Today We Die a Little

Today We Die a Little
Author: Richard Askwith
Publsiher: Bold Type Books
Total Pages: 496
Release: 2016-05-24
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9781568585505

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For a decade after the Second World War, Emil Zátopek—"the Czech Locomotive"—redefined his sport, pushing back the frontiers of what was considered possible in terms of training, record-setting, and medal winning. He won five Olympic medals, set 18 world records, and went undefeated over 10,000 metres for six years. His dominance has never been equaled. And in the darkest days of the Cold War, he stood for a spirit of generous friendship that transcended nationality and politics. Zátopek was an energetic supporter of the Prague Spring in 1968, championing "socialism with a human face" in Czechoslovakia. But for this he paid a high price. After the uprising was crushed by Soviet tanks, the hardline Communists had their revenge. Zátopek was expelled from the army, stripped of his role in national sport, and condemned to years of hard and degrading manual labor: cleaning toilets in a uranium mine. Only the protests of the sporting world saved him from a worse fate. By the time he was rehabilitated in 1989, he was old and broken, a shadow of the man he had been. Based on interviews with people across the world who knew him, as well as his widow, fellow Olympian Dana Zátopková, journalist Richard Askwith breathes new life into the man and the myth and uncovers a glorious age of athletics and an epoch-defining time in world history.

Today We Die a Little

Today We Die a Little
Author: Richard Askwith
Publsiher: Random House
Total Pages: 482
Release: 2016-04-21
Genre: Long-distance runners
ISBN: 9780224100342

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LONGLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD The definitive biography of one of the greatest, most extraordinary runners and Olympic heroes of all time, from the author of running classic Feet in the Clouds. On the track, his running made him a legend; off it, his charisma and humanity made him a hero. No runner has generated myth like Emil Z�topek, the Czechoslovakian soldier who revolutionised distance running after World War II. The minutiae of his victories and training methods, the poignant details of his generosity and downfall - all have been endlessly repeated and reinvented, but the full truth never told. Z�topek won five Olympic medals, set 18 world records, and went undefeated over 10,000 metres for six years. He redefined the boundaries of endurance, training in Army boots, in snow, in sand, in darkness. But his toughness was matched by a spirit of friendship and a joie de vivre that transcended the darkest days of the Cold War. His triumphs put his country on the map, yet when Soviet tanks moved in to crush Czechoslovakia's new freedoms in 1968, Z�topek paid a heavy price for his brave stance as a champion of 'socialism with a human face'. Expelled from the Army, he was condemned to years of degrading manual labour, far from his home and his adored wife. Rehabilitated two decades later, he was a shadow of the man he had been - and the world had all but forgotten him. Based on extensive research in the Czech Republic and with unparalleled access to Z�topek's family and friends, particularly his widow, fellow Olympian Dana Z�topkov�, Today We Die A Little evokes not just an extraordinary man but a glorious age of athletics and a dramatic period in European history. It strips away the myths to tell the complex and deeply moving story of the most inspiring Olympic hero of them all.

Today We Die a Little

Today We Die a Little
Author: Richard AskAdditional Writer
Publsiher: Bold Type Books
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2016-05-24
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9781568585499

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"Based on extensive research in the Czech Republic, interviews with people across the world who knew him, and unprecedented cooperation from his widow ... journalist Richard Askwith's book breathes new life into the man and the myth, uncovering a glorious age of athletics and an epoch-defining time in world history"--Dust jacket flap.

Endurance

Endurance
Author: Rick Broadbent
Publsiher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 320
Release: 2016-04-21
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 9781472920249

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Shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year "A runner must run with dreams in his heart." Emil Zatopek. In the summer of 1952 Emil Zatopek became the king of the running world with an unprecedented distance treble at the Olympic Games in Helsinki. Together with his wife Dana, who won another gold medal in the javelin, they were the embodiment of sporting romance. Born on the same day, they were champions on the same day too. Yet in 1968 this affable but eccentric Czech solider was betrayed by his Communist paymasters and cast out into wilderness. Hidden from world view, monitored by the secret police and forced to live in a caravan in mining country, he became the invisible hero. 'Endurance' is the first biography to document the remarkable rise, fall and rehabilitation of a man voted the 'greatest runner of all time' by 'Runner's World' in 2013. It is also the story of a golden age of sport played out against a backdrop of Cold War politics and paranoia. From the London Olympics of 1948 to Czech concentration camps, this is an uplifting and harrowing story of survival. As Emil rises to global fame, his old coach is locked up and tortured by StB henchmen. Their diverging paths expose the fickleness of popularity and eventually cross again when Zatopek's world is torn asunder. All both men can do is endure. The running world of this era is brought to life by dramatic accounts of Zatopek's great triumphs, manifold records and a rich collection of characters vying to dethrone him. In Britain the sharp-tongued Gordon Pirie falls foul of the media as he becomes obsessed with Zatopek and adopts increasingly-masochistic methods; mild-mannered marathon champion Jim Peters begins a quest that would make “women weep and grown men lose their lunch”. In France Alain Mimoun crawls from the bloody carnage of his war-time exploits to overcome racial snubs and become known as Zatopek's Shadow; and in the Soviet Union, the tragic figure of Vladimir Kuts is moulded into a brutal running machine at huge cost. Only Zatopek manages to bridge this East-West divide as a savage power struggle is fought in both the Olympic arena and in the corridors of power. Due to extensive access to those involved, including Dana herself, award-winning Times author Rick Broadbent has written a vivid history involving blood and guns and a love that sustained the cruellest twists of fate. From heady nights at White City to the brave resistance during the Prague Spring, this is a book that plants the son of a carpenter at the very centre of a revolution. Whether talking to his rivals on the track or Red Army troops as tanks roll into Prague, Zatopek's humanity shines through and carries all. With traces of 'Chariots of Fire' and Laura Hillenbrand's 'Unbroken', Endurance is both a wonderful love story and a landmark tale of hope and strength in the face of crushing opposition. "It's at the borders of pain and suffering that the men are separated from the boys." Emil Zatopek

