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Biography and Memoir May 2017
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I Hear She's a Real Bitch
by Jen Agg
Canadian. Toronto restaurateur Jen Agg, the woman behind the popular The Black Hoof, Cocktail Bar, Rhum Corner, and Agrikol restaurants, is known for her frank, crystal-sharp and often hilarious observations and ideas on the restaurant industry and the world around her. I Hear She's a Real Bitch, her first book, is caustic yet intimate, and wryly observant; an unforgettable glimpse into the life of one of the most interesting, smart, trail-blazing voices of this moment.
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The Push : A Climber's Journey of Endurance, Risk, and Going Beyond Limits
by Tommy Caldwell
On January 14, 2015, Tommy Caldwell, along with his partner, Kevin Jorgeson, summited what is widely regarded as the hardest climb in history—Yosemite’s nearly vertical 3,000-foot Dawn Wall, after nineteen days on the route. Caldwell’s odds-defying feat was the culmination of an entire lifetime of pushing himself to his limits as an athlete. This engrossing memoir chronicles the journey of a boy with a fanatical mountain-guide father who was determined to instill toughness in his son to a teen whose obsessive nature drove him to the top of the sport-climbing circuit. But his evolution as a climber was not without challenges; in his early twenties, he was held hostage by militants in a harrowing ordeal in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan. Soon after, he lost his left index finger in an accident. Later his wife, and main climbing partner, left him. Caldwell emerged from these hardships with a renewed sense of purpose and determination. He set his sights on free climbing El Capitan’s biggest, steepest, blankest face—the Dawn Wall. This epic assault took more than seven years, during which time Caldwell redefined the sport, found love again, and became a father.
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| Dadland by Keggie CarewAuthor Keggie Carew grew up knowing her father, Tom, as a brilliant, unconventional man who failed to keep his family in the style his first wife expected. Until he began showing symptoms of dementia, Keggie knew nothing of her father's World War II experiences as a Jedburgh -- a skilled guerilla who parachuted behind the lines in Burma and France. After she accompanied him to a Jedburgh reunion, she started piecing together his earlier life, discovering his wartime exploits and the reasons he struggled to achieve normality after the war. Dadland provides a "tender evocation of an extraordinary life" (Kirkus Reviews). |
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Coach Wooden and Me : Our 50-year Friendship on and Off the Court
by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
When future NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was still an 18-year-old high school basketball prospect from New York City named Lew Alcindor, he accepted a scholarship from UCLA largely on the strength of Coach John Wooden's reputation as a winner. It turned out to be the right choice, as Alcindor and his teammates won an unprecedented three NCAA championship titles. But it also marked the beginning of one of the most extraordinary and enduring friendships in the history of sports. In COACH WOODEN AND ME, Abdul-Jabbar reveals the inspirational story of how his bond with John Wooden evolved from a history-making coach-player mentorship into a deep and genuine friendship that transcended sports, shaped the course of both men's lives, and lasted for half a century.
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The Jersey Brothers : A Missing Naval Officer in the Pacific and his Family's Quest to Bring him Home
by Sally Mott Freeman
They are three brothers, all Navy men, who end up coincidentally and extraordinarily at the epicenter of three of the war’s most crucial moments. Bill is picked by Roosevelt to run his first Map Room in Washington. Benny is the gunnery and anti-aircraft officer on the USS Enterprise, one of the only carriers to escape Pearl Harbor and by the end of 1942 the last one left in the Pacific to defend against the Japanese. Barton, the youngest and least distinguished of the three, is shuffled off to the Navy Supply Corps because his mother wants him out of harm’s way. But this protection plan backfires when Barton is sent to the Philippines and listed as missing-in-action after a Japanese attack. Now it is up to Bill and Benny to find and rescue him.
