Søgeresultater: 55

Summary: In 2008 the art critic Tom Lubbock was diagnosed with a brain tumour. The tumour was located in the area controlling speech and language, and would eventually rob him of the ability to speak. He died early in 2011. Marion Coutts was his wife. In short bursts of beautiful, textured prose, Coutts describes the eighteen months leading up to her partner's death. This book is an account of a family unit, man, woman, young child, under assault, and how the three of them fought to keep it intact. Written with extraordinary narrative force and power, The Iceberg is almost shocking in its rawness. It charts the deterioration of Tom's speech even as it records the developing language of his child. Fury, selfishness, grief, indignity and impotence are all examined and brought to light. Yet out of this comes a rare story about belonging, an 'adventure of being and dying'. This book is a celebration of each other, friends, family, art, work, love and language

Summary: How one small sailboat taught the Kennedys about life, family, leadership, and winning

Summary: Every sport has its superstars, but there is a small, elite group reserved for those who truly transcend their sport. Entering 2014 as the world number one, with 13 Grand Slam titles to his name, Rafael Nadal belongs in this group. Nadal's tennis journey began in his native Mallorca as a three-year-old and he quickly emerged as a natural, surging into the top 50 of the world rankings by the age of 16. Originally considered a clay-court specialist, he quickly showed he was much more than that. While he continues to make Roland Garros his second home, the Spaniard has also captured the Wimbledon, Australian Open and US Open crowns, completing the full set of Grand Slams in 2010. From his 2008 marathon against Roger Federer at Wimbledon to his classic semi-final victory over Novak Djokovic at the 2013 French Open, Nadal never disappoints on the big stage. His oncourt brilliance is only matched by his off-court humility. And, at 28, there is plenty more to come. So long as he stays clear of the persistent knee injuries that have haunted him, the Spaniard is on pace to finish his career as the greatest player of all-time. This book is the ultimate look at Nadal's rise to the top

Summary: In the years before and after World War II, there were no bigger voices than those of the Andrews Sisters. Maxene, LaVerne, and Patty charted more top ten Billboard hits than Elvis or the Beatles and went on to become the top-selling female vocal group of all time, selling approximately 100 million records. They recorded such instant hits as "Beer Barrel Polka," "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," "Don't Fence Me In," and "I Can Dream, Can't I?" They dominated the music scene for fifteen years with some 600 recordings, appearances in seventeen films, cabaret performances, and countless radio and television appearances. Swing It! is the first published biography of this incredibly popular trio. The book includes many rarely published photos and features extensive career data, including a detailed discography, filmography, and listing of their radio and television appearances between 1938 and 1967. The Andrews Sisters had their big break with the 1937 release of the Yiddish tune "Bei Mir Bist Du Schon (Means that You're Grand)," which sold 350,000 copies in one month and established the trio as successful recording artists. The sisters are now probably best remembered for their work entertaining troops in World War II. They traveled across the U.S. and to Italy and Africa, and their recording of "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" for the film Buck Privates became synonymous with the war effort. Part of the reason for the success of the Andrews Sisters was their ability to perform so many different types of music. They repeatedly achieved major hits with melodies derived from many different countries, becoming the first and most prominent artists of their time to bring ethnic-influenced music to the forefront of America's hit parade. The Andrews Sisters separated for two years in the 1950s as the strain of constantly living, working, and playing together for over four decades took its toll. They reunited in 1956 and continued to perform together until LaVerne's death from cancer in 1967. The Andrews Sisters remain the most successful and enduring female vocal group in the history of show business. Theirs are the voices that defined an era

Summary: After a fantastic start to his professional golf career with two majors in the bag, child prodigy and golf superstar Rory McIlroy suddenly hit a wall. His successes thinned out and he started to slide down the world rankings. Rory was making more headlines off the course and on the front pages of the tabloids after a legal dispute with his former management team Horizon; the constant press speculation as to whether he would represent Great Britain or Ireland in the Olympics; and his on-off relationship with Caroline Wozniacki, which led to a New Years Eve engagement in Australia and then the sudden shock split as wedding invitations were being prepared. Then, after all the traumas, came a double triumph in the summer in 2014 which Rory personally described as an unbelievable summer and the greatest golf of my life. Two more majors followed in just four weeks - The British Open and the USPGA - which put Rory in putting distance of becoming only the sixth man in history to win Golf s Grand Slam as he looks to add the illusive US Masters to his CV

Summary: After a career in the academy, Canadian-born Grant Allen struck out on his own to make his name as a writer. His early focus was on scientific topics, though he later expanded into fiction, as well. Allen was an early proponent of Darwin's theory of evolution and helped to popularize the idea through his writing. His biography Charles Darwin is an engaging and comprehensive look at the scientist's life and work

