“The Best Way Out” recounts a stirring tale of the misfortunes and triumphs of a young English/Argentine sailor from Devon in his quest to sail around Cape Horn. William is born of English Argentine parentage which generates an affection for his mother’s homeland. At an early age William Spyre is inculcated with maritime traditions and desire by his father who served in the Royal Navy. Although he becomes a modest barrister, Joseph Spyre’s unbounded affection and respect for the sea never dims as he passes along this love to his son William. After learning to sail competitively in Plymouth Bay, William turns to offshore racing and defies the odds as he survives the ‘79 Fastnet Race debacle. Tales of South America and Cape Horn grain racers told by Joseph imbue a burning desire in William to ‘Round the Horn’. His wealthy mentor gifts William a stout sloop for the journey and after a year of preparation William heads south in late Fall 1981 in the first leg of his adventure. Upon arriving in Buenos Aires to refit and visit relatives, unbeknownst to William, he has appeared on the cusp of the Falklands invasion. He is promptly arrested by the Argentine Junta as an English spy. Unable to break William or vanquish him, his sadistic Argentine Navy tormentor forces him into the Argentine Army for the invasion of the Falkland Islands. Alone and now the pariah of his platoon, because he’s English, William fears for his life at the hands of the Argentine Marines. He is spared and protected by his platoon Lieutenant, because there is a need for him; he’s their interpreter. After surviving the invasion and occupation of Stanley, William is transferred to Goose Green just prior to the British counter invasion. During a vicious fire fight in the dead of the southern winter, toward the end of May 1982 William find that he’s on the losing end, but he is rescued by a British Soldier in a bizarre coincidence of luck. After the “Arggies” capitulate, William’s British identity cannot be established, so he is returned to Argentina as a POW. He and his wounded buddy make their way back to Buenos Aires on the famous Ruta 3 , bumming rides with good Samaritan, long haul truckdrivers. He reunites with his extended family in Buenos Aires, but is placed under surveillance by Astes. William’s PTSD and now paranoia about Astes alerts him to trouble, so with the aid of his ever-resourceful cousin Rafael, he quickly refits his boat and sails again for Cape Horn. Due to the poor preparation of his hasty departure, he is subsequently wrecked on the coast of Patagonia, rescued by the Argentine/Welch, and is nursed back to health. He has a torrid, illicit love affair with his Welsh host’s daughter, forcing the couple to flee for their lives across Patagonia. In their flight they are relentlessly pursued by William’s Argentine nemesis, Lt Cmdr. Alfredo Astes. William continues to pose a major threat to Astes’ tenuous hold on power. William and his love, Angharad take refuge in Santiago, Chile, where Astes hatches an unsuccessful plot to kill William. This failed attempt unseats Astes from power, but he remains a threat. Angharad encourages to complete his Cape Horn quest, so he takes a tenuous step, travels to Ushuaia, hires a veteran skipper and boat and finally conquers the Horn in winter. The trip out to and around the Horn in winter is a thrilling adventure in and of itself. After sailing past Cape Horn, instead of being jubilant at attaining his goal, William becomes introspective and finally realizes that his attaining his goal has come at the expense of others. He sees that the journey itself is what mattered which was enabled by the love, respect and sacrifice of his closest friends and family. William finally realizes that it is they who are important, not attaining a seemingly impossible goal. He learns this lesson a little late in life, but better learned than never understood. One would think that the story ends here, but no, there’s one last, dangerous problem that must be dealt with - Lt Cmdr. Alfredo Astes. Back in Ushuaia after the Horn, William inadvertently encounters his antagonist Astes and a confrontation ensues, but you must read the book to find out what happens. - Who will prevail and how? The incredible natural beauty and majesty of Chile and Argentina set the backdrop and inspiration for this account of intrigue, betrayal, passion and the ultimate triumph of the human spirit.

In American Odyssey, Uriel Sullinger is thrust into a high-stakes card game with the prince of darkness, taking readers on a salacious romp through the darkened halls and back alleys of the human mind. When an old college mate lures him into a labyrinth of deception and illusion, Uriel’s fate hangs in the balance as he faces the devil’s hand. As he navigates between heaven and hell, Uriel discovers that the game of lies and illusion holds the key to his personal truth. With the powers of the universe battling for his soul, only Uriel’s childhood ghosts can save him from himself and help him understand his past to secure his future.

American Odyssey, a novel set in the not-too-distant future, is the chilling story of a totalitarian America that has plummeted to a nation set on world domination. The protagonist, Herb, is a young "everyman", a schoolteacher. He falls in love with a colleague who introduces him to the resistance movement. A series of personal misfortunes, including the death of his soldier twin, impel him to become a dedicated activist against the dictatorship. His group is soon exposed, and he and his love, Tony, become fugitives. She is soon killed. At that point Herb's odyssey begins as he travels the nation in search of "the movement". The preponderance of the novel reveals the state of the nation and of the people. He comes into contact with a cross-section of the United States. They are men and women -- laborers, farmers, professionals, students..They are Black and white and Hispanic, and each is unique in the manner in which his/her life has been degraded under the dictatorship. At the beginning they are impoverished, fearful, dispirited. In time, as the economic crisis deepens and battlefield losses mount, there are changes in the populace. Apathy turns to anger and then to resistance. Herb becomes reconnected with the opposition to the dictatorship. The American people in large numbers, disheartened by the desperate quality of their lives, simply "opt-out" of the system. The military, too, appalled by the unending wars and bloodshed, also becomes disaffected. Millions converge upon Washington, D.C. the dictatorship falls, and the foundation is laid for the re-establishment of democracy in the United States.

