- Table View
- List View
Myth of the Welfare Queen: A Pulitzer Prize-winning Journalist's Portrait of Women on the Line
by David ZucchinoPulitzer Prize-winning reporter David Zucchino spent a year sharing the lives of Odessa Williams and Cheri Honkala -- two "welfare mothers" in Philadelphia -- to gain an intimate look at their day-to-day existence. Odessa, supporting an extended family, exhibits almost superhuman strength and resolve. Cheri, a single mother, is a tireless advocate for the homeless. Zucchino beautifully portrays them as figures of profound courage and quiet perseverance, systematically shattering all misconceptions and stereotypes about these women and so many others like them.
Secret Lives of Great Filmmakers
by Mario Zucca Robert SchnakenbergStrange-But-True Tales of Cross-Dressers, Drug Addicts, Foot Fetishists, and Other Legendary Filmmakers. With outrageous and uncensored profiles of everyone from D. W. Griffith to Quentin Tarantino, Secret Lives of Great Filmmakers reveals the little-known secrets of all your favorite directors. Why did Charlie Chaplin refuse to bathe for weeks at a time? Was Alfred Hitchcock really missing a belly button? Is Walt Disney's corpse preserved in a state of suspended animation? And why on earth did Francis Ford Coppola direct a 3-D pornographic movie? The legends of the silver screen will never be the same!
Secret Lives of Great Composers
by Mario Zucca Elizabeth LundayTrue tales of murder, riots, heartbreak, and great music. With outrageous anecdotes about everyone from Gioachino Rossini (draft-dodging womanizer) to Johann Sebastian Bach (jailbird) to Richard Wagner (alleged cross-dresser), Secret Lives of Great Composers recounts the seamy, steamy, and gritty history behind the great masters of international music. You'll learn that Edward Elgar dabbled with explosives; that John Cage was obsessed with fungus; that Berlioz plotted murder; and that Giacomo Puccini stole his church's organ pipes and sold them as scrap metal so he could buy cigarettes. This is one music history lesson you'll never forget!
My 2nd Chapter: The Matthew Ward Story
by Darlene ZschedhHow one family's tragedy ultimately revolutionized contemporary Christian music. Known for such classics as "Easter Song," the Second Chapter of Acts was one of the major music groups in the forefront of the Jesus movement. But what happened, in the wake of personal tragedy, to bring together a brother and his two sisters to sing so boldly for their Lord? And what was life really like for a major contemporary Christian band in those early days? In My Second Chapter, Matthew Ward tells his part of the storyfull of intriguing and humorous behind-the-scenes anecdotes and observations: growing up in a large family...orphaned at age twelve...finding the Lord in the California Jesus movement... becoming a music star...traveling the world...battling cancer...raising his own family ... and much more all revealing God's faithfulness in every circumstance. Join Matthew on his amazing personal journey from tragedy to dynamic faith that helped set contemporary Christian music on fire. And discover how God chooses whom he will to accomplish great and mighty acts.From the Trade Paperback edition.
The Golden Thread: Experiencing God’s Presence in Every Season of Life
by Darlene Zschech Joyce Meyer“I know your faith will be lifted and increased with this new treasure.”~Chris TomlinDo you feel like you are barely holding on?Let the golden thread of God's presence be the calm on the other side of chaos.It could be that He is weaving a brilliant new beginning in the middle of your mess.Join beloved worship leader Darlene Zschech as she traces God’s goodness through her recent transitions—moving to a new city, starting a church. The songwriter of “Shout to The Lord” urges us to maintain joy in the middle of it all.Rather than seeing her many life changes as a zigzag of unrelated events, Darlene and her family have learned to trace God’s goodness through every crisis—even as she faced the battle for her life, cancer.Your heart will be encouraged, and your faith will soar right along with Darlene’s.
