Title search results
Showing 1 - 20 of 14808 items

While you were out: An intimate family portrait of mental illness in an era of silence
By Meg Kissinger. 2023
From award-winning journalist Meg Kissinger, a searing memoir of a family besieged by mental illness, as well as an incisive…
exploration of the systems that failed them and a testament to the love that sustained them. Growing up in the 1960s in the suburbs of Chicago, Meg Kissinger's family seemed to live a charmed life. With eight kids and two loving parents, the Kissingers radiated a warm, boisterous energy. Whether they were spending summer days on the shores of Lake Michigan, barreling down the ski slopes, or navigating the trials of their Catholic school, the Kissingers always knew how to live large and play hard. But behind closed doors, a harsher reality was unfolding—a heavily medicated mother hospitalized for anxiety and depression, a manic father prone to violence, and children in the throes of bipolar disorder and depression, two of whom would take their own lives. Through it all, the Kissingers faced the world with their signature dark humor and the unspoken family rule: never talk about it. While You Were Out begins as the personal story of one family's struggles then opens outward, as Kissinger details how childhood tragedy catalyzed a journalism career focused on exposing our country's flawed mental health care. Combining the intimacy of memoir with the rigor of investigative reporting, the book explores the consequences of shame, the havoc of botched public policy, and the hope offered by new treatment strategies. Powerful, candid and filled with surprising humor, this is the story of one family's love and resilience in face of great loss
From America's most beloved foursome—the TikTok sensation @theoldgays—a book of unexpected aspirational advice and inspirational stories drawn from their decades…
of living, from pre-Stonewall to the rise of the LGBTQ+ movement to gay marriage and beyond. Ranging in age from 67 to 80, Mick, Jessay, Robert, and Bill are the real-life Golden Girls of the social media era, a quartet of old gays whose hard-won confidence and awesome authenticity have taken the culture by storm. They are America's beloved Queens—and more importantly, they are survivors whose lives have been transformed by sweeping cultural change. In this fabulously fun and entertaining book, they share their stories—humorous, heartbreaking, shocking, and profound tales which only older gay men can tell. It was their generation that was devastated by AIDS, a health crisis that deprived us of so many brilliant, creative lives, including many of their friends. In this delightful group memoir, Mick, Jessay, Robert, and Bill intimately reveal all about their lives, revealing who they are beyond TikTok, where they came from, and how they found each other. They offer their collective wisdom on a rainbow of topics, including coming out, sex, gay liberation, gay marriage, AIDS, aging, and saving the best act for last. Outrageous and hilarious, refreshingly earnest and unfiltered, engaging and insightful, they've been through it all—harassment, divorce, depression, bankruptcy, even near-death experiences. Between the four of them, there's not much of life they haven't seen or done, and now they dish on everything from fitness and fabulous dinner parties to church and orgies. An intimate and moving portrait of four friends who have experienced the good, the bad and the ugly—and look forward to the best that is still to come, The Old Gays Guide to the Good Life is a celebration of lives lived to the fullest—sometimes against all odds—and a lesson for all of us that age is just a number and that getting older can be outrageously fun
Billy: The Untold Story of a Young Billy Graham and the Test of Faith that Almost Changed Everything (Playaway Adult Nonfiction Ser.)
By Ken Abraham, William McKay. 2008
The remarkable true story of a young Billy Graham and his best friend who walked away from the faith. We all…
know how the story ends but how did it begin? Before he became a household name, and America's Pastor, he was simply known as Billy. When he wasn't playing baseball, he was discovering his love for Christian ministry. His best friend, Charles Templeton, was already on track to be a highly successful evangelist and the two young men began strategizing on how to win the world for Christ. That plan takes a drastic turn, however, when Templeton deserts the faith and becomes an atheist. The impact of this decision on a young Billy Graham is immeasurable and agonizing. Charles would later become the great intellectual architect for agnosticism and atheism. Billy would become the single greatest messenger for the Christian Gospel. It is one of the great untold dramas between friends - Atheism vs Christianity, betrayal and hope.
