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All About Me! : My Remarkable Life In Show Business
Author(s):
Description:
The legendary comedian, actor, and film producer and director traces his rise from a Depression-era kid in Brooklyn to his stellar film career, offering insight into the inspiration for his ideas and the many close friendships and collaborations behind his success.
Format:
Large Print
Call Number:
LP B Bro
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Ancestor Trouble : A Reckoning And A Reconciliation
Author(s):
Description:
Maud Newton's ancestors have vexed and fascinated her since she was a girl. Her mother's father was supposedly married thirteen times, and survived being shot in the stomach by one of his wives. His father purportedly killed a man in the street with a hay hook, and later died in a mental institution. On her father's side, a Massachusetts ancestor was accused of being a witch. Maud's father had a master's in aerospace engineering on scholarship from an Ivy League university and was valedictorian of his law school class; he also viewed slavery as a benevolent institution that should never have been disbanded. He was obsessed with maintaining the purity of his family bloodline, which he could trace back to the days of the Revolutionary War. Her mother was a whirlwind of charisma and passions that could become obsessions; she kept over thirty cats and birds in a tiny two-bedroom apartment, and later started a church in her living room, where she would perform exorcisms. Maud's parents' marriage was acrimonious, their divorce a relief. But the meeting of their lines in her was something she could not shake. She signed up for an online account and began researching her genealogy. She found records of marriages and trials, wills in which her ancestors gave slaves to their spouses and children. The search took over her life. She wanted a truth that would set her free, in a way she hadn't identified yet. This book seeks to understand why the practice of genealogy has become a multi-billion-dollar industry in contemporary America, while also mining the secrets and contradictions of one singularly memorable family history.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
929.2 New
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Bird Brother : A Falconer's Journey And The Healing Power Of Wildlife
Author(s):
Description:
Rodney Stotts shares his journey to becoming a conservationist and one of America's few Black master falconers. For Rodney, it began with a job with the Earth Conservation Corps as a side gig to dealing drugs--a way to get a paystub necessary to rent his own apartment. Then, the health of the Anacostia River began improving, and he was part of a small group who helped reintroduce bald eagles to the region. This book takes readers through the joys and difficulties of Rodney's path to becoming a master falconer: from the delicate work of moving the Anacostia eaglets into their nesting box, to befriending an injured Eurasian eagle-owl named Mr. Hoots, to going to jail on drug charges and resolving to dedicate his life to birds of prey upon his release. As he trains his son Mike to be a master falconer and works to establish his own raptor sanctuary, Rodney offers a testament ot the healing power of nature and the importance of second chances.--From dust jacket flap.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
598.9 Sto
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Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama : A Memoir
Author(s):
Description:
Charting a "Homeric" decades-long "Odyssey" from his origins in the seedy comedy clubs of Chicago all the way to a dramatic career is almost like there are two or three Bob Odenkirks. Bob embraced a life in comedy after a chance meeting with Second City's legendary Del Close, which eventually led to a job as a writer at SNL. As he weathered the beast that is live comedy, he stashed away the secrets of sketch writing, honing them and perfecting them. Then his career met the hope-dashing machine that is Hollywood development. But when all hope was lost for the umpteenth time, Bob was more astonished than anyone to find himself on Breaking Bad. His embrace of this strange new world of dramatic acting led him to working with Steven Spielberg, Alexander Payne, and Greta Gerwig, until finally re-re-inventing himself as a worldwide action star for reasons that even he does not fully grasp. -- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
B Ode
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Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? : A Memoir
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Description:
Format:
Book
Call Number:
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Fearlessly Different : An Autistic Actor's Journey To Broadway's Biggest Stage
Author(s):
Description:
The moving, inspirational memoir of autistic actor Mickey Rowe, who pushed beyond the stereotypes and obstacles so many disabled individuals face to shine on Broadway's biggest stage. Fearlessly Different opens up the world of autism to those who feel locked out and helps those with autism feel seen and understood.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
792.028 Row
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Fifty Sounds : A Memoir Of Language, Learning, And Longing
Author(s):
Description:
When Polly Barton moved to a remote island in Japan at twenty-one, she did not anticipate the total sensory bombardment: Divided into fifty onomatopoeic Japanese phrases, this introspective memoir recounts her path to grasping the basics and becoming not only a literary translator but fluent in one of the most difficult vernaculars in the world. From min-min, the sound of air screaming, to hi'sori, the sound of harboring masochist tendencies, Barton renders these foreign sounds to reflect on the meaning of being an outsider, cultural conformity, and even the transformative philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein. Her book unearths the distinctly human act of learning to communicate and think in a new way.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
