Collection: Biography & Memoir

The Story of the Visionary Who Led Ghana to Independence

"No race, no people, no nation can exist freely and be respected at home and abroad without political freedom," writes Ghanaian prime minister Kwame Nkrumah in his 1957 autobiography. From humble beginnings in a small village, Nkrumah left Africa to be educated abroad, where he met other pan-Africanists who shaped his political understanding. From the time he returned home to the Gold Coast-then a British colony-his story became one with the his country's struggle for independence.

Witnessing earlier attempts at West African nationalism that failed to support the masses, and believing that a colonial authority would be more likely to relinquish power to a well-organized government supported by a majority of Ghana's population, he formed the Convention People's Party "as the democratic instrument of the people's will and aspirations."

Here Dr. Nkrumah shares his life and evolving political philosophy over his several-year journey toward becoming the first prime minister and then president of the newly independent Ghana. His embrace of nonviolence and promotion of Pan-African unity earned him the moniker "the African Nehru." Writing in his autobiography, he states, "Our example must inspire and strengthen those who are still under foreign domination."

Nkrumah's passion for the independence of his people and for neighboring African states infuses this book with inspiration. Still relevant after six decades, this lucid, personal recounting of a pivotal moment in African political history is instrumental to understanding the challenges facing today's evolving African society.

This book is also available from Echo Point Books as a hardcover (ISBN 1635619130).

Annabel Abbs's Windswept: Walking the Paths of Trailblazing Women is a beautifully written meditation on connecting with the outdoors through the simple act of walking. In captivating and elegant prose, Abbs follows in the footsteps of women who boldly reclaimed wild landscapes for themselves, including Georgia O'Keeffe in the empty plains of Texas and New Mexico, Nan Shepherd in the mountains of Scotland, Gwen John following the French River Garonne, Daphne du Maurier along the River Rhône, and Simone de Beauvoir--who walked as much as twenty-five miles a day in a dress and espadrilles--through the mountains and forests of France.

Part historical inquiry and part memoir, the stories of these writers and artists are laced together by moments in Abb's own life, beginning with her poet father who raised her in the Welsh countryside as an "experiment," according to the principles of Rousseau. Abbs explores a forgotten legacy of moving on foot and discovers how it has helped women throughout history to find their voices, to reimagine their lives, and to break free from convention.

As Abbs traces the paths of exceptional women, she realizes that she, too, is walking away from her past and into a radically different future. Windswept crosses continents and centuries in a provocative and poignant account of the power of walking in nature.

From "Birches" to "The Road Not Taken," no poet has won such a place in our hearts as Robert Frost.

In this gorgeously illustrated collection of poems, readers are introduced to twenty-five of Frost's most beloved works, each illustrated with stunning, full-color collage artwork. Brief commentary and helpful definitions accompany each poem, making The Illustrated Robert Frost among the most accessible--and beautiful--introductions to Frost available. Poems include "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening," "Mending Wall," "Fire and Ice," and many more.

From the Introduction:

SUGGESTION 1: Enjoy the poems. This seems far more important than trying to puzzle out what the author meant (or what other people believe the author meant).

SUGGESTION 2: Engage with the poems by asking questions....

SUGGESTION 3: Be your own boss. Read the poems in order or jump around as you see fit. Share them or savor them all by yourself. Say them aloud or whisper their words in your heart.

Poetry makes life better. There is NO wrong way to experience a poem.

So, read on, dear friend. And thank you for choosing poetry.

Having doubts about your next step? Ask yourself what artist Frida Kahlo would do in this "beautiful volume . . . sure to inspire" (Boston Globe).

Revered as much for her fierce spirit as she is for her art, Frida Kahlo stands today as a feminist symbol of daring creativity. Her paintings have earned her admirers around the world, but perhaps her greatest work of art was her own life. What Would Frida Do? celebrates this icon's signature style, outspoken politics, and boldness in love and art--even in the face of hardship and heartbreak. In this irresistible read, writer Arianna Davis conjures Frida's brave spirit, encouraging women to create fearlessly and stand by their own truths.

