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Bartleby and Me: Reflections of an Old Scrivener
by Gay Talese“Literary Legend” (New York) Gay Talese retraces his pioneering career, marked by his fascination with the world's hidden characters.In the concluding act of this "incomparable" (Air Mail) capstone book, Talese introduces readers to one final unforgettable story: the strange and riveting all new tale of Dr. Nicholas Bartha, who blew up his Manhattan brownstone—and himself—rather than relinquish his claim to the American dream.“New York is a city of things unnoticed,” a young reporter named Gay Talese wrote sixty years ago. He would spend the rest of his legendary career defying that statement by celebrating the people most reporters overlooked, understanding that it was through these minor characters that the epic story of New York and America unfolded. Inspired by Herman Melville’s great short story “Bartleby, the Scrivener,” Talese now revisits the unforgettable “nobodies” he has profiled in his celebrated career—from the New York Times’s anonymous obituary writer to Frank Sinatra’s entourage. In the book’s final act, a remarkable piece of original reporting titled “Dr. Bartha’s Brownstone,” Talese presents a new “Bartleby,” an unknown doctor who made his mark on the city one summer day in 2006. Rising within the city of New York are about one million buildings. These include skyscrapers, apartment buildings, bodegas, schools, churches, and homeless shelters. Also spread through the city are more than 19,000 vacant lots, one of which suddenly appeared some years ago—at 34 East 62nd Street, between Madison and Park Avenues—when the unhappy owner of a brownstone at that address blew it up (with himself in it) rather than sell his cherished nineteenth-century high-stoop Neo-Grecian residence in order to pay the court-ordered sum of $4 million to the woman who had divorced him three years earlier. This man was a physician of sixty-six named Nicholas Bartha. On the morning of July 10, 2006, Dr. Bartha filled his building with gas that he had diverted from a pipe in the basement, and then he set off an explosion that reduced the fivestory premises into a fiery heap that would injure ten firefighters and five passersby and damage the interiors of thirteen apartments that stood to the west of the crumbled brownstone.Talese has been obsessed with Dr. Bartha’s story and spent the last seventeen years examining this single 20 x 100 foot New York City building lot, its serpentine past, and the unexpected triumphs and disasters encountered by its residents and owners—an unlikely cast featuring society wannabes, striving immigrants, Gilded Age powerbrokers, Russian financiers, and even a turncoat during the War of Independence—just as he has been obsessed with similar “nobodies” throughout his career. Concise, elegant, tragic, and whimsical, Bartleby and Me is the valedictory work of a master journalist.
Baseball in the Mahoning Valley: From Pioneers to the Scrappers (Sports)
by Paul M. KovachAround the horn in the Mahoning Valley The history of baseball in Ohio's Mahoning Valley has been, to say the least, eventful. Murder, the Civil War, the hot dog, a presidential assassination and one of the deadliest known volcanic eruptions all shaped America's pastime in the Valley. African American baseball pioneer and Hall of Fame inductee Bud Fowler began his professional baseball career in the area, and the first ceremonial celebrity first pitch came from the arm of a prominent local. The area also contributed to Cleveland professional ballclubs like the enigmatic 1883 Blues and the 2016 Believeland Indians, which included numerous players from the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, a minor-league team with its own rich heritage. Digging up little-known facts about Fowler and sundry other colorful stories, local author and creator of Eastwood Field's Days Gone By exhibit PM Kovach celebrates the proud history of baseball in northeast Ohio.
Basketball Dreams
by Chris PaulFrom NBA All-Star Chris Paul comes an inspirational and uplifting picture book about chasing your basketball dreams and the lessons he learned both on and off the court from his beloved grandfather Papa Chilly.Growing up, young Chris Paul dreamed of playing professional basketball. But he knew it would take more than dedication and practice, so Chris looked to his grandfather Papa Chilly as a shining example of the values he could apply both in basketball and in life. Papa taught him about respect, faith, kindness, generosity, and the determination to succeed, just as Papa had succeeded as the first Black business owner of a service station in North Carolina. Serving as a beacon of inspiration for Chris, Papa Chilly and his lessons propelled Chris to become the star NBA player—and person—he is today.
