A long-hidden family secret. Possible infidelity. Death. Encephalitis. Child abuse. These are the hardships assailing Esther Zysset and her four sons against the backdrop of the Great Depression and World War II. Over years of dialogue with his brothers, Kenneth has compiled his family biography; each page is filled with heartache, written with love, and shrouded in mystery. My Mother's Sons weaves stories of growing up on a farm in the '20s and '30s, heading off to war, and growing into manhood. Esther is the central figure in this narrative as the loving but tough matriarch, and as answers come, other questions surface about the nature of the relationship between Esther and the pastor in her small Missouri town. Could it be that the four brothers—Raymond, Leonard, Gerry, and Kenneth—were not true biological brothers? Their mother went to her grave holding a long-hidden family secret. However, the key to unlocking the mystery was not buried with her. My Mother's Sons will take you back to the beginning—1920 Missouri—to highlight the struggles, sacrifices, sins, and ultimately survival of a generation born out of the Great Depression.
*NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER* The No-Holds-Barred Truth About Life Inside the Gotti Dynasty—Told by Their Most Famous Daughter Victoria Gotti never intended to reveal the inside story of the Gotti household—the day-to-day life of a family that has sparked scandalous rumors and sensational headlines for decades. But with the pressing need to finally set the record straight came the realization that only she can do so, once and for all. Daughter to the late John Gotti, sister to John A. “Junior” Gotti and three other siblings, single mother to three sons with whom she shared reality television stardom on Growing Up Gotti, an outspoken columnist and bestselling author, Victoria Gotti delivers a candid, colorful, and brutally honest family portrait that reads like a confidential file, filled with deeply personal reflections, bombshell revelations, and stunning insider secrets. The explosive memoir that captures the Gottis as they are—unvarnished, raw, and real—This Family of Mine is the essential chronicle in the ultimate American family saga.
Fans of The Incredible Journey and Old Yeller will love this endearing, page-turning dog adventure story Luna is a farm puppy who loves to dance, and has only known a happy, serene life surrounded by her mother, Mutt, and her siblings, and cared for by Gilberto, the son of farm workers. But now Gilberto and his parents have moved on, and Mr. Thomas the farmer doesn't feel he can take care of a whole family of dogs. He finds new homes for the puppies, not realizing that the man who took Luna and her brother does not have their best interests at heart. Luna and Chief, hungry and scared, are trapped in the smelly barn of a puppy mill—until they take matters into their own paws and find a way to escape. But can Luna and Chief find their way home? With a lovable cast of animal characters and endearing illustrations, this charming story is a perfect read-aloud for fans of classic children’s novels like Gentle Ben, A Cricket in Times Square, and Shiloh.
It’s wintertime for our favorite furry friends, Earl and Mooch, and they have a lot to do to get ready to hibernate: Step 1: Fill their bellies with shnacky shnacks. Step 2: Cozy up on their people’s warm laps. Or maybe instead of hibernating, Mooch and Earl will help Shtinky Puddin’, Bip and Bop, and the rest of their buddies enjoy the beautiful and magical winter season. Take a peek at The Mutts Winter Diaries to find out. You can help your animal friends, too! Check out the More to Explore section in the back of TheMutts Winter Diaries to find out how you can make sure winter critters stay warm and full of shnacks through the cold, snowy months.
I have always had a fierce independence from my earliest memory. However, I was always shy and uncomfortable in social situations, which always frustrated me to no end. I still struggle with my social shortcomings to this day. My confidence in my solo actions were always strong. I have always marveled at the military's ability to train men and women how to run things who did not have a lot of formal training better than a lot personal who did. During the summer of 2018, I was selected to attend the four-day training seminar at the US War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. I think that I was the lowest-ranking commissioned officer at the class since I was only a Navy lieutenant, and all the others were Army lieutenant colonels and above. I tried to persuade them of the desirability of the need for having senior enlisted soldiers in attendance for their input on how to run things more efficiently than the high-ranking officers did since they were the ones assigned to conduct the operations. I came away with the conclusion that my thoughts were not appreciated for the most part, but I still have this belief. During my preteen years in the Arkansas Ozarks, I read the novel The Yearly by Marjorie Rawlings, and it was later made into a movie starring Gregory Peck. Many of the kids that I knew in the Ozarks were exactly like many of the kids portrayed in the book, which only enhanced the story for me. I also read the books Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, which also brought to life for me what I was living in the Ozarks. Also, while in school in the fourth and seventh grades in the Ozarks, I was well-respected, which also enhanced my experience while in Arkansas. In the Navy, while I had never been in a small airplane in my entire life, I discovered that I had a talent that I did not know that I had. I had mistakenly assumed that many of the other trainees with more abilities than I had were actually washing out of the program while I continued to hang on until getting my wings and commission. This caused a lot of consternations in my mind: why was I succeeding, and they weren't? After being released from the Navy, I couldn't get a job with any airline due to an oversupply of pilots from Vietnam. Eventually, I got a job with East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) and moved back to my home in Angels Camp, California. I worked at EBMUD for twenty years, and during that time, I also served on the elected board of directors for Calaveras County Water District (CCWD), which oversees twenty separate water, wastewater, and hydroelectric systems scattered throughout the county. That's a brief biography of my life. If anybody wishes to communicate with me with questions or observations, please contact me through my e-mail address, [email protected]. Please refer to this book so that I do not mistakenly delete it thinking it is junk mail.
