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A Really Good Day: How Microdosing Made a Mega Difference in My Mood, My Marriage, and My Life
by Ayelet Waldman<P>A revealing, courageous, fascinating, and funny account of the author's experiment with microdoses of LSD in an effort to treat a debilitating mood disorder, of her quest to understand a misunderstood drug, and of her search for a really good day. <P>When a small vial arrives in her mailbox from "Lewis Carroll," Ayelet Waldman is at a low point. <P>Her mood storms have become intolerably severe; she has tried nearly every medication possible; her husband and children are suffering with her. <P>So she opens the vial, places two drops on her tongue, and joins the ranks of an underground but increasingly vocal group of scientists and civilians successfully using therapeutic microdoses of LSD. <P>As Waldman charts her experience over the course of a month--bursts of productivity, sleepless nights, a newfound sense of equanimity--she also explores the history and mythology of LSD, the cutting-edge research into the drug, and the byzantine policies that control it. <P>Drawing on her experience as a federal public defender, and as the mother of teenagers, and her research into the therapeutic value of psychedelics, Waldman has produced a book that is eye-opening, often hilarious, and utterly enthralling.
A Really Strange and Wonderful Time: The Chapel Hill Music Scene: 1989-1999
by Tom MaxwellTHE FIRST BIOGRAPHY OF THE THRIVING AND INFLUENTIAL ROCK SCENE IN CHAPEL HILL, WHICH GAVE THE WORLD ARTISTS LIKE BEN FOLDS FIVE, SUPERCHUNK, AND SQUIRREL NUT ZIPPERS North Carolina has always produced extraordinary music of every description. But the indie rock boom of the late 1980s and early &’90s brought the state most fully into the public consciousness, while the subsequent post-grunge free-for-all bestowed its greatest commercial successes. In addition to the creation of legacy label Merge Records and a slate of excellent indie bands like Superchunk, Archers of Loaf, and Polvo, this was the decade when other North Carolina artists broke Billboard &’s Top 200 and sold millions of records—several million of which were issued by another indie label based in Carrboro, Chapel Hill&’s smaller next-door neighbor. It&’s time to take a closer look at exactly what happened.A Really Strange and Wonderful Time features a representative cross section of what was being created in and around Chapel Hill between 1989 and 1999. In addition to the aforementioned indie bands, it documents—through firsthand accounts—other local notables like Ben Folds Five, Dillon Fence, Flat Duo Jets, Small, Southern Culture on the Skids, The Veldt, and Whiskeytown. At the same time, it describes the nurturing infrastructure which engendered and encouraged this marvelous diversity. In essence, A Really Strange and Wonderful Time is proof of the genius of community.
A Reason to Believe: Lessons from an Improbable Life
by Deval Patrick"I've simply seen too much goodness in this country--and have come so far in my own journey--not to believe in those ideals, and my faith in the future is sometimes restored under the darkest clouds." --Governor Deval Patrick. In January 2007, Deval Patrick became the first black governor of the state of Massachusetts, one of only two black governors elected in American history. But that was just one triumphant step in a long, improbable journey that began in a poor tenement on the South Side of Chicago. From a chaotic childhood to an elite boarding school in New England, from a sojourn doing relief work in Africa to the boardrooms of Fortune 500 companies, and then to a career in politics, Patrick has led an extraordinary life. In this heartfelt and inspirational book, he pays tribute to the family, friends, and strangers who, through words and deeds, have instilled in him transcendent lessons of faith, perseverance, and friendship. In doing so, he reminds us of the power of community and the imperative of idealism. With humility, humor, and grace, he offers a road map for attaining happiness, empowerment, and success while also making an appeal for readers to cultivate those achievements in others, to feel a greater stake in this world, and to shape a life worth living. Warm, nostalgic, and inspirational, A Reason to Believe is destined to become a timeless tribute to a uniquely American odyssey and a testament to what is possible in our lives and our communities if we are hopeful, generous, and resilient. GOVERNOR DEVAL PATRICK is donating a portion of the proceeds from A REASON TO BELIEVE to A Better Chance, a national organization dedicated to opening the doors to greater educational opportunities for young people of color. To learn more, visit www.abetterchance.org.
