Download or read book Strangers to Their Courage written by Alice Derry and published by LSU Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 108 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In her startling new collection of poetry, Alice Derry contemplates an awkward, even taboo, subject -- the persecution and suffering of the German population before, during, and after World War II. Sparked by her desire to capture in verse the torment of her German cousins, who had survived the horrors of war only to be separated by the division of Germany, Derry composed these poems over a quarter century, ultimately chronicling the anguish of an entire people who "deserved" their lot, a people permanently tainted by the horrifying events of the Third Reich and the Holocaust. "Before I realized that I was becoming part of a contaminated language and people, I was part of them", writes Derry in her powerful introductory essay, an eloquent discussion of racism, ethnic prejudice, and learned hatred. Indeed, Derry's intensely personal poems have an immediacy that approaches documentary. She divides the poems into two sections, the first telling the stories of her German relatives trapped behind the Iron Curtain, often from their point of view. "When I felt our first son move inside me . . . / I walked into the cold, muddy spring, / the rubbled streets, and took my place / in the food lines". The second section ponders the distinct experiences of German Americans. By giving voice to a group that Americans and others have been given permission to hate, Derry eloquently reveals a subtle truth about blame and guilt -- in the end we are all implicated, all human suffering is a part of each of us.
Download or read book The Courage of Strangers written by Jeri Laber and published by PublicAffairs. This book was released on 2005-02-16 with total page 441 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After Jeri Laber earned a Master's degree in Russian studies at Columbia University, she became a part-time writer and editor and a full-time wife and mother. Then one day in 1973 she read an article about torture that altered her life and subsequently the lives of countless others around the world. The Courage of Strangers tells how Laber became a founder and the executive director of Helsinki Watch, which grew to be Human Rights Watch, one of the world's most influential organizations. She describes her secret trips to unwelcoming countries, where she met with some of the great political activists of the time. She also recalls what it was like to come of age professionally in an era when women were supposed to follow rather than lead; how she struggled to balance work and family; and how her fight for human rights informed her own intellectual, spiritual and emotional development. This story of the birth of the human rights movement is also a sweeping history of dissent and triumph in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Elegantly written, full of passion, humor and political wisdom, it is exciting history as well as a moving, entertaining, inspiring story of a woman's life.
Download or read book The Power of Strangers written by Joe Keohane and published by Random House. This book was released on 2021-07-13 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A “meticulously researched and buoyantly written” (Esquire) look at what happens when we talk to strangers, and why it affects everything from our own health and well-being to the rise and fall of nations in the tradition of Susan Cain’s Quiet and Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens “This lively, searching work makes the case that welcoming ‘others’ isn’t just the bedrock of civilization, it’s the surest path to the best of what life has to offer.”—Ayad Akhtar, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Homeland Elegies In our cities, we stand in silence at the pharmacy and in check-out lines at the grocery store, distracted by our phones, barely acknowledging one another, even as rates of loneliness skyrocket. Online, we retreat into ideological silos reinforced by algorithms designed to serve us only familiar ideas and like-minded users. In our politics, we are increasingly consumed by a fear of people we’ve never met. But what if strangers—so often blamed for our most pressing political, social, and personal problems—are actually the solution? In The Power of Strangers, Joe Keohane sets out on a journey to discover what happens when we bridge the distance between us and people we don’t know. He learns that while we’re wired to sometimes fear, distrust, and even hate strangers, people and societies that have learned to connect with strangers benefit immensely. Digging into a growing body of cutting-edge research on the surprising social and psychological benefits that come from talking to strangers, Keohane finds that even passing interactions can enhance empathy, happiness, and cognitive development, ease loneliness and isolation, and root us in the world, deepening our sense of belonging. And all the while, Keohane gathers practical tips from experts on how to talk to strangers, and tries them out himself in the wild, to awkward, entertaining, and frequently poignant effect. Warm, witty, erudite, and profound, equal parts sweeping history and self-help journey, this deeply researched book will inspire readers to see everything—from major geopolitical shifts to trips to the corner store—in an entirely new light, showing them that talking to strangers isn’t just a way to live; it’s a way to survive.
