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Beatrix Potter: Her Inner World
By Andrew Norman. 2014
An insightful biography of the pioneering conservationist, illustrator, prolific author, and creator of Peter Rabbit and other legendary tales. …
Beatrix Potter was born curious, with an imagination and a love of natural science and animals that would serve her well. When her self-published and self-illustrated first book, The Tale of Peter Rabbit, was picked up by an enterprising publisher, Beatrix&’s modest &“bunny book&” would become a phenomenon. After more than a century, Beatrix Potter endures as one of the most cherished children&’s book authors in literary history. But what were the sources of inspiration that gave birth to her beloved anthropomorphic characters and enduring cautionary tales? Through extensive research, personal letters, and photographs, this concise and intimate biography reveals Beatrix&’s privileged yet restrictive Victorian childhood; her volatile relationship with her mother; a tragic love affair with her editor; her sometimes debilitating depression and illnesses; her life and career beyond Peter Rabbit; and her liberation as a passionate, driven, trailblazing, and simply original creative spirit.Waiting to Be Arrested at Night: A Uyghur Poet's Memoir of China's Genocide
By Tahir Hamut Izgil. 2023
A poet's account of one of the world's most urgent humanitarian crises, and a harrowing tale of a family's escape…
from genocideOne by one, Tahir Hamut Izgil's friends disappeared. The Chinese government's brutal persecution of the Uyghur people had continued for years, but in 2017 it assumed a terrifying new scale. The Uyghurs, a predominantly Muslim minority group in western China, were experiencing an echo of the worst horrors of the twentieth century, amplified by China's establishment of an all-seeing high-tech surveillance state. Over a million people have vanished into China&’s internment camps for Muslim minorities.Tahir, a prominent poet and intellectual, had been no stranger to persecution. After he attempted to travel abroad in 1996, police tortured him until he confessed to fabricated charges and sent him to a re-education through labor camp. But even having endured three years in the camp, he could never have predicted the Chinese government&’s radical solution to the Uyghur question two decades later. Was the first sign when Tahir was interrogated for hours after a phone call with a fellow poet in the Netherlands? Or when his old friend was sentenced to life in prison simply for calling for Uyghurs' legal rights to be enforced? Perhaps it was when the police seized Uyghurs&’ radios and installed jamming equipment to cut them off from the outside world.Once Tahir noticed that the park near his home was nearly empty because so many neighbors had been arrested, he knew the police would be coming for him any day. One night, after Tahir&’s daughters were asleep, he placed by his door a sturdy pair of shoes, a sweater, and a coat so that he could stay warm if the police came for him in the middle of the night. It was clear to Tahir and his wife that fleeing the country was the family's only hope. Waiting to Be Arrested at Night is the story of the political, social, and cultural destruction of Tahir Hamut Izgil's homeland. Among leading Uyghur intellectuals and writers, he is the only one known to have escaped China since the mass internments began. His book is a call for the world to awaken to the unfolding catastrophe, and a tribute to his friends and fellow Uyghurs whose voices have been silenced.Deadlines on the Front Line: Travels with a Veteran War Correspondent
By Paul Moorcraft. 2018
The author of this gritty memoir has lived life to the full and fortunately has the ability to recall his…
experiences in a graphic and entertaining manner.As a war correspondent and paramilitary policeman, Moorcraft was a magnet for drama and action. His descriptions of sometimes tragic and often hilarious escapades in war torn countries literally from A (Afghanistan) to Z (Zimbabwe) are self-effacingly entertaining. His light-hearted approach disguises a thoroughly perceptive and analytical mind. The reader will never be bored while accompanying Moorcraft reporting on wars in over thirty combat zones in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe. This is his book of hazardous travels to strange, often little-known places meeting even stranger people who were often all too keen to lock him up or try and kill him.Deadlines on the Frontline is a delightful and invigorating read which offers an intelligent insight into the turbulent world of the late 20th and early 21st centuriesA Farewell to Arms, Legs & Jockstraps: A Sportswriter's Memoir
By Diane K. Shah. 2020
“Diane Shah was a boots-on-the-ground female sports reporter in the Cro-Magnon 1970s and brings it all back in this hilarious,…
