Because I would never, ever know peace again.' Charlene Downes was 14 when she went missing in Blackpool's seedy underbelly. Once a happy-go-lucky schoolgirl, she had become a truant - hanging out with the wrong crowd by the takeaway shops and pier. But Charlene's mum, Karen, always knew her typical teenage daughter would come home.Until one day she didn't.Karen has been searching for 15 years, campaigning for the truth of what happened to her daughter. To this day, Karen and her family have no body, no convictions and no answers. Arrests were made and a murder trial took place, but no one has ever been brought to justice.On the 15th anniversary of Charlene's disappearance, Karen shares this heartbreaking account of every parent's worst nightmare.

    His is the story the establishment doesn’t want you to read.br>Captain P. J. “Red” Riley is an ex-SAS soldier who served for eighteen years as an MI6 agent. Riley escaped internment in Chile during the Falklands war during an audacious top-secret attempt to attack the Argentinian mainland. He was imprisoned in the darkness of the Sierra Leonean jungle, and withstood heavy fire in war-torn Beirut and Syria. In 2015, he was arrested for murder but all charges were later dropped. In this searing memoir, Riley reveals the brutal realities of his service, and the truth behind the newspaper headlines featuring some of the most significant events in recent British history. His account provides startling new evidence on the Iraq war, what Tony Blair really knew about Saddam Hussain’s weapons of mass destruction before the allied invasion, and questions the British government’s alleged involvement in the death of Princess Diana. Chaotic, darkly humorous and at times heart-wrenchingly sad, Kisses From Nimbus charts the harrowing real-life experiences of a soldier and spy in the name of Queen and country.

    Would you believe the one about the man who got stuck with half a paintbrush in a delicate area? The medical ethics of a woman using the hospital like a babysitting service? The day when two surgeons almost came to blows after a squabble over theatre space? After reading this brilliantly realised medical nonfiction collection of short stories you will no longer doubt the strange and sometimes tragic circumstances doctors face in medical diagnosis and treatment. From humourous stories about misbehaving patients to short biographies to moving medical stories with tragic ends, Dr Jay weaves a tale of over thirty years’ experience and relates some of the most interesting medical diagnosis and treatment of patients from his career. His narrative voice is rich and compelling and each of the patients’ short biographies is treated with the solid medical ethics we have come to expect from our doctors. Forthright and entertaining, this medical nonfiction collection of short stories comes directly from the horse’s mouth and includes humourous stories as well as short biographies that reveal some of the least pleasant aspects of life as a Surgeon.

    The familiar group of characters appear again, as do a few more waifs and strays. The plight of the rhino takes centre-stage in One Chance, bringing awareness to the risk they face on a daily basis.

    They all grew up dreaming of skating in the big league as stars. Then one day, a coach tells them the only way to make it is to drop the gloves. And every guy says the same thing: I'll do whatever it takes to play in the NHL.Not Stu Grimson, though. When he was offered a contract to patrol the ice for the Calgary Flames, he said no thanks, and went to university instead. And that's the way Grimson has approached his career and his life: on his own terms. He stared down the toughest players on the planet for seventeen years, while working on his first university degree. He retired on his own terms, and went on to practice law, including a stint as in-house counsel for the NHLPA.This has put him in a unique position when it comes to commenting on the game. He's seen it from the trenches, and he's seen it from the courtroom. This puts him in the eye of the storm surrounding fighting and concussions. And he handles that the way he does everything: on his own terms. When Don Cherry called him out on televison, it was the seemingly indominable Cherry who backed down. Hockey fans will be fascinated by his data-driven defence of fighting.But in the end, this is not a book about fighting and locker-room stories. It's the story of a young man who ultimately took on the toughest role in pro sports and came out the other side. Where many others have not.

    A circuitous route through troubled teenage years and four years in the Marines led him to Fort Wolters, Texas, and the US Army’s Warrant Officer Rotary Wing Aviation Course. For the first time in his life, he felt a deep sense of belonging. John’s successful struggle to master the beast called helicopter earned him an all-expense-paid trip to South Vietnam and the opportunity to prove himself as a combat pilot. His year of war was not as expected. Awed by the lush landscapes of Vietnam and the unexpected moments of war’s savage beauty, Bercaw changed his mind about war and its effect on the men who fought in it. He found himself able to overcome fear and doubt in combat and do his job to the best of his ability. Based on the books he had read and the movies he had seen, he had not anticipated the addiction to the highs and lows brought on by the intensity of war. The difficult part came at the end. Leaving Vietnam before the war was over, the sudden end to the daily adrenalin rushes and the sense of being part of something important—aggravated by the shameful reception experienced by all returning veterans—initiated a period of depression that haunted him for years.

