“In the beginning we were happy. And we were always excessive. So in the beginning we were happy to excess.” With these opening lines Sean Wilsey takes us on an exhilarating tour of life in the strangest, wealthiest, and most grandiose of families. Sean's mother is a 1980s society-page staple, regularly entertaining Black Panthers and movie stars in her marble and glass penthouse. His enigmatic father uses a jet helicopter to drop Sean off at the video arcade and lectures his son on proper hygiene in public restrooms. When Sean, "the kind of child who sings songs to sick flowers," turns nine years old, his father divorces his mother and marries her best friend. Sean's life blows apart. His mother has a "vision" of salvation that requires packing her Louis Vuitton luggage and traveling the globe, a retinue of multiracial children in tow. Follow Sean as he candidly recounts his life growing up in a wealthy family all while discovering who he is amongst San Francisco's social elite.

Thrust into the media spotlight with her son Sean Wilsey's searing portrayal of her in his New York Times bestseller Oh the Glory of It All, the former queen of San Francisco society shares her own candid take on the fascinating events of her life. Once dubbed San Francisco's "Golden Girl," Montandon socialized with the cream of San Francisco society, including Danielle Steel, Alex Haley, and the Gettys. Immortalized as a character in Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City, she lived a seemingly perfect life in a penthouse above the San Francisco Bay, complete with her marriage to multimillionaire Al Wilsey and the birth of her son, Sean. From her lavish parties to her legendary Roundtable lunches, Montandon was always the talk of the town. Then, less than a decade later, Wilsey announced he was divorcing her, and Sean abandoned her as well—both for the affections of her once-close friend, Dede Traina. Left penniless and virtually suicidal, Montandon once again had to reinvent herself, this time as a humanitarian for peace. From Berlin to Beslan, she made it her life's mission to give a voice to the world's children and spread a message of hope in times of crisis. Oh the Hell of It All is a rich feast of a story: that of a poor girl turned rich turned poor again, in and out of love and betrayed by those closest to her, who has achieved peace in her life through devotion to something outside herself.

Over the past four years, the world has become a darker and scarier place. Terrorists are attacking, our government is showing their true colors, and threats of both another World War and Civil War loom over us. Learn what this struggle feels like Through the Eyes of an Innocent in The Diary of War, as told through short stories and poems.

"Peace Within Is True Peace" is a book of poetry about what Jesus Christ has done for me. They tell about why He came and what He means to me as my strength and peace in life's storms. Also how He is my guide through each and every day. I hope they inspire those away from God to return to Him. Those without Jesus as their Savior will put their trust in Him and only Him to save them from their sins.

Byron’s Don Juan is one of the greatest poems in the English language. Byron’s friends initially agreed that ‘it will be impossible to publish this’. Byron prevailed, however, and the first two cantos were issued anonymously after much editorial revision. Even in its revised form, Don Juan was perceived as a radical attack on establishment values; the poem has remained a beacon for freedom of speech and retains its power to shock. Since it was published in 1819–24, all printed editions of the poem have used the text prepared by Byron’s publishers, John Murray and John Hunt. This is the first new text of the poem to be printed in two hundred years. The Longman edition is based on a comprehensive line-by-line analysis of the manuscripts, so the text of the poem follows Byron’s own voice, pace and pauses, rather than the grammatical punctuation and more cautious word choice inserted by his nineteenth-century editors. The Longman Don Juan has been annotated afresh, allowing readers to see where Byron left open the choice of words or rhymes, and demonstrating the extraordinary breadth and depth of his literary allusions, topical and cultural references, and socially coded jokes. Textual annotation includes reception history, extensive bibliographies and a detailed chronology, situating Don Juan in the literary, scientific, dramatic, political, musical and social life of the early nineteenth century. A detailed index to the poem and annotation provides an unparalleled resource for students and scholars.