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Saving the White Lions: One Woman's Battle for Africa's Most Sacred Animal
by Andrew Harvey Linda TuckerIn this captivating, suspenseful memoir, white lion conservationist Linda Tucker describes her perilous struggle to protect the sacred white lion from the merciless and mafia-like trophy-hunting industry, armed only with her indomitable spirit and total devotion. Her story begins in 1991 with a heart-stopping misadventure in the Timbavati Reserve of South Africa. Tucker--then a successful advertising executive--and a group of fellow travelers found themselves surrounded by a pride of angry lions. There was no way out, night had fallen, and the battery in their only flashlight was beginning to flicker. Miraculously, a local medicine woman, with two youngsters in tow, passed, trancelike and fearless, through the lions and escorted them all to safety. For Tucker, that life-threatening experience became a life-changing one. She abandoned her career, left Europe, and returned to Timbavati to track down the medicine woman who had saved her: Maria Khosa. Upon seeing Tucker again, Khosa only smiled and said, "What took you so long?" She had been expecting her, and there was so much to do. Under Khosa's shamanic tutelage, Tucker learned of her sacred destiny: to be the "keeper of the white lions," believed to be angelic beings sent to Earth to save humanity at a time of crisis. Khosa also prophesized that the queen of the white lions--the embodiment of the mother of Ra, the sun god--would soon be born, on a day and in a place considered holy by Westerners. On December 25, 2000, in the little South Africa town of Bethlehem, a snowy white lion cub, Marah, was born. From the moment of her first meeting with Marah, Tucker's story immediately takes off into battle, as she dedicates her every waking moment to prying Marah and her siblings from the grips of the trophy-hunting industry. Compellingly written in the intimate style of a journal, Tucker describes with unflinching honesty her fears, doubts, hopes, and dreams, all the while unfolding for us an unforgettable tale of adventure, romance, spirituality, and most of all, justice.
Poets and Pahlevans: A Journey into the Heart of Iran
by Marcello Di CintioMarcello Di Cintio prepares for his "journey into the heart of Iran" with the utmost diligence. He takes lessons in Farsi, researches Persian poetry and sharpens his wrestling skills by returning to the mat after a gap of some years. Knowing that there is a special relationship between heroic poetry and the various styles of traditional Persian wrestling, he sets out to discover how Iranians "reconcile creativity with combat."From the moment of his arrival in Tehran, the author is overwhelmed by hospitality. He immerses himself in male company in tea houses, conversing while smoking the qalyun or water pipe. Iranian men are only too willing to talk, especially about politics. Confusingly, he is told conflicting statements-that all Iranians love George Bush, that all Iranians hate George Bush; that life was infinitely better under the Shah, that the mullahs swept away the corruption of the Shah's regime and made life better for all.Once out of Tehran, he learns where the traditional forms of wrestling are practised. His path through the country is directed by a search for the variant disciplines and local techniques of wrestling and a need to visit sites and shrines associated with the great Persian poets: Hafez, Ferdosi, Omar Khayyám, Attar, Shahriyar and many others. Everywhere his quest leads him, he discovers that poetry is loved and quoted by everyone from taxi-drivers to students.His engagement with Iranian culture is intimate: he wrestles (sometimes reluctantly) when invited, samples illegal home-brew alcohol, attends a wedding, joins mourners, learns a new way to drink tea and attempts to observe the Ramazan fast, though not a Muslim himself. Though he has inevitable brushes with officialdom, he never feels in danger, even when he hears that a Canadian photo-journalist has apparently been beaten to death in a police cell during the author's visit. The outraged and horrified reaction of those around him to this violent act tightens the already close bond he has formed with the Persians.His greatest frustration is that he is unable to converse freely with Iranian women aware that an important part of his picture of Iran is thus absent. Yet the mosaic of incidents, encounters, vistas, conversations, atmospheres and acutely observed sights, smells and moments creates a detailed impression of a country and society that will challenge most, if not all, preconceptions.From the Hardcover edition.
