Growing Up on Rt. 66: Farm Life Outside Ocoya, Illinois


Theresa M. Ripley - 2011
    66 is the memoir of two farm siblings, Ray born 1935 and Theresa 1944. They lived on a 200-acre tenant farm on the 100-milepost from downtown Chicago with their gravel driveway leading out to the legendary Rt. 66. Early life for them was no running water, electricity, or central heating but lots of interdependence with the land, weather, neighbors, and each other as a family of four.Rt. 66 travelers brought them a different kind of exposure to the outside world, but rarely changed the character of what rural life was like.

True State Trooper Stories


Charles A. Black - 2016
    Sgt. Charles Black is a 35 year veteran of the Iowa State Patrol during those years he has had many experiences and he shares his favorites in this book. In 35 years I have seen a lot of changes from the name of the organization to the primary function. From hearses to ambulances to rescue units with EMT's. From paper list of stolen cars to computers.From no recorders to body cameras. From fist fights to gun fights.But human nature and the effects of drugs and alcohol remain the same.

Illustrated Biography of William Shakespeare ("Popular Life Stories")


Manju Gupta - 2014
    He has left behind nearly a million words of text, but his life is still a mystery. This book is an engaging introduction to a subject that students will certainly encounter many times throughout their education—and their lives. Lucid language and dramatic illustrations re-create the Bard's world of kings and queens, fairies and potions, and bloody beheadings. It imparts an amazing amount of vivid, interesting material about place, period and background of Shakespeare. This sweeping account is a biography, a history, and a retelling of some of Shakespeare’s most famous plays—all in one approachable volume. Salient Features: • Shakespeare's Early Life • Life as Playwright and Actor • Theatre Companies • Style of Presentation • Last Years of Life • England of Shakespeare's Days • Drama in Shakespeare's Days • Shakespeare's Greatness as a Poet • Shakespeare's Influence • Works of Shakespeare in detail • Principal Facts of Shakespeare's Life

The Peppercorn Tree


Jill Lovett - 2018
    She has used the analogy of a hardy Peppercorn tree which survived in her childhood backyard, symbolising for her the endurance of suburban 'battlers' struggling to achieve purpose and hope within a somewhat barren environment.. It reveals a very different world of post Second World War frugality, British style education, no television or computers; a time when children largely created their own entertainment, were expected to conform and obey all authority figures and accept limitation in terms of their personal development and dreams. The final chapters reveal how Jill's childhood impacted on her later life as a mother of six children, a victim of a difficult marriage and her eventual achievement of four University degrees as a mature-age student. Jill also touches on aspects of Australian literature and how some of the greatest Australian authors such as historian Manning Clark, novelist Patrick White and social scientists Donald Horne and John Thornhill have viewed suburbia and the Australian psyche developed over two centuries of pioneering a beautiful but harsh land. Jill's story includes humour and pathos and is a keenly observant record of the Australian suburban culture of that era. This is a book for all who live, dream and struggle in suburbia.

Under Siege


Belinda Neil - 2014
    She loved her roles as a homicide investigator and hostage negotiator with the NSW police force, but she never knew what her work day might bring. She might be investigating a crime scene; talking a suicidal woman down from a cliff; or trying to convince a deranged man not to slit the throat of his wife and children.As a negotiator, Belinda often found herself on cliff edges, waiting in doorways or out amongst the elements, persuading the murderous and suicidal to drop their weapons, stop terrorising their families, step back from the ledge.Belinda was so physically slight she needed help lifting on her ballistics vest, but her team never doubted her physical or mental courage. She was put forward for a bravery award and promoted to inspector but every time she stepped into a negotiation, her life was in danger, and over time the horrors she saw and her punishing schedule began to take their toll. After years of broken sleep, traumatic crime scenes and death, a series of disastrous events one weekend brought everything to a head.The next morning when she awoke, Belinda found she was shaking so badly she could not get out of bed. Unsure what was happening to her, she sought counselling but one day, shortly after, she saw the name of an old hostage-taking adversary in the paper; he had killed his ex-girlfriend. It was too much and as the continued stress took its toll, Belinda found herself contemplating jumping off a cliff in the Moreton Bay National Park. She had even written the suicide note.Under Siege shows us the remarkable job homicide investigators and hostage negotiators perform, and their endurance and courage in impossible circumstances. More than that, this courageous memoir reveals how the daily trauma and stress affected Belinda's roles as wife and mother, how she fought against the terrifying post-traumatic stress disorder that resulted to come back from a very dark place.'Her extraordinary journey juggling the roles of police negotiator, homicide investigator, wife and mother shines a light on this little-understood limb of law enforcement.' Mark Whittaker, Fairfax newspapers

The Promise Boxset


J.S. Donovan - 2020
    

Confessions of a Call Centre Worker


Izabelle Winter - 2017
    Could you keep your cool while talking to all levels of stupid? Would you be able to wear a headset all day without wanting to throw it out of the window? All calls are recorded, analysed and timed to the second. Average handling time (AHT) is discussed as if it's the very meaning of life and managers are always coming up with new ways to shave milliseconds from each call. Is it acceptable to only have a total eight minutes a day for visits to the toilet or coffee machine? Imagine not being allowed to hang up on someone who is screaming abuse down the line at you. Welcome to the Call Centre! Izabelle worked in call centres for many years; from insurance to home shopping, from selling advertising to discussing loans. Finally in the early hours one morning, she decided enough was in fact far too much and left her final call centre job the same day, never to return. On her way out of the door for the final time she vowed she would write a book about life in a call centre. Here is that book. Read about call centres in general, memorable customers and staff. How do staff stay sane? What is Big Red? Are cranberries the true meaning of Christmas? Why would you have leather trousers round your ankles in a lift? How not to impress your boss. Izabelle shares these and many other true tales from her years of incarceration in UK call centres.

