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Books > Fiction > True stories > Endurance & survival
The astonishing true story of Beverli Rhodes, child victim of a sick, high-profile paedophilia ring and, years later, of the London Tube Bombings, who rebuilt her life with the help of one very special animal - the horse. Horses saved Beverli Rhodes' mind, and life. As a child, her world consisted of sexually abusive men, and her beautiful saviour horses. She survived to make a life for herself - only to suffer a second, devastating blow when she was caught up in the London Underground bombings of 7 July 2005, in which she was seriously injured. With the British healthcare system failing her, she sought other avenues to cop with severe post-traumatic stress disorder, her recovery directly resulting from contact with horses. She is now able to live a peaceful life, and continues to maintain her strong connection with the animals that helped save her. Moving and at times horrific, The Horse Girl is an extraordinary story of hate redeemed by love, as well as a testament to the triumph of the human spirit over the most terrible adversity.
Starting in the Gobi desert in winter, adventurer Rob Lilwall sets out on an extraordinary six month journey, walking 3,000 miles across China. Along the way he and cameraman Leon brave the toxic insides of China's longest road tunnel, explore desolate stretches of the Great Wall and endure interrogation by the Chinese police. As they walk on through the heart of China, the exuberant hospitality of cave dwellers, coal miners and desert nomads keeps them going despite sub-zero blizzards and treacherous terrain. Rob writes with humour and honesty about the hardships of the walk, reflecting on the nature of pilgrimage and the uncertainties of an adventuring career, while also giving insight into life on the road amid the epic landscapes and rapidly industrialising cities of backwater China.
With one in four adults having been abused or maltreated as a child, Chris Tuck is trying to bring awareness of child abuse and the fact that it's happening behind closed doors in her powerful, new book, 'Through the eyes of a child'. As a child, Chris and her siblings could have wound up being just another statistic of child abuse. For them, it wasn't just one or a few isolated incidents, but a tidal wave of neglect, bullying, starvation and survival. Recent statistics show that nine out of 10 children who have been abused were abused by someone they knew, and this was the case for Chris and her siblings, who were abused by their parents and step-parents. Chris says: "Child abuse never leaves you. You're not supposed to be beaten, touched or starved when you're a child. Mummies and daddies are supposed to love you, not leave you, beat you, or molest your little sister." For many victims of child abuse, they never get over that experience and it will completely change the course of their live. Chris was determined that would never happen to her, and wants to give strength to others who have had the same experience by sharing her story. She says: "No matter what has happened in the past, it doesn't need to dictate your future."
Published to glowing reviews, The Last Mission of the Wham Bam Boys tells the riveting story of a nine-man American bomber crew after they were forced to bail out over Germany in August, 1944. Quickly taken prisoner by a mob of angry farmers, shopkeepers, railroad workers, women, and children, the soldiers were marched into the nearby town of Russelsheim and assaulted with stones, bricks, and wooden clubs before being left for dead at the nearby cemetery. Drawing from trial records, government archives, interviews with family members, and personal letters, author Gregory A. Freeman follows two army officers charged with investigating the murders, and brings to life the dramatic story of how the depravations of war led the citizens of a sleepy German village to commit horrific acts.
The story that became a global sensation: Sophie, the Australian cattle dog who was lost at sea and swam six miles through shark-infested waters to a remote island where she survived in the wild for five months. It was just another day in paradise as Jan and Dave Griffith, along with their blue cattle dog, Sophie, motored out of Mackay Marina for a gorgeous weekend at sea. But when the sky suddenly darkened and the waves turned fierce, the unthinkable happened: Sophie disappeared overboard. Her heartbroken humans couldn't fathom the loss and could only hope their beloved pet didn't suffer. But this true cattle dog and devoted best friend wasn't going to give up that easily--and what followed is a remarkable tale of survival, luck, and persistence. From the first day the Griffiths set eyes on puppy Sophie through that terrible October day she was lost, to Sophie's time as a castaway and the reunion that almost didn't happen, journalist Emma Pearse recreates the incredible journey of this canine Robinson Crusoe. An inspirational story of loyalty and the resilience of the spirit, "Sophie" offers undeniable proof about the unbreakable bond between humans and our pets--and that if lost, they would do anything to come home to us.
