Memoirs Books

Book SynopsisThe incredible true story of a boy trying to lead a normal life in London amidst the terrors and horrors of the Blitz and V bombs raining down in the Second World War

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Book Synopsis''A wonderful slice-of-life autobiography'' Daily Express''I''ve turned boys into men and policemen into coppers,'' said the Sergeant. ''Policemen have got brains, but coppers, they''ve got brains and common sense.''No two days were ever the same for bobby-on-the-beat Martyn Johnson. Come rain or come shine, he patrolled his patch with a sharp eye for troublemakers and a kind word for those in need of a friend. Whether he was pursuing unlikely coal thieves, tracking down peacocks gone AWOL or investigating mysterious flying saucers over Sheffield, PC Johnson faced every new challenge with a smile and a healthy dose of his copper''s common sense. In his charming and funny memoir, Martyn Johnson recalls the rogues, cheats and scoundrels - as well as the many friends - who made his life on the beat so unforgettable.Trade ReviewThis is a heart-warming read, well written with compassion and humour -- Anne Cater * New Books *A wonderful slice-of-life autobiography . . . vividly atmospheric * Daily Express *

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Book SynopsisIn the heart of Ashington - a bustling Geordie mining town - a handsome red-brick vicarage, surrounded by rambling gardens, stands proudly among the rows of terraced houses. It is the perfect place for playing games, keeping secrets and chasing the ghosts of previous occupants, and it will be nine-year-old Barbara''s new home now that her father is to be vicar in this strange new place. In this charming memoir, Barbara Fox recalls a childhood where parishioners knocked on the door at all hours of the day and night, and where no one batted an eye at the collection of waifs and strays who regularly joined the family at the kitchen table. This is a warm-hearted, classic tale of family, community and the unforgettable thrill of childhood adventure.Trade Review[A] gentle story of a cosy, secure childhood among a communtiy whose hearts were as warm as the coal fires that burned in thier hearths * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisTHE TOUCHING TRUE STORYTwo young Second World War evacueesFar from home, far from family, safe from the warGwenda and Douglas Brady were among the millions of British children sent to live with new families for their own safety during the Second World War, leaving behind their parents, their friends and all that felt familiar and safe. Evacuation could be a scary experience, but five-year-old Gwenda and her brother were lucky enough to be housed with a kindly schoolmaster and his wife, and soon the realities of the war felt very far away.WHEN THE WAR IS OVER touchingly tells the story of how Gwenda and Doug found a second family and a loving home in the remote Lake District village of Bampton . . . and how the war touched the lives of everyone, even those far, far away from the big cities. <

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Book SynopsisA GUARDIAN, SUNDAY TIMES, EVENING STANDARD AND COSMOPOLITAN BOOK OF THE YEAR''A jaw-dropping story, told deftly . . . a gripping, thought-provoking book'' Sunday Times''A really engaging memoir about identity, race, family, secrets, lies and ultimately betrayal, by a very gifted storyteller'' GuardianGeorgina Lawton was born to two white parents. Despite her brown skin, her racial identity was never spoken of in her childhood home. The truth only began to emerge when her beloved father died. Fleeing the shattered pieces of her family life, Georgina went in search of answers - a search that took her around the world, to the DNA testing industry and to talk to others whose identities had been questioned or erased.How do you come to terms with a family history tangled in deceit? And how do you define yourself after a childhood that denied a crucial part of your identity?Trade ReviewA jaw-dropping story, told deftly . . . a gripping, thought-provoking book * The Times *A really engaging memoir about identity, race, family, secrets, lies and ultimately betrayal, by a very gifted storyteller -- Gary Younge * Guardian *An extraordinary debut * Daily Mirror *Freshly fascinating. [Lawton] is a particularly astute observer of the psychological dislocation caused by growing up mixed race . . . and she writes beautifully about questions of identity and belonging, so central to each of us in finding our particular place in the world * New York Times *Georgina Lawton's Raceless is an absolutely riveting read, not just as a poignant and eye opening memoir but as a nuanced and crucial dissection of race as a construct. She writes so movingly and powerfully about her experiences - I have no doubt this will be one of the books of this year -- Yomi Adegoke * co-author of Slay in Your Lane *A beautifully written account of an extraordinary story, Raceless is as eye-opening as it is profound -- Otegha Uwagba * author of Little Black Book *Lawton builds a strong story around her attainment of emotional balance and her quest for identity and belonging. At turns revelatory and profound, this memoir sings * Publishers Weekly *Compelling * Cosmopolitan *This is a compelling, incisive and important memoir; both intimate and political -- Caroline Sanderson * The Bookseller *Fascinating * i *Heart-rending and poignant . . . Georgina's story is painfully illuminating but a triumphant journey of self-discovery -- Florence Olajide * author of Coconut *This book is a masterpiece; functioning both as a beautifully-written memoir and sensitive, highly-researched text unpacking the realities of race as a social construct and as a powerful influence on the lives of black people. It is an invaluable read for any person with an interest in race issues in the UK, but especially black and black mixed race people, who so often haven't been given the space to tell their stories. Georgina Lawton is a true talent and while some parts of her story are mired in pain, upon finishing Raceless you'll only be left with optimism for her future as a writer, thinker and commentator -- Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff, Editor-in-Chief * gal-dem magazine *A beautiful heart-expanding memoir, a truly unforgettable reading experience that will stay with me for a long time -- Emma Gannon * author of Olive *An incredibly moving and honest account of self discovery. I found myself weeping at the ways Georgina described grieving for a parent on top of navigating the realisation that her origin story was vastly different from the story she had been told. It isn't often that you come across a story like hers and with every page it felt as though she was letting us in a little bit deeper. What a stunning debut! -- Liv Little * gal-dem founder *Georgina is such a passionate, engaging writer, and I think Raceless is going to be absolutely huge -- Jenny Colgan * author of Sunrise by the Sea *

