My Life as a Goddess
My Life as a Goddess

Author: Guy Branum

Publisher: Atria Books

Published: 2019-06-18

Total Pages: 4

ISBN-13: 1501170236

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

“Smart, fast, clever, and funny (As f*ck!)” (Tiffany Haddish), this collection of side-splitting and illuminating essays by the popular stand-up comedian, alum of Chelsea Lately and The Mindy Project, and host of truTV’s Talk Show the Game Show is perfect for fans of the New York Times bestsellers Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling and We Are Never Meeting in Real Life by Samantha Irby. From a young age, Guy Branum always felt as if he were on the outside looking in. From a stiflingly boring farm town, he couldn’t relate to his neighbors. While other boys played outside, he stayed indoors reading Greek mythology. And being gay and overweight, he got used to diminishing himself. But little by little, he started learning from all the sad, strange, lonely outcasts in history who had come before him, and he started to feel hope. In this “singular, genuinely ballsy, and essential” (Billy Eichner) collection of personal essays, Guy talks about finding a sense of belonging at Berkeley—and stirring up controversy in a newspaper column that led to a run‑in with the Secret Service. He recounts the pitfalls of being typecast as the “Sassy Gay Friend,” and how, after taking a wrong turn in life (i.e. law school), he found stand‑up comedy and artistic freedom. He analyzes society’s calculated deprivation of personhood from fat people, and how, though it’s taken him a while to accept who he is, he has learned that with a little patience and a lot of humor, self-acceptance is possible. “Keenly observant and intelligent, Branum’s book not only offers uproarious insights into walking paths less traveled, but also into what self-acceptance means in a world still woefully intolerant of difference” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). My Life as a Goddess is an unforgettable and deeply moving book by one of today’s most endearing and galvanizing voices in comedy.

Proofs & Theories
Proofs & Theories

Author: Louise Gluck

Publisher: HarperCollins

Published: 2022-01-04

Total Pages: 154

ISBN-13: 0063117614

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature Proofs and Theories, winner of the PEN/Martha Albrand Award for First Non-Fiction, is an illuminating collection of essays by Louise Glück, one of this country's most brilliant poets. Like her poems, the prose of Glück, who won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1993 for The Wild Iris, is compressed, fastidious, fierce, alert, and absolutely unconsoled. The force of her thought is evident everywhere in these essays, from her explorations of other poets' work to her skeptical contemplation of current literary critical notions such as "sincerity" and "courage." Here also are Glück's revealing reflections on her own education and life as a poet, and a tribute to her teacher and mentor, Stanley Kunitz. Proofs and Theories is not a casual collection. It is the testament of a major poet.

Mastering Magick
Mastering Magick

Author: Mat Auryn

Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide

Published: 2022-10-08

Total Pages: 186

ISBN-13: 0738766240

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Create Personalized and Soul-Stirring Magick with Bestselling Author Mat Auryn Boost your psychic ability and incorporate the greater mysteries of magick into your practice. A companion to the international bestseller Psychic Witch, this groundbreaking book features more than sixty spells and is the first of its kind to focus on casting magick to bridge the divide between the seen and unseen worlds. Mat teaches you how to enchant yourself as a powerful psychic witch by connecting with the witch's tools, the elements, the moon, the seasons, and the planets. You'll learn the mechanics of spell work and how to make your magick as effective as possible. In addition to Mat's own tried-and-true castings, Mastering Magick features more than a dozen spells from well-known witches and practitioners, including Christopher Penczak, Judika Illes, Juliet Diaz, Storm Faerywolf, Laura Tempest Zakroff, Devin Hunter, Madame Pamita, and others.