A compelling biography of a South Carolina slave who returned to fight the slave trade in his African homeland The inspirational story of John Kizell celebrates the life of a West African enslaved as a boy and brought to South Carolina on the eve of the American Revolution. Fleeing his owner, Kizell served with the British military in the Revolutionary War, began a family in the Nova Scotian wilderness, then returned to his African homeland to help found a settlement for freed slaves in Sierra Leone. He spent decades battling European and African slave traders along the coast and urging his people to stop selling their own into foreign bondage. This in-depth biography—based in part on Kizell's own writings—illuminates the links between South Carolina and West Africa during the Atlantic slave trade's peak decades. Seized in an attack on his uncle's village, Kizell was thrown into the brutal world of chattel slavery at age thirteen and transported to Charleston, South Carolina. When Charleston fell to the British in 1780, Kizell joined them and was with the Loyalist force defeated in the pivotal battle of Kings Mountain. At the war's end, he was evacuated with other American Loyalists to Nova Scotia. In 1792 he joined a pilgrimage of nearly twelve hundred former slaves to the new British settlement for free blacks in Sierra Leone. Among the most prominent Africans in the antislavery movement of his time, Kizell believed that all people of African descent in America would, if given a way, return to Africa as he had. Back in his native land, he bravely confronted the forces that had led to his enslavement. Late in life he played a controversial role—freshly interpreted in this book—in the settlement of American blacks in what became Liberia. Kizell's remarkable story provides insight to the cultural and spiritual milieu from which West Africans were wrenched before being forced into slavery. Lowther sheds light on African complicity in the slave trade and examines how it may have contributed to Sierra Leone's latter-day struggles as an independent state. A foreword by Joseph Opala, a noted researcher on the "Gullah Connection" between Sierra Leone and coastal South Carolina and Georgia, highlights Kizell's continuing legacy on both sides of the Atlantic.

A biography of the United Nations mediator and winner of the 1950 Nobel Peace Prize for his work on the armistice between Israel and its Arab neighbors.

In this critical study of four plays by Pulitzer Prize-winner August Wilson-- Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Fences, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, and The Piano Lesson--Pereira show how Wilson uses the themes of separation, migration, and reunion to depict the physical and psychological journeys of African Americans in the 20th century.

“Deep down, there is just something that draws us to the land, to wild places. We were there to listen to the land.” When National Geographic Adventurers of the Year Amy and Dave Freeman marry, they set out on an unusual honeymoon: a three-year, 12,000-mile journey across North America. From Alaska’s Inside Passage to Florida’s Key West, they traverse the continent by kayak, canoe, dogsled, and skis, encountering wildlife, sublime landscapes, and harrowing challenges. Along the way, the Freemans also bear witness to environmental degradation and climate change—from plastic-covered beaches to forest fires to retreating glaciers. And as they engage with Native and rural communities most impacted by the changes resulting from modern industrial society and meet individuals and organizations dedicated to protecting the natural world, their adventure deepens in ways they never imagined. From the white-knuckle rush of paddling white water to the wonderment of dogsledding across a frosted landscape where caribou and wolves roam, North American Odyssey is a celebration of our interconnectedness to the natural world and to each other. Beautifully written, engagingly told, and inspiring throughout, Amy and Dave Freeman’s story is a clarion call for change in the way we live.

The Rough Guide to South Americais the definitive handbook to the continent. Features include- Full-coloursection introducing South America's highlights Detailedcoverage and extensive practicalities for all thirteen countries, along with the Galapagos Islands and Easter Island. Vividaccounts of unmissable attractions, from the beaches of Rio and the glaciers of Patagonia to the Inca ruins at Machu Picchu. Hundredsof critical reviews on the best places to stay, eat and drink, plus details on major festivals and indigenous music. Expertadvice on exploring the jungles, deserts and mountains up close, as well as crossing borders and planning multi-country trips. Maps and Plansfor the entire continent.

This book illuminates the professional career and private lives of J. McCants Stewart--a Reconstruction-era lawyer, minister, politician, and political activist--and his descendants over three generations, providing an epic account of an African-American family in America. (Adapted from book jacket)

The O’Shaughnessy brothers’ story takes place between 1860 and 1950 in Illinois, Missouri, New York, and Ireland. They were the children of an impoverished immigrant who fled the famine in Ireland and his Irish-American wife.An Irish-American Odysseyis the tale of this first-generation immigrant family’s struggle to assimilate into American society, highlighting their perseverance and determination to seize opportunities and surmount obstacles, all the while establishing a legacy for their own descendants in American art, advertising, journalism, and public service. TIME magazine called James O’Shaughnessy “the best in the business” of advertising, and he became the first chief executive of the American Association of Advertising Agencies. Earlier, he was a “star” reporter at the Chicago Tribune, and James and Francis were centrally involved in founding and maintaining the Irish Fellowship Club. Francis was also the first graduate of the University of Notre Dame to be invited to deliver its annual commencement address, while Martin was the first captain of Notre Dame’s official basketball team. An attorney, John represented the alleged victim in a notorious “white slavery” case. Thomas (“Gus”) became the leading Gaelic Revival artist in America as well as a promoter of Italian-American heritage, campaigning successfully to have Columbus Day enacted a public holiday. The remarkable rise of the O’Shaughnessy brothers proves the American dream is attainable.