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| Inferno: A Doctor's Ebola Story by Steven HatchIn November 2013, American Dr. Steven Hatch went to work at a hospital in Monrovia, Liberia; by June 2014 the Ebola virus had killed several of his colleagues. In vivid, compelling detail, Hatch describes his experiences in Liberia, calling his memoir a "horror story." He reviews West Africa's history of colonialism, post-colonial dictatorships, and lagging technology that made the region vulnerable to the epidemic. His compassionate writing evokes empathy for the Africans, who were often reduced to anonymity by Western journalists as they recounted the heroism of volunteer American and European health workers. In a starred review, Booklist declares that this powerful work "deserves sharp notice" for its analysis of the events. |
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| Tell Me Everything You Don't Remember: The Stroke That Changed My Life by Christine Hyung-Oak LeeAfter suffering a stroke at age 33, author Christine Hyung-Oak Lee spent days in the hospital and months recording her memories in a notebook, preserving thoughts that her mind could only briefly retain. In this memoir, Lee recounts the issues she dealt with during her recovery and afterwards: she looked well but wasn't, and she came to recognize problems in her relationships that she had ignored. She also developed a new, healthier relationship with her body. Expanded from her viral Buzzfeed essay, Tell Me Everything You Don't Remember offers an inspiring and thought-provoking chronicle of self-discovery. |
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| The Home That Was Our Country: A Memoir of Syria by Alia MalekJournalist and civil rights lawyer Alia Malek, born in Baltimore to Syrian refugee parents, always felt a strong connection to her family's history. In 2011, during the Arab Spring, she moved to Damascus to restore her grandmother's house and report on Syrian politics under the Assad family dictatorship. The Home That Was Our Country traces stories of her ancestors back to 1899, depicting an amicably diverse Syria that was ruptured starting in 1970 by Hafez al-Assad's repressive policy of division. Whether you're curious about Syria's past or a fan of family histories, you won't want to miss this "provocative, richly detailed" (Kirkus Reviews) memoir. |
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On Edge : A Journey Through Anxiety
by Andrea Petersen
A racing heart. Difficulty breathing. Overwhelming dread. Andrea Petersen was first diagnosed with an anxiety disorder at the age of twenty, but she later realized that she had been experiencing panic attacks since childhood. Although having a name for her condition was an enormous relief, it was only the beginning of a journey to understand and master it—one that took her from psychiatrists’ offices to yoga retreats to the Appalachian Trail. Woven into Petersen’s personal story is a fascinating look at the biology of anxiety and the groundbreaking research that might point the way to new treatments. She compares psychoactive drugs to non-drug treatments, including biofeedback and exposure therapy. And she explores the role that genetics and the environment play in mental illness, visiting top neuroscientists and tracing her family history—from her grandmother, who, plagued by paranoia, once tried to burn down her own house, to her young daughter, in whom Petersen sees shades of herself.
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| Grace Notes: My Recollections by Katey SagalBest known for her role as Peggy Bundy on television's Married...with Children, Katey Sagal has experienced a varied career in show business as a singer-songwriter and actress. In Grace Notes, she chronicles her life in conversational vignettes about growing up, her relationships with her parents (both of whom died young), her own illness with cancer, her addictions, and her friends and family. This book is for readers who appreciate insightful memoirs about the authors' lives, as well as for Sagal's fans. For another reflective autobiography that omits superficial gossip, check out Linda Ronstadt's Simple Dreams. |
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Are You Anybody? : A Memoir
by Jeffrey Tambor
It's rare that an actor embodies even one memorable character over the arc of a career. Jeffrey Tambor has managed to create three, beginning with Hank "Hey Now!" Kingsley on The Larry Sanders Show, the series created by Garry Shandling, Jeffrey’s first mentor in television. He went on to find two more show creators, Mitch Hurwitz of Arrested Development and Jill Soloway of Transparent, who shared a love of actors and taught him a lot about acting along the way. Drawing from his formative childhood years, in which he describes himself as a fat Hungarian-Jewish kid with a lisp and a depressive father to how he drew inspiration from his life to create these characters, Tambor's memoir touches on comedy and the enduring chutzpah required to make it through life.
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