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Book Take a Seat  make a Stand   a Hero in the Family

Download or read book Take a Seat make a Stand a Hero in the Family written by Amy Nathan and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book tells of Sarah Keys Evans, an unsung Civil Rights hero. As a young woman in the Women's Army Corps in 1952, she did what Rosa Parks did-three years before Rosa Parks. Sarah Keys Evans kept standing up for her rights until victory was won. Her story shows that an individual can have an impact on history, and that in troubled times ordinary people can step up and accomplish remarkable things. Her story also shows that change is a step-by-step process. Many small contributions along the way help to bring about big shifts in attitudes and laws. "Sarah Keys, a courageous Army private, helped set the stage for the civil rights movement in the 1950s by seeking and getting a legal ruling outlawing discrimination on seating on buses and proving that justice can be there for each of us." Wilma L. Vaught, Brigadier General, USAF (retired); President, Women In Military Service For America Memorial Foundation, Inc. "Sarah Keys fought her battle against segregation and humiliations as a matter of moral decency and learned first hand about mental and physical fear thus exemplifying extraordinary courage." Representative Major R. Owens, U.S. House of Representatives; from a proclamation issued March 2006 "Perfectly pitched to its target elementary audience. Nathan strikes just the right balance of emotion and facts necessary to reach children within the context of a history lesson. A winner." -Kirkus Discoveries

Book Round and Round Together

Download or read book Round and Round Together written by Amy Nathan and published by Paul Dry Books. This book was released on with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A snapshot of the civil-rights movement in one city provides insight into the important role of individual communities as change moved through the country…a case study of how citizens of one city both precipitated and responded to the whirlwind of social change around them."—Kirkus Reviews "A profoundly moving tribute to the intrepid unsung heroes who risked their lives to help bring an end to Baltimore's Jim Crow Era."—Kam Williams, syndicated columnist On August 28, 1963—the day of Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream" speech—segregation ended finally at Baltimore's Gwynn Oak Amusement Park, after nearly a decade of bitter protests. Eleven-month-old Sharon Langley was the first African American child to go on a ride there that day, taking a spin on the park's merry-go-round, which since 1981 has been located on the National Mall in front of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Round and Round Together weaves the story of the struggle to integrate that Baltimore amusement park into the story of the civil rights movement as a whole. Round and Round Together is illustrated with archival photos from newspapers and other sources, as well as personal photos from family albums of individuals interviewed for the book. There is a timeline of major Civil Rights events. "Amy Nathan's book deftly describes the courageous struggle by blacks and whites to end discrimination in the park, the city, and the nation. Readers will walk away with a clearer understanding of segregation and the valiant Americans who fought against this injustice."—Debra Newman Ham, Professor of History, Morgan State University "Round and Round Together tells the inspiring story of how a generation of college and high school students provided the energy and enthusiasm that ended racial segregation in Baltimore's Gwynn Oak Amusement Park and changed the direction of Maryland's history."—James Henretta, Professor Emeritus, University of Maryland "With clarity and passion, Amy Nathan portrays the struggle of everyday citizens to end racial segregation in Baltimore. This compelling history, for and about young people, is simple but profound like freedom itself."—Taylor Branch, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of the trilogy America in the King Years

Book I Know This Much Is True

    Book Details:
  • Author : Wally Lamb
  • Publisher : Cambridge University Press
  • Release : 1998-06-03
  • ISBN : 9780060391621
  • Pages : 884 pages

