Authors / Common Read (U)

<p>Brad Meltzer is the former host of the History Channel TV show, <i>Brad Meltzer&#39;s Decoded</i>, and is the #1 <i>New York Times</i> bestselling author of <i>The Escape Artist</i>, <i>The Inner Circle</i>, <i>The Book of Fate</i>, and many other best-selling thrillers.</p><p>In addition to his fiction, Brad is one of the only authors to ever have books on the best-seller list for Non-Fiction (<i>History Decoded</i>), Advice (<i>Heroes for My Son</i> and <i>Heroes for My Daugh

<p>Holocaust survivor and human rights activist Inge Auerbacher spent three years as a child imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp in Czechoslovakia, where out of 15,000 children, barely 1 percent survived. Following her emigration to the United States in 1946, she received a BS in chemistry from Queens College. Since then, she has worked for over 38 years as a chemist with many renowned medical scientists and researchers.</p><p>Auerbacher is also an accomplished writer.

<p>Susannah Cahalan is an award-winning #1 <em>New York Times</em> best-selling author, journalist, and public speaker.</p><p>Her 2012 memoir <em>Brain on Fire</em>, which has sold over a million copies and was made into a Netflix original movie, one of its most-watched movies of 2016, chronicled her medical misdiagnosis and brief interface with the broken mental health system in America.

<p>One of the biggest national abduction news stories of our time, the kidnapping and recovery of Elizabeth Smart captured the nation’s attention from June 5, 2002, when she was taken at knifepoint, to when the police safely returned her back to her family on March 12, 2003. Held prisoner for 9 grueling months, repeatedly threatened and tormented, Smart emerged a symbol of perseverance and strength when she triumphantly testified before her captor and the world about her very private nightmare.</p>

<p>An award-winning journalist and one of the most recognized voices in radio, Michele Norris engages audiences in candid discussion about race, culture and communication in America.</p><p>From the radio airwaves of NPR and primetime television to leading news publications such as T<em>he Washington Post</em>, and author of<em> Our Hidden Conversations: What Americans Really Think About Race</em> (January 2024), Norris is one of the most trusted voices in American journalism.

<p>Sonia Nazario is an award-winning journalist whose stories have tackled some of this country’s most intractable problems -- hunger, drug addiction, immigration -- and have won some of the most prestigious journalism and book awards. </p><p>She is best known for "Enrique&#39;s Journey," her story of a Honduran boy’s struggle to find his mother in the U.S. Published as a series in the <i>Los Angeles Times</i>, "Enrique&#39;s Journey" won the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing in 2003.

<p>Dr. Marc Lamont Hill shares a bold vision of the future, where social progress and the pursuit of equality depend on listening to each other while adopting a fearless attitude toward change.</p>

<p>As a scholar and award-winning author, Dr. Hill expertly dissects political and social moments as a way to initiate frank discussions on culture, politics and race. By identifying key issues, challenges, controversies and trends in the news, he spotlights the work that must be done to sustain the ongoing struggle for equality and freedom.</p>

<p>With a story that is simultaneously heartbreaking and uplifting, Jennifer Thompson and Ronald Cotton demonstrate that we are all capable of compassion and change, no matter how dire the circumstances. </p>

Well before the era of “fake news” became, well, real, Scott Dikkers and his fellow founders at The Onion mocked popular culture and media tropes. Dikkers then went on to found the world’s first humor website, TheOnion.com.

From his experience in developing a creative culture of frank honesty and freedom at The Onion, Scott Dikkers shares how he built one of the most famous top comedy brands in the business. Scott explores how the creative process freed his team to keep generating funny content with The Onion’s own distinctive voice.