Best of
The-World

2019

Eye for Eye


J.K. Franko - 2019
    until their teenage daughter is senselessly killed.Just as they’re managing to put that tragic loss behind them, a complete stranger approaches Roy in a bar with a drunken proposal—he invokes their daughter’s memory to ask Roy to kill a man.All is not as it seems, however, and Roy and Susie soon find themselves navigating an intricate web of deception, betrayal, and revenge.Can Roy and Susie outwit their hidden enemies? And what secrets lie buried in their past that could destroy them?Eye for Eye is the pulse-pounding Book One of the Talion crime thriller series which begins with the Eye for Eye Trilogy.Eye for EyeTooth for ToothLife for LifeIf you like smart, fast-paced thrillers with unexpected twists, then you’ll love J.K. Franko’s ride on the dark side.

Little Sister: A Memoir


Patricia Walsh ChadwickPatricia Walsh Chadwick - 2019
    An eighteen-year-old-girl who has never danced—and this in the 1960s. It is in Cambridge, Massachusetts where Leonard Feeney, a controversial (soon to be excommunicated) Catholic priest, has founded a religious community called the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Center's members—many of them educated at Harvard and Radcliffe—surrender all earthly possessions and aspects of their life, including their children, to him. Patricia Chadwick was one of those children, and Little Sister is her account of growing up in the Feeney sect. Separated from her parents and forbidden to speak to them, Patricia bristles against the community’s draconian rules, yearning for another life. When, at seventeen, she is banished from the Center, her home, she faces the world alone, without skills, family, or money but empowered with faith and a fierce determination to succeed on her own, which she does, rising eventually to the upper echelons of the world of finance and investing.  A tale of resilience and grace, Little Sister chronicles, in riveting prose, a surreal childhood and does so without rancor or self-pity.

Fight like a Mother: How a Grassroots Movement Took on the Gun Lobby and Why Women Will Change the World


Shannon Watts - 2019
    Along with the world, Watts watched horrifying images of children being marched in a line outside of Sandy Hook Elementary School. Outraged and heartbroken, Shannon felt an overwhelming need to act. She thought there must be an organization like Mothers Against Drunk Driving, but for gun violence prevention. There was no such organization. Watts decided then and there that she needed to build it.Fight like a Mother is the powerful story of how one mother’s cry for change started a national women’s movement—Moms Demand Action—to fight some of the richest and most powerful people in America: the gun lobby. It is a riveting account of how outraged mothers became engaged activists, creating a powerful grassroots network of local chapters in all 50 states. Along with her observations and wisdom, Watts shares inspiring messages of perseverance, courage, and compassion, and outlines the core mantras and principles that Moms Demand Action has used to battle the NRA and the intimidating tactics they use to prevent gun safety progress.Most of all, Fight like a Mother explores the unique power of women—starting with what they have, owning their expertise, asking for help, and doubling down instead of backing down. While not everyone can be on the front lines lobbying congress, every mom is already an organizer, and Shannon shows them how to put their skills to use in their own community, in their own way. Bringing activism into the everyday, Fight like a Mother will inspire everyone—mothers and fathers, students and teachers, lawmakers, and anyone who is outraged, angry, and motivated to work for change— to get to work transforming hearts, minds, and laws.

Barack and Joe: The Making of an Extraordinary Partnership


Steven Levingston - 2019
    The two men, their characters and styles sharply contrasting, formed a dynamic working relationship that evolved into a profound friendship. Based on original interviews, media reports, memoirs and other accounts, Barack and Joe is the first book to tell the full story of their historic relationship and its substantial impact on the Obama presidency and its legacy.Their affinity was not predestined. Barack and Joe began wary of each other, as senators each eyeing a run at the presidency; gradually they came to respect their competitor's values and strengths, growing so fond of each other they were often caught on camera hugging, joking and even crying together. Never had such a relationship been witnessed within the walls of the White House. Side-by-side through two tension-filled terms, they shared the day-to-day joys and travails of leading the most powerful nation on earth. Joe took on an unprecedented role as chief adviser to Obama, reshaping the vice presidency. Together, they took Americans through a dire economic crisis, passage of health care reform, changing perceptions of gay marriage, a national reckoning with mass shootings and police killings of unarmed black men, a shift in America's policy in Iraq, and the elimination of Osama bin Laden. As friends, Barack and Joe weathered the strains on their relationship--magnified by intense media scrutiny--and experienced joy and sadness together: Barack provided comfort to Joe through the loss of his son Beau. As high-level exemplars, the president and the vice president modeled the virtues of male friendship for men everywhere. In the Trump era, many Americans are nostalgic for the Obama presidency, the absence of scandal, the dedication to truth, the respect for the media. What Americans also remember fondly is the warmth and decency of Barack and Joe's friendship.

My Dear Boy: A World War II Story of Escape, Exile, and Revelation


Joanie Holzer Schirm - 2019
    In working through these various materials documenting the life of her father, Oswald “Valdik” Holzer, she learned of her family history through his remarkable experiences of exile and loss, resilience and hope. In this posthumous memoir, Schirm elegantly re-creates her father’s youthful voice as he comes of age as a Jew in interwar Prague, escapes from a Nazi-held army unit, practices medicine in China’s war-ravaged interior, and settles in the United States to start a family. Introducing us to a diverse cast of characters ranging from the humorous to the menacing, Holzer’s life story is an inspirational account of survival during wartime, a cinematic epic spanning multiple continents, and ultimately a tale with a twist—a book that will move readers for generations to come.  Purchase the audio edition.

A Ladybird Book About Donald Trump


Jason A. Hazeley - 2019
    Featuring original Ladybird artwork alongside brilliantly funny, brand new text.

This Is My World


Lonely Planet Kids - 2019
    Would you include a selfie or a family photo? A cute snap of your puppy or that awesome shot of you playing your favourite sport?In this fascinating and fun collection, 84 children from incredibly diverse backgrounds share their stories and photos of what's unique about their lives - from weather, local festivals and hobbies to their favourite sports and food. These personal portraits also reveal the many things children have in common, no matter where they're from.Discover what it's like to live in an orphanage in Zambezi, by a remote fjord in Greenland, on a cattle ranch in Australia, high up in the Himalaya mountains in Nepal, at an eco-lodge in Costa Rica, and much more.About Lonely Planet Kids: Lonely Planet Kids - an imprint of the world's leading travel authority Lonely Planet - published its first book in 2011. Over the past 45 years, Lonely Planet has grown a dedicated global community of travellers, many of whom are now sharing a passion for exploration with their children. Lonely Planet Kids educates and encourages young readers at home and in school to learn about the world with engaging books on culture, sociology, geography, nature, history, space and more. We want to inspire the next generation of global citizens and help kids and their parents to approach life in a way that makes every day an adventure. Come explore!