memoir

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memoir

One last strike

fifty years in baseball, ten and a half games back, and one final championship season
2013
The legendary baseball manager takes readers behind the scenes of the St. Louis Cardinals' 2011 season, detailing a journey that resulted in one of the most dramatic World Series of all time.

Battle ready

memoir of a SEAL warrior medic
A memoir from a SEAL and medic in which he explores his 25-year career in dangerous combat missions and the post-traumatic stress disorder that developed at home.

Only in Spain

a foot-stomping, firecracker of a memoir about food, flamenco, and falling in love
Ten-hour shifts in a high-end department store and catering to snooty customers...Nellie Bennett's life wasn't supposed to turn out this way. But maybe all she needs to do is infuse a little passion into her routine?through flamenco dance lessons, for instance. What Nellie doesn't realize is that flamenco is not just a dance?it's a way of life that seems much more enticing than her depressing retail gig. So she packs her suede dance shoes and leaves everything she knows behind, flying halfway around the world to seek the authentic experience in Seville, where the dark-eyed gypsy boys and mouth-watering tapas are enough to make Nellie want to stay in Spain forever. And why shouldn't she? Only in Spain is a foot-stomping, full-on firecracker of a memoir?crackling with energy, food, dance, gypsies, and love?that will capture your heart with the first "Ol?!".

The Bohemian Love Diaries

a memoir
2013
Infused with southern charm, this irresistibly weird and wonderful story chronicles Slash Coleman?s upbringing in a warped but warm-hearted household of eccentric artists. Descended from a posse of off-beat immigrants--including a grandfather who danced at the Moulin Rouge--and raised near the capital of the Confederacy during the 1970s and ?80s, young Slash sets out to find true love. Unfortunately, he?s his own worst enemy. Obsessions with Evel Knievel, rock band KISS, and crisscrossing the country to find the girl of his dreams set his quest for happiness on a hapless course. Hilarious and profound, Coleman slowly comes to terms with his father, a genius sculptor and volatile alcoholic, and his mother, a Holocaust survivor who makes him promise never to reveal that he?s Jewish. A touching portrait emerges of a young artist whose passionate spirit refuses to be suppressed.

The rules of inheritance

a memoir
2013
In this astonishing debut, Claire Bidwell Smith, an only child, is just fourteen years old when both of her charismatic parents are diagnosed with cancer. What follows is a coming-of-age story that is both heartbreaking and exhilarating. As Claire hurtles towards loss she throws herself at anything she thinks might help her cope with the weight of this harsh reality: boys, alcohol, traveling, and the anonymity of cities like New York and Los Angeles. By the time she is twenty-five years old they are both gone and Claire is very much alone in the world. Claire's story is less of a tragic tale and more of a remarkable lesson on how to overcome some of life's greatest hardships. Written with suspense and style, and bursting with love and adventure, The Rules of Inheritance vividly captures the deep grief and surprising light of a young woman forging ahead on a journey of loss that humbled, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.

The reenactments

2013
A literary tour de force about the making of a film and representation from a master of the memoir form. For Nick Flynn, that game we all play?the who-would-play-you-in-the-movie-of-your-life game?has been resolved. The Reenactments chronicles the surreal experience of being on set during the making of the film Being Flynn, from his best-selling memoir Another Bullshit Night in Suck City, and watching the central events of his life reenacted: his father's long run of homelessness and his mother's suicide. Flynn tells the story of Robert De Niro's first meeting with his real father in Boston and of watching Julianne Moore attempt to throw herself into the sea. The result is a mesmerizingly sharp-edged and kaleidoscopic literary tour de force as well as a compelling argument about consciousness, representation, and grief.

The Crippler

cage fighting and my life on the edge
Chris Leben is a mixed martial arts fighter. He gained notoriety on the inaugural show where hopeful fighters vie for a UFC contract and a path to greatness.

Bad girl

2004
Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield experience major changes in their lives and attitudes.

Gold from the Well

The Inspiring True Account of a Haitian Refugee
2017
"Gold from the Well," reveals the life of Jocelyn "Josh" Apo, a Haitian refugee whose hard work, faith and unbreakable spirit helped him rise from abject poverty, hopelessness, and despair to the successful American citizen and community leader he is today. The telling alternates between Josh's personal accounts and a narrative storyline; readers are entranced by the book's authenticity. Born into rural Haiti's peasant class, Josh's childhood tribulations and loving mother shaped him into a man of great strength. In October 1980, when he was 20, Josh and 61 fellow Haitians survived a 17-day journey on the open Atlantic in search of a better life. Their physical and emotional limits were dangerously tested. "Gold from the Well," then follows Jocelyn's time as a refugee in the United States, a migrant farm worker, a cherished nursing home employee, and finally the entrepreneurial middle school custodian he is today. "Mr. Josh," is a living testament to perseverance and the power of seeking joy in all things, big and small. A portion of every sale will be donated to charities benefiting Haiti.

Same time next week

true stories of working through mental illness
Collects a series of intimate stories from people dealing with mental illness, describing the challenges they have faced and and how they have found hope.

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