Journey Towards the Light, tells of how Suzanne Haslam's life changed after she married a man who turned out to be an obsessive control freak, she found herself constantly humiliated, manipulated and bullied. Her husband was clever enough to make sure her family and friends never saw what was going on, and because the abuse was not physical there were no scars, which she could display as evidence. Her family accused her of imagining it all and even allowed her husband - who was working in the family business - to worm his way into their favour as the one who had been wronged. After seven years of misery, Suzanne managed to pluck up the courage to divorce her husband. However, the stress of coping with the abuse and the tension with her family drove her to a full-scale nervous breakdown and she was forced to take extended sick leave from the nursing job she loved. She sought sanctuary in a remote Spanish monastery, where she experienced a series of vivid psychic events, which ultimately showed her how she could rebuild her life.
This is the astonishing true life adventure story of a plane crash in the wilds of northern Canada...and the four men who survived to tell the tale. On a wintry October night in 1984, nine passengers boarded a Piper Navajo commuter plane bound for remote communities in the far north of Canada. Only four people - strangers from wildly different backgrounds - will survive the night that follows: the pilot, a prominent politician, an accused criminal and the rookie policeman escorting him. "Into the Abyss" is a dramatic tale of tragedy, a coming of age story and a compassionate account of how four men resurrected shattered lives. Like Jon Krakauer's "Into Thin Air" or Sebastian Junger's "The Perfect Storm", the book will trace the arcs of each character's life and fight for survival. It will also follow four men's transformative journeys from the depths of physical and spiritual loss to the riches of lives begun anew.
Vintage Feminism: classic feminist texts in short form WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY JESS PHILLIPS Soldier, criminal, militant, hooligan, revolutionary: these labels Emmeline Pankhurst took up and wore proudly in her long struggle for women's suffrage. This shortened edition of her autobiography tells the inside story of this struggle: the tireless campaigning, the betrayals by men in power, the relentless round of arrests and hunger strikes, the horror of force-feeding. It is a reminder of the controversial means, the indomitable spirit and the sacrifices of life and liberty by which women won their political freedom. ALSO IN THE VINTAGE FEMINIST SHORTS SERIES: The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf
Extreme Survivors tells the illustrated story of 60 of the most daring escapes, famous shipwrecks, and ultimate survival stories. These are astonishing stories of human endurance and endeavour. The statistics, descriptions, archive photographs and illustrative maps will give you a full understanding of how Joe Simpson crawled to safety in the South American Andean mountains, how Anthony Farrar-Hockley evaded capture after the Battle of Imjin River in the Korean War and how Shackleton's men survived the incredible journey by boat to South Georgia. Sixty of the world's greatest survival stories. Here is a selection of them: Survival Stories * The Miracle of Stairway B, and how 16 people managed to escape death in the Twin Towers on 9/11. * The infamous story of the Montevideo rugby union team's plane crash in the Andes, and their subsequent admission of cannibalism - 2012 is the 40th anniversary of the crash. Prison Escapes * Mary Queen of Scots and her escape from a remote Scottish castle. * Three men pull off what is possibly the only successful escape from Alcatraz. * Henri Charriere's (Papillon) five escape attempts from the Devil's Island penal colony. Wartime Escapes * The story of Dith Pran, the Cambodian journalist who escaped the genocide of Pol Pot. * How the German soldier Cornelius Rost escaped from a labour camp in Siberia and trekked for 3 years to Iran. Shipwrecks * Ernest Shackleton's incredible journey to South Georgia to save every man on an expedition. * The story of 18 year old William Shotton and how he navigated his ship after most of the crew perished from a mystery disease in 1893. Hostage Situations * Naheeda Bi's ten years in captivity after her notorious tribal kidnapping in Pakistan. * The dramatic rescue of Ingrid Betancourt by Colombian security forces after six years as a hostage.
