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1947: Where Now Begins
by Fiona Graham Elisabeth ÅsbrinkAn award-winning writer captures a year that defined the modern world, intertwining historical events around the globe with key moments from her personal history.The year 1947 marks a turning point in the twentieth century. Peace with Germany becomes a tool to fortify the West against the threats of the Cold War. The CIA is created, Israel is about to be born, Simone de Beauvoir experiences the love of her life, an ill George Orwell is writing his last book, and Christian Dior creates the hyper-feminine New Look as women are forced out of jobs and back into the home. In the midst of it all, a ten-year-old Hungarian-Jewish boy resides in a refugee camp for children of parents murdered by the Nazis. This year he has to make the decision of a lifetime, one that will determine his own fate and that of his daughter yet to be born, Elisabeth.
What You Did Not Tell: A Russian Past and the Journey Home
by Mark MazowerUncovering their remarkable and moving stories, Mark Mazower recounts the sacrifices and silences that marked a generation and their descendants. It was a family which fate drove into the siege of Stalingrad, the Vilna ghetto, occupied Paris, and even into the ranks of the Wehrmacht. His British father was the lucky one, the son of Russian-Jewish emigrants who settled in London after escaping the Bolsheviks, civil war, and revolution. Max, the grandfather, had started out as a socialist and manned the barricades against Tsarist troops, never speaking a word about it afterwards. His wife Frouma came from a family ravaged by the Terror yet making their way in Soviet society despite it all. In the centenary of the Russian Revolution, What You Did Not Tell revitalizes the history of a socialism erased from memory--humanistic, impassioned, and broad-ranging in its sympathies. But it is also an exploration of the unexpected happiness that may await history's losers, of the power of friendship and the love of place that made his father at home in an England that no longer exists.
Notes on a Shipwreck: A Story of Refugees, Borders, and Hope
by Davide EniaA moving firsthand account of migrant landings on the island of Lampedusa that gives voice to refugees, locals, and volunteers while also exploring a deeply personal father-son relationship. On the island of Lampedusa, the southernmost part of Italy, between Africa and Europe, Davide Enia looks in the faces of those who arrive and those who wait, and tells the story of an individual and collective shipwreck. On one side, a multitude in motion, crossing entire nations and then the Mediterranean Sea under conditions beyond any imagination. On the other, a handful of men and women on the border of an era and a continent, trying to welcome the newcomers. In the middle is the author himself, telling of what actually happens at sea and on land, and the failure of words in the attempt to understand the present paradoxes.Enia reveals the emotional consequences of this touching and disconcerting reality, especially in his relationship with his father, a recently retired doctor who agrees to travel with him to Lampedusa. Witnessing together the public pain of those who land and those who save them from death, alongside the private pain of his uncle's illness, pushes them to reinvent their relationship, to forge a new and unprecedented dialogue that replaces the silences of the past.
Jim's Book: The Surprising Story of Jim Penman - Australia's Backyard Millionaire
by Catherine MoolenschotMeet the man and uncover the story behind one of Australia’s most recognised brands We all know Jim’s. Maybe you just passed a Jim’s Mowing trailer on the road; or maybe there’s a Jim’s Cleaning van parked across the street each Tuesday morning; or maybe your best mate is laughing all the way to the bank after quitting the city and starting his new Jim’s Fencing franchise, but do you know the real story behind the Jim’s Group and its founder, Jim Penman? Brutally efficient, socially awkward, and a tireless perfectionist, Jim is as complex and fascinating as the Jim’s Group. This book is a warts-and-all look at his colourful life that delves deep into how he ignored conventional thinking to turn a few mowing rounds into a corporate juggernaut built on always putting the customer first. Jim’s unique approach revolutionised Australia’s business landscape, providing thousands of people the opportunity to create and grow their own businesses. Most Australians know very little about the man who created one of the nation’s most famous companies. For all of his success, Jim is remarkably unassuming and approachable. In this authorised biography, author Catherine Moolenschot sat down with Jim and over one hundred people who know him — from franchisees and franchisors, to family, friends, and adversaries — to get up close and personal with the surprising story of one of Australia’s biggest brands and the man who made it all happen. Jim’s Book tells the fascinating story of the man and the business that bears his name. Equal parts biography, history and philosophy, this book takes readers on a journey through one man’s remarkable life.
