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A Clean Heart: A Novel
by John RosengrenA Novel of Redemption from Addiction and a Broken Family“A Clean Heart picks at the knot of addiction and recovery insistently and with a wholesomeness intriguingly at odds with its subject. I enjoyed this book.” –Thomas Beller, author of The Sleep-Over ArtistCarter Kirchner struggles to stay sane and sober as a counselor at Six West, an adolescent drug treatment center run by Sister Mary Xavier, a hard-drinking nun with an MBA. The young Kirchner is caught between Sister Mary’s plan to rescue the center by reforming a hard-case kid and the dysfunctional staff’s clumsy plan to intervene on their boss’s drinking. Meanwhile, Carter’s mother?who never forgave him for giving up a promising hockey career to treat his own addiction?lands in the hospital with an advanced case of cirrhosis. Before Carter can help the young addict commissioned to his care or safely navigate the staff’s dysfunctional intervention effort, he must rescue himself from his family’s broken past.A Clean Heart is a novel by John Rosengren, a writer and recent nominee for a Pulitzer Prize who knows the territory of addiction. He went through treatment at age 17 and has been clean and sober since 1981. He also worked in adolescent treatment centers when he was younger. John Rosengren’s articles have appeared in more than 100 publications, including The Atlantic, New Yorker, Reader’s Digest, Sports Illustrated, and Utne Reader.If you are a fan of the 2018 films Ben is Back or David Sheff’s Beautiful Boy or have read addiction memoirs such as If You Love Me or We All Fall Down, you will love reading John Rosengren’s A Clean Heart.
A Clean Mess: A Memoir of Sobriety After a Lifetime of Being Numb
by Tiffany JenkinsThe bestselling author of High Achiever chronicles life after addiction—the raw, the dark, and the hilarious—from setting out with nothing but a backpack to discovering her marriage was built on a shakier foundation than she&’d ever imagined to staying sober when life fell apart.&“Tiffany Jenkins illustrates that recovery is not just about sobriety, but about learning to live and feel again. Her compelling story is a testament to the power of resilience, humor, and hope.&”—Sarah Levy, author of Drinking GamesA Clean Mess opens with the moment that changed everything. Tiffany is about to go on stage when she receives an odd message from her husband: &“Hey Babe, some of the guys here are making some stupid decisions. Not me. But I just wanted to let you know in case you heard it from some of the other wives.&” By the end of the night, Tiffany knew her life would never be the same.This wasn&’t the first time she had to start over. After the opioid addiction and jail sentence that she chronicled in her bestselling memoir, High Achiever, Tiffany was ready for a fresh start. A chance to try life again, this time without drugs coursing through her veins. In A Clean Mess, she takes us back to those early days of recovery, and the whirlwind that she entered the moment she was out of prison. In just two years, she went from inmate to married and sober mom of three. Told with humor and honesty, A Clean Mess is Tiffany Jenkins&’s story of how she learned to live and feel for the first time without numbing herself with drugs—and how she discovered inner reserves of strength she didn&’t know she had. From her tentative first days of sobriety, to seeing two pink lines on a pregnancy test weeks later, to navigating anxiety, a new marriage, and motherhood at the same time, to surviving betrayal and divorce, Jenkins shows how she got through it all when her crutches and Band-Aids were taken away from her. An inspiring memoir that reads like fiction, A Clean Mess is a book that will buoy anyone seeking a life raft in hard times.
A Clean, Well-Lighted Place (A Vintage Short)
by Jon KrakauerHere is Jon Krakauer’s portrait of the iconoclastic architect Christopher Alexander, whose revolutionary human-centered approach has shaken the foundations of modern architecture. Krakauer delves into Alexander’s life and career, from his theories on a timeless “pattern language” that could be used to create buildings and towns that were simultaneously more livable and more beautiful, to his belief that architecture is correctly viewed as a powerful social instrument; from his on-site drafting techniques to his design process that, like a cocoon, shapes a building from the inside out. With trademark rigor, nuance, and insight, Krakauer powerfully draws us into Alexander’s singular vision of human-centered design—one in which people reclaim control over their built environment.