A Rebel in Auschwitz: The True Story of the Resistance Hero who Fought the Nazis from Inside the Camp (Scholastic Focus)
by Jack FairweatherWith exclusive access to previously hidden diaries, family and camp survivor accounts, and recently declassified files, critically acclaimed and award-winning journalist Jack Fairweather brilliantly portrays the remarkable man who volunteered to face the unknown in the name of truth and country. This extraordinary and eye-opening account of the Holocaust invites us all to bear witness.Occupied Warsaw, Summer 1940:Witold Pilecki, a Polish underground operative, accepted a mission to uncover the fate of thousands interned at a new concentration camp, report on Nazi crimes, raise a secret army, and stage an uprising. The name of the camp -- Auschwitz.Over the next two and half years, and under the cruelest of conditions, Pilecki's underground sabotaged facilities, assassinated Nazi officers, and gathered evidence of terrifying abuse and mass murder. But as he pieced together the horrifying Nazi plans to exterminate Europe's Jews, Pilecki realized he would have to risk his men, his life, and his family to warn the West before all was lost. To do so meant attempting the impossible -- but first he would have to escape from Auschwitz itself...
A Rebel's Journey: Mostafa Sho'aiyan and Revolutionary Theory in Iran (Radical Histories of the Middle East)
by Peyman VahabzadehFollowing the 1953 coup that toppled the democratically elected government of Mossadeq and restored the rule of the Shah in Iran, Mostafa Sho&‘aiyan became a key figure on the country&’s militant left. From a life underground he contributed significantly to the study of Iranian history and politics, and developed a unique theory of revolution. A Rebel&’s Journey provides fascinating insights into the life and work of this singular theoretician. Peyman Vahabzadeh sets Sho&‘aiyan&’s thought in the context of his time and place, and explores how his revolutionary theory might contribute to today&’s expanding movements for social justice and liberation.
A Red Family: Junius, Gladys, and Barbara Scales
by Barbara Scales Mickey FriedmanOne of the few publicly known communists in the South, Junius Scales organized textile workers, fought segregation, and was the only American to be imprisoned under the membership clause of the Smith Act during the McCarthy years. This compact collective memoir, built on three interconnected oral histories and including a historical essay by Gail O'Brien, covers Scales's organizing activities and work against racism in the South, his progressive disillusionment with Party bureaucracy and dogmatic rigidity, his persecution and imprisonment, as well as his family's radicalism and response to FBI hounding and blacklisting. Through the distinct perspectives of Junius, his wife Gladys, and his daughter Barbara, this book deepens and personalizes the story of American radicalism. Conversational, intimate, and exceptionally accessible, A Red Family offers a unique look at the American communist experience from the inside out.
A Red Triangle Girl In France
by AnonThe amusing anonymously written letters of a YMCA canteen girl recounting her life serving the Doughboys of the First World War. As her mother who collected and published the letters explains:"May I in a few words explain why I have placed at your disposal the accompanying manuscript? It consists of selections from the home letters of our daughter, written in a Y.M.C.A. canteen "Somewhere in France." They were dashed off rapidly, in busy days, with many interruptions, addressed to members of our family circle; and they bear on their face everywhere the stamp of having been written without pre-meditation or the remotest dream of publication."But they tell the story of the daily life in a crowded canteen in France, as experienced by an intensely interested and enthusiastic participant, not only in its outward form, but also in its innermost spirit. The infinite variety of the life, its humour, its pathos, its confidences, its noble, its generous, its picturesque characters, its delights and its privations, its devotions and its gratitudes, its tragedies and its sorrows, the countless services and the priceless spirit of the Y.M.C.A. workers, all this and much more is disclosed in these vivid letters with an art that is wholly unconscious and to which the thought of publication would have been fatal."
