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Biography / Autobiography

Abraham Lincoln: 1861-1865

Abraham Lincoln: 1861-1865

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America's greatest president, who rose to power in the country's greatest hour of need and whose vision saw the United States through the Civil War

Abraham Lincoln towers above the others who have held the office of president--the icon of greatness, the pillar of strength whose words bound up the nation's wounds. His presidency is the hinge on which American history pivots, the time when the young republic collapsed of its own contradictions and a new birth of freedom, sanctified by blood, created the United States we know today. His story has been told many times, but never by a man who himself sought the office of president and contemplated the awesome responsibilities that come with it.

George S. McGovern--a Midwesterner, former U.S. senator, presidential candidate, veteran, and historian by training--offers his unique insight into our sixteenth president. He shows how Lincoln sometimes went astray, particularly in his restrictions on civil liberties, but also how he adjusted his sights and transformed the Civil War from a political dispute to a moral crusade. McGovern's account reminds us why we hold Lincoln in such esteem and why he remains the standard by which all of his successors are measured.

Abraham Lincoln: A Life

Abraham Lincoln: A Life

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The ideal concise biography of an American icon- now available in paperback for the bicentennial of his birth

The self -mad e man from a log cabin, the great orator, the Emancipator, the Savior of the Union, the martyr-Lincoln's story is at the very heart of American history. But who was he, really? In this outstanding biography, award-winning author Thomas Keneally follows Lincoln from his impoverished birth through his education and presidency. From the development of his political philosophy to his troubled family life and his actions during the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln is an incisive study of a turning point in our history and a revealing portrait of a pivotal figure.

Abraham Lincoln: Great American Historians On Our 16th President

Abraham Lincoln: Great American Historians On Our 16th President

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In a handsome, gift-quality volume celebrating the 200th anniversary of Lincoln's birth, America's top Lincoln historians offer their diverse perspectives on the life and legacy of America's sixteenth president. Spanning Lincoln's life--from his early career as a Springfield lawyer, to his presidential reign during one of America's most troubled historical periods, to his assassination in 1865--these essays, developed from original C-SPAN interviews, provide a compelling, composite portrait of Lincoln, one that offers up new stories and fresh insights on a defining leader.

Edited by C-SPAN's Brian Lamb and Susan Swain, illustrated with Lamb's photographs of Lincoln landmarks, and promoted throughout the year on C-SPAN, Abraham Lincoln is a wonderful compendium of information and deeply-informed analysis that deserves a prominent place on every bookshelf.

Acceptance

Acceptance

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A hard-hitting and hilarious memoir of ambition, desperation, and the dark side of grit.

Growing up in a house filled with dirty feather boas and fearless mice, Emi Nietfeld dreams of escaping to the Ivy League. Emi's single mom believes in her, but can't stop hoarding--catapulting Emi into the underworld of troubled teen treatment, foster care, and homelessness. When her shot arrives to trade sleeping in her car for the hallowed halls of an elite college, Emi must decide: How far will she go to market herself as a perfect "overcomer" when her problems are far from over? And what will it cost to maintain that illusion at Harvard and into adulthood?

From journalist, mental health advocate, and software engineer Emi Nietfeld, this searing coming-of-age story is both a chronicle of the American Dream and an indictment of it. Exposing the price of trading a troubled past for the promise of a bright future, Nietfeld explores whether any amount of success can make trauma worth it. With a ribbon of dark humor, Acceptance challenges our ideas of what it means to overcome--and live on your own terms.

Acceptance

Acceptance

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"Nietfeld's gifts for capturing the fury of living at the mercy of bad circumstances, for critiquing the hero's journey even while she tells it, make Acceptance a remarkable memoir." --The New York Times Book Review

A luminous, generation-defining memoir of foster care and homelessness, Harvard and Big Tech, examining society's fixation with resilience--and its cost

As a homeless teenager writing college essays in her rusty Toyota Corolla, Emi Nietfeld was convinced that the Ivy League was the only escape from her dysfunctional childhood. But upward mobility required crafting the perfect resilience narrative. She had to prove that she was an "overcomer," made stronger by all that she had endured.