Zoya's Story: An Afghan Woman's Struggle for Freedom
by Zoya John Follain Rita CristofariZoya's Story is a young woman's searing account of her clandestine war of resistance against the Taliban and religious fanaticism at the risk of her own life. An epic tale of fear and suffering, courage and hope, Zoya's Story is a powerful testament to the ongoing battle to claim human rights for the women of Afghanistan. Though she is only twenty-three, Zoya has witnessed and endured more tragedy and terror than most people do in a lifetime. Zoya grew up during the wars that ravaged Afghanistan and was robbed of her mother and father when they were murdered by Muslim fundamentalists. Devastated by so much death and destruction, she fled Kabul with her grandmother and started a new life in exile in Pakistan. She joined the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, which challenged the crushing edicts of the Taliban government, and she made dangerous journeys back to her homeland to help the women oppressed by a system that forced them to wear the stifling burqa, condoned public stoning or whipping if they ventured out without a male chaperon, and forbade them from working. Zoya is our guide, our witness to the horrors perpetrated by the Taliban and the Mujahideen "holy warriors" who had defeated the Russian occupiers. She helped to secretly film a public cutting of hands in a Kabul stadium and to organize covert literacy classes, as schooling-branded a "gateway to Hell" -- was forbidden to girls. At an Afghan refugee camp she heard tales of heartrending suffering and worked to provide a future for families who had lost everything. The spotlight focused on Afghanistan after the New York and Washington terrorist attacks highlights the conditions of repression and fear in which Afghan women live and makes Zoya's Story utterly compelling. This is a memoir that speaks louder than the images of devastation and outrage; it is a moving message of optimism as Zoya struggles to bring the plight of Afghan women to the world's attention.
The Barn House
by Ed ZottiA rollicking yarn about a home-improvement project that took a man and his family to hell and back. In 1993, after Chicago lost many of its residents to the suburbs, Ed Zotti and his family gambled their future by fixing up a dilapidated Victorian home in a dicey neighborhood. Where most saw a shabby façade, the Zottis saw promise?even when it dragged and drained every resource. ?The Barn House? had a collapsed ceiling, wiring that shorted, and oak floors painted red, white, and blue. Unsettling discoveries included a box of . 38 caliber bullets?with five missing?and the mere fact that the house was built on a bed of sand. Alternately harrowing and hilarious, this is a classic account of one family?s private urban renewal project, featuring burglars, irate neighbors, and a lively cast of workers. From its grim beginning to its unexpected outcome, The Barn House is the inspiring story of what it means to live (and totally rewire) the American Dream. .
The Barn House
by Ed ZottiA rollicking yarn about a home-improvement project that took a man and his family to hell and back.In 1993, after Chicago lost many of its residents to the suburbs, Ed Zotti and his family gambled their future by fixing up a dilapidated Victorian home in a dicey neighborhood. Where most saw a shabby façade, the Zottis saw promise?even when it dragged and drained every resource. ?The Barn House? had a collapsed ceiling, wiring that shorted, and oak floors painted red, white, and blue. Unsettling discoveries included a box of .38 caliber bullets?with five missing?and the mere fact that the house was built on a bed of sand. Alternately harrowing and hilarious, this is a classic account of one family?s private urban renewal project, featuring burglars, irate neighbors, and a lively cast of workers. From its grim beginning to its unexpected outcome, The Barn House is the inspiring story of what it means to live (and totally rewire) the American Dream.
Moses: A Human Life (Jewish Lives)
by Avivah Gottlieb ZornbergAn unprecedented portrait of Moses's inner world and perplexing character, by a distinguished biblical scholar No figure looms larger in Jewish culture than Moses, and few have stories more enigmatic. Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg, acclaimed for her many books on Jewish thought, turns her attention to Moses in this remarkably rich, evocative book. Drawing on a broad range of sources--literary as well as psychoanalytic, a wealth of classical Jewish texts alongside George Eliot, W. G. Sebald, and Werner Herzog--Zornberg offers a vivid and original portrait of the biblical Moses. Moses's vexing personality, his uncertain origins, and his turbulent relations with his own people are acutely explored by Zornberg, who sees this story, told and retold, as crucial not only to the biblical past but also to the future of Jewish history.