The Lives of Conn Smythe: From the Battlefield to Maple Leaf Gardens: A Hockey Icon's Story
by Kelly McparlandThe first full-length biography of one of hockey's - and Canada's - most influential forces, Conn Smythe.While the story of the Toronto Maple Leafs has been told many times, there has never been a full biography of the man who created, built and managed the team, turning it from a small-market collection of second-rate players into the hockey and financial powerhouse that dominated Canadian sports and created a collection of Canadian icons along the way. From the 1920s to the mid-1960s, Conn Smythe was one of the best-known, highest-profile figures in the country - irascible, tempestuous, outspoken and controversial. He not only constructed a hockey team that dominated the league for long stretches, but was critical to the growth and shaping of the NHL itself. By building Maple Leaf Gardens and hiring Foster Hewitt to fill Canada's living rooms with weekly broadcasts, he turned Saturday night into hockey night, creating institutions and habits that became central to Canada's character and remain with us today.Smythe's story is much deeper and richer than the tale of a cantankerous hockey owner. Smythe fought in both world wars, fighting at Ypres and Passchendaele in the first war and landing at Normandy in the second. He was wounded in both and spent two years as a POW in a German camp after being shot down in 1917. He grew up in poverty and vowed to escape the life that was so incredibly hard on his family. Smythe was active in politics and ignited a national crisis over conscription that split the Liberal government in two and brought Mackenzie King to the brink of resignation.This book tells the life of one of the country's great characters, a man who helped shape and define us and who left behind national habits and institutions that continue to lay at the heart of what makes Canada, Canada.From the Hardcover edition.
The Last Line of Defense: The New Fight for American Liberty
by Ken CuccinelliVirginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli leads the historic fight against the unprecedented overreach of the federal government. With Obamacare and agencies like the EPA, the FCC, and the National Labor Relations Board attempting to exercise unprecedented control over the American people, the Obama Administration was breaking federal laws, ignoring federal courts, and violating the Constitution to achieve its goals of redistributing wealth, concentrating power in Washington, and rewarding its supporters. Without enough lawmakers in Washington devoted to protecting the rule of law to stop the federal government's liberty-stealing power grab, the battle had to be waged in an unprecedented way: from the states -- just as our Founding Fathers intended. The man who led the charge was Ken Cuccinelli, the first state attorney general to argue in federal court against Obamacare, an unapologetic defender of the Constitution, and a man admirers and detractors alike said "was tea party long before there was a Tea Party." The Last Line of Defense provides a behind-the-scenes account of the myriad of legal battles in which our states were the only instruments of resistance to federal abuses of power. It is a must-read for every patriot.
Seminary Boy
by John CornwellOne of the most extraordinary memoirs of recent years, the acclaimed writer John Cornwell has finally written his own story, and the story of a choice he had to make between the Church and a life lived outside its confines. John Cornwell decided to become a priest at the age of thirteen, a strange choice perhaps for a boy who'd been sent to a 'convalescent home' for having whacked a nun about the head. Growing up in a chaotic household, sharing two rooms with his brothers and sisters, his hot-headed mother and - when he was around - absconding father, John spent his time roaming the war-torn streets of London looking for trouble. One day, at his mother's suggestion, he responded to a call from his local parish priest for altar servers. The 'dance of the rituals', the murmur of Latin and the candlelit dawn took hold of his imagination and provided him with a new and unexpected comfort. He left post-war London for Cotton, a seminary in the West Midlands. In this hidden, all-male world, with its rhythms of devotion and prayer, John grew up caught between his religious feelings and the rough and tumble of his life back in London; between seeking the face of God in the wild countryside around him and experiencing his first kiss; between monitoring his soul and watching a girl from a moving train whose face he will never forget. Cornwell tells us of a world now vanished: of the colourful community of priests in charge; of the boys and their intense and sometimes passionate friendships; of the hovering threat of abuse in this cloistered environment. And he tells us of his struggle to come to terms with a shameful secret from his London childhood - a vicious sexual attack which haunts his time at Cotton. A book of tremendous warmth and humour, 'Seminary Boy' is about an adolescent's search for a father and for a home.
