Not too long ago, I was at dinner with my husband and some of his business associates. Somehow the subject of "Hollywood children" came up and I confessed that although I was raised in Canada, I was, indeed, the daughter of a "star." "Who?" They wanted to know. "Lorne Greene," I said, really not expecting them to remember who he was. "Wait a minute," one of them said, "I thought he was my father." I am always amazed at the response I get from people about my father. To me he was a very private man with a public persona who happened to be extremely recognizable. To the public, however, he was larger than life, a hero, yet someone with whom everyone felt a certain warm intimacy. Today, some forty years after Bonanza first aired, he is just as recognizable as ever, to all the families who welcomed him into their homes every Sunday night for fourteen years and to all of those who still see him in syndication around the globe.
Leigh Ann Walker's efforts to learn about her deceased father began in earnest five years ago, but really, the journey started in 1971 when Verlon "Rube" Walker died. He was the third base coach for the Chicago Cubs when he died of leukemia at just 42 years old. Leigh Ann was 3. It was a loss impacting the Walker family, their friends, the Chicago Cubs family and eventually people that Verlon (or "Rube") never even met. But his death was profound for Leigh Ann because he was "daddy" and she barely knew him before he died. The loss of his good night hugs, his voice, and his very presence in her young life touched every aspect of her life. Leigh Ann needed a way to face the loss and the resulting uncertainty of the father she didn't know. Her story chronicles her discoveries and reflections. It is a love story, to be sure, but also a detective story and a journey to the baseball family that called Verlon Walker one of their own. When Leigh Ann talked with her mother, uncles, former baseball players -- including Hall of Famers Ferguson Jenkins and Billy Williams -- and former batboys and coaches, she learned about her father from the people who knew him best and honored him with the Rube Walker Blood Center at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Verlon (or "Rube") was kind, smart, self-effacing and devoted to all the loves of his life baseball, his wife and his daughter. Leigh Ann put the puzzle together of a man who was everything she'd hoped he would be. And while it didn't make her loss any easier all these years later, her journey toward learning about him answered the questions she needed to ask. This is a story for anyone who has suffered the loss of a loved one and could never find a place for the grief to reside or an answer for the "why?" It offers a way to accept what happened and a realization that, as much as those losses hurt and always will, there is always a way forward.
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Finalist for the NAACP Image Award for "Outstanding Literary Work" "Valerie has been one of Barack and my closest confidantes for decades... the world would feel a lot better if there were more people like Valerie blazing the trail for the rest of us."--Michelle Obama "The ultimate Obama insider" (The New York Times) and longest-serving senior advisor in the Obama White House shares her journey as a daughter, mother, lawyer, business leader, public servant, and leader in government at a historic moment in American history. When Valerie Jarrett interviewed a promising young lawyer named Michelle Robinson in July 1991 for a job in Chicago city government, neither knew that it was the first step on a path that would end in the White House. Jarrett soon became Michelle and Barack Obama's trusted personal adviser and family confidante; in the White House, she was known as the one who "got" him and helped him engage his public life. Jarrett joined the White House team on January 20, 2009 and departed with the First Family on January 20, 2017, and she was in the room--in the Oval Office, on Air Force One, and everywhere else--when it all happened. No one has as intimate a view of the Obama Years, nor one that reaches back as many decades, as Jarrett shares in Finding My Voice. Born in Iran (where her father, a doctor, sought a better job than he could find in segregated America), Jarrett grew up in Chicago in the 60s as racial and gender barriers were being challenged. A single mother stagnating in corporate law, she found her voice in Harold Washington's historic administration, where she began a remarkable journey, ultimately becoming one of the most visible and influential African-American women of the twenty-first century. From her work ensuring equality for women and girls, advancing civil rights, reforming our criminal justice system, and improving the lives of working families, to the real stories behind some of the most stirring moments of the Obama presidency, Jarrett shares her forthright, optimistic perspective on the importance of leadership and the responsibilities of citizenship in the twenty-first century, inspiring readers to lift their own voices.
A personal story of learning to trust our heavenly Father when you feel your earthly father has let you down. Blair Linne’s personal story of growing up without a father at home reflects the experiences of millions. She weaves her personal story with thoughtful theological reflection, inviting readers to learn from God what "father" really means and to trust him, even if they feel their earthly father has let them down. This book will help readers to shift their eyes from what they do not have in their earthly fathers (who, whether present or absent, loving or the opposite, can never be perfect) to what they do have in their eternal Father, who will never disappoint, reject or abandon them. Readers will see that the gospel promises not just forgiveness but also a place in God's family, experienced in a local church, where they can enjoy the fullness of his fatherly joy, care, wisdom, provision, protection and security. Also includes a chapter by Blair’s husband, the Christian hip-hop artist Shai, on his own story of fatherlessness and faith.
