned lives.

Washington’s Iconic Final Message to America in an Elegant Gift Edition 

On September 17, 1796, George Washington announced that he would leave the presidency. His famous farewell address encapsulates a view of the Union, the Constitution, and good citizenship that remains an important part of American political thought today. 

Teddy Roosevelt's Historic Guide to Living Life to the Fullest

In 1899 Theodore Roosevelt was Governor of New York and gave a stirring speech on his philosophy of living a most productive life. Based on his own experiences, Roosevelt defined the American ethos of overcoming hardship and hard work in a compelling speech only Teddy could produce. Part of Applewood's "Books of American Wisdom" series, this elegant hardback is a perfect gift for any occasion.

Wealth Secrets from the Greatest Showman

After a wonderful career in which he made and lost fortunes, captivated Kings and Queens, and used his genius, wit and eloquence to entertain millions, P.T. Barnum wrote golden rules for making money. Published in 1880, the Greatest Showman’s The Art of Money Getting reveals his secrets for accumulating vast sums of wealth and issues a program anyone can follow to become rich. Join Barnum and discover a historical treasure of America’s unceasing chase for personal wealth. 

One of America's earliest books and one of the most important early Pilgrim tracts to come from American colonies.

This book helped persuade others to come join those who already came to Plymouth. Pilgrim Father Edward Winslow's first-person account of his experiences on the Mayflower voyage and the settling of the Plymouth Colony.

After reaching Philadelphia, Tubman began thinking of her family. "I was a stranger in a strange land," she said later. "My father, my mother, my brothers, and sisters, and friends were in Maryland. But I was free, and they should be free."

Harriet Tubman was a fugitive slave whose work as a conductor on the Underground Railroad made her a legend. Born in Dorchester County, Maryland, Tubman escaped from slavery in 1849 and supported herself by working in Philadelphia hotels before relocating to Canada and, later, New York. Tubman first returned to Maryland in 1850, when she helped a niece escape from Baltimore, and over the next ten years, she frequently risked her life to liberate family members and other slaves in the area. During the Civil War, Tubman worked as a nurse and a spy for the Union army in South Carolina, where she was known as General Tubman. After the war, Tubman returned to Auburn, New York, where she spoke at women's suffrage meetings with other prominent figures such as Susan B. Anthony. This book is a testament of Harriet Tubman’s bravery and triumph in the face of overwhelming danger!

Harrowing Accounts of the Civil War from the Beloved Author of Little Women

When the Civil War broke out in 1861 Louisa May Alcott was disappointed that she was not able to join the men of her town in battle, and she began to volunteer to provide supplies for the war effort. On her 30th birthday, the age required at the time to become an Army nurse, Alcott became a nurse and was assigned to Union Hotel Hospital in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. While serving, she wrote several letters to her family back in Concord describing the difficult conditions and life healing the wounded. Alcott altered the letters slightly, fictionalized them, and published them to wide acclaim. The sketches lifted Alcott into the national discourse and her fame solidified a few years later with the publication of her timeless novel Little Women. Discover harrowing first hand experiences of war within the early writings of an icon of American literature.

"Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country" —John F. Kennedy

This pocket sized hardcover book contains nearly one hundred quotations from one of America's best-loved presidents, John F. Kennedy. War hero, politician, and 35th President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy embodied the hopes and dreams of an age.