Bad Indians (Expanded Edition): A Tribal Memoir
By Deborah Miranda. 2013
Newly expanded, a memoir hailed as essential by the likes of Leslie Marmon Silko and ELLE magazine."Bad Indians stands out…
as a classic quintessentially Indigenous memoir. " —Joy HarjoBad Indians—part tribal history, part lyric and intimate memoir—is essential reading for anyone seeking to learn about California Indian history, past and present. Widely adopted in classrooms and book clubs throughout the United States, Bad Indians—now reissued in significantly expanded form—plumbs ancestry, survivance, and the cultural memory of Native California.In this best-selling, now-classic memoir, Deborah A. Miranda tells stories of her Ohlone/Costanoan-Esselen family and the experiences of California Indians more widely through oral histories, newspaper clippings, anthropological recordings, personal reflections, and poems. This expanded edition—the first time the book has seen release in hardcover format—includes new poems and essays, as well as an extensive afterword. Wise, indignant, and playful all at once, Bad Indians is a beautiful and devastating read, and an indispensable book for anyone seeking a more just telling of American history.
Down the Rabbit Hole: Curious Adventures and Cautionary Tales of a Former Playboy Bunny
By Holly Madison. 2015
The real, untold, and unvarnished story of life inside the legendary Playboy Mansion—and the man who holds the key—from the…
woman who was Hef’s #1 girlfriend and star of The Girls Next Door. A spontaneous decision at age twenty-one transformed small-town Oregon girl Holly Sue Cullen into Holly Madison, Hugh Hefner’s #1 girlfriend. But like Alice in Wonderland after she plunged down the rabbit hole, what seemed like a fairytale life inside the Playboy Mansion—including A-list celebrity parties and her own #1-rated television show—quickly devolved into an oppressive routine of strict rules, manipulation, and battles with ambitious, backstabbing bunnies. Losing her identity, her sense of self-worth, and her hope for the future, Holly found herself sitting alone in a bathtub contemplating suicide. But instead of ending her life, Holly chose to take charge of it. In this shockingly candid and surprisingly moving memoir, this thoughtful and introspective woman opens up about life inside the Mansion, the drugs, the sex and the infamous parties, as well as what her relationships with her Girls Next Door co-stars, Bridget and Kendra were really like. Holly talks candidly about a subsequent abusive relationship, her own successful television series, and the hard work of healing, including her turn on Dancing with the Stars. A cautionary tale and a celebration of personal empowerment, Down the Rabbit Hole reminds us of the importance of fighting for our dreams—and finding the life we deserve.
Single AF Cocktails: Drinks for Bad B*tches
By Ariana Madix. 2023
Celebrate reality television star and beloved bartender Ariana Madix&’s journey from heartbreak to empowerment with 60 high-drama cocktails that are…
as strong and inspiring as she is. When Ariana Madix famously discovered her partner was unfaithful, the incident—known as Scandoval—captivated audiences worldwide. She has now reclaimed her power, channeling her pain into a resounding statement of strength and resilience in Single AF Cocktails, a collection of alluring drinks that follow the trajectory of a relationship that starts beautifully but ends in disaster. The newly solo Ariana serves up her own recipes and perspective in a unique exploration of the stages of a doomed relationship. In her own words, Ariana takes back the narrative of her very public breakup while inspiring others to find inner strength in their own troubles. Each drink tells part of the story from her point of view, from when she first met her ex, through the insidious affair and its painful aftermath, and to her present state, coming out the other side, stronger than before. Cleverly categorized into relationship-inspired sections—Honeymoon Phase, Betrayal, Devastation, Resilience, and Ad Astra—Single AF Cocktails offers a range of boozy concoctions for whatever your mood, from when you feel like burning it all down to when it&’s time to rally your ride-or-die squad. You&’ll find recipes like Rumors, with dark crème de cassis that floats on top of the drink before bleeding into the spirits below, the way lies may find their way into your relationship, or We Ride at Dawn, a big, bold mezcal margarita that&’s equal parts power and healing. Full of stunning, powerful photography and never-before-told stories, Single AF Cocktails is a singular experience for the reader as they ride the rollercoaster of Ariana&’s story alongside her. Whether you&’re a longtime fan or a newcomer to Ariana&’s world, Single AF Cocktails promises a captivating and cathartic experience for all.
