Search results for ""Author Pat Williams""

Motivational speaker and author Pat Williams guides readers on a journey to success by helping them discover where their greatest talents intersects with their greatest passions.

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On 2 February 1959, a musical about the life and times of heavyweight boxing star Ezekiel Dhlamini (known as 'King Kong') opened in Johannesburg to a packed audience that included Nelson Mandela. King Kong was not just South Africa's first ever musical, but one that grew out of a collaboration between black people and white, and showcased an all-black cast. It was an instant hit, bursting through the barriers of apartheid and eventually playing to 200,000 South Africans of every colour before transferring to London's West End. Pat Williams, the show's lyricist, was at the time an apolitical young woman trying to free herself from the controls and prejudices of the genteel white society in which she lived. Here she recounts her experience of growing up in a divided South Africa, her involvement in the musical, and its lasting impact both on herself and on the show's cast, many of whom went on to find international fame, like South African jazz legends Miriam Makeba and Hugh Masekela. Her memoir takes the story up to the present day. It is both a vivid evocation of a troubled time and place as well as a celebration of a joyous production, in which a group of young people came together in South Africa's dark times - to create a show which still lives on today.

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Introduce Young Readers to Inspiring Figures from Early American History We live in scary and unpredictable times, and times of crisis call for heroes. Despite our recent obsession with all things superhero, real heroes are just regular people who rise to the challenge when the going gets tough--like the people who won the American Revolutionary War. Some famous, some obscure, but all models of courage under fire, these ordinary people followed their convictions, took tremendous risks, and faced dire consequences should they fail. Yet they stuck to their principles, winning the most unlikely of victories and not only shaping a new country but reshaping the world. Now Pat Williams brings their stories to vivid life for children ages 9-12. These engaging stories of men, women, and even kids who showed courage despite overwhelming odds during America's fight for freedom will inspire young readers to face their fears, take calculated risks, and imagine a better future for themselves and their country.

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Each topic is a gem of brilliant writing from a master storyteller. By turns delightful, thought provoking, funny and packed with stories and observations about life's vagaries.

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NBA List Jam! is an entertaining and informative collection of 125+ ranked lists that discuss and debate the people, games, events, and ephemera that have made the NBA the spectator sport of choice for millions in North America and beyond. The wide variety of list topics include Greatest Teams, Best Comebacks, Best High School to NBA Stars, Worst Collapses, Best Pure Shooters, Oddest Hairdos, Greatest Players from the Big 5, Top NBA Announcers, Best/Worst Uniforms, and much, much more! Each of the NBA's 30 teams has one list dedicated to it, contributed by one of that team's most prominent personalities past or present. The book features big-name guest contributors throughout,players, coaches, media, and more,including Doug Collins, Clark Kellogg, Jeannie Buss, Dan Shaughnessy, Craig Sager, and many more! And the ambitious finale ranks the Top100 Players in NBA History. Hoops fans everywhere will have a ball reading and ranting about the best, worst, oddest, funniest, most intense, and most memorable events and moments that have made the NBA a multibillion dollar global enterprise.

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Through engaging stories and inspiring examples of those who have found their sweet spot for success, Williams shows readers how to identify their greatest talent, pursue their greatest passion, and multiply their efforts through teamwork. They'll discover how to maximize their natural gifting, focus their enthusiasm, and leverage their talent and passion into a lifetime of success. Perfect for graduates going off to college or work, or anyone who is still looking for a career that satisfies their soul.

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The Sixers won 65 games and an NBA championship in 1982–83, still one of the finest seasons in NBA history. It was Moses Malone who, in the days before the playoffs, gave the team its battle cry. Asked by coach Billy Cunningham how he thought things would go in the playoffs, Moses said, "Fo’, fo’, fo’,”— meaning, in Moses's shorthand, that he expected the Sixers to sweep each of the three series they would need to play in order to win a championship. In this newly revised edition of Tales from the Philadelphia '76ers Locker Room, sports maverick Pat Williams teams up with writer Gordon Jones to capture a behind-the-scenes look at this legendary season. With wit and candor, Williams and Jones relive the unforgettable victories as well as the wrenching disappointments and painstaking efforts to rebuild that preceded that season. Readers are reintroduced to Julius “Dr. J” Erving, the beloved but unfulfilled superstar; Billy Cunningham, the hard-driven coach; Harold Katz, the relentless owner; and Moses Malone, the final piece of the title puzzle. Joined by a star-studded cast of players, they rampaged through the league, leaving a trail of devastated teams in their wake. With a thirty-year legacy that has yet to be surpassed by any '76ers team, Tales from the Philadelphia '76ers Locker Room is both a celebration of past glory and a promise of future victory to the loyal fans of the '76ers nation.

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When Coach John Wooden graduated from eighth grade, his father gave him a handwritten card and said, "Son, try to live up to this." On the card, his father had written seven simple yet profound life principles: Be true to yourself Help others Make friendship a fine art Drink deeply from good books, especially the Bible Make each day your masterpiece Build a shelter against a rainy day by the life you live Give thanks for your blessings and pray for guidance every day These principles were the key to Coach Wooden's greatness--and his goodness. Through powerful stories and pithy advice, this book shares the wisdom that made Wooden happy and successful. This inspirational and conversational book, now in trade paper, will encourage, challenge, and motivate readers to build these principles into their own lives.

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2022 SABR Baseball Research Award Finalist for the 2022 SABR Seymour Medal The careers of pitchers Jack Quinn and Howard Ehmke began in the Deadball Era and peaked in the 1920s. They were teammates for many years, with both the cellar-dwelling Boston Red Sox and later with the world champion Philadelphia Athletics, managed by Connie Mack. As far back as 1912, when he was just twenty-nine, Quinn was told he was too old to play and on the downward side of his career. Because of his determination, work ethic, outlook on life, and physical conditioning, however, he continued to excel. In his midthirties, then his late thirties, and even into his forties, he overcame the naysayers. At age forty-six he became the oldest pitcher to start a World Series game. When Quinn finally retired in 1933 at fifty, the “Methuselah of the Mound” owned numerous longevity records, some of which he holds to this day. Ehmke, meanwhile, battled arm trouble and poor health through much of his career. Like Quinn, he was dismissed by the experts and from many teams, only to return and excel. He overcame his physical problems by developing new pitches and pitching motions and capped his career with a stunning performance in Game One of the 1929 World Series against the Chicago Cubs, which still ranks among baseball’s most memorable games. Connie Mack described it as his greatest day in baseball.Comeback Pitchers is the inspirational story of these two great pitchers with intertwining careers who were repeatedly considered washed up and too old but kept defying the odds and thrilling fans long after most pitchers would have retired.

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