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Solitude & Company: The Life of Gabriel García Márquez Told with Help from His Friends, Family, Fans, Arguers, Fellow Pranksters, Drunks, and a Few Respectable Souls
by Silvana PaternostroAn oral history biography of the legendary Latin American writer and Nobel laureate Gabriel García Márquez, brimming with atmosphere and insight. <P><P>Irrevent and hopeful, Solitude & Company recounts the life of a boy from the provinces who decided to become a writer. This is the story of how he did it, how little Gabito became Gabriel García Márquez, and of how Gabriel García Márquez survived his own self-creation. <P><P>The book is divided into two parts. In the first, BC, before Cien años de soledad (One Hundred Years of Solitude), his siblings speak and those who were friends before García Márquez became the universally loved Latin American icon. Those who knew him when he still didn't have a proper English tailor nor an English biographer, and didn't accompany presidents. It gathers together the voices around the boy from the provinces, the sisters and brothers, the childhood friends, the drinking buddies and penniless fellow students. <P><P>The second part, AC, describes the man behind the legend that García Márquez became. From Aracataca, to Baranquila, to Bogota, to Paris, to Mexico City, the solitude that García Márquez needed to produce his masterpiece turns out to have been something of a raucous party whenever he wasn't actually writing. Here are the writers Tomás Eloy Martínez, Edmundo Paz Soldán and William and Rose Styron; legendary Spanish agent Carmen Balcells; the translator of A Hundred Years of SolitudeGregory Rabassa; Gabo's brothers Luis Enrique, Jaime, Eligio and Gustavo, and his sisters Aida and Margot; María Luisa Elío, to whom A Hundred Years of Solitude is dedicated; and so much more: a great deal of music, especially the vallenato; the hilarious scenes of several hundred Colombians, García Márquez's chosen delegation, flying to Stockholm for the Nobel Prize celebrations; the time Mario Vargas Llosa punched Gabriel García Márquez in the face; and much, much more. <P><P>In Living to Tell the Tale, the first volume of García Márquez's autobiography, Gabo writes: "I am consoled, however, that at times oral history might be better than written, and without knowing it we may be inventing a new genre needed by literature: fiction about fiction." Solitude & Company joins other great oral histories, like Jean Stein and George Plimpton's Edie: American Girl, their oral history biography of Edie Sedgwick, or Barry Gifford's oral history of Jack Kerouac, Jack's Book--an intimate portrait of the most human side of Gabriel García Márquez told in the words of those who knew him best throughout his life.
Solitude of Self: Thinking About Elizabeth Cady Stanton
by Vivian GornickA champion of the women's movement of the 1970s, Gornick reviews the life of one of the 19th-century founders of the movement for women's rights. For more than 50 years Elizabeth Cady Stanton battled for equal rights for women, educating, inspiring, and organizing women across the country. Gornick looks at parallels between the movements and draws upon her own life and evolution as a feminist.
Solo
by Hope SoloHope Solo is the face of the modern female athlete. She is fearless, outspoken, and the best in the world at what she does: protecting the goal of the U.S. women's soccer team. Her outsized talent has led her to the pinnacle of her sport—the Olympics and the World Cup—and made her into an international celebrity who is just as likely to appear on ABC's Dancing with the Stars as she is on the covers of Sports Illustrated, ESPN The Magazine, and Vogue. But her journey—which began in Richland, Washington, where she was raised by her strong-willed mother on the scorched earth of defunct nuclear testing sites—is similarly haunted by the fallout of her family history. Her father, a philanderer and con man, was convicted of embezzlement when Solo was an infant. She lost touch with him as he drifted out of prison and into homelessness. By the time they reunited, years later, in the parking lot of a grocery store, she was an All-American goalkeeper at the University of Washington and already a budding prospect for the U.S. national team. He was living in the woods. Despite harboring serious doubts even about the provenance of her father's last name (and her own), Solo embraces him as fiercely as she pursues her dreams of being a world-class soccer player. When those dreams are threatened by her standing within the national team, as when she was famously benched in the semifinals of the 2007 World Cup after four shutouts and spoke her piece publicly, we see a woman of uncompromising independence and hard-won perseverance navigate the petty backlash against her. For the first time, she tells her version of that controversial episode, and offers with it a full understanding of her hard-scrabble life. Moving, sometimes shocking, Solo is a portrait of an athlete finding redemption. This is the Hope Solo whom few have ever glimpsed.
