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William Peter Blatty on The Exorcist from Novel to Film: From Novel To Screen
by William Peter BlattyIn William Peter Blatty on The Exorcist: From Novel to Film, the New York Times bestselling author reveals the real-life incidents that inspired his famous novel and how it evolved into the groundbreaking Academy Award-winning screenplay of the 1973 groundbreaking William Friedkin film.Featuring the original, controversial ending of the novel, and both the first draft of the screenplay and the shooting script, Blatty presents his behind-the-scenes commentary on the differences between the book and screenplays, detailing the specific reasons why the changes were made for the final cut. This is the true story of the making of The Exorcist, an insider's guide to Hollywood in one of its most creative eras. Includes photographsAt the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Space Station Down
by Ben Bova Doug BeasonAn American astronaut fights to stop a massive terrorist plot from destroying the east coast in this action-packed technothriller.“Think Die Hard happening two hundred and fifty miles above the earth. . . . Will have you watching the skies overhead much more closely.” —Steve BerryFrom Hugo Award–winning author Ben Bova and Nebula Award finalist Doug Beason:When two rogue cosmonauts slaughter all but one astronaut on the International Space Sttion, the sole survivor, Kimberly Hadid-Robinson, barricades herself in a remote section of the station, wreaking havoc on the terrorists’ plans.The twisted terrorists plot to destroy the United States by obliterating New York City, the financial capital of the world, and raining down a million pounds of radioactive metal from Florida to Maine.As the station descends, Kimberly is in a race against time—not only to save her own life but the lives of millions!Praise for Space Station Down“One hell of a fine suspense novel.” —Stephen Coonts, New York Times–bestselling author“Wow! I found myself feeling like I was flying through the space stations. . . . And I should know—I’ve been there!” —Nicole Scott, International Space Station and space shuttle astronaut, spacewalker, and aquanaut
The Crippled Angel: Book Three Of 'the Crucible' (The Crucible Series #3)
by Sara DouglassThe world that the former monk Thomas Neville knows is crumbling about him. The Holy Mother Church of Rome is losing its power and men are coming to question the nature of religion and the role of those who rule them by sword and cross. Thomas knows that it is not merely the dawning of a new time for men to try to think and judge for themselves but it is a direct result of the rift in the fabric of the world, where demons have escaped their prison and are trying to breach the very gates of heaven. The great archangel Michael gave Thomas the task to find the demons who now dwell in human form and expose their evil natures. To accomplish this he had to turn his back on one set of vows and return to his once lofty noble connections. In doing so, his life is caught up with his childhood friend Harold Bollinbroke, the fair young "Prince Hal"—who might be more (or less) than he seems. And he meets the fair young Margaret, an enigmatic beauty who he takes to wife--not out of love, but as a means to discover if she is one of those who would destroy mankind.Old friends, a new love, and temptations that will try his conscience. And his very soul.For Thomas is beginning to think that all that he knows may not be true. Faced with mortal love and friendships that he desperately wants and fears, he knows that time is growing short. And the choice that he makes will reshape the world.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Sound Experiments: The Music of the AACM
by Paul SteinbeckA groundbreaking study of the trailblazing music of Chicago’s AACM, a leader in the world of jazz and experimental music. Founded on Chicago’s South Side in 1965 and still thriving today, the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) is the most influential collective organization in jazz and experimental music. In Sound Experiments, Paul Steinbeck offers an in-depth historical and musical investigation of the collective, analyzing individual performances and formal innovations in captivating detail. He pays particular attention to compositions by Muhal Richard Abrams and Roscoe Mitchell, the Association’s leading figures, as well as Anthony Braxton, George Lewis (and his famous computer-music experiment, Voyager), Wadada Leo Smith, and Henry Threadgill, along with younger AACM members such as Mike Reed, Tomeka Reid, and Nicole Mitchell. Sound Experiments represents a sonic history, spanning six decades, that affords insight not only into the individuals who created this music but also into an astonishing collective aesthetic. This aesthetic was uniquely grounded in nurturing communal ties across generations, as well as a commitment to experimentalism. The AACM’s compositions broke down the barriers between jazz and experimental music and made essential contributions to African American expression more broadly. Steinbeck shows how the creators of these extraordinary pieces pioneered novel approaches to instrumentation, notation, conducting, musical form, and technology, creating new soundscapes in contemporary music.
