| I'm laughing because I'm crying : a memoir / by Youngmi Mayer. |
 Comedian Youngmi Mayer recounts her childhood and adolescence as an offbeat biracial kid in Saipan. With humor and irreverence, she shares difficult moments in her past, including her family's struggles during the last century of colonialism, her mother's marriage to a man who looked like "white Jesus," and her current life as a single mom in New York City. By joking through her own story, she hopes to pass on her family's gift to her: the gift of laughing while crying, which Mayer's mother always said would make "hair grow out of your butthole." |
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| Damn glad to meet you : my seven decades in the Hollywood trenches / Tim Matheson. |
 "If you know Tim Matheson, odds are it's as Eric "Otter" Stratten, known for the iconic line "Damn glad to meet you" in Animal House-the National Lampoon's iconic, endlessly imitated raunch comedy that imprinted at least three generations with all kinds of terrible ideas of what college was going to be like. But that's not the only time Matheson has graced our screens-in fact, FAR from it. A longtime pro actor in Hollywood, Matheson was a contract player in the studio system. He's been an on-screen favorite all the way back to Leave It to Beaver, then on classic TV like Hawaii 5.0, The West Wing, Ironside, Kung Fu, Medical Center, Police Story, Adam 12, and Night Gallery, as well as films like Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry vehicle Magnum Force, National Lampoon's Van Wilder, the Chevy Chase comedy smash Fletch, and the role of Carol Brady's "presumed-dead" husband in A Very Brady Sequel. What's more, he's far from slowing down in his career; he's enjoying a fifth season as Vernon "Doc" Mullins on the Netflix smash hit, Virgin River. He's old school Hollywood and, at some point or another, he's crossed paths and collaborated with, quite literally, everyone. In this memoir, Matheson reveals what it was like to learn from and work alongside everyone from Lucille Ball, Bob Hope, Dick Van Dyke, and Debbie Reynolds to Chevy Chase, Mel Brooks, John Belushi, Steve Martin, John Candy, Chris Farley, Ryan Reynolds, and so many more. In addition to sharing his favorite stories from behind-the-scenes of his most iconic projects, he also talks about how he transitioned from acting to directing, the time he bought (and then sold) National Lampoon with a business partner in the '90s, and how his recurring role as Vice President Hoynes on The West Wing nabbed him not just one, but TWO nominations for "Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series" at the Primetime Emmy Awards. Thoughtful, heartfelt, and filled to the brim with fun stories of the ever-changing entertainment industry, you're gonna be "damn glad" you read this fascinating memoir"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Legends and soles : the memoir of an American original / Sonny Vaccaro with Armen Keteyian. |
 The memoir from the "Savior of Nike" provides context to media stories including the courting and signing of Michael Jordan, being investigated by the Portland FBI for corporate espionage, close relationships with NBA superstars and Hall of Fame coaches, and the high-stakes drama behind the O'Bannon lawsuit that changed the landscape of college sports. |
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| Becoming spectacular : the rhythm of resilience from the first African American Rockette / Jennifer Jones with Latoya Smith. |
 In 1987, the 63-year color barrier at Radio City was finally broken by one brave and tenacious woman. When she arrived, Jennifer Jones was met with a fierce resistance that she details in this memoir. |
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| This part is silent : a life between cultures / SJ Kim. |
 Born in Korea, raised in the American South, and trying her best to survive British academia, SJ Kim probes her experiences as a writer, a scholar, and a daughter to confront the silences she finds in the world. With curiosity and sensitivity, she writes letters to the institutions that simultaneously support and fail her, intimate accounts of immigration, and interrogations of rising anti-Black and anti-Asian racism. She considers the silences between generations--especially within the Asian diaspora in the West--as she finds her way back to her own family during the pandemic lockdown. Embracing the possibilities and impossibilities of language, Kim rejoices in the similes of Korean, her mother tongue, and draws inspiration from K-dramas and writers across cultures who sustain her. As borders close in and nations enter lockdown, the journey that Kim traces is fraught--and at once illuminates that the act of remaining present has its own power, allowing boundless hope. -- Provided by publisher. |
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| Daughter of daring : the trick-riding, train-leaping, road-racing life of Helen Gibson, Hollywood's first stuntwoman / Mallory O'Meara. |
 A biography of stunt performer Helen Gibson, known as "the most daring actress in pictures" during the Golden Age of Hollywood. |
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| Scam goddess : lessons from a life of cons, grifts, and schemes / Laci Mosley. |
 "From an early age, comedian and actress Laci Mosley knew her path would be riddled with scams, cons, robberies, and frauds. Little ones. Ones that didn't hurt people or get her in trouble. But ones that would get her where she needed to be. "You see," she writes, "everyone's a scammer and everything's a scam. Some people are better at it than others, but we all do it. The system wasn't built for people like me. Scamming saved me and has taught me how to navigate a messy and unfair world while looking out for myself, too." In Scam Goddess, Laci recounts how her scammer instincts have guided her throughout her life--from a religious childhood in rural Texas, to a stint as a city bartender at what might have been a drug front, to swindling her way past the gatekeepers of Hollywood--recounting the greatest true-crime scam stories that inspired her along the way. Whether it's by the beauty industry, capitalism, or the people we date, we're all getting scammed. In this book, Laci identifies the secrets to flipping the script and coming out ahead"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The most human : reconciling with my father, Leonard Nimoy / Adam Nimoy. |
 "Living with Dad was like living with a stranger--as a kid I often had trouble connecting and relating to him. But I was always proud of him. Even before Star Trek I'd see him popping up in bit roles on some of my favorite TV shows like Get Smart, Sea Hunt, and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. And then one night he brought home Polaroids of himself in makeup and wardrobe for a pilot he was working on. It was December 1964 and nobody had heard of Star Trek. Still, the eight-year-old me had watched enough Outer Limits and My Favorite Martian to understand exactly what I was looking at. Spock's popularity happened quickly, and soon the fan magazines were writing about dad's personal life, characterizing us as a "close family." But the awkwardness that defined our early relationship blossomed into conflict, sometimes smoldering, sometimes open and intense. There were occasional flashes of warmth between the arguments and hurt feelings--even something akin to love--especially when we were celebrating my father's many successes. The rest of the time, things between us were often strained. My resentment towards my father kept building through the years. I wasn't blameless, I know that now, but my bitterness blinded me to any thought of my own contribution to the problem. I wanted things to be different for my children. I wanted to be the father I never had, so I coached Maddy's soccer, drove Jonah to music lessons, helped them with their homework--all the things dads are supposed to do. All the things I wanted to do. So what if my Dad and I had been estranged for years? I was living one day at a time. And then I got his letter. That marked a turning point in our lives, a moment that cleared the way for a new relationship between us."-- Provided by publisher. |
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| A matter of complexion : the life and fictions of Charles W. Chesnutt / Tess Chakkalakal. |