Solo
by Álvaro VizcaínoUna novela inspiradora y llena de mensajes de superación, escrita a partir de una increíble historia real de supervivencia. Isla de Fuerteventura, septiembre de 2014. En busca de la ola perfecta, un surfista se precipita por un acantilado. Sobrevive más de 48 horas perdido, con el cuerpo malherido y la cadera rota, venciendo a una naturaleza implacable y a sus propios miedos para lograr sobrevivir. Álvaro Vizcaíno transforma su increíble experiencia al borde de la muerte en una novela inspiradora y llena de fuerza. «Me di cuenta de que a todo el mundo le costaba explicarse cómo sobreviví, y de que al relatar la historia causaba una fuerte impresión a quien la escuchaba. Mis amigos me decían que iban a dejar su trabajo, o que lo habían pensado mejor y se iban a quedar con su novia, y cosas así. Parecía que mi historia era de las que marcaban un antes y un después, así que me decidí a escribirla. ¡Buen viaje y buenas olas!»Álvaro Vizcaíno
Solo Passage: 13 Quests, 13 Questions
by Glenda GoodrichIn her search to find healing and meaning in midlife, Glenda Goodrich undertakes a series of wilderness quests into the backcountry of Oregon, Washington, and California to discover what the natural world has to teach her about life, death, happiness, spirituality, and forgiveness.This book chronicles the sacred ceremonies that connected Goodrich to the land, wove her into nature’s web, and transformed her from a woman who worked to please others into a woman who forged her own path. It is a brilliant collection of adventures—the touch of coyote fur, a snake’s kiss, a ceremonial blood offering—and a profound reflection on the healing and restorative power of nature.
Solo es vida si es verdad: Cómo transformar el miedo en amor y el amor en acción
by Isha EscribanoAl narrar su historia en primera persona, Isha nos sumerge en su experiencia y en su intimidad y ofrece un testimonio poderoso e inspirador para quienes deseen salir de la oscuridad, poner fin al sufrimiento y encontrar la felicidad duradera. Porque, como repite ella misma como un mantra, "solo es vida si es verdad". Nacemos en un molde que nos condiciona como seres humanos. Sin embargo, algunas personas se animan a rehacerse desde sus raíces. A asumir su identidad y a desafiar el lugar que la sociedad y el entorno más íntimo habían reservado para ellas. A través de un proceso de intensa búsqueda espiritual, comprometido y no exento de dolor, Isha Escribano derribó cada una de las barreras que le impusieron y las que debió construir ella misma para sobrevivir. Con los años, su vida se transformó en una revolución paulatina y sutil contra la autoridad y las normas, con el único fin de abrazar la bondad, la belleza y la verdad. Hoy sabe, y además lo comparte, que la existencia solo puede ser gratificante para quienes gozan de autoconocimiento. Este libro es una invitación a preguntarnos quiénes somos, cómo queremos vivir y qué propósito tenemos en nuestra vida; a emprender un viaje que promueva el servicio, la aceptación y el desapego; a descubrir herramientas que fortalezcan la autoestima y contribuyan a abrir la mente y el corazón. En definitiva, propone una sociedad donde no se trata de encajar, sino de florecer.