Whose America?: Culture Wars in the Public Schools
by Jonathan ZimmermanIn this expanded edition of his 2002 book, Zimmerman surveys how battles over public education have become conflicts at the heart of American national identity. Critical Race Theory. The 1619 Project. Mask mandates. As the headlines remind us, American public education is still wracked by culture wars. But these conflicts have shifted sharply over the past two decades, marking larger changes in the ways that Americans imagine themselves. In his 2002 book, Whose America?, Zimmerman predicted that religious differences would continue to dominate the culture wars. Twenty years after that seminal work, Zimmerman has reconsidered: arguments over what American history is, what it means, and how it is taught have exploded with special force in recent years. In this substantially expanded new edition, Zimmerman meditates on the history of the culture wars in the classroom—and on what our inability to find common ground might mean for our future.
The Grown Ups: A Novel
by Robin AntalekSpanning over a decade, told in alternating voices, The Grown Ups explores the indelible bonds of friends and family and the connections that form between Sam, Suzie, and Bella as they navigate parents, siblings, and one another on the way to becoming who they really want to be when they grow up.
Come Back: A Mother and Daughter's Journey Through Hell and Back
by Claire Fontaine Mia FontaineThe unflinching true account of a teenage girl's descent into society's underbelly -- and her mother's desperate and ultimately successful attempts to bring her back.How does an honor student at one of Los Angeles's finest prep schools -- a bright, beautiful girl from a loving home -- trade school uniforms and afternoons at the beach for shooting up in the back of a van in rural Indiana? How does her devoted mother emerge from the shock of finding that her daughter has not only disappeared but had been living a secret life for more than a year?Mother and daughter tell their parallel stories in mesmerizing first-person accounts. Claire Fontaine's story is a parent's worst nightmare, a cautionary tale chronicling her daughter Mia's drug-fueled manipulation of everyone around her as she sought refuge in the seedy underworld of criminals and heroin addicts, the painful childhood secrets that led up to it, and the healing that followed. Her search for Mia was brutal for both mother and daughter, a dizzying series of dead ends, incredible coincidences and, at times, miracles. Ultimately, Mia was forced into harsh-but-loving boot camp schools on two continents while Claire entered a painful but life-changing program of her own. Mia's story includes the jarring culture shock of the extreme and controversial behavior modification school she was in for nearly two years, which helped her overcome depression and self-hatred to emerge a powerful young woman with self-esteem and courage. An unforgettable story of love and transformation, Come Back is a heart-wrenching and humorous portrayal of the primal bond between mother and daughter that will resonate with women everywhere.
