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A Moment in Time: An American Story of Baseball, Heartbreak, and Grace
by David Ritz Ralph BrancaA first-hand account of the golden era of baseball from Jackie Robinson's friend, former teammate and featured player in the 2013 biopic "42."Ralph Branca is best known for throwing the pitch that resulted in Bobby Thomson's "Shot Heard 'Round the World," the historic home run that capped an incredible comeback and won the pennant for the New York Giants in 1951. Branca was on the losing end of what many consider to be baseball's most thrilling moment, but that notoriety belies a profoundly successful life and career. A Moment in Time details the remarkable story of a man who could have been destroyed by a supreme professional embarrassment--but wasn't. Branca came up as a young phenom, playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers during their heyday. He was a staple of the Dodgers' teams in the late 1940s, dominating the National League. It's no stretch to say that New York baseball was the center of the sporting universe and that the players were part of the fabric of the neighborhoods, of the city itself. A Moment in Time offers a rare first-person perspective on the golden era of baseball, opening a window on an amazing world populated by legendary characters such as Jackie Robinson, Pee Wee Reese, Gil Hodges, Leo Durocher, Branch Rickey, and Walter O'Malley. Ralph Branca sits us down and tells us an entertaining, deeply inspiring, classic baseball tale. *** I LOVE BASEBALL. "Baseball is the reason I am writing this book, the reason I've led a life worth reexamining and dissecting. Baseball is the passion that carried me from childhood to manhood. It is how I fought my way from the working class to the middle class. Were it not for baseball, I would not have met Ann, my wife, the mother of our daughters, and my dearest friend for the past sixty years. Baseball has excited my mind, stirred my soul, and brought out the best in me. I look at baseball deeply. Most of us whose lives have been defined by baseball do. Of course, it's principally a sport--a beautiful sport based on a poetic geometry. It is a game played outside of time. You play it not until the clock runs out, but until there is a clear winner. That takes as long as it takes. It is a pastoral game usually set inside a city. You play in a pasture--an urban pasture--where an expanse of grass calls you to the competition. Of course, you can also play on the dirt field of a farm, a sandlot, or a concrete street. Wherever you play, though, time is suspended. Like millions of other kids, I lost track of time whenever I played--playing through breakfast, lunch, dinner; playing until the very last rays of daylight disappeared; playing under the glow of a street lamp or a full moon; playing with the hope that the game would never stop and that real time--any time but baseball time--would never resume. The dream was to turn life into a baseball game." --from the Introduction
A Moment of War: A Memoir (The Autobiographical Trilogy #3)
by Laurie LeeA memoir of the Spanish Civil War with &“the plainness of Orwell but the metaphorical soaring of a poem . . . An extraordinary book&” (The New York Times Book Review).In December 1937 I crossed the Pyrenees from France—two days on foot through the snow. I don&’t know why I chose December; it was just one of a number of idiocies I committed at the time. Such was Laurie Lee&’s entry into the Spanish Civil War. Six months after the Nationalist uprising forced him to leave the country he had grown to love, he returned to offer his life for the Republican cause. It seemed as simple as knocking on a farmhouse door in the middle of the night and declaring himself ready to fight. It would not be the last time he was almost executed for being a spy. In that bitter winter in a divided Spain, Lee&’s youthful idealism came face to face with the reality of war. The International Brigade he sought to join was not a gallant fighting force, but a collection of misfits without proper leadership or purpose. Boredom and bad food and false alarms were as much a part of the experience of war as actual battle. And when the decisive moment finally came—the moment of him or the enemy—it left Lee feeling the very opposite of heroic. The final volume in Laurie Lee&’s acclaimed autobiographical trilogy—preceded by Cider with Rosie and As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning—is a clear-eyed and vital snapshot of a young man, and a proud nation, at a historic crossroads.
A Monarchy Of Letters: Royal Correspondence And English Diplomacy In The Reign Of Elizabeth I (Queenship and Power)
by Rayne AllinsonThis book examines Elizabeth's correspondence with several significant rulers, analyzing how her letters were constructed, drafted and presented, the rhetorical strategies used, and the role these letters played in facilitating diplomatic relations.
