Non-Fiction Books
The Bridge at Andau is James A. Michener at his most gripping. His classic nonfiction account of a doomed uprising is as searing and unforgettable as any of his bestselling novels. For five brief, glorious days in the autumn of 1956, the Hungarian revolution gave its people a glimpse at a different kind of future—until, at four o’clock in the morning on a Sunday in November, the citizens of Budapest awoke to the shattering sound of Russian tanks ravaging their streets. The revolution was over. But freedom beckoned in the form of a small footbridge at Andau, on the Austrian border. By an accident of history it became, for a few harrowing weeks, one of the most important crossings in the world, as the soul of a nation fled across its unsteady planks. Praise for The Bridge at Andau “Precise, vivid . . . immeasurably stirring.” — The Atlantic Monthly “Dramatic, chilling, enraging.” — San Francisco Chronicle “Superb.” — Kirkus Reviews “Highly recommended reading.” — Library Journal
In James A. Michener the Japanese print has found its ideal commentator. Combining the finished literary style of an outstanding novelist with a mature knowledge of his subject, he is able to bring this great art form to life in words, directly communicating his understanding, love, and enthusiasm rather than obscuring his subject in pedantry. In fact, it might almost be said that he here lets the prints speak for themselves, in a wealth of magnificent illustrations and apt but unobtrusive commentary. It is only when one has finished the book that he realizes he has been conducted on a tour of three centuries of art, a tour so carefully arranged as to give a deep understanding of the history and aesthetics of Japanese prints, a new appreciation of a superlative art. The book has many other unique features. So far as consonant with his aim of presenting a full survey, Mr. Michener has illustrated the book with lesser-known masterpieces rather than with those few prints that have been reproduced almost ad nauseam. Unlike earlier books, this does not stop with the past century, but brings the subject completely up to date, introducing, in the modern Japanese print, some of the most exciting art being created in Japanand in the worldtoday. The book also becomes a revealing account of the collecting of Japanese prints, with many valuable hints to collectors based upon the author's own experiences in gathering together one of the best print collections of recent years: it is a collecting field in which many hints are needed, with prices varying from $5 to $5,000 per print, and with forgeries and doubtful attributions on every hand.
Compilation of original Japanese woodblock prints surveys recent outstanding achievements in this art form
“Massive, beautiful . . . unquestionably some of the best writing on Spain [and] the best that Mr. Michener has ever done on any subject.”— The Wall Street Journal Spain is an immemorial land like no other, one that James A. Michener, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author and celebrated citizen of the world, came to love as his own. Iberia is Michener’s enduring nonfiction tribute to his cherished second home. In the fresh and vivid prose that is his trademark, he not only reveals the celebrated history of bullfighters and warrior kings, painters and processions, cathedrals and olive orchards, he also shares the intimate, often hidden country he came to know, where the congeniality of living souls is thrust against the dark weight of history. Wild, contradictory, passionately beautiful, this is Spain as experienced by a master writer.
In this eye-opening nonfiction account, world-renowned author James A. Michener details the reckless gamble U.S. voters make every four years: trusting the electoral college. In 1968, Michener served as a presidential elector in Pennsylvania. What he witnessed that fall disturbed him so much that he felt compelled to expose the very real potential in this system for a grave injustice with history-altering consequences. Incorporating the wide-ranging insight and universal compassion of Michener’s bestselling novels, Presidential Lottery is essential reading for every American concerned about the ever-growing rift between the people and the political process. Praise for Presidential Lottery “Clear, concise, and sensible . . . a thoughtful book on how Americans choose their President.” — The New York Times “An urgent appeal.” — Kirkus Reviews
A probing and dramatic study of the tragic events leading up to the killing of four students by National Guardsmen at Kent State University in the spring of 1970
"A comprehensive, controversial examination of sports as a major force in American life." Los Angeles Times There is a crisis in American sports, and it's getting worse. Drugs, violence, and the corrupting effects of money and fame. Even before these problems made national headlines, master writer James A. Michener was growing concerned about the state of sports in America. Only Michener could tackle a subject so big and leave us amazed and apalled by what we've learned, yet still loving the games we grew up on.
