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Skull Session: Mastering the Mental Game in Sports, Work, and Life
by Scott CochranThe most famous strength and conditioning coach in college football uses his story of hitting rock bottom and clawing his way back to success to inspire audiences in life, business and sports. Few names in college football command respect like Scott Cochran, affectionately known as "Coach Yeah," the 8-time National Championship-winning strength and conditioning coach whose booming voice and relentless energy turned boys into champions at Alabama and Georgia. But behind the rings, ESPN appearances, and hall-of-fame-level hype, Cochran faced an opponent far tougher than any SEC rival: addiction.Skull Session is his no-holds-barred account of rising to the top, falling hard, and clawing his way back with faith, grit, and the unwavering belief that champions are built in the mind as well as on the field. If Cochran is known for anything, it&’s using his distinct voice to turn go-getters into champions. In this motivational book, Cochran blends raw personal testimony with the essential principles that have shaped some of the NFL's greatest stars, including Derrick Henry, Julio Jones, and Minkah Fitzpatrick. This is a playbook for life. Each chapter centers on a core principle learned in what Cochran calls "skull sessions"—mental-development meetings that taught his players (and himself) to confront their fears, failures, and ambitions head-on. From his near-fatal overdose to his spiritual reawakening, Cochran reveals how he rebuilt his life one day at a time. Perfect for sports fans, self-improvement readers, and anyone seeking redemption, Skull Session is the ultimate underdog story. It's a testament to the truth that no matter how many times you fall, you can rise again—and rise stronger.
Skullcaps N Switchblades: Survival Stories of an Orthadox Jew Teaching i the Inner City
by David B. Lazerson Frank McGinleyThis is the touching and uproarious true story of a bearded, skullcapped Orthodox Jewish teacher who finds himself assigned to a class of learning-impaired children in a black ghetto school in Buffalo, New York. In his humorous casual style, the author describes how he and his students overcome their reservations about each other and develop a singular relationship of mutual trust and regard. He demonstrates that diverse backgrounds and beliefs are not necessarily a barrier to harmony and racial rapport, that deep conviction, integrity and honesty lead to respect and understanding. The imaginative application of Talmudic precepts applied to inner-city educational problems helped the Dr. Lazerson develop an innovative approach to learning disabilities which has been widely acclaimed int eh worldwide educational community.
Sky Above Kharkiv: Dispatches from the Ukrainian Front (The Margellos World Republic of Letters)
by Serhiy ZhadanFrom Ukraine&’s leading writer-activist comes an intimate account of resistance and survival in the earliest months of the Russian-Ukrainian war &“A vivid, in-the-trenches report from a Ukrainian city and its &‘injured, yet unbreakable&’ citizens.&”—Kirkus Reviews When Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Serhiy Zhadan took to social media to coordinate a network of resistance workers and send messages of courage to his fellow Ukrainians. What began as a local organizing effort exploded onto the international stage as readers around the globe looked to Zhadan as a key eyewitness documenting Russian atrocities. In this powerful record of the war&’s harrowing first four months, Zhadan works day and night in Kharkiv to evacuate children and the elderly from suburbs that have come under fire. He sends lists of life-saving medications to the West in the hopes of procuring them for civilians, coordinates food deliveries, collects money for military equipment, and organizes concerts. He shares photographs of the open sky—grateful for every pause in the shelling—and captures images of beloved institutions reduced to rubble. We&’ll restore everything. We&’ll rebuild everything, he writes. As the days pass, the city empties. Friends are killed. And when images of the Bucha massacre are released, Zhadan&’s own voice falters: I&’m speechless. Hang in there, my friends. Tomorrow, we&’ll wake up one day closer to our victory. An intimate work of witness literature, this book is at once the testimony of one man entering a new reality and the story of a society fighting for the right to exist.
Sky Brown: Skateboarding Phenom (Sports Illustrated Kids Stars of Sports)
by Cheryl KimAt just 10 years of age, Sky Brown became the youngest professional skateboarder in the world. Instead of using a coach, she learns her tricks online. She’s not afraid to take risks and push limits. After a horrific fall left her unresponsive with several skull fractures and a broken left hand and wrist, Brown is still determined to be the best skateboarder in the world!
