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Behind the Sequins: My Life
by Shirley BallasLeave it all on the floor...Queen of Latin Ballroom, Shirley Ballas has a spectacular dance career spanning over 40 years – she has Cha-Cha'd her way across the world's dance floors to become a multi-award-winning ballroom champion and one of the most renowned dancers in the world. In 1996, Shirley retired from competitive dancing to become a highly-acclaimed coach and now holds the enviable position of Head Judge on BBC One's prime time show Strictly Come Dancing.In Behind the Sequins, she leads us through her dramatic and determined life, from growing up in a rough estate on the Wirral and leaving home at 14 years old, to conquering the high-octane world of ballroom and coping with betrayal, bullying, two broken marriages and a personal tragedy that left Shirley and her family devastated. Speaking from the heart, Shirley leaves her dancing shoes at the door to tell you the story of a fiery, strong-willed grafter who could make the brat pack blush.
Behind the Shades
by Duncan FletcherThe autobiography of England's most successful cricket coach of the modern era
Behind the Shoulder Pads: Tales I Tell My Friends
by Joan Collins&“I&’ve had many amazing adventures in my life. Some stories, though, I have only ever shared with my friends.… Until now!&”Dame Joan Collins has always believed that one should retain some mystery in life and hide a knowing smile behind one&’s shoulder pads. In her new book, she returns in dazzling form to share her most memorable moments from her eclectic and vibrant life—in and out of the limelight. Behind the Shoulder Pads will take you on a spectacular journey from her early years as a young star in Hollywood to stamping her stilettos in Dynasty; from the glittering heights of Saint-Tropez to the busy Oscars seasons in LA over the years. Joan writes movingly about her adventures with and grief for her sister, Jackie, delves deeper into the ups and downs of love and relationships, and discusses her happiness with husband Percy. Filled with a cast of household names and Hollywood icons, Behind the Shoulder Pads is a spectacularly entertaining tour de force bound to delight and shock in equal measures. Hilarious, intimate, and completely spellbinding, Joan invites you into her life like never before, sharing the stories she only tells her closest friends.
Behind the Smile
by Jeannie MorrisIn 1992, Carol Moseley Braun became the first, and to this day only, African-American woman elected to the US Senate. Long before this historic victory, which Barack Obama would later say prefigured his own path to the Senate and presidency, veteran Chicago journalist Jeannie Morris saw an incredible opportunity. Here was a bold and politically courageous candidate, a feminist and sensible progressive with whom Morris quickly identified on a personal level. Morris joined the campaign to write the official story of a brilliant retail politician with a charismatic smile. What happened next resulted in a story that went well beyond what Morris could have imagined. Behind the Smile is the riveting campaign-trail memoir of a journalist coming to grips with the shortcomings of an ascendant politician--a charismatic trailblazer whose personal relationship with a key staffer led to her undoing. The narrative unfolds as the personal journey of a sympathetic reporter reconciling her own belief in an inspiring figure with her responsibility to deliver the facts. In Behind the Smile, Morris brings the social and political impact of Moseley Braun's story--from her meteoric rise to her eventual downfall--into clear focus.
Behind the Smile: My Journey out of Postpartum Depression
by Marie Osmond"I was sitting on the kitchen floor, heaving in sobs, and all I could think was: 'This can't possibly be me.'" In a candid account, Marie Osmond, beloved actress, singing star, and television personality, discloses her heartwrenching battle with postpartum depression and the private pain behind her public persona. Sinking fast into numbing despair after the birth of her last baby, Marie Osmond joined the thousands of women each year who suffer from an illness not often discussed openly. Now she tells her inspiring story...
Behind the Sofa: Celebrity Memories of Doctor Who
by VariousSteve Berry decided to do something a little bit different to raise funds for Alzheimer's Research UK. A life-long DOCTOR WHO fan, he began to interview celebrities, writers, actors and people who had worked on DOCTOR WHO, asking for their earliest memories of the show that sent us cowering behind the sofa. Now he presents the fruits of his four years of labour - a beautiful, touching book containing short articles and touching memories of one of the most successful TV shows ever. 2013 marks the 50th anniversary of DOCTOR WHO - this is the perfect way to enjoy those 50 years!This revised and expanded edition includes over 30 new entries from people such as Sophia Myles, Ben Aaronovitch, John Leeson and many moreContributors include comedians Al Murray, Stephen Merchant, and Bill Oddie; actors Lynda Bellingham, Nicholas Parsons, and Rhys Thomas; writers Neil Gaiman, Jenny Colgan, Jonathan Ross and Charlie Brooker and politicians Louise Mensch and Tom Harris. In addition, there is input from a number of the writers, actors and production staff who were involved in creating DOCTOR WHO stories new and old.
