Selvbiografier

Ray Lane's career began when he was tasked with defusing IRA bombs on the border at the height of The Troubles. He transferred this expertise to Lebanon and later worked as a diplomat in Bosnia during the civil war, witnessing horrific acts committed by people against their own neighbors. The horrors of that war left a deep, permanent mark on him and he would later go on testify in war crimes trials about what he saw.Many years later, when the NATO forces in Afghanistan were facing a daily onslaught of Taliban bombs, it was Ray they sent for, as his experience from Ireland gave him an insight unlike anyone else's.In this gripping memoir, Ray speaks about his incredible career as a soldier and what it takes to be the person who, instead of running away, walks towards a 1,000kg bomb.

In the sequel to Seamus O'Rourke's popular first memoir, Standing in Gaps, this innocent Leitrim lad finally flees the nest, briefly sampling life in New York, Dublin and London - before inevitably returning to his beloved, duller than dishwater existence at home - a life which now includes alcohol, Doctor Hook and some low-budget romance.But man does not live on romance alone and Seamus needs to get to the bottom of his general uselessness, spurred on as always by his ever-the-realist father, who prophesised his mediocrity from an early age. Seamus continues to underachieve while struggling to interpret his auld lad's advice and watered-down compliments - 'You weren't as bad as I often saw ya', 'They must be badly stuck, if they asked you', and the classic 'What kind of an eejit are ya?' - all while capturing the innocence and the absurdity of rural life in 1980s and 1990s Ireland.As always, O'Rourke finds diamond-tipped-needles in bales of really bad hay, providing more laughter and stories of mayhem for fans.'A gifted actor, writer and storyteller produces a memoir that is simply - gifted' - Joe Duffy

Between 2016 and his retirement in 2022, Assistant Garda Commissioner John O'Driscoll was the public face of Garda operations targeting organized crime. This put him at the center of a long-running quest to bring down the Kinahan drug cartel, culminating in US sanctions being imposed - an unprecedented development spearheaded by O'Driscoll.But the Kinahans were just some of the many notorious drug dealers and criminals O'Driscoll successfully brought to book. During his tenure at Dublin's Store Street he was tasked with reckoning with the heroin epidemic: his unique approach to community policing got to the root of the power of infamous criminals like Tony Felloni, Michel Cronin and Derek Dunne, stripping them of their assets.No Assistant Garda Commissioner has ever written a memoir before; On Duty promises to be a unique insight into policing operations in Ireland at the highest level.

John Creedon is a renowned storyteller. Following on from the sensational success of An Irish Folklore Treasury, here he seeks to capture the folklore of his own childhood.This Boy's Heart is set in a city-center household bursting with humanity, with a cast of a dozen children and another dozen adults, including beloved aunts, an American writer, an African doctor and a Scottish bookie. The streets outside are teeming with brewery horses, Christian Brothers, beat clubs, dance halls, a Turkish Delight shop - and a pub where a child could sit up on a high stool and smoke his cigarette in peace. Summers are spent farmed out to friends and family in the countryside, with hilarious tales of donkey derbies and cow chases.Set in wildly contrasting worlds - from urban exotica to spacious meadows, from the classroom of fifty boys to the open road - these stories of friendship, fun, family and folklore take you on a heart-warming journey into an Irish childhood.

Morafe is a luminous exploration of two generations of the Molema family. Beginning in the 1880s and ending in the 1950s in Mafikeng, the capital town of the North West province, this is a landmark publication of South African history and biography.

A graphic novel biography of actor, humanitarian, and style icon Audrey Hepburn-best known for Breakfast at Tiffany's and one of the most enduring and beloved celebrities of the 20th century Author Eileen Hofer and illustrator Christopher Longé peel back the myth of Audrey Hepburn in this graphic novel exploring the life behind her legacy. From the trauma of abandonment and war to her dizzying rise to stardom and her commitment to charity work in her retirement, Hofer and Christopher show Hepburn as she was-and how she came by the strength and grace that made her so much more than a movie star. Born into privilege, Audrey Hepburn lived an incredible riches-to-rags-to-riches life as her childhood was swiftly upended by World War II. During the course of her incredible career, she was a muse of Givenchy, only the third woman to win the EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award), and an activist whose work for UNICEF earned her a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1992. Her inimitable charisma, deep empathy, and dedication to her craft built a lasting legacy-one that stands out among her peers during Hollywood's golden era. Decades later, a cottage industry of books about how best to emulate her, a robot named Sophia that is based on her, and even a digital likeness (which was featured in an ad for Galaxy chocolate), all speak to her enduring legacy. Hepburn's skill as a performer and her magnetism won her generations of fans worldwide. Her name is synonymous with elegance and a certain kind of movie stardom given the impeccable image she so carefully curated during her lifetime-an image which hid incredible resilience and strength.