 "A biography of Charles Chesnutt, one of the first Black authors to write for both Black and white readers. In A Matter of Complexion, Tess Chakkalakal gives readers the first comprehensive biography of Charles W. Chesnutt. A complex and talented man, Chesnutt was born in 1858 in Cleveland to parents who were considered "mixed race." He spent his early life in North Carolina after the Civil War. Though light-skinned, Chesnutt remained a member of the black community throughout his life. He studied among students at the State Colored Normal School who were formerly enslaved. He became a teacher in rural North Carolina during Reconstruction. His life in the South of those years, the issue of race, and how he himself identified as Black informed much of his later writing. He went on to become the first Black writer whose stories appeared in The Atlantic Monthly and whose books were published by Houghton Mifflin. Through his literary work, as a writer, critic, and speaker, Chesnutt transformed the publishing world by crossing racial barriers that divided black writers from white and seamlessly including both Black and white characters in his writing. In A Matter of Complexion Chakkalakal pens the biography of a poor teacher raised in rural North Carolina during Reconstruction who became the first professional African American writer to break into the all-white literary establishment and win admirers as diverse as William Dean Howells, Booker T. Washington, Ida B. Wells, and Lorraine Hansberry"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Hope : the autobiography / Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope Francis ; with Carlo Musso ; translated from the Italian by Richard Dixon. |
 "Hope is the first autobiography in history ever to be published by a Pope. Written over six years, this complete autobiography starts in the early years of the twentieth century, with Pope Francis's Italian roots and his ancestors' courageous migration to Latin America, continuing through his childhood, the enthusiasms and preoccupations of his youth, his vocation, adult life, and the whole of his papacy up to the present day"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Squanto : a native odyssey / Andrew Lipman. |
 "Taken to Europe as a slave, he found his way home and changed the course of American history. American schoolchildren have long learned about Squanto, the welcoming Native who made the First Thanksgiving possible, but his story goes deeper than the holiday legend. Born in the Wampanoag-speaking town of Patuxet in the late 1500s, Squanto was kidnapped in 1614 by an English captain, who took him to Spain. From there, Englishmen brought him to London and Newfoundland before sending him home in 1619, when Squanto discovered that most of Patuxet had died in an epidemic. A year later, the Mayflower colonists arrived at his home and renamed it Plymouth. Prize-winning historian Andrew Lipman explores the mysteries that still surround Squanto: How did he escape bondage and return home? Why did he help the English after an Englishman enslaved him? Why did he threaten Plymouth's fragile peace with its neighbors? Was it true that he converted to Christianity on his deathbed? Drawing from a wide range of evidence and newly uncovered sources, Lipman reconstructs Squanto's upbringing, his transatlantic odyssey, his career as an interpreter, his surprising downfall, and his enigmatic death. The result is a fresh look at an epic life that ended right when many Americans think their story begins."--Publisher's website. |
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| Roman year : a memoir / André Aciman. |
 "A memoir of the author's time in Rome after his family was made to leave Egypt, before moving to America"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Nick Drake : the life / Richard Morton Jack. |
 "In 1968, Nick Drake had everything to live for. The product of a loving, creative family and a privileged background, he was not only a handsome and popular Cambridge undergraduate, but also a new signing to the UK's hippest record label, Island. Three years later, however--having made three well reviewed but low-selling albums--Nick had been overwhelmed by a mysterious mental illness. He returned to live in his family home in rural Warwickshire in 1971, and died in obscurity in 1974, aged just 26. In the decades since, Nick has become the subject of ever-growing fascination and speculation. Combined sales of his records now stand in the millions, his songs are frequently heard on TV and in films, and he has become one of the most widely known and admired singer-songwriters of his generation. Nick Drake: The Life is the only biography of Nick to be written with the blessing and involvement of his sister and estate. Drawing on copious original research and new interviews with his family, friends, and musical collaborators, as well as deeply personal archive material unavailable to previous writers--including his father's diaries, his essays, and private correspondence--this is the most comprehensive and authoritative account possible of Nick's short and enigmatic life."--Publisher. |
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| Spinoza : freedom's messiah / Ian Buruma. |
 "Baruch (Benedictus) Spinoza (1632-1677) was a radical free thinker who led a life guided by strong moral principles despite his disbelief in an all-seeing God. Seen by many--Christians as well as Jews--as Satan's disciple during his lifetime, Spinoza has been regarded as a secular saint since his death. Many contradictory beliefs have been attached to his name: rationalism or metaphysics, atheism or pantheism, liberalism or despotism, Jewishness or anti-Semitism. However, there is no question that he viewed freedom of thought and speech as essential to an open and free society. In this insightful account, the award-winning author Ian Buruma stresses the importance of the time and place that shaped Spinoza, beginning with the Sephardim of Amsterdam and followed by the politics of the Dutch Republic. Though Spinoza rejected the basic assumptions of his family's faith, and was consequently expelled from his Sephardic community, Buruma argues that Spinoza did indeed lead a Jewish life: a modern Jewish life. To Heine, Hess, Marx, Freud, and no doubt many others today, Spinoza exemplified how to be Jewish without believing in Judaism. His defense of universal freedom is as important for our own time as it was in his."-- Publisher's description. |
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| I'll have what she's having / Chelsea Handler. |
 "At ten years old, Chelsea opened a lemonade stand and realized she'd make more money if the drinks were spiked. So she added vodka to her recipe and used her earnings to upgrade herself to first-class on a family vacation-leaving her parents and siblings in coach. At nineteen, she moved to Los Angeles and got fired from her temp job when she admitted she didn't know how to transfer calls. She played pickleball with the scions of an American dynasty. She sexted a governor. She shared psychedelics with strangers in Spain. When she accidentally ended up at dinner with Woody Allen, she decided she wouldn't leave the table without asking him a very pointed personal question. She went on national television and talked about having threesomes. Chelsea Handler has never been one to hold back. But this life of adventure and absurdity is only part of her story. Chelsea's truest calling is showing up for her family-canine and human, biological and chosen. She's come to embrace spending time with herself, meditating, remaining open to love, and ending relationships with grace when that's what's called for. She is a sister to the many women who rely on her"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Alligator tears : a memoir in essays / Edgar Gomez. |
 "In Florida, one of the first things you're taught as a child is that if you're ever chased by a wild alligator, the only way to save yourself is to run away in zigzags. It's a lesson on survival that has guided much of Edgar Gomez's life. Like the night his mother had a stroke while he and his brother stood frozen at the foot of her bed, afraid she'd be angry if they called for an ambulance they couldn't afford. Gomez escaped into his mind, where he could tell himself nothing was wrong with his family. Zig. Or years later, as a broke college student, he got on his knees to put sandals on tourists' smelly, swollen feet for minimum wage at the Flip Flop Shop. After clocking out, his crew of working-class, queer, Latinx friends changed out of their uniforms in the passenger seats of each other's cars, speeding toward the relief they found at Pulse nightclub in Orlando. Zag. From committing a little bankruptcy fraud for the money for veneers to those days he paid his phone bill by giving massages to closeted men on vacation, back when he and his friends would Venmo each other the same emergency twenty dollars over and over. Zig. Zag. Gomez survived this way as long as his legs would carry him. Alligator Tears is a fiercely defiant memoir-in-essays charting Gomez's quest to claw his family out of poverty by any means necessary and exposing the archetype of the humble poor person for what it is: a scam that insists we remain quiet and servile while we wait for a prize that will always be out of reach. For those chasing the American Dream and those jaded by it, Gomez's unforgettable story is a testament to finding love, purpose, and community on your own terms, smiling with all your fake teeth."-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Little avalanches : a memoir / Becky Ellis. |
