Book picks similar to
Not a Place on Any Map by Alexis Paige
memoir
nonfiction
1-shelved
addiction-recovery
Gut Instincts: Dispatches from the Wide Open Space Between Sickness and Health
Heather Abel - 2014
They told her that she had the worst case they’d ever seen of a rare Scandinavian disease called celiac. At first, this diagnosis – and its requirement of total adherence to a gluten-free diet – seemed like the simple answer to a lifetime of strange symptoms including anemia, insomnia, pneumonia, mouth ulcers, missed periods, and neck pain so severe that for months preceding the diagnosis she hadn’t been able to turn her head. But even on the diet – and as glutenphobia erupted in this country, with nearly a third of Americans avoiding gluten —Abel still didn’t feel well. When doctors, nutritionists, and websites all offered contradicting information on gluten and diet, she began to panic. How would she know what to eat? In this powerful, wide-ranging and emotional story about the limits of medical knowledge, Abel discovers why she wasn’t diagnosed with celiac as a child. She considers how environmental fears and Internet anecdotes lead people to avoid gluten. And she grapples with the question that confronts us all: how to live calmly, even joyfully, in the face of uncertainty. Heather Abel worked as a reporter and news editor in Colorado and San Francisco and taught creative writing at the New School University and UMass Amherst. She lives with her family in western Massachusetts where she is finishing her first novel.
"A DIARY FROM HELL": A CHILD BEING SOLD IN AMERICA
THERESA JENKINS - 2017
She was kept in a closet and beaten daily. Neglected, physically and mentally abused. Sometimes she was allowed to eat and sometimes she wasn't. She was left in the care of a family member who took her young innocents by selling her for sex to men at an early age. When most children are at the tender age of adolescents and playing at the playground she was living in a daily hell. The welfare system failed her many times. Sending her back to a home that only the devil could have occupied. By the age 11, she had attempted suicide seven times. With no success, she ran away to live on the streets of Cincinnati Ohio. Until she was caught and sent to many children's homes and foster homes. Read as she takes you through her journey as she recounts her 'Diary from hell"!
A Girl Raised by Wolves: An inspiring memoir of one woman's journey through sex trafficking, cancer, murder and more.
Lockey Maisonneuve - 2018
town, an adolescent girl is unwittingly handed a one-way ticket by her mother to allegedly "visit" her estranged father in Florida. Young and vulnerable, Lockey Maisonnueve has no idea she is being abandoned and sent to live with a vile and dangerous pedophile who would spend the next several years violently raping, abusing and mercilessly selling his daughter's body into childhood prostitution to other adult men. After being rescued by her naive, but well-intentioned, grandparents, her troubled life is further devastated by cancer and ravaged by the subsequent brutal murder of her mother, in which Lockey is briefly considered a suspect. "A Girl Raised by Wolves' is the inspirational memoir of a survivor of the darkest circumstances one can endure in a single lifetime and still emerge with a sense of humor and to defiantly proclaim "they didn't break me!"
Sidney Crosby: The Rookie Year
Neely Lohmann - 2022
As one of the greatest NHL players of all time, he reflects on his 2005-06 rookie season with the Pittsburgh Penguins. From a Canadian phenom dubbed "the next Gretzky" to an 18-year-old carrying the burden of a struggling franchise, he talks candidly about the intense pressure he was under, the surreal experience of lacing up alongside his childhood idol Mario Lemieux and the truth about his rivalry with Alex Ovechkin. Sidney Crosby, with the help of his family, coaches and former teammates, gives listeners an all-access pass to one of the most scrutinized and tumultuous rookie seasons in the history of professional hockey. Hosted by Pittsburgh native and Penguins fan Joe Manganiello.
Sincerely, Andy Rooney
Andy Rooney - 1999
As you might imagine, he gets a lot of letters in response to his often iconoclastic views. As you might not expect, he writes a lot of letters, too. Now Rooney has collected the funniest, wisest, and most interesting of his letters, spanning several decades and addressing issues both momentous and trivial. He responds to complaints from viewers; he corresponds with old friends; and he writes to his children about the things he cares about most. Variously caustic, hilarious, and sage, these unfailingly entertaining letters reveal not only Rooney the iconoclast but Rooney the American Everyman. Sincerely, Andy Rooney is Andy Rooney at his best-and a wonderful gift book that will make readers chuckle and think twice.
ER DOC: Defining Moments of a Career in Emergency Medicine
Reggie Duling - 2021
Twenty-Seven Years in Alaska: True Stories of Adventure in the Alaskan Wilderness
Jennifer Hellings - 2015
From canoe camping next to unnamed lakes, to kayaking in Alaska’s pristine waters, she describes her many encounters with the bears, moose and other animals that make this wilderness their home. With her partner David she helped to build a cabin on a remote piece of property, off the grid and accessible only by boat. Illustrated with the photos she took along the way, her story is sometimes comic, and sometimes tragic, but throughout its pages she speaks with the voice of one who loves nature and the wilderness.
My Psychic Casebook: The amazing secrets of the world’s most respected department-store medium (HarperTrue Fate – A Short Read)
Jayne Wallace - 2015
In My Psychic Casebook, Jayne tells the stories exactly as they happened, and explains the techniques she uses to link with her clients. Just like a good novel, you’ll be instantly engrossed – except that all these stories are true.As the only department store medium in the world, in this short story, Jayne offers a unique insight into the work of a top clairvoyant, as well as shining a light on the remarkable truths behind the questions that concern us all.
