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A Million Little Pieces: A shocking exploration of addiction
by James FreyJames Frey wakes up on a plane, with no memory of the preceding two weeks. His face is cut and his body is covered with bruises. He has no wallet and no idea of his destination. He has abused alcohol and every drug he can lay his hands on for a decade - and he is aged only twenty-three.What happens next is one of the most powerful and extreme stories ever told. His family takes him to a rehabilitation centre. And James Frey starts his perilous journey back to the world of the drug and alcohol-free living. His lack of self-pity is unflinching and searing.A Million Little Pieces is a dazzling account of a life destroyed and a life reconstructed. It is also the introduction of a bold and talented literary voice.(P)2013 John Murray Press
A Million Suns
by Kristin BealeWithin A Million Suns, Kristin Beale learns how to move from the darkness of her disability, into the sunlight of her new circumstance.Kristin was in an accident in 2005 that left her in a wheelchair. That same accident changed her life – for the better. A Million Suns is the story of her embracing her disability; navigating the world, both socially and logistically; and trying to make the best of a “bad” situation. A Million Suns recounts Kristin’s effort to embrace her difference and discover a happiness she never, ever expected.
A Million Times We Cry: A Memoir of Loss, Grief, Depression, and Ultimately Hope
by Stacey Grimes-WempeThe day after she and her husband moved into their first home, Stacey Wempe&’s simple, ideal life in Saskatchewan was shattered. At daybreak, her aunt and uncle arrived at her new home to tell her that her twenty-two-year-old brother, Clinton, had been killed in a tragic accident a few hours earlier. Driving in thick fog to rescue his stranded girlfriend, he drove his truck into the side of a freight train traveling on a rarely used track. This random, tragic event propelled Stacey into a downward spiral of depression and anxiety that lasted years. Prolonged grief extended to postpartum depression after the birth of her son and daughter. Her despair led to marital stress, intensified by her mother and father losing their battles with cancer. In the face of overwhelming sorrow, she struggled to move on but knew she had no alternative. A Million Times We Cry is Stacey&’s uplifting story of her fight to regain control of her life, find hope and joy, and move past her anguish. Seeking therapeutic intervention and subsequently displaying bravery and persistence, she embarked on a journey to become a Fearless Living life coach. Ultimately, Stacey confronted the very things she had evaded—her fears, anguish, and insecurities—and embraced herself and her existence. Drawing upon her life's lessons and life-coach training, Stacey reveals her raw and poignant emotional healing journey that led to a life filled with hope and happiness. Her concluding insights into how others can start their journey to discover healing, hope, and joy are profoundly inspiring.
A Million Years with You
by Elizabeth Marshall ThomasOne of our greatest literary naturalists turns her famed observational eye on herself in this captivating memoir. How is it that an untrained, self-taught observer and writer could see things that professional anthropologists often missed? How is that a pioneering woman, working in male-dominated fields, without sponsors or credentials, could accomplish more than so many more celebrated and professionally educated men could manage? How can we all unlock the wisdom of the world simply by paying close attention? With their intelligence and acute insight into other cultures and species, Elizabeth Marshall Thomas's many books have won a wide and loving audience. In A Million Years with You, this legendary author shares stories from her life, showing how a formative experience in South West Africa (now Namibia) in the 1950s taught her how to pay attention to the ancient wisdom of animals and humankind. As a young woman, Marshall Thomas joined her family on an anthropological expedition to the Kalahari Desert, where she conducted fieldwork among the Ju/wa Bushmen, later publishing her findings as The Harmless People. After college, a wedding, and the birth of two children, she returned to Uganda shortly before Idi Amin's bloody coup. Her skills as an observer and a writer would be put to the test on many other occasions working with dogs, cats, cougars, deer--and with more personal struggles. A Million Years with You is a powerful memoir from a pioneering woman, an icon of American letters.
