Collection: Biography & Memoir

From acclaimed poet and creator of the popular twitter account @SoSadToday comes the darkly funny and brutally honest collection of essays that Roxane Gay called "sad and uncomfortable and their own kind of gorgeous."

Melissa Broder always struggled with anxiety. In the fall of 2012, she went through a harrowing cycle of panic attacks and dread that wouldn't abate for months. So she began @sosadtoday, an anonymous Twitter feed that allowed her to express her darkest feelings, and which quickly gained a dedicated following. In So Sad Today, Broder delves deeper into the existential themes she explores on Twitter, grappling with sex, death, love low self-esteem, addiction, and the drama of waiting for the universe to text you back.

With insights as sharp as her humor, Broder explores--in prose that is both ballsy and beautiful, aggressively colloquial and achingly poetic--questions most of us are afraid to even acknowledge, let alone answer, in order to discover what it really means to be a person in this modern world.

After their parents divorced in the 1970s, Andre Dubus III and his three siblings grew up with their overworked mother in a depressed Massachusetts mill town saturated with drugs and everyday violence. Nearby, his father, an eminent author, taught on a college campus and took the kids out on Sundays. The clash between town and gown, between the hard drinking, drugging, and fighting of "townies" and the ambitions of students debating books and ideas, couldn't have been more stark. In this unforgettable memoir, acclaimed novelist Dubus shows us how he escaped the cycle of violence and found empathy in channeling the stories of others--bridging, in the process, the rift between his father and himself.

New York Times Bestseller

"Probably the best book on living with anxiety that I've ever read." - Mark Manson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

The Chinese believe that before you can conquer a beast, you must first make it beautiful.

Sarah Wilson first came across this Chinese proverb in psychiatrist Kay Redfield Jamison's memoir An Unquiet Mind, and it became the key to understanding her own lifelong struggle with anxiety. Wilson, bestselling author, journalist, and entrepreneur has helped over 1.5 million people worldwide to live better, healthier lives through her I Quit Sugar books and program. And all along, she has been managing chronic anxiety.

In First, We Make the Beast Beautiful, Wilson directs her intense focus and fierce investigating skills onto her lifetime companion, looking at the triggers and treatments, the fashions and fads. She reads widely and interviews fellow sufferers, mental health experts, philosophers, and even the Dalai Lama, processing all she learns through the prism of her own experiences.

Wilson offers readers comfort, humor, companionship, and practical tips for living with the Beast:

• Cultivate a "gratitude ritual." You can't be grateful and anxious at the same time.
• Eat to curb anxiety. Real food is your best friend.
• Just breathe. Embrace the healing power of meditation.
• Make your bed. Every day. Simple outer order creates inner calm.
• Study fellow fretters to know thyself. Emily Dickinson, Charles Darwin, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. all struggled with anxiety.
• Actively practice missing out. Forget FOMO, curl up on the couch, and order takeout.

Practical and poetic, wise and funny, First, We Make the Beast Beautiful is a small book with a big heart. It will encourage the myriad souls who dance with this condition to embrace it as a part of who they are, and to explore the possibilities it offers for a richer, fuller life.

I discover a "lost" aunt, separated from our family due to racism and discrimination against the disabled. She had a mental disability due to childhood meningitis. She was taken away in 1942 when all Japanese Americans were considered the enemy and imprisoned. She then became a "ward" of the state. We believed she had died, but 70 years later found her alive and living a few miles from our family farm. How did she survive? Why was she kept hidden? How did both shame and resilience empower my family to forge forward in a land that did not want them? I am haunted and driven to explore my identity and the meaning of family--especially as farmers tied to the land. I uncover family secrets that bind us to a sense of history buried in the earth that we work and a sense of place that defines us.

This new title in the Who HQ Now format for trending topics details superstar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's legendary career from the ring to the big screen.

This new title in the Who HQ Now format for trending topics details superstar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's legendary career from the ring to the big screen.

The classic, human-scale account of the soldiers who fought in World War II, by Pulitzer Prize winner Ernie Pyle--America's most famous and most loved war correspondent--featuring a new introduction by David Chrisinger, the author of the new Ernie Pyle biography, The Soldier's Truth

A Penguin Classic

When America entered World War II, Ernie Pyle followed the soldiers into the trenches. Long before television and the internet beamed combat footage directly to us, his dispatches from the front lines augmented the coverage of the war's politics, strategies, and macro-level mobilizations to give the American public what he called his "worm's-eye view" of the day-to-day life of the war. He captured, as John Steinbeck described it in Time magazine, the "war of the homesick, weary, funny, violent, common men who wash their socks in their helmets, complain about the food . . . and bring themselves through as dirty a business as the world has ever seen and do it with humor and dignity and courage--and that is Ernie Pyle's war." A number-one bestseller upon its publication in 1944, Brave Men remains unmatched in its clarity, sympathy, and grit as a portrait of America's boys who fought in Europe, and lives on as a testament to the enduring value of embedded journalism in reporting the truth.