Sky Burial
by XinranIn 2002 Xinran's Good Women of China became an international bestseller, revealing startling new truths about Chinese life to the West. Now she returns with an epic story of love, friendship, courage and sacrifice set in Chinese-occupied Tibet. Based on a true story, Xinran's extraordinary second book takes the reader right to the hidden heart of one of the world's most mysterious and inaccessible countries. In March 1958, Shu Wen learns that her husband, an idealistic army doctor, has died while serving in Tibet. Determined to find out what happened to him, she courageously sets off to join his regiment. But to her horror, instead of finding a Tibetan people happily welcoming their Chinese "liberators" as she expected, she walks into a bloody conflict, with the Chinese subject to terrifying attacks from Tibetan guerrillas. It seems that her husband may have died as a result of this clash of cultures, this disastrous misunderstanding. But before she can know his fate, she is taken hostage and embarks on a life-changing journey through the Tibetan countryside -- a journey that will last twenty years and lead her to a deep appreciation of Tibet in all its beauty and brutality. Sadly, when she finally discovers the truth about her husband, she must carry her knowledge back to a China that, in her absence, has experienced the Cultural Revolution and changed beyond recognition. . .
Sky Burial: An Epic Love Story of Tibet
by Xinran XueIn 2002 Xinran's Good Women of China became an international bestseller, revealing startling new truths about Chinese life to the West. Now she returns with an epic story of love, friendship, courage and sacrifice set in Chinese-occupied Tibet. Based on a true story, Xinran's extraordinary second book takes the reader right to the hidden heart of one of the world's most mysterious and inaccessible countries. In March 1958, Shu Wen learns that her husband, an idealistic army doctor, has died while serving in Tibet. Determined to find out what happened to him, she courageously sets off to join his regiment. But to her horror, instead of finding a Tibetan people happily welcoming their Chinese "liberators" as she expected, she walks into a bloody conflict, with the Chinese subject to terrifying attacks from Tibetan guerrillas. It seems that her husband may have died as a result of this clash of cultures, this disastrous misunderstanding. But before she can know his fate, she is taken hostage and embarks on a life-changing journey through the Tibetan countryside -- a journey that will last twenty years and lead her to a deep appreciation of Tibet in all its beauty and brutality. Sadly, when she finally discovers the truth about her husband, she must carry her knowledge back to a China that, in her absence, has experienced the Cultural Revolution and changed beyond recognition.
Sky Dharma: The Foundations of the Namchö Treasure Teaching
by Karma Chagme Rigdzin Kunzang SherabThe inspiring life story of Tertön Migyur Dorje, who revealed a new cycle of Tibetan Buddhist teachings, together with a commentary on the preliminary practices written by his main student. Tertön Migyur Dorje revealed the Namchö treasure teachings while in a three-year retreat that began when he was only thirteen. The Great Compassionate One (Avalokiteshvara) and Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) appeared to him in pure visionary experience and gave him these teachings. Migyur Dorje then dictated them to his teacher Karma Chagme. The Namchö treasures later became the main teachings and practices of the Palyul lineage, and these teachings continue to be presented in Palyul monasteries and retreat centers throughout Asia, North America, and Europe. This book brings together two texts that have inspired countless practitioners in this lineage. The first text tells the life story of Migyur Dorje. It was composed by Karma Chagme, the master who first recognized the seven-year-old Migyur Dorje as an exceptional tulku and tertön and who was responsible for preparing him to be a major treasure revealer. The second text is a commentary on the Namchö preliminary practices. Written by Rigdzin Kunzang Sherab, Migyur Dorje&’s main student and the first throne holder of the Palyul lineage, it explains the foundational practices that should be completed before pursuing more advanced ones: the four contemplations that turn the mind to dharma and the fivefold practice of taking refuge, arousing bodhichitta, mandala offering, Vajrasattva purification, and Guru Yoga.
