Books published by Avalon Publishing Group

A mammoth study of one of the most mysterious figures on the fringes of the Kennedy assassination: Richard Case Nagell, described as the man "hired to kill Oswald and prevent the assassination of JFK" This amazing story has been revised and expanded with a decade's worth of new classified information since the book's original publication in 1993. Freelance investigative journalist Dick Russell delves deep into Richard Case Nagell's strange past, revealing that Nagell had been a contact for both the CIA and KGB at different times. The author's detailed and expert reconstruction of historic events will have readers wondering and questioning about new possible leads never before imagined in this still-unsolved murder.

For devotees of Bird by Bird and The Artist's Way, a memoir-driven guide to healing through the craft of writing

A delightful history of Americans' obsession with advice -- from Poor Richard to Dr. Spock to Miss Manners Americans, for all our talk of pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps, obsessively seek advice on matters large and small. Perhaps precisely because we believe in bettering ourselves and our circumstances in life, we ask for guidance constantly. And this has been true since our nation's earliest days: from the colonial era on, there have always been people eager to step up and offer advice, some of it lousy, some of it thoughtful, but all of it read and debated by generations of Americans. Jessica Weisberg takes readers on a tour of the advice-givers who have made their names, and sometimes their fortunes, by telling Americans what to do. You probably don't want to follow all the advice they proffered. Eating graham crackers will not make you a better person, and wearing blue to work won't guarantee a promotion. But for all that has changed in American life, it's a comfort to know that our hang-ups, fears, and hopes have not. We've always loved seeking advice -- so long as it's anonymous, and as long as it's clear that we're not asking for ourselves; we're just asking for a friend.

The unorthodox former speaker of the Knesset offers a his clear-eyed assessment of Zionism's failings and what the future holds for Israel and for Judaism

"Wandering Souls is an important, moving, utterly compelling, and wonderfully open-hearted book, one that will become a touchstone in America's literature about the aftershocks of our terrible misadventure in Vietnam."-Tim O' Brien, author of The Things They Carried

A deeply reported and intimately human view of the struggle for democracy in Burma, through the lens of one young activist who risked everything to fight against one of the world's most repressive governments.

One of the country's most prominent young writers on race delivers an unflinching account of what it means to be a young black man in America today, and how the existing script for black manhood is being rewritten in one of the most fascinating periods of American history.

Everything we've heard from the "new" feminist wave is dead wrong: achieving success in life is not about leaning in, working harder, or "having it all"-it's about a woman's right to pursue happiness.

A rising star in progressive journalism presents a deeply-reported exploration of the political and social movements that have arisen since the 2008 financial crisis, revealing how ordinary Americans across political beliefs struggle for change, and charting the effectiveness of new forms of resistance.

Ebola outbreaks, terrorist attacks, inner-city guns, illegal immigrants, the Zika virus, drug dealers, death panels. Sasha Abramsky sets out to uncover what things frighten us most

In this bold and urgent book, former Seattle police chief Norm Stamper tells us how we can finally turn warrior cops into neighbourhood-oriented community police.

An unforgettable journey of personal and political transformation, THE EMANCIPATION OF CECILY MCMILLAN tells the origin story of a remarkable young activist and organizer.

Forty years ago, a majority of Americans were highly engaged in issues of war and peace. Whether to go to war or keep out of conflicts was a vital question at the heart of the country's vibrant, if fractious, democracy. But American political consciousness has drifted. In the last decade, America has gone to war in Iraq and Afghanistan, while pursuing a new kind of warfare in Yemen, Somalia, Libya, and Pakistan. National security issues have increasingly faded from the political agenda, due in part to the growth of government secrecy.In lucid and chilling detail, journalist and lawyer Scott Horton shows how secrecy has changed the way America functions. Executive decisions about war and peace are increasingly made by autonomous, self-directing, and unaccountable national security elites. Secrecy is justified as part of a bargain under which the state promises to keep the people safe from its enemies, but in fact allows excesses, mistakes, and crimes to go unchecked. Bureaucracies use secrets to conceal their mistakes and advance their power in government, invariable at the expense of the rights of the people. Never before have the American people had so little information concerning the wars waged in their name, nor has Congress exercised so little oversight over the war effort. American democracy is in deep trouble. Lords of Secrecy explores the most important national security debates of our time, including the legal and moral issues surrounding the turn to private security contractors, the sweeping surveillance methods of intelligence agencies, and the use of robotic weapons such as drones. Horton looks at the legal edifice upon which these decisions are based and discusses approaches to rolling back the flood of secrets that is engulfing America today.Whistleblowers, but also Congress, the public, and the media, play a vital role in this process.As the ancient Greeks recognized, too much secrecy changes the nature of the state itself, transforming a democracy into something else. Horton reminds us that dealing with the country's national security concerns is both a right and a responsibility of a free citizenry, something that has always sat at the heart of any democracy that earns the name.

An intimate biography of the missionary Catholic nun Maura Clarke, chronicling her spiritual and political journey from a tight-knit Irish community in Queens to radical, faith-based activism in Central America and her death at the hands of the Salvadoran military in 1980.

In the wake of the Citizen's United decision, elections will be controlled by moneyed interests as never before. award-winning authors John Nichols and Robert W. McChesney show what this influx of cash with zero transparency means for democracy-and how we can fix the system before it's too late.

"[Kafka] would have appreciated this narrative on any number of levels...[Carle] emerges as an odd and admirable...character in The Interrogator. Witnessing this prickly, rigidly upright man trying to wrest meaning from his bleak dilemma becomes the most compelling aspect of The Interrogator."- Laura Miller, Salon

This rousing critique sounds the alarm on how job automation, combined with stagnant capitalism, will generate unemployment and misery. The only solution is a renewal of democracy that lets citizens-not multinational corporations-chart the future.

A legendary journalist shows how the privacy of American citizens has been eroded and invaded by data-collecting corporations and snooping government entities-with dire consequences for our freedom and democracy.

The coauthor of Soccernomics and professor of sports management at the University of Michigan delivers an approachable introduction to soccer finance-explaining how player salaries, club profits, and wealthy investors determine the fate of your favorite team.

Nomi Prins, a former Wall Street insider, shows how six powerful Wall Street bankers became the unelected leaders of the 20th century that operated as a shadow government that transformed American economy and life. Through a riveting revisionist history, Prins reveals the surreptitious and highly personal connection between six influential bankers, and the highest office in the land.

An explosive expose into the radical right-wing state of Israeli politics from one of our most controversial investigative reporters and the bestselling author of Republican Gomorrah.

The best-selling author argues that Obama's failure to deliver on his promises is due to a political system that stymies democracy when voters choose progressive change.

"Frances Moore Lappe brings us yet another gift in EcoMind. She cautions us to avoid the mental traps that block our thinking. She awakens us to our immense possibilities and potentials. She invites us to release our latent energies to be the change we want to see." " Vandana Shiva

In the vein of Let Us Now Praise Famous Men, Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author Chris Hedges and American Book Award winning cartoonist Joe Sacco bring us a searing on-the-ground report on the crisis gripping underclass America and crime-

An award-winning journalist shatters the myth of Ronald Reagan

Testimony from the largest number of on the record, named, combat veterans who reveal the disturbing, daily reality of war and occupation in Iraq

"Marwan Bishara's The Invisible Arab is the single most perceptive and accessible book I've read about the roots of revolt in the Middle East and the brave, chaotic, exciting and frightening new world they have begun to create." -Christopher Dickey, Newsweek/The Daily Beast

"[A] potent collection [that] ably communicates the hunger for social, cultural and racial justice that made Strummer's work so engaging." "Salon