Every president has had a unique and complicated relationship with the intelligence community. While some have been coolly distant, even adversarial, others have found their intelligence agencies to be among the most valuable instruments of policy and power. Since John F. Kennedy's presidency, this relationship has been distilled into a personalized daily report: a short summary of what the intelligence apparatus considers the most crucial information for the president to know that day about global threats and opportunities. This top-secret document is known as the President's Daily Brief, or, within national security circles, simply "the Book." Presidents have spent anywhere from a few moments (Richard Nixon) to a healthy part of their day (George W. Bush) consumed by its contents; some (Bill Clinton and George H. W. Bush) consider it far and away the most important document they saw on a regular basis while commander in chief. The details of most PDBs are highly classified, and will remain so for many years. But the process by which the intelligence community develops and presents the Book is a fascinating look into the operation of power at the highest levels. David Priess, a former intelligence officer and daily briefer, has interviewed every living president and vice president as well as more than one hundred others intimately involved with the production and delivery of the president's book of secrets. He offers an unprecedented window into the decision making of every president from Kennedy to Obama, with many character-rich stories revealed here for the first time.

This exciting graphic novel presents a series of puzzling mystical Jewish stories weaving together a daring adventure tale, following siblings Rose and Ben as they search for their missing grandparents, aided only by a mysterious book, a lantern, and their wits. Anticipating danger, the kids' grandmother, Bubbe, appears to the twins in a cloud of flour and tells them to find a package that contains a book. The midrash stories they find—about the flying Ziz, the giant Og, the gatekeeper at a maze, and a treasure-seeker who lives in a mushroom hut—provide insights into defeating the creepy sorceress scheming to take the book. As the mystery deepens, the siblings must follow the Lamplighter's wise advice, slip past a guard into a maze, reunite with their grandparents, and learn why they have inherited the responsibility to protect the book—and the Jewish people.

In 1988, a retired schoolteacher named Pius Fernandes receives an old diary found in the back room of an East African shop. Written in 1913 by a British colonial administrator, the diary captivates Fernandes, who begins to research the coded history he encounters in its terse, laconic entries. What he uncovers is a story of forbidden liaisons and simmering vengeances, family secrets and cultural exiles--a story that leads him on an investigative journey through his own past and Africa's.

A boy arrives at a remote village in the dead of night. His name is Ludlow Fitch—and he is running from a most terrible past. What he is about to learn is that in this village is the life he has dreamed of—a safe place to live, and a job, as the assistant to a mysterious pawnbroker who trades people's deepest, darkest secrets for cash. Ludlow's job is to neatly transcribe the confessions in an ancient leather-bound tome: The Black Book of Secrets. Ludlow yearns to trust his mentor, who refuses to disclose any information on his past experiences or future intentions. What the pawnbroker does not know is, in a town brimming with secrets, the most troubling may be held by his new apprentice.

Last time we saw Benjamin Franklin Gates, the cunning, impassioned lead character of Walt Disney Pictures' National Treasure, he had succeeded in evading shady characters, fulfilling his family's destiny, and discovering an unimaginable trove of treasures beneath Manhattan's oldest church./DIV DIVNow, Ben is back. In National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets, the hero finds an all-new set of dangers, conflicts, double-crossings, and of course...treasure!

Book description to come.

Drawing on Derren's own experiences, this is a profound and practical guide to finding value in sadness and strength from difficult times - it is from the friction in life that we find meaning and can grow. In this book, Derren Brown considers the value of difficulty in our lives. As he navigates middle age, love and small talk, he dispenses with self-help platitudes and wonders if perhaps we need to more comfortably embrace uncertainty. Is anxiety in fact a pointer for growth? In chapters that take us back to the scene of childhood humiliation, to lonely evenings on tour, to the high stress of a house move, Derren explores that when we feel most alone we are often most connected to others and the flow of life. Guiding us through the ideas of some of humanity's greatest thinkers, he asks if, rather than focusing on self-improvement, we might instead prioritise a better interaction with the people around us? Learn how to gather ourselves up when we need to and make sure we fully appear in our own lives, rather than watching from the sidelines? In a book that is both profound and deeply personal, Derren reveals his own moments of anger and frustration, loneliness and loss, and finds surprising sources of consolation and compassion.

From the strange symbols on a one-dollar bill to the secret signs of the Knights Templar and Freemasons, invisible societies, and the world of magic and alchemy, The Book of Secrets is a comprehensive introduction to the world of secret and esoteric knowledge throughout history. It offers a doorway into the initiated secret traditions of the fascinating unseen spiritual world: its symbols, secret societies, and seers. You'll discover: Key Concepts: the Great Work, the Universal Force, Polarity, the Four Elements, Magick and Mysticism, Esoteric Anatomy, Qabalah, Alchemy, Astrology, the Astral Plane, and more. Symbolism: More than 100 secrets symbols, words, objects, including their meanings and the secret powers they invoke. Secret Societies and Holy Orders: The gatekeepers and the transmitters of sacred knowledge: Freemasons, O.T.O., Cathars, Templars, Assassins. Pineda places them all in history and geography and explains who they are/were and what they stood for. Luminaries and Seers: More than 200 legends and historical personages: Hermes Trismegistus, Jesus, Siddartha, Osiris, and other seers from the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the 19th and 20th centuries.

Helena Davies just wants a job that will get her out of her parents’ basement, but by the end of her first day at Abernathy’s Bookstore, she has a dead boss in the basement and the news that she is now a part of an endless magical war. Abernathy’s is the world’s only living oracle, and Helena is now its custodian. Without any training, she must navigate her new world and find a place for herself within it. But there’s still a murderer on the loose—and Helena might be next on his list.

The story of a family in modern China with a history of deceit, betrayal and political intrigue, and the communist party's long shadow over them, from the Cultural Revolution to today. Following the lives of military intelligence officer Jie and his wife Moon, The Book of Secrets weaves recently found material into a narrative that not only illuminates the shadowy world of intelligence in China, but also the emotional tragedies that political extremism inflicted on those working within. Drawing on Jie's own vivid biography of his youth, Xinran pieces together his trajectory as he joins the great hope of the Chinese young – the Communist Party – and becomes a loyal cadre until the late 1970s when, as a chief in the security forces, he makes a decision that will poison his family against him. This is a totally unique behind-the-scenes account of a family torn apart by the Tiananmen Square massacre and the attempts of Jie to finally open up the Chinese system to the people, pieced together from an extraordinary archive of personal diaries and letters.