“Equal parts memoir, whodunit, and manual for living . . . a beautifully written, honest look at the forces of blood and bone that make us who we are, and how we make ourselves.” --Neil Gaiman In his unique and engaging voice, the acclaimed actor of stage and screen shares the emotional story of his complicated relationship with his father and the deeply buried family secrets that shaped his life and career. A beloved star of stage, television, and film—“one of the most fun people in show business” (Time magazine)—Alan Cumming is a successful artist whose diversity and fearlessness is unparalleled. His success masks a painful childhood growing up under the heavy rule of an emotionally and physically abusive father—a relationship that tormented him long into adulthood. When television producers in the UK approached him to appear on a popular celebrity genealogy show in 2010, Alan enthusiastically agreed. He hoped the show would solve a family mystery involving his maternal grandfather, a celebrated WWII hero who disappeared in the Far East. But as the truth of his family ancestors revealed itself, Alan learned far more than he bargained for about himself, his past, and his own father. With ribald humor, wit, and incredible insight, Alan seamlessly moves back and forth in time, integrating stories from his childhood in Scotland and his experiences today as a film, television, and theater star. At times suspenseful, deeply moving, and wickedly funny, Not My Father’s Son will make readers laugh even as it breaks their hearts.
An intimate look at the making of a man, an actor, an advocate—and most importantly—a happy human being. A wonderful book that is funny, honest, fearless, and generous in its vulnerability." —Douglas Stuart, Booker Prize-winning author of Shuggie Bain There is absolutely no logical reason why I am here. The life trajectory my nationality and class and circumstances portended for me was not even remotely close to the one I now navigate. But logic is a science and living is an art. The release I felt in writing my first memoir, Not My Father’s Son, was matched only by how my speaking out empowered so many to engage with their own trauma. I was reminded of the power of my words and the absolute duty of authenticity. But… No one ever fully recovers from their past. There is no cure for it. You just learn to manage and prioritize it. I believe the second you feel you have triumphed or overcome something – an abuse, an injury to the body or the mind, an addiction, a character flaw, a habit, a person – you have merely decided to stop being vigilant and embraced denial as your modus operandi. And that is what this book is about, and for: to remind you not to buy in to the Hollywood ending. Ironically maybe, much of Baggage chronicles my life in Hollywood and how, since I recovered from a nervous breakdown at 28, work has repeatedly whisked me away from personal calamities to sets and stages around the world. It is also about marriage(s): starting with the break-up of my first (to a woman) and ending with the ascension to my second (to a man) with many kissed toads in between! But in everything, each failed relationship or encounter with a legend (Liza! X Men! Gore Vidal! Kubrick! Spice Girls!), in every bad decision or moment of sensual joy I have endeavored to show what I have learned and how I’ve become who I am today: a happy, flawed, vulnerable, fearless middle-aged man, with a lot of baggage.
Alan Cumming and Grant Shaffer's world-traveling dogs are back...and off to Scotland! When Honey falls in love with a handsome Scottish pup, will Leon be able to protect their dads on his own? Honey and Leon have done a very good job of keeping their dads safe--but now the dads have decided to travel again! So the two loyal dogs pack up their disguises and secretly follow them all the way to Europe on a Scottish Highland adventure. All is going according to plan...until Honey becomes besotted with a charming Scottish dog named Coll! Can Leon manage to keep their dads out of trouble on his own while Honey is gallivanting with her new beau? Actor Alan Cumming and artist Grant Shaffer bring to life the imagined secret identities of the two dogs they once owned. Hilarious, sassy dialogue and wild escapades make this an unmissable read-aloud, perfect for families who love to put on a show!
Actor and New York Times bestselling author Alan Cumming and artist Grant Shaffer imagine what their dogs do when they’re not around—and it’s no surprise that the dogs aspire to lead lives as action-packed and glamorous as their dads’! Honey and Leon are rescue mutts who love their dads very much. But their dads often have to go away on glamorous and important business, which worries the dogs. Honey and Leon are done staying home and fretting—they’re off on a dad-protecting adventure! Careful to remain incognito, the two pups shadow their dads on a trip across the sea, keeping them out of danger at every turn! How did they survive without Honey and Leon’s protection for this long?! Alan Cumming and Grant Shaffer wrote this story as a tribute to their own dogs, based on their frequent conversations about what Honey and Leon get up to while they’re away.
The acclaimed actor profiles his turbulent relationship with his father and discusses his 2010 appearance in a celebrity genealogy show to solve the disappearance of a WWII hero grandparent and his discovery of astounding family secrets.
Actor and New York Times bestselling author Alan Cumming and artist Grant Shaffer imagine what their dogs do when they’re not around—and it’s no surprise that the dogs aspire to lead lives as action-packed and glamorous as their dads’! Honey and Leon are rescue mutts who love their dads very much. But their dads often have to go away on glamorous and important business, which worries the dogs. Honey and Leon are done staying home and fretting—they’re off on a dad-protecting adventure! Careful to remain incognito, the two pups shadow their dads on a trip across the sea, keeping them out of danger at every turn! How did they survive without Honey and Leon’s protection for this long?! Alan Cumming and Grant Shaffer wrote this story as a tribute to their own dogs, based on their frequent conversations about what Honey and Leon get up to while they’re away.
Tommy is twenty-nine, lives and loves in London, and has a morbid fear of the c word (commitment), the b word (boyfriend), and the f word (forgetting to call his drug dealer before the weekend). But when he begins to feel the urge to become a father, and the pressure from his boyfriend to make a real commitment to their relationship, Tommy starts to wonder if his chosen lifestyle can ever make him happy. Faced with the choice of maintaining his hedonistic, drugged-out, and admittedly fabulous existence or chucking it all in favor of a far more sensitive, fulfilling, and—let's face it—slightly more staid lifestyle, Tommy finds himself in a true quandary. Through a series of adventures and misadventures that lead him from London nightspots to New York bedrooms and back, our boy Tommy manages to answer some of life's most pressing questions—even those he never thought to ask.
