Collection: Biography & Memoir

From a Special Forces Veteran and the Founder of Ronin Tactics, a gripping memoir detailing Tu Lam's life, from his childhood as a Vietnamese refugee, his military career as a decorated Green Beret, his time as an underground MMA fighter, to becoming the basis for Call of Duty's Ronin character.

Tu Lam is known not just for his remarkable accomplishments in the military, as a decorated Green Beret in more than two dozen international war zones, but for his exceptional work outside of it. His fellow soldiers know him for his successful company that he runs with his wife providing aid to military and law enforcement, as well as his tireless charity work for veterans with physical and mental disabilities. Others know him from his popular History Channel television series Forged in Fire: Knife or Death, or for his appearance in and contribution to the world's bestselling video game, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

His accomplishments are all the more impressive considering that Tu Lam was born in a Saigon basement during a North Vietnamese air raid. He barely survived a month drifting at sea in an overcrowded fishing boat. He nearly drowned in an Indonesian refugee camp. He suffered an American childhood of racism, abuse and hatred. Despite all that, he still returned to conflicted zones around the world to "free the oppressed"--starting with himself.

That decision led him to more than two decades of grueling instruction in every facet of the special forces, then deployment to war and conflict zones--all while channeling his inner anger in secret underground no-holds-barred fighting matches. When he finally retired from the military after more than two decades, his demons caught up with him, leading to years of addiction. But even that didn't defeat him.

Tu Lam's life is, at times, all too real, and at many others times, almost unbelievable. For fans of Jocko Willink and David Goggins, The Way of Ronin is an ultimately triumphant tale of what one man can accomplish against seemingly insurmountable odds.

Muhammad Ali was so terrified of flying on planes, he carried a parachute!

He never read a book--not even his own autobiography!

And he had an official taster to determine how salty his sweat was after each bout!

Wait! What?

Siblings Paige and Turner have collected some of the wackiest and most surprising facts about the legendary boxer and antiwar activist, from his childhood and the spark of his boxing career through his three heavyweight championships and beyond.

Narrated by the two spirited siblings and animated by Allison Steinfeld's upbeat illustrations, Wait! What? Muhammad Ali Was a Chicken? is an authoritative, accessible, and one-of-a-kind biography infused with Dan Gutman's signature zany sense of humor.

From the critically acclaimed, multimillion-copy best-selling Little People, BIG DREAMS series, discover the life of Usain Bolt.

Growing up in a rural town in Jamaica, Usain was a standout cricketeer and sprinter from a young age. His speed was noticed by coaches, and by the age of 14, he was wowing fans with his lightning speed. He took the world by storm at the 2008 Beijing Olympics when he broke numerous records and he became the fastest man ever at the World Championships in 2009 with a time of 9.58 seconds. Despite the pressure and even a few off-days, Usain continued to be monumental in his achievements. Usain's story teaches us that any dream is achievable if you put your mind to it, regardless of what others may say.

Little People, BIG DREAMS is a best-selling biography series for kids that explores the lives of outstanding people, from designers and artists to scientists and activists. All of them achieved incredible things, yet each began life as a child with a dream.

This empowering series of books offers inspiring messages to children of all ages, in a range of formats. The board books are told in simple sentences, perfect for reading aloud to babies and toddlers. The hardcover and paperback versions present expanded stories for beginning readers. With rewritten text for older children, the treasuries each bring together a multitude of dreamers in a single volume. You can also collect a selection of the books by theme in boxed gift sets. Activity books and a journal provide even more ways to make the lives of these role models accessible to children.

Inspire the next generation of outstanding people who will change the world with Little People, BIG DREAMS!

Chosen a Best Children's Book of the Year by the Bank Street Center!

Voted a Best Book of the Year by School Library Journal and Kirkus Reviews!

A biography for younger readers about one of the most influential activists of our time, who was an early advocate for African Americans and for gay rights.