Shoot the Widow: Adventures of a Biographer in Search of Her Subject
by Meryle SecrestThe first rule of biography, wrote Justin Kaplan: "Shoot the widow."In her new book, Meryle Secrest, acclaimed biographer ("Knowing, sympathetic and entertainingly droll"--The New York Times), writes about her comic triumphs and misadventures as a biographer in search of her nine celebrated subjects, about how the hunt for a "life" is like working one's way through a maze, full of fall starts, dead ends, and occasional clear passages leading to the next part of the puzzle.She writes about her first book, a life of Romaine Brooks, and how she was led to Nice and given invaluable letters by her subject's heir that were slid across the table, one at a time; how she was led to the villa of Brooks' lover, Gabriele d'Annunzio (poet, playwright, and aviator), a fantastic mausoleum left untouched since the moment of his death seventy years before; to a small English village, where she uncovered a lost Romaine Brooks painting; and finally, to 20, rue Jacob, Paris, where Romaine's lover, Natalie Barney, had fifty years before entertained Cocteau, Gide, Proust, Colette, and others.Secrest describes how her next book--a life of Berenson--prompted Francis Steegmuller, fellow biographer, to comment that he wouldn't touch the subject with a ten-foot pole.For her life of British art historian Kenneth Clark, Secrest was given permission to write the book by her subject, who surreptitiously financed it in the hopes of controlling its contents; we see how Clark's plan was foiled by a jealous mistress and a stash of love letters that helped Secrest navigate Clark's obstacle course.Among the other biographical (mis)adventures, Secrest reveals: how she tracked Salvador Dalí to a hospital room, found him recovering from serious burns sustained in a mysterious fire, and learned that he was knee-deep in a scandal involving fake drawings and prints and surrounded by dangerous characters out of Murder, Inc. . . . and how she went in search of a subject's grave (Frank Lloyd Wright's) only to find that his body had been dug up to satisfy the whim of his last wife.A fascinating account of a life spent in sometimes arduous, sometimes comical, always exciting pursuit of the truth about other lives.From the Hardcover edition.
Pop Princesses
by Beth PetersTHE GIRL'S CLUBThey're young, they're beautiful, and they're changing the face of pop music with their dazzling talent and style!Christina Aguilera: This GENIE IN A BOTTLE is making all her wishes come true!Destiny's Child: THE WRITING'S ON THE WALL! With one Grammy nomination already, this group is headed for great things.Jessica Simpson: This teen has A HEART OF INNOCENCE and a voice like an angel.Blaque: TIME AFTER TIME, this group shows its got talent to spare.Mandy Moore: Her voice is sweeter than CANDY, but her attitude's all heat.From the Paperback edition.
The Mind of War: John Boyd and American Security
by Grant HammondThe ideas of US Air Force Colonel John Boyd have transformed American military policy and practice. A first-rate fighter pilot and a self-taught scholar, he wrote the first manual on jet aerial combat; spearheaded the design of both of the Air Force's premier fighters, the F-15 and the F-16; and shaped the tactics that saved lives during the Vietnam War and the strategies that won the Gulf War. Many of America's best-known military and political leaders consulted Boyd on matters of technology, strategy, and theory.In The Mind of War, Grant T. Hammond offers the first complete portrait of John Boyd, his groundbreaking ideas, and his enduring legacy. Based on extensive interviews with Boyd and those who knew him as well as on a close analysis of Boyd's briefings, this intellectual biography brings the work of an extraordinary thinker to a broader public.From the Trade Paperback edition.
