Great Second Acts

These inspiring true stories of women who’ve made the most of their mature years “will get you fired up” (Becca Anderson, author of The Book of Awesome Women and Real Life Mindfulness). The amazing women profiled in Great Second Acts refused to be defined by the dates on their birth certificates. Their lives are testimony that one can be feisty after fifty—and this book says in no uncertain terms to those who think otherwise, in the words of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: “I dissent.” This isa fascinating collection of biographical sketches of dozens of women of a certain age who have excelled, inspired, and achieved. Learn how these women changed their respective fields of art, politics, science, mathematics, media, literature, business, activism, education, and more. Included are: · Biographies of influential women such as PM Margaret Thatcher, chef Julia Child, Mother Teresa, feminist Gloria Steinem, actress Rita Moreno, inventor Ruth Handler, Judge Judy Sheindlin, and many more · Empowering quotes from strong women who epitomize grit and persistence · Motivational, inspirational, and educational stories of ordinary older women who’ve accomplished extraordinary things

Glimpse Behind the Façade of Rich and Famous Women If you liked The Last Castle and Lean In, you’ll love Women of Means. The Grass Isn't Greener on the Other Side. Heiresses have always been viewed with eyes of envy. They were the ones for whom the cornucopia had been upended, showering them with unimaginable wealth and opportunity. However, through intimate historical biographies, Women of Means shows us that oftentimes the weaving sisters saved their most heart-wrenching tapestries for the destinies of wealthy women. Happily Never After. From the author of Behind Every Great Man, we now have Women of Means, vignettes of the women who were slated from birth―or marriage―to great privilege, only to endure lives which were the stuff Russian tragic heroines are made of. They are the nonfictional Richard Corys―those not slated for happily ever after. Women of Means is bound to be a non-fiction best seller, full of the best biographies of all time. Some of the women whose silver spoons rusted include: • Almira Carnarvon, the real-life counterpart to Lady Cora of Downton Abbey • Liliane Bettencourt, whose chemist father created L’Oreal... and was a Nazi collaborator • Peggy Guggenheim, who had an insatiable appetite for modern art and men • Nica Rothschild, who traded her gilded life to become the Baroness of Bebop • Jocelyn Wildenstein, who became a cosmetology-enhanced cat-woman • Ruth Madoff, the dethroned queen of Manhattan • Patty Hearst, who trod the path from heiress... to terrorist

An entertaining book “filled with inspirational anecdotes” (People) about second acts in life and reinventing yourself from beloved television actress Patricia Heaton—Emmy Award–winning star of Everybody Love’s Raymond, The Middle, Patricia Heaton Parties, and most recently, Carol’s Second Act. Patricia Heaton is one of TV’s most recognizable and beloved moms. She’s won three Emmys, two for her starring role as Debra Barone on the long-running comedy Everybody Loves Raymond, and followed that career-making role with another gem as Frances Heck on the popular sitcom The Middle. She returned to television as the lead in the series Carol’s Second Act, which followed divorced fifty-year-old Carol Kenney (played by Heaton), who after raising two children and retiring as a teacher decides to finally pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. Patricia Heaton knows what it’s like to stage a second act and navigate pivotal transitions in life. When Heaton’s children left the nest, she found herself in a new and unfamiliar stage of life, compelling her to evaluate which direction to take next. Heaton discovered she had the time pursue passions that were previously placed on hold, both personally and professionally. She made her move and took a step forward in her career and for the first time, Heaton was not only the star of her own show, but also the executive producer. She now finds her greatest fulfillment in using her influence to support humanitarian efforts as a Celebrity Ambassador for World Vision, the world’s largest non-governmental organization. She and her husband support their work in poverty relief around the globe, something that was planted in her heart long ago. Through her own experience, Heaton became curious about other people’s stories of second-act transitions and ways to offer support in the process. Now, in Your Second Act, she shares wisdom from her own personal journey as well as insight from stories of numerous people across the country. From work to health, to love and more, the results are heartwarming, inspiring, and surprisingly relatable. “If you’ve been wanting to start your second act, Patricia Heaton may have just what you need” (Today). Filled with light-hearted anecdotes and pragmatic steps, Heaton shows us that midlife doesn’t have to be about crisis when you focus on the opportunity. After all, it’s never too late, or too early to stage your second act.