The Hidden Power of Aikido
The Hidden Power of Aikido

Author: Susan Perry

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2024-04-02

Total Pages: 351

ISBN-13: 164411898X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

• Explains Aikido solutions for peacefully resolving difficulties that arise with intimidating and unpredictable people, those who are stubborn or don’t listen, insincere people who want something from you, and chaotic situations • Presents Aikido’s step-by-step protocol for developing the receptiveness of the beginner’s mind and deescalating potentially violent or dangerous situations • Shares stories of how Aikido helped the author transform interpersonal difficulties into peaceful interactions In addition to the physical practice, the modern martial art of Aikido also offers profound principles for transforming interpersonal conflict into peaceful interaction. Illuminating the inner philosophical and practical aspects of Aikido, forty-seven-year Aikido practitioner and 6th-degree blackbelt Susan Perry, Ph.D., uses personal stories of joy, achievement, and hardship to demonstrate real-life applications of the transformational principles of Aikido. She introduces what Aikido is and where it comes from, providing a brief biography of its founder, Morihei Ueshiba. She explains in detail how Aikido helped her resolve difficulties at work, as a student, and as a teacher/sensei. Through each story shared, the author offers a glimpse of the beginner’s mind in action, the key to changing even the violent energy of an attack into peaceful interaction. Presenting Aikido’s step-by-step protocol for developing the receptiveness of the beginner’s mind, a state essential to personal transformation, Perry explains how distraction and timing can be used to deescalate potentially violent or dangerous situations. She discusses the founder’s philosophy of conflict, showing how Aikido can help peacefully resolve difficulties that arise with pushy, intimidating, and unpredictable people, those who are stubborn or don’t listen, insincere people who want something from you, and chaotic situations. She explains how a deepening practice of the martial art leads to an aiki state of inner peace, fusion, and boundless joy. Revealing how Aikido can help you face your fears and develop your heart and soul, this book shows how this martial art helps you embrace change, cultivate a strong center, and ultimately live a joyful life of engagement with the world.

Heart of Fire
Heart of Fire

Author: Adam Alexander Haviaras

Publisher: Adam Alexander Haviaras

Published: 2018-09-18

Total Pages: 488

ISBN-13: 1988309042

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

5 Stars and Winner of the Historical Fiction Company's 2024 'Highly Recommended' Award of Excellence! A Mercenary... A Spartan Princess... And Olympic Glory... When Stefanos, an Argive mercenary, returns home from the wars raging across the Greek world, his life’s path is changed by his dying father’s last wish – that he win in the Olympic Games. As Stefanos sets out on a road to redemption to atone for the life of violence he has led, his life is turned upside down by Kyniska, a Spartan princess destined to make Olympic history. In a world of prejudice and hate, can the two lovers from enemy city-states gain the Gods’ favour and claim Olympic immortality? Or are they destined for humiliation and defeat? Remember... There can be no victory without sacrifice. Heart of Fire is a book for all those who struggle to make their dreams come true. If you like books by Madeline Miller, Steven Pressfield, David Gemmell, or Mary Renault, you will love this gripping novel of the ancient Olympic Games. Buy this book today and start off on a gritty, mysterious, and emotional journey into the heart of Ancient Greece. To read more about Ancient Greece and the Olympic Games, be sure to check out our ten-part blog series The World of Heart of Fire at www.eaglesanddragonspublishing.com!

Simple Things of Life
Simple Things of Life

Author: Dharanidhar Sahu

Publisher: Atlantic Publishers & Dist

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 308

ISBN-13: 9788126900282

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Nightmares With Teasingly Symbolic Undertones, Events That Are Difficult To Disbelieve, Yet More Difficult To Believe, Obsessions That Pass Off As The Bench Marks Of Normalcy All Together Contribute To The Narrator S Confusion And Push Him Into The Outer Edge Of The Mind. This Narrator Named Debasis, A Settled, Middle-Aged, Utterly Ordinary Bloke, Becomes Aware Of His Somewhat Neurotic State Of Mind, And Tries, In His Own Eccentric Way, To Regain His Mental/Emotional Well-Being By Re-Living And Scribbling Down His Past Encounters, Events, Etc., Which Turn Out To Be Equally Confusing, Equally Engrossing. The Characters Associated With His Past Are A Curious Lot Some Crazy, Some Funny, Some Sublime, Some Bawdy But All Believably Human.It Is The Story Of Every Sensitive Individual Living In A Postmodern, Strife-Torn World Which Could Be An Enlarged Version Of The Wave Crest Lodge Situated On The Beach Of The Bay Of Bengal.The Novel Abounds In Sudden Turns And Surprises. It Ends With A Hint Of Hope : The Confusion Will Always Be There, But The Ordinary, Simple Man Living In The Valley May Not Die Of Thirst As Long As There Is A Perennial Stream On The Top Of The Mountain.

Engaging the Spirit World
Engaging the Spirit World

Author: Kirsten W. Endres

Publisher: Berghahn Books

Published: 2012-03-01

Total Pages: 244

ISBN-13: 0857453599

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In many parts of the contemporary world, spirit beliefs and practices have taken on a pivotal role in addressing the discontinuities and uncertainties of modern life. The myriad ways in which devotees engage the spirit world show the tremendous creative potential of these practices and their innate adaptability to changing times and circumstances. Through in-depth anthropological case studies from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam, the contributors to this book investigate the role and impact of different social, political, and economic dynamics in the reconfiguration of local spirit worlds in modern Southeast Asia. Their findings contribute to the re-enchantment debate by revealing that the “spirited modernities” that have emerged in the process not only embody a distinct feature of the contemporary moment, but also invite a critical rethinking of the concept of modernity itself.