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I Am on the Hit List: A Journalist's Murder and the Rise of Autocracy in India
by Rollo RomigA gripping investigation into the mysterious assassination of a journalist in India, revealing the courage and vulnerability of those who are fighting the decline of democracy around the worldWhen Gauri Lankesh, an outspoken journalist in the South Indian city of Bangalore, was assassinated in September 2017 outside her home, it wasn&’t just a loss to her close-knit community of writers and activists—the shock reverberated nationwide, making headlines and sparking mass protests. Why was she targeted, and who was behind it? Following the case to its stunning, unsettling conclusion, Rollo Romig uncovers a world of political extremists, fearless writers, organized crime, and shadowy religious groups. I Am on the Hit List is an epic narrative that moves between a historic booksellers' district and brand-new high rises funded by IT wealth, to a secretive ashram in Goa and the kitchens of an international vegetarian restaurant chain, boldly interrogating whether we can break the cycle of polarization and bloodshed inspiring political murder across the globe.
I Am the Central Park Jogger
by Trisha MeiliFor the first time since the brutal assault in 1989 -- a crime that stunned New Yorkers, the nation, and the world -- the Central Park Jogger reveals her identity and tells the story you haven't heard, the journey of a young woman who turned horrifying violence and certain death into extraordinary healing and triumphant life. It is the end of a long workday and she is out for a run. Shortly after 9:00 P.M. on April 19, 1989, a young woman jogs alone near 102nd Street in New York City's Central Park. She is attacked, raped, savagely beaten, and left for dead. Many hours later, she is found lying in the mud, her body thrashing violently. When the young woman -- soon to be known around the world simply as the Central Park Jogger -- arrives in the emergency room, her body temperature is 85 degrees, she is comatose, and she cannot breathe on her own. She has a fractured skull and has lost so much blood that the doctors can't understand why she is still alive. I Am the Central Park Jogger recounts the mesmerizing, inspiring, often wrenching story of human strength and transcendent recovery that involved a family, a hospital, a city -- in fact, an entire nation -- of supporters. Even today, more than a decade after the attack, the Central Park Jogger is still in the news. As she writes this story, the headlines scream jogger once more. Startling new information about the crime emerges. Because of the nature of her head injuries, she remembers nothing of the attack. Whether one man or several nearly took her life, the damage was done. And for the Central Park Jogger, the crime was not the climax but the beginning of her journey. This indelible, moving, tough-minded self-portrait weaves the stories of ER workers, doctors, nurses, investigators, family, colleagues, friends, and strangers into a haunting narrative of courage, survival, and healing against seemingly impossible odds. She tells us who she was -- a well-educated young woman working on Wall Street -- and who she is now. Postattack, she must relearn to read, write, add, subtract, tell time. Once a distance runner, she must learn to walk again. She was a woman who guarded an unhealthy secret that defied treatment until after the violence, when it magically healed; a young professional who worked twelve- to fourteen-hour days but who, postattack, had the courage to reclaim her life and focus on what matters most. Once comfortable in a high-pressure corporate boardroom, she is a woman who has had to learn to talk again, and is now a powerful and inspiring speaker. She is not the woman she was -- physical and cognitive "deficits" linger -- yet she is stronger and more alive than she has ever been. The event meant to take her life gave her a deeper one, richer and more meaningful. Meet Trisha Meili, the Central Park Jogger. The author will make a donation to The Achilles Track Club, Gaylord Hospital, and The Mount Sinai Sexual Assault and Violence Intervention Program from her proceeds of the book.
