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Double Double: A Dual Memoir of Alcoholism
by Martha Grimes Ken GrimesFrom the opening paragraphs of Double Double:"We were sitting in a coffee shop talking, looking at the view of downtown Charlottesville, Virginia. This was ten years ago, and we had both been off alcohol for more than a decade. We were disagreeing about the best way to stay sober, when my mother said, "I think we should write a book about alcoholism." I sat back. 'We?' 'Both of us. Two points of view.' "To the final page of this dual memoir, Martha and Ken Grimes keep the reader entertained and informed. Double Double is a unique and honest, dual memoir of alcoholism, a disease that affects nearly 45 million Americans each year. People who suffer from alcoholism as well as their families and friends know that while it is possible to get sober--there is no one "right" way to do this. Now, award-winning mystery writer Martha Grimes and her son, Ken Grimes, offer two points of view on their struggles with alcoholism. In alternating chapters, they share their stories--stories of drinking, recovery, relapse, friendship, travel, work, success and failure. Double Double is an intensely personal, candid and illuminating book, filled with insights, humor, a little self-deprecation, and a lot of self-evaluation.
Impossible Odds: The Kidnapping of Jessica Buchanan and Her Dramatic Rescue by SEAL Team Six
by Jessica Buchanan Erik Landemalm Anthony FlaccoA New York Times bestseller!In 2006, twenty-seven-year-old Jessica Buchanan stepped off a plane in Nairobi, Kenya, with a teaching degree and long-held dreams of helping to educate African children. By 2009, she had met and married a native Swede named Erik Landemalm, who worked to coordinate humanitarian aid with authorities in Africa. Together the two moved from Nairobi to Somalia, and with hopes of starting a family, their future couldn’t have been brighter. . . .But on October 25, 2011, Jessica and a colleague were kidnapped at gunpoint and held for ransom by a band of Somali pirates. For the next three months, Jessica was terrorized by more than two dozen gangsters, held outdoors in filthy conditions, and kept on a starvation diet while her health steadily deteriorated. Negotiations for ransom dragged on, and as the ordeal stretched into its third month, the captors grew increasingly impatient. Every terrifying moment Jessica Buchanan spent suffering in captivity was matched by that of her adoring husband working behind the scenes to deal with her captors. After ninety-three days of fruitless negotiations, and with Jessica’s medical state becoming a life-or-death issue, President Barack Obama ordered Navy SEAL Team Six to attempt a rescue operation. On January 25, 2012, just before the president delivered his State of the Union speech, the team of twenty-four SEALs, under the cover of darkness, attacked the heavily armed hostiles. They killed all nine with no harm to the hostages, who were quickly airlifted out on a military rescue helicopter.In riveting detail, this book chronicles Jessica and Erik’s mutual journey during those torturous months. Together they relate the events prior to the kidnapping, the drama of Jessica’s fight to stay alive, and Erik’s efforts to bolster and support the hunt for her while he acted as liaison between their two families, the FBI, professional hostage negotiators, and the United States government. Both a testament to two people’s courage and a nail-biting look at a life-or-death struggle, this is a harrowing and deeply personal story about their triumph over impossible odds.
Heart
by Dick Cheney Jonathan ReinerFormer Vice President Dick Cheney and his longtime cardiologist, Dr. Jonathan Reiner, share the story of Cheney's thirty-five-year battle with heart disease--providing insight into the incredible medical breakthroughs that have changed cardiac care over the last four decades. For almost as long as he served at the highest levels of government and business, Dick Cheney has been one of the most well known cardiac patients in the world. When he suffered his first heart attack in 1978, Cheney received essentially the same treatment as President Eisenhower did after his heart attack in 1955. Since then, coronary care has undergone revolutionary changes. The story of these changes is told through the chronicle of Cheney's own heart disease and the treatments he received. In Heart, for the first time ever, Dick Cheney shares the very personal story of his health struggles. Heart traces the history of cardiology over the past forty years through the alternating narratives of Cheney and his longtime cardiologist Dr. Jonathan Reiner. In their voices, readers will learn about Cheney's personal experiences, get a glimpse into the all-important doctor-patient relationship, and learn about the cutting-edge science that has radically changed the way we think about and treat the disease. By revealing the intimate details behind his five heart attacks and most recently, his heart transplant, Cheney offers hope to the millions struggling with cardiovascular disease around the world.
