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My road from Damascus : a memoir / by Saeed, Jamal,1959-author.; Cobham, Catherine,translator.;
"Jamal Saeed arrived as a refugee in Canada in 2016. In his native Syria, as a young man, his writing pushed both social and political norms. For this reason, as well as his opposition to the regimes of the al-Assads, he was imprisoned on three occasions for a total of 12 years. In each instance, he was held without formal charge and without judicial process. My Road from Damascus not only tells the story of Saeed's severe years in Syria's most notorious military prisons but also his life during the country's dramatic changes. Saeed chronicles modern Syria from the 1950s right up to his escape to Canada in 2016, recounting its descent from a country of potential to a pawn of cynical and corrupt powers. It paints a picture of village life, his rebellion as a young Marxist and evolution into a free thinker, living in hiding as a teenager for 30 months while being hunted by the secret police, his youthful love affairs, how he survived his brutal prison years, his final release, and his family's harrowing escape to Canada. While many prison memoirs focus on the cruelty of incarceration, My Road from Damascus offers a tapestry of Saeed's whole life. It looks squarely at brutality, but also at beauty and poetry, hope and love."-- Provided by publisher.
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Saeed, Jamal, 1959-; Authors, Canadian; Political refugees; Political refugees;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Rebel : my escape from Saudi Arabia to freedom / by Mohammed, Rahaf,author.; Armstrong, Sally,1943-author.;
In early 2019, after three years of careful planning, Rahaf Mohammed finally escaped her abusive family in Saudi Arabia--but made it only to Bangkok before being stripped of her passport. If forced to return home, she was sure she would be killed, like other rebel women in her country. As men pounded at the door of her barricaded hotel room, she created a Twitter account. The teenager reached out to the world, and the world answered--she gained 45,000 followers in one day, and those followers helped her seek asylum in the West. Now, Rahaf Mohammed tells her remarkable story in her own words, revealing untold truths about life in the closed kingdom, where young women are brought up in a repressive system that puts them under the legal control of a male guardian. Raised with immense financial privilege, but under the oppressive control of her male relatives--including her high-profile politician father--Rahaf endured an abusive childhood in which oppression and deceit were the norm. Moving from Rahaf's early days on the underground online network of Saudi runaways who use coded entries to learn how to flee the brutalities of their homeland, to her solo escape to Canada, Rebelis a breathtaking and life-affirming memoir about one woman's tenacious pursuit of freedom.
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Mohammed, Rahaf.; Muslim women; Muslim women; Muslim women; Refugees; Refugees; Women refugees; Women refugees; Women; Women; Women;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Ron's gone wrong [videorecording] / by Baynham, Peter,film producer,screenwriter.; Breay, Lara,film producer.; Colman, Olivia,voice actor.; Delaney, Rob,1977-voice actor.; Galifianakis, Zach,voice actor.; Grazer, Jack Dylan,2003-voice actor.; Helms, Ed,voice actor.; Lockhart, Julie,film producer.; Murdoch, Elisabeth(Film producer),film producer.; Smith, Justice,1995-voice actor.; Smith, Sarah(Television writer),screenwriter,film director,film producer.; Vine, Jean Philippe,film director.; 20th Century Studios,production company.; Buena Vista Home Entertainment (Firm),film distributor.; Locksmith Animation (Firm),production company.;
Voices of: Zach Galifianakis, Jack Dylan Grazer, Olivia Colman, Ed Helms, Justice Smith, Rob Delaney.Ron's Gone Wrong is a computer-animated film set in a world where it's the norm to have B-Bots, digitally connected robot companions. Barney is a shy middle-schooler who is the last one in his city to finally get Ron, his B-Bot. Unfortunately, his "Best Friend Out of the Box" becomes a major pain, malfunctioning on a regular basis. Not knowing what else to do, Barney sets out to teach Ron about social cues and what it means to be a human.Canadian Home Video Rating: G.MPAA rating: PG.Described video for the blind and visually impaired.Subtitled for the deaf and hard-of-hearing (SDH).DVD ; wide screen presentation ; Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital 2.0.
Subjects: Animated films.; Children's films.; Comedy films.; Feature films.; Video recordings for people with visual disabilities.; Video recordings for the hearing impaired.; Human-robot interaction; Middle school boys; Robots; Social media;
For private home use only.
Available copies: 2 / Total copies: 2
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Undersong / by Winter, Kathleen,author.;
When young James Dixon, a local jack-of-all-trades recently returned from the Battle of Waterloo, meets writer Dorothy Wordsworth, he quickly realizes he's never met another woman anything like her. In her early thirties at the time of the meeting, Dorothy has already lived a wildly unconventional life. As her famous brother William Wordsworth's confidante and creative collaborator--considered by some in their circle to be the secret to his success as a poet--she has carved a seemingly idyllic existence for herself, alongside William and his wife, in England's Lake District. One day, Dixon is approached by William to do some handiwork around the Wordsworth estate. At William's urging, he takes on more and more chores--and quickly understands that his real, unspoken responsibility is to keep an eye on Dorothy, who is growing frail and melancholic. The unlikely pair of misfits form a sympathetic bond despite the sometimes troubling chasm in social class between them, and soon Dixon is the quiet witness to everyday life in Dorothy's family and glittering social circle, which includes literary legends Samuel Coleridge, Thomas de Quincy, William Blake, and Charles and Mary Lamb. Through the fictional James Dixon--a gentle but troubled soul, more attuned to the wonders of the garden he faithfully tends than to vexing worldly matters--we step inside the Wordsworth family, witnessing their dramatic emotional and artistic struggles, hidden traumas, private betrayals and triumphs. At the same time, Winter slowly weaves a darker, complex "undersong" through the novel, one as earthy and elemental as flower and tree, gradually revealing the pattern of Dorothy's rich, hidden life--that of a woman determined, against all odds, to exist on her own terms despite societal norms. But the unsettling effects of Dorothy's tragically repressed brilliance take their toll, and when at last her true voice finally sings out, it is so searing and bright that Dixon, compelled equally by love and grief and fear, must make an impossible choice.