Download or read book I Know This Much Is True written by Wally Lamb and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1998-06-03 with total page 884 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With his stunning debut novel, She's Come Undone, Wally Lamb won the adulation of critics and readers with his mesmerizing tale of one woman's painful yet triumphant journey of self-discovery. Now, this brilliantly talented writer returns with I Know This Much Is True, a heartbreaking and poignant multigenerational saga of the reproductive bonds of destruction and the powerful force of forgiveness. A masterpiece that breathtakingly tells a story of alienation and connection, power and abuse, devastation and renewal--this novel is a contemporary retelling of an ancient Hindu myth. A proud king must confront his demons to achieve salvation. Change yourself, the myth instructs, and you will inhabit a renovated world. When you're the same brother of a schizophrenic identical twin, the tricky thing about saving yourself is the blood it leaves on your bands--the little inconvenience of the look-alike corpse at your feet. And if you're into both survival of the fittest and being your brother's keeper--if you've promised your dying mother--then say so long to sleep and hello to the middle of the night. Grab a book or a beer. Get used to Letterman's gap-toothed smile of the absurd, or the view of the bedroom ceiling, or the influence of random selection. Take it from a godless insomniac. Take it from the uncrazy twin--the guy who beat the biochemical rap. Dominick Birdsey's entire life has been compromised and constricted by anger and fear, by the paranoid schizophrenic twin brother he both deeply loves and resents, and by the past they shared with their adoptive father, Ray, a spit-and-polish ex-Navy man (the five-foot-six-inch sleeping giant who snoozed upstairs weekdays in the spare room and built submarines at night), and their long-suffering mother, Concettina, a timid woman with a harelip that made her shy and self-conscious: She holds a loose fist to her face to cover her defective mouth--her perpetual apology to the world for a birth defect over which she'd had no control. Born in the waning moments of 1949 and the opening minutes of 1950, the twins are physical mirror images who grow into separate yet connected entities: the seemingly strong and protective yet fearful Dominick, his mother's watchful "monkey"; and the seemingly weak and sweet yet noble Thomas, his mother's gentle "bunny." From childhood, Dominick fights for both separation and wholeness--and ultimately self-protection--in a house of fear dominated by Ray, a bully who abuses his power over these stepsons whose biological father is a mystery. I was still afraid of his anger but saw how he punished weakness--pounced on it. Out of self-preservation I hid my fear, Dominick confesses. As for Thomas, he just never knew how to play defense. He just didn't get it. But Dominick's talent for survival comes at an enormous cost, including the breakup of his marriage to the warm, beautiful Dessa, whom he still loves. And it will be put to the ultimate test when Thomas, a Bible-spouting zealot, commits an unthinkable act that threatens the tenuous balance of both his and Dominick's lives. To save himself, Dominick must confront not only the pain of his past but the dark secrets he has locked deep within himself, and the sins of his ancestors--a quest that will lead him beyond the confines of his blue-collar New England town to the volcanic foothills of Sicily 's Mount Etna, where his ambitious and vengefully proud grandfather and a namesake Domenico Tempesta, the sostegno del famiglia, was born. Each of the stories Ma told us about Papa reinforced the message that he was the boss, that he ruled the roost, that what he said went. Searching for answers, Dominick turns to the whispers of the dead, to the pages of his grandfather's handwritten memoir, The History of Domenico Onofrio Tempesta, a Great Man from Humble Beginnings. Rendered with touches of magic realism, Domenico's fablelike tale--in which monkeys enchant and religious statues weep--becomes the old man's confession--an unwitting legacy of contrition that reveals the truth's of Domenico's life, Dominick learns that power, wrongly used, defeats the oppressor as well as the oppressed, and now, picking through the humble shards of his deconstructed life, he will search for the courage and love to forgive, to expiate his and his ancestors' transgressions, and finally to rebuild himself beyond the haunted shadow of his twin. Set against the vivid panoply of twentieth-century America and filled with richly drawn, memorable characters, this deeply moving and thoroughly satisfying novel brings to light humanity's deepest needs and fears, our aloneness, our desire for love and acceptance, our struggle to survive at all costs. Joyous, mystical, and exquisitely written, I Know This Much Is True is an extraordinary reading experience that will leave no reader untouched.