In a Fix (Ciel Halligan #1)
by Linda GrimesThis urban fantasy with a strong, shape-shifting female lead is “a fast-paced, sexy romp with characters as original as its intriguing premise” (Diana Gabaldon, New York Times–bestselling author of Outlander).Snagging a marriage proposal for her client while on an all-expenses-paid vacation should be a simple job for Ciel Halligan, aura adaptor extraordinaire. A kind of human chameleon, she’s able to take on her clients’ appearances and slip seamlessly into their lives, solving any sticky problems they don’t want to deal with themselves. No fuss, no muss. Big paycheck.This particular assignment is pretty enjoyable . . . that is, until Ciel’s island resort bungalow is blown to smithereens and her client’s about-to-be-fiancé is snatched by modern-day Vikings.Going from romance to rescue requires some serious gear-shifting, as well as a little backup. Her best friend, Billy, and Mark, the CIA agent she’s been crushing on for years—both skilled adaptors—step in to help, but their priority is, annoyingly, keeping her safe. Before long, Ciel is dedicating more energy to escaping their watchful eyes than she is to saving her client’s intended.Suddenly, facing down a horde of Vikings feels like the least of her problems.“Fresh, fun, and sexy.” —Vicki Pettersson, New York Times–bestselling author of The Signs of the Zodiac series“Bright, fizzy, sexy and amusing—the perfect antidote to an attack of post-summer blues.” —Kirkus Reviews“Fans of both hard and soft fantasy and crime drama will love [the] protagonist’s spunky, irreverent attitude.” —Library Journal, starred review
Waste Tide
by Chen QiufanA LOCUS AWARD FINALIST FOR BEST FIRST NOVELAward-winning author Chen Qiufan's Waste Tide is a thought-provoking vision of the future.Translated by Ken Liu, who brought Cixin Liu's Hugo Award-winning The Three Body Problem to English-speaking readers.Mimi is drowning in the world's trash. She’s a waste worker on Silicon Isle, where electronics -- from cell phones and laptops to bots and bionic limbs — are sent to be recycled. These amass in towering heaps, polluting every spare inch of land. On this island off the coast of China, the fruits of capitalism and consumer culture come to a toxic end.Mimi and thousands of migrant waste workers like her are lured to Silicon Isle with the promise of steady work and a better life. They're the lifeblood of the island’s economy, but are at the mercy of those in power. A storm is brewing, between ruthless local gangs, warring for control. Ecoterrorists, set on toppling the status quo. American investors, hungry for profit. And a Chinese-American interpreter, searching for his roots. As these forces collide, a war erupts -- between the rich and the poor; between tradition and modern ambition; between humanity’s past and its future. Mimi, and others like her, must decide if they will remain pawns in this war or change the rules of the game altogether."An accomplished eco-techno-thriller with heart and soul as well as brain. Chen Qiufan is an astute observer, both of the present world and of the future that the next generation is in danger of inheriting." – David Mitchell, New York Times bestselling author of Cloud Atlas At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Havana Requiem: A Legal Thriller
by Paul GoldsteinFueled by alcohol and legal brilliance, Michael Seeley once oversaw his law firm's most successful litigation. Until it all fell apart. Recklessness and overreach cost him his wife, his job, and likely the life of his last client, a Chinese dissident journalist. Havana Requiem, the latest Seeley novel from the acclaimed author Paul Goldstein, opens after a year's sobriety has earned Seeley back most of what he lost: the partnership in his Manhattan law firm, if not his corner office; the wary respect of most of his partners; the lucrative clients—but not the gin-sharpened passion.Then the renowned Cuban musician Héctor Reynoso enters his office with a simple request: help him and other composers who defined Cuba's musical golden age of the 1940s and '50s—the music that made the Buena Vista Social Club internationally famous—reclaim the copyright to their work. When Reynoso goes missing, Seeley's reluctant promise to help draws him progressively deeper into Havana's violent underbelly and a decades-long conspiracy that runs from the partners in his firm to the U.S. State Department to Cuba's security police, who are willing to do anything to suppress the truth. In the heat of Havana, Seeley will lose himself to his worst and best passions as his pursuit of justice becomes a desperate gambit to save not only his composers but the stunning Amaryll, who is playing her own dangerous game.
You Will Never Be Forgotten: Stories
by Mary SouthIn this provocative, bitingly funny debut collection, people attempt to use technology to escape their uncontrollable feelings of grief or rage or despair, only to reveal their most flawed and human selvesAn architect draws questionable inspiration from her daughter’s birth defect. A content moderator for “the world’s biggest search engine,” who spends her days culling videos of beheadings and suicides, turns from stalking her rapist online to following him in real life. At a camp for recovering internet trolls, a sensitive misfit goes missing. A wounded mother raises the second incarnation of her child. In You Will Never Be Forgotten, Mary South explores how technology can both collapse our relationships from within and provide opportunities for genuine connection. Formally inventive, darkly absurdist, savagely critical of the increasingly fraught cultural climates we inhabit, these ten stories also find hope in fleeting interactions and moments of tenderness. They reveal our grotesque selfishness and our intense need for love and acceptance, and the psychic pain that either shuts us off or allows us to discover our deepest reaches of empathy. This incendiary debut marks the arrival of a perceptive, idiosyncratic, instantly recognizable voice in fiction—one that could only belong to Mary South.