"Bayard had an unshakable optimism, nerves of steel, and, most importantly, a faith that if the cause is just and people are organized, nothing can stand in our way."--President Barack Obama

"Bayard Rustin was one of the great organizers and activists of the Civil Rights Movement. Without his skill and vision, the historic impact of the March on Washington might not have been possible. I am glad this biography will make young people aware of his life and his incredible contribution to American history.--Congressman John Lewis

"'We need, in every community, a group of angelic troublemakers, ' declared Bayard Rustin in the late 1940s. A proponent of nonviolent resistance and a stalwart figure in the civil rights movement, Rustin organized a profound and peaceful milestone in American history--the 1963 March on Washington. . . . Troublemaker for Justice describes not only how Rustin orchestrated the March on Washington in two months but also how he stood up for his Quaker principles throughout his life. The three authors, Jacqueline Houtman, Walter Naegle and Michael G. Long, show the difficulties Rustin faced as a gay black man in 20th-century America, and that he shouldered them with strength, intelligence, and a quest for peace and justice."--Abby Nolan, The Washington Post

"An excellent biography that belongs in every young adult library. Readers will find Rustin's story captivating; his story could encourage young people to fight for change."--Michelle Kornberger, Library Journal, *Starred Review

"In today's political landscape, this volume is a lesson in the courage to live according to one's truth and the dedication it takes to create a better world."--Kirkus Reviews, *Starred Review

"A long-overdue introduction to a fascinating, influential change maker."--Publishers Weekly, *Starred Review

"This biography is an indispensable addition to the literature of both civil and gay rights."--Michael Cart, Booklist, *Starred review

Bayard Rustin was a major figure in the Civil Rights movement. He was arrested on a bus 13 years before Rosa Parks and he participated in integrated bus rides throughout the South 14 years before the Freedom Riders. He was a mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., teaching him the techniques and philosophy of Gandhian nonviolent direct action. He organized the March on Washington in 1963, one of the most impactful mobilizations in American history.

Despite these contributions, few Americans recognize his name, and he is absent from most history books, in large part because he was gay. This biography traces Rustin's life, from his childhood and his first arrest in high school for sitting in the "whites only" section of a theater, through a lifetime of nonviolent activism.

"Authors Jacqueline Houtman, Walter Naegle, and Michael G. Long provide middle and high school students with a biography of Rustin that illustrates how the personal is political. Young readers will take away valuable lessons about identity, civics, and 20th-century history."--Rethinking Schools

Teachers: Discussion Guide Available! Explanation of Common Core Instructional Standards Available! Reach out to the publisher at Stacey [@] citylights.com

A perfect introduction to mathematical concepts for young readers, written by a Newbery honor-winning author!
This colorfully illustrated biography of the Greek philosopher and scientist Eratosthenes, who compiled the first geography book and accurately measured the globe's circumference, is just right for budding mathematicians, scientists, historians, and librarians! Filled with fascinating details about Eratosthenes's world (and in print since 1994), kids are sure to flip through the pages time and again.

"A modern classic of courage and excitement." --The New Yorker

NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING CHARLIE HUNNAM AND RAMI MALEK

Henri Charrière, nicknamed "Papillon," for the butterfly tattoo on his chest, was convicted in Paris in 1931 of a murder he did not commit. Sentenced to life imprisonment in the penal colony of French Guiana, he became obsessed with one goal: escape. After planning and executing a series of treacherous yet failed attempts over many years, he was eventually sent to the notorious prison, Devil's Island, a place from which no one had ever escaped . . . until Papillon. His flight to freedom remains one of the most incredible feats of human cunning, will, and endurance ever undertaken.

Charrière's astonishing autobiography, Papillon, was first published in France to instant acclaim in 1968, more than twenty years after his final escape. Since then, it has become a treasured classic--the gripping, shocking, ultimately uplifting odyssey of an innocent man who would not be defeated.

- Long considered the last word on Hank Williams, this biography has remained continuously in print since its first publication in 1994.- This new edition has been completely updated and includes many previously unpublished photographs, as well as a complete catalog detailing all the songs Hank Williams ever wrote, even those he never recorded.- Colin Escott is codirector and cowriter of the forth-coming two-hour PBS/BBC television documentary on Hank Williams, set to broadcast in spring 2004, and coauthor of "Hank Williams: Snapshots from the Lost Highway.- HANK WILLIAMS was the third-prize winner of the prestigious Ralph J. Gleason Music Book Award.

In the companion to his first book, John Caldwell elaborates on his experience in finding himself, discovering happiness, and leaving a life that told him that he didn't deserve either. In Walking Forward, he hopes to provide hope and encouragement to those who might see themselves in his story. Leaving home at fifteen, fighting within himself between the church and his sexuality, John Caldwell finally breaks free from the shame that haunted him for years. He discovers that life truly begins at the point where you finally have the courage to accept who you truly are. Follow his story as he leaves shame, embraces hope, and discovers who he was made to be.

