Search results for [Military biography] at Tsuga Consortium

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All that glitters : a story of friendship, fraud, and fine art / by Whitfield, Orlando,author.;

"A dazzling insider look at the contemporary art world and the meteoric rise and fall of the seductive, charismatic, utterly amoral young, American art dealer, Inigo Philbrick, told through the eyes of his former partner and set in London, New York, Miami and Vanuatu Orlando Whitfield and Inigo Philbrick met in 2006 at Goldsmiths University where, though total opposites, they became best friends. By 2007, they were art dealing together having formed I&O Fine Art and two years later, upon graduation, were looking for a gallery space. While they continued to work together, Inigo was also taking on work for the prestigious London Gallery, White Cube. Orlando would set up his own gallery with a partner and watch as Inigo quickly immersed himself in a world of private jets, lavish trips, and close multimillion-dollar deals for major clients. To those who did not know, Inigo seemed a brilliant art world hotshot. But underneath the extravagant façade, his complicated financial schemes were unraveling. Monthly interest installments of $150k were left unpaid; calls were dodged; letters from auction houses faked. With debt, lawsuits, and court summons piling up, Inigo went into an inescapable tailspin of lies and subterfuge. By 2019, things had spiraled enough out of control for Inigo to flee to the remote island of Vanuatu, 300 miles off Fiji. There, in 2020, he was arrested by US Marshals and flown to Guam where he was arraigned in a military court and eventually moved to Brooklyn where he was denied bail and sentenced to seven years in prison for over $86 million in fraud. This unique, shocking, and page-turning story is compulsively readable as it sweeps you up in both adventure and downfall. A close-up of two very young players in the contemporary art world who would each pay a big price, in very different ways, make it an irresistible cautionary tale"--

Subjects: Biographies.; True crime stories.; Personal narratives.; Philbrick, Inigo.; Whitfield, Orlando.; Art and society; Art dealers; Art; Fraud;

The astonishing general : the life and legacy of Sir Isaac Brock / by Turner, Wesley B.,1933-;

Includes bibliographical references and index.The War of 1812 created heroes and heroines on both the Canadian and American sides, and Sir Isaac Brock was the best-known, although his military role lasted less than five months. Surprisingly, he was admired almost equally by both sides, and his succcess in winning the support of Tecumseh and his army for the British added to his reputation. This book tells of his life, career and legacy.LSC

Subjects: Brock, Isaac, Sir, 1769-1812.; Generals;

© c2011., Dundurn Press,

The indomitable Florence Finch : the untold story of a war widow turned resistance fighter and savior of American POWs / by Mrazek, Robert J.,author.;

Includes bibliographical references and index."When Florence Finch died at the age of 101, few of her Ithaca, NY neighbors knew that this unassuming Filipina native was a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, whose courage and sacrifice were unsurpassed in the Pacific War against Japan. Long accustomed to keeping her secrets close in service of the Allies, she waited fifty years to reveal the story of those dramatic and harrowing days to her own children.Florence was an unlikely warrior. She relied on her own intelligence and fortitude to survive on her own from the age of seven, facing bigotry as a mixed-race mestiza with the dual heritage of her American serviceman father and Filipina mother. As the war drew ever closer to the Philippines, Florence fell in love with a dashing American naval intelligence agent, Charles "Bing" Smith. In the wake of Bing's sudden death in battle, Florence transformed from a mild-mannered young wife into a fervent resistance fighter. She conceived a bold plan to divert tons of precious fuel from the Japanese army, which was then sold on the black market to provide desperately needed medicine and food for hundreds of American POWs. In constant peril of arrest and execution, Florence fought to save others, even as the Japanese police closed in. With a wealth of original sources including taped interviews, personal journals, and unpublished memoirs, The Indomitable Florence Finch unfolds against the Bataan Death March, the fall of Corregidor, and the daily struggle to survive a brutal occupying force. Award-winning military historian and former Congressman Robert J. Mrazek brings to light this long-hidden American patriot. The Indomitable Florence Finch is the story of the transcendent bravery of a woman who belongs in America's pantheon of war heroes."--