The Girl in the Yellow Poncho: A Memoir
by Kristal Brent ZookAt five years old, Kristal Brent Zook sat on the steps of a Venice Beach, California, motel trying to make sense of her white father’s abandonment, which left her feeling unworthy of a man’s love and of white protection. Raised by her working-class African American mother and grandmother, Zook was taught not to count on anyone, especially men. Men leave. Men disappoint. In adulthood she became a feminist, activist, and “race woman” journalist in New York City. Despite her professional success, something was missing. Coming to terms with her identity was a constant challenge.The Girl in the Yellow Poncho is Zook’s coming-of-age tale about what it means to be biracial in America. Throughout, she grapples with in-betweenness while also facing childhood sexual assault, economic insecurity, and multigenerational alcoholism and substance abuse on both the Black and white sides of her family. Her story is one of strong Black women—herself, her cousin, her mother, and her grandmother—and the generational cycles of oppression and survival that seemingly defined their lives.Setting out on an inner journey that takes her across oceans and continents, Zook tells the story of a little girl who never gives up on love, even long after it seems to have been destroyed. In the end she triumphs, reconciling with her father and mother to create the family of her dreams through forgiveness and sheer force of will. A testament to the power of settling into one’s authentic identity, this book tells a story of a daughter’s lifelong yearning, a mother’s rediscovery of lost love, and the profound power of atonement and faith to heal a broken family.
Two Years in the Melting Pot
by Liu ZongrenA Chinese journalist describes his experience in the U.S., and shares his observations on the American people and culture
Last Shot
by Jock ZonfrilloA coming-of-age memoir of addiction, ambition and redemption in the high-stakes world of Michelin star kitchens. From reckless drug addict to one of Australia&’s top chefs and television stars: MasterChef judge Jock Zonfrillo's powerful life story will shock and inspire. Jock&’s life spiralled out of control when he tried heroin for the first time as a teenager while growing up in 1980s Glasgow. For years he balanced a career as a rising star amongst legendary chefs with a crippling drug addiction that took him down many dark paths. Fired from his job at a Michelin star restaurant in Chester, England, after a foul-mouthed rant, Jock made his way to London looking for work and found himself in front of the legendary Marco Pierre White. He credits White for saving his life, but Jock continued to struggle with addiction in a world of excess, celebrity, and cut-throat ambition. On New Year&’s Eve 1999, Jock shot up his last shot of heroin before boarding a plane to Sydney, where he would find passion and new meaning in life in the most unexpected places. There would be more struggles ahead, including two failed marriages, the closure of his prized restaurant during COVID-19, his time on-country, and some very public battles. This is his unforgettable story. Foreword by Jimmy Barnes. Praise for Last Shot "If you get to see yourself in someone else&’s book it&’s a bit of a gift and it is the mark of a good storyteller. I&’m sure as you read this book you will see a bit of yourself too. This is a story of hope. A story of perseverance and resilience. A story of passion and love. A remarkable tale of a remarkable man who took the hard, hard road and made it his own." Jimmy Barnes "Last Shot is Trainspotting meets Kitchen Confidential. Jock&’s ability to not sugarcoat the truth and his brutal honesty about his struggle with his inner demons will resonate with so many people. That coupled with his absolute passion for food, his commitment to highlighting the culture and food of Australia&’s First Nations People and his pure love for his family makes this a truly stunning book. I loved it.&” Actress, Rebecca Gibney&“Oh my goodness what a book. I&’ve just finished it, devoured it in under four hours. I laughed and cried and marvelled at him.&” News Corp's National Entertainment Writer, Lisa Woolford
The Bible Explorer's Guide People and Places: 1,000 Amazing Facts and Photos
by ZondervanFrom the world&’s leading Bible publisher, comes The Bible Explorer&’s Guide People and Places: 1,000 Amazing Facts and Photos. Packed with fun facts and full-color photos, illustrations, and maps, this book brings to life key Bible characters and places such as:The first people: Adam and EveKings and queens: King Solomon and the Queen of ShebaWarriors: Deborah and SamsonProphets: Elijah and ElishaThe tall and the small: David and GoliathThe ancient worldJerusalemAnd more!The perfect reference for reluctant readers and visual learners interested in discovering the history of the Bible and its people, The Bible Explorer&’s Guide People and Places will fascinate children 8 and up.
