Biography For Boys

Tales of brave and selfless deeds used to be part of every boy's education. We grew up sharing stories with our fathers, uncles, and grandfathers of how other men had lived their lives, met their challenges, reached their goals, and faced their deaths. Becoming a man was about comradeship and standing by your friends whatever the circumstances. And it meant that sometimes it was more important to die a hero than live a coward's life. Through Neil Oliver's vivid, stirring accounts we can rediscover the stories that inspire men to perform acts greater than themselves.

Hilarious and heartfelt, Ron Wolfson's inspiring memoir is filled with stories of growing up in a warm family, encountering colorful characters like the merchants of Omaha and the famous Warren Buffett, navigating adolescence and learning never to underestimate his mother.

From the acclaimed Modern Library Chronicles comes an exploration of a promising theory that when put to practice wreaked havoc on the world. An expert on communism, Richard Pipes follows the history of the Soviet Union from the 1917 revolution to the Cold War, and finally, to its deterioration and collapse.

The JT LeRoy scandal is a story of our times. In January 2006, the New York Times unmasked Savannah Knoop as the face of the mysterious author JT LeRoy. A media frenzy ensued as JT's fans, mentors, and readers came to terms with the fact that the gay male-ex-truck stop prostitute turned literary wunderkind was really a girl from San Francisco whose sister-in-law wrote the books.

Life with Louie is a collection of coming-of-age stories about growing up with a brother who happens to have been born with Down syndrome. For the author, Mia Rotella-White, having a sibling with a disability never created hardship. The opposite is true. Growing up with Louie meant Mia’s days were full of disco balls, group hugs, fashion shows and dance parties. When adversity struck, and it did, the siblings reminded each other how ridiculous it was to think any tragedy could ever be bigger than their love.

Faced by an uncertain future and surrounded by hypocrites, Elisa feels her foundation crumbling. She doesn't know who to turn to. That's when she meets a mysterious man. But maybe she shouldn't trust him after all. Will he help her, or make things even worse than they were before? Find out.

A chilling investigation into the unsolved “boy in the woods” murder; journalist Jim Cosgrove chronicles his decades-long struggle to uncover the truth of a family friend’s disappearance and death — perfect for fans of I'll be Gone in the Dark and Memorial Drive.

From surf music to hot-rod records to the sunny pop of the Beach Boys and the Mamas & the Papas, Hollywood Eden captures the fresh blossom of a young generation who came together in the epic spring of the 1960s to invent the myth of the California Paradise. Central to the story is a group of sun-kissed teens from the University High School class of 1959 - a class that included Jan & Dean, Nancy Sinatra, and future members of the Beach Boys - who came of age in Los Angeles at the dawn of a new golden era when anything seemed possible.

Brian Wilson ist genialer Musiker, der uns unzählige Welthits wie "Surfin USA" oder "Good Vibrations" und das Jahrhundertalbum "Pet Sounds" geschenkt hat. Der amerikanische Rolling Stone hat ihn unter die 20 wichtigsten Künstler aller Zeiten gewählt. Brian Wilson ist auch ein labiler Mensch, der sich mit Tabletten, Drogen und Alkohol immer wieder in Zonen bewegt hat, aus der man ohne fremde Hilfe nicht heil herauskommt.

You are about to go back in time to the Wild West of the 1800s. These true, real-life adventures were told first-hand by Elijah Nicholas Wilson. He was a cavalry spy, hired to track down murdering bands of Indians. Before that he was a stagecoach driver on roads filled with outlaws. Before that he was one of the first Pony Express riders and was chased by Indians who nearly killed him with arrows. And before that he was a bronc buster who accepted a bet to ride the meanest bucking horse in the west.

When I started writing a blog over ten years ago, I never dreamed, I would be sharing so much of myself in my own posts. I mostly thought, it would have bits about my life, or the news of current events. Instead, I found it a safe place to put all my fears, and insights that I discovered, while practicing yoga, meditation, reading spiritual books. It morphed into difficult memories of the stages of healing from a childhood of sexual abuse.

D Esperanza was just thirteen years old when he lost his caregivers, his beloved grandmother and uncle. Since both of his parents were working and living in the United States, D was left on his own in a small town in Honduras. He quickly realized he simply could not make enough money to survive so he made the difficult decision to head north with his cousins and hopefully reunite with his parents in el norte. Together, the boys struggled to survive a long and treacherous journey through Central America and Mexico.

This Boy and His Mother: Healing from Trauma as a Gay Latter-day Saint chronicles Preston Jenkins' journey back to faith and activity in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Speaking with authenticity, Preston offers gospel insights gleaned from his experiences involving same-sex attraction, sexual and emotional abuse, an early return from an LDS mission, mental illness, and the eventual completion of a mission. Hope, faith, and never-failing charity are strikingly displayed. So, too, is the sufficient grace of Jesus Christ to holistically heal all wounds.

Sixteen-year-old Matthew McGough was a fairly typical teenager, obsessed with getting through high school, girls, and baseball, not necessarily in that order. His passion for the New York Yankees was absolute, complete with a poster of his hero, Yankees first baseman Don Mattingly, hanging on his bedroom wall.

Their idea was simple. Four NYU undergrads wanted to build a social network that would allow users to control their personal data instead of surrendering it to big businesses like Facebook. They called it Diaspora. In days they raised $200,000, and reporters, venture capitalists, and the digital community's most legendary figures were soon monitoring their progress. But as the months passed and the money ran out, the Diaspora Four fell victim to errors, bad decisions, and their own hubris.

Gypsy Jane stood toe-to-toe with some of the most dangerous men in the land and won. Her blood-soaked march through the criminal ranks is a unique tale of villainy in modern Britain. In a murky world where shootings and stabbings were part of daily business, Jane never forgot her Gypsy blood and stayed loyal to a personal honour code that always gave her the edge. 'If today is the day I die, it's a good day to die,' she would tell herself in the full knowledge that every day of her violent life could well be her last.

Ira Harris was taken from his family by representatives from the Board of Education trying to prove Negroes were inferior to whites during desegregation. His story happened in America during the turbulent 1960's. His mother was told she had freedom of choice to send him to any school she wanted! When the time came, his mother was told Negroes had no rights. He was forced to attend a white school because representatives from the Board of Education were trying to prove Negroes were inferior to whites in an effort to stop desegregation.

Abdul is just seven years old when his parents are killed before his eyes. As a brutal war sweeps Sudan, Abdul and his three-year-old brother are forced to flee. Their gruelling journey across the Sahara to a refugee camp in Chad is fraught with danger, and every day is a struggle against hunger and disease. Until one day Abdul is offered a chance to escape. A chance that could save him, but will force him to make the most heartbreaking decision of his life. Abdul's death-defying flight leaves deep scars.

Best-selling author Charlie Connelly returns with a First World War memoir of his great uncle, Edward Connelly, who was an ordinary boy sent to fight in a war the likes of which the world had never seen. But this is not just his story; it is the story of all the young forgotten soldiers who fought and bravely died for their country. The Forgotten Soldier tells the story of Private Edward Connelly, aged 19, killed in the First World War a week before the Armistice and immediately forgotten, even, it seems, by his own family.

These recollections cover the time from the very early 1960s until after my last significant acting role. After that I pulled a disappearing act and became a regular bloke for the most part. The transition from child/youth actor through to adult is notoriously difficult, some have succeeded, some spectacularly so. Some have stumbled along and sadly, some have fallen. I chose to take a break, which I’m still on. I’ve been the subject of many 'where are they now?' articles and musings. Well, I’m here now, writing this.