"From tales of chivalrous knights to the barbarity of trial by ordeal, no era has been a greater source of awe, horror, and wonder than the Middle Ages. In handsomely crafted prose, and with the grace and authority of his extraordinary gift for narrative history, William Manchester leads us from a civilization tottering on the brink of collapse to the grandeur of its rebirth--the dense explosion of energy that spawned some of history's greatest poets,...

Who were the Renaissance scientists and philosophers? In The Renaissance Thinkers with History Projects for Kids, kids ages 10 through 15 meet five famous Renaissance thinkers, including Filippo Brunelleschi, Machiavelli, Copernicus, Thomas More, and Francis Bacon while engaging in hands-on STEAM activities that incorporate the scientific method and the engineer design process to build critical and creative thinking skills. Discover the brilliant...

"One of the most acclaimed artists of the Harlem Renaissance, Zora Neale Hurston was a gifted novelist, playwright, and essayist. Drawn from three decades of her work, this anthology showcases her development as a writer, from her early pieces expounding on the beauty and precision of African American art to some of her final published works, covering the sensational trial of Ruby McCollum, a wealthy Black woman convicted in 1952 for killing a white...

After learning how to fight at a young age, Oroonoko, an African prince, fights alongside his army against invading forces. When a celebrated general saves Oroonoko's life, trading his own to take an arrow for Oroonoko, the young prince feels indebted to the man and decides to go pay his respects to the late general's family. There, he meets Imoinda, the daughter of the general. Oroonoko and Imoinda quickly fall in love and become betrothed, but the...

This series presents some of the finest teachers in America, lecturing on some of the greatest literature ever written.

Shanice Pierce knows better than to heed bad omens. But it's hard to ignore the signs when she finds herself newly single and out of a job on the same seemingly cursed day. Then, while cleaning out her grandmother's house, Shanice comes across a painting. Drawn to the haunting portrait in a way she can't explain, Shanice accepts her grandmother's offer to keep the family heirloom. She soon uncovers the story of the artist, a Harlem Renaissance painter...

Florence, 1501-1505. Leonardo was a charming, handsome fifty year-old at the peak of his career. Michelangelo was a temperamental sculptor in his mid-twenties, desperate to make a name for himself. After winning the commission to carve what will become a sculpture of David, Michelangelo lives at the foot of his misshapen block of marble struggling until the stone finally begins to speak. Leonardo is obsessed with his ungainly flying machine and haunted...

"Michelangelo created some of the world's most recognizable art, from the statue of David to the intricate ceiling fresco of the Sistine Chapel. Beyond his well-known painting and sculpting, he was a gifted poet and architect. Young readers can learn about the entirety of Michelangelo's life, from his time as a young apprentice, and his relationships with several Catholic popes and the Medici family, to his unwillingness to stop working into his late...