Book picks similar to
Abigail Adams: Her Letters by Abigail Adams
history
revolutionary-war
for-young-ladies
nation-building
The Unstoppable Keeper
Lutz Pfannenstiel - 2009
A massive bestseller in Germany, this astonishing, fascinating and at times hilarious book relates a football career in which Lutz: Became the only person to have played professional football in all FIFA Confederations Was wrongly jailed for match fixing in Singapore spending 101 days in horrific conditions Signed for 25 teams (including Notts Forest, Wimbledon's Crazy Gang and Calgary) Stopped breathing three times after his heart stopped during a game Turned down mighty Bayern Munich to play in Malaysia Coached teams in such exotic locations as Norway, Namibia, Armenia and Cuba Kidnapped a Penguin! All this because he simply loved playing football and because, quite simply, goalkeepers are mad!"
Bounty Hunter 4/3: My Life in Combat from Marine Scout Sniper to MARSOC
Jason Delgado - 2017
He ultimately escaped the death and drugs of a crime-riddled Bronx by way of the United States Marine Corps. However, after earning his way into the esteemed ranks of the service's famed Scout Snipers, Delgado saw that old struggle reignited when he was dumped into the hell of war in Iraq.There Delgado proved not only a participant, but a warrior capable of turning the tide in several of the most harrowing and historically important battles of the evolving war. He took all the hard lessons learned in combat and, as MARSOC's original lead sniper instructor, made himself a pivotal figure in revolutionizing the way special operations snipers trained and operated. But even after accomplishing his mission in the military, Delgado still faced that original fight, struggling to understand and accept the man his experiences had transformed him into. Bounty Hunter 4/3 is Jason Delgado's captivating first-hand account of these powerful and life-changing experiences.
The Court-Martial of Daniel Boone
Allan W. Eckert - 1973
A captain during the Revolutionary War, Boone faces court-martial and hanging for such high crimes as betraying his command to the Indians, conspiring to surrender Boonesborough, consorting with the enemy, and accepting favors from the British. And Boone pleads guilty to all of the actions detailed in the charges against him. But he also pleads not guilty to the charge of treason, and to the amazement of the court, he insists on defending himself - disregarding the advice of experienced counsel in favor of a plan only he himself knows. Strong, seemingly irrefutable evidence is added to the prosecution's case with each witness. To a man, they corraborate the capture of Boone and his company by Shawnee Indians, Boone's preferential treatment in the Indian camp.
Driven
James Martin - 2008
In this entertaining narrative he revealshow his two passions – cooking and cars – have fuelled his hopes, dreams and successes and made him the household name he is today.James talks with passion, energy and candid humour about his childhood, early ambitions, becoming a successful chef and wowing audiences with his foxtrot on Strictly Come Dancing. His story is punctuated with tales of remarkable cars, from his first toy Ferrari to his vintage Maserati, each one representing a personal milestone and bringing with it charming stories and amusing anecdotes. James' cars give him the perfect excuse to delve into his life, revealing frank and fascinating details - from racing through the fields on his father's tractor and teenage fumblings in the back seat, to hurtling round a track with James Bond actor, Daniel Craig.With James' career reaching new heights, and his collection of classic cars continuing to grow, Driven tells how his two lifelong obsessions have shaped the life of this relentlessly ambitious man.
Columbus: the Accidental Hero (Kindle Single)
Kevin Jackson - 2014
When Columbus set sail from Spain in 1492, he had no intention of seeking out new lands. He was trying to reach China and India by a western sea route. And even after he landed on islands off the coast of America, he continued to believe that he was close to the realms of the Great Khan. COLUMBUS: THE ACCIDENTAL HERO tells the thrilling and little-known story of the reality behind the myth, and replaces the story-book Columbus by the much more fascinating and complex man who found the New World and changed our planet forever.