Traditioal Chinese Medicine: A Woman's Guide to Healing From Breast Cancer (Traditional Chinese Medicine)
by Nan Lu Ellen SchaplowskyDiscover The Power Of Ancient WisdomFor centuries , Traditional Chinese Medicine has helped millions of cancer patients in China, specializing in reducing the risk of breast cancer and healing it by identifying and treating its root cause. Chinese medicine offers a broad range of time-tested, natural, safe, self-healing treating that can complement prevailing Western cancer treatments.Traditional Chinese Medicine provides a nine-point healing guide that can be individually customized for women diagnosed with breast cancer; those about to undergo surgery, chemotherapy or radiation; breast cancer survivors who want to prevent recurrence, and any woman looking for serious prevention techniques. With his training, Dr. Nan Lu revives the ancient healing wisdom of traditional Chinese medicine --Early warning signs from your bodyAncient self-healing evergy movementsHealing, strengthening foods and ancient techniques to strengthen you before surgeryHow to manage your health during chemotherapy or radiationWhy and how to create a new Traditional Chinese Medicine lifestyle that addresses the root cause of breast cancer...and much more!
The Anti-Inflammation Zone: Reversing the Silent Epidemic That's Destroying Our Health (The Zone)
by Barry SearsA 30-day plan for combating the serious health threat of silent inflammation from the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of The Zone.Heart disease is the #1 killer of Americans.Cancer is the #1 fear of Americans.Dementia is the #1 concern of Americans.What do these devastating illnesses have in common? All three have been linked to silent inflammation, a condition that occurs when the body’s natural immune response goes awry. With eye-opening new research in the field of hormonal control and nutrition, Dr. Sears offers the first comprehensive plan to combat silent inflammation. This important book gives us the tools and tests we need to assess the current level of silent inflammation in our bodies—and determine our future health.As you’ll discover, the Zone dietary plan—including supplements of high-dose, ultra-refined fish oil—is the best way to get the hormonal control you need to reduce inflammation. In The Anti-Inflammation Zone, Dr. Sears shows exactly what steps to follow to reduce your risk of each disease and condition, or to reverse it if you have it already—in only thirty days. And the Zone Lifestyle Program includes a week of delicious Zone-friendly meals, easy home exercises, and important stress-reducing methods—all of which work together to put you on a path toward wellness that will improve the rest of your life.The day you start fighting silent inflammation is the day that you start to slow down the aging process—and all the chronic diseases that come with it. Welcome to the Anti-Inflammation Zone—and the return to wellness.
Billy and Me: A Novel
by Giovanna FletcherIn this sweet Cinderella story, a celebrity heartthrob stirs up drama for a shy, reserved young woman who only knows the quiet life of her English village.Sophie May is content with her life in her small English village, working in the local coffee shop and living with her mom. But when famous actor Billy comes to town to play Mr. Darcy in a new film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, Sophie’s quiet life is quickly turned on its head. Billy is adored by women around the world, but he only wants Sophie on his arm. But being with Billy comes at a price, and Sophie is thrown in the spotlight after years of shying away from attention. Can she handle the constant scrutiny that comes with being with Billy?Brimming with humor, wit, and genuine warmth, Billy and Me is a book about taking a chance on life and on love.