Sally Ride: America's First Woman in Space
by Lynn SherrThe definitive biography of Sally Ride, America's first woman in space, with exclusive insights from Ride's family and partner, by the ABC reporter who covered NASA during its transformation from a test-pilot boys' club to a more inclusive elite.<P> Sally Ride made history as the first American woman in space. A member of the first astronaut class to include women, she broke through a quarter-century of white male fighter jocks when NASA chose her for the seventh shuttle mission, cracking the celestial ceiling and inspiring several generations of women.<P> After a second flight, Ride served on the panels investigating the Challenger explosion and the Columbia disintegration that killed all aboard. In both instances she faulted NASA's rush to meet mission deadlines and its organizational failures. She cofounded a company promoting scienceand education for children, especially girls.<P> Sherr also writes about Ride's scrupulously guarded personal life--she kept her sexual orientation private--with exclusive access to Ride's partner, her former husband, her family, and countless friends and colleagues. Sherr draws from Ride's diaries, files, and letters. This is a rich biography of a fascinating woman whose life intersected with revolutionary social and scientific changes in America. Sherr's revealing portrait is warm and admiring but unsparing. It makes this extraordinarily talented and bold woman, an inspiration to millions, come alive.
Shirley Jones: A Memoir
by Shirley Jones Wendy LeighFrom golden-voiced ingénue to bus-driving mother of a pop band, Shirley Jones sets aside her wholesome, squeaky clean image in a memoir as shockingly candid, deliciously juicy, and delightfully frank as the star herself.“You are going to meet the real flesh-and-blood Shirley Jones, not just the movie star or Mrs. Partridge,” says the beloved film, television, and stage actress and singer of her long-awaited memoir, an account as shockingly direct, deliciously juicy, and delightfully frank as the performer herself.Sharing the “candid” (Los Angeles Times) and “revealing” (Associated Press) details of her life in Hollywood’s inner circle and beyond, Shirley Jones blows past the wholesome, squeaky-clean image that first brought fame, and gives us a woman who only gets hotter with time.If the story of a rebellious, gifted small-town girl being discovered by Rodgers and Hammerstein isn’t thrilling enough, go deeper behind the scenes, where Shirley Jones portrays her tumultuous marriage to Jack Cassidy, the dashing and charismatic but deeply troubled actor who unlocked her highly charged sexuality and captured her heart forever. She talks openly about their passion-fueled relationship; the infidelities, the costar crushes, and sexual experimentation. She reflects on her relationship with stepson David Cassidy; her cult status as coolest-ever TV mom Shirley Partridge; her second marriage to wacky TV comedian and producer Marty Ingels; and much more in this “saucy” (Entertainment Weekly) self-portrait.
Happy, Happy, Happy: My Life and Legacy as the Duck Commander
by Phil RobertsonThis no-holds-barred autobiography chronicles the remarkable life of Phil Robertson, the original Duck Commander and Duck Dynasty® star, from early childhood through the founding of a family business.LIVING THE DREAMDuck calls—though the source of his livelihood—are not what makes Phil Robertson the man he is today. When asked what matters in his life, he’s quick to say, “Faith, family, ducks—in that order.” It isn’t often that a person can live a dream, but Phil Robertson, aka The Duck Commander, has proven that it is possible with vision, hard work, helping hands, and an unshakable faith in the Almighty. Phil’s is the remarkable story of one man who followed the call he received from God and soon after invented a duck call that would begin an incredible journey to the life he had always dreamed of for himself and his family. In the love of his country, his family, and his maker, Phil has finally found the ingredients to the “good life” he always wanted. If you ever wind up sitting face-to-face with Phil, you’ll see that his enthusiasm and passion for duck hunting and the Lord is no act—it is truly who he is.If you’ve watched the exceedingly popular A&E® program Duck Dynasty®, you already know the famed Phil Robertson. As patriarch of the Robertson clan and creator of Duck Commander duck calls, he fearlessly leads his family in a responsible work ethic and an active faith.But what you don’t know is his life before the show. In the pages of this book, you’ll learn of Phil’s colorful past and his wild road to the “happy, happy, happy” life he leads today. Before the “happy,” Phil’s passion for the outdoors and wild living led him down some shady paths. As a young husband and father, he became the proprietor of a rough bar and lived a life, as he says, of “romping, stomping, and ripping” for a number of years. He even left his wife and young boys for a short period of time.Through it all, Phil Robertson has lived his life as a “called” man. Called to live off the land, called to leave a starring role in Louisiana Tech football (playing ahead of Terry Bradshaw) for duck hunting, called to wild living, called to create a new kind of duck call—and finally, called to follow God and lead a life of faith. In this eye-opening and rousing book, you’ll find stories that will shock you, as well as those that will inspire you. You’ll get to know the man behind the legend, and you’ll come away better for it.