Courage, resilience and triumph! Celebrating the African American experience, the extraordinary people, and their profound influence on American history!

African Americans helped build the United States. Their contributions, deeds, and influence are interwoven into the fabric of the country. Celebrating centuries of achievements, the African American Almanac: 400 Years of Black Excellence provides insights on the impact and inspiration of African Americans on U.S. society and culture spanning centuries and presented in a fascinating mix of biographies, historical facts, and enlightening essays on significant legislation and movements.

Covering events surrounding African American literature, art and music; the civil rights movement; religion within the black community; advances in science and medicine; and politics, education, business, the military, sports, theater, film, and television, this important reference connects history to the issues currently facing the African American community. The African American Almanac also honors the lives and contributions of 800 influential figures, including ...

Stacey Abrams, Muhammad Ali, Maya Angelou, Josephine Baker, Amiri Baraka, Daisy Bates, Reginald Wayne Betts, Simone Biles, Cory Bush, Bisa Butler, George Washington Carver, Ray Charles, Bessie Coleman, Claudette Colvin, Gary Davis, Frederick Douglass, W. E. B. Du Bois, Michael Eric Dyson, Duke Ellington, Margie Eugene-Richard, Medgar Evers, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Roxane Gay, Amanda Gorman, Nicole Hanna-Jones, Eric H. Holder, Jr., Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Ketanji Brown Jackson, LeBron James, Mae C. Jemison, Gayle King, Martin Luther King, Jr., Queen Latifah, Jacob Lawrence, Kevin Liles, Thurgood Marshall, Walter Mosley, Elijah Muhammad, Barack Obama, Gordon Parks, Rosa Parks, Richard Pryor, Condoleezza Rice, Smokey Robinson, Wilma Rudolph, Betty Shabazz, Tavis Smiley, Dasia Taylor, Clarence Thomas, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Ross Tubman, C. Delores Tucker, Usher, Denmark Vesey, Alice Walker, Raphael Warnock, Booker T. Washington, Denzel Washington, Cornell West, Colson Whitehead, Justus Williams, Serena Williams, Oprah Winfrey, Malcolm X, and many more.

Completely updated and revised for the first time in over a decade, the African American Almanac looks at the recent challenges--from the Black Lives Movement to Covid-19--and ongoing resilience of our nation, and it shines a light on our momentous and complicated history, the individual accomplishments and contributions of the celebrated and unsung--but no less worthy--people who built our country and who continue to influence American society.

Comprehensive and richly illustrated, it thoroughly explores the past, progress, and current conditions of America. This seminal work is the most complete and affordable single-volume reference of African American culture and history available today, and it illustrates and demystifies the emotionally moving, complex, and often lost history of black life in America!

Mark Twain's Hawaii: A Humorous Romp through History, combines Twain's own writings on Hawaii with personal reminiscences by others who met him at that time, and traces Twain's journey through the region just as he experienced it in 1866.

The New York Times bestseller and International Phenomenon
One of the Top Ten Books of 2015, Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times.

"It's bloody marvelous." - Helen Macdonald, New York Times bestselling author of H IS FOR HAWK

"Captivating... A book about continuity and roots and a sense of belonging in an age that's increasingly about mobility and self-invention. Hugely compelling." - Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

Some people's lives are entirely their own creations. James Rebanks' isn't. The first son of a shepherd, who was the first son of a shepherd himself, his family have lived and worked in the Lake District of Northern England for generations, further back than recorded history. It's a part of the world known mainly for its romantic descriptions by Wordsworth and the much loved illustrated children's books of Beatrix Potter. But James' world is quite different. His way of life is ordered by the seasons and the work they demand. It hasn't changed for hundreds of years: sending the sheep to the fells in the summer and making the hay; the autumn fairs where the flocks are replenished; the grueling toil of winter when the sheep must be kept alive, and the light-headedness that comes with spring, as the lambs are born and the sheep get ready to return to the hills and valleys.