Neruda: The Poet's Calling
by Mark EisnerThe most definitive biography to date of the poet Pablo Neruda, a moving portrait of one of the most intriguing and influential figures in Latin American historyFew poets have captured the global imagination like Pablo Neruda. In his native Chile, across Latin America, and in many other parts of the world, his name and legacy have become almost synonymous with liberation movements, and with the language of erotic love. Neruda: The Poet’s Calling is the product of fifteen years of research by Mark Eisner, writer, translator, and documentary filmmaker. The book vividly depicts Neruda’s monumental life, potent verse, and ardent belief in the “poet’s obligation” to use poetry for social good. It braids together three major strands of Neruda’s life—his world-revered poetry; his political engagement; and his tumultuous, even controversial, personal life—forming a single cohesive narrative of intimacy and breadth.The fascinating events of Neruda’s life are interspersed with Eisner’s thoughtful examinations of the poems, both as works of art in their own right and as mirrors of Neruda’s life and times. The result is a book that animates Neruda’s riveting story in a new way—one that offers a compelling narrative version of Neruda’s life and work, undergirded by exhaustive research, yet designed to bring this colossal literary figure to a broader audience.
Life Could Be Verse: Reflections on Love, Loss, and What Really Matters
by Kirk DouglasDiscover the life and lines of Spartacus. . . He is Spartacus. And a whole lot more. That rugged chin. Those broad shoulders. A swag epitomized in epic films such as Spartacus and The Bad and the Beautiful. Crowned one of greatest actors of all time, Kirk Douglas, whose son Michael continues to build on his Hollywood legacy, is more than legendary. He's a husband. A father. A philanthropist. A Renaissance man. At 97 years old, Kirk Douglas has embraced many roles. But poet? Playing on his Yiddish roots, Life Could Be Verse--not worse--gives readers the best seat in the house to the intimate world of an acclaimed actor who has turned the silver screen gold. But his poems transcend pentameters--they are nostalgic celebrations of old Hollywood, of timeless lessons in life and love, reflecting an era when people had few coins in their pockets but an abundance of hope in the promise of the American dream. Through poems, prose, and photographs, Douglas candidly shares it all as he chaperones us through the stages of his life, including the untimely death of his youngest son and the stroke that left him unable to speak. Still, Douglas doesn't dwell in the sadness. Instead, he tantalizes us with his words, his perspective on life, and some never-before-seen photographs and stories of Marlene Dietrich, Lauren Bacall, Brigitte Bardot and his most cherished leading lady of all, his wife of sixty years, Anne Buydens.Life Could Be Verse is uncomplicated yet revealing, poignant yet playful. It's the life and the lines of Spartacus-an uplifting reminder that many times the story of our lives is the most entertaining script of all. (The following is an original poem Kirk wrote about his famous son Michael Douglas): Fathers and Sons"Am I a good father?'" I asked my son He took a pause, too long for meI waited and waited for him to answer And finally he said, "Ultimately." But the pause was all I heard The silence was so loudI was waiting for some kind wordSomething that would make me proud.How could I have been so dumb?And I never heardThe answer in the pause,When he spoke not a word.I became a "good father,"It took me too long to see,When I needed himMore than he needed me.
