The legend of Teach's Light has been handed down by the people of Stumpy Point village in coastal North Carolina for nearly three centuries. None can say when the mysterious light that hovers above Little Dismal Swamp will next appear, but it is said to guard a store of treasure buried long ago by Edward Teach (c. 1680-1718), better known as the infamous pirate Blackbeard.

One summer evening, teenagers Corky Calhoun and Toby Davis row into the swamp, drawn by the mystery of Teach's Light. But their adventure soon takes a curious turn. Thrown back in time by a sudden explosion, Corky...

The bombing of the Twin Towers in New York City on September 11, 2001, marked a major turning point in modern American culture. Priscilla Walton and Bruce Tucker examine critical moments in the aftermath of 9/11 - the Enron scandal, the trial of Martha Stewart, the capture and rescue of Jessica Lynch, the torture at Abu Ghraib prison, the widespread popularity of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code and Tim LeHaye's "Left Behind" series, Michael Moore's movie Fahrenheit 9/11, and former president Ronald Reagan's funeral. The authors argue that commentators on the American scene abandoned complexity,...