The twenty-five luminous and intensely personal essays in this collection are, like Andre Dubus's celebrated short stories, a testament to the author's vulnerability, vision, and indestructible faith. Since losing one leg and the use of the other in a 1986 accident, Dubus has experienced despair, learned acceptance, and, finally, found joy in the sacramental magic of even the most quotidian tasks. Whether he is writing of the relationship with his father, the rape of his beloved sister, his Catholic faith, the suicide of a gay naval officer, his admiration for fellow writers like Hemingway and Mailer, or the simple act of making sandwiches for his daughters' lunchboxes, Dubus cuts straight to the heart of things. Here we have a master at the height of his powers, an artist whose work "is suffused with grace, bathed in a kind of spiritual glow" (The New York Times Book Review).
When Michael Bishope learned he was going to be a father for the first time, his lifelong dream was about to come true. Due to a tragic accident, Michael lost his family as a child, and Michael dreamed of one day having a family of his own. Now that his wife is pregnant, he just couldn't wait. Michael was walking on cloud 9. But soon after he learned of his wife's pregnancy, Michael was hit by a harsh reality; that his wife wanted to abort his child without an explanation. Michael was beside himself with worry and stress. He loved his wife deeply, and for the life of him, he just couldn't figure out why she wanted to abort his child. At the suggestion of his closest friend, Michael decided to take his wife to court to stop her from having an abortion. Fighting for the life of his unborn son, Michael Bishope fights more than just his wife, the courts system, and the world media. It was a fight that he just wasn't ready for. Nobody would ever be ready for a fight like this. When Susan Bishope learned she was indeed pregnant, the life she thought was once buried long behind her came rushing back and brought with it the many altered personalities she once used as a safety mechanism just to survive as a child and a teen. That was until she made her grand escape and buried her past tormented life behind her. She ran as fast and as far as she could and created a whole new world and life for herself. A life that would be pain free with no more abuse, a life that had a future that was far from the place from where she came. But when the one thing she was warned against, the very thing that could threaten any dream of a new happy life confronted her, she knew nothing could stop the events that were to be unleashed onto her new life of happiness and love. In her mind she knew she could never truly be happy anymore, not after this. She knew there was only depression, agony, and at worst case scenario even death for her ahead. Why did she let the one thing happen that she was repeatedly warned against? If she could have only listened, she could have led a long happy life with her new husband she loved so much. Her overall outlook now was very bleak and for good reason. During her last court appearance, Susan has a conversation with a friend who isn't actually there. She had her one-sided conversation in front of her husband, the lawyers, the judge, and the world media. The judge became irate and ruled against her in Michael's lawsuit. In a bittersweet moment, Michael felt victorious, but now he must find the answers to the confusing unanswered questions that are lingering and driving him crazy. In order for him to raise his child, he must cut through the lies and find the answers his wife never told him about. And now on his own, he begins the journey of finding the answers that tore his world apart.
Agastya Raj has a stroke that leaves him paralyzed from the neck down and unable to speak. As he lies in bed enveloped by a circle of love and care orchestrated by his wife Khushi, he shares with us the tumultuous thoughts that swirl in his mind. In this fictionalized narrative, Rima Pande immerses herself in her father’s consciousness to become his voice, bringing to you the story of her parents, her father’s illness and her powerful, giving mother. His Voice is a sensitive portrayal of deep family roots and often unspoken bonds across four generations. With plenty of little twists in between that will make you nod and smile.
The inspiring true story of a young woman who became deaf at age 19 while pursuing a degree in music--and how she overcame adversity and found the courage to live out her dreams.
Eddie K. Wrights memoir detailing the controversial experience of being the young father of a son who would grow up to be the gayest man on the planet! His "NO SON OF MINE!!" street gangster mentality evolves during his difficult life journey coming to realize that his responsibility as a loving father didn't change just because his son is gay. The book is scheduled for publication on June 1, 2016. In his first memoir, Eddie shares his story of becoming a father at 18 years old who realized his son was showing 'stereotypical' signs of being gay while still in diapers. Spending most of his adult life engulfed in the street gangster/hip hop culture where this subject was not only hushed, but deeply frowned upon, he gives us the voice for what's been kept silent for far too long, confronting almost every aspect of this taboo topic. It took years for him to silently accept his son's homosexuality himself, regardless of all the signs. When his son was five years old, his favorite color was pink and there was nothing Dad could do about it. By the age of fourteen; he was an internet sensation, dancing on YouTube building his fan base to guarantee his success when performing as a drag queen a few years later. Eddie addresses the questions most are scared to ask; Was there anything I could do to stop my son's homosexuality? When did I know my son was gay? What made him that way? Parents will find comfort in reading that Eddie admits that his son's feminine behaviors embarrassed him and he seriously contemplated abandonment, a choice that too many fathers feel they have to choose.