Download or read book Imperfect Courage written by Jessica Honegger and published by WaterBrook. This book was released on 2018-08-14 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Want to make a move but scared to leave your comfort zone? Go anyway. “Jessica's perspective of global sisterhood and the power of lifting each other up in the midst of fear and scarcity is exactly what we need today. This book is both an invitation and a challenge to bravely show up for ourselves, for the people we love, and for the strangers that we will one day call family. I say, Amen!” —Brené Brown, Ph.D., Author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Braving the Wilderness In Imperfect Courage, the founder of the popular fair trade jewelry brand Noonday Collection shares her story of starting the rapid-growing business that impacts over 4,500 artisans in vulnerable communities across the globe—and invites readers on a journey of transformation, challenging them to trade their comfort zones for a life of impact and adventure. In 2015, Inc. magazine recognized Noonday Collection as one of the fastest-growing companies in America. But years earlier, as Jessica Honegger stood at a pawn-shop counter in Austin, Texas, and handed over her grandmother's gold jewelry, her goal was much more personal: to fund the adoption of her Rwandan son, Jack, by selling artisan-made jewelry. This first step launched an unexpected side-hustle that would grow into Noonday Collection. Jessica embarked on this new journey and teamed up with her first artisan partner, Jalia, a Ugandan jewelry maker. She saw the meaningful impact Noonday brought to Jalia's community and knew it was the right move. Fear crept into Jessica's heart as she realized her success, or failure, meant the same for Jalia. But refusing to let fear hinder her goals, Jessica found the necessary (if imperfect) courage she needed along the way--the courage to leave comfort and embrace a life of risk and impact. Discover Your Imperfect Courage In Imperfect Courage, Jessica takes you by the hand and invites you to trade your comfort zone for a life of impact and meaning. • First, she invites you to draw a circle of compassion around yourself and leads you through some soul-searching aimed at setting you free from shame. • Next, she challenges all of us to come together, dare to be vulnerable with one another, and commit to building a culture of collaboration. • Finally, Jessica calls on you to broaden your circle of compassion to embrace the entire globe--and to bring your beautifully imperfect courage to a world that needs you.
Download or read book A Stranger Truth written by Ashok Alexander and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When Ashok Alexander left a high-profile corporate job to head Avahan, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's programme to stem the growth of the HIV epidemic in India, he was plunged into an India far removed from the comfort zones he had lived and worked in all his life. It was a grinding place where women sold themselves for fifty rupees and fourteen-year-olds injected drugs. It was the shadow world of transgenders and of young gay men in a country that still criminalized same-sex love. It was the strange world of truckers, lonely journeymen along forgotten highways. Above all, it was a place where valiant battles for a barely decent life were being fought every day. During the ten years Alexander built Avahan, it grew to become one of the largest and most successful HIV prevention programmes in the world, credited with averting over 6. 5 lakh new infections.
Download or read book Social Courage written by Eric Goodman and published by Exisle Publishing. This book was released on 2018-07-01 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many people walk around with a secret: they experience social anxiety! At the same time, they are bombarded by messages from books, articles, and gurus that lead them to believe that social anxiety is a disease that needs to be cured. Consequently, along with social anxiety, they carry shame — believing that there is something wrong with them that must be fixed before they can live a ‘normal’ life. Often, they are waiting for the magical day when their social anxiety vanishes forever before pursuing their social goals, such as increasing friendships, finding a romantic partner, or advancing in their career. The problem is that social anxiety is normal and, to some degree, it will remain a lifelong companion. Social Courage presents a step-by-step, structured program for minimizing suffering in the face of social anxiety while giving readers the tools to boldly go towards their social goals. It combines strategies from Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and Compassion-Focused Therapy to form ‘CBT 2.0’, to help readers cope and thrive with anxious thoughts and emotions using practical exercises and case studies. Whether readers are struggling with social anxiety of phobic proportions or are just held back when it comes to public speaking or meeting a specific social goal, Social Courage presents a path forward while minimizing suffering along the way.
Download or read book The Stranger in My Genes written by Bill Griffeth and published by New England Historic Genealogical Society. This book was released on 2016-09-06 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bill Griffeth, longtime genealogy buff, takes a DNA test that has an unexpected outcome: "If the results were correct, it meant that the family tree I had spent years documenting was not my own." Bill undertakes a quest to solve the mystery of his origins, which shakes his sense of identity. As he takes us on his journey, we learn about choices made by his ancestors, parents, and others - and we see Bill measure and weigh his own difficult choices as he confronts the past.
