On Being German: A Personal Journey Into the German Experience


Doris Pena-Cruz - 2021
    In my younger years I avoided that subject, be it in literature or in entertainment, whenever I possibly could. That was not easy. Television was full of programs in which Germans looked stupid and heinous. My own children watched these things with glee; I fled into another room. Since I have always read a lot, I was at least aware of the avalanche of books that were published about the Holocaust. Still, I kept my blinkers on. I firmly told myself that it was not my business, since I was just a child during that time. Sooner or later such an attitude will have to come to an end. It did for me after I fled a difficult marriage and finally began to examine my life. This was a slow process, aided by a patient psychiatrist. Now, years later, I want to write about my life and about the conflicted feelings such a search will cause in a woman of German nationality.

Daughter of the Reich


Louise Fein - 2020
    But she never imagines that all she believes and knows about her world will come into stark conflict when she encounters Walter, a Jewish friend from the past, who stirs dangerous feelings in her. Confused and conflicted, Hetty doesn’t know whom she can trust and where she can turn to, especially when she discovers that someone has been watching her.Realizing she is taking a huge risk—but unable to resist the intense attraction she has for Walter—she embarks on a secret love affair with him. Together, they dream about when the war will be over and plan for their future. But as the rising tide of anti-Semitism threatens to engulf them, Hetty and Walter will be forced to take extreme measures.Will the steady march of dark forces destroy Hetty’s universe—or can love ultimately triumph…?Propulsive, deeply affecting, and inspired by the author’s family history, Daughter of the Reich is a mesmerizing page-turner filled with vivid characters and a meticulously researched portrait of Nazi Germany. In this riveting story of passion, courage and morality, Louise Fein introduces a bold young woman determined to tread the treacherous path of survival and freedom, showing readers the strength in the power of love and reminding us that the past must never be forgotten.

Saigon Kids: An American Military Brat Comes of Age in 1960's Vietnam


Les Arbuckle - 2017
    military brat during the early Vietnam war years in Saigon The early Vietnam war years through the eyes of a U.S. military brat: In May of 1962, Naval Chief Petty Officer Bryant Arbuckle flew to Saigon to establish a new Armed Forces radio station. Next to follow were his wife and three boys, Leslie among them. Saigon Kids is the candid, recondite slice of fourteen-year-old military brat Les Arbuckle's experience at the American Community School (ACS) during the critical months of the Vietnam War when events would, quite literally, ignite in downtown Saigon. In 1963, Saigon was beautiful, violent, and dirty - and the most exciting place a fourteen-year-old American boy could live. Saigon offered a rich array of activities, and much to the consternation of their parents and teachers, Les and his fellow military brats explored the dangers with reckless abandon running from machine gun fire, watching a Buddhist monk burn to death, visiting brothels late at night or, trading currency on the black market Coming of age in the streets of Vietnam War torn Saigon: When Les first arrives in Vietnam, he is a stranger in a strange land, expecting boredom in a country he doesn't know. But the American social scene is more vibrant than he expected. The American Community School is a blend of kids from all over the globe who arrived in Saigon as the fuse on Saigon was about to ignite. As the ACS students continue their American lifestyle behind barbed wire, Saigon unravels in chaos and destruction. In spite of this ugliness - an ever-present feature of everyday life -- Les tells his story of teenage angst with humor and precocity. Coming of age tale with a twist: The events leading up to the Vietnam War provide an unusual backdrop for this coming-of-age tale with a twist. Saigon Kids will also make a perfect companion to the documentary film (sponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts) currently in production. The film chronicles the lives of -military brats- living in Saigon in the volatile years from 1958 to 1964.

Not To Blame - Maggie Hartley ebook short


Maggie Hartley - 2020
    Social Services are at a loss as to what to do with the troubled teenager. Prone to violent outbursts and sudden, uncontrollable tantrums, Rebecca has never spent more than a few months in any one placement. When she comes to live with foster carer Maggie Hartley, it seems like there is little hope of Rebecca ever finding a long-term home. Her strange behaviour and sudden flashes of anger present challenges unlike any Maggie has ever seen before.But when a secret from Rebecca's past finally comes to light, it seems that Maggie has finally found the root of this vulnerable girl's out-of-control behaviour. Can Maggie help Rebecca come to terms with her past and realise she's not to blame?

Deputy: 35 Years as a Deputy Sheriff from Upstate NY to LA


Cliff Yates - 2019
    Sheriff’s Sergeant Cliff Yates Ride along with a real DEPUTY Have you ever wondered what it would be like to patrol the streets of south-central LA? What if you could go behind the scenes and see what life is really like on the Sunset Strip? ”DEPUTY” 35 years as a Deputy Sheriff from upstate NY to LA is the first-hand account of Cliff Yates, a thirty-five-year law enforcement veteran. His story begins in rural upstate New York, then takes a drastic turn that leads him to the mean streets of LA and the surrounding area. This memoir invites readers into his world and see what he saw, experience what he experienced. Each story is real. Some may be tough to read. Others will make you laugh-out-loud. But all serve as a lesson Cliff will carry with him for the rest of his days. If you’ve ever wondered what life is like for men and women in the law enforcement community, this book will answer most of your questions and give you great insight from someone who has been there. Fast, riveting and exciting.