Unconditional: How a Mother's Love Rescued Her Rebellious Son
By Suzanne Roragen. 2023
In Unconditional, Suzanne Roragen shares her journey of parenting her rebellious teenage son—and how she fought to save him from…
self-destruction.How far should you go to stop your child from experiencing an epic failure? How do you find the resources and tools you need to get them back on track? As her husband&’s military career moved her family across the country and the world, Suzanne Roragen happily embraced her relationship with her child, infusing as much carefree fun and learning as possible into every experience. As her son&’s staunchest advocate and biggest cheerleader, she also provided a steadfast source of stability from one home to the next.But as Nick transitioned from his teen years to a young adult, the seemingly unbreakable bond they shared was tested to the breaking point. He slipped further into destructive behaviors, and further away from her. Suzanne was left reeling, struggling to maintain her good influence on her son—and on her sanity. Would Nick&’s rebellion destroy him? Or would it destroy her first?Ultimately, Suzanne acknowledged that as an imperfect parent raising an equally imperfect human, conflict with her child, and the subsequent heartbreak, were inevitable. But as she&’d learn, the journey teaches us not only about ourselves and our shortcomings but also about the Heavenly Father who loves His children unconditionally. Regardless of your current season of parenting—whether you&’ve had your share of turmoil and parenting failures or your child is approaching the teen years—Unconditional will give you hope and remind you that grace, forgiveness, and love can allow you to emerge stronger than ever on the other side of the struggle.
Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning
By Liz Cheney. 2023
A gripping first-hand account of the January 6th, 2021 insurrection from inside the halls of Congress, from origins to aftermath,…
as Donald Trump and his enablers betrayed the American people and the Constitution—by the House Republican leader who dared to stand up to it. In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, Donald Trump and many around him, including certain other elected Republican officials, intentionally breached their oath to the Constitution: they ignored the rulings of dozens of courts, plotted to overturn a lawful election, and provoked a violent attack on our Capitol. Liz Cheney, one of the few Republican officials to take a stand against these efforts, witnessed the attack first-hand, and then helped lead the Congressional Select Committee investigation into how it happened. In Oath and Honor, she tells the story of this perilous moment in our history, those who helped Trump spread the stolen election lie, those whose actions preserved our constitutional framework, and the risks we still face.
A Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist reveals the little-known story of the Union soldiers from Alabama who played a decisive role in…
the Civil War, and how they were scrubbed from the history books.&“It is my sincere hope that this compelling and submerged history is integrated into our understanding of our nation, and allows us to embrace new heroes of the past.&”—Imani Perry, professor, Harvard University, and National Book Award–winning author of South to AmericaWe all know how the Civil War was won: Courageous Yankees triumphed over the South. But is there more to the story?As Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Howell Raines shows, it was not only soldiers from northern states who helped General William Tecumseh Sherman burn Atlanta to the ground but also an unsung regiment of 2,066 Alabamian yeoman farmers—including at least one member of Raines&’s own family.Called the First Alabama Cavalry, U.S.A., this regiment of mountain Unionists, which included sixteen formerly enslaved Black men, was the point of the spear that Sherman drove through the heart of the Confederacy. The famed general hailed their skills and courage. So why don&’t we know anything about them?Silent Cavalry is part epic American history, part family saga, and part scholarly detective story. Drawing on the lore of his native Alabama and investigative skills honed by six decades in journalism, Raines brings to light a conspiracy that sought to undermine the accomplishments of these renegade southerners—a key component of the Lost Cause effort to restore glory to white southerners after the war, even at the cost of the truth.In this important new contribution to our understanding of the Civil War and its legacy, Raines tells the thrilling tale of the formation of the First Alabama while exposing the tangled web of how its wartime accomplishments were silenced, implicating everyone from a former Confederate general to a gaggle of Lost Cause historians in the Ivy League and a sanctimonious former keeper of the Alabama state archives. By reversing the erasure of the First Alabama, Silent Cavalry is a testament to the immense power of historians to destroy as well as to redeem.
