In The 1930s, Irish schoolchildren were tasked with asking their oldest relatives and neighbours about stories and superstitions from times past so that ordinary people's lives could be preserved and celebrated. What those schoolchildren wrote in their copybooks resulted in the National Folklore Archive's Schools' Collection, and this book contains a selection of its best stories. With chapters on ghost stories, agriculture, forgotten trades, schooling and pastimes, this is a people's hist...

Caught Between Two Devils is based on the real-life experiences of Antanas Paskevicius, his wife Jadwyga, and his sister Maria. In April of 1944, their lives were forever altered when they were sent to a work camp in northeast Germany where they struggled for ten months. Despite the risk of betrayal, torture, and death, they stole a Wehrmacht truck in February 1945 and, along with other prisoners, fled and headed for Bavaria. The struggles of Antanas, Jadwyga and Maria are not unique; ther...

John Creedon's scenes from an Irish childhood paint a colourful and sometimes hilarious picture of a changing Ireland and the growing pains of boyhood. Set in a city-centre household bustling with humanity, the cast includes a dozen children and another dozen adults, including aunts, an American writer, an African doctor, and a Scottish bookie. The streets outside overflow with brewery horses, beat clubs, dance halls, nuns, priests, a Turkish delight shop and a pub where a child could sit ...

John Creedon has always been fascinated by place names, from growing up in Cork City as a young boy to travelling around Ireland making his popular television show. In this brilliant new book, he peels back the layers of meaning of familiar place names to reveal stories about the land of Erin and the people who walked it before us.Travel the highways, byways and boreens of Ireland with John and become absorbed in the place names, such as 'The Cave of the Cats', 'Artichoke Road', 'T...

Having lost his older brother to leukemia at a young age, Andy Funk pushed himself to the limits of human endurance, embracing the hustle of entrepreneurship. With his wife, he founded two successful businesses, one of which transformed the world of hip hop dance, forever—all while raising a family and navigating health crises. Keeping a laser focus on customer service has been key to his family’s success.Monsters’ Family is part memoir, part aspirational, and completely inspiratio...

Winner of the 2011 Stan and Tom Wick Poetry PrizeEdward Hirsch, Judge“I’m moved by the way that Carolyn Creedon’s work treats experience as sacred. She won’t look away from difficult truths. She writes frankly about her own frustrations, longings, and heartbreaks, but she also recognizes the suffering of others—their secret grievances and griefs. The daily working world is here in full measure. And yet there’s an oddly religious feeling that keeps b...

History is a series of stories, and who doesn’t love a good story? Written in the Past: Seeing God Throughout History will introduce the reader to people who lived before us and the issues they faced. Some of the characters are well known to us, but others are not. We can learn from their struggles and heartaches, as well as their victories.Every event that is mentioned in the Bible, as well as the cases from secular history, involves real people just like us. As we read, we can pu...

Containing nearly three dozen original essays penned by the nation's leading newspaper journalists, editors, and executives, this book advances current discussions regarding women in journalism. Surveying the past quarter century, the book's contributors highlight the unprecedented influence American women have had on the news industry, especially newspapers, and look ahead to the future for women in news. Acclaimed anthropologist and author Helen E. Fisher adds her perspe...

Engaging with the Bible in a small group context has the potential to be transformative, but the picture is not without some complications. Key factors in determining whether a small group can be transformed through scripture include the use (or abuse) of ‘experts’, the opportunity for challenge in the group, and how study materials are used. "Do Small Groups Work" not only presents extensive research into these questions, with the potential to transform practice, but also offers a unique ...

This edited collection provides a singular look at contemporary mediated coverage of women athletes and sports from Title IX to the present day.Through personal perspectives, contributors provide a valuable overview of common patterns in women’s sports media coverage, exploring issues of diversity, ethnicity, and inclusion. Chapters examine Title IX discourse, NIL brand creation, and marketing among female college athletes through platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter (X...

Misogyny and Media in the Age of Trump argues that misogyny has increased in the United States under President Trump and that although women’s experiences under misogyny are by no means universal, patriarchal social and institutional systems facilitate gender-based hostility. Systemic misogyny and power inequities are at the root of male-on-female bullying, the bullying and harassment of non-hegemonic males and other minorities as well as sexual harassment, rape, and even murder. Given the...

“Because of my age, my friends frequently showed an interest in my wartime experiences. Sources are diminishing! I prepared a talk about my experiences for their entertainment, it was "well received" so I decided to try for print. Obviously many books in this category exist ranging from "The Diary of Anne Frank" to the wondrous escape stories. I was an ordinary schoolboy and I know of no other account in this category. Schoolboy life warrants exposure. It was certainly not dull, was often ...