A Clear Premonition: The Letters of Lieutenant Tim Lloyd To His Mother, North Africa and Italy, 1943-44
by Raleigh TrevelyanAn insightful collection of WWII correspondence between a British lieutenant & his mother, with commentary by his best friend and fellow soldier. Tim Lloyd was aged twenty-two, a lieutenant in the Rifle Brigade, when he was killed in action near Florence in July, 1944. His personality made a vivid impression on his companions, and after all these years he is remembered still for his extraordinary zest for life, his indomitable cheerfulness, and his appreciation of beautiful things. If he had lived, he might well have joined the famous publishing firm of his brother-in-law, Sir William Collins, but more likely he would have been a theatre designer, possibly a great one. He was also brave, though his period at the front line was brief. Raleigh Trevelyan, a year younger, regarded him as his best friend. It was a shock when Tim's nephew Samson Lloyd showed Raleigh Tim&’s letters to his mother when they were together in North Africa and Italy. For the first time, Raleigh reread extracts from his own diary and found himself plunged into memories he hoped he had put to rest. Tim had been ill in Italy, so missed being sent to Anzio Beachhead, the subject of Raleigh&’s much praised and harrowing battle memoir The Fortress, and also part of his later book Rome &‘44. Meanwhile Tim continued his letters to his mother, outstanding not only in their descriptions of landscape and people, but as an example of a son's deep devotion. Sue Ryder, who had first met Tim on the boat to South Africa, was convinced that he had a clear premonition of what lay in store. Based on his letters to Mrs. Lloyd, the book traces his childhood at Repton, his passion for the theatre and his marionette shows in ENSA, also life in the ranks and wild times in London after being commissioned.
A Clearing In The Distance: Frederick Law Olmsted and America in the 19th Century
by Witold RybczynskiIn a brilliant collaboration between writer and subject, Witold Rybczynski, the bestselling author of Home and City Life, illuminates Frederick Law Olmsted's role as a major cultural figure at the epicenter of nineteenth-century American history.We know Olmsted through the physical legacy of his stunning landscapes -- among them, New York's Central Park, California's Stanford University campus, and Boston's Back Bay Fens. But Olmsted's contemporaries knew a man of even more extraordinarily diverse talents. Born in 1822, he traveled to China on a merchant ship at the age of twenty-one. He cofounded The Nation magazine and was an early voice against slavery. He managed California's largest gold mine and, during the Civil War, served as the executive secretary to the United States Sanitary Commission, the precursor of the Red Cross. Rybczynski's passion for his subject and his understanding of Olmsted's immense complexity and accomplishments make his book a triumphant work. In A Clearing in the Distance, the story of a great nineteenth-century American becomes an intellectual adventure.
A Clearing in the Wild (Change and Cherish #1)
by Jane KirkpatrickYoung Emma Wagner chafes at the constraints of Bethel colony, an 1850s religious community in Missouri that is determined to remain untainted by the concerns of the world. A passionate and independent thinker, she resents the limitations placed on women, who are expected to serve in quiet submission. In a community where dissent of any form is discouraged, Emma finds it difficult to rein in her tongue-and often doesn't even try to do so, fueling the animosity between her and the colony's charismatic and increasingly autocratic leader, Wilhelm Keil. Eventually Emma and her husband, Christian, are sent along with eight other men to scout out a new location in the northwest where the Bethelites can prepare to await "the last days." Christian believes they've found the ideal situation in Washington territory, but when Keil arrives with the rest of the community, he rejects Christian's choice in favor of moving to Oregon. Emma pushes her husband to take this opportunity to break away from the group, but her longed-for influence brings unexpected consequences. As she seeks a refuge for her wounded faith, she learns that her passionate nature can be her greatest strength-if she can harness it effectively.From the Trade Paperback edition.