The Backwoods of Canada: Being Letters From The Wife Of An Emigrant Officer, Illustrative Of The Domestic Economy Of British America (New Canadian Library)
by D.M.R. Bentley Catharine Parr TraillThe toils, troubles, and satisfactions of pioneer life are recorded with charm and vivacity in this portrayal of pioneer life by Catharine Parr Traill, who, like her sister Susanna Moodie, left the comforts of genteel English society for the rigours of a new, young land.From the Paperback edition.
Six Silent Men...Book Three: 101st LRP / Rangers (101st LRP Rangers #3)
by Gary Linderer"The Eyes and Ears of the Screaming Eagles . . ."By 1969, the NVA had grown more experienced at countering the tactics of the long range patrols, and SIX SILENT MEN: Book Three describes some of the fiercest fighting Lurps saw during the war. Based on his own experience and extensive interviews with other combat vets of the 101st's Lurp companies, Gary Linderer writes this final, heroic chapter in the seven bloody years that Lurps served God and country in Vietnam. These tough young warriors--grossly outnumbered and deep in enemy territory--fought with the guts, tenacity, and courage that have made them legends in the 101st.From the Paperback edition.
Ponzi: The Incredible True Story of the King of Financial Cons
by Donald DunnJust who was the man whose name has become synonymous with the classic "rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul" scam in which money from new investors is used to reward earlier ones? In December 1919, he was an unknown thirty-eight-year-old, self-educated Italian immigrant with a borrowed two-hundred dollars in his pocket. Six months later, he was Boston's famed "wizard of finance," lionized by the public and politicians alike. Based on exclusive interviews with people who knew Charles Ponzi, lent him their money, and exposed him, Donald Dunn's Ponzi recreates both one of America's most notorious and colorful financial con artists and the mad money-hungry era in which he thrived.
Spiritual Genius: The Mastery of Life's Meaning
by Winifred GallagherInSpiritual Genius, journalist Winifred Gallagher, the acclaimed author ofWorking on God, asks Rabbi Lawrence Kushner to define holiness. "Standing in the presence of God," he says. "Everyone has it, but some people seem to have more of a knack for accessing it. " Like holiness, the gift that Gallagher calls "spiritual genius"--which she defines as "the uniquely human ability to search for and find life’s meaning, then express it in our lives as only each of us can"--is one we all possess but don’t necessarily recognize. Whether they are called saints, gurus, tzaddiks, or shamans, there have always been people who possess exceptional insight, altruism, and charisma. In this disarmingly inspirational book, Gallagher investigates what ordinary people trying to live decent, meaningful lives can learn from such extraordinary men and women, who are specially attuned to the deepest truths, and who exemplify-and radiate-spiritual genius. In a clear-eyed, ecumenical approach that's free of dogma and bias and suffused with profound respect, Winifred Gallagher highlights the common wisdom-and down-to-earth good humor-of these religious leaders, revels in their differences, and identifies the capacity for spiritual genius that all of us share with them. On an island in the Arabian Sea, Gallagher visits Mata Amritanandamayi, regarded by devotees as a Hindu goddess, who transmits divine love through hugs and charities. She travels through America's inner cities with Tony Campolo, an Evangelical preacher who counsels national leaders and serves the poor. She learns how Riffat Hassan, a Pakistani theologian, uses the Qur’an to defend the rights of her Muslim sisters. She journeys to a Tibetan Buddhist monastery in the Himalayas to understand how an exiled minority has enchanted the world with their deep, resilient spirituality. In these diverse lives, Gallagher argues, we can glimpse our own potential for spiritual genius writ large. Each story testifies to the profound good in the world, even during a troubled time, and to Gallagher’s groundbreaking theory of a human capacity for finding life’s meaning that is nothing less than genius.
