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A Poet Of The Air; Letters Of Jack Morris Wright: First Lieutenant Of The American Aviation In France, April, 1917-January, 1918
by Jack Morris Wright Sara Greene Wise"THESE letters from my son, I gathered for publication just as they came, with the full joy and pride I had in receiving them, hoping to give to other boys something of his fine courage and spirit --- to other mothers comfort and hope, and to all readers the vivid, beautiful sketches of France, of War, of Idealism as he, "Poet of the Airs," has given me.Jack Wright, the author of these letters is an American boy of eighteen years, born in New York City. When a small child he was taken to France, where he remained until the outbreak of the war.He was educated entirely in French schools; his playmates were the children of the artists and poets of France. French was his language. This will explain his unique literary expression, the curious blend of French and English which, even to the formation of words, I have left entirely as he writes them, feeling therein a special charm.This will explain also his great love for France, the home of his childhood.Although but eighteen years old when he left to make the supreme sacrifice as one of the first American Volunteers, he had graduated with special honors from l'École Alsacienne at Paris and Andover in America, and entered Harvard University.Although only nine months in the war, he had won his commission as First Lieutenant Pilot-Aviator of the American Aviation.While joyously compiling these letters (having even confided my plan to him) the official telegram came that announced his last flight, January 24, 1918.
David, King of Israel, and Caleb in Biblical Memory
by Jacob L. WrightOf all the Bible's personalities, David is the most profoundly human. Courageous, cunning, and complex, he lives life to the hilt. Whatever he does, he does with all his might, exuding both vitality and vulnerability. No wonder it has been said that Israel revered Moses yet loved David. But what do we now know about the historical David? Why does his story stand at the center of the Bible? Why didn't the biblical authors present him in a more favorable light? And what is the special connection between him and Caleb - the Judahite hero remembered for his valor during the wars of conquest? In this groundbreaking study, Jacob L. Wright addresses all these questions and presents a new way of reading the biblical accounts. His work compares the function of these accounts to the role war memorials play over time. The result is a rich study that treats themes of national identity, statehood, the exercise of power, and the human condition.
They Shot, He Scored: The Life and Music of Eldon Rathburn
by James K. WrightEldon Davis Rathburn (1916-2008), one of the most multi-dimensional, prolific, and endlessly fascinating composers of the twentieth century, wrote more music than any other Canadian composer of his generation. During a long and productive career that spanned seventy-five years, Rathburn served for thirty years as a staff composer with the National Film Board of Canada (1947-76), scored the first generation of IMAX films, and created a diverse catalogue of orchestral and chamber works. With the aid of extensive archival and documentary materials, They Shot, He Scored chronicles Rathburn's life and works, beginning with his formative years in Saint John, New Brunswick, and his breakthrough in Los Angeles in connection with Arnold Schoenberg and the LA Philharmonic Orchestra. The book follows his work at the NFB, his close encounters with some of the most celebrated international figures in his field, and his collaboration with the team of innovators who launched the IMAX film corporation. James Wright undertakes a close analytical reading of Rathburn's film and concert scores to outline his methods, compositional techniques, influences, and idiosyncratic approach to instrumentation, as well as his proto-postmodern proclivity for borrowing from diverse styles and genres. Authoritative and insightful, They Shot, He Scored illuminates the extraordinary career of an unsung creative force in the film and music industry.