Songs on Endless Repeat: Essays and Outtakes
By Anthony So. 2023
A Most Anticipated Book of 2023 from: LA Times * Boston Globe * The Millions * LitHub By the New York…
Times bestselling author of the award-winning AFTERPARTIES comes a collection like none other: sharply funny, emotionally expansive essays and linked short fiction exploring family, queer desire, pop culture, and race The late Anthony Veasna So’s debut story collection, Afterparties, was a landmark publication, hailed as a “bittersweet triumph for a fresh voice silenced too soon” (Fresh Air). And he was equally known for his comic, soulful essays, published in n+1, The New Yorker, and The Millions.Songs on Endless Repeat gathers those essays together, along with previously unpublished fiction. Written with razor-sharp wit and an unflinching eye, the essays examine his youth in California, the lives of his refugee parents, his intimate friendships, loss, pop culture, and more. And in linked fiction following three Cambodian American cousins who stand to inherit their late aunt’s illegitimate loan-sharking business, So explores community, grief, and longing with inimitable humor and depth.Following “one of the most exciting contributions to Asian American literature in recent years” (Vulture), Songs on Endless Repeat is an astonishing final expression by a writer of “extraordinary achievement and immense promise” (The New Yorker).
One Man's Meat
By E. White. 1944
The Pulitzer Prize–winning writer and author of Charlotte&’s Web documents his move from Manhattan to a saltwater farm in New…
England: &“Superb reading.&” —The New Yorker Called &“a mid-20th–century Thoreau&” by Notre Dame Magazine, E. B. White&’s desire to live a simple life caused him to sell half his worldly goods, give up his job writing the New Yorker&’s &“Notes and Comment&” editorial page, and move with his family to a saltwater farm in North Brooklin, Maine. There, White got into the nuts-and-bolts of rural life—not without a lot of self-reflection—and surrounded himself with barnyard characters, some of whom would later appear in Charlotte&’s Web.One Man&’s Meat is White&’s collection of pithy and unpretentious essays on such topics as living with hay fever (&“I understand so well the incomparable itch of eye and nose for which the only relief is to write to the President of the United States&”), World War II (&“I stayed on the barn, steadily laying shingles, all during the days when Mr. Chamberlain, M. Daladier, the Duce, and the Führer were arranging their horse trade&”), and even dog training (&“Being the owner of dachshunds, to me a book on dog discipline becomes a volume of inspired humor&”). Though first published in 1942, this book delivers timeless lessons on the value of living close to nature in our quest for self-discovery. With each subject broached and reflected upon, it &“becomes an ardent and sobering guidebook for those of us trying to live our day-to-day lives now&” (Pif magazine). &“The most succinct, graceful and witty of essayists.&” —San Francisco Examiner and Chronicle &“A lively record of an active inquiring mind.&” —Kirkus Reviews
When I Was Your Age is a hilarious, heartwarming and surprising ode to growing up, getting older and wiser, and luck,…
life, and learning from the school of hard knocks, from SNL's longest-serving actor, Kenan ThompsonKenan Thompson is Saturday Night Live’s longest-ever-serving cast member and a star of such pioneering sketches as “Black Jeopardy” and is hugely beloved thanks to a tidal wave of nostalgic fans who grew up on early 2000s classics All That, Good Burger, and Kenan & Kel on Nickelodeon.He’s also a dad (to two girls) in his mid-40s living in suburbia, and whose universal, relatable, family-friendly humor has created unbelievable appeal and engagement from fans from middle America to coastal elites. Becoming a dad sucked the cool right out of him -- and he's OK with that!When I Was Your Age is packed with hilarious yet poignant essays that are aimed to offer any reader valuable advice on parenting, focusing on positivity, and having fun in life. Kids, new parents, fellow fathers, budding comics, and aunties who want to pinch his cheeks, can all learn from his biggest mistakes and most triumphant victories. There’s something for everybody here!