For more than seventy-five years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 2,000 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

In 1978, in the tailwind of the golden age of air travel, flight attendants were the epitome of glamor and sophistication. Fresh out of college and hungry to experience the world--and maybe, one day, write about it--Ann Hood joined their ranks. After a grueling job search, Hood survived TWA's rigorous Breech Training Academy and learned to evacuate seven kinds of aircraft, deliver a baby, mix proper cocktails, administer oxygen, and stay calm no matter what the situation.

In the air, Hood found both the adventure she'd dreamt of and the unexpected realities of life on the job. She carved chateaubriand in the first-class cabin and dined in front of the pyramids in Cairo, fended off passengers' advances and found romance on layovers in London and Lisbon, and walked more than a million miles in high heels. She flew through the start of deregulation, an oil crisis, massive furloughs, and a labor strike.

As the airline industry changed around her, Hood began to write--even drafting snatches of her first novel from the jump-seat. She reveals how the job empowered her, despite its roots in sexist standards. Packed with funny, moving, and shocking stories of life as a flight attendant, Fly Girl captures the nostalgia and magic of air travel at its height, and the thrill that remains with every takeoff.

This is the first biography of Joe Walsh, from his days in the James Gang to his membership in the Eagles. One of the most colorful characters in all of rock and roll, Walsh has enjoyed a successful musical career for more than five-decades. With his offbeat attitude and quirky sense of humor, he earned a number of nicknames including the Analog Man and the Clown Prince of Rock Guitar. In the process, he wrote and recorded some of the most memorable classics of the 1970s including "Rocky Mountain Way," "Life's Been Good" and "Funk #49." As a member of the Eagles, Walsh helped to craft a number of enduring rock standards such as "Hotel California," "In The City" and "Life In The Fast Lane." This book chronicles Walsh's often-complicated life as a musical showman, a talented guitarist and a much-respected ordinary, average guy.

Are you a fan of the game of ice hockey?

Do you see the beauty that comes from the intensity that takes place on the ice?

Are you in need of an inspirational story or two?

As a sport, ice hockey is an intense battle waged by two teams over a sheet of rock-hard ice, but the battles and stories that happen off the ice can be just as intense. Because of that intensity, the people involved in the game often have to overcome obstacles that have nothing to do with the puck or the game itself. When that happens to a player with the world watching, those onlookers are inspired by the grit and tenacity the players demonstrate.

Hockey players truly are special people. They have a set of skills unique to their game, and not all of them are physical. Mentally, hockey players have to be sharp and resilient. When those skills are put on display, crowds will marvel and cheer. But when tragedy strikes, those same skills prove to the world that moving forward is possible no matter what happens.

Inspirational Hockey Stories for Young Readers contains 12 real-life stories involving hockey players and families from decades' worth of hockey history. You'll find players grappling with a range of situations, from cancer to disabilities and more, and their reactions are sure to inspire you to contend with whatever is causing you pain in your life.

Some of the stories in this book include:

• Gordie Howe's resilient career.
• An emotional shutout from Craig Anderson.
• Jim Kyte's trailblazing career.
• How the first unofficial NHL All-Star Game came to be.

This book is sure to motivate and inspire any hockey fan, from the young skater playing with friends up to the adult league champion. This book may also help the reader understand how a hockey player can find a way to move forward, even when their dreams are seemingly stripped away from them.

Maybe there's a hockey player in your life who needs a boost in their life. Maybe they're struggling with their health, or there's conflict around them that they are unable to handle on their own. Or, maybe, you just know a hockey player who loves the history of the game and wants to read about 12 amazing players.

Either way, this book is bound to bring a smile, or maybe even a few tears of happiness, to anyone who knows what it takes to play the game of hockey. It is sure to inspire hockey players and fill their hearts with pride that they play the toughest sport ever created.

In this book from the critically acclaimed, multimillion-copy best-selling Little People, BIG DREAMS series, discover the life of Albert Einstein, the legendary scientist.

Little Albert grew up in Germany, where it took him four years to formulate his first word. He was fascinated by how objects worked and, although he didn't love school, he loved physics and math books. His brilliant mind contemplated space and time, and he eventually came up with the theory of relativity.

He shared his knowledge with the rest of the world, becoming the most original mind of the twentieth century. This fascinating book features stylish and quirky illustrations and extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with historical photos and a detailed profile of the theoretical physicist's life.

Little People, BIG DREAMS is a best-selling biography series for kids that explores the lives of outstanding people, from designers and artists to scientists and activists. All of them achieved incredible things, yet each began life as a child with a dream.

This empowering series of books offers inspiring messages to children of all ages, in a range of formats. The board books are told in simple sentences, perfect for reading aloud to babies and toddlers. The hardcover and paperback versions present expanded stories for beginning readers. With rewritten text for older children, the treasuries each bring together a multitude of dreamers in a single volume. You can also collect a selection of the books by theme in boxed gift sets. Activity books and a journal provide even more ways to make the lives of these role models accessible to children.

Inspire the next generation of outstanding people who will change the world with Little People, BIG DREAMS!

Discover the story of Mary Anning, the world's best-known fossil hunter.