American Saint: The Life of Elizabeth Seton
by Joan Barthel“A fascinating biography” of Elizabeth Seton, who shocked high society by converting to Catholicism—a faith that was illegal in New York when she was born (Booklist).In this riveting biography of the first American saint, Joan Barthel tells the mesmerizing story of a woman whose life encompassed wealth and poverty, passion and sorrow, love and loss. Elizabeth was born into a prominent New York City family in 1774—when Catholicism was illegal and priests in the city were arrested, and sometimes hanged. Her father was the chief health officer for the Port of New York, and she lived down the block from Alexander Hamilton. She danced at George Washington’s sixty-fifth Birthday Ball in cream slippers, monogrammed. When Elizabeth and her husband sailed to Italy in a doomed attempt to cure his tuberculosis, she and her family were quarantined in a damp dungeon. And when, after she was widowed, Elizabeth became a Catholic, she was so scorned that people talked of burning down her house. American Saint is the inspiring story of a brave woman who forged the way for other women who followed and who made a name for herself in a world entirely ruled by men. Founder of the Sisters of Charity, she resisted male clerical control of her religious order—and she also started America’s first Catholic school, laying the foundation of an educational system that would help countless children thrive in a new nation.“Compelling . . . an exquisite story of Seton’s inspiring life. . . . Readers interested in Catholic history and U.S. history should not overlook this important biography.” —Publishers Weekly“Barthel is a fine and insightful observer of this larger-than-life woman who was so far ahead two hundred years ago that we’re still catching up with her.” —Gloria SteinemIncludes a foreword by Maya Angelou
The Copa: Jules Podell and the Hottest Club North of Havana
by Mickey Podell-Raber Charles PignoneThis beautifully illustrated history of Jules Podell's legendary club Copacabana features colorful characters, romance, and intrigue from the golden age of nightclubs.In this fascinating look behind the scenes of one of the world's most legendary nightclubs, the story of the Copa begins and ends with its fiery owner, Jules Podell. A Russian immigrant, Jules dropped out of the fourth grade to make money for his family and went on to create the number one destination for the rich, famous, and dangerous of New York. All the legends of the fifties and early sixties stood on his stage, including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Nat King Cole, Peggy Lee, Tony Bennett, Bobby Darin, Tom Jones, Sam Cooke, Johnny Mathis, and the Temptations. This book, which includes the Podell family's never-before-seen photos, menus, and club memorabilia, as well as interviews, allows us to truly get a peek at the Copa and its great moment in New York history.
Before the Flood: The Biblical Flood as a Real Event and How It Changed the Course of Civilization
by Ian WilsonIn the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.The great Biblical flood so described in Genesis has long been a subject of fascination and speculation. In the 19th century the English archbishop James Ussher established it as having happened in the year 2348 B.C., calculating what was then taken as the age of the earth and working backward through the entire series of Biblical "begats." Proof of the flood, which is an element of so many creation myths, began in earnest when archaeology started connecting physical evidence with Biblical story. The dream of proving the Bible as literal truth has proven irresistible, producing both spurious claims and serious scholarship.As best-selling historian Ian Wilson reveals in this fascinating new book, evidence of a catastrophic event has been building steadily, culminating in the work of William Ryan and Walter Pitman. Several years ago Ryan and Pitman had posited that around 5600 BC there had an inundation in the Black Sea of such proportions that it turned the freshwater lake into a saltwater lake by connecting it to the Mediterranean. Were that true, they estimated that there would be signs of civilization 300 feet below the surface of the Black Sea. In September 2000, using his famous underwater equipment, Robert Ballard (of SS Titanic fame) explored parts of the Black Sea near the Turkish shore and found the remains of wood houses. There had been a flood, and whether God's wrath or not it had destroyed everything around it for hundreds of miles, killing tens of thousands of people.Exploring all the archeological evidence, Wilson explains how the Black Sea flood and the Biblical flood have to be connected. In particular, Wilson argues, learnedly and persuasively, that the center of the civilized world was further to the West than previously thought-not in Egypt or Mesopotamia but in what is today Northern Turkey. The earliest, antediluvian civilizations may have migrated east into those places we have come to call the cradles of civilization, forced by the Black Sea flood to create new settlements.Scrupulous in its details and compelling in its sweep, Before the Flood is narrative detective history at its most provocative, contributing a vital new chapter to the debate about the Bible and origins of the modern world.