Unplugged: My Journey into the Dark World of Video Game Addiction
by Dr. Ryan G. Van CleaveWARNING: This video game may impair your judgment. It may cause sleep deprivation, alienation of friends and family, weight loss or gain, neglect of one's basic needs as well as the needs of loved ones and/or dependents, and decreased performance on the job. The distinction between fantasy and reality may become blurred. Play at your own risk. Not responsible for suicide attempts, whether failed or successful. No such warning was included on the latest and greatest release from the Warcraft series of massive multiplayer on-line role-playing games (MMORPGs)—World of Warcraft (WoW). So when Ryan Van Cleave—a college professor, husband, father, and one of the 11.5 million Warcraft subscribers worldwide—found himself teetering on the edge of the Arlington Memorial Bridge, he had no one to blame but himself. He had neglected his wife and children and had jeopardized his livelihood, all for the rush of living a life of high adventure in a virtual world. Ultimately, Ryan decided to live, but not for the sake of his family or for a newly found love of life: he had to get back home for his evening session of Warcraft. A fabulously written and gripping tale, Unplugged takes us on a journey through Ryan's semi-reclusive life with video games at the center of his experiences. Even when he was sexually molested by a young school teacher at age eleven, it was the promise of a new video game that lured him to her house. As Ryan's life progresses, we witness the evolution of videogames—from simple two-button consoles to today's complicated multi-key technology, brilliantly designed to keep the user actively participating. As is the case with most recovering addicts, Ryan eventually hits rock bottom and shares with the reader his ongoing battle to control his impulses to play, providing prescriptive advice and resources for those caught in the grip of this very real addiction.
Portrait of the Artist's Mother: Dignity, Creativity and Disability
by Fiona PlaceI am seen by many as a danger. As having failed to understand the new rules, the new paradigm of successful motherhood. In this eye-opening book, Fiona Place describes what it is like to be the mother of a son with Down syndrome. She takes us from her pregnancy—and the urging of medical professionals to undergo screening—to the multiple challenges she faced as she did her utmost to ensure her son had every opportunity to grow and learn. We share her distress at the treatment of her family by many so-called experts; we share her appreciation for those people who reached out to Fraser and showed him care and compassion; we share her frustration at the obstacles she faces as a mother who just wants the best for her son. We also share her joy as we witness Fraser become a successful award-winning artist. This is a story of courage, love, and commitment to the idea that all people, including those who are 'less than perfect', have a right to be welcomed into this increasingly imperfect world.
Mis amigos
by Álvaro Castaño CastilloAlvaro Castaño es uno de las personalidades intelectuales más queridasen el país, y aquí nos habla de sus grandes amigos del mundo cultural A los 94 años, Álvaro Castaño Castillo tiene todavía muchas cosas quecontar. En este, el último libro de su vida, seamanguala con la memoria lúcida que a su edadno lo traiciona ni por un instante, para escribirlas anécdotas de las que fue testigo, y que fueronel resultado de eternas amistades con los pensadores, escritores,periodistas y políticos más in?uyentes del Siglo XX de Colombia y deAmérica. Estos son sus amigos. Alvaro Castaño es uno de las personalidades intelectuales más queridasen el país, y aquí nos habla de sus grandes amigos del mundo cultural A los 94 años, Álvaro Castaño Castillo tiene todavía muchas cosas quecontar. En este, el último libro de su vida, seamanguala con la memoria lúcida que a su edadno lo traiciona ni por un instante, para escribirlas anécdotas de las que fue testigo, y que fueronel resultado de eternas amistades con los pensadores, escritores,periodistas y políticos más in?uyentes del Siglo XX de Colombia y deAmérica. Estos son sus amigos.
Not Taco Bell Material
by Adam CarollaIn his second book, Adam Carolla--author of New York Times bestseller In Fifty Years We'll All Be Chicks and chart-topping podcaster--reveals all the stories behind how he came to be the angry middle-aged man he is today. Funnyman Adam Carolla is known for two things: hilarious rants about things that drive him crazy and personal stories about everything from his hardscrabble childhood to his slacker friends to the hypocrisy of Hollywood. He tackled rants in his first book, and now he tells his best stories and debuts some never-before-heard tales as well. Organized by the myriad "dumps" Carolla called home--through the flophouse apartments he rented in his twenties, up to the homes he personally renovated after achieving success in Hollywood--the anecdotes here follow Adam's journey and the hilarious pitfalls along the way. Adam Carolla started broke and blue collar and has now been on the Hollywood scene for over fifteen years, yet he never lost his underdog demeanor. He's still connected to the working class guy he once was, and delivers a raw and edgy, fish-out-of-water take on the world he lives in (but mostly disagrees with), telling all the stories, no matter who he offends--family, friends or the famous.
