Biography: general Books

Book SynopsisJosephine Tey was the pen-name of Elizabeth MacKintosh (1896-1952). Born in Inverness, MacKintosh lived several lives: Best known as Golden Age Crime Fiction writer Tey, she was also successful novelist and playwright Gordon Daviot. During her exceptional career, she had plays on simultaneously in the West End in London and on Broadway, and even wrote for Hollywood, all from her home in the north of Scotland. Celebrating the 125th anniversary of MacKintosh’s birth, this updated edition of the definitive biography includes a new preface. Trade Review‘The biographer reveals the moving story of Elizabeth MacKintosh’s life with tact and superior investigative tenacity.’ * The Wall Street Journal *‘Jennifer Morag Henderson presents us with an intelligent, industrious and interesting woman who knew her own mind. She has written a sympathetic, well-researched biography...’ * The Times Literary Supplement *‘The playwright and author Jennifer Morag Henderson has taken on the Alan Grant mythbuster role and written a full-length biography, the first of Tey to appear.’ * The Telegraph, Best Books of 2016 *‘It strips away a lot of the myth surrounding Mackintosh; and it also tells the moving story of a major leading Scots writer for whom the detective novel became “a medium as disciplined as any sonnet”.’ * The Observer, Best Biographies of 2015 *The life of one of the great golden age crime writers is granted a forensic examination in Josephine Tey.’ * The Independent, Best Crime Books of 2015 *‘Her biography is scrupulously researched, narrated with sympathy and full of information previously not readily available. It reads like a labour of love.’ * Literary Review *‘In Henderson's loving, meticulously-researched book we have a first and vital account of that life...hugely valuable to anyone who cares about the story of writing in Scotland, what it has been, how it has changed, and where it may go next.’ * The Scotsman *‘This is the first biography of Josephine Tey and Henderson goes through the few facts of Mackintosh’s life with a forensic thoroughness and finds no secrets lurking. Henderson here pays important tribute to a mind boiling with creativity that came to fruition in the ordered habits of a quiet life.’ * The Oldie *‘Henderson is an Invernessian herself and she seems to take MacKintosh’s neglect personally. In the age of Google-aided, instant biography it’s a pleasure to read one that is the product of time, care and passion.’ * The National *‘A book which, by foregrounding the life and work of a writer who should never have been neglected, deserves the widest of readership.’ * Scottish Review *‘...becomes at a stroke the definitive volume.’ * Crime Time *‘Sterling, superb, and all manner of superlatives -- this book is a must-read for anyone even remotely interested in Josephine Tey. Henderson has done an invaluable service to Tey fans everywhere through her meticulous research...there's so much here about this woman's life that frankly, if you're a Tey reader, you will not want to miss a single word.’ * Crime Segments *‘Absorbing first biography of the crime and mystery writer.’ * The Bookseller *‘This is an interesting read and it was good to add some meat to the bones of this elusive writer.’ * Crime Squad *‘[Tey] was in danger of being forgotten before the publication of a new and comprehensive account of her life and work.’ * Celtic Connection *‘Jennifer Morag Henderson's is the first full biography of this enigmatic and original writer. Painstakingly researched, Henderson is keen to place Tey firmly in the canon of modern Scottish literature, a status never given to her in life.’‘A much needed biography of one of the great mystery writers of the twentieth century. ‘Josephine Tey’ is also a well-kept secret in Scottish Literature: a forensic stylist and the most elegant of minds.’ * University of Glasgow *‘This biography by Jennifer Morag Henderson is to be warmly welcomed and will be read eagerly by anyone curious about Josephine Tey, modern theatre, crime genre fiction, women’s writing, or Scottish literature, in all its multi-faceted complexity.’ * Scottish Literature, University of Glasgow *

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Book Synopsis“Some people say that the term ‘fighting cancer’ is too aggressive. But I did not go looking for this fight. Cancer started it. If I was fighting cancer, then it was only because cancer picked a fight with me. I plead self-defence.” Poet, author and activist Janine Booth was part of the ranting poetry movement in the ‘80s, performing as ‘The Big J’. In late 2016, she discovered a strange indentation in her right breast and was subsequently diagnosed with breast cancer. In this collection of candid journal extracts, poetry, meticulous research and substantive politics, Janine details her journey from detection and diagnosis, through surgery, to ‘getting over it’. Includes a Foreword by poet and activist Kate Smurthwaite. “This book is a must for all health care workers – doctors, nurses, students, caterers, cleaners, porters – the team needed by patients facing The Big C.” – Dr Coral Jones, GP & Chair Hackney South and Shoreditch Labour Party “A veritable paean to our (still free) NHS. Together with the added bonus of some fascinating political background and an insider’s guide to terms. With poetry!” – Rhoda Dakar, songwriter, musician & activist “Janine’s openness, humour and honesty, combined with her poetic sensibility, leads us by the hand through her experience with cancer … to leave us breathless on her behalf and on behalf of all women facing such a challenge.” – Henry Normal, poet, writer, TV & film producer “Full of clarity, worry, humour, explanations about how capitalism hampers medical practice and love, praise and commitment to the NHS. It demystifies and humanises the cancer experience and inspires and entertains the reader.” – Morning StarTrade Review“You get an overall sense of strength and fierce determination to face this life-changing disease head on, to make the best of every situation, and draw as much humour and creativity from it as possible, whilst maintaining a righteous fury at the damage done to the NHS. Hand on heart, this is one of the best books I have read this year, I would urge everyone to buy a copy, for themselves, a friend, or a family member. Let’s start talking about cancer, and stop hiding it away." Laura Taylor – Write Out Loud