Sky Fighters Of France, Aerial Warfare, 1914-1918
by Lieutenant Henry Farré Catherine RushDuring the First World War the skies above became a new frontier for warfare, as many of the soldiers below caught their first glimpse of an airplane from the ground the pioneering airmen fought to gain control of the skies. Amongst the French pilots rose aces such as Hertaux and Guynemer, and embedded in their midst was the unassuming artist Henry Farré commissioned to record their deeds, characters and life in his paintings. Farré was determined to record the airwar and its combatants in intimate detail and lived with the sqaudrons in the field and frequently accompanied the planes up into the fray as an observer.Lieutenant Farré wrote his short but richly detailed and illustrated autobiography a few years after the war whilst the details were fresh in his mind. It stands as an excellent record of the elite French pilots with which he served and whose deeds he painted.Author --Lieutenant Henry FarréTranslator -- Catharine RushText taken, whole and complete, from the edition published in Boston, Houghton Mifflin company, 1919.Original Page Count - xvii and 142 pagesIllustrations -- 25 portraits and illustrations
Sky High: George Ferris's Big Wheel (Step into Reading)
by Monica KullingThis fascinating Step 3 History Reader describes the invention of the first Ferris wheel—an engineering marvel. The 1893 World&’s Fair organizers wanted something big to draw people to Chicago . . . something that would rival the Eiffel Tower. George Ferris, an American engineer, had the idea for an observation wheel that passengers could ride on. People laughed at his idea. They said it would never work. But it was a huge success, with thirty-six cars that could hold over 2,100 riders! That&’s some big wheel! Ferris wheel lovers can thank George Ferris for never giving up his dream. Step 3 Readers feature engaging characters in easy-to-follow plots about popular topics—for children who are ready to read on their own.
Sky Is Not the Limit: Adventures of an Urban Astrophysicist
by Neil deGrasse TysonFrom the author of Astrophysics for People in a Hurry and the host of Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey,a memoir about growing up and a young man's budding scientific curiosity. This is the absorbing story of Neil deGrasse Tyson's lifelong fascination with the night sky, a restless wonder that began some thirty years ago on the roof of his Bronx apartment building and eventually led him to become the director of the Hayden Planetarium. A unique chronicle of a young man who at one time was both nerd and jock, Tyson's memoir could well inspire other similarly curious youngsters to pursue their dreams. Like many athletic kids he played baseball, won medals in track and swimming, and was captain of his high school wrestling team. But at the same time he was setting up a telescope on winter nights, taking an advanced astronomy course at the Hayden Planetarium, and spending a summer vacation at an astronomy camp in the Mojave Desert. Eventually, his scientific curiosity prevailed, and he went on to graduate in physics from Harvard and to earn a Ph.D. in astrophysics from Columbia. There followed postdoctoral research at Princeton. In 1996, he became the director of the Hayden Planetarium, where some twenty-five years earlier he had been awed by the spectacular vista in the sky theater. Tyson pays tribute to the key teachers and mentors who recognized his precocious interests and abilities, and helped him succeed. He intersperses personal reminiscences with thoughts on scientific literacy, careful science vs. media hype, the possibility that a meteor could someday hit the Earth, dealing with society's racial stereotypes, what science can and cannot say about the existence of God, and many other interesting insights about science, society, and the nature of the universe. Now available in paperback with a new preface and other additions, this engaging memoir will enlighten and inspire an appreciation of astronomy and the wonders of our universe.
Sky Lantern: The Story of a Father's Love for His Children and the Healing Power of the Smallest Act of Kindness
by Matt MikalatosMatt Mikalatos offers a poignant and compassionate look at a father's relationship with his children, the healing power of a small act of kindness, and the certainty that even death can't stop love in a deeply moving memoir inspired by a sky lantern with a scribbled note and the journey to find the child who wrote it.Love you, Daddy. Miss you so much. Steph. Steph scribbled those words on a sky lantern before sending it off to her father in heaven who had passed away from cancer. Halfway across the country, Steph's lantern landed in Matt Mikalatos's yard. As a father of three daughters, Matt could not let Steph's note go unanswered, so he posted an open letter to her on his blog. Matt never could have expected the viral response to his letter that led him on a journey to find Steph--and to bring healing to thousands of others in desperate need of the loving words of a father. Filled with paternal wisdom and reflections on the relationship between a father and their child, Sky Lantern shows how the miraculous events that followed Matt finding the sky lantern in his yard--and the widespread and lasting impact his letter had--prove that the bond between a parent and their child is everlasting.