Reckless: My Life as a Pretender
by Chrissie HyndeChrissie Hynde, for nearly four decades the singer/songwriter/ undisputed leader of the Pretenders, is a justly legendary figure. Few other rock stars have managed to combine her swagger, sexiness, stage presence, knack for putting words to music, gorgeous voice and just all-around kick-assedness into such a potent and alluring package. From "Tatooed Love Boys" and "Brass in Pocket" to "Talk of the Town" and "Back on the Chain Gang," her signature songs project a unique mixture of toughness and vulnerability that millions of men and women have related to. A kind of one- woman secret tunnel linking punk and new wave to classic guitar rock, she is one of the great luminaries in rock history. Now, in her no-holds-barred memoir Reckless, Chrissie Hynde tells, with all the fearless candor, sharp humor and depth of feeling we've come to expect, exactly where she came from and what her crooked, winding path to stardom entailed. Her All-American upbringing in Akron, Ohio, a child of postwar power and prosperity. Her soul capture, along with tens of millions of her generation, by the gods of sixties rock who came through Cleveland--Mitch Ryder, David Bowie, Jeff Back, Paul Butterfield and Iggy Pop among them. Her shocked witness in 1970 to the horrific shooting of student antiwar protestors at Kent State. Her weakness for the sorts of men she calls "the heavy bikers" and "the get-down boys." Her flight from Ohio to London in 1973 essentially to escape the former and pursue the latter. Her scuffling years as a brash reviewer for New Musical Express, shop girl at the Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood boutique 'Craft Must Wear Clothes But The Truth Loves To Go Naked', first-hand witness to the birth of the punk movement, and serial band aspirant. And then ,at almost the last possible moment, her meeting of the three musicians who comprised the original line-up of The Pretenders, their work on the indelible first album "The Pretenders," and the rocket ride to "Instant" stardom, with all the disorientation and hazards that involved. The it all comes crashing back down to earth with the deaths of lead guitarist James Honeyman Scott and bassist Peter Farndon, leaving her bruised and saddened, but far from beaten. Because Chrissie Hynde is, among other things, one of rock's great survivors. We are lucky to be living in a golden age of great rock memoirs. In the aptly titled Reckless, Chrissie Hynde has given us one of the very best we have. Her mesmerizing presence radiates from every line and page of this book.From the Hardcover edition.
The Road to Rescue: The Untold Story of Schindler's List
by Mietek Pemper“Don’t thank me for your survival, thank your valiant Stern and Pemper, who stared death in the face constantly.”—Oskar Schindler in a speech to his released Jewish workers in May 1945.Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-winning film Schindler’s List popularized the true story of a German businessman who manipulated his Nazi connections and spent his personal fortune to save some 1,200 Jewish prisoners from certain death during the Holocaust. But few know that those lists were made possible by a secret strategy designed by a young Polish Jew at the Płaszow concentration camp. Mietek Pemper’s compelling and moving memoir tells the true story of how Schindler’s list really came to pass.Pemper was born in 1920 into a lively and cultivated Jewish family for whom everything changed in 1939 when the Germans invaded Poland. Evicted from their home, they were forced into the Krakow ghetto and, later, into the nearby camp of Płaszow where Pemper’s knowledge of the German language was put to use by the sadistic camp commandant Amon Goth. Forced to work as Goth’s personal stenographer from March 1943 to September 1944—an exceptional job for a Jewish prisoner—Pemper soon realized that he could use his position as the commandant’s private secretary to familiarize himself with the inner workings of the Nazi bureaucracy and exploit the system to his fellow detainees’ advantage. Once he gained access to classified documents, Pemper was able to pass on secret information for Schindler to compile his famous lists. After the war, Pemper was the key witness of the prosecution in the 1946 trial against Goth and several other SS officers. The Road to Rescue stands as a historically authentic testimony of one man’s unparalleled courage, wit, defiance, and bittersweet victory over the Nazi regime.
