Englische Bücher: Biographien

'The Power' is back. King of the oche and a legend in the game, Phil Taylor is largely responsible for taking darts into the 21st century. Recently crowned world champion for an unprecedented eleventh time, Taylor is a complete one-off ? the Tiger Woods of his sport ? and the most phenomenal player ever to throw a dart. Brought up in the back streets of the Potteries, where his Dad tried to turn him into a boxer, Taylor's first job saw him earning £75 a week in a factory making ceramic toilet handles ? and by the age of 25 he had hardly thrown a dart in anger. Then he attended an Eric Bristow darts exhibition, and the 'Crafty Cockney' became his mentor and friend and loaned him £10,000 to play the pro circuit. Within five years Taylor had won the first of his eleven world titles ... In his book, Taylor describes how Bristow coaxed, bullied, humiliated and often literally punched him into making it as a pro. He is candid about the booze culture of the game, while revisiting the memorable matches and recalling vivid stories featuring the likes of Bristow, Cliff Lazarenko (who once had 20 cans of lager before a match), John Lowe and the legendary Jocky Wilson. A dispute between the professional players and the British Darts Organisation in 1992 almost led to a dispirited Taylor giving up the game for good. And he retraces the worst six months of his life, during which time he was convicted of sexually assaulting two female fans and had his MBE rescinded. The pain for his family was hard to bear. This is a story of a man having to come to terms with unparalleled success in his professional life after a career setback that would have destroyed many others; a unique sportsman whose steely-eyed determination won him an unprecedented eleventh world title in 2004 in what many observers described as the best professional darts match in living memory.

A Frozen Woman charts Ernaux's teenage awakening, and then the parallel progression of her desire to be desirable and her ambition to fulfill herself in her chosen profession - with the inevitable conflict between the two. And then she is thirty years old, a teacher married to an executive, mother of two infant sons. She looks after their nice apartment, raises her children. And yet, like millions of other women, she has felt her enthusiasm and curiosity, her strength and her happiness, slowly ebb under the weight of her daily routine. The very condition that everyone around her seems to consider normal and admirable for a woman is killing her. While each of Ernaux's books contain an autobiographical element, A Frozen Woman, one of Ernaux's early works, concentrates the spotlight piercingly on Annie herself. Mixing affection, rage and bitterness, A Frozen Woman shows us Ernaux's developing art when she still relied on traditional narrative, before the shortened form emerged that has since become her trademark.

Here is an absorbing biography of the English artist Dora Carrington, who called herself simply "Carrington". She was a woman who made a vivid impression on those she met-she was portrayed (or caricatured), for example, in novels by Wyndham Lewis, D. H. Lawrence, and Aldous Huxley. Hopelessly in love with the noted writer Lytton Strachey, she achieved notoriety by killing herself shortly after his death. A talented painter, living a bohemian life, Carrington was torn by conflicts as an artist and a woman, including the shrewd and inquisitive Bloomsbury group. Carrington's paintings, however, reveal much of her remarkable and original cast of mind, and since her death her reputation as an artist has grown steadily. Her work is new represented in major collections worldwide.

In his signature larger-than-life style, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Total Recall is a revealing self-portrait of his illustrious, controversial, and truly unique life.The greatest immigrant success story of our time. His story is unique, and uniquely entertaining, and he tells it brilliantly in these pages. He was born in a year of famine, in a small Austrian town, the son of an austere police chief. He dreamed of moving to America to become a bodybuilding champion and a movie star. By the age of twenty-one, he was living in Los Angeles and had been crowned Mr. Universe. Within five years, he had learned English and become the greatest bodybuilder in the world. Within ten years, he had earned his college degree and was a millionaire from his business enterprises in real estate, landscaping, and bodybuilding. He was also the winner of a Golden Globe Award for his debut as a dramatic actor in Stay Hungry. Within twenty years, he was the world’s biggest movie star, the husband of Maria Shriver, and an emerging Republican leader who was part of the Kennedy family. Thirty-six years after coming to America, the man once known by fellow body­builders as the Austrian Oak was elected governor of California, the seventh largest economy in the world. He led the state through a budget crisis, natural disasters, and political turmoil, working across party lines for a better environment, election reforms, and bipartisan solutions. With Maria Shriver, he raised four fantastic children. In the wake of a scandal he brought upon himself, he tried to keep his family together. Until now, he has never told the full story of his life, in his own voice. Here is Arnold, with total recall.