Book Stella s Girl

Download or read book Stella s Girl written by Captain Evelyn Decker U.S. Army and published by iUniverse. This book was released on 2009-04-04 with total page 110 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book tells the story of Captain Evelyn Decker, a pioneer, as one of the first African American nurses to serve in the U.S. Army. Having grown up in an integrated, accepting community in upstate New York, she was surprised and dismayed by the continual discrimination and segregation she faced as she served her country. Her spirit and strength illuminate her narrative, a history that should never be forgotten. "In this book, Captain Decker details her early childhood, young adulthood, and her military career in this country and overseas, covering her experiences from World II through the Korean era This autobiography explores Captain Decker's life and assesses her place in American military history. The book traces her personal and career development, her challenges, and her climb over insurmountable obstacles to obtain many decorations." -Dr. (Brigadier General) Carrie Nero, USA (Ret.) "I feel honored to have read this book and I enjoyed it too! I believe the English used in this book is appropriate for Middle and Junior High School students. Good luck with the publication." -Ethleen B. Stoute, Social Studies Teacher, Shaw Junior High School, Washington, DC

Book Yusuf Azeem Is Not a Hero

Download or read book Yusuf Azeem Is Not a Hero written by Saadia Faruqi and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2021-09-07 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At a time when we are all asking questions about identity, grief, and how to stand up for what is right, this book by the author of A Thousand Questions will hit home with young readers who love Hena Khan and Varian Johnson—or anyone struggling to understand recent U.S. history and how it still affects us today. Yusuf Azeem has spent all his life in the small town of Frey, Texas—and nearly that long waiting for the chance to participate in the regional robotics competition, which he just knows he can win. Only, this year is going to be more difficult than he thought. Because this year is the twentieth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, an anniversary that has everyone in his Muslim community on edge. With “Never Forget” banners everywhere and a hostile group of townspeople protesting the new mosque, Yusuf realizes that the country’s anger from two decades ago hasn’t gone away. Can he hold onto his joy—and his friendships—in the face of heartache and prejudice?

Book Women in the United States Military

Download or read book Women in the United States Military written by Judith A. Bellafaire and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2011-01-26 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Women’s participation in the U.S. Armed Forces has grown over time in response to the national need for their services. Throughout each era of American history, patriotic women volunteered to serve their country in a wide variety of official and unofficially sanctioned capacities. When there was a call to duty, the United States Armed Forces always relied upon women to be a part of the effort. Women in the United States Military: An Annotated Bibliography is the most complete and up to date listing of resources to help students and scholars understand the effect women have had on the wars that have shaped the United States. Covering everything from the American Revolution to Operations in Iraq, Women in the United States Military is essential for all academic and research libraries.

Book The Summer That Made Us

Download or read book The Summer That Made Us written by Robyn Carr and published by MIRA. This book was released on 2017-09-05 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Look for Robyn’s new book, The Best of Us, a story about family, second chances and choosing to live your best life—order your copy today! Mothers and daughters, sisters and cousins, they lived for summers at the lake house until a tragic accident changed everything. The Summer That Made Us is an unforgettable story about a family learning to accept the past, to forgive and to love each other again. That was then… For the Hempsteads, two sisters who married two brothers and had three daughters each, summers were idyllic. The women would escape the city the moment school was out to gather at the family house on Lake Waseka. The lake was a magical place, a haven where they were happy and carefree. All of their problems drifted away as the days passed in sun-dappled contentment. Until the summer that changed everything. This is now… After an accidental drowning turned the lake house into a site of tragedy and grief, it was closed up. For good. Torn apart, none of the Hempstead women speak of what happened that summer, and relationships between them are uneasy at best to hurtful at worst. But in the face of new challenges, one woman is determined to draw her family together again, and the only way that can happen is to return to the lake and face the truth. Robyn Carr has crafted a beautifully woven story about the complexities of family dynamics and the value of strong female relationships.

