Showing titles in Biographies

At the outset of World War II, Denmark did not resist German occupation. Deeply ashamed of his nation's leaders, 15-year-old Knud Pedersen resolved with his brother and a handful of schoolmates to take action against the Nazis if the adults would not. Naming their secret club after the fiery British leader, the young patriots in the Churchill Club committed countless acts of sabotage, infuriating the Germans, who eventually had the boys tracked down and arrested. But their efforts were not in vain.

A peaceful summer night is shattered by gunfire as an unseen assailant tries to murder police officer John Busby. Though horribly wounded, Busby survives. But the perpetrator remains at large, meaning neither Busby, nor his wife, nor their three children are safe. In separate chapters John and his daughter, Cylin, who was nine at the time, recount the story of that year. John writes graphically, and movingly, of his wounds, his pain, his multiple surgeries, and his rage.

Imagine being a 13-year-old girl in love with boys, school, family - life itself. Then suddenly, in a matter of hours, your life is shattered by the arrival of a foreign army. This is the memoir of Elli Friedmann, who was 13 years old in March 1944, when the Nazis invaded Hungary. It describes her descent into the hell of Auschwitz, a concentration camp where, because of her golden braids, she was selected for work instead of extermination. In intimate, excruciating details she recounts what it was like.

The name of Florence Nightingale is a household word, but the exact nature and scope of her work, and the difficulties and discouragement under which it was accomplished, are unknown to many in the present generation. This story of that justly beloved woman’s life is told by one whose father was in part responsible for Miss Nightingale’s decision to devote her life to nursing. Written with a rare sympathy and beauty of style, this uplifting account of a noble life will inspire young and old alike.

Iqbal Masih, ceduto dalla sua famiglia di contadini ridotti in miseria, in cambio del prestito di 26 dollari, costretto a lavorare in una tessitura di tappeti dall'alba al tramonto, incatenato al telaio, in condizioni disumane, come milioni di altri bambini nei paesi più poveri del mondo, troverà la forza di ribellarsi, di far arrestare il suo padrone, di denunciare la "mafia dei tappeti", contribuendo alla liberazione di centinaia di altri piccoli schiavi.

Was haben der Boxer Muhammad Ali, der Beatle Ringo Starr oder der französische Schauspieler Gérard Depardieu miteinander zu tun? Sie alle sind, neben den vierzehn weiteren berühmten Persönlichkeiten, die der Museumspädagoge Christof Gießler hier auf unterhaltsame und informative Weise vorstellt, Genies auf ihrem jeweiligen Gebiet. Das Hauptaugenmerk wird hier auf ihre Kinder- und Jugendzeit gelegt sowie auf jeweils den Moment oder das Ereignis, das für ihren späteren Erfolg entscheidend werden sollte.

Laura Dekker var kun 14 år, da hun stævnede ud i sin båd for at sejle jorden rundt. Alene! Efter 518 dage nåede hun som 16-årig sit mål. Hun havde på egen hånd sejlet hele kloden rundt - som den yngste nogensinde. Dette er historien om hendes utrolige eventyr. Om mod, viljestyrke, venskaber, Stillehavsøer, verdenshave, frihed, storme og ensomhed. Og om en retssag, der var ved at bremse det hele. "Alene jorden rundt" er historien om en meget usædvanlige pige, som kan inspirere alle til at kæmpe for ting, de drømmer om - også selvom der er masser af modstand.

Taylor marched up to the woman behind the front desk and went into gear. "Hi! I'm Taylor Swift! I'm eleven and I want a record deal!" She handed the woman her CD. "Call me!" she said and flashed her a cheery smile. "She thought I was cute," Taylor said when she was back in the car. "The usual Go away and come back when you're eighteen."Taylor stared out the side window as her mother drove slowly down Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee. As they passed by the famous Bluebird Cafe, she said, "Someday I'm going to sing here." This is the biography of one of the world's most famous singer, intocicating narrated by Becca Stewart.

Längst ist das jüdische Mädchen, das sich zwei Jahre lang vor den Nazis verstecken konnte und darüber Tagebuch führte, zu einer Ikone erstarrt. Waldtraut Lewin wagt es, Anne Frank in unsere Welt zu holen. Bei ihrer fiktiven Begegnung erzählt sie Anne vom Staat Israel oder vom neuen Deutschland, in dem Juden leben dürfen und Menschen gegen Rechtsradikalismus protestieren. Zusammen wagen sie den Blick auf das Gestern und das Morgen.