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Book SynopsisAS SEEN ON BBC TWO''S HIT TV-SHOW ''THIS FARMING LIFE''''A heartwarming tale of life on the land'' Alan Titchmarsh''There''s love and loss, challenge and adversity, but above all it''s warm, insightful and inspiring'' Helen Skelton''Will inspire any reader to look at the countryside - and all those who work there - with newfound appreciation'' Jimmy Doherty ''Uplifting, charming and beautifully written'' Adam HensonEmma Gray was just twenty-three when she moved to an isolated farm in Northumberland, becoming Britain''s youngest solo shepherdess. In the seasons that followed, Emma fell in love with its rolling fields, surrounding forest and sturdy farmhouse, tending her sheep and training her dogs - and even found romance.But when Emma finds herself suddenly alone again, heartbroken and recovering from a serious accident, she wonders if her isolated existence is still such a sensible idea. Even if she

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Book SynopsisYpres diary 1914-15

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Book SynopsisDo you remember trying to solve the Rubik's cube whilst dressed in your He-Man picture pyjamas?Did you try to make cool' sound effects with your mouth like Jones from Police Academy?Or maybe you swooned over Scott and Charlene's (aka Jason and Kylie's) wedding of the year?If that sounds like you, there's no mistaking you were a child of the eighties. Rev up your DeLorean, switch on the Flux Capacitor and take a cruise back through the decade that made you the person you are today. This amusing and entertaining collection of reminiscences will jog the memories of all who grew up in the same decade where greed was good, mullets were cool and white dog poo littered the streets.

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Book SynopsisDo you remember glam rock, flares, cheesecloth shirts and chopper bikes? Then it sounds like you were lucky enough to grow up during the 1970s. Who could forget all the glam rock bands of that era, like Slade, Wizard, Mud and Sweet, or singers like Alvin Stardust, Marc Bolan and David Bowie? What about those wonderful TV shows like Starsky and Hutch, Kojak, Kung Fu and Happy Days?Fashion included platform shoes (we all had a pair), flared trousers, brightly patterned shirts with huge collars and colourful kipper ties. And everyone remembers preparing for power cuts and that long, hot summer of 1976?So dust off your space hopper and join us on this fascinating journey through a childhood during the seventies, with hilarious illustrations and a nostalgic trip down memory lane for all those who grew up in this memorable decade.

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Book SynopsisAlex Hornenoun1. comedian, writer, gambler, taskmaster, podcaster, birdwatcher, potential neologist and father.Trade ReviewHorne's observations are at once funny and fascinating * Metro (Review for 'Birdwatching' show) *Rather like a rare bird - his ostensible subject - [Horne] is a fragile delight, covering any subject with a daft, surreal charm * The Sunday Times (Review for 'Birdwatching' show) *Remarkably touching, honest, and dryly witty * Time Out *Enjoyable and entertaining -- Stephen Moss * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis''A book of heart-stopping bravery and endurance'' -- Helen Macdonald''A great read incredible adventures and a dramatic new perspective'' -- Chris Packham''[A] delightful, endlessly fascinating book'' -- Daily Mail BOOK OF THE WEEKThis is the story of a professional British tree climber, cameraman and adventurer, who has made a career out of travelling the world, filming wildlife for the BBC and climbing trees with people like David Attenborough, Chris Packham and Helen Macdonald.James''s climbs take him to breathtaking locations as he scales the most incredible and majestic trees on the planet. On the way he meets native tribes, gets attacked by African bees, climbs alongside gorillas, chased by elephants, and spends his nights in a hammock pitched high in the branches with only the stars above him.This book blends incredible stories of scrapes and bruises in the branches with a new way of looking at liTrade ReviewA book of heart-stopping bravery and endurance, packed with astonishing—and sometimes gruesome—encounters with wild creatures. James Aldred is an old-school hero, and his thrilling recollections of a life of adventure driven by a love for trees will give you new reverence for the beauties and mysteries of the natural world. * Helen Macdonald *The giant trees, described by James Aldred, are full of wonder and his fascinating book is a story of real adventure * Peter Wohlleben, author of the international bestseller THE HIDDEN LIFE OF TREES *A great read – incredible adventures and a dramatic new perspective from the arms of the world’s giants * Chris Packham *Passionate and courageous, in his masterpiece of a memoir, James Aldred reminds us that the sweet green world around us is as alive as any creature--and trees are wondrous individuals with deep truths to tell. This is a book filled with beauty, suspense and revelation. I loved it! * Sy Montgomery, author of THE SOUL OF AN OCTOPUS *[A] delightful, endlessly fascinating book -- Brian Viner * Dail Mail BOOK OF THE WEEK *

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Book SynopsisARIANNA HUFFINGTON is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post, a nationally syndicated columnist, and the author of thirteen books. She is also the co-host of the US radio show Left, Right & Center. She was named to the Time 100, Time magazine's list of the world's one hundred most influential people, and to the Financial Times's list of fifty people who shaped the decade. Originally from Greece, she moved to England when she was sixteen and graduated from Cambridge University with an MA in economics.Trade ReviewIn Thrive, Arianna urges all of us to get in touch with who we really are so that we can live life on our own terms. From the importance of sleep to the imperative to listen to our own inner voice for ways to deal with the daily time crunches we all feel, this book lays out a path for each of us to look within and make our lives more authentic and fulfilling. * Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO and author of Lean In *At once intimate and formidable, this book is Arianna Huffington at her persuasive best. Thrive is a clarion call, a meditation, and a practical response to the question of how to live. * Susan Cain, author of New York Times bestseller Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking *Once in a generation, a book comes along that can truly transform your life. This is it. The most unhappy people are those who have achieved unfathomable money, power, and fame and found that it didn’t bring them the happiness they were seeking. Now what? Thrive doesn’t show just how to become more successful; it shows how to realize and experience what matters most. * Dean Ornish, founder of the Preventive Medicine Research Institute, bestselling author of The Spectrum *Thrive is a captivating look at what it takes to live a more meaningful, satisfying life. Brimming with passion, supported by science, and crowned with practical insights, Arianna’s exceptional book will transform our workplaces, schools, and families. * Adam Grant, Wharton professor and author of Give and Take *Arianna Huffington has written a passionate and much needed prescription for reshaping life from the inside out. Turn off your cell phone, your email, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and every other tool of the stressed-out, distracted world to spend some time thinking about grace, joy and wonder. You'll be glad you did. * Ellen Goodman, Pulitzer prize winning columnist and bestselling author of I Know Just What You Mean *

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Book Synopsis*The Sunday Times Bestseller*''Inspiring and illuminating'' JAMES O''BRIENPicked as a 2023 highlight by the Guardian---------------Our legal system often feels like it only works for the rich and powerful. But we can fight back.Jolyon Maugham KC founded Good Law Project in 2017 with the belief that the law can also put power into the hands of ordinary people. Already the largest legal campaign group in the UK, Good Law Project is shining light into corners the establishment would rather keep dark from the failures of Brexit to the still-developing PPE scandal, to the tax arrangements of business giants like Uber.In Bringing Down Goliath, Jolyon Maugham KC reveals the story behind these landmark cases and the hidden fault lines of our judicial system. He offers an empowering, bold new vision for how the law can work better for all of us in the fight against injustice.