Book The Rebellious Life of Mrs  Rosa Parks

Download or read book The Rebellious Life of Mrs Rosa Parks written by Jeanne Theoharis and published by Beacon Press. This book was released on 2021-02-02 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A must-read for young people.”—Bryan Stevenson, author of Just Mercy Now adapted for readers ages 12 and up, the award-winning biography that examines Rosa Parks’s life and 60 years of radical activism and brings the civil rights movement in the North and South to life The basis for the documentary of the same name executive produced by award-winning journalist Soledad O’Brien, now streaming on Peacock. The documentary is the recepient of the 2022 Television Academy Honors Award. A Chicago Public Library’s “Best of the Best Books of 2021” Selection · A Kirkus Reviews “Best YA Biography and Memoir of 2021” Selection Rosa Parks is one of the most well-known Americans today, but much of what is known and taught about her is incomplete, distorted, and just plain wrong. Adapted for young people from the NAACP Image Award–winning The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks, Jeanne Theoharis and Brandy Colbert shatter the myths that Parks was meek, accidental, tired, or middle class. They reveal a lifelong freedom fighter whose activism began two decades before her historic stand that sparked the Montgomery bus boycott and continued for 40 years after. Readers will understand what it was like to be Parks, from standing up to white supremacist bullies as a young person to meeting her husband, Raymond, who showed her the possibility of collective activism, to her years of frustrated struggle before the boycott, to the decade of suffering that followed for her family after her bus arrest. The book follows Parks to Detroit, after her family was forced to leave Montgomery, Alabama, where she spent the second half of her life and reveals her activism alongside a growing Black Power movement and beyond. Because Rosa Parks was active for 60 years, in the North as well as the South, her story provides a broader and more accurate view of the Black freedom struggle across the twentieth century. Theoharis and Colbert show young people how the national fable of Parks and the civil rights movement—celebrated in schools during Black History Month—has warped what we know about Parks and stripped away the power and substance of the movement. The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks illustrates how the movement radically sought to expose and eradicate racism in jobs, housing, schools, and public services, as well as police brutality and the over-incarceration of Black people—and how Rosa Parks was a key player throughout. Rosa Parks placed her greatest hope in young people—in their vision, resolve, and boldness to take the struggle forward. As a young adult, she discovered Black history, and it sustained her across her life. The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks will help do that for a new generation.

Book She Stood for Freedom

Download or read book She Stood for Freedom written by Loki Mulholland and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Biography of Joan Trumpauer Mulholland follows her from her childhood in 1950s Virginia through her high school and college years, when she joined the Civil Rights Movement, attending demonstrations and sit-ins. She also participated in the Freedom Rides of 1961 and was arrested and imprisoned. Her life has been spent standing up for human rights.

Book When Heroes Fall  An Enemies to Lovers Mafia Romance

Download or read book When Heroes Fall An Enemies to Lovers Mafia Romance written by Giana Darling and published by Giana Darling Publishing. This book was released on 2021-06-02 with total page 508 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From Wall Street Journal bestselling author Giana Darling comes an enemies to lovers, forbidden romance between an ice cold lawyer and her infamous mafioso client who is on trial for murder... I am the villain of my own story... Jilted by my fiancé. A disappointment to my family. Haunted by my childhood traumas. I felt so much all my life that I resolved to feeling nothing at all. Until I met my match. As the most infamous mafioso of the 21st century, Dante Salvatore was madly passionate, unequivocally bad, and entirely too dangerous to know. He was everything I abhorred, yet I found myself representing him in the biggest criminal trial of the decade. I was so focused on winning and achieving the success I deserved that I didn't notice the gorgeous black-eyed man's effect on me until it was too late. My icy heart had been held too close to his flame and now I wouldn't let Dante go down without fighting with everything I had in me. Even if the cost of a new life with him meant the loss of my old life and everything I thought I held dear. *Book One in the Anti-Heroes in Love Duet.*

Book The Mother Road

    Book Details:
  • Author : Meghan Quinn
  • Publisher : Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
  • Release : 2016-01-05
  • ISBN : 9781523204205
  • Pages : 358 pages

Download or read book The Mother Road written by Meghan Quinn and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2016-01-05 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Never in a million years would I have pictured myself as an axe-wielding, dragon lady, chopping up multi-colored flannel shirts into my very own plaid mulch. But here I am, chopping away my frustrations. It all started when my brother, Paul, convinced me to go on one last family road trip across the Mother Road with him and my dad.. Just like old times, right? Wrong. What Paul fails to mention is his best man, Porter, will be joining us, who just so happens to be my childhood crush and the man who broke my heart four years ago. What is supposed to be a fun, family bonding experience across Route 66 turns into a war of pranks, awkward moments and bathrooms full of dirty flannel shirts and day old beard clippings. Paul's know-it-all attitude and Porter's devilish charm brings me to the brink of my sanity on my seven day trek across the United States with three bearded men in a small 1980's RV