A Mind Apart
by Susanne AntonettaThis beautifully written exploration of "the unusual abilities of those who are differently wired" (Psychology Today) received a Ken Book Award from the National Alliance on Mental Illness for outstanding literary contribution to the world of mental health. In this fascinating literary memoir, Susanne Antonetta draws on her personal experience as a manic-depressive, as well as interviews with people with multiple personality disorder, autism, and other neurological conditions, to form an intimate meditation on mental "disease. " She traces the many capabilities-the visual consciousness of an autistic, for example, or the metaphoric consciousness of a manic-depressive-that underlie these and other mental "disabilities. " A stunning portrait of how the world shapes itself in minds that are profoundly different from the norm, A Mind Apart urges readers to look beyond the concept of cures to the gifts inherent in many neuroatypical conditions. Employing a wide-ranging approach to her subject, Antonetta provides a rare glimpse into the wildly varying landscapes of human thought, perception, and emotion. .
A Mind Spread Out on the Ground
by Alicia ElliottA bold and profound work by Haudenosaunee writer Alicia Elliott, A Mind Spread Out on the Ground is a personal and critical meditation on trauma, legacy, oppression and racism in North America. In an urgent and visceral work that asks essential questions about the treatment of Native people in North America while drawing on intimate details of her own life and experience with intergenerational trauma, Alicia Elliott offers indispensable insight and understanding to the ongoing legacy of colonialism. What are the links between depression, colonialism and loss of language--both figurative and literal? How does white privilege operate in different contexts? How do we navigate the painful contours of mental illness in loved ones without turning them into their sickness? How does colonialism operate on the level of literary criticism?A Mind Spread Out on the Ground is Alicia Elliott's attempt to answer these questions and more. In the process, she engages with such wide-ranging topics as race, parenthood, love, mental illness, poverty, sexual assault, gentrification, writing and representation. Elliott makes connections both large and small between the past and present, the personal and political--from overcoming a years-long history with head lice to the way Native writers are treated within the Canadian literary industry; her unplanned teenage pregnancy to the history of dark matter and how it relates to racism in the court system; her childhood diet of Kraft dinner to how systematic oppression is linked to depression in Native communities. With deep consideration and searing prose, Elliott extends far beyond her own experiences to provide a candid look at our past, an illuminating portrait of our present and a powerful tool for a better future.
A Mind Spread Out on the Ground
by Alicia Elliott#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2019 HILARY WESTON WRITERS' TRUST PRIZE FOR NONFICTIONNAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF 2019 BY THE GLOBE AND MAIL • CBC • CHATELAINE • QUILL & QUIRE • THE HILL TIMES • POP MATTERSA bold and profound meditation on trauma, legacy, oppression and racism in North America from award-winning Haudenosaunee writer Alicia Elliott.In an urgent and visceral work that asks essential questions about the treatment of Native people in North America while drawing on intimate details of her own life and experience with intergenerational trauma, Alicia Elliott offers indispensable insight into the ongoing legacy of colonialism. She engages with such wide-ranging topics as race, parenthood, love, mental illness, poverty, sexual assault, gentrifcation, writing and representation, and in the process makes connections both large and small between the past and present, the personal and political—from overcoming a years-long battle with head lice to the way Native writers are treated within the Canadian literary industry; her unplanned teenage pregnancy to the history of dark matter and how it relates to racism in the court system; her childhood diet of Kraft Dinner to how systemic oppression is directly linked to health problems in Native communities. With deep consideration and searing prose, Elliott provides a candid look at our past, an illuminating portrait of our present and a powerful tool for a better future.
A Mind Spread Out on the Ground
by Alicia ElliottA bold and profound meditation on trauma, legacy, oppression and racism in North America from an award-winning Haudenosaunee writerThe Mohawk phrase for depression can be roughly translated to "a mind spread out on the ground." In this urgent and visceral work, Alicia Elliott explores how apt a description that is for the ongoing effects of personal, intergenerational, and colonial traumas she and so many Native people have experienced. Elliott's deeply personal writing details a life spent between Indigenous and white communities, a divide reflected in her own family, and engages with such wide-ranging topics as race, parenthood, love, art, mental illness, poverty, sexual assault, gentrification, and representation. Throughout, she makes thrilling connections both large and small between the past and present, the personal and political.A national bestseller in Canada, this updated and expanded American edition helps us better understand legacy, oppression, and racism throughout North America, and offers us a profound new way to decolonize our minds.