She stopped and raised the torch. Kate looked. Alone on the wall was the figure of a girl with ice blue eyes and skin that glowed with a pure golden aura, standing out like an island in a dark black lagoon. ... There was no mistaking the identity of the tiny figure. Kate was staring at her own image burned into the wall. Bexus is another world, a hostile world of magic, adventure, and tremendous danger, and there's only one way to get there-die. Neither heaven nor hell, Bexus is a world where the souls of the dead get a second chance. When Kate Gallagher awakens in Bexus after she is killed in a train wreck, she finds that her soul has retained a powerful memory of her earthly form. She also finds she bears a very dangerous mark-a golden aura that indicates purity and possibly the fulfilment of a prophecy. Kate finds herself chosen and suddenly thrust into the middle of a conflict she cannot hope to survive. With nowhere to turn and an entire world counting on her, Kate has no choice but to set out to fulfil her destiny. But Kate and her new friends are not the only ones who know of the prophecy that foretold her arrival. Varak, the tyrant lord of Bexus, is well aware of what her coming could mean for him. He's determined to capture and kill Kate before she can fulfil her destiny and return peace to Bexus.
Kareem cradled her close to him, tucking her between his arm and his body, trying to keep her head above the thrashing, pounding waves, but Kate fought against him and slipped from his grasp. Moments later, she resurfaced beside him, and as he reached for her once more, she gripped his head between her two hands and screamed into his face. "Hawklight! Find Hawklight! He can't swim! Leave me! I can make it back to the boat!" He opened his mouth to argue, but she yelled him down. "Don't you understand? Find Hawklight!" A flash of lightning lit her face. Her eyes were wide, fearful, and pleading." the world of Bexus, a hostile place of magic, adventure, and tremendous danger, is once again in peril, and only Kate Gallagher can help. the Hornshurst Talisman, also known as the Toki-Moai, has been stolen, and the citizens of Hornshurst want it back--at any cost. Because of the theft, the city-states of Hornshurst and Cherath have led Bexus to the brink of another crippling war. the Council of Hogarth orders Kate to intervene and wield the power of the crystal that she wrested from Varak only months ago, but Kate has discarded the stone. Once this fact becomes known, she must agree to track down the thief and return the talisman to its rightful owners to avert the war. But Kate and her companion, Hawklight, are not the only ones seeking the Toki-Moai. Fate has played its hand, and Kate cannot begin to comprehend all that she may lose in order for the quest to succeed.
Kate Gallagher has returned to Hogarth only to learn terrible news: as he was leading a secret expedition south, her estranged friend Hawklight was murdered by unknown assassins. Driven by guilt because she created the rift in their friendship, Kate vows to avenge his death. But as she begins to sift through the facts about his mysterious mission, she uncovers a diabolical plot that threatens to resurrect the spectre of Varak in the form of a new overlord of Bexus. Time is running out as Kate and her friends embark on a perilous adventure to prevent the unthinkable from happening. Unfortunately, others are constantly a step ahead in the race, and throughout the quest Kate and her companions are ruthlessly pursued in an attempt to prevent them from succeeding. Kate's destiny is inextricably entwined in this twisted power struggle, as she alone possesses the capability to prevent another tyrant from enslaving the planet. But she has yet to discover that there is a steep price to pay as an old nemesis seeks to settle a score.
It is all as frightening and exciting when read for the umpteenth time in middle age as when first discovered in childhood. A.N. Wilson When young Jim Hawkins discovers a treasure map in a pirate s chest in his parents inn, he is drawn into a world of danger and adventure. He joins the crew setting sail to the Caribbean to seek out the booty and over the course of the voyage confronts mutiny, murder and the charismatic and devious Long John Silver.
The Beatles were one of the most important musical phenomena of the twentieth century, and together with their manager, Brian Epstein, it can truly be stated that they changed the world. But there were dark aspects to the Beatles story to go along with the million-sellers, and the record-breaking tours. Lost opportunities, millions of pounds lost or squandered or stolen, and the involvement of some very unpleasant characters. "For No One" is the story of the Beatles rise to super-stardom and their descent into a petty squabbling break-up, and a decline highlighted by tragic death and squalid murder and a host of unanswered questions.
The battle of Bannockburn in 1314 gave Scotland a great hero in Robert Bruce but deprived Scotland of three other worthy “patriot heroes.” This book tells the intriguing story of three members of the Comyn family who have been kept from their rightful place in Scottish tradition because of Robert Bruce's success. Bruce's ruthless rise to power and his sacrilegious murder of Scotland's chief political leader, John Comyn III Lord of Badenoch, in Greyfriars' Church in Dumfries in 1306 had to be spun to paint Bruce in a more favorable light in keeping with his status. Meanwhile, the victim and his family were mercilessly cast as traitors to Bruce and the Scottish cause. The book re-examines the murder and reconstructs the Scottish Independence movement before 1306. The conclusions are surprising—there was already a strong sense of national identity and political independence before the involvement of William Wallace or Robert Bruce—and Walter Comyn Earl of Menteith, Alexander Comyn Earl of Buchan, and John Comyn III Lord of Badenoch were preeminent as pillars of an independent Scottish monarchy, defining and protecting Scotland's integrity in times of political crisis. The Comyns fittingly led Scotland into the War of Independence in 1296. Offering a fresh analysis of the medieval roots of the Scottish Independence movement, this book takes a controversial look at the murder which helped to bring Robert Bruce to power in Scotland.
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