Battle Scars: Twenty Years Later: 3d Battalion 5th Marines Looks Back at the Iraq War and How it Changed Their Lives
by Chip ReidA unique insight into how combat in Iraq has shaped the lives of a battalion of young Marines. The most eye-opening, and terrifying, story in Chip Reid's career as a journalist was the six weeks he spent with 3d Battalion, 5th Marines, during the invasion of Iraq in 2003, as a correspondent for NBC News. Traveling shoulder-to-shoulder with the young Marines, he had unparalleled access, witnessing them in combat, and interviewing as many as he could persuade his bosses to put on air, allowing them to tell their war stories in their own words. It took only 22 days for the Marines of 3/5 to fight their way to Baghdad, but the effects on those who fought have lasted a lifetime. They lost a number of their own in battle, and others suffered life-threatening injuries. Of those who returned - even if they avoided physical scars - many have had to find their own way through survivor's guilt and the nightmare of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, with all its attendant miseries. Twenty years on, Chip sat down with the Marines of 3/5 once more. They told Chip inspiring stories of heroism in battle, of camaraderie and comrades lost, of patriotism and belief in mission, of recovery and success in both military and civilian life, and of the new appreciation for life that results from Post-Traumatic Growth. Visceral and searingly honest, this book is a tribute to the Marines for their service, and for the many sacrifices they made then, and that many still make today.
Battle for the Columbia River: The Rise of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company (Transportation)
by Mychal OstlerA war over riches on the Columbia River. While the Civil War raged, a group of captains, merchants, bankers and gamblers in the Pacific Northwest formed the Oregon Steam Navigation Company. The first capitalistic enterprise in the new state, they aimed to develop the richest and most powerful transportation operation in the region, dominating hundreds of miles of river traffic from the Pacific Coast to Montana. Achieving such status was anything but easy. They battled competitors, lawyers, the river herself, and defectors within their management team. In the unregulated business environment of the nineteenth century, men like John Ainsworth made their own rules, often deploying frontier justice against their enemies. Join author Mychal Ostler as he recounts the battle for power that shaped an industry.
Bazooka Charlie: The Unbelievable Story of Major Charles Carpenter and Rosie the Rocketer
by James P. Busha Carol ApackiA revealing biography of Lt. Col. Charles "Bazooka Charlie" Carpenter, a U.S. Army pilot who served in WWII and is most known for destroying several enemy armored vehicles in his bazooka-equipped L-4 Grasshopper light observation aircraft. Major Charles Carpenter made headlines during the Second World War when he affixed six bazookas to his tiny Piper L-4 observation plane and began attacking German tanks. &“Bazooka Charlie&” and his plane &“Rosie the Rocketer&” were profiled in a variety of military and civilian publications, including the iconic Stars & Stripes. The major was a high school educator in the civilian world, teaching history and coaching football. In 1945, the dashing pilot was forced out of the cockpit and into a hospital bed by Hodgkin&’s lymphoma, which was discovered in his neck. In addition to the enemy and terminal cancer, Carpenter also battled cynicism and guilt, particularly in regard to the state of his marriage, which was on the brink of failure by the time he returned home from Europe. Charles Carpenter died in 1966, having resumed his career, salvaged his marriage, and long outlived the timeline afforded him by his doctors in the initial prognosis. This revealing biography of the famous pilot was made possible through the collaboration of noted aviation author and magazine editor Jim Busha, and Carpenter&’s daughter, Carol Apacki. Along with memories of her father in his postwar years, Carol provided a treasure trove of wartime correspondence between Charles and his wife, Elda Carpenter.
Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life
by Arnold SchwarzeneggerThe seven rules to follow to realize your true purpose in life—distilled by Arnold Schwarzenegger from his own journey of ceaseless reinvention and extraordinary achievement, and available for absolutely anyoneThe world&’s greatest bodybuilder. The world&’s highest-paid movie star. The leader of the world&’s sixth-largest economy. That these are the same person sounds like the setup to a joke, but this is no joke. This is Arnold Schwarzenegger. And this did not happen by accident. Arnold&’s stratospheric success happened as part of a process. As the result of clear vision, big thinking, hard work, direct communication, resilient problem-solving, open-minded curiosity, and a commitment to giving back. All of it guided by the one lesson Arnold&’s father hammered into him above all: be useful. As Arnold conquered every realm he entered, he kept his father&’s adage close to his heart. Written with his uniquely earnest, blunt, powerful voice, Be Useful takes readers on an inspirational tour through Arnold&’s tool kit for a meaningful life. He shows us how to put those tools to work, in service of whatever fulfilling future we can dream up for ourselves. He brings his insights to vivid life with compelling personal stories, life-changing successes and life-threatening failures alike—some of them famous; some told here for the first time ever. Too many of us struggle to disconnect from our self-pity and connect to our purpose. At an early age, Arnold forged the mental tools to build the ladder out of the poverty and narrow-mindedness of his rural Austrian hometown, tools he used to add rung after rung from there. Now he shares that wisdom with all of us. As he puts it, no one is going to come rescue you—you only have yourself. The good news, it turns out, is that you are all you need.