well-crafted book.” —Dan Shaughnessy, Boston Globe sports columnist and New York Times bestselling authorStrike fast, strike hard—whether it’s scoring a homerun or front-page news, Diane K. Shah, former sports columnist, knows how to grab the best story.In her memoir A Farewell to Arms, Legs, and Jockstraps, follow Diane’s escapades, from interviews with a tipsy Mickey Mantle, to sneaking into off-limits Republican galas, dining with Frank Sinatra, flying a plane with Dennis Quaid, and countless other adventures where she wields her tape recorder and a tireless drive for more.From skirting KGB agents while covering the Cold War Olympics to hunting down the three mechanical sharks starring in Jaws, Diane’s experiences are filled with real heart and a tongue-in-cheek attitude. An insightful look into the difficulties of navigating a male-dominated profession, A Farewell to Arms, Legs, and Jockstraps offers rich retellings and behind-the-scenes details of stories of a trailblazing career and the prejudices facing female sportswriters during the sixties and seventies.“Impossibly elegant, and the most fun ever. The only thing better than reading Diane K. Shah’s memoir was, I suppose, living it.” —Sally Jenkins, columnist and feature writer, Washington Post“Diane’s memoir is just like her columns—smart, funny, enlightening—just like her. Until reading it, I never really knew all the challenges she dealt with. She broke ground but never acted like it. I was lucky to work with the first female sports columnist in the country.” —Ken Gurnick, LA Dodgers correspondent for MLB.comWall Street Journal BestsellerPublishers Weekly BestsellerPatrick Hinds has failed. A lot. In fact, he&’s kind of an expert at it—which…
is why he&’s uniquely qualified to say that failure is a good thing.On paper, the chubby, poor, gay son of a lesbian who wrote pornographic letters to Jesus isn&’t the person that you think of when you hear the word &“success.&” Yet Patrick Hinds has somehow managed to bungle his way through to become the successful co-host of True Crime Obsessed—a podcast with more than 200 million downloads.Before that, though, he failed at many, many things. Patrick&’s life is a series of fiascos, missteps, and just plain bad ideas. An eternal optimist, he&’s always thrown himself into everything he&’s done, even when he probably shouldn&’t have. He devoted himself to becoming an actor even though he was terrible, started a daycare even though he hated kids, and somehow had a disastrous time with Bea Arthur . . . even though he couldn&’t be gayer.Both heartfelt and hilarious, Failure Is Not Not an Option lets Patrick&’s signature storytelling style shine—and it&’s also the only book to bravely and definitively declare:1: Failing simply means that you tried (and if you try enough, eventually success will be an option, too).2: Ted Bundy is. Not. Hot. By trying, and yes, failing at so many things, Patrick finally found his way—to a great career, a great husband, and a great family. Along the way, there were hurdles to jump, unexpected surprises, and no shortage of laughter. Failure is Not NOT an Option is a fun and outrageous read that will raise you up—and provide a soft landing pad for the next time you fall.Come Back in September: A Literary Education on West Sixty-seventh Street, Manhattan
By Darryl Pinckney. 2022
Critic and writer Darryl Pinckney recalls his friendship and apprenticeship with Elizabeth Hardwick and Barbara Epstein and the introduction they…
offered him to the New York literary world.Darryl Pinckney arrived at Columbia University in New York City in the early 1970s and had the opportunity to enroll in Elizabeth Hardwick’s creative writing class at Barnard. It changed his life. When the semester was over, he continued to visit her, and he became close to both Hardwick and Barbara Epstein, Hardwick’s best friend and neighbor and a fellow founder of The New York Review of Books.Pinckney was drawn into a New York literary world where he encountered some of the fascinating contributors to the Review, among them Susan Sontag, Robert Lowell, and Mary McCarthy. Yet the intellectual and artistic freedom that Pinckney observed on West Sixty-seventh Street could conflict with the demands of his politically minded family and their sense of the unavoidable lessons of black history. In addition, through his peers and former classmates—such as Felice Rosser, Jim Jarmusch, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Lucy Sante, Howard Brookner, and Nan Goldin—Pinckney witnessed the coming together of the New Wave scene in the East Village. He experienced the avant-garde life at the same time as he was discovering the sexual freedom brought by gay liberation. It was his time for hope. In Come Back in September, through his memories of the city and of Hardwick, we see the emergence and evolution of Pinckney himself as a writer.Beautiful Monster: A Becoming