The Shepherd's Life the story of a deep-rooted attachment to place, modern dispatches from an ancient landscape that describe a way of life that is little noticed and yet has profoundly shaped the landscape over time. In evocative and lucid prose, James Rebanks takes us through a shepherd's year, offering a unique account of rural life and a fundamental connection with the land that most of us have lost. It is a story of working lives, the people around him, his childhood, his parents and grandparents, a people who exist and endure even as the culture - of the Lake District, and of farming - changes around them.

Many memoirs are of people working desperately hard to leave a place. This is the story of someone trying desperately hard to stay.

"A work of extraordinary reportage and compassion...[it] will shock you, move you, and leave you changed."
--Matthew Desmond, Pulitzer Prize-winning and New York Times bestselling author of Evicted and Poverty, by America

"An enlightening, frightening, unforgettable read."
--Sandra Cisneros, bestselling author of The House on Mango Street

An intense, intimate and first-of-its-kind look at the world of human smuggling in Latin America, by a MacArthur "genius" grant winner and anthropologist with unprecedented access

Political instability, poverty, climate change, and the insatiable appetite for cheap labor all fuel clandestine movement across borders. As those borders harden, the demand for smugglers who aid migrants across them increases every year. Yet the real lives and work of smugglers--or coyotes, or guides, as they are often known by the migrants who hire their services--are only ever reported on from a distance, using tired tropes and stereotypes, often depicted as boogie men and violent warlords. In an effort to better understand this essential yet extralegal billion dollar global industry, internationally recognized anthropologist and expert Jason De León embedded with a group of smugglers moving migrants across Mexico over the course of seven years.

The result of this unique and extraordinary access is SOLDIERS AND KINGS: the first ever in-depth, character-driven look at human smuggling. It is a heart-wrenching and intimate narrative that revolves around the life and death of one coyote who falls in love and tries to leave smuggling behind. In a powerful, original voice, De León expertly chronicles the lives of low-level foot soldiers breaking into the smuggling game, and morally conflicted gang leaders who oversee rag-tag crews of guides and informants along the migrant trail. SOLDIERS AND KINGS is not only a ground-breaking up-close glimpse of a difficult-to-access world, it is a masterpiece of narrative nonfiction.

In this book from the critically acclaimed Little People, BIG DREAMS series, discover the life of Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning monarch of modern times.

Little Elizabeth loved dogs and horses and dreamed of living on a farm. But, one day, she heard chants on the streets. Her uncle Edward had renounced the Crown, which meant her father would be the next king, and she heiress to the throne. From that day on, she had to learn how to one day be the queen.

When she was only 13, World War Two broke out across the globe. Elizabeth bravely served as an ambulance driver, and after the war ended, she fell in love with and married the charming Prince Philip. In 1952, she was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom, and for the next 70 years she would serve as a beacon of continuity, looking after her subjects and serving the country she reigned over.

This moving 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 monarch's life.

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!

Squarely challenging a culture obsessed with success, an acclaimed philosopher argues that failure is vital to a life well lived, curing us of arrogance and self-deception and engendering humility instead.

Our obsession with success is hard to overlook. Everywhere we compete, rank, and measure. Yet this relentless drive to be the best blinds us to something vitally important: the need to be humble in the face of life's challenges. Costica Bradatan mounts his case for failure through the stories of four historical figures who led lives of impact and meaning--and assiduously courted failure. Their struggles show that engaging with our limitations can be not just therapeutic but transformative.

In Praise of Failure explores several arenas of failure, from the social and political to the spiritual and biological. It begins by examining the defiant choices of the French mystic Simone Weil, who, in sympathy with exploited workers, took up factory jobs that her frail body could not sustain. From there we turn to Mahatma Gandhi, whose punishing quest for purity drove him to ever more extreme acts of self-abnegation. Next we meet the self-styled loser E. M. Cioran, who deliberately turned his back on social acceptability, and Yukio Mishima, who reveled in a distinctly Japanese preoccupation with the noble failure, before looking to Seneca to tease out the ingredients of a good life.