    In her illuminating, fascinating, sometimes heartbreaking memoir, Up All Night, the legendary "Nightbird" tells the story of her colorful career--her rise to success in a male-dominated music industry; her close and personal dealings with rock royalty like Bruce Springsteen (whose music she first introduced to New York radio), Sir Paul McCartney, and Steven Tyler (whom she dated)--and details openly and honestly her battle against breast cancer for the very first time.

    She believed that if he could address his back problems, he’d have a better chance of a long-term recovery—but she was completely unprepared for the lengthy journey that followed. Unlike other books about addiction, SAVING BOBBY begins after Bobby has left the structure and protection of rehabilitation centers and half-way houses. Told in part through journal entries and e-mails, this raw, deeply moving memoir describes the resources and holistic process used to help Bobby reclaim his life, including the importance of being in a community that can move past the shame and stigma of addiction. A riveting and timely read for those concerned about America’s most pressing epidemic. —Claude T. Moorman, III, MD, Executive Director, Duke Sports Sciences Institute and Head Team Physician, Duke Athletics

    Page by page, year by year, tender father-son memories of airplane watching transform into nightmarish, turbulent family drama.Upon the discovery that his father had been the victim of severe elder abuse as his health was rapidly deteriorating, the author finds himself reevaluating the decisions his father made throughout his life. With an unshakable ending, the author's probing dissection of a man he thought he knew reckons with disloyalty, depression, religion and death, leaving no stone unturned.Through sharp, sometimes hilariously brash analysis, decorated in plane metaphors and imagery, the author expresses his commitment to truth with sincerity and transparency. He reaches for forgiveness, understanding and compromise in the face of absurdity and uncompromising rigidity.Ultimately, he contemplates a different "flight path" drawn from past lessons. He encourages readers to do the same.A must-read for sons, fathers and families. Book-club discussion guide included.

    Life is messy and uncertain and full of surprises. And one of the best things he's ever done is let go of his expectations about how life should be in order to embrace life as it is a moment-by-moment walk with God.Hurt Road is the engaging true story of a man who, as a teen, found in music a refuge from the uncertainties of life. Who set out to discover a better way to live than constantly struggling to make sure life turned out the way he planned it. Who stopped substituting what's next for what's now and learned the truth--that coming or going, God's got us.Poignant, funny, and thoughtful, Hurt Road dares anyone feeling knocked down or run over by their circumstances to give up control to the One who already has the road all mapped out. Includes black and white photos.

    It is a meditation on miscommunication, childhood, Northeastern vs. Southern American culture, family, nature vs. technology, and the imagination of the introvert."From sonnets to somnambulance, from algae to oxytocin, from manatees to Manhattan, Stirling Smith rides the riptides of memory’s fictions and frictions in this prolific debut. Butterfly Bruises is a gem mine of poems and stories that write through grief and growing up, personal and planetary survival, with words rugged and glistening like seashell shards..." -Poetry Critic and Scholar, Professor Robert Dewhurst, PhD.

    Buried for nearly three hundred years and now brought triumphantly to light by Dr Livesey, this is, at last, the true story of what happened on the fateful Treasure Island…The truth about Captain Flint and his fabled death.The truth about Long John Silver and his coveted wife.And the truth about Jim Hawkins, that double-dealing turncoat of the first order: the traitor of Treasure Island.

    One we find our way into. And one that finds its way into us. Steeped in Scripture, Eugene Peterson's faith-filled reflections open the door.The Message Devotional Bible invites you on a journey--call it practicing resurrection, call it eating this book, or call it simply a long obedience in the same direction. From the pastor who translated the entire Bible, The Message Devotional Bible sets you on the right path--devoted not just to the Bible but to God, who, in Jesus, became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood.Open the door between Scripture and your world.From Eugene . . .Over 600 scriptural insights52 contemplative readingsIntroductions to the books and genres of the BiblePlus . . .Large print for relaxed, enjoyable readingMore than 400 reflection questions9 neighborhood-themed articles

    He was living his dreams and preparing for a future of success. But the day before leaving for New York, Ryan was in a life-altering car accident that robbed him of the use of his arms and legs. Paralyzed from the shoulders down, he found himself struggling to grasp just how fundamentally his life had changed.In this unflinchingly honest account, Ryan takes you along his journey of coming to terms with his physical limitations, redefining success, falling in love, believing for a healing that seemed all but inevitable, and ultimately learning to trust the purpose in suffering.If you have ever watched your dreams crumble before your eyes, endured prolonged pain and disappointment in your life, or wondered if there is more to life than what you are living… Ryan’s story may be just what you need to discover what matters most—in this life and the next.