Collection: Biography & Memoir

Filled with beautiful full-color illustrations, a groundbreaking compendium honoring the amazing true stories of fifty inspirational women who helped fuel some of the greatest achievements in space exploration from the nineteenth century to today--including Hidden Figure's Mary Jackson and Katherine Johnson as well as former NASA Chief Astronaut Peggy Whitson, the record-holding American biochemistry researcher who has spent the most cumulative time in space.

When Neil Armstrong stepped off the ladder of the lunar module, Eagle, he famously spoke of "one small step for man." But Armstrong would not have reached the moon without the help of women. Today, females across the earth and above it--astronauts and mathematicians, engineers and physicists, test pilots and aerospace psychophysiologists--are pushing the boundaries of human knowledge, helping us to understand the universe and our place in it. Galaxy Girls celebrates more than four dozen extraordinary women from around the globe whose contributions have been fundamental to the story of humankind's quest to reach the stars.

From Ada Lovelace in the nineteenth century to the "colored computers" behind the Apollo missions, from the astronauts breaking records on the International Space Station to the scientific pioneers blazing the way to Mars, Galaxy Girls goes boldly where few books have gone before, celebrating this band of heroic sisters and their remarkable and often little known scientific achievements. Written by Libby Jackson, a leading British expert in human space flight, and illustrated with striking artwork from the students of London College of Communication, Galaxy Girls will fire the imaginations of trailblazers of all ages.

A brilliant, fascinating portrait of the intellectual tradition of Greek writers and thinkers during the Age of Rome.

In 146 BC, Greece yielded to the military might of the Roman Republic; sixty years later, when Athens and other Greek city-states rebelled against Rome, the Roman general Lucius Cornelius Sulla destroyed the city of Socrates and Plato, laying waste to the famous Academy where Aristotle had studied. However, the traditions of Greek cultural life continued to flourish during the centuries of Roman rule that followed--in the lives and work of a distinguished array of philosophers, doctors, scientists, geographers, and theologians.

Charles Freeman's accounts of such luminaries as the physician Galen, the geographer Ptolemy, and the philosopher Plotinus are interwoven with contextual "interludes" that showcase a sequence of unjustly neglected and richly influential lives. A cultural history on an epic scale, The Children of Athena presents the story of a rich and vibrant tradition of Greek intellectual inquiry across a period of more than five hundred years, from the second century BC to the start of the fifth century AD.

Journey to Avonlea and meet Anne Shirley -- the imaginative and bold star of the beloved Anne of Green Gables series -- in this addition to the What Is the Story Of? series.

Author L. M. Montgomery first brought Anne Shirley onto the page in 1908, and this independent and inspiring character has been capturing readers' hearts ever since. The story of an orphaned girl who is sent to Avonlea on Prince Edward Island to live with the Cuthbert family includes adventure, romance, and an ensemble of iconic characters like Diana Barry and Gilbert Blythe. Today, fans enjoy Anne on page, on screen, and even on stage as the popular series continues to draw audiences. Learn about the history of this iconic literary character, Anne with an "e" - in this exciting biography.

Help kids ages 6 to 9 discover the life of Malala Yousafzai―a story about standing up for education and equal rights

Malala Yousafzai became a brave activist while she was still a young girl. Before she fearlessly fought for girls' right to education, she was a thoughtful kid who enjoyed school, sports, and daydreaming. Then Malala was told that girls would no longer be able to go to school. She didn't let that stop her, though! Find out how Malala stood up for equal rights and became the youngest person ever to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Story of Malala Yousafzai includes:

• Watch Malala's progress―Explore a visual timeline of Malala's life.
• Word definitions―Discover easy-to-understand definitions for the more advanced words and ideas in the book.
• Lasting change―Learn about how Malala changed the world.

How will Malala's courageous spirit inspire you?

At age two, Helen Keller became deaf and blind. She lived in a world of silence and darkness and she spent the rest of her life struggling to break through it. But with the help of teacher Annie Sullivan, Helen learned to read, write, and do many amazing things. This inspiring illustrated biography is perfect for young middle-grade readers. Black-and-white line drawings throughout, sidebars on related topics such as Louis Braille, a timeline, and a bibliography enhance readers' understanding of the subject.

A NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR - An essential new translation of the author's complete, uncensored diaries--a revelation of the idiosyncrasies and rough edges of one of the twentieth century's most influential writers.