Beads and Beadwork of the American Indians: A Study Based On Specimens In The Museum Of The American Indian, Heye Foundation
by William C. OrchardThis book and Orchard's book on porcupine quill decoration, form the foundation for almost every text on Indian arts and crafts that has been written since their publication and they remain superior to most.Not only is this book an in-depth study of bead technology, but it considers in greater detail than any similar work the history, use and distribution of North (and South) American beadwork art from prehistoric to relatively modern times. The author pays needed attention to the variety of materials used and the design motifs of finished beadwork, as well as the role of early Europeans, whose colorful trade beads (shown in beautiful color plates) had such a tremendous impact on Indian economics and material culture. Included are discussions, photographs and illustrations of shell, pearl, bone, stone, metal, and trade beads. Wampum is described in great detail and odd forms and materials, which include seed, basketry, wooden, gum, earthenware, dried otter's liver, and native manufacture of glass beads are also described. There is also a very interesting section on drilling holes in beads.All of the basic techniques of beadwork are explored and illustrated. These include woven beadwork (square weave, bias weave, and net-like weave), sewing techniques and edgings, bead inlays and beaded baskets. There are 16 color plates, 26 black and white plates and 136 figures which include drawings and photographs. The color plates include chevron beads, polychrome trade beads, and outstanding examples of native beadwork from Alaska to Ecuador.-Print ed.
Beautiful Monster: A Becoming
by Miles BorreroA breathtaking, exquisitely crafted memoir about a trans person&’s singular journey through breaching the boundaries of gender—across generations, cultures and borders—to become his truest, most authentic self.Nearing the age of forty, with an entire life already lived as a woman—half in Colombia, half in the US—Miles Borrero comes face to face with his father&’s impending death. Suddenly realizing that he has been stalling his transition for fear of losing his family&’s love, this moment catalyzes Miles&’s determination to be fully known as his father&’s son before it is too late. In Beautiful Monster, Miles chronicles his unusual childhood, by turns riveting and hilarious, in &’80s and &’90s Colombia during the Pablo Escobar years, as well as his move to Salt Lake City to pursue acting and the winding trajectory that eventually lands him in the New York City yoga scene. Within these very different cultures, the realities of being queer and trans echo poignantly through the triumphs, heartbreaks, family dynamics, spiritual pursuits, and relationships that propel Miles along his path. Sublimely nuanced and written in ravishing prose that is as unique and irresistible as its subject, Beautiful Monster is one person&’s story of navigating the pressures to perform femininity while becoming a gender outlaw. Brimming with wonder, humor, and mythos, entertaining and enlightening in equal measure, this book offers a compelling case for embracing one&’s true nature.
Beautiful Noise: The Music of John Cage
by Lisa RogersOpen this unique picture book and meet John Cage, the pioneering, inspiring composer who believed all sound—from the crash of a slamming door to the whirr of a blender to the whoosh of the wind—was music.For John Cage, music was everywhere: in the hum of the refrigerator, the screech of a garbage truck, the patter of the rain. But other people disagreed. They felt that, surely, a pianist on stage must actually play their piano to create music...not just sit there. And in no way was it melodic to turn a musician's mic on and off as they do play their instruments--it was just chaos!John Cage found sound in silence, and knew that all noises were unique. All you had to do was listen to hear it.Told in second person and paired with exciting illustrations as innovative as Cage's music, here is a picture book--perfect for any budding musician--that celebrates the genius of a nonconforming musician who always stayed true to his artistic vision.