A Mind Unraveled: A Memoir
by Kurt EichenwaldThe compelling story of an acclaimed journalist and New York Times bestselling author’s ongoing struggle with epilepsy—his torturous decision to keep his condition a secret to avoid discrimination, and his ensuing decades-long battle to not only survive, but to thrive. <P><P>As a college freshman, Kurt Eichenwald awoke one night on the floor of his dorm room, confused and in pain. In the aftermath of that critical moment, his once-carefree life would be consumed by confrontations with medical incompetence, discrimination that almost cost him his education and employment, physical abuse, and dark moments when he contemplated suicide. <P><P>This is the story of one man’s battle to pursue his dreams despite an often incapacitating brain disorder. <P><P>From his early experiences of fear and denial to his exasperating search for treatment, Eichenwald provides a deeply candid account of his years facing this misunderstood and often stigmatized condition. He details his encounters with the doctors whose negligence could have killed him, but for the heroic actions of a brilliant neurologist and the family and friends who fought for him. <P><P>Many of Eichenwald’s recollections are drawn from his diaries, vivid and painstakingly kept records that helped sharpen his skills as a journalist. He raises important questions about the nature of memory, the revelations of brain science, and the profound mysteries of human perception. <P><P>Ultimately, A Mind Unraveled is an inspirational story, one that chronicles how Eichenwald, faced often with his own mortality, transformed trauma into a guide for reaching the future he desired. Defying relentless threats to his emotional and physical well-being, he affirmed his decision to never give up, and in the process learned how to rise from the depths of despair to the heights of unimagined success.
A Mind at Play: How Claude Shannon Invented the Information Age
by Jimmy Soni Rob GoodmanWinner of the Neumann Prize for the History of Mathematics "We owe Claude Shannon a lot, and Soni & Goodman&’s book takes a big first step in paying that debt." —San Francisco Review of Books "Soni and Goodman are at their best when they invoke the wonder an idea can instill. They summon the right level of awe while stopping short of hyperbole." —Financial Times "Jimmy Soni and Rob Goodman make a convincing case for their subtitle while reminding us that Shannon never made this claim himself." —The Wall Street Journal &“A charming account of one of the twentieth century&’s most distinguished scientists…Readers will enjoy this portrait of a modern-day Da Vinci.&” —FortuneIn their second collaboration, biographers Jimmy Soni and Rob Goodman present the story of Claude Shannon—one of the foremost intellects of the twentieth century and the architect of the Information Age, whose insights stand behind every computer built, email sent, video streamed, and webpage loaded. Claude Shannon was a groundbreaking polymath, a brilliant tinkerer, and a digital pioneer. He constructed the first wearable computer, outfoxed Vegas casinos, and built juggling robots. He also wrote the seminal text of the digital revolution, which has been called &“the Magna Carta of the Information Age.&” In this elegantly written, exhaustively researched biography, Soni and Goodman reveal Claude Shannon&’s full story for the first time. With unique access to Shannon&’s family and friends, A Mind at Play brings this singular innovator and always playful genius to life.
A Mind at Sea: Henry Fry and the Glorious Era of Quebec's Sailing Ships
by John FryThe trials and tribulations of a Canadian business titan during a fascinating period in 19th-century Quebec. A Mind at Sea is an intimate window into a vanished time when Canada was among the world’s great maritime countries. Between 1856 and 1877, Henry Fry was the Lloyd’s agent for the St. Lawrence River, east of Montreal. The harbour coves below his home in Quebec were crammed with immense rafts of cut wood, the river’s shoreline sprawled with yards where giant square-rigged ships – many owned by Fry – were built. As the president of Canada’s Dominion Board of Trade, Fry was at the epicentre of wealth and influence. His home city of Quebec served as the capital of the province of Canada, while its port was often the scene of raw criminality. He fought vigorously against the kidnapping of sailors and the dangerous practice of deck loading. He also battled against and overcame his personal demon – mental depression – going on to write many ship histories and essays on U.S.-Canada relations. Fry was a colourful figure and a reformer who interacted with the famous figures of the day, including Lord and Lady Dufferin, Sir John A. Macdonald, Wilfrid Laurier, and Sir Narcisse-Fortunat Belleau, Quebec’s lieutenant-governor.