Behind the Throne: A Domestic History of the British Royal Household
by Adrian TinniswoodAn upstairs/downstairs history of the British royal court, from the Middle Ages to the reign of Queen Elizabeth II Monarchs: they're just like us. They entertain their friends and eat and worry about money. Henry VIII tripped over his dogs. George II threw his son out of the house. James I had to cut back on the alcohol bills. In Behind the Throne, historian Adrian Tinniswood uncovers the reality of five centuries of life at the English court, taking the reader on a remarkable journey from one Queen Elizabeth to another and exploring life as it was lived by clerks and courtiers and clowns and crowned heads: the power struggles and petty rivalries, the tension between duty and desire, the practicalities of cooking dinner for thousands and of ensuring the king always won when he played a game of tennis. A masterful and witty social history of five centuries of royal life, Behind the Throne offers a grand tour of England's grandest households.
Behind the Wire: Allied Prisoners of War in Hitler’s Germany
by Philip KaplanPhilip Kaplan presents us here with a riveting account of the Allied experience behind enemy lines, detailing the trials and tribulations experienced by the British and American airmen who were shot down in European skies during World War Two, to be incarcerated 'behind the wire' in enemy camps. With eloquence and a clear enthusiasm for the subject at hand, the author describes how various individuals adjusted to their incarceration. Whilst some set their minds resolutely on escape, and dreamt up plots and plans to achieve this end, others retreated, away from their comrades and into themselves as the grim reality of their predicament pushed them ever deeper into debilitating depression. Others were determined that they would not waste their time; affected by the quick and brutal deaths they had witnessed during their wartime careers, they were unwilling to sit idle. Theatres, recreational areas, and other camp facilities were designed and built a creative spur that made their time behind the wire, and the quality of life of their fellow comrades, infinitely more bearable. These small acts of enterprising heroism, alongside the harrowing tales of those who crumpled under the weight of their prison reality, combine to create a complete picture of this collective experience. Kaplan's skill lies in informing the reader of the facts of this history with both honesty and reverence.
Behind the Yoi: The Life of Myron Cope, Legendary Pittsburgh Steelers Broadcaster
by Dan Joseph Elizabeth CopeMyron Cope was the color commentator for Pittsburgh Steelers radio broadcasts from 1970 to 2005, the second-longest-serving team broadcaster in NFL history. At the peak of his popularity, an estimated 50 percent of Steeler fans turned down the volume on their TVs so they could listen to the radio as Cope, in his one-of-a-kind scratchy, raspy voice, barked out phrases like &“Yoi&” and &“Okle-dokle,&” often fueled by bursts of excitability and his own beautiful brand of homerism. About his voice, Cope said, &“Mine isn&’t a broadcaster&’s voice; it tends to cut through concrete.&” Cope helped forge the unbreakable bond between the city of Pittsburgh and its football team. His evening talk show, one of the first sports talk programs in the nation, dominated its time slot for more than twenty years, and he became the first pro football announcer elected to the National Radio Hall of Fame. Born in Pittsburgh to parents of Lithuanian Jewish ancestry, Cope attended the University of Pittsburgh and became a journalist. Though he forged a successful career writing for magazines like Sports Illustrated, football fans grew to know Cope far more through the airwaves. Co-namer of the Immaculate Reception, he also created the Terrible Towel, the flag of Steelers Nation, when in 1975 he urged fans to bring gold towels to wave at a playoff game against the Baltimore Colts. Behind the scenes the Terrible Towel took on a deeper personal meaning, as Cope eventually assigned all royalties from the towels to the facility where his son, who was born with brain damage and never learned to speak, still resides. Throughout his life Cope, who passed away in 2008, raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for children with disabilities. Using Cope&’s own papers, correspondence, and tapes, plus interviews with friends and family, Dan Joseph and Elizabeth Cope, Myron&’s daughter, paint the first three-dimensional portrait of the creative, many-faceted man whom Pittsburghers still hold in high esteem and close to their hearts.
Behold This Heart: The Story of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
by H. HeagneyThe very popular and not always understood devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was revealed to a cloistered Visitation nun in France during the very trobled seventeenthcentury. Although the book is writtenas novel, French and English history is accurate. The book moves quickly along and the story should hold the interest of anyone committed to his devotion.