Imran Khan
Christopher Sandford - 2009
On one thing, Imran Khan's friends and enemies agree: it all began with the leopard print satin trousers. In November 1974, the Cricketer International published an article about the new elite group of young talented players, "into concepts like fashion and pop music," and bent on challenging cricket's eternal stereotypes. Of the five featured stars on the cover, a superbly hirsute 21-year-old wearing a tight black shirt and gaudy trousers, with a facial expression of supreme self-confidence, stood out. Imran Khan has always been a controversial figure, a man who gives rise to hot debate on account of his strong conviction and hard line views. From his achievements on the cricket field as the Pakistan captain who captured the World Cup and the game's best all-rounder in history, through to his racy social life—the practicing Muslim boogieing on the dancefloor of Annabel's; an "astonishing lovemaker," according to one overnight partner; praised by Diana Princess of Wales, close friend to his then wife Jemima Goldsmith, as a "devoted husband"—the Imran story is full of color and contradictions. Acclaimed biographer Christopher Sandford has approached a richly varied cast list of Imran associates past and present—from Geoff Boycott, Javed Miandad, Mike Brearley, David Gower, and John Major through to Nelson Mandela and close acquaintances such as Eric Clapton, Mick Jagger, John Major, Keith Richards, sources close to the late Princess of Wales, and Pakistan's General Musharraf. Imran Khan himself and his ex-wife Jemima have agreed to be interviewed for the book and given Sandford exclusive access to Imran's inner sanctum.
Through Apache Eyes: Verbal History of Apache Struggle (Annotated and Illustrated)
Geronimo Chiricahua - 2011
Yet, the one constant in the history of the Apache People is their constant struggle to survive in a world where they are surrounded by various enemies, including other Indian tribes, the Mexicans and finally their brutal nemesis the United States Army. Attacked, tricked, lied to and double crossed by all of those who surround and outnumber them, the Apache people continued their struggle until they were for all intent and purposes almost totally wiped out. One Apache’s name stands out in their brave yet woeful history and it is Geronimo, who at age 30 witnessed the massacre of his mother, wife and two young children.I’ve taken his recollections or accounts of the struggle of the Apache people and intertwined them with some archeological facts about this extraordinary tribe. In addition, I have searched and included some of the best photos of Apaches from that era, which I collected from Library of Congress Archives. What impressed me most about Geronimo was his brevity of words, yet his ability to take a knife to the heart of anyone who reads his verbal history. Like most Apaches, Geronimo said little, but what he did say was profound and truthful. But most powerful is what Geronimo didn’t say in his recollections. It is between this silence one can feel the pain, sorrow, pride and bravery of the Apache People. Chet DembeckPublisher of One
Satan's Choice
Lorne Campbell - 2013
Lorne Campbell was an officer and enforcer for the outlaw biker club Satan's Choice for over thirty years, before patching over to the Hells Angels. The product of a violent childhood, with a hair-trigger temper and fearless nature, he just wanted a place to belong. He found brotherhood with his fellow one per centers, and a code he has lived his life by. In his time he's seen club life slip further into the criminal underworld and be transformed by cocaine dealing. He killed a rival biker to save his brothers and has been imprisoned for assault and drug trafficking. He's faced off police out to get him, taken revenge on men who betrayed him, and gone to extreme lengths to protect his honour and his club. Written with dark humour and raw honesty, and filled with unforgettable characters living life on their own terms, Satan's Choice is a unique insight into an outlaw world seen through the eyes of one proud and unrepentant biker.
Behind The White Ball
Jimmy White - 1998
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.
An Encyclopaedia of Myself
Jonathan Meades - 2014
Memory invents unbidden.’The 1950s were not grey. In Jonathan Meades’s detailed, petit-point memoir they are luridly polychromatic. They were peopled by embittered grotesques, bogus majors, vicious spinsters, reckless bohos, pompous boors, suicides. Death went dogging everywhere. Salisbury, where he was brought up, had two industries: God and the Cold War, both of which provided a cast of adults for the child to scrutinise – desiccated God-botherers on the one hand, gung-ho chemical warriors on the other. The title is grossly inaccurate. This book is, rather, a portrait of a disappeared provincial England, a time and place unpeeled with gruesome relish.
The Answer Is Never: A Skateboarder's History of the World
Jocko Weyland - 2002
In The Answer Is Never, skating journalist Jocko Weyland tells the rambunctious story of a rebellious sport that began as a wintertime surfing substitute on the streets of Southern California beach towns more than forty years ago and has evolved over the decades to become a fixture of urban youth culture around the world. Merging the historical development of the sport with passages about his own skating adventures in such wide-ranging places as Hawaii, Germany, and Cameroon, Weyland gives a fully realized portrait of a subculture whose love of free-flowing creativity and a distinctive antiauthoritarian worldview has inspired major trends in fashion, music, art, and film. Along the way, Weyland interweaves the stories of skating pioneers like Gregg Weaver and the Dogtown Z-Boys and living legends like Steve Caballero and Tony Hawk. He also charts the course of innovations in deck, truck, and wheel design to show how the changing boards changed the sport itself, enabling new tricks as skaters moved from the freestyle techniques that dominated the early days to the extreme street-skating style of today. Vivid and vibrant, The Answer Is Never is a fascinating book as radical and unique as the sport it chronicles.