A Mind that Found Itself: An Autobiography (classic Reprint)
by Clifford Whittingham BeersA Mind That Found Itself by Clifford Whittingham Beers, is derived from as human a document as ever existed; and, because of its uncommon nature, perhaps no one thing contributes so much to its value as its authenticity. It is an autobiography, and more: in part it is a biography; for, in telling the story of the authors life, which he must relate the history of another self-a self which was dominant from his twenty-fourth to twenty-sixth year. During that period, unlike he had ever been been, or what he has been since. The biographical part of his autobiography might be called the history of a mental civil war, which he fought single-handed on a battlefield that lay within the compass of his skull.
A Mingled Yarn: The Life of R.P.Blackmur
by Russell FraserR. P. Blackmur was an American critic and poet, as well as a professor of English literature and creative writing at Princeton University. At the time of his death, he had completed five books and numerous plays, poems, and short stories. He devoted most of his life to studies on Henry Adams - someone he saw in himself. In his lifetime, he received a share of adulation, but he was not successful in the way that success is commonly measured. In this work, Russell Fraser follows the course of Blackmur's self-declared failed genius. He tells the story of his precocious youth in Cambridge; his eclectic education; his years of poverty and renown as a poet, novelist, freelance music critic, and essayist; his obsessive marriage to artist Helen Dickson; his entangled friendships with T. S. Eliot, Delmore Schwartz, Allen Tate, and John Berryman; and, his passion for the wilds of Maine. He discusses Blackmur's crucial role in the literary magazines of the twenties and thirties; his unique influence as instructor of creative writing; the emotional and professional price he paid for a doubtful security at Princeton University; and, the torment of wavering between intellectual inertia and prolific inspiration. With empathy and insight, Fraser shows how the trajectory of Blackmur's career parallels the movements in the American literary scene; the experiments in poetry and fiction; the development of the New Criticism; the writer's conflict between order and anarchy, taxonomy and the full response; and, the emergence of the critic as artist. A biography, intellectual history, and literary criticism, "A Mingled Yarn" unravels Blackmur's complex character and celebrates his great achievement.
A Ministry of Risk: Writings on Peace and Nonviolence
by Philip BerriganExperience the powerful legacy of Philip Berrigan’s nonviolent resistance to war and empireFrom the battlefields of World War II to the front lines of peace activism, Philip Berrigan evolved from soldier to scholar, priest to political prisoner. Confronting the fundamental nature of America’s military-focused culture, Berrigan took an unyielding stance against societal evils—war, systemic racism, unchecked materialism, and the baleful presence of nuclear weapons. Imprisoned by his government and ostracized by his Church, Berrigan’s life is a courageous example of nonviolent resistance and liberation in the face of overwhelming odds.A Ministry of Risk is the definitive collection of Philip Berrigan’s writings. Authorized by the Berrigan family and arranged chronologically, these writings depict the transformation of one revolutionary soul while also providing a firsthand account of a nation grappling with its martial obsessions.Threading the vibrant fabric of history with autobiographical insights, introspective theology, and a clarion call to activism, A Ministry of Risk offers both a living manifesto of nonviolent resistance and a journal of spiritual reflection by one of the 20th century’s most prophetic voices.