The Elimination: A Survivor of the Khmer Rouge Confronts His Past and the Commandant of the Killing Fields
by John Cullen Christophe Bataille Rithy PanhFrom the internationally acclaimed director of S-21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine, a survivor's autobiography that confronts the evils of the Khmer Rouge dictatorship.Rithy Panh was only thirteen years old when the Khmer Rouge expelled his family from Phnom Penh in 1975. In the months and years that followed, his entire family was executed, starved, or worked to death. Thirty years later, after having become a respected filmmaker, Rithy Panh decides to question one of the men principally responsible for the genocide, Comrade Duch, who's neither an ordinary person nor a demon--he's an educated organizer, a slaughterer who talks, forgets, lies, explains, and works on his legacy. This confrontation unfolds into an exceptional narrative of human history and an examination of the nature of evil. The Elimination stands among the essential works that document the immense tragedies of the twentieth century, with Primo Levi's If This Is a Man and Elie Wiesel's Night.
The Post Office Lady with the Dragon Tattoo: An Essay
by Laurie Notaro"I had been dreading this day for more than a year." Everyone's favorite Idiot Girl, Laurie Notaro, is very close to wearing out her welcome in her hometown of Eugene, Oregon. Just a year ago, she was eighty-sixed from the local satellite post office for buying too many two-cent stamps ("The post office lady looked at me like I had just asked her if she wanted to buy my sex tape"). Now Notaro, needing to send an important care package to her nephew, returns to the scene of the non-crime--which is located inside a drugstore that is stocked with everything from Hello Kitty trinkets to fake poo to "the largest collection of aging candy on the West Coast." Will the post office lady who banned her the first time around kick her to the curb, or will Laurie use her Idiot Girl wiles to work her way back into the Mean Lady's good graces? In this hilarious short story, New York Times bestselling author Laurie Notaro's signature pluck and irresistible candor are on full display and will have you laughing out loud.
Summons of Trumpet: U.S.-Vietnam in Perspective
by Dave R. PalmerSoldier/scholar Palmer traces the history of the American involvement in Vietnam and shows how events in both the U.S. and Vietnam became inextricably linked as domestic dissent and a lack of realistic, viable military strategy ultimately led to America's first lost war.
The Life of Margaret Laurence
by James KingThe magnificent and long-awaited biography of the beloved writer who gave us the Manawaka novels, including The Diviners and The Stone Angel.
The Third Wave: A Volunteer Story
by Alison ThompsonAlison Thompson, a filmmaker living in New York City, was enjoying Christmas with her boyfriend in 2004 when she saw the news reports online: a 9.3 magnitude earthquake had struck the sea near Indonesia, triggering a massive tsunami that hit much of southern Asia. As she watched the death toll climb, Thompson had one thought: She had to go help. A few years earlier, she had spent eight months volunteering at Ground Zero after 9/11. She'd learned then that when disaster strikes, it's not just the firemen and Red Cross who are needed--every single person can make a difference. With $300 in cash, some basic medical supplies, and a vague idea that she'd go wherever she was needed, Thompson headed to Sri Lanka. Along with a small team of volunteers, she settled in a coastal town that had been hit especially hard and began tending to people's injuries, giving out food and water, playing games with the children, collecting dead bodies, and helping rebuild the local school and homes that had been destroyed. Thompson had intended to stay for two weeks; she ended up staying for fourteen months. She and her team helped start new businesses and set up the first tsunami early-warning center in Sri Lanka, which continues to save lives today. The Third Wave tells the inspiring story of how volunteering changed Thompson's life. It begins with her first real introduction to disaster relief after 9/11 and ends with her more recent efforts in Haiti, where she has helped create and run, with Sean Penn, an internally-displaced-person camp and field hospital for more than 65,000 Haitians who lost their homes in the 2010 earthquake. In The Third Wave, Thompson provides an invaluable inside glimpse into what really happens on the ground after a disaster--and a road map for what anyone can do to help. As Alison Thompson shows, with some resilience, a healthy sense of humor, and the desire to make a difference, we all have what it takes to change the world for the better.From the Hardcover edition.
