Amazing Grace tells the story of the remarkable life of the British abolitionist William Wilberforce (1759-1833). This accessible biography chronicles Wilberforce's extraordinary role as a human rights activist, cultural reformer, and member of Parliament. At the center of this heroic life was a passionate twenty-year fight to abolish the British slave trade, a battle Wilberforce won in 1807, as well as efforts to abolish slavery itself in the British colonies, a victory achieved just three days before his death in 1833. Metaxas discovers in this unsung hero a man of whom it can truly be said: he changed the world. Before Wilberforce, few thought slavery was wrong. After Wilberforce, most societies in the world came to see it as a great moral wrong.To mark the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the British slave trade, HarperSanFrancisco and Bristol Bay Productions have joined together to commemorate the life of William Wilberforce with the feature-length film Amazing Grace and this companion biography, which provides a fuller account of the amazing life of this great man than can be captured on film. This account of Wilberforce's life will help many become acquainted with an exceptional man who was a hero to Abraham Lincoln and an inspiration to the anti-slavery movement in America.

In his groundbreaking book, Marc Hauser puts forth a revolutionary new theory: that humans have evolved a universal moral instinct, unconsciously propelling us to deliver judgments of right and wrong independent of gender, education, and religion. Combining his cutting-edge research with the latest findings in cognitive psychology, linguistics, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, economics, and anthropology, Hauser explores the startling implications of his provocative theory vis-à-vis contemporary bioethics, religion, the law, and our everyday lives.

On February 13, 2003, a plane carrying three American civilian contractors Marc Gonsalves, Keith Stansell, and Tom Howes crash-landed in the mountainous jungle of Colombia. Dazed and shaken, they emerged from the plane bloodied and injured as gunfire rained down around them. As of that moment they were prisoners of the FARC, a Colombian terrorist and Marxist rebel organization. In an instant they had become American captives in Colombia's volatile and ongoing conflict, which has lasted for almost fifty years.In Out of Captivity, Gonsalves, Stansell, and Howes recount for the first time their amazing tale of survival, friendship, and, ultimately, rescue, tracing their five and a half years as hostages of the FARC. Their story takes you inside one of the world's most notorious terrorist organizations, going behind enemy lines with vivid and haunting imagery. Their words conjure a reality that few people have ever encountered from sleeping on beds literally carved out of the jungle to escaping Colombian military air strikes under the cover of darkness to being bound with steel chains by their captors. Describing backbreaking starvation marches and forced isolation, the authors chronicle their confrontations and interactions with the FARC guerrilla soldiers a motley crew of brainwashed, idealistic teenagers and seasoned vet-erans who've been around long enough to realize that the only way out of the FARC is in a body bag.Though the physical punishments their bodies endured were unrelenting, the psychological battles they waged were the ultimate test of their resolve. With candid detail, Gonsalves, Stansell, and Howes relate the perilous mental struggles they each experienced, as they grappled with feelings of guilt, fear, and anxiety for the families and lives they'd left behind. Exposing the transformative power of captivity, they show how they turned these fears into strengths, using their memories and their families, their pasts and their futures, to motivate them in their quest for survival. Despite the odds and the conditions, despite the chains and the silence, and despite the often tense relationships they experienced with their fellow Colombian hostages, they had one another, forging a bond that allowed them to cope with the horrific conditions of their confinement. This brotherhood enabled them to persevere through the worst that the FARC threw at them while always reminding them of their ultimate goal: freedom.A harrowing account of one of the longest civilian hostage crises in United States history, Out of Captivity is a remarkable and compelling exploration of how far three Americans were willing to go as they fought to stay alive for themselves, their families, and one another.