A personal and pictorial view of five regions of the United States includes conversations with residents of each region on present-day social, economic, political, and cultural events and trends
Provides a close-up look at modern Havana thirty years after the Revolution, showing its neighborhoods, plantations, and people
Elaborating on his two-week trip to Poland and Rome in 1988, the author discusses his meeting with the Pope, the Polish Prime Minister, Lech Walesa, and a Jewish immigrant who revealed how contraband copies of "The Source" inspired his Russian community
In this autobiography, the best-selling novelist James A. Michener introduces us to the people, events and ideas that have shaped his life. He describes the many strands of his experience - his passion for travel, his love of literature, music and painting, and the nature of the writer's life.
The best-selling novelist recounts the genesis, development, abandonment, and resurrection thirty years later of his novel, Mexico, in a book that includes a previously unpublished novella, The Texas Girls. Reissue.
Pulitzer Prize–winning author James A. Michener has written about everything from the pristine islands of the South Pacific and the endless wilds of Africa to Spanish bullfighters, American revolutionaries, and pirates of the Caribbean. Now Michener turns to his favorite and most personal subject: the written word. Reproducing pages from his own handwritten rough drafts and working manuscripts, Michener walks the reader through a step-by-step guide to the entire process of writing, editing, revising, and publishing. Addressing challenges specific to both fiction and nonfiction, all the while providing thoughtful and useful solutions, James A. Michener’s Writer’s Handbook is an invaluable resource for book lovers, editors, and, of course, writers—aspiring and accomplished alike. Praise for James A. Michener “A master storyteller . . . Michener, by any standards, is a phenomenon.” — The Wall Street Journal “Sentence for sentence, writing’s fastest attention grabber.” — The New York Times “Michener has become an institution in America, ranking somewhere between Disneyland and the Library of Congress. You learn a lot from him.” — Chicago Tribune “While he fascinates and engrosses, Michener also educates.” — Los Angeles Times
Pulitzer Prize-winning author James A. Michener has been writing for over seven decades. This book presents Michener's analysis of his own writing and that of his peers--his reflections, remembrances, and stories of his youthful encounters with the era's notable personages. For any who do not know him, this is their chance to meet this extraordinary man. For his millions of fans, this is the chance to know him better.
A Fantastic and very rare book. This is a stated first edition of a limited issue of 274 numbered (the stated limitation, but the actual number issued was only 148) and 26 lettered and SIGNED copies. This copy is one of only 50 copies that were issued with the lettered issue limitation page but marked as "proof" (instead of a letter), and bound differently, in grayish red cloth, than the regular edition. Published in Huntington Beach, CA by James Cahill in 1995, this copy is signed on the limitation page by the author. The condition is fine (like new), in the slip case, as issued. Ventures in Editing “seeks to accomplish only one thing: to allow the reader to watch how a writer, in this case me, composes a manuscript that says with great accuracy everything I wanted to say at that moment.” To that end, the book presents two articles by Michener, “My Advice to Young America” and “The Writer and His Machine,” each in two different versions: the author’s first draft and the final, edited copy. Though there were to be 274 numbered copies in addition to the lettered copies, only 148 were actually signed; 50 proof copies of the lettered edition were printed in addition to the 26 actual lettered copies.
With his genius for research and his mastery of many cultures, James A. Michener cuts to the heart of the issues that threaten to fragment and undermine America today: racial conflict, the widening gulf between rich and poor, the decline of education, the inadequacies of our health care system. Then he offers a detailed program that will help America sustain what he terms its "outstanding success." Thought-provoking, opinionated, infused with the wisdom and passion of a lifetime, This Noble Land is at once a wake-up call for our troubled times and a blueprint for our future greatness. From the Trade Paperback edition.
Islam represents more than 1.6 billion believers worldwide. Thereby it is the second largest religion behind Christians. But there are many reservations and prejudices with regard to this belief in particular in the western world. Because of that the famous author James A. Michener (1907-1997) wrote the following text already in 1955. Trying to understand the characteristics of Islam is today more topical than ever. This booklet, getting for yourself or giving as a present, is suitable to start in this way, that you will be able to know the origin and nature of Islam.