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Book SynopsisA visually stunning, award-winning photography book of transgender New Yorkers, complete with thought-provoking and revealing interviews that honor the transgender community and the courage it takes to find oneself and defy societal norms. A growing portion of the LGBTQ+ community identifies as transgender; they are family members, friends, neighbors, and colleagues, and yet they are all-too-often stigmatized and misunderstood. This visual tour de force presents exquisite portraits of more than fifty New Yorkers who identify as trans, genderqueer, or gender nonbinary, and interviews with them in which they reveal who they are and what their transitions were like and combat common misconceptions and stereotypes.The vibrant, honest photographs were taken on the streets of New York or in iconic places like Grand Central Station, and together the photos and interviews provoke questions on gender identity, the gender spectrum, and gender expectations. In total, this is an unparalleled articulation of the expressions of sexuality, gender, and self that New York, in all of its beauty, honesty, and compassion, welcomes, as well as a celebration of the power of finding oneself and a compelling call for respect and acceptance.In addition to enlightening text from more than fifty members of New York’s trans community and the author, award-winning documentary photographer Peter Bussian, there are inspiring longer essays and an extraordinary foreword by the celebrated trans activist Abby Chava Stein. Trans New York is the winner of a prestigious International Photography Award (IPA) for its superb images.Trade Review“If a picture says a thousand words, fifty pictures of trans people along with their written experiences tell a story in a uniquely hopeful way, asking readers to see the humanity and complexity of the trans community and all of the different people within it.”—Publishers Weekly“An award-winning photographer best known for his work in conflict zones has turned his lens on New York’s transgender community with stunning results.”—The Article “Trans New York is an astonishing book that balances the extraordinary and the ordinary to create something close to truth. Bussian's photographs are elegant and beautiful in their normality, often sitting at odds with the brutal realities of life as told by New York's trans community. A fine and mature piece of work.”—Andrea Busfield, Journalist and Author of Born Under a Million Shadows “Peter Bussian's photographs are subtle, respectful, interesting, and arresting, which make for an important book at an important time.”—Jack Parsons, Photographer“Peter's book is a celebration of life where the images are speaking a valid and understandable language. The subjects are as beautiful, comfortable, or awkward as others breathing the same air and experiencing the same sunlight and darkness. Their unique stories transmit value and transcend societal barriers across the world.” —Jamal Shah, Actor and Director General of the Pakistan National Council of the Arts“Peter Bussian's book is beautiful. New York City in all its grit, glamour, and uniqueness serves as a perfect backdrop in the telling of the remarkable stories of the proud, brave, beautiful trans community Mr. Bussian profiles. Each person's story is totally singular in the telling and photography. I came away with a greater understanding of and respect for all of these beautiful souls who are living their truth, and a real yearning for the city they call home.”—Arianna Zukerman, Opera Singer and Educator“An extraordinary visual essay on love, courage, and finding oneself.”—Raynbow Affair Magazine “Trans New York is a beautiful depiction of the trans individuals and community that make up the city. Photographed all over New York and set to backdrops that range from iconic landmarks to private spaces to lesser-known city blocks, the settings are as beautiful, interesting, and varied as the subjects themselves. Just as New York is not only one thing, not just the empire state building, nor only Flushing, Queens, or Williamsburg, Brooklyn, not just SoHo or Central Park, this book deftly and elegantly displays the trans community in all their divergent beauty.”—Alyssa Blumstein, photographer of People of the Pride Parade“What’s striking are the photos themselves; both in their beauty and how ‘normal’ the portraits are.”—Palo Alto Weekly“I learned so much from reading this book and I recommend this book to everybody.” —Stacy White, The Etiquette Show

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Book SynopsisFrom the 1920s to 1952, George and Else Seel lived about sixty kilometres south of Burns Lake near the small farming settlement of Wistaria on the western shore of Ootsa Lake. Like many early twentieth century settlers who migrated to BC''s Central Interior, the Seels came in search of opportunity and prosperity, but the harsh environment posed challenges they could not have imagined. The community was remote and the winters were long, but eventually, along with their fellow settlers, they learned how to live and thrive in this new world. They developed a close connection to the land; helped each other in times of need; and established collaborative relationships with the First Nations people who lived around them. The couple and their family lived at Ootsa Lake through the prosperity of the late 1920s; subsisted during the Depression of the 1930s; and experienced a rejuvenation during World War II and its aftermath. George died in 1950, but Else remained until 1952, when their property was flooded by the Nechako Reservoir as part of the Alcan project and she was uprooted, like many of the Ootsa Lake settlers and Cheslatta First Nations people. George had spent his life as a prospector and trapper and Else as a published writer. Together they documented a rich story of pioneer life in a small Northern BC community before the demand for hydro power changed their life and the valley forever.

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Book SynopsisIn this third anthology in the Canadian women series by Caitlin Press, Canadian immigrant women from a variety of ethnicities and intersecting identities share their diverse and personal stories. A woman takes on the complex and often baffling nuances of the English language, a Ugandan refugee and her family settle in Canada only to find their father is forever changed, a Portuguese woman recalls her fear when her parents are forced to leave her and her sister alone in a dangerous situation, and a woman from Thailand re-discovers her history and culture in spite of being told that There was no room for the past in the bright worlds to come. these are portraits of women attempting to navigate unfamiliar landscapes, and their desire to be accepted despite differences in accent, sexuality, skin colour, or taste in food. Whether home is a place they long to return, desire to create, or hope to preserve in the language of their families, each writer reveals how pieces of their history have brought them closer to, or farther from the feeling of belonging. In Wherever I Find Myself, edited by Miriam Matejova, the authors are both critical and grateful for being able to call Canada home. Together their stories present a mosaic of emotions and worldviews that underline the plurality of immigrant experiences for women.

