Book picks similar to
Shadow Warrior by David Everett
biography
kantbot
westerns
20th-century
Beautiful Exiles
Meg Waite Clayton - 2018
Headstrong, accomplished journalist Martha Gellhorn is confident with words but less so with men when she meets disheveled literary titan Ernest Hemingway in a dive bar. Their friendship—forged over writing, talk, and family dinners—flourishes into something undeniable in Madrid while they’re covering the Spanish Civil War.Martha reveres him. The very married Hemingway is taken with Martha—her beauty, her ambition, and her fearless spirit. And as Hemingway tells her, the most powerful love stories are always set against the fury of war. The risks are so much greater. They’re made for each other.With their romance unfolding as they travel the globe, Martha establishes herself as one of the world’s foremost war correspondents, and Hemingway begins the novel that will win him the Nobel Prize for Literature. Beautiful Exiles is a stirring story of lovers and rivals, of the breathless attraction to power and fame, and of one woman—ahead of her time—claiming her own identity from the wreckage of love.
Grease Junkie: A book of moving parts
Edd China - 2019
Think big. Think the unthinkable!'
As you'll discover in his incomparable memoir, inventor, mechanic, TV presenter and walking tall as the definition of the British eccentric, Edd China sees things differently.An unstoppable enthusiast from an early age, Edd had 35 ongoing car projects while he was at university, not counting the double-decker bus he was living in. Now he's a man with not only a runaround sofa, but also a road-legal office, shed, bed and bathroom. His first car was a more conventional 1303 Texas yellow Beetle, the start of an ongoing love affair with VW, even though it got him arrested for attempted armed robbery.A human volcano of ideas and the ingenuity to make them happen, Edd is exhilarating company. Join him on his wild, wheeled adventures; see inside his engineering heroics; go behind the scenes on Wheeler Dealers.Climb aboard his giant motorised shopping trolley, and let him take you into his parallel universe of possibility.
Willin': The Story of Little Feat
Ben Fong-Torres - 2013
Formed in 1969 by ex-members of Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention, Little Feat created groove-heavy music that was an irresistible mix of rock, blues, R&B, country, jazz, soul, and funk.Fronted by the charismatic but doomed vocalist and brilliant slide guitarist Lowell George, the band recorded such classic studio albums as Sailin’ Shoes and Dixie Chicken, as well as Waiting for Columbus, which many consider to be one of the best live albums of all time.Acclaimed journalist Ben Fong-Torres—working with Little Feat’s surviving members, their friends, and associates—wrote Willin’ based on hours of brand new interviews with the key players. The result? The first definitive biography of this beloved rock ’n’ roll institution.
Backstairs Billy: The Life of William Tallon, the Queen Mother's Most Devoted Servant
Tom Quinn - 2015
For much of his life he was driven by two demons: a powerful sex drive and an intense, almost pathological love for the Queen Mother…”
From humble beginnings as a shopkeeper’s son in Coventry to ‘Page of the Backstairs’ at Clarence House, William Tallon, or ‘Backstairs Billy’ as he came to be known, entered royal service at the age of fifteen. Over the next fifty years, he became one of the most notorious and flamboyant characters ever to have graced the royal household - the one servant the Queen Mother just could not do without. While others came and went, he remained by her side, becoming one of her most trusted friends and confidants.
The fascinating life story of the man who spent more than half a century working for one of the world’s most elusive institutions, Backstairs Billy provides a rare glimpse of what the royals really get up to behind closed doors…
Some Gave it All: Through the Fire of the Vietnam War
Danny Lane - 2018
I’d encourage you to pick up a copy of “Some Gave it All” and read the rest of his inspirational story. Chuck NorrisBased on an incredible true story, a young Marine fights an unbelievable battle in the abyss of Vietnam. Get a front row seat to the intense action, courage and sacrifice he and other Marines endured.Experience the ferocity of battle; the deep bonds of brotherhood; and the stinging sweat of fear that hangs persistently over the jungle canopy. Imagine lying in a foxhole when a “Broken Arrow” goes into effect as the enemy sappers overtake their position, forcing these young soldiers to fight the enemy hand to hand.This is the gripping story of Marine Corporal Danny Lane and other young Marines that stood the faith with God, and he Marine Corps during the most agonizing times that no one would want to endure.Instead of a hero’s welcome, he and other survivors came home to a country that didn’t honor their sacrifices.“War is Hell” but for some, surviving is worse!
Every Mother's Son: 77 Days at Khe Sanh
K.M. Loftin - 2019
The North Vietnamese Army committed over 20,000 troop to destroying the Marine hill positions and the Khe Sanh Combat Base. The small Marine outposts were transformed into highly effective kill zones, as the enemy slammed the landing zones with rockets, mortars, artillery and automatic weapons fire. The Marine helicopter pilots and crews of HMM-262 dedicated their lives to saving their Marine brothers. This is their story.
The Naked Soldier: A True Story of the French Foreign Legion
Tony Sloane - 2005
Well known as the most notorious, bloody, and ruthless band of mercenaries in the world, in 1998 the Legion accepted Tony Sloane at the age of 18, inviting him as an elite member of this secret and mysterious fighting force. The legend and the myths of the Legion captivated Sloane and he quickly learned that life as a legionnaire was not just about physical training, but also about pledging mind and soul to the missions and operations.