I Am the New Black
by Anthony Bozza Tracy MorganThe outrageously funny, heartbreaking, and surprising story of Tracy Morgan's rise from ghetto wiseass to superstar comedian. Who is Tracy Morgan? The wildly unpredictable funnyman who rocketed to fame on Saturday Night Live? The Emmy-nominated actor behind the sly and ingenious character Tracy Jordan on the award-winning hit sitcom 30 Rock, whose turbulent personal life often mirrors that of his fictional alter ego? Is he Chico Divine, the life of the party--any party, anytime, anywhere--getting ladies pregnant everywhere he goes? Or is he a soulful, tender family man who emerged from a hardscrabble ghetto upbringing and, against all odds, achieved superstardom, raised a solid family, prevailed over a collection of lethal bad habits, and is still ascending new heights and coming into his own? The answer is: Tracy Morgan is all that. And a bag of potato chips with a 50 cent; soda. When he was just a boy living in the Tompkins Projects in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, being funny was about survival. With the right snap, Tracy could shut down the playground bullies who picked on him and his physically disabled older brother. And with a wild enough prank, he could exact revenge on whoever stole his Pumas at the community pool. Later, being funny was about escape--from the untouchable sadness of his father's death, from the desperation of the drug dealer's trade, from the life-and-death battles waged on the streets of the South Bronx in the age of crack. But these days being funny is about living his dream--a dream born in the comedy clubs of Harlem and realized on shows like Martin and Saturday Night Live, where he was a cast member for seven years, and in movies like The Longest Yard and Half-Baked. With brutal honesty and his trademark take-no-prisoners humor, Tracy tells the story of his rise to fame, with all its highs and its many lows--from the very public battles with alcohol and diabetes that threatened both his career and his life to the private and poignant end of his twenty-year marriage. In his singularly warped and brilliant way he muses on family, love, sex, race, politics, ambition, and what it takes to bring the funny. Hilarious, inspiring, searing, and touching, I Am the New Black is a fascinating peek inside the minds of one of the most compelling and defining comedians of our time. From the Hardcover edition.
I Am the Storm: Inspiring Stories of People Who Fight Against Overwhelming Odds
by Janice DeanFor almost twenty years, countless viewers have known Janice Dean as the “mostly sunny” TV meteorologist. But, like the weather forecast, life isn’t always clear skies.After losing her beloved in-laws in the spring of 2020, Janice faced a storm of grief and confusion. And once she learned that thousands of Covid-infected patients were deliberately sent to nursing homes, she took on the man she believed was responsible: Governor Andrew Cuomo. What at first seemed like a futile fight ended with Cuomo’s historic resignation. But it caused Janice to wonder: What fuels someone’s resolve to go up against a powerful opponent? And how can ordinary people make the world a better place?In I Am the Storm, Janice shares how she decided to go up against New York’s most powerful political dynasty and tells the stories of others who stood like David against Goliath, choosing to fight for what was right rather than take the easy path. These ordinary people—from a California chef who defied another powerful leader’s lockdowns to an American college hockey team that beat Soviet champions—faced extraordinary tempests. You’ll be inspired by the passion of a gymnastics coach who vowed to change a sport mired in scandal, and the courage of a southern nurse who went to New York City to care for Covid patients at the height of the pandemic.These and other true stories will reveal what it takes for real people to go through life’s storms. And sometimes, those storms leave permanent damage. You may need a box of tissues as you read about a veteran who lost his hearing and sight to an IED, or a Minnesota mom who took up the fight against the opioid epidemic after losing her own daughter. But even in our darkest seasons, Janice shows, we can still have hope, resilience, and perseverance. I Am the Storm is an uplifting call to be brave like David no matter what Goliaths we face.
I Am the Warrior: My Crazy Life Writing the Hits and Rocking the MTV Eighties