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Book SynopsisGerman knights of the early 16th century had to face and cope with a number of challenges regarding their privileged role in society. How they prevailed is examined in this book by rereading autobiographical accounts. By the examples of Ulrich von Hutten (14801523), Götz von Berlichingen (c. 14801562), and Sigmund von Herberstein (14861566) it is demonstrated how the various crises of being a knight were innovatively solved in and by texts. This reveals a crucial interdependence between knighthood as a community of shared memory and dispositions and its narrative constitution.

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Book SynopsisBrings readers on the long journey from Houston's Fifth Ward to the packed stadiums of the NFL, continuing with his decades-long fight for the compensation due an athlete who sustained injuries on the job. Here, Delvin Williams recounts the circumstances that motivated him to meet challenges at every level and exceeding his own expectations.

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Book SynopsisAn NPR Best Book of 2022 and Winner of a Nautilus Silver Book Award"Stirring and unforgettable-a breathtaking adoption saga like no other." -Robert Kolker, New York Times-bestselling author of Hidden Valley Road and Lost GirlsIt was 1998 in Nha Trang, Vi?t Nam, and Liên struggled to care for her newborn twin girls. Hà was taken in by Liên's sister, and she grew up in a rural village with her aunt, going to school and playing outside with the neighbors. They had sporadic electricity and frequent monsoons. Hà's twin sister, Loan, was adopted by a wealthy, white American family who renamed her Isabella. Isabella grew up in the suburbs of Chicago with a nonbiological sister, Olivia, also adopted from Vi?t Nam. Isabella and Olivia attended a predominantly white Catholic school, played soccer, and prepared for college.But when Isabella's adoptive mother learned of her biological twin back in Vi?t Nam, all of their lives changed forever. Award-winning journalist Erika Hayasaki spent years and hundreds of hours interviewing each of the birth and adoptive family members. She brings the girls' experiences to life on the page, told from their own perspectives, challenging conceptions about adoption and what it means to give a child a good life.

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Book SynopsisAn unexpected family photograph leads Dionne Ford to uncover the stories of her enslaved female ancestors, reclaim their power, and begin to heal Countless Black Americans descended from slavery are related to the enslavers who bought and sold their ancestors. Among them is Dionne Ford, whose great grandmother was the last of six children born to a Louisiana cotton broker and the enslaved woman he received as a wedding gift. What shapes does this kind of intergenerational trauma take? In these pages, which move between her inner life and deep research, Ford tells us. It manifests as alcoholism and post-traumatic stress; it finds echoes in her own experience of sexual abuse at the hands of a relative, and in the ways in which she builds her own interracial family. To heal, Ford tries a wide range of therapies, lifestyle changes, and recovery meetings. ?Anything,? she writes, ?to keep from going back there.? But what she learns is that she needs to go back there, to return to her female ancestors, and unearth what she can about them to start to feel whole.

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Book SynopsisWinner Best of Los Angeles Award's "Best Holocaust Book - 2021"

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Book SynopsisActivist and public relations thought leader David Fenton shares lessons on how to organize successful media campaigns, cultivated from more than half a century working within some of history’s most impactful social movements.In an extraordinary career David Fenton has learned first-hand what to do—and not to do—to propel progressive causes into the public eye and create real, impactful, lasting change. A visionary activist, Fenton has been the driving force behind some of the most important and history-making campaigns of the last 50 years, from the No-Nukes concerts with Bruce Springsteen in 1979, to the campaigns to free Nelson Mandela and end apartheid in the late 1980s, exposing the dangers of toxic chemicals in our food, the long battle to legalize marijuana and end racist drug laws, the misinformation in Washington during the Bush era in the 2000s, and recent campaigns that successfully banned fracking in New York and alerted the public to the climate crisis, including the  environmental impact of Bitcoin. Reflecting on his life, with tales of living in a commune, photographing riots and rock stars, working at Rolling Stone and High Times magazines rabble-rousing with Abbie Hoffman, and collaborating with presidents and celebrities, David tells the fascinating story of how he developed the strategies and tactics that have made him a successful media agitator. David then shows how these tools can be used by anyone to advance their cause. Part rollercoaster memoir, part practical guide, The Activist's Media Handbook provides an essential toolkit for today’s activists for organizing to win: how to tell your story, captivate audiences, and inspire them to join the cause.

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Book SynopsisAward-winning designer and writer Steven Heller comes of age at the center of New York’s youth culture in the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s. Steven Heller has written a memoir. This is no chronological trek through the hills and valleys of his comparatively “normal” life, but instead, a coming of age tale whereby with luck and circumstance, he found himself in certain curious places at critical times during the early to late 1960s and later throughout the 80s in New York City. This story is both entertaining and enlightening and follows Heller between the ages of 16 and 23 as he solidified his work as art director, graphic designer, cartoonist and writer, through stints at the New York Review of Books, Sex, Screw, and The New York Free Press, until becoming the youngest art director (and occasional illustrator) for The New York Times OpEd page at age 23.