Solo nosotros
by Claudia RankineThe Spanish edition of Claudia Rankine&’s (Citizen) new, acclaimed, genre-bending reflection on whiteness in America. &“A skyscraper in the literature on racism.&” —Christian Science Monitor &“Rankine [is] helping America understand itself, one conversation at a time.&” —Associated Press NAMED A BEST BOOK OF 2020 by The New York Times, Time Magazine, NPR, Esquire, The Guardian, O Magazine, Ms. Magazine, Star Tribune, St. Louis Post Dispatch, Christian Science Monitor, Kirkus Reviews, and Publishers Weekly As everyday white supremacy becomes increasingly vocalized with no clear answers at hand, how best might we approach one another? Claudia Rankine, without telling us what to do, urges us to begin the discussions that might open pathways through this divisive and stuck moment in American history. Just Us is an invitation to discover what it takes to stay in the room together, even and especially in breaching the silence, guilt, and violence that follow direct addresses of whiteness. This brilliant arrangement of essays, poems, and images is Rankine&’s most intimate work, less interested in being right than in being true, being together.
Solo: My Adventures in the Air
by Clyde EdgertonA “spellbinding” memoir about the author’s passion for flying, including his stint as a combat pilot in Vietnam (Tim O’Brien). When Clyde Edgerton was four years old, his mother took him to the local airport to see the planes. For the boy, it was love at first sight. Eighteen years later, she would take him to the same airport to catch a flight to Texas for Air Force pilot training. Edgerton tells the story of his lifelong love affair with flying, from his childlike wonder to his job as a fighter pilot flying reconnaissance over the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Now, decades after the Vietnam War, he looks back at his youthful passion for flying, at the joy he took in mastering it, at the exhilaration—and lingering anguish—of combat aviation. It is a story that will resonate with every pilot who remembers their first takeoff, first landing, and first solo flight, or any passenger who has marveled at a journey through the sky—Solo offers a “heartfelt celebration of the flying life” (The New York Times). “Spellbinding, exciting, funny, informative, moving, and beautifully, beautifully, beautifully written.” —Tim O’Brien, author of The Things They Carried
Solomon: The Lure of Wisdom
by Steven WeitzmanTradition has it that King Solomon knew everything there was to know--the mysteries of nature, of love, of God himself--but what do we know of him? Esteemed biblical scholar Steven Weitzman reintroduces readers to Solomon's story and its surprising influence in shaping Western culture, and he also examines what Solomon's life, wisdom, and writings have come to mean for Jews, Christians, and Muslims over the past two thousand years. Weitzman's Solomon is populated by a colorful cast of ambitious characters--Byzantine emperors, explorers, rabbis, saints, scientists, poets, archaeologists, trial judges, reggae singers, and moviemakers among them--whose common goal is to unearth the truth about Solomon's life and wisdom. Filled with the Solomonic texts of the Bible, along with lesser-known magical texts and other writings, this book challenges both religious and secular assumptions. Even as it seeks to tell the story of ancient Israel's greatest ruler, this insightful book is also a meditation on the Solomonic desire to know all of life's secrets, and on the role of this desire in world history.
Soltera codiciada: (#FairyTalesNoMore)
by María José OsorioSoltera codiciada (#FairyTalesNoMore) recoge lo mejor de Soltera codiciada, blog que han visitado más de dos millones y medio de lectoras Esto no es una reunión de directrices ni datitos para atrapar a un hombre. Sí es, en cambio, un homenaje al fabuloso laberinto que es la mente femenina, porque la verdadera soltera codiciada empieza por codiciarse a sí misma, por quererse, por tratarse bonito y dejar de hacer tonterías que solo la detienen y la atrasan. María José Osorio publicó su primer post en enero de 2011, con la única premisa de incentivar a las mujeres a no tomarse tan en serio a sí mismas. Su habilidad para analizar las clásicas conductas de hombres y mujeres con un humor fresco e irreverente la ha convertido en referente obligatorio para miles de jóvenes. Mucho se ha escrito sobre las mujeres, pero este libro, que recoge lo dicho hasta hoy, y también lo que quedó por decir en el blog, retrata las nuevas formas de lo femenino y a toda una generación que se mueve y siente distinto de sus predecesoras.