A journey around the world begins on a small island.A revolution begins step by step.One man sets out to change an entire industry.This is his story ¿ and with it the story of single malt whisky.A declaration of love to taste and smell, to the beauty of the homeland, to life itself.

To be our selves, we must become secure in our insecurities. In The Hidden Power of F*cking Up, The Try Guys?Keith, Ned, Zach, and Eugene?reveal their philosophy of trying: how to fully embrace fear, foolishness, and embarrassment in an effort to understand how we all get paralyzed by a fear of failure. They'll share how four shy, nerdy kids have dealt with their most poignant life struggles by attacking them head-on and reveal their?ahem?sure-fail strategies for achieving success.But they're not just here to talk; they're actually going to put their advice to work. To demonstrate their unique self-improvement formula, they'll each personally confront their deepest insecurities. A die-hard meat-lover goes vegan for the first time. A straitlaced father transforms into a fashionista. A perpetually single sidekick becomes the romantic lead. A child of divorce finally grows more intimate with his family. Through their insightful, emotional journeys and surprising, hilarious anecdotes, they'll help you overcome your own self-doubt to become the best, most f*cked-up version of yourself you can be!

Im Jahr 1902 erhält Rainer Maria Rilke Post von einem jungen Mann, Franz Xaver Kappus, einem literarisch begabten, 19-jährigen Offiziersanwärter. Kappus ist sich nicht sicher, welche Richtung er in seinem Leben einschlagen soll, und fragt daher den großen, nur wenige Jahre älteren Dichter um Rat. Rilke antwortet ihm - auf gänzlich unerwartete Weise. In den folgenden Jahren schreibt ihm Rilke neun weitere Briefe. Sie reden, mit der ihm eigenen bescheidenen Eindringlichkeit, von nichts Geringerem als dem richtigen Leben.Die von Kappus 1929 herausgegebene Sammlung der Rilke-Briefe hat Epoche gemacht und ganze Generationen immer wieder von Neuem inspiriert. Hier wird sie in der neuen, modernen Übersetzung von dem Rilke-Kenner Ulrich Baer vorgelegt.

There is a restaurant at 46 Alte Schönhauser Strasse in Berlin's Mitte district that evolved into an international place of pilgrimage many years ago. It is Monsieur Vuong's eatery. His photo hangs on the orange red wall, and has become its symbol. But wait, that's the father, a portrait photographer who came from Vietnam to Germany with his family in 1987 and took this »selfie« at the age of 24. His son Dat is the owner of the restaurant in front of which long queues form. No surprise, because the dishes taste heavenly and are of a soothing, unpretentious simplicity. They are authentic as Dat Vuong, culinary ambassador and culture hopper, cooks in the tradition of his mother and frequently returns to his roots, to Vietnam. Whoever eats at Monsieur Vuong returns. Whoever meets Dat Vuong wants to know his story, how it has led to his success. High time to erect a monument in his honour. Here it is, with the finest recipes from the restaurant, all easy to cook, with advice and inspiration, and all the flair of Vietnamese cook-shop that has become an international hot spot. >Die China-Küche des Herrn Wu

Uproarious advice and never-before-seen color photos from drag queen extraordinaire Bianca Del RioThe cheeky, larger-than-life drag queen and outrageous comic—"The Joan Rivers of the Drag World," (New York Times)—who isn't afraid to shock or offend brings her trademark acerbic wit and sharp commentary to the page in an illustrated collection of advice.When it comes to insult comics, Bianca Del Rio is in a class by herself. Fierce, funny, and fabulous—a would-be love child sired by John Waters and birthed by Joan Rivers—Bianca sandblasted her name in the annals of pop culture on RuPaul's Drag Race. Thanks to her snarky frankness, impeccable comedic timing, and politically incorrect humor, she became the show's breakout star, winning its sixth season.In Blame It On Bianca Del Rio, Bianca shares her opinions loudly and proudly, offering raucous, hilarious, no-holds-barred commentary on the everyday annoyances, big and small, that color her world, and make it a living, albeit amusing, hell for anyone who inhabits it. A collection of biting advice filled with vibrant photos from Bianca's twisted universe, Blame It On Bianca Del Rio will shock you and keep you laughing. But be warned: it is not for the faint of heart!