Sandra Day O'Connor, America's first woman justice, became the axis on which the Supreme Court turned. She was called the most powerful woman in America, and it was often said that to gauge the direction of American law, one need look only to O'Connor's vote. Then, just one year short of a quarter century on the bench, she surprised her colleagues and the nation by announcing her retirement.Drawing on information from once-private papers of the justices, hundreds of interviews with legal and political insiders, and the insight gained from nearly two decades of covering the Supreme Court, Joan Biskupic examines O'Connor's remarkable career, providing an in-depth account of her transformation from tentative jurist to confident architect of American law. The portrait that emerges is of a complex and multifaceted woman: lawyer, politician, legislator, and justice, as well as wife, mother, A-list society hostess, and competitive athlete. To all appearances, she was the polite lady in pearls, handbag on her arm. But in the back rooms of politics and the law, she was a determined, focused strategist. O'Connor was the feminist who, rather than rebel against the male-dominated system, worked from within -- and succeeded.As Biskupic demonstrates, Justice O'Connor became much more than a "first." During her twenty-four-year tenure, she wrote the decisions on some of the most controversial social battles of our time. O'Connor's tie-breaking opinions on issues such as abortion rights, affirmative action, the death penalty, and religious freedom will have a lasting effect far into the future. O'Connor also cast one of the five votes that cut off the Florida recounts and allowed George W. Bush to take the White House in the 2000 contested presidential election. With an eye to the American people and a keen sense of public attitudes, she worked behind the scenes to shape the law and transform the legal standards by which future cases will be decided.From O'Connor's isolated upbringing on the Lazy B ranch in Arizona through her time as a state legislator to her rise as a justice -- along the way confronting her own personal challenges and crises, including breast cancer -- Biskupic presents a vivid, astute depiction of the justice -- and of the woman beneath the black robe. In so doing, Sandra Day O'Connor also provides an unprecedented look inside the exclusive, famously secretive High Court.

Within is a masterful assembly of the most personal details and gorgeous minutiae of Frank Sinatra's way of living--matters of the heart and heartbreak, friendship and leadership, drinking and cavorting, brawling and wooing, tuxedos and snap-brims--all crafted from rare interviews with Sinatra himself as well as many other intimates, including Tony Bennett, Don Rickles, Angie Dickinson, Tony Curtis, and Robert Wagner, in addition to daughters Nancy and Tina Sinatra. Illustrated with scores of photos, The Way You Wear Your Hat captures the timeless romance and classic style of the fifties and the loose sixties and is a stunning exploration of the Sinatra mystique.

What is it like to be America's First FamilyIn this wonderfully engaging book, Bonnie Angelo, Time correspondent and acclaimed author of First Mothers, probes two hundred years of American history to tell the story of real life within the White House walls how presidents, their wives, children, and extended families worked to create a home in an imposing national monument while attempting to keep their private lives from the public domain.First Families chronicles exhilarating moments as well as dark days at the nation's most famous address, with fascinating, behind-the-headline accounts of picture-book weddings, gossipy love affairs, rollicking children, domestic squabbles, and tragic deaths. From activist wives Eleanor Roosevelt and Hillary Clinton to reluctant occupants Bess Truman and Jacqueline Kennedy, to those such as Mary Todd Lincoln, Dolley Madison, and madcap debutante Alice Roosevelt, who embraced their new address and status, here is an unforgettable human portrait of our First Families and how they coped, stumbled, or thrived in the national spotlight.

Confident people react positively and successfully to life's problems and challenges. Those who lack confidence often view themselves as victims blaming others or bingeing on drugs, sex, food, or alcohol to mask their feelings of shame or worthlessness.In Complete Confidence, renowned psychotherapist Dr. Sheenah Hankin points the way to a confident life free of self-criticism, anxiety, and immature anger. Her Winning Hand of Comfort technique is a clear, concise, and powerful pre*ion for dealing with everyday situations from resolving conflicts to ending unhealthy habits like overeating, complaining, and procrastinating. This essential handbook will teach you how to retrain your brain to manage your emotions and put your problems into perspective. You will learn how to calm down, clarify your thinking, challenge your blame habit, comfort your negative feelings, and achieve confidence. That is Dr. Hankin's promise.

When Hope Edelman, author of the New York Times bestseller Motherless Daughters, became a parent, she found herself revisiting the loss of her mother in ways she had never anticipated. Now the mother of two young girls, Edelman set out to learn how the loss of a mother to death or abandonment can affect the ways women raise their own children. In Motherless Mothers, Edelman uses her own story as a prism to reveal the unique anxieties and desires that these women experience as they raise their children without the help of a living maternal guide. In an impeccably researched, luminously written book enriched by the voices of the mothers themselves and filled with practical insight and advice from experienced professionals she examines their parenting choices, their triumphs, and their fears, and offers motherless mothers the guidance and support they want and need.