Behold the Monster: Confronting America's Most Prolific Serial Killer
by Jillian Lauren'Fearless and fierce ... transcends a crime story to be a story that threatens social order' - Michael Connelly'Bewitching . . . a tale of horror that is also humane and self-aware' - Jennifer Egan'Wildly original... true crime fans will find this a unique and disturbing thrill ride' - Publishers Weekly'Blending gruesome forensic details with tender domestic moments . . . a panoramic tale of America's worst serial killer' - Daily TelegraphJillian Lauren set out to research a serial killer for a novel. Instead, she put one at the centre of her life.Months of exchanging letters with Samuel Little in prison landed her a face-to-face meeting - and the trust of a monster. In the hours of harrowing interviews that followed, Little confessed to the murders of ninety-three women, making him America's most prolific serial killer. As the investigations escalated, the disturbing relationship took its toll on Lauren, both psychologically and legally - but she couldn't stop.Conversations with a psychopath, intertwined with intensely personal experience and the stories of those killed told for the first time, result in an unforgettable true crime account. Behold the Monster is a journey into a mind and murderer that shocked the world, but one that ultimately lifts the lives of the victims with such grace that we cannot look away.
Behold the Monster: Confronting America's Most Prolific Serial Killer
by Jillian Lauren'Fearless and fierce ... transcends a crime story to be a story that threatens social order' - Michael Connelly'Bewitching . . . a tale of horror that is also humane and self-aware' - Jennifer Egan'Wildly original... true crime fans will find this a unique and disturbing thrill ride' - Publishers Weekly'Blending gruesome forensic details with tender domestic moments . . . a panoramic tale of America's worst serial killer' - Daily TelegraphJillian Lauren set out to research a serial killer for a novel. Instead, she put one at the centre of her life.Months of exchanging letters with Samuel Little in prison landed her a face-to-face meeting - and the trust of a monster. In the hours of harrowing interviews that followed, Little confessed to the murders of ninety-three women, making him America's most prolific serial killer. As the investigations escalated, the disturbing relationship took its toll on Lauren, both psychologically and legally - but she couldn't stop.Conversations with a psychopath, intertwined with intensely personal experience and the stories of those killed told for the first time, result in an unforgettable true crime account. Behold the Monster is a journey into a mind and murderer that shocked the world, but one that ultimately lifts the lives of the victims with such grace that we cannot look away.
Beijing Bastard: Into the Wilds of a Changing China
by Val WangA humorous and moving coming-of-age story that brings a unique, not-quite-outsider's perspective to China's shift from ancient empire to modern superpower Raised in a strict Chinese-American household in the suburbs, Val Wang dutifully got good grades, took piano lessons, and performed in a Chinese dance troupe--until she shaved her head and became a leftist, the stuff of many teenage rebellions. But Val's true mutiny was when she moved to China, the land her parents had fled before the Communist takeover in 1949. Val arrives in Beijing in 1998 expecting to find freedom but instead lives in the old city with her traditional relatives, who wake her at dawn with the sound of a state-run television program playing next to her cot, make a running joke of how much she eats, and monitor her every move. But outside, she soon discovers a city rebelling against its roots just as she is, struggling too to find a new, modern identity. Rickshaws make way for taxicabs, skyscrapers replace hutong courtyard houses, and Beijing prepares to make its debut on the world stage with the 2008 Olympics. And in the gritty outskirts of the city where she moves, a thriving avant-garde subculture is making art out of the chaos. Val plunges into the city's dizzying culture and nightlife and begins shooting a documentary, about a Peking Opera family who is witnessing the death of their traditional art. Brilliantly observed and winningly told, Beijing Bastard is a compelling story of a young woman finding her place in the world and of China, as its ancient past gives way to a dazzling but uncertain future.