Gleefully breaching the boundaries between argument and storytelling, scholarship and spiritual quest, Bradatan concludes that while success can make us shallow, our failures can lead us to humbler, more attentive, and better lived lives. We can do without success, but we are much poorer without the gifts of failure.

A graphic novel biography of the escaped slave, abolitionist, public speaker, and most photographed man of the nineteenth century, based on his autobiographical writings and speeches, spotlighting the key events and people that shaped the life of this great American.

Recently returned to the cultural spotlight, Frederick Douglass's impact on American history is felt even in today's current events. Comic book writer and filmmaker David F. Walker joins with the art team of Damon Smyth and Marissa Louise to bring the long, exciting, and influential life of Douglass to life in comic book form. Taking you from Douglass's life as a young slave through his forbidden education to his escape and growing prominence as a speaker, abolitionist, and influential cultural figure during the Civil War and beyond, The Life of Frederick Douglass presents a complete illustrated portrait of the man who stood up and spoke out for freedom and equality. Along the way, special features provide additional background on the history of slavery in the United States, the development of photography (which would play a key role in the spread of Douglass's image and influence), and the Civil War. Told from Douglass's point of view and based on his own writings, The Life of Frederick Douglass provides an up-close-and-personal look at a history-making American who was larger than life.

After breaking or tying more than sixty records in hockey, it's no wonder that Wayne Gretzky is known as "The Great One." Born in Brantford, Ontario, on January 26, 1961, in a nation obsessed with the sport, he threw himself into the game practically from the time he first laced up a pair of skates. When he retired from the NHL in 1999, he had led several teams to Stanley Cup victories, competed in the Olympics, and changed the way hockey was played forever. Known for his love for family and as a truly decent human being, Wayne Gretzky is revealed as more than a sports legend in this easy-to-read biography.

A legendary NBA player and beloved teammate shares his hard-earned wisdom about finding your true purpose and mastering your inner game, whatever that game might be.

Chris Bosh is on any list of the Top 100 NBA players of all time--an eleven-time All Star, two-time Finals winner, Olympic gold medalist, and currently the league's Global Ambassador. Always an uncommonly philosophical NBA star, he found himself needing all the mindfulness he could muster in 2017, when his career was cut short at its prime by a freak medical condition. Suddenly, he was thrown out of the work that had given so much more than just a livelihood, and had to think deeply about his identity in the world. This game had taught him so much; what could he make of it all?

Out of that place of deep reflection has emerged an uncommon book for a retired superstar to write. While it has the best elements of a memoir--the portraits of the great players and coaches, from LeBron and Kobe to Pat Riley and Coach K, and the accounts of extraordinary competitive moments--it is really a wisdom book, a blend of The Inner Game of Tennis, Wynton Marsalis's To a Young Jazz Musician, and Rilke's Letters to a Young Poet. It is rich with insight about basketball, but even richer with insight about life. It's a book about finding a purpose that is deep and real, not shallow and external, and about navigating success and failure as the twin mirages they are--pushing past fear, past ego, past fatigue to the pure flow of sustained accomplishment in a mesh with teammates who have given themselves to the same thing. Chris Bosh found that flow, and sustained it at the highest level. He misses basketball keenly still, but he has no regrets. Deep, honest, unflinching, this book is his friend's hand up to those coming up behind, whatever their pursuit might be.

This is the word search that reads like a book; the bold words in the text are in the puzzle on the opposite page.

All the other word searches are the same, just a boring list of words and a puzzle; if you do boring things, well that makes you a boring person (keep reading below so this doesn't happen to you).

