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• CALIFORNIA JUSTICE

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  Introducing the victims and perpetrators responsible for California’s most notorious shootouts, lynchings, and assassinations, this account shows how homemade justice is never black-and-white. In relating these histories, this discussion also analyzes how and why Hollywood storylines almost always follow the same skewed and unrealistic arc in which the bad guys abuse the good guys, the good guy take the high road until the bad guy has gone too far, and the good guy picks off the bad guys, one by one, in an increasingly dramatic fashion.

• Behind San Quentin's Walls: The History of California’s Legendary Prison and Its

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  San Quentin is one of the most famous prisons in American history, featured in countless movies and novels, yet few know its colorful early history. In Behind San Quentin’s Walls, noted Old West historian William B. Secrest reveals the beginning of San Quentin, from its unlikely start as a real estate scheme to its essential role in taming the lawless California of the Gold Rush era. Featuring numerous citations from contemporary accounts, plus period photos, illustrations, newspaper clippings, and maps, Behind San Quentin’s Walls chronicles the political calculations that created San Quentin; the outsize egos of the men who built it; the mismanagement and frequent escapes that marred San Quentin’s early years; and the notorious ruffians and cutthroats who were housed there. Filled with exciting true stories of gunfights, brawls, prison riots, daring escapes, and intrepid manhunts, Behind San Quentin’s Walls is a rip-roaring Wild West tale of how men and women with immense talent for both good and evil tamed a new state and each other.

• UNDERDOGS TO WONDERDOGS: Fresno State's Road to Omaha and the College World Seri

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  The rollercoaster ride that produced one of the most improbable championships in college sports history is captured in remarkable detail in this new release. Featuring over 100 full-color photos, riveting radio play-by-play excerpts, and telling comments from the "Wonderdogs" themselves, this book takes you inside Fresno State's unprecedented string of upsets that ended with the school's first NCAA baseball championship. Eavesdrop in the dugout as the team stares elimination in the face six times on its way to the title. Go beyond the big swings, diving catches, and knee-buckling curveballs to discover the deeper meaning in the six-week journey from 89th in the country to the top of that College World Series dogpile. From their stoic skipper to his team full of "sixth graders at recess," you'll get to know the key figures who turned adversity into triumph on a scale usually only found in fantasy. Written in the unique storytelling style of the team's radio announcer, Underdogs to Wonderdogs spins an exhilarating, heart-warming, and inspirational tale that just so happens to be true. Lending additional perspective to the significance of Fresno State's win is a chapter packed with exclusive comments from opposing coaches, local and national media, and luminaries long associated with the program. This book makes a great gift for the baseball lover in your life, and even non-sports fans will be drawn to the human side of one team's magical metamorphosis.

• SAN FRANCISCO'S PLAYLAND AT THE BEACH: The Early Years

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  Playland at the Beach was a magical place, revered in the hearts of San Franciscans and all who visited. Playland wasn?t just another amusement park?it had a special identity that encompassed socialization, dining, playing, strolling and sight-seeing that was purely San Francisco. From the 1920s to the 1970s, Playland enthralled generations. Everyone who visited it recognized its uniqueness, and its pioneering rides and attractions inspired the designers of the amusement parks that followed. ?San Francisco?s Playland at the Beach? is a comprehensive photographic record of Playland at the Beach from its construction in 1920 through its glorious heyday in the 1930s and 40s. The book presents over 350 rare photographs of Playland and the surrounding neighborhood, including 250 unique, never-before-seen photos drawn from the private archive of ride designer Laurence ?Laurie? Hollings. ?San Francisco?s Playland at the Beach? leads the reader through a chapter-by-chapter tour of the setting and evolution of Playland during its formative era. Photographs trace the development of the site from steam shovels carving the bare sand dunes of Ocean Beach and the construction of the main Playland buildings. Each of Playland?s famous rides receives its own chapter, with photographs showing both how the rides were built and how they looked in their prime. Other chapters cover Playland?s attractions, arcade amusements, restaurants, and nightclubs. Incidental photographs depict the clothes, cars, people, and customs of the time. The book also covers some of the most notable events that happened at Playland in the 1930s, including the Century of Progress exhibit of 1934 and a labor strike that paralyzed the park in the mid-30s. The book includes a complete timeline and history of Playland from its beginning to its destruction in 1972. ?San Francisco?s Playland at the Beach? gives readers an enchanting vision of the fun, sights, sounds, and flavors of a glamorous and care-free time. Take a turn on the Big Dipper roller coaster, the Shoot the Chutes water ride, the DodgEm bumper cars, and the six-story giant slide at the Fun House. Taste a Pie Shop blackberry pie, Topsy?s chicken, and a Bull Pupp enchilada. Listen to the staccato of the four shooting galleries, the rumble of the wooden roller coaster and the screams of its passengers, the orchestrion playing marching tunes, and the raucous laughter of Laffing Sal. Richly illustrated and painstakingly researched, ?San Francisco?s Playland at the Beach? is a time machine fun ride through little-known history.

• STORIES OF SERVICE: Valley Veterans Remember World War II

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  Stories of Service is a remarkable collection of stories by veterans and civilians of the San Joaquin Valley who lived and fought during World War II. Gathered primarily from author Janice Stevens? memoirs class for military veterans, these stirring recollections include riveting tales of combat, such as a sailor caught in the open on the docks when the first wave of Japanese warplanes bombed Pearl Harbor, to the harrowing dash across the sand during the Utah beach landings on D-Day. Other stories are poignant remembrances of pain and loss by those who remained on the home front, and depict the privation and sacrifice that characterized their lives. The authentic voices within speak with simple unvarnished honesty about fear, bravery, boredom, and love. Augmented by almost 100 period photos, their compelling stories represent a powerful and unfiltered look back into a time of terrible conflict, pain, courage, and patriotism.

• MURDER IN THE GARDEN, VOL. 2

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  Subtitle: "More Famous Crimes of Early Fresno County." With a foreword by William Secrest, Sr. Presenting 16 famous cases from Fresno, California, set mainly in the first part of the 20th century, author Scott Morrison -- a long-time detective in the Fresno sheriff's office - brings to life fascinating cases of murder and mayhem from Fresno?s past. The book introduces memorable figures such as Fresno?s ?Old Broom Man? and ?Black Widow,? and one chapter focuses specifically on all the men from Fresno County who have ever been executed by the State of California?s justice apparatus. ?Murder in the Garden, Volume 2? offer commentary that compares these sensational past cases to current high-profile criminal cases. A consideration of the changing face of crime, this history reveals a modern upswing in child abuse, multiple murders, and kidnapping cases and highlights the extended nature of the current legal process as compared to the open-and-shut character of the early 1900s.