Bits and pieces : my mother, my brother, and me / Goldberg, Whoopi

If it weren't for Emma Johnson, Caryn Johnson would have never become Whoopi Goldberg. Emma gave her children the loving care and wisdom they needed to succeed in life, always encouraging them to be true to themselves. When Whoopi lost her mother in 2010 -- and then her older brother, Clyde, five years later -- she felt deeply alone; the only people who truly knew her were gone. Emma raised her children not just to survive, but to thrive. In this intimate and heartfelt memoir, Whoopi shares many of the deeply personal stories of their lives together for the first time. Growing up in the projects in New York City, there were trips to Coney Island, the Ice Capades, and museums, and every Christmas was a magical experience. To this day, she doesn't know how her mother was able to give them such an enriching childhood, despite the struggles they faced -- and it wasn't until she was well into adulthood that Whoopi learned just how traumatic some of those struggles were. Fans of personal memoirs such as Finding Me by Viola Davis and In Pieces by Sally Field will be touched by Bits and Pieces: a moving tribute from a daughter to her mother, and a beautiful portrait of three people who loved each other deeply. Whoopi writes, "Not everybody gets to walk this earth with folks who let you be exactly who you are and who give you the confidence to become exactly who you want to be. So, I thought I'd share mine with you."

Dancing on the edge : a journey of living, loving, and tumbling through Hollywood / Tomlinson, Sarah

A bold memoir of an extraordinary, singular life lived by one of the world's most beloved and acclaimed figures: Russ Tamblyn. With more than eighty years as a celebrated artist and actor under his belt, Russ Tamblyn is a cherished figure to name among cinephiles and pop culture fans alike, working with such legendary directors as Robert Wise, David Lynch, and Quentin Tarantino. He tumbled through his acclaimed starring role in the original West Side Story as an actor and acrobatic dancer, taught Elvis Presley some signature dance moves, and became an unlikely visionary in the counterculture movement of the sixties alongside peers and friends Henry Miller and Dennis Hopper. Russ deftly guides readers through his star-studded life and his search for a deeper, more connected existence: attending school with Elizabeth Taylor, earning an Academy Award nomination for Peyton Place, dropping out of Hollywood at the height of his career to become a fine artist in Topanga Canyon, and forging a lifelong friendship with Neil Young. He shares the painful breakup of a twenty-year marriage and the joy of finding true love and inspiration as a husband, father, and mentor in his own right. Perfect for old and new fans alike, 'Dancing on the Edge' is an intimate and powerful story about the singular life of one of our most gifted storytellers, artists, and stars of the silver screen.

Once upon a time : the captivating life of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy / Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Captivating life of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy
"The life and legacy of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, wife of John F. Kennedy Jr., are reexamined in this captivating and effervescent biography that is perfect for fans of My Travels with Mrs. Kennedy, What Remains, and Fairy Tale Interrupted. A quarter of a century after the plane crash that claimed the lives of John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn, and sister-in-law Lauren, the magnitude of this tragedy remains fresh. Yet, Carolyn is still an enigmatic figure, a woman whose short life in the spotlight was besieged with misogyny and cruelty. Amidst today's cultural reckoning about the way our media treats women, Elizabeth Beller explores the real person behind the tabloid headlines and media frenzy. When she began dating America's prince, Carolyn was increasingly thrust into an overwhelming spotlight filled with relentless paparazzi who reacted to her reserve with a campaign of harassment and vilification. To this day, she is still depicted as a privileged princess -- icy, vapid, and drug-addicted. She has even been accused of being responsible for their untimely death, allegedly delaying take-off until she finished her pedicure. But now, she is revealed as never before. A fiercely independent woman devoted to her adopted city and career, Carolyn relied on her impeccable eye and drive to fly up the ranks at Calvin Klein in the glossy, high-stakes fashion world of the 1990s. When Carolyn met her future husband, John was immediately drawn to her strong-willed personality, effortless charm, and high intelligence. Their relationship would change her life and catapult her to dizzying fame, but it was her vibrant life before their marriage and then hidden afterwards, that is truly fascinating. Based on in-depth research and exclusive interviews with friends, family members, teachers, roommates, and colleagues, this comprehensive biography reveals a multi-faceted woman worthy of our attention regardless of her husband and untimely death"--

The trading game : a confession / Stevenson, Gary

Ever since he was a kid, kicking broken soccer balls on the run-down streets of East London, Gary Stevenson dreamed of something bigger. As luck would have it, he was good at numbers. At the London School of Economics, wearing tracksuits and sneakers, Stevenson shocked his posh classmates by winning a competition called "The Trading Game." The prize?: a golden ticket to a new life, as the youngest trader at Citibank. A place where you could make more money than you'd ever imagined. Where your colleagues are dysfunctional geniuses and insecure bullies yet start to feel like family. Where against the odds you become the bank's most profitable trader, closing deals worth nearly a trillion dollars. A day. Soon you are dreaming of numbers in your sleep--and then you stop sleeping at all. But what happens when winning starts to feel like losing? You're making a killing betting on millions of people becoming poorer--like the very people you grew up with. The economy is slipping off a precipice, and your own sanity starts slipping with it. You want to stop, but you can't. Because nobody ever leaves. Would you stick, or quit? Even if it meant risking everything?