Jesus (Get to Know)
by ZondervanJesus—part of the Get to Know series—is a unique biography about Jesus, the son of God. Focusing on the life and character of this Biblical hero, using color photographs, maps, and other visual resources to tell the whole story, young biography fans will come to learn more about this man of the God and the role he plays in history.Featuring a bibliography and scriptural references throughout, this is sure to become a favorite for young readers and for first book reports.
King David (Get to Know)
by ZondervanA Shepherd and A KingDavid lived an adventurous life. He protected his family&’s sheep from lions and bears. He fought a giant with just a sling and stone. He even spent years hiding from men who were trying to kill him. And eventually, David became a great king. But David was also a man of God. Learn more about this hero from the Bible and his exciting place in history. Discover what it was like to grow up in ancient Israel and then be a king of God&’s people. King David—part of the Get to Know series—will teach you everything you need to know about an imperfect young man whom God used to do great things!
Mary (Get to Know)
by ZondervanChosen by GodMary was more than the mother of Jesus. She was a hero of the Bible. She said “Yes!” to God. Learn about Mary and her exciting place in history. Discover what it was like to grow up in Israel and be a part of Jesus’ life on earth. Mary—part of the Get to Know series—will teach you everything you need to know about this young woman whom God used to do great things!
Speed to Glory: The Cullen Jones Story
by ZonderkidzHe conquered the thing that nearly took his life At five years old, Cullen Jones nearly drowned. While some people might stay away from water after that, Jones conquered his fear when his mother enrolled him in a swimming class. Not only did he learn to swim, he quickly found that he was a good swimmer… and would become one of the world’s best. Discover how faith, courage, and hard work led Jones to win an Olympic gold medal and set a new world record in his event. Find out what can happen when you overcome fear and strive to become all God calls you to be. Includes a personal note from Cullen Jones.
Dream Homes: From Cairo to Katrina, an Exile's Journey (Jewish Women Writers Ser.)
by Joyce ZonanaThe American daughter of Egyptian Jewish immigrants journeys in search of belonging from Brazil to New Orleans and beyond—includes recipes and photos! Born to Egyptian Sephardic Jews who fled to the United States after the Arab-Israeli war of 1948, Joyce Zonana spent her childhood in Brooklyn. But her experience of Jewish culture was very different from that of the other children she knew, from the foods they ate to the language they spoke. As she struggled to find a sense of inclusion, never feeling completely American or completely Egyptian, a childhood trip to Brazil became the basis for a lifelong quest to find her place in the world. Meeting members of her extended family who had migrated to Brazil was one step in discovering the kind of life she might have lived in Egypt, and exploring the woman she was becoming. Through travels that ranged from Cairo to Oklahoma and finally New Orleans in the shadow of Katrina, and including an evocative exploration of the way food varies from culture to culture, this is a &“frank, spirited memoir of identity from a Brooklyn-raised, Egyptian-born Jewish feminist.&” (Kirkus Reviews) &“Zonana makes every human encounter lively&” —Booklist
The Burning of the World
by Bela Zombory-Moldovan Peter Zombory-MoldovanPublishing during the 100th Anniversary of the First World War An NYRB Classics Original The budding young Hungarian artist Béla Zombory-Moldován was on holiday when the First World War broke out in July 1914. Called up by the army, he soon found himself hundreds of miles away, advancing on Russian lines and facing relentless rifle and artillery fire. Badly wounded, he returned to normal life, which now struck him as unspeakably strange. He had witnessed, he realized, the end of a way of life, of a whole world. Published here for the first time in any language, this extraordinary reminiscence is a powerful addition to the literature of the war that defined the shape of the twentieth century.
