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Windswept & Interesting: My Autobiography
by Billy ConnollyIn his first full-length autobiography, comedy legend and national treasure Billy Connolly reveals the truth behind his windswept and interesting life.Born in a tenement flat in Glasgow in 1942, orphaned by the age of 4, and a survivor of appalling abuse at the hands of his own family, Billy's life is a remarkable story of success against all the odds.Billy found his escape first as an apprentice welder in the shipyards of the River Clyde. Later he became a folk musician - a 'rambling man' - with a genuine talent for playing the banjo. But it was his ability to spin stories, tell jokes and hold an audience in the palm of his hand that truly set him apart.As a young comedian Billy broke all the rules. He was fearless and outspoken - willing to call out hypocrisy wherever he saw it. But his stand-up was full of warmth, humility and silliness too. His startling, hairy 'glam-rock' stage appearance - wearing leotards, scissor suits and banana boots - only added to his appeal.It was an appearance on Michael Parkinson's chat show in 1975 - and one outrageous story in particular - that catapulted Billy from cult hero to national star. TV shows, documentaries, international fame and award-winning Hollywood movies followed. Billy's pitch-perfect stand-up comedy kept coming too - for over 50 years, in fact - until a double diagnosis of cancer and Parkinson's Disease brought his remarkable live performances to an end. Since then he has continued making TV shows, creating extraordinary drawings... and writing.Windswept and Interesting is Billy's story in his own words. It is joyfully funny - stuffed full of hard-earned wisdom as well as countless digressions on fishing, farting and the joys of dancing naked. It is an unforgettable, life-affirming story of a true comedy legend.'I didn't know I was Windswept and Interesting until somebody told me. It was a friend who was startlingly exotic himself. He'd just come back from Kashmir and was all billowy shirt and Indian beads. I had long hair and a beard and was swishing around in electric blue flairs.He said: "Look at you - all windswept and interesting!"I just said: "Exactly!"After that, I simply had to maintain my reputation...'
Windswept: Walking the Paths of Trailblazing Women
by Annabel Abbs“A gorgeous and revelatory blend of memoir, travelogue, and long-forgotten history.”—Abbott Kahler Annabel Abbs’s Windswept: Walking the Paths of Trailblazing Women is a beautifully written meditation on connecting with the outdoors through the simple act of walking. In captivating and elegant prose, Abbs follows in the footsteps of women who boldly reclaimed wild landscapes for themselves, including Georgia O’Keeffe in the empty plains of Texas and New Mexico, Nan Shepherd in the mountains of Scotland, Gwen John following the French River Garonne, Daphne du Maurier along the River Rhône, and Simone de Beauvoir—who walked as much as twenty-five miles a day in a dress and espadrilles—through the mountains and forests of France. Part historical inquiry and part memoir, the stories of these writers and artists are laced together by moments in Abb’s own life, beginning with her poet father who raised her in the Welsh countryside as an “experiment,” according to the principles of Rousseau. Abbs explores a forgotten legacy of moving on foot and discovers how it has helped women throughout history to find their voices, to reimagine their lives, and to break free from convention. As Abbs traces the paths of exceptional women, she realizes that she, too, is walking away from her past and into a radically different future. Windswept crosses continents and centuries in a provocative and poignant account of the power of walking in nature.
The Windward Road: Adventures of a Naturalist on Remote Caribbean Shores
by Archie CarrThe Windward Road, published in 1956, made history. When Archie Carr began to rove the Caribbean to write about sea turtles, he saw that their numbers were dwindling. Out of this appeal to save them grew the first ventures in international sea turtle conservation and the establishment of the Caribbean Conservation Corporation.In addition to sea turtle biology, Carr recorded his general impressions, producing a natural history sprinkled with colorful stories.