A Monarchy Transformed Britain 1603-1714
by Mark KishlanskyBeginning with the accession of James I and concluding with the death of Queen Anne, this book describes the tempestuous events that took place during the Stuart dynasty and provides lively pen portraits of the many fascinating personalities involved. Conspiracies, rebellions, and revolutions jostle side by side with court intrigues, political infighting and the rise of parties. In 1603 Britain was an isolated archipelago; by 1714 it had emerged among the intellectual, commercial, and military centers of the world.
A Monk Swimming: A Memoir
by Malachy McCourtIn this &“irresistible memoir that&’s equal parts pathos and belly laughs,&” the Irish American writer and actor shares stories from his first decade in the US (People). Malachy McCourt left behind a childhood of poverty and painful memories of his father and mother in Limerick, Ireland, when he followed his brother, Frank, to America in 1952. In A Monk Swimming, McCourt recounts the decade that followed. With not much to his name other than his sharp wit and knack for storytelling, McCourt was unsure what he would do after arriving in New York City. He worked as a longshoreman on the Brooklyn docks, became the first celebrity bartender in a Manhattan saloon, performed on stage with the Irish Players, and told tales to Jack Paar on The Tonight Show. Although McCourt gained success, money, women, and, eventually, children of his own, he still carried memories of the past with him. So, he fled again. He found himself in the Manhattan Detention Complex, otherwise known as the Tombs. He was arrested several times: poolside in Beverly Hills, in Zurich with gold-smugglers, and again in Calcutta with sex workers. McCourt&’s journey also took him to Paris, Rome, and even Limerick again, until finally he was forced to grapple with his past. &“[A] funny, oddly winning book.&” —The New York Times &“A rollicking good read that, as the Irish say, would make a dead man laugh.&” —The Philadelphia Inquirer &“A triumphant tale. . . . You will find yourself laughing through the tears.&” —Newsday &“Howlingly funny.&” —Atlanta Journal-Constitution &“Build[s] on the story of the McCourts&’ early life so dazzlingly told in Angela&’s Ashes by his brother Frank.&” —Thomas Keneally, author of the international bestseller Schindler&’s List
A Monk Swimming: A Memoir
by Malachy MccourtAn autobiography of McCourt's life, his journey from Ireland to America, and the barriers he overcame in the process.
A Monk in the World: Cultivating a Spiritual Life
by Wayne TeasdaleIn 1986, Brother Wayne Teasdale accepted an invitation to visit Father Bede Griffiths, an English Benedictine monk who had been living in India and studying Hinduism, in Shantivanam, his Christian ashram in Tamil Nadu, India. For millennia the land housing Shantivanam had been sacred, a consecrated place for sages, sannyasis, or monks, and mystics. More recently, it had become a refuge and sanctuary for countless pilgrims of many different traditions. On this, Teasdale's third visit to Shantivanam, with the new year approaching, Father Bede sent for him, and asked if he would consider taking sannyasa, or Indian monkhood, from him, as a Christian. Thus began Teasdale's life as an interreligious monk and mystic. In A Monk in the World, he explores what Griffiths? charge has meant for him ? to live as a monk outside the monastery, to integrate teachings from the world's religions with his own Catholic training, to combine his vigorous spiritual practice with the necessities of making a living and pursuing a course of social justice in a big American city as well as how readers can find their own spiritual path amidst the rigors of everyday life. Along the way, Teasdale explores the real world topics of friendship; time, work, and money; the problem and opportunity of the homeless; a contemplative understanding of suffering; the struggle to promote personal and social change; as well as the as the role of the church and nature in building spiritual understanding. Building on the success and insights of his first book, The Mystic Heart, Teasdale gives a compelling glimpse of the unique spiritual path he has followed, and how everyone can find their own internal monastery and bring spiritual practice into their busy lives.