 As a young girl, Becky is forced to hide from phantom Nazis, subjected to dental procedures without pain medication, and torn from her mother again and again. Growing up in the shadow of her father's PTSD, she wants to know what is wrong but knows not to ask. Her father won't talk about being a Timberwolf, a unit of specially trained night fighters that went into combat first and experienced a 300 percent casualty rate. He returns home with thirteen medals, including a silver star, and becomes a doctor and well-respected member of the community, but is haunted by his past. Seeing only his explosive and often dangerous personality, Becky distances herself from the man she wants to love. Yet on the eve of his nintieth birthday, when Becky looks at the vulnerable man he's become, something shifts and she asks about the war. He breaks seventy years of silence, offering an unfiltered account of war without glory and revealing the extent of the trauma he's endured.She spends the next several years interviewing, researching, and ultimately understanding the demons she inherited. Because his story is incomplete without hers, and hers is inconceivable without his, Ellis offers both, as well as their year-long aching conversation marked by moments of redeeming grace. With compassionate, unflinching writing, Little Avalanches reminds us that we are profoundly shaped by the secrets we keep and forever changed by the stories we share. |
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| On Gold Hill : a personal history of wheat, farming, and family, from Punjab to California / Jaclyn Moyer. |
 "A young South Asian American woman's story of reconnecting with her identity, family, and heritage through sustainable farming"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The last Tsar : the abdication of Nicholas II and the fall of the Romanovs / Tsuyoshi Hasegawa. |
 "When Tsar Nicholas II fell from power in 1917, Imperial Russia faced a series of overlapping crises, from war to social unrest. Though Nicholas's life is often described as tragic, it was not fate that doomed the Romanovs--it was poor leadership and a blinkered faith in autocracy. Based on a trove of new archival discoveries, The Last Tsar narrates how Nicholas's resistance to reform doomed the monarchy. Encompassing the captivating personalities of the era--the bumbling Nicholas, his spiteful wife Alexandra, the family's faith healer Rasputin--it untangles the dramatic struggle by Russia's aristocratic, military, and legislative elite to reform the monarchy. By rejecting compromise, Nicholas undermined his supporters at crucial moments. His blunders cleared the way for all-out civil war and the eventual rise of the Soviet Union. Definitive and engrossing, The Last Tsar uncovers how Nicholas II stumbled into revolution, taking his family, the Romanov dynasty, and the whole Russian Empire down with him"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The harder I fight the more I love you : a memoir / Neko Case. |
 "Neko Case has long been revered as one of music's most influential artists, whose authenticity, lyrical storytelling, and sly wit have endeared her to a legion of critics, musicians, and lifelong fans. In The Harder I Fight The More I Love You, Case brings her trademark candor and precision to a memoir that traces her evolution from an invisible girl "raised by two dogs and a space heater" in rural Washington state to her improbable emergence as an internationally-acclaimed talent. In luminous, sharp-edged prose, Case shows readers what it's like to be left alone for hours and hours as a child, to take refuge in the woods around her home, and to channel the monotony and loneliness and joy that comes from music, camaraderie, and shared experience into art. The Harder I Fight The More I Love You is a rebellious meditation on identity and corruption, and a manifesto on how to make space for ourselves in this world, despite the obstacles we face"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The real James Herriot : a memoir of my father / Jim Wight. |
 A portrait of the best-selling author of "All Creatures Great and Small" by his son describes the life and times of the beloved Yorkshire veterinarian, describing his devotion to his family, his work as a rural vet, and his writing. |
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| Written in the waters : a memoir of history, home, and belonging / Tara Roberts. |
 When Tara Roberts first caught sight of a photograph at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History depicting the scuba and underwater archaeology group Diving With a Purpose, it called out to her. Here were Black women and men strapping on masks, fins, and tanks to explore Atlantic Ocean waters along the coastlines of Africa, North America, and Central America, seeking the wrecks of slave ships long lost in time. Inspired, Roberts joined them--and started on a path of discovery more challenging and personal than she could ever have imagined. In this lush and lyrical memoir, she tells a story of exploration and reckoning that takes her from her home in Washington, D.C., to an exotic array of locales: Thailand and Sri Lanka, Mozambique, South Africa, Senegal, Benin, Costa Rica, and St. Croix. The journey connects her with other divers, scholars, and archaeologists, offering a unique way of understanding the 12.5 million souls carried away from their African homeland to enslavement on other continents. But for Roberts, the journey is also intensely personal. Inspired by the descendants of those who lost their lives during the Middle Passage, she decides to plumb her own family history and life as a Black woman to help make sense of her own identity. |
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| Fearless and free : a memoir / Josephine Baker ; translated from the French by Anam Zafar and Sophie Lewis ; foreword by Ijeoma Oluo ; [introduction by Marcel Sauvage ; afterword by Jean-Claude Bouillon-Baker]. |
 "Published in English for the first time, this is the memoir of the fabulous, rule-breaking, one-of-a-kind Josephine Baker"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Reading the waves : a memoir / Lidia Yuknavitch. |
 "The frank and revealing memoir of a writer who draws from her own creativity to heal"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Who I always was : a memoir / Theresa Okokon. |
 "When Theresa Okokon was nine, her father traveled to his hometown in Nigeria to attend his mother's funeral...and never returned. His mysterious death shattered Theresa as her family's world unraveled. Now a storyteller and television cohost, Okokon sets out to explore the ripple effects of that profound loss and the way heartache shapes our sense of self and of the world--for the rest of our lives. Using her grief and her father's death as a backdrop, Okokon delves deeply into intrinsic themes of Blackness, African spirituality, family, abandonment, belonging, and the seemingly endless, unrequited romantic pursuits of a Black woman who came of age as a Black girl in Wisconsin suburbs where she was--in many ways--always an anomaly."-- Publisher description. |
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| The loves of my life : a sex memoir / Edmund White. |
 Edmund White write about his sexual experiences of over seventy years of being unabashedly gay and in love with love in all its forms -- adapted from publisher. |
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| The woman who knew everyone : the power of Perle Mesta, Washington's most famous hostess / Meryl Gordon. |