Book Heroes

    Book Details:
  • Author : Margaret Watts
  • Publisher : Lothian Children's Books
  • Release : 2012-06-01
  • ISBN : 0734413335
  • Pages : 104 pages

Download or read book Heroes written by Margaret Watts and published by Lothian Children's Books. This book was released on 2012-06-01 with total page 104 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Seventeen-year-old singer Juliet Belford is irritated by her father's reticence regarding his service in the airforce during World War II, but with secrets of her own concerning an abusive stepfather, she tries to ignore it. However, her ignorance proves embarrassing during a weekend visit to a small western town for the dedication of a memorial to her father's former crewmate: she is told Martin Mansfield saved her father's life. Remembering how easily he let her mother go, she wonders if her father is perhaps a coward. During the weekend, Juliet worries that she might be replaced in the band and fights her attraction to the hero's son Christian, who is engaged to be married. She's also shocked by his mother's attempts to ensnare her father, Tony, while accusing her of flirting. In addition, there's the weird behaviour of Christian's grandfather to think about and she senses a mystery around the death of his wife, Mary. Can she solve it? And, if she does, will it somehow help Juliet find the courage to speak out about her stepfather?

Book Hooray for Heroes

    Book Details:
  • Author : Dennis Denenberg
  • Publisher : Scarecrow Press
  • Release : 1994
  • ISBN : 9780810828469
  • Pages : 262 pages

Download or read book Hooray for Heroes written by Dennis Denenberg and published by Scarecrow Press. This book was released on 1994 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Combines creative activities with a comprehensive list of biographies written for children. Organized by age group: pre-school (ages 3-5), primary (6-8), intermediate (9-11), and young people (12-14).

Book Introduction to Family Processes

Download or read book Introduction to Family Processes written by Randal D. Day and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-09-04 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What goes on "behind closed doors" in families is examined in this text. Through his storytelling style, Randy Day introduces readers to the family processes approach – the strategies and behaviors families use to achieve goals. The emphasis is on how families work and interact rather than on the psychological, sociological, or economic processes. It examines emotions in families, communication, relationship formation/dissolution, family rituals, and power and conflict. Chapters open with a Preview and conclude with a Summary, Study Questions, Key Terms, and Suggested Readings. Principle Boxes highlight key concepts and a Glossary defines the key terms listed at the ends of the chapters. Significantly updated with 50% new material including many new references and examples, the new edition features: A new chapter that introduces the discipline’s methodology A new chapter on relationship formation including partner selection, falling in love, commitment, sexuality, passion, and intimacy A new design reformatted to tie in with the book’s website at http://www.psypress.com/family-processes which now contains the Chapter Activity Questions that reinforce critical thinking skills, the Journal Activities that strengthen students' personal connection to the material, and the chapter Previews and Key Terms for review purposes An Instructor’s Web Resource at http://www.psypress.com/family-processes with small group and in-class exercises, lecture outlines in PowerPoint, topics for debate, suggested films, and multiple-choice, true/false, matching, and essay questions More material on the role of gender, power, genetics, and personality in relationships; families from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds and the impact of work and technology on the family; the changing nature of family structures including single parenting and gay unions; and stresses in family life. Written for undergraduate courses on family processes, family dynamics, family life, the family, and/or marriage & family interaction taught in family studies, human development, psychology, sociology, social work, education, consumer sciences, home economics, health, and nursing departments, this book also appeals to those who want to maximize the positive parts of family life and manage the inevitable challenges.

Book The Family Herald

    Book Details:
  • Author :
  • Publisher :
  • Release : 1865
  • ISBN :
  • Pages : 850 pages

Download or read book The Family Herald written by and published by . This book was released on 1865 with total page 850 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Book Tragedy and Civilization

Download or read book Tragedy and Civilization written by Charles Segal and published by University of Oklahoma Press. This book was released on 1999 with total page 534 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on comprehensive analyses of all of Sophocles' plays, on structuralist anthropology, and on other extensive work on myth and tragedy, Charles Segal examines Sophocles both as a great dramatic poet and as a serious thinker. He shows how Sophoclean tragedy reflects the human condition in its constant and tragic struggle for order and civilized life against the ever-present threat of savagery and chaotic violence, both within society and within the individual. Tragedy and Civilization begins with a study of these themes and then proceeds to detailed discussions of each of the seven plays. For this edition Segal also provides a new preface discussing recent developments in the study of Sophocles.