Wine and War
by Donald & Petie KladstrupIn the vineyards, wine caves, and cellars of France as war and occupation came to the country winemakers acted heroically not only to save the best wines but to defend their way of life.These are the true stories of vignerons who sheltered Jewish refugees in their cellars and of winemakers who risked their lives to aid the resistance. They made chemicals in secret laboratories to fuel the resistance and fled from the Gestapo when arrests became imminent.There were treacheries too, as some of the nation's winemakers supported the Vichy regime or the Germans themselves and collaborated.Donald Kladstrup is a retired American network correspondent. He and his wife Petie have accumulated these fascinating stories, told with the pace and action that will fascinate fiction and non-fiction readers alike.
Wine Girl: A sommelier's tale of making it in the toxic world of fine dining
by Victoria James'Hugely entertaining' Jay Rayner, Observer'Addictive' Stylist'James does for wine what Anthony Bourdain did for the high-pressure, low-margin world of professional restaurants, exposing secrets kept from customers' Financial TimesAged twenty-one, Victoria was named the US's youngest sommelier, working in Michelin-starred restaurants, serving the finest wines. The groping patrons she learned to handle, but, behind the scenes, the world of high-end dining was a mess of fractious relationships and unacknowledged abuse. It would take hitting rock-bottom for Victoria to find her way back to the industry she adores. Wine Girl is the memoir of a young woman breaking free from her traumatic childhood. It's the story of overcoming a notoriously misogynistic business, and of the restorative power of a glass of wine with friends.'You'll raise a glass to James's extraordinary resilience' Sunday Times'A must-read' Daily Telegraph
Wine Girl: A sommelier's tale of making it in the toxic world of fine dining
by Victoria JamesAn affecting memoir from America's youngest sommelier, tracing her path through the glamorous but famously toxic restaurant worldAt just twenty-one, Victoria James became America's youngest sommelier at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Even as Victoria was selling bottles worth hundreds and thousands of dollars during the day, passing sommelier certification exams with flying colors and receiving distinction from all kinds of press, there were still groping patrons, bosses who abused their role and status and a trip the hospital emergency room.It would take hitting bottom at a new restaurant and restorative trips to the vineyards where she could feel closest to the wine she loved for Victoria to re-emerge, clear-eyed and passionate, and a proud 'wine girl' of her own Michelin-starred restaurant.Exhilarating and inspiring, Wine Girl is the memoir of a young woman breaking free from an abusive and traumatic childhood on her own terms; an ethnography of the glittering, high-octane, but notoriously corrosive restaurant industry; and above all, a love letter to the restorative and life-changing effects of good wine and good hospitality.
Wine Girl: The Obstacles, Humiliations, and Triumphs of America's Yougest Sommelier
by Victoria JamesAn affecting memoir from the country’s youngest sommelier, tracing her path through the glamorous but famously toxic restaurant world At just twenty-one, the age when most people are starting to drink (well, legally at least), Victoria James became the country’s youngest sommelier at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Even as Victoria was selling bottles worth hundreds and thousands of dollars during the day, passing sommelier certification exams with flying colors, and receiving distinction from all kinds of press, there were still groping patrons, bosses who abused their role and status, and a trip to the hospital emergency room. It would take hitting bottom at a new restaurant and restorative trips to the vineyards where she could feel closest to the wine she loved for Victoria to re-emerge, clear-eyed and passionate, and a proud leader of her own Michelin-starred restaurant.Exhilarating and inspiring, Wine Girlis the memoir of a young woman breaking free from an abusive and traumatic childhood on her own terms; an ethnography of the glittering, high-octane, but notoriously corrosive restaurant industry; and above all, a love letter to the restorative and life-changing effects of good wine and good hospitality.
The Wine of Wisdom: The Life, Poetry and Philosophy of Omar Khayyam
by Mehdi AminrazaviThe intoxicating message of Khayyam's famous Ruba'iyyat created an image of exotic Orientalism in the West but, as author Mehdi Aminrazavi reveals, Khayyam's achievements went far beyond the intoxicating message within these verses. Philosopher, mathematician, scientist, and mystic - his many different identities are examined here in detail, creating a coherent picture of this complex and often misunderstood figure.