Barking to the Choir: The Power of Radical Kinship
by Gregory BoyleIn a moving example of unconditional love in difficult times, Gregory Boyle, the Jesuit priest and New York Times bestselling author of Tattoos on the Heart, shares what working with gang members in Los Angeles has taught him about faith, compassion, and the enduring power of kinship.In his first book, Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion, Gregory Boyle introduced us to Homeboy Industries, the largest gang-intervention program in the world. Critics hailed that book as an &“astounding literary and spiritual feat&” (Publishers Weekly) that is &“destined to become a classic of both urban reportage and contemporary spirituality&” (Los Angeles Times). Now, after the successful expansion of Homeboy Industries, Boyle returns with Barking to the Choir to reveal how compassion is transforming the lives of gang members.In a nation deeply divided and plagued by poverty and violence, Barking to the Choir offers a snapshot into the challenges and joys of life on the margins. Sergio, arrested at age nine, in a gang by age twelve, and serving time shortly thereafter, now works with the substance-abuse team at Homeboy to help others find sobriety. Jamal, abandoned by his family when he tried to attend school at age seven, gradually finds forgiveness for his schizophrenic mother. New father Cuco, who never knew his own dad, thinks of a daily adventure on which to take his four-year-old son. These former gang members uplift the soul and reveal how bright life can be when filled with unconditional love and kindness.This book is guaranteed to shake up our ideas about God and about people with a glimpse at a world defined by more compassion and fewer barriers. Gently and humorously, Barking to the Choir invites us to find kinship with one another and re-convinces us all of our own goodness.
One Doctor: Close Calls, Cold Cases, and the Mysteries of Medicine
by Brendan ReillyAn epic story told by a unique voice in American medicine, One Doctor describes life-changing experiences in the career of a distinguished physician.An epic story told by a unique voice in American medicine, One Doctor describes life-changing experiences in the career of a distinguished physician. In riveting first-person prose, Dr. Brendan Reilly takes us to the front lines of medicine today. Whipsawed by daily crises and frustrations, Reilly must deal with several daunting challenges simultaneously: the extraordinary patients under his care on the teeming wards of a renowned teaching hospital; the life-threatening illnesses of both of his ninety-year-old parents; and the tragic memory of a cold case from long ago that haunts him still. As Reilly's patients and their families survive close calls, struggle with heartrending decisions, and confront the limits of medicine's power to cure, One Doctor lays bare a fragmented, depersonalized, business-driven health-care system where real caring is hard to find. Every day, Reilly sees patients who fall through the cracks and suffer harm because they lack one doctor who knows them well and relentlessly advocates for their best interests. Filled with fascinating characters in New York City and rural New England--people with dark secrets, mysterious illnesses, impossible dreams, and many kinds of courage--One Doctor tells their stories with sensitivity and empathy, reminding us of professional values once held dear by all physicians. But medicine has changed enormously during Reilly's career, for both better and worse, and One Doctor is a cautionary tale about those changes. It is also a hopeful, inspiring account of medicine's potential to improve people's lives, Reilly's quest to understand the "truth" about doctoring, and a moving testament to the difference one doctor can make.
One Doctor
by Brendan ReillyReminiscent of the eloquent writings of physicians Abraham Verghese, Atul Gawande, and Siddhartha Mukherjee, this compelling story is told by a unique voice in American medicine, Brendan Reilly, a distinguished internist whose work was profiled at length by Malcolm Gladwell in his bestselling book Blink.Only One Doctor is a riveting first-person narrative--a true story that reads like a novel and recreates Dr. Reilly's present-day, moment-to-moment "E.R."-like dramas with patients, families, and medical staff at the Medical Center. At the heart of Only One Doctor is an unsolved medical mystery that haunts Reilly: the loss of a legendary engineer friend and patient, Fred, who died suddenly after he began to see angels and hear voices. Fred was renowned for many inventions, including a navigational device that was removed from Amelia Earhart's plane before she took off on her last flight. As Fred sought to learn Earhart's fate, Reilly searches for the reason behind Fred's death, piecing together his last days to arrive at a chilling revelation. Lessons learned from Fred's case resonate throughout Reilly's experiences with other patients in the book, ultimately leading to the saving of thousands of lives. From the cases in Only One Doctor, patients and caretakers learn what works and what doesn't in today's health care and how to avoid falling through the cracks. As compelling as an episode of House, written with the skill of How We Die and My Own Country, Only One Doctor is a wrenching, brilliant, inspiring read.