by Holly KnightHolly Knight&’s singular music career included crafting a good part of the soundtrack to the MTV eighties with mega-hits for Tina Turner (&“The Best&”), Pat Benatar (&“Love Is A Battlefield&”), and Patty Smyth (&“The Warrior&”)—songs that celebrated female empowerment and shaped pop and rock for years to come.&“Holly Knight wrote some of the best and toughest songs for female artists. Her songs helped pave the way for women in rock. Not to mention a few dudes.&” —Patty Smyth As a writer and musician, Holly Knight worked hard and played hard with the likes of KISS, Rod Stewart, Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, and Heart. She showed the boys how it was done when many women were still struggling to get a foot in the door. Starting in the late 1970s in post-punk New York, Knight, a gifted keyboardist, joined the band Spider—which quickly ascended to buzzworthy status before things began to disintegrate. Fortunately, her song &“Better Be Good to Me&” found its way to Tina Turner and became the second single on her landmark solo album, Private Dancer, launching Holly into rarified air. Soon she was being sought out to write for other artists in search of the big hit or their lead single. Coinciding with the birth of MTV, Knight&’s powerful lyrics, hooks, and melodies became a staple on the channel as it exploded into a cultural force. &“People who grew up in the eighties tell me that MTV was the soundtrack to their lives. Holly Knight deserves much of the credit. Few songwriters have written such a diverse collection of songs for such a broad range of superstars.&” —Alan Hunter But it was an often lonely journey to success. Not only was Holly a woman in a male-dominated industry that didn&’t welcome women warmly into the inner sanctum, she carried with her the baggage of a difficult childhood and a fraught relationship with her mother, the substance of which informed the themes that made her songs so anthemic. I Am the Warrior is a story of survival, perseverance, and triumph laced with ample amounts of sex, drugs, and rock &’n&’ roll. Backstage, onstage, in the studio, and on the road, this book is a revealing, bang-bang tale that welcomes you along for a look back at one of the most adventurous and colorful periods in music history. &“I Am the Warrior takes readers on a wild ride through the eighties world of rock &’n&’ roll from a strong female&’s perspective. Songwriters Hall of Fame-inductee Holly Knight delivers the goods and stands out as a creative, gutsy woman who made her way through a field dominated by men, ultimately coming out on top. If you love music like I do, this is a must-read!&” —Cassandra Peterson (AKA Elvira, Mistress of the Dark)
I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death
by Maggie O'FarrellAn extraordinary memoir--told entirely in near-death experiences--from one of Britain's bestselling novelists, for fans of Wild, When Breath Becomes Air, and The Year of Magical Thinking.We are never closer to life than when we brush up against the possibility of death. I Am, I Am, I Am is Maggie O'Farrell's astonishing memoir of the near-death experiences that have punctuated and defined her life. The childhood illness that left her in the hospital for nearly a year, which she was not expected to survive. A teenage yearning to escape that nearly ended in disaster. An encounter with a serial killer on a remote path. And, most terrifying of all, an ongoing, daily struggle to protect her daughter from a condition that leaves her unimaginably vulnerable to life's myriad dangers.Seventeen discrete encounters with Maggie at different ages, in different locations, reveal a whole life in a series of tense, visceral snapshots. In taut prose that vibrates with electricity and a restrained emotion, O'Farrell captures the perils running just beneath the surface, and illuminates the preciousness, beauty and mysteries of life itself.
I Am, I Am, I Am: Seventeen Brushes with Death
by Maggie O'FarrellIn this astonishing memoir, the New York Times bestselling author of The Marriage Portrait and Hamnet shares the seventeen near-death experiences that have punctuated and defined her life.The childhood illness that left her bedridden for a year, which she was not expected to survive. A teenage yearning to escape that nearly ended in disaster. An encounter with a disturbed man on a remote path. And, most terrifying of all, an ongoing, daily struggle to protect her daughter from a condition that leaves her unimaginably vulnerable to life&’s myriad dangers. Here, O&’Farrell stiches together these discrete encounters to tell the story of her entire life. In taut prose that vibrates with electricity and restrained emotion, she captures the perils running just beneath the surface, and illuminates the preciousness, beauty, and mysteries of life itself.
I Am, I Am, I Am: The Breathtaking Number One Bestseller
by Maggie O'FarrellAS FEATURED ON DESERT ISLAND DISCS, BIG SCOTTISH BOOK CLUB AND THE ZOE BALL BOOKCLUB, A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE SUNDAY TIMES, THE TIMES, GUARDIAN, IRISH TIMES, OBSERVER, RED and THE TELEGRAPH.*SHORTLISTED FOR THE PEN ACKERLEY PRIZE FOR MEMOIR AND AUTOBIOGRAPHY 2018*I AM, I AM, I AM is a memoir with a difference - the unputdownable story of an extraordinary woman's life in near-death experiences. Insightful, inspirational, gorgeously written, it is a book to be read at a sitting, a story you finish newly conscious of life's fragility, determined to make every heartbeat count.A childhood illness she was not expected to survive. A teenage yearning to escape that nearly ended in disaster. A terrifying encounter on a remote path. A mismanaged labour in an understaffed hospital. Shocking, electric, unforgettable, this is the extraordinary memoir from Costa Novel-Award winner and Sunday Timesbestselling author Maggie O'Farrell. It is a book to make you question yourself. What would you do if your life was in danger, and what would you stand to lose?
