Book picks similar to
A Firefighter's Journal: Thirty-Seven Years on the Firegrounds and in the Firehouses of Philadelphia by Robert Marchisello
nonfiction
fire
first-responder-medical
memoir
The unknown Mongol
Scott "Junior" Ereckson - 2010
From a child to the National President of one the most notorious Motorcycle clubs in history. The best book of its genre.Once you start it you won't be able to put it down.
Postcards From Across the Pond
Michael Harling - 2010
Dispatches from an accidental expat--a humorous commentary on British life by an bewildered American who, through no fault of his own, found himself living in England.
Stories from a Theme Park Insider
Robert Niles - 2011
What time is the 3:00 parade? Why does a child need to be 40 inches tall to ride a roller coaster? What happens when the president of France gets lost inside Pirates of the Caribbean? A former employee, or "cast member", at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom answers these and other questions while sharing humorous stories about working inside the world's most popular theme park."Stories from a Theme Park Insider" takes you inside the park's famous tunnels and backstage for a look at how theme parks really work, and the funny moments and embarrassments that can happen when your work is someone else's vacation.
Wrong Family: For Every Secret, There Is A Family
Charisse Dahlke Peeler - 2018
In order to break the dysfunctional cycle, Charisse needs to overcome the chaos caused by generations of family secrets, extreme poverty, fanatical religion and sexual abuse all of which leaves her ill equipped to make her own adult decisions. Can she overcome a legacy of lies?
An Appalachian Childhood
Deany Brady - 2012
Deany Brady tells the story of her colorful childhood in the 1930s and 40s with freshness, humor, wit, and intelligence. She is a master storyteller, following in the vigorous oral tradition of her parents and her grandmother, who told vivid family stories all through her childhood. Following the arc of her young life, Brady beautifully captures her own growth from a daydreaming child, creating mansions out of moss and sticks, and gazing at the famous people in the newspapers covering the walls, to a girl in love with language and writing, whose greatest happiness is to read all of Gone with the Wind to her mother by the wash stream one magical summer. Unusual in her Appalachian community, the young Deany yearns not only to complete her high school education but to find a way to better her own life and that of her family’s, by moving to the big city of Atlanta and hoping to gain a college education. Even as Deany’s life grows more intricate and challenging, and even as she makes her own mistakes in her urge to escape the constraints of Appalachia, she holds onto her dream of a life filled with knowledge, happiness and beauty.An Appalachian Childhood is the first half of a two-part memoir. It covers Deany Brady’s first twenty-two years. The second half, Higher than Yonder Mountain, is forthcoming. This second volume follows her grown-up life’s arc from Georgia to Miami Beach, to Park Avenue in New York, and ultimately to her life as a writer in California.
The Appalachian Trail Girl's Guide: Part Memoir, Part Manifesto
Megan Maxwell - 2014
While she had a lively and beautiful six month journey, she noticed that there were not a lot of women on the trail. She wants to change that by inspiring other women to hit the A.T. and feel confident in their own backpacking abilities. In this book, Megan uses her own trials and errors to guide readers through their gear selections, mental preparation, dealing with weary friends and family, avoiding potentially dangerous situations, and everything else you need to know to be a successful solo girl in the wilderness. Some of the highlights of the book include: -Budgeting for your hike and cutting costs on the trail. -Selecting the best gear for your price range. -Choosing practical clothing that you will actually want to wear. -Getting a support system in place to improve your chances of success. -Dealing with things like your period and peeing in the woods. -Dealing with creepy or annoying men on the trail. -Learning skills like hitch-hiking, building fires, getting the most out of your phone battery, and Yogi-ing. -Megan's favorite spots to camp or visit in each state. -An outline of the best section hikes in each state. -Megan's personal account of her own thru-hike. -Awesome photos from Megan's thru-hike.
Beyond Rain of Gold
Victor Villaseñor - 2011
In the process of ensuring that his family’s saga would be published as the authentic, true account it was, Villaseñor forged a sacred bond with his father and his indigenous ancestors, who were guiding him from the Other Side. The book eventually became a national bestseller and an enduring favorite of millions of readers. Yet the story doesn’t end there. Villaseñor’s connection with the Spirit World continued to deepen, awakening him to the ongoing miracles inherent in everyday living. He discovered that his life had suddenly taken on a magical quality, with events occurring that transcended the boundaries of what is normally considered “reality.” A series of mystical encounters with Spirit convinced Villaseñor that not only is there no firm line between life and death—but that the time has come in our collective “human-story” to usher in a new era of abundance, peace, and harmony on our beloved Mother Earth and among all of humanity! Similar to Carlos Castaneda’s body of work, this exciting, raw, and honest book courageously delves into altered states of consciousness that exist alongside ordinary reality . . . ultimately revealing the Spiritual Wisdom that is available to each and every one of us. Beyond Rain of Gold will truly transform the way you see the world—
on both a personal and planetary level!
Seriously Mum, Who's that Chicken?
Alan Parks - 2017
In fact, each setback they experience just seems to immerse them deeper into a life they have totally fallen in love with. 'Seriously Mum, Who's that Chicken?' is the latest installment of their adventures as they continue to seize the day, living off-grid and loving every minute.
A Season with Mom: Love, Loss, and the Ultimate Baseball Adventure
Katie Russell Newland - 2021
Along with black-and-white photographs, Katie shares letters written to her mom, who died of cancer before the two of them could go on this adventure of a lifetime together.A Season with Mom reminds readers that in life, as in baseball, sometimes you strike out, but sometimes you hit home runs. Even if the wait is longer than you’d hoped, dreams can come true.