The Very Worst Missionary: A Memoir or Whatever
by Jamie Wright“The reason you love Jamie (or are about to) is because she says exactly what the rest of us are thinking, but we’re too afraid to upset the apple cart. She is a voice for the outlier, and we’re famished for what she has to say.” --Jen Hatmaker, New York Times bestselling author of Of Mess and Moxie and For the Love Wildly popular blogger "Jamie the Very Worst Missionary" delivers a searing, offbeat, often hilarious memoir of spiritual disintegration and re-formation. As a quirky Jewish kid and promiscuous punkass teen, Jamie Wright never imagines becoming a Christian, let alone a Christian missionary. She is barely an adult when the trials of motherhood and marriage put her on an unexpected collision course with Jesus. After finding her faith at a suburban megachurch, Jamie trades in the easy life on the cul-de-sac for the green fields of Costa Rica. There, along with her family, she earnestly hopes to serve God and change lives. But faced with a yawning culture gap and persistent shortcomings in herself and her fellow workers, she soon loses confidence in the missionary enterprise and falls into a funk of cynicism and despair. Nearly paralyzed by depression, yet still wanting to make a difference, she decides to tell the whole, disenchanted truth: Missionaries suck and our work makes no sense at all! From her sofa in Central America, she launches a renegade blog, Jamie the Very Worst Missionary, and against all odds wins a large and passionate following. Which leads her to see that maybe a "bad" missionary--awkward, doubtful, and vocal—is exactly what the world and the throngs of American do-gooders need. The Very Worst Missionary is a disarming, ultimately inspiring spiritual memoir for well-intentioned contrarians everywhere. It will appeal to readers of Nadia Bolz-Weber, Jen Hatmaker, Ann Lamott, Jana Reiss, Mallory Ortberg, and Rachel Held Evans.
Madame Restell: The Life, Death, and Resurrection of Old New York's Most Fabulous, Fearless, and Infamous Abortionist
by Jennifer Wright**Longlisted for the Brooklyn Public Library Book Prize in Nonfiction (2023)** **An Amazon EDITOR'S PICK for BEST BOOKS OF 2023 SO FAR in BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR and HISTORY** **An Amazon EDITOR'S PICK for BEST BOOKS OF THE MONTH (March 2023)** **A Bookshop.Org EDITOR'S PICK (March 2023)** &“This is the story of one of the boldest women in American history: self-made millionaire, a celebrity in her era, a woman beloved by her patients and despised by the men who wanted to control them.&” An industrious immigrant who built her business from the ground up, Madame Restell was a self-taught surgeon on the cutting edge of healthcare in pre-Gilded Age New York, and her bustling &“boarding house&” provided birth control, abortions, and medical assistance to thousands of women—rich and poor alike. As her practice expanded, her notoriety swelled, and Restell established her-self as a prime target for tabloids, threats, and lawsuits galore. But far from fading into the background, she defiantly flaunted her wealth, parading across the city in designer clothes, expensive jewelry, and bejeweled carriages, rubbing her success in the faces of the many politicians, publishers, fellow physicians, and religious figures determined to bring her down. Unfortunately for Madame Restell, her rise to the top of her field coincided with &“the greatest scam you&’ve never heard about&”—the campaign to curtail women&’s power by restricting their access to both healthcare and careers of their own. Powerful, secular men—threatened by women&’s burgeoning independence—were eager to declare abortion sinful, a position endorsed by newly-minted male MDs who longed to edge out their feminine competition and turn medicine into a standardized, male-only practice. By unraveling the misogynistic and misleading lies that put women&’s lives in jeopardy, Wright simultaneously restores Restell to her rightful place in history and obliterates the faulty reasoning underlying the very foundation of what has since been dubbed the &“pro-life&” movement. Thought-provoking, character-driven, boldly written, and feminist as hell, Madame Restell is required reading for anyone and everyone who believes that when it comes to women&’s rights, women&’s bodies, and women&’s history, women should have the last word.
My Bondage and My Freedom
by John Wright Frederick DouglassMy Bondage and My Freedom is the second of three published autobiographies from one of the most brilliant and eloquent abolitionists and human rights activists in American history. The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave was published ten years before in 1845, while The Life and Times of Frederick Douglass was published twenty-five years later.
My Father, Frank Lloyd Wright
by John Lloyd Wright"An anecdotal reminiscence of America's chief living genius by his son -- short, unconventional, amusing and on the whole revealing." -- Book Week.Frank Lloyd Wright is widely regarded as the twentieth century's greatest architect -- an unconventional genius who transformed both residential and commercial building design with his concept of "organic" architecture. During a long and productive life, Wright designed some 800 buildings, received scores of honors and awards, and left an indelible imprint on modern architectural theory and practice.In this charming, readable memoir, Wright the architect and father comes to life through the vivid recollections and firsthand knowledge of his son. John Lloyd Wright characterizes his father as "a rebel, a jolt to civilization, whose romantic theme -- purposive planning and organic unity in inventing and combining forms -- is an epoch in the architecture of the world." His unique view of the "epoch" will intrigue architects, students, and all who admire the work of this visionary and uncompromising spirit. An added attraction of this volume is the inclusion of the complete text of William C. Gannet's The House Beautiful, an extremely rare work designed and printed by Frank Lloyd Wright.