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Book SynopsisIn her never-finished My Life’s Travels and Adventures, the eighteenth-century Polish doctor Regina Salomea Pilsztynowa plays a myriad of roles, including child bride, wife, mother, lover, adventuress, slave trader, writer, and home-taught physician. She successfully carved out a viable niche for herself, navigating the multicultural, multiethnic, and varied religious environment of Europe’s eastern periphery. Despite limited expectations for female professionals, she became a highly sought after and well-respected practitioner of the medical arts and rose to the position of court physician to Turkish pashas and Hungarian princes, and even to Sultan Mustafa III. My Life’s Travels and Adventures—part memoir, part autobiography, and part travelogue—provides a view into eighteenth-century social, professional, and gender interactions and weaves a rich narrative replete with vignettes of love, travel, and popular superstitions important to our historical, ethnographic, and religious understanding of the era. This edition brings the entirety of this personal and idiosyncratic memoir to English for the first time. Trade Review“Thanks entirely to the discovery of her lost memoir at the end of the nineteenth century, Regina Salomea Pilsztynowa enjoys the reputation of being the first female doctor in Polish history. And how all this came about is a fascinating story, vividly conveyed in Roczniak’s tour-de-force translation. . . . Pilsztynowa’s compelling story as told in this splendid critical edition is worthy of her legacy.” -- Barry Keane, University of WarsawTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction The Other Voice Her Life, Her Book, and Her Times The Emancipate’s Journey Pilsztynowa as Other, Pilsztynowa and Others Note on Locations and Translation My Life’s Travels and Adventures Preface, To the Estimable Reader Chapter One, First Journey to Istanbul, and Other Adventures Chapter Two, My Second Marriage, and Other Adventures Chapter Three, The Disagreement with Mr. Bekierski, and My Cavalier Chapter Four, My Second Arrival in Istanbul Chapter Five, The Turkish Sect Chapter Six, The Route to Jerusalem Chapter Seven, About Fasting on Saturdays Appendix One: Glossary of Places Appendix Two: Pilsztynowa’s Patients Appendix Three: Chronology Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisA gorgeous account of William Beebe's 1934 Bathysphere expedition, the first-ever deep-sea voyage to the otherworldly environment 3,024 feet below sea level. In the summer of 1934, aboard a ship floating near the Atlantic island of Nonsuch, marine biologist Gloria Hollister sat on a crate, writing furiously in a notebook with a telephone receiver pressed to her ear. The phone line attached to a steel cable that unrolled off the side of the vessel and plunged into the sea, sinking 3000 feet. There, suspended by the cable, dangled a four-and-a-half-foot steel ball called the bathysphere. Crumpled up inside, gazing through three-inch quartz windows at the undersea world, sat Hollister's colleague William Beebe. He called up to her excitedly, describing bizarre creatures, explosions of bioluminescence, and strange effects of light and color. Hollister, listening amid rocking waves, tried to get down everything she heard. The story of The Bathysphere Book springs from the original expedition logbooks-the first eyewitness account of the deep ocean. They possess a strange poetry, scientific vocabulary shot through with the thrill of the new, and an erotic charge due to the illicit affair Hollister and Beebe were carrying on. The expedition launched from an expansive, transforming America, as streetlights came on in New York City and the Great Plains baked to dust. Backers ranged from eugenicist conservatives to billionaire socialists, while the expedition staff was a ragtag team of eccentrics who socialized with iconic figures of the period, such as Theodore Roosevelt, Amelia Earhart, and Gypsy Rose Lee. The bathysphere was the subject of much media attention and made the team famous. Prefiguring NASA's blue marble photograph, the first images of the deep ocean offered a new sense of the planetary. The book will include archival images as well as a few reproductions of illustrations by expedition artists. The Bathysphere Book delights in the human drama that surrounds this groundbreaking move into the deep ocean, a story of one visionary encounter with the unknown.Trade Review"The Bathysphere Book is wonderful, in the literal sense: filled with wonder. Brad Fox illuminates the extraordinary discoveries of the ocean depths, to be sure, but also of the scientists and artists who first explored them, less than a century ago. To read this glorious and beautifully illustrated account-relayed with what its protagonist William Beebe called 'the oblique glance', the wisdom that everything is connected-is to feel again a child's awed delight at human ingenuity, and at our planet." -Claire Messud, author of The Emperor's Children and A Dream Life "What is this sublime, remarkable book? It's a black unreadable eye sliding past a submarine window, it's a color on an alien spectrum, it's a fish made of filaments and lit by its own light. I don't know what it is, I only know that it's luminous." -Shelley Jackson, author of The Melancholy of Anatomy and Riddance "Brad Fox has created a brilliant work of literary art-at once almanac and seance, wonder-cabinet and hallucinogen. The vigor, pluck, and compression of his language turn a linear chronicle into a time-bending, gem-laden constellation, with surprising flashes of wit, gossip, and melodrama." -Wayne Koestenbaum, author of Ultramarine and The Cheerful Scapegoat "Brad Fox knows that the descent into the deep meant a sea-change not just in science, but in aesthetics, philosophy, the sense of what it is to be human. All have been changed, become rich and strange, as this rich, strange book shows so beautifully." -China Mieville, author of The City in the City and This Census-Taker

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Book SynopsisEnter the mind of French literary giant Honoré de Balzac through a study of nine of his greatest characters and the novels they inhabit. Balzac''s Lives illuminates the writer''s life, era, and work in a completely original way.Balzac, more than anyone, invented the nineteenth-century novel, and Oscar Wilde went so far as to say that Balzac had invented the nineteenth century. But it was above all through the wonderful, unforgettable, extravagant characters that Balzac dreamed up and made flesh—entrepreneurs, bankers, inventors, industrialists, poets, artists, bohemians of both sexes, journalists, aristocrats, politicians, prostitutes—that he brought to life the dynamic forces of an era that ushered in our own. Peter Brooks’s Balzac’s Lives is a vivid and searching portrait of a great novelist as revealed through the fictional lives he imagined.

