Deborah Blum

Discover the incredible story of the scandalous women who moved to South Dakota in the late 19th century to divorce their husbands and start fresh. Dubbed "The Divorce Colony," Sioux Falls became the destination for spurned women seeking freedom, thanks to the state's lax divorce laws. This book explores the social, political, and personal dramas that unfolded through the stories of four different women. Entertaining and enlightening, The Divorce Colony offers a deeply researched account of these society divorcees who fought to take their lives into their own hands and sparked a national conversation about marriage and divorce.

Discover the secrets of award-winning science journalists from around the world in A Tactical Guide to Science Journalism. Drawn from major publications like National Geographic, The New Yorker, and The Washington Post, this guide provides practical advice on finding sources, reporting on infectious disease and climate change, and even how to cover science in authoritarian regimes. Learn how to distill complex research subjects for a general audience and build trust with readers through independent journalistic inquiry. Improve your craft and understand the profession at its best with this essential resource.

Explore the fascinating and otherworldly realm of extreme wealth and its insidious effects on society with this compassionate and perversely humorous journey into the American wealth fantasy. Jackpot delves into the social, psychological, and societal downsides of great affluence, asking important questions about wealth's impact on our collective psyche and how it exacerbates economic differences. With deep reporting and interviews with a wide array of fortunate citizens, Jackpot offers a thought-provoking window into the world of the wealthy and the costs of their affluence.

Follow the high-stakes, global race for the lifesaving vaccine to end the pandemic, featuring heroic science, chaotic politics, and billionaire entrepreneurs. Through exclusive access and reporting, award-winning journalist Brendan Borrell vividly portrays the conflicts and rivalries that have shaped 18 months of fear, resolve, and triumph. The First Shots draws on key players in this dramatic vaccine race, including Stéphane Bancel of Moderna Therapeutics, Robert Kadlec of Operation Warp Speed, and infectious disease expert Michael Callahan. This defining story of our times is soon to be the subject of an HBO limited series with Adam McKay as the director and producer.

This true crime book delves into the shocking case of Dr. Thomas Neill Cream, who poisoned at least ten people in the United States, Britain, and Canada over the course of fifteen years. The story is structured around Cream's London murder trial in 1892, when he was finally brought to justice for his heinous crimes. The book explores the blind trust given to medical practitioners and the flawed detection methods, bungled investigations, corrupt officials, and stifling morality of Victorian society that allowed Cream to prey on vulnerable and desperate women. The story is a fascinating look into the birth of modern policing and newly adopted forensic methods, which police departments scoffed at during this time. This book is a must-read for true crime enthusiasts and anyone interested in the history of crime-solving.

Discover a world unseen by human eyes in this stunning, passionate work of activism and resistance. Richard Powers's twelfth novel weaves together interlocking fables spanning centuries and continents, from antebellum New York to the Timber Wars of the Pacific Northwest. Immerse yourself in this breathtaking paean to the natural world and follow the journey of a few individuals who learn to see the invisible forces at play in our world, as they become entangled in a catastrophic unfolding. A New York Times Bestseller.