The anticipated second book by the poet Mary Szybist, author of Granted, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award The troubadours knew how to burn themselves through, how to make themselves shrines to their own longing. The spectacular was never behind them.-from "The Troubadours etc." In Incarnadine, Mary Szybist.

“No Dog Should Die Alone” was the attention-grabbing — and heart-stirring — headline of journalist Laura T. Coffey’s TODAY show website story about photographer Lori Fusaro’s work with senior shelter pets. While generally calm, easy, and already house-trained, these animals often represent the highest-risk population at shelters. With gorgeous, joyful photographs and sweet, funny, true tales of “old dogs learning new tricks,” Coffey and Fusaro show that adopting a senior can be even more rewarding than choosing a younger dog. You’ll meet endearing elders like Marnie, the irresistible shih tzu who has posed for selfies with Tina Fey, James Franco, and Betty White; Remy, a soulful nine-year-old dog adopted by elderly nuns; George Clooney’s cocker spaniel, Einstein; and Bretagne, the last known surviving search dog from Ground Zero. They may be slower moving and a tad less exuberant than puppies, but these pooches prove that adopting a senior brings immeasurable joy, earnest devotion, and unconditional love.

Now published in the Bloomsbury Revelations series, this is a classic work on the power and importance of drama by renowned American playwright, screenwriter and essayist David Mamet. In this short but arresting series of essays, David Mamet explains the necessity, purpose and demands of drama. A celebration of the ties that bind art to life, Three Uses of the Knife is an enthralling read for anyone who has sat anxiously waiting for the lights to go up on Act 1. In three tightly woven essays of characteristic force and resonance, Mamet speaks about the connection of art to life, language to power, imagination to survival, public spectacle to private script. Self-assured and filled with autobiographical touches Three Uses of the Knife is a call to art and arms, a manifesto that reminds us of the singular power of the theatre to keep us sane, whole and human.

"These cautionary tales are provocative, highly instructive, occasionally brutal, and, from a safe distance, downright hilarious, making Second Act Trouble the perfect Broadway bedtime reader - unless you are prone to nightmares."--BOOK JACKET.

A self-portrait of a great writer 's rise and fall, intensely personal and etched with Fitzgerald's signature blend of romance and realism. The Crack-Up tells the story of Fitzgerald's sudden descent at the age of thirty-nine from glamorous success to empty despair, and his determined recovery. Compiled and edited by Edmund Wilson shortly after F. Scott Fitzgerald's death, this revealing collection of his essays—as well as letters to and from Gertrude Stein, Edith Wharton, T.S. Eliot, John Dos Passos—tells of a man with charm and talent to burn, whose gaiety and genius made him a living symbol of the Jazz Age, and whose recklessness brought him grief and loss. "Fitzgerald's physical and spiritual exhaustion is described brilliantly," noted The New York Review of Books: "the essays are amazing for the candor."

A fascinating look at the stories behind the dedications of 50 literary classics. Mary Shelley dedicated Frankenstein to her father, her greatest champion. Charlotte Brönte dedicatedJane Eyre to William Makepeace Thackeray for his enthusiastic review of the book’s first edition. Dostoyevsky dedicated The Brothers Karamazov to his typist-turned-lover Anna Grigoyevna. And, as this collection’s title indicates, F. Scott Fitzgerald dedicated his masterpiece The Great Gatsby to his wife Zelda. Often overlooked, a novel’s dedication can say much about an author and his or her relationship to the person for whom the book was consecrated. Once Again to Zelda explores the dedications in fifty iconic books that are an intrinsic part of both literary and pop culture, shedding light on the author’s psyche, as well as the social and historic context in which the book was first published.