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Book SynopsisThe Chinese Cultural Revolution began in 1966 and led to a ten-year-long reign of Maoist terror throughout China, in which millions died or were sent to labor camps in the country or subjected to other forms of extreme discipline and humiliation. Ji Xianlin was one of them. The Cowshed is Ji’s harrowing account of his imprisonment in 1968 on the campus of Peking University and his subsequent disillusionment with the cult of Mao. As the campus spirals into a political frenzy, Ji, a professor of Eastern languages, is persecuted by lecturers and students from his own department. His home is raided, his most treasured possessions are destroyed, and Ji himself must endure hours of humiliation at brutal “struggle sessions.” He is forced to construct a cowshed (a makeshift prison for intellectuals who were labeled class enemies) in which he is then housed with other former colleagues. His eyewitness account of this excruciating experience is full of sharp irony, empathy, and remarkable insights into a central event in Chinese history.In contemporary China, the Cultural Revolution remains a delicate topic, little discussed, but if a Chinese citizen has read one book on the subject, it is likely to be Ji’s memoir. When The Cowshed was published in China in 1998, it quickly became a bestseller. The Cultural Revolution had nearly disappeared from the collective memory. Prominent intellectuals rarely spoke openly about the revolution, and books on the subject were almost nonexistent. By the time of Ji’s death in 2009, little had changed, and despite its popularity, The Cowshed remains one of the only testimonies of its kind. As Zha Jianying writes in the introduction, “The book has sold well and stayed in print. But authorities also quietly took steps to restrict public discussion of the memoir, as its subject continues to be treated as sensitive. The present English edition, skillfully translated by Chenxin Jiang, is hence a welcome, valuable addition to the small body of work in this genre. It makes an important contribution to our understanding of that period.”

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Book SynopsisToya Boudy’s father grew up in the Magnolia projects of New Orleans; her mother shared a tight space with five siblings uptown. They worked hard, rotated shifts and found time to make meals from scratch for the family. In Cooking for the Culture, Boudy shares these recipes, many of which are deeply rooted in the proud Black traditions that shaped her hometown. Driving the cookbook are her personal stories: from struggling in school to having a baby at sixteen, from her growing confidence in the kitchen to her appearances on Food Network. The cookbook opens with Sweet Cream Farina, prepared at the crack of dawn for girls in freshly ironed clothes—being neat and pressed was important. Boudy recounts making cookies from her commodity box peanut butter; explains the know-how behind Smothered Chicken, Jambalaya and Red Gravy; and shares her original television competition recipes. The result is a deeply personal and unique cookbook.

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Book SynopsisALY'S FIGHT is a beautiful story about a tenacious young couple who chose to face devastating news with a spirit of hope and to look for blessings the Lord sends them in good times and in bad times. Authors Josh and Aly Taylor share their journey with readers to teach all to enjoy life when life is anything but enjoyable. At just 24 years old, Aly was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer and underwent years of treatments and surgeries. After many failed fertility treatments, she was then diagnosed with infertility as a result of her chemotherapy. The most painful diagnoses in Josh and Aly's lives led to their greatest gifts. After an adoption that was on, off, then on again, God blessed them with baby number one, Genevieve. Just nine short months after adopting Genevieve, Aly discovered that she was pregnant with baby number two! A few weeks after Aly's pregnancy was confirmed, Genevieve's birth mother called and told the Taylors she was pregnant again and asked if Josh and Aly would adopt her second child. Lydia (baby number three) was born 11 days after Aly gave birth to Vera. Three daughters all within 16 months!

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Book SynopsisKevan is just one of the guys. It's impossible to know him and not become a little more excited about life. He is an inspiring man permeated by joy, unafraid of sorrow, full of vitality and life! His sense of humor is infectious and so is his story.He grew up, he says, at 'belt-buckle level' and stayed there until Kevan's beloved posse decided to leave his wheelchair at the Atlanta airport, board a plane for France, and have his friends carry him around Europe to accomplish their dream to see the world together! Kevan's beloved posse traveled to Paris, England, and Ireland where, in the climax of their adventure, they scale 600 feet up to the 1,400-year-old monastic fortress of Skellig Michael.In WE CARRY KEVAN the reader sits with Kevan, one head-level above everyone else for the first time in his life and enjoys camaraderie unlike anything most people ever experience. Along the way they encounter the curiosity and beauty of strangers, the human family disarmed by grace, and the constant love of God so rich and beautiful in the company of good friends. WE CARRY KEVAN displays the profound power of friendship and self-sacrifice.

