The smells, the noise and the speed were all there for me to experience. It was like a massive injection in my head and it just blew my mind. I knew within seconds that I was going to be a TT racer. I didn’t know how or what I was going to have to do to achieve this, and my dad wasn’t going to be keen. Everyone around me was aware of the dangers, but from that moment I knew I had to do it.’ John McGuinness is one of the all-time giants of road racing, with a huge host of victories to his name. But his easy humour and down-to-earth attitude off the bike have always kept people guessing: what’s the truth about the man inside the helmet, that has kept him at the top of such a sport for over 20 years?His autobiography tells the whole story, from his humble beginnings in Morecambe and getting his first bike at the age of 3, to working as a bricklayer and cockle fisherman before deciding to follow his dream, and finally to his many victories in the most dangerous sporting event on the planet. He tells of what it takes to be a champion in such an exacting sport, and to keep winning even though all logic tells you to stop – and when so many of your fellow racers are paying the ultimate price for doing it. This thrilling autobiography gets into the head of the man who stares death in the face, and doesn’t even flinch.

    Brando Unzipped is the definitive gossip guide to the late, great actor's life New York Daily News. Lurid, raunchy, perceptive, and certainly worth reading, it's one of the best show-biz biographies of the year. London's Sunday Times. Brando Unzipped received an Honorable Mention from Foreword Magazine in its Book of the Year competition, and it won a Silver Ippy award for Best Biography from the Independent Publisher's Association."

    The [Chithoni railway link] bridge was completed eleven weeks ahead of schedule and proved to be helpful to one and all.Two key railway projects changed the way India travels by train—the 760-km stretch of Konkan Railway and the Delhi Metro. Both the projects were up and running in seven years flat and the man in charge was Dr Elattuvalapil Sreedharan, popularly known as the Railway Man. He has been hailed as the messiah of new-age infrastructure projects and his success stories have become railway engineering benchmark.Respected, loved and equally hated, this book covers the amazing story of one man—his perseverance, beliefs, and public and private battles. India’s Railway Man: A Biography of E. Sreedharan is a tribute to this extraordinary man.

    Barry's set of experiences with these legends of humour is unique, and will delight all who made PIGS CAN FLY a runaway porcine bestseller. In this completely new, organically grown book, old Baz recalls, reminisces, recounts and other words beginning with 'R', on a trip down Memory Lane, pausing only for tea and macaroons at the Stannah Stairlift Cafe. What memories - if only he can remember them. Currently 74, a third of his life has already passed and he invites you to enjoy this wonderfully funny account of it, a decorous orgy of nostalgia.

    Here is a truly joyful and inspiring story of a woman achieving success on her own terms, in her own way. And now she is sharing her life, for the very first time, with us. Now I Can Dance is an uplifting story of love, family, laughter, determination and - of course - song.

    When ordinary tasks of communication, such as using a phone, become complex, then difficult, and then impossible, isolation becomes inevitable. Helping becomes excruciating. In these pages philosopher Douglas Groothuis offers a window into his experience of caring for his wife as a rare form of dementia ravages her once-brilliant mind and eliminates her once-stellar verbal acuity. Mixing personal narrative with spiritual insight, he captures moments of lament as well as philosophical and theological reflection. Brief interludes provide poignant pictures of life inside the Groothuis household, and we meet a parade of caregivers, including a very skilled companion dog. Losses for both Doug and Becky come daily, and his questions for God multiply as he navigates the descending darkness. Here is a frank exploration of how one continues to find God in the twilight.

    As the key African American witness to take the stand in the trial famously dubbed the Mississippi Burning case by the FBI, Dr. Charles Johnson, a young preacher fresh out of Bible College, became a voice for justice and equality in the segregated south. Unwittingly thrust into the heart of a national tragedy - the murder of three civil rights activists - Dr. Johnson overcame fear and adversity to become a leader in the civil rights movement. He played a vital role for the Federal Justice Department, offering clarity to the event that led to the Voting Rights Act of 1965. And, in a shocking turn of events, Johnson offered a path of reconciliation for one of the convicted killers. A story of love, conviction, adversity, and redemption, Called to the Fire is a riveting account of a life in pursuit of the call of God and the fight for justice and equality.

    Until one intense night in the Jamaican Blue Mountains that allowed him to see himself in the mirror of grace, changing everything. The Secret Life of a Fool is Andrew Palau's unforgettable journey of running from God -- and the crushing, freeing experience of coming back to Him. It is a story of getting high, burning up cars, being stranded in Europe, surviving a near-fatal plane crash, and utter despair overcome by simple grace and a father's love, expressed in excerpted letters throughout this book.

    Sure, she was in her regular place along the stage-right aisle at Grace Community Church, halfway back...parked near a few others in wheelchairs. And the worship music had been glorious...hymns Joni could sing along with...which she did. Enthusiastically and without consulting the hymnal. All the verses. Normal so far. The part that wasn't typical was that the pastor/teacher of Grace Church, Dr. John MacArthur, was away. A pinch hitter was filling in. And although he was giving it his best, it wasn't...uh...well, it just wasn't John MacArthur. Joni tried to focus on what was being preached, but her mind began to hopelessly slide. Perhaps the past few days had been a little more hectic than usual. Maybe she and her ministry team had stayed out a little longer than they should have at dinner the night before. Or maybe the volunteers who had come that morning to get Joni up, bathed and dressed had come a little too early. Whatever the reason, Joni fought drowsiness. Caught in a truly awkward situation and not wanting to make a scene, Joni began to pray. It would be a worthy exercise to pass the time. This is something she of-ten did at night when she'd waken with nowhere to go and no wakeful person on duty to help her. Joni knew that the week ahead was going to be a busy one, including some air travel. That's something I can pray about, she mused. And so she did. Next, Joni decided to look around...carefully, of course, so as not to be accused of not paying attention, looking for folks seated in the congregation. 'Lord, is there someone I should pray for?' she whispered almost loud enough to be detected by those close by. She scanned the people sitting in front of her and spotted the back of a man's head a few rows closer to the front of the church. 'Okay, Lord, ' Joni prayed, 'Please bless that man up there with the straight black hair. Thank You for him, protect him and, if You will, please prosper him for Your glory.' She prayed for his family, his work, his friends and interests. Oddly, she found it easy to pray for this man she didn't know... which made her wonder, Lord, why have you put him so strongly on my heart? I can't even see his face... don't know his name. This was the first time Joni would be thanking her Heavenly Father for Ken Tada. It surely wouldn't be the last. And since 1982, when Joni and Ken were married, Ken Tada has been a colleague and full partner in Joni's life and ministry. He also prays for Joni.

