The Fall of the House of Zeus
Title | The Fall of the House of Zeus PDF eBook |
Author | Curtis Wilkie |
Publisher | Crown |
Pages | 417 |
Release | 2011-09-13 |
Genre | Biography & Autobiography |
ISBN | 0307460711 |
“Masterful . . . an epic tale of backbiting, shady deal-making, and greed [that] reads like a John Grisham novel.”—The Wall Street Journal A real-life legal thriller as timeless as a Greek tragedy, tracing the downfall of one of America’s most famous lawyers and exposing the dark side of Southern politics—from the author of When Evil Lived in Laurel Dickie Scruggs was arguably the most successful plaintiff’s lawyer in America. A brother-in-law of former U.S. Senate majority leader Trent Lott, Scruggs made a fortune taking on mass tort lawsuits against Big Tobacco and the asbestos industries. He was hailed by Newsweek as a latter-day Robin Hood and was portrayed in the movie The Insider as a dapper aviator-lawyer. Scruggs’s legal triumphs rewarded him lavishly, and his success emboldened both his career maneuvering and his influence in Southern politics—but at a terrible cost, culminating in his spectacular fall, when he was convicted for conspiring to bribe a Mississippi state judge. Based on extensive interviews, transcripts, and FBI recordings never made public, The Fall of the House of Zeus uncovers the Washington legal games and power politics: the swirl of fixed cases, blocked investigations, judicial tampering, and a zealous prosecution that would eventually ensnare not only Scruggs but his own son, Zach, in the midst of their struggle with insurance companies over Hurricane Katrina damages. Featuring Trent Lott and Jim Biden, brother of then-Senator Joe Biden, in supporting roles, with cameos by John McCain, Al Gore, and other Washington insiders, Curtis Wilkie’s account of this uniquely American tragedy reveals the seedy underbelly of institutional power.
Kings of Tort
Title | Kings of Tort PDF eBook |
Author | Alan Lange |
Publisher | |
Pages | 0 |
Release | 2010 |
Genre | Judicial corruption |
ISBN | 9781597252768 |
"Kings of Tort chronicles a tale of judicial bribery and political intrigue in Mississippi ... . It features the story of Dickie Scruggs, who was largely credited with bringing down Big Tobacco in the early 1990s. From his ascent to a net worth of nearly a billion dollars to his downfall stemming from his role in improperly influencing two local judges to influence cases involving fee disputes with other lawyers, the book documents how those in Scruggs's own trusted circle of tort barons turned on him and cooperated with federal authorities. It also shows the political influence he wielded with judges, attorneys general, and even his own brother-in-law, former US Senator Trent Lott" --
Change Me Into Zeus's Daughter
Title | Change Me Into Zeus's Daughter PDF eBook |
Author | Barbara Robinette Moss |
Publisher | Simon and Schuster |
Pages | 321 |
Release | 2002-01-27 |
Genre | Biography & Autobiography |
ISBN | 0743219503 |
A haunting and triumphant story of a difficult and keenly felt life, Change Me into Zeus's Daughter is a remarkable literary memoir of resilience, redemption, and growing up in the South. Barbara Robinette Moss was the fourth in a family of eight children raised in the red-clay hills of Alabama. Their wild-eyed, alcoholic father was a charismatic and irrationally proud man who, when sober, captured his children's timid awe, but when (more often) drunk, roused them from bed for severe punishment or bizarre all-night poker games. Their mother was their angel: erudite and stalwart -- her only sin her inability to leave her husband for the sake of the children. Unlike the rest of her family, Barbara bore the scars of this abuse and neglect on the outside as well as the inside. As a result of childhood malnutrition and a complete lack of medical and dental care, the bones in her face grew abnormally ("like a thin pine tree"), and she ended up with what she calls "a twisted, mummy face." Barbara's memoir brings us deep into not only the world of Southern poverty and alcoholic child abuse but also the consciousness of one who is physically frail and awkward, relating how one girl's debilitating sense of her own physical appearance is ultimately saved by her faith in the transformative powers of artistic beauty: painting and writing. From early on and with little encouragement from the world, Barbara embodied the fiery determination to change her fate and achieve a life defined by beauty. At age seven, she announced to the world that she would become an artist -- and so she did. Nightly, she prayed to become attractive, to be changed into "Zeus's daughter," the goddess of beauty, and when her prayers weren't answered, she did it herself, raising the money for years of braces followed by facial surgery. Growing up "so ugly," she felt the family's disgrace all the more acutely, but the result has been a keenly developed appreciation for beauty -- physical and artistic -- the evidence of which can be seen in her writing. Despite the deprivation, the lingering image from this memoir is not of self-pity but of the incredible bond between these eight siblings: the raucous, childish fun they had together, the making-do, and the total devotion to their desperate mother, who absorbed most of the father's blows for them and who plied them with art and poetry in place of balanced meals. Gracefully and intelligently woven in layers of flashback, the persistent strength of Barbara Moss's memoir is itself a testament to the nearly lifesaving appreciation for literature that was her mother's greatest gift to her children.
