Historians have long remarked on Thomas Jefferson's "peculiarities." But it took author Norm Ledgin, whose son has Asperger's Syndrome, to see what others did not. In this intriguing book, Ledgin carefully constructs a convincing case for the likelihood that Thomas Jefferson had Asperger's Syndrome. He matches Jefferson's behaviors with five diagnostic criteria for Asperger's: social impairment, preoccupation with "special interests," impairment in nonverbal communication, lack of emotional reciprocity, and inflexible adherence to non-functional routines. He also addresses other well-known signs of Asperger's, such as failure to recognize social cues, need for calming pressure, and indifference to peer pressure. A fascinating read!

The fanatical John Brown chooses a natural-born killer to help cart rifles into Bleeding Kansas. He's Malcolm Erskine, mixed-race drifter off the docks of Massachusetts, where he'd endured Yankee bigotry and slain two men. Besieged Kansas-settling abolitionists enlist Erskine in the Border War to repel invading proslavers. Aiding transplanted New Englanders, young Wild Bill Hickok tries to guide Erskine, but Malcolm makes it a personal fight. Outrage over the savagery of the enemy drives him to even bloodier retaliation, and he's on his way to becoming more notorious than Brown. Erskine is quickly wanted dead or alive, stalked by Missouri Bushwhackers and bounty hunters. Yet he manages to escape jails and an attempted lynching to assemble and lead counter-offensive forces of Jayhawkers. Meanwhile, women of every race throw themselves at this handsome and legendary adventurer. Question is, will he ever settle down to enjoy the racial freedom he's fighting so hard to win for slaves and other people of color? Or will race hatred bring him down? The Jayhawker pulls no punches when it comes to treachery, gore, sex, even the frontier frustrations that lead to incest. Few authors succeed credibly in combining hard-fighting adventure with romance, but historical fiction writer Norm Ledgin pairs ingeniously calculated warring and intense lovemaking as natural expressions of a cunning and well-motivated hero.

Feisty middle-aged piano teacher Sally Freberg stumbles on a murder-in-progress after a Kansas City concert. Why would anyone conspire to kill mild-mannered archeologist Henry Decker? His brutal knife-slaying stymies all, especially the police. What's the motive? Apparently none in the victim's estranged Santa Fe family stands to gain. But----what's this about Decker's pre-concert mention of an opera? How might Sally follow THAT slender lead to uncover a motive and unmask the conspirators? To nail it all, Sally teams with an ambitious KCPD detective for a deadly pursuit near Decker's digs among ancient pueblo ruins. It's a wild chase during a fierce New Mexico monsoon, imperiling Sally----and altering her life.

The author of Diagnosing Jefferson introduces twelve more high-achieving role models - including Einstein, Mozart, and Darwin - who have made significant contributions to our world. All exhibited traits common to people with Asperger's Syndrome. Today's young people and adults with AS can also make a difference if they are given support, opportunities, and the freedom to explore their abilities. Many accomplished people have been loners, self-taught, obsessed by an idea, and known for their lack of social skills. How many of them would be diagnosed with Asperger's today? Norm Ledgin makes convincing arguments for an Asperger's role in each of their extraordinary lives.