Sky Ranch: Living on a Remote Ranch in Idaho
by Bobbi PhelpsA city girl is uprooted and moved to the farm, where she must overcome her fears and learn to live life in a rougher way. Once Bobbi Phelps married an Idaho rancher, she discovered what it was like to live in rural America. The contrast between her suburban background and her farming life created challenging yet rewarding differences. Sky Ranch tells of Bobbi Phelps’s Idaho ranch experiences between 1980 and 1996, the adventures in a past time before camera phones, GPS technology, and social media. Throughout this memoir, she shares frightening tales of: - Dangerous white-outs during Rocky Mountain blizzards. - A terrifying flooded road crossing in pitch blackness. - A near drowning while fishing Henry’s Lake. - Losing her young son among huge harvesting machines. Sky Ranch is a memoir about a naïve suburban woman who struggled to navigate an industrial farm and its commercial cattle enterprise. Her life on the ranch meant grocery shopping once every two weeks, driving through harsh winter storms and swollen streams, and rescuing her horse in a full-blown blizzard. Living in the Rocky Mountains allowed her to fish, hunt, and camp on a regular basis. She also discovered different aspects of the Mormon religion, coyotes hunting her dog, industrial farming, and environmental conservation. Sky Ranch will appeal to readers interested in Western culture, cattle and row-crop farmers, hunters, anglers, and those who only dream of living on a ranch. It takes the reader on an exciting ride of terror, drama, and humor, giving us a look at what goes on behind the scenes at a rural ranch, many miles from civilization.
Sky Ranch: Reared in the High Country
by Linda M. LockwoodFor fans of Tara Westover’s Educated and Ivan Doig’s This House of Sky comes a memoir about a girl’s isolated ranch childhood—and her adulthood journey to overcome grief and fear and discover the truth about her mother’s mental illness.At the age of eight, Linda Lockwood moves with her family to an isolated ranch in eastern Washington State. Within two years, she’s patrolling the ranch on horseback alongside her border collie—herding sheep, killing rattlesnakes, and defending the ranch’s livestock from coyotes, bears, and even trespassing hunters—and working tirelessly to realize her dream of training horses. But her most daunting challenge is one hard work can’t overcome: her mother is descending into madness. And Linda’s deepest fear is that she might inherit the schizophrenia that threatens to dismantle her family. At age twenty-five, Linda marries, but the joy of her first pregnancy is darkened by her mother’s suicide. Then she endures a painful miscarriage and the death of her beloved grandmother, traumatic events that send her back in time to the births and deaths of animals—domesticated and wild—that she loved in childhood. Eventually, her own family grows, but her happiness is haunted by questions people have tiptoed around all her life. How did her mother become schizophrenic? What did she endure as a patient in 1960s mental hospitals? Might Linda and even her children be next to battle that catastrophic mental disorder? Driven by the courage and will she sharpened as a rancher, Linda vows to find out.
Sky Rider: Park Van Tassel and the Rise of Ballooning in the West
by Gary B. FogelWith a reputation as the hot-air balloon capital of the world and the home of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta®, the skies of the southwestern desert city of Albuquerque frequently showcase the magic and adventure of ballooning. This legacy links back to the 1880s and a man by the name of Park Van Tassel. Through his pioneering flight, Van Tassel not only opened the skies to future generations across New Mexico, but he also opened minds to the possibility of manned flight throughout the American West.A charismatic, P. T. Barnum–like showman, Van Tassel rose from obscurity to introduce the new science of ballooning and parachuting throughout the West. Van Tassel toured extensively—from California to Utah, Colorado, and Louisiana and later embarking on an international journey that took him to Hawaii, Australia, Southeast Asia, India, Africa, and beyond. Sky Rider weaves together the many threads of Van Tassel&’s extraordinary life journey, situating him at last in his rightful place among the prominent aerial exhibitionists of his time.