Jack Harold Hanson has an extraterrestrial dog with magical powers that can talk and communicate telepathically. They go on an interstellar adventure that involves space dragons, and a lovely female wormhole that transports them to the parallel universe where Planet Zealon is located. With the help of his two best friends, Heidi and Vance, they solve a fascinating mystery involving the Heart Tree and an extraterrestrial wizard named Mr. Amazing. Jack is the Chosen One and only he and his dog Mutt hold the key to saving Planet Earth from climate change. Fantastical creatures like halligans abound. The twist at the end of the book will leave the reader surprised and filled with joy.
A hilarious comedy about family, friends, pets and boyfriends. Perfect for fans of Louise Rennison and Carmen Reid. Danielle is doomed in love and has the parents from hell. Her mum and dad are embarrassingly scruffy and their car bonnet is a different color from the rest of the car. Worst of all, they're still in love, which is totally gross considering how ancient they are. Her best friend is a (nice) nerd, her love-rival is an airhead and her dog Simon is in love with an Ugg boot. Despite all this, she hatches a plan--indeed many plans--to win the gorgeous Damian's affections. But when she brings Simon to the park to show him off in front of Damien, a smelly little accident lands Danielle with the nickname "Dench the Stench." Could things get any worse? When Simon is accused of biting children in the neighborhood and her Dad decides to have him taken away, Danielle's life truly begins to unravel. And then her mother announces she's pregnant--again--which gives Danielle's schoolmates even more ammunition with which to make fun of her. Will Damian ever notice her? Can she save Simon? And will Danielle ever live her family down?
Available for the first time in this stunning electronic edition, THE KRISTIN HANNAH COLLECTION: VOLUME 1 is sure to delight the beloved, blockbuster bestselling author's legions of fans. Includes: FIREFLY LANE To the people around them they were known as TullyandKate or the Firefly Lane Girls. A single, inseparable unit. Best friends forever. On the surface they were as opposite as two people could be: Kate, doomed to be forever uncool, with a loving family who mortifies her at every turn. Tully, steeped in glamour and mystery, but with a secret home life that is destroying her. Yet they are best friends who swear they'll be there for each other, and for thirty years that promise holds strong—until events and choices in their lives make that promise impossible. More than a coming-of-age novel, this is the story of a generation of women who were both blessed and cursed by choices. It's about promises and secrets and betrayals. And ultimately, about the one person who really, truly knows you—and knows what has the power to hurt you and heal you. TRUE COLORS The Grey sisters had only each other when their mother died years ago. Their stern, unyielding father gave them almost no attention. Winona, the oldest, needs her father's approval most of all. An overweight dreamer, she never felt at home on the sprawling horse ranch that had been in her family for three generations. Aurora, the middle, is the peacemaker. Vivi Ann, the youngest, is the undisputed star of the family. Everything comes easily to Vivi Ann, her father's love most of all. But when Vivi Ann makes a fateful decision to follow her heart, rather than take the route of a dutiful daughter, events are set in motion that will test the love and loyalties of the Grey sisters. They will be pitted against each other in ways none could have imagined. Secrets will be revealed, and a terrible, shocking crime will shatter both the family and their beloved town. With breathtaking pace and penetrating insight, Kristin Hannah's has written a novel that's about sisters, vengeance, jealousy, betrayal—and ultimately, what it truly means to be a family. FLY AWAY Kristin Hannah returns to the world of the unforgettable characters from FIREFLY LANE and asks the question: How do you hold yourself together when your world has fallen apart? This is the story of three women who have lost their way and need each other—plus a miracle—to transform their lives. An emotionally complex, heartwrenching novel about love, family, motherhood, loss, and redemption, it reminds us that where there is life, there is hope, and where there is love, there is forgiveness. Told with her trademark visceral storytelling and illuminating prose, Kristin Hannah reveals why she is one of the most beloved writers of our day.
This book starts at the funeral of her father, Eddie Gravitt. She is talking with his spirit and recalling the days of her youth. You can feel her grief and sadness as she recalls the days of her childhood and that of her siblings growing up in rural Missouri in the forties and fifties. You will feel the trauma of a poor family trying to survive the depression. She describes all the hardships and the love for her family and her parents. She shows immense pride in her father. He never gave up trying to support his family, though his job skills were limited by not being able to read or write. She tells how he became one of the most respected antique dealers in Missouri. This book is the actual story of a family's hardships. It is not fiction.
Charles Huey is a best-selling author. Dead-End for Dollars was released worldwide, followed by the novel Marked for a Crime. Threads of a Crime is his latest release. Following college, he worked in broadcasting for eight years. He then began a thirty-year path of adventure and curiosity in science, working as an engineer in telecommunications development. He lives in North Carolina near his family.