Subjects: Biographies.; Finch, Florence Ebersole Smith, 1915-2017.; United States. Army. Forces, Far East; United States. Coast Guard. Women's Reserve; Prisoners of war; Prisoners of war; War widows; World War, 1939-1945; World War, 1939-1945; World War, 1939-1945;

The gardener of Lashkar Gah : a true story of the Afghans who risked everything to fight the Taliban / by Brown, Larisa,author.;

Includes bibliographical references and index.The powerful true story of the Afghans left behind as the Taliban conquered the country. The 20-year war fought by the US and its allies in Afghanistan is the longest war of the 21st century. It brought opportunity and tragedy for those who were forced to live through it. The abrupt withdrawal of British and American troops in 2021, in what may come to be regarded as one of the worst foreign policy failures of the past hundred years, precipitated the swift recapture of the country by the Taliban. With the withdrawal came upheaval and torment for Afghans who had loyally served alongside NATO forces and were left to fend for themselves at the gates of Kabul airport. This is the story of one such family. The Gardener of Lashkar Gah follows the extraordinary journey of Shaista Gul, a kind man who built a beautiful garden inside a British military base in Helmand Province that became famous as a calm oasis for soldiers with troubled minds. Other members of his family worked for the allies, including his son Jamal, who became an interpreter for the British Army when he was just a teenager. Following the chaotic withdrawal of allied troops, all members of the family suffered. Larisa Brown-Defence Editor for The Times, award-winning journalist and a campaigner for the interpreters of Afghanistan-has spent hundreds of hours talking to members of the Gul family and others in order to tell their remarkable story. In heart-warming and beautifully human prose, she unspools a tale of courage, hope and sacrifice-with the beauty of the garden and the hopes and dreams of the family counterpointed against the violence, anger and chaos raging in Afghanistan at the time. The scandalous betrayal of many of the interpreters and others who worked for the British and American armies is still being revealed. By telling one family's bittersweet experience-The Gardener of Lashkar Gah provides a unique and powerful insight into the devastating effects on ordinary Afghans of the end of the disastrous 'War on Terror'.

Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Afghan War, 2001-2021.; Gardeners;

Paradise of the damned : the true story of an obsessive quest for El Dorado, the legendary city of gold / by Thomson, Keith,1965-author.;

Includes bibliographical references and index.The transporting account of an obsessive quest to find El Dorado, set against the backdrop of Elizabethan political intrigue and a competition with Spanish conquistadors for the legendary city's treasure. As early as 1530, reports of El Dorado, a city of gold in the South American interior, beckoned to European explorers. Whether there was any truth to the stories remained to be seen, but the allure of unimaginable riches was enough to ensnare dozens of would-be heroes and glory hounds in the desperate hunt. Among them was Sir Walter Raleigh: ambitious courtier, confidant to Queen Elizabeth, and, before long, El Dorado fanatic. Entering the Elizabethan court as an upstart from a family whose days of nobility were far behind them, Raleigh used his military acumen, good looks, and sheer audacity to scramble into the limelight. Yet that same swagger proved to be his undoing, as his secret marriage to a lady-in-waiting enraged Queen Elizabeth and landed him in the Tower of London. Between his ensuing grim prospects at court and his underlying lust for adventure, the legend of El Dorado became an unwavering siren song that hypnotized Raleigh. On securing his release, he journeyed across an ocean to find the fabled city, gambling his painstakingly acquired wealth, hard-won domestic bliss, and his very life. What awaited him in the so-called New World were endless miles of hot, dense jungle packed with deadly flora and fauna, warring Spanish conquistadors and Indigenous civilizations, and other unforeseen dangers. Meanwhile, back at home, his multitude of rivals plotted his demise. Paradise of the Damned, like Keith Thomson's critically acclaimed Born to Be Hanged, brings this story to life in lush and captivating detail. The book charts Raleigh's obsessive search for El Dorado -- as well as the many doomed expeditions that preceded and accompanied his -- providing not only an invaluable history but also a gripping narrative of traveling to the ends of the earth only to realize, too late, that what lies at home is the greatest treasure of all.