I Am, I Am, I Am: The Breathtaking Number One Bestseller
by Maggie O'FarrellAS SELECTED FOR THE ZOE BALL BOOKCLUB, A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE SUNDAY TIMES, THE TIMES, GUARDIAN, IRISH TIMES, OBSERVER, RED and THE TELEGRAPH.I AM, I AM, I AM is a memoir with a difference - the unputdownable story of an extraordinary woman's life in near-death experiences. Insightful, inspirational, gorgeously written, it is a book to be read at a sitting, a story you finish newly conscious of life's fragility, determined to make every heartbeat count.A childhood illness she was not expected to survive. A teenage yearning to escape that nearly ended in disaster. A terrifying encounter on a remote path. A mismanaged labour in an understaffed hospital. Shocking, electric, unforgettable, this is the extraordinary memoir from Costa Novel-Award winner and Sunday Timesbestselling author Maggie O'Farrell. It is a book to make you question yourself. What would you do if your life was in danger, and what would you stand to lose? I AM, I AM, I AM will speak to readers who loved Cheryl Strayed's WILD or Max Porter's GRIEF IS THE THING WITH FEATHERS.(P)2017 Headline Publishing Group Ltd
I Asked, God Answered: A Columbine Miracle
by Mark TaylorThis is an honest and insightful look into one young man's courageous journey of survival and forgiveness. Taylor neither downplays or dramatizes the horrific violence which maimed and killed Columbine students. The writing is humble and beautiful.
I Await the Devil's Coming: The Story Of Mary Maclane (Neversink)
by Mary Maclane. Jessa CrispinMary MacLane's I Await the Devil's Coming is a shocking, brave and intellectually challenging diary of a 19-year-old girl living in Butte, Montana in 1902. Written in potent, raw prose that propelled the author to celebrity upon publication, the book has become almost completely forgotten.In the early 20th century, MacLane's name was synonymous with sexuality; she is widely hailed as being one of the earliest American feminist authors, and critics at the time praised her work for its daringly open and confessional style. In its first month of publication, the book sold 100,000 copies -- a remarkable number for a debut author, and one that illustrates MacLane's broad appeal.Now, with a new foreward written by critic Jessa Crispin, I Await The Devil's Coming stands poised to renew its reputation as one of America's earliest and most powerful accounts of feminist thought and creativity.
I Beat The Odds: From Homelessness, To The Blind Side And Beyond
by Don Yaeger Michael OherThe football star made famous in the hit film The Blind Sidereflects on how far he has come from the circumstances of his youth. Michael Oher is the young man at the center of the true story depicted in The Blind Sidemovie (and book) that swept up awards and accolades. Though the odds were heavily stacked against him, Michael had a burning desire deep within his soul to break out of the Memphis inner-city ghetto and into a world of opportunity. While many people are now familiar with Oher's amazing journey, this is the first time he shares his account of his story in his own words, revealing his thoughts and feelings with details that only he knows, and offering his point of view on how anyone can achieve a better life. Looking back on how he went from being a homeless child in Memphis to playing in the NFL, Michael talks about the goals he had for himself in order to break out of the cycle of poverty, addiction, and hopelessness that trapped his family for so long. He recounts poignant stories growing up in the projects and running from child services and foster care over and over again in search of some familiarity. Eventually he grasped onto football as his ticket out of the madness and worked hard to make his dream into a reality. But Oher also knew he would not be successful alone. With his adoptive family, the Touhys, and other influential people in mind, he describes the absolute necessity of seeking out positive role models and good friends who share the same values to achieve one's dreams. Sharing untold stories of heartache, determination, courage, and love, I Beat the Odds is an incredibly rousing tale of one young man's quest to achieve the American dream.
I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness, to The Blind Side, and Beyond
by Michael OherThe football star made famous in the hit film (and book) The Blind Side reflects on how far he has come from the circumstances of his youth. Michael Oher shares his personal account of his story, in this inspirational New York Times bestseller. Looking back on how he went from being a homeless child in Memphis to playing in the NFL, Michael talks about the goals he had to break out of the cycle of poverty, addiction, and hopelessness that trapped his family. Eventually he grasped onto football as his ticket out and worked hard to make his dream into a reality. With his adoptive family, the Touhys, and other influential people in mind, he describes the absolute necessity of seeking out positive role models and good friends who share the same values to achieve one's dreams. Sharing untold stories of heartache, determination, courage, and love, I Beat the Odds is an incredibly rousing tale of one young man's quest to achieve the American dream.
