A portrait of a great American dynasty and its legacy in business, technology, the arts, and philanthropy
Meyer Guggenheim, a Swiss immigrant, founded a great American business dynasty. At their peak in the early twentieth century, the Guggenheims were reckoned among America's wealthiest, and the richest Jewish family in the world after the Rothschilds. They belonged to Our Crowd, that tight social circle of New York Jewish plutocrats, but unlike the others -- primarily merchants and financiers -- they made their money by extracting and refining copper, silver, lead, tin, and gold.
The secret of their success, the patriarch believed, was their unity, and in the early years Meyer's seven sons, under the leadership of Daniel, worked as one to expand their growing mining and smelting empire. Family solidarity eventually decayed (along with their Jewish faith), but even more damaging was the paucity of male heirs as Meyer and the original set of brothers passed from the scene.
In the third generation, Harry Guggenheim, Daniel's son, took over leadership and made the family a force in aviation, publishing, and horse-racing. He desperately sought a successor but tragically failed and was forced to watch as the great Guggenheim business enterprise crumbled.
Meanwhile, "Guggenheim" came to mean art more than industry. In the mid-twentieth century, led by Meyer's son Solomon and Solomon's niece Peggy, the Guggenheims became the agents of modernism in the visual arts. Peggy, in America during the war years, midwifed the school of abstract expressionism, which brought art leadership to New York City. Solomon's museum has been innovative in spreading the riches of Western art around the world. After the generation of Harry and Peggy, the family has continued to produce many accomplished members, such as publisher Roger Straus II and archaeologist Iris Love.
In The Guggenheims, through meticulous research and absorbing prose, Irwin Unger, the winner of a Pulitzer Prize in history, and his wife, Debi Unger, convey a unique and remarkable story -- epic in its scope -- of one family's amazing rise to prominence.

The Guggenheims

Unger, Irwin

Unger, Debi

Biographies & Memoirs

Harper

A major historical biography of George C. Marshall—the general who ran the U.S. campaign during the Second World War, the Secretary of State who oversaw the successful rebuilding of post-war Europe, and the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize—and the first to offer a complete picture of his life.
While Eisenhower Patton, Bradley, Montgomery, MacArthur, Nimitz, and Leahy waged battles in Europe and the Pacific, one military leader actually ran World War II for America, overseeing personnel and logistics: Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army from 1939 to 1945, George C. Marshall.
This interpretive biography of George C. Marshall follows his life from his childhood in Western Pennsylvania and his military training at the Virginia Military Institute to his role during and after World War II and his death in 1959 at the age of seventy-eight. It brings to light the virtuous historical role models who inspired him, including George Washington and Robert E. Lee, and his relationships with the Washington political establishment, military brass, and foreign leaders, from Harry Truman to Chiang Kai-shek. It explores Marshall’s successes and failures during World War II, and his contributions through two critical years of the emerging Cold War—including the transformative Marshall Plan, which saved Western Europe from Soviet domination, and the failed attempt to unite China’s nationalists and communists.
Based on breathtaking research and filled with rich detail, George Marshall is sure to be hailed as the definitive work on one of the most influential figures in American history.

George Marshall: A Biography

Hirshson, Stanley

Historical

A portrait of a great American dynasty and its legacy in business, technology, the arts, and philanthropy Meyer Guggenheim, a Swiss immigrant, founded a great American business dynasty. At their peak in the early twentieth century, the Guggenheims were reckoned among America's wealthiest, and the richest Jewish family in the world after the Rothschilds. They belonged to Our Crowd, that tight social circle of New York Jewish plutocrats, but unlike the others - primarily merchants and financiers - they made their money by extracting and refining copper, silver, lead, tin, and gold. The secret of their success, the patriarch believed, was their unity, and in the early years Meyer's seven sons, under the leadership of Daniel, worked as one to expand their growing mining and smelting empire. Family solidarity eventually decayed (along with their Jewish faith), but even more damaging was the paucity of male heirs as Meyer and the original set of brothers passed from the scene. In the third generation, Harry Guggenheim, Daniel's son, took over leadership and made the family a force in aviation, publishing, and horse-racing. He desperately sought a successor but tragically failed and was forced to watch as the great Guggenheim business enterprise crumbled. Meanwhile, "Guggenheim" came to mean art more than industry. In the mid-twentieth century, led by Meyer's son Solomon and Solomon's niece Peggy, the Guggenheims became the agents of modernism in the visual arts. Peggy, in America during the war years, midwifed the school of abstract expressionism, which brought art leadership to New York City.