Six Days to Zeus
Title | Six Days to Zeus PDF eBook |
Author | Samuel Hill |
Publisher | Booklocker.com |
Pages | 238 |
Release | 2021-07-25 |
Genre | |
ISBN | 9781644385302 |
Circle of Greed
Title | Circle of Greed PDF eBook |
Author | Patrick Dillon |
Publisher | Crown |
Pages | 546 |
Release | 2010-03-02 |
Genre | Biography & Autobiography |
ISBN | 030758917X |
Circle of Greed is the epic story of the rise and fall of Bill Lerach, once the leading class action lawyer in America and now a convicted felon. For more than two decades, Lerach threatened, shook down and sued top Fortune 500 companies, including Disney, Apple, Time Warner, and—most famously—Enron. Now, the man who brought corporate moguls to their knees has fallen prey to the same corrupt impulses of his enemies, and is paying the price by serving time in federal prison. If there was ever a modern Greek tragedy about a man and his times, about corporate arrogance and illusions and the scorched-earth tactics to not only counteract corporate America but to beat it at its own game, Bill Lerach's story is it.
Zeus
Title | Zeus PDF eBook |
Author | George O'Connor |
Publisher | Macmillan |
Pages | 84 |
Release | 2010-01-05 |
Genre | Juvenile Fiction |
ISBN | 1596434317 |
Tells the story of Zeus and his battle with his father, Kronos, and the Titans. In graphic novel format.
Son of Zeus
Title | Son of Zeus PDF eBook |
Author | Glyn Iliffe |
Publisher | Canelo |
Pages | 387 |
Release | 2018-04-16 |
Genre | Fiction |
ISBN | 1788630270 |
A historical fantasy set in ancient Greece that retells the mythological story of Heracles. Heracles has done something unforgivable. Son of the King of Olympus and savior of Thebes, Heracles is adored by all. Until his world is shattered. Born from Zeus’s adultery, he has become the unwitting prey of Hera, who will stop at nothing to destroy him. Haunted by his crimes, he seeks penance with the Delphic oracle and is ordered to complete twelve seemingly unconquerable labors. Armed with superhuman strength and an unshakeable resolve, Heracles must overcome not just the mythical beasts of his trials, but the vengeful gods themselves. Even for Heracles, redemption will not come easily. He has only one choice: to fight. An awe-inspiring retelling of the myth of Heracles, Son of Zeus is perfect for fans of Bernard Cornwell, C. F. Iggulden and Simon Scarrow. Praise for Glyn Iliffe’s Adventures of Odysseus series: “Suspense, treachery, and bone-crunching action . . . will leave fans of the genre eagerly awaiting the rest of the series.” —The Times Literary Supplement “A must read for those who enjoy good old epic battles, chilling death scenes and the extravagance of ancient Greece.” —Lifestyle Magazine “The reader does not need to be classicist to enjoy this epic and stirring tale. It makes a great novel.” —The Historical Novels Review