I Beg to Differ: Politically Incorrect, Proudly Midwestern, Potentially Funny
by Laura PulferYou may agree or you may differ with this Journalist who speaks her mind. What she says may pierce you to the heart or tickle your funnybone in these brief but telling pieces. She doesn't give you a second to become bored. You won't be perplexed by what she's talking about or her opinion of it. She expresses her views about the ruining of holidays in America, the inefficacy of Children's Services, a couple who lovingly set the standard for keeping the marriage vow, "in sickness and in health," universal legal coverage, putting, "Home of the spam Cook-off," on license plates, and getting a VISA card for her dog. She covers topics of common experience like airport delays, potholes, Dick and Jane, who have everything but a last name, and offers creative fixes for the blues, road rage, bigotry and illness. She redefines common terms like soap opera which she says are beautiful people who spend all their time in bed either kissing or in a coma. Pulfer aims to leave you smiling and thinking, and perhaps inspired to express your own ideas about anything and everything, loudly and clearly.
I Begin My Life All Over: The Hmong and the American Immigrant Experience
by Lillian Faderman Ghia XiongI Begin My Life All Over is an oral history of 36 real-life strangers in a strange land, an intimate study of the immigrant experience in contemporary America.
I Begin with Spring: The Life And Seasons Of Henry David Thoreau
by Julie DunlapHorn Book Starred Review: An excellent introduction to Thoreau and the turbulent times in which he lived. School Library Journal Starred Review: An engaging and inspiring biographical title for budding scientists, artists, and environmentalists. Kirkus starred review: A marvelous life survey of a perennially relevant historical figure. One of Kirkus' Most Anticipated Children's Book of 2022 "A must read." - Elizabeth Bird, A Fuse 8 Production Formatted like a nature notebook, this exploration of seasonal changes in Thoreau’s day is also a visual story of his life and times and a gentle introduction to climate change. I Begin with Spring weaves natural history around Thoreau’s life and times in a richly illustrated field notebook format that can be opened anywhere and invites browsing on every page. Beginning each season with quotes from Thoreau’s schoolboy essay about the changing seasons, Early Bloomer follows him through the fields and woods of Concord, the joys and challenges of growing up, his experiment with simple living on Walden Pond, and his participation in the abolition movement, self-reliance, science, and literature. The book’s two organizing themes—the chronology of Thoreau’s life and the seasonal cycle beginning with spring—interact seamlessly on every spread, suggesting the correspondence of human seasons with nature’s. Thoreau’s annual records of blooms, bird migrations, and other natural events scroll in a timeline across the page bottoms, and the backmatter includes a summary of how those dates have changed from his day to ours and what that tells us about the science of phenology and climate change. Megan Baratta’s watercolors are augmented with historical images and reproductions of Thoreau’s own sketches to create a high-interest visual experience. The book includes a foreword from Thoreau scholar Jeffrey Cramer, Curator of Collections for the Walden Woods Project.
I Believe In Miracles: The Remarkable Story of Brian Clough’s European Cup-winning Team
by Daniel Taylor Jonny OwenOn January 6, 1975, Nottingham Forest were thirteenth in the old Second Division, five points above the relegation places and straying dangerously close to establishing a permanent place for themselves among football's nowhere men.Within five years Brian Clough had turned an unfashionable and depressed club into the kings of Europe, beating everyone in their way and knocking Liverpool off their perch long before Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United had the same idea.This is the story of the epic five-year journey that saw Forest complete a real football miracle and Clough brilliantly restore his reputation after his infamous 44-day spell at Leeds United. Forest won the First Division championship, two League Cups and back-to-back European Cups and they did it, incredibly, with five of the players Clough inherited at a club that was trying to avoid relegation to the third tier of English football.I Believe In Miracles accompanies the critically-acclaimed documentary and DVD of the same name. Based on exclusive interviews with virtually every member of the Forest team, it covers the greatest period in Clough's extraordinary life and brings together the stories of the unlikely assortment of free transfers, bargain buys, rogues, misfits and exceptionally gifted footballers who came together under the most charismatic manager there has ever been.
I Believe in Angels
by Elaine LloydElaine Lloyd was born in Manchester, into a loving family with three siblings; Ken, Debbie, and Christine, and a poodle, Skippy. She had a happy childhood except for natural, occasional rows with her siblings.Elaine is a happy, pleasant person with a sunny outlook on life with a tendency to play the “dizzy blond”, but she never wanted to change. Her parents provided a happy environment in which their children could feel, and were, safe.Oddly, Elaine first saw her husband-to-be, Neil, at Conway, when she was only ten years old and she told her Mum then that she would marry him one day … and she did!So, having made such a prediction, you will not be surprised to discover that from an early age she revealed other amazing attributes. She could see, hear and speak to those in the spirit world... and it didn't frighten her, she felt at peace and blessed. It seemed to Elaine, that these events were normal. At that point in her life, she had not realised that her “gifts” were not present in all people. She could hear the angels, talk to them, see and feel their presence.She and her husband were immensely happy, with the occasional blip that occurs in all relationships. They both worked hard and were able to provide their family with a happy home and lots of love, However, one dark day, Neil was suddenly taken ill and was rushed to hospital coughing up blood. All four of this happy family suffered a dreadful time, that changed their lives for ever.
