Download or read book The Death Class written by Erika Hayasaki and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2014-01-14 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The poignant, “powerful” (The Boston Globe) look at how to appreciate life from an extraordinary professor who teaches about death: “Poetic passages and assorted revelations you’ll likely not forget” (Chicago Tribune). Why does a college course on death have a three-year waiting list? When nurse Norma Bowe decided to teach a course on death at a college in New Jersey, she never expected it to be popular. But year after year students crowd into her classroom, and the reason is clear: Norma’s “death class” is really about how to make the most of what poet Mary Oliver famously called our “one wild and precious life.” Under the guise of discussions about last wills and last breaths and visits to cemeteries and crematoriums, Norma teaches her students to find grace in one another. In The Death Class, award-winning journalist Erika Hayasaki followed Norma for more than four years, showing how she steers four extraordinary students from their tormented families and neighborhoods toward happiness: she rescues one young woman from her suicidal mother, helps a young man manage his schizophrenic brother, and inspires another to leave his gang life behind. Through this unorthodox class on death, Norma helps kids who are barely hanging on to understand not only the value of their own lives, but also the secret of fulfillment: to throw yourself into helping others. Hayasaki’s expert reporting and literary prose bring Norma’s wisdom out of the classroom, transforming it into an inspiring lesson for all. In the end, Norma’s very own life—and how she lives it—is the lecture that sticks. “Readers will come away struck by Bowe’s compassion—and by the unexpectedly life-affirming messages of courage that spring from her students’ harrowing experiences” (Entertainment Weekly).

Download or read book Waking Up in Heaven written by Crystal McVea and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2013-04-02 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recounts the story of a young mother who underwent an intense near-death experience after she became unresponsive during a medical emergency, as she discusses the hardships of her past and the impact of the experience on her life.

Download or read book Based on a True Story written by Norm Macdonald and published by Random House. This book was released on 2016-09-20 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Driving, wild and hilarious” (The Washington Post), here is the incredible “memoir” of the legendary actor, gambler, raconteur, and Saturday Night Live veteran. When Norm Macdonald, one of the greatest stand-up comics of all time, was approached to write a celebrity memoir, he flatly refused, calling the genre “one step below instruction manuals.” Norm then promptly took a two-year hiatus from stand-up comedy to live on a farm in northern Canada. When he emerged he had under his arm a manuscript, a genre-smashing book about comedy, tragedy, love, loss, war, and redemption. When asked if this was the celebrity memoir, Norm replied, “Call it anything you damn like.”

Download or read book True Story written by Kate Reed Petty and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2020-08-04 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A gripping, ripped-from-headlines tale.” —People “Spellbinding.” —Megan Abbott, The New York Times Book Review Tracing the fifteen-year fallout of a toxic high school rumor, a riveting, astonishingly original debut novel about the power of stories—and who gets to tell them 2015. A gifted and reclusive ghostwriter, Alice Lovett makes a living helping other people tell their stories. But she is haunted by the one story she can't tell: the story of, as she puts it, "the things that happened while I was asleep." 1999. Nick Brothers and his lacrosse teammates return for their senior year at their wealthy Maryland high school as the reigning state champions. They're on top of the world—until two of his friends drive a passed-out girl home from of the team's "legendary" parties, and a rumor about what happened in the backseat spreads through the town like wildfire. The boys deny the allegations, and, eventually, the town moves on. But not everyone can. Nick descends into alcoholism, and Alice builds a life in fits and starts, underestimating herself and placing her trust in the wrong people. When she finally gets the opportunity to confront the past she can't remember—but which has nevertheless shaped her life—will she take it? An inventive and breathtaking exploration of a woman finding her voice in the wake of trauma, True Story is part psychological thriller, part fever dream, and part timely comment on sexual assault, power, and the very nature of truth. Ingeniously constructed and full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the final pages, it marks the debut of a singular and daring new voice in fiction.

Download or read book My Lie written by Meredith Maran and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2010-11-05 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Meredith Maran lived a daughter's nightmare: she accused her father of sexual abuse, then realized, nearly too late, that he was innocent. During the 1980s and 1990s, tens of thousands of Americans became convinced that they had repressed memories of childhood sexual abuse, and then, decades later, recovered those memories in therapy. Journalist, mother, and daughter Meredith Maran was one of them. Her accusation and estrangement from her father caused her sons to grow up without their only grandfather, divided her family into those who believed her and those who didn't, and led her to isolate herself on "Planet Incest," where "survivors" devoted their lives, and life savings, to recovering memories of events that had never occurred. Maran unveils her family's devastation and ultimate redemption against the backdrop of the sex-abuse scandals, beginning with the infamous McMartin preschool trial, that sent hundreds of innocents to jail—several of whom remain imprisoned today. Exploring the psychological, cultural, and neuroscientific causes of this modern American witch-hunt, My Lie asks: how could so many people come to believe the same lie at the same time? What has neuroscience discovered about the brain's capacity to create false memories and encode false beliefs? What are the "big lies" gaining traction in American culture today—and how can we keep them from taking hold? My Lie is a wrenchingly honest, unexpectedly witty, and profoundly human story that proves the personal is indeed political—and the political can become painfully personal.