Wine to Water
by Doc HendleyThe captivating story of an ordinary bartender turned humanitarian who's changing the world through clean water. Doc Hendley never set out to be a hero. A small-town bartender, Doc loved his Harley, music, and booze. Then he learned about the world's water crisis, and decided to help by hosting fundraisers. But he wanted to do more and soon found himself traveling to one of the world's most dangerous hot spots: Darfur, Sudan. Doc was immediately cast into a crisis zone. The Sudanese government was wiping out entire villages through horrific state-sponsored genocide--and one of the chief weapons was water. By dumping corpses in water sources and shooting up water bladders, Janjaweed terrorists doomed hundreds of thousands of citizens to dehydration, disease, and death. At just twenty-five years old, Doc was inexperienced, untrained, and in constant danger--but he stepped up to save lives. Alternatively begging international organizations for funding and dodging trigger-happy Janjaweed, Doc began drilling and repairing wells, bringing drinking water to those who desperately needed it. Wine to Water is his story about braving tribal warfare in far-flung regions of the world, and an inspirational tale of how one ordinary person can make a difference.
Wine Witch on Fire: Rising from the Ashes of Divorce, Defamation, and Drinking Too Much
by Natalie MacLeanA powerful memoir about how one woman resurrects her life and career in the glamorous but sexist wine industry.Natalie MacLean, a bestselling wine writer, is shocked when her husband of twenty years, a high-powered CEO, demands a divorce. Then an online mob of rivals comes for her career.Wavering between despair and determination, she must fight for her son, rebuild her career, and salvage her self-worth using her superpowers: heart, humour, and an uncanny ability to pair wine and food.Natalie questions her insider role in the slick marketing that encourages women to drink too much while she battles the wine world’s veiled misogyny. Facing the worst vintage of her life, she reconnects with the vineyards that once brought her joy, the friends who sustain her, and her own belief in second chances.This true coming-of-middle-age story is about transforming your life and finding love along the way.
Wine, Women and Words (American Autobiography Ser.)
by Billy RoseMeet the Governor who read the Bible to Sally Rand; English Bob, the nose-biter, and all the luscious damozels, in this fabulous potpourri of stories by Billy Rose, author of the syndicated column PITCHING HORSESHOES.Here is the magic that won 18,000,000 newspaper readers for Billy Rose, the little guy who has crowded into one lifetime such unusual distinctions as (1) giving dictation to President Wilson, (2) combining dampness and damozels into the world’s first Aquacade, (3) going into the nightclub business because he wanted to wear a black hat and meet some girls.“The contents of this book could almost be summarized on a picture-postcard: ‘Having a wonderful time. Wish you were here.’ But Billy Rose does more than wish you were there. He takes you there and lets you share the fun.”—Deems Taylor“Billy Rose is New York’s most sparkling troubadour. Billy came out of a bonfire called Broadway. His book is full of its quick blaze, its sudden warmth and seven wonders.”—Ben Hecht“To me, Billy Rose is the Uncle Remus of Broadway. His book combines nostalgic incident with notes on a weird array of characters. If the Book-of-the-Month doesn’t take it, Billy ought to buy his own month and show them.”—Fred Allen
A Wing and a Prayer: The "Bloody 100th" Bomb Group of the US Eighth Air Force in Action Over Europe in World War II
by Harry H. Crosby&“A compelling account of the air war against Germany&” written by the navigator portrayed by Anthony Boyle in Apple TV&’s Masters of the Air (Publishers Weekly). They began operations out of England in the spring of &’43. They flew their Flying Fortresses almost daily against strategic targets in Europe in the name of freedom. Their astonishing courage and appalling losses earned them the name that resounds in the annals of aerial warfare and made the &“Bloody Hundredth&” a legend. Harry H. Crosby—depicted in the miniseries Masters of the Air developed by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg—arrived with the very first crews, and left with the very last. After dealing with his fear and gaining in skill and confidence, he was promoted to Group Navigator, surviving hairbreadth escapes and eluding death while leading thirty-seven missions, some of them involving two thousand aircraft. Now, in a breathtaking and often humorous account, he takes us into the hearts and minds of these intrepid airmen to experience both the triumph and the white-knuckle terror of the war in the skies. &“Affecting . . . A vivid account . . . Uncommonly thoughtful recollections that address the moral ambiguities of a great cause without in any way denigrating the selfless valor or camaraderie that helped ennoble it.&” —Kirkus Reviews &“Re-creates for us the sense of how it was when European skies were filled with noise and danger, when the fate of millions hung in the balance. An evocative and excellent memoir.&” —Library Journal &“The acrid stench of fear and cordite, the coal burning stoves, the heroics, the losses . . . This has to be the best memoir I have read, bar none.&” —George Hicks, director of the Airmen Memorial Museum