Jack Slater: Orphan Train to Cattle Baron
Johnny Gunn - 2017
He was saved by the Children’s Aid Society that placed orphaned children with families on the frontier. These families welcomed the children and most found loving homes. Some grew up to become industrial, political, or community leaders. Slater did not find a loving home. Instead, he found himself at Pete Jablonski’s farm in Fargo, Dakota Territory where abuse was a daily dose of reality. When outlaws rob a local mine payroll and kill four men in the process, Slater makes a mortal enemy of the Elko County Sheriff that takes Slater's life is an unexpected direction.
A Lesser Photographer: Escape the Gear Trap and Focus on What Matters
C.J. Chilvers - 2018
Less gear. Less anxiety. Less stress. Less fear. A Lesser Photographer is the missing guide you've always wanted to the only gear that really matters: the gear between your ears. In under an hour, you’ll be able to identify the myths you’ve been taught about photography and embrace useful creative habits that will set you apart. Praise for previous editions: “For something beautiful and well-said, check out A Lesser Photographer.” — David duChemin “Amazing read…I really recommend everyone get a copy.” — Chris Marquardt “CJ Chilvers reevaluates what it means to be a photographer in this manifesto. Most of the points apply to virtually any creative endeavor or obsession. ‘The real show is outside the viewfinder.’” — Jim Coudal “I have to say, CJ has a great attitude. If you care at all about photography, he’s a must read.” — Patrick Rhone “Every photographer should follow CJ Chilvers.” — Eric Kim
Red Herrings for Breakfast
Annabet Ousback - 2020
However, nothing was as it seemed and Annabet and Anders were both exposed to harsh, often irrational and frequently violent discipline from their parents, which left them emotionally unbalanced and starved of affection. In a time where domestic violent was never discussed within the family let alone outside of it, Annabet and Anders struggled to keep their spirits and souls afloat. But at least they had each other.As they endeavoured to find their paths in life - Annabet as a children's clothing designer and Anders as an internationally recognised chef, restaurateur and talented potter - neither could escape the legacy of their violent and disturbing upbringing. Anders never overcame a secret he kept tragically to himself and Annabet was perpetually wracked with self-doubt due to her mother's continual criticism.This beautifully written story not only traces the history of growing up on the north shore but the gradual evolution of the food and fashion scene in Sydney in the 70s and 80s. It encompasses many areas of day to day struggles within families that were not discussed then and which are, sadly, still occurring today.
THIS is Africa
Mat Dry - 2012
THIS is Africa is a compilation of stories that defines the maxim "Truth is sometimes stranger, and more wondrous than fiction." From a place known for its continent-wide diversity, notorious for its dramatic turbulence, and beloved for its animals and untamed wildness, Mat Dry, brings his incredible true tales of living and working in Africa as a Safari Guide.
The Pact: A UFC Champion, a Boy with Cancer, and Their Promise to Win the Ultimate Battle
Cody Garbrandt - 2018
In his darkest moments, when those dreams were dashed, he dug deep with the help of an unlikely friend—five-year-old Maddux Maple, a local hometown fan with leukemia. They made a pact: Cody would be in the UFC and win the championship, and Maddux would beat cancer. Read their moving story in Cody’s new book, The Pact, and go behind the scenes into Cody’s training and how he made his dreams come true. Cody Garbrandt grew up in a rough town in the Central Appalachian region of Ohio, surrounded by a longstanding culture of fighting—and drugs. Raised in this environment by a single mom (his dad left him at the young age of three to reside in the Ohio State Penitentiary), Cody grew up fighting, and he grew up wild. His future seemed predestined to end in the coal mines, or in prison.Thankfully, Cody had visions of something more. His American Dream? Mixed Martial Arts. But a path to success wasn’t clear. He spent as much time fighting in the streets as he did in the gym—one bad decision away from losing everything. Then, at age 20, Cody’s brother introduced him to five-year old Maddux Maple. Maddux was deathly ill with leukemia, his survival by no means assured. A unique friendship developed as they made a promise to each other: Maddux would beat cancer, and Cody would make it to the UFC and become world champion.Through five long years of pain and hardship, they both persevered; Cody, through the agony and sacrifices of fighting his way to the top, and Maddux through the horrors of chemotherapy. They loved and supported each other. They served as each other’s inspiration. And in December 2016, they made good on their pact: Cody won his UFC Championship belt, which he promptly presented to Maddux—the boy who had beaten cancer into remission.
Lovely Things in Ugly Places
Mattie Montgomery - 2016
In Lovely Things in Ugly Places, he invites us to come with him as he revisits the moments in his ministry (some incredible, some hilarious, and some tragic), that shaped him most substantially. Known for his bold and fearless proclamation of the Gospel, Montgomery writes with vulnerability and transparency, beckoning the Body of Christ into a radical lifestyle of love. He challenges his readers to lay down the labels we use to identify people, and to see them (and ourselves) as God does, reminding us that if we are willing to look, we too will find Lovely Things in Ugly Places.
Complete Surrender - The True Story of a Family's Dark Secret and the Brothers it Tore Apart at Birth
Dave Sharp - 2008
He lived his life happily as a bricklayer and grew up and honest man who loved soccer. In his 60s, he set about the long and arduous process of trying to find out who his real parents were. After much searching he discovered the family who had given him up for adoption and met up with them. He also scheduled to meet with the man he believed to be his half-brother; this man, it turned out, was the noted novelist Ian McEwan, author of Atonement and On Chesil Beach. A shocking revelation concerning a family affair that had long lain hidden was soon unearthed, and Dave learned that Ian was in fact his full brother. This is the amazing and heartwarming story of a sons wish to find his family, and two men gaining the brother that they had always wished for.