From Splendor to Revolution: The Romanov Women 1847–1928
by Julia P. Gelardi“A richly detailed portrait of four women, whom marriage and blood put at the center of European history.” —Richmond Times-DispatchThis sweeping saga recreates the extraordinary opulence and violence of Tsarist Russia as the shadow of revolution fell over the land and destroyed a way of life for these Imperial women.From the early 1850s until the late 1920s Russia underwent a massive transformation, taking it from days of grandeur under the tsars to the chaos of revolution and the beginnings of the Soviet Union.At the center of all this tumult were four Romanov women. Marie Alexandrovna, Tsar Alexander II’s pampered daughter, astonished her mother-in-law, Queen Victoria, with her strength of character. Thrust into the role of queen at sixteen, Olga Constantinovna’s altruistic streak benefited Greeks and Russians alike. Charming and vivacious, Marie Feodorovna, the mother of the ill-fated Tsar Nicholas II, excelled in her role as empress. Formidable and ambitious, Marie Pavlovna emerged as a rival to Tsarina Alexandra, Nicholas II’s embattled consort.From Splendor to Revolution presents the unforgettable political and personal dramas of these extraordinary women. What began for them as a time of splendor ended after World War I, with a Russia destroyed by revolution.“Relating the drama and tragedy of royal life, Gelardi ably weaves in the extended family ties that connected most European rulers, including Queen Victoria.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)“Simple, straightforward, and engaging. Gelardi is proof that history written from the female perspective can be all business.” —The Roanoke Times
That Summer: A Novel
by Lauren WilligFrom modern-day England to the early days of the Preraphaelite movement, Lauren Willig's That Summer takes readers on an unputdownable journey through a mysterious old house, a hidden love affair, and one woman's search for the truth about her past—and herself. "Willig reaches deep into her characters' souls to depict tragedy, triumph and the depth of love." —RT Book Reviews (4 ½ stars) 2009: When Julia Conley hears that she has inherited a house outside London from an unknown great-aunt, she assumes it's a joke. She hasn't been back to England since the car crash that killed her mother when she was six, an event she remembers only in her nightmares. But when she arrives at Herne Hill to sort through the house—with the help of her cousin Natasha and sexy antiques dealer Nicholas—bits of memory start coming back. And then she discovers a pre-Raphaelite painting, hidden behind the false back of an old wardrobe, and a window onto the house's shrouded history begins to open... 1849: Imogen Grantham has spent nearly a decade trapped in a loveless marriage to a much older man, Arthur. The one bright spot in her life is her step-daughter, Evie, a high-spirited sixteen year old who is the closest thing to a child Imogen hopes to have. But everything changes when three young painters come to see Arthur's collection of medieval artifacts, including Gavin Thorne, a quiet man with the unsettling ability to read Imogen better than anyone ever has. When Arthur hires Gavin to paint her portrait, none of them can guess what the hands of fate have set in motion.
Let the Trumpet Sound: A Life of Martin Luther King, Jr.