Beautiful Trauma: An Explosion, an Obsession, and a New Lease on Life
by Rebecca FoggA compelling account of surviving a freak accident, and a fascinating exploration of the science of trauma and recovery. Late one night, while Rebecca Fogg was alone in her apartment, her hand was partially amputated in an explosion. Quick thinking saved her life, but the journey to recovery would be a slow one. As the doctors rebuilt her hand, Rebecca (who also survived 9/11) began rebuilding her sense of self by studying the physical and psychological process of recovery. Interspersing the personal with the medical, Rebecca charts her year of rehabilitation, touching on the marvelously adaptable anatomy of the hand; how the brain&’s fight-or-flight mechanism enables us to react instantly to danger; and why trauma causes some people to develop PTSD and gives others a whole new lease on life. Told with emotional and intellectual clarity, Beautiful Trauma is a celebration of the resilience of the human spirit and the wonder of the human hand.
Beautiful and Terrible Things: Faith, Doubt, and Discovering a Way Back to Each Other
by Amy ButlerFrom one of America&’s most prominent ministers comes an inspiring, provocative reflection on the necessity of community, the inevitability of conflict, and the transformative power of radical love.&“I so love and admire the work and witness of Pastor Amy Butler.&”—Anne Lamott&“Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don&’t be afraid,&” said theologian Frederick Beuchner. Pastor Amy Butler, the first woman at the helm of New York&’s historic Riverside Church, knows firsthand that to navigate such a world, one must be courageous, honest, and compassionate. In Beautiful and Terrible Things, Pastor Amy draws on the most meaningful, challenging, and soul-shaking moments of her own life to offer larger lessons on theology and relationships.Pastor Amy grew up in a conservative Evangelical family in the diverse culture of the Hawaiian Islands. As she realized she was more inclined to be a pastor than to marry one, she began an unlikely journey, breaking one stained-glass ceiling after another. Holding increasingly high-profile ministry positions in New Orleans, Washington, D.C., and New York City, Amy weathered rigidly unwelcoming congregations and enormous trials, ultimately learning that only the radical love of community could generate healing. As she describes her experiences leading a church to publicly affirm its LGBTQ community members, losing a child, and undergoing an unexpected divorce, Amy offers a thoughtful lens on all the ways life can push us to see the world from another&’s perspective. In her signature compassionate, witty voice, she offers fresh, nonjudgmental perspectives on faith—which, at its most beautiful expression, allows for the possibility that there is more than one way to experience God.
Beber
by Pere AznarUn honesto relato en primera persona sobre el alcoholismo escrito por el guionista y humorista Pere Aznar. «Lección de honestidad, lección de vida, lección de comedia... Este no es un libro cualquiera, es de los que recuerdas».Quique Peinado «La fórmula de Pere Aznar: valentía, verdad, autoparodia, amor por el oficio y la vida. Imbatible. Molt bé nen».Andreu Buenafuente El 13 de julio de 2021 decidí dejar de BEBER. Lo decidí en serio. Había tenido esa conversación interna cientos de veces pero nunca antes había ganado yo, siempre había ganado la bestia. La bestia me acompaña desde que tengo 13 años. La bestia tiene muchos nombres, nombres que conoces y seguramente de cerca, nombres que te evocan a noches, celebraciones y aperitivos, nombres que has dicho a gritos en un bar. BEBER no solo es un verbo para mí, es un catálogo de recuerdos muy buenos y también muy malos. BEBER es una historia, como muchas otras, en la que todo está empapado de licores, pero también es un relato de cómo deja de estarlo, y de cómo cambia la vida cuando ya no tienes el codo en 90 grados casi todo el rato.BEBER es la historia de mi vida, de los 27 años en que el alcohol ha sido mi fiel amigo y mi peor enemigo, de mi relación con la adicción, que ha marcado y marcará mi existencia para siempre. Y también de la vida de mi hija, de la vida de mi padre, de la vida de todos los que estuvieron cuando yo no estaba. Y de la vida de los que están ahora que empiezo a estar. Y, quién sabe, tal vez es un poco la historia de tu vida.Bébete este libro con moderación y ríete a gusto. Yo ya puedo hacerlo. Soy un cómico de 41 años, el de la portada concretamente. Seguramente no te sueno de nada, pero he escrito chistes y los he dicho, desde hace ya unos cuantos años, en lugares dispares. Sitios tan distintos como Los 40, Antena 3, Cuatro, la SER, Radio 3, Telecinco, el teatro Principal de Valencia o un escenario hecho con cajas de refresco en una pizzería de Segovia. Todos estos lugares tienen una cosa en un común y nadie en ellos lo sabía: cuando estuve allí o estaba borracho o quería estarlo. Este es mi primer libro. Habla de todo lo que me ha pasado a mí y a mi alrededor. Habla de reírse cuando las cosas duelen. Habla de que ahora mismo no estoy borracho y ya no quiero estarlo. Bueno, esto último no te lo puedo asegurar. Sigue leyendo y lo comprobarás.
