“The Big One is to competitive fishing what Friday Night Lights was to high school football.” —News & Record (Greensboro) A Forbes Best Sports Book of the Year Published to rave reviews in hardcover and purchased by DreamWorks in a major film deal, The Big One is a spellbinding and richly atmospheric work by a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist. Here is the story of a community—Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts—and a sporting event—the island’s legendary Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby—that is rendered with the same depth, color, and emotional power of the best fiction. Among the characters, we meet: Dick Hathaway, a crotchety legend who once caught a bluefish from a helicopter and was ultimately banned for cheating; Janet Messineo, a recovering alcoholic who says that striped bass saved her life; Buddy Vanderhoop, a boastful Native American charter captain who guides celebrity anglers like Keith Richards and Spike Lee; and Wyatt Jenkinson, a nine-year-old fishing fanatic whose mother is battling brain cancer. At the center of it all is five-time winner Lev Wlodyka, a cagey local whose next fish will spark a storm of controversy and throw the tournament into turmoil. “The Big One is a rollicking true story of a grand American obsession. You don’t have to be a fisherman to relish David Kinney’s marvelous account of the annual striper madness on Martha’s Vineyard, or his unforgettable portraits of the possessed. It’s a fine piece of journalism, rich with color and suspense.” —Carl Hiaasen, New York Times–bestselling author

Twelve-year-old Eddie has always lived for fishing trips with his grandfather, idyllic day-long floats on the sweet waters of their home river. But now Gramps, the charismatic owner of a local sporting goods store, has himself been hooked by dementia: he's obsessed with catching the biggest fish in the river, and he's scaring everyone in Eddie's life half to death. This earthquake spawns numerous aftershocks, some comic: the unfortunate incident of the deceased carp; how it comes about that Eddie's dad throws up at his mom's wedding. And some dark: the climactic 60-mile river journey--one voyager perhaps mad, the other perhaps kidnapped--launches deep in the night, carrying Eddie and his grandfather inexorably to a final, fateful encounter with the Big One.

In just eight days, every secret you've ever kept could be laid bare for the world to see. This is the chilling promise made by the shadowy group known as ‘The Horrible Siliconettes.’ Enter Flake, a prominent data-dystopian YouTuber and social media critic known for his prank videos. Now, he’s the NSA’s top suspect, accused of orchestrating what they deem a terrorist act. But to Flake, it’s a wake-up call for society. As the world grapples with the looming threat, Flake finds himself drawn to Leeza, a bright-eyed Silicon Valley insider who believes in the power of social media to do good. Their budding romance is set against the backdrop of a society on the brink of chaos. Together, they ignite a viral social media campaign challenging Big Tech’s ethics, drawing both admiration and adversaries. As users abandon social media platforms and stock markets waver, the impending data dump – dubbed ‘The Big One’ in Silicon Valley circles – threatens to dismantle lives, topple corporate giants, and even destabilize governments. Amidst this whirlwind, Flake and Leeza’s relationship is put to a test as they get pulled into a web of corporate intrigue and political machinations. As the stakes rise, they quickly realize they’re in over their heads, facing dire consequences. “Just because you are paranoid don’t mean they’re not after you,” Kurt Cobain screamed at us in ‘Territorial Pissings’. In a world where secrets are currency, how much are you willing to pay?

Charley Maplewood has never been one for parties? that would require friends, which he doesn?t have. But now that he?s turning ten?the big oneoh? he decides to throw a birthday party for himself. Of course things don?t work out as he plans. In trying to make friends, he ends up inviting the class bully, and that?s before he ruins the cake and sets the garage on fire. Will Charley be able to pull it together before the big one-oh . . . becomes the big OH-NO?

It is Summer, 1947. Europe is being torn apart by a war nobody can win. Nazi Germany occupies everything from the Pyranees to the Volga. In the East, American and Russian troops fight side-by-side to hold the Germans back. in the West, the U.S. Navy owns the Atlantic and uses its aircraft carriers to hurl fleets of fighter-bombers against any targets they can find, Nothing can stop the madness except the one last card America has left to play. A fleet of the largest bombers the world has ever seen and a terrifying new weapon to arm them.

World War II was truly the largest and greatest conflict in US history. This book presents a collection of diary entries, letters, photographs, and other documents from that era.