 "Perle Mesta was a force to be reckoned with. In her heyday - the 1940's, 50's and 60's - this extremely wealthy globe-trotting Washington widow was one of the most famous women in America, garnering as much media attention as Eleanor Roosevelt. Renowned for her world-class parties featuring politicians and celebrities, she was very close to three presidents - Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower and Lyndon Johnson. After Truman named her as the first female envoy to Luxembourg, Irving Berlin wrote an entire hit musical based on Perle's life - "Call Me Madam" - which starred Ethel Merman, ran on Broadway for two years and later became a movie. Dubbed by Berlin as the "hostess with the mostess'," Perle inherited serious money (Texas oil) and married even more money (a Pittsburgh steel magnate). She had a rollicking life outside of Washington, befriending such Broadway legends as Merman, Angela Lansbury and Pearl Bailey. She also had a serious side. A pioneering supporter of the Equal Rights Amendment dating to the 1930's and influential champion for working women, she was a prodigious Democratic fundraiser and rescued Harry Truman's financially flailing 1948 campaign. In this intensely researched biography, author Meryl Gordon chronicles Perle's lavish life and society adventures in Newport, Manhattan and Washington while highlighting her important, but nearly forgotten contribution to American politics and the feminist movement"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Lorne : the man who invented Saturday Night Live / by Susan Morrison. |
 "Ever since its debut in the fall of 1975, Saturday Night Live's impact on the culture has been lasting and profound. It has been a breeding ground for our brightest comedy stars, launching the careers of John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, Eddie Murphy, Adam Sandler, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Pete Davidson, and many many more. Its iconic sketches--from Wayne's World to Weekend Update to Coneheads to the Californians to of course, More Cowbell--have dominated water cooler talk for five decades, and its catchphrases, from "we're not worthy!" to ""Daaaaa Beeeears" are embedded in the public lexicon. And at the center of it all, from the moment of its inception to the present day, is one man: producer Lorne Michaels. Over his 50 years running the show, Lorne Michaels has become a revered, inimitable and bewildering presence in the world of entertainment. He's a mogul, a kingmaker, a tastemaker, a grudge-holder, a mensch, a workaholic, a genius spotter of talent, a ruthless businessman, a name dropper, an obsessive step counter, the inspiration for Dr. Evil, a winner of 90 Emmys--and a mystery. Generations of writers, actors, and stars have spent their lives trying to figure him out. He's "Obi wan Kenobi" (Tracey Morgan), the "Great and Powerful Oz" (Kate McKinnon), the Godfather (Will Forte), or "some kind of very distant, strange Comedy God" (Bob Odenkirk). Lorne will introduce you to him, in full, for the first time. With unprecedented access to Michaels (who has spent his career mostly avoiding reporters) and the entire SNL apparatus, The New Yorker's Susan Morrison takes you behind the curtain for the rollicking, definitive story of how Lorne created the institution that would change comedy forever. Lorne features hundreds of interviews with Michaels, conducted over several years; his close friends (such as Paul Simon, Paul McCartney, and Steve Martin); and the candid, hilarious stars of the show, including Chris Rock, Amy Poehler, Jason Sudeikis, Bill Hader, Buck Henry, Chevy Chase, and more. Nearly a decade in the making, Lorne is an intimate, deeply reported, and wildly entertaining account of a man singularly obsessed with the show that would define his life--and change American culture"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| On James Baldwin / Colm Tóibín. |
 "Colm Tóibín's personal account of encountering James Baldwin's work, published in Baldwin's centenary year. Acclaimed Irish novelist Colm Tóibín first read James Baldwin just after turning eighteen. He had completed his first year at an Irish university and was struggling to free himself from a religious upbringing. He had even considered entering a seminary and was searching for literature that would offer illumination and insight. Inspired by the novel Go Tell It on the Mountain, Tóibín found a writer who would be a lifelong companion and exemplar. From On James Baldwin, Baldwin was interested in the hidden and dramatic areas in his own being, and was prepared as a writer to explore difficult truths about his own private life. In his fiction, he had to battle for the right of his protagonists to choose or influence their destinies. He knew about guilt and rage and bitter privacies in a way that few of his White novelist contemporaries did. And this was not simply because he was Black and homosexual; the difference arose from the very nature of his talent, from the texture of his sensibility. "All art," he wrote, "is a kind of confession, more or less oblique. All artists, if they are to survive, are forced, at last, to tell the whole story, to vomit the anguish up."On James Baldwin is a magnificent contemporary author's tribute to one of his most consequential literary progenitors"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| This changes everything : a surprisingly funny story about race, cancer, faith, and other things we don't talk about / Tyler Merritt ; with David Tieche. |
 "When Tyler Merritt was diagnosed with cancer, everything he thought he knew about what mattered in life changed. Though he made it through a highly invasive surgery and thought he was in the clear, Tyler soon realized that the cancer had other plans. It wasn't a question of if the tumor would come back for an encore, his doctors told him. It was a question of when. The clock was ticking. This Changes Everything is a humorous and optimistic love letter to this beautiful life. As Tyler counts down the days until his next scan, he begins to understand that none of us have time for anger, for being unforgiving, for foolishness, for letting relationships drift, or for letting friendships to be lost. It's a clear-eyed reckoning with the reality that our time on this earth is limited and a hopeful vision of how each of us can make the most of the time we have left. Laced with Tyler's trademark humor, love of pop culture, and arguably too many musical theater references, This Changes Everything is a story about how wrestling with the idea of death can birth a whole new outlook on life, how we live it, and the urgency that comes when you grasp that time is a precious commodity"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Source code : my beginnings / Bill Gates. |
 The software giant explores his personal journey, recounting his early influences, friendships, family and first steps in computing that paved the way for his revolutionary career and later philanthropic focus, offering an intimate look at the experiences that shaped him. -- Provided by publisher. |
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| In Gad we trust : a tell-some / Josh Gad. |
 "A heartfelt and hilarious collection of essays from the comedian and entertainer known for voicing Olaf in the ... Disney franchise of Frozen, and for his award-winning turn as Elder Cunningham in [Broadway's] The Book of Mormon"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The first and last king of Haiti : the rise and fall of Henry Christophe / Marlene L. Daut. |
 "The essential biography of the controversial rebel, traitor, and only king of Haiti. Henry Christophe (1767 - 1820) is one of the most richly complex figures in the history of the Americas, and was, in his time, popular and famous the world over: in The First and Last King of Haiti, a brilliant young Yale scholar unravels the still controversial enigma that he was"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Hope : the autobiography / Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Pope Francis ; with Carlo Musso ; translated from the Italian by Richard Dixon. |
| "Hope is the first autobiography in history ever to be published by a Pope. Written over six years, this complete autobiography starts in the early years of the twentieth century, with Pope Francis's Italian roots and his ancestors' courageous migration to Latin America, continuing through his childhood, the enthusiasms and preoccupations of his youth, his vocation, adult life, and the whole of his papacy up to the present day"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Memorial days : a memoir / Geraldine Brooks. |
