- Table View
- List View
Jimmy Stewart: A Wonderful Life
by Jonathan CoeOver a career that spanned forty-three years and seventy-seven films, Jimmy Stewart went from leading man to national idol. Classics such as Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Philadelphia Story, Harvey, and, of course, It’s A Wonderful Life are far more than mere movies; they are visions of America as it wanted to be seen. With his inimitable (though widely mimicked) down-home drawl, Jimmy Stewart came to embody the ideal American male, lean, affably sarcastic, honorable, endearingly awkward. His double takes were memorable; his way of muttering his asides charmed audiences. Most of all, he was the man whose heart was always in the right place, and who would see always see his way clear to doing the right thing. “If Bess and I had a son,” Harry Truman once said, “we’d want him to be just like Jimmy Stewart.” Jonathon Coe traces Stewart’s beginnings in a small town in Pennsylvania, his amateur dramatics and college years at Princeton, and the early films and stardom through to his heroics as an air force pilot during World War II and his triumphant return to Hollywood. Though he was adored in black and white, Stewart’s mature work shows his range as an actor, his ability to play far more than just the good-natured leading man. By the time he retired from acting, Stewart had films credits that were unparalleled—and a place in the American heart that was unrivaled. Illustrated with 150 photographs, taken on and off the set, this handsome tribute gives us the private man as well as the screen legend and guides us through the whole wonderful life of Jimmy Stewart.
Jimmy Stewart: The Truth Behind the Legend
by Michael MunnMany of the stars of the silver screen in twentieth-century Hollywood became national icons, larger-than-life figures held up as paragons of American virtues. Unfortunately, the private lives of actors such as John Wayne, Henry Fonda, and Errol Flynn rarely lived up to the idealistic roles they portrayed. However, James Stewart was known as the underdog fighter in many of his films and in real life. He was highly decorated for his bravery during his time as a bomber pilot during World War II and was adored for his earnest and kindly persona.Here many unknown sides of Stewart are revealed: his explosive temper, his complex love affairs, his service as a secret agent for the FBI, his innate shyness, and his passionate patriotism. Munn's personal touch shines through his writing, as he was a friend of Stewart and his wife, Gloria, and interviewed them as well as their colleagues and friends. This definitive biography reveals the childhood ups and downs that formed this cinema hero, explores the legendary Fonda-Stewart relationship, and recounts Stewart's experiences making acclaimed films that include The Philadelphia Story, Rear Window, Anatomy of a Murder, It's a Wonderful Life, and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.
Jimmy: My Story
by James Anderson'One of life's preconceptions is that fast bowlers are all made from exactly the same stock: Harold Larwood, Fred Trueman, Andrew Flintoff. Ultra-confident men with super-hero strength. Well, I'd better make the confession now. This fast bowler's wired up differently. ' With over 50 Test matches and more than 100 One Day Internationals under his belt, James Anderson is undoubtedly one of the most important and successful cricketers to represent England. But as meteoric as his rise may have been, it was still a hard road to the top. Getting his start with Burnley Cricket Club, James was soon on the path to success with Lancashire CCC. Even when he was inevitably called up to the England team, no one could have predicted this naturally shy man would become the dynamic record-breaking fast bowler he is today. His tenure has been part of one of the most turbulent and exciting periods in international cricket history. But in between the injuries, international disputes, scandals and terrorist attacks were moments of the greatest success ever achieved by the England team, and also some of the most crushing defeats. In between the highs and lows of representing his country, James has learned to take on that mantle of the English fast bowler. At home he is James, the family man, but once he steps onto the field he becomes determined and dangerous. He becomes that fiery fast bowler with a rhino-skin hide. He becomes Jimmy. James Anderson is an England fast bowler. He was born in Burnley in 1982 and played for Burnley Cricket Club and Lancashire County Cricket Club before being called up for the England team in 2002. He has since represented the team in over 50 Test matches and more than 100 One Day Internationals, broken numerous records and brought home the Ashes. James was named one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 2009 and England Player of the Year in 2012. Richard Gibson, who worked with James Anderson on this book, is a freelance journalist and regular contributor to several national newspapers. His previous collaborations include David Lloyd's bestselling Start the Car: The World According to Bumble and Graeme Swann's The Breaks Are Off.
