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Fifty-five Years in Five Acts: My Life in Opera
by Astrid Varnay Donald ArthurFor Astrid Varnay, opera was the family business. The daughter of coloratura soprano Mária Jávor and dramatic tenor Alexander Várnay, she literally grew up backstage at the opera. Vocally and musically trained by her mother and mentor (and later husband) Hermann Weigert, she was just twenty-three years old when she made her unofficial debut at the Metropolitan Opera as a last-minute replacement for the suddenly ill Lotte Lehmann. Varnay's critically acclaimed performance as Sieglinde in Die Walküre catapulted her into the limelight. Varnay reflects on her remarkable life in opera, discussing her signature roles and performances, vocal preparation and technique, interpretive acting style, and her seamless transition from leading soprano to character roles, including her switch from Elektra to Klytemnästra in Strauss's Elektra. Her engaging and witty memoir is filled with frank, often critical, observations about many of the most significant vocal artists, conductors, and directors of the twentieth century. She describes her lifelong friendship with operatic idol Kirsten Flagstad, the years at the Met and conflicts with Rudolf Bing, her appearances at the Bayreuth and Salzburg Festivals, and her artistic rift with Herbert von Karajan.<P><P> This book is also listed in libraries as "55 Years in Five Acts: My Life in Opera"
Fighting Bob La Follette
by Nancy C. UngerRobert "Fighting Bob" La Follette (1855-1925) was one of the most significant leaders of American progressivism. Nancy Unger integrates previously unknown details from La Follette's personal life with important events from his storied political career, revealing a complex man who was a compelling mixture of failure and accomplishment, tragedy and triumph.Serving as U.S. representative from 1885 to 1891, governor of Wisconsin from 1901 to 1906, and senator from Wisconsin from 1906 to his death in 1925, La Follette earned the nickname "Fighting Bob" through his uncompromising efforts to reform both politics and society, especially by championing the rights of the poor, workers, women, and minorities.Based on La Follette family letters, diaries, and other papers, this biography covers the personal events that shaped the public man. In particular, Unger explores La Follette's relationship with his remarkable wife, feminist Belle Case La Follette, and with his sons, both of whom succeeded him in politics. The La Follette who emerges from this retelling is an imperfect yet appealing man who deserves to be remembered as one of the United States' most devoted and effective politicians.
Film Crazy
by Patrick McgilliganIn Film Crazy, McGilligan shares some of his fascinating interviews with screen luminaries from his salad days as a young journalist working the Hollywood beat. He rides the presidential campaign bus with Ronald Reagan, visits Alfred Hitchcock on the set of the Master of Suspense's last film, "Family Plot," meets George Stevens at the Brown Derby and conducts the last interview with the director of "Shane" and "Giant." Other interview subjects captured for posterity include rough-and-ready pioneer directors William Wellman and Raoul Walsh; likeable actor Joel McCrea; actress - and the only female director of her era - Ida Lupino; French legend Rene Clair; and lowly-contract-writer-turned-studio-mogul Dore Schary. Film Crazy is a must for film students, scholars and professionals.
Final Confession: The Unsolved Crimes of Phil Cresta
by Brian P. Wallace Bill CrowleyJust before he died in Chicago, legendary London-born thief Phil Cresta (1928-95) revealed to Crowley, a retired Boston police detective, how he planned and carried out the capers that had baffled both the police and his colleagues for decades. Sports announcer and columnist Wallace helps him tell the tales. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Fire And Rain: The James Taylor Story
by Ian HalperinBased on interviews with more than 100 musicians, family members, music industry figures, and others, "Fire and Rain" offers a full-scale and sympathetic view of the musician's life and career--including his stay in a psychiatric institution, his self-imposed exile to England, and the inspirations behind his songs.