A Monk's Guide to Happiness: Meditation in the 21st century
by Gelong ThubtenA guide to meditation and mindfulness written by Buddhist monk Gelong Thubten.Modern life is fast-paced and demanding - we're constantly racing from one place to the next, mentally and physically, but how often do we pause and consider whether we're truly happy?A Monk's Guide to Happiness is an insightful and practical guide to meditation, mindfulness and the nature of true, lasting happiness. This book will help you to understand the power of meditation, living in the present, and how this can transform your life. Thubten's expertise lies in teaching meditation and he's introduced mindfulness and calm into the lives of many. He's taught everywhere from law firms and banks to schools and prisons; he will teach you how to choose happiness and mental calm. Gelong Thubten draws upon all that he has learned during his many years of meditation practice, including several years in intensive retreats, and also his many years of experience teaching people from all walks of life and backgrounds, making this book accessible and rooted in reality.In A Monk's Guide to Happiness, Thubten teaches us how to meditate, how to be more 'awake' in life, how to train our minds and reprogramme our stress response and how to introduce 'micro moments' of mindfulness into our daily lives. Through mindfulness we can discover the deeper potential of the mind - our inherent compassion, wisdom and true freedom.(P)2019 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
A Month in Siena
by Hisham MatarFrom the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Return comes a profoundly moving contemplation of the relationship between art and life. After finishing his powerful memoir The Return, Hisham Matar, seeking solace and pleasure, traveled to Siena, Italy. Always finding comfort and clarity in great art, Matar immersed himself in eight significant works from the Sienese School of painting, which flourished from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries. Artists he had admired throughout his life, including Duccio and Ambrogio Lorenzetti, evoke earlier engagements he’d had with works by Caravaggio and Poussin, and the personal experiences that surrounded those moments.Including beautiful full-color reproductions of the artworks, A Month in Siena is about what occurred between Matar, those paintings, and the city. That month would be an extraordinary period in the writer’s life: an exploration of how art can console and disturb in equal measure, as well as an intimate encounter with a city and its inhabitants. This is a gorgeous meditation on how centuries-old art can illuminate our own inner landscape—current relationships, long-lasting love, grief, intimacy, and solitude—and shed further light on the present world around us.Praise for A Month in Siena“As exquisitely structured as The Return, driven by desire, yearning, loss, illuminated by the kindness of strangers. A Month in Siena is a triumph.”—Peter Carey
A More Elite Soldier: Pursuing a Life of Purpose
by Chuck HoltonThe rigor of becoming an Airborne Ranger is exceeded only by the challenge of being one - but those who join their ranks find fulfillment in something bigger than themselves. In the same way, pursuing God's objectives energizes our everyday lives. Former U. S. Army Ranger Chuck Holton shows how God oversees our training and gives each of us specific skills to accomplish the mission He has for us in this great spiritual war. Riveting action and powerful vignettes offer potent spiritual ammunition for the battles of every Christian serving in God's army. Find out what it takes to be a more elite soldier. Life is combat. From the instant the alarm clock signals the beginning of your day, you're jumping into a zone of uncertainty. Your survival depends on having a clear focus. YOUR OBJECTIVE: Get on mission as an elite soldier. Become part of something bigger than yourself. Your Commanding Officer will oversee your training, honing your skills to a razor-sharp edge. God will lead you through the danger zone of today's insecurity, equipping you to make a difference. In this riveting book, you will be issued potent spiritual ammunition for your daily battles from the perspective of a seasoned Special Operations soldier. UNCERTAINTY IS A GIVEN. FEAR IS OPTIONAL.
A Mormon in the White House?: 10 Things Every American Should Know About Mitt Romney
by Hugh HewittAccording to author and radio personality Hewitt, Mitt Romney-billionaire venture capitalist, consummate family man, gifted and media-savvy politician-would be unstoppable in the coming presidential race were it not for one niggling line on his resumé: he's a Mormon. In this unashamedly partisan volume, Hewitt attempts to refute the claim that no Mormon could get elected President (along with any other claim that might be made against Romney) while analyzing the former Massachusetts governor's biography and burnishing his conservative and leadership credentials. Hewitt is an agreeable, if inelegant, writer, wise enough to take detours (such as an edifying primer on Mormon history and thought) that stave off tedium. He spends far more time extolling Romney than excoriating his Republican and Democratic opponents. This is an efficient and effective exercise in political hagiography.