Download or read book The Book of Gutsy Women written by Hillary Rodham Clinton and published by Simon & Schuster. This book was released on 2019-10-01 with total page 464 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Soon to be an eight-part docuseries on Apple TV+ Hillary Rodham Clinton and her daughter, Chelsea, share the stories of the gutsy women who have inspired them—women with the courage to stand up to the status quo, ask hard questions, and get the job done. She couldn’t have been more than seven or eight years old. “Go ahead, ask your question,” her father urged, nudging her forward. She smiled shyly and said, “You’re my hero. Who’s yours?” Many people—especially girls—have asked us that same question over the years. It’s one of our favorite topics. HILLARY: Growing up, I knew hardly any women who worked outside the home. So I looked to my mother, my teachers, and the pages of Life magazine for inspiration. After learning that Amelia Earhart kept a scrapbook with newspaper articles about successful women in male-dominated jobs, I started a scrapbook of my own. Long after I stopped clipping articles, I continued to seek out stories of women who seemed to be redefining what was possible. CHELSEA: This book is the continuation of a conversation the two of us have been having since I was little. For me, too, my mom was a hero; so were my grandmothers. My early teachers were also women. But I grew up in a world very different from theirs. My pediatrician was a woman, and so was the first mayor of Little Rock who I remember from my childhood. Most of my close friends’ moms worked outside the home as nurses, doctors, teachers, professors, and in business. And women were going into space and breaking records here on Earth. Ensuring the rights and opportunities of women and girls remains a big piece of the unfinished business of the twenty-first century. While there’s a lot of work to do, we know that throughout history and around the globe women have overcome the toughest resistance imaginable to win victories that have made progress possible for all of us. That is the achievement of each of the women in this book. So how did they do it? The answers are as unique as the women themselves. Civil rights activist Dorothy Height, LGBTQ trailblazer Edie Windsor, and swimmer Diana Nyad kept pushing forward, no matter what. Writers like Rachel Carson and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie named something no one had dared talk about before. Historian Mary Beard used wit to open doors that were once closed, and Wangari Maathai, who sparked a movement to plant trees, understood the power of role modeling. Harriet Tubman and Malala Yousafzai looked fear in the face and persevered. Nearly every single one of these women was fiercely optimistic—they had faith that their actions could make a difference. And they were right. To us, they are all gutsy women—leaders with the courage to stand up to the status quo, ask hard questions, and get the job done. So in the moments when the long haul seems awfully long, we hope you will draw strength from these stories. We do. Because if history shows one thing, it’s that the world needs gutsy women.
Download or read book The Care of Strangers written by Ellen Michaelson and published by Melville House. This book was released on 2020-11-10 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2019 Miami Book Fair/de Groot Prize, The Care of Strangers is a moving story about friendship set in a gritty Brooklyn hospital, where a young woman learns to take charge of her life by taking care of others. Working as an orderly in a gritty Brooklyn public hospital, Sima is often reminded by her superiors that she's the least important person there. An immigrant who, with her mother, escaped vicious anti-Semitism in Poland, she spends her shifts transporting patients, observing the doctors and residents ... and quietly nurturing her aspirations to become a doctor herself by going to night school. Now just one credit short of graduating, she finds herself faltering in the face of pressure from her mother not to overreach, and to settle for the life she has now. Everything changes when Sima encounters Mindy Kahn, an intern doctor struggling through her residency. Sensing a fellow outsider in need of support, Sima bonds with Mindy over their patients, and learns the power of truly letting yourself care for another person, helping to give her the courage to face her past, and take control of her future. A moving story about vulnerability and friendship, The Care of Strangers is the story of one woman's discovery that sometimes interactions with strangers are the best way to find yourself.