 "It was Memorial Day, 2019, when Geraldine Brooks received news that her husband, Tony Horwitz, had collapsed and died, far from home, in the middle of his own book tour. The complex tasks required in the face of such a sudden death left her no time to properly grieve for him. Three years later, still feeling broken and bereft, she booked a flight to a remote island off the coast of Tasmania. Alone on a rugged stretch of coast, she revisited a thirty-five-year marriage filled with risk, adventure, humor, and love. There, she pondered the ways other cultures deal with mourning and finally seized the time and space she needed for her own grief"--Inside jacket flap. |
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| Magical thinking / Augusten Burroughs. |
 A collection of personal writings features observations on such topics as a contest of wills with a deranged cleaning lady, the emotional side of killing a rodent in one's home, and th4e brief fame that accompanies starring in a commercial. |
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| Memorial days : a memoir / Geraldine Brooks. |
| "It was Memorial Day, 2019, when Geraldine Brooks received news that her husband, Tony Horwitz, had collapsed and died, far from home, in the middle of his own book tour. The complex tasks required in the face of such a sudden death left her no time to properly grieve for him. Three years later, still feeling broken and bereft, she booked a flight to a remote island off the coast of Tasmania. Alone on a rugged stretch of coast, she revisited a thirty-five-year marriage filled with risk, adventure, humor, and love. There, she pondered the ways other cultures deal with mourning and finally seized the time and space she needed for her own grief"--Inside jacket flap. |
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| Source code : my beginnings / Bill Gates. |
| The software giant explores his personal journey, recounting his early influences, friendships, family and first steps in computing that paved the way for his revolutionary career and later philanthropic focus, offering an intimate look at the experiences that shaped him. -- Provided by publisher. |
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| Fearless and free : a memoir / Josephine Baker ; translated from the French by Anam Zafar and Sophie Lewis ; foreword by Ijeoma Oluo ; [introduction by Marcel Sauvage ; afterword by Jean-Claude Bouillon-Baker]. |
| "Published in English for the first time, this is the memoir of the fabulous, rule-breaking, one-of-a-kind Josephine Baker"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| She blooms : finding home after the convent : a memoir / Maura Doherty. |
 "This is a memoir about leaving family and old beliefs behind while finding new ways to grow and contribute to society. It will resonate with anyone curious about convent life or who struggles with a crisis of faith or faces major life decisions. It will appeal to anyone whose stress levels threatens to undermine their health. Maura's story heralds the saving grace of friendship, love, and the pivotal role mentors play in helping us build a meaningful life. Her story is a testament to the belief that it is never too late to "bloom""-- Provided by publisher. |
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| How to share an egg : a true story of hunger, love, and plenty / Bonny Reichert. |
 Bonny Reichert avoided engaging with her family's Holocaust history until, in midlife, she unexpectedly confronted it while writing an article. Her father's survival in Auschwitz-Birkenau was a backdrop to her upbringing, but a transformative experience in Warsaw--a perfect bowl of borscht--sparked a journey to explore her culinary roots. This journey intertwined with her personal life, from her childhood in the restaurant business to the challenges of marriage, motherhood, and her eventual path to becoming a chef. In her memoir How to Share an Egg, Reichert reflects on pivotal life moments through the lens of food. From her baba Sarah's knishes to her father's comforting scrambled eggs, cuisine serves as a symbol of joy, survival, and identity. The book blends poignant stories of scarcity and abundance with her quest for self-discovery, exploring how her personal experiences connect to her family's legacy. It's a moving meditation on heritage, resilience, and the role of food in shaping identity. |
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| Brooke Shields is not allowed to get old : thoughts on aging as a woman / Brooke Shields with Rachel Bertsche. |
 "From Brooke Shields, the icon who has inspired generations of women, comes a thoughtful, intimate, and candid exploration of the humility and power of aging"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The inherited mind : a story of family, hope, and the genetics of mental illness / James Longman. |
 James Longman was a preteen in boarding school when his dad, who was diagnosed with depression and schizophrenia, died by suicide. As he got older, James's own bouts of depression spurred him to examine how his father's mental health might have affected his own. He engaged with experts to uncover the science behind what is inherited, how much environmental factors can impact genetic traits, and how one can overcome a familial history of mental illness and trauma. |
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| Scam goddess : lessons from a life of cons, grifts, and schemes / Laci Mosley. |
| "From an early age, comedian and actress Laci Mosley knew her path would be riddled with scams, cons, robberies, and frauds. Little ones. Ones that didn't hurt people or get her in trouble. But ones that would get her where she needed to be. "You see," she writes, "everyone's a scammer and everything's a scam. Some people are better at it than others, but we all do it. The system wasn't built for people like me. Scamming saved me and has taught me how to navigate a messy and unfair world while looking out for myself, too." In Scam Goddess, Laci recounts how her scammer instincts have guided her throughout her life--from a religious childhood in rural Texas, to a stint as a city bartender at what might have been a drug front, to swindling her way past the gatekeepers of Hollywood--recounting the greatest true-crime scam stories that inspired her along the way. Whether it's by the beauty industry, capitalism, or the people we date, we're all getting scammed. In this book, Laci identifies the secrets to flipping the script and coming out ahead"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The loves of my life : a sex memoir / Edmund White. |
| Edmund White write about his sexual experiences of over seventy years of being unabashedly gay and in love with love in all its forms -- adapted from publisher. |
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| The harder I fight the more I love you : a memoir / Neko Case. |
| "Neko Case has long been revered as one of music's most influential artists, whose authenticity, lyrical storytelling, and sly wit have endeared her to a legion of critics, musicians, and lifelong fans. In The Harder I Fight The More I Love You, Case brings her trademark candor and precision to a memoir that traces her evolution from an invisible girl "raised by two dogs and a space heater" in rural Washington state to her improbable emergence as an internationally-acclaimed talent. In luminous, sharp-edged prose, Case shows readers what it's like to be left alone for hours and hours as a child, to take refuge in the woods around her home, and to channel the monotony and loneliness and joy that comes from music, camaraderie, and shared experience into art. The Harder I Fight The More I Love You is a rebellious meditation on identity and corruption, and a manifesto on how to make space for ourselves in this world, despite the obstacles we face"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The survivor : how I made it through six concentration camps and became a Nazi hunter / Josek Lewkowicz with Michael Calvin. |
 "When Nazi forces entered Krakâow, Poland, in 1939, unexpected and unresisted, Josef Lewkowicz's life became a nightmare overnight ashe and his family were rounded up and sent to concentration camps across German-occupied territory. It wasn't long before Josef found himself face-to-face with SS kommandant Amon Goeth, whose brutality was made infamous by the film Schindler's List. As Josef struggled tosurvive the violence, horror, and degradations of one prison camp after another--his journey eventually spanning continents and taking him to the limits of human endurance--he was kept alive only by his faith and his profound sense of justice. A harrowing but ultimately uplifting glimpse into a pivotal moment in history, The Survivor is the story of one man's survival and pursuit of justice against all odds. The story of resilience and tenacity, and a desire for revenge redirected as a yearning to build a better future for humanity"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Tree hugger: a memoir from off the grid / Fred Karnes. |