A Miracle and A Privilege: RECOUNTING A HALF CENTURY OF SURGICAL ADVANCE
by Francis D. MooreFrancis Moore entered Harvard Medical School in September of 1935, seven years before penicillin became available. During his remarkable career in surgery, research, and education, Moore has witnessed and contributed to some of the most important biomedical advances of the century, and his students now practice surgery worldwide. In this autobiography, he brings humor and warmth to the story of a lifetime at the forefront of medicine.In this fascinating book Moore describes his work in radioactive isotope research, burn therapy, breast cancer treatment, transplant science, and understanding the process of convalescence.Moore's colleagues have included such medical pioneers as George Thorn, David Hume, Thomas Starzl, John Gibbon, Steven Rosenberg, Harold Urey, and Nobel Prize winner Joseph Murray, and he recounts the setbacks and victories of their work. For example, he writes of the adventure he had with Charles Hufnagel in which 25 dogs, implanted with Hufnagel's experimental heart valves, made their escape into the Connecticut countryside and had to be recovered by dog control officers wielding stethoscopes.Yet Moore recalls with equal clarity the young mother who gave him a silver dollar for delivering her baby, the husband who begged that his ailing wife be allowed to die with dignity, and the desperately sick patients who made themselves available for experimental surgery and treatment. In one of his early operations he relieved "the pain, anguish, and threat to a wonderful small boy" by removing the boy's diseased appendix. He describes this capability as "a miracle and a privilege."The book includes a gripping account of the aftermath of the Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in Boston in 1942, when Moore learned the horrific details of death by fire. He recounts both his experience with M.A.S.H. units and battalion aid stations in Korea and the sudden request from the U.S. State Department that resulted in his treating King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia.Moore's life story reflects his serious commitment to human well-being as well as his appreciation for the wonder of human life. Physicians, medical students, and all readers alike will find this book informative and inspirational.Francis Daniels Moore, M.D., is Moseley Professor of Surgery, Emeritus, Harvard Medical School and Surgeon-in-Chief, Emeritus, Peter Bent Brigham Hospital, Boston.
A Miracle of Five Minutes: The Autobiography of Kim Sundo
by Sundo KimIn 1930, Sundo Kim was born at Sunchun, Pyunganbukdo, North Korea. Standing at the crossroads of life and death, he experienced the living God numerous times and decided to become a pastor. In 1970, he was appointed as pastor toKwanglim Methodist Church in Seoul, Korea. Through the ministries of a positive application of the word of a new vision of life, spiritual healing, systematic and creative church administration, and special missions, he invited many souls to God and gave Christians new spiritual energy.
A Mirror Garden: A Memoir
by Zara Houshmand Monir FarmanfarmaianIn Persia in 1924, when a child still had to worry about hostile camels in the bazaar and a nanny might spin stories at her pillow until her eyes fell shut, the extraordinary and irresistible Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian was born. From the enchanted basement storeroom where she played as a girl to the penthouse high above New York City where she would someday live, this is the delightful and inspiring story of her life as an artist, a wife and mother, a collector, and an Iranian. Here we see a mischievous girl become a spirited woman who defies tradition. Both a love story and a celebration of the warmth and elegance of Iranian culture, A Mirror Garden is a genuine fairy tale of an exuberant heroine who has never needed rescuing.From the Trade Paperback edition.
A Mission Without Borders: Why a Father and Son Risked it All for the People of Ukraine
by Chad RobichauxAuthor, speaker, and former Force Recon Marine Chad Robichaux offers an honest, no-holds-barred account of what has really been happening in Ukraine and shares powerful stories that are soaked in resiliency and determination, faith and sacrifice in the face of overwhelming opposition.When Russian forces invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, former Force Recon Marine Chad Robichaux knew that innocent people were about to be exposed to untold brutality. He also knew that God was inviting him to get involved. With little idea of the trials that would follow, Chad's response was simple and clear: "yes." As he gathered a team of elite special operations veterans, he invited his twenty-five-year-old son, Hunter--also a Marine combat veteran--to partner with him in Ukraine. Over the course of seven trips, Chad saw a change in Hunter as his confidence grew and he exceled among the team. Chad's own faith also grew as he learned to relinquish control and trust God with his son and what he witnessed in the brutality of war.A Mission Without Borders is a powerful account of the lessons we can learn whenever we say yes to God. Chad's experience will help readersunderstand what the conflict in Ukraine was like for everyday citizens beyond the political fog;discover how a bond can grow between a father and son as they face hardship together; andrealize that God doesn't just call us to go to the aid of the people we know and love, sometimes he calls us to help strangers--because it's the right thing to do. A Mission Without Borders will take readers deep into the war in Ukraine. From Russia's use of ballistic and chemical weapons on civilians, to the inspirational story of the role that the Ukrainian church has played in the war, Chad's story of courage and hope needs to be heard. It is rich in human and spiritual truth and will connect deeply with readers of all walks.