Jivannu Parodh
by Prabhudas Chaganlal Gandhiમારા બન્ને પિતામહ— જેમણે ઘરમાં સદાયે સન્માર્ગને જ પોષ્યો, જેમણે સિત્યાસી વર્ષની ઉંમર સુધી ઉત્સાહી વિદ્યાર્થીનું જીવન ગુજાર્યું, અને જેઓ છેલ્લી પળ સુધી ભગવદ્ગીતાનું જ શ્રવણ-મનન કરતાં કરતાં શાંતિપૂર્વક પોતાનું ખોળિયું ઉતારી ગયા એ મોટા બાપુજીને; તથા જેમણે સદાયે સાચી કેળવણી આપવા પાછળ પોતાના પ્રાણ પાથર્યા, જેમને એંશી વર્ષની ઉંમરે પણ જીવનના પ્રચંડ ઝંઝાવાતો વચ્ચે જુવાનના જોમથી ઘૂમતાં થાક ન જણાયો, અને જેઓ પળે પળે અનાસક્તિયોગના આચરણ દ્વારા વામનને વિરાટના, કૃપણને ઉદારના અને કાયરને પુરુષાતનના પ્રત્યક્ષ પાઠ ભણાવી ગયા, તે બાપુજીને ચરણે...
Jo Cox: More in common
by Brendan Cox'Jo Cox's selfless service to others made the world a better place' Barack Obama, 44th President of the United StatesTHE NUMBER 1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'Jo's dedication to a fairer and kinder world beautifully told ...' Bear Grylls | 'A desperately tender account ... part love story, part grief memoir ... resolutely uplifting' Decca Aitkenhead, Guardian | 'Brave, inspiring, and full of love' Daily Express | 'A chance to get to know the woman behind the headlines - a tiny ball of energy with a heart as big as a lion, a person who wanted to make a difference' Lorraine Kelly, SunJo Cox's murder in June 2016 shocked the world. In the aftermath of her tragic death her husband Brendan Cox urged us to remember Jo's life and what she stood for and not the manner of her death. In this inspiring and impassioned portrait of Jo - as daughter, mother, wife, sister, MP and campaigner - we see how much she gave and much more she had to give. The values she embraced of togetherness, inclusion and compassion are needed now more than ever. A touching and very human portrait of an extraordinary woman, whose legacy has already inspired others. This summer over 100,000 events were part of The Great Get Together in honour of Jo. 'We are far more united and have far more in common with each other than things that divide us.'Winner of the Best Political Book by a non-Parliamentarian (Parliamentary Book Awards)All Brendan Cox's royalties will go to the Jo Cox Foundation.'Jo would have no regrets about her life, she lived every day of it to the full.'
Jo Cox: More in common
by Brendan Cox'Jo Cox's selfless service to others made the world a better place' Barack Obama, 44th President of the United StatesTHE NUMBER 1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'A desperately tender account ... part love story, part grief memoir ... resolutely uplifting' Decca Aitkenhead, Guardian | 'Brave, inspiring, and full of love.' Daily Express | 'A chance to get to know the woman behind the headlines - a tiny ball of energy with a heart as big as a lion, a person who wanted to make a difference' Lorraine Kelly, SunJo Cox's murder in June 2016 shocked the world. In the aftermath of her tragic death her husband Brendan Cox urged us to remember Jo's life and what she stood for and not the manner of her death. In this inspiring and impassioned portrait of Jo - as daughter, mother, wife, sister, MP and campaigner - we see how much she gave and much more she had to give. The values she embraced of togetherness, inclusion and compassion are needed now more than ever. A touching and very human portrait of an extraordinary woman, whose legacy has already inspired others. This summer over 100,000 events were part of The Great Get Together in honour of Jo. 'We are far more united and have far more in common with each other than things that divide us.'All Brendan Cox's royalties will go to the Jo Cox Foundation.'Jo would have no regrets about her life, she lived every day of it to the full.'
