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Letters to Milena
by Franz KafkaIn no other work does Franz Kafka reveal himself as in Letters to Milena, which begins as a business correspondence but soon develops into a passionate but doomed epistolary love affair. Kafka's Czech translator, Milena Jesenska, was a gifted and charismatic twenty-three-year-old who was uniquely able to recognize Kafka's complex genius and his even more complex character. For the thirty-six-year-old Kafka, she was "a living fire, such as I have never seen." It was to Milena that he revealed his most intimate self and, eventually, entrusted his diaries for safekeeping."The voice of Kafka in Letters to Milena is more personal, more pure, and more painful than in his fiction: a testimony to human existence and to our eternal wait for the impossible. A marvelous new edition of a classic text."--Jan Kott
Letters to My Daughters
by Fawzia KoofiIn the vein of Infidel comes this spellbinding memoir of survival and courage from Afghanistan's most popular female politician.On the day Fawzia Koofi was born, her mother set her under the blazing Afghan sun to die. She was the nineteenth child of twenty-three in a family with seven wives, and her mother did not want another daughter. Despite severe burns that lasted into her teenage years, Fawzia survived and became the favourite child.In Letters to My Daughters, Fawzia tells her remarkable life story. Fawzia's father was an incorruptible politician strongly attached to Afghan tradition. When he was murdered by the mujahedeen, Fawzia's illiterate mother decided to send the ten-year-old girl to school, and as the civil war raged, Fawzia dodged bullets and snipers to attend class, determined to be the first person in her family to receive an education.She went on to marry a man she loved, and they had two cherished daughters, Shohra and Shaharzad. Tragically, the arrival of the Taliban spelled an end to her freedom. Outraged and deeply saddened by the injustice she saw around her, and by the tainting of her Islamic faith, Fawzia discovered politics herself.
Letters to My Father (Southern Literary Studies)
by William Styron“I’ve finally pretty much decided what to write next—a novel based on Nat Turner’s rebellion,” twenty-six-year-old William Styron confided to his father in a letter he wrote on May 1, 1952. Styron would not publish his Pulitzer Prize–winning The Confessions of Nat Turner until 1967, but this letter undercuts those critics who later attacked the writer as an opportunist capitalizing on the heated racial climate of the late 1960s. From 1943 to 1953, Styron wrote over one hundred letters to William C. Styron, Sr., detailing his adventures, his works in progress, and his ruminations on the craft of writing. In Letters to My Father, Styron biographer James L. W. West III collects this correspondence for the first time, revealing the early, intimate thoughts of a young man who was to become a literary icon. Styron wrote his earliest letters from Davidson College, where he was very much unsure of himself and of his prospects in life. By the last few letters, however, he had achieved a great deal: he had earned a commission in the Marine Corps, survived World War II, published the novel Lie Down in Darkness (1951) and the novella The Long March (1953), and won the Prix de Rome. He had also recently married and was about to return to the United States from an expatriate period in Paris and Rome. The letters constitute a portrait of the artist as a young man. They read like an epistolary novel, with movement from location to location and changes in voice and language. Styron was extremely close to his father and quite open with him. His story is a classic one, from youthful insecurity to artistic self-discovery, capped by recognition and success. There are challenges along the way for the hero—poor academic performance, a syphilis scare, writer’s block, temporary frustration in romance. But Styron overcomes these difficulties and emerges as a confident young writer, ready to tackle his next project, the novel Set This House on Fire (1960). Rose Styron, the author’s widow, contributes a prefatory memoir of the senior Styron. West has provided comprehensive annotations to the correspondence, and the volume also has several illustrations, including facsimiles of some of the letters, which survive among Styron’s papers at Duke University. Finally, there is a selection of Styron’s apprentice fiction from the late 1940s and early 1950s. In all of American literature, no other extended series of such letters—son to father—exists. Letters to My Father offers a unique glimpse into the formative years of one of the most admired and controversial writers of his time.