What's So Funny?
by Carol Burnett Jane Scovell Tim ConwaySix-time Emmy award-winning funny man Tim Conway, best known for his characters on The Carol Burnett Show, offers a straight-shooting and hilarious memoir about his life on stage and off as an actor and comedian.In the annals of TV history, few entertainers have captured as many hearts, tickled as many funny bones, and brought as many families together in living rooms across America as Tim Conway. In What's So Funny? he brings his hilarious hijinks from the screen to the page. Conway's often-improvised humor, razor-sharp timing, and hilarious characters have made him one of the funniest and most authentic performers to grace the stage and studio. As Carol Burnett has said, "there's no one funnier" than Tim Conway. In What's So Funny? Conway takes us on a seventy-year, rags-to-riches journey that is touchingly comical and ultimately inspiring, from his pranks in small Ohio classrooms during the Great Depression to his pitch-perfect performances on national TV and in major motion pictures. Along the way, Conway shares hilarious and often moving accounts of the glory days of The Carol Burnett Show; his famous partnerships with entertainment greats like Harvey Korman, Don Knotts, and Dick Van Dyke; and his friendships with stars like Betty White, Bob Newhart, and, of course, Carol Burnett, who also provides an intimate foreword to the book. As Conway continues to tour the country giving live comedy performances that enchant his always eager audiences, What's So Funny? brings his warmth, humor, and heart to delight and inspire fans everywhere.
Simpler
by Cass R. SunsteinSimpler government arrived four years ago. It helped put money in your pocket. It saved hours of your time. It improved your children's diet, lengthened your life span, and benefited businesses large and small. It did so by issuing fewer regulations, by insisting on smarter regulations, and by eliminating or improving old regulations. Cass R. Sunstein, as administrator of the most powerful White House office you've never heard of, oversaw it and explains how it works, why government will never be the same again (thank goodness), and what must happen in the future. Cutting-edge research in behavioral economics has influenced business and politics. Long at the forefront of that research, Sunstein, for three years President Obama's "regulatory czar" heading the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, oversaw a far-reaching restructuring of America's regulatory state. In this highly anticipated book, Sunstein pulls back the curtain to show what was done, why Americans are better off as a result, and what the future has in store. The evidence is all around you, and more is coming soon. Simplified mortgages and student loan applications. Scorecards for colleges and universities. Improved labeling of food and energy-efficient appliances and cars. Calories printed on chain restaurant menus. Healthier food in public schools. Backed by historic executive orders ensuring transparency and accountability, simpler government can be found in new initiatives that save money and time, improve health, and lengthen lives. Simpler: The Future of Government will transform what you think government can and should accomplish.
Conspiracy Theories and Other Dangerous Ideas
by Cass R. SunsteinThe nation's most-cited legal scholar who for decades has been at the forefront of applied behavioral economics, and the bestselling author of Nudge and Simpler, Cass Sunstein is one of the world's most innovative thinkers in the academy and the world of practical politics. In the years leading up to his confirmation as the administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), Sunstein published hundreds of articles on everything from same-sex marriage to cost-benefit analysis. Conspiracy Theories and Other Dangerous Ideas is a collection of his most famous, insightful, relevant, and inflammatory pieces. Within these pages you will learn: * Why perfectly rational people sometimes believe crazy conspiracy theories * What wealthy countries should and should not do about climate change * Why governments should allow same-sex marriage, and what the "right to marry" is all about * Why animals have rights (and what that means) * Why we "misfear," meaning get scared when we should be unconcerned and are unconcerned when we should get scared * What kinds of losses make us miserable, and what kinds of losses are absolutely fine * How to find the balance between religious freedom and gender equality * And much more . . . Cass Sunstein is a unique, controversial, and exciting voice in the political world. A man who cuts through the fog of left vs. right arguments and offers logical, evidence-based, and often surprising solutions to today's most challenging questions.
