In schools across America, in classes for handicapped, gifted, privileged, and disadvantaged students, these teachers recall that exciting first year, when they were often given the toughest kids and the biggest responsibilities of their careers. From coping with inner-city diversity to challenging poor self-esteem, these extraordinary images come straight from people who have already taken those first courageous steps of the novice educator. For anyone who is contemplating teaching as a profession, this invaluable collection is a must-read."Vivid, poignant, and often funny stories about one of the most challenging experiences anyone can have: first-year teaching."--Albert Shanker, President, American Federation of Teachers

    (He died on July 31st, 2012 at the age of 86.) The triumphant arc of Vidal’s literary career wasn’t solely a mastery of language, though that never hurts. Handsome, poised, slim, charismatic, able to hold his own in verbal fisticuffs without losing his imperious cool, Vidal was the premiere star author of his generation, the one who elevated the role of talk-show guest to a command performance--a theatrical event. He brought the electronic crackle of the TV screen to his prose and the tactical precision of his prose to combat debate on TV. His near-violent altercations on camera with William F. Buckley, Jr. and Norman Mailer are the stuff of YouTube legend and the secret to The Gore Supremacy. A contributing writer to Vanity Fair, a partisan observer of pop culture, and the author of the New York-in-the-70s memoir Lucking Out (which comes out in paperback this fall), James Wolcott has been a closeup observer of Vidal on-camera and off for more years than seems respectable. This, his first Kindle Single, is his way of paying homage--and saying goodbye.

    Yet shortly after reaching those heights, he started to crumble, and famously left the 2012-13 Ashes tour of Australia suffering from a stress related illness. His story is the story of Team England - it encompasses the life-cycle of a team that started out united by ambition, went on to achieve some of the greatest days in the team's history but then, bodies and minds broken, fell apart amid acrimony.Having seen all of this from the inside, Jonathan's autobiography takes readers to the heart of the England dressing room, and to the heart of what it is to be a professional sportsman. Not only does it provide a unique perspective on a remarkably successful period in English cricket and its subsequent reversal, it also offers a fascinating insight into the rewards and risks faced as a sportsman carrying the hope and expectation of a team and a nation. And it's a salutary tale of the dangers pressure can bring in any walk of life, and the perils of piling unrealistic expecations on yourself.

    Kylie and Jason became the celebrity couple of the 1980s and released the number one hit Especially For You in 1988. But behind the squeaky-clean pop star image was a man increasingly addicted to recreational drugs and on a spiraling downwards path until love pulled him through. His pop career launched, Jason went on to sell  more than 30 million records worldwide and appeared in West End musicals such as Joseph and His Technicolor Dreamcoat and, more recently, The Rocky Horror Show. But just as Jason reached the pinnacle of his career, everything collapsed around him. When Jason sued style magazine The Face for calling him gay, the press tore him apart. Years of binge drug taking, and partying to excess followed. In his frank and honest account of his life, Jason talks candidly about the drugs that nearly saw the end of his career, about his relationship with the princess of pop, Kylie Minogue, and how he finally got his own very happy ending with the woman who saved him, his partner Angela, and their two children.

    These were the athletes in the Olympic marathon. So how did he end up with a bronze medal? How did he win the London marathon? And why does he still hold the English record for the distance?In this remarkable autobiography, he explains how -- how someone who was almost the bottom of the class when he first went to school, and even worse at sport, eventually turned himself into a world-class athlete, competing in top marathons all over the world, and genuinely going from last to first.As well as the enthralling life story of one of our finest distance runners, this book is a wonderfully clear and inspiring piece of life coaching for anyone who wants to make the most of their talents. But more than this, as Spedding says at the start, 'I believe that on occasions you can create the circumstances in which you can perform at a higher level than your talent says you can.' Spedding's own story, and his chronicle of the big races he excelled in, proves it's trueFor anyone aspiring to run a marathon, or indeed anyone who wants to set themselves a goal they think beyond their reach -- and achieve it -- this is an essential book.