"In 2009, while thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail, Robert Moor began to wonder about the paths that lie beneath our feet: How do they form? Why do some improve over time while others fade? What makes us follow or strike off on our own? Over the course of the next seven years, Moor traveled the globe, exploring trails of all kinds, from the miniscule to the massive. He learned the tricks of master trail-builders, hunted down long-lost Cherokee trails, and traced the origins of our road networks and the Internet. In each chapter, Moor interweaves his adventures with findings from science, history, philosophy, and nature writing--combining the nomadic joys of Peter Matthiessen with the eclectic wisdom of Lewis Hyde's The Gift. Throughout, Moor reveals how this single topic--the oft-overlooked trail--sheds new light on a wealth of age-old questions: How does order emerge out of chaos? How did animals first crawl forth from the seas and spread across continents? How has humanity's relationship with nature and technology shaped the world around us? And, ultimately, how does each of us pick a path through life? With a breathtaking arc that spans from the dawn of animal life to the digital era, On Trails is a book that makes us see our world, our history, our species, and our ways of life anew"--Book jacket flap.

?Unconventional. . . . Not a garden-variety rock memoir . . . [but] a strange and lovely book about a woman finding and losing herself onstage and off and crafting a complicated creative life when none of the molds quite fit.??Los Angeles Times Book Review?Engaging and surprisingly intimate.??Vanity Fair?More than a memoir, though one of the most riveting music biographies ever penned.??Examiner.comFor many, Kim Gordon, vocalist, bassist, and founding member of Sonic Youth?one of the most influential and successful bands to emerge from the post-punk New York scene?has always represented the epitome of cool. And almost as celebrated as the band's defiantly dissonant sound was the marriage between Gordon and her then husband, Thurston Moore. When it was announced that the couple was splitting after twenty-seven years of marriage, fans were devastated.In Girl in a Band, this famously reserved superstar speaks candidly about her past and the future. From her childhood in the sunbaked suburbs of Southern California, growing up with a mentally ill sibling, to New York's downtown art and music scene in the eighties and nineties and the birth of a band that would pave the way for acts like Nirvana, as well as help inspire the Riot Grrl generation, here is an edgy and evocative portrait of a life in art.Exploring the artists, musicians, and writers who influenced her, and the relationship that defined her life for so long, Girl in a Band is filled with the sights and sounds of a pre-Internet world and is a deeply personal portrait of a woman who has become an icon.

Die 15 Inventionen, die nach wie vor zum grundlegenden Repertoire eines jeden Klavierunterrichts gehören, werden hier nach aktuellem Forschungsstand in modernem Notenstich vorgelegt. Auf der Grundlage von Bachs Autograph und seinem selbst verfassten Vorwort, bereinigt von Fingersätzen und Zusätzen aus Quellen zweiter Hand.

Die drei Violinsonaten von Edward Grieg nehmen eine wichtige Stellung im Schaffen des Komponisten ein. Zusammen mit seinen anderen Kammermusikwerken zeugen diese bemerkenswert originellen Sonaten von Griegs Fähigkeit, die klassisch-romantische Form wirkungsvoll durch norwegisches Nationalkolorit zu bereichern.

Timed to the twentieth anniversary of Miles Davis's death, Miles is the classic, unfiltered, bestselling autobiography of an American legend--now updated with a new introduction.