Navy SEAL Training Class 144: My BUD/S Journal
Stephen Templin - 2015
In this behind-the-scenes account, readers join New York Times bestselling author Stephen Templin in his journey as a trainee in Class 144. Templin and his classmates endure Hell Week: five-and-a-half days of swimming, hallucinating, enduring frequent hypothermia, running more than two hundred miles, and doing over twenty hours per day of extreme physical training—having slept only four hours total for the week. After Hell Week, they face more challenges. These experiences, Steve’s insights into some of the psychology needed to overcome seemingly impossible challenges, teamwork, and an unexpected conclusion, make this a memorable adventure.
The Furious Method: Transform your Mind, Body and Goals
Tyson Fury - 2020
TRANSFORM YOUR BODY AND MIND.MAKE YOUR COMEBACK. From weighing twenty-eight stone and fighting a deep depression, to his amazing return to heavyweight champion of the world, Tyson opens up and share his inspiring advice and tips on diet, exercise regime, and his incredible journey back to a healthier body and mind. Frank, accessible and inspiring, The Furious Method is a feel-good and motivating tonic, full of inspirational advice for readers on how we can all improve our physical and mental health. And how we can all create a champion mind-set.Whatever your starting point or past set-backs, Tyson will show you how you can make your own comeback and start living your life to the fullest - fighting fit, mentally restored, and stronger than ever.
Wilt: Just Like Any Other 7 Foot Black Millionaire Who Lives Next Door
Wilt Chamberlain - 1973
The Great Clippers
Jane D. Lyon - 2016
These wealthy men had founded the first banks in the United States and built its first railroads, factories, and steamships. Now, they were to cap their achievements by making their young country equally superior in size, and in the process, producing the greatest, swiftest, and most beautiful craft the world had ever seen - the clipper ship. This book not only traces the origins and achievements of the clipper but enlivens the dry bones of historic fact with the flesh and blood of clipper captains and crews. A great era comes to life with their courageous, tenacious stories.
A Garden In Sarlat: Fulfilling an ambition to run a bed and breakfast in The Dordogne
David Prothero - 2016
They knew that it was a massive gamble. Their friends called them brave. Their families thought that they had either gone completely mad or were dreaming of a delusional easy life in the sun. In the event none of these assumptions were completely accurate. Moving and funny, this is the story of the trials and tribulations involved in buying and converting their new house. The challenges of starting a new business in a foreign land, speaking a language they had struggled to learn thirty years previously and had since forgotten. But ultimately of fulfilling their ambition to work, laugh and play in the beautiful town of Sarlat.
The Man Who is Mrs Brown - The Biography of Brendan O'Carroll
David O'Dornan - 2013
Finally, he was being acknowledged as a worldwide sensation in his role as the irrepressible ‘Mammy’ Agnes Brown.Over the last few years, Brendan has spread his wings to taste success as an author, a playwright, a comedian, an actor, a television star and more, picking up major awards along the way. But it hasn’t always been a bed of roses for the Dubliner, who started off life working as a waiter before evolving into the hardest working man in showbiz.Born in 1955 as the youngest of 11 children, he grew up in a two-bedroom corporation house in the rough-and-tumble working class area of Finglas in north Dublin. After his father Gerard died, when Brendan was just seven years old, his formidable mother Maureen – who influenced Brendan’s future career – raised him on his own.Life truly didn’t begin until 40 for Brendan, who left school aged just 12 and tried his hand at anything to earn a living, including jobs as a milkman, DJ, bar manager and painter and decorator. But after being persuaded to have a go on the comedy circuit it was the the beginning of a new dawn in Brendan’s life that would see him become the man with the Midas touch.In the years since, his work rate has become phenomenal as his earthy comedy has become a global hit, he found love again with his second wife and co-star Jennifer Gibney and he has become rich beyond his wildest dreams thanks to his foul-mouthed matriarch Mrs Brown.In this first ever biography of the star, David O’Dornan reveals the extraordinary rags to riches journey Brendan O’Carroll has made to become a comedy genius loved by millions of devoted fans. This is a must-read book for any fan and includes exclusive interviews with those nearest and dearest to the star.
The Element of Surprise: Navy Seals in Vietnam
Darryl Young - 1990
This classic book is the first one ever to fully chronicle the extraordinary exploits of a Navy SEAL unit--one of the most dangerous details in the Vietnam War.
Why Didn't You Get Me Out?: A POW's Nightmare in Vietnam
Frank Anton - 1997
Now, more than thirty years later, he tells the story of how his own government failed him...For give hellish years, American soldier Frank Anton was held as a POW in Vietnam. Subject to disease, starvation, and physical and psychological torture, Anton and his fellow prisoners held out hope that the U.S. government would find and rescue them.When he was finally freed in 1973, Anton returned to the United States bruised and battered. And the most devastating blow of all had yet to even be struck. Upon his release, Anton and debriefed by the government and saw both aerial photographs of the prison camps where he was held and a close-us picture of himself walking the grueling Ho Chi Minh Trail. The government had known all along where and when Anton and his fellow soldiers were being held--and made no attempt to rescue them.now, in this harrowing first-person account and shocking expose, Frank Anton recounts his years as a POW and the aftermath--devoting his life to understanding why and how his own government left him and others to suffer and possibly die in the Vietnamese prison camps. And the answers he's uncovered will forever astound and disturb you.With eight pages of dramatic photosA main selection of the Military Book Club