Sky Songs: Meditations on Loving a Broken World (American Lives)
by Jennifer SinorSky Songs is a collection of essays that takes inspiration from the ancient seabed in which Jennifer Sinor lives, an elemental landscape that reminds her that our lives are shaped by all that has passed through. Beginning with the conception of her first son, which coincided with the tragic death of her uncle on an Alaskan river, and ending a decade later in the Himalayan home of the Dalai Lama, Sinor offers a lyric exploration of language, love, and the promise inherent in the stories we tell: to remember. In these essays, Sinor takes us through the mountains, deserts, and rivers of the West and along with her on her travels to India. Whether rooted in the dailiness of raising children or practicing yoga, Sinor searches for the places where grace resides. The essays often weave several narrative threads together in the search for relationship and connection. A mother, writer, teacher, and yoga instructor, Sinor ultimately tackles the most difficult question: how to live in a broken world filled with both suffering and grace.
Sky Time in Gray's River
by Robert Michael PyleMuch the way Donald Hall's Seasons at Eagle Pond captured New England, Sky Time in Gray's River captures the essence of the rural Northwest. Although Rober Michael Pyle is a lepidopterist, and southwestern Washington is notable for its lack of butterflies, something about the village of Gray's River spoke to him on a visit thirty years ago. Ever since then he has lived in the village, which was one of the first to be established near the mouth of the Columbia River and which still feels only tenuously connected to the twenty-first century. Sky Time brings Gray's River to life by compressing those thirty years into twelve chapters, following the lives of its people, birds, butterflies - and cats- month by month through the seasons.In showing how the village has changed his life, Pyle illustrates how a special place can change anyone lucky enough to find it and highlights what is being lost in a world of accelerating speed, mobility, and sameness. Above all, Sky Time tells us that you dont have to travel far to see something new every day - if you know how to look.
Sky Time in Gray's River: Living for Keeps in a Forgotten Place
by Robert Michael PyleAn ecologist reflects on the natural wonders of the Pacific Northwest as he describes the lives of plants, animals, and humans through every season of the year during his thirty years in the village of Gray's River, near the mouth of the Columbia River--long out of print, this classic of nature writing is being given a new life in trade paperback with a new afterword by the author.Sky Time in Gray's River is an elegant meditation on life in the rural Northwest. Although Robert Michael Pyle is a lepidopterist, and southwestern Washington is notable for its lack of butterflies, something about the Gray's River Valley spoke to him when he visited more than forty years ago. Since then he has lived near the village of Gray's River, one of the first to be established near the mouth of the Columbia River and only tenuously connected to the world of the twenty-first century. Pyle brings Gray's River to life by compressing those forty years into twelve chapters, following the lives of the people, plants, and animals that make this valley their home, month by month through the seasons.Through his loving portrait of one riverside village, Pyle illustrates how a special place can transform anyone lucky enough to find it. He shows that you don't have to travel far to see something new every day--if you know how to look.
Sky Walking: An Astronaut's Memoir
by Tom JonesA gripping first-hand account of life in space and the making of an astronaut. What is it like to fly the space shuttle and work on and in the International Space Station? <p><p>Veteran NASA astronaut Tom Jones is uniquely qualified to give the details: he flew four shuttle missions and led three space walks to deliver the US Lab to the Station. From B-52 pilot during the Cold War, to a PhD in planetary science, to the unbelievable rigors of astronaut training, his career inevitably pointed him toward the space shuttle. Until the Challenger exploded. <p><p>Jones's story is the first to candidly explain the professional and personal hardships faced by the astronauts in the aftermath of that 1986 tragedy. He certainly has 'The Right Stuff' but also found himself wondering if the risks he undertook were worth the toll on his family. Liftoffs were especially nerve-wracking (his mother, who refuses to even get on a plane, cannot watch) but his 53 days in space were unforgettable adventures. <p><p>Jones uses his background as a scientist to explain the practical applications of many of the shuttle's scientific missions, and describes what it's like to work with the international crews building and living aboard the space station. Tom Jones returned from his space station voyage to assess the impact of the 2003 Columbia tragedy, and prescribes a successful course for the U.S. in space. Stunning photographs, many taken in space, illustrate his amazing journey.