A Mission from God: A Memoir and Challenge for America
by William Doyle James Meredith"I am not a civil rights hero. I am a warrior, and I am on a mission from God." --James Meredith James Meredith engineered two of the most epic events of the American civil rights era: the desegregation of the University of Mississippi in 1962, which helped open the doors of education to all Americans; and the March Against Fear in 1966, which helped open the floodgates of voter registration in the South. Part memoir, part manifesto, A Mission from God is James Meredith's look back at his courageous and action-packed life and his challenge to America to address the most critical issue of our day: how to educate and uplift the millions of black and white Americans who remain locked in the chains of poverty by improving our public education system. Born on a small farm in Mississippi, Meredith returned home in 1960 after nine years in the U.S. Air Force, with a master plan to shatter the system of state terror and white supremacy in America. He waged a fourteen-month legal campaign to force the state of Mississippi to honor his rights as an American citizen and admit him to the University of Mississippi. He fought the case all the way to the Supreme Court and won. Meredith endured months of death threats, daily verbal abuse, and round-the-clock protection from federal marshals and thousands of troops to became the first black graduate of the University of Mississippi in 1963. In 1966 he was shot by a sniper on the second day of his "Walk Against Fear" to inspire voter registration in Mississippi. Though Meredith never allied with traditional civil rights groups, leaders of civil rights organizations flocked to help him complete the march, one of the last great marches of the civil rights era. Decades later, Meredith says, "Now it is time for our next great mission from God. . . . You and I have a divine responsibility to transform America."
A Modern Heretic and a Traditional Community: Mordecai M. Kaplan, Orthodoxy, and American Judaism
by Jeffrey S. Gurock Jacob J. SchacterEncompasses more than previous autobiographies of Kaplan (1881-1983) by considering at length the community he came from, lived in, fought with, and left behind. Follows him from his early days as a member in good standing in the New York Orthodox Jewish community, through his private estrangement and public divorce from Orthodoxy, to his founding of Reconstructionism and many decades as the movement's leader. Queries whether a religious group can learn anything from one of its members who has rejected its most fundamental beliefs. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.
A Modern Man: The Best of George Carlin
by George CarlinExperience George Carlin as you&’ve never seen him in this collection highlighting his greatest hits and achievements, including never-before-seen material. It is impossible to talk about 20th century comedy without discussing George Carlin. Named the 2nd greatest standup of the 20th century by both Comedy Central and Rolling Stone, Carlin garnered multiple gold records, 4 Grammys, 6 Emmy nominations, and the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. He was the first host of SNL, appeared on the Tonight Show some 130 times, and acted in beloved films like Bill and Ted&’s Excellent Adventure and Dogma. Dubbed &“the dean of counterculture comedians,&” George Carlin was an American icon. A perfect introduction for new fans and a worthy addition to the collections of old fans, The Best of Carlin showcases the longevity, range, and—above all—hilarity of the master. Filled with thoughts, musings, questions, lists, beliefs, curiosities, monologues, assertions, assumptions, and other delicious verbal ordeals, it is drop-dead funny tour through Carlin&’s mind. More than ten years after his death, Carlin&’s characteristically ironic takes on life's annoying universal truths remain thoughtful, fearless, and somehow more relevant than ever.
A Modern Marriage
by Christy Kidd Mark KiddIn this candid memoir about a marriage that risked everything to emerge stronger than ever, one couple takes us outside the bounds of monogamy and into one of the most fascinating and secretive subcultures in the nation--swinging.With fifteen million strong worldwide, swingers are everywhere--a huge community, hiding in plain sight, whose erotic pastime has remained a complete mystery to the rest of us. Christy and Mark Kidd certainly had no idea what they were getting into when at one fateful New Year's Eve party they decided to venture behind a mysterious velvet curtain and discovered a whole new world of sexuality they never thought possible. The swinging lifestyle still remains largely taboo in our country. The Kidds were just as skeptical when they returned home. Could they ever take their relationship to that level? Would it ruin the strong marriage they had built for five years? How would their very different jealousies come into play? There was only one way to find out, so they decided to embark on the adventure of a lifetime, ultimately ending up in a more trustful and fulfilling relationship than either could have expected. This stirring memoir takes an up-close and often lurid look at a private life that most of us would never entertain. Nonetheless, it's a life Christy and Mark took seriously--including the same fears and doubts we all imagine would come into play--and emerged with a greater understanding of themselves as well as their unique bond. Deeply honest, A Modern Marriage pulls back the curtain on polyamory and sheds new light on the endless variety of forms and faces, pairings and possibilities found in modern love.