A Clockwork Murder: The Night A Twisted Fantasy Became A Demented Reality
by Steve Jackson&“Wonderful and dark . . . a journey into the minds of two men who together become one killer&” from the New York Times bestselling true crime author(Blaine L. Pardoe, author of A Special Kind of Evil). In April 1997, pretty, 22-year-old Jacine Gielinski stopped her car at a red light in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She had no idea that the two young men looking at her from the car next to hers would in that moment decide she would be their target for unspeakable horrors. George Woldt and Lucas Salmon were an unlikely pair of best friends, much less killers. Woldt was a fast-talking, well-dressed ladies&’ man who boasted of his sexual conquests. Salmon was deeply religious and socially misfit, obsessed with losing his virginity. Woldt was the leader, Salmon his willing follower, but neither had been in serious trouble with the law. However, inspired by the cult movie, A Clockwork Orange, with its dystopian violence, they fantasized for months what it would be like to abduct, rape, torture and murder a woman. Then, aroused by watching ultra-violent pornography, they decided to act upon their evil thoughts. Revised and updated with a new afterword from the author, A Clockwork Murder recounts the steps that led to an unthinkable crime and its impact on a community, as well as the friends and especially the parents of an innocent young woman who paid with her life for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. &“Jackson&’s sharp eye misses nothing in the painstakingly rendered details.&”—Publishers Weekly
A Cloud Where the Birds Rise: A book about love and belonging
by Michael Harding Jacob StackPlease note this has been optimised for display on tablets and colour devices.In this stunning collaboration, bestselling writer Michael Harding's most memorable musings on the human condition are brought to life by illustrator Jacob Stack.In these pages, the reader is held in moments of belonging, solitude, love and healing as we witness the beauty of falling snow, the pain and love of goodbyes, and the shared lives and deaths of neighbours amid the sweeping landscape of Ireland.A Cloud Where the Birds Rise is a beautifully illustrated collection of observations and stories from one of Ireland's best-loved writers - a celebration of finding beauty and hope in the ordinary.
A Cluttered Life: Searching for God, Serenity, and My Missing Keys
by Pesi DinnersteinA Cluttered Life chronicles Pesi Dinnerstein's touching, quirky, and often comic search for order and simplicity amid an onslaught of relentless interruptions. When a chance encounter with an old acquaintance opens her eyes to the extent to which disorder has crept into every corner of her existence, she begins a quest to free herself from the excess baggage she carries and finds-to her great surprise-that the meaning she's spent years searching for is right there in her own piles of clutter.Dinnerstein's battle with chaos is an odyssey of self-discovery that leads her from the obvious mess spilling out of closets and the backseat of her car to the more subtle forms of disorder in her life and, finally, to the most hidden expressions deep within herself. In the end-with the help of devoted friends, a twelve-step recovery program, and a bit of Kabbalistic wisdom-her struggle with the things of this world is transformed from a distraction into its own journey of healing and personal growth. At turns insightful, unsettling, and wildly funny, A Cluttered Life is the story of how one woman found her true self-and spiritual fulfillment-through trying to make sense of her own muddled world.
A Coach's Life: My Forty Years in College Basketball
by Sally Jenkins John Kilgo Dean SmithLegendary University of North Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith tells the full story of his fabled career, and shares the life lessons taught and learned over forty years of unparalleled success as a coach and mentor.For almost forty years, Dean Smith coached the University of North Carolina men's basketball program with unsurpassed success- on the court and in shaping young men's lives. In his long-awaited memoir, he reflects on the great games, teams, players, strategies, and rivalries that defined his career, and explains the philosophy that guided him. There's a lot more to life than basketball- though some may beg to differ- but there's a lot more to basketball than basketball, and this is a book about basketball filled with wisdom about life. Dean Smith insisted that the fundamentals of good basketball were the fundamentals of character- passion, discipline, focus, selflessness, and responsibility- and he strove to unite his teams in pursuit of those values.To read this book is to understand why Dean Smith changed the lives of the players he coached, from Michael Jordan, who calls him his second father and who never played a single NBA game without wearing a pair of UNC basketball shorts under his uniform, to the last man on the bench of his least talented team. We all wish we had a coach like Dean Smith in our lives, and now we will have that chance.