A Most Beautiful Thing: The True Story of America's First All-Black High School Rowing Team
by Arshay CooperNow a documentary narrated by Common, produced by Grant Hill, Dwyane Wade, and 9th Wonder, from filmmaker Mary Mazzio The moving true story of a group of young men growing up on Chicago's West side who form the first all-black high school rowing team in the nation, and in doing so not only transform a sport, but their lives.Growing up on Chicago’s Westside in the 90’s, Arshay Cooper knows the harder side of life. The street corners are full of gangs, the hallways of his apartment complex are haunted by drug addicts he calls “zombies” with strung out arms, clutching at him as he passes by. His mother is a recovering addict, and his three siblings all sleep in a one room apartment, a small infantry against the war zone on the street below.Arshay keeps to himself, preferring to write poetry about the girl he has a crush on, and spends his school days in the home-ec kitchen dreaming of becoming a chef. And then one day as he’s walking out of school he notices a boat in the school lunchroom, and a poster that reads “Join the Crew Team”.Having no idea what the sport of crew is, Arshay decides to take a chance. This decision to join is one that will forever change his life, and those of his fellow teammates. As Arshay and his teammates begin to come together to learn how to row--many never having been in water before--the sport takes them from the mean streets of Chicago, to the hallowed halls of the Ivy League. But Arshay and his teammates face adversity at every turn, from racism, gang violence, and a sport that has never seen anyone like them before.A Most Beautiful Thing is the inspiring true story about the most unlikely band of brothers that form a family, and forever change a sport and their lives for the better.
A Most Clever Girl: A Novel of an American Spy
by Stephanie Marie ThorntonA thrilling novel of love, loyalty, and espionage, based on the incredible true story of Elizabeth Bentley, a Cold War double agent spying for the Russians and the United States, from USA Today bestselling author Stephanie Marie Thornton.1963: Reeling from the death of her mother and President Kennedy&’s assassination, Catherine Gray shows up on Elizabeth Bentley&’s doorstep demanding answers to the shocking mystery she just uncovered about her family. What she doesn&’t expect is for Bentley to ensnare her in her own story of becoming a controversial World War II spy and Cold War informer… Recruited by the American Communist Party to spy on fascists at the outbreak of World War II, a young Bentley—code name Clever Girl—finds she has an unexpected gift for espionage. But after falling desperately in love with her handler, Elizabeth makes another surprise discovery when she learns he is actually a Russian spy. Together, they will build the largest Soviet spy network in America and Elizabeth will become its uncrowned Red Spy Queen. However, once the war ends and the U.S. and U.S.S.R. become embroiled in the Cold War, it is Elizabeth who will dangerously clash with the NKVD, the brutal Soviet espionage agency. As Catherine listens to Elizabeth's harrowing tale, she discovers that the women's lives are linked in shocking ways. Faced with the idea that her entire existence is based on a lie, Catherine realizes that only Elizabeth Bentley can tell her what the truth really is.
A Most Dangerous Method
by John KerrThis explosive, revelatory history of the early years of psychoanalysis shows that the bitterly unresolvable split between Jung and Freud pivoted around a former patient and lover of Jung's whose story and own potentially important theoretical contributions to psychoanalysis were blocked by both men. "A huge scholarly work . . . gripping". --The New York Times.