By Miles Borrero. 2023
A 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.Desert Queen
By Jyoti R. Gopal. 2023
This picture book biography in verse follows the life of beloved Rajasthani drag performer Queen Harish, known as the Whirling…
Desert Queen of Rajasthan. Lit by an inner fire and propelled by a family tragedy, Harish defied the gender conventions of middle class Indian life, battled discrimination and intimidation, and eventually grew up to dance with Bollywood movie stars and on stages across the world.Jyoti Gopal's rhythmic phrases evoke the particular sounds and beats of the music Harish danced to, and capture the passions and conflicts of his life. The poignant and inspiring tale is interpreted by internationally acclaimed Rajasthani artist Svabhu Kohli in kohl-black lines and shapes and brilliant jewel-like colors.Desert Queen
By Jyoti R. Gopal. 2023
This picture book biography in verse follows the life of beloved Rajasthani drag performer Queen Harish, known as the Whirling…
Desert Queen of Rajasthan. Lit by an inner fire and propelled by a family tragedy, Harish defied the gender conventions of middle class Indian life, battled discrimination and intimidation, and eventually grew up to dance with Bollywood movie stars and on stages across the world.Jyoti Gopal's rhythmic phrases evoke the particular sounds and beats of the music Harish danced to, and capture the passions and conflicts of his life. The poignant and inspiring tale is interpreted by internationally acclaimed Rajasthani artist Svabhu Kohli in kohl-black lines and shapes and brilliant jewel-like colors.The Story of Maya Angelou (The Story of: A Biography Series for New Readers)
By Tiffany Obeng. 2023
Discover the life of Maya Angelou—a story about courage for kids ages 6 to 9Maya Angelou was an acclaimed author,…
poet, historian, singer and songwriter, playwright, director, and civil rights activist. Before she was known for her unique and pioneering autobiographical writing style, Maya was a young girl interested in the written word. From an early age she wrote essays, poetry, and kept a journal. She used her powerful voice to share her experiences and unite the world through her written words. Explore how Maya Angelou went from difficult childhood experiences to one of our most celebrated memoirists and poets of all-time.The Story of Maya Angelou includes:A fun quiz—Test your knowledge of Maya's life with a short quiz that covers the Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How of her story.Word definitions—This standout among Maya Angelou books for kids includes easy-to-understand explanations of some of the more advanced words and ideas.Her lasting legacy—Learn about how Maya inspired the world with both the beauty and the call to action of her words.How will Maya's fight for civil rights inspire you?Salvaje
By Cheryl Strayed. 2012
La historia de los 1800 kilómetros que la joven autora anduvo en su recorrido a pie por la cordillera del…
Pacífico de los Estados Unidos. Con veintidós años creía que lo había perdido todo en la vida. Tras la muerte de su madre y tomar la decisión de separarse, sus hermanos se dispersaron y ella se quedó sin pilares sobre los que construir su vida. Cuatro años después de la muerte de su madre toma la decisión más impulsiva de su vida: recorrer el camino del las Cumbres del Pacífico, una ruta de senderismo que recorre toda la costa oeste de los Estados Unidos, desde el desierto Mojave en California y Oregon al estado de Washington. Y decide hacerlo completamente sola. Sin ninguna experiencia en senderismo, y ni tan solo habiendo pasado jamás una noche al aire libre, para ella se trataba de una idea, vaga y extravagante y prometedora.Pero esa promesa se convirtió en la necesidad de volver a juntar las piezas del rompecabezas en que se ha convertido su vida. Narrada con suspense, estilo, sentido del humor y ternura, Savaje consigue atrapar el miedo y los placeres en la vida de una joven que se encuentra en el proceso de forjar su vida contra toda expectativa, en el viaje que la volvió loca, que la fortaleció y que acabó por sanarla. La crítica ha dicho...«Espectacular...Te atrapa... Una aventura que te quita el aliento y una profunda reflexión sobre la naturaleza del dolor y la supervivencia. Un triunfo a nivel literario y personal.»New York Times Book Review «Un libro ameno y a ratos duro, que hará las delicias de senderistas y amantes de la buena literatura con las peripecias de una joven en procesode reconstrucción, a lo largo del viaje que la volvió loca, que la fortaleció y que terminó por sanarla.»EvadiumIn the Footsteps of Du Fu
By Michael Wood. 2023
A beautifully illustrated travelogue, chronicling the life and work of one of the world greatest poets. Du Fu (712-70) is…