A Wing and a Prayer: The Race to Save Our Vanishing Birds
by Anders Gyllenhaal Beverly GyllenhaalA captivating drama from the frontlines of the race to save birds set against the devastating loss of one third of the avian population. Three years ago, headlines delivered shocking news: nearly three billion birds in North America have vanished over the past fifty years. No species has been spared, from the most delicate jeweled hummingbirds to scrappy black crows, from a rainbow of warblers to common birds such as owls and sparrows. In a desperate race against time, scientists, conservationists, birders, wildlife officers, and philanthropists are scrambling to halt the collapse of species with bold, experimental, and sometimes risky rescue missions. High in the mountains of Hawaii, biologists are about to release clouds of laboratory-bred mosquitos in a last-ditch attempt to save Hawaii&’s remaining native forest birds. In Central Florida, researchers have found a way to hatch Florida Grasshopper Sparrows in captivity to rebuild a species down to its last two dozen birds. In the Sierra Nevada Mountains, a team is using artificial intelligence to save the California Spotted Owl. In North Carolina, a scientist is experimenting with genomics borrowed from human medicine to bring the long-extinct Passenger Pigeon back to life. For the past year, veteran journalists Anders and Beverly Gyllenhaal traveled more than 25,000 miles across the Americas, chronicling costly experiments, contentious politics, and new technologies to save our beloved birds from the brink of extinction. Through this compelling drama, A Wing and a Prayer offers hope and an urgent call to action: Birds are dying at an unprecedented pace. But there are encouraging breakthroughs across the hemisphere and still time to change course, if we act quickly.
Winged Pegasus and the Rangers: Winged Pegasus And The Rangers (Air War D-Day)
by Martin W. BowmanThis is the third volume of a comprehensive five part work, detailing every aspect of air and paratroop operations on the night of 5/6 June 1944. The 6th Airborne Division was to support British Second Army and First Canadian Army; its task was to seize and hold the left flank of the bridgehead. The 5th Parachute Brigade was to seize the ground each side of the bridges over the Canal du Caen and the Orne River, whilst on the same day seize and hold positions on the long wooded ridge beyond the waterways, running from Troarn in the south to the sea. This ridge with the bridges behind would eventually form the critical left flank of the army and the bridges had to be intact to permit Allied troops and supplies to pass easily back and forth. The 3rd Parachute Brigade, which included the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion (1,800 men) was to prevent enemy reinforcements moving towards the British beachhead. Another Battalion and the 1st Canadian Brigade had to destroy five bridges in the flooded valley of the Dives. The 9th Battalion had to silence a battery of four concrete gun emplacements on high ground near the village of Merville, 3 miles east of Ouistreham. For these tasks 38 and 46 Groups RAF dispatched 264 aircraft and 98 glider combinations, the glider tugs being Albemarles, Dakotas, Halifaxes and Stirlings, the gliders mainly Horsas with a few Hamilcars (carrying light tanks and 17-pounder anti-tank guns). Meanwhile, Brigadier Lord Lovats 1st Special Service Brigade, composed of four Army and one Royal Marines Commando, reached Pegasus Bridge en route to help other units of the Airborne Division.Allied intelligence had pinpointed 73 fixed coastal gun batteries that could menace the invasion. At Pointe-du-Hoc, a cliff rising 100 feet high from a very rocky beach, a six-gun battery which potentially could engage ships at sea and fire directly onto Utah and Omaha was taken by three companies (225 men) of the US 2nd Ranger Battalion using rocket propelled grapple hooks attached to climbing ropes and portable extension ladders to scale the cliffs within ten minutes after landing and capture the position.This dynamic episode in the history of D-Day is expertly researched and relayed with both style and reverence for the aircrew who participated in proceedings. A plate section of rare black and white images supplement the text, working further to create a real sense of the times at hand at this most pivotal point in the history of D-Day.