Solutions and Other Problems
by Allie BroshINSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER For the first time in seven years, Allie Brosh—beloved author and artist of the extraordinary #1 New York Times bestseller Hyperbole and a Half—returns with a new collection of comedic, autobiographical, and illustrated essays. Solutions and Other Problems includes humorous stories from Allie Brosh&’s childhood; the adventures of her very bad animals; merciless dissection of her own character flaws; incisive essays on grief, loneliness, and powerlessness; as well as reflections on the absurdity of modern life. This full-color, beautifully illustrated edition features all-new material with more than 1,600 pieces of art. Solutions and Other Problems marks the return of a beloved American humorist who has &“the observational skills of a scientist, the creativity of an artist, and the wit of a comedian&” (Bill Gates). Praise for Allie Brosh&’s Hyperbole and a Half: &“Imagine if David Sedaris could draw….Enchanting.&” —People &“One of the best things I&’ve ever read in my life.&” —Marc Maron &“Will make you laugh until you sob, even when Brosh describes her struggle with depression.&” —Entertainment Weekly &“I would gladly pay to sit in a room full of people reading this book, merely to share the laughter.&” —The Philadelphia Inquirer &“In a culture that encourages people to carry mental illness as a secret burden….Brosh&’s bracing honesty is a gift.&” —Chicago Tribune
Solvay: History of a Multinational Family Firm
by Ernst Homburg Kenneth Bertrams Nicolas CoupainErnest Solvay, philanthropist and organizer of the world-famous Solvay conferences on physics, discovered a profitable way of making soda ash in 1861. Together with a handful of associates, he laid the foundations of the Solvay company, which successfully branched out to other chemicals, plastics, and pharmaceuticals. Since its emergence in 1863, Solvay has maintained world leadership in the production of soda ash. This is the first scholarly book on the history of the Solvay company, which was one of the earliest chemical multinationals and today is among the world's twenty largest chemical companies. It is also one of the largest companies in the field to preserve its family character. The authors analyze the company's 150-year history (1863-2013) from economic, political, and social perspectives, showing the enormous impact geopolitical events had on the company and the recent consequences of global competition.
Solving for Why: A Surgeon's Journey to Discover the Transformative Power of Purpose
by Dr. Mark ShrimeFrom Mercy Ships surgeon Dr. Mark G. Shrime comes an inspiring memoir about finding the answer to life's biggest question—"Why?"—and about following that answer through remarkable, unlikely places on the road to fulfillment, purpose, and joy.SOLVING FOR WHY chronicles one man's journey to find the answer to the biggest of all life's questions: "Why?" Following a traumatic car accident, Dr. Shrime—the child of Lebanese immigrants fleeing a civil war, who later became a successful practicing surgeon in Boston—found himself compelled to change the course of his life, determined to find meaning and satisfaction even if it meant diverting from America&’s idea of &“success.&” Featuring stories, insights, and research from his own exceptional life and work, SOLVING FOR WHY is the story of Dr. Shrime's search for—and discovery of—lifelong fulfillment. Now a global surgeon operating on a hospital ship docked off the coast of West Africa and one of the few global experts on surgery in low- and middle-income countries, Dr. Shrime seeks to impart the wisdom of the lessons he&’s learned over the course of his search for a life of true contentment. In the tradition of Dr. Paul Farmer's To Repair the World, Dr. Atul Gawande's Better, and Dr. Michele Harper's The Beauty in Breaking, SOLVING FOR WHY combines personal stories with deep, thoughtful research into the challenges of working in modern medicine in the 21st century and the commodification of work in America. A story of discovery and transformation, SOLVING FOR WHY seeks to help readers answer the &“why&” of their own lives and ultimately find joy outside the status quo.