by Stephen B. Oates“The most comprehensive, the most thoroughly researched and documented, the most scholarly of the biographies of Martin Luther King, Jr.” —Henry Steele Commanger, Philadelphia InquirerWinner of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Book Award * A New York Times Notable Book of the YearBy the acclaimed biographer of Abraham Lincoln, Nat Turner, and John Brown, Stephen B. Oates's prizewinning Let the Trumpet Sound is the definitive one-volume life of Martin Luther King, Jr. This brilliant examination of the great civil rights icon and the movement he led provides a lasting portrait of a man whose dream shaped American history.“Drawing on interviews with those who knew King, previously unutilized material at Presidential libraries, and the holdings of the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in Atlanta, Mr. Oates has written the most comprehensive account of King’s life yet published. . . . He displays a remarkable understanding of King’s individual role in the civil rights movement. . . . Oates’s biography helps us appreciate how sorely King is missed.” —Eric Foner, New York Times Book Review
Attitudes of Gratitude: How to Give and Receive Joy Every Day of Your Life
by M.J. Ryan&“Exquisitely reconnects us to the wonder and satisfaction which can be found in our daily lives.&” —Judy Ford, author of Wonderful Ways to Love a Child Gratitude is a simple, profound practice that can change your life. Research has confirmed its many emotional and physical benefits. Taking the time to notice and reflect upon good things opens our hearts, creates happiness, and restores us to a natural place where we notice what's right instead of wrong. Find happiness and joy with positive thinking. When you find ways to be grateful every day, you experience more joy in life. Author and personal success coach M. J. Ryan writes, &“Gratitude births only positive feelings—love, compassion, joy, and hope. As we focus on what we are thankful for, fear, anger, and bitterness simply melt away, seemingly without effort.&” Her book Attitudes of Gratitude teaches you how to reach this positive place. Inside, you&’ll discover: Proven strategies for practicing gratitude daily, enabling you to experience joy and positive feelings Tools for integrating gratitude meditation into your routine, paving the way for emotional healing and a serene state of mind Methods to maintain a grateful heart, providing a fresh perspective and heightening overall happiness The profound benefits of thankfulness, starting a transformative journey towards positivity and abundance &“I'm thankful to Mary Jane Ryan because her candid and story-filled book reminds me to return to my heart-the home of gratitude- and consequently, enhances my connection with all that is wonderful and wise around and within me.&” —Sue Patton Thoele, bestselling author of Woman's Book of Courage and Courage to be Yourself
Chocolate, Please: My Adventures in Food, Fat, and Freaks
by Lisa LampanelliAn inside look at the life of Comedy's Lovable Queen of Mean, Lisa Lampanelli, as she dishes on everything from relationships, food, and fat to why once you go black, you never go back In her jaw-droppingly hilarious and politically incorrect memoir, Lisa reveals all—including the dysfunctional childhood that made her the insult comic she is today, the subject for which she's best known (black men, black men, and more black men), and her hilarious struggles with her addiction to food and hot guys. By telling her story in her very real, very candid, very open way, Lisa shows her audience that it's okay to be yourself, even if it's just one rehab stint at a time. Lisa also takes readers behind the scenes at the roasts that have marked her comedy career and launched her into the comedy elite, and reveals the important "firsts" in her career, including her first time on her hero's program, The Howard Stern Show.Chocolate, Please is a side-splittingly funny portrait of the woman behind the award-winning insult comedy.
1789: The Threshold of the Modern Age
by David AndressThe world in 1789 stood on the edge of a unique transformation. At the end of an unprecedented century of progress, the fates of three nations—France; the nascent United States; and their common enemy, Britain—lay interlocked. France, a nation bankrupted by its support for the American Revolution, wrestled to seize the prize of citizenship from the ruins of the old order. Disaster loomed for the United States, too, as it struggled, in the face of crippling debt and inter-state rivalries, to forge the constitutional amendments that would become known as the Bill of Rights. Britain, a country humiliated by its defeat in America, recoiled from tales of imperial greed and the plunder of India as a king's madness threw the British constitution into turmoil. Radical changes were in the air. A year of revolution was crowned in two documents drafted at almost the same time: the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the American Bill of Rights. These texts gave the world a new political language and promised to foreshadow new revolutions, even in Britain. But as the French Revolution spiraled into chaos and slavery experienced a rebirth in America, it seemed that the budding code of individual rights would forever be matched by equally powerful systems of repression and control. David Andress reveals how these events unfolded and how the men who led them, such as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Paine, Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyès, and George Washington, stood at the threshold of the modern world. Andress shows how the struggles of this explosive year—from the inauguration of George Washington to the birth of the cotton trade in the American South; from the British Empire's war in India to the street battles of the French Revolution—would dominate the Old and New Worlds for the next two centuries.
