Our New Slogan

Our birthday celebration is finally over and after three long years of absence, we finally have a tag-line: Know More. Read Less.


That's the winner folks, of the many entries to our Third Birthday Tagline Contest, that shimmering jewel of inspiration from Ginny Hull Hartline was our favorite and will now be used on anything and everything published by For Beginners. And, as we promised, Ginny will soon be receiving the grand prize of a full catalogue of For Beginners books. That's right, all thirty eight title from Anarchism to Zinn. Congrats Ginny and thanks so much for participating in our contest. We love our new slogan!

Today in History: 1787 -- The United States Constitution is Signed

In May, 1787, eleven years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence and four years after the end of the American Revolutionary War, a Convention was called to amend the Articles of Confederation, the document that had been the basis for American law and government since America's independence from Britain. After much discussion and debate, by mid-June, the Convention decided that to amend the articles would not be enough. At this time, the goal became to write an entirely new constitution that would establish a new government for the country. The Constitutional Convention was formed. By September 17, the Constitution had been written and signed by the members of the Convention. Although the Convention proposed that only nine out of thirteen states were needed to ratify the Constitution, Benjamin Franklin gave a speech on the day of the signing urging unanimity, saying: "Much of the strength & efficiency of any Government in procuring and securing happiness to the people, depends, on opinion, on the general opinion of the goodness of the Government, as well as of the wisdom and integrity of its Governors. I hope therefore that for our own sakes as a part of the people, and for the sake of posterity, we shall act heartily and unanimously in recommending this Constitution."

Indeed, three years later the constitution was ratified by all thirteen states and a new government was established in the United States that still stands today.

Read more about this great document in Democracy For Beginners.

New FDR Reviews

What's with all these new reviews? First we get a new review for one of our first books, then a blogger posts his praise for Ayn Rand For Beginners, and now to round out this two weeks of praise, we've just been informed that our latest title, FDR and The New Deal, has received two positive reviews from people in very high places.

The first is from one of our personal favorite publishing magazines, Publishers Weekly. The review calls the book "smart" and "dramatic" and even goes so far as to call the entire For Beginners series "impressive!" Read the full review here (you'll have to scroll down a bit to find it).

The second is from the journal of all things comics, Comics Journal, writing with great enthusiasm about the new book. Read the full review here.

Check out the newest For Beginners title that is earning nothing but critical acclaim. FDR and the New Deal For Beginners is on sale now. And don't stop reviewing, we love hearing good things about ourselves.

Thanks To All Our Fans

We would like to thank all of those who suffered through the rain this past weekend to show us their support at the Brooklyn Book Festival. We always love to see old fans and new beginners reading our books. We appreciate your presence with us at the fair and we hope you're all learning something new from the For Beginners series.

Blogger Reviews Ayn Rand For Beginners

Not totally convinced yet that you want to read Ayn Rand For Beginners? Then you should read the Thinking Christian's review on our biographical title about the Russian-American novelist, playwright, and philosopher. The review makes a very convincing argument.

Read the whole review here and be sure to begin your discovery of the great thinker with Ayn Rand For Beginners.

Last Day of For Beginners Birthday Contest

I can't believe our birthday is coming to a close. I just don't feel like we've celebrated enough. If you haven't already, don't forget to submit a few taglines for our Big Birthday Contest. The contributor with the best tagline will get it published on all forthcoming For Beginners products and will win an entire catalogue of our 38 titles!

It's a big prize for a small amount of work, don't let it pass you by.

Post your ideas as a comment here, on twitter with the #forbeginners hashtag, or on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/forbeginners

New Website and Brooklyn Book Festival

First: Our new website is LIVE!!! We've put in a ton of work to make it pretty and efficient. If you ever had any problems with our last site, this one should have it all smoothed out. Check it out athttp://www.forbeginnersbooks.com

Second: We have a booth at the Brooklyn Book Festival which takes place tomorow, so if you're in the neighborhood, make sure you come by Booth 93 to get in on all the For Beginners fun. And while your there you can see tons of famous writers, like Salman Rushdie and Paul Krugman, IN PERSON! It's a free festival from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm TOMORROW at Brooklyn Borough Hall. It's sure to be a ton of fun, check out the website here.

