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Books > Fiction > True stories > Endurance & survival
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.
The powerfully moving new novel from Sunday Times bestselling author, Maggie Hartley. Fourteen-year-old Shazia has been taken into care after a conversation at school leads her teacher to suspect that the teenager's family are planning to send her to Pakistan for an arranged marriage. To her family's fury, Shazia is sent to live with foster carer Maggie Hartley whilst social services investigate. But with Shazia denying everything and social services unable to find any evidence to support the teacher's fears, Shazia is allowed to return home. But a few weeks later, Maggie is woken up in the middle of the night by a phone call from a terrified Shazia, who has managed to escape the family home through a window. Sobbing, she confesses to Maggie that her parents are planning to send her to Pakistan to be married in a few days, and have threatened to kill her if she speaks out again. Returned to Maggie's care, Shazia is petrified that her parents will track her down and kill her, and Maggie must be on constant alert. But the worst is yet to come when it emerges that Shazia is the victim of FGM. Can Maggie help this damaged and traumatised young girl understand what has happened to her and to find a way to heal? In this new book, Maggie Hartley taps into the highly topical issues of FGM and arranged marriage, and presents a sensitive and unique insight into the effect these practices have on their young victims.
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.
"Impossible to put down, makes you laugh and cry, Sophie's story is inspirational. It gives us so much hope and encouragement. I don't think we would be where we are on our own journey without her advice." OLLIE LOCKE "A read so twisty your heart pounds as you turn the pages." THE SUNDAY TIMES Brave, funny and honest, columnist Sophie Beresiner takes us on her complex journey to parenthood and shows us that there's more than one way to become a mother. Sophie's journey to motherhood began aged 30 with a cancer diagnosis that stole her fertility. Today, Sophie is older, wiser (and agonisingly excellent at hindsight), and somewhat battered. Through interminable cycles of hope and failure, her infertility story spanned three countries, five surrogates and a debt she'd rather not dwell on. Part memoir, part manifesto, The Mother Project is the epic story of Sophie's quest for happiness. Exploring the complexities, expectations and injustices faced by millions of women across the world, it is a book that is both personal and universal.
"A dramatic story, ably and convincingly told . . . A chilling look at the precarious line between success and tragedy."--"Kirkus Reviews" On May 15, 2006, a young British climber named David Sharp lay dying near the top of Mount Everest while forty other climbers walked past him on their way to the summit. A week later, Lincoln Hall, a seasoned Australian climber, was left for dead near the same spot. Hall's death was reported around the world, but the next day he was found alive after spending the night on the upper mountain with no food and no shelter. If David Sharp's death was shocking, it was hardly singular: ten others died attempting to reach the summit that year. In this meticulous inquiry into what went wrong, Nick Heil tells the full story of the deadliest year on Everest since the infamous season of 1996. As more climbers attempt the summit each year, Heil shows how increasingly risky expeditions and unscrupulous outfitters threaten to turn Everest into a deadly circus. Written by an experienced climber, "Dark Summit" is both a riveting account of a notorious climbing season and a troubling investigation into whether the pursuit of the ultimate mountaineering prize has spiraled out of control.
A riveting story of dislocation, survival, and the power of stories to break or save us When Clemantine Wamariya was six years old, her world was torn apart. She didn't know why her parents began talking in whispers, or why her neighbours started disappearing, or why she could hear distant thunder even when the skies were clear. As the Rwandan civil war raged, Clemantine and her sister Claire were forced to flee their home. They ran for hours, then walked for days, not towards anything, just away. they sought refuge where they could find it, and escaped when refuge became imprisonment. Together, they experienced the best and the worst of humanity. After spending six years seeking refuge in eight different countries, Clemantine and Claire were granted refugee status in America and began a new journey. Honest, life-affirming and searingly profound, this is the story of a girl's struggle to remake her life and create new stories - without forgetting the old ones. ____________________________________ 'Extraordinary and heartrending. Wamariya is as fiercely talented as she is courageous' JUNOT DIAZ, author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao 'Brilliant ... has captivated me for a couple of years' SELMA BLAIR
Daoud Hari lost a way of life in Darfur. But amidst the carnage and turmoil he found a new calling... As a Zaghawa tribesman in the Darfur region of Sudan, Daoud Hari grew up racing camels across the desert, attending colourful weddings and, when his work was done, playing games under the moonlight. But in 2003 helicopter gunships swooped down on Darfur's villages and shattered that way of life for ever. Sudanese government-backed militias came to murder, rape and burn. To drive the tribesmen from their lands. When Hari's village was attacked and destroyed, his family was decimated. He escaped and roamed the battlefield deserts, helping the weak and vulnerable find food, water and safety. When international aid groups and reporters arrived, Hari gave his services as a translator and guide. To do so was to risk his life, for the Sudanese government had outlawed journalists, punishing aid to 'foreign spies' with death. Yet Hari did so time and again. Until eventually, his luck ran out... The Translator is a harrowing tale of selfless courage in terrifying conditions.