Jo Malone: My Story
by Jo MaloneKnown around the world for her eponymous brand of fragrances and now her brand-new venture Jo Loves, Jo Malone tells the remarkable and inspiring story of her rise from humble beginnings to beloved business success.<P><P> Jo Malone began her international fragrance and scented candle business in 1983 from her kitchen, where she made bath oils as thank-you gifts for her facial clients. She opened her first store in London in 1994, and in 1999 she sold the Jo Malone London brand to Estee Lauder Companies. Recently, she launched a new brand, Jo Loves, igniting the excitement of fashion and beauty converts all over the world.<P> Raised in government-subsidized housing in Kent in the early 1960s, Jo Malone left school as a teenager to care for her mother after she had a stroke. Jo had not been successful in school because of her dyslexia, but she had the ability to see and feel everything in scent. Her at-home beauty business and hand-made products became popular, and word of her talent spread until an international brand was born. After the sale of her company and the birth of her son, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent treatment in New York. Thus began the second chapter of her life, and in this memoir, Jo tells her full amazing and inspiring personal story.
Jo Malone: My Story
by Jo MaloneKnown around the world for her eponymous brand of fragrances and now her brand-new venture Jo Loves (soon to debut in the US), Jo Malone tells the remarkable and inspiring story of her rise from humble beginnings to beloved business success.Jo Malone began her international fragrance and scented candle business in 1983 from her kitchen, where she made bath oils as thank-you gifts for her facial clients. She opened her first store in London in 1994, and in 1999 she sold the Jo Malone London brand to Estee Lauder Companies. Recently, she launched a new brand, Jo Loves, igniting the excitement of fashion and beauty converts all over the world. Raised in government-subsidized housing in Kent in the early 1960s, Jo Malone left school as a teenager to care for her mother after she had a stroke. Jo had not been successful in school because of her dyslexia, but she had the ability to see and feel everything in scent. Her at-home beauty business and hand-made products became popular, and word of her talent spread until an international brand was born. After the sale of her company and the birth of her son, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent treatment in New York. Thus began the second chapter of her life, and in this memoir, Jo tells her full amazing and inspiring personal story.
Jo seré l'última: La història del meu captiveri i la meva lluita contra l'Estat Islàmic
by Amal Clooney Nadia MuradLa Nadia Murad va ser víctima de la gihad sexual de l'Estat Islàmic. Ara s'ha convertit en defensora dels drets humans, en la primera persona en ser anomenada Ambaixadora de Bona Voluntat per la Dignitat dels Supervivents del Tràfic de Persones de les Nacions Unides y ha estat nominada al Premi Nobel de la Pau. Aquesta és la seva història. El 15 d'agost de 2014, la vida de la Nadia Murad va canviar per sempre. Les tropes de l'Estat Islàmic van irrompre en el poblet del nord de l'Iraq on vivia, i on la minoria yazidita feia una vida tranquil·la, i hi van cometre una massacre. Van executar homes i dones, entre ells la seva mare i sis dels seus germans, i els van amuntegar en fosses comunes. A la Nadia, que aleshores tenia vint-i-un anys, la van segrestar juntament amb milers de noies i nenes, i la van vendre com a esclava sexual. Els soldats la van torturar i violar durant mesos, fins que unanit va aconseguir fugir de miracle pels carrers de Mossul. Així va començar per a ella el llarg i perillós viatge cap a la llibertat. De petita, la Nadia, una nena criada al camp, mai de la vida no hauria imaginat que un dia parlaria a l'assemblea de les Nacions Unides ni que seria nominada al Premi Nobel de la Pau. No havia trepitjat mai Bagdad, ni tan sols havia vist un avió. Avui, la història de la Nadia insta el món a parar atenció al genocidi del seu poble. És una crida a l'acció per aturar els crims de l'Estat Islàmic, un testimoni poderós de la força de la voluntat humana. Jo seré l'última és, alhora, una carta d'amor a un país desaparegut, a una comunitat vulnerable i a una família devastada per la guerra. El valor i el testimoni d'una noia poden canviar el món. Perquè no s'oblidi, perquè vol ser l'última persona que hagi deviure-la, la Nadia ens explica la seva història. Ressenyes:«Una narració crua i aterridora del genocidi religiós i de la vida en captivitat d'una jove supervivent yazidita sota l'Estat Islàmic. Amb detalls vívids i una emoció autèntica i esquinçadora, l'autora