Zum 100. Geburtstag von Sophie Scholl. Der Historiker und Radiojournalist Hermann Vinke zeichnet das zutiefst anrührende Bild einer jungen Frau, die lieber starb, als sich dem NS-Regime unterzuordnen. Sophie Scholl, geboren im Mai 1921, wurde am 22.02.1943 mit dem Fallbeil hingerichtet. Sie war Mitglied der Widerstandsgruppe "Die weiße Rose".

When the Dionne Quintuplets were born on May 28, 1934, weighing a grand total of just over 13 pounds, no one expected them to live so much as an hour. Overnight, Yvonne, Annette, Cécile, Émilie, and Marie Dionne mesmerized the globe, defying medical history with every breath they took. In an effort to protect them from hucksters and showmen, the Ontario government took custody of the five identical babies, sequestering them in a private, custom-built hospital across the road from their family - and, in a stunning act of hypocrisy, proceeded to exploit them for the next nine years.

It's 1986, and Jeff is an average 15-year-old: he thinks a lot about dating and he's trying his hardest to get a car. Conversely, the world around him feels crazy: the United States and the Soviet Union are at glaring odds, with their leaders in a standoff, and that awful word, "nuclear", is on everyone's mind. Then, boom - Jeff learns that he has brain cancer and it's likely terminal. Well, that puts a damper on his summer plans and romantic prospects, doesn't it? Jeff's family rallies around him, but they are fiercely complicated - especially Jeff's father....

Growing up with a mother suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and a mostly absent father, Nikki Grimes found herself terrorized by babysitters, shunted from foster family to foster family, and preyed upon by those she trusted. At the age of six, she poured her pain onto a piece of paper late one night - and discovered the magic and impact of writing. For many years, Nikki's notebooks were her most enduing companions. In this accessible and inspiring memoir, Nikki shows how the power of those words helped her conquer the hazards - ordinary and extraordinary - of her life.

The women’s suffrage movement was decades in the making and came with many harsh setbacks. But it resulted in a permanent victory: women’s right to vote. How did the suffragists do it? One hundred years later, an eye-opening look at their playbook shows that some of their strategies seem oddly familiar. Women’s marches at inauguration time? Check. Publicity stunts, optics, and influencers? They practically invented them. Petitions, lobbying, speeches, raising money, and writing articles? All of that, too.  

Exclusive interviews with the top athletes in sports today. Trust the Grind: How World-Class Athletes Got to the Top reveals how these men and women reached the heights of their profession so that you can too. Each chapter tells a different story, as each superstar shares the habit that helped them accomplish their goals and reach the pinnacle of their profession.

The true story of 19-year-old Jordana Lebowitz’s time at the trial of Oskar Groening, known as the bookkeeper of Auschwitz, a man charged with being complicit in the death of more than 300,000 Jews. A granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, Jordana was still not prepared for what she would see and hear. 

Ophelia DeVore boldly overcame tragedy and hardship to become the first Black model in the United States of America. She possessed grace, finesse, intelligence, natural beauty, and courage. Being the first black graduate of the Vogue Modeling School, she eventually became a powerful business mogul, an exuberant entrepreneur, and a respected leader in her field. Her story is unique because she redefined "beauty" in America. Throughout her life, she sought to prove to the world beauty could be found in every shade of color.

In The Future of Science Is Female, author and award-winning journalist Zara Stone shares the fascinating, complicated stories of how a diverse group of powerful women got started - from the perspective of those still working it out as they go along. Take 22-year-old Dominique Barnes, a female hero of the oceans. She was worried about all the dolphins and whales killed during shrimp farming, so the marine biologist created a tasty, affordable plant-based shrimp alternative. And she's just one of the sheroes you will discover in The Future of Science Is Female.

With a number-one album in multiple countries and more than 53 million Instagram followers, Billie Eilish is a global star. She has collaborated with Justin Bieber and Khalid, headlined at Glastonbury and Coachella, and has appeared in Calvin Klein ad campaigns. In a short career, she has become an icon to Generation Z. Billie grew up in a close-knit family - her brother, Finneas, still writes and produces her songs - in Highland Park, a suburb of LA.  

Blaze Ginsberg offers a unique view into his mind and life as a high functioning autistic teenager. Inspired by the format of the Internet Movie Database, Ginsberg organizes the events in his life as a collection of "episodes." Some of these are ongoing (like Thanksgiving dinners with his family), some are in syndication, and some (his crush on Hillary Duff, for example) have sadly come to an end. Using a style and a language all his own, Blaze reinvents the traditional memoir for listeners of all ages.