Summary: Fearless hero and showman extraordinaire William "Buffalo Bill" Cody lived a remarkable life. As a young man, he made a name for himself in the Wild West as an incredibly successful buffalo hunter and rider for the Pony Express. Later in life, he helped immortalize the mythology of the period by staging a series of traveling shows depicted a romanticized version of life on the open range. This thrilling autobiography offers a fascinating glimpse into the adventures of this quintessentially American icon

Summary: Hard-hitting Rory McIlroy was always destined to become a professional golfer from the moment he recorded a 40-yard drive aged just two. His first hole in one came when he was nine and he played in his first professional European tour event as a 16-year-old in 2005.Despite high expectations, Rory keeps a cool head on his young shoulders and lets his golf do the talking. His maiden victory came in the 2009 Dubai Desert Classic, where he endured a nail-biting final hole, and he has since gone on to win multiple events around the world.After falling apart at the 2011 Masters, his final breakthrough came in June 2011 when he won his first major, the US Open. An incredible 2012 followed, in which he became the number one ranked golfer in the world. But in 2013, despite high aspirations, Rory did not fare well in major tournaments - not, that is, until the end of the year, when he won the Australian Open by one stroke.In 2014, he raised his game still further, winning two more majors in an incredible four-week spell - the British Open and the USPGA (the latter for a second time) - bringing his total tally to four majors. Now, with Rory back at No 1 in the world rankings, Frank Worrall presents the fascinating story of one of golf 's greatest ever talents

Summary: If an umpire could steal the show in a Major League game, Al Clark might well have been the one to do it. Tough but fair, in his thirty years as a professional umpire he took on some of baseball's great umpire baiters, such as Earl Weaver, Billy Martin, and Dick Williams, while ejecting any number of the game's elite—once tearing a hamstring in the process. He was the first Jewish umpire in American League history, and probably the first to eject his own father from the officials' dressing room. But whatever Clark was doing—officiating at Nolan Ryan's three hundredth win, Cal Ripken's record breaker, or the "earthquake" World Series of 1989, or braving a labor dispute, an anti-Semitic tirade by a Cy Young Award winner, or a legal imbroglio—it makes for a good story. Called Out but Safe is Clark's outspoken and often hilarious account of his life in baseball from umpire school through the highlights to the inglorious end of his stellar career. Not just a source of baseball history and lore, Clark's book also affords a rare look at what life is like for someone who works for the Major Leagues' other team

Summary: The stunningly candid autobiography of one of cycling's great names and the man who rode alongside Lance Armstrong for each of his now infamous seven Tour victories George Hincapie has always personified more than the sport in which he chose to compete, cycling, and his legacy will be more than the sum of his accomplishments on the road. It is also intertwined with the team-mates he helped to achieve success.As Lance Armstrong's trusted sidekick, he helped re-write the record books of the greatest cycling event in the world, the Tour de France. No other team-mate was with Lance for all seven of his wins. No one was closer to him as a friend or confidante and no one was closer to the scandal which would ultimately bring down Armstrong and so many of those around him.Told with stunning candour, 'The Loyal Lietenant' offers the most transparent and engaging account yet of the now infamous years of cycling's modern history.It is a book that will once again change our perceptions of what it means to be a sporting great

Summary: French Enlightenment thinker Voltaire saw much to admire in Russian emperor Peter the Great. Most significantly, Voltaire admired Peter's tireless efforts to drag Russia from its medieval mindset and thrust it into an age of rationality. This exhaustive biography focuses more on Peter's philosophy and values than his wartime exploits

Summary: Mother Catherine Spalding (1793—1858) was the cofounder and first leader of one of the most significant American religious communities for women — the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth near Bardstown, Kentucky. Elected at age nineteen to lead the order, Spalding also founded several educational institutions, Louisville's first private hospital, and the first social service agency for children in Kentucky. Pioneer Spirit is the first biography of Catherine Spalding, a woman who made it her life's work to serve the citizens of the Kentucky frontier. Catherine, who lost her mother at a young age and was raised in many different homes before she was ten years old, eventually came to be raised in a colony of Catholic families. These formative years taught her independence, the value of hard work and an enduring spirit, and the importance of education, all of which would figure prominently in her later career. Spalding became increasingly interested in health care, services for orphans, and education, and her business skills and strong sense of purpose allowed her to achieve her goals with little interference from outsiders. She showed a natural gift for administration, and the scope and services of the Sisters of Charity expanded under her leadership. In the midst of this ministerial work, however, Spalding always maintained the connection of her ministry to spiritual and communal life, ascribing great importance to all three facets of her calling. Author Mary Ellen Doyle notes that in Spalding's correspondence with the Sisters, she repeatedly emphasized the heart of charity: "genuine interest in each other and sisterly affection free of personal ambition or jealousy." By the time of Catherine Spalding's death, the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth extended beyond Nazareth to more than one hundred sisters in sixteen convents. Spalding's legacy of service continues today with more than six hundred members worldwide, and her story of progressive and compassionate leadership offers unique insights into the growth of a religious order and the struggles of developing America's frontier communities