relata no solament la seva inimaginable tragèdia, sinó també la de tot un poble, el seu, ignorada pel món sencer. Una autobiografia devastadora, i inspiradora alhora, que empeny el lector a l'acció urgent.»Kirkus Reviews «Nadia Murad forma part d'aquesta llarga i invisible història de dones fortes i indomables a les quals ni la violació com a tàctica de guerra ha pogut doblegar, que segueixen en peu i estan disposades a trencar l'odiós silenci imposat i a exigir justícia i llibertat per a les seves germanes.»Times («Les 100 persones més influents del 2016») «La Nadia és més que una supervivent... És una dona valenta, amb empenta, decidida, obstinada i apassionada, que ha decidit aprofundir en ella mateixa i explicar els pitjors horrors als quals qualsevol de nos altres podria veure's sotmès, perquè altres persones no hagin de passar pel mateix.»Samantha Power, ambaixadora dels Estats Units a les Nacions Unides «La Nadia és un ésser humà extraordinari, amb un cor i una ànima meravellosos. Mai no parla d'ella; parla dels altres. És la seva manera de viure amb el dolor.»Murad Ismael, director executiu de Yazda [Keywords a canal]
Joachim Murat - Marshal of France and King of Naples
by Pickle Partners Publishing Andrew Hilliard AtteridgeThis ebook is purpose built and is proof-read and re-type set from the original to provide an outstanding experience of reflowing text for an ebook reader. A first-rate biography of the famed Marshal Murat, the most famous cavalry leader of the Napoleonic Wars. Joachim Murat was born in Gascony, the department of Lot, and although his father was relatively affluent, no-one realized the spectacular rise that would lead him to a the crown of Naples and an indelible imprint on the history of his native France and all of Europe. Atteridge wrote a number of books on the men who worked as satellites to Napoleon, Emperor of the French, his commanders on the battlefield and the brothers he placed, or tried to place in power as a buffer to a vengeful Europe. Marshal Murat has often been caricatured as a dashing cavalry commander with little more brains than the horse he rode, however the portrait here painted is much more complex than the simplistic view carted out by some other historians. More than a superlative leader of cavalry, in the short campaigns of the emergent French army, he grew distant from Napoleon due to constant goadings and rebukes, he was a varied man, vain and pompous, a dedicated family man, yet possibly also cuckold. He was to find a ignominious grave, for firing squad, at Pizzo having attempted to emulate his former master's march on Paris in his adopted Naples. Highly recommended. Atteridge's book forms a companion to his other single volume biography of Marshal Ney and his work on the varied personalities on Napoleon's Brothers. Text taken, whole and complete, from the 1911 first edition, published in London by Metheun and Co. Ltd. Original - 338 pages. Author- Andrew Hilliard Atteridge (1844-1912) Linked TOC and 7 Illustrations and 3 maps.
Joachim Peiper and the Nazi Atrocities of 1944
by Stephen WynnJoachim Peiper held the rank of Obersturmbannführer in Nazi Germany’s fanatical Schutzstaffel, more commonly referred to as the SS. He spent the first two years of the war as an adjutant to the Reichsführer of the Schutzstaffel, and leading member of the Nazi Party, Heinrich Himmler, where he would have witnessed at first hand the construction and implementation of numerous SS policies, many of which would have been in relation to ethnic cleansing and the Holocaust. In October 1941, having yearned for a chance at combat, he changed roles and became a commander in the Waffen-SS, although he still remained in regular contact with Himmler. As a member of the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte, he saw service in the Soviet Union, Italy and Belgium. On 19 September 1943, he and his men were responsible for the murder of twenty-four Italian civilians at the village of Boves. On 17 December 1944, men under his command were responsible for what became known as the Malmedy massacre, involving the murder of eighty-four unarmed American prisoners of war. Following this, between 17 and 20 December, Peiper and his men were involved in the murder of a number of other American soldiers, as well as Belgian civilians. Peiper was never charged with the atrocities at Boves, but in 1946 he faced an American military tribunal for the Malmedy masssacre. Although found guilty and sentenced to death, his sentence was reduced to life imprisonment but he was eventually released in 1956. In 1972, Peiper moved to the French village of Troves in north east France. On 14 July 1976, his home was attacked and set on fire. Overcome by smoke, he died in the flames.