Praying with Jane Eyre: Reflections on Reading as a Sacred Practice
by Vanessa Zoltan&“In these soaring, open-hearted essays, Vanessa Zoltan writes with fierce brilliance about suffering, survival, and the kind of meaning in life that can withstand real scrutiny.&”—John Green, bestselling author of The Fault in Our Stars and The Anthropocene Reviewed A deeply felt celebration of a classic novel--and a reflection on the ways our favorite books can shape and heal us.Our favorite books keep us company, give us hope, and help us find meaning in a chaotic world. In this fresh and relatable work, atheist chaplain Vanessa Zoltan blends memoir and personal growth as she grapples with the notions of family legacy and identity through the lens of her favorite novel, Jane Eyre. Informed by the reading practices of medieval monks and rabbinic scholars from her training at the Harvard Divinity School and filtered through the pages of Jane Eyre as well as Little Women, Harry Potter, and The Great Gatsby, Zoltan explores topics ranging from the trauma she has inherited as the granddaughter of four Holocaust survivors to finding hope, meaning, and even magic in our deeply fractured times. Brimming with a lifelong love of classic literature and the tenderness of self-reflection, the book also reveals simple techniques for reading any work as a sacred text--from Virginia Woolf to Anne of Green Gables to baseball scorecards.Whether you're an avowed "Eyrehead" or simply a curious reader looking for a richer connection with the written word, this deeply felt and inspiring book will light the way to a more intimate appreciation for whatever books you love to read.
Cracked Open: Liberty, Fertility and the Pursuit of High Tech Babies
by Miriam Zoll Judy Norsigian Michele GoodwinCracked Open is Miriam Zoll's eye-opening account of growing into womanhood with the simultaneous opportunities offered by the U. S. women's movement and new discoveries in reproductive technologies. Influenced by the pervasive media and cultural messages suggesting that science had finally eclipsed Mother Nature, Zoll postponed motherhood until the age of 40. When things didn't progress as she had hoped, she enters a world of medical seduction and bioethical quagmires. Desperate to conceive, she surrenders to unproven treatments and procedures only to learn that the odds of becoming a mother through reproductive technologies are far less than she and her generation had been led to believe.
Missing Pieces: A Chronicle of Living With a Disability
by Irving Kenneth Zolahe personal odyssey of a man with a disability, this passionate book tries to tell as well as analyze what it is like to have a disability in a world that values vigor and health. Zola writes, "Missing Pieces is an unraveling of a social problem in the manner of Black Like Me. Like its author, I, too, am a trained social observer, but for me 'passing' was not an issue. For I already have the stigmata of the disable - the braces, the limp, the cane - though I have spent much of my life denying their existence." The author started out in the role of a social scientist on a seven-day excursion to acquaint himself with an extraordinary experiment in living - Het Dorp, one of the few places in the world designed to promote "the optimum happiness" of those with severe physical disabilities. Neither a medial center nor a nursing home, Het Dorp is a village in the western-most part of the Netherlands. What began as a sociological attempt to describe this unusual setting became, through the author's growing awareness, what can only be called a socio-autobiography. Resuming his prior dependence on a wheelchair, the author experienced his own transformation from someone who is "normal" and "valid" to someone who is "invalid." The routine of Het Dorp became his: he lived in an architecturally modified home, visited the workshops, and shared meals, social events, conversation, and perceptions with the remarkably diverse residents. The author confronts some rarely discussed issues - the self-image of a person with a chronic disability, how one fills one's time, how one deals with authority and dependence, and love and sex. Missing Pieces offers striking insights into an aspect of the human condition shared by nearly 30 million Americans. It is must reading for the general reader, as well as for the rehabilitation counselor, social worker, or social scientist. Author note: Irving Kenneth Zola (1935-1994) was Professor of Sociology at Brandeis University and a founding member and counselor at the Boston Self-Help Center. Nancy Mairs is the author of seven books, including Waist-High in the World: A Life Among the Disabled, and most recently, A Troubled Guest: Life and Death Stories. She lives in Tucson with her husband, George.