McGraw: The Incredible Untold Story of Tam 'The Licensee' McGraw


Reg McKay - 2008
    He rose from poverty in the city's East End to amass a vast fortune from crime and, when he died in 2007, his empire stretched from Glasgow to the Canaries. When he was alive, few would talk openly about the man known as 'The Licensee'. But now his incredible, untold story can finally be revealed. Real stories about the time McGraw cheated The Godfather, risking his life to end a dynasty. How he was behind the UK's biggest coke heist and who paid the price. Who killed the six Doyles in the Ice Cream Wars. Why the BarL Team was never caught even with MI5 on their case. Armed jail breakouts - who arranged them, who grassed them. There are hit contracts, backstabbings, vendettas and scores to settle with everyone from The Godfather to The Devil, M Family, Specky Boyd and Paul Ferris. McGraw did all that and much more yet was never caught. Why? He was The Licensee. Licensed to Commit Crime.

The Dirty Dozen: The real story of the rise and fall of London's most feared armed robbery gang


Noel 'Razor' Smith - 2020
    

Shadow of My Father


John Gotti - 2015
    But now in "Shadow of My Father," the real story of the King of the Volcano is revealed for the first time. John A. Gotti, who survived four trials and a parole violation hearing, in four years, without a guilty verdict, now takes up his pen to tell the story of his father’s unwavering dedication to the street, and how, as his son, he entered that life, and then, with his father’s permission, left the life of crime, and put the “Family” behind him to live a legitimate life with his real family. It is a saga of betrayal and redemption, and an insider’s view of how, at times, those who are tasked with upholding the law readily broke it to further their careers.

Jason Leonard: The Autobiography


Jason Leonard - 2002
    His big break came when he was invited to join the England squad for their tour to Argentina in 1990 and has been capped 100 times.

Second Wind


Jimmy White - 2014
    All I’ve ever wanted to do is entertain the public and hear the roar of the crowd as they chant my name. From the age of just 11, snooker has given me a life of fun, fame, fortune and freedom. But it’s not always been easy – there have been plenty of ups and downs, on and off the table. I’ve lived the way I’ve played my snooker – fast, hard and with plenty of risks. Some of those risks have nearly cost me everything; my career, my family, even my life. If I had my time again I might do it differently. Doesn’t mean I have any regrets. My journey has taken me from Tooting to Thailand, from Higgins to Hendry, from cocaine to the Crucible. I’ve been through a Whirlwind of change and come out the other side. There’s a reason why I’ve held back from telling my real story. We all need a second chance... Welcome to my mad, bad world.

Defector


Peter Kozmar - 2019
    Flint soon finds himself facing a ruthless opponent, Oleg Malchik, a dynamic FSB agent who’s closing down Western intelligence networks one after another.With Malchik closing in, Flint has his own problems with the local Mafia. But things turn for the worse when Malchik wants Flint dead. With the FSB and the Mafia in hot pursuit, Flint believes there’s a mole helping Malchik.Who can Flint trust? Can he complete his mission? Who will get to him first, the Mafia or Malchik?   Defector is the first stand-alone novella in the ‘Beginning Series’, part of the series of international thrillers based around CIA agent, Andy Flint. If you like action, a page turning roller-coaster of a read and plot which keeps you on the edge of your seat, you’ll love Peter Kozmar’s gripping thriller. Download Defector and start your fast-paced adventure today.

Familiar Pieces (North and Martin Abduction Mystery #6)


James Hunt - 2021
    Since then, twelve more children have been abducted, and the man responsible is still at large. With the abductor taunting the detectives with mysterious texts, they have pushed themselves to the brink, and their obsession of bringing the kidnapper to justice could cost them everything.

Billy the Kid: An Autobiography


Daniel A. Edwards - 2014
    Jesse walked out of prison a free man and disappeared, never to be heard from again. Never, that is, until 1949 when he came out of hiding after almost 60 years to claim his inheritance. In the course of proving his identity to a court Jesse told some amazing stories of his time when he was an outlaw but his biggest revelation of all was that his good friend Billy the Kid was still alive. Jesse led a young lawyer to an old man named not William H. Bonney but William H. Roberts who after some consideration finally agreed to come forward and reveal himself as Billy the Kid only if he would help him obtain a pardon from the Governor before his death so he could die a free man. You see, Billy the Kid was still wanted for murder and was condemned to hang. To come forward and reveal himself was to risk being arrested and put to death. This was a risk that William H. Roberts was willing to take. He sat down with the young lawyer and told his story. That story is the one true autobiography of Billy the Kid and told only one time, to one man. This is his story.