The truth was more complicated. Emi's mom was a charming hoarder who had her put on antipsychotics but believed in her daughter's brilliance--unlike the Minnesotan foster family who banned her "pornographic" art history flash cards (of Michelangelo's David). Emi's other parent vanished shortly after coming out as trans, a situation few understood in the mid-2000s. Her own past was filled with secrets: mental health struggles, Adderall addiction, and the unbecoming desperation of a teenager fending for herself. And though Emi would go on to graduate from Harvard and become a software engineer at Google, she found that success didn't necessarily mean safety.

Both a chronicle of the American Dream and an indictment of it, this searing debut exposes the price of trading a troubled past for the promise of a bright future. Told with a ribbon of dark humor, Acceptance challenges our ideas of what it means to overcome--and find contentment on your own terms.

Accidental Feminist

Accidental Feminist

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Movie stars establish themselves as brands--and Taylor's brand, in its most memorable outings, has repeatedly introduced a broad audience to feminist ideas. In her breakout film, "National Velvet" (1944), Taylor's character challenges gender discrimination: Forbidden as a girl to ride her beloved horse in an important race, she poses as a male jockey. Her next milestone, "A Place in the Sun" (1951), can be seen as an abortion rights movie--a cautionary tale from a time before women had ready access to birth control. In "Butterfield 8" (1960), for which she won an Oscar, Taylor isn't censured because she's a prostitute, but because she chooses the men: she controls her sexuality, a core tenet of the third-wave feminism that emerged in the 1990s. Even "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1966) depicts the anguish that befalls a woman when the only way she can express herself is through her husband's stalled career and children.

The legendary actress has lived her life defiantly in public--undermining post-war reactionary sex roles, helping directors thwart the Hollywood Production Code, which censored film content between 1934 and 1967. Defying death threats she spearheaded fundraising for AIDS research in the first years of the epidemic, and has championed the rights of people to love whom they love, regardless of gender. Yet her powerful feminist impact has been hidden in plain sight. Drawing on unpublished letters and scripts as well as interviews with Kate Burton, Gore Vidal, Austin Pendleton, Kevin McCarthy, Liz Smith, and others, The Accidental Feminist will surprise Taylor and film fans with its originality and will add a startling dimension to the star's enduring mystique.

Accidental Lessons

Accidental Lessons

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Chicago Journalist Writes an Extraordinary and Personal Memoir David W. Berner takes the reader inside his own personal journey - a very human and inspirational story of self-discovery. After the death of his father, the end of a marriage, and the loss of his job, the author accepts a teaching position in an impoverished and troubled Chicago-area school, hoping the change will help him find his footing. What he discovers not only surprises him but also reawakens his life, teaching him invaluable lessons about himself, his place in the world, and the redemptive power of second chances. David W. Berner is a journalist, documentary writer, and producer. He teaches writing, documentary, and radio narrative classes at Columbia College Chicago. He has published personal essays, hundreds of magazine articles, and interviewed the likes of Ted Kennedy, Tiger Woods, and Bill Gates. David lives in Naperville, Illinois and is currently working on a collection of stories about fatherhood. Accidental Lessons is his first book. www.davidwberner.com PRAISE FOR ACCIDENTAL LESSONS "Berner has given us a beautiful, elegantly-written book in the tradition of Blackboard Jungle and To Sir, With Love - the difference here is that Berner's story is not fiction, it's true." - Thomas E. Kennedy, Winner of the 2008 National Magazine Award and author of In the Company of Angels "Accidental Lessons will toss you like a cork at sea, throw you heavy against its steel straps, and when it's done you'll never be quite the same. This is the kind of book you tell your friends about." - Eric Jones, BookReview.com "A terrific memoir." - Rick Kogan, The Sunday Papers, WGN Radio, Chicago "A book of raw honesty." - Larry Richert, KDKA Radio, Pittsburgh Publisher's Website: www.strategicbookpublishing.com/AccidentalLessons.html
Accidental Lessons

Accidental Lessons

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Accidental Lessons is a remarkable memoir by successful Chicago journalist David W. Berner. Berner takes the reader inside his own personal journey; a heart-wrenching and inspirational account of self-discovery.Berner had it all-a very successful career as a broadcast journalist and a wonderful family life. But his career hits a bump and he finds himself out of work. Life then delivers more trouble-his father becomes terminally ill and his marriage falls apart. In the middle of painful personal times, this respected journalist makes a decision that changes his life forever.Berner takes a job in a public school outside Chicago where the students are representations of society's "throw-aways." What he learns from them teaches him invaluable lessons about himself, who he is, and why he became a journalist in the first place-to seek out the truth and give voice to those who need their story told.David W. Berner is a journalist, documentary writer, and producer. He teaches writing, documentary and radio narrative classes at Columbia College in Chicago. He has published personal essays and hundreds of magazine articles and interviewed such greats as Ted Kennedy, Tiger Woods, and Bill Gates. He lives in Naperville, Illinois with his family and two dogs, Hogan and Mike. Mr. Berner is currently working on a collection of essays about fatherhood. Accidental Lessons is his first book.

