Collection: Biography & Memoir

An emotional, funny, and fabulous memoir by trailblazing and award-winning Trans actor and activist Alexandra Billings.

Born in 1962, Alexandra Billings grew up in a decade in which being herself was illegal. When she started transitioning in 1980, the word "Transgender" was not commonly used. With no Trans role models and no path to follow, Alexandra did what her family, teachers, and even friends said was impossible: Alexandra forged ahead.

Spanning five decades, from profound lows to exhilarating highs, This Time for Me captures the events of a pioneering life. An award-winning actor and history-making LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS activist, Alexandra shares not only her own ever-evolving story but also the parallel ways in which queer identity has dramatically changed since the Stonewall riots of 1969. She weaves a true coming-of-age story of richly imaginative lies, of friends being swept away by a plague that decimated the community, of her determination to establish a career that would break boundaries, and of the recognition of her own power.

A celebration of endless possibilities, Alexandra's bracing memoir is a fight-to-the-death revolution against all expectations.

When Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin boldly escaped from Alcatraz prison on June 11, 1962, it is widely believed that they succumbed to the waters of San Francisco Bay, though no trace of the men has ever been found, only their makeshift raft. In this reexamination of the escape and its aftermath, the Anglin brothers' nephew presents compelling evidence that his uncles did in fact survive and eventually made their way to Brazil, where they married and had children. Using official; government documents the authors show how mobster Mickey Cohen may have been involved in the escape, some revealing letters from fellow inmate Whitey Bulger, and recorded testimony from the person who facilitated their escape to Brazil, the authors make a strong case for the Anglin brothers' survival. In addition, a 1975 photograph of the brothers in Brazil has overcome all challenges to its authenticity by skeptics. This book provides a plausible outcome to one of America's enduring mysteries.

Perfect for fans of New Kid and A First Time for Everything, a joyful and tearful debut middle grade graphic memoir about one girl being uprooted when she moves to Hong Kong, a place where her family fits in but, for her, it's nothing like home.

Ruth Chan loves her hometown in Toronto, hanging out with her best friends for life, and snacking on ketchup flavored potato chips, which are the best. What Ruth doesn't love is having to move to Hong Kong after her dad gets a new job there.

Her mom is excited to reunite with her family, but it's not the same for Ruth. In Hong Kong, her classes are harder, her Cantonese isn't good enough, and her parents are never around. Ruth feels lonely and completely uprooted.

But as Ruth's dad tells stories about her family, about how they relied on their strength, courage, and each other to survive the most difficult times, Ruth realizes that she too can be strong. Gradually, she puts down roots, knowing that home will always be where her heart is.

From Butter to Dynamite, I Need U to No More Dream, BTS Legends Alphabet is a color-filled, can't-stop-dancing journey through BTS's greatest hits. Written with fascination and illustrated with admiration, every BTS ARMY member should be armed with this brilliant book.

An award-winning journalist tells the inspiring story of her unlikely midlife journey to master the daunting sport of obstacle course racing--a powerful, science-based account of the change possible at any age when we push limits.

In her midforties, Gwendolyn Bounds attended a dinner party where someone asked a little girl: "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

It struck Bounds: In middle age, no one asks you that anymore. So she put the question to herself. The answer set her on an unexpected five-year path of transformation from an unathletic office executive glued to her screens to an age-group medalist and world championship competitor in obstacle course racing--a demanding military-style sport requiring speed, endurance, mobility, and strength.

In Not Too Late, Bounds explores how tackling something new and hard upended her expectations for middle age--while also helping her reconcile regrets of her youth. Her story takes us from playgrounds and gyms, where Bounds relearns childhood movements (swinging from monkey bars, climbing a rope); to far-flung Spartan Race courses, where she strives to master running in difficult terrain and to conquer challenges such as scaling tall walls, crawling under barbed wire, and carrying heavy loads of rocks up mountains.

Bounds's journey offers inspiration and a road map for anyone craving more out of life. Woven through Not Too Late are insights from scientists, longevity doctors, philosophers, elite athletes, and performance experts on how to reimagine our limits and who we think we are. Through Bounds's story, as she changes her body and mindset, we learn about humans' capacity to tap inner reserves, face fears, locate intrinsic motivation, and push boundaries at any life stage.

Ultimately, one message prevails: When unleashing our full potential, age can be a secret weapon.