The Last Kiss: A True Story of Love, Joy and Loss


Leslie Brody - 2012
    But six years after their wedding, they learned that Elliot, only 55, had pancreatic cancer - and would be lucky to live for a year or two.With a journalist's eye for intimate detail, Leslie shows how they made the very most of the time they had left together. Told with heart, humor and compelling immediacy, The Last Kiss is a love story about the life-affirming power of a passionate marriage, the importance of loyal friends, and the resilience of children growing up through one of life's harshest trials.This is the most important story she has ever told.

Make Enterprise Great Again: The Gods Must Be Crazy!: Cradle of Communism to Catacomb of Capitalism: A Proposal to bring back the House of Roosevelt's


E.P.M. Mavericks - 2020
    The bottle is thought to be a gift from the Gods, but after it incites bitter fighting amongst the villagers, the tribal leader decides to return it to the Gods, embarking upon a journey to the end of the world. Through my own metaphorical coke bottle, I visualize the dawn of a daunting new Empire. This book serves as both a testament to the past glories of the current American Empire and a guidebook to restoring Capitalism and Enterprise – before it is too late.Steve Hilton:” A lot of people say that China wants to replace the US as the superpower ..., Do you believe that that's their intention?"Trump: "Yes, I do. Why wouldn't it be? They're very ambitious people. They're very smart. They're great people. It's a great culture." - Fox News interview (05-19-19)------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------It’s halftime America!Ay Yi Yai Yi! We are in the middle of The New World Order!Empires rise, decline, and fall. History has witnessed this cycle with the Romans, the Ottomans, and the British. They have all toppled, and if we are not careful, the US will be the next.Many of today’s enterprises are a gaggle of debt-addicted extreme financial engineering frogs floundering in tepid snake oil. Unfortunately, many will find their demise in the clutches of IP vultures.If we don't play our trump cards right, the next voracious Empire - the Middle Kingdom of China - will consume us; sending their errand boys to collect bills from the US and over a hundred other countries that it has economically and digitally colonized since the Economic Tsunami of 2008, through “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI) to its “Digital Silk Road” (DSR).“Make Enterprise Great Again” digs into the foundations of capitalism and traces the ideals, triumphs and zeitgeist of the Roosevelt years in order to “Build Back Better” – and to save us from the impending Fourth Reich.Yeah! It's halftime, America!

After Such Knowledge: Where Memory of the Holocaust Ends and History Begins


Eva Hoffman - 2004
    How should they, in turn, convey its knowledge to others? What are the effects of a traumatic past on its inheritors, and the second generation's responsibilities to its received memories?" As Eva Hoffman ponders the ambiguous consequences of the cultural preoccupation with the Holocaust and guides us through the poignant juncture at which living memory must be relinquished, she asks what insights can be carried from the past to the present, and urges us to transform potent family narratives into a fully informed understanding of a forbidding history.

Such Good Girls: The Journey of the Hidden Child Survivors of the Holocaust


R.D. Rosen - 2014
    In Such Good Girls, R. D. Rosen tells the story of these survivors through the true experiences of three girls.Sophie Turner-Zaretsky, who spent the war years believing she was an anti-Semitic Catholic schoolgirl, eventually became an esteemed radiation oncologist. Flora Hogman, protected by a succession of Christians, emerged from the war a lonely, lost orphan, but became a psychologist who pioneered the study of hidden child survivors. Unlike Anne Frank, Carla Lessing made it through the war concealed with her family in the home of Dutch strangers before becoming a psychotherapist and key player in the creation of an international organization of hidden child survivors.In braiding the stories of three women who defied death by learning to be “such good girls,” Rosen examines a silent and silenced generation—the last living cohort of Holocaust survivors. He provides rich, memorable portraits of a handful of hunted children who, as adults, were determined to deny Hitler any more victories, and he recreates the extraordinary event that lured so many hidden child survivors out of their grown-up “hiding places” and finally brought them together.

Two Sisters: A Journey of Survival Through Auschwitz


Livia Krancberg - 2018
    Would she have made it on her own? Who knows, even with Livia’s remarkable resilience which she still exhibits today in her nineties. It was Rose, with her desire to protect Livia and her instincts for survival that kept them, time and time again, from the many dangers which could have cost both of them their lives. From the moment they were on the transport to Auschwitz, and then saw their mother, along with Rose’s little son taken away and sent to the gas chambers, it was Rose who seem to anticipate what lay ahead. Maybe it was an extra morsel of food that could be obtained or an article of warm clothing. Rose always came through, even at great risk. Two Sisters is so much more than a story of survival during the Holocaust. It is the beautiful portrayal of a young girl―and later young woman―coming of age in rural Romania. Her academic achievements, schoolgirl crushes, and family life are all explored, revealed in detail for all of us. Carefully written and beautifully crafted, it serves as an extraordinary example of the power of the memoir in Holocaust understanding.