From Paris Olympics star and legendary gymnast Simone Biles’s longtime coach, an insider’s look at the making of a championWith a Foreword by Simone BilesThe Balance is coach Aimee Boorman’s inside account of the growth of a transcendent athlete and the tumultuous events—from the dictatorial coaching of Bela and Martha Karolyi to the sexual abuse by Larry Nassar—that upended the lives of many girls, including Biles. Simone Biles is one of the greatest athletes of all time. She’s won six all-around world championships and nine Olympic medals (six gold). Five gymnastics moves are named after her, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom (the youngest recipient ever), and at an age when most elite gymnasts have retired, Biles is not just still competing—she’s dominating. She’s soaring in Paris this summer, bringing home more Olympic gold. She’s having so much fun that LA 2028 is not out of the question. But when coach Aimee Borman met her at a gym in Texas, Simone was just a seven-year-old kid. An exceptionally athletically gifted one, to be sure, but not yet great. That would take time, care, love, and balance. Boorman helped shape Biles, both pushing her and holding her back, protecting both her mental and physical health. “She’s like a second mom to me,” writes Biles, and Boorman was the National Team coach in 2016, where the US—and Biles—took home all-around gold.The Balance combines unprecedented insider perspective on a legend, newsworthy details on gymnastics history, and compelling lessons on coaching, leadership, and development.

This book is, in one way, a biography of Folke Rogard, focusing mostly on his rolesas FIDE President and organizer of modern chess. However, it only briefly discussesthe other facets of his life as a father, husband, lawyer, businessman, and in private.The portrayal of Rogard primarily centers on his organization of chess and his presidencyof FIDE, a position he held for more than two decades. Being in that genre, it aims to capture his personality what his driving forces were and the constraints that held him back.

If you were walking the streets of any major city in 2023 and you found some colourful feathers on the pavement, what would they mean to you? For most people, they’re a sign that there was a Harry Styles concert the night before, but for a fan, they represent a gateway into the beautiful, bright world of this enigmatic superstar. Immerse yourself fully in that world with this glorious graphic novel that celebrates the values, life and influences of Harry Styles.

A visual celebration of Bangtan Sonyeondan, the K-Pop super group who took over the world, and – with their powerful independent missions – aspire to make it a better place.

This first biography of the Kettle's Yard artists reveals the life of a visionary who helped shape twentieth-century British art and explores a thrilling moment in the history of modernism'The beautiful, revelatory biography we have been waiting for. I loved it'EDMUND DE WAAL'This book is the legacy Jim Ede might have wished for'OBSERVERThe lives of Jim Ede and the Kettle's Yard artists represent a thrilling tipping point in twentieth-century modernism: a new guard, a new way of making and seeing, and a new way of living with art. The artists Ben and Winifred Nicholson, Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, Alfred Wallis and Henri Gaudier-Brzeska were not a set like the Bloomsbury Set or Ravilious and his friends. But Jim Ede recognised in each of the artists he championed something common and kindred, some quality of light and life and line.Jim Ede is the figure who unites them. His vision continues to influence the way we understand art and modern living. He was a man of extraordinary energies: a collector, dealer, fixer, critic and, above all, friend to artists. For Ede, works of art were friends and art could be found wherever you looked - in a pebble, feather or seedhead. Art lived and a life without art, beauty, friendship and creativity was a life not worth living. Art was not for galleries alone and it certainly wasn't only for the rich. At Kettle's Yard in Cambridge, he opened his home and his collection to all comers. He showed generations of visitors that learning to look could be a whole new way of life.