Solving the Puzzle Under the Sea: Marie Tharp Maps the Ocean Floor
by Robert Burleigh Raúl Colón<p>Filled with gorgeous illustrations by acclaimed artist Raúl Colón, this illustrated biography shares the story of female scientist, Marie Tharp, a pioneering woman scientist and the first person to ever successfully map the ocean floor. <p>Marie Tharp was always fascinated by the ocean. Taught to think big by her father who was a mapmaker, Marie wanted to do something no one had ever done before: map the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Was it even possible? Not sure if she would succeed, Marie decided to give it a try. <p>Throughout history, others had tried and failed to measure the depths of the oceans. Sailors lowered weighted ropes to take measurements. Even today, scientists are trying to measure the depth by using echo sounder machines to track how long it would take a sound wave sent from a ship to the sea floor to come back. But for Marie, it was like piecing together an immense jigsaw puzzle. <p>Despite past failures and challenges—sometimes Marie would be turned away from a ship because having a woman on board was “bad luck”—Marie was determined to succeed. And she did, becoming the first person to chart the ocean floor, helping us better understand the planet we call home.</p>
Solzhenitsyn: The Historical-Spiritual Destinies of Russia and the West (NIU Series in Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies)
by Lee CongdonThis study of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918–2008) and his writings focuses on his reflections on the religiopolitical trajectories of Russia and the West, understood as distinct civilizations. What perhaps most sets Russia apart from the West is the Orthodox Christian faith. The mature Solzhenitsyn returned to the Orthodox faith of his childhood while serving an eight-year sentence in the GULag Archipelago. He believed that when men forget God, communism or a similar catastrophe is likely to be their fate. In his examination of the author and his work, Lee Congdon explores the consequences of the atheistic socialism that drove the Russian revolutionary movement. Beginning with a description of the post-revolutionary Russia into which Solzhenitsyn was born, Congdon outlines the Bolshevik victory in the civil war, the origins of the concentration camp system, and the Bolsheviks' war on Christianity and the Russian Orthodox Church. He then focuses on Solzhenitsyn's arrest near the war's end, his time in the labor camps, and his struggle with cancer. Congdon describes his time in exile and increasing alienation from the Western way of life, as well as his return home and his final years. He concludes with a reminder of Solzhenitsyn's warning to the West—that it was on a path parallel to that which Russia had followed into the abyss. This important study will appeal to scholars and educated general readers with an interest in Solzhenitsyn, Russia, Christianity, and the fate of Western civilization.
Somalia on $5 a Day: A Soldier's Story
by Martin Stanton"Stanton's battalion was the first army unit in Somalia in 1992 and it did one hell of a job accomplishing a difficult mission where there wasn't a template. I had the pleasure of tagging along with his unit and saw first-hand how its leaders dealt with and solved problems. . . . A first-rate book and a must read. All professional soldier-leaders should carry Stanton's book in their rucksacks."--DAVID H. HACKWORTH Author of About Face and Hazardous DutyA country torn by seemingly endless war, a people tormented and victimized by relentless banditry---into this land of warlords came the soldiers of the army's elite 10th Mountain Division. They were strangers in a strange land sent to restore hope to this cauldron of misery and despair. The Pentagon deemed it a hostile fire zone thereby earning each soldier a monthly bonus of $150-- Somalia on $5.00 a day. Major Stanton and the infantrymen of Task Force 2-87 found themselves in unfamiliar surroundings, trying to accomplish a vague and constantly changing mission where knowing the good guys from the bad guys was nearly impossible. When the focus of Restore Hope changed from limited famine relief to nation building, the men found themselves in armed clashes with Somali warlords. In this exciting and often humorous memoir, Stanton relates the mounting frustrations experienced by the U.S. soldiers, futility that culminated in the infamous chaos on the streets of Mogadishu.From the Paperback edition.
Some Assembly Required
by Anne Lamott Sam Lamott"If there is a doyenne of the parenting memoir, it would be Anne Lamott."--Time In Some Assembly Required, Anne Lamott enters a new and unexpected chapter in her own life: grandmotherhood. Stunned to learn that her son, Sam, is about to become a father at nineteen, Lamott begins a journal about the first year of her grandson Jax's life. In careful and often hilarious detail, Lamott and Sam--about whom she first wrote so movingly in Operating Instructions--struggle to balance their changing roles. By turns poignant and funny, honest and touching, Some Assembly Required is the true story of how the birth of a baby changes a family--as this book will change everyone who reads it.