The Hitler Years: Disaster, 1940-1945


Frank McDonough - 2020
    At the beginning of 1940 Germany was at the pinnacle of its power. By May 1945 Hitler was dead and Germany had suffered a disastrous defeat. Hitler had failed to achieve his aim of making Germany a super power and had left her people to cope with the endless shame of the Holocaust. In The Hitler Years Disaster 1940-1945 , Professor Frank McDonough charts the dramatic change of fortune for the Third Reich, and challenges long-held accounts of the Holocaust and Germany's ultimate defeat. Despite Hitler's grand ambitions and the successful early stages of the Third Reich's advances into Europe, Frank McDonough argues that Germany was only ever a middle-ranking power and never truly stood a chance against the combined forces of the Allies.

The Fallen Stones: Chasing Blue Butterflies, Mayan Secrets, and Happily Ever After in Belize


Diana Marcum - 2022
    Before long Diana and her partner, Jack Moody—new to being a couple—have moved into a long-empty jungle house, cohabitating with bats, scorpions, toucans, iguanas, and the vulnerable but resilient butterflies. She comes to be obsessed with the array of iridescent creatures.Just ahead, although they don’t know it, are a hurricane and a global pandemic.This warm, funny tale of finding a way forward when the world seems to be falling apart is filled with the beauty of the natural world and a heartfelt cry to protect it—beginning with butterflies.

Incredibull Stella: How the Love of a Pit Bull Rescued a Family


Marika Meeks - 2019
    The adorable pit bull puppy had been abandoned in a cold field in winter - but her warm, friendly eyes and boundless affection could melt anyone's heart. Even so, Marika wasn't sure she was ready to adopt a dog. As a busy entrepreneur, wife, and mother of two daughters, Marika's life was crazy already. She was recovering from stage-three breast cancer, and her family was still reeling from her brush with mortality. But Marika couldn't deny the way Stella made her feel - the pure joy of this sweet-natured dog's unconditional love - and she knew in her heart what her family needed....In a leap of faith, the Meekses welcomed Stella into their home, and thanks to this incredible dog, the daily pressures of work, stress, and Marika's health problems seemed to slip away. As Marika's cancer receded and her family found renewed vitality, she began sharing Stella's story with the world. Now an international social media star, Stella helps Marika to spread their heartfelt message of advocating for pit bull breed awareness, explaining the benefits of pet ownership and supporting shelters and other organizations that save animals' lives.

Your Heart, My Hands: The Remarkable Life of One of America's Most Prolific Cardiac Surgeons


Arun K. Singh - 2019
    Arun Singh has witnessed life and death from a vantage point nearly unmatched in medical history, while performing over 15,000 open heart surgeries. Revered by colleagues and patients, under the hot lights of the O.R. this award-winning surgeon has spent thousands of hours performing life-saving operations, while witnessing the miraculous, the joyous, and the devastating. He has held the life-giving heart in his hand and has been praised for his tireless devotion to preserving the lives this organ sustains.Dr. Singh's decorated career is an odyssey of remarkable determination. To illuminate the power of perseverance, Dr. Singh recounts how the same two hands that have so expertly worked to extend life were once crushed and his future nearly shattered. In YOUR HEART, MY HANDS he recalls the fortitude that saw him through a complicated boyhood in India, struggles with dyslexia, and finding his way as an immigrant, to become one of America's most highly-regarded and preeminent surgeons. Reflecting on over 40 years of practice, Dr. Singh shares intimate O.R. secrets, riveting patient accounts, and the life lessons he learned treating his most memorable patients. This book will inspire, enlighten, and captivate readers.

The Jesus I Know: Honest Conversations and Diverse Opinions about Who He Is


Kathie Lee Gifford - 2021
    What she discovered early on is most people are very willing to talk about Jesus:  atheists, agnostics, Scientologists, Jews, broken-hearted Catholics, confused Baptists, Pentecostals, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Hindus alike.While some of the people Kathie Lee has spoken with do not share her belief that Jesus is the Messiah—as prophesied for centuries by prophets in the Hebrew scriptures—they nonetheless have a universal fascination with Him. This singular man who lived more than two thousand years ago, and never traveled more than one hundred miles from where He was born, managed to change the entire world. Even the way we delineate history (BC/AD) comes from His short thirty-three years of life.In The Jesus I Know, Kathie Lee shares cherished conversations that she’s had with others who find Jesus to be an ancient historical figure who somehow continues to be an undeniably magnetic, relevant presence in the modern world. Those conversations include actors like Kristin Chenoweth and Cynthia Garrett, with stories of Craig Ferguson and Kevin Costner,newsmakers and news personalities like Kris Jenner, Megyn Kelly, Jason Kennedy, and Janice Dean,performers like Chynna Phillips Baldwin, Brian Welch, Jimmie Allen, and Jimmy Wayne,hitmakers like Louis York and David Pomeranzas well as those coming from other faith traditions. Using Kathie Lee’s favorite Scripture passages as scaffolding, these thought-provoking exchanges will bring His teachings to life before your very eyes.