Who'd be a copper?: Thirty years a frontline British cop
Jonathan Nicholas - 2015
Who’d be a copper? follows Jonathan Nicholas in his transition from a long-haired world traveller to becoming one of ‘Thatcher’s army’ on the picket lines of the 1984 miner’s dispute and beyond. His first years in the police were often chaotic and difficult, and he was very nearly sacked for not prosecuting enough people. Working at the sharp end of inner-city policing for the entire thirty years, Jonathan saw how politics interfered with the job; from the massaging of crime figures to personal petty squabbles with senior officers. His last ten years were the oddest, from being the best cop in the force to repeatedly being told that he faced dismissal. This astonishing true story comes from deep in the heart of British inner-city policing and is a revealing insight into what life is really like for a police officer, amid increasing budget cuts, bizarre Home Office ideas and stifling political correctness. “I can write what I like, even if it brings the police service into disrepute, because I don’t work for them anymore!” says Jonathan Nicholas. Who’d be a copper? is a unique insight into modern policing that will appeal to fans of autobiographies, plus those interested in seeing what really happens behind the scenes of the UK police."I HAVE BOUGHT YOUR BOOK." TW, Sir Thomas Winsor, WS HMCIC"A WEALTH OF ANECDOTES. FASCINATING." John Donoghue, author of 'Police, Crime & 999'"AN ILLUMINATING ACCOUNT OF LIFE AS A FRONT LINE OFFICER IN BRITAIN'S POLICE, A SERVICE OFTEN STRETCHED FOR RESOURCES BUT MIRED IN RED TAPE AND POLITICAL CORRECTNESS." Pat Condell, author of 'Freedom is My Religion'
Somebody Else's Kids by Torey Hayden Summary & Study Guide
BookRags - 2011
37 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more – everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of Somebody Else's Kids. This detailed literature summary also contains Topics for Discussion and a Free Quiz on Somebody Else's Kids by Torey Hayden.
Freighter Captain
Max Hardberger - 1998
Capt. Max Hardberger and his crew fought a non-stop battle against crooked charterers, treacherous agents, and the sea itself. They came face-to-face with bandits in Jamaica, violent stowaways in the Dominican Republic, and warring gangs in post-Duvalier Haiti. It was a world of desperation and danger, where only the captain's will and the loyalty of his crew stood between the ship and disaster.
Out of the Wild: Seven Years in the Wilderness
Charlie Paterson
Away from all the modern conveniences and comforts most take for granted, his tale is one of adversity, building a dream with dogged determination. Battling against considerable and powerful opposition, bureaucracy, severe lack of money, unforgiving nature, loneliness and ultimately his own ill health; only to find the dream fulfilled will almost destroy him. A sometimes spiritual and critical tale of self-discovery where ultimately his growing faith in God literally saves him from a very sorry end in the mountainous wilderness of New Zealand. A story that exposes wilderness living as it truly is, not for the faint hearted. However, Out of the Wild is more than just a candid wilderness survival tale, but includes some very interesting snippets of New Zealand's early pioneer history associated to the Fiordland National Park, the Hollyford Valley, Martins Bay, the beautiful deserted ghost town of Jamestown Bay and even the fabled "lost ruby mine" in the inaccessible Red Hills. For the outdoor and "back to basics" enthusiasts Charlie details his accounts of hunting red deer in the thick Fiordland rainforest around his wilderness home to using the old traditional methods to store his kills, through to trapping introduced predators destroying the special rainforest ecosystems of Fiordland. "Out of the Wild" is a very unique New Zealand wilderness tale which will appeal to the outdoor conservative types.
No Hiding in The Open: A Journey in Professional Golf
John Hoskison - 2013
When he meets Seve Ballesteros for the first time and makes the cut in the Martini International, he looks set for success. Then reality kicks in at Royal Birkdale in the PGA Championships.This is a true story of how someone has to deal with life's ups and downs. After topping a shot in front of Seve, shanking in front of Sandy Lyle and almost hitting Greg Norman with a monumental slice, John has to deal with the brutality of championship golf. With confidence in tatters John sets out on a quest to find a golf swing that will work and stand the ultimate test of playing in The Open - his dream. But there are no psychologists or coaches to help. Like the rest of the young pros, he has to find the solution himself and no stone is left unturned.From trying crazy superstitions to simply copying the top players like Tom Watson and Nick Faldo, this book shows the difference between the modern day tour pro and the young men who went into battle with blindfolds on.The account of John Hoskison's life on tour is funny, sad and brutally honest. This book will be a fascinating read for all keen golfers or sportsman and the sting in the tail will surprise everyone who reads it.Excerpt from the book:Just before driving home the chairman of West Surrey came to shake my hand. 'John - you're a star,' he said. I smiled. I had felt like one all day. The Titleist Tour clothes designer, proving himself a colour-blind schizophrenic, had far outstripped his previous three design attempts taking 'conspicuous' to new heights. The pattern on my sweater that day was literally stunning. I knew it was power dressing by the reaction of the players in front of me when I had earlier stepped onto the first tee and whipped off my waterproof jacket. Both Craig Stadler and Tom Weiskopf looked stunned. 'Wow,' said Craig. 'You should warn people before you do that.'
The Miraculous Life of Maggie the Wunderdog
Kasey Carlin - 2020
Maggie was shot 17 times and subjected to cruelty and torture, before being rescued from Lebanon and brought to live in the UK by a determined and loving young woman called Kasey.As Maggie struggled to overcome her injuries, every day was a fight to rehabilitate her. But Kasey was convinced that what she had found in this little dog was someone just as determined to live and love as she was.This is the incredible story of their journey together: a story of hope, unconditional love and never giving up.