A tragicomic story of bad dates, bad news, bad performances, and one girl's determination to find the funny in high school from the author of Denton Little's Deathdate. Winnie Friedman has been waiting for the world to catch on to what she already knows: she's hilarious. It might be a long wait, though. After bombing a stand-up set at her own bat mitzvah, Winnie has kept her jokes to herself. Well, to herself and her dad, a former comedian and her inspiration. Then, on the second day of tenth grade, the funniest guy in school actually laughs at a comment she makes in the lunch line and asks her to join the improv troupe. Maybe he's even . . . flirting? Just when Winnie's ready to say yes to comedy again, her father reveals that he's been diagnosed with ALS. That is . . . not funny. Her dad's still making jokes, though, which feels like a good thing. And Winnie's prepared to be his straight man if that's what he wants. But is it what he needs? Caught up in a spiral of epically bad dates, bad news, and bad performances, Winnie's struggling to see the humor in it all. But finding a way to laugh is exactly what will see her through. **A Junior Library Guild Selection**
It’s better to laugh than to cry. Many years ago, when I was a college student, I took a job peddling mail during the Christmas holidays. One day, as I was passing out the mail, one of the recipients invited me to step into his house for a second or two in order to warm up. “You’ll do a much better job,” he said, “if you rest and warm up for a few minutes.” However, as soon as I entered, his wife approached with three tall glasses of port wine. Not wanting to refuse their kindness, I accepted the offer and drank the wine. How I managed to distribute the rest of the mail to all the other homes along my route is due—I am convinced—to the grace of the almighty God. One of the stories, “The Mail Must Go Through,” will tell you what happened after I drank that tall glass of delicious port wine. As time went on, I began to add more stories, all of them humorous, with the simple purpose of stimulating the reader’s sense of humor. May you enjoy reading the stories as much as I enjoyed writing them.
Introduces readers to prison workers as they share stories, debate the role of corrections in American racial politics and social justice, and talk about the important function of humor in their jobs.
Want to get back to a day when life was easy, children did as they were told and your grandmother cooked on Sunday? It all begins with you. Laughter, Humor and Joy expert Yvonne Conte shows you how in this very different book about Life, Love and Italian Cooking. Includes over 45 authentic Italian recipes from three generations of Conte's. Introduction The Conte Family trace our origin to Amaroni, a small town in the Province of Catanzaro, in southern Italy, in the Region of Calabria. My great Grandparents, Francesco and Francesca (DiVito) Conte had three sons and two daughters. Their eldest son was my grandfather, Antonio Conte. We called him Pa. He came to this country as a young boy and hoped for a good life in the new world. He married Philomena Marrotta and had four children. The eldest was my father, Frances William Conte. My Dad came from a strong, dedicated and loyal family. He knew the power of that kind of family strength and he passed that knowledge down to my sisters and I. Somehow that made me feel very safe and protected as a child growing up in the 50's and 60's. I always knew my family had my back, no matter what. They would always be there for me. I could count on that. If ever there was a disagreement with one of us kids, he would look at us and say, "That's your sister. You're family. I don't want to hear anymore. Kiss and make up." And we always did. My father would not tolerate any sort of discord. We cried a little bit, we laughed a little bit and then Daddy would get us in the kitchen and we'd cook! Somehow a wonderful meal and sitting around the table together made everything alright. He taught me that nothing is as important as the family. He has been gone now since 1995 and much has changed. Our families have gotten bigger and some of our traditions have gone by the wayside. I think that happens in most families as time goes on. I wrote this book because I want my grandchildren to know that same kind of family strength and loyalty that I grew up with. I think it's time for Americans to go back to their roots and back to the values, respect and beliefs that this country was founded on. In the first section you will find a collection of essays. Some essays are funny, some are emotional and some are just my random thoughts. I've tried to be descriptive so that you can almost hear the laughter from my many Conte, Gerace, Scarano and Paone cousins, smell the aromas and envision us around the table. The second section offers the same kind of values, respect and beliefs in conversations with Gary Dunes, a long time fixture in the Central New York radio market. The third section is my real gift to you. I'm giving away all the family secrets! Forty-five recipes from three generations of Conte's fill the pages. I'm telling you, you can almost smell the sauce. I hope you enjoy this book. Of everything I've ever written, this book offers more of me - my heart and soul, my thoughts and dreams, and the food that made me who I am. Mmmm, molto bene! Enjoy. Yvonne "My task which I am trying to achieve by the power of the written word, to make you hear, to make you feel - it is, before all, to make you see. That and no more, and it is everything." - Joseph Conrad
There are so many things that we do not have control over, things that we would not ever choose: cancer, loosing a spouse, tragic accidents. But we can choose how we will handle these things. Joy is a choice that anyone can make but not everyone knows how. Facing cancer, becoming a widow, loosing the future as the author saw it made her recognize that she had to choose a way to deal with the present.
About the Book Jamie and Roxana Merrill lived and loved through ups and downs, joys and sorrows through their twenty-one years together, but nothing prepared them for the Roxana’s multiple myeloma cancer diagnosis. Jamie carries on Roxana’s life and legacy by telling her story, sharing with others her journey, her fight against cancer with dignity and love. With the devastating loss of his wife, Jamie learns how to accept and manage grief. It is okay to be angry. It is okay to find joy again. It is okay to feel what you feel. The most important action to take is placing your best foot forward and complete the story your loved one has begun. For anyone struggling with a loss of a loved one or their own chronic illness, Jamie and Roxana’s story is a heart-wrenching tale, one that is filled with moments of humor and levity alongside the moments of seemingly inescapable grief. Their love story is a reminder to keep living, to keep thriving, and to carry on with your loved one inside your heart. About the Author Jamie Merrill is a sixty-one year old lifelong retail food service operator and consultant who celebrates his colorful past as the stepping stone to getting his life "right" and becoming the man he is today. He is a self-taught bassist and guitar player, with the high point of his performing career being part of the opening act for Pearl Bailey at the old Riverboat Lounge in the Empire State Building. Merrill was born and raised in the Bronx and later relocated to California, where he met Roxana. Roxana has two sons from a previous marriage, and Jamie became a stepfather after their marriage.
A civilian-soldier during WW II who found herself on that stony uphill path where the Women's Army Corps was the unwitting avant-garde for women's liberation.
“No Comprehension here.” Those words spoken by a neurologist to Whitney and Margaret Morse in May, 2005 caused horrible despair but pushed this couple to determined perseverance in a long battle of healing. Mr. Morse sustained in January, 2005 a sub-cranial bleed followed by two strokes. He was diagnosed with Wernicke’s Aphasia, a communication disorder as the result of stroke. In this story of their journey of faith, perseverance and healing Margaret Morse wants to convey to the reader the importance of believing, caring and hope when one is faced with crisis, in this case the results of severe stroke. Dedication: This book is written for those families affected by stroke and it is written for "the one I love."