Who's really driving oil and gas pricesHow much oil is leftHow far will Big Oil go to get it, and at what cost to the environment, human rights, the economy, worker safety, public health, and democracy?Here, at last, are the answers we've been looking for and the inside story on Big Oil.In The Tyranny of Oil, Antonia Juhasz investigates the true state of the companies collectively known as "Big Oil," uncovering their unparalleled global financial power, their political dominance, and their increasingly destructive plans for the future. And she tells us what we can do about it.A tool for meaningful change that blends history, original investigative research and reporting, candid interviews with key insiders, and a unique focus on activism, The Tyranny of Oil is required reading for every concerned global citizen.

In this moving memoir, Robert J. Wagner opens his heart to share the romances, the drama, and the humor of an incredible life He grew up in Bel Air next door to a golf course that changed his life. As a young boy, he saw a foursome playing one morning featuring none other than Fred Astaire, Clark Gable, Randolph Scott, and Cary Grant. Seeing these giants of the silver screen awed him and fueled his dreams of becoming a movie star. Battling a revolving door of boarding schools and a father who wanted him to forget Hollywood and join the family business, sixteen-year-old Wagner started like any nave kid would walking along Sunset Boulevard, hoping that a producer or director would notice him.Under the mentorship of stars like Spencer Tracy, he would become a salaried actor in Hollywood's studio system among other hot actors of the moment such as his friends Rock Hudson and Tony Curtis. Working with studio mogul Darryl Zanuck, Wagner began to appear in a number of films alongside the most beautiful starlets but his first love was Barbara Stanwyck, an actress twice his age. As his career blossomed, and after he separated from Stanwyck, he met the woman who would change his life forever, Natalie Wood. They fell instantly and deeply in love and stayed together until the stress of their careers hers marching upward, his inexplicably deflating drove them to divorce.Trying to forget the pain, he made more movies and spent his time in Europe with the likes of Steve McQueen, Sophia Loren, Peter Sellers, Laurence Olivier, David Niven, Liz Taylor, and Joan Collins. He would meet and marry the beautiful former model and actress Marion Marshall. Together they had a daughter and made their way back to America, where he found himself at the beginning of a new era in Hollywood the blossoming of television. Lew Wasserman and later Aaron Spelling would work with Wagner as he produced and starred in some of the most successful programs in history. Despite his newfound success, his marriage to Marion fell apart. He looked no further than Natalie Wood, for whom he still pined. To the world's surprise, they fell in love all over again, this time more deeply and with maturity. As she settled into a domestic life, raising their own daughter, Courtney, as well as their children from previous marriages, Wagner became the sole provider, reaping the riches of television success. Their life together was cut tragically short, though, when Wood died after falling from their yacht.For the first time, Wagner writes about that tremendously painful time. After a serious bout with depression, he finally resurfaced and eventually married Jill St. John, who helped keep his family and his fractured heart together. With color photographs and never-before-told stories, this is a quintessentially American story of one of the great sons of Hollywood.

How to afford kids and teach them about moneyWe all want to raise smart children. But somewhere between the reading, writing, and arithmetic, one of life's most important lessons is too often overlooked: personal finances. As adults, we interact with money every day, whether by saving, investing, spending, or giving it, but we often forget that kids also face these same decisions from their own unique perspective as they mature. How do we teach today what kids really need to know tomorrow to thrive as financially savvy adultsIn Piggybanking, veteran Wall Street Journal personal-finance writer Jeff D. Opdyke provides a clear and effective plan to help parents raise children to be comfortable and confident managing the daily finances of life.But even before kids arrive, parents face a rash of financial decisions. Accordingly, Piggybanking also deals with the essential problems every struggling young family must face, including how to prepare your budget for a child's arrival, how to choose between single- and dual-income lifestyles, and how to plan for funding a college education.With Opdyke's valuable advice, and with his 15 Rules of Kids Money in hand, parents will be well equipped to create a sound financial foundation for their family and a successful financial life for their kids.