    Astonishing and unforgettable, this is a captivating story about the effects of abuse on the mind of a child, the heart wrenching struggles of an impoverished family, and how a young girl strives and dreams for something better. Born in the Philippines in the 1960s, Xulli is the first child of many. By the time she is four, she is taking care of three other siblings with both her mother and father working. In the beginning things were difficult but not desperate. But then life turns exceedingly ugly when her father begins binging on gin, spending nearly every penny he earns on his addiction and leaving his family on the brink of starvation on a daily basis. The alcohol makes her abusive father mean. And very violent. At first, his anger is mostly directed at her mother, but after a particularly nasty beating, she flees for her life, leaving the children with him. Her father then turns his attention to Xulli and her siblings. Cruelly, he tries to teach the youngest ones that they don’t need their mother or milk by putting hot peppers on the nipples of their bottles. With her mother missing, Xulli must find a way to protect her siblings from their father and provide for their needs. Eventually her mother returns and the abusive cycle continues. Plagued by death, loss, and periods of starvation, Xulli struggles to provide for her siblings, when she is just a child herself. Even through many horrible experiences and extraordinary challenges, her spirit shines, never giving up hope. Demonstrating an extraordinary resiliency to survive against all odds, Xulli inspires us as she finds the courage to succeed in her own life. A note from the author: “I have written this book to raise awareness of the wide spread domestic violence and child abuse that is so prevalent in the Filipino culture. All too often children in the Philippines are robbed of their basic human rights to an education because they have to become parents to their siblings or have been sold for money. Through my writing and work, it is my passionate goal to help stop domestic violence and child abuse by educating the very young as well as adults about the effects of physical, emotional, and mental abuse, and show those in need how and where to seek help.” Victoria Mulato Note: When you order a copy of Sister Moon of the Philippines, a percentage of the proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to organizations that are working to preventing child abuse.

    Throughout the shift, the dispatcher is faced with stabbings, robberies, medical calls, fights, and a variety of other calls. There is no telling what the next call will bring. Some of the calls faced by the dispatcher are heinous, some are tragic, and some are a complete waste of time.You will get to see what life is really like for a 911 dispatcher. While some of the details have been modified to protect the identity of those involved, this books was inspired by true and actual calls handled by a 911 dispatcher.Warning: This book contains some adult language and topics.

    She has hit rock bottom and here, for the first time, Kerry shares how bad it's really been.But this incredible story of survival charts Kerry's rise out of the mire of addiction, depression and bankruptcy. She has brought her life and health back from the brink of total collapse and has become a happy single parent and working mother of four.

    . . being a player from India defines who I am. When I play, it's for my parents, my coach, and my country.' Meet Saina Nehwal-India's star badminton player and World Number 4, Padma Shri and Khel Ratna awardee, the girl who brought laurels to India by winning an Olympic medal at the age of twenty-two. In this fascinating memoir, she talks about her childhood and growing-up years; her relationship with the most important people in her life; the ups and downs of her celebrated career, from district level wins to the Olympics; and the sacrifices needed to succeed in any sport. She also reveals little-known facts and offers a peek into her many avatars-daughter, sister, student, and the regular girl behind the badminton prodigy. Find out what a typical day in Saina's life is like-rigorous training, a strict diet, and no parties or sleepovers. But it's not all work and no play; Saina loves to shop, eat ice cream (post wins only), and play games on her iPad! With candid photographs and badminton tips from the pro herself, this book showcases the making of a badminton champ-in her own words.

    Prior to the tournament, a statistician calculated the Bulldogs as a 200-to-1 shot to win. But as fascinating as what Butler accomplished was how they did it. Underdawgs tells the incredible and uplifting story. Butler’s coach, 33-year-old Brad Stevens, looked so young he was often mistaken for one of the players, but he had quickly become one of the best coaches in the nation by employing the “Butler Way.” This philosophy of basketball and life, adopted by former coach Barry Collier, is based on five principles: humility, passion, unity, servanthood, and thankfulness. Even the most casual observer could see this in every player, on the court and off, from NBA first-round draft pick Gordon Hayward to the last guy on the bench. Butler was coming off a great 2009–10 regular season, but its longtime existence on the periphery of major college basketball fostered doubt as March Madness set in. But after two historic upsets, one of top-seeded Syracuse and another of second-seeded Kansas State, and making it to the Final Four, the Bulldogs came within the diameter of a shoelace of beating the perennial leaders of college basketball: the Duke Blue Devils. Much more than a sports story, Underdawgs is the consummate David versus Goliath tale. Despite Duke’s winning the championship, the Bulldogs proved they belonged in the game and, in the process, won the respect of people who were not even sports fans.