Barry Woodward grew up in Greater Manchester, England. At the age of 16 he left school without any qualifications and was drawn into the drug scene, experimenting with cannabis, amphetamines and LSD. This led to a heroin addiction and life as a drugs supplier. For twelve years he was totally dependent on drugs, during which time he spent a number of terms in prison. Miraculously, his life turned around completely following an amazing sequence of supernatural encounters.
Travelling the world is an exhilarating, eye-opening, life-affirming experience. But it can also be scary to even think about. There are language barriers, borders to cross, planes to fly in, and of course, the mystery of an unknown land. It can be difficult to take the chance, even when you're yearning for adventure. This inspirational collection of true travel stories proves that the best journeys are to be had when you feel the fear but go anyway. From a nervous flier anxiously taking to the skies for the first time to a female traveller braving the Middle East, from a death-defying hike on an Indonesian volcano to the anxious freedom of finding yourself alone on the other side of the world, these stories are certain to send you looking for your passport. Created by the popular travel writing website, Intrepid Times, as part of an international writing competition that saw entries pouring in from across the globe, Fearless Footsteps is travel writing at both its most exhilarating and its most introspective. Covering every continent from Africa to Antarctica, these carefully selected stories get to the heart of what it means to be a traveller and see the world with courage, open-mindedness, and relentless curiosity.
Rain is lashing down when Barby Keel is called out to an emergency unfolding at the gates of her animal sanctuary, deep in the Sussex countryside. A greyhound had been dumped under the cover of darkness, and is at death's door. In the 37 years she has dedicated her life to the welfare of animals, Barby has witnessed the horrors that humans are capable of, but never has she seen anything as barbaric as this poor dog's condition. Cigarette burns scar his flank, and he is so malnourished that he struggles to stand, every rib showing through his patchy fur. It's touch-and-go whether he will survive the night. The dog, who Barby names Bailey, proves he has a fighting spirit and, slowly but surely, begins the long road to recovery. But Barby is facing her own battle with ill health - one that threatens the future of the entire sanctuary... Will You Love Me? is an emotional, joyful true story of the deepest bond that exists between humans and animals, and shows how in rescuing others, we can rescue ourselves.
The true story of the tragic round-the-world yacht race - now the subject of The Mercy, starring Colin Firth and Rachel Weisz In 1968, the Sunday Times organised the Golden Globe race-an incredible test of endurance never before attempted-a round the world yacht race that must be completed single-handed and non-stop. This remarkable challenge inspired those daring to enter-with or without sailing experience. A Race Too Far is the story of how the race unfolded, and how it became a tragedy for many involved. Of the nine sailors who started the race, four realised the madness of the undertaking and pulled out within weeks. The remaining five each have their own remarkable story. Chay Blyth, fresh from rowing the Atlantic with John Ridgway, had no sailing experience but managed to sail round the Cape of Good Hope before retiring. Nigel Tetley sank while in the lead with 1,100 nautical miles to go, surviving but dying in tragic circumstances two years later. Donald Crowhurst began showing signs of mental illness and tried to fake a round the world voyage. His boat was discovered adrift in an apparent suicide, but his body was never found. Bernard Moitessier abandoned the race and carried on to Tahiti, where he settled and fathered a child despite having a wife and family in Paris. Robin Knox-Johnston was the only one to complete the race. Chris Eakin recreates the drama of the epic race, talking to all those touched by the Golden Globe: the survivors, the widows and the children of those who died. It is a book that both evokes the primary wonder of the adventure itself and reflects on what it has come to mean to both those involved and the rest of us in the forty years since.