Il Lamento dell'immigrato
by Mois Benarroch Martina Fattore"Il lamento dell'immigrato" è stato pubblicato per la prima volta nel 1994 in ebraico. La poesia di Benarroch è stata tradotta in una dozzina di lingue, incluse l'urdu e il cinese. Julia Uceda considera la sua poesia detentrice della memoria del mondo, mentre Jose Luis Garcia Martin ritiene che i suoi versi vadano ben oltre la poesia e che siano dei veri e propri documenti. ""Se dovessi scegliere qualcuno da nominare per il Premio Nobel, sicuramente concorrerebbe anche lui." Klaus Gerken, editore di Ygdrasil. La sua fama cresce constantemente e i suoi libri sono stati pubblicati in Spagna, Israele e Stati Uniti d'America. Benarroch è stato insignito del Prime Minister Literary Prize nel 2008 e del Yehuda Amichai Poetry Prize nel 2012.
Brown Scarf Blues
by Mois Benarroch Steven CapsutoReeling from the deaths of two loved ones, an Israeli writer travels to Spain--his ancestors' homeland--for a conference of Sephardic Jews. In Seville, he finds a scarf that comforts him for thirteen days. Then, just as suddenly, it vanishes in Madrid. For the writer, the scarf becomes a symbol of loss: of goodbyes to things and people. He says farewell to the dead, and to all the people he never became and never will be. But just as he is letting go of his dreams, he meets a group of Spanish Jews who were lost in the Amazon for 150 years, whom he once wrote about in a novel. Did he merely make them up? Can imagination shape reality? Narrated through many voices and viewpoints, Brown Scarf Blues is a novella that spans countries--Morocco, Brazil, the United States and Israel--and languages--Hebrew, French, Spanish, Portuguese and especially Haketia: the Moroccan Judeo-Spanish speech that hangs on like a living-dead remnant of a vanished culture... the words and expressions left behind by a lost world.
Disfarçado: Operação Julie – por dentro da história
by Stephen Bentley PAULA RIBEIRO F F DA ROCHAA Operação Julie ainda é hoje o ponto de referência para todas as operações secretas britânicas e treinamento. Em 2011, a BBC afirmou que essa operação policial massiva e única foi o início da guerra contra as drogas. Stephen Bentley foi um dos quatro detetives secretos envolvidos na Operação Julie, uma das maiores apreensões de drogas do mundo. Juntamente com seu parceiro disfarçado, ele se infiltrou na gangue que produzia cerca de 90% do LSD do mundo e descobriu um plano para importar grandes quantidades de cocaína boliviana para o Reino Unido. O submundo conhecia o autor como Steve Jackson. Como ele conseguiu se infiltrar nas duas gangues? Ele teve que usar drogas e como "viver uma mentira" o afetou? Descubra as respostas e entre na mente de Steve Jackson, detetive disfarçado. "A perspectiva de um insider sobre o tráfico de drogas, contada com charme, inteligência e, às vezes, humor, por um homem talentoso, singularmente qualificado para contar a verdadeira história." - Excerto de revisão
Un'avventura nel mondo della cucina
by Sergio Casado Rodríguez Tizziani CarloSituazioni ed esperienze meturate nel mondo della cucina, viaggiando in diverse città europee. Il mondo della ristorazione visto da dentro con prospettiva autobiografica.