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Book SynopsisSir Richard Branson is a global entrepreneur, adventurer and founder of the Virgin Group, one of the world's most recognised and respected brands. He is the international bestselling author of seven books, including the classic Losing My Virginity and the new autobiography Finding My Virginity. He lives on Necker Island in the British Virgin Islands, is married to Joan, father to Holly and Sam and proud grand-dude to five grandchildren.

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Book SynopsisFive-year-old Jimmy Rova is the unwanted child of a mother who rejects him, and whose other children bully him. The one thing he can call his own is a pair of shoes, a present from the only person he feels has ever loved him. When they are cruelly taken away, Jimmy spirals down into a state of loneliness and terrible loss from which there seems no recovery.This triumphant story of a boy''s struggle with early trauma and his remarkable journey into adulthood is based on William Horwood''s own remarkable childhood in south-east England after the Second World War. Using all the skills that went into the creation of his modern classics, Horwood has written an inspiring story of a journey from a past too painful to imagine to the future every child deserves.Trade ReviewBeautifully written * Sarah Broadhurst, Bookseller *A powerfully moving memoir * Daily Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisFrom the moment Tim Collins''s speech to his men in Iraq was made public, this soldier and thinker became a hero and an inspiration to world leaders and infantrymen alike. To a public suspicious about the motives for war, he offered some explanation for it and inspired a mood of optimism and humanity that has since been sadly lost. And yet, only two months later Collins was pilloried by two national newspapers and accused of war crimes. But this is only part of his story. From taking command of 1 Royal Irish in the aftermath of the Sierra Leone hostage crisis to combating the Loyalist murder gangs in East Tyrone, Rules of Engagement is a powerful memoir that offers a frank and compelling insight into the realities of warfare and a life lived on the frontline.Trade Review'He is a thinking soldier with a gift for words and tells his story well' John Keegan, SPECTATOR; 'This absorbing tale, by turns dramatic, thoughtful and humorous, is a lesson in the humanity behind a country at war' SUN; 'The book is a fascinating, detailed account of what he and his men went through in the invasion and delivers a hard-hitting message of where the Coalition has gone wrong since the invasion' Sydney SUN HERALD; 'His memoir is incendiary' Glasgow HERALD; 'Painfully compelling' Allan Mallinson, THE TIMES * Various *

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Book SynopsisCynthia Owen grew up in Ireland, went to the local convent school, said her prayers and took her first communion with all the other girls in her class. But behind the façade of respectability lurked a hideous reality.Cynthia was just eight years old when she was sexually abused by her father amongst others. Shortly before her eleventh birthday she was made pregnant and, minutes after giving birth to the baby, Cynthia watched in horror as her own mother murdered the tiny infant, named Noleen, by repeatedly stabbing her with a knitting needle. Cynthia''s mother then wrapped the baby girl in a plastic bag, dumped her in an alleyway and made her daughter go back to school and pretend nothing had ever happened.After enduring many more years of rape and violence, Cynthia came forward and reported her abuse and Noleen''s death.Finally, in 2007, after a fifteen-year legal fight to have her baby girl formally identified, the jury at the ''Dun Laoghaire Baby'' inquest

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Book Synopsis''My fingers close around the trigger. I pause for a split second to think about the bullets I am about to spray across the ground. After today, I''ll no longer be the new girl.''Captain Charlotte Madison is blonde, beautiful and flies Apache helicopters for a living. She has completed two tours of duty in Afghanistan and is currently fighting on the frontline in her third. DRESSED TO KILL shows us what life is like for a girl in a resolutely male-dominated environment. But she isn''t just a woman in a man''s world, she''s a woman women aspire to be - glamorous as well as brave, and beating the men at their own game. Only a tiny percentage of people can multi-task to the extreme level the aircraft demands, and most airmen who try to qualify as an Apache pilot fail. Full of the exciting, adrenaline-filled action that has made other military memoirs so successful, DRESSED TO KILL is also unique. A highly intelligent and brilliant young woman, Charlotte is Britain''s fTrade ReviewIt's not very often a war book makes its way onto Hot Stars' radar, but this real-life memoir by 26-year-old Charlotte is truly unique. She is just like one of us - she loves reading about celebs and fashion - but she's also on the frontline in Afghanistan. Passionate, hilarious and at times heart-wrenching, this brilliant book had us gripped! * *

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Book SynopsisJo Brand is one of Britain''s funniest and best-loved comedians. With a sharp eye for the absurd and in her own unique voice, she tells her story for the first time. What possessed her to become a professional comedian in the cut-throat world of stand-up comedy after ten years as a psychiatric nurse? How did she deal with late night drunken audiences? From her early years growing up in a small south coast town with two brothers who toughened her up, to emerging on stage as ''The Sea Monster'', Jo Brand tells it like it is with wit and candour.