From Torey Hayden, the number one Sunday Times bestselling author of One Child comes The Invisible Girl, a deeply moving true account of a young teen with a troubling obsession and an extraordinary educational psychologist's sympathy and determination to help. Eloise is a vibrant and charming young teen with a deeply caring nature, but she also struggles with a worrying delusion. She's been moved from home to home, and her social workers have difficulty dealing with her habit of running away. After experiencing violence, neglect and sexual abuse from people she should have been able to trust, Eloise has developed complex behavioural needs. She struggles to separate fact from fiction, leading to confusion for the social workers trying to help her. After Torey learns of Eloise's background she hopes that some gentle care and attention can help Eloise gain some sense of security in her life. Can Torey and the other social workers provide the loving attention that has so far been missing in Eloise's life, or will she run away from them too?
'Life is not defined by the bad things that happen to us. It certainly isn't for me.' Written for her young son so that he would know what had happened to his mother, Cynthia Banham's inspiring family memoir uncovers a true picture of what survival means: 'This book tells a story that I tried to write many times before, but couldn't. For a long time, it was too painful to tell. It is also one I hadn't known how to tell. It had to be more than a story about surviving a plane crash, a random event without intrinsic meaning.' Unable until now to write her own story, Cynthia found that the lives of her Italian grandfather, Alfredo, and his intriguing older sister, Amelia, resonated with her own. Discovering their sacrifice, joy, fear and love, from Trieste to Germany and America, and finally to Australia, their stories mirror and illuminate Cynthia's own determination and courage in the face of overwhelming adversity. From a remarkable writer, and told with unflinching honesty and compassion, A Certain Light speaks to the heart of what really matters in life.
Praise for Luke and Ryan Hart's memoir: 'A powerful, searing account from incredible brothers and an important contribution to our understanding of domestic abuse' Victoria Derbyshire '... a courageous account of domestic abuse and the devasting impact it has on families' Jeremy Corbyn MP 'Relevant and inspiring' Chris Green, White Ribbon UK On 19 July 2016, Claire and Charlotte Hart were murdered, in broad daylight, by the family's father. He shot his wife and daughter with a sawn-off shotgun before committing suicide. REMEMBERED FOREVER is the shocking story of what led to this terrible crime. Luke and Ryan Hart, the family's two surviving sons, lived under the terror of coercive control. Their father believed that his family members were simply possessions, never referring to them by their names ... just as Woman, Boy, Girl. Written by the boys, but laced with the voices of Claire and Charlotte, this gripping and moving account brings deeper understanding to the shocking crime of domestic abuse and homicide. Luke and Ryan Hart have become spokespeople for the victims who are so often silenced but must never be forgotten.
The gritty and engaging story of two brothers, Chuck and Tom Hagel, who went to war in Vietnam, fought in the same unit, and saved each other's life. One supported the war, the other detested it, but they fought it together. 1968. It was the worst year of America's most divisive war. Flag-draped caskets came home by the thousands. Riots ravaged our cities. Assassins shot our political leaders. Black fought white, young fought old, fathers fought sons. And it was the year that two brothers from Nebraska went to war. In Vietnam, Chuck and Tom Hagel served side by side in the same rifle platoon. Together they fought in the Tet Offensive, battled snipers in Saigon, chased the enemy through the jungle, and each saved the other's life under fire. Yet, like so many American families, one brother supported the war while the other detested it. Tom and former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel never set out to be heroes, but they epitomized the best, and lived through the worst, of the most tumultuous, amazing, and consequential year in the last half century. Following the brothers' paths from the prairie heartland through a war on the far side of the world and back to a divided America, Our Year of War tells the story of two brothers at war, serving their divided country. It is a story that resonates to this day, an American story.
A Different Kind of Daughter is a powerful memoir about a young Pakistani girl who, until the age of twelve, was disguised as a boy so she could compete in sports. 'Maria Toorpakai has risen from the turmoil of tribal life in Pakistan to become not only a world-class athlete, but a true inspiration, a pioneer for millions of other women struggling to pave their own paths to autonomy, fulfilment and genuine personhood' - Khaled Hosseini, author of The Kite Runner Maria Toorpakai Wazir has lived her life disguised as a boy, defying the Taliban, in order to pursue her love of sport. Coming second in a national junior weightlifting event for boys, Maria decided to put her future in her own hands by going in disguise. When she discovered squash and was easily beating all the boys, life became more dangerous. Heart-stopping and profoundly moving, Maria shares the story of her long road and eventual triumph, pursuing the sport she loved, defying death threats and following her dream.
