Jackson "Jacko" Smith is dyslexic, but like many people affected by the learning disability, he is highly intelligent. His best friend Sammy Collins helps him get through school and unlocks his potential. Jacko progresses through the ranks of local government until Mother Nature intervenes and the straight boy and the gay boy become a couple.As Jacko and Sammy start a family and challenge social mores, Jacko enters politics, horrified at the direction the Australian government is t...

As a young gay man growing up in southwest Victoria, Nick Williams leads a charmed life. Life on the family farm gives him a sense of purpose. His supportive parents are loving and affectionate. And his best friend Aaron is always around to help him get out of trouble. But when his father dies a few days before Nick's eighteenth birthday, it changes the course of Nick's life.From rural Australia to India, Nick builds a life as a successful businessman only to watch it crumble in a w...

Apart from his drug addiction, his homophobic father, and his denial of his sexuality, Ben O'Connor lives a charmed life. He has a wonderful son, a lucrative job as a Realtor, and a supportive mother and siblings. Then his boss promotes someone else over him and his life disintegrates. In his anger, he breaks the eleventh commandment—thou shalt not get caught.Kicking his ice habit while incarcerated, Ben realizes he has lost his ability to enjoy life. But he gets another chance at ...

Australia is a nation in transition. Marriage equality looms but homophobia still rules. Depression and suicide are commonplace as Dean Prentice and his lover, Danny, grow up together in country Victoria. When Dean moves to a nearby regional center to study veterinary science, he finds acceptance and love when reunited with Danny. Profound tragedy visits Dean's life and he grieves, moving on through a series of lovers both male and female and struggling to focus on his studies and his drea...

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to its knees. When we weren’t sheltering in place, we were advised to wear masks, wash our hands, and practice social distancing. We watched in horror as medical personnel worked around the clock to care for the sick and dying. Businesses were shuttered, travel stopped, workers were furloughed, and markets dropped. And people continued to die.Amid all this uncertainty, writers and artists from around the world continued to create com...

Our world was turned upside down. Two months ago, my brother, Bob, was diagnosed with follicular lymphoma, a type of B-cell lymphoma, and bone cancer. Needless to say, it turned our world upside down. When we received his diagnosis, it literally knocked the wind out of me. Prior to that day, I did not even imagine that it could be cancer causing the lumps in his neck. I optimistically thought it could be benign, fatty tumors, but sadly, I was way off base on this one. To watch my brother c...

This book provides a guide to research and teaching in an Australian Indigenous Studies that is oriented toward the diverse, contemporary world. Central to this perspective is a sensibility to the intercultural complexity of that world – particularly its Indigenous component – and an awareness of the interactional capabilities that the Indigenous (and others) need to successfully negotiate it. These capabilities are important for facilitating Indigenous peoples’ goal of equality as citizen...

In 1898, a two masted schooner, the Mildred E, departed Boston, Massachusetts, bound for Seattle and the gold fields of Alaska. On board were two brothers out to make their fortune by taking cargo from Seattle to Alaska. Only four of the eleven crew members had ever been to sea before. The crew included a captain who liked the bottle too much, a second mate with two wooden legs, and a cook with an obsession that would threatened the lives of the whole crew This voyage was a test of the shi...

Production designers are artistic masters in their own right. They are responsible for the 'look' of a movie; joining productions at an early stage, they coordinate costume design, special effects, set design, make-up, and location scouting to ensure a unified visual appearance. In Production Design, 16 production designers share their insights, anecdotes, and technical achievements, through a series of exclusive interviews. Fascinating for both film fans and practitioners, this book is th...

Lauren Graham was three weeks away from turning twenty-oneloving college life, her friends, and her familywhen her life was turned upside down and changed forever. She was diagnosed with cancerspecifically, with acute lymphoblastic lymphoma. In her memoir, Lauren considers the everyday life of a cancer patient and recalls all the challenges she experienced with humor and brutal honesty. Her unique storytelling, presented through the e-mails that she wrote over the course of nearly three ye...

#1 New York Times Bestseller: The definitive book on the sinking of the Titanic , based on interviews with survivors, by the author of The Miracle of Dunkirk ."Absolutely gripping and un-put-downable." —David McCullough, author of John AdamsAt first, no one but the lookout recognized...

This carefully crafted ebook is formatted for your eReader with a functional and detailed table of contents. The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe that is centered on a series of superhero films, independently produced by Marvel Studios and based on characters that appear in publications by Marvel Comics. The franchise has expanded to include comic books, short films, television series, and digital series. The shared universe, much like the ...