I An urgent primer on what can be done to combat emerging threats to the core of U.S. democracy-presidential elections. "Hirsch does a very good job of offering historical context to illuminate the present-and the terrifying future. His imaginative proposals are probably too sensible to be implemented in an age of parochial partisanship."-David Shipler, former reporter for the New York Times and Pulitzer Prize winner In 2000, we learned that an exceptionally...

"St. Peter's Square, Rome. White smoke signals that a new Pope has been chosen. Is it possible that the new Pope is a woman? The world is watching as historic crowds gather in Rome, waiting for news of a new Pope, one who promises to be unlike any other in the Church's history. Some followers are ecstatic, but the leading candidate has made a legion of powerful enemies. From a difficult childhood with drug addled parents, to a career as a doctor on...

President Will Lee is having a rough week. There are some loose nukes in Pakistan--and a rogue CIA agent--that might just trigger World War III if Lee's diplomatic efforts fall short. It's up to Holly Barker, Lance Cabot, and a few other Stuart Woods series regulars to save the world--and the upcoming election.

Meehan, a career thief staring at life without parole, is awaiting sentencing at the Manhattan Correctional Center when he is called to a meeting by someone masquerading as his lawyer. The man, it turns out, represents the presidential re-election campaign committee -- now finding itself in need of a little professional help. So they "outsource" Meehan in return for a walk from all pending criminal charges. All he has to do is steal a compromising...

Young Henry Burton gets an education in modern American presidential politics when he becomes an aide in the campaign of Jack Stanton, governor of a small southern state, for our nation's highest office.

"The author of the Pulitzer finalist The Right to Vote explains the enduring problem of an controversial institution: the Electoral College. Every four years, millions of Americans wonder why they choose their presidents through the Electoral College, an arcane institution that permits the loser of the popular vote to become president and narrows campaigns to swing states. Most Americans would prefer a national popular vote, and Congress has attempted...

"Co-Winner of the 2013 Chadwick F. Alger Prize, International Studies Association" "One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2013" Judith G. Kelley is associate professor of public policy and political science at Duke University. She is the author of Ethnic Politics in Europe: The Power of Norms and Incentives (Princeton). In recent decades, governments and NGOs--in an effort to promote democracy, freedom, fairness, and stability throughout...

"The President's vampire, Nathaniel Cade, and his human handler, Zach Barrows, must hunt down an immortal serial killer wreaking havoc on the 2012 campaign trail"--

On November 6, 1860, Abraham Lincoln became the fluky victor in a tight race for president. The country was bitterly at odds; Southern extremists were moving ever closer to destroying the Union, with one state after another seceding and Lincoln powerless to stop them. Slavery fueled the conflict, but somehow the passions of North and South came to focus on a lonely federal fortress in Charleston Harbor: Fort Sumter. Master storyteller Erik Larson...

"A radical spirit of change has overtaken American politics, making once-unthinkable reforms-like abolishing the Electoral College-seem possible. Two of the last five elections were won by candidates who lost the popular vote, calling the integrity of the entire electoral system into question. Political passions are already high, and they will reach a boiling point as we enter the 2020 race. The message from the American people is clear: we need major...