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
Like most Americans at the time, Plennie Wingo was hit hard by the effects of the Great Depression. When the bank foreclosed on his small restaurant in Abilene, he found himself suddenly penniless with nowhere left to turn. After months of struggling to feed his family on wages he earned digging ditches in the Texas sun, Plennie decided it was time to do something extraordinary -- something to resurrect the spirit of adventure and optimism he felt he'd lost. He decided to walk around the world -- backwards. In The Man Who Walked Backward, Pulitzer Prize finalist Ben Montgomery charts Plennie's backwards trek across the America that gave rise to Woody Guthrie, John Steinbeck, and the New Deal. With the Dust Bowl and Great Depression as a backdrop, Montgomery follows Plennie across the Atlantic through Germany, Bucharest, Turkey, and beyond, and details the daring physical feats, grueling hardships, comical misadventures, and hostile foreign police he encountered along the way. A remarkable and quirky slice of Americana, The Man Who Walked Backward paints a rich and vibrant portrait of a jaw-dropping period of history.
Fran Stiff is a silicone gel survivor. Implanted with silicone gel-filled breast implants in November 1981 she was told it was a 'one off' and that the implants would last a lifetime. It was the beginning of a 22-year nightmare. Intended to enhance her beauty, the procedure had the opposite result. By 1983 her right breast had become hard and deformed. The implant had ruptured and loose silicone gel had been broadcast into her breast and other bodily tissues. This was surgically removed and the implant replaced. By May 1989 her right breast had re-hardened, but this time she was unable to find a plastic surgeon willing to deal with it. They were only prepared to explant the implants, because they said the hardening would only reoccur. This would have left her with a grossly deformed chest and no breasts. She refused, deciding it was preferable to live with the deformity. She found herself progressively afflicted with major allergies and rheumatism. It was only in 1997 – 16 years after the first implantations – that she found a plastic surgeon who was prepared to tackle her problems. After a string of operations to remove the remnants of silicone gel that remained in her body and the replacement of both her implants with saline-filled ones, Fran is at last at the stage she had thought she had reached in 1981. Even her silicone gel-inspired allergies and rheumatism has begun to diminish. While silicone gel implants have been banned in the USA since 1992, their virtually unregulated use has continued in the European Union, South Africa and elsewhere. Effectively, women there have been used as lab rats by manufacturers of silicone gel breast implants to gather data for the FDA so that their products might be allowed back on the lucrative US market.
Forced to work in a Hungarian slave labour battalion under the command of Hitler's Third Reich, Steve Floris managed to survive thanks to his skills as a cook and the decency of his commanding officer. After escaping and returning to Budapest, he married his sweetheart, who had also survived the Holocaust. Together they escaped Soviet occupied Hungary and went to Austria. They worked in UN refugee camps, then made their way to Salzburg and were accepted for immigration to Canada.
""102 Minutes" does for the September 11 catastrophe what Walter
Lord did for the Titanic in his masterpiece, "A Night to Remember"
. . . Searing, poignant, and utterly compelling." Hailed upon its hardcover publication as an instant classic, the critically acclaimed "New York Times" bestseller "102 Minutes" is now available in a revised edition timed to honor the tenth anniversary of the attacks of September 11, 2001. At 8:46 a.m. that morning, fourteen thouosand people were inside the World Trade Center just starting their workdays, but over the next 102 minutes, each would become part of a drama for the ages. Of the millions of words written about this wrenching day, most were told from the outside looking in. "New York Times" reporters Jim Dwyer and Kevin Flynn draw on hundreds of interviews with rescuers and survivors, thousands of pages of oral histories, and countless phone, e-mail, and emergency radio transcripts to tell the story of September 11 from the inside looking out. Dwyer and Flynn have woven an epic and unforgettable account of the struggle, determination, and grace of the ordinary men and women who made 102 minutes count as never before.
Discover the brave, shocking and remarkable true story of two RAF lieutenants' capture during the Gulf War 'HEROISM UNDER A BLOOD RED SKY' Independent 'THE MOST COMPELLING STORY OF THE GULF WAR' Daily Mail _________ RAF Flight Lieutenants John Peters and John Nichol were shot down over enemy territory on their first mission of the Gulf War. Their capture in the desert, half a mile from their blazing Tornado bomber, led to seven harrowing weeks of torture, confinement and interrogation. An ordeal which brought both men close to death. In Tornado Down, John Peters and John Nichol tell the incredible story of their part in the war against Saddam Hussein's regime. It is a brave and shocking and totally honest story: a story about war and its effects on the hearts and minds of men. |
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