If there's anything I have learned about life, it's that you deserve to be exactly who you are. By leaning into love, friendship, connection, community, education, and all aspects of life as a gay man, I share several practical life lessons and tools I've learned and applied in my journey to find happiness. While far from perfect, I share an unfiltered view into what it looks like to find this within the LGBTQIA+ community and how you can work to foster community, connectedness, concern, and care for not only yourself, but those around you. Through life lessons and everyday practices, I hope to join you in your journey and help you Own It.

Martha Engber lives a charmed life in the suburbs with a husband and two kids where everything is fine, fine, fine until suddenly she's... completely broken. She's so used to lying to others and herself that she has no idea who she really is or how she feels about anything. What happened? Why is her life smooth driving one minute and totaled the next?

In this sometimes funny, often devastating memoir, Martha describes the arduous journey toward discovering the invisible roadblock that ran her life off course: her psychological distress is the result of being the neurotypical daughter of a dad with undiagnosed Autism Spectrum Disorder, a condition that affects over 75 million people worldwide.

Martha uses personal anecdotes and research about the emergence of ASD as a diagnosis to explain the psychological, emotional and social challenges she faced as a child, then as an adult and parent. Along the way, she shows the sometimes harrowing, but eminently rewarding, route others can follow to chase down the source of their family angst and so reach a more blissful future.

Bear Boy is a true-life coming-of-age story of two bears who inspire one boy to stand up for animals, question authority and discover the power of activism.

"This is a book that will encourage you to follow your dreams...I simply couldn't put it down." -Jane Goodall, UN Messenger of Peace

"An empowering story of a young man who discovered his words count, his actions count, and he counts...Delightful in umpteen ways." -Ingrid Newkirk, President of PETA

"A truly empowering story of compassion, activism, and self-discovery." -Jasmin Singer, author of Always Too Much and Never Enough

Justin is a typical teenager, dodging school bullies and waging an endless war with his parents. But when he discovers Ursula and Brutus-two sibling black bears being kept in horrific conditions at a nearby zoo-his life begins to change. He finds a cause that ignites his passion and an animal sanctuary willing to take the bears. But there's a catch: he'll have to cover the quarter-million-dollar cost.

Undaunted, Justin takes his seemingly insurmountable quest to an international audience, gaining media attention and support from celebrities. With television cameras rolling, Justin fights to free the bears, and it turns out himself.

Justin Barker's surprising and moving YA memoir offers the optimism of the 1990's while exploring timely issues of activism, animal rights, and LGBTQ+ identity with tenderness, unblinking honesty, and heart.

Additional Praise for Bear Boy:

"In this compelling, honest, and moving story, Justin Barker proves that one kid can make a big difference. Old and young, rich and poor, black and white, LGBTQ and straight-we all have the power to change the lives of animals for the better."-Sy Montgomery, NYT bestselling author, The Soul of an Octopus

"Justin sets an example for what a motivated young person can do to impact their community and the world. Written with honesty and humor, it's fun to tag along as Justin fights his long battle to save Brutus and Ursula. We need more stories like this." -Jamie Margolin, cofounder, Zero Hour; author, Youth to Power

How Languages Changed My Life is a collection of stories exploring the importance of languages in shaping the lives of individuals and communities around the world. It brings together writers and musicians, politicians and activists, teachers, students, scientists, comedians, and sportspeople whose experiences are both unique and exemplary. The first-person voices are conversational, intimate and uplifting, but also often very funny and deeply moving.

This book is for anyone who loves real-life stories; is interested in languages, culture, and adventure; and believes in global citizenship. It embraces more than forty different languages and offers a kaleidoscope of individual views that collectively make the case for linguistic diversity being as essential to our survival as biodiversity.

Irrespective of age and background, whether as first-time learners or professional polyglots, all our storytellers testify to how languages have inspired and empowered them. How Languages Changed My Life is a book for our times, reminding us that what we have in common is always greater than our differences.

Victoria Sweet's new book, SLOW MEDICINE, is on sale now!

For readers of Paul Kalanithi's When Breath Becomes Air, a medical "page-turner" that traces one doctor's "remarkable journey to the essence of medicine" (The San Francisco Chronicle).