Letters to My Grandchildren
by David SuzukiIn this inspiring series of letters to his grandchildren, David Suzuki offers grandfatherly advice mixed with stories from his own remarkable life and explores what makes life meaningful. He challenges his grandchildren - and us - to do everything at full tilt. He explains why sports, fishing, feminism, and failure are important; why it is dangerous to deny our biological nature; and why First Nations must lead a revolution. Drawing on his own experiences and the wisdom he has gained over his long life, he decries the lack of elders and grandparents in the lives of many people, especially immigrants, and champions the importance of heroes. And he even has something to say about fashion. The book also provides an intimate look at Suzuki's life as a father and grandfather with letters that are chock-full of anecdotes about his children and grandchildren when they were small. As he ponders life's deepest questions and offers up a lifetime of wisdom, Suzuki inspires us all to live with courage, conviction, and passion.
Letters to My Mother: A Message of Love, A Plea for Freedom
by Ingrid Betancourt Lorenzo Delloye-Betancourt Melanie Delloye-BetancourtCorrespondence between politician Ingrid Betancourt and her family, written while she was being held hostage by a Columbian guerilla group. On December 1, 2007, during the arrest of several guerillas in Bogotá, the Colombian police confiscated a short video clip of political hostage Ingrid Betancourt. Accompanying the video was a twelve-page letter, dated October 24, 2007, written by Betancourt to her mother and family. Kidnapped on February 23, 2002, Betancourt has become an international symbol in the struggle for liberty and the fight against barbarity. Before being captured by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), she was a voice of hope for the Colombian people, leading a courageous fight against political corruption, violence, and illegal detentions. Presented in this small, poignant book is Betancourt&’s letter to her mother printed in English, French, and Spanish. From the depths of the Colombian jungle, Betancourt&’s words are an impassioned declaration of love to those dearest to her. In addition to this letter is a response to Betancourt written by her children who, since they were teenagers, have rallied public support for their mother&’s release. With a preface by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Elie Wiesel, Letters to My Mother conveys a powerful message of love for family and country, and a heartrending plea for freedom.
Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor
by Yossi Klein HaleviAttempting to break the agonizing impasse between Israelis and Palestinians, the Israeli commentator and award-winning author of Like Dreamers directly addresses his Palestinian neighbors in this taut and provocative book, empathizing with Palestinian suffering and longing for reconciliation as he explores how the conflict looks through Israeli eyes. <P><P>I call you "neighbor" because I don’t know your name, or anything personal about you. Given our circumstances, "neighbor" might be too casual a word to describe our relationship. We are intruders into each other’s dream, violators of each other’s sense of home. We are incarnations of each other’s worst historical nightmares. Neighbors? <P><P>Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor is one Israeli’s powerful attempt to reach beyond the wall that separates Israelis and Palestinians and into the hearts of "the enemy." In a series of letters, Yossi Klein Halevi explains what motivated him to leave his native New York in his twenties and move to Israel to participate in the drama of the renewal of a Jewish homeland, which he is committed to see succeed as a morally responsible, democratic state in the Middle East. <P><P>This is the first attempt by an Israeli author to directly address his Palestinian neighbors and describe how the conflict appears through Israeli eyes. Halevi untangles the ideological and emotional knot that has defined the conflict for nearly a century. In lyrical, evocative language, he unravels the complex strands of faith, pride, anger and anguish he feels as a Jew living in Israel, using history and personal experience as his guide. <P><P>Halevi’s letters speak not only to his Palestinian neighbor, but to all concerned global citizens, helping us understand the painful choices confronting Israelis and Palestinians that will ultimately help determine the fate of the region.
Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor
by Yossi Klein HaleviNew York Times bestseller "A profound and original book, the work of a gifted thinker."--Daphne Merkin, The Wall Street JournalAttempting to break the agonizing impasse between Israelis and Palestinians, the Israeli commentator and award-winning author of Like Dreamers directly addresses his Palestinian neighbors in this taut and provocative book, empathizing with Palestinian suffering and longing for reconciliation as he explores how the conflict looks through Israeli eyes.I call you "neighbor" because I don’t know your name, or anything personal about you. Given our circumstances, "neighbor" might be too casual a word to describe our relationship. We are intruders into each other’s dream, violators of each other’s sense of home. We are incarnations of each other’s worst historical nightmares. Neighbors?Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor is one Israeli’s powerful attempt to reach beyond the wall that separates Israelis and Palestinians and into the hearts of "the enemy." In a series of letters, Yossi Klein Halevi explains what motivated him to leave his native New York in his twenties and move to Israel to participate in the drama of the renewal of a Jewish homeland, which he is committed to see succeed as a morally responsible, democratic state in the Middle East.This is the first attempt by an Israeli author to directly address his Palestinian neighbors and describe how the conflict appears through Israeli eyes. Halevi untangles the ideological and emotional knot that has defined the conflict for nearly a century. In lyrical, evocative language, he unravels the complex strands of faith, pride, anger and anguish he feels as a Jew living in Israel, using history and personal experience as his guide.Halevi’s letters speak not only to his Palestinian neighbor, but to all concerned global citizens, helping us understand the painful choices confronting Israelis and Palestinians that will ultimately help determine the fate of the region.
Letters to My Torturer: Love, Revolution, and Imprisonment in Iran
by Houshand AsadiHoushang Asadi's Letters to My Torturer is one of the most harrowing accounts of human suffering to emerge from Iran and is now available for the first time in paperback. Kept in solitary confinement for over two years in one of the most infamous prisons in Tehran, prominent Iranian journalist, Houshang Asadi suffered inhuman degradations and brutal, mindless torture at the hands of a man who introduced himself as 'Brother Hamid'. A man without whose permission he couldn't eat, sleep, receive medical care, or go to the toilet. A man who knew no limits when it came to extracting 'confessions': suspended from the ceiling, beaten, and forced to bark like a dog, Asadi became a spy for the Russians, for the British - for anyone. Narrowly escaping execution as the government unleashed a bloody pogrom against political prisoners that left thousands dead, he was hauled before a sham court and sentenced to fifteen years. In exile, tormented by nightmares and flashbacks, Asadi' first attempt at recording his experiences resulted in a heart attack. Here at last he confronts his torturer one last time, speaking for those whose voices will never be heard, and provides a chilling glimpse into the heart of Iran and the practice of state-sponsored justice. In 1983, the journalist, writer, and translator Houshang Asadi was locked in a Tehran prison. Under torture, he said he was a spy. Many of his friends also confessed and were later executed. He was released after six years. Today he lives in Paris with his wife, Nooshabeh Amiri. They write for the high-profile Iranian news website Rooz Online. "Remarkable on any terms, but it is made especially memorable by the chilling irony and heartbreaking naïveté that characterize Mr. Asadi's tale." Wall Street Journal "With moving stories about fellow prisoners, biting commentary on the religious dictates imposed by his jailers, and meditations on the soul-destroying effect of false confessions and the special cruelty of his ideological, authoritarian interrogators, Asadi's simple prose attracts even as the facts he reports repel... A horrifying glimpse of the decades-long nightmare still afflicting the people of Iran." Kirkus
Letters to Ottla and the Family (The Schocken Kafka Library)
by Franz KafkaWritten by Kafka between 1909 and 1924, these letters offer a unique insight into the workings of the Kafka family, their relationship with the Prague Jewish community, and Kafka's own feelings about his parents and siblings. A gracious but shy woman, and a silent rebel against the bourgeois society in which she lived, Ottla Kafka was the sibling to whom Kafka felt closest. He had a special affection for her simplicity, her integrity, her ability to listen, and her pride in his work. Ottla was deported to Theresienstadt during World War II, and volunteered to accompany a transport of children to Auschwitz in 1943. She did not survive the war, but her husband and daughters did, and preserved her brother's letters to her. They were published in the original German in 1974, and in English in 1982."Kafka's touching letters to his sister, when she was a child and as a young married woman, are beautifully simple, tender, and fresh. In them one sees the side of his nature that was not estranged. It is lucky they have been preserved."--V. S. Pritchett, The New York Review of Books
Letters to Penthouse XV: Outrageous Erotic Orgasmic (Penthouse Adventures #15)
by The Editors Of Penthouse MagazineAnother collection of erotic stories from Penthouse magazine.