Being (Sick) Enough: Thoughts on Invisible Illness, Childhood Trauma, and Living Well When Surviving Is Hard
by Jessica GrahamWise, visceral essays on navigating pain, sex, trauma, spirituality, addiction, recovery, and grief from queer, neurodivergent trauma-resolution guide Jessica GrahamIn an unapologetic look at living well with trauma and chronic illness, writer and meditation teacher Jessica Graham offers smart, funny, raw, and mindful insights on untangling—and embracing—the messy realities of being a human alive on this planet today.Graham gives us permission to accept care—and accept that it&’s okay to want care. They weave together personal stories and practical wisdom, offering their take on managing symptoms, getting creative, setting boundaries, and healing from ableist tropes like &“you don&’t look sick&” and &“we&’re all a little ADHD.&”Graham also shares vulnerable personal history: The adverse childhood experiences that wired their body and brain. The workaholism and addictions that kept their pain lying just below the surface. How illness and trauma intersect to obscure the knowledge that we&’re each enough, wholly as we are.This memoir explores the parts of chronic illness life that don&’t get enough airtime: How can we center sex and pleasure when pain gets in the way? How can we live well while living through late-stage capitalist hell? How can we come into relationship with our pain without falling prey to self-blame, magical thinking, or toxic positivity?Wise and embodied, fearless and necessary, Being (Sick) Enough is both a wild awakening and a love letter to your whole self: the pains and suffering, joys and brightness, and vital connections that hold each of us as we navigate what it means to be here, like this, right now.
Being Adam Golightly: One man's bumpy voyage to the other side of grief
by Adam GolightlyThe cruel early death of his beloved wife Helen tears up the script of Adam Golightly’s middle-class, middle-aged existence. Miserably single, outnumbered by his kids and haunted by life’s screaming fragility, he recounts his fight back against the crappy hand of fate.This irreverent and frank memoir follows Adam’s snakes-and-ladders journey through his grief in the year following his wife’s death, as he struggles with small town tongue wagging, the trauma of teenage bra shopping and online dating anarchy. Adam’s is the biggest mid-life crisis anyone could face and as he starts to build a new, alternative life for himself and his children, he shows not just how to survive bereavement but how to be transformed by it.
Being Ana: A Memoir of Anorexia Nervosa
by Shani RavivShani Raviv is a misfit teen whose peer-pressured diet spirals down into full-blown anorexia nervosa—something no one in her early-nineties, local South African community knows anything about. Fourteen-year-old Shani spends the next six years being “Ana” (as many anorexics call it), on the run from her feelings. She goes from aerobics addict to Israeli soldier to rave bunny to wannabe reborn, using sex, drugs, exercise and, above all, starvation, to numb out everything along the way. But one night, at age twenty, Shani faces the rude awakening that if she doesn’t slow down, break her denial, and seek help, she will starve to death. Three years later, her hardest journey of all begins: the journey to let go of being Ana and learn to love herself. Being Ana is an exploration into the soul and psyche of a young woman wrestling with anorexia’s demons—one that not only exposes the real horrors of a day in the life of an anorexic girl but also reveals the courage it takes to stop fighting and find healing.
Being Bad: This book is for anyone who has decided the rules don't apply.
by Arielle EgoziWhat happens when you stop giving a f*ck about what your parents, partners, and society expect of you and ask yourself what you really want?Salon’s inaugural sex and love advice columnist and author of the viral LinkedIn sex work post, Arielle Egozi, shares their journey as a queer, neurodivergent, child of immigrants who never quite fit into the social roles she was supposed to, instead choosing to embrace their multiple dimensions, and eventually discovering freedom—and true power—by being “bad” in a world that kept trying to force her to be “good.”What if sex positivity wasn’t about having sex at all? What if you ditched relationship hierarchies and explored relationship anarchy? How can everyone get in touch with their inner domme? Using frameworks and philosophies cultivated from years of living, writing, speaking, and educating on sex, relationships, and identity through a queer and decolonizing lens, Egozi offers questions, practices, and tools to help you find your own power, and step into it—creating space for you to dream far beyond what your family, society, or capitalist culture expects. Being Bad offers you the permission to become who you are, however you choose to be.
Being Berlusconi: The Rise & Fall from Cosa Nostra to Bunga Bunga
by Michael DayPeople from all walks of life are appalled and fascinated in equal measure by the stratospheric political career of the tycoon and three-time Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.Michael Day provides an in depth look at the life and crimes of the shameless media mogul until his nine lives ran out and he faced definitive conviction which signaled his irreversible decline. He tells the story of a bright and ambitious man from a lower-middle class family who shook off his humble origins and rose to become rich and powerful beyond most people's dreams—a multi-billionaire whose Mediaset company remains one of Europe's largest television and cinema conglomerates. Along the way, amid the election victories, business triumphs, and womanizing, he became bogged down by his hubris, egotism, sexual obsessions, as well as his flagrant disregard for the law.And yet how and why did Italy and Italians put up with him for so long?With the 78-year-old's legal woes ongoing, including further trials for bribery, after a recent nine-month community service stint, Being Berlusconi: The Rise and Fall from Cosa Nostra to Bunga Bunga is well-timed to mark the final chapters of a notorious—and astonishing—life and career.
