Why am I passionate about this?

In school, I was a math and science nerd but also loved to write. I got good grades, except in history; memorizing dates and events was boring. My dad loved history. When he told stories about historical figures, I was fascinated. In twelfth grade, my history teacher told stories like my dad, and I started acing the class. Since then, I’ve become obsessed with history and devour good historical books, particularly when they focus on the people who change history. And now, I’ve actually been in places at times when history was made. 


I wrote

Election Hacks: Zeidman v. Lindell: Exposing the $5 million election myth

By Bob Zeidman,

Book cover of Election Hacks: Zeidman v. Lindell: Exposing the $5 million election myth

What is my book about?

Mike Lindell, the MyPillow magnate, has been publicly declaring he has proof of voting machine tampering that threw the 2020…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Member of the Family: My Story of Charles Manson, Life Inside His Cult, and the Darkness That Ended the Sixties

Bob Zeidman Why did I love this book?

This book is a true, firsthand account of Dianne Lake, a teenage member of the Manson family cult that horrifically murdered people in the 1960s while attempting to start a race war.

I found the book hard to put down for its insights into the mind of a young girl abandoned by her parents who found acceptance by a charming yet psychotic man and his band of adoring, troubled sycophants. This book also put the turbulent 60s into perspective.

Growing up in the sixties, I was disturbed and frightened by the discord in society, perhaps not unlike society today. People have romanticized the hippie movement since then, but Dianne’s story put this troubled time into perspective, showing the drug use and casual sex that went hand in hand with the abandonment of personal responsibility to society, friends, and even family.

By Dianne Lake, Deborah Herman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Member of the Family as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In this poignant and disturbing memoir of lost innocence, coercion, survival, and healing, Dianne Lake chronicles her years with Charles Manson, revealing for the first time how she became the youngest member of his Family and offering new insights into one of the twentieth century’s most notorious criminals and life as one of his "girls."

At age fourteen Dianne Lake―with little more than a note in her pocket from her hippie parents granting her permission to leave them―became one of "Charlie’s girls," a devoted acolyte of cult leader Charles Manson. Over the course of two years, the impressionable teenager endured…


Book cover of Noon at Tiffany's: An Historical, Biographical Novel

Bob Zeidman Why did I love this book?

Louis Comfort Tiffany was famous in the late nineteenth century for magnificent stained-glass designs. In 2006, a collection of letters was found from one of Tiffany’s employees, Clara Wolcott, describing her experiences as head of the Tiffany Studios Women's Glass Cutting Department.

These letters gave insight into Clara’s life and her relationships and also revealed how many of Tiffany’s designs were actually created by her. Echo Heron took those letters and wrapped them into a beautiful story about a talented artist who loved her art so much that she was willing to sacrifice fame and fortune and much of her personal life.

I not only appreciated the beautiful, detailed descriptions of the artwork but also her descriptions of the passion and effort that Clara put into them. I don’t like books about historical figures where the author gives them modern attitudes and dialog, but the hero of this book is a determined, creative woman who realistically works and speaks within nineteenth-century mores.

By Echo Heron,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Noon at Tiffany's as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

IN THE SUMMER OF 1888, Clara Wolcott, a daring young artist from Ohio, walked into Louis Tiffany's Manhattan office to interview for a job as a designer. For the next 21 years, her pivotal role in his multi-million dollar empire remained one of Tiffany's most closely guarded secrets—a secret that when revealed 118 years later sent the international art world into a tailspin.
Torn between his obsession with Clara and his lust for success, Tiffany resorts to desperate measures to keep her creative genius under his command. Clara cleverly navigates both her turbulent love-hate relationship with Tiffany and the rigid…


Book cover of Really Enough: A True Story of Tyranny, Courage and Comedy

Bob Zeidman Why did I love this book?

When Chairman Mao initiated the Cultural Revolution in China, Margaret Zhao and her family became enemies of the state. This memoir is full of hope, humor, and love despite the horrific situation of this young girl attempting to survive while many were doing everything to destroy her and her family.

I’m fascinated by how this true story describes the evils of communism in contrast with the opportunities provided by Western Civilization and capitalism. I also find it encouraging that someone could go through such terrible situations, always fearing for the life of herself and her family, and still hold so much optimism that she would one day find her way to America and freedom.

By Margaret Zhao, Kathleen Martens,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Really Enough as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This astonishing, intimate memoir by Margaret Zhao with Kathleen Martens charts one young woman’s daunting struggle for survival, freedom and forbidden love while exposing the shocking lives of the Enemies of the State under the tumultuous rule of Chairman Mao. Set against the backdrop of a China in chaos, Really Enough is a relatable and touching celebration of rising up against all odds. Born into a disenfranchised family in rural China in the 1950s and branded an Enemy of the State, Margaret Zhao quickly learned her abject lot in life. With Chairman Mao Zedong’s new Communist Party policies—virtually hidden from…


Book cover of 1001 Nights in Iraq: The Shocking Story of an American Forced to Fight for Saddam Against the Country He Loves

Bob Zeidman Why did I love this book?

