Like generations of little girls, Lauren Kessler fell in love with ballet the first time she saw The Nutcracker, and from that day, at age five, she dreamed of becoming a ballerina. But when she was twelve, her very famous ballet instructor crushed those dreams — along with her youthful self-assurance — and she stepped away from the barre.
Fast forward four decades. Lauren — suddenly, powerfully, itchingly restless at midlife —...

Haunted and haunting, Jones's memoir tells the story of a young, black, gay man from the South as he fights to carve out a place for himself, within his family, within his country, within his own hopes, desires, and fears. Through a series of vignettes that chart a course across the American landscape, Jones draws readers into his boyhood and adolescence--into tumultuous relationships with his mother and grandmother, into passing flings with lovers,...

From daughter of musical visionary Frank Zappa. Moon Unit Zappa, comes a memoir of growing up in her unconventional household in 1970s Los Angeles, coming of age as part of the MTV generation in the 1980s as the "Valley Girl," and finding herself after losing her father, then her mother, and the fracturing of her longest relationships. WELCOME I got my first journal as a Christmas gift when I was five. It was hardbound, black leather with gold embellishments...

"The acclaimed literary essayist T Kira Madden's raw and redemptive debut is a memoir about coming of age as a queer, biracial teenager within the fierce contradictions of Boca Raton, Florida, a place where cult-like privilege, shocking social and racial disparities, rampant white-collar crime, and powerfully destructive standards of beauty hide in plain sight. As a child in Florida, T Kira Madden lived a life of extravagance--from her exclusive private...

At the age of twelve, Julia Pandl was initiated into the ritual of the Sunday brunch at her father's Milwaukee-based restaurant, a weekly madhouse where she--and her eight siblings before her--learned not just the family business but also life lessons that would shape them for years to come. Now, looking back on those years, she tells a story that is part childhood memories, part a window into the mysteries of the restaurant business.

"The renowned biographer's definitive portrait of a literary titan. Appointed by Philip Roth and granted independence and complete access, Blake Bailey spent years poring over Roth's personal archive, interviewing his friends, lovers, and colleagues, and engaging Roth himself in breathtakingly candid conversations. The result is an indelible portrait of an American master and of the postwar literary scene. Bailey shows how Roth emerged from a lower-middle-class...

"A memoir exploring the author's father's love of wine" -- Provided by publisher.

"At 35, Elsie Robinson feared she'd lost it all. She was reeling from a hostile divorce to a wealthy man that played out in tabloids across the country and she faced an uncertain future as the single mother of a chronically-ill son. She had no clear means of financial support, no college education or training. She'd hit a wall. At a time when it was thought that a woman's highest calling was to become a wife and mother, Elsie hungered for a different...

Explores the lesser-known tale of George's creators, Hans and Margret Rey. Years later, having heard that Hans was wasting his artistic talents as a bookkeeper in Rio, Margaret traveled to Brazil to persuade him to marry her and do something creative together. Arriving in New York as refugees, they started their life anew and over the next three decades, they created a classic that continues to touch the hearts and minds of children around the world....

"This current, affordable title covers Native American poetry, fiction, and prose. It lists more than 300 alphabetically arranged entries, divided into four types: individual authors, individual works, important characters in works, and terms or events of historical importance. Summaries and interpretive information on texts that would be of use to high school and undergraduate students are provided. This volume would be a useful addition to public...