Biographies Power

A collection of stories about the influence music can have on a person, a crowd, or a culture, from John Schmid. John Schmid is the founder and director of Common Ground Ministries, a singing ministry with a focus on on prisons in the Ohio Prison System.

Since his headline-grabbing speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004, Barack Obama has come to represent the promise of unity among groups of all types: blacks and whites; Democrats, Republicans, and moderates; the upper, middle, and lower classes. In this groundbreaking biography, veteran journalist and Obama chronicler David Mendell gives an in-depth, comprehensive portrait of a man whose name has become a catchphrase for hope in a politically jaded society desperate for a new star.

Lucetta Zaytoun's ability to bounce back from tragedy time and time again is uncanny. After raising six kids, yet another life earthquake hit. This one led her to put everything she owned in storage, sell her car, shut down her phone and travel in developing countries by herself for one year. Lucetta's precarious, intrepid and fascinating runaway journey took her to places she never imagined.

Collecting deeply personal conversations with inspirational LGBTQ+ trailblazers (from Troye Sivan to Margaret Cho) about how they leveraged the challenges and insights they had as relative outsiders to succeed in the worlds of business, tech, politics, Hollywood, sports and beyond, Andrew Gelwick’s The Queer Advantage celebrates the unique power of queer identity. Their stories brim with the hard-won lessons gained over their careers.

From the editor of the best-selling anthology The Meaning of Michelle, a celebration of one of the greatest stars of our time, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter.

Scott Stabile's parents were murdered when he was 14. Nine years later, his brother died of a heroin overdose. Soon after that, Stabile joined a cult that would dominate his life. Through all these challenges, Stabile grew stronger and more committed to living his life from love. Whether trying - as we all must - to silence shame, show up for friends, or overcome dreaded what-ifs, Stabile shares hard-won insights that will return listeners to love, both of themselves and of others.

Power walking, also known as fitness or speed walking, is gaining popularity as an aging population looks for workout options that are good for their bodies and good for their wallets. This book includes expert tips and techniques for starting or expanding a power walking practice. Covering the author's journey from non-athlete to dedicated power walker, it is entertaining, motivational, and jam-packed with information. Here, power walking practice is contextualized through the author's goal to complete a half marathon in each of the United States.

Horace 'Jim' Greasley was 20 years of age in the spring of 1939 when Adolf Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia and latterly Poland. There had been whispers and murmurs of discontent from certain quarters, and the British government began to prepare for the inevitable war. After seven weeks training with the 2nd/5th Battalion Leicester, he found himself facing the might of the German army in a muddy field south of Cherbourg, in Northern France, with just 30 rounds of ammunition in his weapon pouch. Horace's war didn't last long. He was taken prisoner on 25th May 1940.

Michael Bloomberg is not only New York City's 108th mayor; he is a business genius and self-made billionaire. He has run the toughest city in America with an independence and show of ego that first brought him great success and eventually threatened it. Yet while Bloomberg is internationally known and admired, few people know the man behind the carefully crafted public persona.

This is a short biography of Cleopatra, powered by AI. The book describes Cleopatra's early life and rule in Egypt, highlighting her political savvy, ambition, and determination in the face of family drama and political upheaval.

The ‘Ndrangheta (pronounced an-drang-et-ah) is a close neighbor of the Cosa Nostra and currently considered the most powerful (and difficult to spell) criminal organization in Italy. The ‘Ndrangheta is centered around Calabria, the most southwestern region of Italy, almost touching the Sicilian city of Messina. Though it began as far back as the late 19th century, it was not until the 1950s that the ‘Ndrangheta started to spread its tentacles throughout Italy and then across the entire globe, forming an empire that now ranges from Australia and Turkey, to Chile to Canada.

By 2050, $50 trillion will change hands in North America in the largest generational wealth transfer ever. It will remake the world and be the biggest money-making opportunity in history. "Business as usual", founded on exploitation and environmental ruin, is over. Climate catastrophe, reactionary politics, and widening inequity have put the world on edge. Meanwhile innovations are shifting the economic ground, and an entire generation is pounding the table for real change.

When Speaker Newt Gingrich greeted Dr. David Lewis in his office overlooking the National Mall, he looked at Dr. Lewis and said: "You know you’re going to be fired for this, don’t you?" "I know," Dr. Lewis replied, "I just hope to stay out of prison." Gingrich had just read Dr. Lewis' commentary in Nature, titled "EPA Science: Casualty of Election Politics".

Michael Bloomberg became mayor of New York just four months after the 9/11 terrorist destruction of the World Trade Center, and he led the rebuilding of a physically and emotionally devastated city so well that within two years, the city had budget surpluses. Weikart reveals how state and federal governments constrained Bloomberg's efforts to set municipal policy and implement his strategic goals in the areas of homelessness, low-income housing, poverty, education, and crime.

Fifty years after John F. Kennedy's death, we find ourselves enmeshed in an era of political division and cynicism, where politicians talk past one another and the spirit of "Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country" is less visible than it should be. We seem to have forgotten that we're all on the same team. Fortunately, Scott D. Reich has given us The Power of Citizenship, a timely book to bring us back on track.

Barbara Pamplin’s life was changed by 50, 3, and 3. That's 50 days in intensive care, 3 open heart surgeries, and 3 deaths and resuscitations - all in the fall of 2017. Barbara is a passionate storyteller, committed to inspiring Black women and others to celebrate and engage in the soul work of personal transformation, to confront the health crisis among Black women at its root level.

On July 23, 2007, Dr. William Petit suffered an unimaginable horror: Armed strangers broke into his suburban Connecticut home in the middle of the night, bludgeoned him nearly to death, tortured and killed his wife and two daughters, and set their house on fire. He miraculously survived, and yet living through those horrific hours was only the beginning of his ordeal. Broken and defeated, Bill was forced to confront a question of ultimate consequence: How does a person find the strength to start over and live again after confronting the darkest of nightmares?

AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A HEALER: Near-Death Experience to the Power of Love is the remarkable true story of Dr. Laurence Brock’s life-altering journey that began with a near-death experience in 1976. During that moment on the edge of life and death, he encountered the pure, magical Power of Love—a force so profound it would shape the rest of his life in unexpected and mystical ways. What followed was a path marked by healing abilities, spiritual awakening, and encounters with wise teachers from diverse traditions who helped him expand and refine the gifts he was given.

Truth examines Bush's political roots as governor of Texas, delves into what is known about his National Guard duty - or lack of service - and sheds light on the solidity of the documents that backed up the National Guard story, even including images of the actual documents in an appendix to the book. It is peopled with a colorful cast of characters - from Karl Rove to Sumner Redstone - and moves from small-town Texas to Black Rock - CBS corporate headquarters - in New York City.

This biography of educational activist and Black studies forerunner Bertha Maxwell-Roddey examines a life of remarkable achievements and leadership in the desegregated South. Sonya Ramsey modernizes the nineteenth-century term "race woman" to describe how Maxwell-Roddey and her peers turned hard-won civil rights and feminist milestones into tangible accomplishments in North Carolina and nationwide from the late 1960s to the 1990s.