A Redefined Life: Lessons from a Pitchfork
by Ashlee LundvallAfter a paralyzing ranching accident when she was sixteen years old, Ashlee Lundvall was forced to redefine her life. What she discovered was that through hard changes and loss comes beautiful hope and life-changing lessons. Once a basketball player, she has found she can continue to be competitive in a new stadium--the great outdoors. Join her on her journey home as she shares her struggles, triumphs, and the lessons she learned along the way following her Pitchfork Moment.
A Redemptive Path Forward: From Incarceration to a Life of Activism
by Antong LuckyA motivational memoir by a formerly incarcerated man who transformed from founder and leader of the Dallas Bloods to a practitioner of peace and nonviolence in the neighborhood he once helped destroyAs a child of an incarcerated father, Antong Lucky grew up in an impoverished, crime-ridden neighborhood in East Dallas, Texas, born at the same time as East Dallas experienced an alarming rise in crack cocaine and heroin use. Despite his high grades and passion for learning, Antong is introduced to gang life and its consequences. Eventually, Antong forms the Dallas Bloods gang, inaugurating a period in the 1990s of escalating retaliatory gun violence buoyed by a lucrative illegal drug enterprise until he is ultimately arrested and sentenced to seven years in prison. His journey through the doors of transformation came through the pain of incarceration and introspection that caused him to question the cognitive distortions embedded in him since childhood. Once in prison, Antong denounced his gang affiliation and began working to unite rival gangs, quickly rising to become one of the most respected and sought-after mentors in prison. A spiritual transformation further inspired Antong to return to his old neighborhood after early release, seeking to align with like-minded people dedicated to challenging systemic issues in U.S. communities through collective efforts. The work of an incisive, determined mind, A Redemptive Path Forward will take its place among the broadening canon of titles championing and investigating prison reform and societal transformation.
A Refugee at Hanover Tavern: The Civil War Diary of Margaret Wight (Civil War Ser.)
by The Hanover Tavern FoundationAn account of life on the home front written by a Southern woman trying to survive the daily struggles of the Civil War. The Hanover Tavern outside Richmond was a place of refuge during the Civil War. Life at the Tavern was not always safe as residents weathered frequent Union cavalry raids on nearby railroads, bridges, and farms. Margaret Copland Brown Wight and some of her family braved the war at the Tavern from 1862 until 1865 in the company of a small community of refugees. She kept a diary to document each hardship and every blessing—a day of rain after weeks of drought, news of her sons fighting in the Confederate armies, or word from her daughter caught behind enemy lines. Wight&’s diary, discovered more than a century after the war, is a vital voice from a time of tumult. Join the Hanover Tavern Foundation as the diary is presented here for the first time. Includes photos
A Refugee's American Dream: From the Killing Fields of Cambodia to the U. S. Secret Service
by Leth OunAfter barely surviving the horrors of the Killing Fields of Cambodia as a child, Leth Oun spent almost four years in refugee camps before immigrating to America, where he persevered to become an officer in the United States Secret Service.
A Refugee's American Dream: From the Killing Fields of Cambodia to the U.S. Secret Service
by Leth Oun“I saw many killed. I almost starved. But I escaped to refugee camps in Thailand and eventually made it to the U.S.” Thus begins Leth Oun’s poignant and vivid memoir. A survivor of the Cambodian Killing Fields—having spent a torturous three years, eight months, and ten days imprisoned by the Khmer Rouge—Oun thrived in America, learning English, becoming a citizen, and working as an officer in the United States Secret Service Uniformed Division. In A Refugee’s American Dream, Oun shares hard memories of Cambodia, where his father was executed, and his family enslaved in labor camps. Following the fall of the Khmer Rouge, Oun survived a year of homelessness then nearly four years in refugee camps. Arriving in America, 17 and penniless, Oun struggled, washing dishes at a Chinese restaurant for $3.15 an hour. Still, he persevered, graduating from Widener University and completing thousands of hours of training to pursue a career in the Secret Service. While on President Obama’s protection team, he returns to Cambodia after 32 years, reunites with family, and bonds with Reik, the Secret Service dog he handles. Through his most difficult moments, Oun displays truly inspiring resilience that ultimately leads to great achievements. The authors’ proceeds will go to help Cambodians in need
A Regular American Guy
by Bob BellA Regular American Guy is the story of one American guy. It begins with recounting his family's eight generations of American citizenship. Then his relatively normal childhood and transition into adulthood. He manages to get through high school and works his way through college. He was thrust into the Vietnam War in 1968. All he accomplished until then, and all he would achieve later, was put at risk. A battle where you are almost killed can be a profound experience. Reflecting on that traumatic event convinced him of two things. First, war is a terrible thing, and we need to find a way to stop it in the future. Second, thinking about that dramatic and frighting battle instilled in him a determination to make his life count regarding his fellow citizens and his family. So, he built an engineering and surveying firm from scratch employing hundreds of people. He served in elective offices and on community boards and commissions. He and Candace raised a family of five kids, who were well cared for materially and emotionally, and all grew up to be happy and productive adults. He made his life count. That fight in Vietnam was not so much a major event in his life as it was a tipping point. It refocused his life plan. So marriage, the birth of children, business success, and public service were the major event, just like so many American men and women.
