The glowing story of Satchmo--the great jazz musician, Louis Armstrong.Louis Armstrong has been called the most important improviser in the history of jazz. Although his New Orleans neighborhood was poor in nearly everything else, it was rich in superb music. Young Louis took it all in, especially the cornet blowing of Joe King Oliver. But after a run-in with the police, 11-year-old Louis was sent away to the Colored Waif's Home for Boys where he became a disciplined musician in the school's revered marching band.Ultimately, he was to travel the world from Chicago to Paris and would transform jazz through his improvised singing (scatting) and masterful trumpet playing. He played with Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and other jazz greats of his day. Armstrong was the first African-American man to host a national radio show, and the first jazz musiciain to write an autobiography.This is a joyful tribute to the virtuoso musician and buoyant personality who introduced much of the world to jazz. The author's note includes a detailed biography and resources to learn more about Louis Armstrong and jazz.

    A is for Activist is an ABC board book for the next generation of progressives: Families that want their kids to grow up in a space that is unapologetic about activism, environmental justice, civil rights, LGBTQ rights, and so on.

    A comprehensive overview of all of Marvel's greatest heroes and villains furnishes profiles of more than one thousand characters that document their individual superpowers and their careers, in a reference that traces the history of Marvel Comics and encompasses stunning artwork by some of Marvel's greatest artists.

    He'd been shot at least four times in the head, decapitated, and set on fire. Who could have turned on the ambitious real-estate ace with such bloodthirsty fury? Even before the remains were found, circumstantial evidence was building against Rudin's tempestuous 52-year-old wife, Margaret, who stood to inherit a handsome share of her husband's fortune. Rudin's friends also suspected Margaret, and Rudin himself had thought that his wife was trying to poison him when he was alive. Then a chilling caveat was discovered in Rudin's living trust: that should he die under violent circumstances, an investigation should be conducted. By the time authorities closed in on Margaret Rudin, she'd disappeared. It would take two-and-a-half years to hunt the Black Widow down, and to discover the cold-blooded secrets at the heart of a poisonous marriage....BUT VENGEANCE WOULD COME-FROM THE GRAVE.... Now, reporter Michael Fleeman delivers a startling glimpse into the mind of a woman who would stop at nothing to get what she wanted as she drove the man who had promised to love and honor her to secretly fear her. Fleeman also details the relentless pursuit of justice that would lead authorities from the glamorous faade of Las Vegas to a squalid apartment on the outskirts of Boston to hold the remorseless wife accountable for her shocking and unfathomable crimes.

    In the more than 40 years since the days of DJ Kool Herc and "Rapper's Delight," hip hop and rap have become a billion-dollar worldwide phenomenon. Yet there is no definitive history of the genre-until now. Based on Chuck's long-running show on Rapstation.com, this massive compendium details the most iconic moments and influential songs in the genre's recorded history, from Kurtis Blow's "Christmas Rappin'" to The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill to Kendrick Lamar's ground-breaking verse on "Control." Also included are key events in hip hop history, from Grandmaster Flash's first scratch through Tupac's holographic appearance at Coachella. Throughout, Chuck offers his insider's perspective on the chart toppers and show stoppers as he lived it. Illustrating the pages are more than 100 portraits from the talented artists specializing in hip hop.

    It is the follow-up book to Police, Crime & 999, a book which still remains hugely popular today, with over 250 5-star Amazon reviews, and which garnered positive feedback from a number of national publications:‘Everything is included in this warts-and-all account. Very funny’ The Sun‘A treasure trove of a book – a wonderfully informative and addictive read, full of belly laughs’ The Non-Fiction Book ClubWARNING: Contains Humour & Traces of Nuts

    With her trademark unflinching honesty and humour, she discusses everything from her new role as a step parent, to eating disorders, online bullying and the struggles that the fame of Like a Queen and her blog has brought.Still a Queen will make you laugh and it will make you cry. But Constance's underlying message, about the importance of supporting each other without passing judgement, is something that we all should take to hear

    Tracking an American original—from his Jewish roots to his controversial embrace of Jesus to his enduring legacy as the composer of the Tempest album—Bob Dylan: A Spiritual Life delivers the story of a man in dogged pursuit of redemption.Based on years of research and original interviews, this book sorts through the myths and misunderstandings and reveals Dylan to be both traditional and radical in the way he expresses his spiritual quest for purpose and meaning. "Call Dylan whatever you want, but the name won’t stick," said foreword writer and film director Scott Derrickson. "What does stick is his music, in part because his songs contain a deep, abiding spirituality that moves listeners like me more than the songs of any other artist."Bob Dylan: A Spiritual Life bridges the gap between purpose and meaning in grand fashion. It offers readers an informative, entertaining, and nuanced look into Bob Dylan’s spiritual odyssey. Today, there is not a Dylan book in existence that exclusively focuses on his spiritual odyssey through years of research and original interviews with those who know him and his journey well, such as Barry Beckett, Arthur Blessit, T-Bone Burnett, Carolyn Dennis, Dave Kelly, Regina McCrary, Maria Muldaur, Scott Ross, Jerry Wexler, and Paul Wasserman. The evidence abounds and Dylan's friends and fans provide a plethora of insight into this veritable music icon's spiritual side.“I’ve had a God-given sense of destiny," said Dylan in 2001. "This is what I was put on earth to do.”