The Boy Who Reached for the Stars El niño que alcanzó las estrellas
By Elio Morillo. 2023
El joven ingeniero conocido como “el mecánico del espacio” (@THESPACEMECHANIC) comparte su apasionante historia, desde su infancia en Ecuador hasta…
su trabajo en la misión Marte 2020 de la NASA.Elio Morillo tenía cuatro años cuando una serie de dificultades económicas y familiares obligaron a su madre a abandonar Ecuador con él. En Nueva York, y más tarde en Puerto Rico, gracias a los sacrificios y el apoyo incondicional de su mamá, Elio descubrió el poder transformador de la educación y el esfuerzo, así como de la amistad y la ayuda desinteresada de los desconocidos. Su determinación lo llevó a trabajar en el Laboratorio de Propulsión a Chorro de la NASA para la Misión Marte 2020, donde fue ingeniero de pruebas y operaciones de sistema para el rover Perseverance e Ingenuity, el helicóptero de Marte. El niño que alcanzó las estrellas es una muestra de que, si te lo propones, tú también puedes realizar tus sueños, así sean tan grandes como alcanzar las estrellas.---The young engineer known as "the space mechanic" (@THESPACEMECHANIC) shares his gripping story, from his childhood in Ecuador to his work on NASA's Mars 2020 mission.Elio Morillo was four years old when a series of economic and family difficulties forced his mother to leave Ecuador with him. In New York, and later in Puerto Rico, thanks to the sacrifices and unconditional support of his mother, Elio discovered the transformative power of education and effort, as well as friendship and the selfless help of strangers. His determination led him to work at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory for the Mars 2020 Mission, where he was a system tested and operations engineer for the Perseverance rover and Ingenuity, the Mars helicopter. The boy who reached for the stars is a proof that, if you set your mind to it, you too can make your dreams come true, even if they are as big as reaching for the stars.
Skid dogs
By Emelia Symington-Fedy. 2023
A raw and riveting coming-of-age story about the wild love of teenage friendships and the casual oppression of nineties rape…
culture. Emelia Symington-Fedy grew up with her girl gang on the railroad tracks of a small town in British Columbia. Unsupervised and wild, the girls explored the power and shortcomings of "best" friendships and their growing sexuality. Two decades later an eighteen-year-old girl is murdered on Halloween on the same tracks, and Symington-Fedy returns to her hometown to stay with her mother, who is fearful of a murderer at large. While the media narrows its focus on how the girl dared be alone on the tracks, Symington-Fedy slowly comes to terms with the mistreatment of her own teenage body. Giving a bold and often darkly humorous first-hand account of nineties rape culture and the sexual coercion that still permeates girlhood, Symington-Fedy holds her hometown close and accountable and exposes the subtle ways that misogyny shows up daily
Pull up a chair and gather in close with entrepreneur and content creator Kristin Johns as she shares her best-kept…
secrets: mouthwatering recipes, design inspiration, and ways we all can grow, celebrate, and find nourishment in every season of life. Kristin Johns long dreamed of putting together a book of favorite recipes, ideas for interiors, and reflections on faith, family, and love. Growing Seasons is a collection of stories, recipes, and inspiration that encourages us to step into each day with courage and authenticity, and to embrace every season of life. Just as each month has its own specific character, each season of life has its own unique challenges and opportunities, all with valuable life lessons to teach us. Walking through the calendar year from January to December, the book's twelve chapters feature: Kristin's favorite recipes like Christmas Morning Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls, CeCe's Famous Cajun Gumbo, a Sunny Citrus Kale Salad and, of course, Kristin's famous Chocolate Chunk Cookie recipe Creative projects such as Rustic Hand Dyed Linens, DIY Lavender Blue Tansy Skin Serum, and five easy tricks to minimize clutter and maximize coziness at home Fun ideas to entertain and connect with others through Summer Getaway Essentials and a guide to movie night at home complete with homemade pizza and caramel corn Whether you're looking for adventure or a chill night at home, Growing Seasons will meet you where you are and inspire where you are going
Sink: A memoir
By Joseph Thomas. 2023
"A brilliant and brilliantly different" (Kiese Laymon), wrenching and redemptive coming-of-age memoir about the difficulty of growing up in a…