As a baby, Mary was struck by lightning, then as a little girl she found a fossilised sea monster, the most important prehistoric discovery of its time. This spectacular tale of a little girl who dared to be different and who followed her dreams will inspire young children.

Beautiful illustrations and narrative text help children to learn how Mary discovered new fossils - and how her observations rocked the natural history world. Be inspired by Mary's work as a woman in the field of science - especially as her achievements weren't recognised until after her death.

Perfect for kids interested in dinosaurs and rocks, and for parents looking for strong female role models in science.

If you liked this, you might like the Anholt's Artists series.

A young screenwriter is invited to collaborate with Jimi Hendrix on a film, resulting in the wildest eighteen months of his life and coinciding with the tumultuous final months of Hendrix's life.

In 1969, a twenty-something screenwriter with one movie credit to his name is approached by Jimi's management after the legendary guitarist saw the obscure indie film in London and had the idea to collaborate on a project of his own. Jonathan Stathakis had no idea how thrilling the next eighteen months would be, as he and Hendrix formed not just a working partnership but a unique friendship. Hendrix ushered Jonathan into his world, where plenty of sex and drugs surrounded the rock 'n' roll. From Woodstock to Electric Ladyland, Jonathan leads readers inside one of the craziest trips ever taken in music history.

While writing their script, Jonathan and Hendrix talked about life and where their roads were leading. Hendrix the performer was a flamboyant unpredictable force of nature. But Hendrix the friend was a thoughtful, frustrated, dedicated artist who oftentimes just needed somebody to talk to. Sadly, Hendrix's journey ended far too soon, and his last phone call to Jonathan--just two days before his death in London--almost seemed to foretell his fate.

With many never-before-told stories and never-before-seen photographs, Jimi Hendrix comes back to life as you've never experienced him before. Backstage, on stage, and everyplace in between, get ready to ride through the purple haze and experience one of the most creative and powerful cultural eras in history. It's Almost Famous with a Hendrix twist.

The newest diary manga from the Harvey Award-winning creator of My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness.

After attending a friend's wedding, Nagata Kabi decides she wants one of her own. That's not the only thing she wants--she longs to love and be loved. But she has three major problems: she has no partner, no dating experience, and her only sexual encounters are limited to a lesbian escort service. With the help of a photoshoot, a dating app, and more, the author embarks on a journey to seek the love and happiness she so desperately desires.

The incredible true story of a young girl who navigated dangerous forests, outwitted Nazi soldiers, and survived against all odds with the companionship of a stray cat.

Growing up in the Polish village of Tarnogrod on the fringes of a deep pine forest, Mala Szorer had the happiest childhood she could have hoped for. But at the age of twelve, as the German invasion begins, her beloved village becomes a ghetto and her family and friends reduced to starvation. She takes matters into her own hands and bravely removes her yellow star, risking sneaking out to the surrounding villages to barter for food.

It is on her way back that she sees her loved ones rounded up for deportation, and receives a smuggled letter from her sister warning her to stay away. In order to survive, she walks away from everything she holds dear to live by herself in the forest, hiding not just from the Nazis but hostile villagers. She is followed by a stray cat who stays with her--and seems to come to her rescue time and time again.

"Malach" the cat becomes her family and her only respite from painful loneliness, a guide, and areminder to stay hopeful even when faced with unfathomable darkness.

Filled with remarkable spiritual strength that allows readers to see the war through the innocence of a child's eyes, Mala's Cat is a powerful and unique addition to the Holocaust canon.

"A new, exciting approach to the literature about this momentous era."--The Wall Street Journal

There may never be another era of science like the first half of the twentieth century, when a peerless cast of physicists--Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, Max Planck, Wolfgang Pauli, and others--came together to uncover the quantum world, a concept so outrageous and contrary to traditional physics that its own founders rebelled against it until the equations held up and fundamentally changed our understanding of reality.

In page-turning chapters, Tobias Hürter takes us back to this momentous time in science history, when the creation of quantum theory demanded the combined efforts of friends and rivals, lovers and loners, straight-edged intellectuals and freethinking dreamers--and when, with the Nazis in pursuit of an atomic bomb, the stakes couldn't be higher. In this stirring, grand narrative, brought to life by letters, notes, research papers, diaries, and memoirs, we witness the birth of an idea that revolutionized both physics and our world at large and unleashed the profound and terrifying power of the atom--and that ultimately stands as a testament to the boundless potential of genius in collaboration.

The epic tale of the five owners who shepherded the NFL through its tumultuous early decades and built the most popular sport in America The National Football League is a towering, distinctly American colossus spewing out $14 billion in annual revenue. But it was not always a success. In The League, John Eisenberg focuses on the pioneering sportsmen who kept the league alive in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, when its challenges were many and its survival was not guaranteed. At the time, college football, baseball, boxing, and horseracing dominated America's sports scene. Art Rooney, George Halas, Tim Mara, George Preston Marshall, and Bert Bell believed in pro football when few others did and ultimately succeeded only because at critical junctures each sacrificed the short-term success of his team for the longer-term good of the league. At once a history of a sport and a remarkable story of business ingenuity, The League is an essential read for any fan of our true national pastime.