Winged Scalpel: A Surgeon at the Frontline of Disaster
by Richard VillarAn ex-SAS surgeon&’s gripping memoir of trying to save lives in disaster areas and war zones around the globe. In this fast-paced narrative, ex-SAS surgeon Richard Villar provides a very personal insight into the difficulties, dangers, and occasional virtual impossibility of providing medical aid to disaster areas and war zones. He shares his remarkable experiences in the aftermath of three major earthquakes Kashmir (2005), Java (2006), and Haiti (2010) as well as in the 2011 Libyan civil war, in a no-holds-barred introduction to a world most will never experience. He describes what happens on the ground before a full aid program swings into action. Arriving in a stricken area with the infrastructure destroyed, his small, dedicated team can take nothing for granted; water, power, shelter, and the rule of law are likely to be nonexistent and disease and shortages of food and water ever present. They meet challenges that the rest of us can only imagine and are under intense pressure to help, comfort, and sustain overwhelming numbers of traumatized men, women, and children whose worlds have been turned upside down. Winged Scalpel is not only a riveting read but highly instructional and informative. From his own point of view, the author&’s experiences prove that you can take a man out of the SAS, but you cannot take the SAS out of the man.
The Winged Seed: A Remembrance (American Readers Series)
by Li-Young Lee"It has true spiritual importance for contemporary American literature."-Edward HirschUpon its initial publication, acclaimed poet Li-Young Lee's memoir The Winged Seed: A Remembrance (1995), received an American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation. In lyrical prose, Lee's extraordinary story begins in the 1950s when his parents fled China's political turmoil for Indonesia. Along with many other Chinese members of the population, his family was persecuted under President Sukarno. Falsely accused and charged for crimes against the state, his father spent a year and a half in jail as a political prisoner, half of that time in a leper colony. While his entire family was being transported to a prison colony, they escaped and fled to Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, and back to Hong Kong where his father rose to prominence as an evangelical preacher. Eventually, the family sought asylum in the United States in 1962. When the author was six, they emigrated to a small town in western Pennsylvania where his father became a Presbyterian minister. This reissued edition contains a new foreword by the author and never-before-seen photos of the family from different stages of their journey.Li-Young Lee is the author of four critically acclaimed books of poetry that have garnered such awards as the Delmore Schwartz Memorial Award from New York University; the 1990 Lamont Poetry Selection; the Writer's Award from the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation; and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, The Lannan Foundation, and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.
The Winged Seed
by Li-Young Lee"It has true spiritual importance for contemporary American literature."-Edward HirschUpon its initial publication, acclaimed poet Li-Young Lee's memoir The Winged Seed: A Remembrance (1995), received an American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation. In lyrical prose, Lee's extraordinary story begins in the 1950s when his parents fled China's political turmoil for Indonesia. Along with many other Chinese members of the population, his family was persecuted under President Sukarno. Falsely accused and charged for crimes against the state, his father spent a year and a half in jail as a political prisoner, half of that time in a leper colony. While his entire family was being transported to a prison colony, they escaped and fled to Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, and back to Hong Kong where his father rose to prominence as an evangelical preacher. Eventually, the family sought asylum in the United States in 1962. When the author was six, they emigrated to a small town in western Pennsylvania where his father became a Presbyterian minister. This reissued edition contains a new foreword by the author and never-before-seen photos of the family from different stages of their journey.Li-Young Lee is the author of four critically acclaimed books of poetry that have garnered such awards as the Delmore Schwartz Memorial Award from New York University; the 1990 Lamont Poetry Selection; the Writer's Award from the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation; and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, The Lannan Foundation, and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.
