Are You Somebody

Memoir followed by a selection of Nuala O'Faolain's columns on people, issues, and places from the Irish times over the past decade.

"You don't want the book to end; it glows with compassion and you want more, more because you know this is a fine wine of a life, richer as it ages."—Frank McCourt, author of Angela's Ashes One of nine children born into a penniless North Dublin family, Nuala O'Faolain was saved from a harrowing childhood by her love of books and reading. Though she ultimately became one of Ireland's best-known columnists, her professional success did little to ease her loneliness and longing for a deep connection to the world. Are You Somebody? distills her experiences into a wisdom that can only come from an obstinate refusal to shrink from life. This commemorative edition of her landmark memoir celebrates O'Faolain's remarkable life and work with a new foreword from Frank McCourt as well as additional archival materials. Strikingly vivid and starkly emotional, Are You Somebody? is, like O'Faolain herself, a singular example of courage, honesty, and bold living.

A young woman is determined not to repeat the cycle set by her parents. Includes columns originally published in the Irish times.

An anonymous valentine changes the life of the unsociable Mr. Hatch, turning him into a laughing friend who helps and appreciates all his neighbors.

In this poignant and heart wrenching true story, Regina Louise recounts her childhood search for connection in the face of abuse, neglect, and rejection. What happens to a child when her own parents reject her and sit idly by as others abuse her? In this poignant, heart wrenching debut work, Regina Louise recounts her childhood search for someone to feel connected to. A mother she has never known--but long fantasized about-- deposited her and her half sister at the same group home that she herself fled years before. When another resident beats Regina so badly that she can barely move, she knows that she must leave this terrible place-the only home she knows. Thus begins Regina's fight to survive, utterly alone at the age of 10. A stint living with her mother and her abusive boyfriend is followed by a stay with her father's lily white wife and daughters, who ignore her before turning to abuse and ultimately kicking her out of the house. Regina then tries everything in her search for someone to care for her and to care about, from taking herself to jail to escaping countless foster homes to be near her beloved counselor. Written in her distinctive and unique voice, Regina's story offers an in-depth look at the life of a child who no one wanted. From her initial flight to her eventual discovery of love, your heart will go out to Regina's younger self, and you'll cheer her on as she struggles to be Somebody's Someone.

What if peace of mind, beautiful feelings, little or no stress, wonderful, healthy relationships and greater effectiveness, were right at your fingertips, and you held the key but didn't realize it or didn't know how to use it? That is what "Somebody Should Have Told Us!" This book is about how we all have a state of perfect mental health and wisdom inside us that can only be covered up by our own thinking, and how our use of our power of thought creates the "reality" we see, out of which we then think, feel and act. Here are ten simple but profound truths for living well, arising from three spiritual facts that, once grasped or truly realized, can transform one's life. This book has the ability to spawn insights that change the lives of those who come to understand the simple, yet profound wisdom contained in this book. In fact, it already has. This book is the essence of self-help, in that it points people inside themselves for all answers. It shows people how to access their own essence whenever they need to. It shows people how they create their experience of life moment to moment. The book is written in an easy-to-understand manner with many stories of how people's lives have changed. When we were growing up nobody told us what this book points to, but somebody should have told us! And it's never too late. About the Author Jack Pransky, Ph.D. is founder/director of the Center for Inside-Out Understanding. He authored the books, "Modello: A Story of Hope for the Inner City and Beyond, Parenting from the Heart, Prevention from the Inside-Out; Prevention: The Critical Need" and co-authored "Healthy Thinking/ Feeling/Doing from the Inside-Out" prevention curriculum for middle school students. Pransky has worked in the field of prevention since 1968 in a wide variety of capacities and now provides consultation, training, counseling and coaching from the inside-out, throughout the U.S. and internationally. He is also cofounder/director of the nonprofit consulting organization, Prevention Unlimited, which created the Spirituality of Prevention Conference. In 2001 his book, "Modello" received the Martin Luther King Storyteller's Award for the book best exemplifying King's vision of "the beloved community," and in 2004 Jack won the Vermont Prevention Pioneer's Award. Jack can be contacted through his website at www.healthrealize.com.

"Plastic bags don't belong in the sea!" Everybody has a taste for Stanley - and the other ocean creatures just keepmistaking him for a delicious treat - but this is no ordinary jellyfish. Most jellyfish have dangly-gangly tentacles, but Stanley has two handles... Other jellyfish have a magical glow, but Stanley has stripes... Because Stanley (spoiler alert) is a plastic bag! A beautifully illustrated picture book with a powerful message about plastic pollution from environmental expert Sarah Roberts. The perfect gift to introduce children to the issues of plastic in our oceans Brilliant for teachers to read to children in class when introducing them to pollution issues This book is made of material from well-managed FSC-certifiedforests and other controlled sources

From the USA Today–bestselling authors of Stand Your Ground comes the explosive story of a liberal college under siege—and freedom under fire. Former Army Ranger Jake Rivers is not your typical Kelton College student. He is not spoiled, coddled, or ultra-lib like his classmates who sneer at the “soldier boy.” But regardless of his differences with the rest of the student body, he needs an education. And when terror strikes, the school needs Jake. Without warning, the sounds of gunfire plunge the campus into a battle zone. A violent gang of marauders invade the main hall, taking students hostage for ransom. As a veteran and patriot, Jake won’t give in to their demands. But to fight back, he needs to enlist his fellow classmates and school them in the not-so-liberal art of war. This time, the aggression isn’t “micro.” It’s life or death. And only the strong survive.