Marked for Life: One Man's Fight for Justice from the Inside
by Isaac Wright Jr.An empowering memoir of courage and hope in the face of injustice—and the basis for the ABC television show, For Life—Marked for Life is the true story of Isaac Wright Jr.’s battle to win his freedom after being wrongfully imprisoned for crimes he didn’t commit, and a critical indictment of America’s judicial system.“If I waited around for someone to save me, I’d be waiting my whole life. Unless I took the reins of this thing myself, I was going to die in prison. If that was my destiny, then I was going to die fighting. The desperation of that equation kept me up most nights. I would never find a gladiator. So I had to become him.”In the summer of 1989, Isaac Wright Jr. was a 28-year-old independent music producer, who’d struck out on his own and became one of hip hop’s early success stories. With his dance crew Uptown Express, Wright won recognition on Star Search, toured with Run-DMC, and transitioned into management, co-founding his wife Sunshine’s music group, The Cover Girls. They’d settled in the New Jersey suburbs to raise their six-year-old daughter, never imagining that Wright would fall victim to gross police misconduct and a corrupt district attorney.Accused of being a drug “kingpin” and incarcerated in Somerset County while the prosecutor and police built their case of lies against him, Wright realized he would get no help from any defense attorneys—white men uninterested in uncovering the truth or in proving the innocence of a black man. Pressured to take a plea deal offer of 20 years behind bars, Wright chose to take the law into his own hands by educating himself in the legal system so he could represent himself in court.Studying statutes and cases in the jail’s law library, Wright became an adept legal mind. But despite acquiring knowledge that he put to use in defending his fellow inmates, he lost his trial and was sentenced to Trenton State Prison for life, plus 70 years in 1991. For the next five years, Wright would continue learning law, become a paralegal with the prison’s Inmate Legal Association, and appeal his case. Threatened by corrupt correction officers and convicts, his family falling apart, Wright fought for his life with every legal means at his disposal, eventually uncovering the smoking gun that unraveled the conspiracy perpetrated by law enforcement officials against him.Marked for Life is not just the story of how Isaac Wright Jr. won his freedom. It is the story of how he found his true calling as a gladiator fighting on behalf of the oppressed and marginalized communities victimized by an unjust system of law.
God Save Texas: A Journey into the Soul of the Lone Star State
by Lawrence Wright<P>With humor and the biting insight of a native, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Looming Tower explores the history, culture, and politics of Texas, while holding the stereotypes up for rigorous scrutiny. <P>God Save Texas is a journey through the most controversial state in America. It is a red state in the heart of Trumpland that hasn't elected a Democrat to a statewide office in more than twenty years; but it is also a state in which minorities already form a majority (including the largest number of Muslims). The cities are blue and among the most diverse in the nation. <P>Oil is still king but Texas now leads California in technology exports. The Texas economic model of low taxes and minimal regulation has produced extraordinary growth but also striking income disparities. <P>Texas looks a lot like the America that Donald Trump wants to create. And Wright's profound portrait of the state not only reflects our country back as it is, but as it was and as it might be. <P><b>A New York Times Bestseller</b>
In the New World: Growing Up with America, 1960-1984
by Lawrence WrightWe first meet Larry Wright in 1960. He is thirteen and moving with his family to Dallas, the essential city of the New World just beginning to rise across the southern rim of the United States. As we follow him through the next two decades--the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War, the devastating assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Martin Luther King, Jr., the sexual revolution, the crisis of Watergate, and the emergence of Ronald Reagan--we relive the pivotal and shocking events of those crowded years. Lawrence Wright has written the autobiography of a generation, giving back to us with stunning force the feelings of those turbulent times when the euphoria of Kennedy's America would come to its shocking end. Filled with compassion and insight, In the New World is both the intimate tale of one man's coming-of-age, and a universal story of the American experience of two crucial decades.