Other Side of the Sky: A Memoir
by Farah AhmediFarah Ahmedi's "poignant tale of survival" (Chicago Tribune) chronicles her journey from war to peace. Equal parts tragedy and hope, determination and daring, Ahmedi's memoir delivers a remarkably vivid portrait of her girlhood in Kabul, where the sound of gunfire and the sight of falling bombs shaped her life and stole her family. She herself narrowly escapes death when she steps on a land mine. Eventually the war forces her to flee, first over the mountains to refugee camps across the border, and finally to America. Ahmedi proves that even in the direst circumstances, not only can the human heart endure, it can thrive. The Other Side of the Sky is "a remarkable journey" (Chicago Sun-Times), and Farah Ahmedi inspires us all.
Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and the Making of a Medical Examiner
by Judy Melinek T.J. Mitchell“Fun…and full of smart science. Fans of CSI—the real kind—will want to read it” (The Washington Post): A young forensic pathologist’s “rookie season” as a NYC medical examiner, and the hair-raising cases that shaped her as a physician and human being.Just two months before the September 11 terrorist attacks, Dr. Judy Melinek began her training as a New York City forensic pathologist. While her husband and their toddler held down the home front, Judy threw herself into the fascinating world of death investigation—performing autopsies, investigating death scenes, counseling grieving relatives. Working Stiff chronicles Judy’s two years of training, taking readers behind the police tape of some of the most harrowing deaths in the Big Apple, including a firsthand account of the events of September 11, the subsequent anthrax bio-terrorism attack, and the disastrous crash of American Airlines Flight 587. An unvarnished portrait of the daily life of medical examiners—complete with grisly anecdotes, chilling crime scenes, and a welcome dose of gallows humor—Working Stiff offers a glimpse into the daily life of one of America’s most arduous professions, and the unexpected challenges of shuttling between the domains of the living and the dead. The body never lies—and through the murders, accidents, and suicides that land on her table, Dr. Melinek lays bare the truth behind the glamorized depictions of autopsy work on television to reveal the secret story of the real morgue. “Haunting and illuminating...the stories from her average workdays…transfix the reader with their demonstration that medical science can diagnose and console long after the heartbeat stops” (The New York Times).
Trauma Red
by Peter Rhee Gordon DillowThe incredible life story of the trauma surgeon who helped save Congresswoman Gabby Giffords--from his upbringing in South Korea and Africa to the gripping dramas he faces in a typical day as a medical genius.Congresswoman Gabby Giffords is a household name: most people remember that awful day in Arizona in 2011 when she was a victim of an act of violence that left six dead and thirteen wounded. What many people don't know is that it was Dr. Peter Rhee who played a vital role in her survival. Born in South Korea, Rhee moved with his family to Uganda where he watched his public health surgeon father remove a spear from a man's belly--and began his lifelong interest in medicine. What came next is this compelling portrait of how one becomes a world class trauma surgeon: the specialized training, the mindset to make critical decisions, and the practiced ability to operate on the human body. Dr. Rhee is so eminent that when President Clinton traveled to China, he was selected to accompany the president as his personal physician. In Trauma Red we learn how Rhee's experiences were born from the love and sacrifices of determined parents, and of Rhee's own quest to become as excellent a surgeon as possible. Trauma Red chronicles the patient cases Dr. Rhee has handled over two decades on two distinct battle fronts: In Iraq and Afghanistan, where he served as a frontline US Navy surgeon trying to save young American soldiers, and the urban zones of Los Angeles and Washington, DC, where he has been confronted by an endless stream of bloody victims of civilian violence and accidents. Tough and outspoken, Dr. Rhee isn't afraid to take on the politics of violence in America and a medical community that too often resists innovation. His story provides an inside look into a fascinating medical world, a place where lives are saved every day.