Some Bright Morning, I'll Fly Away: A Memoir
by Alice AndersonThe incredible true story of one woman's journey to relocate the place inside herself where strength, hope, and personal truth reside.After Hurricane Katrina, Alice Anderson has returned home to assess the damage to her beloved Mississippi coastline and the once-immaculate home she’d carefully cultivated for her husband, Dr. Liam Rivers, one of the community's highly respected doctors.But in the wake of this natural disaster, a more terrifying challenge emerges as Liam’s mental health spirals out of control, culminating in a violent attack at knifepoint, from which Alice is saved by their three-year-old son. Afraid for her life, she flees with her children.What ensues is an epic battle—emotional, psychological, spiritual, and legal—for her children’s welfare, for self-preservation, and ultimately for redemption. It’s an unrelenting battle that persists even as life goes on, finally coming full circle when the same son who saved Alice ten years before endures an eerily-familiar violent encounter at his father’s hands. Yet even as she confronts the harsh realities of high-powered Southern lawyers and an inadequate legal system, Alice forges a new life with her blossoming children and an ultimate reclamation of her true self.
Some Desperate Glory: The Diary of a Young Officer, 1917
by Edwin Campion Vaughan&“An officer&’s diary hidden away for 40 years reveals the horrors of World War One in harrowing detail.&” —The SunSome Desperate Glory charts the progress of an enthusiastic and patriotic young officer who marched into battle with Palgrave&’s Golden Treasury—a collection of English poems—in his pack. Intensely honest and revealing, his diary evokes the day-to-day minutiae of trench warfare: its constant dangers and mind-numbing routine interspersed with lyrical and sometimes comic interludes. Vividly capturing the spirit of the officers and men at the front, the diary grows in horror and disillusionment as Vaughan&’s company is drawn into the carnage of Passchendaele from which, of his original happy little band of 90 men, only 15 survived.&“This diary of a few months in the life of a young officer on the Western Front in 1917 deserves to rank close behind Graves, Owen, Sassoon, among the most brilliant and harrowing documents of that devastating period.&” —Max Hastings, author of Vietnam: An Epic Tragedy, 1945-1975&“This stark WW I diary by a 19-year-old subaltern in the British army begins with an account of his eager departure for the western front, and ends eight months later with an awesome description of the battle of Ypres in which most of his company died.&” —Publishers Weekly
Some Enchanted Evenings: The Glittering Life and Times of Mary Martin
by David KaufmanMary Martin was one of the greatest stars of her day. Growing up in Texas, she was married early to Benjamin Hagman and gave birth to her first child, Larry Hagman. She was divorced even more quickly. Martin left little Larry with her parents and took off for Hollywood. She didn't make a dent in the movie industry and was lured to New York where she found herself auditioning for Cole Porter and his new show "Leave It to Me!". After she sang the bawdy "My Heart Belongs to Daddy", she ended up on the cover of Life magazine. Six years later, she became the Toast of Broadway when she starred in "South Pacific". After that, she flew as "Peter Pan", yodeled in "The Sound of Music", took "Hello, Dolly!" on the road and shared a four-poster with Robert Preston in "I Do! I Do!". Her personal life was just as interesting: In NYC, she met and married Richard Halliday, a closeted upper-class homosexual who adored her, Broadway and interior decorating (though probably not in that order). They were a powerful twosome. There were rumors about Martin, too, being in a lesbian relationship with both Janet Gaynor and Jean Arthur. Peopled with legends like Ethel Merman, Ezio Pinza, Noel Coward and a starry cast of thousands, David Kaufman's "Some Enchanted Evenings" is the delectable story of the one and only Mary Martin, a woman who described herself as a chicken farmer from Texas only to become Peter Pan and capture America's heart.
Some Fantastic Place: My Life In and Out of Squeeze
by Chris DiffordLonglisted for the Penderyn Music Book PrizeOver the course of a thirteen-album and multi-award-winning career with Squeeze, it was clear from the very beginning that Chris Difford has few peers when it comes to smart, pithy lyricism. In Some Fantastic Place, he charts his life from his childhood in south London to becoming a member of one of Britain's greatest bands and beyond. Along the way Chris reveals the inspiration and stories behind Squeeze's best-known songs, and his greatest highs and lows from over four decades of making music.