Becoming Dr Jones: A Wild Life
by Dr Dr Rhys JonesRhys Jones was brought up on a council estate in South Wales where expectations for what life held in store for you were slim, and the factor beckoned. As he recalls, he was born fighting and never stopped. His perspective on what life could offer him changed forever in the early 1980s when his grandfather took him to the local cinema to see Stephen Spielberg's blockbuster Raiders of the Lost Ark. The dream of emulating his hero Indiana Jones and travelling to the farthest reaches of the planet to explore exotic locations and its wildlife now burned deep inside him.As he progressed at school this passion to escape and explore was further kindled through the pages of an old natural history encyclopaedia given to him by his grandmother. Devouring the pages, the encyclopaedia would help craft his chosen path in life. Like his hero and namesake Indiana Jones, Rhys's journey has now taken him to all corners of the globe with friends and colleagues at every port; from the Australian outback to the furthest outpost of the Maasai tribe in Eastern Africa.In Becoming Dr Jones Rhys will take the reader on an inspiring journey through his life. One filled with highs, lows, humour and poignancy, as well as reverent insights into some of the amazing residents of our beloved natural world. If adventure had a name it would be Jones, and Dr Rhys Jones has taken that mantle to a whole new level!
Becoming Dr Jones: A Wild Life
by Dr Dr Rhys JonesRhys Jones was brought up on a council estate in South Wales where expectations for what life held in store for you were slim, and the factor beckoned. As he recalls, he was born fighting and never stopped. His perspective on what life could offer him changed forever in the early 1980s when his grandfather took him to the local cinema to see Stephen Spielberg's blockbuster Raiders of the Lost Ark. The dream of emulating his hero Indiana Jones and travelling to the farthest reaches of the planet to explore exotic locations and its wildlife now burned deep inside him.As he progressed at school this passion to escape and explore was further kindled through the pages of an old natural history encyclopaedia given to him by his grandmother. Devouring the pages, the encyclopaedia would help craft his chosen path in life. Like his hero and namesake Indiana Jones, Rhys's journey has now taken him to all corners of the globe with friends and colleagues at every port; from the Australian outback to the furthest outpost of the Maasai tribe in Eastern Africa.In Becoming Dr Jones Rhys will take the reader on an inspiring journey through his life. One filled with highs, lows, humour and poignancy, as well as reverent insights into some of the amazing residents of our beloved natural world. If adventure had a name it would be Jones, and Dr Rhys Jones has taken that mantle to a whole new level!
Becoming Ezra Jack Keats (Willie Morris Books in Memoir and Biography)
by Virginia McGee ButlerBecoming Ezra Jack Keats offers the first complete biography of acclaimed children’s author and illustrator Ezra Jack Keats (1916–1983) intended for adult readers. Drawing extensively from his unpublished autobiography and letters, Becoming Ezra Jack Keats covers the breadth of Keats’s life, taking readers through his early years as the child of immigrant parents, his introduction to illustration and writing, and the full arc of his remarkable career.Beyond a standard biography, this volume presents a time capsule of the political, social, and economic issues evolving during the span of Keats’s lifetime. It also addresses his trailblazing commitment to representation and diversity, most notably in his work The Snowy Day, which won the Caldecott Medal as the first full-color picture book to feature a Black child as the protagonist. Keats far surpassed his father’s prediction that he would be a starving artist. Instead, as shown in Becoming Ezra Jack Keats, he is now regarded as one of the most influential figures in children’s literature, having published twenty-two books translated into sixteen languages, all featuring the diversity he saw in the children outside the window of his Brooklyn studio.