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Book SynopsisDon Isaac Abravanel (1437–1508) was one of the great inventors of Jewish modernity. A merchant, banker, and court financier, a scholar versed in both Jewish and Christian writings, a preacher and exegete, a prominent political actor in royal entourages and Jewish communities, Abravanel was one of the greatest leaders and thinkers of Iberian Jewry in the aftermath of the expulsion of 1492. This book, the first new intellectual biography of Abravanel in twenty years, depicts his life in three cultural milieus—Portugal, Castile, and post-expulsion Italy—and analyzes his major literary accomplishments in each period. Abravanel was a traditionalist with innovative ideas, a man with one foot in the Middle Ages and the other in the Renaissance. An erudite scholar, author of a monumental exegetical opus that is still studied today, and an avid book collector, he was a transitional figure, defined by an age of contradictions. Yet, it is these very contradictions that make him such an important personality for understanding the dawn of Jewish modernity.Trade Review"Cohen-Skalli's book is a daring, suggestive and stimulating book...without a doubt, the work that Cohen-Skalli offers us will have to be taken into account in the future when approaching the study of the figure of Abravanel and his Biblical commentaries and theological treatises." * Bulletin of Spanish Studies *"Cedric Cohen-Skalli resists cramming his subject into 'a single period, movement, or role' in his new intellectual biography. Human lives are not dissertations, and one of the pleasures of Cohen-Skalli’s book is its modesty about getting to the bottom of who Abravanel was. 'Don Isaac remains a mystery,' he writes, a 'mosaic of innovation and conservatism' in service of both the preservation of the Jewish people and the distinctive Sephardi tradition." * Jewish Review of Books *"Few medieval Jewish figures lived lives as fascinating as Abravanel—so the first new full-length biography of this rabbi, exegete, philosopher, and statesman in almost 70 years is itself noteworthy. The book weaves between his activities in different European centers in the aftermath of the 1492 Expulsion, analyzing his most significant literary and philosophical works in each time and place." * TraditionOnline *"A welcome study of Isaac Abravanel (1437–1508), one of the great figures in medieval Jewish history . . . [and] a valuable resource for scholars of Jewish studies and religion." * Choice *"Don Isaac Abravanel: An Intellectual Biography is a rich, comprehensive, and rewarding biography. It adeptly situates Abravanel's writings within his career and the wider political happenings of their composition and offers a nuanced portrait of the man. The reader will no doubt be grateful for having gained a deeper understanding of the life and times of Judaism's most celebrated learned nobleman." -- Rabbi Stu Halpern, Yeshiva University“This vibrant portrait of Isaac Abravanel departs from earlier biographies to locate him clearly in his own times and on his own terms: learned, eclectic, and deeply shaped by the Iberian expulsions and Italian sojourns. Adapting traditions to his times and position, he is pragmatic, paradoxical, and above all fully human.” -- Nicholas Terpstra, University of Toronto, author of Religious Refugees in the Early Modern World“Cohen-Skalli’s study is an erudite and penetrating contribution to our understanding of one of the most original figures in Jewish history and thought." -- Moshe Idel, Emeritus Professor, The Hebrew University“Cohen-Skalli’s elegant and comprehensive book about Isaac Abravanel— one of the most fascinating Jewish philosophers, exegetes, and political operatives in any period— represents a rare achievement: a work of history that is accessible to a broad audience yet does not sacrifice scholarly integrity. Highly recommended to anyone interested in Jewish thought of the Middle Ages and Early Modern period; the role of Jews in European politics; and the epochal story of the Sephardi diaspora.” -- Andrew Berns, University of South CarolinaTable of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgmentsPart 1: Don Isaac Abravanel in Portugal (1437-1483)1. The Kingdom of Portugal and the Abravanel Family2. Isaac Abravanel and Iberian Court Culture3. Isaac Abravanel as a Jewish Leader in His Hebrew Epistles 4. Isaac Abravanel: Philosopher and Theologian 5. Don Isaac’s Fall from Grace in Portugal Part 2: Don Isaac Abravanel in Castile (1483-1492)6. Don Isaac Abravanel Immigrates to Castile 7. Isaac Abravanel’s Historical and Literary Approach to the Books of the Former Prophets8. The Figure of the Leader in Abravanel’s Commentary on the Former Prophets9. Don Isaac’s Republicanism10. Success at the Courts of the Catholic MonarchsPart 3: Don Isaac Abravanel in Italy (1492-1508)11. Abravanel’s Arrival in Naples12. Commentary on Kings as a Response to the Expulsion13. Solomon: The Ideal King14. The Temple: Construction, Glory, Destruction15. The Military Crisis in Italy at the End of the Fifteenth Century 16. A Defense of Judaism in the Midst of the Storm 17. Messianism18. The Last Years in Venice (1503–1508) Afterword: Don Isaac Abravanel in the Twentieth CenturyNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisA frank, honest, and insightful look into the lives of women over fifty. The Second Half explores, in photographic portraits and interviews, how the second half of life is experienced by women from many different cultures. From a French actress to a British novelist, from an Algerian nomad to a Saudi Arabian doctor, and an American politician, Ellen Warner traveled all over the world to interview women about their lives. She asked them what they learned in the first half that was helpful in the second, and what advice they would give to younger women. Their revealing and inspiring stories are enlightening for all readers, and are illustrated by Warner’s stunning portraits which tell their own story. Trade Review"A fascinating, fly-in-amber distillation of forty women over fifty, the book pushes these women to the foreground, shaking up expectations along the way. The results (are) revelatory.” * Foreword Reviews, Starred Review *"Reading Ellen Warner’s The Second Half: Forty Women Reveal Life After Fifty is like having one of those intimate conversations with each of 40 women from around the world as they share their formative experiences and advice for younger generations. Their insights are particularly valuable in a country where intergenerational learning is often lost…" * The Washington Post *"It is with these words (from the women in the book) that any woman who reaches the age of 50 and beyond can exhilarate in the fact that a better life is just beginning." * The New York Journal of Books *"As these women and others divulge their most difficult and joyous moments, the result is a book bristling with energy and wisdom." * BookPage, Starred Review *"The black-and-white portraits are intimate and revealing, and the interviews..are never less than fascinating… Its magic rests in the portraits, which are so wondrous that