Download or read book Immortal Life written by Stanley Bing and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2017-12-05 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An ancient mogul has bought the power to live forever, but the strong young body he plans to inhabit has other ideas. The battle for immortal life begins in Stanley Bing’s “stimulating, satirical and perhaps even visionary novel” (Wall Street Journal). Immortal life. A fantasy, an impossible dream—or is it? The moguls of Big Tech are pouring their mountain of wealth into finding a cure for death and they are determined to succeed. None of these titans is richer than Arthur Vogel. The inventor, tech tycoon, and all-round monster has amassed trillions of dollars and rules over a corporate empire stretching all the way to Mars. The newest—and most expensive—life extension technology has allowed him to live to 127 years, but time is running out. His last hope to escape the inevitable lies with Gene, a human specifically created for the purpose of housing Arthur’s consciousness. The plan is to discard his aged body and come to a second life in a young, strong host. But there’s a problem: Gene. He may be artificial, but he is a person—and he has other ideas. As Arthur sets off to achieve his goal of world domination, Gene hatches a risky plan of his own. The forces against him are rich, determined, and used to getting what they pay for. The battle between creator and creation is heightened as the two minds wrestle for control of one body. Mixing brisk action, humor, and wicked social commentary, author Stanley Bing has crafted “an engaging and cautionary tale about the direction in which spaceship Earth is hurtling” (USA Today). Welcome to a brave new world that is too familiar for comfort—and watch the struggle for humanity play out to the bitter end.

Download or read book I Hope You Have a Good Life written by Campbell Armstrong and published by Three Rivers Press. This book was released on 2002-02-26 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “I Hope You Have a Good Life addresses the most fundamental questions about adoption, families, life, and love. . . . Heartbreaking and beautiful.” —Publishers Weekly “A passionate memoir of love retrieved.” —The Times (London) “Campbell Amstrong understands and communicates the devotion of mother and daughter and the special poignancy of their brief and stress-filled time together.” —Kirkus Reviews The remarkable story of two extraordinary women who had to live a whole lifetime of caring in a few short weeks. When Campbell Armstrong and his first wife became lovers, she shared her most intimate secret with him—as a teenager she had given up her first child for adoption. Years later, at the side of his ex-wife, Armstrong witnessed a mother and daughter unite in the most overwhelming circumstances. With compassion and empathy, Armstrong presents the triumphant reunion of his estranged family with a delicate grace that captivates the joy and despair, sadness and laughter they felt when joined. He paints a beautiful and unforgettable portrait of a mother and daughter brought together out of desperation, but whose lives ultimately provide an uplifting, redemptive story. I Hope You Have a Good Life is an inspirational memoir, a testament to the human spirit and to the ability of families to reunite when it matters most.

Download or read book You Changed My Life written by Abdel Sellou and published by . This book was released on 2012-07-10 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The true story of the 'Driss' character in the ... film The intouchables"--Cover.

Download or read book A Free Man A True Story of Life and Death in Delhi written by Aman Sethi and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2012-10-22 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A deeply moving, funny, and brilliantly written account from one of India’s most original new voices." —Katherine Boo Like Dave Eggers’s Zeitoun and Alexander Masters’s Stuart, this is a tour de force of narrative reportage. Mohammed Ashraf studied biology, became a butcher, a tailor, and an electrician’s apprentice; now he is a homeless day laborer in the heart of old Delhi. How did he end up this way? In an astonishing debut, Aman Sethi brings him and his indelible group of friends to life through their adventures and misfortunes in the Old Delhi Railway Station, the harrowing wards of a tuberculosis hospital, an illegal bar made of cardboard and plywood, and into Beggars Court and back onto the streets. In a time of global economic strain, this is an unforgettable evocation of persistence in the face of poverty in one of the world’s largest cities. Sethi recounts Ashraf’s surprising life story with wit, candor, and verve, and A Free Man becomes a moving story of the many ways a man can be free.