A Most English Princess: A Novel of Queen Victoria's Daughter
by Clare McHugh"In this sweeping, immersive novel, Clare McHugh draws readers into the mesmerizing world of the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria – Princess Vicky – as she emerges into a powerful force in her own right and ascends to become the first German Empress.” —Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The Only Woman in the Room Perfect for fans of the BBC's Victoria, Alison Pataki's The Accidental Empress, and Daisy Goodwin's Victoria, this debut novel tells the gripping and tragic story of Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter, Victoria, Princess Royal.To the world, she was Princess Victoria, daughter of a queen, wife of an emperor, and mother of Kaiser Wilhelm. Her family just called her Vicky…smart, pretty, and self-assured, she changed the course of the world.January 1858: Princess Victoria glides down the aisle of St James Chapel to the waiting arms of her beloved, Fritz, Prince Frederick, heir to the powerful kingdom of Prussia. Although theirs is no mere political match, Vicky is determined that she and Fritz will lead by example, just as her parents Victoria and Albert had done, and also bring about a liberal and united Germany. Brought up to believe in the rightness of her cause, Vicky nonetheless struggles to thrive in the constrained Prussian court, where each day she seems to take a wrong step. And her status as the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria does little to smooth over the conflicts she faces. But handsome, gallant Fritz is always by her side, as they navigate court intrigue, and challenge the cunning Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, while fighting for the throne—and the soul of a nation. At home they endure tragedy, including their son, Wilhelm, rejecting all they stand for.Clare McHugh tells the enthralling and riveting story of Victoria, the Princess Royal—from her younger years as the apple of her father Albert's eyes through her rise to power atop the mighty German empire to her final months of life.
A Most Extraordinary Ride: Space, Politics, and the Pursuit of a Canadian Dream
by Marc GarneauA captivating and inspiring memoir by Canada's first man in space.On October 5th, 1984, Marc Garneau made history. Blasting off from the Kennedy Space Center aboard the U.S. Space Shuttle and reaching a speed of 28,000 km/hour, he became the first Canadian to fly to outer space. That monumental achievement, now etched in Canadian history as one of our country&’s proudest moments, inspired a nation and ushered in a new era of space exploration for Canada. Twenty-four years later, Garneau made history yet again, becoming the first astronaut to be elected as a Member of Parliament.In between those two milestones in Garneau&’s unprecedented career, he was the first Canadian, and the first non-American, to serve as CAPCOM, the voice of Mission Control for the astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle. In the years that followed his historic first voyage to space, Garneau returned to space two more times, becoming the first Canadian to log three trips into orbit, and led the Canadian Space Agency through its most dynamic years.In the House of Commons, Garneau would ultimately serve in two cabinet posts as Minister of Transport and Minister of Foreign Affairs during some of the biggest events of the past decade: the onset of one of the worst pandemics in modern times; the arbitrary detention of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor by China; the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban; and the death of 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents aboard Ukrainian Airlines Flight 752, shot down by Iran.It was no surprise, then, that when Marc Garneau announced his retirement after fourteen years in government, many Canadians lamented the loss of an upstanding parliamentarian who was not afraid to speak up for causes he believed in, even if that meant bucking his own party and its leader. In A Most Extraordinary Ride: Space, Politics, and the Pursuit of a Canadian Dream, Garneau chronicles his once-improbable ascent from a mischievous teenager and rebellious naval midshipman to a decorated astronaut and statesman who represented Canada on the world stage – both on and off the planet. With candour and humour, Garneau describes the highs and lows of his life and career, including the awe he experienced first seeing the earth from space, the tragic loss of his first wife to mental illness and suicide, sailing across the Atlantic and back in a sailboat called "the Pickle," and witnessing the tragedy of the doomed shuttle Challenger.Honest and illuminating, A Most Extraordinary Ride is a rare journey into the early years of Canada&’s space program and an inside account of the joys and challenges of governing from one of Canada&’s most distinguished citizens.
A Most Glorious Ride: The Diaries of Theodore Roosevelt, 1877-1886 (Excelsior Editions)
by Edward P. KohnFinalist for the 2015 ForeWord INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award in the History CategoryA Most Glorious Ride presents the complete diaries of Theodore Roosevelt from 1877 to 1886. Covering the formative years of his life, Roosevelt's entries show the transformation of a sickly and solitary Harvard freshman into a confident and increasingly robust young adult. He writes about his grief over the premature death of his father, his courtship and marriage to his first wife, Alice Hathaway Lee, and later the death of Alice and his mother on the same day. The diaries chronicle his burgeoning political career in New York City and his election to the New York State Assembly. With his descriptions of balls, dinner parties, and nights at the opera, they offer a glimpse into life among the Gilded Age elite in Boston and New York. They also recount Roosevelt's first birding and hunting trips to the Adirondacks, the Maine woods, and the American West. Ending with Roosevelt's secret engagement to his second wife, Edith Kermit Carow, A Most Glorious Ride provides an intimate look into the life of the man who would become America's twenty-sixth president.Brought together for the first time in a single volume, the diaries have been meticulously transcribed, annotated, and introduced by Edward P. Kohn. Twenty-four black-and-white photographs are also included.