one is drawn irresistibly into the words." * Air Mail *"This is a collection of 40 beautiful portraits of 40 amazing women over 50. Gift it to all your friends, for no special occasion whatsoever. " * Ms. Magazine *"22 of 2022’s Top New Books (So Far)" * AARP *"What makes this book really special is that the women share what they’ve learned from their experiences, and how those lessons will shape the rest of their lives… (it) is a compelling testament to human perseverance in the face of hardship, but also to life’s enduring joys. Warner captures her subjects’ candid stories sensitively and with verve." * Hyperallergic *“We need to celebrate women for not wrinkles but laugh lines. We need to see ourselves changing and growing. If that means looking older – celebrate it. Experience is as beautiful as youth. These (words and) pictures are meant to teach us that every stage of life has its own enchantment.” * Erica Mann Jong, from the Foreword *"Ellen Warner’s powerful and moving portraits and interviews show us what we need to know: how extremely diverse women envision the second half of women’s’ lives, and the wide-ranging perspectives they offer to share with us, the fortunate readers." * Professor Elaine Pagels, historian *“The faces of the women in this book, deeply etched by experience and by sorrow and yet alight with life and hope are an enduring tribute not only to Ellen's genius as a photographer skill but also to the personal qualities that give her subjects the freedom to reveal who they really are." * Pat Barker, novelist *“Warner’s book beautifully reflects the challenges and opportunities of growing older in an ageist culture. The depictions of older women’s complexity, diversity and resiliency offer a wonderful resource for all of us – including younger people – in our age-segregated society.” * Joan Ditzion, MSW, and Judy Norsigian, co-founders of Our Bodies Ourselves *“The diverse and inspiring stories in Ellen Warner’s The Second Half are as powerfully written as they are stunningly photographed, and superbly curated. Each face, each life, each page fills you with hope, and takes your breath away.” * Nandana Sen, writer, actor, activist *"Ellen Warner’s photographs are deeply narrative, and in this book we are presented with a remarkable enhancement to those images: the real narratives." * Tim Gunn, author, actor, Project Runway mentor. *"Books with good advice on healthy aging." * Beacon *Table of ContentsForeword by Erica JongForeword by Sarah LambIntroductionOdette Walling, born 1920, interviewed at age 86Resistance leader, Ravensbruck Prisoner #47321, Kings Medal for Courage, Medaille de Resistance, Paris, FranceJean Angell, born ca 1942, interviewed at age 65Lawyer with Lou Gehrig’s disease, Prout’s Neck, Maine, USARoxy Beaujolais, born ca. 1947, interviewed at age 60Publican of the Seven Stars, Carey Street, London, EnglandTeresa Sayward, born ca. 1944, interviewed at age 64State Assemblywoman, Retired Farmer, Willsboro, New York, USALeslie Caron, born 1931, interviewed at age 70Actress, Paris, FranceDr. Fathia Al Sulimani, born 1950, interviewed at age 60Nephrologist, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaMarilynn Preston, born 1946, interviewed at age 60Journalist, playwright and Emmy Award winning TV producer, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA Jacqueline Délia Brémond, born 1936, interviewed at age 70Publisher, Co-Founder and Co-Chair of Fondation Ensemble, Paris, FranceFatma Doufen, born ca 1945, interviewed at age 62Tuareg nomad in the Sahara - 36 k from Tamanrasset, Southern AlgeriaFrancoise Simon, born ca. 1930, interviewed at age 76Portrait Painter, Paris, FranceLuisah Teish, born ca 1948, interviewed at age 60Shaman, Teacher of Transformation, Spiritual Anthropologist, San Francisco, California, USAPerla Servan-Schreiber, born ca. 1944, interviewed at age 62Publisher, writer, Founder of Psychologie magazine, Paris, FranceIrene Carlos, born ca 1900, interviewed at age 107 Retired Cook, Antigua, West IndiesNi Ketut Takil, born ca. 1935, interviewed at age 75A Jero Balian (Sacred Healer), Banjar Baung Sayan, Ubud, Bali, IndonesiaBokara Legendre, born 1940, interviewed at age 70Actress, Writer, Artist, TV presenter, New York and South Carolina, USASalama Ba Sunbol, born ca. 1957, interviewed at age 53Embroidery Specialist and Trainer, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaTamasin Day-Lewis, born 1953, interviewed at age 55Documentary Filmmaker, Food Critic, Chef and AuthorSomerset, EnglandGeorgia Nikitara, born ca 1932, interviewed at age 74Farmer, Patmos, GreeceGiuliana Camerino, born 1920, interviewed at age 86Founder of the design firm Roberta di Camerino, Venice, ItalyAda Gates, born 1943, interviewed at age 67Farrier, First Woman Licensed to Shoe Thoroughbred Horses in the USA and Canada, Pasadena, California, USAMa Thanegi, born 1946, interviewed at age 65Journalist, Author, Ang San Suu Kyi’s Personal Assistant who went to jail with her, Yangon, MyanmarFlora Biddle, born 1928, interviewed at age 80Writer, past Chair of the Board of The Whitney Museum, Granddaughter of the Founder, New York City, USA Elizabeth Jane Howard, born 1923, interviewed at age 84Author, Bungay Bay, Suffolk, EnglandModestine Brown, born ca.1931, interviewed at age 76Retired Cook, Antigua, West IndiesCristina Loring de Saavedra, born ca 1947, interviewed at age 61Retired Flamenco Dancer, Madrid, Spain Christine Ockrent, born 1944, interviewed at age 62First women TV anchor in France, Paris, FrancePeggy Elliott, born ca. 1943, interviewed at age 64Manicurist, Fishers Island, New York and West Palm Beach, Florida, USALady Elizabeth Longman, born 1924, interviewed at age 82 Wife of the last head of Longman’s Publishing Company, Bridesmaid to Queen Elizabeth, London, EnglandLali Al Balushi, born ca 1950, interviewed at age 60Housewife, Muscat, OmanTullia Zevi, born 1919, interviewed at age 89Musician, Journalist, President of the Italian Jewish Communities, Vice President of European Jewish Communities, Rome, ItalyLama Yeshe Drolma, born ca 1945, interviewed at age 61 Buddhist Lama, Lubeck, GermanyLulu Balcom, born 1908, interviewed at age 98 Artist, Fishers Island, New York and Palm Beach, Florida, USADodie Rosecrans, born 1919, interviewed at age 88 American art collector who divides her time between San Francisco, Paris and VeniceElo Papasin, born 1946, interviewed at age 60Housekeeper and Cook, Manila, Philippines. Currently lives in Paris, FranceMonika Kochs, born ca. 1946, interviewed at age 61Artist, Salzburg, AustriaMarina Ma, born ca. 1923, interviewed at age 85Mother of Yo-Yo Ma, cellist, and Dr. Yo-Chen MaLong Beach, New York, USACharlotte Mosley, born 1952, interviewed at age 55Journalist, Publisher, Editor of the letters of the Mitford SistersParis, FranceMarilyn Nelson, born 1946, interviewed at age 74Poet, Translator, Author, Former Poet Laureate of ConnecticutEast Haven, Connecticut, USABlanche Blackwell, born 1912, interviewed at age 95Ian Fleming’s last great love, mother of Chris Blackwell who founded Virgin Records, London, EnglandOlivia de Havilland, born 1916, interviewed at age 92Actress, Paris, France