A Coastline Is an Immeasurable Thing: A Memoir Across Three Continents
by Mary-Alice DanielA poetic coming-of-age memoir that probes the legacies and myths of family, race, and religion—from Nigeria to England to AmericaMary-Alice Daniel’s family moved from West Africa to England when she was a very young girl, leaving behind the vivid culture of her native land in the Nigerian savanna. They arrived to a blanched, cold world of prim suburbs and unfamiliar customs. So began her family’s series of travels across three continents in search of places of belonging.A Coastline Is an Immeasurable Thing ventures through the physical and mythical landscapes of Daniel’s upbringing. Against the backdrop of a migratory adolescence, she reckons with race, religious conflict, culture clash, and a multiplicity of possible identities. Daniel lays bare the lives and legends of her parents and past generations, unearthing the tribal mythologies that shaped her kin and her own way of being in the world. The impossible question of which tribe to claim as her own is one she has long struggled with: the Nigerian government recognizes her as Longuda, her father’s tribe; according to matrilineal tradition, Daniel belongs to her mother’s tribe, the nomadic Fulani; and the language she grew up speaking is that of the Hausa tribe. But her strongest emotional connection is to her adopted home: California, the final place she reveals to readers through its spellbinding history.Daniel’s approach is deeply personal: in order to reclaim her legacies, she revisits her unsettled childhood and navigates the traditions of her ancestors. Her layered narratives invoke the contrasting spiritualities of her tribes: Islam, Christianity, and magic. A Coastline Is an Immeasurable Thing is a powerful cultural distillation of mythos and ethos, mapping the far-flung corners of the Black diaspora that Daniel inherits and inhabits. Through lyrical observation and deep introspection, she probes the bonds and boundaries of Blackness, from bygone colonial empires to her present home in America.
A Coat of Yellow Paint: Moving Through the Noise to Love the Life You Live
by Naomi DavisLife doesn&’t come with an instruction book for the role of perfect wife and mother. However, as Naomi Davis discovered on her journey from newlywed Juilliard dancer to mother of five, a joyful life is a work of art that only you can create for yourself.***When Naomi launched the popular blog Love Taza over a decade ago, she had no way of knowing where that first blog post would lead or the millions of lives she&’d impact.In A Coat of Yellow Paint, Naomi shares all-new stories, time-stamped as intimate and vulnerable essays, exploring her faith, personal heartaches, challenges balancing a home life with career, motherhood, and her struggles with infertility. Along the way, Naomi illustrates the urgency of celebrating life&’s most important things––family, faith, friendship, and an upright piano painted bright yellow––ignoring the critics.Naomi shares life lessons she&’s learned, including how tocommunicate openly and honestly in your marriage and friendshipsbe confident in the choices you make as a mother--and why you&’re more than &“just a mom&”overcome criticism--including from yourself--on body image, infertility, and doing &“enough&”make childhood feel magical, and seek out adventures with your little onesnavigate spiritual upheaval and reclaim your faithfind more soulfulness in your social media and online experienceIf you dream of a life celebrating family, self, and work in a way that feels right for you, A Coat of Yellow Paint will inspire you to drown out the noise of others&’ opinions and expectations--so you can be empowered to love your life.
A Coffin for King Charles: The Trial and Execution of Charles I
by C. V. WedgwoodThe reign of Charles I, defined by religious conflict, a titanic power struggle with Parliament, and culminating in the English Civil Wars, the execution of the king, and the brief abolition of the monarchy, was one of the most turbulent in English history. <p><p>Six years after the First Civil War began, and following Charles' support for the failed Royalist uprising of the Second Civil War, an act of Parliament was passed that produced something unprecedented in the history of England: the trial of an English king on a capital charge. There followed ten extraordinary weeks that finally drew to a dark end on January 30, 1649, when Charles was beheaded in Whitehall. <p><p>In this acclaimed account, C. V. Wedgwood recreates the dramatic events of the trial and Charles's final days, to vividly bring to life the main actors in this tragic and compelling story.
A Cold War Odyssey
by Donald E. Nuechterlein“A fascinating ride through a period of history in which United States foreign policies and relationships matured greatly.” —Ralph C. Bledsoe, Special Assistant to the President, 1982–88The Cold War—that long ideological conflict between the world’s two superpowers—had a profound effect not only on nations but on individuals, especially all those involved in setting and implementing the policies that shaped the struggle. Donald Nuechterlein was one such individual and this is his story.Although based in fact, the narrative reads like fiction, and it takes the reader behind the scenes as no purely factual telling of that complex story can. Presented as the story of David and Helen Bruening and their family, A Cold War Odyssey carries us across three continents. Against a backdrop of national and international events, we follow the Bruenings through five decades as David’s governmental and academic assignments take them to all corners of the world.In the tradition of Herman Wouk’s Winds of War, the Bruenings’ personal and professional odyssey offers us a microcosm of world history in the second half of the twentieth century. Through the acute eyes of these participant observers, we see the partitioning of Europe after World War II, Korea and Vietnam, Watergate and Iran, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany, the collapse of the Soviet Union and, with it, the end of the Cold War. With each succeeding episode, our understanding of the causes and consequences of international struggle is deepened through the Bruenings’ experience.