A Modern Plutarch: Comparisons of the Most Influential Modern Statesmen
by Robert Lloyd GeorgeInspired by the Ancient Greek biographer, this volume offers comparative assessments of important leaders from American and British history. One of the most significant and enduring texts of Ancient Greece is Plutarch&’s Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans. In it, the &“Father of Biography&” paired off the most notable and influential figures of the classical world, placing their lives and legacies next to each other, allowing the comparisons and juxtapositions to reveal new truths about these famous men. He compared Demosthenes with Cicero, Alexander the Great with Julius Caesar; the result was an intellectual masterpiece still referred to by historians today. In A Modern Plutarch, Robert Lloyd George applies this model of biography to the most influential statesmen and stateswomen of American and British history. Lloyd George compares figures such as Edmund Burke, a prophet of modern conservatism, and Thomas Paine, a champion for the common man. He juxtaposes Winston Churchill and Abraham Lincoln, two of the greatest wartime leaders of the past 200 years, and Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan, the first divisive, the latter popular. In doing so, he draws parallels between their lives and philosophies, while revealing the traits that made them unique. An essential primer on leadership and an inspiring account of exceptional lives, A Modern Plutarch offers remarkable insight into some of the greatest minds of the modern era.
A Mohawk Memoir from the War of 1812: John Norton - Teyoninhokarawen
by John Norton TeyoninkarawenA Mohawk Memoir from the War of 1812 presents the story of John Norton, or Teyoninhokarawen, an important war chief and political figure among the Grand River Haudenosaunee (or Iroquois) in Upper Canada. Norton saw more action during the conflict than almost anyone else, being present at the fall of Detroit, the capture of Fort Niagara, the battles of Queenston Heights, Fort George, Stoney Creek, Chippawa, and Lundy’s Lane, the blockades of Fort George and Fort Erie, as well as a large number of skirmishes and front-line patrols. His memoir describes the fighting, the stresses suffered by indigenous peoples, and the complex relationships between the Haudenosaunee and both their British allies and other First Nations communities. Norton’s words, written in 1815 and 1816, provide nearly one-third of the book’s content, with the remainder consisting of Carl Benn’s introductions and annotations, which enable readers to understand Norton’s fascinating autobiography within its historical contexts. With the assistance of modern scholarship, A Mohawk Memoir presents an exceptional opportunity to explore the War of 1812 and native-newcomer issues through Teyoninhokarawen’s Mohawk perspectives from a period that produced few indigenous autobiographies, of which Norton’s is the most extensive, engaging, and reliable.
A Mom Like That: A Memoir of Postpartum Psychosis
by Aaisha Alvi“A brave and lyrical exploration of motherhood and mental health . . . as terrifying as it is riveting.” — Susannah Cahalan, NYT bestselling author of Brain on FireA powerful exploration of postpartum psychosis and motherhood — and a call to end the stigma and blame.Early motherhood is supposed to be joyous, but for Aaisha Alvi those early days were ruined by terrifying thoughts about her baby and family. Her experience was the antithesis of everything she had ever been told about motherhood, far beyond the trials of breastfeeding or putting her baby to sleep.Aaisha did recover and began to enjoy motherhood. She was thrilled when she fell pregnant again. Sadly, that pregnancy ended in a miscarriage, and the psychosis returned. This time, however, she was blindsided by the unimaginable: voices urged her to stab her daughter and to harm innocent people. Aaisha felt evil, worthy of taking her own life. But each time she sought medical help, she was turned away.With unflinching honesty, Aaisha takes readers beyond the vitriol and blame that is flung at women suffering from postpartum psychosis — particularly women of colour. Hers is a clarion call for increased awareness of a condition that need never result in tragedy.