Saints and Sinners: Walker Railey, Jimmy Swaggart, Madalyn Murray O'hair, Anton Lavey, Will Campbell, Matthew Fox
by Lawrence WrightIn this fascinating book about religion in America, one of this country's most probing yet sympathetic journalists puts forth stories not only of real grace but of despair, sexual scandal, and attempted murder. Lawrence Wright's Saints and Sinners are Jimmy Swaggart, who preached a hellfire gospel with rock 'n' roll abandon before he was caught with a, prostitute in a seedy motel; Anton LaVey, the kitsch-loving, gleefully fraudulent founder of the First Church of Satan; Madalyn Murray O'Hair, whose litigious atheism sometimes resembled a brand of faith; Matthew Fox, the Dominican priest who has aroused the fury of the Vatican for dismissing the doctrine of original sin and denouncing the church as a dysfunctional family; Walker Railey, the rising star of Dallas's Methodist church, who, at the pinnacle of his success, was suspected of attempting to murder his wife; and Will Campbell, the eccentric liberal Southern Baptist preacher whose challenges to established ways of thinking have made him a legend in his own time. By letting us listen to their voices and see the individuals in all their complexities, Lawrence Wright has written a richly fascinating book about the passions, triumphs, and failures of the life of faith.
Learning to Float: The Journey of a Woman, a Dog, and Just Enough Men
by Lili WrightBurned out on love, Lili Wright embarks on a soul-searching highway adventure in this gutsy memoir of the heart. In matters of the heart, thirty-three-year-old Lili Wright is far from where she'd hoped to be. Technically single but also dating two men, she wonders why it's so hard to make a relationship work and whether either one of her current flames will last a lifetime. Unable to choose between them, Lili opts for another path: the open road. She borrows a dog, jumps in her beaten up old car and ...
A Perfect Fit
by Luther Wright Karen HunterFORMER NBA STAR LUTHER WRIGHT SHARES HIS HARROWING AND UPLIFTING JOURNEY OF FINDING GOD--AND HIMSELF--WHEN HE HAD NOTHING LEFT TO LOSE. Luther Wright had the life hoop dreams are made of. A first-round NBA draft pick for the Utah Jazz, he was a rookie on a team with basketball legends Karl Malone and John Stockton. He had money, women, cars, and a luxurious bachelor pad overlooking Salt Lake City. But within a year, ravaged by drugs and unable to cope with life as an NBA star, he was homeless, broke and addicted to crack cocaine. Wright never wanted to play basketball, yet standing more than seven feet tall even as a boy, he thought he had no choice. In this heartrending memoir, he writes candidly about the self-destructive spiral he found himself on after neglecting his passions to pursue the dreams of others. After years of living on the streets, he finally found a gift greater than anything his millions could have bought him--God. Today, Wright offers a simple message: believe in yourself, follow your dreams, and only then will you find your Perfect Fit.
Unbroken: My story of survival from 7/7 Bombings to Paralympic success
by Martine Wright‘Tears of sorrow will roll down your face, only to be followed by tears of laughter. You will be filled with awe at the unbreakable spirit of Martine Wright.’ CLARE BALDINGBy turns heart-breaking and heart-warming, Unbroken is the remarkable true story of a woman who turned trauma and tragedy into hope. The autobiography of 7/7 bombings survivor and GB Paralympian, Martine Wright. On the morning of 7th July 2005, Martine Wright’s life changed forever. As she boarded an eastbound circle line train at Moorgate station, amid the busy rush-hour, she didn’t pay attention to her fellow passengers. At 8.49am, one of those passengers detonated a suicide bomb that would kill seven people in the carriage, part of a wider attack on London claiming 52 lives that became known as the 7/7 bombings. Martine was, in fact, the last person to be brought out alive from the atrocities. She lost 80 per cent of her blood, was in a coma for ten days and underwent ten months of surgery. Not only did Martine survive her horrific injuries but, having never played sport seriously before, she took up sitting volleyball as part of her rehabilitation and went on to represent Great Britain at the Paralympics in London 2012 – a deeply poignant moment that marked her journey from tragedy to triumph. Since then Martine has become a national figure: a formidable, powerful, brilliantly funny, hugely engaging heroine who has come back – almost literally – from the dead. In 2012 she was awarded the Helen Rollason award at the Sports Personality of the Year and in 2015 the Independent voted her one of ’50 most powerful women in British Sport’. Beyond her phenomenal sporting achievements, Martine continues to change the lives of those around her as a charity fundraiser and inspirational speaker.