PAPA Hemingway in Key West
James McLendon - 1972
From his first days on the island he came to know and love fishing and the sea. For the next twelve years the famed author called the island his home. His years in Key West became the most crucial and prolific years of his life. During that period he wrote Death in the Afternoon, Green Hills of Africa, numerous important short stories, To Have and Have Not, and began For Whom the Bell Tolls. He also created and became his own living legend, self-consciously constructing the swaggering image known to the world as Papa.In the early 1970s journalist James McLendon seized the opportunity to interview Ernest Hemingway’s Key West friends who remained alive. A Key West resident himself, McLendon wrote this book by combining his knowledge of the island with his conversations and with the extensive Hemingway-related material held by the Monroe County Public Library. McLendon recreates the slow-paced, sub-tropical setting, the island’s Depression years, and the people and places that infused and inspired Hemingway. These were the years that saw his love affair with Martha Gellhorn and the crumbling of his marriage to Pauline Pfeiffer. Beyond letters and legal documents, too little of the Hemingway era in Key West is found in biographical studies. Because this book was first published in 1974, much of what exists in those studies today is derived from this manuscript. This book gives us a penetrating look at the significance of the Key West era in Hemingway’s career. James McLendon was a columnist for the Key West Citizen, a creative writing instructor and a freelance writer. His dispatches and articles appeared in various U.S. newspapers and magazines, including UPI wire services, the Christian Science Monitor and Writers Digest.
The Game
Ken Dryden - 1983
Intelligent and insightful, former Montreal Canadiens goalie and former President of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ken Dryden captures the essence of the sport and what it means to all hockey fans. He gives us vivid and affectionate portraits of the characters—Guy Lafleur, Larry Robinson, Guy Lapointe, Serge Savard, and coach Scotty Bowman among them—that made the Canadiens of the 1970s one of the greatest hockey teams in history. But beyond that, Dryden reflects on life on the road, in the spotlight, and on the ice, offering up a rare inside look at the game of hockey and an incredible personal memoir. This commemorative edition marks the 20th anniversary of "The Game's" original publication. It includes black and white photography from the Hockey Hall of Fame and a new chapter from the author. Take a journey to the heart and soul of the game with this timeless hockey classic.
The Crippler: Cage Fighting and My Life on the Edge
Chris Leben - 2016
And it takes another kind of person to stand out from all the rest as both a wild man and a rock star. Chris Leben, otherwise known as “The Crippler,” is that kind of person.Leben’s reputation started when he appeared on the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter, a reality show and competition where hopeful fighters live together and vie for a UFC contract and a path to greatness. He quickly made a name for himself with his controversial and abrasive behavior. During his subsequent ten-year career in ultimate fighting, Leben became one of the most recognized figures in the sport, enthralling audiences around the world with his wild, head-first style of fighting as he took on some of the world’s best fighters, including Anderson Silva, Yoshihiro Akiyama, and Wanderlei Silva.But Leben’s success in the ring and international fame hid a troubled background. Abandoned by his father at a young age, Leben’s mother worked long hours to raise him and his two siblings, and Leben learned early he had to be tough to fend for himself. For most of his life, Leben struggled with alcohol and narcotics, and he was suspended by the UFC for nine months for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. The Crippler is not just an exciting account of his rise to prominence within the UFC; it’s the incredible story of a renowned wild man dealing with his personal demons and learning that the toughest opponent is always yourself.Skyhorse Publishing, along with our Arcade, Good Books, Sports Publishing, and Yucca imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs. Our list includes biographies on well-known historical figures like Benjamin Franklin, Nelson Mandela, and Alexander Graham Bell, as well as villains from history, such as Heinrich Himmler, John Wayne Gacy, and O. J. Simpson. We have also published survivor stories of World War II, memoirs about overcoming adversity, first-hand tales of adventure, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
My Own Words
Ruth Bader Ginsburg - 2016
Throughout her life Justice Ginsburg has been (and continues to be) a prolific writer and public speaker. This book’s sampling is selected by Justice Ginsburg and her authorized biographers Mary Hartnett and Wendy W. Williams. Justice Ginsburg has written an introduction to the book, and Hartnett and Williams introduce each chapter, giving biographical context and quotes gleaned from hundreds of interviews they have conducted. This is a fascinating glimpse into the life of one of America’s most influential women.