Subjects: Biographies.; Raleigh, Walter, Sir, 1552?-1618.; El Dorado.; Explorers;

The Stalin affair : the impossible alliance that won the war / by Milton, Giles,author.;

Includes bibliographical references and index."From international bestselling historian Giles Milton comes the remarkable true story of the motley group of allied men and women who worked to manage Stalin's mercurial, explosive approach to diplomacy during four turbulent years of World War II. In the summer of 1941, Hitler did the unthinkable -- he invaded the Soviet Union, shattering what Stalin had until then considered an ironclad partnership. It was a shocking, urgent turning point in the war, in the wake of which a team of British and American men and women were assembled with one central goal: to keep the Red Army fighting on the Eastern Front. There were real fears that Stalin's forces would either be defeated (as looked increasingly likely as Hitler's army pushed forward at a merciless pace) or that the Soviet leader would once again strike a deal with Hitler. Either eventuality would spell catastrophe for both Britain and America. Hitler would be able to concentrate his vast military resources in Western Europe, making the continent's ultimate liberation virtually impossible. Enter Averell Harriman: a railroad magnate, and, at the start of the war, the fourth richest man in America. At Roosevelt's behest he traveled to Britain to serve as a liaison between him and Churchill and spearhead what became known as the Harriman mission. Together with his fashionable young daughter Kathy, an unforgettable cast of British diplomats, and Churchill himself, he managed to wrangle Stalin into the partnership the allies needed to finally defeat Hitler. Based on unpublished diaries, letters and secret reports, The Stalin Affair reveals troves of new material about the path to Allied victory, full of vivid scenes between celebrated and infamous World War II figures. Ultimately, it provides fascinating, richly nuanced portrait of one of history's most complicated and notorious dictators"--

Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Stalin, Joseph, 1878-1953.; Churchill, Winston, 1874-1965.; Harriman, W. Averell (William Averell), 1891-1986.; World War, 1939-1945; World War, 1939-1945; World War, 1939-1945;

The remains of Company D : a story of the Great War / by Nelson, James Carl.;

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Subjects: Nelson, John, 1892-1993.; United States. Army; United States. Army. Infantry Regiment, 28th.; Argonne, Battle of the, France, 1918.; Cantigny, Battle of, Cantigny, France, 1918.; Soldiers; World War, 1914-1918; World War, 1914-1918; World War, 1914-1918; World War, 1914-1918;

© 2009., St. Martin's Press,

A most extraordinary ride : space, politics, and the pursuit of a Canadian dream / by Garneau, Marc,author.;

"A captivating and inspiring memoir by Canada's first man in space. On October 5th, 1984, Marc Garneau made history. Blasting off from the Kennedy Space Center aboard the U.S. Space Shuttle and reaching a speed of 28,000 km/hour, he became the first Canadian to fly to outer space. That monumental achievement, now etched in Canadian history as one of our country's proudest moments, inspired a nation and ushered in a new era of space exploration for Canada. Twenty-four years later, Garneau made history yet again, becoming the first astronaut to be elected as a Member of Parliament. In between those two milestones in Garneau's unprecedented career, he was the first Canadian, and the first non-American, to serve as CAPCOM, the voice of Mission Control for the astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle. In the years that followed his historic first voyage to space, Garneau returned to space two more times, becoming the first Canadian to log three trips into orbit, and lead the Canadian Space Agency through its most dynamic years. In the House of Commons, Garneau would ultimately serve in two cabinet posts as Minister of Transport and Minister of Foreign Affairs during some of the biggest events of the past decade: the onset of one of the worst pandemics in modern times; the arbitrary detention of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor by China; the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban; and the death of 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents aboard Ukrainian Airlines Flight 752, shot down by a missile over Iran. It was no surprise, then, that when Marc Garneau announced his retirement after fourteen years in government, many Canadians lamented the loss of an upstanding parliamentarian who was not afraid to speak up for causes he believed in, even if that meant bucking his own party and its leader. In Making History: Space, Politics, and The Pursuit of a Canadian Dream, Garneau chronicles his once-improbable ascent from a mischievous teenager and rebellious military officer to a decorated astronaut and statesman who represented Canada on the world stage -- both on and off the planet. With candour and humour, Garneau describes the highs and lows of his life and career, including the awe he experienced first seeing the earth from space, the tragic loss of his first wife to mental illness and suicide, sailing across the Atlantic and back in a sailboat improbably called "the Pickle," and witnessing the tragedy of the doomed shuttle Challenger. Honest and illuminating, Making History is a rare journey into the early years of Canada's space program and an inside account of the joys and challenges of governing from one of Canada's most distinguished citizens"--