'Kimber is a 22nd-century cricket writer' The GuardianColourful cricket history meets expert analysis in this richly researched exploration of the art of batting. Most batters are trying to do their best, yet the top players are creating art. It is physically impossible to face an 80mph delivery and track it with your eyes, yet the greatest batters do more than just watch the ball, they predict where it will go. They can see into the future. This book is about the batters who see what mortals don't. Javed Miandad purposefully made errors to manipulate the field, Sachin Tendulkar dug up a pitch to take on Warne, Shivnarine Chanderpaul was peppered by tennis balls on the beach until he created his bastardised technique and Joe Root's great play against spin is a confluence of three random events. Others, such as Smith, Pietersen and Richards, carried on the work of a man 100 years before their time, and Ranji changed cricket with a bucket. Their methods and stories are different, but their currency is the same: runs. Through interviews with cricketing greats such as David 'Bumble' Lloyd, Graeme Swann and Rob Key, this book shows you the science, skill and culture that made the 50 greatest batters of all time, and, ultimately, how these players conquered leather with willow.

From the New York Times bestselling authors of The Nazi Conspiracy and The Lincoln Conspiracy comes a true, little-known story about the first assassination attempt on John F. Kennedy, right before his inauguration.Kennedy, the thirty-fifth president of the United States, is often ranked among Americans' most well-liked presidents. Yet what most Americans don't know is that JFK's historic presidency almost ended before it began-at the hands of a disgruntled sociopathic loner armed with dynamite.On December 11, 1960, shortly after Kennedy's election and before his inauguration, a retired postal worker named Richard Pavlick waited in his car-a parked Buick-on a quiet street in Palm Beach, Florida. Pavlick knew the president-elect's schedule. He knew when Kennedy would leave his house. He knew where Kennedy was going. From there, Pavlick had a simple plan-one that could've changed the course of history.Written in the gripping, page-turning style that is the hallmark of Brad Meltzer and Josh Mensch's bestselling series, this is a slice of history vividly brought to life. Meltzer and Mensch are at the top of their game with this brilliant exploration of what could've been for one of the most compelling leaders of the 20th century.

The long-awaited memoir by one of the most important political leaders of our timeFor 16 years, Angela Merkel bore the governmental responsibility for Germany, leading the country through numerous crises and shaping German and international politics and society with her actions and attitude. But Angela Merkel was not born a Chancellor. In her memoirs, co-written with her long-standing political advisor Beate Baumann, she looks back on her life in two German states - 35 years in the GDR (German Democratic Republic), 35 years in reunified Germany. More personally than ever before, she talks about her childhood, youth, and her studies in the GDR, and the dramatic year of 1989, when the Wall fell and her political life began. She shares insights into her meetings and conversations with the world's most powerful leaders and elucidates, with clear and precise examples, significant national, European, and international turning points and how decisions were made that shape our times. Her book offers a unique insight into the inner workings of power - and is a decisive plea for freedom. "What does freedom mean to me? This question has occupied me my entire life. Naturally, politically, because freedom needs democratic conditions, without democracy there is no freedom, no rule of law, no protection of human rights. But this question also occupies me on another level. Freedom, for me, is finding out where my own limits are, and pushing my own limits. Freedom is for me not to stop learning, not to have to stand still but to be allowed to continue, even after leaving politics." - Angela Merkel

Should we assume that people who lived some time ago were quite similar to us or should we assume that they need to be thought of as alien beings with whom we have little in common? This specially commissioned collection explores this important issue through an analysis of the lives and work of a number of significant early modern writers. It wa

This collection makes a critical and creative intervention into ongoing debates about the relationship between poetry and autobiography. Drawing on recent theories of life writing, the essays and reflections in this volume offer new analyses of works by a range of poets, dating from the early modern period to the present day. This book was publi

Parliament as an Export (1966) deals with the adoption of overseas countries and particularly the Commonwealth countries of the British Parliamentary system. These countries examined are the original British colonies, the Dominions, the Indian sub-continent and the newer colonial territories.

This volume revisits Amoz Oz's the two pens parable. It brings together scholars from various disciplines who assess Oz's dual role in Israeli culture and society as an immensely popular novelist and a leading public intellectual. This book was originally published as a special issue of Journal of Israeli History.

The Routledge Handbook to Literary Translingualism aims to provide a comprehensive overview of translingual literature in a wide variety of languages throughout the world, from ancient to modern times.

The Routledge Companion to Jane Austen provides wide-ranging coverage of Jane Austen's works, reception, and legacy, with chapters that draw on the latest literary research and theory.