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  Elephant Company - The Inspiring...

  Vicki Constantine Croke

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  NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOKThe remarkable story of James Howard “Billy” Williams, whose uncanny rapport with the world’s largest land animals transformed him from a carefree young man into the charismatic war hero known as Elephant BillIn 1920, Billy Williams came to colonial Burma as a “forest man” for a British teak company. Mesmerized by the intelligence and character of the great animals who hauled logs through the jungle, he became a gifted “elephant wallah.” In Elephant Company, Vicki Constantine Croke chronicles Williams’s growing love for elephants as the animals provide him lessons in courage, trust, and gratitude.Elephant Company is also a tale of war and daring. When Japanese forces invaded Burma in 1942, Williams joined the elite British Force 136 and operated behind enemy lines. His war elephants carried supplies, helped build bridges, and transported the sick and elderly over treacherous mountain terrain. As the occupying authorities put a price on his head, Williams and his elephants faced their most perilous test. Elephant Company, cornered by the enemy, attempted a desperate escape: a risky trek over the mountainous border to India, with a bedraggled group of refugees in tow. Part biography, part war epic, Elephant Company is an inspirational narrative that illuminates a little-known chapter in the annals of wartime heroism.

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  Survival Lessons

  Alice Hoffman

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  One of America’s most beloved writers shares suggestions for finding beauty in the world even during the toughest times. 
  Fifteen years ago, Alice Hoffman received a diagnosis that changed everything about the life she’d been living. Most significant—aside from the grueling physical ordeal she underwent—was the way it changed how she felt inside and what she thought she ought to be doing with her days. Now she has written the book that she needed to read then. In this honest, wise, and upbeat guide, Alice Hoffman provides a road map for the making of one’s life into the very best it can be. As she says, “In many ways I wrote this book to remind myself of the beauty of life, something that’s all too easy to overlook during the crisis of illness or loss. There were many times when I forgot about roses and starry nights. I forgot that our lives are made up of equal parts sorrow and joy, and that it’s impossible to have one without the other. . . . I wrote to remind myself that in the darkest hour the roses still bloom, the stars still come out at night. And to remind myself that, despite everything that was happening to me, there were still some choices I could make.”

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  When the War Never Ends - The...

  Leah Wizelman

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  Veterans with PTSD speak: “Anyone wanting to understand what it is to have a ‘flashback’ will learn more from these firsthand accounts than from any textbook.” ―The British Journal of Psychiatry   The chances of service members developing PTSD after military-related traumas is, according to a U.S. study, at least thirty percent. The effects can be devastating, ranging from distressing flashbacks to nightmares, sleep disorders, physical symptoms, irritability, aggressions, and memory and concentration problems. These symptoms often cause severe impairment in all areas of life and may lead to despair and hopelessness. PTSD is neither a localized nor a temporary problem.    Here, Leah Wizelman relates the true stories of service members from different service branches and ranks from the United States, Canada, Australia, and Germany, who were participants in various wars (Vietnam, Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, Grenada) and peace missions (Kosovo, Bosnia, Croatia, Cambodia, Somalia, Cyprus, Haiti). They talk openly about their lives after trauma and share their fates with the reader. Spouses of affected military members also tell their stories. They talk about the challenges loved ones face when living with a partner with PTSD, how it affects their children, and how they manage to cope.    As these stories show all too vividly, military-related PTSD has not been dealt with effectively or with enough empathy or sympathy. Those affected by PTSD will realize that they are not alone in their suffering—and others will gain insight into the realities of this challenging disorder.   “I highly recommend this volume to all who seek to understand combat-related PTSD.” —Kathryn M. Magruder, MPH., PhD, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Military Science Division, Medical University of South Carolina

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  The Undercover Nazi Hunter -...

  Wolf Frank

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  A 1949 series of articles on life in post-World War II Germany, written by an undercover German reporter for an American paper—and the story behind them.   Wolfe Frank was chief interpreter at the Nuremberg Trials where he was dubbed “The Voice of Doom.” A playboy turned resistance worker branded an “enemy of the state—to be shot on sight,” he had fled Germany for England in 1937. Initially interned as an “enemy alien,” he was later allowed to join the British Army where he rose to the rank of captain. Unable to speak English when he arrived, he became, by the time of the trials, the finest interpreter in the world.   In the months following the trials, the misinformation coming out of Germany began to alarm Frank, so in 1949, backed by the New York Herald Tribune, he returned to the homeland he once fled to go undercover and report on German post-war life. He worked alongside Germans in factories, on the docks, in a refugee camp, and elsewhere. Carrying false papers, he sought objective answers to many questions including refugees, anti-Semitism, morality, de-Nazification, religion, and nationalism. Among the many surprises in Frank’s work was his single-handedly tracking down and arresting the SS General ranked fourth on the Allies most wanted list—and personally taking and transcribing the Nazi’s confession.  The Undercover Nazi Hunter not only reproduces Frank’s series of articles (as he wrote them) and a translation of the confession—which until now has never been seen in the public domain—but also reveals the fascinating behind-the-scenes story of a great American newspaper agonizing over how to manage this unique opportunity and these important exposés.

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  Encounters of a Wayward Sailor

  Tristan Jones

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  From the acclaimed teller of such classic yarns as A STEADY TRADE, THE INCREDIBLE VOYAGE, and HEART OF OAK, ENCOUNTERS OF A WAYWARD SAILOR is wonderful collection of true stories from one of the great storytellers of the sea.Drawing on experiences from a lifetime at sea, Tristan Jones uses his acute powers of observation and his gift with for telling tales to transport us aboard boats struggling through savage gales, sweltering through parched calms, and sliding down the trade winds through beautiful, phosphorescent seas. With a special poignancy and his unique, wry sense of humor, Jones brings back to life people--like sailing adventurer Bill Tilman, long-distance voyager Bernard Moitessier, and pioneering woman sailor Clare Francis--as well as the places and boats lost to time. He recalls his favorite ports, his treasured cities, and his most memorable voyages.

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  Life of Samuel Johnson (Unabridged)

  James Boswell

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  The literary critic Samuel Johnson was 54 when he first encountered James Boswell; the friendship that developed spawned one of the greatest biographies in the history of world literature. The book is full of humorous anecdote and rich characterization, and paints a vivid picture of 18th-century London, peopled by prominent personalities of the time such as Sir Joshua Reynolds, John Wilkes, Oliver Goldsmith and David Garrick. It also gives insight into Johnson's depression, fear of death, intellectual brilliance and rough humour.

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