Fire on the Beach
by David Wright David ZobyFROM THE CIVIL WAR TO THE TURN OF THE CENTURY, THIS IS THE TRUE-LIFE STORY OF THE ORIGINAL COAST GUARD AND ONE CREW OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN HEROES WHO FOUGHT STORMS AND SAVED LIVES OFF NORTH CAROLINA'S OUTER BANKS. Fire on the Beach recovers a lost gem of American history. It tells the story of the U.S. Life-Saving Service, formed in 1871 to assure the safe passage of American and international shipping and to save lives and salvage cargo. A century ago, the adventures of the now-forgotten "surfmen" who, in crews of seven, bore the brunt of this dangerous but vital duty filled the pages of popular reading material, from Harper's to the Baltimore Sun and New York Herald. Station 17, located on the desolate beaches of Pea Island, North Carolina, housed one such unit, and Richard Etheridge -- the only black man to lead a lifesaving crew -- was its captain. A former slave and Civil War veteran, Etheridge recruited and trained a crew of African- Americans, forming the only all-black station in the nation. Although civilian attitudes toward Etheridge and his men ranged from curiosity to outrage, they figured among the most courageous surfmen in the service, performing many daring rescues. From 1880 to the closing of the station in 1947, the Pea Island crew saved scores of men, women, and children who, under other circumstances, would have considered the hands of those reaching out to help them to be of the wrong race. In 1896, when the three-masted schooner E. S. Newman beached during a hurricane, Etheridge and his men accomplished one of the most daring rescues in the annals of the Life-Saving Service. The violent conditions had rendered their equipment useless. Undaunted, the surfmen swam out to the wreck, making nine trips in all, and saved the entire crew. This incredible feat went unrecognized until 1996, when the Coast Guard posthumously awarded the crew the Gold Life-Saving Medal. The authors depict the lives of Etheridge and his crew against the backdrop of late-nineteenth-century America -- the horrors of the Civil War, the hopefulness of Reconstruction, and the long slide toward Plessy v. Ferguson that followed. Full of exploits and heroics, Fire on the Beach, like the movie Glory, illustrates yet another example of the little-known but outstanding contributions of a remarkable group of African-Americans to our country's history.
First Person: An Astonishingly Frank Self-Portrait by Russia's President Vladimir Putin
by Vladimir Putin Nataliya Gevorkyan Natalya Timakova Andrei KolesnikovWho is this Vladimir Putin? Who is this man who suddenly--overnight and without warning--was handed the reigns of power to one of the most complex, formidable, and volatile countries in the world? How can we trust him if we don't know him? First Person is an intimate, candid portrait of the man who holds the future of Russia in his grip. An extraordinary compilation of over 24 hours of in-depth interviews and remarkable photographs, it delves deep into Putin's KGB past and explores his meteoric rise to power. No Russian leader has ever subjected himself to this kind of public examination of his life and views. Both as a spy and as a virtual political unknown until selected by Boris Yeltsin to be Prime Minister, Putin has been regarded as man of mystery. Now, the curtain lifts to reveal a remarkable life of struggles and successes. Putin's life story is of major importance to the world.
First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers
by Loung UngUntil the age of five, Lounge Ung lived in Phnom Penh, one of seven children of a high-ranking government official. She was a precocious child who loved the open city markets, fried crickets, chicken fights, and sassing her parents. While her beautiful mother worried that Loung was a troublemaker -- that she stomped around like a thirsty cow -- her beloved father knew Loung was a clever girl. When Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge army stormed into Phnom Penh in April 1975, Ung's family fled their home and moved from village to village to hide their identity, their education, their former life of privilege. Eventually, the family dispersed in order to survive. Because Loung was resilient and determined, she was trained as a child soldier in a work camp for orphans, while other siblings were sent to labor camps.
First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers
by Loung UngOne of seven children of a high-ranking government official, Loung Ung lived a privileged life in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh until the age of five. Then, in April 1975, Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge army stormed into the city, forcing Ung's family to flee and, eventually, to disperse. Loung was trained as a child soldier in a work camp for orphans, her siblings were sent to labor camps, and those who survived the horrors would not be reunited until the Khmer Rouge was destroyed. Harrowing yet hopeful, Loung's powerful story is an unforgettable account of a family shaken and shattered, yet miraculously sustained by courage and love in the face of unspeakable brutality.
First, You Cry: The Classic, Inspiring Story of One Woman's Triumph over Breast Cancer
by Betty Rollin"Every woman. . . should read it. Her book has the simple touch of truth." —Gail Sheehy, Author of The Silent PassageNBC News correspondent Betty Rollin, glamorous, successful, and happily married, had it all—and then she learned that she had a malignant tumor in her breast. Written with wit, warmth, and soul searching honesty, First, You Cry is the inspiring true story about how one woman transformed the most terrifying ordeal of her life into a new beginning. With a new introduction and epilogue, this unique memoir serves as a fascinating retrospective of the twenty-five years since Rollin's first mastectomy and, given the continuing threat of breast cancer, tells a story that will inform all women as it touches them with its honesty and even, humor.