Joachim Prinz, Rebellious Rabbi: An Autobiography--the German and Early American Years
by Michael A. MeyerJoachim Prinz (1902-1988) was one of the most extraordinary and innovative figures in modern Jewish history. Never one for conformity, Prinz developed and modeled a new rabbinical role that set him apart from his colleagues in Weimar Germany. Provocative, strikingly informal and determinedly anti-establishment, he repeatedly stirred up controversy. During the Hitler years, Prinz strove to preserve the self-respect and dignity of a Jewish community that was vilified on a daily basis by Nazi propaganda. After immigrating to the United States in 1937, he soon became a prominent rabbi in New Jersey, drawing thousands to his unpredictable sermons. Prinz's autobiography, superbly introduced and annotated by Michael A. Meyer, offers a fascinating glimpse into the life and personality of this unconventional and influential rabbi.
Joan Blondell: A Life between Takes (Hollywood Legends Series)
by Matthew KennedyJoan Blondell: A Life between Takes is the first major biography of the effervescent, scene-stealing actress (1906-1979) who conquered motion pictures, vaudeville, Broadway, summer stock, television, and radio. Born the child of vaudevillians, she was on stage by age three. With her casual sex appeal, distinctive cello voice, megawatt smile, luminous saucer eyes, and flawless timing, she came into widespread fame in Warner Bros. musicals and comedies of the 1930s, including Blonde Crazy, Gold Diggers of 1933, and Footlight Parade. Frequent co-star to James Cagney, Clark Gable, Edward G. Robinson, and Humphrey Bogart, friend to Judy Garland, Barbara Stanwyck, and Bette Davis, and wife of Dick Powell and Mike Todd, Joan Blondell was a true Hollywood insider. By the time of her death, she had made nearly 100 films in a career that spanned over fifty years. Privately, she was unerringly loving and generous, while her life was touched by financial, medical, and emotional upheavals. Joan Blondell: A Life between Takes is meticulously researched, expertly weaving the public and private, and features numerous interviews with family, friends, and colleagues.
Joan Didion: and Other Conversations
by Melville HouseThe iconic writer whose prose was as influential and as it is unmistakably hers is joined in conversation with Sheila Heti, Hilton Als, Dave Eggers, Hari Kunzru and many more.Some writers define a generation. Some a genre. Joan Didion did both, and much more. Didion rose to prominence with her nonfiction collection, Slouching Towards Bethlehem, and she quickly became the writer who captured the zeitgeist of the washed-out, acid hangover of the 60s. But as a bicoastal writer of fiction and nonfiction whose writing ranged from personal essays and raw, intimate memoirs to reportage on international affairs and social justice, Didion is much harder to pin down than her reputation might suggest. This collection encompasses it all, in conversations that delve into her underappreciated mid-career works, her influences, the loss of her husband and daughter, and her most infamous essays. Far from the evasive, terse minimalist that has come to dominate the image of Joan Didion, what this collection reveals is a warm, thoughtful woman whose well earned legacy promises to live on for readers and writers for many generations to come.
Joan Mitchell Paints a Symphony: La Grande Vallée Suite
by Lisa RogersCelebrate the creative process of pioneering American abstract painter Joan Mitchell in this beautifully illustrated STEAM picture book, perfect for all kinds of young creators.It&’s 1983, and American artist Joan Mitchell is in her studio outside Paris, transforming her emotions and memories into a symphony of colors and shapes. Inspired by her friend&’s description of an idyllic hidden valley in France, Mitchell creates 21 massive paintings—her Grande Vallée series —bursting with vibrant, energizing hues. But she doesn&’t paint the valley&’s flowers and meadows. She paints a feeling about them—abundance, freedom, liveliness—creating a harmonious blend of drips, splashes, and brushstrokes in rainbow colors. When the paint dries, it's time to share her valley with the world.This inspiring, poetic picture book about an influential yet lesser-known American artist provides a snapshot of a creator who deserves as much acclaim as better-known Abstract Expressionists like Jackson Pollock or Willem de Kooning. Author Lisa Rogers shares both the despair and delight Mitchell experienced throughout her career, while acclaimed illustrator Stacy Innerst&’s bright artwork captures the movement and energy of Mitchell&’s work, as her paintings develop from page to page.