A Reluctant Hero: The Life of Captain Robert Ryder VC
by Richard HoptonThis is the first biography of Captain Robert Ryder V.C., Royal Navy (1908-1986), one of the greatest naval heroes of the Second World War. Ryder led the audacious raid on St Nazaire in March 1942 which completely destroyed the ports dry dock, depriving the Germans mighty pocket battleships of its use for the remainder of the war. The raid was one of the most brilliantly-executed combined operations of the war, much of the credit for which must go to Ryders outstanding planning and courageous leadership. He received one of five Victoria Crosses awarded for the operation.Although Ryders name will be forever linked with the raid on St Nazaire, the rest of his war service was no less distinguished. Torpedoed in a Q ship in 1940 he was rescued after clinging to a piece of wreckage for four days. After St Nazaire, he was heavily involved in the planning of combined operations and took part in the ill-fated raid on Dieppe. On D Day he lead a naval assault party in the first wave of the invasion. For the rest of the war Ryder commanded a destroyer on the Arctic convoys.Ryders naval career before the war was, as The Times put it on his death, unorthodox. In 1933-34 he, as captain, and four other young naval officers sailed the Tal-Mo-Shan, a 54 food ketch, from Hong Kong to England via the Panama Canal in a voyage lasting exactly a year, an outstanding achievement. Recently there has been press speculation that the voyage was a cover for naval espionage in Japanese waters. The Tal-Mo-Shan herself has now acquired international celebrity as a result of her sail-on part in the Abba film Mamma Mia. Between 1934 and 1937 Ryder served in the Antarctic as captain of the Penola, the base ship of the British Graham Lane Expedition. His formidable navigation and seamanship was largely responsible for the Penola, which was ill-adapted to polar conditions, surviving her ordeal intact. Ryder also took part in some of the earliest ocean yacht races, including the second Fastnet race in 1926.
A Remarkable Man
by Andrew Murtagh'I can truthfully say that there has never been a nicer man in the game. George Chesterton is a gentleman to the core. And he wasn't a bad bowler either!' Tom Graveney OBE. Wartime pilot dropping supplies over occupied Europe; county cricketer; housemaster teaching and disciplining mischievous teenage boys; family man and civic figure, there have been few dull moments in George Chesterton's life. And he can probably manage to turn even those into amusing anecdotes. Andrew Murtagh tells the story of this remarkable man.
A Remarkable Man: Dr. Shuntaro Hida from Hiroshima to Fukushima
by Marc PetitjeanA poignant, eye-opening portrait of a witness to the atomic bomb who dedicated his life to treating and advocating for radiation survivors.As a young doctor, Shuntaro Hida (1917–2017) played an essential role in the aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing, which he witnessed firsthand only six kilometers from ground zero. Tending to the overwhelming number of victims, he would spend more than sixty years developing an unparalleled understanding of the harmful effects of radiation and warning against the reckless use of nuclear power.Through intimate, thoughtful interviews and compelling reportage, Marc Petitjean has created a worthy tribute to this determined, inspiring man who stood up to complicit governments and businesses. It testifies to the power of individuals to effect change as well as the importance of collective action, as demonstrated by organizations such as Nihon Hidankyo, a survivors&’ group that would receive the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize.