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Book SynopsisA memoir of lessons and life in the Yorkshire Dales...Warm, touching and very funny, All Teacher''s Great and Small transports you to a time that may be gone but has never been forgotten. Andy Seed''s memoir is sure to charm fans of Jack Sheffield and Gervase Phinn''s nostalgic style. ''Heart-warming and hilarious'' - Daily Mail Dear Mr Seed, I am sorry that are Jack was not at school yesterday. He put on such a groth spurt in the night that nun of his clowthes fitted im next morning so I had to take him to the shops. Mrs R. Twenty-five years ago, newly qualified teacher Andy Seed moved to a remote village in the Yorkshire Dales with his wife Barbara, anticipating breath-taking views and the gentle simplicity of the countryside. The picturesque scenery did not disappoint. But life as a primary school teacher was anything but simple. With a classroom full of colourful characters whose capacity for misTrade Review'heartwarming and hilarious' * Daily Mail *'The author cleverly weaves the story of his first year teaching at the school. A truthful, wry, amusing memoir - the ideal gift for teachers, friends and family.' * The Teacher *'... this touching, evocative, and often very funny book has a timeless message' * Times Educational Supplement *

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Book SynopsisColin Shindler first wrote of his deep love for Manchester City in Manchester United Ruined My Life. Now he tells the story of his sorrowful disenchantment with his home town club as, on the instruction of its new foreign owners, it turns itself remorselessly into a global brand.From the nail-biting victory over Gillingham 1999 to the equally dramatic winning of the Premier League in May 2012 Shindler watches as his team becomes more successful yet, to his own bewilderment, he feels increasingly alienated from the club. This is the story of a frustrated romantic who finds in the glitz and glamour of the current media-obsessed game a helter-skelter of artificially fabricated excitement. As he details how football courses through his veins, Shindler reveals how it intersects with his own life, a life that has been marked by family tragedy, and how he finally found personal redemption even as his team lost its soul.Trade ReviewReviews of Manchester United Ruined My Life:"This is a wonderful book ... it is also extremely funny" * The Times *His prose ... is never less than sharp, smart and easy on the eye ... His writing is so attractive ... [I] would be thrilled to read more * Jim White, Guardian *It is his childhood and absent friends that touch the rawest, universal nerve * Simon Garfield, Mail on Sunday *Shindler's art lies in conversational writing, and an ability to change gear deftly from humour to devotion and back through fanaticism to the black comedy of Manchester City * Howard Davies, The Times *Shindler is both touching and convincing in his evocation of his formative years ... it's skilful, entertaining and heading for the top of the league * Richard Pendlebury, Daily Mail *Evocative, funny-sad and warm-hearted * Michael Henderson, The Times *Sits in the same class as Fever Pitch ... Shindler's down-to-the-bone honesty also reminds us self-indulgence can be great entertainment * The Times *This could still be the most important football book since Fever Pitch capturing, as it does, the delicious irony that caused City fans to fall into a soon to be legendary chorus of "Are you watching Macclesfield?" * Mick Middles, Manchester Evening News *'Manchester City Ruined My Life... is funny, touching and telling.' * Sunday Express *'****' * The Daily Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisAndy Murray is one of Britain''s best loved athletes. On the 7th July 2013 he became the first British man to lift the Wimbledon trophy for 77 years. His new book, Andy Murray: Seventy-Seven, will take us on a personal journey through his career. Focusing on the last two dramatic years, he will share with us his thoughts on the pivotal moments of his playing career and allow us a glimpse into his world - his intense training regime, his close-knit team and his mental and physical battle to get to the very top. This very personal book will be a stunning celebration of Andy''s career so far.

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Book SynopsisDon Kuhl, founder of The Change Companies®, shares the 10 big lessons he learned throughout life's little moments.We all have one thing in common. We’re getting older – and that’s a good thing. In Changing with Aging, Don Kuhl, founder of The Change Companies, shares 10 big lessons he has learned through a lifetime of love, courage and misadventures. Don Kuhl has brought inspiration and transformation to millions by creating Interactive Journals that help people reflect on where they’ve been, where they are, and where they wish to go. Now it's Kuhl's turn to share his stories of growing older and the wisdom he has gained along the way. Before he founded The Change Companies, Kuhl managed motel properties, started several sports publications, worked in college and health care administrations, and launched about a dozen corporations. Some of them failed miseraTrade Review"Profusely illustrated with both b/w and color photography throughout, "Changing with Aging: Little Stories, Big Lessons" will have a special and particular appeal to readers with an interest in how people deal with issues of love, loss, and self-esteem. A remarkable and memorable life story, "Changing with Aging: Little Stories, Big Lessons" is unreservedly recommended for community and academic library American Biography/Memoir collections." John Taylor, Midwest Book Review "Each of Don’s stories is a small gift. We unwrap them one by one to find inside an unexpected nugget of truth, sweetness, and life. His generosity of spirit shines bright between each line about friendship, love, and loss to light up the places where we too can be our best selves." Melissa Piasecki, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry, University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine“I’ve always admired Don’s values and his ability to help and inspire others. It’s no surprise he’s tackling aging with his wit and humor.” Karen Gedney, M.D., author, 30 Years Behind Bars: Trials of a Prison Doctor"Don Kuhl is an incredible and special soul who has committed his life to making a positive difference to so many through his caring and entrepreneurial efforts. Changing with Aging details his extraordinary journey and will provide inspiration for all who choose to follow in his footsteps." Peter Vegso, publisher, Health Communications, Inc.

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Book SynopsisRenowned spiritual teacher and co-founder of The Way of the Rose Perdita Finn teaches the art and healing power of connecting with the dead, as she guides readers through the magical process of conversing with the unseen world.'Finn weaves a spellbinding meditation . . . an affecting ode to the power of the unseen.' —Publisher's Weekly What if you could live in a world where the guidance of those who were gone was available, right at your very fingertips? It's possible, if we are open to it. Anyone can reclaim the forgotten guidance of the dead, and anyone can return to the realm of magic and miracles. In Take Back the Magic: Conversations with the Unseen World, author, spiritual teacher, and co-founder of The Way of the Rose Perdita Finn reveals that life is beginningless, love is endless, and those who have passed don’t truly go anywhere when they die. Weaving together memoir, history, and a non-denomin

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Book SynopsisFrom one of the best-known and best-loved storytellers in the world comes another unforgettable memoir, the highly anticipated bridge between PEOPLE OF THE DEER and NEVER CRY WOLF

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Book SynopsisBeloved author, speaker, and renowned Bible teacher walks alongside women, helping them understand that it's never too late to start again and there is healing and freedom in just taking the first step.