The House of Mitford
by Jonathan GuinnessAmong the six daughters and one son born to David, second Lord Redesdale, and his wife Sydney were Nancy, the novelist and historian; Diana, who married fascist leader Sir Oswald Mosley; Unity, friend of Hitler; Jessica, who became a communist and then an investigative journalist; and Deborah, Duchess of Devonshire and mistress of Chatsworth. 'The Mitford Girls', as John Betjeman called them, were one of the twentieth century's most controversial families; said to be always either in shrieks of laughter or floods of tears, they were glamorous, romantic and - especially in politics - extreme. Yet the teasing, often bordering on cruelty, the flamboyant contrasts and the violent disagreements, hid a powerful affection, subtle likenesses in character and a powerful underlying unity.
Bomb: My Autobiography
by Adam JonesIn rugby, there are the Flash Harrys and the Glory Boys: the fly-halves who run, kick and dazzle; the scrum-halves who nip and dart; the wingers who step and glide. These are the players who get the crowd on their feet, who set stadiums abuzz. But they only get to do these things because other, less glorified figures do all of the donkey work. Adam Jones is one such figure. And for a decade he was one of the world's best. On many occasions when George North or Shane Williams were careering under the posts to score a try, and the crowd was engulfed in rapturous joy, Adam Jones would be hauling himself up from the turf, spitting blood and mud, and massaging his aching neck. He hadn't scored the try; but more often than not it was his graft and strength which had made it. This is the story of 'Bomb': the self-effacing manual labourer from the Swansea Valley who traded laying paving slabs for running out in some of the world's most imposing sporting citadels. He rose to the pinnacle of his sport, winning virtually everything there was to be won: Grand Slams, Six Nations Championships, Lions tours, Pro12 titles. In a nation of rugby heroes, Adam Jones has become a legend. Only six Welshmen can say they've won three Grand Slams. He is one of them: not just as a bit-part player, but as the beating heart of the most successful squad in Welsh rugby history. His was one of the first names on the team sheet. He was - literally and metaphorically - the cornerstone of this Welsh side. In his autobiography, Jones reveals exactly what goes on in the murky depths of the front row: the tricks, the techniques, the physical and psychological warfare; and the mental fortitude it takes to endure in one of the hardest positions, in one of the world's toughest contact sports.
The Bridge: The Life and Rise of Barack Obama
by David RemnickThe rise of Barack Obama is one of the great stories of this century: a defining moment for America, and one with truly global resonance. This is the book of his phenomenal journey to election. Through extensive on-the-record interviews with friends and teachers, mentors and disparagers, family members and Obama himself, David Remnick has put together a nuanced, unexpected and masterly portrait of the man who was determined to become the first African-American President. Most importantly, The Bridgeargues that Obama imagined and fashioned an identity for himself against the epic drama of race in America. In a way that Obama's own memoirs cannot, it examines both the personal and political elements of the story, and gives shape not only to a decisive period of history, but also to the way it crucially influenced, animated and motivated a gifted and complex man. 'Speaking to hundreds of friends and colleagues, Remmick investigates and corrects Obama’s own accout of his life with an assured and elegant tone that clarifies rather than accuses or unmasks . . . 600 masterly pages. *****Daily Telegraph 'The publishing event of the year' Observer
Remembering Richie: A Tribute to a Cricket Legend
by Richie BenaudA tribute to Richie Benaud and a celebration of his life.Remembering Richie is a compilation of the very best writing from Richie's books, along with the best tributes and obituaries from those who knew and worked with him. As a player, Richie was one of the greatest of cricket's all-rounders. As a commentator and thinker on the game he became the leading figure of his generation. As a man he was revered by cricket's multitude of followers and as a friend he was both loved and admired by his close circle of friends.This celebratory book brings together the best of Richie's writing on a range of subjects from his love of cricket as a child to his all time XIs; from his thoughts on T20 to insight into his family life, along with his most loved sayings and best known pieces of commentary. All perfectly complemented with tributes from his friends and colleagues.
