Your Next Great Read

In just over a decade, a tiny, do-it-yourself stand-up scene on the North Side of Chicago produced some of the most successful and influential stand-up comedians of their generation. Hannibal Buress, T.J. Miller, Kyle Kinane, Cameron Esposito, Pete Holmes, Beth Stelling, Matt Braunger and Kumail Nanjiani make up a partial list of names of comics who emerged from a scene that had very little industry attention--or even a home club.

It was also a scene that took a backseat to the city's vaunted improv institution, and if we're being completely honest, it was a scene where comics mostly performed to drunks in the backs of dingy bars on their off nights. None of it was glamorous. None of it should have worked at all. But somehow, some way, the comedians from this scene have managed to etch their own names into the Chicago comedy pantheon. The Perfect Amount of Wrong is the story of that scene, as told by its veterans.

Charleston Like It's Never Been Seen

Hand-colored, vivid details bring these historic photographs to life like never before. Witness the beginnings of the sweetgrass basket tradition. See the bleak devastation on Meeting Street after the Civil War. Note intense contrast in blues and grays of prisoners captured at the Battle of Bull Run. Explore the Battery as it looked in the 1800s. And dazzle in the bright fashions of flappers at the dawn of "the Charleston" dance craze. Author Mark Jones and artist Lewis Hayes bring a new vision to Holy City history.

Since William Penn presided over the state's only official witch trial in 1684, witchcraft and folk magic have been a part of the history of the Keystone State.

English and German settlers brought their beliefs in magic with them from the Old World--sometimes with dangerous consequences. In 1802, an Allegheny County judge helped an accused witch escape an angry mob. Susan Mummey was not so fortunate. In 1934, she was shot and killed in her home by a young Schuylkill County man who was convinced that she had cursed him. In other regions of the state, views on folk magic were more complex. While hex doctors were feared in the Pennsylvania German tradition, powwowers were and are revered for their abilities to heal, lift curses and find lost objects. Folklorist Thomas White traces the history and lore of witchcraft and the occult that quietly live on in Pennsylvania even today.

In 1717, the Council of Trade and Plantations received "agreeable news" from New England. "Bellamy with his ship and Company" had perished on the shoals of Cape Cod. Who was this Bellamy and why did his demise please the government?

Born Samuel Bellamy circa 1689, he was a pirate who operated off the coast of New England and throughout the Caribbean. Later known as "Black Sam," or the "Prince of Pirates," Bellamy became one of the wealthiest pirates in the Atlantic world before his untimely death. For the next two centuries, Bellamy faded into obscurity until, in 1984, he became newsworthy again with the discovery of his wrecked pirate ship.

Historian Jamie L.H. Goodall unveils the tragic life of Bellamy and the complex relationship between piracy and the colonial New England coast.

On the first of September 1785, with night coming on and the weather deteriorating, the crew of the ship Faithful Steward sailed toward Delaware's notorious False Cape. In the summer of 1785, a group of Irish migrants took to the Atlantic to escape the abuse and persecution of the ruling classes at home. They sought a new life in the United States, a place "where the banner of freedom waved proudly" and "every good was possessed." Their ship was new and sturdy, and its captain had a good reputation. On this voyage, however, it was overloaded with migrant families and a massive cargo of counterfeit coins. By the first of September the ship was lost, somewhere off the mid-Atlantic coast. Michael Timothy Dougherty tells the story of the wreck and the people on board.

From ghost towns to circus performers to mass hysteria, the Bluegrass State is no stranger to the strange. Read stories of famed President Abraham Lincoln you've never heard before. Find possible solutions to the mystery of Pearl Bryan's missing head and decipher the outrageous hoaxes involving an unsolvable puzzle and monkeys trained to perform farm work. Learn about the time when the author wrote to Charles Manson as a joke and Manson wrote back--four times. Join author Keven McQueen as he recounts some of the weirder vignettes from Kentucky lore.

The Eerie and Ominous in Kentucky

Kentucky is no stranger to strange occurrences. From weird encounters with the Grim Reaper to local graveyard dogs, the Bluegrass State has its share of odd stories. Learn about local ghosts who've haunted areas for years. Encounter body snatchers and some very odd modes of death. Go on the hunt for Daniel Boone's bones and witness the marvelous twisting tombstone. Witness the people who uncannily predicted their own death. Author Keven McQueen details these creepy stories and more.

On November 28, 1942, fire roared through Boston's famed Cocoanut Grove nightclub during what was supposed to be a high-spirited Saturday night. By midnight, more than five hundred people were dead, dying or maimed for life. Local author Stephanie Schorow probes the club's history, the circumstances leading to the fire and the tragedy's lingering impact. The inferno reached deep into the city's social structure--its politics, medical care and legal system--and touched nearly everyone in the Boston area, even those who had never set foot in the club. In this newly updated and revised edition, Schorow has added new photographs, interviews and insights into the worst nightclub fire in American history.

George Bird Grinnell was a prolific writer and record-keeper. After a long day's hunt or exploration, he diligently made time in camp for meticulous journal entries. With his small group of explorers, he discovered and named forty geological features east of the Continental Divide and west of the Blackfeet Reservation. As a result, he wrote a series of articles about his trips from 1885 to 1898 for publication in Forest and Stream. In 1891, he began advocating to protect the area as a national park and led that charge for nearly two decades until successful. His discoveries, publications and leadership led to the creation of Glacier National Park. Cousin Hugh Grinnell compiles first-person narratives from unpublished journal entries, personal correspondence and dozens of articles to tell the early story of Glacier.

Cursed awards, haunted estates, and deadly sets.

Hollywood is supposed to be the place where dreams come true, but it's also where nightmares come to life. Spirits haunt the halls of renowned studios, legendary cafes, and lavish estates, while rumors of curses lurk in the shadows of the rich and famous. It's said that stars like James Dean, Carrie Fisher, and Prince once predicted their own deaths, while slain screenwriter Paul Bern tried in vain to warn Sharon Tate about her own fate. Ghosts reportedly linger in the corners of the El Coyote Café and the Falcon Lair boasts sightings of Rudolph Valentino long after his death.

Join author and paranormal historian Brian Clune for a star-studded tour of the dark side of Hollywood.

The Call of Service and the Trial of War From abolitionists to copperheads, from patriotic volunteer soldiers to deserters, the Pennsylvania Wilds lived up to its adventurous name during the Civil War era. The region not only joined the front lines, but also played its part in the abolition of slavery. Including an extensive Underground Railroad system, many defied the Federal Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 to help those desperate to be free pass through the region on their way to Canada. The Wilds had average citizens and heroes alike volunteer for service including women who were not nurses but acted as nurses and those who remained on the home-front. Author Kathy Meyers presents stories of how the war came to the Pennsylvania Wilds and how the people of the Wilds responded.