People Power

People Power
Author: Richard Askwith
Publsiher: Biteback Publishing
Total Pages: 97
Release: 2018-02-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9781785903663

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British parliamentary democracy is in a state of advanced decay. The symptoms are familiar: party machines with no goal beyond their own survival; donors and lobbyists whose interests trump the nation's; a disillusioned electorate; and an over-mighty executive whose patronage has become the main driving force of politics. These rots have mixed to breed a caste of career politician more concerned with serving patrons than constituents. We've known this for years, but what can we do about it beyond not bothering to vote? However, in the past decade, a new generation's digital revolution has gradually given a voice to the hitherto unheard masses. Its contribution to political discourse, once limited to the occasional 'X' on a ballot paper, has been rude, vigorous, anarchic – and spectacularly influential. The tide has turned. The result? A slump in support for the big parties, the rejection of mainstream candidates in the Labour leadership contest; the roar of pent-up rage against the Brussels-friendly elite that led to the Brexit vote of June 2016; and then, five months later, the seemingly crazed elevation of Donald Trump to become the most powerful man in the world.

Zatopek

Zatopek
Author: Jan Novák
Publsiher: SelfMadeHero
Total Pages: 208
Release: 2020-10
Genre: Electronic Book
ISBN: 1910593885

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An intoxicating, visually intense portrait of legendary runner Emil Zátopek Emil Zátopek is arguably the greatest Olympic champion of all time. The Czech runner's three gold medals at the 1952 Helsinki Summer Olympics, for the 5,000 meter, 10,000 meter, and marathon, is an achievement that has never been matched. His success as a runner made him a national hero, but as a public figure, outspoken and unafraid to take a stand, he was equally impressive. Even before the Helsinki Games, Zátopek had scored a remarkable victory, successfully pressuring the communist regime to allow his colleague Stanislav Jungwirth, who until then had been excluded on political grounds, to compete. In Zátopek, Jan Novák and Jaromír 99 trace the extraordinary life and times of the great Olympian, from his first meeting with Dana, the love of his life, to the victories that would ensure his lasting legacy.

A Little Life

A Little Life
Author: Hanya Yanagihara
Publsiher: Anchor
Total Pages: 834
Release: 2016-01-26
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9780804172707

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NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A stunning “portrait of the enduring grace of friendship” (NPR) about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. A masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century. NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST • WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE A Little Life follows four college classmates—broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—as they move to New York in search of fame and fortune. While their relationships, which are tinged by addiction, success, and pride, deepen over the decades, the men are held together by their devotion to the brilliant, enigmatic Jude, a man scarred by an unspeakable childhood trauma. A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century, Hanya Yanagihara’s stunning novel is about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. Look for Hanya Yanagihara’s latest bestselling novel, To Paradise.

They Both Die at the End

They Both Die at the End
Author: Adam Silvera
Publsiher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 243
Release: 2017-09-05
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 9780062457813

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Adam Silvera reminds us that there’s no life without death and no love without loss in this devastating yet uplifting story about two people whose lives change over the course of one unforgettable day. #1 New York Times bestseller * 4 starred reviews * A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year * A Kirkus Best Book of the Year * A Booklist Editors' Choice * A Bustle Best YA Novel * A Paste Magazine Best YA Book * A Book Riot Best Queer Book * A Buzzfeed Best YA Book of the Year * A BookPage Best YA Book of the Year On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day. In the tradition of Before I Fall and If I Stay, They Both Die at the End is a tour de force from acclaimed author Adam Silvera, whose debut, More Happy Than Not, the New York Times called “profound.” Plus don't miss The First to Die at the End: #1 New York Times bestselling author Adam Silvera returns to the universe of international phenomenon They Both Die at the End in this prequel. New star-crossed lovers are put to the test on the first day of Death-Cast’s fateful calls.