495.68 Bar
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How Do I Un-remember This? : Unfortunately True Stories
Author(s):
Description:
Growing up in small-town Ohio isn't easy, particularly when you're a closeted gay kid surrounded by... no one openly gay. This is a collection of real-life stories exploring Danny Pellegrino's journey from feeling like the only gay kid in Ohio to becoming a big-time podcaster in Los Angeles, and all the amusing moments life threw at him in between. With honesty and humor, Danny discusses his struggles alongside his love for all things pop culture in a way that is equally emotional and uplifting, and sprinkled with a little '90s nostalgia and a whole lot of comedy.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
792.76 Pel
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I Was Better Last Night : A Memoir
Author(s):
Description:
A memoir from the cultural icon, Harvey Fierstein, gay rights activist, and four-time Tony Award winner. Harvey's career has taken him from Broadway to Hollywood and back. He's received accolades and awards for acting and writing. But while he is widely known as one of today's most peerless performers, Harvey has never shared his own story until now.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
B Fie
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In Love : A Memoir Of Love And Loss
Author(s):
Description:
Amy and Brian's world was changed forever with his diagnosis of early onset Alzheimer's. Forced to confront the daily frustrations and realities of the disease and its impact on their lives and marriage, Brian resolved not to let it dictate his life and instead asked himself: What makes life meaningful, and how do I want to live the rest of mine? His decision led them to learn about Dignitas and to fly to Zürich for a peaceful ending of Brian's life. This is the story of a marriage, of the gradual awareness that something was deeply wrong, and of a disease's effect on a man, a woman, a family. Bloom recounts their search for a dignified and kind solution to the pain of Brian's life, and their discovery of Dignitas in Zurich, where the choice for a dignified end of life can be realized.
Format:
Large Print
Call Number:
LP 616.8311 Blo
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In The Shadow Of The Mountain : A Memoir Of Courage
Author(s):
Description:
When Silvia's mother called her home to Peru, she knew something finally had to give. A Latinx hero in the elite macho tech world of Silicon Valley, privately, she was hanging by a thread. She was deep in the throes of alcoholism, hiding her sexuality from her family, and repressing the abuse she'd suffered as a child. Her visit to Peru would become a turning point in her life. Silvia started climbing. Something about the brute force required for the ascent--the restricted oxygen at altitude, the vast expanse of emptiness around her, the risk and spirit and sheer size of the mountains, the nearness of death--woke her up. And then, she took her biggest pain to the biggest mountain: Everest. "The Mother of the World," as it's known in Nepal, allows few to reach her summit, but Silvia didn't go alone. She gathered a group of young female survivors and led them to base camp alongside her, their strength and community propelling her forward. A story of heroism, one which awakens in all of us a lust for adventure, gratitude for the strong women in our lives, and faith in our own resilience.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
796.522 Vas
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Author(s):
Description:
"A darkly funny and devastating memoir of growing up in '90s Manhattan with a mentally ill single parent"-- Provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
616.89 Sch
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Ten Steps To Nanette : A Memoir Situation
Author(s):
Description:
Hannah Gadsby's unique standup special Nanette was a viral success--and to some, her fame may have seemed like an overnight sensation. But like everything else about Gadsby, there's more to her success than meets the eye. The queer Australian comedian, writer, and actress takes us through the key moments in her life that ultimately led to the creation of Nanette and her startling declaration that she was quitting comedy. She traces her growth as a gay woman from Tasmania--where homosexuality was illegal until 1997--to her ever-evolving relationship with comedy, to her struggle with late-in-life diagnoses of autism and ADHD, and finally to the backbone of Nanette--the renouncement of self-deprecation, the rejection of misogyny, and the moral power of telling the truth.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
792.7028 Gad
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The Impossible City : A Hong Kong Memoir
Author(s):
Description:
Hong Kong has long been known as a city of extremes: a former colony of the United Kingdom that today exists at the margins of an authoritarian, ascendant China; a city rocked by mass protests, where residents take to the streets to rally against encroaching threats on their democracy and freedoms. But it is also misunderstood and often romanticized, its history and politics oversimplified in Western headlines. Drawing from her own experience, as well as interviews with artists, protestors, students, and writers who have made Hong Kong their home, Karen Cheung gives us an insider's view of this city, making the case along the way that we should look to Hong Kong as a warning sign for what lies ahead for other global democracies. Coming of age in the wake of Hong Kong's reunification with China in 1997, Cheung traverses the multifold identities available to her in childhood and beyond, whether that was at her English-speaking international schools, where her classmates were often the children of diplomats or corporate officers, or within her deeply traditional family. Cheung gives a personal account of what it's like to seek out affordable housing and mental healthcare in one of the world's most expensive cities. She also takes us into Hong Kong's vibrant indie music and literary scenes--youth-driven spaces of creative resistance. Cheung brings us with her to the protests, where her understanding of what it means to belong to Hong Kong finally crystallized.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
951.25 Che
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The Perfect Other : A Memoir Of My Sister
Author(s):
Description:
"All Kait Leddy had ever wanted was a little sister. When Kyleigh was born, they were inseparable; Kait would protect her, include her, cuddle and comfort her, and, to Kyleigh, her big sister was her whole world. As they grew, however, and as Kait entered adolescence, her personality began to change. She was lashing out emotionally and physically, and losing touch with reality in certain ways. The family struggled to keep this side of Kait private--at school and in her social life, she was still the gorgeous, effervescent life of the party with a modeling career ahead of her and big dreams. But slowly, things began to shatter, and Kyleigh could only watch in horror as her perfect sibling's world collapsed around her. Kait was institutionalized with what would eventually be diagnosed as schizophrenia, leaving Kyleigh and their mother to handle the burden, shame, and guilt alone. Then, in January 2014, Kait disappeared. Though they never found her body, security footage showed her making her way onto a big bridge over a river, where it is presumed that she jumped. Kyleigh is left wondering: What could she have done differently? How could this shining light be gone? And how will she find peace without her sister to guide her way there?"--Provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
616.898 Led
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This Will Be Funny Later : A Memoir
Author(s):
Description:
"A funny, biting, and entertaining memoir about coming of age in the shadow of celebrity and finding your own way in the face of absolute chaos, one that is both a moving portrait of a complicated family and an exploration of the cost of fame." -- From publisher's description.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
B Pen
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To Boldly Grow : Finding Joy, Adventure, And Dinner In Your Own Backyard
Author(s):
Description:
A part memoir, part how-to guide by Tamar Haspel about the unexpected joys of what she calls "first-hand food"--meals we grow, forage, fish, or even hunt from the world around us.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
630.973 Has
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Uncommon Measure : A Journey Through Music, Performance, And The Science Of Time
Author(s):
Description:
"How does time shape consciousness, and consciousness, time? Do we live in time, or does time live in us? And how does music, with its patterns of rhythm and harmony, inform our experience of time? Uncommon Measure: Reflections on Music, Performance, andthe Science of Time explores these questions from the perspective of a young Korean American who dedicated herself to perfecting her art until, crippled by performance anxiety, she was forced to give up her dreams of becoming a career solo violinist. Anchoring her narrative in illuminating research in neuroscience and theories of quantum physics, Hodges traces her own passage through model-minority expectations and examines her immigrant mother's encounters with racism to come to terms with the meaning ofa life in music. The lessons she learns enable her to move from anxiety toward acceptance, from rote re-creation toward the freedom of improvisation"-- Provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
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What My Bones Know : A Memoir Of Healing From Complex Trauma
Author(s):
Description:
A memoir of reckoning and healing investigating the little-understood science behind Complex PTSD and how it has shaped her life. By age thirty, Stephanie Foo was successful on paper: she had her dream job and had won an Emmy. But behind her office door she was having panic attacks and sobbing at her desk. After years of questioning what was wrong with her, she was diagnosed with Complex PTSD--a condition that occurs when trauma happens continuously, over the course of years. She thought she'd overcome her trauma, but her diagnosis illuminated the ways in which her past continued to threaten her health, her relationships, and her career. Ultimately, she discovers that you don't move on from trauma--but you can learn to move with it, with grace and joy. A brave narrative that reckons with the hold of the past over the present, the mind over the body--and one woman's ability to reclaim agency from her trauma.-- From statement provided by publisher.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
616.8521 Foo
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What's So Funny? : A Cartoonist's Memoir
Author(s):
Description:
From a New Yorker staff cartoonist, a family memoir, a love letter to New York City, and an exploration of the origins of creativity--richly interleaved with the author's witty, beloved cartoons. -- From publisher's description.
Format:
Book
Call Number:
741.569 Sip