The dynamic between the biographer and the subject is one of the most fascinating aspects of biography as a genre. How does the biographer stage the illusion that is the narrative life, the illusion that the subject assumes a living form through words? In contrast to purely fictional forms, biography writing does not allow total freedom to the biographer in this creative act. Ideally, a biography's backbone is structured by accurate historical facts. But its spirit lies elsewhere. Rana Tekcan explores how some of the most accomplished biographers manage to recreate "life" across time and space. She looks at their illusionary art through the narrative strategies in Samuel Johnson's Life of Savage, James Boswell's Life of Johnson, Lytton Strachey's Eminent Victorians, Michael Holroyd's Lytton Strachey, Park Honan's Jane Austen, and Andrew Motion's Keats. She notes three types of distance in biographical narrative: First, where the biographer and the subject personally know one another; second, where the biographer is a near contemporary of the subject; and third, where biographer and subject are distinctly separated, in some cases, by hundreds of years.

Up close, and way too personal! Breaking and entering is hardly her style, but Iona MacCabe needs her passport back from her ex’s motel room. Jaded L.A. private investigator Zane Montoya is staking out a con man’s motel room when this pretty Scottish girl gets seriously in the way. For her own safety, he’ll keep her under his very close protection... Except independent, willful Iona is not best pleased to be ‘rescued’ — even by someone as sexy as blue-eyed, gorgeous Zane! And when he discovers just how innocent she really is, suddenly their scorching attraction feels even more dangerous...

Does the fear of failing hold you back? Do you ever find yourself hesitant to use your gifts because you’re afraid you’ll fail? Bestselling author Jess Connolly offers you 100 devotions that challenge women to Take It Too Far in all the good stuff--worship, service, love, forgiveness, and more--as they bring their full selves, gifts, and voices to everything they do. Several years ago, Jess began using the phrase “take it too far” as a motto for her spiritual life. She found that those four words freed her to recognize and use her God-given gifts to serve others. In this beautiful devotional for women, Jess: Explores topics such as peace, rest, purpose, hope, wonder, discipline, and courage Shares 100 entries that include a Scripture verse, personal reflections, and a conclusion that shows you how you can take it too far today This is a great self-purchase for anyone wanting an abundant life, boundless love, and unending grace. Take It Too Far makes a perfect gift for birthdays, Mother’s Day, Galentine’s Day, Christmas, or anyone looking to deepen their faith. Inside you’ll find a: presentation page for easy and thoughtful gifting table of contents for quick reference heartfelt foreword from Jess’s husband Nick Connolly beautiful two-color interior With the Holy Spirit’s guidance and Jess’s freeing charge, you will be inspired to bring your full self, gifts, and voice to your work, family, and relationships. The possibilities are endless when you tell God you’re ready to Take It Too Far.

“If you’ve been looking for something different to level up your health, fitness, and personal growth, this is it.”—Melissa Urban, Whole30 CEO and New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Boundaries “Michael Easter’s genius is that he puts data around the edges of what we intuitively believe. His work has inspired many to change their lives for the better.”—Dr. Peter Attia, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Outlive Discover the evolutionary mind and body benefits of living at the edges of your comfort zone and reconnecting with the wild—from the author of Scarcity Brain, coming in September! In many ways, we’re more comfortable than ever before. But could our sheltered, temperature-controlled, overfed, underchallenged lives actually be the leading cause of many our most urgent physical and mental health issues? In this gripping investigation, award-winning journalist Michael Easter seeks out off-the-grid visionaries, disruptive genius researchers, and mind-body conditioning trailblazers who are unlocking the life-enhancing secrets of a counterintuitive solution: discomfort. Easter’s journey to understand our evolutionary need to be challenged takes him to meet the NBA’s top exercise scientist, who uses an ancient Japanese practice to build championship athletes; to the mystical country of Bhutan, where an Oxford economist and Buddhist leader are showing the world what death can teach us about happiness; to the outdoor lab of a young neuroscientist who’s found that nature tests our physical and mental endurance in ways that expand creativity while taming burnout and anxiety; to the remote Alaskan backcountry on a demanding thirty-three-day hunting expedition to experience the rewilding secrets of one of the last rugged places on Earth; and more. Along the way, Easter uncovers a blueprint for leveraging the power of discomfort that will dramatically improve our health and happiness, and perhaps even help us understand what it means to be human. The Comfort Crisis is a bold call to break out of your comfort zone and explore the wild within yourself.

Feeling responsible for damaging Lady Jane’s reputation, the Earl of Abbington arranges for a bevy of suitors to attend a house party so she can choose a husband from among them. But the more time he spends helping Lady Jane decide, the more he falls for her himself… A fun and charming Regency romance by a USA Today bestselling author! A daring lady. A caring earl. And a Christmas house party that turns love into a dangerous game. The Earl of Abbington is not a daring man. Responsible for the care of an opium-addicted uncle, George’s life poses dangers to a bride that he’ll never risk. It’s why he avoided the independent and kind Lady Jane last year, despite her brother’s request he protect her during her season. His neglect no doubt led to Jane’s tattered reputation. In reparation, he’s sent pre-approved suitors to the house party to ensure she marries well, not to a man whose life is a nightmare. Lady Jane is done being daring. Her daring spirit ruined her reputation, her family’s social standing, and her brother’s marital prospects. But a Christmas house party attended by a coterie of willing suitors can put everything right. Plain of face and ordinary of intellect, Jane knows she’ll never find love. And she doesn’t want it anyway. Love is the most daring thing a woman can do, after all. Instead, she’ll develop a system to test her suitors and discover the best husband for a practical sort of marriage. Jane needs George’s help choosing a husband, but George soon realizes he can’t give it without betraying his own heart. Together, they must find the courage to face the dangers of love or lose the love of a lifetime. In this friends-to-lovers Regency romance by USA Today bestselling author Charlie Lane, an independent lady and a cautious earl must do the most daring thing of all—fall in love.