Being Binky
by Binky FelsteadWelcome to the glamorous life of Alexandra 'Binky' Felstead, original cast member and star of the hit TV programme, Made in Chelsea. In this tell-all account she reveals what it's really like BEING BINKY and what it takes to be a real Chelsea Girl. When the show launched in 2011, Binky was catapulted from a nine to five job as a receptionist at a hedge-fund into the limelight of reality TV fame. She's experienced many ups and downs on the show, from feuding with best friend Cheska and a failed romance with Jamie Laing to her new found friendship with Lucy Watson and being swept off her feet by Alex Mytton, the impact of Made in Chelsea on her life was immediate. Charting her overnight rise to fame and exploring her life outside of Made in Chelsea, for the first time, Binky opens up about her childhood, the bullying she was victim to at school and the difficulties of dealing with her parents' divorce. She talks candidly about body image, and dieting, and shares her beauty regime top tips. BEING BINKY lifts the lid on one of the series' favourite characters and provides a backstage pass to the secret and exclusive world of Chelsea.
Being Black in America's Schools: A Student-Educator-Reformer's Call for Change
by Brian Rashad FullerFor readers of The Knowledge Gap, Race to the Bottom, and The Inequality Machine, education and equity strategist Brian Rashad Fuller sheds a stark light on America's public schools, the miseducation of students of color, and the action required to make tangible changes and reforms to a failing and racialized educational system. With a foreword from Harriet Tubman's great-grand nephew, Abdul Tubman. In a polarizing and racially divided America, what do children of color learn about themselves before they even go to school? How do they see themselves and is that image only exacerbated by spending twelve years in a public education system that perpetuates negative stereotypes? Brian Rashad Fuller personally knows that the impact of low expectations can be devastating, as proved by the &“school to prison&” pipeline that so many students have experienced. He aims to make a difference in this humanizing and very personal portrayal of what it means to be Black in America&’s schools. As a Black man who has spent his life as a student and an educator, Brian shares his own story of navigating the world, overcoming his family struggles, and eventually entering an educational system that he believes is inherently racist, damaging, and disserving. He exposes the challenges Black students face in elite and predominantly white universities and spaces, dissects &“Black exceptionalism&” in the schooling experience, and offers a firsthand account of the emotional and psychological impact made by teachers, administrators, policies, practices, lessons, and student interactions. Most Americans are looking for answers on how to improve our education system—as illustrated by the critical race theory debate—but have not fully understood the lived Black experience, until now. With powerful insight into a thoroughly American institution, Brian offers present-day solutions, and liberating hope, for a centuries-long issue, as well as a galvanizing and radical step forward. It is a book essential to our challenging times.
Being Brown: Sonia Sotomayor and the Latino Question (American Studies Now: Critical Histories of the Present #9)
by Lázaro LimaBeing Brown: Sonia Sotomayor and the Latino Question tells the story of the country’s first Latina Supreme Court Associate Justice’s rise to the pinnacle of American public life at a moment of profound demographic and political transformation. While Sotomayor’s confirmation appeared to signal the greater acceptance and inclusion of Latinos—the nation’s largest “minority majority”—the uncritical embrace of her status as a “possibility model” and icon paradoxically erased the fact that her success was due to civil rights policies and safeguards that no longer existed. Being Brown analyzes Sotomayor’s story of success and accomplishment, despite seemingly insurmountable odds, in order to ask: What do we lose in democratic practice when we allow symbolic inclusion to supplant the work of meaningful political enfranchisement? In a historical moment of resurgent racism, unrelenting Latino bashing, and previously unimaginable “blood and soil” Nazism, Being Brown explains what we stand to lose when we allow democratic values to be trampled for the sake of political expediency, and demonstrates how understanding “the Latino question” can fortify democratic practice. Being Brown provides the historical vocabulary for understanding why the Latino body politic is central to the country’s future and why Sonia Sotomayor’s biography provides an important window into understanding America, and the country’s largest minority majority, at this historical juncture. In the process, Being Brown counters “alternative facts” with historical precision and ethical clarity to invigorate the best of democratic practice at a historical moment when we need it most.