Three thousand feet above the Zambian bush, the DHC2 Beaver had only ten minutes' fuel remaining. Night was drawing in; ground features were indiscernible. I could not raise anyone on the radio. Would this be the end? John Flexman knew he wanted to be a pilot from the moment he saw an RAF flypast as a boy of eight. At sixteen he joined the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy, getting his 'wings' in 1961 at the age of 18. From there on he never looked back. His flying career took him around the world, from the Far East to Africa and back again. John came within seconds of disaster on several occasions and often encountered tragedy, losing several friends and colleagues in flying accidents. During his years in Africa he flew the dictator Idi Amin several times, while on the ground he was able to witness the barbaric results of Amin's regime. He went on to fly an assortment of prominent businessmen, politicians and pop stars, from Norman Tebbitt and Rupert Murdoch to Phil Collins and Paul McCartney. John finally retired at 60, having narrowly survived a 42-year career spanning 17,800 flying hours. Aviation at the Edge is his story.
THE ENTHRALLING INSIDE STORY OF THE THAI CAVE RESCUE FROM THE MAN AT THE HEART OF THE MISSION, AS SEEN IN THE SUNDAY TIMES 'The British divers are all heroes' Clive Cussler 'A case study in courage' Ron Howard, Oscar-winning director of Apollo 13 ________ Thailand, July 2018. Twelve boys and their football coach vanish into Tham Luang caves just as the monsoon rains hit. A mile from the surface they are trapped by rising flood waters. All attempts to reach them fail. As hope for their survival fades a retired British firefighter tinkering with homemade cave-diving kit gets a call. Rick Stanton and his dive partner race to the other side of the world. The boys have been missing for days. Each hour, their chance of escape shrinks. Rick must swim, crawl and squeeze through treacherously tight submerged tunnels hunting for them. But that is not the impossible part. Because if by some miracle they're alive then somehow he must bring the boys back out again . . . He doesn't know it yet but all his life he's been training for this very moment . . . ________ 'The riveting, behind-the-scenes story. Captivating' SUNDAY POST 'A definitive view of the rescue. You probably won't read a better-written book about diving this year. I just had to get to the end' DIVER MAGAZINE 'Diver Rick Stanton relives the rescue of the century' SUNDAY TIMES 'Remarkable . . . the chronicle of a man from a humble background who worked devilishly hard . . . and was willing to go anywhere to help people in the most dire cave disasters' WALL STREET JOURNAL THE RESCUE WATCHED BY THE WORLD 'The Thai cave rescue was phenomenally dangerous, and the work of true heroes' iNews '[The rescue] was fantastic, it really was . . .' HRH Prince William 'If it was me stuck anywhere, the one person I would want to come and rescue me is Rick Stanton' Alex Daw, Watch Commander, West Midlands Fire Service 'One of the great stories of our time' Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Oscar-winning co-director of Free Solo 'Rick Stanton is not the most domesticated of men' Sunday Telegraph
An inspiring story of courage and strength in the face of adversity. As a young, dedicated medical student, Antoinette Anthony-Pillai's future was mapped out. But when a routine operation for a tonsillectomy went horribly wrong, Antoinette's brain was starved of oxygen and her life took a dramatically different turn. She and her family came face to face with the harsh realities of living with brain injury. The Never Ending Journey is a moving account of Antoinette's daily struggle to cope with her condition and her fight to regain control of her life. It is an honest, captivating account of the difficulties that Antoinette and her family have faced as they have come to terms with the accident and its consequences. Yet this is not a plea for sympathy. Antoinette has a charming, matter-of-fact style of writing and speaks openly and honestly about the ups and downs of her day-to-day life. As she draws you into her world, you will understand just a little of what it is like to live in her shoes. As she tells her remarkable story, you will see how her faith in the God of miracles and the love and support of her family have seen her through. This is a story of courage, determination and unconditional love. It will be an inspiration for any who are going through difficult times. 'Antoinette tells her story] eloquently and with such a light and humorous touch.' Professor Michael Oddy Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust 'Antoinette's story is a brave and dignified portrayal of life with brain injury and is a testament to her strength in overcoming adversity by helping others. It is heart warming and inspirational.' Dr. Sherrie Baehr Clinical Neuropsychologist / Founder of the Silverlining Charity
Ruth Parry relates the true story of her adventures in China before Mao Tse-Tung's Communists took over. As a single woman she had unforgettable experiences, including caring for lepers discovered in an indescribable state. With her husband Idris she moved to the India/China border, where she continued to work as a nurse missionary, living through unimaginable storms, including landslides. She believes that she and her husband were protected, kept safe through their faith in God. Further miraculous protection was given them during their subsequent adventures in Congo.