hazardous home and the glory of finding salvation in geek culture. Stranded within an ever-shifting family's desperate but volatile attempts to love, saddled with a mercurial mother mired in crack addiction, and demeaned daily for his perceived weakness, Joseph Earl Thomas grew up feeling he was under constant threat. Roaches fell from the ceiling, colonizing bowls of noodles and cereal boxes. Fists and palms pounded down at school and at home, leaving welts that ached long after they disappeared. An inescapable hunger gnawed at his frequently empty stomach, and requests for food were often met with indifference if not open hostility. Deemed too unlike the other boys to ever gain the acceptance he so desperately desired, he began to escape into fantasy and virtual worlds, wells of happiness in a childhood assailed on all sides. In a series of exacting and fierce vignettes, Thomas guides readers through the unceasing cruelty that defined his circumstances, laying bare the depths of his loneliness and illuminating the vital reprieve geek culture offered him. With remarkable tenderness and devastating clarity, he explores how lessons of toxic masculinity were drilled into his body and the way the cycle of violence permeated the very fabric of his environment. Even in the depths of isolation, there were unexpected moments of joy carved out, from summers where he was freed from the injurious structures of his surroundings to the first glimpses of kinship he caught on his journey to becoming a Pokémon master. SINK follows Thomas's coming-of-age towards an understanding of what it means to lose the desire to fit in—with his immediate peers, turbulent family, or the world—and how good it feels to build community, love, and salvation on your own terms
We could have been friends, my father and i: A palestinian memoir
By Raja Shehadeh. 2023
2023 National Book Award Finalist for Nonfiction A subtle psychological portrait of the author's relationship with his father during the…
twentieth-century battle for Palestinian human rights Aziz Shehadeh was many things: lawyer, activist, and political detainee. He was also the father of bestselling author and activist Raja. In this searingly personal memoir, Raja Shehadeh unpicks the snags and complexities of their relationship. A vocal and fearless opponent, Aziz resists under the British mandatory period, then under Jordan, and, finally, under Israel. As a young man, Raja fails to recognize his father's courage, and in turn, his father does not appreciate Raja's own efforts in campaigning for Palestinian human rights. When Aziz is murdered in 1985, it changes Raja irrevocably. This is not only the story of the battle against the various oppressors of the Palestinians but also a moving portrait of a particular father and son relationship
My kitchen year: 136 recipes that saved my life
By Ruth Reichl. 2015
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER | NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Los Angeles Times • NPR…
• Men’s Journal • BookPage • Booklist • Publishers Weekly In the fall of 2009, the food world was rocked when Gourmet magazine was abruptly shuttered by its parent company. No one was more stunned by this unexpected turn of events than its beloved editor in chief, Ruth Reichl, who suddenly faced an uncertain professional future. As she struggled to process what had seemed unthinkable, Reichl turned to the one place that had always provided sanctuary. "I did what I always do when I’m confused, lonely, or frightened," she writes. "I disappeared into the kitchen." My Kitchen Year follows the change of seasons—and Reichl’s emotions—as she slowly heals through the simple pleasures of cooking. While working 24/7, Reichl would "throw quick meals together" for her family and friends. Now she has the time to rediscover what cooking meant to her. Imagine kale, leaves dark and inviting, sautéed with chiles and garlic; summer peaches baked into a simple cobbler; fresh oysters chilling in a box of snow; plump chickens and earthy mushrooms, fricasseed with cream. Over the course of this challenging year, each dish Reichl prepares becomes a kind of stepping stone to finding joy again in ordinary things. The 136 recipes collected here represent a life’s passion for food: a blistering ma po tofu that shakes Reichl out of the blues; a decadent grilled cheese sandwich that accompanies a rare sighting in the woods around her home; a rhubarb sundae that signals the arrival of spring. Here, too, is Reichl’s enlivening dialogue with her Twitter followers, who become her culinary supporters and lively confidants. Part cookbook, part memoir, part paean to the household gods, My Kitchen Year may be Ruth Reichl’s most stirring book yet—one that reveals a refreshingly vulnerable side of the world's most famous food editor as she shares treasured recipes to be returned to again and again and again. Praise for My Kitchen Year "Ruth is one of our greatest storytellers today, which you will feel from the moment you open this book and begin to read: No one writes as warmly and engagingly about the