Joan Mitchell: Lady Painter
by Patricia Albers"Gee, Joan, if only you were French and male and dead." --New York art dealer to Joan Mitchell, the 1950s. She was a steel heiress from the Midwest--Chicago and Lake Forest (her grandfather built Chicago's bridges and worked for Andrew Carnegie). She was a daughter of the American Revolution--Anglo-Saxon, Republican, Episcopalian. She was tough, disciplined, courageous, dazzling, and went up against the masculine art world at its most entrenched, made her way in it, and disproved their notion that women couldn't paint.Joan Mitchell is the first full-scale biography of the abstract expressionist painter who came of age in the 1950s, '60s, and '70s; a portrait of an outrageous artist and her struggling artist world, painters making their way in the second part of America's twentieth century. As a young girl she was a champion figure skater, and though she lacked balance and coordination, accomplished one athletic triumph after another, until giving up competitive skating to become a painter. Mitchell saw people and things in color; color and emotion were the same to her. She said, "I use the past to make my pic[tures] and I want all of it and even you and me in candlelight on the train and every 'lover' I've ever had--every friend--nothing closed out. It's all part of me and I want to confront it and sleep with it--the dreams--and paint it."Her work had an unerring sense of formal rectitude, daring, and discipline, as well as delicacy, grace, and awkwardness.Mitchell exuded a young, smoky, tough glamour and was thought of as "sexy as hell." Albers writes about how Mitchell married her girlhood pal, Barnet Rosset, Jr.--scion of a financier who was head of Chicago's Metropolitan Trust and partner of Jimmy Roosevelt. Rosset went on to buy Grove Press in 1951, at Mitchell's urging, and to publish Henry Miller, Samuel Beckett, Jean Genet, Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, et al., making Grove into the great avant-garde publishing house of its time. Mitchell's life was messy and reckless: in New York and East Hampton carousing with de Kooning, Frank O'Hara, James Schuyler, Jane Freilicher, Franz Kline, Helen Frankenthaler, and others; going to clambakes, cocktail parties, softball games--and living an entirely different existence in Paris and Vétheuil.Mitchell's inner life embraced a world beyond her own craft, especially literature . . . her compositions were informed by imagined landscapes or feelings about places. In Joan Mitchell, Patricia Albers brilliantly reconstructs the painter's large and impassioned life: her growing prominence as an artist; her marriage and affairs; her friendships with poets and painters; her extraordinary work. Joan Mitchell re-creates the times, the people, and her worlds from the 1920s through the 1990s and brings it all spectacularly to life.
Joan Myers Brown & The Audacious Hope Of The Black Ballerina
by Robert Farris Thompson Ananya ChatterjeaFounder of the Philadelphia Dance Company (PHILADANCO) and the Philadelphia School of Dance Arts, Joan Myers Brown's personal and professional histories reflect the hardships as well as the advances of African-Americans in the artistic and social developments of the second half of the twentieth and the early twenty-first centuries.
Joan Of Arc: Her Story
by Jeremy DuQuesnay Adams Regine Pernoud Marie-Veronique Clin Narue-Veronique ClinThe peasant girl who led an army against the English and placed Charles VII on the French throne has inspired countless books since her death at age 19. While others have claimed Joan the Maid (as she called herself) for every cause from feminism to working-class radicalism, this meticulous volume by two French scholars sticks close to the known facts. The authors make extensive use of contemporary documents that bring to life the turbulent political scene in which Joan operated as well as her forceful personality. Joan followed the directives of voices she believed were sent to her by God; her deep piety, self-assurance, decisiveness, and shrewd intelligence radiate from her letters and from her responses to hostile questioning at the rigged trial that resulted in her being burned alive as a heretic in 1431. General readers may be intimidated at first by a detailed narrative studded with lengthy quotations, but those who persevere will discover a story all the more moving because it is not manipulated to make a modern-day point. This English translation updates the 1986 French volume's bibliography, supplements the biographies in part 2 with sketches of historical figures less familiar outside of France, and generally makes the book more accessible for English-language readers. --Wendy Smith.