"Finding out I had cancer was like going to sleep in my own bed and suddenly waking up in the middle of a boxing ring. Out of the clear blue I am standing toe-to-toe with the Heavyweight Champion of the World, the crowd is looking on, and I am in my pajamas and don't even know how to throw a punch." "Stepping into the Ring" is the 2002 Women of Faith(R) drama sketch by Nicole Johnson, possibly her most powerful piece of writing to date. "Women have always had a unique fellowship of suffering," Nicole says. Where is the woman old or young who will not shed a tear and silently scream in her heart as she walks in these pages through the diagnosis of breast cancer and the devastation that ensues? While she focuses on the specific soul-chilling crisis, Nicole offers her readers broader insights for dealing with major losses of all kinds. She extends genuine hope and much-needed rays of light to those who are mired in hopelessness and despair. A "must" read for breast cancer patients and their loved ones.
Steve Haydock joined the British Army in 1972 aged 15, joining the lnfantry Junior Leaders Battalion, based in Oswestry, Shropshire. On his 18th birthday he arrived in Northern lreland to begin the first of his three tours of duty in the province, with the 1st Battalion of The Queens Lancashire Regiment. He served nine years with the QLR from Northern Ireland to Cyprus to Ghana before becoming a civilian in the mid 1980's. In 1992, after seeing the war unfold in Yugoslavia he left England to join the Croatian Army, to use his experience and skills to help the Croats fight to defend the country and win freedom from the Serbian aggressor. This is his story................
In 2004, Maggie Lane fell to her death from the cliffs at Beachy Head. While trying to come to terms with his wife's tragic death, Keith Lane sought solace by going back to the spot from which she had jumped. It was then that he spotted a woman about to take her own life and persuaded her not to go through with it. From this point on, Keith made it his mission to patrol the area in the hope of saving more lives. For nearly four years, Keith dedicated his life to helping those who felt that they had reached the point of no return. Dedicated and determined, he would be on his watch come rain or shine, whatever the circumstances - nothing fazed this remarkable man. In total, Keith has prevented a remarkable 29 people from going over the edge. In this dramatic and heart-rending book, Keith tells of his own personal despair at the loss of Maggie and how, in his darkest hour, his only wish was to join her in ending his own life; he tells of how his own existence was given meaning once more when he realised that he could help those in desperate need; he recalls with clarity and emotion those he has assisted and he tells of finding love and hope in the form of new wife Val.
Theresa was a normal happy little girl till one day her whole world came crashing down. The first turning point for her was when her father left the family home, she adored her father she couldn't understand why he had walked out of her life. She grew up being bitter to-wards life especially men, but when she was 17yrs she met a young man, and the following year they married . Some years later, Theresa now aged 37yrs and after divorcing her 1st and later her 2nd husband - life began to improve for her. Then one day returning home from work she realised she was being followed, as she neared a row of shops she was suddenly attacked from behind, it was her ex-husband Richard. He pushed her hard to the wall and held her with his body restraining her from running, one hand around her throat the other raised into a fist. She wanted to scream, but his grip was too tight, expecting his fist she closed her eyes and prayed. In desperation she kicked out, catching him on the leg with the heel of her shoe, he cried out loosing his grip on her. She tried to run, he lunged at her once again, catching her by her hair pulling her violently backwards, she lost her footing and fell through the glass shop window. Richard then turned and fled as the shopkeeper, upon hearing the crash, came running shouting -- he would call the police, she was saved. She managed to reach home and once inside, doors firmly locked and bolted, she sank into her big arm chair and sobbed uncontrollably, she was lucky, no major injury's. Life she realised was slowly once again turning against her, everything she had fought so hard for was slowly slipping away, she could not and would not go through her past life style again it was too painful and horrific, she had to fight against the cruel hand of fate anyway she could, her strength yet again would be put to the test. Her only solace was her beloved Adam.
