America's Game by Michael MacCambridge (Random House / $27.95 / 458 pages), decribes the rise of pro football in America, from its days as a small-time sport to the present era of Super Bowl spectaculars, It's not strictly a book about Maryland, but how can you resist a cover that has Johnny U. with his arm cocked on a pass?

The War Behind Me by Deborah Nelson (Basic Books / $26.95 / 187 pages) looks at an archive of Vietnam-era war crimes, declassified Army papers that were erroneously released and have since been pulled from public circulation. Nelson, a Pulitzer Prize–winner who is a visiting professor at the University of Maryland College of Journalism, talks with many of those who were involved, both accusers and accused.

Flightless Goose by Eric and Nataliya Goodman (Writer's Lair Books / $15.95), is a picture book about a goose that must learn to tolerate teasing and the challenges of being different.  He is even left behind as the geese fly south for the winter.  In the end, the flightless goose develops a talent no other goose has.