Uma Aventura na Cozinha
by Sergio Casado RodríguezEstamos habituados a ler e ouvir histórias ou até ver filmes de pessoas de êxito, sendo assim também no mundo da cozinha, como em qualquer ramo do saber. Com homens e mulheres audazes, inteligentes, valentes... Pessoalmente, gosto bastante deste tipo de histórias, tanto de as ver em filmes, como ler as suas biografias. Estas pessoas inspiram-nos, levam-nos a sonhar e a refletir em como podemos ascender a ser assim, embora no fundo saibamos que é quase impossível alcançá-lo. Não obstante, diversas vezes sinto falta de histórias menores, mais próximas e empáticas, histórias de pessoas como nós, que vivenciaram pequenas experiências, que podem ser igualmente inspiradoras, instrutivas ou simplesmente divertidas. Sendo por isso, que neste livro não existirão grandes personagens, nem sequer estrelas Michelín. Espero então, além de entreter, dar a minha visão do mundo da cozinha, induzir as pessoas a lutarem para alcançarem os seus sonhos, porque todas as histórias valem a pena, todas elas escondem grandes ensinamentos e pequenos grandes momentos que nos podem encher de realização e superação. Estamos habituados a ler e ouvir histórias ou até ver filmes de pessoas de êxito, sendo assim também no mundo da cozinha, como em qualquer ramo do saber. Com homens e mulheres audazes, inteligentes, valentes... Pessoalmente, gosto bastante deste tipo de histórias, tanto de as ver em filmes, como ler as suas biografias. Estas pessoas inspiram-nos, levam-nos a sonhar e a refletir em como podemos ascender a ser assim, embora no fundo saibamos que é quase impossível alcançá-lo. Não obstante, diversas vezes sinto falta de histórias menores, mais próximas e empáticas, histórias de pessoas como nós, que vivenciaram pequenas experiências, que podem ser igualmente inspiradoras, instrutivas ou simplesmente divertidas. Sendo por isso, que neste livro não existirão grandes personagens, nem sequer estrelas Michelín. Espero ent
All That You Leave Behind: A Memoir
by Erin Lee Carr“A documentary filmmaker and daughter of the late, great New York Times columnist David Carr celebrates and wrestles with her father’s legacy in a raw, redemptive memoir.”—O: The Oprah Magazine (The Best Nonfiction Books Coming Out in 2019)“A breathtaking read . . . a testimony equal parts love and candor. David would have had it no other way.”—Ta-Nehisi Coates, bestselling author of Between the World and Me Dad: What will set you apart is not talent but will and a certain kind of humility. A willingness to let the world show you things that you play back as you grow as an artist. Talent is cheap. Me: OK I will ponder these things. I am a Carr. Dad: That should matter quite a bit, actually not the name but the guts of what that name means. A celebrated journalist, bestselling author (The Night of the Gun), and recovering addict, David Carr was in the prime of his career when he suffered a fatal collapse in the newsroom of The New York Times in 2015. Shattered by his death, his daughter Erin Lee Carr, at age twenty-seven an up-and-coming documentary filmmaker, began combing through the entirety of their shared correspondence—1,936 items in total—in search of comfort and support. What started as an exercise in grief quickly grew into an active investigation: Did her father’s writings contain the answers to the question of how to move forward in life and work without her biggest champion by her side? How could she fill the space left behind by a man who had come to embody journalistic integrity, rigor, and hard reporting, whose mentorship meant everything not just to her but to the many who served alongside him? All That You Leave Behind is a poignant coming-of-age story that offers a raw and honest glimpse into the multilayered relationship between a daughter and a father. Through this lens, Erin comes to understand her own workplace missteps, existential crises, and relationship fails. While daughter and father bond over their mutual addictions and challenges with sobriety, it is their powerful sense of work and family that comes to ultimately define them. This unique combination of Erin Lee Carr’s earnest prose and her father’s meaningful words offers a compelling read that shows us what it means to be vulnerable and lost, supported and found. It is a window into love, with all of its fierceness and frustrations.“Thank you, Erin, for this beautiful book. Now I am going to steal all of your father’s remarkable advice and tell my kids I thought of it.”—Judd Apatow
Empire: The Life and Legacy of Pioneering Publishing Magnate: The House that John H. Johnson Built
by Margena A. ChristianAfrican-American stories were overlooked by mainstream media until John H. Johnson showed the world the value of black life. In his magazines EBONY and JET, the publisher and businessman presented never-before-told accounts and used captivating, memorable images to share stories of black people. Margena A. Christian conducts extensive archival research, drawing upon rare sources and a personal decade-long relationship as an employee under the direct tutelage of Johnson. She meticulously constructs the complex story of what made the founder of these magazines become one of history's greatest publishers and businessmen. He went on to become the first black person named to the Forbes 400 richest Americans and amassed an empire, ranging from publishing, cosmetics, travel, radio stations, TV shows, hair care products, and the world's largest traveling fashion show.