| After retiring as a family therapist, Fred started his autobiography while tinkering with Facebook at the urging of former clients who were in their teens. Through this venue, he shared his adventures of migrating from Iowa to Oregon in the early 1970's to build a cabin in the woods. He had no skills or a log house kit. But he did have a rudimentary instruction book and a determined spirit. Along the way, he shares stories of his mishaps, accomplishments, joys and sorrows. His stories are full of self-discovery and connecting with individuals and nature. "Tree hugger is an epithet tossed about by men who regard forested mountains in the Pacific Northwest as a commodity.They often consider people like me to be dreamy hypocrites." |
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| You'll never believe me : a life of lies, second tries, and things I should only tell my therapist / Kari Ferrell. |
 "Adopted at a young age by a Mormon family in Utah, Kari struggled with questions of self-worth and identity as one of the few Asian Americans in her insulated community, leading her to run with the 'bad crowd' in an effort to fit in. Soon, stealing from superstores turned into picking up men (and picking their pockets), and before she knew it, Kari had graduated from petty theft to Utah's most wanted list. Though Kari was able to escape the Southwest, she couldn't outrun her new moniker: the Hipster Grifter. New York City's indie sleaze scene had found its newest celebrity--just as Kari found herself in a heap of trouble. Jail time, riots, bad checks, and an explosion of internet infamy and fetishization put her name in the spotlight. Beyond the gossip and Gawker posts, there's a side to Kari the media never saw--until now"--Inside jacket flap. |
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| The first and last king of Haiti : the rise and fall of Henry Christophe / Marlene L. Daut. |
| "The essential biography of the controversial rebel, traitor, and only king of Haiti. Henry Christophe (1767 - 1820) is one of the most richly complex figures in the history of the Americas, and was, in his time, popular and famous the world over: in The First and Last King of Haiti, a brilliant young Yale scholar unravels the still controversial enigma that he was"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| How to share an egg : a true story of hunger, love, and plenty / Bonny Reichert. |
| Bonny Reichert avoided engaging with her family's Holocaust history until, in midlife, she unexpectedly confronted it while writing an article. Her father's survival in Auschwitz-Birkenau was a backdrop to her upbringing, but a transformative experience in Warsaw--a perfect bowl of borscht--sparked a journey to explore her culinary roots. This journey intertwined with her personal life, from her childhood in the restaurant business to the challenges of marriage, motherhood, and her eventual path to becoming a chef. In her memoir How to Share an Egg, Reichert reflects on pivotal life moments through the lens of food. From her baba Sarah's knishes to her father's comforting scrambled eggs, cuisine serves as a symbol of joy, survival, and identity. The book blends poignant stories of scarcity and abundance with her quest for self-discovery, exploring how her personal experiences connect to her family's legacy. It's a moving meditation on heritage, resilience, and the role of food in shaping identity. |
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| The mango tree : a memoir of fruit, Florida, and felony / Annabelle Tometich. |
 "When journalist Annabelle Tometich picks up the phone one June morning, she isn't expecting a collect call from an inmate at the Lee County Jail. And when she accepts, she certainly isn't prepared to hear her mother's voice on the other end of the line. However, explaining the situation to her younger siblings afterwards was easy; all she had to say was, 'Mom shot at some guy. He was messing with her mangoes.' They immediately understood. Answering the questions of the breaking-news reporter--at the same newspaper where Annabelle worked as a restaurant critic--proved more difficult. Annabelle decided to go with a variation of the truth: it was complicated. So begins The Mango Tree, a poignant and deceptively entertaining memoir of growing up as a mixed-race Filipina 'nobody' in suburban Florida as Annabelle traces the roots of her upbringing--all the while reckoning with her erratic father's untimely death in a Fort Myers motel, her fiery mother's bitter yearning for the country she left behind, and her own journey in the pursuit of belonging." -- Publisher annotation. |
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| Brooke Shields is not allowed to get old : thoughts on aging as a woman / Brooke Shields with Rachel Bertsche. |
| "From Brooke Shields, the icon who has inspired generations of women, comes a thoughtful, intimate, and candid exploration of the humility and power of aging"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Hollow : a memoir of my body in the Marines / Bailey Williams. |
 "At eighteen, Bailey Williams bolted from her strict Mormon upbringing to a Marine recruiting office to enlist as a 2600--a military linguist. But the first language the Marine Corps taught her wasn't Arabic, Farsi, or Dari. It was how Marines speak to, and about, women. There are only three kinds of women in the Marine Corps, she was told: you can be a bitch, a dyke, or a whore. Determined to prove she's not whatever it is the men around her believe a woman to be, Private Williams turned to an eating disorder, intending to show her discipline through the visible testament of bone. She ran endurance distances on an increasingly Spartan diet, shoving through her own body's resistance. Pushed to the brink by a leadership and a culture that demands women shrink themselves, she finally looked to the women around her, and began to wonder what else she was losing. Quietly but inexorably, the power of other women's stories whispered an alternative path to what it means to be a woman, and a warrior. Hollow is a story for anyone whose identity has been prescribed to them--and has dared question if there is another way to live" -- Provided by the publisher. |
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| Freedom : memoirs 1954-2021 / Angela Merkel with Beate Baumann. |
 "For sixteen years, Angela Merkel was Chancellor of Germany and at the forefront of European and international politics. In her memoir, she looks back on her life in two German states--East Germany until 1990, and reunified Germany thereafter. How did she, coming from the East, rise to the top of the Christian Democratic Union to become the first woman to hold the Office of Chancellor? And how did she then become one of the most powerful heads of government in the Western world? What guided her? Angela Merkel recounts daily life in the chancellor's office as well as the dramatic days and nights when she made far-reaching decisions in Berlin, Brussels, and beyond"-- Publisher description. |
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| Everyone but myself : a memoir / Julie Chavez. |
 For Julie, an elementary school librarian and mother of two boys, there was no time for debilitating anxiety. Yet the terrifying aftershocks of her first panic attack left her grappling with questions about the causes of her mental health crisis and where it would lead next. What follows is a hopeful, honest account of love and loss, a husband who can't read minds, disastrous family outings, and finding a path (with help from loved ones and a few key new friends) to the joy of a well-lived life. Sure to resonate with mothers spread thin by the demands of modern family life, Everyone But Myself offers an intimate portrait of how one woman found her way back to herself. --from Amazon. |
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| In Gad we trust : a tell-some / Josh Gad. |
| "A heartfelt and hilarious collection of essays from the comedian and entertainer known for voicing Olaf in the ... Disney franchise of Frozen, and for his award-winning turn as Elder Cunningham in [Broadway's] The Book of Mormon"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| The housekeeper's secret : a memoir / Sandra Schnakenburg. |