The Unarmed Truth: My Fight to Blow the Whistle and Expose Fast and Furious
by John DodsonA hard-hitting inside account of the Fast and Furious scandal—the government-sponsored program intended to “win the drug war” by providing and tracking gun sales across the border to Mexico—from whistle-blower and ATF agent John Dodson.After the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, John Dodson pulled bodies out of the wreckage at the Pentagon. In 2007, following the shooting massacre at Virginia Tech, John Dodson walked through the classrooms, heartbroken, to cover up the bodies of the victims.Then came Arizona. The American border.Ten days before Christmas, 2010, ATF agent John Dodson awoke to the news he had dreaded every day as a member of the elite team called the Group VII Strike Force: a U.S. border patrol agent named Brian Terry had been shot dead by bandits armed with guns that had been supplied to them by ATF. Was this an inevitable consequence of the Obama administration’s Project Gunrunner, set in place one year earlier ostensibly to track Mexican drug cartels?Brian Terry’s murder would not only change John Dodson’s life forever; it would reveal a scandal so unthinkably unpatriotic that it forced President Barack Obama to claim executive privilege and caused Attorney General Eric Holder to be held in contempt of Congress.Federal Agent John Dodson, an ex-military man, took an oath to defend the world’s greatest country, and proudly considered himself a walking patriotic example of the American Dream. Brian Terry, ex-military like Dodson, was only forty years old, a family man who served his country by working for the government.Dodson was terrified when the next phone call came, one with the potential to destroy his career, his family, and his life. CBS investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson asked Dodson to go public with what he knew about Fast and Furious. To Agent Dodson, this meant blowing the whistle. But to the family of Agent Terry, it was a chance to save lives and right a wrong. As he took a fight from the border towns of Arizona to a showdown in the halls of Congress, John Dodson clung to the hope that truth would prevail, that he would be redeemed, and that Brian Terry’s death would not be in vain.Like whistle-blowers before him, John would not be welcome back on the job. But he found strength in his conscience, in the support of the American public, and in Senators Darryl Issa and Chuck Grassley. When his first-amendment rights to publicly tell his story were threatened, the ACLU took up his case. For her report revealing John Dodson as the key whistle-blower in Fast and Furious, Sharyl Attkisson received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Investigative Journalism.Ultimately, John Dodson was cleared by the Inspector General’s office, publicly heralded as a hero, and returned to Arizona.Perhaps a lesson gleaned from John Dodson’s powerful account is well stated by former Speaker of the House of Representatives Sam Rayburn: “If you always tell the truth, you don’t have to remember what you said.”
Sounds Like Me: My Life (So Far) in Song
by Sara BareillesWith refreshing candor, Sounds Like Me reveals Sara Bareilles, the artist--and the woman--on songwriting, soul searching, and what's discovered along the way.Sara Bareilles shares the joys and the struggles that come with creating great work, all while staying true to yourself. Imbued with humor and marked by Sara's confessional writing style, this collection tells the inside story behind some of her most popular songs. Most recently known for her chart-topper "Brave," Sara first broke through in 2007 with her multi-platinum single "Love Song." She has released five albums that have sold 2.5 million copies and spawned several hits. More than a privileged view inside the experience of a remarkable musical talent--this is a moving tribute to the universal search for growth, healing, and self-acceptance.ibute to the universal search for growth, healing, and self-acceptance.
An Amish Wedding Invitation; An eShort Account of a Real Amish Wedding
by Serena B MillerAmish fiction author Serena B. Miller takes you "behind the barn door" in this true e-short account of her experience of attending an Amish wedding.In her years of researching her Amish novels, Serena Miller has gotten to know several Amish families in Holmes County, Ohio. When she was invited to attend the wedding of one of her friend's daughters, she expected it to be a casual affair: muck out the barn, throw a potluck together, send the bride and groom off on their honeymoon in a buggy with a Just Married sign hung on the back. But when the young bride shyly brings her a formal, professionally printed invitation, she realized everything she thought she knew about Amish weddings was wrong. From the hand-arranged centerpieces--made from flowers the bride grew herself--to the portable kitchens the family rents to the elaborate and formally served meal, she realized that every detail of this wedding has been carefully and beautifully orchestrated by a bride and a society that cares very deeply about marriage. On the day of the wedding, Serena sits through the three-hour sermon preached entirely in German, after which the ceremony itself lasts under two minutes. She sees the grace with which the bride cooks for and serves her guests, and then stays to clean up after everyone has gone home. She is inspired by the way every member of the community seems to have some role to play in the event. Serena, a pastor's wife, has attended hundreds of weddings, and draws comparisons between the overblown weddings she normally attends and this "simple" wedding. She is inspired by the immensity of the vows this young couple is making--not just to each other, but to their community--and the faithfulness of the community that puts the focus on the marriage far more than the wedding itself.
