The Winchesters

Fourteen-year-old Chris Winchester is torn between two worlds. By birth, he's part of the indomitable Winchester clan, owners of the enormous electronics factory that employs nearly everyone in town. Yet Chris' father gave up his stake in the business to work for the Peace Corp. When he died, Chris, his mother, and his twin sisters moved into a tiny gatehouse on the Winchester estate—poor relations living on family goodwill. While his cousin Ernest is groomed to take over the family fortune, Chris attends public school and makes friends with the kids in town. He can't understand why a crisis at his uncle's factory makes people suddenly hate him, but a wage cut and a threatened strike have everyone's nerves on edge. In the eyes of the townspeople, Chris is guilty by association, for he bears the Winchester name. When things turn ugly, Chris discovers that his family can get very tough. Power is like a muscle, his uncle explains, and it must be flexed to keep it strong. Chris senses that power can be used to destroy, as well. In spite of himself, Chris is drawn into the inner circle of the Winchester clan. Suddenly he realizes that part of the Winchester wealth might be his one day. Being rich sounds exciting, but his uncle's protection is not without its price, and Chris' conscience is uneasy. As he journeys toward adulthood he is faced with some difficult questions: where does he belong, and whose side is he on?

Sam and Dean Winchester know all the secrets their father recorded in his journal. Now you can, too. On November 2, 1983, Sam and Dean Winchester lost their mother to a demonic supernatural force. In the wake of the tragedy, their father, John, set out to learn everything he could about the paranormal evil that lives in the dark corners and on the back roads of America . . . and how to kill it. In his personal journal, he not only compiled folklore, legend, and superstition about all manner of otherworldly enemies but he also recorded his experiences—hunting the creature that killed his wife even as he raised his two sons. Part prequel, part resource guide, John Winchester's Journal finally gives fans the ultimate companion book for Supernatural. It's all here: the exorcism Sam and Dean used in "Phantom Traveler," John's notes on everything from shape-shifters to Samuel Colt, Dean's first hunt, Sam's peewee soccer team . . . and John's single-minded pursuit of a growing and deadly evil.

“Details the extraordinary life of Oliver Winchester, the company, and its rapid rise and slow fall as told by a distant family descendant.”—American Gunsmith Arguably the world’s most famous firearm, the Winchester Repeating Rifle was sought after by a cast of characters ranging from the settlers of the American West to the Ottoman Empire’s Army. Laura Trevelyan, a descendant of the Winchester family, offers an engrossing personal history of the colorful New England clan responsible for the creation and manufacture of the “Gun that Won the West.” Trevelyan chronicles the rise and fortunes of a great American arms dynasty, from Oliver Winchester’s involvement with the Volcanic Arms Company in 1855 through the turbulent decades of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. She explores the evolution of an iconic, paradigm-changing weapon that has become a part of American culture; a longtime favorite of collectors and gun enthusiasts that has been celebrated in fiction, glorified in Hollywood, and applauded in endorsements from the likes of Annie Oakley, Theodore Roosevelt, Ernest Hemingway, and Native American tribesmen who called it “the spirit gun.” “[A] detailed but accessible look at the life, times and commerce of Oliver Winchester—Trevelyan’s great great great grandfather—and his many descendants of both the human and firearms varieties . . . Whether you’re a fan of firearms or simply of American history, there is much to enjoy and learn in this easy-to-read and well-footnoted volume.”—American Shooting Journal “The book is beautifully illustrated, with fascinating photos of the Winchester family, and with well-known historical figures—including the Native American leader Geronimo and President Theodore Roosevelt—clutching their repeating rifles.”—Times Literary Supplement

“Another gem from one of the world’s justly celebrated historians specializing in unusual and always fascinating subjects and people.” — Booklist (starred review) The revered New York Times bestselling author traces the development of technology from the Industrial Age to the Digital Age to explore the single component crucial to advancement—precision—in a superb history that is both an homage and a warning for our future. The rise of manufacturing could not have happened without an attention to precision. At the dawn of the Industrial Revolution in eighteenth-century England, standards of measurement were established, giving way to the development of machine tools—machines that make machines. Eventually, the application of precision tools and methods resulted in the creation and mass production of items from guns and glass to mirrors, lenses, and cameras—and eventually gave way to further breakthroughs, including gene splicing, microchips, and the Hadron Collider. Simon Winchester takes us back to origins of the Industrial Age, to England where he introduces the scientific minds that helped usher in modern production: John Wilkinson, Henry Maudslay, Joseph Bramah, Jesse Ramsden, and Joseph Whitworth. It was Thomas Jefferson who later exported their discoveries to the fledgling United States, setting the nation on its course to become a manufacturing titan. Winchester moves forward through time, to today’s cutting-edge developments occurring around the world, from America to Western Europe to Asia. As he introduces the minds and methods that have changed the modern world, Winchester explores fundamental questions. Why is precision important? What are the different tools we use to measure it? Who has invented and perfected it? Has the pursuit of the ultra-precise in so many facets of human life blinded us to other things of equal value, such as an appreciation for the age-old traditions of craftsmanship, art, and high culture? Are we missing something that reflects the world as it is, rather than the world as we think we would wish it to be? And can the precise and the natural co-exist in society?

Inspired by true events, this masterfully crafted horror tale takes you into the non-stop construction of “the house taht spirits built” and its briliant and mysterious owner, Sarah Winchester. Thought to be one of the most haunted placed in the world, the Winchester Mystery House is much more than an architectural wonder. It's a labyrinth full of secrets. Come step inside and hear the house's whispers...Inspired by true events, this masterfully crafted horror tale written by Joshua Werner and beautifully illustrated by Dustin Irvin and Damien Torres takes you into the non-stop construction of "the house that spirits built" and its brilliant owner, Sarah Winchester.

From the bestselling author Simon Winchester, a human history of land around the world: who mapped it, owned it, stole it, cared for it, fought for it and gave it back.

The What Do We Know About? series explores the mysterious, the unknown, and the unexplained. Why was Sarah Winchester's puzzling mansion built with so many mysterious features? And is it truly haunted? In 1884, Sarah Winchester began building a large mansion in Santa Clara County, California. Under Sarah's direction, the house rose to be seven stories high and filled with mysterious features, including stairs that lead to nowhere and windows that look into other interior rooms. The house is more than just oddly designed, however: Many people believe that it is haunted. What made the heiress to the Winchester rifle fortune, an independent woman in many ways ahead of her time, create such an unusual house? Is it really filled with ghosts and spirit energy? Find out more in this nonfiction title about one of America's most famously unexplainable and possibly haunted houses.