Becoming Foucault: The Poitiers Years (Intellectual History of the Modern Age)
by Michael C. BehrentThough Michel Foucault is one of the most important thinkers of the twentieth century, little is known about his early life. Even Foucault’s biographers have neglected this period, preferring instead to start the story when the future philosopher arrives in Paris.Becoming Foucault is a historical reconstruction of the world in which Foucault grew up: the small city of Poitiers, France, from the 1920s until the end of the Second World War. Beyond exploring previously unexamined aspects of Foucault’s childhood, including his wartime ordeals, it proposes an original interpretation of Foucault’s oeuvre. Michael Behrent argues that Foucault, in addition to being a theorist of power, knowledge, and selfhood, was also a philosopher of experience. He was a thinker intent on making sense of the events that he lived through. Behrent identifies four specific experiences in Foucault’s childhood that exercised a decisive influence on him and that, in various ways, he later made the subject of his philosophy: his family’s deep connections to the medical profession; his upbringing in a bourgeois household; the German Occupation during World War II; and his Catholic education.Behrent not only reconstructs the specific nature of these experiences but also shows how reference to them surfaces in Foucault’s later work. In this way, the book both sheds light on a formative period in the philosopher’s life and offers a unique interpretation of key aspects of his thought.
Becoming Free Indeed: My Story of Disentangling Faith from Fear
by Jinger VuoloJinger Vuolo, the sixth child in the famous Duggar family of TLC's 19 Kids and Counting and Counting On, recounts how she began to question the unhealthy ideology of her youth and learned to embrace true freedom in Christ.When Jinger Duggar Vuolo was growing up, she was convinced that obeying the rules was the key to success and God's favor. She zealously promoted the Basic Life Principles of Bill Gothard,fastidiously obeying the modesty guidelines (no shorts or jeans, only dresses),eagerly submitting to the umbrella of authority (any disobedience of parents would place her outside God's protection), promoting the relationship standard of courtship, andavoiding any music with a worldly beat, among others. Jinger, along with three of her sisters, wrote a New York Times bestseller about their religious convictions. She believed this level of commitment would guarantee God's blessing, even though in private she felt constant fear that she wasn't measuring up to the high standards demanded of her.In Becoming Free Indeed, Jinger shares how in her early twenties, a new family member—a brother-in-law who didn't grow up in the same tight-knit conservative circle as Jinger—caused her to examine her beliefs. He was committed to the Bible, but he didn't believe many of the things Jinger had always assumed were true. His influence, along with the help of a pastor named Jeremy Vuolo, caused Jinger to see that her life was built on rules, not God's Word.Jinger committed to studying the Bible—truly understanding it—for the first time. What resulted was an earth-shaking realization: much of what she'd always believed about God, obedience to His Word, and personal holiness wasn't in-line with what the Bible teaches.Now with a renewed faith of personal conviction, Becoming Free Indeed shares what it was like living under the tenants of Bill Gothard, the Biblical truth that changed her perspective, and how she disentangled her faith with her belief in Jesus intact.
Becoming Gandhi: Living the Mahatma's 6 Moral Truths in Immoral Times
by Perry GarfinkelThe fascinating and timely quest of a longtime New York Times contributor to follow Mahatma Gandhi&’s code of ethics in today&’s world. In Becoming Gandhi, veteran journalist and author Perry Garfinkel sets out on a three-year quest to examine how Gandhi&’s ideals have held up in a world beset with troubling trends. In one chilling admission, one of Gandhi&’s own grandsons tells Garfinkel that humans will always retain a degree of violence. Where does this leave modern society? &“When I despair,&” the Mahatma had said, &“I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won.&” To many he was a beacon of hope, a true moral compass; to others, a divisive lightning rod for controversy. Garfinkel takes to heart one of Gandhi&’s most famous sayings―&“Be the change you want to see in the world&”―and attempts a personal transformation. Committing to practice the Mahatma&’s six main principles―truth, nonviolence, vegetarianism, simplicity, faith, and celibacy―he seeks to better himself, facing successes and failures that at times lead to self-effacing humour. Perry undertook a unique journey of self-discovery by tracing Gandhi&’s footsteps from India to England to South Africa and even American communities where Gandhi&’s spirit endures. Featuring inspiring interviews, provocative reflections, and remarkable encounters, Becoming Gandhi shares new perspectives on this pivotal figure and why his teachings are needed like never before.
