New Memoirs

Humphrey Bogart spent some 40 weekends a year sailing his Olin Stephens designed yacht Santana, and earned a well-deserved reputation as one of the most accomplished racers and skippers in Southern California. Be it a long race around the islands or at anchor off some pebbled beach, Bogie felt at ease amongst sailors, whose respect he had earned both on and off the waters.

During a 30-year boom period in France between the end of World War II and the 1974 oil crisis, Paris was not only the world's most delicious, stylish, and exciting tourist destination; it was also the world capital of gastronomic genius and innovation. The Gourmands' Way explores the lives and writings of six Americans who chronicled the food and wine of this era, paying particular attention to their individual struggles as writers, to their life circumstances, and to their particular genius at sharing awareness of French food with mainstream American audiences.

There are certain moments that simply transcend sports. They become larger than life and bigger than anyone ever thought possible, leaping off the field, the court, or the diamond and into the annals of not only history, but the very fabric of the American milieu. We all just witnessed such a moment on February 5th, 2017, when the New England Patriots battled back from the largest deficit in Super Bowl history to once again become world champions and secure Tom Brady’s legacy as the greatest quarterback of all time.

The late 1890s saw Arthur Conan Doyle return to England after several years abroad. His new house, named Undershaw, represented a fresh start, but it was also the beginning of a dramatic decade that saw him fall in love, stand for parliament, fight injustice, and be awarded a knighthood. However, for his many admirers, the most important event of that decade was the resurrection of Sherlock Holmes—the character that he felt had cast a shadow over his life.

Chiara Luce, a girl full of vitality, suddenly fell gravely ill. And, strangely, moment by moment, a new life full of light began to unfold for her. She was 18 when she died, yet she had lived to the full. On September 25, 2010, Chiara Luce was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI and is now known as "Blessed Chiara Badano".

Ten years after an attack on the US diplomatic mission in Benghazi killed Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans, cries of "Benghazi!" still echo across America. But instead of a landmark event to be taken seriously, it has become a punchline, an empty word, or a code for controversy and political theatre. In this thrilling retelling, Ethan Chorin reveals Benghazi as a watershed moment in American history, one that helped create the world America lives in today: polarized, fearful, and dangerously unstable.

Steven Adams overcame extreme odds to become a first-round prospect in the 2013 NBA draft. From there he signed a major contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder - making him New Zealand's highest-paid athlete ever - and went on to forge a reputation for his intense, physical style of basketball. Adams takes you inside the draft process from the fascinating whirlwind tour of pre-draft workouts with dozens of teams to the draft itself where dreams are made or dashed and the Gatorade bottles on every table are glued shut.

This short story chronicles one particular night in Samantha's life where she attended an ugly Christmas sweater party and crossed paths with a boy she went to high school with. Throughout her senior year, he seemed to linger on the peripherary of her life, though he never seemed interested enough to take action. Now that they find themselves alone in a mutual friend's kitchen at the party, adrift in a sea of strangers, defenses crumble and a true human connection sparks. This short story is told from the perspective of an older Smantha reflecting on her past and wondering what could have ...

Luis Tiant is one of the most charismatic and accomplished players in Boston Red Sox history - a cigar-chomping maestro who was the heart and soul of Boston's teams in the 1970s. Nobody was a tougher competitor on the diamond, and few were as successful. There may be no more qualified pitcher not yet enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame. In Son of Havana, Tiant puts his huge heart on his sleeve and describes his road from fields strewn with rocks and rubbish in Havana to the pristine lawns of Major League ballparks.

Born in 1891, Dorothy Tiffany was the last child in the long line of the famous Tiffany dynasty of jewelers and artisans. As was expected of the young heiress, Dorothy married a wealthy member of the American plutocracy, Dr. Robert Burlingham. But the lackluster life of wealthy young women in early 20th century America held little appeal for Dorothy. Leaving behind her socially prominent husband, she took her children and moved to Europe, where she underwent psychoanalysis with Sigmund Freud.

Antoine Lavoisier reinvented chemistry, overthrowing the long-established principles of alchemy and inventing an entirely new terminology, one still in use by chemists. Madison Smartt Bell’s enthralling narrative comes across like a race to the finish line, as the very circumstances that enabled Lavoisier to secure his reputation as the father of modern chemistry—a considerable fortune and social connections with the likes of Benjamin Franklin—also caused his glory to be cut short by the French Revolution.

On the night of March 2, 1962, in Hershey, Pennsylvania, right up the street from the chocolate factory, Wilt Chamberlain, a young and striking athlete celebrated as the Big Dipper, scored 100 points in a game against the New York Knickerbockers.

The Coach to Como After Gary announces that he will no longer fly, his wife, Poppo books a coach holiday to Lake Como. One week later, with the newly acquired kittens dropped off at the cattery, Gary and Poppo embark on a twenty-four hour coach journey to Italy. While the book itself is a narrative account of a journey to Lake Como, The Coach to Como is ultimately the story of survival, recovery and evolution. A colourful but incredibly honest account of the journey Gary has undertaken since he came to terms with his ego, his internal struggles with life, BDP, Bipolar, loneliness, ...

Created by the founder of Breathing Space Creative Literary Studio, acclaimed writer and editor Chelene Knight, Let It Go draws on personal experience and the advice of leaders from various Black communities to share hard-won tools for joy-discovery—tools such as how to say no with love; how to call back activities that feel good; how to reshape communication with those closest to you; how to revise language; and most of all, how to learn to let go in order to redefine what we think joy is.

This fascinating biography reveals the untold story of the legendary New Yorker profile writer - author of Joe Gould's Secret and Up in the Old Hotel - and unravels the mystery behind one of literary history's greatest disappearing acts.

I Return to Versions of Myself: A Reckoning by Gary Troia is a deeply introspective memoir that delves into the complexities of self-discovery, mental health, and the pursuit of authenticity. This powerful and raw narrative explores the different versions of the author—some hidden, some lived openly, and others that embody darkness, depression, and self-doubt. Troia’s journey reflects the struggle to reconcile these conflicting selves, ultimately seeking the elusive, authentic version that lies beneath the surface. In this poignant memoir, Troia confronts the difficult and often painful...

In 2010, a brave whistleblower alerted the police to Dr. Stan Li's corrupt pain management clinic in Queens, New York. Li spent years supplying more than 70 patients a day with oxycodone and Xanax, trading prescriptions for cash. Emergency room doctors, psychiatrists, and desperate family members warned him that his patients were at risk of death, but he would not stop.

What would you do if your husband suddenly left you with two kids to support? Go back to school? Go into real estate? Or start a new career as a pimp? Upon discovering that sex work is decriminalised in New Zealand, Antonia Murphy decides to build her own business: an ethical escort agency. It seems like a good idea, but she isn’t sure how it’s done, so she connects with the online sex worker community.

Angel of the Ghetto tells the remarkable story of Sam Solasz, a boy born into a warm and loving Jewish family in Poland in 1928. Sam inhabited a protected world until the Nazi invasion of Poland in 1939, which tore his world apart. Ripped from his family, young Sam lived a nomadic and dangerous life. He had to learn to depend on his resourcefulness and the keen ability. He had to size up people and events around him.

Actors, musicians, TV personalities, and other public figures in the spotlight aren’t always who they appear to be. You might be surprised by just how many have led nefarious, double lives, and have become infamous criminals! Power, status, and a rich lifestyle aren’t barriers to criminal behavior. Yes, people from all walks of life commit crimes. But the people featured here are not your typical neighbors or subway passengers—they are household names and Hollywood stars.