This word search is full of interesting facts that will make you smarter. Have you ever noticed how smart people are also better looking (just say'n). Take your good looking self and strike up a conversation about The Beatles and you will soon see that everyone is excited to see you because they know you are so much fun to talk with. Smart, good looking, lots of great friends, all because you like to do "Circle It" word searches; isn't life great!!!

Discover all these great facts, and more, inside this book:

• One of the first instruments that John Lennon learned to play was the Banjo (page, 102).

• Paul McCartney met George Harrison on a school bus in 1954 (page 110).

• Ringo Starr, at the age of eight, was illiterate (page 118).

• George Harrison grew up in a terraced house on a dead end street that had an outdoor toilet (page 128).

If you like this "Circle It" word search, then you will also like:

• Pink Floyd Facts

• 1960's Rock and Roll Facts

• Beach Boys Facts

• Muscle Car Facts

Search for "Lowry Global Media" on this booksellers web page, to see all of our great "Circle It" word search books. They also are a great gift.

About Us:

"Circle It" word search books are published by Lowry Global Media LLC. We are a Ma-and-Pa run company in the great state of Colorado.

One day Ma had a great idea (full story below), make a word search book that reads like a regular book, but bold some of the words in the text instead of just making a list of words to search for in the puzzle. Let everyone have fun reading interesting facts, getting smarter, and enjoying the challenge of a word search.

Years ago my Dad was in the Mayo Clinic hospital in Rochester Minnesota for an extended stay after a complicated surgery. Ma went to the gift shop to find a word search book to give my Dad something to do (you can only watch so much TV before your brain goes to mush), but all of the word search books they had were just boring lists of words printed on cheap thin crappy paper. Ma said, Pa these books are terrible...I have an idea....

Next thing I know (I'm Pa), I am on the internet trying to figure out how to start a business and become a publisher (this was in late 2011). By April of 2012 I had everything set up and was ready to publish our first book, oh but wait, we had to actually make our first book. We figured that everyone likes cats (wrong, I kinda don't), so we made "Cat Facts", published it, and within a few weeks it was a top 100 best seller on Amazon. Holy cow, we did it!!! People liked reading interesting facts and doing our word searches.

Now, many years later, we have published over 200 different "Circle It" word search book titles.

"Circle It" word searches are printed in different locations all over the world. If you buy one in the USA, it prints in the USA and goes directly to you. If you buy one in the United Kingdom, it prints in the UK (employing your neighbors) and goes directly to you. The same goes for: Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Poland, South Korea, India, Australia, and Brazil.

When you buy our books, you are helping to keep people in your community employed with great jobs.

Have a wonderful day.

Punk protagonist, legendary drinker, Irish musical icon. The complete and extraordinary journey of the Pogues' notorious frontman from outcast to national treasure has never been told - until now.

A Furious Devotion vividly recounts the experiences that shaped the greatest songwriter of his generation: the formative trips to his mother's homestead in Tipperary, the explosion of punk which changed his life, and the drink and drugs that nearly ended it.

As well as exclusive interviews with Shane himself, author Richard Balls has secured contributions from his wife and family, and people who have never spoken publicly about Shane before: close associates, former girlfriends and the English teacher who first spotted his literary gift. Nick Cave, Aidan Gillen, Cillian Murphy, Christy Moore, Sinead O'Connor and Dermot O'Leary are on the rollcall of those paying tribute to the gifted songwriter and poet.

This frank and extensive biography also includes many previously unseen personal photographs, printed in black and white.

This is both a fascinating history of the formative years of Alcoholics Anonymous, as well as the bitter-sweet tale of the troubled man Bill W. always referred to as "my sponsor."

In 1934, Ebby Thatcher called an old drinking buddy to tell him about the happiness he was finding in sobriety. His friend's name was Bill Wilson, and this book is the story of their life-long friendship.

"Deeply informative and moving, a valuable contribution to the history of A.A. A 'must' reading for anyone interested in one of the more fascinating chapters in A.A.'s history."--Nell Wing, Retired A.A. Archivist and Bill Wilson's Secretary