Becoming Us: The inspiring memoir of transgender joy, love and family
by Jake Graf Hannah Graf'The UK's most influential LGBT Power Couple' - GuardianThis is the inspiring and moving memoir of a couple in search of a normal family life. And in many ways that have found that: married, doing jobs they love and expecting their second child. But their journey there has been an extraordinary one. Becoming Us is the inspiring and at times heart-breaking memoir of Jake and Hannah Graf, the UK's most visible transgender couple and family. We follow their extraordinary paths towards the 'normality' they have always longed for, as they navigate the many challenges and pitfalls along the way. Born in 1980s London under Section 28 and assigned female at birth, Jake knew from a young age that he was in body that didn't fit. Hannah was assigned male at birth, and growing up in small town Cardiff she hid her innate femininity from her family and friends until joining the British Army in her late teens. Their journeys were wildly different, Jake falling into drug and alcohol addiction, Hannah excelling in the military and serving across the world. Hannah would later come out as trans and be awarded an MBE by HRH Prince William. Jake discovered community and purpose in the film industry. But it was only after they found themselves that they were ready to find each other.Now, they are married and parents to two beautiful daughters. Amid soaring levels of hatred and transphobia in the UK, Jake and Hannah have chosen to tell their story in the hope of increasing awareness, raising visibility and spreading some much needed love and understanding around transgender people and their lives. They hope too that in sharing their experiences, they will help in the fight for inclusivity, acceptance and support across all demographics.(P)2023 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
Becoming Us: The inspiring memoir of transgender joy, love and family
by Jake Graf Hannah Graf'The UK's most influential LGBT Power Couple' - IndependentThis is the inspiring and moving memoir of a couple in search of a normal family life. And in many ways that have found that: married, in careers they love and parents to two beautiful children. But their journey there has been an extraordinary one. Becoming Us is the inspiring and at times heart-breaking memoir of Jake and Hannah Graf, the UK's most visible transgender couple and family. We follow their extraordinary paths towards the 'normality' they have always longed for, as they navigate the many challenges and pitfalls along the way. Born in 1980s London under Section 28 and assigned female at birth, Jake knew from a young age that he was in body that didn't fit. Hannah was assigned male at birth, and growing up in small town Cardiff she hid her innate femininity from her family and friends until joining the British Army in her late teens. Their journeys were wildly different, Jake falling into drug and alcohol addiction, Hannah excelling in the military and serving across the world. Hannah would later come out as trans and be awarded an MBE by HRH Prince William. Jake discovered community and purpose in the film industry. But it was only after they found themselves that they were ready to find each other.Now, they are married and parents to two beautiful daughters. Amid soaring levels of hatred and transphobia in the UK, Jake and Hannah have chosen to tell their story in the hope of increasing awareness, raising visibility and spreading some much needed love and understanding around transgender people and their lives. They hope too that in sharing their experiences, they will help in the fight for inclusivity, acceptance and support across all demographics.
Becoming Us: The inspiring memoir of transgender joy, love and family AS SEEN ON LORRAINE
by Jake Graf Hannah Graf'The UK's most influential LGBT Power Couple' - IndependentThis is the inspiring and moving memoir of a couple in search of a normal family life. And in many ways that have found that: married, in careers they love and parents to two beautiful children. But their journey there has been an extraordinary one. Becoming Us is the inspiring and at times heart-breaking memoir of Jake and Hannah Graf, the UK's most visible transgender couple and family. We follow their extraordinary paths towards the 'normality' they have always longed for, as they navigate the many challenges and pitfalls along the way. Born in 1980s London under Section 28 and assigned female at birth, Jake knew from a young age that he was in body that didn't fit. Hannah was assigned male at birth, and growing up in small town Cardiff she hid her innate femininity from her family and friends until joining the British Army in her late teens. Their journeys were wildly different, Jake falling into drug and alcohol addiction, Hannah excelling in the military and serving across the world. Hannah would later come out as trans and be awarded an MBE by HRH Prince William. Jake discovered community and purpose in the film industry. But it was only after they found themselves that they were ready to find each other.Now, they are married and parents to two beautiful daughters. Amid soaring levels of hatred and transphobia in the UK, Jake and Hannah have chosen to tell their story in the hope of increasing awareness, raising visibility and spreading some much needed love and understanding around transgender people and their lives. They hope too that in sharing their experiences, they will help in the fight for inclusivity, acceptance and support across all demographics.