A Most Remarkable Creature: The Hidden Life and Epic Journey of the World's Smartest Birds of Prey
by Jonathan Meiburg&“A fascinating, entertaining, and totally engrossing story.&”—David Sibley, author of What It's Like to Be a Bird &“Utterly captivating and beautifully written, this book is a hugely entertaining and enlightening exploration of a bird so wickedly smart, curious, and social, it boggles the mind.&”—Jennifer Ackerman, author of The Bird Way &“As curious, wide-ranging, gregarious, and intelligent as its subject.&”—Charles C. Mann, author of 1491 An enthralling account of a modern voyage of discovery as we meet the clever, social birds of prey called caracaras, which puzzled Darwin, fascinate modern-day falconers, and carry secrets of our planet's deep past in their family history.In 1833, Charles Darwin was astonished by an animal he met in the Falkland Islands: handsome, social, and oddly crow-like falcons that were "tame and inquisitive . . . quarrelsome and passionate," and so insatiably curious that they stole hats, compasses, and other valuables from the crew of the Beagle. Darwin wondered why these birds were confined to remote islands at the tip of South America, sensing a larger story, but he set this mystery aside and never returned to it. Almost two hundred years later, Jonathan Meiburg takes up this chase. He takes us through South America, from the fog-bound coasts of Tierra del Fuego to the tropical forests of Guyana, in search of these birds: striated caracaras, which still exist, though they're very rare. He reveals the wild, fascinating story of their history, origins, and possible futures. And along the way, he draws us into the life and work of William Henry Hudson, the Victorian writer and naturalist who championed caracaras as an unsung wonder of the natural world, and to falconry parks in the English countryside, where captive caracaras perform incredible feats of memory and problem-solving. A Most Remarkable Creature is a hybrid of science writing, travelogue, and biography, as generous and accessible as it is sophisticated, and absolutely riveting.
A Mother for All Seasons: A Memoir
by Mim E. Rivas Debbie PhelpsThe unsinkable Debbie Phelps—who captured the hearts of the world when her son, Michael, triumphed at the Beijing Olympic games—shares her inspirational story A Mother for All Seasons is the heartfelt, intimate memoir of an everywoman—a single mom and an educator who raised three exceptional children, including the greatest Olympian of all time, Michael Phelps.During the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, when Michael achieved the impossible with his record-shattering eight gold-medal wins, Debbie Phelps nearly stole the show. For the millions who were riveted to the most watched Olympics in history, few could forget the homage that Michael consistently paid to the one person on Team Phelps most responsible for making it all possible: his mom. Nor can we forget how after each medal ceremony, Michael walked proudly to the stands to reach up to his mother and his sisters, Hilary and Whitney, to deliver his winning bouquets to them. While those highlights will forever be remembered the world over, very few know the behind-the-scenes stories as lived by the members of Team Phelps—a roller-coaster ride full of dramatic ups and downs, heartbreaks, and disappointments, yet one guided to triumph by vision, courage, and tenacity. Now at last, in A Mother for All Seasons, we're given the untold story as lived by the mom on the team. An educator in home economics, motivational spokeswoman, visionary middle-school principal, mother of three, and grandmother of two, Debbie Phelps is also the eternal cheerleader who was raised in a small, blue-collar, working-class town. An avid believer that achievement is limitless for each and every child, no matter the odds, Debbie reveals the universal themes of her story, which is rich with struggle, humor, hope, advice, and passion. Infused with the indomitable spirit of “America's mom,” as she has been called, A Mother for All Seasons rallies us to cheer for all of our children at every stage of their growth and in every endeavor. Candid, lively, and charming, it offers timely, commonsense wisdom, lessons, and insights, and provides a much-needed reminder that life doesn't always turn out how you plan it, but in fact it can sometimes turn out even better.