One of the Best Feel-Good Books of 2021 by The Washington Post A hilarious and honest not-quite-self-help book in the vein of Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies and I Used to Have a Plan. Every person on the planet wants their life to mean something. The problem is that you’ve been told there’s only one way to find that meaning. In Unfollow Your Passion, Terri Trespicio—whose TEDx talk has more than six million views—questions everything you think you need: passion (fun, but fleeting), plans (flimsy at best), and a bucket list (eye roll), to name a few. Instead, she shows you how (and why) to flip society, culture, and the #patriarchy the bird so you can live life on your terms. Trespicio effortlessly guides you through her method of unhooking yourself from other people’s agendas, boning up on the skills to move you forward, and exploring your own creativity, memory, and intuition to unlock your unique path to meaning—while also confronting the challenges that stop you in your tracks, like boredom, loss, and fear. Unfollow Your Passion is a fresh and fearless “must-read for anyone looking for a more meaningful life” (Mel Robbins, author of The 5 Second Rule).

“I wrote this book because I believe that there is a serious gap in what has been written and communicated about cross-cultural management and what people actually struggle with on the ground.”—From the Introduction What does it mean to be a global worker and a true “citizen of the world” today? It goes beyond merely acknowledging cultural differences. In reality, it means you are able to adapt your behavior to conform to new cultural contexts without losing your authentic self in the process. Not only is this difficult, it’s a frightening prospect for most people and something completely outside their comfort zone. But managing and communicating with people from other cultures is an essential skill today. Most of us collaborate with teams across borders and cultures on a regular basis, whether we spend our time in the office or out on the road. What’s needed now is a critical new skill, something author Andy Molinsky calls global dexterity. In this book Molinsky offers the tools needed to simultaneously adapt behavior to new cultural contexts while staying authentic and grounded in your own natural style. Based on more than a decade of research, teaching, and consulting with managers and executives around the world, this book reveals an approach to adapting while feeling comfortable—an essential skill that enables you to switch behaviors and overcome the emotional and psychological challenges of doing so. From identifying and overcoming challenges to integrating what you learn into your everyday environment, Molinsky provides a guidebook—and mentoring—to raise your confidence and your profile. Practical, engaging, and refreshing, Global Dexterity will help you reach across cultures—and succeed in today’s global business environment.

The Indignities of Coach Class, the Torments of Low Thread Count, the Never-Ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil, and Other First World Problems David Rakoff’s collection of autobiographical essays, Fraud, established him as one of our funniest, most insightful writers. In Don’t Get Too Comfortable, Rakoff journeys into the land of plenty that is contemporary North America. Rarely have greed, vanity, selfishness, and vapidity been so mercilessly and wittily portrayed. Whether contrasting the elegance of one of the last flights of the supersonic Concorde with the good times and chicken wings of Hooters Air, portraying the rarified universe of Paris fashion shows where an evening dress can cost as much as four years of college, or traveling to a private island off the coast of Belize to watch a soft-core Playboy TV shoot, where he is provided with his very own personal manservant, David Rakoff takes us on a bitingly funny grand tour of our culture of excess, delving into the manic getting and spending that defines the North American way of life. Somewhere along the line, our healthy self-regard has exploded into obliterating narcissism, and Rakoff is there to map that frontier. He sits through the grotesqueries of “avant garde” vaudeville in Times Square immediately following 9/11. Twenty days without food allows him to experience firsthand the wonders of “detoxification,” and the frozen world of cryonics, whose promise of eternal life is the ultimate status symbol, leaves him very cold indeed (much to our good fortune). At once a Wildean satire of our ridiculous culture of overconsumption and a plea for a little human decency, Don’t Get Too Comfortable is a bitingly funny grand tour of our special circle of gilded-age hell.

'a really, really, really good book' – Vassos Alexander 'A masterpiece' – Paul-Sinton Hewitt CBE, parkrun founder 'A lovely book... it is really simple about getting a nice relationship with your running where it helps your life and changes with your life... Very accessible.' – Paul Tonkinson, Running Commentary presenter and author A smart running book designed for the all-too-often overlooked middle-of-the-pack runner, written by Marathon Talk's Martin Yelling and Anji Andrews. Welcome to the midpack! Running pushes us, stretches us, asks us difficult questions, challenges us. It gives us space, calms us down, picks us up, boosts our energy, rewards, inspires and fulfils us. Midpack runners – those who fall between the beginners and the elite – are the heartbeat and footsteps of the running community. In this long-overdue book, Marathon Talk's Martin Yelling and Anji Andrews share their expert knowledge, first-person stories and coaching ideas to nourish the midpackers' running experience. Covering such diverse topics as 'Making Yourself Bullet-proof' and 'How to Nail Your Race', Running in the Midpack will cultivate your running progress, and help you to become a healthy, happy and successful runner. Marathon Talk is the UK's number one running podcast.