Viatge al país dels blancs
by Ousman UmarL'odissea d'un jove que va arriscar la seva vida per un futur millor. Em dic Ousman Umar. Sé que vaig néixer un dimarts, no sé de quin mes ni de quin any, perquè això a la meva tribu tant se val. Vaig créixer a la sabana africana. Cada dia caminava set quilòmetres per anar a l'escola. Tenia una vida feliç i senzilla, fins que un dia mentre jugava vaig veure un avió al cel. Des d'aquell moment vaig voler ser pilot, enginyer, tot menys negre. La curiositat per conèixer el món em va empènyer a iniciar un viatge sense retorn cap al País dels Blancs. Quan tenia tretze anys vaig travessar el Sàhara a peu i el mar en patera. I vaig veure morir pel camí la majoria dels meus companys de viatge, entre ells el meu millor amic. Al cap de quatre anys d'haver iniciat aquella gesta, vaig arribar finalment a Espanya i, després de passar uns quants mesos dormint al carrer, una família em va acollir. La primera nit que vaig dormir a casa seva, tot i les comoditats i el benestar que sentia, em vaig posar a plorar com un nen. Per què havia patit tant? Per què tanta lluita? Què havia fet malament? Ara necessito explicar aquesta història, fins que ja no hi hagi més històries com aquesta per explicar.
Death Traps: The Survival of an American Armored Division in World War II
by Belton Y. Cooper"Cooper saw more of the war than most junior officers, and he writes about it better than almost anyone. . . . His stories are vivid, enlightening, full of life--and of pain, sorrow, horror, and triumph."--STEPHEN E. AMBROSE From his Foreword"In a down-to-earth style, Death Traps tells the compelling story of one man's assignment to the famous 3rd Armored Division that spearheaded the American advance from Normandy into Germany. Cooper served as an ordnance officer with the forward elements and was responsible for coordinating the recovery and repair of damaged American tanks. This was a dangerous job that often required him to travel alone through enemy territory, and the author recalls his service with pride, downplaying his role in the vast effort that kept the American forces well equipped and supplied. . . . [Readers] will be left with an indelible impression of the importance of the support troops and how dependent combat forces were on them."--Library Journal"[DEATH TRAPS] FILLS A CRITICAL GAP IN WW2 LITERATURE. . . . IT'S A TRULY UNIQUE AND VALUABLE WORK."--G.I. JournalFrom the Paperback edition.
The Wizard and the Prophet: Two Remarkable Scientists and Their Dueling Visions to Shape Tomorrow's World
by Charles C. MannFrom the best-selling, award-winning author of 1491 and 1493--an incisive portrait of the two little-known twentieth-century scientists, Norman Borlaug and William Vogt, whose diametrically opposed views shaped our ideas about the environment, laying the groundwork for how people in the twenty-first century will choose to live in tomorrow's world. In forty years, Earth's population will reach ten billion. Can our world support that? What kind of world will it be? Those answering these questions generally fall into two deeply divided groups--Wizards and Prophets, as Charles Mann calls them in this balanced, authoritative, nonpolemical new book. The Prophets, he explains, follow William Vogt, a founding environmentalist who believed that in using more than our planet has to give, our prosperity will lead us to ruin. Cut back! was his mantra. Otherwise everyone will lose! The Wizards are the heirs of Norman Borlaug, whose research, in effect, wrangled the world in service to our species to produce modern high-yield crops that then saved millions from starvation. Innovate! was Borlaug's cry. Only in that way can everyone win! Mann delves into these diverging viewpoints to assess the four great challenges humanity faces--food, water, energy, climate change--grounding each in historical context and weighing the options for the future. With our civilization on the line, the author's insightful analysis is an essential addition to the urgent conversation about how our children will fare on an increasingly crowded Earth.