The sparkling new novel from the bestselling author of ‘A Question of Love.’ It’s never easy putting down new roots… After the sudden death of her mother, Anna Temple realises she needs to live for the moment and pursue her dream of becoming a garden designer. Swapping hedge funds for herbaceous borders, and shares for scented stocks, she says goodbye to City life for a fresh start in the country. But on the eve of her sparkling new future she meets the gorgeous Xan and their chance encounter changes her world in more ways than she could ever imagined – enter baby Milly. Juggling her new business with the joys and fears of motherhood is a struggle, especially alone and when Anna unearths a long-buried family secret, skeletons tumble from the closet. Suddenly nothing is as it seems, past or present…

Following the hugely popular ‘An Angel Saved My Life’, comes another collection of powerful true stories of communication with those in the Afterlife. Includes real-life amazing rescues, mysterious dream visitations, near death experiences and miraculous recoveries. In the follow up to her first collection of stories entitled ‘An Angel Saved My Life’, Jacky Newcomb is back with more incredible, inspiring true life dramas and what happens when those from the afterlife intervene in our darkest hour of need. The book includes: ? Miraculous survival stories which defy explanation. ? Amazing rescues – mysterious strangers who proved to be angels in disguise. ? People who came back from the brink of death – what is it really like to die? ? Remarkable medical recoveries – spirit intervention to set the clock back on a person's 'time to go'. ? Dream visitations by spirits – angels and spirit friends entering or creating dreams to give important messages. ? The psychic power of children and their interaction with angels. ? Incredible psychic animals – pets who came back from the dead to protect their owners.

The UK's number one TV psychic is back as you've never seen him before. Derek shares stories of his scariest, most bloodcurdling encounters with the other side. From possession by demons, violent spirits that have thrown him bodily across the room and encounters with dead serial killers, to ghosts that have made him fear for his very life, here is a collection of shocking experiences that have made Derek stare into the darkest places of the spirit world. Warning: this is not for the faint-hearted. Read it, if you dare.

Everyone thinks they know the real Gordon Ramsay: rude, loud, pathologically driven, stubborn as hell. But this is his bestselling real story… Humble Pie tells the full story of how he became the world’s most famous and infamous chef: his difficult childhood, his brother’s heroin addiction and his failed first career as a footballer: all of these things have made him the celebrated culinary talent and media powerhouse that he is today. Gordon talks frankly about: ? his tough childhood: his father’s alcoholism and violence and the effects on his relationships with his mother and siblings, ? his first career as a footballer: how the whole family moved to Scotland when he was signed by Glasgow Rangers at the age of fifteen, and how he coped when his career was over due to injury just three years later, ? his brother’s heroin addiction. ? Gordon’s early career: learning his trade in Paris and London; how his career developed from there: his time in Paris under Albert Roux and his seven Michelin-starred restaurants. ? Kitchen life: Gordon spills the beans about life behind the kitchen door, and how a restaurant kitchen is run in Anthony Bourdain-style. ? How he copes with the impact of fame on himself and his family: his television career, the rapacious tabloids, and his own drive for success.

Drs Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz, authors of the million-copy bestseller ‘YOU: The Owner's Manual’, have devised a diet that is so effective you'll notice changes in your body immediately. Starting with a Two-Week Reboot that will help you lose up to two inches around your waist, you will shed your unwanted pounds forever. ‘YOU on a Diet’ is not another faddy crash-diet weight loss plan: you will lose weight – and a lot of it – but you will also gain the knowledge, insight and power to keep off the pounds you lose. Knowledge is the most powerful motivator when it comes to making the right food choices: know the ‘why’ and you'll successfully handle the ‘how’. ? Find out your ideal shape – and how to reach it ? Lose weight without hunger – you need only 100 calories less a day ? Enjoy flexibility – you can still indulge in treats ? Rebalance body chemicals and hormones – these, not willpower, dictate what you eat ? Stop worrying about what you weigh – it's your waist size that counts Roizen and Mehmet's clear plan combined with: ? Amazing YOU facts (e.g. 95% of your body's serotonin is found in your intestines – there's only 2-3% in your nervous system) ? Eating tips (e.g. eating a small handful of nuts before your meal tricks your body into thinking that you are fuller sooner) ? Interactive questionnaires (e.g. are your emotions affecting your food choices?) make this diet one of the most cutting-edge and easy-to-follow of our time. Successful long-term weight loss is only found in one place: YOU.