 "A Catholic family in 1960s Chicago headed by a narcissistic and demanding father takes on Lee, a housekeeper with a mysterious past. Lee becomes like a second mother to the Krilich children, especially Sandy. After Lee's death, Sandy begins a determined quest to find out her dear friend's backstory--and proceeds to uncover one shocking fact after another, even as the story of her own family drama, and the heartwarming role Lee played in the Krilichs' lives, unfolds."-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Malcolm before X / Patrick Parr. |
 "In February 1946, when the 21-year-old Malcolm Little was sentenced to eight to ten years in a maximum-security prison, he was a petty criminal and street hustler in Boston. By the time of his parole in August 1952, he had transformed into a voracious reader, joined the Black Muslims, and was poised to become Malcolm X, one of the most prominent and important intellectuals of the civil rights era. While scholars and commentators have exhaustively detailed, analyzed, and debated Malcolm X's post-prison life, they have not explored these transformative six and a half transformative years in any depth. Utilizing a trove of previously overlooked documents, Patrick Parr immerses readers into the unique cultures of Charlestown State Prison, the Concord Reformatory, and the Norfolk Prison Colony where Malcolm devoured books, composed poetry, boxed, debated, and joined the Nation of Islam. This time in prison changed the course of Malcom's life and set the stage for a decade of antiracist activism that would fundamentally reshape American culture"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Inheriting magic : my journey through grief, joy, celebration, and making every day magical / Jennifer Love Hewitt. |
 "With lessons on grief, love, and the incredible joy of parenting, Jennifer Love Hewitt's debut memoir shares wisdom learned from her late mother and shows her readers her real self-who can't be defined by a single label"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Ingrained : the making of a craftsman / Callum Robinson. |
 "For fans of H Is for Hawk and Shop Class as Soulcraft comes a captivating literary memoir, immersing readers in the life of a Scottish carpenter as he perfects his craft, builds a business, and reflects on what inheritance and shared responsibility really mean. The eldest son of a master woodworker, Callum Robinson spent his childhood surrounded by wood and trees, absorbing craft lessons in his father's workshop and playing among the sycamore, oak, and Scots pine that bordered his home. In time he became his father's apprentice, helping to create exquisite bespoke objects. But eventually the need to find his own path led him to establish his own workshop; to chase ever bigger and more commercial projects; to business meetings, bright lights, and bureaucracy; to lose touch with his roots--until the devastating loss of one major job threatened to bring it all crashing down. Faced with the end of his business, his team, and everything he had worked so hard to build, he was forced to question what mattered most. In beautifully wrought prose, Callum tells the story of returning to the workshop and to the wood; to handcrafting furniture for people who will love it and then pass it on to the next generation--an antidote to a culture where everything seems so easily disposable. As he does so, he brings us closer to nature and the physical act of creation. Close enough to smell the sawdust, see the wood's grain and character, and feel the magic of furniture coming to life. At the same time, we begin to understand how he has been shaped, as both a craftsman and a son. Blending memoir and nature writing at its finest, Ingrained is an uplifting meditation on the challenges of working with your hands in our modern age, on community, consumerism, and the beauty of the natural world-one that asks us to see our local trees, and our own wooden objects, in a new and revelatory light"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Mama : a queer Black woman's story of a family lost and found / Nikkya Hargrove. |
 "A rare and timely parenting memoir by a queer Black mother, Mama follows the impact of incarceration on a family, exploring the generational trauma and pulling back the curtain on the foster care system"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Hour of the heart : connecting in the here and now / Irvin D. Yalom, MD, and Benjamin Yalom. |
 "Facing memory loss at age ninety-three as well as the fallout from a global pandemic that moved much of daily life online, legendary psychotherapist and bestselling author Irvin D. Yalom was forced to vastly reconsider the shape of his sessions with patients. Rather than throw in the towel in the face of change, Dr. Yalom considered head-on the limitations imposed by these new realities and revolutionized his practice. Turning his focus to what might be achieved in a one-hour, one-time-only meeting between patient and practitioner, Dr. Yalom employed an even more concerted use of his "here and now" approach"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| My time to stand : a memoir / Gypsy-Rose Blanchard with Melissa Moore and Michele Matrisciani. |
 "Featuring Blanchard family photos and new facts about Gypsy's life that she previously kept private, My Time to Stand offers an unprecedented look at the real Gypsy-Rose Blanchard, proudly embarking on her ongoing journey to recovery and self-discovery"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| I will scream to the world / Jaha Marie Dukureh ; foreword by Ashley Judd |
 "This extraordinary memoir details the monumental journey of one young Gambian woman from survivor of FGM and forced child marriage, to global activist and political leader who became UN Women's first Goodwill Ambassador for Africa, one of Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People, and among the youngest people nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Ingrained : the making of a craftsman / Callum Robinson. |
| "For fans of H Is for Hawk and Shop Class as Soulcraft comes a captivating literary memoir, immersing readers in the life of a Scottish carpenter as he perfects his craft, builds a business, and reflects on what inheritance and shared responsibility really mean. The eldest son of a master woodworker, Callum Robinson spent his childhood surrounded by wood and trees, absorbing craft lessons in his father's workshop and playing among the sycamore, oak, and Scots pine that bordered his home. In time he became his father's apprentice, helping to create exquisite bespoke objects. But eventually the need to find his own path led him to establish his own workshop; to chase ever bigger and more commercial projects; to business meetings, bright lights, and bureaucracy; to lose touch with his roots--until the devastating loss of one major job threatened to bring it all crashing down. Faced with the end of his business, his team, and everything he had worked so hard to build, he was forced to question what mattered most. In beautifully wrought prose, Callum tells the story of returning to the workshop and to the wood; to handcrafting furniture for people who will love it and then pass it on to the next generation--an antidote to a culture where everything seems so easily disposable. As he does so, he brings us closer to nature and the physical act of creation. Close enough to smell the sawdust, see the wood's grain and character, and feel the magic of furniture coming to life. At the same time, we begin to understand how he has been shaped, as both a craftsman and a son. Blending memoir and nature writing at its finest, Ingrained is an uplifting meditation on the challenges of working with your hands in our modern age, on community, consumerism, and the beauty of the natural world-one that asks us to see our local trees, and our own wooden objects, in a new and revelatory light"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| I, Rigoberta Menchú : an Indian woman in Guatemala / Rigoberta Menchú ; edited by Elisabeth Burgos-Debray ; translated by Ann Wright. |