Sky of Stone: A Memoir (Coalwood #3)
by Homer HickamOnce again, #1 bestselling author Homer Hickam takes readers on a ride back to the hometown of his youth in a new memoir as moving asOctober Sky. The New York Timesapplauded, "Hickam builds a story of overcoming obstacles worthy of Frank Capra," and readers are eager for more. By the summer of 1961, Sonny Hickam, who has just finished his first year of college, thinks he has left his hometown of Coalwood behind forever. He's got big dreams—dreams that got their lift-off with the backyard rocket launches of his adolescense. But a scandal at the mine that threatens to ruin his father takes Sonny home for the summer. And to his surprise, what begins as a summer of coal dust and misery will allow him to discover truths not just about his parents, work, and Coalwood, but about himself and the true nature of his dreams. As he did inOctober Sky, Hickam's touching memoir recreates a place and time that is at once uncannily familiar and wonderfully revealing. USA Todayraved, "Unlike so many memoirs, this book brings to life more than on man's experiences. " Hickam makes this happen again inSky of Stone.
Sky's Story (Thrown Away Children Ser.)
by Louise AllenWhen Sky and her older sister Avril were taken into care, the social workers knew this was a case like no other. Raised by troubled parents who hoarded compulsively, creating horrific conditions no child should live in, the two girls arrived at foster carer Louise's home, neglected, malnourished, and indoctrinated. Louise had to draw on all of her experience as one of Britain's leading foster carers to rehabilitate and change the course of their lives.But with constant attempts to thwart her work, Louise ends up under siege in her own home. Will she succeed or is their fate sealed forever?
Sky's Story (Thrown Away Children Ser.)
by Louise AllenWhen Sky and her older sister Avril were taken into care, the social workers knew this was a case like no other. Raised by troubled parents who hoarded compulsively, creating horrific conditions no child should live in, the two girls arrived at foster carer Louise's home, neglected, malnourished, and indoctrinated. Louise had to draw on all of her experience as one of Britain's leading foster carers to rehabilitate and change the course of their lives.But with constant attempts to thwart her work, Louise ends up under siege in her own home. Will she succeed or is their fate sealed forever?
Skybound!: Starring Mary Myers as Carlotta, Daredevil Aeronaut and Scientist
by Sue Ganz-SchmittIn this STEAM picture book, take to the skies with Mary Myers, aka &“Carlotta,&” an aeronaut and inventor whose careful scientific work improved hot air balloons and our understanding of flight, weather patterns, and the atmosphere.In the 1850s, proper young ladies were supposed to keep their feet on the ground (literally and metaphorically), but Mary dreamed of flying. Luckily, she married Carl Myers, a hot air balloon enthusiast whose dreams were just as lofty as hers. Together, they designed and constructed balloons of all shapes and sizes, a difficult and dangerous job that required knowledge of chemistry, engineering, and meteorology. But how could they know which balloon designs worked best? They needed someone adventurous who could do balloon tricks for crowds while recording flight data. Mary knew just the person . . . herself! She gave herself the stage name Carlotta and anxiously awaited her first flight. Would she make it into the air? Could she collect the data they needed? Mary battled thick clouds and bone-chilling cold, but she went higher and farther than she hoped, and returned ready for her next flight.One of the few women inventors of her time, Mary&’s daring flights and careful scientific work improved hot air balloons and our understanding of flight, weather patterns, and the atmosphere.