     However, as readers of the first two volumes of this series will know, her childhood was hardly the loving, supportive, preparatory period it should have been. Instead of family dinners and piano recitals, there were shattered dishes and abusive parents. Instead of trips to the museum, there were trips to TV studios - to be molested by celebrities. In short, her childhood was nothing short of a nightmare. Should it really be any surprise then, after such a traumatic baptism into life, that her first foray into the adult world was hardly an unmitigated success? From living in squalor to racking up debts, her new-found independence forced her face-to-face with many of life's grim realities. And despite waiting all her life for her freedom, she soon realised that a world without the institutional bars she was so accustomed to was just too much of a jungle. And every jungle has its predators... But what was a girl to do? Regress back to an abusive enslavement? Or continue moving forward in a world that seemed so backward? She needed a friend - and fast. Naturally, her understandable distrust of others didn't make things easy. Not to mention her warped idea of love. In the end though, her determination proved the deciding factor. As far as she was concerned, she'd performed her final "favour", and cried the last of her tears. But just when she thought she'd finally left her demons behind, she found herself at the mercy of unsavoury characters yet again - and this time, without anyone to turn to... DISCLAIMER: This is a true story of child abuse, and as such, reader discretion should be advised. Names have been changed to protect the innocent.

    of the APA manual (2nd printing) < < < This handbook is ideal for preparing undergraduate essays. It was specifically designed with the average student's needs in mind. The book is intended to cover the vast majority of situations that the normal student will encounter while writing a college essay. Organized for speed and brevity, the book is primarily a concentrated, up-to-date guide on APA format (11 pages) and documentation requirements (12 pages In-Text, 19 pages References) with a heavy emphasis on examples and visual aids (90 to be exact). Additionally the book contains pointers on how to get started, what to document, what notes to take (by source type), and how to handle quotes of varying length. All of this in a book designed to fit in a shirt pocket. Product Dimensions: 60 Pages - 5 5/16" x 3 3/4" x .166 " Continuously Updated - Coincides with most recent APA standards (APA Manual 6th Edition) Last Update 6/2/10

    His profound and poetic speeches are famous around the world, evidence of the greatness of American’s most beloved leader. But did you know that the sixteenth president of the United States was also a backwoods hillbilly from America’s western frontier, with a Kentucky accent so thick you could cut it? Or that he liked wrestling matches, dirty jokes, and had a reputation for telling hilarious, R-rated stories that weren’t suitable for mixed company? From his childhood working as a virtual slave for an abusive father, to sailing a river raft to New Orleans, to the Illinois General Assembly, Congress, and the White House, the story of Abraham Lincoln’s life is the story of America. He mourned the deaths of almost everyone he loved, endured marriage to a wife whose mental health issues made her a domestic abuser, and lost more elections than he won. But Abraham Lincoln believed in one thing above all: that everyone deserved a fair shot at the American dream. Why did John Wilkes Booth really shoot Abraham Lincoln? The truth is as shocking now as it was in 1865.

    Aged 16, White was the youngest player to win the English Amateur Championship. At 18, he won the World Amateur title. By 1984, he's a professional success, married but not at all settled. He's the kind of man who goes out for a packet of cigarettes and comes home two weeks later. Gambling, women, marathon binges with showbiz friends like Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones, have threatened the stability of his marriage. But somehow White has survived, to tell in candid detail, a most unusual, often outrageous story of a very sporting life.

    Following on from Our Story, Ron Kray fills in the gaps and gives his version of the murders of Jack The Hat McVitie and George Cornell, describing his bisexuality and his marriage in Broadmoor and clarifying many of the misconceptions about the years when he and Reg ruled the London underworld, shot enemies at will and simultaneously socialized with some of the most glittering politicians, celebrities and hostesses of the time.