Find healing and move on from the past in the face of loss, confusion, and pain

"If only I could get some closure..." If you've found yourself saying these words, you're not alone. When you've lost a relationship, a job, or a loved one, closure can seem as elusive as it is necessary. Psychotherapist and relationship coach Gary McClain says it's one of the most common--and important--issues his clients bring up.
In this empathetic and insightful guide, Dr. McClain explains why the promise of closure is so appealing--and why it's not always all it's cracked up to be. He walks readers through what closure is (and isn't), the reasons we want it, how to seek it in healthy and productive ways, and ways to move forward when we don't get the closure we're looking for. Learn how to find peace and leave regret behind when you can't stop obsessing about a fight with a friend, when your world has been turned upside down by a breakup, or when a loved one has died. Whether you're dealing with the pain of loss or are simply feeling the need to tie up a loose end, big or small, in a relationship, The Power of Closure will help you let go of the past and embrace the future.

A frank, raucous, and bawdy collection of essays about coming of age through the oddest jobs, misadventures in queer love, and endearing parenting fails

This is a perfect book for a very imperfect generation. Millennials were the kids who wore slap bracelets and jeans so low rise they could see one another's colons, and they are now adults wondering, Is everyone else as messed up as I am?

In her book, Jess shares relatable tales of a woman who feels like a dumpster fire even with a seemingly ideal set up with a fire-captain wife, three kids, and a mortgage. Highlights include roller-derby catastrophes, a disastrous first night on the job at a lesbian bar, narrow escapes from wild animals, and fond memories of sending printed thirst-trap photos via mail to the lover in Australia she met on the early Internet. Readers will soon cheerfully discover that Jess's voice is infectious, her stories are off-the-wall, and her references are deeply and delightfully millennial.

An upcoming book to be published by Penguin Random House.

A renowned climber and National Geographic photographer shares his incredible adventures--and the early trauma that drove him to seek such heights--in a vivid memoir that spans the summit of Everest to the darkest corners of the soul.

"In order to escape madness, I will live madly. I will risk my life in order to save it."

Growing up in the mountains of Utah, Cory Richards was constantly surrounded by the outdoors. His father, a high school teacher and ski patroller, spent years teaching Cory and his brother how to ski, climb, mountaineer, and survive in the wild. Despite a seemingly idyllic childhood, the Richards home was fraught with violence, grief, and mental illness. After being diagnosed with bipolar disorder and dropping out of high school, Cory subsumed himself in the worlds of photography and climbing, seeking out the farthest reaches of the world to escape the darkness. Suddenly though, in the midst of a wildly successful career in adventure photography, a catastrophic avalanche changed everything, forcing Cory to confront the trauma of his past, evaluate his own mental health and learn to rewrite his own story.

The Color of Everything is a thrilling tale of risk and adventure, written by a man who has done it all: he's stood at the top of the world, climbed imposing mountain faces alone in the dark and become the only American to summit an 8,000-meter peak in winter. But it is also the story of a tumultuous life--a stirring, lyrical memoir that captures the profound musings of a brilliant and unquiet mind grappling with the meaning of success, the cost of fame, addiction, and whether it is possible to outrun your demons. With exquisite prose and disarming candor, accompanied by stunning photos from his career, Richards excavates the psychological roots and effects of trauma and shares what it took for him to climb out.

From the fashion mogul and entrepreneur behind Babes, an empowering memoir about turning what makes you different into the foundation of your success

Ciera Rogers is known for being an "Outsider"--and she likes it that way. As the founder and CEO of a multi-million-dollar brand that caters to curvy women of all shades, worn by the likes of Kim Kardashian and championed by Beyoncé, Ciera has rallied the very women the fashion industry is designed to ignore around the radical idea that what makes you different is actually your superpower.

The Outsider Advantage is for Outsiders like her: the dreamers, doers, and go-getters that society continuously overlooks and underestimates, but who are uniquely equipped to achieve glass-shattering success.

In this bold and inspiring memoir, Ciera shares the moments in her life that left the biggest impact--being kidnapped at a young age by her estranged father, running hustles in strip clubs, living in her mom's red Jeep, daring to post her first outfit for sale on Instagram, hitting seven-figures, and buying a home--and unearths the powerful lessons she has taken away from her past and her unorthodox rise, like how to harness what you already have and how to use your trauma as a motivator. She also speaks to feelings of millennial rage, as on her journey, she came to realize that the American Dream is a lie. But she didn't allow that to stop her from outmaneuvering the system to finally live the life she wanted.