A Cold War Turning Point: Nixon And China, 1969-1972
by Chris TuddaIn February 1972, President Nixon arrived in Beijing for what Chairman Mao Zedong called the "week that changed the world. " Using recently declassified sources from American, Chinese, European, and Soviet archives, Chris Tudda's A Cold War Turning Point reveals new details about the relationship forged by the Nixon administration and the Chinese government that dramatically altered the trajectory of the Cold War. Between the years 1969 and 1972, Nixon's national security team actively fostered the U. S. rapprochement with China. Tudda argues that Nixon, in bold opposition to the stance of his predecessors, recognized the mutual benefits of repairing the Sino-U. S. relationship and was determined to establish a partnership with China. Nixon believed that America's relative economic decline, its overextension abroad, and its desire to create a more realistic international framework aligned with China's fear of Soviet military advancement and its eagerness to join the international marketplace. In a contested but calculated move, Nixon gradually eased trade and travel restrictions to China. Mao responded in kind, albeit slowly, by releasing prisoners, inviting the U. S. ping-pong team to Beijing, and secretly hosting Secretary of State Henry Kissinger prior to Nixon's momentous visit. Set in the larger framework of international relations at the peak of the Vietnam War, A Cold War Turning Point is the first book to use the Nixon tapes and Kissinger telephone conversations to illustrate the complexity of early Sino-U. S. relations. Tudda's thorough and illuminating research provides a multi-archival examination of this critical moment in twentieth-century international relations.
A Cole Porter Companion
by Susan Forscher Weiss Matthew Shaftel Don M. RandelBalancing sophisticated melodies and irresistible rhythms with lyrics by turns cynical and passionate, Cole Porter sent American song soaring on gossamer wings. Timeless works like "I Get a Kick Out of You" and "At Long Last Love" made him an essential figure in the soundtrack of a century and earned him adoration from generations of music lovers. In A Cole Porter Companion , a parade of performers and scholars offers essays on little-known aspects of the master tunesmith's life and art. Here are Porter's days as a Yale wunderkind and his nights as the exemplar of louche living; the triumph of Kiss Me Kate and shocking failure of You Never Know ; and his spinning rhythmic genius and a turkey dinner into "You're the Top" while cultural and economic forces take "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" in unforeseen directions. Other entries explore notes on ongoing Porter scholarship and delve into his formative works, performing career, and long-overlooked contributions to media as varied as film and ballet. Prepared with the cooperation of the Porter archives, A Cole Porter Companion is an invaluable guide for the fans and scholars of this beloved American genius.
A Colorful Life: Gere Kavanaugh, Designer
by Louise Sandhaus Kat CatmurThe designer Gere Kavanaugh is an irrepressible force of nature who epitomized the craft and folk vibe of the '60s and '70s California design scene and remains a larger-than-life personality today. Raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Kavanaugh became in 1952 only the third woman to earn a degree in Cranbrook Academy of Art's design program. After successful stints as one of GM's so-called Damsels of Design and as director of interiors for Victor Gruen's architecture and planning firm, she opened Gere Kavanaugh/Designs. There, Kavanaugh put her unique stamp on textiles, furniture, toys, graphics, store and restaurant interiors, holiday decor, housewares, and public art—even designing and curating exhibitions. But perhaps her most enduring project has been the joyful, open-ended, ongoing experiment of her own lifestyle and homes, a dream of color and handcraft. Kavanaugh was awarded the AIGA Medal in 2016, recognizing her "prodigious and polymathic approach to design."
A Colorful Way of Living: How to Be More, Create More, Do More the Vera Bradley Way
by Barbara Bradley BaekgaardFrom the co-founder of the Vera Bradley empire, a practical and inspiring book that shows women how to awaken their full potential, at any age."This place could use some color!" That's what Barbara Bradley said to her friend Pat during an airport layover. It was 1982 and all the women could see was a succession of drab, bulky suitcases. When they returned home to Indiana, Barbara and her business partner got out a few Simplicity patterns and a Singer sewing machine and set to work. And the Vera Bradley Company was born.A Colorful Way of Living offers practical, inspiring advice to empower women of all ages to navigate life by the values that provide the foundation of the Vera Bradley empire. Women looking for the encouragement to start a new chapter, women balancing career and family, and new graduates entering the workforce will all benefit from the Baekgaard’s learned wisdom has as it applies to career, life, and relationships. Lessons include “Noticing Every Detail,” “Choosing Nice,” and “Remembering Always—there’s enough room for everyone.” In this highly readable book, Barbara Bradley Baekgaard shares the values that have helped her to thrive in business, health, and relationships--in every aspect of her personal and professional life.