 Now a global bestseller, the remarkable life of Rigoberta Menchú, a Guatemalan peasant woman, reflects on the experiences common to many Indian communities in Latin America. Menchú suffered gross injustice and hardship in her early life: her brother, father and mother were murdered by the Guatemalan military. She learned Spanish and turned to catechistic work as an expression of political revolt as well as religious commitment. Menchú vividly conveys the traditional beliefs of her community and her personal response to feminist and socialist ideas. Above all, these pages are illuminated by the enduring courage and passionate sense of justice of an extraordinary woman. |
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| The impossible man : Roger Penrose and the cost of genius / Patchen Barss. |
 "As a little boy, Roger Penrose and his father discovered a sundial in a clearing behind their home. In that machine made of light, shadow, and time, six-year-old Roger discovered a "world behind the world" of transcendently beautiful geometry, beginning a journey toward becoming one of the world's most influential mathematicians, philosophers, and physicists. In the years to come, Penrose earned a Nobel Prize, a knighthood, and dozens of other prestigious honors. He proved the limitations of general relativity, and he set a new agenda for theoretical physics. However, as Patchen Barss documents in The Impossible Man, success came at a price. Penrose's longing for knowledge was matched only by his inability to understand those around him, and he struggled to connect with friends, family, and especially the women in his life. His final years have been spent alone with his research, intentionally cut off from the people who loved him. Erudite and deeply moving, The Impossible Man intimately depicts the relationship between Penrose the scientist and Roger the human being. It reveals the tragic cost-to himself and those closest to him-of Roger Penrose's extraordinary life"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| F. Scott Fitzgerald : a composite biography / Niklas Salmose and David Rennie, editors. |
 "F. Scott Fitzgerald was a man of many aspects, a writer whose complexity and multitudes this composite biography finally aptly portrays. Bringing together twenty-three leading writers and scholars on Fitzgerald, each focusing on two years of his life, this volume presents a new way of grouping together biographical material and perspectives, considering from various angles the author's best-known works as well as understudied writings, personal experiences, and literary relationships"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Thurgood Marshall : American revolutionary / Juan Williams. |
 Presents a biography of the first African American appointed to the Supreme Court, from his crusade against segregation to his friendships with other famous Black figures. |
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| Above the noise : my story of chasing calm / DeMar DeRozan, with Dave Zarum. |
 "From one of the most outspoken and respected NBA athletes comes a groundbreaking and remarkable memoir chronicling a very public struggle with depression, in the hopes that other young men will not suffer alone"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Becoming Little Shell : a landless Indian's journey home / Chris La Tray. |
 "From Montana Poet Laureate Chris La Tray, a singular story of discovery and embrace of Indigenous identity"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| I will do better : a father's memoir of heartbreak, parenting, and love / Charles Bock. |
 The novelist Charles Bock was a reluctant parent, tagging along for the ride of fatherhood, obsessed primarily with his dream of a writing career. But when his daughter Lily was six months old, his wife, Diana, was diagnosed with a complex form of leukemia. Two and half years later, when all treatments and therapies had been exhausted, Bock found himself a widower--devastated, drowning in medical bills, and saddled with a daunting responsibility. He had to nurture Lily, and, somehow, maybe even heal himself. I Will Do Better is Charles's pull-no-punches account of what happened next. Playdates, music classes, temper tantrums, oh-so-cool babysitters, first days at school, family reunions, single-parent dating, and a citywide crippling natural disaster--were minefields especially treacherous for Charles and Lily because of their preexisting vulnerability: their grief. Charles sought help from friends, family, and therapists, but this overgrown, middle-aged boy-man and his plucky child became, foremost, a duo--they found their way together. By turns comical and heartbreaking, I Will Do Better does not shy from moments of sadness, anger, or awkwardness. It's the remarkable journey of two defiant and wounded people, and their personal growth in the name of love. |
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| Woodrow Wilson : the light withdrawn / Christopher Cox. |
 "More than a century after he dominated American politics, Woodrow Wilson still fascinates. With panoramic sweep, Woodrow Wilson: The Light Withdrawn reassesses his life and his role in the movements for racial equality and women's suffrage. The Wilson that emerges is a man superbly unsuited to the moment when he ascended to the presidency in 1912, as the struggle for women's voting rights in America reached the tipping point. The first southern Democrat to occupy the White House since the Civil War era brought with him to Washington like-minded men who quickly set to work segregating the federal government. Wilson's own sympathy for Jim Crow and states' rights animated his years-long hostility to the Susan B. Anthony Amendment, which promised universal suffrage backed by federal enforcement. Women demonstrating for voting rights found themselves demonized in government propaganda, beaten and starved while illegally imprisoned, and even confined to the insane asylum. When, in the twilight of his second term, two-thirds of Congress stood on the threshold of passing the Anthony Amendment, Wilson abruptly switched his position. But in sympathy with like-minded southern Democrats, he acquiesced in "race rider" that would protect Jim Crow. The heroes responsible for the eventual success of the unadulterated Anthony Amendment are brought to life by Christopher Cox, an author steeped in the ways of Washington and political power. This is a brilliant, carefully researched work that puts you at the center of one of the greatest advances in the history of American democracy"-- Provided by publisher. |
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| Master of me : the secret to controlling your narrative / Keke Palmer. |
 "Keke Palmer thought she knew who she was. What it means to be a good person and what it takes to be a success. It all seemed so simple, until she realized the challenges she would have to face to prove to herself who she wanted to be. From feeling alienated to having to restart her career after ten years in to becoming a single mother just months after her son was born-everything she worked for in life that she felt granted her what she wanted now also reminded her that "life is going to life" and throw curveballs regardless of what you deserve. It was in this realization that her understanding of value changed: "Real value doesn't come from what you experience in the world but from how you manage yourself in the midst of those storms." She found herself asking, Where do I find my power? How do I master myself? In her own raw and intimate words, Keke talks about everything from her struggles with boundaries to unconditional love, forgiveness, and worthiness. "Don't block your blessings and potential opportunities by allowing the voices of other people to influence your actions," she says. "How you're choosing to set yourself up for success is between you and the person looking back at you in the mirror." Throughout the book, Keke also poses readers with the questions needed to get them through their own challenging times by sharing personal stories and lessons she's learned along the way. She gets candid about the tools she's developed to take the reins, harness her vulnerability, and recognize ownership in the narrative of her life-which allowed her to turn personal power into major power. In this exhilarating, deeply poignant, and often laugh-out-loud book, Lauren Keyana Palmer gets real about life, work, love, and belief. These pages will encourage readers to empower themselves with the truth, leverage their currency, and find the keys to master themselves and the art of alchemy. Keke writes. "You are not on anyone else's timeline, only your own." The result is a tour de force. They said, "Jack of all Trades, Master of None." She said, "No, I am the Master. Of Me.""-- Provided by publisher. |
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