Winged Warfare - Hunting The Huns In The Air [Illustrated Edition]
by Major Billy Bishop V.C. D.S.O. M.C.[Illustrated with 17 additional photos of the author and the machines he flew and fought against]As a young Billy Bishop looking up into the sky above his Canadian trench in July 1915, a passing Royal Flying Corps aircraft was returning home from patrol. He was envious and said to whoever was listening "...it's clean up there! I'll bet you don't get any mud or horse **** on you up there. If you die, at least it would be a clean death.". Struck by his sudden epiphany he requested a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps, it was a momentous decision, for within the next three years Bishop would claim 72 victories over his German opponents, making him the highest scoring British Empire air ace of the First World War.A National Hero in his native Canada, he was awarded a V.C. for conspicuous services - the citation read:"For most conspicuous bravery, determination, and skill. Captain Bishop,...[On his own] flew first of all to an enemy aerodrome; finding no machines about, he flew on to another aerodrome...which was at least 12 miles the other side of the line. Seven machines....were on the ground. He attacked these from about fifty feet...One of the machines got off the ground, but at a height of 60 feet, Captain Bishop fired 15 rounds into it at very close range, and it crashed to the ground. A second machine got off the ground, into which he fired 30 rounds at 150 yards range, and it fell into a tree. Two more machines then rose from the aerodrome. One of these he engaged at a height of 1,000 feet, emptying the rest of his drum of ammunition. This machine crashed 300 yards from the aerodrome, after which Captain Bishop emptied a whole drum into the fourth hostile machine, and then flew back to his station. Four hostile scouts were about 1,250 feet above him for about a mile of his return journey, but they would not attack. His machine was very badly shot about by machine gun fire from the ground."A fine memoir from an Air Ace legend.
Winged Warriors: Memoirs of a Canberra and Tornado Pilot
by Thomas McDonaldPaul McDonald is a former RAF fast-jet pilot whose flying career spanned 34 years. He is not a typical senior RAF officer having been brought up on a council estate in a bleak northern industrial town. He became a pilot by accident and struggled to gain his wings. He spent 14 years on operational tours overseas including 2 tours at the height of the Cold War on a Tornado tactical nuclear squadron in Germany, only 15 minutes from responding to an anticipated Soviet onslaught. Earlier he served on a low-level photo reconnaissance squadron on NATO's vulnerable southern flank. He was decorated for gallantry in 1980 and later served in Kuwait as the Senior RAF Adviser, including Operation Desert Fox, the air war against Iraq in 1998.
Winging It
by Jenny GardinerA hilarious and poignant cautionary tale about two very different types of creatures, thrown together by fate, who learn to make the best of a challenging situation -- feather by feather. Like many new bird owners, Jenny and Scott Gardiner hoped for a smart, talkative, friendly companion. Instead, as they took on the unexpected task of raising a curmudgeonly wild African gray parrot and a newborn, they learned an important lesson: parrothood is way harder than parenthood. A gift from Scott's brother who was living in Zaire, Graycie arrived scrawny, pissed-off, and missing a lot of her feathers -- definitely not the Polly-wants-a-cracker type the Gardiners anticipated. Every day became a constant game of chicken with a bird that would do anything to ruffle their feathers. The old adage about not biting the hand that feeds you -- literally -- never applied to Graycie. But Jenny and Scott learned to adapt as the family grew to three children, a menagerie of dogs and cats, and, of course, Graycie. In this laugh-out-loud funny and touching memoir, Jenny vividly shares the many hazards of parrot ownership, from the endless avian latrine duty and the joyful day the bird learned to mimic the sound of the smoke detector, to the multiple ways a beak can pierce human flesh. Graycie is a court jester, a karaoke partner, an unusual audio record of their family history, and, at times, a nemesis. But most of all, she has taught the family volumes about tolerance, going with the flow, and realizing that you can no sooner make your child fit into a mold than you can turn a wild parrot into a docile house pet. Winging It is an utterly engrossing reminder of the importance of patience, loyalty, and humor when it comes to dealing with even the most unpleasant members of the family.