Five Sisters
by James FoxThe author of the bestseller White Mischief tells the story of the beautiful Langhorne sisters, who lived at the Pinnacle of high and powerful society from the end of the Civil War through the Second World War. Making their way across two continents, they left in their wakes rich husbands, fame, adoration, and scandal. Lizzie, Irene, Nancy, Phyllis, and Nora were born in Virginia to a family impoverished by the Civil War. Their father remade his fortune by collaborating with the Yankees and building rail-roads; the sisters became southern belles and northern debutantes. James Fox draws on unpublished correspondence between the sisters and their husbands, lovers, children, and the powerful and glamorous of their day to construct a plural topography with the scope of a grand novel and the pace of a historical thriller. At its center is the most famous sister, Nancy, who married Waldorf Astor, one of the richest men in the world. Heroic, hilarious, magnetically charming, and a bully, Lady Astor became Britain's first female MP, championing women's rights and the poor. The beautiful Irene married Charles Dana Gibson and was the model for the Gibson Girl. The author's grandmother, Phyllis, married a famous economist, one of the architects of modern Europe. Fox has written an absorbing and spirited, intimate and sweeping account of extraordinary women at the highest reaches of society, their adventures set against the background of a tumultuous century.
Flips and Tips: Fun Advice from Today’s Top Skaters and Gymnasts
by Pohla SmithHow to improve your athletic skills, with tips from famous skaters and gymnasts.
Flirting with Danger
by Siobhan DarrowFormer star correspondent for CNN, Siobhan Darrow covered the world's hottest war zones over the last two decades, reporting from the front lines in Moscow, Chechnya, the Balkans, Albania, Israel, and Northern Ireland. Her fearless pursuit of stories placed her in countless life-threatening situations, prompting Darrow to wonder what about her character so attracted her to adrenaline, and so alienated her from the family life a part of her longed for. Darrow approaches this question with the same honesty-and seat-of-the-pants courage-that established her reputation as a premiere reporter, and the answers she arrives at form this riveting memoir of a woman assigned to cover history in the making, even as she chases down the most elusive "get" of all: her own happiness.From the Trade Paperback edition.
Flux: Women on Sex, Work, Love, Kids and Life in a Half-changed World
by Peggy OrensteinPeggy Orenstein's bestselling Schoolgirls is the classic study of teenage girls and self-esteem. Now Orenstein uses the same interviewing and reporting skills to examine the lives of women in their 20s, 30s and 40s. The advances of the women's movement allow women to grow up with a sense of expanded possibilities. Yet traditional expectations have hardly changed. To discover how they are navigating this double burden personally and professionally, Orenstein interviewed hundreds of women and has blended their voices into a compelling narrative that gets deep inside their lives and choices. With unusual sensitivity, Orenstein offers insight and inspiration for every woman who is making important decisions of her own.
Flying Ace: The Story of Amelia Earhart (Dorling Kindersley Readers)
by Angela BullNIMAC-sourced textbook
For Freedom's Sake: The Life of Fannie Lou Hamer
by Chana Kai LeeA biography of Fannie Lou Hamer, one of the most important civil rights activists of the 20th century. It documents Hamer's lifelong crusade to empower the poor through collective action and the personal costs of her struggle to win a political voice and economic self-sufficiency for blacks in the segregated South.
For Humanity: Reflections of a War Crimes Investigator
by Richard J. GoldstoneThroughout his career, the distinguished South African jurist Richard J. Goldstone has been deeply committed to promoting human rights in his own country and abroad. A justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa since 1994, he has also served as chairperson of the Commission of Inquiry Regarding the Prevention of Public Violence and Intimidation in South Africa and chief prosecutor of the United Nations International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. In this engrossing and inspiring book, Justice Goldstone provides an intimate account of his progression from a young activist opposing South Africa's racial policies to the world's first independent war crimes prosecutor. Justice Goldstone begins by describing how he became involved in the transition of South Africa from an apartheid state to a democracy and why he was chosen in late 1992 to head the commission that investigated criminal conduct that accompanied that transition. He then considers his time as chief prosecutor for the United Nations Tribunals, speaking not only of the fundamental legal issues that have arisen but also of his personal experiences and feelings. Arguing in favor of the move toward establishing a permanent international criminal court, he offers a stirring defense of the role of international tribunals in holding human rights violators accountable.
Forever Liesl
by Charmian CarrThe Sound of Music is more than a classic film. It is a cultural phenomenon. Its magic lives on in the minds and hearts of everyone it has touched. It was Charmian Carr who captivated us as the world’s most famous older sister: Liesl ‘Sixteen Going on Seventeen’ von Trapp. Now, she is the first of the 1965 film’s cast to tell us what it was like to be part of the phenomenon, celebrating the spirit of the movie – family love, romance, inspiration, courage, and the joy and power of music. Forever Liesl brims with anecdotes – from love affairs on set to wild nights at Salzburg’s Bristol Hotel (where Charmian was billeted with ‘the adults’), the near disaster as they filmed that famous dance in the summerhouse, how she won her role with no acting experience, and her relationships, both then and now, with her six celluloid siblings. You’ll read this in part to find out the answer to the question Charmian is asked most often – What was Julie Andrews really like? – but you’ll discover her favourite stories from friends and fans of the film, rare photographs, how they actually pieced the world of the film together from locations in Austria and sets in Hollywood, what Charmian learned when she met the real von Trapp children, and how The Sound of Music has helped her to get through stormy times in her own life since.
Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation (Pulitzer Prize Winner)
by Joseph J. EllisPULITZER PRIZE WINNER • NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A landmark work of history explores how a group of greatly gifted but deeply flawed individuals—Hamilton, Burr, Jefferson, Franklin, Washington, Adams, and Madison—confronted the overwhelming challenges before them to set the course for our nation.&“A splendid book—humane, learned, written with flair and radiant with a calm intelligence and wit.&” —The New York Times Book ReviewThe United States was more a fragile hope than a reality in 1790. During the decade that followed, the Founding Fathers—re-examined here as Founding Brothers—combined the ideals of the Declaration of Independence with the content of the Constitution to create the practical workings of our government. Through an analysis of six fascinating episodes—Hamilton and Burr&’s deadly duel, Washington&’s precedent-setting Farewell Address, Adams&’ administration and political partnership with his wife, the debate about where to place the capital, Franklin&’s attempt to force Congress to confront the issue of slavery and Madison&’s attempts to block him, and Jefferson and Adams&’ famous correspondence—Founding Brothers brings to life the vital issues and personalities from the most important decade in our nation&’s history.
Franco: A Concise Biography
by Gabrielle Ashford HodgesGeneral Francisco Franco came to prominence during the days of David Lloyd George and Woodrow Wilson and was able to cling to absolute political power until his death in 1975. Over his fifty-year career, he became one of the four dictators who changed the face of Europe during the twentieth century.Franco joined the Spanish Army when he was barely fifteen years old. In 1926 he became the youngest general in Europe and, driven by an astonishing sense of his own greatness, was recognized as sole military commander of the Nationalist zone during the Spanish Civil War. His ambition was always to hold on to the power that he had secured. In practice, this meant winning the Spanish Civil War and surviving the fall of the fascist regimes of Hitler and Mussolini and the international isolation that followed their defeat.But behind the military heroics and dexterous political footwork lay an insecure and vengeful man, wracked by contradictory impulses. Although fueled by a single-minded determination to succeed, he was full of self-doubt. A bold and sometimes inspirational soldier in Africa, he became an indecisive, hesitant military commander during the Civil War. Filled with a burning conviction that his destiny was bound up with the medieval kings of Spain and God Himself, he appeared shy, withdrawn, and humble. Ruthlessly intent on wiping out all political opposition, he denied heatedly that he was a dictator. A stubborn man, he could be remarkably flexible when it came to safeguarding his power.Gabrielle Ashford Hodges' psychological biography considers Franco's mental state, as well as his political motivation. In doing so, it succeeds admirably in getting under the skin of Europe's most enduring dictator.
Frankie Muniz Boy Genius
by Nancy KrulikMeet Frankie Muniz! He's the star of Malcolm in the Middle, one of the hottest shows on TV today. Frankie's fifteen, funny, and now he's famous. Here, for every fan who can't get enough of Frankie, is everything you need to know about him: how he broke into show business, what his hobbies are, where to find Frankie fan clubs on the Web, and whether his zodiac sign is compatible with yours! Extra bonus: take the all-Frankie quiz inside!
French Impressions: The Adventures of an American Family
by John S. LittellA must-read for armchair travelers...for "journal" buffs...for lovers of French history...for American adventurers and everyday dreamers-a true-life Innocents Abroad....<P> In 1950, John S. Littell dreamed of turning his life into a Hemingwayesque adventure. His wife Mary was an optimist who shared her husband's sense of fun. So what happens when they set off for the South of France with their two young sons? The result is French Impressions, a riveting, whimsical, and uproarious account of the Littells' time abroad, based on Mary's journals and diaries-with a marvelous collection of family photos.