Accidental Life: An Editor's Notes on Writing and Writers

Accidental Life: An Editor's Notes on Writing and Writers

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An Amazon Best Book of 2016

A celebration of the writing and editing life, as well as a look behind the scenes at some of the most influential magazines in America (and the writers who made them what they are).

You might not know Terry McDonell, but you certainly know his work. Among the magazines he has top-edited: Outside, Rolling Stone, Esquire, and Sports Illustrated. In this revealing memoir, McDonell talks about what really happens when editors and writers work with deadlines ticking (or drinks on the bar). His stories about the people and personalities he's known are both heartbreaking and bitingly funny--playing "acid golf" with Hunter S. Thompson, practicing brinksmanship with David Carr and Steve Jobs, working the European fashion scene with Liz Tilberis, pitching TV pilots with Richard Price.

Here, too, is an expert's practical advice on how to recruit--and keep--high-profile talent; what makes a compelling lede; how to grow online traffic that translates into dollars; and how, in whatever format, on whatever platform, a good editor really works, and what it takes to write well.

Taking us from the raucous days of New Journalism to today's digital landscape, McDonell argues that the need for clear storytelling from trustworthy news sources has never been stronger. Says Jeffrey Eugenides: "Every time I run into Terry, I think how great it would be to have dinner with him. Hear about the writers he's known and edited over the years, what the magazine business was like back then, how it's changed and where it's going, inside info about Edward Abbey, Jim Harrison, Annie Proulx, old New York, and the Swimsuit issue. That dinner is this book."

Accidental Saints: Finding God in All the Wrong People

Accidental Saints: Finding God in All the Wrong People

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What if that person you've been trying to avoid is your best shot at grace today?

...And what if that's the point?


In Accidental Saints, New York Times best-selling au­thor Nadia Bolz-Weber invites readers into a surprising encounter with what she calls "a religious but not-so-spiritual life." Tattooed, angry and profane, this former standup comic turned pastor stubbornly, sometimes hilariously, resists the God she feels called to serve. But God keeps showing up in the least likely of people--a church-loving agnostic, a drag queen, a felonious Bishop and a gun-toting member of the NRA.

As she lives and worships alongside these "ac­cidental saints," Nadia is swept into first-hand en­counters with grace--a gift that feels to her less like being wrapped in a warm blanket and more like being hit with a blunt instrument. But by this grace, people are trans­formed in ways they couldn't have been on their own.

In a time when many have rightly become dis­illusioned with Christianity, Accidental Saints dem­onstrates what happens when ordinary people share bread and wine, struggle with scripture together, and tell each other the truth about their real lives. This unforgettable account of their faltering steps toward wholeness will ring true for believer and skeptic alike.

Told in Nadia's trademark confessional style, Accidental Saints is the stunning next work from one of today's most important religious voices.

Accidental Sportswriter

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Celebrated sports journalist Robert Lipsyte--the New York Times' longtime lead sports columnist--mines pure gold from his long and very eventful career to bring readers a memoir like no other. An enthralling book, as much about personal relationships and the culture of sports as the athletes and teams themselves, An Accidental Sportswriter interweaves stories from Lipsyte's life and the events he covered to explore the connections between the games we play and the lives we lead. Robert Lipsyte has been there--from the Mets' first Spring Training to the fight that made Muhammad Ali an international icon to the current steroids scandals that rewired our view of sports--and in An Accidental Sportswriter he offers a fresh and refreshing view of the world of professional athletes as seen through the eyes of a journalist who always managed to remain independent of our jock-obsessed culture.
Acedia & Me: A Marriage, Monks and a Writer's Lie

Acedia & Me: A Marriage, Monks and a Writer's Lie

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The extraordinary New York Times bestselling masterpiece from "one of the most eloquent yet earthbound spiritual writers of our time" (San Francisco Chronicle).