San Francisco's Laguna Honda Hospital is the last almshouse in the country, a descendant of the Hôtel-Dieu (God's hotel) that cared for the sick in the Middle Ages. Ballet dancers and rock musicians, professors and thieves--"anyone who had fallen, or, often, leapt, onto hard times" and needed extended medical care--ended up here. So did Victoria Sweet, who came for two months and stayed for twenty years.
Laguna Honda, relatively low-tech but human-paced, gave Sweet the opportunity to practice a kind of attentive medicine that has almost vanished. Gradually, the place transformed the way she understood her work. Alongside the modern view of the body as a machine to be fixed, her extraordinary patients evoked an older idea, of the body as a garden to be tended. God's Hotel tells their story and the story of the hospital itself, which, as efficiency experts, politicians, and architects descended, determined to turn it into a modern "health care facility," revealed its own surprising truths about the essence, cost, and value of caring for the body and the soul.

Racoons are not the only bandits wearing masks in the wilderness. Growing up, author Kennie Prince spent most of his time in the woods and creeks near his home in Rankin County, Mississippi. A highly skilled outdoorsman, Prince began his career with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife Conservation in 1983 and dedicated his life to protecting Mississippi's fish and wildlife resources in dangerous undercover work. The Poacher's Nightmare: Stories of an Undercover Game Warden contains dozens of hair-raising accounts of covert wildlife operations, often spanning years, requiring ingenious planning, complicated secrecy, and deft coordination.

Prince infiltrated bloody-minded, wary criminal groups, winning their trust. When his traps were fully set, he involved other state and federal law enforcement officials to bring an abrupt halt to abominable thefts of vast fish and wildlife resources from the public trust. Smart, creative, knowledgeable, tenacious, disciplined, passionate, and a natural-born actor, Prince bore a unique skillset that made him an ideal fit for this perilous undertaking. This memoir details how Prince gained the confidence of tightly knit circles of loyal, leery poachers and put an end to their destructive evil.

Serenade to the Big Bird, first published in the United States in 1952, recounts author Bert Stiles experiences as an Army Air Force pilot in the European theater of World War Two. Stiles enlisted in the Air Force almost immediately after Pearl Harbor, and served as a Second Lieutenant in the 401st Bomb Squadron, 91st Bomb Group, and later in the 505th Fighter Squadron, 339th Fighter Group. Stiles expressed doubts about the conflict, stating that "we aren't solving anything with this war." However, he realized "there is a time when every man must fight."

After completing a tour of duty (thirty-five missions) in B-17 bombers, Stiles transferred to a fighter squadron where he flew the P-51 Mustang. Sadly, four months later, on November 26, 1944, he was killed in action while on an escort mission to Hanover, Germany. Stiles was 23 at the time of his death.

Due to the efforts of his mother, Serenade to the Big Bird was first published in England in 1947 and in the United States in 1952. The book, long-considered one of the masterpieces of World War Two writing, has remained popular due to its description of the tragedy of war, and specifically, the sensitive portrayal of life and war by such a young, gifted writer.

This new edition includes photographs and a biography of the author.

In honor of the one hundredth anniversary of George H. W. Bush's birth, this visually stunning chronicle features never-before-published photos and memories celebrating the forty-first president's vision of leadership as service to country--curated by Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Jon Meacham.

Lavishly illustrated, The Call to Serve is an intimate, illuminating portrait of the forty-first president, a man who was so much more than just his politics. In words and images--many found in a lifetime of scrapbooks kept by Barbara Pierce Bush--Jon Meacham brings George H. W. Bush vividly to life. From the values of integrity, empathy, and grace that Bush learned in childhood to his leadership at the highest levels in tumultuous times, the forty-first president embodied an ideal of service that warrants attention in our own divided time.

Bush pursued a life of service to America through his heroic combat experience in the Pacific during World War II, his political rise in Texas, his serving as U.S. ambassador to the UN, his time as envoy to China and as director of the CIA, his tenure as Ronald Reagan's vice president, and his election as the forty-first president of the United States. Set against the background of America during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, this book commemorates the legacy of a man who was far from perfect--he could be cutthroat on the campaign trail--but whose ambition was not an end unto itself. Bush's drive to succeed was, rather, a means to put the values of balance, patriotism, and respect for others into action in the political arena. Toward the end of Bush's life, the forty-fourth president, Barack Obama, said that Bush put the country first "both before he was president, while he was president, and ever since."

Featuring more than 450 photographs, Meacham's introduction and commentary throughout, and narration drawn from his biography of George H. W. Bush, Destiny and Power, this is an essential tribute to a uniquely American life.