"An invaluable addition to Kafka's oeuvre."--The New York Times

An essential new translation of Franz Kafka's complete, uncensored diaries--a revelation of the idiosyncrasies and rough edges of one of the twentieth century's most important, influential, and visionary writers Dating from 1909 to 1923, Franz Kafka's Diaries contains a broad array of writing, including accounts of daily events, assorted reflections and observations, literary sketches, drafts of letters, records of dreams, and unrevised texts of stories. This volume makes available for the first time in English a comprehensive reconstruction of Kafka's handwritten diary entries and provides substantial new content, restoring all the material omitted from previous publications--notably, names of people and undisguised details about them, a number of literary writings, and passages of a sexual nature, some of them with homoerotic overtones.

By faithfully reproducing the diaries' distinctive-- and often surprisingly unpolished--writing as it appeared in Kafka's notebooks, translator Ross Benjamin brings to light not only the author's use of the diaries for literary invention and unsparing self-examination but also their value as a work of genius in and of themselves.

You won't see no sad and teary eyes when I get my wings, and it's my time to fly
Just call my friends and tell them there's a party, come on by
So just roll me up and smoke me when I die

In Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die, Willie Nelson muses about his greatest influences and celebrates the family, friends, and colleagues who have blesses his remarkable journey. Willie riffs on music, wives, Texas, politics, horses, religion, marijuana, children, the environment, poker, hogs, Nashville, karma, and more. He shares the outlaw wisdom he has acquired over eight decades, along with favorite jokes and insights. Rare family pictures, beautiful artwork created by his son Micah Nelson, and lyrics to classic songs punctuate these charming and poignant memories.

At once a road journal and a fitting tribute to America's greatest traveling bard, Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die--introduced by Kinky Friedman, another favorite son of Texas--is a deeply personal look into the heart and soul of one of the greatest artists of our time.

WINNER OF THE 2022 PULITZER PRIZE IN BIOGRAPHY

Booklist #1 Nonfiction Book of the Year * African American Literary Book Club (AALBC) #1 Nonfiction Bestseller * Named a Best Book of the Year by: NPR, Publishers Weekly, BookPage, Barnes & Noble, Hudson Booksellers, ARTnews, and more * Amazon Editors' Pick * Carnegie Medal of Excellence in Nonfiction Longlist

"A compelling and important history that this nation desperately needs to hear." --Bryan Stevenson, New York Times bestselling author of Just Mercy and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative

Winfred Rembert grew up in a family of Georgia field laborers and joined the Civil Rights Movement as a teenager. He was arrested after fleeing a demonstration, survived a near-lynching at the hands of law enforcement, and spent seven years on chain gangs. During that time he met the undaunted Patsy, who would become his wife. Years later, at the age of fifty-one and with Patsy's encouragement, he started drawing and painting scenes from his youth using leather tooling skills he learned in prison.

Chasing Me to My Grave presents Rembert's breathtaking body of work alongside his story, as told to Tufts Philosopher Erin I. Kelly. Rembert calls forth vibrant scenes of Black life on Cuthbert, Georgia's Hamilton Avenue, where he first glimpsed the possibility of a life outside the cotton field. As he pays tribute, exuberant and heartfelt, to Cuthbert's Black community and the people, including Patsy, who helped him to find the courage to revisit a traumatic past, Rembert brings to life the promise and the danger of Civil Rights protest, the brutalities of incarceration, his search for his mother's love, and the epic bond he found with Patsy.

Vivid, confrontational, revelatory, and complex, Chasing Me to My Grave is a searing memoir in prose and painted leather that celebrates Black life and summons readers to confront painful and urgent realities at the heart of American history and society.

WINNER OF THE LINCOLN FORUM BOOK PRIZE

"A Lincoln classic...superb." ---The Washington Post

"A book for our time."--Doris Kearns Goodwin

Lincoln on the Verge tells the dramatic story of America's greatest president discovering his own strength to save the Republic.

As a divided nation plunges into the deepest crisis in its history, Abraham Lincoln boards a train for Washington and his inauguration--an inauguration Southerners have vowed to prevent. Lincoln on the Verge charts these pivotal thirteen days of travel, as Lincoln discovers his power, speaks directly to the public, and sees his country up close. Drawing on new research, this riveting account reveals the president-elect as a work in progress, showing him on the verge of greatness, as he foils an assassination attempt, forges an unbreakable bond with the American people, and overcomes formidable obstacles in order to take his oath of office.

A raw and poignant memoir of a daughter's journey from a difficult upbringing in rural Alabama to a fulfilling life as a wife and mother with a successful career far beyond the limitations of her upbringing, Mildred J Mills describes unimaginable highs like becoming a fashion model, beauty pageant winner, and corporate American executive, and devastating lows like the horror of gang rape as she simultaneously conveys deep love and respect for most of those who hurt her.