Brilliant, funny, charming, imperious, Diana Vreeland?the fashion editor of Harper's Bazaar and editor-in-chief of Vogue?was a woman whose passion and genius for style helped define the world of high fashion for fifty years. Among her eclectic circle of friends were some of the most renowned and famous figures of the twentieth century?artists and princes, movie stars and international legends, including Chanel, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Isak Dinesen, Clark Gable, and Swifty Lazar.Moving from English palaces to the nightclubs of 1930s Paris, the wilds of Wyoming to the exclusive venues of New York high society, D.V. takes readers into this iconic woman's dazzling life, evoking the luxury and brio of an era that encompassed Josephine Baker, England's Queen Mary, Buffalo Bill, and Diaghilev.Vibrant with the vivid, irresistible voice that elevated every tête-à-tête and dinner party, D.V. brings this renowned and uninhibited raconteur alive, whether recalling herself as a young girl, her search for the perfect red, her piquant observations about her world, or her abhorrence for nostalgia. Like her legacy, Vreeland's story, told in her own words, is a classic to be celebrated by both loyal admirers and a new generation of culture mavens and style savants.

For more than a quarter century, Philip Norman's internationally bestselling Shout! has been unchallenged as the definitive biography of the Beatles. Now, at last, Norman turns his formidable talent to the Beatle for whom belonging to the world's most beloved pop group was never enough. Drawing on pre-viously untapped sources, and with unprecedented access to all the major characters, here is the comprehensive and most revealing portrait of John Lennon that is ever likely to be published. This masterly biography takes a fresh and penetrating look at every aspect of Lennon's much-chronicled life, including the songs that have turned him, posthumously, into a near?secular saint. In three years of research, Norman has turned up an extra-ordinary amount of new information about even the best-known episodes of Lennon folklore?his upbringing by his strict Aunt Mimi; his allegedly wasted school and student days; the evolution of his peerless creative partnership with Paul McCartney; his Beatle-busting love affair with a Japanese performance artist; his forays into painting and literature; his experiments with Transcendental Meditation, primal scream therapy, and drugs. The book's numerous key informants and interviewees include Sir Paul McCartney, Sir George Martin, Sean Lennon?whose moving reminiscence reveals his father as never before?and Yoko Ono, who speaks with sometimes shocking candor about the inner workings of her marriage to John.Honest and unflinching, as John himself would wish, Norman gives us the whole man in all his endless contradictions?tough and cynical, hilariously funny but also naive, vulnerable and insecure?and reveals how the mother who gave him away as a toddler haunted his mind and his music for the rest of his days.

Osamu Tezuka's vaunted storytelling genius, consummate skill at visual expression, and warm humanity blossom fully in his eight-volume epic of Siddhartha's life and times. Tezuka evidences his profound grasp of the subject by contextualizing the Buddha's ideas; the emphasis is on movement, action, emotion, and conflict as the prince Siddhartha runs away from home, travels across India, and questions Hindu practices such as ascetic self-mutilation and caste oppression. Rather than recommend resignation and impassivity, Tezuka's Buddha predicates enlightenment upon recognizing the interconnectedness of life, having compassion for the suffering, and ordering one's life sensibly. Philosophical segments are threaded into interpersonal situations with ground-breaking visual dynamism by an artist who makes sure never to lose his readers' attention.Tezuka himself was a humanist rather than a Buddhist, and his magnum opus is not an attempt at propaganda. Hermann Hesse's novel or Bertolucci's film is comparable in this regard; in fact, Tezuka's approach is slightly irreverent in that it incorporates something that Western commentators often eschew, namely, humor.

We know that there were dogs in Victorian Britain, but who were the 'Doggy People' who kept them, bred them, showed them, worked with them and cared for them? Chapter by chapter, this book reveals the varied and often eccentric lives of the Victorians who helped define dogs as we know them today. The cast runs from the very pinnacle of society, Queen Victoria, to near the bottom with Jemmy Shaw, a publican, boxer, promoter of dog-fights and rat-killing. The others include an artist, aristocrats, authors, a clergyman, doctors, a dog-dealer, a feminist, journalists, landowners, millionaires, philanthropists, politicians, scientists, a stockbroker, veterinarians, and a showman - none other their Charles Cruft. Looking at the invention and meaning of new breeds such as poodles, collies, Jack Russells, and borzois amongst others, we see how the Victorians thought about pets, sports, dog shows and animal rights.