Winging It
by Catherine GoldhammerA ?strikingly imaginative? (O, The Oprah Magazine) and heartfelt memoir for every woman on the verge of becoming and empty nester In her critically acclaimed debut memoir, Still Life with Chickens, Catherine Goldhammer shared her recovery from the chaos of divorce: moving with her daughter Harper to a seaside New England town, renovating a rustic cottage, and raising six chickens. Winging It picks up when Harper begins her junior year of high school and Catherine suddenly realizes that both she and her daughter will be on their own in two short years. Like so many mothers, Catherine feels woefully unprepared for not only her daughter?s independence, but also her own. Yet as friends, ex-lovers, adventures, and opportunities emerge, Catherine begins to realize that her life will not end with her daughter?s departure, but begin anew. With wit, charm, and candor, she reveals her journey of rediscovering herself through one of life?s most universal transitions, including the lesson that letting go doesn?t have to mean losing those you love. .
The Wingmen: The Unlikely, Unusual, Unbreakable Friendship Between John Glenn and Ted Williams
by Adam LazarusThe untold story of the unique fifty-year friendship between two American icons: John Glenn, the unassailable pioneer of space exploration and Ted Williams, indisputably the greatest hitter in baseball history. It was 1953, the Korean War in full throttle, when two men—already experts in their fields—crossed the fabled 38th Parallel into Communist airspace aboard matching Panther jets. John Glenn was an ambitious operations officer with fifty-nine World War II combat missions under his belt. His wingman was Ted Williams, the two-time American League Triple Crown winner who, at the pinnacle of his career, was inexplicably recalled to active service in the United States Marine Corps. Together, the affable flier and the notoriously tempestuous left fielder soared into North Korea, creating a death-defying bond. Although, over the next half century, their contrasting lives were challenged by exhilarating highs and devastating lows, that bond would endure. Through unpublished letters, unit diaries, declassified military records, manuscripts, and new and illuminating interviews, The Wingmen reveals an epic and intimate portrait of two heroes—larger-than-life and yet ineffably human, ordinary men who accomplished the extraordinary. At its heart, this was a conflicted friendship that found commonality in mutual respect—throughout the perils of war, sports dominance, scientific innovation, cutthroat national politics, the burden of celebrity, and the meaning of bravery. Now, author Adam Lazaraus sheds light on a largely forgotten chapter in these legends&’ lives—as singular individuals, inspiring patriots, and eventually, however improbable, profoundly close friends.
Wings and Rockets: The Story of Women in Air and Space
by Jeannine AtkinsCelebrating the hundredth anniversary of powered flight From Katharine Wright, sister of the Wright brothers, to Eileen Collins, the first woman commander of a spacecraft, scores of women have played critical roles in our country's history of aviation. Wilbur and Orville Wright, who pioneered powered flight in 1903, knew how much they owed to Katharine. "When the world speaks of the Wrights," said Orville, "they should not forget our sister. " Although Katharine Wright was among the first women to ride in an airplane, Blanche Stuart Scott was the first to sit at the controls. To achieve her dream, Blanche overcame sexism and other obstacles. The same can be said of every woman whose piloting career is highlighted here - Bessie Coleman, Amelia Earhart, Jackie Cochran, Ann Baumgartner Carl, Jerrie Cobb, Shannon Wells Lucid, and others. Their stories are sure to fire the imaginations of readers and encourage them to "follow their hearts into the sky" - or anywhere at all. This beautifully articulated history of American women who broke barriers to achieve an especially satisfying success is enhanced by clever, captivating halftone illustrations.