What If . . .
by Shirley MaclaineBeloved actress and bestselling author Shirley MacLaine contemplates a wealth of subjects from the mundane to the esoteric in this all-new collection of musings that begin with two simple words: What if...What if hope is the most dangerous emotion?What if a frog had wings? (Answer: He wouldn't bump his ass so much.)What if our political leaders actually led?What if Downton Abbey was full of Americans? What if, for some reason, I couldn't be creative and work? These are just a few of the "what ifs" that Shirley Maclaine considers in her new book written in the style of her beloved and laugh-out-loud memoir I'm Over All That. In What If..., she speculates on a wide range of matters both spiritual and secular, humorous and profound, earth-bound and high-flying, personal and universal. This is Shirley MacLaine at her most funny, acerbic, imaginative, and irresistible.
My Name is Mary
by Mary FisherShare your own customer images My Name is Mary: A Memoir [Kindle Edition] Mary Fisher (Author) 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kindle Price: $10.67 includes free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet Sold by: Simon and Schuster Digital Sales Inc -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- • Length: 288 pages •Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here. Formats Amazon Price New from Used from Kindle Edition $10.67 -- -- Hardcover -- $5.95 $0.01 Audio, Cassette, Audiobook -- $0.49 $0.01 Kindle Daily Deals Subscribe and Get a Free Kindle Book For a limited time only, first-time subscribers to the "Kindle Delivers Daily Deals" e-mail can choose one of 16 selected Kindle books for free. Learn more -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Book Description Publication Date: December 4, 2012 "The AIDS virus is not a political creature. It does not care whether you are Democrat or Republican. It does not ask whether you are Black or White, male or female, gay or straight, young or old. Tonight I represent an AIDS community whose members have been reluctantly drafted from every segment of American society." So said Mary Fisher in her historic speech at the 1992 Republican National Convention. My Name Is Mary chronicles the emotional events leading up to and following this momentous evening. In a memoir that exhibits the same grace and unflinching honesty that moved the nation, Mary Fisher shares the story of her life. Raised in a socially prominent, affluent Michigan family, Mary Fisher seemed to have it all. She socialized with important and often famous friends and eventually married a handsome artist with whom she had two sons. Although the marriage ended in divorce, Mary continued to thrive in her roles as mother and artist. However, in 1991 Mary's world was turned upside down by the news from her ex-husband that he had AIDS. An HIV test revealed that Mary, too, was infected. Terrified, struggling against fear, depression, and anger, Mary ultimately found a new life mission in her positive status—she began to educate others about the need for compassion and activism in the face of this epidemic. Her unspoken motto is powerful—one person can, indeed, make a difference. Whether describing her difficult childhood, reflecting on raising her two sons, discussing her evolution as an artist, or explaining her coping mechanisms for survival, My Name Is Mary is warm, caring, and inspirational—like Mary Fisher herself.
Fiend
by Harold SchechterA MONSTER PREYED UPON THE CHILDREN OF NINETEENTH-CENTURY BOSTON. HIS CRIMES WERE APPALLING -- AND YET HE WAS LITTLE MORE THAN A CHILD HIMSELF. When fourteen-year-old Jesse Pomeroy was arrested in 1874, a nightmarish reign of terror over an unsuspecting city came to an end. "The Boston Boy Fiend" was imprisoned at last. But the complex questions sparked by his ghastly crime spree -- the hows and whys of vicious juvenile crime -- were as relevant in the so-called Age of Innocence as they are today. Jesse Pomeroy was outwardly repellent in appearance, with a gruesome "dead" eye; inside, he was deformed beyond imagining. A sexual sadist of disturbing precocity, he satisfied his atrocious appetites by abducting and torturing his child victims. But soon, the teenager's bloodlust gave way to another obsession: murder. Harold Schechter, whose true-crime masterpieces are "well-documented nightmares for anyone who dares to look" (Peoria Journal Star), brings his acclaimed mix of page-turning storytelling, brilliant insight, and fascinating historical documentation to Fiend -- an unforgettable account from the annals of American crime.
