New York Times–Bestselling Author: This biography of the man who inspired the world’s fastest-growing religion “paints a portrait of a very human prophet” (The Wall Street Journal).Muhammad presents a fascinating portrait of the founder of a religion that continues to change the course of world history. Muhammad’s story is more relevant than ever, because it offers crucial insight into the true origins of an increasingly radicalized Islam. Countering those who dismiss Islam as fanatical and violent, Karen Armstrong, author of Islam and A History of God, offers a clear, accessible, and balanced portrait of the central figure of one of the world’s great religions.“A good glimpse of how the vast majority of the world’s Muslims understand their prophet.” —The New York Times“Respectful, knowledgeable, and, above all, readable. It succeeds because [Armstrong] brings Muhammad to life as a fully rounded human being.” —The Economist

The “striking” holocaust memoir that that inspired the Oscar-winning film “conveys with exceptional immediacy . . . the author’s desperate fight for survival” (Kirkus Reviews).On September 23, 1939, Wladyslaw Szpilman played Chopin’s Nocturne in C-sharp minor live on the radio as shells exploded outside—so loudly that he couldn’t hear his piano. It was the last live music broadcast from Warsaw: That day, a German bomb hit the station, and Polish Radio went off the air.Though he lost his entire family, Szpilman survived in hiding. In the end, his life was saved by a German officer who heard him play the same Chopin Nocturne on a piano found among the rubble. Written immediately after the war and suppressed for decades, The Pianist is a stunning testament to human endurance and the redemptive power of fellow feeling.“Szpilman’s memoir of life in the Warsaw ghetto is remarkable not only for the heroism of its protagonists but for the author’s lack of bitterness, even optimism, in recounting the events.” —Library Journal“Employing language that has more in common with the understatement of Primo Levi than with the moral urgency of Elie Wiesel, Szpilman is a remarkably lucid observer and chronicler of how, while his family perished, he survived thanks to a combination of resourcefulness and chance.” —Publishers Weekly“[Szpilman’s] account is hair-raising beyond anything Hollywood could invent . . . an altogether unforgettable book.” —The Daily Telegraph“[Szpilman’s] shock and ensuing numbness become ours, so that acts of ordinary kindness or humanity take on an aura of miracle.” —The Observer

From the beloved Python and New York Times-bestselling author, an “insightful and enjoyable” memoir/travelogue from his money-grubbing tour (The AV Club).A stunningly witty exploration of the American landscape—not to mention a brilliant comic’s mind—this diary is chock-full of everything you ever wanted to know about Eric Idle, Monty Python, the United States, and sleeping on a bus. In these pages, the sixth-nicest Python is cheeky, touching, and funny as he travels the highways and byways and takes us backstage at the Broadway smash Spamalot.Fascinating, moving, at times even amusing, this book may dramatically improve your sex life, make you feel intelligent and charming within the first several pages, and after a few chapters, permanently eliminate all your personal or health problems. So come experience eighty days, 15,750 miles, and forty-nine cities as you never have before!“Taking readers from Vermont to Vegas as he attempts standup for the first time, and writing with wit and honesty, Idle mixes memoir and tales from his tour bus [and] offers a Pythonesque pastiche of goofy observations as he analyzes audiences, dissects his nightly performances and recalls showbiz friendships.” —Publishers Weekly“Idle is warm and witty . . . reminiscing about the Pythons’ glory days, meditating on the aesthetics of comedy (his philosophy of comedy is fascinating and elaborate), and recounting many odd happenings on the road.” —Booklist“Talking about the Pythons’ casual cruelty to each other, or the difficulty of living up to a decades-old reputation, Idle is hilarious . . . his diary touches on topics as diverse as his first meeting with his wife, his long friendship with George Harrison, and his mother’s death, and his stories are both revealing and touching.” —The AV Club