Today in History – 1974: President Gerald Ford pardons Richard Nixon

September 8th, 1974

Newly appointed President Gerald Ford used his executive authority to issue an unconditional pardon to a recently resigned Richard Nixon. Ford claimed the edict was in the best interests of the country but the pardon was met with criticism. The general public didn’t approve of Ford negating the punishment for Nixon’s crimes during his presidential tenure.

Ford’s loss in the ensuing 1976 election is often attributed to his unpopular pardon of Nixon which may have angered voters.

To learn more about the long and storied history of the executive branch and the core concepts of democracy, be sure to check out Democracy for Beginners.

Reminder: One Week Left in the Tagline Contest!

There is only a week remaining for entries in the Tagline Contest. We have already seen some great entries but there is plenty of time for new and creative ideas. Remember, the winner can look forward to seeing their idea on all sorts of For Beginners® merchandise as well as receiving a collection of all 38 titles from the For Beginners® catalog.

Continue to post your ideas via our twitter and facebook pages. A list of some of the earlier entries can be found here.

Today in History – 1986: Desmond Tutu elected first black Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Cape Town

September 7th, 1986 
Desmond Tutu, the globally established opponent of the Apartheid and recipient of the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize, added further renown to his already impressive philanthropic and religious contributions to South Africa by becoming the first black Archbishop of the Anglican Church in Cape Town.

Tutu, who had received the inaugural Albert Schweitzer Prize for Humanitarianism early in the year, remained in the position until 1996. He continues to speak to date on the critical theological and social issues afflicting both South Africa and the world.

To learn more about Desmond Tutu and other figures critical to African history, pick up our African History for Beginners.

Today in History: 1901 -- Anarchist Leon Czolgosz shoots President William McKinley

Leon Czolgosz, born on May 5, 1873 in Alpena Michigan, was a recluse throughout his life, disillusioned by what he saw as a cat and mouse relationship between the upper and lower class in the American Capitalist society, and was heavily influenced by socialist and anarchist thinkers such as Emma Goldman and Alexander Berkman. On August 31, 1901, Czolgosz moved to Buffalo, NY where he rented a room near the Pan-American Expo. He went to the expo on September 6th concealing a gun in his pocket and shot the president twice at point blank range. President McKiney died seven days later.

Czolgosz's last words before being executed were "I killed the president because he was an enemy to the good people - the working people."

Czolgoz was never an active participant of any anarchist group and many anarchists found his aggresive and violent behavior to be detrimental to the movement, however, after his execution, Emma Goldman publicized her approval of his actions.

Learn more about Anarchism in our book, Anarchism For Beginners.

A New Review For An Old Book

Proof that our For Beginners series is still relevant: 

Not but a month ago, the Chapman University's Community of Readers blog said that our Postmodernism For Beginners, a title first published 12 years ago by Writers and Readers, is... RECOMMENDED!!! 

Another positive review under our belts. Read it here.

A is For Anansi

Black Holocaust For Beginners author, S.E. Anderson, wants everybody to know that the New York University's A is For Anansi: Literature for Children of African Descent is coming up on the 8th and 9th of October. The presentation is presented by the Institute of African American Affairs at New York University and will be held at the Kimmel Center, 60 Washington Square South, Room 914.


A Is For Anansi will cover the history, criticism and theory of contemporary books for and about children of African descent, as told by its most influential critics, scholars, teachers and producers. The need for more in-depth analysis and for more information, critical evaluation, and publications on this topic still remain. The conference will look at these and consider other questions and issues as well.


There there will be a long line up of presenters ranging from teachers to publishers to writers, speaking on the importance of reading. It's sure to be a great event.


Find more info about A is or Anansi here