I Belong Only to Myself
by Andrea PakieserLeda Rafanelli was one of the most prolific propagandists in early twentieth-century Italy. A comrade of Benito Mussolini before he turned fascist, she converted to anarchism and Islam at the age of twenty, a combination characteristic of her iconoclastic approach to life and politics. Weaving excerpts from Rafanelli's novels, poems, and essays with extensive biographical research, this book tells the story of the insurrections accompanying the birth of the Italian nation, the evolution of the anarchist movement, struggles for alternatives to bourgeois feminism, and the dangers faced by those opposing global war and fascism.Andrea Pakieser is a writer and translator currently at the University of Paris.
I Belong to No One: Abused, afraid and alone. A young girl forced to make the ultimate sacrifice for her survival.
by Gwen WilsonAbused, afraid and alone. This is the heartbreaking true story of a young woman forced to sacrifice it all to survive... *****GWEN WILSON WAS UNLOVED FROM BIRTH.Illegitimate, fatherless, her mother in and out of psychiatric hospitals, it would have been easy for anyone to despair and give up. Yet Gwen had hope. Despite it all, she was a good student, fighting hard for a scholarship and a brighter future. Then she met Colin. Someone to love who would love her back. Or so she hoped. Her relationship with Colin was the start of a living hell. Rape was just the beginning. By sixteen she was pregnant, and all alone. In an effort to save her son, Jason, from the illegitimacy and deprivation she'd grown up with, Gwen chose to marry Colin - and too quickly the nightmare of physical abuse and poverty seemed inescapable. I BELONG TO NO ONE is a story of desperate lows, the fight for survival and how one woman eventually triumphed - despite the toughest of odds.
I Belong to No One: Abused, afraid and alone. A young girl forced to make the ultimate sacrifice for her survival.
by Gwen WilsonRape, teen pregnancy, illegitimacy, domestic abuse - in 1970s Australia all were shameful secrets that trapped women in poverty, loss and ongoing emotional trauma. This is one woman's story of all she lost and how hard she fought to survive.A teenager in the 1970s, Gwen Wilson grew up in Western Sydney. It was a tough childhood. Illegitimate, fatherless - her mother in and out of psychiatric hospitals; it would have been easy for anyone to despair and give up. Yet Gwen had hope. Despite it all, she was a good student, fighting hard for a scholarship and a brighter future.Then she met Colin. Someone to love who would love her back. But that short-lived love wasn't the sanctuary Gwen was looking for. It was the start of a living hell. Rape was just the beginning. By sixteen she was pregnant, her education abandoned. Australian society did not tolerate single mothers; prejudice and discrimination followed her everywhere. In an effort to save her son, Jason, from the illegitimacy and deprivation she'd grown up with, Gwen chose to marry Colin - and too quickly the nightmare of physical abuse, poverty and homelessness seemed inescapable.In 1974, in the dying days of the forced adoption era in Australia, this isolated teenager was compelled to make a decision about her child that would tear her life apart, one she would never truly come to terms with.I Belong to No One is one woman's story of all she lost and how hard she fought to survive and eventually triumph.
I Belong to No One: One womans true story of family violence, forced adoption and ultimate triumphant survival
by Gwen WilsonRape, teen pregnancy, illegitimacy, domestic abuse - in 1970s Australia all were shameful secrets that trapped women in poverty, loss and ongoing emotional trauma. This is one woman's story of all she lost and how hard she fought to survive.A teenager in the 1970s, Gwen Wilson grew up in Western Sydney. It was a tough childhood. Illegitimate, fatherless - her mother in and out of psychiatric hospitals; it would have been easy for anyone to despair and give up. Yet Gwen had hope. Despite it all, she was a good student, fighting hard for a scholarship and a brighter future.Then she met Colin. Someone to love who would love her back. But that short-lived love wasn't the sanctuary Gwen was looking for. It was the start of a living hell. Rape was just the beginning. By sixteen she was pregnant, her education abandoned. Australian society did not tolerate single mothers; prejudice and discrimination followed her everywhere. In an effort to save her son, Jason, from the illegitimacy and deprivation she'd grown up with, Gwen chose to marry Colin - and too quickly the nightmare of physical abuse, poverty and homelessness seemed inescapable.In 1974, in the dying days of the forced adoption era in Australia, this isolated teenager was compelled to make a decision about her child that would tear her life apart, one she would never truly come to terms with.I Belong to No One is one woman's story of all she lost and how hard she fought to survive and eventually triumph.