The Art of the Wasted Day
by Patricia HamplA spirited inquiry into the lost value of leisure and daydreamThe Art of the Wasted Day is a picaresque travelogue of leisure written from a lifelong enchantment with solitude. Patricia Hampl visits the homes of historic exemplars of ease who made repose a goal, even an art form. She begins with two celebrated eighteenth-century Irish ladies who ran off to live a life of "retirement" in rural Wales. Her search then leads to Moravia to consider the monk-geneticist, Gregor Mendel, and finally to Bordeaux for Michel Montaigne--the hero of this book--who retreated from court life to sit in his chateau tower and write about whatever passed through his mind, thus inventing the personal essay. Hampl's own life winds through these pilgrimages, from childhood days lazing under a neighbor's beechnut tree, to a fascination with monastic life, and then to love--and the loss of that love which forms this book's silver thread of inquiry. Finally, a remembered journey down the Mississippi near home in an old cabin cruiser with her husband turns out, after all her international quests, to be the great adventure of her life. The real job of being human, Hampl finds, is getting lost in thought, something only leisure can provide. The Art of the Wasted Day is a compelling celebration of the purpose and appeal of letting go.
Touching the Dragon: And Other Techniques for Surviving Life's Wars
by James Hatch Christian D'AndreaFrom former special ops Navy SEAL senior chief; master naval parachutist (four Bronze Stars with Valor, Navy and Marine Corps Medal recipient, etc.); fighter in 150 missions (Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia, Africa); expert military dog trainer and handler whose SEAL dogs were partners and medal winners--a fierce, moving tale of a return from hell, being badly wounded on a special ops mission that ended his two-decades-long military career, his searing recovery, and the struggle to live life off the speeding train of war.In Touching the Dragon, James Hatch, Naval Special Warfare Operator, expert commando, tactical master in deadly operations, twenty-four years in service to his country (he enlisted in the Army National Guard at age seventeen), writes of his years of military service, from joining the Navy at eighteen, becoming a SEAL, to his joining the Naval Special Warfare Development group ("If I died in a gunfight, it would be doing something I loved"). He writes of the harrowing secret missions (Iraq, Bosnia, Africa); and of the fateful final mission (Afghanistan), that left him badly shot (a bullet exploding through his femur and out the back of his leg) as Hatch and his SEAL team crew were attempting to rescue a rogue soldier--Pvt. Bowe Bergdahl, who deserted his post, was captured by Al Qaida and Taliban militants, and was set to be smuggled to a part of the world where Americans could never reach him. Hatch writes of the horrific wound to his leg; of having no choice but to end his military career; of coming home to the country he'd spent his life defending; of the ordeal of getting well physically (eighteen surgeries; twelve months of recovery; learning to walk again); of having to find out who he was as a man apart from the chaotic world of special operations missions; of days and months of despair, alcoholism, the pull toward suicide; and of finally, through love of family, friends, soldiers, and his specially trained military dogs, touching the dragon, of going through the fear of feeling unfit for society, of finding a purpose and a way back to life.
Scientist, Scientist, Who Do You See?
by Chris Ferrie<p>A scientific twist on a beloved children's classic that's sure to delight both parent and child! <p>Scientist, Scientist, Who do you see? I see Marie Curie in her laboratory! <p>The adored children's classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear gets a nerdy makeover in this picture book by the #1 bestselling science author for kids! Young readers will delight at taking a familiar text and poking fun at it all while learning about scientists and how they changed the world. Back matter includes brief biographical information of the featured scientists. This sweet parody is the perfect inspiration for scientists of all ages! <p>Full of scientific rhyming fun, Scientist, Scientist, Who Do You See? features appearances by some of the world's greatest scientists! From Albert Einstein to Marie Curie and Ahmed Zewail, from Charles Darwin to Chien-Shiung Wu and Grace Hopper... and more!</p>