    She had a tenured position at a large university in a field for which she cared deeply. She owned two homes with her partner, in which they provided hospitality to students and activists that were looking to make a difference in the world. There, her partner rehabilitated abandoned and abused dogs. In the community, Rosaria was involved in volunteer work. At the university, she was a respected advisor of students and her department’s curriculum. And then, in her late 30s, Rosaria encountered something that turned her world upside down—the idea that Christianity, a religion that she had regarded as problematic and sometimes downright damaging, might be right about who God was, an idea that flew in the face of the people and causes that she most loved. What follows is a story of what she describes as a “train wreck” at the hand of the supernatural. These are her secret thoughts about those events, written as only a reflective English professor could."Conversion put me in a complicated and comprehensive chaos. I sometimes wonder, when I hear other Christians pray for the salvation of the “lost,” if they realize that this comprehensive chaos is the desired end of such prayers. Often, people asked me to describe the “lessons” that I learned from this experience. I can’t. It was too traumatic. Sometimes in crisis, we don’t really learn lessons. Sometimes the result is simpler and more profound: sometimes our character is simply transformed." —Rosaria Butterfield

    But Lilias never abandoned her artistic talent, and now you can enjoy page after page of inspiring artwork, with all the vivid colors and characer of the Algerian landscape, complete with her own thoughts and spiritual wisdom. A Blossom in the Desert is truly a book that belongs on your coffee table, to give you encouragement time and again as you ponder Lilias's challenges and how she persevered to inspire the song, "Turn Your Eyes upon Jesus." This hardcover gift book is 240 pages of full color, inspirational art, and meditations, with a satin bookmark.

    But this is the story I’ve been waiting to tell. It’s my time to set the record straight.’ One of the most naturally talented footballers of the modern era, Michael Owen’s career has always divided opinion among fans. From the age of only seven, his life was mapped out as a professional footballer. At 17, he made his Premier League debut. At 18, he was a Golden Boot winner and England’s youngest goalscorer at a World Cup. As he turned 22, he became the second youngest player to lift the Ballon d’Or. Owen would go on to lift every domestic trophy and play in three World Cups. But his career path took him in directions he could never have foreseen. Lines were crossed. Headlines were written. Injuries took their toll. Fans made up their minds… Owen penned a previous autobiography in 2004 but feels that only now, six years on from hanging up his boots, can he really open up on what really happened behind the scenes. It makes for a revealing, explosive read.

    He's also got one of the most interesting CVs I have ever seen.' - Sarah Brett, BBC Radio Five LiveGARY BELL QC is one of Britain's top barristers, with his own hit BBC TV show, a Who's Who entry and a wife whose family is listed in Burke's Landed Gentry.But behind his silk gown and horsehair wig is a compelling and hilarious backstory.The chronic bedwetting son of a teenaged cigarette factory worker and a nineteen-year-old miner, Gary grew up in a condemned Nottingham slum, and left his tough comprehensive school without taking any exams to follow his dad down the pit.He spent his teenage years as a drunken football hooligan known as 'Animal' (for his terrible eating habits, not his fighting skills), baking pies at Pork Farms, stacking shelves at Asda, and trying and failing to become (among other things) a miner, a bricklayer, and a fireman. After being convicted of fraud and sentenced to six months (he worked out how to fiddle pub fruit machines), he was homeless for some years.Finally deciding to make something of himself, he took O and A levels and hitch-hiked to Bristol University as a mature law student in his mid 20s. After three hilarious years - he somehow managed to wangle a job with a Beverly Hills law firm before he'd even graduated - he went on to become a barrister and, twenty years later, achieved the rare honour of being appointed Queen's Counsel.His preposterous story - which contains some fascinating details of the many major cases he has worked on - reads like a strange dream and redefines the word 'amazing', as well as being extremely funny, very moving, and utterly life-affirming.

    

    "'Christopher, you must choose! You must choose the family or choose homosexuality.' He looked at me and said, 'It's not something I can choose. I am gay. If you can't accept me, then I have no other choice but to leave.'" Christopher Yuan, the son of Chinese immigrants, discovered at an early age that he was different. He was attracted to other boys. As he grew into adulthood, his mother, Angela, hoped to control the situation. Instead, she found that her son and her life were spiraling out of control, and her own personal demons were determined to defeat her. Years of heartbreak, confusion, and prayer followed before the Yuans found a place of complete surrender, which is God's desire for all families. Their amazing story, told from the perspectives of both mother and son, offers hope for anyone affected by homosexuality. God calls all who are lost to come home to him, and he wants everyone to pursue holy sexuality. Out of a Far Country speaks to prodigals, parents of prodigals, and those wanting to minister to the gay community. "But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him." - Luke 15:20