Download or read book Based on a True Story written by Delphine de Vigan and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2017-04-06 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'A wonderful literary trompe l'oeil: a book about friendship, writing and the boundary between reality and fantasy ... Dark, smart, strange, compelling' Harriet Lane, bestselling author of Her Overwhelmed by the huge success of her latest novel, exhausted and suffering from a crippling inability to write, Delphine meets L. L. embodies everything Delphine admires; sophisticated and unusually intuitive, she slowly but deliberately carves herself a niche in the writer's life. However, as she makes herself indispensable to Delphine, the intensity of this unexpected friendship manifests itself in increasingly sinister ways. And as their lives become further entwined, L. begins to threaten Delphine's identity and her safety.

Download or read book The Reckless Oath We Made written by Bryn Greenwood and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2020-08-25 with total page 466 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A new provocative love story from the New York Times bestselling author of All the Ugly and Wonderful Things. “The story of Zee and Gentry is the reason we read.” —Brunonia Barry Their journey will break them—or save them. A moving and complicated love story for our time, The Reckless Oath We Made redefines what it means to be heroic. Zee has never admitted to needing anybody. But she needs Gentry. Her tough exterior shelters a heart that’s loyal to the point of self-destruction, while autistic Gentry wears his heart on his sleeve, including his desire to protect Zee at all costs. When an abduction tears Zee’s family apart, she turns to Gentry—and sets in motion a journey and a love that will change their lives forever. “[A] mind-blowing book that has left me scrambling to pick up the pieces of my brain and my shattered heart . . . Prepare to have your mind and heart expanded to their limits.” —The Oklahoman

Download or read book 8 Is Enough written by Shannon Alford and published by Charisma Media. This book was released on 2012-10-31 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DIV"No matter how difficult life becomes, we can develop a love relationship with God and choose the path to follow Him."/div

Download or read book The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell written by Robert Dugoni and published by Center Point. This book was released on 2023-04 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sam Hill always saw the world through different eyes. Born with red pupils, he was called "Devil Boy" or Sam "Hell" by his classmates; "God's will" is what his mother called his ocular albinism. Her words were of little comfort, but Sam persevered, buoyed by his mother's devout faith, his father's practical wisdom, and his two other misfit friends.

Download or read book My life true story written by Abraham Sote and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on with total page 68 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Gift written by Charles W. Allen and published by Book Hub Inc. This book was released on 2013-03-11 with total page 243 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Charles Allen, loving husband and father in a family of eight, shares his personal experience of conquering the heartache and tragedy of losing two children to cystic fibrosis, and both his oldest daughter and wife to cancer. Through the details of Allen’s experiences of coping with the loss of four family members, it becomes clear how tragedy can become a powerful source of personal growth and how faith plays an important role in the trials and tribulations of life. Allen’s mourning culminates with the selfless gift given to him by his wife, Sue, as she struggles with her last breath. Through touching personal journal entries and revealing narrative, The Gift chronicles one man’s struggles with, and triumph over, loss and grief.

Download or read book The Journey Home written by Shirleen Von Hoffmann and published by Dog Ear Publishing. This book was released on 2005-08 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Same River Twice written by Pam Mandel and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2020-11-03 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Acclaimed travel writer Pam Mandel's thrilling account of a life-defining journey from the California suburbs to Israel to the Himalayan peaks and back. Given the choice, Pam Mandel would say no and stay home. It was getting her nowhere, so she decided to say yes. Yes to hard work and hitch-hiking, to mean boyfriends and dirty travel, to unfolding the map and walking to its edges. Yes to unknown countries, night shifts, language lessons, bad decisions, to anything to make her feel real, visible, alive. A product of beige California suburbs, Mandel was overlooked and unexceptional. When her father ships her off on a youth group tour of Israel, he inadvertently catapults his seventeen-year-old daughter into a world of angry European backpackers, seize-the-day Israelis, and the fall out of cold war-era politics. Border violence hadn't been on the birthright tour agenda. But then neither had domestic violence, going broke, getting wasted, getting sick, or getting lost. With no guidance and no particular plan, utterly unprepared for what lies ahead, Mandel says yes to everything and everyone, embarking on an adventure across three continents and thousands of miles, from a cold water London flat to rural Pakistan, from the Nile River Delta to the snowy peaks of Ladakh and finally, back home to California, determined to shape a life that is truly hers. An extraordinary memoir of going away and growing up, The Same River Twice follows Mandel's tangled journey and shows how travel teaches and changes us, even while it helps us become exactly who we have been all along.