Showing titles in Biographies

She lost her arm in a shark attack and nearly died, but she never lost her faith. Now a major motion picture, Soul Surfer is the moving story of Bethany Hamilton’s triumphant return to competitive surfing and has continued to be a beacon of inspiration to all who hear it. They say Bethany Hamilton has saltwater in her veins. How else could one explain the passion that drives her to surf? Or that nothing—not even the loss of her arm—could come between her and the waves?

The astounding story of one girl's journey from war victim to UNICEF Special Representative. As a child in a small rural village in Sierra Leone, Mariatu Kamara lived peacefully surrounded by family and friends. Rumors of rebel attacks were no more than a distant worry. But when 12-year-old Mariatu set out for a neighboring village, she never arrived. Heavily armed rebel soldiers attacked and tortured Mariatu. During this brutal act of senseless violence they cut off both of her hands.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER From the acclaimed author, gender non-conforming performance artist, and speaker, Alok Vaid-Menon, comes a short, compassionate, and deeply personal primer on gender’s expansive, multifaceted nature. “When reading this book, all I feel is kindness.”—Sam Smith...

In Ginger Kid, popular comedian Steve Hofstetter grapples with life after seventh grade...when his world fell apart. Formatted as a series of personal essays, Steve walks his listeners through awkward early dating, family turbulence, and the revenge of the bullied nerds. This YA nonfiction is sure to be the beloved next volume for the first generation of Wimpy Kid fans who are all grown up and ready for a new misfit hero.

Twelve-year-old Ji-li Jiang has brains, friends, and a bright future. Then Mao Zedong launches China’s infamous Cultural Revolution. Soon school is suspended and students are getting caught up in the fervor of Mao’s extreme politics. When Ji-li’s family is accused of capitalist crimes, all of her beautiful dreams burst like soap bubbles. Because Ji-li’s grandfather was a landlord, her family is harassed and humiliated. Their home is searched, and they live in constant fear. Nonetheless, Ji-li remains loyal to her beloved Chairman Mao....

Like many others on the autism spectrum, 20-something stand-up comic Michael McCreary has been told by more than a few well-meaning folks that he doesn’t “look” autistic. But, as he’s quick to point out in this memoir, autism “looks” different for just about everyone with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Eight proven principles to help you overcome your self-doubt, conquer your fear of the future, reverse negative thoughts about yourself, and hurdle any other obstacles standing between you and your dreams. But instead of letting his circumstances control him, Dr. Carson took control of his...

Every Falling Star, the first book to portray contemporary North Korea to a young audience, is the intense memoir of a North Korean boy named Sungju who is forced at age 12 to live on the streets and fend for himself. To survive, Sungju creates a gang and lives by thieving, fighting, begging, and stealing rides on cargo trains. Sungju richly recreates his scabrous story, depicting what it was like for a boy alone to create a new family with his gang, his "brothers".

Adapted for young adults from the New York Times bestseller, a riveting and true WWII story of a young man--an American tank gunner--who meets his destiny in an iconic armor duel and forges an enduring bond with his enemy. Shut the hatches. It's time to roll out. You'll find yourself behind...

2020 ALA Alex Award Winner 2020 Stonewall — Israel Fishman Non-fiction Award Honor Book The ground-breaking, bestselling graphic novel is now available on audio. In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical...

Drawing from her experiences as an Indigenous scientist, botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer demonstrated how all living things—from strawberries and witch hazel to water lilies and lichen—provide us with gifts and lessons every day in her bestselling book Braiding Sweetgrass. Adapted for young adults by Monique Gray Smith, this new edition reinforces how wider ecological understanding stems from listening to the earth's oldest teachers: the plants around us.

An entertaining and accessible introduction to the radical philosopher of freedom of thought and religion is the only biography of Spinoza for young adults. The second title in the Philosophy for Young People series. Winner of the National Jewish Book Award for Children's and Young Adult...

This program is read by the author. Maggie Nichols’s official memoir is an inspirational tell-all about the abuse she suffered under the US national gymnastics team and how she managed to redefine herself in the face of adversity. With an introduction from Simone Biles. In 2015, Maggie...

Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Finalist! The gripping true story of the only women to fly in combat in World War II—from Elizabeth Wein, award-winning author of Code Name Verity In the early years of World War II, Josef Stalin issued an order that made the Soviet Union the first...

At the outset of World War II, Denmark did not resist German occupation. Deeply ashamed of his nation's leaders, 15-year-old Knud Pedersen resolved with his brother and a handful of schoolmates to take action against the Nazis if the adults would not. Naming their secret club after the fiery British leader, the young patriots in the Churchill Club committed countless acts of sabotage, infuriating the Germans, who eventually had the boys tracked down and arrested. But their efforts were not in vain.

In The Bernie Sanders Guide to Political Revolution, Independent congressman, presidential candidate and activist Bernie Sanders continues his fight against the imbalances in the nation’s status quo, and shows you how to make a difference to effect the changes America—and the world—need to...

William F. Buckley, Jr., was the foremost architect of the conservative movement that swept the American political landscape from the 1960s to the early 2000s. When Buckley launched National Review, in 1955, conservatism was a beleaguered, fringe segment of the Republican Party. Three decades later Ronald Reagan - who credited National Review with shaping his beliefs - was in the White House. Buckley and his allies devised a new-model conservatism.

How to Be Happy tackles depression, friendship, sexual identity, suicide, academic pressure, love, and adolescent confusion. It’s a brave and honest account of one young man’s search for a happy, true, and meaningful life that will resonate with listeners young and old.

Brought to you by Penguin. Take a journey to a vanished world with the ADVENTURES IN TIME series - stories so exciting you won't believe they're all true 'Alexander's mind was clear. It was time to go east. Time to march into Asia, to confront the Persians and to meet his destiny.' Alexander of...

This lyrical biography explores the life and art of Yoko Ono, from her childhood haiku to her avant-garde visual art and experimental music. An outcast throughout most of her life, and misunderstood by every group she was supposed to belong to, Yoko always followed her own unique vision to create art that was ahead of its time and would later be celebrated. Her focus remained on being an artist, even when the rest of world saw her only as the wife of John Lennon. Yoko Ono's moving story will inspire any young adult who has ever felt like an outsider.