one of China&’s greatest poets. His career coincided with periods of famine, war and huge upheaval, yet his secular philosophical vision, combined with his empathy for the common folk of his nation, ensured that he soon became revered. Like Shakespeare or Dante, his poetry resonates in a timeless manner that ensures it is always relevant and offers something new to the modern generation. Now, in this beautifully illustrated book, broadcaster and historian Michael Wood follows in his footsteps to try to understand the places that inspired Du Fu to write some of the most famous and best-loved poetry the world has known. The themes he wrote about – friendship, family, human suffering – are universal and in our troubled times are just as relevant as they were almost 1,300 years ago.First published in 1996, The William Makepeace Thackeray Library is a collection of works written by and about the novelist.…
This sixth volume contains the work of Lewis Melville, one of the most productive biographers and critics of Thackeray at the turn of the 20th century. Richard Pearson’s helpful introduction not only provides additional information on the biographer himself, but also analyses the text and tracks its development over time. This book will be of interest to those studying Thackeray and nineteenth-century literature.Mark and Livy: The Love Story of Mark Twain and the Woman Who Almost Tamed Him
By Resa Willis. 2004
Olivia Langdon Clemens was not only the love of Mark Twain's life and the mother of his children, she was…
also his editor, muse, critic and trusted advisor. She read his letters and speeches. He relied on her judgment on his writing, and readily admitted that she not only edited his work, but also edited his public persona.Until now, little has been known about Livy's crucial place in Twain's life. In Resa Willis's affecting and fascinating biography, we meet a dignified, optimistic women who married young, raised three sons and a daughter, endured myriad health problems and money woes and who faithfully traipsed all over the world with Twain--Africa, Europe, Asia--while battling his moodiness and her frailty.Twain adored her. A hard-drinking dreamer with an insatiable wanderlust, he needed someone to tame him. It was Livy who encouraged him to finish his autobiography even through the last stages of her illness. When she died in 1904, Twain's zest for life and writing was gone. He died six years later.A triumph of the biographer's art, Mark and Livy presents the fullest picture yet of one of the most influential women in American letters.I'm Walking as Straight as I Can: Transcending Disability in Hollywood and Beyond
By Geri Jewell. 2011
A candid memoir of building an acting career—and a happy life—with cerebral palsy: &“It&’s a joy to read this book&”…
(Ian McShane). Exposing real pain, unstoppable perseverance, and unquestionable faith in the human spirit, this autobiography offers a true glimpse beyond actress Geri Jewell&’s public image as a one-dimensional hero. Born with cerebral palsy, Jewell made history when she became the first person with a disability cast in a recurring role on American television in The Facts of Life, and in the years that followed she experienced a string of other successes, including a performance at the White House and a role on HBO&’s Deadwood. But along with such accomplishments, this personal story also depicts some of the less-than-rosy events that happened behind closed doors during her initial climb to fame—among them, her release from The Facts of Life; her manager&’s embezzlement of the money she made on the show; and her struggle with chronic pain, despair, and a fear of revealing her true sexual identity. Told with grace and humor, this inspirational narrative presents an honest portrayal of a woman who refused to give up when others kept knocking her down.On the Sultan's Service: Halid Ziya Usakligil's Memoir of the Ottoman Palace, 1909–1912
By Douglas Scott Brookes. 2020
The renowned Turkish author’s memoir of serving Sultan Mehmed V provides a rare look inside the palace politics of the…
late Ottoman Empire.Before he became one of Turkey’s most famous novelists, Halid Ziya Usakligil served as First Secretary to Sultan Mehmed V. His memoir of that time, between 1909 and 1912, provides first-hand insight into the personalities, intrigues, and inner workings of the Ottoman palace in its final decades.In post-Revolution Turkey, the palace no longer exercised political power. Instead, it negotiated the minefields between political factions, sought ways to unite the empire in the face of nationalist aspirations, and faced the opening salvos of the wars that would eventually overwhelm the country. Usakligil includes interviews with the Imperial family as well as descriptions of royal nuptials, the palaces and its visitors, and the crises that shook the court. He also delivers an insightful and moving portrait of Mehmed V, the man who reigned over the Ottoman Empire through both Balkan Wars and World War I.My Own Two Feet: A Memoir
