Jackie saw it all, and in The Joke Man: Bow to Stern he shares personal stories as well a look from behind the scenes at one of the highest-rated radio shows of all time. You’ll also get his take on his falling out with Howard and the show, and plenty of the raunchy, laugh-out–loud humor that Jackie “The Joke Man” is famous for. So sit back, relax, and enjoy as “The Joke Man” riffs on his one-of-a-kind career in show business, Howard Stern and the gang, and his very unique life—an American success story like no other.

    After growing up in an Irish Catholic household, he was sent to a grammar school run by priests, from which he eventually emerged unscathed. A combination of O Levels and rock ’n’ roll led him into the bowels of Manchester’s club land, where he worked alongside strippers and Chinese strongman acts while revising the War of Jenkin’s Ear.Testosterone and guilt struggled for mastery in his lapsing Catholic chest and trousers until testosterone won and, with guilt still on his back like Quasimodo’s hump, he toured the dancehalls of Northern England in a VW panel van, taking rock ’n’ roll to one-horse towns where the horse had bolted.Warm, nostalgic and very funny, Mike Harding’s memoir of his early life in post-war Manchester is as idiosyncratic and engaging as the man himself.

    The rubber snake might as well be a real snake—the nightmare reality—when they elicit the same response. Blind fear will make both horse and rider try to outrun lions, even when those lions are made of paper. Blind fear can send you straight over a cliff, and even if you manage to pull up before the edge, that is no way to live life. It is only through training, training, and more training, and then testing that training, that you learn to turn and face fear, find courage, and welcome the ride, wild though it promises to be. These are the rings of fire, the trials that lie ahead for all of us, whether they be taking command of a spooky horse or navigating more human problems. Once trained, with worthy companions marching with you, shoulder-to-shoulder, you are ready for the ride. Welcome to The Dressage Chronicles IV: Rings of Fire.

    But when fellow competitor Frederick Twemlow snatches away their top horse, everything they have ever worked for is on the brink of falling apart before their eyes. Frederick Twemlow is gorgeous, rich, popular and at the top of the eventing ranks. When he sets his sights on something, he doesn't stop until he gets it. So when he begins to make eyes at Elsa, they both know it's only a matter of time before Frederick gets what he wants. Desperate to despise him for tipping their yard into turmoil, and to prove her loyalty to Sophia; for how long can Elsa resist his charms?

    All the ten year old Bowden knew about golf was that it was a stupid game that took up too much of his father’s time, and that he’d much rather kick around a soccer ball or stay home and read a book. But all that changed once Bowden’s father, a renowned local doctor, introduced him to one of his patients, Freddie Bennett, the legendary Augusta National caddie master. Though Bowden was a white child of considerable privilege and Bennett was an older black gentleman of more modest means, the two formed an unusual bond. It was Bennett who introduced Bowden to the game of golf, a sport that would one day earn him a Division 1 golf scholarship and lead him to the final stage of a British Open qualifier. But it was the lessons Bennett taught the young Bowden off the course that had their profoundest impact on his life. Through Freddie and his particular brand of homespun wisdom, the author learned invaluable lessons about personal responsibility, hard work, and respect for others regardless of age, race or religion. He also learned that there’s much more to life than just playing golf. Like the bestsellers Tuesdays With Morrie and Seasons of Life before it, Freddie & Me is a heartwarming tale of two unlikely friends and their uncommon bond forged through sport.

    Her little sister, Angela, was brutally murdered and Savage has been searching for the strength to write her grief down ever since. Finally, just shy of six years later, and one year after justice finally rained down upon the man to blame, Savage found the courage to try. This collection is an 18-poem narrative of the very real and raw emotions felt by the author over the years since the tragedy. Here, she pays homage to her baby sister and bleeds her own pain onto paper for anyone who might need help finding their own strength.

    

    It includes the story of Frank's beloved sister, Eva, who was a top-class West End shoplifter, and his sons David and Patrick, who reveal in shocking detail the full extent of the family's network and the influences that shaped them.With sawn-off shotguns as toys, the Kray twins as family friends and a mother who urged them as teenagers to 'get out of bed and rob a bleedin' bank', it is little wonder that the Fraser boys were heavily involved in organized crime by the time they were in their twenties. Packed with new information, and featuring some of the most famous names in the London underworld, this is a fascinating slice of gangland history seen through the eyes of Frank Fraser and his two renegade sons.