The former Prime Minister examines the history of one of the great loves of his life. Throughout John Major’s life, one of the constant factors has been his deep love of cricket. In this sumptuously illustrated book he delves deep into the game’s history, tracing its development from its rustic beginnings to the international sport we know today. Along the way he examines – and at times demolishes – many cherished myths. Among the subjects to which he pays particular attention are the changing social role of cricket, developments in the rules, the emergence of the professional player, the game’s spread throughout the British Empire and the part it has played in cementing international relations. John Major’s history of cricket reflects not only his lifelong passion for the game, but the depth of his research among a wealth of hitherto neglected but fascinating sources. It is a significant addition to the already rich literature of the greatest game of all.

When Pete Bennett exploded into the Big Brother house, and into everyone's living rooms, he instantly became an icon. Weird, unpredictable, involuntarily foul-mouthed, beautiful and endlessly entertaining, from day one he was the favourite to win. As a small, sensitive boy, Pete struggled with the bullies and gangs of thugs in some of the hardest housing estates and schools in South London. Despite a tough start, he showed prodigious creative talents in art, music and performance. When Tourette's exploded in his head at puberty, he lost control of his mouth, his body and his face. Unable to finish his education or follow any normal career path, he was led to living the high life and low life on the streets of Brighton. He cheerfully experimented with hard drugs and perverse sexuality, happy to find himself in a world where being beautiful and weird made you a star, not a victim. After witnessing the death of his close friend, he came crashing down to earth. As he battled on with the effects of depression and drug addiction, poverty and Tourette's, a visionary trip to heaven convinced him that the only way he could survive and save his family from penury was by winning Big Brother. After a euphoric victory in August 2006, he is now one of the most famous faces and voices in the country.

A breathtaking novel of suspense from the co-author with James Patterson of five No 1 bestsellers including Judge and Jury and Lifeguard, and the hit thriller of 2007, The Blue Zone GET UP. KISS YOUR FAMILY GOODBYE. GOT TO WORK. DIE… They say bad luck comes in threes. But for Karen Friedman’s family, bad luck is just the beginning. It starts with her husband Charlie’s investments going wrong and the sudden death of a family pet. Then one morning Charlie takes the train to work – straight into a lethal terrorist blast. For his widow Karen and their children, all that remains of Charlie is a shared past. Or is it? When the Friedmans begin to receive terrifying threats Karen turns to Detective Ty Hauck for help. Hauck’s family fell apart too, after a tragic accident he still blames himself for. Now he’s determined to keep Karen’s safe. But Hauck doesn’t know about how people who investigate Charlie have a way of ending up dead…

A queen brought low by love compromised and power abused – the tragedy of Mary Tudor. These are desperate times for Mary Tudor. As England’s first ruling queen, her joy should be complete when she marries Philip, the dashing Prince of Spain. But despite her ardent devotion, he’s making it painfully obvious that he cares little for his new wife – and her struggle to produce an heir only makes him colder towards him. Lonely and depressed, Mary begins to vent her anguish on her people – and England becomes a place of cruelty, persecution and fear. Mary’s terrible fall from grace is seen through the eyes of Rafael, a Spanish sundial maker who is part of the Prince’s flamboyant entourage. He becomes the one person that she trusts, but his life – and new-found love – will be caught in the chaos that follows…

You can take the WAG out of Luton but you can't take Luton out of the WAG…. Tracie Martin is back! But this time everyone's favourite Wag is in LA, City of Angels - and her idol Victoria Beckham… But it's not all California dreaming. Whilst husband Dean swaps life on the subs bench for coaching the LA Raiders and daughter Paskia-Rose is busy settling into her new school, Tracie is left twiddling her manicured fingers. It seems LA's not ready for WAGS - the women are naturally golden rather than fake bake orange, there's no boozing and everyone is thinner than her - surely that's not possible when she last ate a proper meal in 1997? But at least there's plenty of cosmetic surgery… Enter Jamie, a knight in shining Lycra. He'll show Tracie the sights of LA A's sights - including the Beckhams. But is he all that he seems? Before long, Tracie is sampling all the city has to offer - including South Central street gangs and cheerleading lessons. But then her long-lost father turns up - at the same time as she discovers someone has stolen her identity. Can Tracie leave LA with her pride, bank balance and marriage - not to mention her fake tan - intact? Find out in the funniest read this summer - guaranteed beach material.