Kathleen Norris had written several much loved books, yet she couldn't drag herself out of bed in the morning, couldn't summon the energy for her daily tasks. Even as she struggled, Norris recognized her familiar battle with acedia, a word she had discovered in early Church text years earlier. Fascinated by this "noonday demon", so familiar to those in the early and medieval Church, Norris knew she must restore this forgotten but important concept to the modern world's vernacular. An examination of acedia in the light of psychology, spirituality, the healing powers of religious practice, and Norris's own experience, Acedia & Me is both intimate and historically sweeping, brimming with exasperation and reverence, sometimes funny, often provocative, and always insightful.

Acne

Acne

$29.00
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From the creator and star of Florida Girls comes a hilarious and profound memoir about family, happiness, and really aggressive acne.

Despite having dirty-blonde hair and fair skin, Laura Chinn is mixed-race: the daughter of a Black father and a white mother, which on its own makes for some funny and insightful looks at identity. Laura's parents were both Scientologists and nonconformists in myriad ways. They divorced early in Laura's childhood, and she spent her teen years ping-ponging back and forth between Clearwater, Florida, and Los Angeles (with an extended stint in Tijuana for good measure).

Laura lived alone and raised herself for long periods of time, but don't worry! Her mom's alcoholic boyfriend was always nearby to supervise. She also lost family members to horrific tragedies, started drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes when she was eleven years old, and dropped out of school when she was fifteen, all the while completely obsessed with and scarred by her severe acne condition.

This is not a sad story. There is Jell-O wrestling. There is an abnormal amount of dancing. There is information about whether you can drink gallons of sangria while taking unregulated Accutane acquired in Mexico. But mostly there is love, and ultimately there is redemption. Laura explores her trauma through anecdotes riddled with grit and humor, proving that in the face of unspeakable tragedy, it is possible to find success, love, and self-acceptance, zits and all.

Acrobaddict

Acrobaddict

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This raw and emotional tale is a roller coaster through the depths of addiction, tragedy, hard work, and redemption. It is proof that with hard work, anything is possible.--Sanjay Gupta, MD, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent

Follow Joe Putignano on a harrowing journey from the US Olympic Training Center to homeless shelters to shooting heroin on the job to being declared dead. This story goes beyond addiction. It is about the fragility and tenacity of the human spirit and how that spirit can redeem each and every one of us by helping to push us through the darkness, whether the darkness is from death, divorce, or the disease of addiction.

Acrobaddict is a story about the close relationship between athletics and drug addiction--how the same energy, obsession, and dedication that can create an Olympic athlete can also create a homeless drug addict.

Across Many Mountains

Across Many Mountains

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A powerful, emotional memoir and an extraordinary portrait of three generations of Tibetan women whose lives are forever changed when Chairman Mao's Red Army crushes Tibetan independence, sending a young mother and her six-year-old daughter on a treacherous journey across the snowy Himalayas toward freedom

Kunsang thought she would never leave Tibet. One of the country's youngest Buddhist nuns, she grew up in a remote mountain village where, as a teenager, she entered the local nunnery. Though simple, Kunsang's life gave her all she needed: a oneness with nature and a sense of the spiritual in all things. She married a monk, had two children, and lived in peace and prayer. But not for long. There was a saying in Tibet: When the iron bird flies and horses run on wheels, the Tibetan people will be scattered like ants across the face of the earth. The Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1950 changed everything. When soldiers arrived at her mountain monastery, destroying everything in their path, Kunsang and her family fled across the Himalayas only to spend years in Indian refugee camps. She lost both her husband and her youngest child on that journey, but the future held an extraordinary turn of events that would forever change her life--the arrival in the refugee camps of a cultured young Swiss man long fascinated with Tibet. Martin Brauen will fall instantly in love with Kunsang's young daughter, Sonam, eventually winning her heart and hand, and taking mother and daughter with him to Switzerland, where Yangzom will be born.

Many stories lie hidden until the right person arrives to tell them. In rescuing the story of her now 90-year-old inspirational grandmother and her mother, Yangzom Brauen has given us a book full of love, courage, and triumph, as well as allowing us a rare and vivid glimpse of life in rural Tibet before the arrival of the Chinese. Most importantly, though, ACROSS MANY MOUNTAINS is a testament to three strong, determined women who are linked by an unbreakable family bond.