Letters to Poseidon
by Cees NooteboomIt is said that during his abortive campaign to invade Britannia, the infamous Roman emperor Caligula ordered his legions into the surf to attack Poseidon and claim seashells as trophies of war. Cees Nooteboom is considerably more thoughtful in his relationship with the god of the sea. As autumn falls each year, Nooteboom writes Poseidon a letter requesting permission to return to his home in Minorca the following spring.Of course, it would be the height of discourtesy if Nooteboom's letters were no more than a series of demands. So Cees takes the opportunity to seek the wisdom of the trident-wielding deity, and to offer the god updates about his own life and thoughts.At once playful and poignant, beautiful and at times slightly bizarre, this masterful exploration of humankind's relationship with the sea uses the minutiae of everyday life to illuminate the broadest questions of human existence, all couched in the lapidary prose of one of Europe's outstanding stylists.
Letters to President Obama: Americans Share Their Hopes and Dreams with the First African-American President
by Sherman Puckett Donald R. Deskins Josephine A.V. Allen Hanes WaltonThis collection, which will total between 300 and 500 letters from Americans of all walks of life, will become an important piece of history as it describes the variety of feelings and emotions of Americans about the election of Barack Obama as President of the United States. Central to the book is the African-American experience and the long road from slavery to the civil rights era to the twenty-first century, but Americans of every race, color, gender, and age will be represented. From children and seniors, from cities and farms, all we have something to say and much to share about how Barack Obama's election was special to them.
Letters to Sam: A Grandfather's Lessons on Love, Loss, and the Gifts of Life
by Daniel GottliebDr. Gottlieb is a nationally known psychologist. He has a private practice, a call-in radio show in Philadelphia's NPR affiliate, writes a regular column for the Philadelphia Inquirer, and authored several books. At age 33, he was in a car accident and became quadriplegic. He's been in a wheelchair since then. After healing, he returned to his profession. When his grandson was born, he began writing short letters to Sam, a method of passing on his wisdom. At about 14 months, Sam was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder, the Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Grandpa's letters became even more important as Sam grows to age 4, when the book ends. The themes of the letters speak to everyone, disability is only one aspect of their lives. There are many gems of wisdom in here, much to ponder and absorb. It resonates with life lessons worth knowing and universal truths.
Letters to Sam: A Grandfather's Lessons on Love, Loss, and the Gifts of Life
by Dr. Dan GottliebDear Sam,As your only living grandfather, I want to welcome you into this world. Always remember that … life is a gift and a blessing. In the tradition of such bestsellers as Tuesdays with Morrie and Riding the Buswith My Sister, this emotionally powerful collection of letters from grandfather to grandson will touch readers right down to their core. Award-winning radio host, newspaper columnist, and psychologist Daniel Gottlieb has created a truly inspirational work. When his grandson was born, Daniel Gottlieb began to write a series of heartfelt letters that he hoped Sam would read later in life. He planned to cover all the important topics—dealing with your parents, handling bullies, falling in love, coping with death—and what motivated him was the fear that he might not live long enough to see Sam reach adulthood. Daniel Gottlieb is a quadriplegic—the result of a near-fatal automobile accident that occurred two decades ago—and he knows enough not to take anything for granted. Then, when Sam was only fourteen months old, he was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disability, a form of autism, and suddenly everything changed. Now the grandfather and grandson were bound by something more: a disability—and Daniel Gottlieb’s special understanding of what that means became invaluable.A lovingly written, emotionally gripping book that offers unique—and universal—insights into what it means to be human. In addition to his thriving psychotherapy practice, Daniel Gottlieb serves as the host of Voices in the Family, an award-winning mental health call-in show on Philadelphia’s much-respected public radio station, WHYY. He also writes a bimonthly column for the Philadelphia Inquirer entitled “On Healing,” and is the author of two books. He lectures locally and nationally on a variety of topics affecting the well-being of people, families, and the larger community.