Fields of Grace: Faith, Friendship, and the Day I Nearly Lost Everything
by Hannah Luce Robin Gaby FisherIn this remarkable tale of hope and survival, Hannah Luce tells how, as the sole survivor of a terrible plane crash, she came to grips with her faith: “a calamitous, fascinating memoir, written with surprising spiritual sophistication” (Publishers Weekly, starred review).On May 11, 2012, a small plane carrying five young adults, en route to a Christian youth rally, crashed in a Kansas field, skidding 200 yards before hitting a tree and bursting into flames. Only two survived the crash: ex-marine Austin Anderson, who would die the next morning from extensive burns, and his friend Hannah Luce, the daughter of Teen Mania founder and influential youth minister Ron Luce.This is Hannah’s story.In Fields of Grace, Hannah details the investigation of her faith, her coming-of-age as the dutiful daughter of Evangelical royalty, her decision to join her father’s ministry outreach to teens, and her miraculous survival and recovery following the accident. It also serves as a tribute and testament to the lives of the dear friends who perished in the catastrophic plane crash and reveals how their memory continues to inspire all that she does.Here is the “riveting personal account” (Booklist) of a girl who grew up as the daughter of one of the most influential evangelical leaders of our time, who questioned her early religious convictions somewhere along the way and who, from the embers of that doomed plane ride, finally found her faith.
The Second Kind of Impossible: The Extraordinary Quest for a New Form of Matter
by Paul SteinhardtOne of the most fascinating scientific detective stories of the last fifty years, an exciting quest for a new form of matter. The Second Kind of Impossible reads like James Gleick’s Chaos combined with an Indiana Jones adventure.When leading Princeton physicist Paul Steinhardt began working in the 1980s, scientists thought they knew all the conceivable forms of matter. The Second Kind of Impossible is the story of Steinhardt’s thirty-five-year-long quest to challenge conventional wisdom. It begins with a curious geometric pattern that inspires two theoretical physicists to propose a radically new type of matter—one that raises the possibility of new materials with never before seen properties, but that violates laws set in stone for centuries. Steinhardt dubs this new form of matter “quasicrystal.” The rest of the scientific community calls it simply impossible. The Second Kind of Impossible captures Steinhardt’s scientific odyssey as it unfolds over decades, first to prove viability, and then to pursue his wildest conjecture—that nature made quasicrystals long before humans discovered them. Along the way, his team encounters clandestine collectors, corrupt scientists, secret diaries, international smugglers, and KGB agents. Their quest culminates in a daring expedition to a distant corner of the Earth, in pursuit of tiny fragments of a meteorite forged at the birth of the solar system. Steinhardt’s discoveries chart a new direction in science. They not only change our ideas about patterns and matter, but also reveal new truths about the processes that shaped our solar system. The underlying science is important, simple, and beautiful—and Steinhardt’s firsthand account is an engaging scientific thriller.
Three Things You Need to Know About Rockets: A Real-Life Scottish Fairy Tale
by Jessica A. FoxIn this inspiring, delightful memoir, a young woman decides to escape the daily grind and turn her "what if" fantasy into a reality, only to find work--and a man--she loves in one fell swoop, all in a secondhand bookstore in a quaint Scottish town.Jessica Fox was living in Hollywood, an ambitious 26-year-old film-maker with a high-stress job at NASA. Working late one night, craving another life, she was seized by a moment of inspiration and tapped "second hand bookshop Scotland" into Google. She clicked the first link she saw. A month later, she arrived 2,000 miles across the Atlantic in Wigtown, on the west coast of Scotland, and knocked on the door of the bookshop she would be living in for the next month . . . The rollercoaster journey that ensued--taking in Scottish Hanukkah, yoga on Galloway's west coast, and a waxing that she will never forget--would both break and mend her heart. It would also teach her that sometimes we must have the courage to travel the path less taken. Only then can we truly become the writers of our own stories.
Three Things You Need to Know About Rockets
by Jessica FoxIn this inspiring, delightful memoir, a young woman decides to escape the daily grind and turn her "what if" fantasy into a reality, only to find work--and a man--she loves in one fell swoop, all in a secondhand bookstore in a quaint Scottish town.Jessica Fox was an ambitious twenty-six-year-old filmmaker, but she was stuck in a rut and couldn't take it anymore. Living in Hollywood and working a high-stress job at NASA, she was seized by a moment of inspiration one night and typed "second hand bookshop Scotland" into Google. She clicked on the first link she saw. A month later, she crossed the Atlantic to the west coast of Scotland, and knocked on the door of the bookshop she would be calling home for the next year... The rollercoaster journey that ensued--involving Scottish Hanukkah, a swoon-worthy love story, yoga on Galloway's West Coast, and a waxing that Jessica will never forget--would both break and mend her heart. It would also teach her that before we can write our own stories, we must have the courage to travel the path less taken. If you've ever wondered how you could change the course of your life, Jessica's charming story will entertain, enlighten, and inspire you to begin your own journey of self-discovery.