The story of a native Minnesotan who was shot down over Austria during World War II and taken prisoner.

Wire-I am the pain manager at the Wings of Diablo MC Club. What's that mean? It means that if my brothers need information they call on me to get it out of you. You should see the art I can create with a blow torch or a serrated blade or my favorite, barbed wire. I have been known to have a cold fearless heart. To stand in the middle of a gun fight without a care in the world, tear flesh from bodies and not even blink when my mark would scream and cry. Nothing reached me, I was numb to the world. Chaos was my meditation. That was until I met Keeley. Now one small piece of false information, one wrong victim and one war later she is completely under my skin.Keeley-He just showed up in my backyard pointing a gun in my face and bleeding profusely. If I would have known at that precise moment my world would turn on its head I would have never let him in. I left my home to get away from the violence and the wars yet here I am back in a world I don't want to be in. I would run but no one excites me like Dillon does, no one protects me like Dillon does, and no one makes me scream in pleasure like him either. As hard as his life is and even with my own life in danger there is no where I would rather be than in his arms, I am his.

After winning Philadelphia's SportsRadio 94WIP's Wing Bowl in January 1999, competitive eater Bill "El Wingador" Simmons became an overnight celebrity and helped inspire food-obsessed gluttons across the nation. However, despite winning four more Wing Bowl championships, and participating in numerous television commercials and public appearances across the country, there was much more going on behind the scenes in the life of this six-foot-five, larger-than-life character than what appeared on his plate. Personal setbacks soon forced Simmons down a devastating and destructive road, leading to his subsequent arrest and jail sentence. A series of near-death experiences while in prison inspired Simmons to take control of his life, and his newfound path has helped him regain the love and respect of legions of fans. With a foreword by two-time Pulitzer Prize nominee and iconic Philadelphia sports radio personality Angelo Cataldi (Angelo Cataldi and the WIP Morning Show- SportsRadio 94WIP), Snow On The Barbwire offers a no-holds-barred look at the life and times of one of the most charismatic, recognizable and colorful personalities to ever conquer the eating world. The book is co-written with close friend and confidant Joe Vallee, co-founder of the website Philly2Philly.com and co-author of A Snowball's Chance: Philly Fires Back Against the National Media, and 'No Curveballs: My Greatest Sports Stories Never Told, ' the autobiography of long-time sports journalist Bill Werndl. 'Snow On The Barbwire' is more than just the story of a man eating chicken wings. It is the candid, compelling tale of a man whose random participation in one of the world's biggest eating competitions led to fame, fortune, and some rather unintended consequences. It inspires all of us to rise up against adversity and never give up on life-no matter how dire the consequences may seem.

In this extraordinary journey, Alan Tennant recounts his attempt to track the transcontinental migration of the majestic peregrine falcon — an investigation no one before him had ever taken to such lengths. From the windswept flats of the Texas barrier islands to the Artic and then south again into the Caribbean, On the Wing provides a hilariously picaresque and bumpy flight.

Longlisted for the James Cropper Wainwright Prize 2024 for Nature Writing "Delightful . . . Hedgelands is a merry exposition on the history and biology of these unique ecosystems, and a very good argument as to why we should re-engage with the hedge."—The Wall Street Journal "Hart’s passion for the potential that resides here is intoxicating. Occasionally an environmental solution comes along that is so breathtakingly simple you can’t believe that not everyone is already doing it."—Sunday Times "[A] joyously readable book— it riffs along like breeze in the hedgerow."—John Lewis-Stempel in Country Life On this joyous journey around the wild edges of Britain, celebrated author Christopher Hart takes us through the life, ecology and history of the humble countryside hedge and how it is inextricably woven into our language, landscape and culture. Hedges – or hedgerows – have long been an integral part of the British landscape. An ancient, human-made boundary, hedgerows have become a critically important haven for wildlife and are now being recognised as one of the greatest ‘edge’ habitats on Earth. Britain boasts 400,000 kilometres of hedgerows, but has lost 50 per cent of them since the Second World War and their slow deterioration today is becoming a huge threat to the ecosystem. In Hedgelands, Christopher Hart shares the history of the hedge, highlighting the hawthorn and hazel of ancient hedgerows, and reveals its abundance of wildlife, from the elusive dunnock to the iconic nightingale, the industrious hedgehog to the miniscule harvest mouse. He demonstrates how this true environmental hero and powerful climate ally can help rebuild species-rich, resilient havens for birds, mammals and insects. Hedges play a vital role in mature woodland, grassland and even wetland, all of which can offer us much-needed ecological diversity and carbon sequestration. Through rewilding a patch of land in southwest England, Christopher shows us how easy, joyful and rewarding it is to restore even the smallest stretch of hedge. Whether you live in the country or the city, Hedgelands shares how simple actions can make a huge difference to the future of our precious hedges – and environment. “What’s good for us is good for nature, and what’s good for nature is good for us. And nowhere is this more true than in the bustling, flourishing, flowering, fruiting and altogether glorious native British hedge.”—Christopher Hart

Ven. Nyanatiloka was one of the pioneers of Buddhism in the modern world and the first European Buddhist monk. As the world’s senior Western bhikkhu, ordained in 1903, Nyanatiloka attracted many disciples, through whose work his influence continues to be felt today, more than fifty years after his death. Nyanatiloka was also a renowned scholar and translator of Pali scriptures. His classic The Word of the Buddha, written more than a century ago, is still widely read. The core of this volume consists of a translation of Nyanatiloka’s autobiography, written in German when he was forty-eight. The remaining thirty-one years of his life, from 1926 until 1957, are presented as a biographical postscript, drawn from other sources. The story of Nyanatiloka’s life provides an inspiring example of one man’s ability to put aside his cultural doubts and hesitations and embrace wholeheartedly a non-Western system of values, ideas and practices. The greatest hardships do not seem to deter him any more than his achievements appear to go to his head. For those who have not experienced the turmoil and uncertainty of war and are accustomed to instant access of information through the internet, Nyanatiloka’s accomplishments are all the more remarkable. The Life of Nyanatiloka Thera offers a fascinating insight into the formative period of Europe’s encounter with the Dhamma.

The book is about the revival of China in the 20th century and the first decade of the 21st century. It has eight parts: (1) The civil revolution in China, (2) The countryside bases, (3) The Long Match of the Red Army, (4) The Anti Japanese War, (5) Decisive civil battles before the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, (6) The Mao Era before the Great Cultural Revolution, (7) The Great Cultural Revolution, and (8) The Reform and opening up. This version of the book is with pictures.