The rabbi of Buchenwald : the life and times of Herschel Schacter / Medoff, Rafael

"A face-to-face encounter with the Holocaust transformed the life of an American rabbi--and, in turn, transformed the American Jewish community in the decades to follow. Herschel Schacter, a U.S. army chaplain in World War II, was part of the unit that liberated the Nazi concentration camp of Buchenwald. After the war, Rabbi Schacter helped spearhead a revival of Orthodox Judaism in America, played a significant role in the Soviet Jewry protest movement, and led efforts to secure American support for Israel. He was the first Orthodox rabbi to reach the pinnacle of communal leadership as chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. Through the prism of Rabbi Schacter's remarkable life, The Rabbi of Buchenwald sheds important new light on how American Jewry grappled with the political, social and racial crises of the 1960s, 1970s, and beyond."--

It was you all along / Russ, 1992-

"The book addresses the question posed by the subtitle -- what if you’re the one you’ve been waiting for? -- a line from Russ’s first album inspired by his mother’s advice. Success comes from loving and believing in yourself and working hard regardless of obstacles and naysayers. Published in conjunction with his tour of the same name, It Was You All Along expands on themes found in Russ’s music and across his albums, and each chapter title takes the name of a track. Russ has always followed his own beat -- and shows you how to find your own unique rhythm, offering motivational wisdom on everything from trust, discipline, and letting go to authenticity, joy, and faith. Packed with moving observances, It Was You All Along gives fans a rare look into the man behind the music and the challenges he continues to face both personally and as an independent artist. Russ gets deeply personal in these pages, revealing how seeing a therapist helped him understand his relationship with his family and realize that he was so overly focused on helping everyone in his orbit when the person who needed his attention most was himself. Russ uses his immense passion, his experiences, and his love for people to inspire us all. His honesty and straightforwardness will convince even the most reluctant reader that the answer can always be found within. An artist known for his powerful lyrics, Russ uses his songwriting gifts to craft prose that is moving, memorable, and motivational."--

Heavyweight : a family story of the Holocaust, empire, and memory / Brager, Solomon J.

"Solomon Brager grew up with accounts of their great-grandparents' escape from Nazi Germany, told over and over until their understanding of self was bound up with the heroic details of their ancestors' exploits. Their great-grandmother related how her husband, a boxing champion, thrashed Joseph Goebbels and cleared beer halls of Nazis with his fists, how she broke him out of an internment camp and carried their children over the Pyrenees mountains. But that story was never the whole picture; zooming out, everything becomes more complicated. Alongside the Levis' propulsive journey across Europe and to the United States, Brager distills ... research about the Holocaust and connected periods of colonial history. Heavyweight asks us to consider how the patterns of history emerge and reverberate, not as a simple chain of events but in haunting layers. Confronting the specters of violence as both historian and descendent, this book is an exploration of family mythology, intergenerational memory, and the mark the past makes on the present"--

Uncommon : simple principles for an extraordinary life / Divine, Mark

"From former Navy SEAL, entrepreneur, father, and New York Times bestselling author Mark Divine comes Uncommon -- an inspirational book following Mark Divine's trademark warrior monk philosophy that will lead you to the summit of personal development. To be common is to be an everyday person. It's to do the things that you are expected to do, whether that's what your parents want for you, or your employer, or your spouse, et cetera. But if you want to be more than you are, more than you think you can be, then you need to recognize and learn from your mistakes to lead a life of excellence. As an elite Navy SEAL, entrepreneur, author, speaker, professor of leadership, and philanthropist, as well as the creator of SEALFIT, Kokoro Yoga, and Unbeatable Mind, Mark Divine uses years of wisdom, business development, martial arts, eastern philosophy and military experience to take you through life's most important principles for finding your pursuit of excellence -- so that you or anyone with the proper motivation can become uncommon"--

Spying on spies : how Elizebeth Smith Friedman broke the Nazis' secret codes / Moss, Marissa
Elizebeth Smith Friedman codebreaker
"From bestselling and award-winning author-illustrator Marissa Moss, praised for her accessible blend of narrative nonfiction with graphic novel-style chapter openers in The Woman Who Split the Atom: The Life of Lise Meitner, comes another fascinating story of a groundbreaking woman in STEM. One of the founders of U.S. cryptology who would eventually become one of the world's greatest code breakers, Elizebeth Smith Friedman (1892-1980) was a brilliant mind behind many important battles throughout the 20th century, saving many lives through her intelligence and heroism. Whip-smart and determined, Elizebeth displayed a remarkable aptitude for language and recognizing patterns from a young age. After getting her start by looking for linguistic clues to the true authorship of Shakespeare's writings, she and her husband William Friedman were tasked with heading up the first government code-breaking unit in America, training teams and building their own sophisticated code systems during the lead-up to World War I. Elizebeth's solo career was even more impressive. She became the Treasury Department's and Coast Guard's first female codebreaker and created her own top-notch codebreaking unit, where she trained and led many male colleagues. During Prohibition of the 1920's, her work solving and intercepting coded messages from mobsters and criminal gangs lead to hundreds of high-profile criminal prosecutions, including members of Al Capone's gang. Her crowning achievement came during World War II, when Elizbeth uncovered an intricate network of Nazi spies operating in South America, a feat that neither law enforcement nor intelligence agencies had been able to accomplish. Despite her unparalleled accomplishments, she was largely written out of history books and overshadowed by her husband. Only in very recent years has her name begun to receive the attention it deserves, including the U.S. Coast Guard naming a ship in her honor and the U.S. Senate passing a 2019 resolution to honor her life and legacy. Back matter includes codes for kids to learn!"--

Beyoncé / Orlando, Jade.

In this book from the highly acclaimed 'Little People, Big Dream' series, discover the incredible life of Beyoncé, the chart-topping superstar. This powerful 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 performer's life.