A Colossal Failure of Common Sense: The Inside Story of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers
by Patrick Robinson Lawrence G. McDonaldOne of the biggest questions of the financial crisis has not been answered until now: What happened at Lehman Brothers and why was it allowed to fail, with aftershocks that rocked the global economy? In this news-making, often astonishing book, a former Lehman Brothers Vice President gives us the straight answers—right from the belly of the beast. In A Colossal Failure of Common Sense, Larry McDonald, a Wall Street insider, reveals, the culture and unspoken rules of the game like no book has ever done. The book is couched in the very human story of Larry McDonald&’s Horatio Alger-like rise from a Massachusetts &“gateway to nowhere&” housing project to the New York headquarters of Lehman Brothers, home of one of the world&’s toughest trading floors. We get a close-up view of the participants in the Lehman collapse, especially those who saw it coming with a helpless, angry certainty. We meet the Brahmins at the top, whose reckless, pedal-to-the-floor addiction to growth finally demolished the nation&’ s oldest investment bank. The Wall Street we encounter here is a ruthless place, where brilliance, arrogance, ambition, greed, capacity for relentless toil, and other human traits combine in a potent mix that sometimes fuels prosperity but occasionally destroys it. The full significance of the dissolution of Lehman Brothers remains to be measured. But this much is certain: it was a devastating blow to America&’s—and the world&’s—financial system. And it need not have happened. This is the story of why it did.
A Colossal Wreck
by Alexander CockburnAlexander Cockburn was without question one of the most influential journalists of his generation, whose writing stems from the best tradition of Mark Twain, H.L. Menchken and Tom Paine. Colossal Wreck, his final work, finished shortly before his death in July 2012, exemplifies the prodigious literary brio that made Cockburn's name.Whether ruthlessly exposing Beltway hypocrisy, pricking the pomposity of those in power, or tirelessly defending the rights of the oppressed, Cockburn never pulled his punches and always landed a blow where it mattered. In this panoramic work, covering nearly two decades of American culture and politics, he explores subjects as varied as the sex life of Bill Clinton and the best way to cook wild turkey. He stands up for the rights of prisoners on death row and exposes the chicanery of the media and the duplicity of the political elite. As he pursues a serpentine path through the nation, he charts the fortunes of friends, famous relatives, and sworn enemies alike to hilarious effect.This is a thrilling trip through the reefs and shoals of politics and everyday life. Combining a passion for the places, the food and the people he encountered on dozens of cross-country journeys, Cockburn reports back over seventeen years of tumultuous change among what he affectionately called the "thousand landscapes" of the United States.From the Hardcover edition.
A Combat Artist in World War II
by Edward ReepA WWII combat artist shares his recollections—and his arresting artwork—from the frontlines of the Italian campaign in this military memoir.Many artists have fought in wars and later recorded heroic scenes of great battles. Yet few artists have created their work on the frontlines as they fought alongside their comrades. Edward Reep, as an official combat artist in World War II, painted and sketched while the battles of the Italian campaign raged around him. At Monte Cassino, the earth trembled as he attempted to paint the historic bombing of that magnificent abbey. Later, racing into Milan with armed partisans on the fenders of his Jeep, he saw the bodies of Mussolini and his beautiful mistress cut down from the gas station where they had been hanged by their heels. That same day he witnessed the spectacle of a large German army force holed up in a high-rise office tower, waiting for the chance to surrender to the proper American brass for fear of falling into the hands of the vengeful partisans.Reep’s recollections of such desperate days are captured in Combat Artist, both in the text and in the many painfully vivid paintings and drawings that accompany it. Reep’s battlefield drawings show us, with unrelenting honesty, the horrors and griefs?and the bitter comedy?of battle.