Sounds Like Home: Growing Up Black and Deaf in the South
by Mary Herring WrightMary Herring Wright's memoir adds an important dimension to the current literature in that it is a story by and about an African American deaf child. The author recounts her experiences growing up as a deaf person in Iron Mine, North Carolina, from the 1920s through the 1940s. Her story is unique and historically significant because it provides valuable descriptive information about the faculty and staff of the North Carolina school for Black deaf and blind students from the perspective of a student as well as a student teacher. In addition, this engrossing narrative contains details about the curriculum, which included a week-long Black History celebration where students learned about important Blacks such as Madame Walker, Paul Laurence Dunbar, and George Washington Carver. It also describes the physical facilities as well as the changes in those facilities over the years. In addition, Sounds Like Home occurs over a period of time that covers two major events in American history, the Depression and World War II. Wright's account is one of enduring faith, perseverance, and optimism. Her keen observations will serve as a source of inspiration for others who are challenged in their own ways by life's obstacles.
Sounds Like Home: Growing Up Black and Deaf in the South
by Mary Herring WrightOriginally published in 1999, Sounds Like Home adds an important dimension to the canon of deaf literature by presenting the perspective of an African American deaf woman who attended a segregated deaf school. Mary Herring Wright documents her life from the mid-1920s to the early 1940s, offering a rich account of her home life in rural North Carolina and her education at the North Carolina School for the Deaf and Blind, which had a separate campus for African American students. This 20th anniversary edition of Wright’s story includes a new introduction by scholars Joseph Hill and Carolyn McCaskill, who note that the historical documents and photographs of segregated Black deaf schools have mostly been lost. Sounds Like Home serves “as a permanent witness to the lives of Black Deaf people.”
Gardens of Stone: My Boyhood in the French Resistance
by Michael Wright Stephen GradyAn extraordinary wartime memoir, combining the best kind of adventure story with a coming of age testimony of unforgettable resonance and poignancy. September 2011, Halkidiki, Northern Greece. A solitary 86 year-old man gazes across an Aegean headland, knowing that he must finally confront his past. He begins to write... September 1939, Nieppe, Northern France. 14 year-old Stephen is living with his family, 25 kilometres from Ypres. His French mother battles with her encroaching blindness. Failing to escape the advancing German army, his English father can no longer look after the war graves that cast so heartbreaking a shadow across the region. Stephen and his friend Marcel embark upon their great adventure: collecting souvenirs from strafed convoys and crashed Messerschmitts. But their world turns dark when arrested and imprisoned for sabotage and threatened with deportation or the firing squad. Upon his release, and still only 16, Stephen is recruited by the French Resistance. Growing up under the threat of imminent betrayal, he learns the arts of clandestine warfare, and - in a moment that haunts him still - how to kill... Such was the impact of Stephen Grady's work for the French Resistance, (especially during the countdown to D-Day and its bloody aftermath) that he was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the American Medal of Freedom.