     Adapted from the column on its author's website, Nathan Rabin's Happy Place, with 52 hilarious, sometimes obscure and often oddly beautiful new original illustrations from Felipe Sobreiro and an introduction from Al himself, The Weird Accordion to Al explores every track on all sixteen of Al's records (14 studio albums, the Medium Rarities obscurities collection and Peter & the Wolf, his collaboration with Wendy Carlos) with an obsessiveness thats downright peculiar. Equal parts music criticism, cultural and comedy history, autobiography and comic meditation on nostalgia, television, consumerism, childhood, technology and food, The Weird Accordion to Al does justice to a musical legend and comic genius the extent of whose remarkable achievements are only now being fully understood and appreciated. Praise for The Weird Accordion to Al “A brilliant, heartfelt cry of obsession and love for an already beloved and obsessed-over artist. Share Nathan’s madness and be freed!”—Patton Oswalt "This book is pop culture history, music dissertation, and comedic theory. Nathan has exemplified the qualities that make Weird Al an artist who is equal parts Frank Zappa, Mel Brooks, and Mark Twain.”—Jonah Ray “You don’t have to be a fan of Weird Al to enjoy Rabin’s raucous deep-dive into the complete discography. But if you’re not a Weird Al fan there’s clearly something wrong with you”—Alex Winter “Wonderfully captures the quirks and fun details that have made the Yank-oeuvre ooze with oddness for almost four decades. Nathan really shows you what makes Al's mind tick. Spoiler: It's the neurons. A must read for anyone unemployed, childless, or with ninety spare hours to kill.”—Scott Aukerman “The Weird Accordion to Al is the definitive companion to the “Weird Al” catalogue. It’s chock full of fascinating insights that left my head spinning like a Frankie Yankovic record (no relation). Nobody covers the Al canon in better depth than Nathan Rabin. It’s a must-read for the weirdos in your life. I learned so much from this VERY SPECIFIC book.”—Thomas Lennon "Nathan Rabin is obsessive in the best sense of the word. He literally ALREADY wrote the book on Weird Al that Weird Al asked him to write. That wasn't enough for Nathan and that's why we are lucky to have this book. Al's contributions to pop culture deserve the kind of obsession that only Nathan Rabin can bring to the page and he brings it big time in this book. He dares to be very smart about "Dare To Be Stupid.’”—Jake Fogelnest

    

    Tens of thousands of British fans followed him there to watch these monumental bouts, and to soak up the unique atmosphere in Sin City.In Ricky's Hatton's Vegas Tales, he recalls the most memorable moments: from fight negotiations, through trash-talking transatlantic promotional tours, gruelling training camps, bizarre encounters with opponents, fans, A-list celebrities and boxing legends; all the way to fight-week mayhem and the epic post-fight benders that followed.With contributions from family, friends and the journalists who know him best, tributes from Mexican boxing legends Oscar De La Hoya and Marco Antonio Barrera, plus the hilarious recollections of rock 'n' roll superstar Noel Gallagher, this is an anecdote-driven romp through all the highs and lows of Ricky's Vegas fights, and the madness that preceded and followed each bout.What goes down in Vegas, stays in Vegas... until now!

    From a life of luxury in the opulent city of Dubai to promised ruination, Jaubert tells a tale of espionage and escape that rivals any best selling novel on the market. Immersed in a luxury submarine business, Jaubert was hired as CEO by Dubai World to develop and design miniature subs for the wealthy. Once problems developed within the business, Herve Jaubert became the scapegoat of government officials and found himself ensnared in a web of police threats, extortion, human rights abuses and coercion. With no chance to make it through their biased legal system, Jaubert planned the escape of his life.

    This volume showcases his extraordinary vision of urban trees and their often precarious, sometimes triumphant place in the human landscape.

    . . Grace and Ted Chapman married at the beginning of the war, but then Ted was called up to fight . . . Grace was left alone, fearful that her beloved Ted would never return. With the passage of time, Grace began to create a new life and found comfort in the arms of another man. Then along came the birth of a little girl, baby Barbara.One morning, Grace receives a telegram out of the blue, she learns that Ted is alive and on his way home. News of his return sends Grace into a sick panic and she begs her sister Joan to look after her daughter. When Ted returns back to Birmingham, he is shell-shocked and fragile - all the while Grace is tormented. Just how far is Grace willing to go, in order to protect her secret?

    Committing to a man? Not exactly on her agenda. But then a tragedy brings her closer to gorgeous attorney Griffin Rice and they have to share custody of their twin goddaughters.Griffin never saw himself as husband or father material. But suddenly family vacations and Sunday dinners with the girls are the highlight of his schedule—and getting closer to their smart, sexy-looking godmother is his number one priority. Can he teach her that their partnership has turned into a loving relationship powerful enough to last?Sweet DeceptionLaw professor Myles Eaton knows a lot can happen in ten years. A decade ago, Philadelphia's finest bachelor was a hotshot attorney engaged to a woman he swore he'd love forever—until she left him to marry a powerful politician. The only thing more difficult than forgiving her has been forgetting the searing heat they shared. And just when Myles is sure he's over her, Zabrina Cooper is back in his life.Nothing could stop Zabrina from loving Myles, not even when she was blackmailed into becoming the wife—in name only—of another man. And as her secrets are revealed, Zabrina has one summer to convince Myles that beyond their incredible chemistry is a soul-stirring bond that has never faded.