Download or read book Braving the Wilderness written by Brené Brown and published by Random House Trade Paperbacks. This book was released on 2019-08-27 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK • A timely and important book that challenges everything we think we know about cultivating true belonging in our communities, organizations, and culture, from the #1 bestselling author of Rising Strong, Daring Greatly, and The Gifts of Imperfection Don’t miss the five-part Max docuseries Brené Brown: Atlas of the Heart! “True belonging doesn’t require us to change who we are. It requires us to be who we are.” Social scientist Brené Brown, PhD, MSW, has sparked a global conversation about the experiences that bring meaning to our lives—experiences of courage, vulnerability, love, belonging, shame, and empathy. In Braving the Wilderness, Brown redefines what it means to truly belong in an age of increased polarization. With her trademark mix of research, storytelling, and honesty, Brown will again change the cultural conversation while mapping a clear path to true belonging. Brown argues that we’re experiencing a spiritual crisis of disconnection, and introduces four practices of true belonging that challenge everything we believe about ourselves and each other. She writes, “True belonging requires us to believe in and belong to ourselves so fully that we can find sacredness both in being a part of something and in standing alone when necessary. But in a culture that’s rife with perfectionism and pleasing, and with the erosion of civility, it’s easy to stay quiet, hide in our ideological bunkers, or fit in rather than show up as our true selves and brave the wilderness of uncertainty and criticism. But true belonging is not something we negotiate or accomplish with others; it’s a daily practice that demands integrity and authenticity. It’s a personal commitment that we carry in our hearts.” Brown offers us the clarity and courage we need to find our way back to ourselves and to each other. And that path cuts right through the wilderness. Brown writes, “The wilderness is an untamed, unpredictable place of solitude and searching. It is a place as dangerous as it is breathtaking, a place as sought after as it is feared. But it turns out to be the place of true belonging, and it’s the bravest and most sacred place you will ever stand.”
Download or read book The Courage Test written by James Preller and published by Feiwel & Friends. This book was released on 2016-09-13 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Will has no choice. His father drags him along on a wilderness adventure in the footsteps of legendary explorers Lewis and Clark--whether he likes it or not. All the while, Will senses that something about this trip isn't quite right. Along the journey, Will meets fascinating strangers and experiences new thrills, including mountain cliffs, whitewater rapids, and a heart-hammering bear encounter. It is a journey into the soul of America's past, and the meaning of family in the future. In the end, Will must face his own, life-changing test of courage. This title has Common Core connections.
Download or read book Stranger s Knowledge written by Xavier Marquez and published by Parmenides Publishing. This book was released on 2012-06-07 with total page 418 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Statesman is a difficult and puzzling Platonic dialogue. In A Stranger's Knowledge Marquez argues that Plato abandons here the classic idea, prominent in the Republic, that the philosopher, qua philosopher, is qualified to rule. Instead, the dialogue presents the statesman as different from the philosopher, the possessor of a specialist expertise that cannot be reduced to philosophy. The expertise is of how to make a city resilient against internal and external conflict in light of the imperfect sociality of human beings and the poverty of their reason. This expertise, however, cannot be produced on demand: one cannot train statesmen like one might train carpenters. Worse, it cannot be made acceptable to the citizens, or operate in ways that are not deeply destructive to the city's stability. Even as the political community requires his knowledge for its preservation, the genuine statesman must remain a stranger to the city.Marquez shows how this impasse is the key to understanding the ambiguous reevaluation of the rule of law that is the most striking feature of the political philosophy of the Statesman. The law appears here as a mere approximation of the expertise of the inevitably absent statesman, dim images and static snapshots of the clear and dynamic expertise required to steer the ship of state across the storms of the political world. Yet such laws, even when they are not created by genuine statesmen, can often provide the city with a limited form of cognitive capital that enables it to preserve itself in the long run, so long as citizens, and especially leaders, retain a "e;philosophical"e; attitude towards them. It is only when rulers know that they do not know better than the laws what is just or good (and yet want to know what is just and good) that the city can be preserved. The dialogue is thus, in a sense, the vindication of the philosopher-king in the absence of genuine political knowledge.
Download or read book The Courage of Strangers written by Jeri Laber and published by PublicAffairs. This book was released on 2005-02-16 with total page 446 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After Jeri Laber earned a Master's degree in Russian studies at Columbia University, she became a part-time writer and editor and a full-time wife and mother. Then one day in 1973 she read an article about torture that altered her life and subsequently the lives of countless others around the world. The Courage of Strangers tells how Laber became a founder and the executive director of Helsinki Watch, which grew to be Human Rights Watch, one of the world's most influential organizations. She describes her secret trips to unwelcoming countries, where she met with some of the great political activists of the time. She also recalls what it was like to come of age professionally in an era when women were supposed to follow rather than lead; how she struggled to balance work and family; and how her fight for human rights informed her own intellectual, spiritual and emotional development. This story of the birth of the human rights movement is also a sweeping history of dissent and triumph in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Elegantly written, full of passion, humor and political wisdom, it is exciting history as well as a moving, entertaining, inspiring story of a woman's life.