North by Northwestern: A Seafaring Family on Deadly Alaskan Waters
by Sig Hansen Mark SundeenNOW A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!In the tradition of Sebastian Junger and Linda Greenlaw comes Captain Sig Hansen's rags-to-riches epic of his immigrant family's struggle against deadly Alaskan seas, freezing shipwrecks, and dangerously brutal conditions to achieve the American Dream Sig Hansen has been a star of the Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch from the pilot to the present. Seen in over 150 countries, the show attracts more than 49 million viewers per season, making it one of the most successful series in the history of cable TV. With its daredevil camera work, unpredictably dangerous weather, and a setting as unforgivable and unforgettable as the frigid Bering Sea, The Deadliest Catch is unlike anything else on television. But the weatherworn fishermen of the fishing vessel Northwestern have stories that don't come through on TV. For Sig Hansen and his brothers, commercial fishing is as much a part of their Norwegian heritage as their names. Descendants of the Vikings who roamed and ruled the northern seas for centuries, the Hansens' connection to the sea stretches from Alaska to Seattle and all the way to Norway. And after twenty years as a skipper on the commercial fishing vessel the Northwestern--which was his father's before him--Sig has lived to tell the tales. To be a successful fisherman, you need to be a mechanic, navigator, welder, painter, carpenter, and sometimes, a firefighter. To be a successful fisherman year after year, you need to be a survivor. This is the story of a family of survivors; part memoir and part adventure tale, North by Northwestern brings readers on deck, into the dockside bars and into the history of a family with a common destiny. Built around a gripping tale of a deadly shipwreck like The Perfect Storm, North By Northwestern is the multi-generational tale of the Hansen family, a clan of tough Norwegian-American fishermen who, through the popularity of The Deadliest Catch, have become modern folk-heroes.
This Could Hurt: A Novel
by Jillian Medoff“Periodically a writer captures the pattern of comedy and tragedy that peppers office life like alternating colors of carpet squares. . . . As smart as Medoff’s critique of corporate inanity is, it’s tempered by compassion for these people, who are ultimately tender with each other, too. . . . Medoff finds plenty of hurt—but strains of hope, too.” —Ron Charles, The WashingtonPostThe acclaimed and deeply felt novel that illuminates the pivotal role of work in our lives. Rosa Guerrero beat the odds as she rose to the top of the corporate world. An attractive woman of a certain age, the longtime chief of human resources at Ellery Consumer Research is still a formidable presence, even if her most vital days are behind her. A leader who wields power with grace and discretion, she has earned the devotion and loyalty of her staff. No one admires Rosa more than her doting lieutenant Leo Smalls, a benefits vice president whose whole world is Ellery.While Rosa is consumed with trying to address the needs of her staff within the ever-constricting limits of the company’s bottom line, her associate director, Rob Hirsch, a middle-aged, happily married father of two, finds himself drawing closer to his "work wife," Lucy Bender, an enterprising single woman searching for something—a romance, a promotion—to fill the vacuum in her personal life. For Kenny Verville, a senior manager with an MBA, Ellery is a temporary stepping-stone to bigger and better places—that is, if his high-powered wife has her way.Compelling, flawed, and heartbreakingly human, these men and women scheme, fall in and out of love, and nurture dreams big and small. As their individual circumstances shift, one thing remains constant—Rosa, the sun around whom they all orbit. When her world begins to crumble, the implications for everyone are profound, and Leo, Rob, Lucy, and Kenny find themselves changed in ways beyond their reckoning.Jillian Medoff explores the inner workings of an American company in all its brilliant, insane, comforting, and terrifying glory. Authentic, razor-sharp, and achingly funny, This Could Hurt is a novel about work, loneliness, love, and loyalty; about sudden reversals and unexpected windfalls; a novel about life.