Arguing that what the world calls limitations--lack of connections, resources, fancy degrees, or even the "right" look--are actually our biggest competitive advantages, Ciera teaches anyone who has ever been overlooked, ignored or underestimated how to embrace their Outsider status to find unstoppable success.

New York City's premier "house call veterinarian" takes you into the exclusive penthouses and four-star hotel rooms of the wealthiest New Yorkers and shows that, when it comes to their pets, they are just as neurotic as any of us.

When a pet is sick, people--even the rich and famous--are at their most authentic and vulnerable. They could have a Monet on the wall and an Oscar on the shelf, but if their cat gets a cold, all they want to talk about are snotty noses and sneezing fits. That's when they call premier in-home veterinarian Dr. Amy Attas.

In Pets and the City, Dr. Amy shares all the shocking, heartbreaking, and life-affirming experiences she's faced throughout her thirty-year career treating the cats and dogs of New Yorkers from Park Avenue to the projects. Some of her stories are about celebs, like the time she saw a famous singer naked (no, her rash was not the same as her puppy's). Others are about remarkable animals, like the skilled service dog who, after his exam was finished, left the room and returned with a checkbook in his mouth. Every tale in this rollicking, informative, and fun memoir affirms a key truth about animal, and human, nature: Our pets love us because their hearts are pure; we love them because they're freaking adorable. On some level, we know that by caring for them, we are the best version of ourselves. In short: Our pets make us better people.

From mother-daughter team Hillary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton comes a celebration of gardens, family and tradition, and an ode to mothers, grandmothers and the children they love. Now an abridged board book for the tiniest gardeners.

A celebration of family and flowers, gardens and greenery that shows readers how sharing the things we love with the people we love can connect us.

Praise for Grandma's Gardens

"A deeply affectionate tribute to the bounty of nature and the love of gardening." --Publishers Weekly

"Filled with mindfulness, the story inspires children to reflect on family and keep memories alive." --Booklist

As the rate of children with anxiety climbs steadily, teachers and parents need ways to help children manage their anxiety while at school. In Helping Children Manage Anxiety at School, author Colleen Wildenhaus uses her experience as a parent and teacher to help parents and teachers understand anxiety, create a classroom environment that supports positive mental health, and offers a guide for creating a plan for the anxious child.

How do you help the child who refuses to go to school, sits alone rather than with peers, or defies all requests to complete assignments? While these situations often lead teachers and parents to identify their child's reactions as misbehavior, the truth is anxiety is often the root cause. Using real-life scenarios, easy to implement strategies, and hands-on exercises, parents and teachers will learn that anxiety is treatable with the right tools, allowing them to provide the necessary guidance and support to children who need it most.

Using the information in this book, parents and teachers will have the knowledge to help an anxious child increase their confidence and independence, reestablish peer relationships, improve their emotional well being, and see a rise in their academic abilities. With the purchase of this book, you gain access to over 20 free printable PDFs focused on supporting the anxious child.

Backed by years of personal experience and success, Helping Children Manage Anxiety at School gives parents and teachers the strategies and information they need to positively support the mental health of children in the classroom.

Combining the genres of memoir, literary and cultural critique, and medical testimony, Deformity offers a unique glimpse into the lived experience of a person with a disability in enlightenment London.

A glorious, illustrated, celebration of a lifetime love affair with dining, by the author-illustrator of the classic Madeline series. Here is the best of Ludwig Bemelmans on the subject he loved most: the good table.

The entrancing memories and charming pictures collected here transport the reader behind the scenes of the great hotels of Europe and America--including the immortal Hotel Splendide--and such restaurants as the Tour d'Argent in Paris and Le Pavillon in New York.

Memorable dishes, the eccentric geniuses of the kitchens who created them, the opulent and often astonishing patrons who ordered them, the legendary wines and the occasions they toasted, are all evoked in rich and piquant flavor.

The gifted and exuberant Ludwig Bemelmans was trained as a boy for a career as a restauranteur, and La Bonne Table is in effect his gastonomical autobiography. The high--and sometimes riotous low--points of his life with food, from Austrian cafes to the late, lamented Ritz of New York, are narrated with delight and zest as he celebrates beer and sausages, pressed duck and caviar, and the chefs who cooked for him. He remembers with decidedly mixed emotions the ways of the busboy and the waiter, and the qualities that make up the perfect maitre d'. He muses over great menus and great eaters--and soon makes the reader very hungry.

Here, truly, is a feast of reading on the art of dining well.