    In fact music hasn't just accompanied his life, it's been an integral part of it.In the bestselling and award-winning tradition of This Boy, In My Life vividly transports us to a world that is no longer with us - a world of Dansettes and jukeboxes, of heartfelt love songs and heart-broken ballads, of smoky coffee shops and dingy dance halls. From Bob Dylan to David Bowie, from Lonnie Donnegan to Bruce Springsteen, all of Alan's favourites are here. As are, of course, his beloved Beatles, whom he has worshipped with undying admiration since 1963.But this isn't just a book about music. In My Life adds a fourth dimension to the story of Alan Johnson the man.

    This is the story of how, with the odd misstep along the way, the owners of the Bond franchise, Eon Productions, have contrived to keep James Bond abreast of the zeitgeist and at the top of the charts for 45 years, through 21 films featuring six Bonds, three M’s, two Q’s and three Moneypennies. Thanks to the films, Fleming’s original creation has been transformed from a black sheep of the post-war English upper classes into a figure with universal appeal, constantly evolving to keep pace with changing social and political circumstances. Having interviewed people concerned with all aspects of the films, Sinclair McKay is ideally placed to describe how the Bond ‘brand’ has been managed over the years as well as to give us the inside stories of the supporting cast of Bond girls, Bond villains, Bond cars and Bond gadgetry. Sinclair McKay, formerly assistant features editor of the Daily Telegraph, works as a freelance writer and journalist. He is also the author of A Thing of Unspeakable Horror: The History of Hammer Films, which the Guardian called ‘A splendid history’ and the Independent on Sunday described as ‘Brisk, cheerful and enthusiastic.’

    Biggie Smalls, a.k.a. The Notorious B.I.G.In this riveting account of Biggie's remarkable life, hip hop journalist Cheo Hodari Coker tells the story you've never heard about the dramatic, tension-filled world of Biggie, Tupac, Puff Daddy, and Suge Knight, tracing their friendships and feuds from the beginning to the bitter end. Despite the clash of personalities and styles, all four were key players in a volatile and creative era of hip hop, a time when gangsta rap became popular music.Before he rocketed to fame as Biggie, Christopher Wallace was a young black man growing up in Brooklyn with a loving single mother. An honors student who dropped out of school to sell drugs, Biggie soon discovered that he had a gift for rocking the mike. Coker's narrative is based on exclusive interviews with Biggie's family and friends, some of whom have never spoken publicly about Biggie before.Compellingly written and brilliantly illustrated, with rare color and black-and-white photographs from Vibe's archives and Biggie's family, this is an in-depth look at the life and afterlife of an icon whose music is as powerful and prevalent as ever. A virtuoso of flow as well as a master storyteller, Biggie was arguably the greatest rapper of all time. We've heard a lot of speculation about Biggie's death. Now it's time to remember his life and celebrate his work.

    Written by his manager Dave Lory, Jeff Buckley includes interviews with others who worked closely with him who have never spoken before. For the first time since Jeff Buckley’s untimely death on May 29, 1997, his manager Dave Lory reveals what it was like to work with one of rock’s most celebrated and influential artists. Go on the road and behind the scenes with Jeff, from the release of his debut EP Live at Sin-é to the second album Buckley never completed. Jeff Buckley includes testimony from the many people who worked closely with Jeff both on and off stage and includes never-before-shared intimate scenes that only Lory witnessed, including what went down immediately after Lory got that fateful call, “Jeff is missing.”

     "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" and "I've Been Working on the Railroad"? Well, forget 'em! Songwriter and comedy writer extraordinaire Alan Katz has turned those and other old favorites on their ears and created new nonsense songs kids will love. With zany, spirited pictures by illustrator and cartoonist David Catrow, this kooky collection guarantees laughs and plenty of silly dillyness for kids everywhere!

    Audrey: The 60s is a landmark photographic chronicle of her film and fashion career during those tumultuous years. Regarded as one of the most beautiful and best-dressed women in the world, Audrey Hepburn had timeless appeal—and this breathtaking photographic collection compiled by David Wills, author of Marilyn Monroe: Metamorphosis, captures this legendary star at the height of her career—from Breakfast at Tiffany’s to the Vogue fashion shoots with world-class photographers that captured her unique, trendsetting style.

    'Yippie-ti-yay! My stomach’s on fire!!'” In this Texas-styled reworking of "There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly," a cowboy downs a variety of native Southwest creatures—a spider, a roadrunner, a lizard, an armadillo, a snake, a boar, and more—all to catch that ant! Another hilarious and vividly illustrated tale from the team behind Senorita Gordita and The Three Little Gators.