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Book SynopsisThe compelling memoir of a single white mother searching to understand why her adopted biracial son grew from a happy child into a troubled young adult who struggled with addiction for decades. The answers, E. Kay Trimberger finds, lie in both nature and nurture.Trade ReviewThis will be an immensely helpful and deeply personal book for so many, and one I've been looking for these past twenty-eight years. By sharing her family's journey, Kay Trimberger sheds light on the issues faced by many of those raising children who struggle with great challenges and offers hope and a new way forward. Kay Trimberger's personal, intriguing book lays out a compelling case for progressing toward a genuine Extended Family of Adoption, in which ongoing relationships among all the child's relatives— by birth or through adoption— become the norm. This book, in the end, is about how heredity and environment are intertwined and can help to provide hope and guidance to other adoptive families. Psychotherapists will find this to be a foundational resource in their work with both adoptive parents and adoptees, and an absorbing and accessible guide for their patients.

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewNearly three million Americans served in the Vietnam War. Each had his or her own take on what happened and why and many have tried to commit their war to paper. Phil Gioia has helped our understanding by detailing his days in-country and his informed perspectives in the midst of a fascinating, candid and brave memoir of a life of service. Bravo. -- Ken Burns, filmmakerAt a time when Americans are better connected to one another than ever electronically, but more distant from one another emotionally and psychologically, Phil Gioia gives us a story about a living community committed to service and to one another. Danger Close! is a compelling and elegantly written memoir. -- H. R. McMaster, author of Dereliction of Duty and Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free WorldPhil Gioia has written a splendid account of his life and times, from growing up as an army brat to military school to the U.S. Army in Vietnam. Excellent storytelling, that kept me riveted to the pages from start to finish. -- Joseph L. Galloway, coauthor of We Were Soldiers Once . . . and Young, We Are Soldiers Still, and They Were Soldiers

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Book SynopsisDrawing on memoir, history, and theory, Eli Clare complicates the understanding of cure, seeing it as an ideology that serves contradictory purposesfrom saving lives to social controlwhile critiquing cure rhetoric and the drive to cure disabled people through an insistence of the value of disability.Trade Review"Vermont has many national treasures living quietly among us, and one of them is Addison County resident Eli Clare. His latest book, Brilliant Imperfection: Grappling with Cure, is revelatory, a clarion call for changing the medicalized disability narrative of defective brokenness." -- John Killacky * Vermont Public Radio *"Brilliant Imperfection is a clarion call, for changing the medicalized disability narrative, that of 'defective brokenness,' that often prevails in U.S. healthcare.... [It] provides empowering answers and guidance-contributing significantly to the evolving discourse on gender, queer, and disability studies." -- John R. Killacky * Gay & Lesbian Review *"Brilliant Imperfection is an honest, moving, and deeply thoughtful engagement with some of the most difficult and significant questions in disability, queer, and cultural studies. . . . Brilliant Imperfection is sure to become required reading for scholars of disability and queer studies, revealing the multiple, often contradictory meanings and consequences of cure and the importance of work for social justice." -- Laurel Daen * H-Disability, H-Net Reviews *"Brilliant Imperfection is powerfully intersectional in its approach to body-mind difference: disability, as an identity, process, and means of interacting with the world, cannot be disentangled from other facets of identity like race, sexuality, class, and gender." -- Travis Lau * Wordgathering *"This book will quickly become a classic, cited for Clare's careful analogies that examine cure through the notion of ecosystem restoration; his harsh critique of 'case files' and the work that scholars and artists do with them; and his deeply-nuanced exploration of the shame, grief, loss, and yearning in relation to bodymind difference. Brilliant Imperfection is beautifully written, with the insight and poetic clarity that readers have come to expect from Clare." -- Ryan Cartwright * Disability Studies Quarterly *"Clare’s Brilliant Imperfection provides a well-researched, thoroughly thought-out project that grapples with multiple relevant discourses surrounding disability and PwDs. In highlighting historical, personal, and anecdotal evidence, Clare’s text is an articulate, poignant narrative – a mosaic of stories, histories and experiences – that invites much debate and analysis." -- Heather Lacey * Journal of Gender Studies *"Brilliant Imperfection is a provocation—one that spotlights how crucial disability studies continues to be, particularly as scholars, activists, and artists make room for more nuanced conversations about rehabilitation, cure, and diagnosis." -- Julie Passanante Elman * Feminist Formations *"As lawmakers present some lives as worth less than others, we need voices like Clare’s: the voices of those who see worth in the most devalued lives but who also recognize that a simple critique of medical technology is inadequate when so many people around the world desperately need access to that technology. Brilliant Imperfection is therefore timely and necessary for our current political moment—and it will prove a critical resource as we seek to create a better world." -- Julie Avril Minich * QED *“Accessible and poetic. Brilliant Imperfection will be valuable to students in introductory medical anthropology courses as well as anthropology courses on the body and human–nature interactions.” -- Michele Friedner * Medical Anthropology Quarterly *"[Brilliant Imperfection] wasn’t a how-to on overcoming grief and injury. It was permission to be who the accident made me: a disabled dyke. It was a permission to rage against the abelist and lesbiphobic shame I’d internalized. Clare was the only person who told me my worth was not dependent on my ability to get better or to disappear my pain. I cried as I read and re-read." -- Sara Youngblood Gregory * Vice *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments xi Introduction: Writing a Mosaic xv A Note on Reading This Book: Thinking about Trigger Warnings xix Brilliant Imperfection: White Pines 1 1. Ideology of Cure 7 Brilliant Imperfection: Twitches and Tremors 19 2. Violence of Cure 21 Brilliant Imperfection: Maples 33 3. In Tandem with Cure 37 Brlliant Imperfection: Stone 49 4. Nuances of Cure 51 Brilliant Imperfection: Shells 65 5. Structure of Cure 67 Brilliant Imperfection: Hermit Crabs 81 6. How Cure Works 83 Brilliant Imperfection: Rolling 99 7. At the Center of Cure 101 Brilliant Imperfection: Myrtle 125 8. Moving Through Cure 127 Brilliant Imperfection: Drag Queen 147 9. Impacts fo Cure 149 Brilliant Imperfection: Survival Notes 169 10. Promise of Cure 171 Brilliant Imperfection: Cycling 189 Notes 191 Bibliography 201 Index 209