Letters to Solovine, 1906–1955
by Albert EinsteinA provocative collection of letters to his longtime friend and translator that spans Einstein&’s career and reveals the inner thoughts and daily life of a transformative geniusFrom their early days as tutor and scholar discussing philosophy over Spartan dinners to their work together to publish Einstein&’s books in Europe, in Maurice Solovine, Albert Einstein found both an engaged mind and a loyal friend. While Einstein frequently shared his observations on science, politics, philosophy, and religion in his correspondence with Solovine, he was just as likely to express his feelings about everyday life—his health and the effects of aging and his experiences in the various places where he settled and visited in his long career. The letters are both funny and frank, and taken together, reflect the changes—large and small—that took place over a half century and in the remarkable life of the world&’s foremost scientist. Published in English alongside the German text and accompanied by facsimile copies of the original letters, the collected Letters to Solovine offers scholar and interested reader alike unprecedented access to the personal life of Albert Einstein. This authorized ebook features a new introduction by Neil Berger, PhD, and an illustrated biography of Albert Einstein, which includes rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Letters to Solovine, 1906–1955: 1906–1955 (Paperback Ser.)
by Albert EinsteinA provocative collection of letters to his longtime friend and translator that spans Einstein&’s career and reveals the inner thoughts and daily life of a transformative geniusFrom their early days as tutor and scholar discussing philosophy over Spartan dinners to their work together to publish Einstein&’s books in Europe, in Maurice Solovine, Albert Einstein found both an engaged mind and a loyal friend. While Einstein frequently shared his observations on science, politics, philosophy, and religion in his correspondence with Solovine, he was just as likely to express his feelings about everyday life—his health and the effects of aging and his experiences in the various places where he settled and visited in his long career. The letters are both funny and frank, and taken together, reflect the changes—large and small—that took place over a half century and in the remarkable life of the world&’s foremost scientist. Published in English alongside the German text and accompanied by facsimile copies of the original letters, the collected Letters to Solovine offers scholar and interested reader alike unprecedented access to the personal life of Albert Einstein. This authorized ebook features a new introduction by Neil Berger, PhD, and an illustrated biography of Albert Einstein, which includes rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Letters to Véra
by Vladimir NabokovThe letters of the great writer to his wife--gathered here for the first time--chronicle a decades-long love story and document anew the creative energies of an artist who was always at work.No marriage of a major twentieth-century writer is quite as beguiling as that of Vladimir Nabokov's to Véra Slonim. She shared his delight in life's trifles and literature's treasures, and he rated her as having the best and quickest sense of humor of any woman he had met. From their first encounter in 1923, Vladimir's letters to Véra form a narrative arc that tells a half-century-long love story, one that is playful, romantic, pithy and memorable. At the same time, the letters tell us much about the man and the writer. We see the infectious fascination with which Vladimir observed everything--animals, people, speech, the landscapes and cityscapes he encountered--and learn of the poems, plays, stories, novels, memoirs, screenplays and translations on which he worked ceaselessly. This delicious volume contains twenty-one photographs, as well as facsimiles of the letters themselves and the puzzles and doodles Vladimir often sent to Véra. From the Hardcover edition.
Letters to a Friend
by Diana Athill Edward Field"What a feast. Diana's work compels me. . . . She's got her teeth into life!"--Alice Munro Diana Athill is one of our great women of letters. The renowned editor of V. S. Naipaul, Jean Rhys, and many others, she is also a celebrated memoirist whose Somewhere Towards the End was a New York Times bestseller and a National Book Critics Circle Award winner. For thirty years, Athill corresponded with the American poet Edward Field, freely sharing jokes, pleasures, and pains with her old friend. Letters to a Friend is an epistolary memoir that describes a warm, decades-long friendship. Written with intimacy and spontaneity, candor and grace, it is perhaps more revealing than any of her celebrated books. Edited, selected, and introduced by Athill, and annotated with her own delightful notes, this collection--rich with Athill's characteristic wit, humor, elegance, and honesty--reveals a sharply intelligent woman with a keen eye for the absurd, a brilliant turn of phrase, and a wicked sense of humor. Covering her career as an editor, the adventure of her retirement, her immersion in her own writing, and her reactions to becoming unexpectedly famous in her old age--including gossip about legendary authors and mutual friends, sharp pen-portraits, and uninhibited accounts of her relationships--Letters to a Friend describes a flourishing friendship and offers a portrait of a woman growing older without ever losing her zest for life.