A Remarkable Mother
by Jimmy CarterA Remarkable Motheris President Carter's loving, admiring, wry homage to Miss Lillian Carter, who championed the underdog always, even when her son was president. A registered nurse, pecan grower, university housemother, Peace Corps volunteer, public speaker, and renowned raconteur, Miss Lillian ignored the mores and prejudices of the racially segregated South of the Great Depression years. She was an avid supporter of the Brooklyn Dodgers (because she happened to attend the first major league baseball game in which Jackie Robinson, from Cairo, Georgia, played), was a favored guest on television talk shows (usually able to "steal the microphone" from hosts such as Johnny Carson and Walter Cronkite), and an important role model for the nation. Jimmy Carter's mother emerges from this portrait as redoubtable, generous, and forward-looking. He ascribes to her the inspiration for his own life's work of commitment and faith.
A Renaissance of Our Own: A Memoir & Manifesto on Reimagining
by Rachel E. CargleFrom a highly lauded modern voice in feminism and racial justice comes a deeply personal and insightful testament to the power of reimagining to dismantle the frameworks and systems that no longer serve us while building new ones that do. There are breaking points in all our lives when we realize that the way things have been done before just don&’t work for us anymore, be it the way we approach our relationships, our belief systems, our work, our education, even our rest. For activist, philanthropist, and CEO Rachel E. Cargle, reimagining—the act of creating in our minds that which does not exist but that we believe can and should—has been a lifelong process. Reimagining served as the most powerful catalyst for Cargle&’s personal transformation from a small-town Christian wife to an incisive queer feminist voice of a generation. In A Renaissance of Our Own, we witness the sometimes painful but always inspiring breaking points in Cargle&’s life that fostered a truer identity. These defining moments offer a blueprint for how we must all use our imagination—the space that sees beyond limits—to live in alignment with our highest values and to craft a world independent of oppressive structures, both personal and societal. Cargle now invites you to acknowledge ways of being that stem from societal expectations instead of your personal truth, and to embark on a renaissance of your own. She provides the very tools and prompts that she used to unearth her own truth, tools that opened her up to being a more authentic feminist and purpose-driven matriarchal leader. A Renaissance of Our Own gives us the courage to look at the world and say &“I want something different.&” It serves as a reminder of the power and possibility of reimagining a life that feels right, all the way down to the marrow of your bones.
A Reporter's Life
by Walter CronkiteHe has been called the most trusted man in America. His 60-year journalistic career has spanned the Great Depression, several wars, and the extraordinary changes that have engulfed our nation over the last two-thirds of the 20th century. When Walter Cronkite advised his television audience in 1968 that the war in Vietnam could not be won, President Lyndon B. Johnson said: "If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost middle America."
A Republic, If You Can Keep It
by Neil GorsuchJustice Neil Gorsuch reflects on his journey to the Supreme Court, the role of the judge under our Constitution, and the vital responsibility of each American to keep our republic strong. <P><P>As Benjamin Franklin left the Constitutional Convention, he was reportedly asked what kind of government the founders would propose. He replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.” <P><P>In this book, Justice Neil Gorsuch shares personal reflections, speeches, and essays that focus on the remarkable gift the framers left us in the Constitution. Justice Gorsuch draws on his thirty-year career as a lawyer, teacher, judge, and justice to explore essential aspects our Constitution, its separation of powers, and the liberties it is designed to protect. <P><P>He discusses the role of the judge in our constitutional order, and why he believes that originalism and textualism are the surest guides to interpreting our nation’s founding documents and protecting our freedoms. He explains, too, the importance of affordable access to the courts in realizing the promise of equal justice under law—while highlighting some of the challenges we face on this front today. <P><P>Along the way, Justice Gorsuch reveals some of the events that have shaped his life and outlook, from his upbringing in Colorado to his Supreme Court confirmation process. And he emphasizes the pivotal roles of civic education, civil discourse, and mutual respect in maintaining a healthy republic. <P><P>A Republic, If You Can Keep It offers compelling insights into Justice Gorsuch’s faith in America and its founding documents, his thoughts on our Constitution’s design and the judge’s place within it, and his beliefs about the responsibility each of us shares to sustain our distinctive republic of, by, and for “We the People.” <P><P><b>A New York Times Bestseller</b>