The Guggenheims: A Family History

Arts & Photography

History & Criticism

Harper-perennial

“Elegant and iconoclastic . . . refreshing . . . persuasive.”—NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW
Here is the first biography to offer a complete picture of the life of George C. Marshall, chief of staff of the U.S. Army from 1939 to 1945 and the military leader who actually ran World War II for America as he oversaw all personnel and logistics.
Following Marshall from his childhood in western Pennsylvania and his training at the Virginia Military Institute to his role during and after World War II and his death in 1959 at the age of seventy-eight, this biography casts light on the inspiration he took from historical role models, such as George Washington and Robert E. Lee, and his relationships with military brass, the Washington political establishment, and world leaders, from Harry Truman to Chiang Kai-shek. It also explores Marshall’s triumphs and defeats during World War II, and his contributions through two critical years of the emerging Cold War—including the transformative Marshall Plan, which saved Western Europe from Soviet domination, and his failed attempt to unite China’s Nationalists and Communists.
Based on exhaustive research and filled with rich detail, George Marshall is sure to be hailed as the definitive work on one of the most influential figures in American history.
“A grand but judicious biography of a fascinating man.”—Evan Thomas, author of Ike’s Bluff

This history of the United States organizes each chapter around a specific question designed to challenge students to consider the complexity of the past. The book has been updated to include coverage of the first months of the Clinton administration.

These United States: The Questions of Our Past (Combined)

History

Under, Irwin

Americas

PRENTICE/HALL

Twentieth Century America

A survey text covering American history from the 1890s through the 1988 elections. Includes primary readings and special chapters on urbanization and the Vietnam War. Irwin Unger (NYU) is a Pulitzer Prize winner and has written trade books about the New Left. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

St.Martin's Press

Postwar America : The United States since 1945 by Irwin Unger and Debi Unger (1989, Paperback)

Postwar America: The United States Since 1945

St Martins Pr

Palgrave Publishers, Limited

Lbj a Life

From a Pulitzer prize-winning writer, the only single-volume biography of the towering yet enigmatic leader--from his humble origins to his rise to America's highest office. Flawed as a human being, Lyndon Johnson was a towering public figure of his era, a man whose social programs changed America in profound ways. In this compelling new biography, Irwin and Debi Unger explore the political and personal influences that made Johnson such an unpredictable, charismatic, and difficult man, depicting his life as a constant tension between political expediency and doing the right thing for Americans.

Lbj: A Life

John Wiley&Sons, Inc.

Critical Praise for Irwin Unger 
"A careful, comprehensive portrait of a complex figure, a man both eminently practical and deeply principled, who looms large over the middle of our century."–Kirkus Reviews "Few authors have attempted a one-volume life of the idealistic but controversial Lyndon B. Johnson, and none has succeeded like Irwin Unger.. . . Highly recommended. "–Library Journal Pulitzer Prize—winning author Irwin Unger and Debi Unger explore the enigmatic and complex Lyndon B. Johnson, as both a public and a private figure–examining his monumental achievements as well as his conflicted and turbulent relationships with his family, friends, and colleagues. LBJ reveals Johnson’s demons as well as his dreams, providing a compelling portrait of this larger-than-life figure. From the hardscrabble life of the Texas hill country to the colorful Lone Star state elections that provided his entrée into national politics to power politics in Washington, this compassionate, insightful biography traces the life, influences, and motivations of the unpredictable, charismatic, and difficult man who occupied the Oval Office during one of the nation’s most tumultuous periods.

Leaders & Notable People

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Books by Unger, Debi

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Unger, Debi. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Guggenheims

George Marshall: A Biography

The Guggenheims: A Family History

George Marshall: A Biography

These United States: The Questions of Our Past (Combined)

Twentieth Century America

Postwar America: The United States Since 1945

Twentieth Century America

Lbj: A Life

Lbj a Life