Phantom Warriors: Book I: LRRPs, LRPs, and Rangers in Vietnam (Phantom Warriors #1)
by Gary LindererHere are some of the most courageous missions executed by six-man teams on their own deep behind enemy lines.
Prisoners of Hope: The Story of Our Captivity and Freedom in Afghanistan
by Stacy Mattingly Dayna Curry Heather MercerThe gripping and inspiring story of two extraordinary women--from their imprisonment by the Taliban to their rescue by U. S. Special Forces. When Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer arrived in Afghanistan, they had come to help bring a better life and a little hope to some of the poorest and most oppressed people in the world. Within a few months, their lives were thrown into chaos as they became pawns in historic international events. They were arrested by the ruling Taliban government for teaching about Christianity to the people with whom they worked. In the middle of their trial, the events of September 11, 2001, led to the international war on terrorism, with the Taliban a primary target. While many feared Curry and Mercer could not survive in the midst of war, Americans nonetheless prayed for their safe return, and in November their prayers were answered. InPrisoners of Hope, Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer tell the story of their work in Afghanistan, their love for the people they served, their arrest, trial, and imprisonment by the Taliban, and their rescue by U. S. Special Forces. The heart of the book will discuss how two middle-class American women decided to leave the comforts of home in exchange for the opportunity to serve the disadvantaged, and how their faith motivated them and sustained them through the events that followed. Their story is a magnificent narrative of ordinary women caught in extraordinary circumstances as a result of their commitment to serve the poorest and most oppressed women and children in the world. This book will be inspiring to those who seek a purpose greater than themselves. From the Hardcover edition.
Somalia on $5 a Day: A Soldier's Story
by Martin Stanton"Stanton's battalion was the first army unit in Somalia in 1992 and it did one hell of a job accomplishing a difficult mission where there wasn't a template. I had the pleasure of tagging along with his unit and saw first-hand how its leaders dealt with and solved problems. . . . A first-rate book and a must read. All professional soldier-leaders should carry Stanton's book in their rucksacks."--DAVID H. HACKWORTH Author of About Face and Hazardous DutyA country torn by seemingly endless war, a people tormented and victimized by relentless banditry---into this land of warlords came the soldiers of the army's elite 10th Mountain Division. They were strangers in a strange land sent to restore hope to this cauldron of misery and despair. The Pentagon deemed it a hostile fire zone thereby earning each soldier a monthly bonus of $150-- Somalia on $5.00 a day. Major Stanton and the infantrymen of Task Force 2-87 found themselves in unfamiliar surroundings, trying to accomplish a vague and constantly changing mission where knowing the good guys from the bad guys was nearly impossible. When the focus of Restore Hope changed from limited famine relief to nation building, the men found themselves in armed clashes with Somali warlords. In this exciting and often humorous memoir, Stanton relates the mounting frustrations experienced by the U.S. soldiers, futility that culminated in the infamous chaos on the streets of Mogadishu.From the Paperback edition.
The Sandwich Years: How to survive when the people in your life need you most
by Alana KirkThe Sandwich Years is the heartfelt, inspirational story of the bond between mothers and daughters, and how one woman - through caring for the person she had relied on the most - finally found herself. Alana Kirk, married with two children and a third on the way, often found herself stretched between the various demands on her time - parenting, marriage, work, friendship, self. But when her mother suffered a massive stroke, just days after the birth of daughter Ruby, Alana's life became unrecognisable.The next five years - 'the sandwich years' - were a time of heartbreak and difficult choices as Alana lost herself amid part-time caring for her mother, supporting her father and parenting three young daughters, while also attempting to get her career back on track. But it was also a time of growth and love as Alana rediscovered the joy her loved ones bring to her life, and learned how to find a way back to herself.The Sandwich Years is a celebration of mothers and daughters, and everyday warriors.(Previously published as Daughter, Mother, Me)