The Day the Revolution Began: Reconsidering the Meaning of Jesus's Crucifixion
by N. T. WrightThe renowned scholar, Anglican bishop, and bestselling author widely considered to be the heir to C. S. Lewis contemplates the central event at the heart of the Christian faith--Jesus' crucifixion--arguing that the Protestant Reformation did not go far enough in transforming our understanding of its meaning.In The Day the Revolution Began, N. T. Wright once again challenges commonly held Christian beliefs as he did in his acclaimed Surprised by Hope. Demonstrating the rigorous intellect and breathtaking knowledge that have long defined his work, Wright argues that Jesus' death on the cross was not only to absolve us of our sins; it was actually the beginning of a revolution commissioning the Christian faithful to a new vocation--a royal priesthood responsible for restoring and reconciling all of God's creation. Wright argues that Jesus' crucifixion must be understood within the much larger story of God's purposes to bring heaven and earth together. The Day the Revolution Began offers a grand picture of Jesus' sacrifice and its full significance for the Christian faith, inspiring believers with a renewed sense of mission, purpose, and hope, and reminding them of the crucial role the Christian faith must play in protecting and shaping the future of the world.
Paul: In Fresh Perspective
by N. T. WrightThe letters of the Apostle Paul changed the world like no others before or since, and they continue to strike us afresh with their panoramic vision of human history and destiny.Preeminent New Testament scholar and churchman N. T. Wright here offers a fresh perspective on the Apostle Paul's content and convictions. Wright ranks Paul as "one of the most powerful and seminal minds of the first or any century," endlessly engaging and perennially elusive. Yet, with recent research, Wright argues, we can now sketch with confidence a new and more nuanced picture of the Apostle and the radical way in which his encounter with Jesus redefined his life, his whole thought-world, his mission, and his expectations for a world made new in Christ. The result: a masterful, engaging, and enlightening portrait that situates Paul in his time and for our own.
Paul: A Biography (The\new Testament For Everyone Ser.)
by N. T. WrightIn this definitive biography, renowned Bible scholar, Anglican bishop, and bestselling author N. T. Wright offers a radical look at the apostle Paul, illuminating the humanity and remarkable achievements of this intellectual who invented Christian theology—transforming a faith and changing the world.For centuries, Paul, the apostle who "saw the light on the Road to Damascus" and made a miraculous conversion from zealous Pharisee persecutor to devoted follower of Christ, has been one of the church’s most widely cited saints. While his influence on Christianity has been profound, N. T. Wright argues that Bible scholars and pastors have focused so much attention on Paul’s letters and theology that they have too often overlooked the essence of the man’s life and the extreme unlikelihood of what he achieved.To Wright, "The problem is that Paul is central to any understanding of earliest Christianity, yet Paul was a Jew; for many generations Christians of all kinds have struggled to put this together." Wright contends that our knowledge of Paul and appreciation for his legacy cannot be complete without an understanding of his Jewish heritage. Giving us a thoughtful, in-depth exploration of the human and intellectual drama that shaped Paul, Wright provides greater clarity of the apostle’s writings, thoughts, and ideas and helps us see them in a fresh, innovative way.Paul is a compelling modern biography that reveals the apostle’s greater role in Christian history—as an inventor of new paradigms for how we understand Jesus and what he accomplished—and celebrates his stature as one of the most effective and influential intellectuals in human history.
How We Invented the Airplane: An Illustrated History
by Orville WrightIt was the realization of a dream as old as mankind. On December 17, 1903, two bicycle mechanics from Dayton, Ohio, achieved the first sustained, powered, heavier-than-air flight in a machine of their own design and construction. This book offers a concise and fascinating history of that remarkable accomplishment, much of it in the words of the inventors themselves. The heart of the book is Orville Wright's personal account, written in connection with an obscure lawsuit filed against the U.S. government. Long forgotten until a typewritten copy was discovered among the Wright papers at the Library of Congress, it is the best, most detailed account of how the Wright brothers succeeded in creating the machine that lifted man into the sky on wings.The brothers first became interested in the problem of flight after reading about the glider experiments of Otto Lilienthal, a 19th-century German engineer. Experimenting first with kites and gliders, they developed a revolutionary wing design that helped solve the crucial problem of maintaining lateral equilibrium. Later, they added a movable rudder that eliminated the tendency of the machine to go into a tailspin. In addition to these critical innovations, the two inventors developed new accurate tables of "life" pressures and an original theory of air propellers. Slowly, methodically, with patience, perseverance, ingenuity, and inspired invention, they solved the problems that had defeated so many experimenters before them.Finally, on a gusty winter day in North Carolina, the Wright brothers flew their little motor-driven biplane off the sand at Kitty Hawk (actually Kill Devil Hills) and into the pages of history. Although the first flight lasted only about 12 seconds and covered barely 120 feet, it was the first time a machine carrying a man and driven by a motor had lifted itself from the ground in controlled free flight. A new era had begun and the world would never be the same again.The achievement of the Wright brothers is placed in historical context in the absorbing and informative introduction to this volume, written by Fred C. Kelly, author of two standard works on the Wrights. Mr. Kelly has also written an illuminating commentary, including fascinating anecdotes about the Wrights, their personalities and later aspects of their career. As an extra bonus, a lively popular account of the Wrights' success, written in 1908 by both brothers, has been included in an Appendix. Enhanced by 76 photographs, including many rare views of the Wrights and their flying machines, this book offers a thrilling reading experience for anyone interested in aviation, its pioneers, or the mechanics of flights.