Subjects: Autobiographies.; Biographies.; Garneau, Marc.; Astronauts; Politicians;

An accidental villain : a soldier's tale of war, deceit and exile / by MacIntyre, Linden,author.;

Includes bibliographical references and index."The bestselling, prize-winning novelist and broadcast journalist draws back the curtain on the shadowy life of Sir Hugh Tudor, Winston Churchill's lifelong friend, who, as head of the notorious Black and Tans in Ireland post-WWI, met civil strife and terror with state-sanctioned murder, and changed the course of Irish history. After distinguishing himself on the battlefields of the First World War, Major-General Sir Hugh Tudor could have sought a respectable retirement in England, his duty done. But, in 1920, his old friend Winston Churchill, minster of war in Lloyd George's cabinet, called Tudor to serve in a very different kind of conflict -- one fought in the Irish streets and countryside against an enemy determined to resist British colonial authority to the death. And soon Tudor, newly responsible for policing Ireland, was directing a brutal campaign of terror against rebel "terrorists" in the Irish War of Independence, a conflict he didn't entirely understand but was determined to win at all costs. Which included utilizing police death squads and inflicting brutal reprisals against IRA members and supporters and Sinn Féin politicians. Tudor left few traces of his time in Ireland. No diary or letters that might explain his record as commander of the notorious Black and Tans. Nothing to justify his role in Bloody Sunday, November 21, 1920, when his men infamously slaughtered Irish football fans. Was this retaliation for the IRA's earlier murder of British military officers? Also, why did a man knighted for his efforts in Ireland leave his family and homeland in 1925, moving across the sea to Newfoundland where he remained in quiet obscurity until he died forty years later? Linden MacIntyre -- a storyteller and journalist long fascinated with the toll of violence and war -- has spent four years tracking Tudor through archives, contemporaries' diaries and letters, and the body count of that Irish war, in search of answers. And in An Accidental Villain, he delivers up a consequential and fascinating account of how events can bring a man to the point where he acts against his own training, principles and inclination in the service of a cause -- and ends up on a long journey towards personal oblivion"--

Subjects: Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Tudor, Hugh, 1871-1965.; Royal Irish Constabulary Reserve Force.; Soldiers;

Prince Philip revealed / by Seward, Ingrid,author.;

Included bibliographical references and index.The son of Greek and Danish royalty, consort to the queen, and the grandfather of Princes Harry and William, Prince Philip has been at the heart of the royal family for decades-yet he remains an enigma to many. Now, Ingrid Seward, the editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine, brings her decades of experience covering the royal family to this fascinating and insightful biography of Queen Elizabeth II's husband, and father, grandfather, and great-grandfather of the next three kings of England. From his early childhood in Paris among aristocrats and his mother's battle with schizophrenia to his distinctive military service during World War II and marriage to Elizabeth in 1947, Seward chronicles Philip's life and reveals his many faces-as a father, a philanthropist, a philanderer, and a statesman. Though it would take years for Philip to find his place in a royal court that initially distrusted him, he remains one of the most complex, powerful, yet confounding members of Britain's royal family. Entertaining, eye-opening, and informative, Prince Philip is perfect for any anglophile and fans of the series The Crown.

Subjects: Biographies.; Philip, Prince, consort of Elizabeth II, Queen of Great Britain, 1921-; Princes;

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