A Mother in History
by Jean StaffordJean Stafford's unforgettable portrait of Marguerite Oswald, the mother of Lee Harvey Oswald.Curious about &“the influences and accidents and loves and antipathies and idiosyncrasies&” that shaped Lee Harvey Oswald, the novelist and short story writer Jean Stafford spent nine hours interviewing Marguerite Oswald in May 1965. A Mother in History (1966) is the acerbic result, an indelible portrait of a woman hungry for money, fame, and attention, full of righteous self-pity, and relentless in professing her son&’s blamelessness: &“Killing does not necessarily mean badness. You find killing in some very fine homes for one reason or another.&” Stafford&’s controversial profile elicited mixed reviews—Newsweek praised it as a &“masterpiece of character study,&” while Time called it &“the most abrasively unpleasant book in recent years&”—and angry readers accused her of seeking to &“enthrone a wicked woman&” and &“demolish the sacred throne of motherhood.&” It captures a moment in history when the trauma of Dallas was still raw, Lee Harvey Oswald&’s guilt was widely accepted, and Marguerite Oswald, with her obsessive &“research&” into hidden &“truths&” and the machinations of an omnipresent &“they,&” appeared to be a singular prisoner of maternal delusion, and not a harbinger of the decades to come.
A Mother's Cry: A Memoir of Politics, Prison, and Torture Under the Brazilian Military Dictatorship
by Lina Penna SattaminiDuring the late 1960s and early 1970s, Brazil's dictatorship arrested, tortured, and interrogated many people it suspected of subversion; hundreds of those arrested were killed in prison. In May 1970, Marcos P. S. Arruda, a young political activist, was seized in So Paulo, imprisoned, and tortured. A Mother's Cry is the harrowing story of Marcos's incarceration and his family's efforts to locate him and obtain his release. Marcos's mother, Lina Penna Sattamini, was living in the United States and working for the U. S. State Department when her son was captured. After learning of his arrest, she and her family mobilized every resource and contact to discover where he was being held, and then they launched an equally intense effort to have him released. Marcos was freed from prison in 1971. Fearing that he would be arrested and tortured again, he left the country, beginning eight years of exile. Lina Penna Sattamini describes her son's tribulations through letters exchanged among family members, including Marcos, during the year that he was imprisoned. Her narrative is enhanced by Marcos's account of his arrest, imprisonment, and torture. James N. Green's introduction provides an overview of the political situation in Brazil, and Latin America more broadly, during that tumultuous era. In the 1990s, some Brazilians began to suggest that it would be best to forget the trauma of that era and move on. Lina Penna Sattamini wrote her memoir as a protest against historical amnesia. First published in Brazil in 2000, A Mother's Cry is testimonial literature at its best. It conveys the experiences of a family united by love and determination during years of political repression.
A Mother's Dance: One Step Back---Two Steps Forward, Full Circle
by Pattie Welek Hall"Pattie's touching memoir is the heart and soul of a mother's love---from happiness to despair, and everything in-between. It will inspire you to face calamitous events and refuse to be conqurered by them." ~National Jefferson Award Winner Dave Pelzer, Auth or "A Child Called 'It'". How does one measure the depth of a mother's love? Pattie never thought it possible until she experienced every mother's worst nightmare--twice. With all three kids in college and thriving, Pattie is excited about embarking on her new career as community relations manager at Barnes & Noble. That is, until she receives word that her nineteen-year-old son has been admitted to the Medical University of South Carolina and tagged "John Doe" after he suffered a traumatic brain injury. Now her sole concern is to get to Charleston, 250 miles away, before he takes his final breath. Although Casey is given only twenty-four hours to live, Pattie clings to her faith and refuses to accept her son's death sentence. During Casey's long and arduous healing, Pattie takes a hard look at the past--the kid's tender childhood memories, their challenging teenage years, the skeletons in the closet, and the circumstances that have formed her into who she has become. When tragedy strikes again, Pattie must make a choice--to remain stuck in her grief or to step into the life she's meant to create. Moving and heart-wrenching, A Mother's Dance, is a story about hope, perseverance, self-discovery, hard choices, and most importantly about love. . .the sad and the wondrous. "I wrote this book in hopes it would bring healing to others," Hall says. "Instead I discovered that I was the one who healed."