I Belong to Vienna: A Jewish Family's Story of Exile and Return
by Anna GoldenbergA memoir of family history, personal identity, and WWII Vienna—a &“well-researched, intimate, evocative look at some of the 20th century&’s foulest days&” (Kirkus). In autumn 1942, Anna Goldenberg&’s great-grandparents and one of their sons are deported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Hans, their elder son, survives by hiding in an apartment in the middle of Nazi-controlled Vienna. But this is no Anne Frank-like existence; teenage Hans passes time in the municipal library and buys standing room tickets to the Vienna State Opera. He never sees his family again. Goldenberg reconstructs this unique story in magnificent reportage. She also portrays Vienna&’s undying allure. Although they tried living in the United States after World War Two, both grandparents eventually returned to the Austrian capital. The author, too, has returned to her native Vienna after living in New York herself, and her fierce attachment to her birthplace enlivens her engrossing biographical history. I Belong to Vienna is a probing tale of heroism and resilience marked by a surprising freshness as a new generation comes to terms with history&’s darkest era.
I Blame Dennis Hopper: And Other Stories From a Life Lived In and Out of the Movies
by Illeana DouglasFrom award-winning actress Illeana Douglas comes a memoir about learning to survive in Hollywood while staying true to her quirky vision of the world.In 1969 Illeana Douglas' parents saw the film Easy Rider and were transformed. Taking Dennis Hopper's words, "That's what it's all about man" to heart, they abandoned their comfortable upper middle class life and gave Illeana a childhood filled with hippies, goats, free spirits, and free love. Illeana writes, "Since it was all out of my control, I began to think of my life as a movie, with a Dennis Hopper-like father at the center of it." I Blame Dennis Hopper is a testament to the power of art and the tenacity of passion. It is a rollicking, funny, at times tender exploration of the way movies can change our lives. With crackling humor and a full heart, Douglas describes how a good Liza Minnelli impression helped her land her first gig and how Rudy Valley taught her the meaning of being a show biz trouper. From her first experience being on set with her grandfather and mentor-two-time Academy Award-winning actor Melvyn Douglas-to the moment she was discovered by Martin Scorsese for her blood-curdling scream and cast in her first film, to starring in movies alongside Robert DeNiro, Nicole Kidman, and Ethan Hawke, to becoming an award winning writer, director and producer in her own right, I Blame Dennis Hopper is an irresistible love letter to movies and filmmaking. Writing from the perspective of the ultimate show business fan, Douglas packs each page with hilarious anecdotes, bizarre coincidences, and fateful meetings that seem, well, right out of a plot of a movie. I Blame Dennis Hopper is the story of one woman's experience in show business, but it is also a genuine reminder of why we all love the movies: for the glitz, the glamor, the sweat, passion, humor, and escape they offer us all.
I Bought a Mountain: The Rediscovered Nature Classic
by Thomas FirbankWITH A FOREWORD BY PATRICK BARKHAMAnd an essay by Welsh hill farmer, Dafydd Morris-Jones'I first saw Dyffryn in a November gale... the old house was quivering under the thrusts of the wind, and the wild, remote setting had already captured my fancy, and I will hold it till I die.'So begins the remarkable story of a 21-year-old man who, with no experience in agriculture, visited a sheep farm on a near barren Welsh mountainside in 1931 and that same day bought all 2,400 acres along with its 3000 sheep for £5,000.Set amidst the rugged grandeur of Snowdonia, I Bought a Mountain follows the struggles and triumphs of this impulsive but hard-working man and his every-bit-as-tough wife, Esme, as they fight to build the farm into prosperity.Firbank's writing is guileless and immediate and ruthlessly honest. His paean to the traditional, Welsh hill-farming way of life, transports you to a disappearing world, one ruled by the age-old rhythms of work, weather, livestock and a love of the land, and offers precious insights into conservation and sustainability.