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Book SynopsisA moving memoir of love, loss and hope. Zdenka's peaceful life was changed forever when she was sent to Terezin concentration camp. Here, she was given a humble engraved tin ring by her first love Arno. She survived six concentration camps, endured horrors the like of which most of us can't begin to comprehend, yet never lost the will to live.Trade Review'Zdenka Fantlova and her story made a lasting impression. She survived six concentration camps, endured horrors the like of which most of us can't begin to comprehend, yet never lost the will to live or her optimism for a better future. During her time in the camps she kept a little tin ring, made for her by her boyfriend. She risked her life to keep this humble object that meant so much to her.' Fiona Bruce, BBC's Antiques Roadshow; ; 'An unforgettable memoir which deserves to be read for its unique story and for its shared message about the unrelenting human spirit.' Publisher's Weekly; 'These are stories we must read and never forget.' Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks

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Book SynopsisBob Pisani is Senior Markets Correspondent for CNBC and has spent the past 25 years on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.He has been on the front line of finance for all the major events of the last quarter century, including the Asian Financial Crisis, the dot-com bubble and collapse, the terrorist attacks of 9/11, and the Great Financial Crisis.What was it like to witness these events firsthand, at the center of the financial world?In Shut Up and Keep Talking, Bob tells a series of captivating stories that reveal what he has learned about life and investing.These include encounters with a host of stars, world leaders and CEOs, including Fidel Castro, Robert Downey Jr., Walter Cronkite, Aretha Franklin, Barry Manilow, Jack Ma, Joey Ramone, and many more.Along the way, Bob describes how the investment world has changed, from brokers shouting on the floor of the NYSE to fully electronic trading, from investment sages and superstars picking stocks for exorbitant fees to the phenomenal rise of low-cost index funds that are saving investors millions, and from the belief that investors make rational decisions to the new age of behavioral finance, which recognizes the often-irrational nature of human decision making and seeks to understand its role in the stock market.Bob also considers what really moves stocks up and down and tackles the big questions: why is stock picking so hard, and why is the future so unknowable?Don?t miss this highly entertaining and revealing account of how financial markets have changed, and how they really work, from someone who was there.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review‘Sam McAlister is a force of nature – she’s relentlessly pursued scoops for her entire career. And this is the book to prove it.’ -- Steph McGovern‘Sam delivers where others fail. She has a zinger of a story to tell.’ -- Huw Edwards‘Even though we know what happened, McAlister’s eye-witness description of the royal car-crash retains the power to shock… riveting.’ -- Sunday Telegraph‘A good television news interview requires organisational skill and news instinct, not just from the interviewer, but from the producers who support them. Sam McAlister clearly has both in abundance… The book sheds light on the often unacknowledged efforts of producers, as well as on life at the BBC.’ -- TLS‘McAlister’s insights into why some interviews make compelling viewing while others, despite brilliant inquisitors and intriguing guests, fall flat is one reason why Scoops should be required reading not just for media insiders but for anyone thinking about a media appearance.’ -- Times Higher Education

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Book SynopsisIn a series of vignettes of life in her village, Alice Taylor reasserts the priorities of public space and local community. The Parish evokes and explores the positive values of community, which could be renewed and reinvigorated for a present and future that achieves harmony between comfort and the pressing need to respect the environment.

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Book SynopsisImmortalized as Dean Moriarty by Jack Kerouac in his epic novel, On the Road, Neal Cassady was infamous for his unstoppable energy and his overwhelming charm, his savvy hustle and his devil-may-care attitude. A treasured friend and traveling companion of Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs and Ken Kesey, to name just some of his cohorts on the beatnik path, Cassady lived life to the fullest, ready for inspiration at any turn.Before he died in Mexico in 1968, just four days shy of his forty-second birthday, Cassady had written the jacket blurb for this book: “Seldom has there been a story of a man so balled up. No doubt many readers will not believe the veracity of the author, but I assure these doubting Thomases that every incident, as such, is true.As Ferlinghetti writes in his editor’s note, Cassady was “an early prototype of the urban cowboy who a hundred years ago might have been an outlaw on the range.” Here are his autobiographical writings, the rambling American saga of a truly free individual.Neal Cassady (1926-1968) was a key figure and writer during the Beat Generation and is known as the inspiration for Jack Kerouac''s immortalizing character Dean Moriarty. In 1946, Cassady traveled to New York City where he met famous Beat poets and writers such as Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg. Cassady''s works were never published during his lifetime.