A Mother's Nightmare: A Heartrending Journey into Near Fatal Childhood Illness
by Cathy CrimminsIn the tradition of Lorenzo's Oil, a brutally searing story of one mother's quest to save her child's life.One day Kelly Crimmins was a happy seemingly healthy twelve-year-old; the next she confessed to her mom that she'd had blood in her urine for months. After a series of tests, Kelly was diagnosed with a life-threatening, potentially terminal autoimmune disease.A Mother's Nightmare details Cathy and Kelly's three-year medical and emotional journey, which took them from Philadelphia to Minnesota's Mayo Clinic and back again. Cathy writes about the toll taken on a young girl who suddenly becomes a patient, and about a mom who in fighting for her little girl's life becomes sick herself with worry and fear. As she did in her award-winning Where Is the Mango Princess?, Cathy makes illness both personal and universal. It's an account all readers will find memorable and moving.
A Mother's Promise: My true story of surviving Auschwitz and the horrors of the Holocaust, the Sunday Times bestseller
by Kate Thompson Renee Salt'Mama, it's me.' I held her hand in mine, hoping it would give her the strength to hold on. Finally, she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.'Do not cry when I die.''Quite simply the most important book you will read this year' Hazel Gaynor'An extraordinary read' Lorraine Kelly'Deeply moving' Daily MailFrom invasion to liberation, September 1939 to April 1945, as Renee was marched from ghetto to camp, there was one constant. One hand that clutched hers - her mother's. Every day for nearly six years, mother and daughter were bound together in hell. From Auschwitz-Birkenau to Bergen-Belsen, they were a powerful source of solace and hope for one another.The strength of Sala's love gave them both something fragile yet beautiful to cling to in an ugly, depraved world. It was her mother who hid Renee, lied to the SS, went right when she was directed left - whose small actions had life-saving consequences. Now, for Renee, the need to share has finally overcome the desire to forget.A Mother's Promise is a love letter to a mother eighty years in the making.*****'Will stay with me for a long time... A beautiful account, so movingly told' Anna Stuart'Powerful, poignant, and deeply important. A must-read' Elizabeth Bellak 'This is a story the world needs to know' Madeline Martin 'This book travels to the very heart of existence' Joshua Levine
A Mother's Promise: My true story of surviving Auschwitz and the horrors of the Holocaust, the Sunday Times bestseller
by Kate Thompson Renee Salt'Mama, it's me.' I held her hand in mine, hoping it would give her the strength to hold on. Finally, she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.'Do not cry when I die.''Quite simply the most important book you will read this year' Hazel Gaynor'An extraordinary read' Lorraine Kelly'Deeply moving' Daily MailFrom invasion to liberation, September 1939 to April 1945, as Renee was marched from ghetto to camp, there was one constant. One hand that clutched hers - her mother's. Every day for nearly six years, mother and daughter were bound together in hell. From Auschwitz-Birkenau to Bergen-Belsen, they were a powerful source of solace and hope for one another.The strength of Sala's love gave them both something fragile yet beautiful to cling to in an ugly, depraved world. It was her mother who hid Renee, lied to the SS, went right when she was directed left - whose small actions had life-saving consequences. Now, for Renee, the need to share has finally overcome the desire to forget.A Mother's Promise is a love letter to a mother eighty years in the making.*****'Will stay with me for a long time... A beautiful account, so movingly told' Anna Stuart'Powerful, poignant, and deeply important. A must-read' Elizabeth Bellak 'This is a story the world needs to know' Madeline Martin 'This book travels to the very heart of existence' Joshua Levine