Some Fantastic Place: My Life In and Out of Squeeze
by Chris DiffordChris Difford is a rare breed. As a member of one of London's best-loved bands, the Squeeze co-founder has made a lasting contribution to English music with hits such as 'Cool For Cats', 'Up The Junction', 'Labelled With Love', 'Hourglass' and 'Tempted'. Even before his first release in 1977, his love of writing lyrics has never wavered. Over the course of a thirteen-album career with Squeeze, it was clear from the very beginning that Difford has few peers when it comes to smart, pithy lyricism. His 'kitchen-sink drama' style has drawn plaudits from fans on both sides of the Atlantic, and his influence is keenly felt today. The likes of Lily Allen. Mark Ronson, Kasabian, Razorlight and many more have recognized the debt they owe to Squeeze's music and to Difford's way with words, while journalists were moved by his winning combination with Glenn Tilbrook to dub the pair 'The New Lennon and McCartney'.In Some Fantastic Place, Chris Difford charts his life from his early days as a dreaming boy in south London with a talent for poetry to becoming a member of one of Britain's greatest bands and beyond. Along the way he reveals the inspiration and stories behind Squeeze's best-known songs, and his greatest highs and lows from over four decades of making music.
Some Fantastic Place: My Life In and Out of Squeeze
by Chris Difford'King George Street in Charlton, South London, was my first home. Six prefabs, three pubs, a school, a church and a yard where the electricity board kept cables. Two long rows of terraced house faced each other at one end of the street; and, at the other, big houses with big doors and even bigger windows. There was a phone box next to one of the pubs and when it rang everyone came out to see who it was for. It was a tiny road - at one end of which there was Greenwich Park. It was heaven being there, its beauty always shone on me from the trees at sunsets and from the bushes in the rain. I was there in all weathers. It was 1964, I was ten years old and this is when my memory really begins. The previous decade is built up from vague recollections that lean heavily on the imagination.'Chris Difford is a rare breed. As a member of one of London's best-loved bands, the Squeeze co-founder has made a lasting contribution to English music with hits such as 'Cool For Cats', 'Up The Junction', 'Labelled With Love', 'Hourglass' and 'Tempted'. Some Fantastic Place is his evocative memoir of an upbringing in Sixties' South London and his rise to fame in one of the definitive bands of the late Seventies and early Eighties.Written and Read by Chris Difford(P) ORION PUBLISHING GROUP 2017
Some Fine Day
by Emery C. WaltersThis is the story of how Emery Walters became whom he was supposed to be.I knew I was male at an early age, something that was a societal no-no in the 1950s and still is in parts of the country today. Burying my male identity, I strove to be the best woman possible. But after raising my four wonderful children from two debilitating marriages, I found myself alone and nearly penniless. That was when Emery asserted his identity.Life became better with the shift from female to male, a third marriage, and a wife who, herself, transitioned from male to female.
Some Girls
by Jillian LaurenRead Jillian Lauren's posts on the Penguin Blog. A jaw-dropping story of how a girl from the suburbs ends up in a prince's harem, and emerges from the secret Xanadu both richer and wiser At eighteen, Jillian Lauren was an NYU theater school dropout with a tip about an upcoming audition. The "casting director" told her that a rich businessman in Singapore would pay pretty American girls $20,000 if they stayed for two weeks to spice up his parties. Soon, Jillian was on a plane to Borneo, where she would spend the next eighteen months in the harem of Prince Jefri Bolkiah, youngest brother of the Sultan of Brunei, leaving behind her gritty East Village apartment for a palace with rugs laced with gold and trading her band of artist friends for a coterie of backstabbing beauties. More than just a sexy read set in an exotic land, Some Girls is also the story of how a rebellious teen found herself-and the courage to meet her birth mother and eventually adopt a baby boy. Watch a Video .