Against the Water: A surfing champion's inspirational journey to Olympic glory
by Owen WrightThe gut-wrenching story of how one of Australia&’s finest surfers overcame a brain injury and despair to win an Olympic medal. On the morning of 10 December 2015, Owen Wright entered the water at Pipeline, Hawaii, determined to become a world champion. But after being pounded by a set of monstrous waves, he ended up fighting for life and facing extensive brain trauma. In this inspirational memoir, Wright chronicles the events leading up to that fateful day, as well as the months and years that followed as he battled to regain basic functioning, and eventually the capacity to compete again at the apex of surfing.Against the Water carries the reader back to Wright&’s boyhood in the tiny town of Culburra, where his father, determined to raise champions, turned family life into a kind of boot camp. While eccentric, his father&’s methods bore fruit: the Wrights of Culburra would become Australian surfing royalty. Owen&’s story lays bare the complex relationship with his father – the adoration, the fight for independence, the fallings out, and the reconciliations. Told in a spare, intimate style, Against the Water is the moving account of an athlete who refused to accept that his best days were behind him and raises fundamental questions around family and competition. What, ultimately, is our duty to our children? At what point does bravery become folly? And how much should we sacrifice for the sake of another? &‘Owen was a childhood phenom who grew into the ultimate family man. In between this transition, he took on the world, charged crazy waves, suffered a huge brain injury, and finished off with the all-time sporting comeback!&’ Mick Fanning, three-time world champion surfer &‘Whatever it is that Owen is getting himself into, he seems to do it with little to no fear and a massive smile on his face. He&’s an inspirational guy, to put it lightly. Owen is one special human!&’ Liam Hemsworth, actor &‘Owen Wright has to be the most inspiring person I&’ve ever met. His story is one of a childhood prodigy, to facing a near-death experience, to Australian hero . . . This book will inspire and motivate anyone who has had to face adversity whilst following their dreams.&’ Kita Alexander, singer-songwriter &‘[A] true fighter&’s spirit!' Luke Rockhold, UFC middleweight champion, two-time jiu-jitsuworld champion, three-time strikeforce middleweight champion
American Hunger
by Richard WrightAmerican Hunger, published posthumously in 1977, was originally intended as the second volume of Black Boy.
Black Boy (P. S. Series)
by Richard Wright<P>Richard Wright grew up in the woods of Mississippi, with poverty, hunger, fear, and hatred. He lied, stole, and raged at those around him; at six he was a "drunkard," hanging about taverns. <P>Surly, brutal, cold, suspicious, and self-pitying, he was surrounded on one side by whites who were either indifferent to him, pitying, or cruel, and on the other by blacks who resented anyone trying to rise above the common lot. <P>Black Boy is Richard Wright's powerful account of his journey from innocence to experience in the Jim Crow South. <P>It is at once an unashamed confession and a profound indictment-a poignant and disturbing record of social injustice and human suffering. <P>[This text is listed as an example that meets Common Core Standards in English language arts in grades 11-12 at http://www.corestandards.org.]