By Beverly Cleary. 1995
Told in her own words, My Own Two Feet is Newbery Medal–winning author Beverly Cleary’s second heartfelt and relatable memoir.The New…
Yorker called Beverly Cleary's first volume of memoirs, A Girl From Yamhill, "a warm, honest book, as interesting as any novel."Now the creator of the classic children's stories millions grew up with continues her own fascinating story. Here is Beverly Cleary, from college years to the publication of her first book. It is a fascinating look at her life and a writing career that spans three generations, continuing to capture the hearts and imaginations of children of all ages throughout the world.Beverly Cleary's books have sold more than 85 million copies and have been translated into twenty-nine different languages, which speaks to the worldwide reach and love of her stories. She was honored with a Newbery Honor for Ramona and Her Father and a second one for Ramona Quimby, Age 8. She received the John Newbery Medal for Dear Mr. Henshaw, which was inspired by letters she’d received from children. Her autobiographies, A Girl from Yamhill and My Own Two Feet, are a wonderful way to get to know more about this most beloved children's book author.A Strange Life: Selected Essays of Louisa May Alcott
By Louisa May Alcott. 2023
Collected together for the very first time, witty and wide-ranging essays from the celebrated author of Little Women.Louisa May Alcott…
(1832–1888) is, of course, best known as the author of Little Women (1868). But she was also a noted essayist who wrote on a wide range of subjects, including her father&’s failed utopian commune, the benefits of an unmarried life, and her experience as a young woman sent to work in service to alleviate her family&’s poverty. Her first literary success was a contemporary close-up account of the American Civil War, brilliantly depicted in Hospital Sketches, which was drawn from her own experience of serving as an army nurse near the nation&’s capital. As with her famous novel, Alcott writes these essays with clear observation, unforgettable scenes, and one of the sharpest wits in American literature.Blending gentle satire with reportage and emotive autobiography, Alcott&’s exquisite essays are as exceptional as the novels she is known for. Published together for the first time, this delightful selection shows us another side to one of our most celebrated writers.This Hill, This Valley: A Memoir
By Hal Borland. 1957
A memoir of a year immersed in nature on a New England farm, by the national bestselling author of The…
Dog Who Came to Stay. After a nearly fatal bout of appendicitis, Hal Borland decided to leave the city behind and move with his wife to a farmhouse in rural Connecticut. Their new home on one hundred acres inspired Borland to return to nature. In this masterpiece of American nature writing, he describes such wonders as the peace of a sky full of stars, the breathless beauty of blossoming plants, the way rain swishes as it hits a river, and the invigorating renewal brought by the changing seasons. The delights of nature as Borland observes them seem boundless, and his sense of awe is contagious.Transgender Profiles: Time for a Change
By Linda DeFruscio. 2018
“A comprehensive and enlightening must-read primer for anyone who is beginning their transition from male to female or female to…
male.” —Jeanette Renee, TLC’s I Am JazzTransgender Profiles: Time for a Change is an inspirational volume from Linda DeFruscio about the courage it takes to become the person you have always felt you were inside—to shirk off the mask that you have worn for your whole life until this moment. As an electrologist, Linda sees clients every day who are in the process of transitioning to a different gender, and she is there to help them in their journey of self-expression and the claiming of their identity.Filled with twenty unique stories of bravery from all different walks of life, this book is a tribute to all the courageous people who take their identity in their own hands and go forth to find the body that fits the soul and mind within. For those considering transitioning, for those looking for perspective and guidance in supporting loved ones, or for those who are curious and want to understand the struggles and triumphs of transgender individuals, Transgender Profiles is an invaluable resource.“Not only does this work open one’s eyes and mind to the transgender community, it goes beyond that to remind us of the importance of loving and caring for one another. Thanks to people like Linda DeFruscio, our world is becoming a more accepting and safer place.” —Andrew J. Safioleas, PharmD, MBA, PRS, RPh, inpatient pharmacist and music instructor“This clear, helpful collection tells many of our stories in the irreplaceable and accessible form of brief oral histories.” —Stephanie Burt, Professor of English, Harvard University