Becoming a Matriarch
by Helen KnottWhen matriarchs begin to disappear, there is a choice to either step into the places they left behind, or to craft a new space.Helen Knott&’s debut memoir, In My Own Moccasins, wowed reviewers, award juries, and readers alike with its profoundly honest and moving account of addiction, intergenerational trauma, resilience, and survival. Now, in her highly anticipated second book, Knott returns with a chronicle of grief, love, and legacy.Having lost both her mom and grandmother in just over six months, forced to navigate the fine lines between matriarchy, martyrdom, and codependency, Knott realizes she must let go, not just of the women who raised her, but of the woman she thought she was.Woven into the pages are themes of mourning, sobriety through loss, and generational dreaming. Becoming a Matriarch is charted with poetic insights, sass, humour, and heart, taking the reader over the rivers and mountains of Dane Zaa territory in Northeastern British Columbia, along the cobbled streets of Antigua, Guatemala, and straight to the heart of what matriarchy truly means. This is a journey through pain, on the way to becoming.
Becoming the Ex-Wife: The Unconventional Life and Forgotten Writings of Ursula Parrott
by Marsha GordonThe riveting biography of Ursula Parrott—best-selling author, Hollywood screenwriter, and voice for the modern woman. Credited with popularizing the label "ex-wife" in 1929, Ursula Parrott wrote provocatively about divorcées, career women, single mothers, work-life balance, and a host of new challenges facing modern women. Her best sellers, Hollywood film deals, marriages and divorces, and run-ins with the law made her a household name. Part biography, part cultural history, Becoming the Ex-Wife establishes Parrott's rightful place in twentieth-century American culture, uncovering her neglected work and keen insights into American women's lives during a period of immense social change. Although she was frequently dismissed as a "woman's writer," reading Parrott's writing today makes it clear that she was a trenchant philosopher of modernity—her work was prescient, anticipating issues not widely raised until decades after her decline into obscurity. With elegant wit and a deft command of the archive, Marsha Gordon tells a timely story about the life of a woman on the front lines of a culture war that is still raging today.
Before the Light Fades: A Memoir of Grief and Resistance - 'Deeply affecting and unexpectedly inspiring’ Sarah Waters
by Natasha Walter'Deeply affecting and unexpectedly inspiring... the perfect read for daunting times' SARAH WATERS'Beautiful... illuminating and healing' JULIA SAMUEL'Eloquent, piercing, gloriously humane' PHILIPPE SANDSOne day in December, Natasha Walter's mother Ruth took her own life.At first, the grief and guilt that Natasha felt were overwhelming. As the author of feminist books and the founder of the charity Women for Refugee Women, Natasha had always been active in movements for social justice. But in the aftermath of her mother's suicide, her personal grief intertwines with a sense of political despair.Gradually, she starts to search back through Ruth's history, trying to understand how her life led to this death. She explores Ruth's own involvement as a young woman in the nuclear disarmament movement of the 1960s. Even though Ruth had been brought up to be a conventional young woman, she chose to take huge risks and break the law in order to stand up for what she believed was right. This was where Ruth met and fell in love with Natasha's father, the anarchist writer Nicolas Walter.Natasha also explores the history of Ruth's parents, particularly the story of her grandfather Georg. He was involved in anti-Nazi resistance in the 1930s in Germany, was imprisoned for three years and then went on the run across Europe. Eventually he got to safety, and never spoke again about his experiences.In thinking back through the years, Natasha comes to a deeper and more hopeful understanding of the legacy that her parents and grandparents leave her. No longer overwhelmed by grief, she comes to value the courage of past generations. She steps back into activism, and values the beauty of everyday life once again.Without false hope, this book explores why it is always important to stand up for what you believe is right, even when success is far from assured. This is a memoir that is honest about loss, but also searches for what is valuable in the legacy of one family that lived through some of the great crises of the twentieth century. It will resonate with those grappling with the loss of hope in these challenging political times, as well as those who are living in the shadow of bereavement.