Skylark: The Life and Times of Johnny Mercer
by Philip FuriaSkylark is the story of the tormented but glorious life and career of Johnny Mercer, and the first biography of this enormously popular and influential lyricist. Raised in Savannah, Mercer brought a quintessentially southern style to both his life in New York and to his lyrics, which often evoked the landscapes and mood of his youth ("Moon River", "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening"). Mercer also absorbed the music of southern blacks--the lullabies his nurse sang to him as a baby and the spirituals that poured out of Savannah's churches-and that cool smooth lyrical style informed some of his greatest songs, such as "That Old Black Magic".Part of a golden guild whose members included Cole Porter and Irving Berlin, Mercer took Hollywood by storm in the midst of the Great Depression. Putting words to some of the most famous tunes of the time, he wrote one hit after another, from "You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby" to "Jeepers Creepers" and "Hooray for Hollywood." But it was also in Hollywood that Mercer's dark underside emerged. Sober, he was a kind, generous and at times even noble southern gentleman; when he drank, Mercer tore into friends and strangers alike with vicious abuse. Mercer's wife Ginger, whom he'd bested Bing Crosby to win, suffered the cruelest attacks; Mercer would even improvise cutting lyrics about her at parties.During World War II, Mercer served as Americas's troubadour, turning out such uplifting songs as "My Shining Hour" and "Ac-cent-tchu-ate the Positive." He also helped create Capitol Records, the first major West Coast recording company, where he discovered many talented singers, including Peggy Lee and Nat King Cole. During this period, he also began an intense affair with Judy Garland, which rekindled time and again for the rest of their lives. Although they never found happiness together, Garland became Mercer's muse and inspired some of his most sensuous and heartbreaking lyrics: "Blues in the Night," "One for My Baby," and "Come Rain or Come Shine."Mercer amassed a catalog of over a thousand songs and during some years had a song in the Top Ten every week of the year--the songwriting equivalent of Joe DiMaggio's hitting streak--but was plagued by a sense of failure and bitterness over the big Broadway hit that seemed forever out of reach.Based on scores of interviews with friends, family and colleagues, and drawing extensively on Johnny Mercer's letters, papers and his unpublished autobiography, Skylark is an important book about one of the great and dramatic characters in 20th century popular music.
Skylarks and Rebels: A Memoir about the Soviet Russian Occupation of Latvia, Life in a Totalitarian State, and Freedom (Edition Noema Ser.)
by Rita LaimaSkylarks and Rebels is a story about the fate of Latvia in the 20th century as told by Rita Laima. Laima, a Latvian-American, chose to leave behind the comforts of life in America to explore the land of her ancestors, which in the 1980s languished behind the Iron Curtain. In writing about her own experiences in a totalitarian state, Soviet-occupied Latvia, Laima delves into her family's past to understand what happened to her fatherland and its people during and after World War II. She also pays tribute to some of Latvia's remarkable people of integrity who risked their lives to oppose the brutal and destructive Soviet state.
Skymeadow: Notes from an English Gardener
by Charlie Hart'A love letter to English horticulture written by a passionate gardener. A must-read for anyone who has dreamt of cultivating their own patch of land' Jane Perrone'Skymeadow is a fascinating book . . . Every flower, every passing bud, every change in the season is described with rapture' Jilly CooperWhen Charlie Hart first visited Peverels, a small farmhouse that sits lazily on the lip of a hill running down into the Peb Valley, he was at breaking point, grieving the loss of his father and anxious about the impending death of his mother. He and his wife Sybilla felt that their London life had been steadily growing in noise: the noise of grief, the noise of busyness, the noise that comes from the expectations of others and, for Charlie, the constant clamour of dissatisfaction at work. At Peverels, Charlie found an expanse of untouched meadowland, the perfect setting for an audacious garden. Charlie felt an unquenchable urge to dig, to create something. The days he spent wrestling with the soil in the rose garden were the days in which he mourned the loss of his parents. Gardening has taught him that you can dig for victory, but you can also dig for mental health. As the garden formed around Charlie, he buried his fears and anxieties within it. A garden that is now known as Skymeadow and grows with a lusty, almost biblical vigour.In Skymeadow, Charlie seamlessly weaves together his own memoir with that of his garden. The result is a lyrical and incisive story of mental health at an all-time low, the healing powers of digging and, ultimately, a celebration of nature.