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Book SynopsisThe first scholarly biography of Levi Yitshak of Berdychiv in English in over thirty-five years. Defender of the Faithful explores the life and thought of Levi Yitshak of Berdychiv (1740–1809), one of the most fascinating and colorful Hasidic leaders of his time. This is an intellectual and religious biography, a reading of the development of his thought and career. Featuring examples of Levi Yitshak’s extraordinary texts alongside insightful analysis by scholar and theologian Arthur Green, Defender of the Faithful is a compelling study of both Levi Yitshak’s theology and broader philosophy. Trade Review“Arthur Green, a modern master of Jewish thought, explores the life and thought of Rabbi Levi Yitsḥak, one of the towering, formative figures in early Hasidism. In Green’s lucid presentation, Levi Yitsḥak emerges as a mystic, but also a realist who faces the fact that we live in a world seemingly not guided by divine will. Boldly, Levi Yitshak claims that a righteous individual can actually implant a new will within God. A fascinating, profound book.” -- Daniel Matt, author of Becoming Elijah: Prophet of Transformation and the multivolume annotated translation The Zohar: Pritzker Edition“A brilliant intellectual biography of a spiritual hero, a leading eighteenth-century Hasidic master and leader, a mystical revolutionary thinker who took upon himself to act in a world seemingly not guided by divine intervention, hidden or revealed. Skillfully and felicitously written by one of the world’s leading scholars of Hasidism, it presents new dimensions of the thoughtful, profound, and original author of Kedushat Levi (1798), and contextualizes the mystical-Hasidic phenomenon in the spiritual and historical circumstances in which it evolved.” -- Rachel Elior, John and Golda Cohen Chair in Jewish Philosophy, Hebrew University“In this stunningly interesting study, Arthur Green sets aside the legendary Levi Yitshak of Berdychiv in pursuit of the historical figure, whose life and thought Green explores with his signature combination of extraordinary erudition and finely-honed sensitivity to the psychological and spiritual dimensions of classical Hasidism. A wonderfully crafted landmark study of a seminal figure, richly contextualized and bringing to light many of the complexities that characterized Hasidism in its early stages of development.” -- Lawrence Fine, author of Physician of the Soul, Healer of the Cosmos: Isaac Luria and His Kabbalistic Fellowship“Arthur Green blends meticulous historical scholarship with delicate textual analysis and poetic writing to help us understand anew the life and teachings of one of the most important leaders of early Hasidism, a daring theologian who was also remembered as a popular spiritual hero and an iconic Jewish leader. Much like his pathbreaking intellectual and religious biography of Rabbi Nahman of Bratslav, Green inspires us again. This book is a must read for scholars and seekers alike!” -- Biti Roi, Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, and author of Love of ShekhinaTable of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments Introduction Part I: Levi Yits?ak as Hasidic Leader 1. The Life and Times of an Eighteenth-Century Rabbi 2. Levi Yits?ak in the Maggid’s Circle: The Challenge of Leadership 3. First Steps: The Evidence of Shemu‘ah Tovah 4. The Hasidic Tsaddik and the Quest for Models 5. The Mezritch Circle: A Later Look Part II: Mystic Disciple and Teacher 6. Translating the Transcendent 7. The Mystic and the Religious Revival 8. The Question of Miracles 9. An Emerging Religious Personality 10. Power and Pleasure in Serving God 11. Defending the Commandments 12. Interpreting Torah 13. Looking into the Future? Abbreviations Used in Notes Bibliography

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