La obra
by Émile ZolaLos mejores libros jamás escritos. Novela sobre la naturaleza de la creación artística, sobre el amor, la amistad y sobre el fascinante y complejo alumbramiento del impresionismo, La obra es uno de los títulos más valientes y perdurables de la literatura del siglo XIX. Perteneciente al ciclo de los Rougon-Macquart, La obra, la novela más autobiográfica de su autor, está inspirada en la relación del propio Zola con Cézanne. El pintor Claude Lantier intenta terminar un óleo de grandes dimensiones que represente la modernidad del Segundo Imperio, en los albores del movimiento impresionista. Su enfermiza obsesión se verá mezclada con el amor de Christine -la mujer que le sirve de modelo- y su difícil amistad con el novelista Sandoz. Esta edición, que recoge la reciente traducción de José Ramón Monreal, se abre con un amplio estudio de Ignacio Echevarría, uno de los editores y críticos literarios más reputados de nuestro país. «¿Existe, en arte, otra cosa que dar lo que se lleva dentro?» Clarín dijo...«De todas las novelas de Zola se podrían hacer grandes cuadros, por la fuerza plástica, por la precisión y la expresión de las líneas.»
My Friends, We Were Robbed!
by Rabbi Uri ZoharIn the late 1970s, an Israeli named Uri Zohar quietly made a decision to become Torah observant. When the news of that decision became public knowledge, it plunged a good portion of Israeli society, frum and non-frum alike, into total shock. You see, Uri Zohar was, at the time, the top comedian, television and radio talk show host, social satirist, actor, and film producer on the Israeli scene. Even more, he was the epitome of modern, non-Torah-observant Israeli society. How does such an individual simply jump ship one day?! Today, Rav Uri Zohar is one of our gedolim, a tremendous talmid chacham who is also involved in bringing others closer to Torah. This book contains the story of his decision to become a frum Jew, as well as his observations, thoughts, views, and descriptions of various facets of his journey's starting point, the world of the West. Is there a G-d Who gave the Torah to the Nation of Israel at Mt. Sinai, and if there is, what does He want from us? That is the question which Uri Zohar, at the height of his wildly successful career, set out to answer, and it is that intellectual excursion which is the subject of this book. Read the fascinating "teshuvah story" of Uri Zohar, as told to beloved author Nachman Seltzer. Join him on his journey of logic and reason, as related in Rav Zohar's own words, and discover-as he did-the deep, irrefutable truths of your very own heritage.
Elvis in Vegas: How the King Reinvented the Las Vegas Show
by Richard ZoglinThe story of how Las Vegas saved Elvis and Elvis saved Las Vegas in the greatest musical comeback of all time.The conventional wisdom is that Las Vegas is what destroyed Elvis Presley, launching him on a downward spiral of drugs, boredom, erratic stage behavior, and eventually his fatal overdose. But in Elvis in Vegas, Richard Zoglin takes an alternate view, arguing that Vegas is where the King of Rock and Roll resurrected his career, reinvented himself as a performer, and created the most exciting show in Vegas history. Elvis’s 1969 opening night in Vegas was his first time back on a live stage in more than eight years. His career had gone sour—bad movies, and mediocre pop songs that no longer made the charts. He’d been dismissed by most critics as over the hill. But in Vegas he played the biggest showroom in the biggest hotel in the city, drawing more people for his four-week engagement than any other show in Vegas history. His performance got rave reviews, “Suspicious Minds” gave him his first number-one hit in seven years, and Elvis became Vegas’s biggest star. Over the next seven years, he performed more than 600 shows there, and sold out every one. Las Vegas was changed too. The intimate night-club-style shows of the Rat Pack, who made Vegas the nation’s premier live-entertainment center in the 1950s and ‘60s, catered largely to well-heeled older gamblers. Elvis brought a new kind of experience: an over-the-top, rock-concert-like extravaganza. He set a new bar for Vegas performers, with the biggest salary, the biggest musical production, and the biggest promotion campaign the city had ever seen. In doing so, he opened the door to a new generation of pop/rock performers, and brought a new audience to Vegas—a mass audience from Middle America that Vegas depends on for its success to this day. A classic comeback tale set against the backdrop of Las Vegas’s golden age, Richard Zoglin’s Elvis in Vegas is a feel-good story for the ages.