Letters to a Writer of Color
by Madeleine Thien Xiaolu Guo Tiphanie YaniqueA vital collection of essays on the power of literature and the craft of writing from an international array of writers of color, sharing the experiences, cultural traditions, and convictions that have shaped them and their work&“Electric essays that speak to the experience of writing from the periphery . . . a guide, a comfort, and a call all at once.&”—Laila Lalami, author of Conditional Citizens Filled with empathy and wisdom, instruction and inspiration, this book encourages us to reevaluate the codes and conventions that have shaped our assumptions about how fiction should be written, and also challenges us to apply its lessons to both what we read and how we read. Featuring: • Taymour Soomro on resisting rigid stories about who you are• Madeleine Thien on how writing builds the room in which it can exist• Amitava Kumar on why authenticity isn&’t a license we carry in our wallets• Tahmima Anam on giving herself permission to be funny• Ingrid Rojas Contreras on the bodily challenge of writing about trauma• Zeyn Joukhadar on queering English and the power of refusing to translate ourselves• Myriam Gurba on the empowering circle of Latina writers she works within• Kiese Laymon on hearing that no one wants to read the story that you want to write• Mohammed Hanif on the censorship he experienced at the hands of political authorities• Deepa Anappara on writing even through conditions that impede the creation of art• Plus essays from Tiphanie Yanique, Xiaolu Guo, Jamil Jan Kochai, Vida Cruz-Borja, Femi Kayode, Nadifa Mohamed in conversation with Leila Aboulela, and Sharlene Teo The start of a more inclusive conversation about storytelling, Letters to a Writer of Color will be a touchstone for aspiring and working writers and for curious readers everywhere.
Letters to a Young Athlete
by Chris BoshA legendary NBA player shares his remarkable story, infused with hard-earned wisdom about the journey to self-mastery from a life at the highest level of professional sportsChris Bosh, NBA Hall of Famer, eleven-time All-Star, two-time NBA champion, Olympic gold medalist, and the league&’s Global Ambassador, had his playing days cut short at their prime by a freak medical condition. His extraordinary career ended not at a time of his choosing but &“in a doctor&’s office in the middle of the afternoon.&” Forced to reckon with how to find meaning to carry forward, he found himself looking back over his path, from a teenager in Dallas who balanced basketball with the high school robotics club to the pinnacle of the NBA and beyond. Reflecting on all he learned from a long list of basketball legends, from LeBron and Kobe to Pat Riley and Coach K, he saw that his important lessons weren&’t about basketball so much as the inner game of success—right attitude, right commitment, right flow within a team. Now he shares that journey, giving us a fascinating view from the inside of what greatness feels like and what it takes, formulated as a series of letters to younger people coming up and to all wisdom seekers. A timeless gift for anyone in pursuit of excellence, Letters to a Young Athlete offers a proven path for taming your inner voice and making it your ally, through the challenges of failure and the challenges of success alike.
