The text of this book represents not a catalogue of names, dates, and statistics of the war between the United States and Mexico but an attempt to tell the story of that conflict and to depict its color, drama, tragedy, and meaning mainly through the use of ten principal characters who participated in the war and who left behind written accounts.
Some men in government during the administration of James K. Polk used a four-word maxim to describe the goal of the United States in the war against Mexico, which resulted from years of bickering and bitterness between the two nations. A...

The hurricane that swept Galveston Island early in September, 1900, occupies a unique place in the reckoning of events of the Texas Gulf coast. Nearly a century after its passing, the storm remains the standard against which the ferocity and destructiveness of all others are measured. Twothirds of Galveston's buildings were washed away at a cost that was never fully calculated. More than 6,000 people were killed. And in the collective memory of a region where depredations by wind and water are accepted as part of life, the weekend of September 8, 1900, is the ultimate example of the terror...

When the U.S.S. battleship "Maine" mysteriously exploded in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898, it set off the Spanish-American War, that "splendid little war" which forever changed the United States' position among nations. "Remember the "Maine" " was the outraged public's call for battle, but here it is a call to remember the seemingly star-crossed ship and the more than 260 young men who perished with it.
Author John Edward Weems tells the story of the ship from beginning to explosive end, with the help of the "Maine"'s survivors, whom he interviewed in 1957. The text of this edition...

Children of all ages will enjoy this colorful, instructive book on Texas history. Told in simple language, the story emphasizes the drama and excitement of the state s history from prehistoric times, when Texas was largely underwater and inhabited by strange creatures, to the modern age of space travel and computers.
The text is amply illustrated by lively sketches and paintings that will make reading about history fun."

Tornadoes are among nature's most destructive and terrifying phenomena. Twisters have left their wake of destruction throughout the United States and the world, and The Tornado describes some of the most bizarre--houseboats sailing through the air; cars flown to a landing half a cornfield away; an entire house lifted and demolished, leaving only a divan and the uninjured family seated on it.
Intermingled with descriptions of tornado encounters the world over and the ominous weather patterns that preceded them is the author's eyewitness account of a funnel that hit Waco, Texas, on May 11,...