A Restatement of Religion
by Jyotirmaya SharmaIn this third installment of his comprehensive history of "Indias religion" and reappraisal of Hindu identity, Professor Jyotirmaya Sharma offers an engaging portrait of Swami Vivekananda and his relationship with his guru, the legendary Ramakrishna. Sharmas work focuses on Vivekanandas reinterpretation and formulation of diverse Indian spiritual and mystical traditions and practices as "Hinduism" and how it served to create, distort, and justify a national self-image. The author examines questions of caste and the primacy of the West in Vivekanandas vision, as well as the systematic marginalization of alternate religions and heterodox beliefs. In doing so, Professor Sharma provides readers with an incisive entryway into nineteenth- and twentieth-century Indian history and the rise of Hindutva, the Hindu nationalist movement. Sharmas illuminating narrative is an excellent reexamination of one of Indias most controversial religious figures and a fascinating study of the symbiosis of Indian history, religion, politics, and national identity. It is an essential story for anyone interested in the evolution of one of the worlds great religions and its role in shaping contemporary India.
A Restless Soul: Meditations from the Road
by Michael Ford Henri J. M. NouwenThese engaging selections gathered from Henri Nouwen's travel writings offer new insights into the restless soul of a deeply spiritual man. Whether Nouwen was describing the grim surroundings of post-Soviet Ukraine, mingling with senators in Washington, or meeting cocaine users in a South American prison, each situation tells a revealing story. Editor Michael Ford creates a journey from actual places Nouwen visited from the Ukraine to Bolivia via Europe, Canada, and the United States that depicts Nouwen's world as one of striking contrasts--one minute rubbing shoulders with the affluent, the next walking through lands of poverty. At each destination, we discover a man whose endless search for intimacy and beauty resonates deeply with our own.
A Restricted Country
by Joan NestleA proud working-class woman, an “out” lesbian long before the Rainbow revolution, Joan Nestle has stood at the forefront of American freedom struggles from the McCarthy era to the present day. Featuring photographs and a new introduction by the author, this classic collection which intimately accounts the lesbian, feminist and civil rights movements through personal essays is available again for the first time in years.
A Restricted Country
by Joan NestleA proud working class woman, an "out" lesbian long before the Rainbow revolution, Joan Nestle has stood at the forefront of American freedom struggles from the McCarthy era to the present day. Available for the first time in years, this revised classic collection of personal essays offers an intimate account of the lesbian, feminist, and civil rights movements.
A Return to Self: Excursions in Exile
by Aatish TaseerA blend of travelog and memoir spanning from Turkey to Mexico, exploring Aatish Taseer&’s uniquely blended identity and asking: Why do certain cities become epicenters of great historical shifts and sites of unpredictable communities?In 2019, the government of Prime Minister Narenda Modi revoked Aatish Taseer&’s Indian citizenship, thereby exiling him from the country where he grew up and lived for thirty years. This loss, both practical and spiritual, sent him on a journey of revisiting the places that formed his identity, and asking broader questions about the complex forces that make a culture and a nationality, in the process. In Istanbul, he confronts the hopes and ambitions of his former self. In Uzbekistan, he sees how what was once the majestic portal of the Silk Road is now a tourist façade. In India, he explores why Buddhism, which originated there, is so little practiced. Everywhere he goes, the ancient world mixes intimately with the contemporary: with the influences of the pandemic, the rise of new food cultures, and the ongoing cultural battles of regions around the world. How do centuries of cultures evolving and overlapping, often violently, shape the people that subsequently emerge from them? In thoughtful prose that combines reportage with romanticism, Taseer casts an incisive eye at what it means to belong to a place that becomes an unstable, politicized vessel for ideas defined by exclusion and prejudice, and gets to the human heart of the shifts and migrations that define our multicultural world.