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  Whatever It Took - An American...

  Henry Langrehr, Jim DeFelice

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  Published to mark the 75th anniversary of VE Day, an unforgettable never-before-told first-person account of World War II: the true story of an American paratrooper who survived D-Day, was captured and imprisoned in a Nazi work camp, and made a daring escape to freedom.  
   
  Now at 95, one of the few living members of the Greatest Generation shares his experiences at last in one of the most remarkable World War II stories ever told. As the Allied Invasion of Normandy launched in the pre-dawn hours of June 6, 1944, Henry Langrehr, an American paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne, was among the thousands of Allies who parachuted into occupied France. Surviving heavy anti-aircraft fire, he crashed through the glass roof of a greenhouse in Sainte-Mère-Église. While many of the soldiers in his unit died, Henry and other surviving troops valiantly battled enemy tanks to a standstill. Then, on June 29th, Henry was captured by the Nazis. The next phase of his incredible journey was beginning. 
  Kept for a week in the outer ring of a death camp, Henry witnessed the Nazis’ unspeakable brutality—the so-called Final Solution, with people marched to their deaths, their bodies discarded like cords of wood. Transported to a work camp, he endured horrors of his own when he was forced to live in unbelievable squalor and labor in a coal mine with other POWs. Knowing they would be worked to death, he and a friend made a desperate escape. When a German soldier cornered them in a barn, the friend was fatally shot; Henry struggled with the soldier, killing him and taking his gun. Perilously traveling westward toward Allied controlled land on foot, Henry faced the great ethical and moral dilemmas of war firsthand, needing to do whatever it took to survive. Finally, after two weeks behind enemy lines, he found an American unit and was rescued. 
  Awaiting him at home was Arlene, who, like millions of other American women, went to work in factories and offices to build the armaments Henry and the Allies needed for victory. Whatever It Took is her story, too, bringing to life the hopes and fears of those on the homefront awaiting their loved ones to return. 
  A tale of heroism, hope, and survival featuring 30 photographs, Whatever It Took is a timely reminder of the human cost of freedom and a tribute to unbreakable human courage and spirit in the darkest of times.  
  Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

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  The Wicked Boy - The Mystery of...

  Kate Summerscale

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  Early in the morning of Monday 8 July 1895, thirteen-year-old Robert Coombes and his twelve-year-old brother Nattie set out from their small, yellow-brick terraced house in East London to watch a cricket match at Lord's. Their father had gone to sea the previous Friday, the boys told their neighbours, and their mother was visiting her family in Liverpool. Over the next ten days Robert and Nattie spent extravagantly, pawning their parents' valuables to fund trips to the theatre and the seaside. But as the sun beat down on the Coombes house, a strange smell began to emanate from the building. When the police were finally called to investigate, the discovery they made sent the press into a frenzy of horror and alarm, and Robert and Nattie were swept up in a criminal trial that echoed the outrageous plots of the 'penny dreadful' novels that Robert loved to read. In The Wicked Boy, Kate Summerscale has uncovered a fascinating true story of murder and morality - it is not just a meticulous examination of a shocking Victorian case, but also a compelling account of its aftermath, and of man's capacity to overcome the past.

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  Beyond Babylon Resilience in...

  Jason Jansson

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  Preface 
  Welcome to the vibrant, unpredictable world of Slab City California—a place where trials and transformation intersect amidst the desert ruins. In the season of 2024, I embarked on a journey to this otherworldly post-apocalyptic landscape, seeking refuge from the constraints of modern society and discovering profound lessons in resilience and human connection. 
  My experiences in Slab City were nothing short of transformative. What began as a quest for escape evolved into a profound exploration of self-discovery and communal living. Here, amidst the remnants of a forgotten military base, I encountered a community unlike any other—a gathering of souls navigating their own purgatories, seeking solace and renewal in the desert expanse. 
  As you delve into the pages of this book, you'll join me on a journey of personal evolution and collective wisdom. From the vibrant art installations of East Jesus to the camaraderie of the Oasis Club, each encounter in Slab City left an indelible mark on my spirit. The Slabbers I met—resilient, resourceful, and irreverently creative—taught me invaluable lessons about living authentically and embracing the unexpected. 
  Through the trials and tribulations of Slab City, I discovered that true transformation begins with the courage to embrace the unknown and the willingness to connect deeply with others. This book is a testament to the enduring spirit of humanity, a celebration of unconventional living, and a reminder that amidst desolation, hope and community flourish. 
  Join me as we uncover the secrets of Slab City, where the mundane fades away and the extraordinary emerges. May this journey inspire you to seek your own path of authenticity and resilience, wherever your adventures may lead. 
  Let the metamorphosis begin. Jason

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  The Underground Railroad in...

  Horatio T. Strother

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  This account of fugitive slaves traveling through Connecticut “includes many stories from descendants of the underground agents . . . a definitive work.” —Hartford Courant 
   
  Here are the engrossing facts about one of the least-known aspects of Connecticut’s history—the rise, organization, and operations of the Underground Railroad, over which fugitive slaves from the South found their way to freedom. Drawing his data from published sources and, perhaps more importantly, from the still-existing oral tradition of descendants of Underground agents, Horatio Strother tells the detailed story in this book, originally published in 1962. He traces the routes from entry points such as New Haven harbor and the New York state line, through important crossroads like Brooklyn and Farmington.  
   
  Revealing the dangers fugitives faced, the author also identifies the high-minded lawbreakers who operated the system—farmers and merchants, local officials and judges, at least one United States Senator, and many dedicated ministers of the Gospel. These narratives are set against the larger background of the development of slavery and abolitionism in America—conversations still relevant today.

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  W F Harvey - Six of the Best -...

  W F Harvey

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  Six has always been a number we group things around – Six of the best, six of one half a dozen of another, six feet under, six pack, six degrees of separation and a sixth sense are but a few of the ways we use this number. 
   
  Such is its popularity that we thought it is also a very good way of challenging and investigating an author’s work to give width, brevity, humour and depth across six of their very best. 
   
  In this series we gather together authors whose short stories both rivet the attention and inspire the imagination to visit their gems in a series of six, to roam across an author’s legacy in a few short hours and gain a greater understanding of their writing and, of course, to be lavishly entertained by their ideas, their narrative and their way with words. 
   
  These stories can be surprising and sometimes at a tangent to what we expected, but each is fully formed and a marvellous adventure into the world and words of a literary master.

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  The Guga Hunters

  Donald S. Murray

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  This Scottish Highlands history celebrates the traditional Gaelic bird hunt undertaken each year on the island of Sula Sgeir north of the Outer Hebrides. Every year, ten men from Ness, at the northern tip of the Isle of Lewis, sail north-east for some forty miles to a remote rock called Sula Sgeir. Their mission is to catch and harvest the guga; the almost fully grown gannet chicks nesting on the two-hundred-foot-high cliffs that circle the tiny island, which is barely half a mile long. After spending a fortnight in the arduous conditions that often prevail there, they return home with around two thousand of the birds, pickled and salted and ready for the tables of Nessmen and women both at home and abroad.The Guga Hunters tells the story of the men who voyage to Sula Sgeir each year, capturing their way of life and the drama of their exploits. They speak of the laughter that seasons their time together on Sula Sgeir, as well as the dangers they have faced. Delving deep into the social history of Ness, local historian Donald S. Murray also reveals the hunt's connections to the traditions of other North Atlantic countries. Told in his district's poetry and prose, Murray shows how the spirit of a community is preserved in this truly unique tradition.

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