In 1980, Shant Kenderian’s father was dying in Iraq, so he decided to fly there from the U.S. for one last visit. While there, the Iran-Iraq war broke out, and Saddam Hussein conscripted this U.S. citizen into the army like many unprepared Iraqis who were just bodies to throw in the way of Iranian troops. When Operation Desert Storm started, rather than retreating, Shant decided to make his way to the front lines to surrender to his fellow Americans.

I love this true story of desperation and courage from an ordinary person thrust into an extraordinary situation, struggling against authoritarian forces to make his way back to America and freedom while dodging bombs and bullets from all sides. I found this true story to be as exciting as any spy novel.

By Shant Kenderian,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked 1001 Nights in Iraq as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Shant Kenderian was a schoolboy in Baghdad, growing up in the Armenian Christian community there. His parents divorced, and in 1978, at age 14, he chose to emigrate to America with his mother and brother. Just before his 17th birthday, he returned to visit his father in Baghdad, arriving on Sept. 14, 1980. One week later, Iraq invaded Iran, the borders were closed and Shant was trapped. His father died soon after in a car accident and he would not see America again for more than 10 years.

Shant continued his education and earned a degree in Engineering. Upon graduating…


Book cover of Alicia: My Story

Bob Zeidman Why did I love this book?

As antisemitism is currently coming into fashion again around the world, I recommend this frightening true story of a young girl hiding from the Germans, Russians, and Ukrainians who were all looking to rob Jews or send them to their deaths during World War II.

It is sometimes hard to believe that people can be so cruel, but what I take away from this book is first, that these events will continue throughout history and second, that good people of strong will can survive any tragedy if they have hope, a strong will, and luck (or God) on their side.

By Alicia Appleman-Jurman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Alicia as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A remarkable Holocaust memoir, a powerful testament to human courage and fortitude, for readers of Edith Eger's The Choice.

'This memoir is heartbreaking.' Elie Wiesel, author of Night
'Profoundly observed... remarkably lived... ferocious bravery.' New York Times
__________

Alicia Jurman is five-years-old when her story begins. It is 1935 and she is living in the East Polish town of Buczacz. Although brought up in an atmosphere of anti-Semitism, nothing could have prepared her for the Russian invasion of Poland and the full horror of the Nazi Occupation.

At thirteen, while fleeing the Nazis through war-ravaged Poland, Alicia began saving the…


Explore my book 😀

Election Hacks: Zeidman v. Lindell: Exposing the $5 million election myth

By Bob Zeidman,

Book cover of Election Hacks: Zeidman v. Lindell: Exposing the $5 million election myth

What is my book about?

Mike Lindell, the MyPillow magnate, has been publicly declaring he has proof of voting machine tampering that threw the 2020 election from Donald Trump to Joe Biden. Bob Zeidman, who invented the field of software forensics, was invited by Lindell to examine and verify the alleged proof. What he found was bogus data, manipulated results, and dangerous conspiracy theories. This is the story of Bob’s successful $5 million lawsuit against Lindell and his uncovering of a scandal leading to top political leaders and advisors in America.

Election Hacks is not just an important book about the cries of a stolen 2020 presidential election; it’s also a warning for the 2024 election and all future elections.

Book cover of Member of the Family: My Story of Charles Manson, Life Inside His Cult, and the Darkness That Ended the Sixties
Book cover of Noon at Tiffany's: An Historical, Biographical Novel
Book cover of Really Enough: A True Story of Tyranny, Courage and Comedy

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Elephant Safari

By Peter Riva,

Book cover of Elephant Safari

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Why am I passionate about this?

I have been to, and loved, North, Central, and especially East Africa for over fifty years. Only six times have I been to Africa on holiday; more often, perhaps twenty or more times, as a television producer. Working in Africa gains a perspective of reality that the glories of vacation do not. Each has its place, each its pitfalls like stalled plane rides with emergency landings in the bush or attacks by wildlife. But, in the end, the magic of the “otherness,” what an old friend called “primitava” captures one’s soul and changes your life.

Peter's book list on the otherness that few get to experience

What is my book about?

Keen to rekindle their love of East African wildlife adventures after years of filming, extreme dangers, and rescues, producer Pero Baltazar, safari guide Mbuno Waliangulu, and Nancy Breiton, camerawoman, undertake a filming walking adventure north of Lake Rudolf, crossing from Kenya into Ethiopia along the Omo River, following a herd of elephant making their annual migration.

Stumbling onto an elephant poaching, the team become embroiled in true financing of terrorism for al Shabaab –ivory sales–and are determined to stop the slaughter at any cost. Ivory trade financing terrorism involves UN refugee camps with two hundred thousand displaced Somali persons, powerful…

Elephant Safari

By Peter Riva,

What is this book about?

A documentary team hiking through East Africa collides with a gang of deadly poachers, in this gripping adventure by the author of Kidnapped on Safari.

Years of filming, extreme dangers, and daring rescues have taken their toll on documentary producer Pero Baltazar and his team. To relax and reconnect with the East African wildlife they love, Pero organizes a walking safari for him, his camerawoman Nancy Breiton, and their elite guide Mbuno Waliangulu. Still, Pero has trouble truly disconnecting from work. When the team comes across a herd of elephants making their annual migration north of Lake Rudolf, Pero decides…


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in Holocaust survivors, Charles Manson, and Mao Zedong?

Charles Manson 13 books
Mao Zedong 20 books