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir
by Matthew PerryINSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER#1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER The BELOVED STAR OF FRIENDS takes us behind the scenes of the hit sitcom and his struggles with addiction in this “CANDID, DARKLY FUNNY...POIGNANT” memoir (The New York Times) A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK by Time, Associated Press, Goodreads, USA Today, and more!“Hi, my name is Matthew, although you may know me by another name. My friends call me Matty.”So begins the riveting story of acclaimed actor Matthew Perry, taking us along on his journey from childhood ambition to fame to addiction and recovery in the aftermath of a life-threatening health scare. Before the frequent hospital visits and stints in rehab, there was five-year-old Matthew, who traveled from Montreal to Los Angeles, shuffling between his separated parents; fourteen-year-old Matthew, who was a nationally ranked tennis star in Canada; twenty-four-year-old Matthew, who nabbed a coveted role as a lead cast member on the talked-about pilot then called Friends Like Us. . . and so much more.In an extraordinary story that only he could tell—and in the heartfelt, hilarious, and warmly familiar way only he could tell it—Matthew Perry lays bare the fractured family that raised him (and also left him to his own devices), the desire for recognition that drove him to fame, and the void inside him that could not be filled even by his greatest dreams coming true. But he also details the peace he’s found in sobriety and how he feels about the ubiquity of Friends, sharing stories about his castmates and other stars he met along the way. Frank, self-aware, and with his trademark humor, Perry vividly depicts his lifelong battle with addiction and what fueled it despite seemingly having it all. Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing is an unforgettable memoir that is both intimate and eye-opening—as well as a hand extended to anyone struggling with sobriety. Unflinchingly honest, moving, and uproariously funny, this is the book fans have been waiting for.
From Drawing to Painting: Poussin, Watteau, Fragonard, David, and Ingres (The A. W. Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts #47)
by Pierre RosenbergUnique perspectives from an acclaimed art historian on the relationship between drawing and paintingFrom Drawing to Painting interweaves biographical information about five renowned French artists—Nicolas Poussin, Antoine Watteau, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Jacques-Louis David, and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres—with a fascinating look at dozens of their drawings and the links that they have to their paintings. This book explores drawing as a site of reflection, the space between the idea of a painted image and its realization on canvas.How, why, and for whom did these artists draw? What value did they place on their drawings? How did their drawings get handed down to us? In what way do they enable us better to understand the artists’ intentions, their creative processes, and to penetrate their worlds? Pierre Rosenberg determines that each artist approached drawing in a distinctive way, reflecting his individual training, work habits, and personal ambitions. For example, Poussin viewed his drawings simply as working documents, Watteau preferred his drawings to his paintings, and Fragonard made a lucrative business selling his graphic work. For David and Ingres, drawing had a considerable pedagogical function, whether in copying the great works of their predecessors or in sharpening their own techniques.From Drawing to Painting Offers an unprecedented view of the artistic process, and makes an important and beautiful addition to any art library.Please note: All images in this ebook are presented in black and white and have been reduced in size.
From Our House: A Memoir
by Lee MartinMy father, when he was a boy, took it upon himself to change his name. My grandparents had named him Leroy Martin, but when he went to school and started learning cursive handwriting, he had trouble forming a capital ”L.” His answer to the problem was to drop the first two letters of his name and become, from then on, ”Roy.” If he couldn’t be “the King,” he would settle for merely “King.” So began his method for confronting obstacles with swift and decisive action. So begins the luminous and uniquely American memoir of Lee Martin, born into a farming family the same year his father unexpectedly lost both of his hands. Lee’s father, once known for ”doing a good turn for his neighbors,” changed that afternoon in the cornfields to become an embittered, hardened man. ”All our lives have private truths,” Martin writes, ”and the truth about my father was that after his accident he brought a deep and abiding rage into our home. I knew his hooks as intimately as I ever knew anything about my father.” Lee’s mother, called Beulah for the idyllic land at the end of John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, never gave up hope that salvation might one day find their home. ”How easily our bodies become us, our souls bound to the material, to the joy or grief or pain we feel through our skin,” Martin muses. Ultimately it is his mother’s quiet compassion that accounts for the grace that Lee and his father finally discover both within themselves and within their small family. Learning to live by the seasons and to fall asleep to the rumble of his father’s tractor, braving snowstorms to sell hogs or to visit an ailing grandmother, playing basketball, listening to baseball games, and stealing records, Lee endures the anger and shame that haunt his family— yet grows up to tell his tale with rare beauty and remarkable forbearance. From Our House, buoyed on every page by Martin’s deep humanity, is a wonderful book that bears all the marks of a classic. As Paul Eggers, author of Saviors, wrote: ”Every page resonates with a kind of beautiful ache, of memory rescued from anger by Martin’s compassion and yes, even wisdom. It is a heartbreakingly redemptive book, one quietly aflame with sorrow and forgiveness. Martin captures the very essence of the family romance and shows us how love—the real stuff, love that is intelligent and muscular and wide-awake— can transform even the most bitter of experiences into something approaching grace. I haven’t been this moved by a book in years.”