Who I Am
by Pete Townshend (Harper)
Scrounging around for band names in early 1964, Townshend suggested the Hair. Of his signature guitar smashing, he reveals the first time was an accident and it got a great reaction, so he kept doing it. He also goes into detail about the Who’s great songs and albums (he got some of the “deaf, dumb and blind kid” “Pinball Wizard ideas from a Mose Allison song); admits he has a thing for Mick Jagger; talks about his first acid trip (in a plane); and writes how Keith Moon was going to make a James Bond-like comedy not unlike the later Austin Powers flicks. And when Moon died, Phil Collins offered to take his place.
Tower
An Epic History of the Tower of London
by Nigel Jones (St. Martin’s)
Built by William the Conqueror starting in 1078, the goings-on over the centuries in the Tower of London offer a grisly testament of British history. Historian and journalist Jones gives us visceral telling of tales from the tower, which has been used as a palace, the Royal Mint, home to the Crown Jewels, a prison, execution site and even a zoo. Those who lost their heads here include Henry VIII wives Anne Boleyn, who tipped her executioner, and Katherine Howard, who practiced placing her head on the chopping block before her beheading. More recently, Nazi bigwig Rudolf Hess spent some time in the tower.
Marvel Comics
The Untold Story
by Sean Howe (HarperCollins)
In this unauthorized history, Howe traces the history of the once counter-culture company that was acquired by Disney a few years ago for $4 billion. Along the way, he delves into office politics, creative clashes among talent and the company’s early failures in Hollywood. Four-color godfather Stan Lee takes a beating, often coming off as a huckster who steals credit for creations, including Spider-Man, from his more talented collaborators. Written crisply with lots of original reporting, this one’s a must for any superhero or pop-culture fan.
Silent House
by Orhan Pamuk (Knopf)
Pulitzer Prize-winning Turkish author Pamuk’s second novel — from 1980 — has never been translated to English until now. It’s the story of a family gathering in Cennethisar, a sleepy seaside village-turned-resort where 90-year-old widow Fatma still lives in her crumbling mansion with her faithful dwarf servant, her late doctor husband’s illegitimate son. All this on the eve of a 1980 military coup.
The Man Who Saved the Union
Ulysses Grant in War and Peace
by H.W Brands (Doubleday)
Grant is much more than just the face on the $50 bill. And Brand, who previously wrote books on Benjamin Franklin and Franklin Roosevelt, reminds us how Grant saved America twice. His leadership in the field won the Civil War. And his presidency, after the disastrous Andrew Johnson administration, set the country back on track. Grant, he points out, was the last president for nearly 100 years, who defended the civil rights of black Americans.