Books & Films Story Briefs

Great books and films rivet our attention. Then we learn there is even more behind them than the final work. Let's go behind them and find out more.

Rudolf Abel was a Soviet spy, living in America for eight years, before an informer (his own assistant) blew Abel's cover when the informer defected i...

Sgt. Matt Eversmann is portrayed by Josh Hartnett in the movie Black Hawk Down. He is a hero from the Battle for Mogadishu.

In his narrative, Simon Northup describes his bout with a dreaded disease known as smallpox.

Since it became America's capital city, circa 1800, Washington City had slaves. This compendium includes laws impacting slavery in the District.

Eva, the fictional heroine in "Someone Named Eva," is a victim of Nazi-Germany's "Lebenborn" program. What is that program? How did it impact the live...

Imagining what it would be like to have alter-ego boys, both aged 9, living on opposite sides of the Auschwitz fence, John Boyne creates a sobering st...

While "The Lorax" is a fictional story, by Dr. Seuss, it contains real-life meaning for today's world.

Learn about hurricanes, weather predictions and an unexpected weather phenomenon known as "The Perfect Storm" which claimed the lives of six fishermen...

Theseus and The Minotaur is a Greek myth about the son of an Athenian king - Theseus - and a horrifying monster - "The Minotaur.

In The Girl Who Played with Fire, a murder occurs in the Vasastan District of Stockholm.

Today Vincent van Gogh, the Dutch painter, is one of the world's most-beloved artists.

Show tooltips