Book Season of the Matriarchs

    Book Details:
  • Author : Bobbie J. Ford-Edwards
  • Publisher : Xlibris Corporation
  • Release : 2010-10-28
  • ISBN : 1453530347
  • Pages : 222 pages

Download or read book Season of the Matriarchs written by Bobbie J. Ford-Edwards and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2010-10-28 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Season of the Matriarchs An anthology of seven stories, celebrating strong family matriarchs, from diverse backgrounds, who range from 58-110 years-old. 1. THE VISIT Dicie Phillips, age 70, visits her son and daughter-in-law, in the south suburbs of Chicago. Then, she reluctantly embarks on a visit to the West side of Chicago, with them. The eventful evening, culminates in thought-provoking enlightenment. 2. THE HOMECOMING Minty Isadore's 110th birthday is hailed, during the annual homecoming celebration, in Warren, Arkansas. The festivities are held on the grounds of the now, closed church, where the doors are opened for service, once a year, preceding the gala events. 3. NOVEMBER IN NEW YORK Delores Moore, 58, visits New York City, for the first time, with her female employer, a former resident of New York City. On the first day, hardly leaving a stone unturned; her companion, showed Delores around the city that she'd dreamed of visiting, her entire life. Then, due to her companion having a love interest in the city; Delores is forced to veer out on her own. Consequently, she encounters an unlikely suitor. 4. EFFIE AND EUNICE The Lamm Sisters, Effie and Eunice, are whimsical and spry, 90 and 95 year-old spinsters. They've lived a joyous life together, in the same house, for nearly seventy years. Between them, Effie and Eunice have a storehouse of memories from the past. And, prefer slow going evenings, reflecting on days gone by; rather than getting caught up in life, during the present time, in Indianola, Mississippi. 5. I DO, AGAIN Theresa Owens, 62, a widow for twelve years, calls her three grown daughters (all of varying lifestyles and personalities) together to announce her recent engagement. Though Theresa's Daughters don’t think alike, they all agree that no man can replace their father. But, it's only Stephanie, the take-charge, police sergeant, who insists the marriage between their mother, a cultured, retired school teacher who's recently moved into a Milwaukee, lake front condo, and her fiancé, a grungy auto mechanic, should not take place. In her opinion, he and his family don't measure up to their mother's standards. 6. CLOSED Mable Tucker, 80, is closing her prosperous, Canal Street restaurant, in New Orleans. And, retiring after forty-five years at the same location. Regular patrons, packed the restaurant and spilled out into the garden area, regaling in the folly. Many rekindled decades of memories, while enjoying one last meal at Mama Mable's. A first time visitor, Gordy, in town on business, gets to Mable's, just in time to experience what his best friend (who's Mable's nephew,) has boasted about for years. Gordy discovered that Mable did cook the best gumbo and bread pudding with caramel sauce that he'd ever tasted, in or out of New Orleans. Jovial and motherly, Mable made him feel like he'd known her all of his life. Gordie ends his visit with Mable, stimulated both mentally and physically by her ability to spin tales of "Old New Orleans," just as well as she cooked. 7. THE LAST STOP Velma Jones, 65, a charter bus driver, makes her last run, before her retirement. Many of the passengers on the trip are regulars on her run between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. A few of them were along, on her first trip, twenty-four years ago. She's going to miss the passengers and the road. Velma possesses a tremendous singing voice, and has always aspired to be a professional singer. But, had never received that "big break." Just as comfortable behind a microphone as she was behind the steering wheel; Velma always serenaded the passengers on her bus, as they rolled along the highway. Velma's accepted an off-the-strip club owner's offer to sing with his band. She knows the experience would be good exposure, that might lead to better offers. But, though Velma's good at concealing it, the thought of walking out on stage, in front of an audience, gives Velma the jitt