all-important intersection of food, life, love, and loss. This book is a lyrical and deeply intimate journey told through recipes, as only Ruth can do." —Alice Waters "What will send this book to the top of bestseller lists is the lovely way Reichl describes how dishes come together, like the Greek chicken soup with lemon and egg known as avgolemono, and her talent for assembling a collection of recipes her legions of former Gourmet fans will want to make themselves." — The Washington Post "The recipes make for lovely reading, full of Reichl’s elemental wisdom. . . . In the best way possible, My Kitchen Year is cozy, the reading equivalent of curling up next to a fire with a glass of red wine and perhaps the scent of bread in the oven wafting over." — Vogue "If anyone can convince us that a dessert, plus two more fabulous dishes, can turn a crummy day around, it’s culinary writer Ruth Reichl, who knows firsthand just how powerful food can be." — O: The Oprah Magazine "The voice is pure Reichl in a way that makes the reader yearn for a house
My hijacking: A personal history of forgetting and remembering
By Martha Hodes. 2023
In this moving and thought-provoking memoir, a historian offers a personal look at the fallibilities of memory and the lingering…
impact of trauma as she goes back fifty years to tell the story of being a passenger on an airliner hijacked in 1970. On September 6, 1970, twelve-year-old Martha Hodes and her thirteen-year-old sister were flying unaccompanied back to New York City from Israel when their plane was hijacked by members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and forced to land in the Jordan desert. Too young to understand the sheer gravity of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Martha coped by suppressing her fear and anxiety. Nearly a half-century later, her memories of those six days and nights as a hostage are hazy and scattered. Was it the passage of so much time, or that her family couldn't endure the full story, or had trauma made her repress such an intense life-and-death experience? A professional historian, Martha wanted to find out. Drawing on deep archival research, childhood memories, and conversations with relatives, friends, and fellow hostages, Martha Hodes sets out to re-create what happened to her, and what it was like for those at home desperately hoping for her return. Thrown together inside a stifling jetliner, the hostages forged friendships, provoked conflicts, and dreamed up distractions. Learning about the lives and causes of their captors—some of them kind, some frightening—the sisters pondered a deadly divide that continues today. A thrilling tale of fear, denial, and empathy, My Hijacking sheds light on the hostage crisis that shocked the world, as the author comes to a deeper understanding of both what happened in the Jordan desert in 1970 and her own fractured family and childhood sorrows
I am still with you: A reckoning with silence, inheritance, and history
By Emmanuel Iduma. 2023
"Powerful and transcendent" — Chigozie Obioma "Both epic and intimate" —Margo Jefferson A deeply moving, lyrical journey through the author's…
homeland of Nigeria, in search of the truth about his disappeared uncle and the history of a war that shaped him, his family, and a nation In inimitable, rhythmic prose, the author and winner of the prestigious Windham-Campbell Prize Emmanuel Iduma tells the story of his return to Nigeria, where he grew up, after years of living in New York. He traveled home with an elusive mission: to learn the fate of his uncle Emmanuel, his namesake, who disappeared in the Nigerian Civil War in the late 1960s. A conflict that left so many families broken, the war remains at the margins of the history books, almost taboo to discuss. To find answers, Iduma stopped in city after city throughout the former Biafra region, reconnecting with relatives dear and distant to probe their memories, prowling university libraries to furtively photocopy illicit books, and visiting half-abandoned monuments along the highway. Perhaps, he realized, if he could understand how his father grieved the loss of a brother in the war, he might learn how to grieve his late father in turn. His is also the story of countless families across the country and across the world who will never have answers or proper funerals for their loved ones. It's a story about the birth of an artist, about writing itself as an act both healing and political, even dangerous. And it's a story about family history and legacy, and all the questions the dead leave unanswered. How much of the author's identity is wrapped up in this inheritance? And what does it mean to return home, when the people who define it are gone? Equal parts memoir, national history, and political reckoning, I Am Still With You is a profoundly personal story of collective loss and making peace with the unknowable