A Comedy & A Tragedy
by Travis Hugh CulleyIn this powerful memoir, former bicycle messenger and acclaimed author of The Immortal Class recounts his difficult journey to literacy. A Comedy & A Tragedy is the story of one young man's effort to teach himself to read. Complex and many-leveled, this book is also a manifesto about the acquisition of intellectual independence. It is a plea for better understanding of the impact of dysfunctional family dynamics in education, and a passionate indictment of a broken school system that lets so-called problem kids slip through the cracks.When Travis Hugh Culley moves with his family to Miami in the spring of 1980, the bright six-year-old hopes things will be easier for him. Instead, he is dubbed "Birdbrain" by his older brother and classified by his new teachers as a discipline problem. Travis fakes his way through tests and homework assignments, mimicking his fellow students and pretending to know how to read. When his music teacher suggests that he audition for an acting program, Travis begins an unlikely path toward literacy.The moment Travis begins to perform, he is confronted by his angry father, who is threatened by the transformation in his son. Unsure of how to make sense of what has happened, Travis grabs a pen and writes his experience down. Suddenly, everything can be seen in a new light. Having written, he begins to understand in a new way the relationship between words and actions.When his parents separate and his grades fall, Travis clings to a journal in which he notes the details of his changing life. Having no place else to turn to process his emotions, Travis lays claim to the project of his own emancipation. This troubled student runs away from home but does not drop out of school. With pen in hand, he commits to an education in the theater and begins to fully realize the power and importance of literacy. Travis discovers that only through the mastery of writing can he determine his place in the world. Eventually, he will become an accomplished author--with a triumphant story to tell. A Comedy & A Tragedy is an important and inspired memoir that will touch the hearts of parents, teachers, students, and anyone who has struggled with traumatic experiences in education. It is a work of love, of friendship, and of confidence in one young scholar's infinite belief in language.
A Comet of the Enlightenment: Anders Johan Lexell's Life and Discoveries (Vita Mathematica #17)
by Johan C.-E. SténThe Finnish mathematician and astronomer Anders Johan Lexell (1740-1784) was a long-time close collaborator as well as the academic successor of Leonhard Euler at the Imperial Academy of Sciences in Saint Petersburg. Lexell was initially invited by Euler from his native town of Abo (Turku) in Finland to Saint Petersburg to assist in the mathematical processing of the astronomical data of the forthcoming transit of Venus of 1769. A few years later he became an ordinary member of the Academy. This is the first-ever full-length biography devoted to Lexell and his prolific scientific output. His rich correspondence especially from his grand tour to Germany, France and England reveals him as a lucid observer of the intellectual landscape of enlightened Europe. In the skies, a comet, a minor planet and a crater on the Moon named after Lexell also perpetuate his memory.
A Comfort of Cats
by Doreen ToveyTucked away in an idyllic corner of the West Country, you'd think Doreen and her husband Charles would be enjoying a peaceful life-but far from it. Their wily Siamese companions still keep them on their toes. The Toveys are presented with a new problem when the local cattery closes down. Where will they leave Saska and Shebalu when they go on holiday? And so they buy a caravan to take the cats away with them, only to discover that packing up and leaving home is far from a holiday when seal-points are involved. As Saska grows ever more boisterous, he develops monkey-like climbing abilities, a knack for opening doors, and a somewhat inconvenient obsession with wool. With Annabel the self-willed donkey, Father Adams, and a host of gossiping villagers, this is a beguiling tale to enchant and amuse.
A Commentary on Jeremiah: Exile and Homecoming
by Walter BruggemannJeremiah's poignant lament over Judah's social and religious disintegration reflects God's own pathos-laden yearning for his disobedient covenant people. In this widely praised expository commentary Walter Brueggemann, one of the premier Old Testament scholars of our time, explores the historical setting and message of Jeremiah as well as the text's relevance for the church today.Offering a fresh look at the critical theological issues in the Jeremiah tradition, Brueggemann argues that Jeremiah's voice compels us to rediscern our own situation, issuing an urgent invitation to faith, obedience, justice, and compassion.This combined edition of Brueggemann's original two-volume work, published until recently as part of the International Theological Commentary series, is an essential resource for students, pastors, and general readers alike. It is reprinted here with a new introduction by Brueggemann that surveys the current state of Jeremiah studies.