Wings Around the World: The Exhilarating Story of One Woman's Epic Flight From the North Pole to Antarctica
by Polly VacherOn May 6, 2003, Polly Vacher took off from Birmingham airport seeking to become the first pilot to complete a solo flight around the world via both Poles in a single-engine aircraft. Despite having only a few years of flying experience, Polly, a 59-year-old mother of three, had already completed a lateral solo circumnavigation of the world in 2001 for the charity Flying Scholarships for the Disabled; this second challenge, for the same charity, would make that achievement look like a casual jaunt. There would be no margin for error. Her voyage to the ice was a 35,000-mile adventure in her Piper Dakota that would take her to at least 30 different countries on every single continent. She had prepared meticulously for two years, was fully insured and had all the requisite permits and visas. With her kinetic enthusiasm, charm and persistence, she had already garnered multifarious sponsors ranging from multinationals such as Shell to private individuals. However, as she took off on that blustery spring day, flanked by a Hurricane and a Spitfire from the RAF Battle of Britain Flight, and waved off by her family and the Prince of Wales, she suddenly felt so alone. She had begun a remarkable expedition that would gain her three world records, but would also see her encounter extremes of weather and emotion, much kindness and obstruction and also a little political intrigue.
Wings In The Wilderness
by Arthur Gordon Marion Bond WestJ. V. Calvert, The Premonition Arthur Gordon, Seconds Away from Death Bill Carver, The Strip Miner Judy Armstrong, When the Bell Tolled Marion Bond West, The Gideon Bible Fred Nicholas, "She Knew You Were Coming" Alan Holland, What Stopped the Tractor? Ronald "Scotty" Bourne, A Dog Named Bandit Don Bell, The Steer in the Soaphole Edith M. Dean, Those Mysterious Numbers Doug Elliott, Wings in the Wilderness Charlotte Doty, The Yellow Rose David Moore, Pilot's Directions Kenneth Bishop, Someone's Kidding! Elva and Ben-David Weisiger, Warning at : Jose M. Sandoval, The Long Leap DeLinda Koster, Back Off! Stephen Saint, To the Ends of the Earth Edward A. Elliott, After Fifty Years Ron Bailey, Car Trouble Jacqueline Hewitt Allen, In Full Supply Carol Knapp, The Afterthought B. J. Connor, Stamp of Approval Agnes Huyser, The Sudden Freeze Muriel Lombardi, When Dad Changed His Mind Helen Lewis Coffer, His Broad Shoulders Andrew C. Sorelle, Jr., Out of Control! Mary Virag, "Someone Help Me!" Mary Helen Livingston, What on Earth Is Shoo-fly Pie, Anyway? Philip K. March, Her Playing Days Were Over Jeanne M. Dams, "She Couldn't Have Said a Word!" J. V. Calvert, The Premonition Arthur Gordon, Seconds Away from Death Bill Carver, The Strip Miner Judy Armstrong, When the Bell Tolled Marion Bond West, The Gideon Bible Fred Nicholas, "She Knew You Were Coming" Alan Holland, What Stopped the Tractor? Ronald "Scotty" Bourne, A Dog Named Bandit Don Bell, The Steer in the Soaphole Edith M. Dean, Those Mysterious Numbers Doug Elliott, Wings in the Wilderness Charlotte Doty, The Yellow Rose David Moore, Pilot's Directions Kenneth Bishop, Someone's Kidding! Elva and Ben-David Weisiger, Warning at : Jose M. Sandoval, The Long Leap DeLinda Koster, Back Off! Stephen Saint, To the Ends of the Earth Edward A. Elliott, After Fifty Years Ron Bailey, Car Trouble Jacqueline Hewitt Allen, In Full Supply Carol Knapp, The Afterthought B. J. Connor, Stamp of Approval Agnes Huyser, The Sudden Freeze Muriel Lombardi, When Dad Changed His Mind Helen Lewis Coffer, His Broad Shoulders Andrew C. Sorelle, Jr., Out of Control! Mary Virag, "Someone Help Me!" Mary Helen Livingston, What on Earth Is Shoo-fly Pie, Anyway? Philip K. March, Her Playing Days Were Over Jeanne M. Dams, "She Couldn't Have Said a Word!"