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Book SynopsisA series of personal and historical encounters with surrealism from one of its foremost practitioners in the United States.Trade Review"The cumulative effect of these [essays] and Rosemont's other historical pieces is the reader’s realization that so much of progressive history has disappeared from dominant narratives. … Rosemont is careful to champion art and joy as well as activism—and she emphasizes that creativity and humor are essential to a true mental revolution. … Perhaps most poignantly, these encounters add up to an indelible portrait of Ted Joans himself as another revolutionary artist and thinker who had a profound effect on those around him, but who is obscure in the dominant narrative of U.S. culture. Rosemont’s collection should go far in restoring Joans and many others to a more equitable 'canon,' while also reminding us of a time when artists, poets, and activists worked together toward a deeply lived vision of societal change."—Hyperallergic"In part, this is a memoir of the now 77-year-old American writer and artist Penelope Rosemont’s encounters with the giants of surrealism and how those encounters shaped her. But it’s also a book of wonderful mini-essays describing and paying tribute to a whole host of largely forgotten, fascinating figures—underground artists, publishers and public dissenters who set the stage for waves of cultural production dedicated, to paraphrase Andre Breton, to hunting down the mad beast of conventionality. In these pages you will meet, for instance, Canadian trailblazing surrealist painter Mimi Parent, a flamboyant expatriate relocated to Paris where she spent her days scorning art world greed and making works like this one, described by Rosemont: 'Another painting, aglow with four different kinds of radiance, portrays a gray sky filled by a gray eagle whose talons reach through the very walls of the Bastille to clutch two frilly female dolls.' Vivid arts writing that makes you yearn to see the work, combined with an insistence that Surrealism and its many spinoffs may still yet lead to the 'transformation of everyday life.' In this book, Rosemont reaffirms the revolutionary potential and enduring practice of the non-hierarchical arts."—Broken Pencil"The memoir captures a fantastic and revolutionary spirit of chance and serendipity. &hellilp; It is through the recount of these artistic relationships that we come to understand the Surrealist movement, and those driving it, much more intimately. … Rosemont shares a compassionate vision of the world, grounded in the surrealist impulse towards yet another utopia. This new collection vibrates and hums and sings."—Entropy"Speaking of the Parisian surrealists that she and Franklin Rosemont met in Paris during their visit in 1965-66, Penelope describes them as 'overflowing with poetry, beauty, humor, excitement and life.' Every word applies to this book, a fascinating collection of essays, diary notes, and surrealist reflections. When writing about André Breton and his friends, or about the marvelous surrealist women artists Toyen, Mimi Parent, Leonora Carrington or Jayne Cortez, Penny Rosemont is not delivering dry abstractions, as so many academic 'specialists,' but telling us about warm and exciting human encounters, illuminated by the subversive spirit of Permanent Enchantment."—Michael Löwy, author of Ecosocialism"This compelling and well-drawn book lets us see the adventures, inspirations, and relationships that have shaped Penelope Rosemont's art and rebellion."—David Roediger, author of Class, Race, and Marxism"Anyone seeking to understand contemporary surrealism or the history of surrealism in America and beyond should make their way at once to this book. Penelope Rosemont's remarkable life and legendary body of work lies centrally at the crossroads of surrealism then and now. The broad sampling of essays included here offer a compelling entry point for curious readers and an essential compendium for surrealist practitioners."—Abigail Susik, professor of art history, Willamette University"Reading Rosemont is like being led by an enchanted guide through the wild fields of Surrealism. Around her neck must be a double lens made out of telescope and magnifying glass through which she studies this glowing, breathless landscape. Artist, historian, and social activist, Rosemont writes from the inside out. Like a rare, hybrid flower growing out of the earth, she complicates, expands, and opens the strange and beautiful meadow where Surrealism continues to live and thrive."—Sabrina Orah Mark, author of Wild Milk "In this wide-ranging collection of essays, Penelope Rosemont, long a keeper of surrealism's revolutionary flame, shows how a penetrating look into the past can liberate the future. With humor and passion, Rosemont tells the story both of her own engagement with surrealism and of surrealism's relevance to the struggle for social and psychic transformation. Whether addressed to feminism, anarchism, the black power movement, or visual art and poetry, Rosemont's writing, like surrealism itself, sets fire to everything it touches."—Andrew Joron, author of The Absolute Letter"The looming centenary of Surrealism will be greeted by a boatload of publications, but few will be as heartfelt, spirited, and teeming with the atmosphere conjured by Penelope Rosemont. Her welcome memoir has a double virtue, as testament to the enduring radiance of Surrealism, and as a memento to the Sixties, revealing a sweetly beating wonderment at the heart of that absurdly maligned decade."—Jed Rasula, author of Destruction Was My Beatrice: Dada and the Unmaking of the Twentieth Century"Written with the quickness, candor, and delight of encounter, Penelope Rosemont's Surrealism: Inside the Magnetic Fields brings surrealism's central figures, Leonora Carrington, Man Ray, Toyen, Andre Breton et al into our field of experience, and out of the stasis of photography and film, where most of us have glimpsed them. Most thrilling, perhaps, is the 60’s mimeo-magazine-making coterie of Rosemont and her friends, seeking revolution, disorientation, anything but the banality of the American Midwestern plains. Quite naturally possessing what she calls 'remnants of my healthy beatnik hedonism,' Rosemont recreates the feverish antics and immediate reception her close-knit, sleep-deprived, beat-attired squad find in the established, moray-breaking Parisian and international surrealists. Revolution is here, between the covers. Anyone who opens this book is invited to the journey, the party, the radicalism that 'must not be grim but a liberation, an increase of pleasure. Otherwise what is the point of it?'"—Gillian Conoley, author of A Little More Red Sun on the Human: New and Selected Poems and translator of Thousand Times Broken: Three Books by Henri Michaux"Penelope Rosemont recounts her chance encounters with surrealists in Paris, leading her to a life-long adventure in surrealist praxes. These included (and still do!) sharing poetry, stories, art, and games of objective chance with kindred spirits around the globe, some of which she shares with us in these magical pages. As surrealists, we live our lives not as today's external world demands but as our own inner dreams, desires, and imaginations lead. We demand nothing less than the impossible not in some distant utopian future but right here, right now."—Gale Ahrens, author of Lucy Parsons: Freedom, Equality & SolidarityTable of ContentsPreface Introduction: The Magnetic Fields, Cinema, & the Penetrating Light of the Total Eclipse 1) My Days in the Mimeo Revolution 2) Paris Days 3) Chicago: Maxwell Street in the Sixties 4) Toyen and The Sleeping Girl 5) The Hermetic Windows of Joseph Cornell 6) Citizen Train Defends the Haymarket Anarchists 7) Mary Maclane, A Daughter of Butte, MT 8) Surrealist Encounters, Ted Joans, Jayne Cortez, Black Power 9) Unexpected Paths: Gustav Landauer 10) Mimi Parent & the Art of Luminous Laughter 11) The Life and Times of the Golden Goose 12) Nancy Cunard & Surrealism: Thinking Sympathetically Black 13) Lee Godie, Queen of the Outsiders 14) Dada: Emmy Hennings, Kandinsky, & the Theory of Relativity 15) Surrealism and Situationism: King Kong vs. Godzilla 16) Sex, the Sleeping Girl, and the Crisis of the Object: Toyen 17) Grant’s Tomb to the Emerald Tablet 18) Leonora Carrington in Chicago, and the Lion and the Unicorn in the Theater of Analogy 19) Restless, Reckless, Rendezvous of Women Surrealists Works Cited Bibliography of Penelope Rosemont

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisA thrilling Second World War memoir, which takes the reader back to Britain''s darkest days. For thirty years, Eileen was forbidden to speak about her wartime activities. This is the full, uncut story of the Filter Room for the first time! Discover top secrets of Britain''s wartime Radar network and read about Eileen''s time in Nazi Germany.