A Malaysian cargo ship on its way from Seattle, Washington to China ran aground off the coast of western Alaska's Aleutian Islands on December 8, 2004 during a brutal storm, leading to one of the most incredible Coast Guard rescue missions of all time. Two Coast Guard Jayhawk helicopters lifted off immediately from Air Station Kodiak during the driving storm in an effort to rescue the ship's eighteen crewmembers before it broke apart and sank in the freezing waters. Nine of the crew were lifted from the ship and dropped aboard a nearby Coast Guard cutter. But during attempts to save the last eight-crew members, one of the Jayhawks was engulfed by a rogue wave that broke over the bow of the ship. When its engines flamed out from ingesting water, the Jayhawk crashed into the sea. The seven-crew members from the ship who had been hoisted into the aircraft, along with the chopper's three-man crew, plunged into the bitterly cold ocean where hypothermia began to set in immediately. Interviewing all the surviving participants of the disaster and given access to documents and photos, acclaimed author Spike Walker has once again crafted a white-knuckle read of survival and death in the unforgiving Alaskan waters.
For the most part, there was nothing particularly unusual about Jean Potter 's life. Going right to work after graduating from high school, she spent most of her career as an executive assistant in several large New York-based companies. In fact, she was working for the managing director of Bank of America in its offices on the eighty-first floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. By the Grace of God is Jean 's story from her upbringing in Brooklyn, New York, to her jobs as assistant to several high-level executives, to her courtship and marriage to a New York City fireman, to setting up a home in Battery Park City, to that horrific day when she and her co-workers had to make their way down eighty-one flights of stairs in a desperate effort to escape the collapse of the North Tower. It 's the story, too, of her husband, Dan, seeing flames erupting from the World Trade Center, and racing from Staten Island to Manhattan determined to help her, but, recognizing his duty as a fireman, stopping to help others even while he anguished over his wife 's fate. It 's also the story of the extraordinary effect living through that day had on both of their lives having to cope with the effects of post traumatic stress disorder; moving because they could no longer live in a home haunted by three thousand ghosts; giving up their jobs, Jean because she could no longer bear working in New York City and Dan because he d been hurt in the collapse of the South Tower; and having to leave the city they had grown up in and loved. Perhaps most important, By the Grace of God is the story of how their faith enabled them to come to terms with their experience and to find a new life of love, hope, and healing.
The thrilling account of the Typhoon FGR4s in the war against ISIS, from the RAF Wing Commander who led them into combat 'Adrenaline-fuelled. A rare insight into the high-pressure, high-stakes world of an RAF fighter squadron at war' JOHN NICHOL ________ 'I eased the jet's nose down and rested my index finger on the trigger. Three seconds to go. Almost 500 knots. The whole airframe pulsed as I started to fire . . .' Mike Sutton led the RAF's premier Typhoon squadron into battle against a brutal enemy. Flying the world's most advanced multi-role combat jet, every mission across the treacherous skies above Syria and Iraq saw him and his team tested to the limit. The threat of being shot down was a fact of life. Every split-second decision meant the difference between life and death. Typhoon brings to life the exhilarating and exacting world of a fighter squadron at war like never before. Strap in, light the burners, and hold on tight . . . ________ 'A fabulous insight into the mind of an accomplished fighter pilot and leader as he takes on the biggest challenge of his career' FLYER 'Gripping, nerve-shredding, captivating, visceral, fascinating' DAILY MAIL
From the pilots, doctors and nurses who spread their 'mantle of safety' throughout the remote inland of Australia, as well as the men and women they treat on the ground, comes a collection of flying doctor yarns as told to master storyteller Bill 'Swampy' Marsh. |
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