Joan Procter, Dragon Doctor: The Woman Who Loved Reptiles
by Patricia ValdezFor fans of Ada Twist: Scientist comes a fascinating picture book biography of a pioneering female scientist--who loved reptiles!Back in the days of long skirts and afternoon teas, young Joan Procter entertained the most unusual party guests: slithery and scaly ones, who turned over teacups and crawled past the crumpets.... While other girls played with dolls, Joan preferred the company of reptiles. She carried her favorite lizard with her everywhere--she even brought a crocodile to school!When Joan grew older, she became the Curator of Reptiles at the British Museum. She went on to design the Reptile House at the London Zoo, including a home for the rumored-to-be-vicious komodo dragons. There, just like when she was a little girl, Joan hosted children's tea parties--with her komodo dragon as the guest of honor.With a lively text and vibrant illustrations, scientist and writer Patricia Valdez and illustrator Felicita Sala bring to life Joan Procter's inspiring story of passion and determination.A Chicago Public Library Best Book of the Year selection
Joan Soldado
by Paul J. VanderwoodPaul J. Vanderwood offers a fascinating look at the events, beliefs, and circumstances that have motivated popular devotion to Juan Soldado, a Mexican folk saint. In his mortal incarnation, Juan Soldado was Juan Castillo Morales, a twenty-four-year-old soldier convicted of and quickly executed for the rape and murder of eight-year-old Olga Camacho in Tijuana in 1938. Immediately after Morales's death, many people began to doubt the evidence of his guilt, or at least the justice of his brutal execution. People reported seeing blood seeping from his grave and hearing his soul cry out protesting his innocence. Soon the "martyred" Morales was known as Juan Soldado, or John the Soldier. Believing that those who have died unjustly sit closest to God, people began visiting Morales's grave asking for favors. Within months of his death, the young soldier had become a popular saint. He is not recognized by the Catholic Church, yet thousands of people have made pilgrimages to his gravesite. While Juan Soldado is well known in Tijuana, southern California's Mexican American community, and beyond, this book is the first to situate his story within a broader exploration of how and why popular canonizations such as his take root and flourish. In addition to conducting extensive archival research, Vanderwood interviewed central actors in the events of 1938, including Olga Camacho's mother, citizens who rioted to demand Morales's release to a lynch mob, those who witnessed his execution, and some of the earliest believers in his miraculous powers. Vanderwood also interviewed many present-day visitors to the shrine at Morales's grave. He describes them, their petitions--for favors such as health, a good marriage, or safe passage into the United States--and how they reconcile their belief in Juan Soldado with their Catholicism. Vanderwood puts the events of 1938 within the context of Depression-era Tijuana and he locates people's devotion, then and now, within the history of extra-institutional religious activity. In Juan Soldado, a gripping true-crime mystery opens up into a much larger and more elusive mystery of faith and belief.
Joan of Arc
by Kathleen V. KudlinskiThe story of Joan, a young farm girl who became a Christian martyr after she heard voices encouraging her to secure the throne of France for its rightful heir.
Joan of Arc
by Mary GordonJoan of Arc was born in 1412 and grew up during a time of invasion and civil war. At thirteen, she began to hear the voices of saints and followed their directives, believing they were sent to her by God. At seventeen, she rode into battle to rescue France from English domination in the Hundred Years War and in 1431, aged only nineteen, she was put on trial for heresy and sorcery by an ecclesiastical court of the Inquisition, and burned at the stake. Joan radiated with deep piety, self-assurance, decisiveness, and shrewd intelligence as her responses to hostile questioning preserved in the records of the rigged trial demonstrate. In this glittering portrait of the illiterate peasant girl who became the saviour of France, Joan of Arc's energy, spirit and her heroism as the first to die for a Christian-inspired idea of nationalism, are beautifully portrayed.
Joan of Arc
by Nancy W. RossIn the early 15th century, France was in turmoil. The country had been at war for years, and it had no king. Out of the chaos came Joan of Arc. No one knows how Joan, a poor farm girl, was able to command armies and win battles, but she did all that and more. Some called Joan a heroine. Others called her a witch. But with her determination and unwavering faith, she would go down in history as Saint Joan of Arc.
Joan of Arc
by Shana CoreySensitively and dramatically told, this book brings the story of Joan of Arc to life, from her simple childhood to her tragic end.
Joan of Arc (SparkNotes Biography Guide)
by SparkNotesJoan of Arc (SparkNotes Biography Guide) Making the reading experience fun! SparkNotes Biography Guides examine the lives of historical luminaries, from Alexander the Great to Virginia Woolf. Each biography guide includes:An examination of the historical context in which the person lived A summary of the person&’s life and achievements A glossary of important terms, people, and events An in-depth look at the key epochs in the person&’s career Study questions and essay topics A review test Suggestions for further reading Whether you&’re a student of history or just a student cramming for a history exam, SparkNotes Biography guides are a reliable, thorough, and readable resource.