Download or read book The Comfort of Strangers written by Ian McEwan and published by RosettaBooks. This book was released on 2011-02-08 with total page 129 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A twisted relationship between two couples reaches a terrible climax in this novel by the New York Times-bestselling author of Machines Like Me. Colin and Mary are lovers on holiday in Italy, their relationship becoming increasingly problematic as they become increasingly alienated from one and other. They move from place to place in this foreign land but seemingly without aim or purpose, seemingly bored and without attachment. Then they meet a man named Robert and his disabled wife, Caroline. Colin and Mary seem happy for the diversion—happy to meet another couple that takes their focus off of each other for a while. But things become strange when they attempt to leave: Robert and Caroline insist that they stay with them for a while longer. While Mary and Colin do rediscover an erotic attraction to each other during this time, they also find that their relationship with Robert and Caroline is taking a dreadful and horrific turn, in this “fine novel” by the Booker Prize-winning author of Saturday and On Chesil Beach (New Statesman). “McEwan perfectly captures the thrill of travel when one is divorced from familiar surroundings and the chance of something unusual and out-of-character seems possible. Of course, this being a McEwan fiction, the possibility is a brutal truth about how people find love in extreme ways.”—The Daily Beast
Download or read book Hello Fears written by Michelle Poler and published by Sourcebooks, Inc.. This book was released on 2020-05-05 with total page 186 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Are you ready to break free from the grip of fear and embark on a journey of personal growth and empowerment? For readers of motivational books like Daring Greatly and Girl, Wash Your Face, this growth mindset personal development book from acclaimed speaker and influencer, Michelle Poler, will help you push out of your comfort zone and find authentic happiness. With a captivating blend of vulnerability, humor, and actionable insights, Michelle shares her story of conquering 100 fears in 100 days and provides a roadmap to help you navigate the uncharted territories of your fears. From public speaking and taking risks to facing rejection and embracing vulnerability, Hello, Fears equips you with the tools and mindset needed to set life-changing goals, embrace courage, and live a life without limits. Learn how to identify and understand your fears, uncovering their root causes Discover proven techniques to step out of your comfort zone and face challenges with confidence Overcome the fear of failure and transform setbacks into stepping stones for success Embrace vulnerability and build authentic connections in your personal and professional life Cultivate resilience and adaptability in the face of uncertainty and change Develop a growth mindset and harness fear as a catalyst for personal growth Whether you're struggling with fear in your career, relationships, or personal aspirations, Hello, Fears provides the guidance and motivation you need to break free and live a life driven by courage, resilience, and purpose. Embrace the transformative power of fear and unlock your true potential today!
Download or read book Strangers written by Dean Koontz and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2002-10-01 with total page 705 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “The plot twists ingeniously...an engaging, often chilling book.”—The New York Times Book Review A writer in California. A doctor in Boston. A motel owner and his employee in Nevada. A priest in Chicago. A robber in New York. A little girl in Las Vegas. They’re a handful of people from across the country, living through eerie variations of the same nightmare. A dark memory is calling out to them. And soon they will be drawn together, deep in the heart of a sprawling desert, where the terrifying truth awaits...
Download or read book Find Your Courage written by Margie Warrell and published by McGraw Hill Professional. This book was released on 2009-01-11 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "An up-front, to the point, and honest masterpiece. You can't go wrong with this one!"—Richard Carlson, bestselling author of Don't Sweat the Small Stuff . . . From popular life coach and motivational speaker Margie Warrell comes an inspiring, practical guide for finding the courage to change any--or every--aspect of your life. Warrell's "12 Acts of Courage" challenges you to rethink your "life scripts," overcome everyday fears, and dream bigger. Each chapter includes proven strategies and "Courage Exercises" to help you harness their inner strength and make meaningful changes in your personal and professional lives.