Being Carlos Alcaraz: The Man Behind the Smile
by Mark Hodgkinson'A perfect match of author and subject. Mark Hodgkinson's mix of style and substance - flair and professionalism - mirrors Carlos Alcaraz on a tennis court.'- Jon Wertheim, a senior writer at Sports Illustrated'This is a great window into the background and processes of arguably the most exciting player in men's tennis right now.' - Charlie Eccleshare, tennis correspondent for the New York Times and The Athletic 'A highly readable portrait of tennis's most exciting young talent.'- Conor Niland, a former tennis player and the winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year award 2024 for 'The Racket''This is a brilliant book. The detail on offer is extraordinary ... A cracking read for any tennis fan.'- Courtney Walsh, Fox Sports in AustraliaA deeply researched biography of the new (smiley) face of tennis. A global star who has achieved more than Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer did by this stage of their careers. At just 19 years old, Carlos Alcaraz won the US Open and became the youngest ever men's world number one. At only 21, he already had four Grand Slam titles.For Alcaraz, everything - from his charm to his star power to his tennis mojo - starts with a smile. But there is a more complex character behind the smile. One who grew up in modest circumstances in a small village in Murcia in southern Spain. A man with strong family traditions who has a tattoo of his grandfather's favourite saying - 'cabeza, corazon y cojones' (brain, heart and balls) - inked on his left wrist.Mark Hodgkinson talks to those who know Alcaraz best - including his coaches, old teachers and competitors - to provide a fascinating insight into a showman with ambitions of becoming the GOAT, the greatest of all time.
Being Carlos Alcaraz: The Man Behind the Smile
by Mark Hodgkinson'A perfect match of author and subject. Mark Hodgkinson's mix of style and substance - flair and professionalism - mirrors Carlos Alcaraz on a tennis court.'- Jon Wertheim, a senior writer at Sports Illustrated'This is a great window into the background and processes of arguably the most exciting player in men's tennis right now.' - Charlie Eccleshare, tennis correspondent for the New York Times and The Athletic 'A highly readable portrait of tennis's most exciting young talent.'- Conor Niland, a former tennis player and the winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year award 2024 for 'The Racket''This is a brilliant book. The detail on offer is extraordinary ... A cracking read for any tennis fan.'- Courtney Walsh, Fox Sports in AustraliaA deeply researched biography of the new (smiley) face of tennis. A global star who has achieved more than Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer did by this stage of their careers. At just 19 years old, Carlos Alcaraz won the US Open and became the youngest ever men's world number one. At only 21, he already had four Grand Slam titles.For Alcaraz, everything - from his charm to his star power to his tennis mojo - starts with a smile. But there is a more complex character behind the smile. One who grew up in modest circumstances in a small village in Murcia in southern Spain. A man with strong family traditions who has a tattoo of his grandfather's favourite saying - 'cabeza, corazon y cojones' (brain, heart and balls) - inked on his left wrist.Mark Hodgkinson talks to those who know Alcaraz best - including his coaches, old teachers and competitors - to provide a fascinating insight into a showman with ambitions of becoming the GOAT, the greatest of all time.
Being Carlos Alcaraz: The Man Behind the Smile
by Mark Hodgkinson'A perfect match of author and subject. Mark Hodgkinson's mix of style and substance - flair and professionalism - mirrors Carlos Alcaraz on a tennis court.'- Jon Wertheim, a senior writer at Sports Illustrated'This is a great window into the background and processes of arguably the most exciting player in men's tennis right now.' - Charlie Eccleshare, tennis correspondent for the New York Times and The Athletic 'A highly readable portrait of tennis's most exciting young talent.'- Conor Niland, a former tennis player and the winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year award 2024 for 'The Racket''This is a brilliant book. The detail on offer is extraordinary ... A cracking read for any tennis fan.'- Courtney Walsh, Fox Sports in AustraliaA deeply researched biography of the new (smiley) face of tennis. A global star who has achieved more than Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer did by this stage of their careers. At just 19 years old, Carlos Alcaraz won the US Open and became the youngest ever men's world number one. At only 21, he already had four Grand Slam titles.For Alcaraz, everything - from his charm to his star power to his tennis mojo - starts with a smile. But there is a more complex character behind the smile. One who grew up in modest circumstances in a small village in Murcia in southern Spain. A man with strong family traditions who has a tattoo of his grandfather's favourite saying - 'cabeza, corazon y cojones' (brain, heart and balls) - inked on his left wrist.Mark Hodgkinson talks to those who know Alcaraz best - including his coaches, old teachers and competitors - to provide a fascinating insight into a showman with ambitions of becoming the GOAT, the greatest of all time.