Subjects: Biographical fiction.; Historical fiction.; Wordsworth, Dorothy, 1771-1855; Wordsworth, William, 1770-1850; Families; Man-woman relationships; Poets; Social classes; Veterans;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 2
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Raising boys to be good men : a parent's guide to bringing up happy sons in a world filled with toxic masculinity / by Gouveia, Aaron,author.;
"From the dad who created the viral tweet supporting his son wearing nail polish, this essential parenting guide shares 38 parenting tips for battling gender norms, bringing down "man up" culture, and helping sons realize their potential. Our boys are in a crisis. Toxic masculinity and tough guy-ism are on display daily from our leaders, and we see anger, dysfunction, violence, and depression in young men who are suffocated by harmful social codes. Our young sons are told to stop throwing like a girl. They hear phrases like "man up" when they cry. They are told "boys will be boys" when they behave badly. The "Girl Power" movement has encouraged women to be whoever and do whatever they want, but that sentiment is not often extended to boys. Just watch the bullying when boys try ballet, paint their fingernails, or play with a doll. But we can treat this problem-and the power lies in the hands of parents. It's not only possible to raise boys who aren't emotionally stifled and shoved into stereotypical gender boxes; it's vital if we want a generation of men who can express their emotions, respect women, and help nurse society back to a halfway healthy place. We can reframe manhood. From Aaron Gouveia, who gained viral fame after tweeting his support for his son's painted fingernails (and who knows toxic masculinity very well), learn practical and actionable tips such as: Don't accept different standards for moms and dads Teach boys that "girl" is not an insult and retire phrases like "boys will be boys" Show boys that expressing their emotions and being physical is a good thing Let boys pursue nontraditional interests and hobbies Talk to boys about consent and privilege Model healthy and respectful relationships for boys to emulate Penned with equal parts humor, biting snark, and lived advice, Raising Boys to Be Good Men is the essential parenting guide for raising sons to realize their potential outside the box. "--
Subjects: Masculinity.; Boys; Parenting.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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The power worshippers : inside the dangerous rise of religious nationalism / by Stewart, Katherine,author.;
Includes bibliographical references (pages 283-326) and index.For too long the Religious Right has masqueraded as a social movement preoccupied with a number of cultural issues, such as abortion and same-sex marriage. In her deeply reported investigation, Katherine Stewart reveals a disturbing truth: this is a political movement that seeks to gain power and to impose its vision on all of society. America's religious nationalists aren't just fighting a culture war, they are waging a political war on the norms and institutions of American democracy. Stewart pulls back the curtain on the inner workings and leading personalities of a movement that has turned religion into a tool for domination. She exposes a dense network of think tanks, advocacy groups, and pastoral organizations embedded in a rapidly expanding community of international alliances and united not by any central command but by a shared, anti-democratic vision and a common will to power. She follows the money that fuels this movement, tracing much of it to a cadre of super-wealthy, ultraconservative donors and family foundations. She shows that today's Christian nationalism is the fruit of a longstanding antidemocratic, reactionary strain of American thought that draws on some of the most troubling episodes in America's past. It forms common cause with a globe-spanning movement that seeks to destroy liberal democracy and replace it with nationalist, theocratic and autocratic forms of government around the world. Religious nationalism is far more organized and better funded than most people realize. It seeks to control all aspects of government and society. Its successes have been stunning, and its influence now extends to every aspect of American life, from the White House to state capitols, from our schools to our hospitals.
Subjects: Christianity and politics; Nationalism; Nationalism; Christianity and culture; Christianity;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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Age of revolutions : progress and backlash from 1600 to the present / by Zakaria, Fareed,author.;
Includes bibliographical references (pages 331-364) and index."Populist rage, ideological fracture, economic and technological shocks, war, and an international system studded with catastrophic risk -- the early decades of the twenty-first century may be the most revolutionary period in modern history. But it is not the first. Humans have lived, and thrived, through more than one great realignment. What are these revolutions, and how can they help us to understand our fraught world? In this major work, Fareed Zakaria masterfully investigates the eras and movements that have shaken norms while shaping the modern world. Three such periods hold profound lessons for today. First, in the seventeenth-century Netherlands, a fascinating series of transformations made that tiny land the richest in the world -- and created politics as we know it today. Next, the French Revolution, an explosive era that devoured its ideological children and left a bloody legacy that haunts us today. Finally, the mother of all revolutions, the Industrial Revolution, which catapulted Great Britain and the US to global dominance and created the modern world. Alongside these paradigm-shifting historical events, Zakaria probes four present-day revolutions: globalization, technology, identity, and geopolitics. For all their benefits, the globalization and technology revolutions have produced profound disruptions and pervasive anxiety and our identity. And increasingly, identity is the battlefield on which the twenty-first century's polarized politics are fought. All this is set against a geopolitical revolution as great as the one that catapulted the United States to world power in the late nineteenth century. Now we are entering a world in which the US is no longer the dominant power. As we find ourselves at the nexus of four seismic revolutions, we can easily imagine a dark future. But Zakaria proves that pessimism is premature. If we act wisely, the liberal international order can be revived and populism relegated to the ash heap of history." --
Subjects: Revolutions.; Revolutions; Social change.; World history.;
Available copies: 1 / Total copies: 1
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