Across Many Mountains

Across Many Mountains

$25.99
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A powerful, emotional memoir and an extraordinary portrait of three generations of Tibetan women whose lives are forever changed when Chairman Mao's Red Army crushes Tibetan independence, sending a young mother and her six-year-old daughter on a treacherous journey across the snowy Himalayas toward freedom

Kunsang thought she would never leave Tibet. One of the country's youngest Buddhist nuns, she grew up in a remote mountain village where, as a teenager, she entered the local nunnery. Though simple, Kunsang's life gave her all she needed: a oneness with nature and a sense of the spiritual in all things. She married a monk, had two children, and lived in peace and prayer. But not for long. There was a saying in Tibet: "When the iron bird flies and horses run on wheels, the Tibetan people will be scattered like ants across the face of the earth." The Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1950 changed everything. When soldiers arrived at her mountain monastery, destroying everything in their path, Kunsang and her family fled across the Himalayas only to spend years in Indian refugee camps. She lost both her husband and her youngest child on that journey, but the future held an extraordinary turn of events that would forever change her life--the arrival in the refugee camps of a cultured young Swiss man long fascinated with Tibet. Martin Brauen will fall instantly in love with Kunsang's young daughter, Sonam, eventually winning her heart and hand, and taking mother and daughter with him to Switzerland, where Yangzom will be born.

Many stories lie hidden until the right person arrives to tell them. In rescuing the story of her now 90-year-old inspirational grandmother and her mother, Yangzom Brauen has given us a book full of love, courage, and triumph, as well as allowing us a rare and vivid glimpse of life in rural Tibet before the arrival of the Chinese. Most importantly, though, ACROSS MANY MOUNTAINS is a testament to three strong, determined women who are linked by an unbreakable family bond.

Act Like You Got Some Sense

Act Like You Got Some Sense

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From Academy Award-winning multi-talent Jamie Foxx, a hilariously candid look at the joys and pitfalls of being the father of two daughters.

Jamie Foxx is not only an actor, comedian, and musician, he's also starring in his most humbling and long-running role yet as father to two independent girls: Corinne and Anelise. While his daughters have very different views on the world, there is one thing they can agree on: Dad gets on their motherf***ing nerves. Though every day with his girls brings hurdles and hilarity, he's learned a lot along the way.

In Act Like You Got Some Sense--a title inspired by his beloved and fierce grandmother--Jamie reveals his rocky parenting journey through priceless stories about the tough love and old-school values he learned growing up in the small town of Terrell, Texas; his early days trying to make it in Hollywood; and life after achieving stardom. You would think being an A-lister would ease his dad-duty struggles, but if anything, it has only made things more complicated. It seems that a teenage girl who just wants to blend in with her friends will not be excited to see her dad's flashy new convertible at the front of the carpool lane.

Hilarious, poignant, and always brutally honest, Act Like You Got Some Sense is Jamie Foxx like we've never seen him before, dealing with problems he never imagined he'd have.

Act Like You Got Some Sense

Act Like You Got Some Sense

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From Academy Award-winning multi-talent Jamie Foxx, a hilariously candid look at the joys and pitfalls of being the father of two daughters.

Jamie Foxx has won an Academy Award and a Grammy Award, laughed with sitting presidents, and partied with the biggest names in hip-hop. But he is most proud of his role as father to two very independent young women, Corinne and Anelise. Jamie might not always know what he's doing when it comes to raising girls--especially when they talk to him about TikTok (PlikPlok?) and don't share his enthusiasm for flashy Rolls Royces--but he does his best to show up for them every single day.

Luckily, he has a strong example to follow: his beloved late grandmother, Estelle Marie Talley. Jamie learned everything he knows about parenting from the fierce woman who raised him: As he puts it, she's "Madea before Tyler Perry put on the pumps and the gray wig."

In Act Like You Got Some Sense--a title inspired by Estelle--Jamie shares up close and personal stories about the tough love and old-school values he learned growing up in the small town of Terrell, Texas; his early days trying to make it in Hollywood; the joys and challenges of achieving stardom; and how each phase of his life shaped his parenting journey. Hilarious, poignant, and always brutally honest, this is Jamie Foxx like we've never seen him before.