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Book SynopsisHolocaust survivor Iby Knill picks up from where she left off in the best-selling 'Woman without a Number' arriving in England in 1947. Building nine separate lives, she also has to come to terms with her past. Poignant, moving and searingly honest, this account reconfirms the very best of human nature and is a truly uplifting sequel.

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Book SynopsisThe trials, tribulations and occasional successes of a newly qualified teacher in the early 1970s at an urban school in West Yorkshire, the characters she comes across in the classroom and staffroom accompanied by a series of letters to and from parentsTable of ContentsIntroduction Chapter One - Yorkshire Roots Chapter Two - Yorkshire Terriers Chapter Three - Yorkshire Dialect Chapter Four - Yorkshire Grit Chapter Five - Yorkshire Regiment Chapter Six - Yorkshire Ridings...and Beyond Chapter Seven - A Yorkshire Rose Chapter Eight - Yorkshire Lads and Lasses Chapter Nine - Yorkshire Life Chapter Ten - Yorkshire Relish Chapter Eleven - Yorkshire Puddings Chapter Twelve - Yorkshire Folk Chapter Thirteen - A Right Yorkshire Mixture Chapter Fourteen - Yorkshire Tykes Chapter Fifteen - Yorkshire Days Chapter Sixteen - Yorkshire Post

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Book SynopsisA memoir with Letters and Diaries. After the death of her son, the days seemed endlessly dark. But the discovery of the letters he left behind for her would change everything.

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Book SynopsisPianist Helmut Deutsch relates his journey from unknown repetiteur to one of the most refined and sought-after accompanists of the modern era. In this book, he gives, with humour and modesty, fascinating insights into pianistic technique, repertoire, performance, interpersonal relationships, and the special qualities required for his profession.Trade Review'This is a book which will surely appeal to any classical music lover, and in particular those with a penchant for lieder. Meanwhile pianists, and especially those who practice the art of accompanying, will find that the book offers a plethora of expert insight and valuable understanding. For college students learning this art, and those intent on a portfolio career, the book is absolutely invaluable.' - Andrew Eales @pianodao.com. 'All lovers of song will want this book, it illuminates with wit what it is to be an accompanist, and provides a clear-sighted view from 50 years partnering singers.' Robert Hugill @planethugill.com 'Outstanding. How often does one read a book from the first page to the last without putting it down? And feel sad when one has finished?' - Ingrid Wanja, OperaLounge ; 'This volume is quite simply treasure-trove: required reading for all those devoted to Lieder, and a wonderfully tasty appetizer for those as yet unfamiliar with the genre.' - Rotary-Magazin ; 'This book describes, with humour and with intelligence, Helmut Deutsch's journey from unknown repetiteur to one of the most sought-after accompanists of the modern era. Apart from pianistic technique we also learn the qualities required for his profession of accompanist: empathy, flexibility, psychological sensitivity, patience and the ability to take a step back and be at the service of others.' - Nicole Restle, Das Magazin der Berliner PhilharmonikerTable of ContentsForeword by Alfred Brendel, Translator's note, Acknowledgements, Prologue, 1. Hermann Prey. The first concert, 2. ' . . . and dream a blissful dream.' Japan, 3. 'What a dream profession!' The years with Hermann Prey, 4. Even Karajan had to laugh. Childhood and adolescence, 5. The right partnership. Early years as a song accompanist. Ileana Cotrubas, Irmgard Seefried, Rita Streich, 6. Hermann Prey. Winterreisen and anecdotes, 7. Yumiko Samejima, 8. Josef Protschka, 9. Olaf Bar, 10. Brigitte Fassbaender, 11. Practising, 12. Working with the singer, 13. Bo Skovhus, 14. Bernd Weikl, 15. Peter Schreier, 16. Thomas Quasthoff, 17. Teaching, 18. Juliane Banse, 19. Dietrich Henschel, 20. Jonas Kaufmann, 21. Stefanie Iranyi, 22. Mauro Peter, 23. Of pianos and concert-grands, 24. The day of the concert, 25. The concert, 26. Page-turners, 27. After the concert, 28. Barbara Bonney, 29. Angelika Kirchschlager, 30. Programmes, 31. Andreas Schmidt, 32. Recordings, 33. Grace Bumbry, 34. Matthias Goerne, 35. The press, 36. Werktreue and liberties, 37. Michael Volle, 38. Diana Damrau, 39. Competitions, 40. Piotr Beczala, 41. Camilla Nylund, 42. Singers and accompanists, 43. The Liederabend - past and future, 44. Epilogue, Appendices: Contributor biographies, The singers, Selected discography, Index of names

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Book SynopsisA celebration of the beauty and power of crochet - specifically, the life-changing benefits this fibre art has brought to one extraordinary boy, 11-year-old crochet prodigy, Jonah Larson.PART ONE: Jonah shares his life story, including details about his adoption, behaviour struggles in school, and the role that crochet has played in his life.PART TWO: Jonah defines crochet, introduces fibre art friends from around the world, and invites readers to crochet away with him - exclusive pattern included.Since going viral early this year, Jonah has been credited for lighting the crochet community on fire, and he has grown his social media following substantially. His Instagram page has nearly 200,000 followers. The continued national and international media attention, including an appearance on the Today Show, a spot inOprah Magazine,feature stories in major crochet magazines in the US and UK, and interviews by television stations in Australia and Germany, has allowed Jonah to expand his business and give back in an even bigger way. To date, he has raised close to $20,000 through Go Fund Me for an organisation doing charitable work in the region of Ethiopia where he was born.Trade ReviewYoung Talent In his first book Hello, Crochet Friends! 11-year-old Jonah Larson shares his inspirational outlook on the world of crafts. Exploring the concepts of making art, being mindful, and giving back, this title would make an uplifting addition to your bookshelf. Now available in the UK and exclusively distributed by Search Press it costs £12.99 from searchpress.com * Let's Knit *Exciting New Release In his first book Hello, Crochet shares his life story and inspirational outlook on the world of crafts. Exploring the concepts of making art, being mindful, and giving back, this title would make an uplifting addition to your bookshelf. Courtesy of Search Press, the exclusive distributor for the UK, we have eight copies of this incredible new release up for grabs. * Let's Knit *

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