Letters to a Young Conservative
by Dinesh D'SouzaDinesh D'Souza rose to national prominence as one of the founders of the Dartmouth Review, a leading voice in the rebirth of conservative politics on college campuses in the 1980s. He fired the first popular shot against political correctness with his best-selling exposé Illiberal Education. Now, after serving as a Reagan White House staffer, the managing editor of Policy Review, and a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and the Hoover Institution, he addresses the next generation in Letters to a Young Conservative. Drawing on his own colorful experiences, both within the conservative world and while skirmishing with the left, D'Souza aims to enlighten and inspire young conservatives and give them weapons for the intellectual battles that they face in high school, college, and everyday life. Letters to a Young Conservative also illuminates the enduring themes that for D'Souza anchor the conservative position: not "family values" or patriotism, but a philosophy based on natural rights and a belief in universal moral truths. With a light touch, D'Souza shows that conservatism needn't be stodgy or defensive, even though it is based on preserving the status quo. To the contrary, when a conservative has to expose basic liberal assumptions to scrutiny, he or she must become a kind of imaginative, fun-loving, forward-looking guerrilla--philosophically conservative but temperamentally radical. Among the topics Dinesh D'Souza covers in Letters to a Young Conservative: Fighting Political CorrectnessAuthentic vs. Bogus MulticulturalismWhy Government Is the ProblemWhen the Rich Get RicherHow Affirmative Action Hurts BlacksThe Feminist MistakeAll the News That FitsHow to Harpoon a LiberalThe Self-Esteem HoaxA Republican Realignment?Why Conservatives Should Be Cheerful
Letters to a Young Gymnast
by Nadia ComaneciIf there were such a thing as an "elder" stateswoman in women's gymnastics today, Nadia Comaneci would win that title as readily as she once won gold medals. Olga Korbut came before her, and many other medalists would follow, but none has ever been as dominant in winning the hearts of millions around the world. With grit and determination, Nadia Comaneci ushered in a new era for women's sports, one where young girls could vault into the arena of superstardom. Even today, almost thirty years after her greatest triumphs, you need only mention the name "Nadia" and gymnastics fans know instantly whom you are talking about. In Letters to a Young Gymnast, Nadia shows what it takes to achieve athletic perfection and become the best. With inspiring and dramatic stories from her own experience, she tells us how the young girl that Bela Karolyi discovered in a Romanian elementary school found the inner strength to become a world-class athlete at such a young age. This collection of Nadia's memories, anecdotes, and advice grants unique insights into the mind of a top competitor. From how to live after you've realized your dream, to the necessity of "a spirit forged with mettle," Nadia's thoughts on athleticism and sacrifice are eye-opening and surprisingly challenging.
Letters to a Young Lawyer
by Alan M. DershowitzAs defender of both the righteous and the questionable, Alan Dershowitz has become perhaps the most famous and outspoken attorney in the land. Whether or not they agree with his legal tactics, most people would agree that he possesses a powerful and profound sense of justice. In this meditation on his profession, Dershowitz writes about life, law, and the opportunities that young lawyers have to do good and do well at the same time.We live in an age of growing dissatisfaction with law as a career, which ironically comes at a time of unprecedented wealth for many lawyers. Dershowitz addresses this paradox, as well as the uncomfortable reality of working hard for clients who are often without many redeeming qualities. He writes about the lure of money, fame, and power, as well as about the seduction of success. In the process, he conveys some of the "tricks of the trade" that have helped him win cases and become successful at the art and practice of "lawyering."
Letters to a Young Poet
by Rainer Maria Rilke Lewis Hyde Charlie LouthRilke's powerfully touching letters to an aspiring young poet At the start of the twentieth century, Rainer Maria Rilke wrote a series of letters to a young officer cadet, advising him on writing, love, sex, suffering, and the nature of advice itself. These profound and lyrical letters have since become hugely influential for generations of writers and artists of all kinds, including Lady Gaga and Patti Smith. With honesty, elegance, and a deep understanding of the loneliness that often comes with being an artist, Rilke's letters are an endless source of inspiration and comfort. Lewis Hyde's new introduction explores the context in which these letters were written and how the author embraced his isolation as a creative force. This edition also includes Rilke's later work The Letter from the Young Worker.
Letters to a Young Poet
by Rainer Maria Rilke M. D. NortonRilke's timeless letters about poetry, sensitive observation, and the complicated workings of the human heart. Born in 1875, the great German lyric poet Rainer Maria Rilke published his first collection of poems in 1898 and went on to become renowned for his delicate depiction of the workings of the human heart. Drawn by some sympathetic note in his poems, young people often wrote to Rilke with their problems and hopes. From 1903 to 1908 Rilke wrote a series of remarkable responses to a young, would-be poet on poetry and on surviving as a sensitive observer in a harsh world. Those letters, still a fresh source of inspiration and insight, are accompanied here by a chronicle of Rilke's life that shows what he was experiencing in his own relationship to life and work when he wrote them.