This collection reminds us that adveristy is a part of every life, and that one of ourmost powerful weapons against it is courage.

Bill Griffiths lost both hands and both eyes when he was a prisoner of the Japanese in Java in 1942. This book tells the story of how he overcame these two shattering handicaps, either one of which might have qualified him to spend the rest of his life quietly in a home for the disabled. But Bill had no intention of allowing himself to become an object of pity and it was not long after his return to civilian life that he began to make it clear that, even if he had no hands and no eyes, he still had his own two feet and he certainly intended to stand on them. Inevitably life has not been without its ups and downs, and he certainly Bill could not have got where he has without the care and devotion of Alice, his wife. Their story is one of remarkable courage, told with no trace of bitterness and with a generous helping of laughter. It is a measure of the man that Bill can end his story with the words, "I've been lucky"!

The Mountaineers Books publishes the best in climbing literature, boasting a list of books chronicling the greatest climbing adventures ever pursued. Courage & Misfortune contains gripping accounts of expeditions that encountered violent forces of nature or tragic accidents.

Many of us are so busy that we might be tempted to think we don’t have time to be patient. However, that idea involves a serious underestimation of what patience is and why it matters. In On Patience, Matthew Pianalto revives a richer understanding of what patience is and why it is centrally important in both virtue theory and everyday life. Drawing from a wide range of philosophical and religious sources, Pianalto shows that our contemporary tendency to equate patience with waiting fails to do justice to other aspects of patience such as tolerance, perseverance, and the opposition of patience to anger. With this broader understanding of patience, Pianalto further shows how patience supports the development of other moral strengths, such as courage, justice, love, and hope. In these ways, On Patience sheds light on Franz Kafka’s remark that, “Patience is the master key to every situation,” and Gregory the Great’s perhaps surprising claim that, “Patience is the root and guardian of all the virtues.” This first book-length contemporary philosophical examination of patience will be of interest to students and scholars not just of virtue ethics, but also of moral philosophy more broadly.

As the founders of the US republic make clear in the Declaration of Independence, human beings have an unassailable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. While the meaning of these “unalienable rights” is debated, it is clear that these rights are interrelated. Concerned with these “rights,” Holistic Happiness focuses on happiness, defining the purpose of life as achieving and maintaining happiness “conducive to the equitable flourishing of all.” To this end, happiness should not be confused with pleasure, which is momentary and transitory, for happiness is not so much a feeling as an attitude, associated with what we call achieving meaning and purpose in life. Properly understood, happiness can be achieved, but only by inner discipline, requiring a transformation of one’s outlook, attitude, and approach to life. As this book emphasizes, good health is an important foundation for happiness. However, to experience and maintain good health requires good genes, a balanced lifestyle, supportive companions, wholesome eating and drinking, regular exercise, a positive mindset, an active disposition, and good fortune. While happiness and good health are frequently disrupted by accidents, disease, stress, chemical and emotional imbalance, and numerous other factors, wellness is achievable and sustainable, but it needs balanced input from an individual’s four constituent dimensions: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. In this regard, this volume is a resource for individuals seeking holistic happiness. While benefitting from recent scholarly research, Holistic Happiness is unique in content and conception and is useful for individual or group study. Each chapter concludes with questions suitable for discussion or reflection.

From the moment he set foot on it, Karl Rove has rocked America’s political stage. He ran the national College Republicans at twenty-two, and turned a Texas dominated by Democrats into a bastion for Republicans. He launched George W. Bush to national renown by unseating a popular Democratic governor, and then orchestrated a GOP White House win at a time when voters had little reason to throw out the incumbent party. For engineering victory after unlikely victory, Rove became known as “the Architect.” Because of his success, Rove has been attacked his entire career, accused of everything from campaign chicanery to ideological divisiveness. In this frank memoir, Rove responds to critics, passionately articulates his political philosophy, and defends the choices he made on the campaign trail and in the White House. He addresses controversies head-on— from his role in the contest between Bush and Senator John McCain in South Carolina to the charges that Bush misled the nation on Iraq. In the course of putting the record straight, Rove takes on Democratic leaders who acted cynically or deviously behind closed doors, and even Republicans who lacked backbone at crucial moments. Courage and Consequence is also the first intimate account from the highest level at the White House of one of the most headline-making presidencies of the modern age. Rove takes readers behind the scenes of the bitterly contested 2000 presidential contest, of tense moments aboard Air Force One on 9/11, of the decision to go to war in Afghanistan and Iraq, of the hard-won 2004 reelection fight, and even of his painful three years fending off an indictment by Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald. In the process, he spells out what it takes to win elections and how to govern successfully once a candidate has won. Rove is candid about his mistakes in the West Wing and in his campaigns, and talks frankly about the heartbreak of his early family years. But Courage and Consequence is ultimately about the joy of a life committed to the conservative cause, a life spent in political combat and service to country, no matter the costs.

The story of Stevie Rose the Brave Stevie Rose is a as cute as a bug’s ear and as smart as a whip. She lives with her mom, Gigi, Papa, and Aunts Olivia and Maddie. She is loved and cherished by all who know her. Her perfectly dimpled face makes everyone who sees her smile!! She spends her days reading, pretending, playing, singing, dancing, and making everyone feel happy. In her world, everything is bright and sunny except for one small problem. Well, if you are mom, Gigi, Papa, Aunt LivLiv, and Aunt Maddie – it’s a very LARGE problem. No matter what they do, they cannot help Stevie fall asleep. She doesn’t like the dark, she doesn’t like staying still, and she does not like to be alone!! In this story, children and adults alike are drawn into Stevie Rose’s world of a families’ love to help this precious little girl find happiness and finally be able to be brave enough to fight her demons and find a forever friend.