But tonight, I stand in the shadows behind a tree, watching as a boy skips rocks on the lake.
He shouldn’t be here.
Lexi is cursed with a dark secret. The water calls to her, draws her in, forces her to sing her deadly song to unsuspecting victims. If she succumbs, she kills. If she doesn’t, the pain is unbearable. To keep herself and those she cares about safe, she shuts herself off, refusing to make friends or fall in love—again. Because the last time she fell in love with a boy, he ended up dead.
Then Lexi meets Cole. Against her better judgment, she finds herself opening up again, falling in love when she knows she shouldn’t. But when she’s offered the chance to finally live a normal life, she learns that the price she must pay to be free of her curse is giving him up.
In Ripple, Mandy Hubbard spins a sea-ravaged tale of melancholy beauty, and the choices one girl makes between land and waves, love and freedom, her future—and her heart.
I cannot wait for this to be release and give you the full review... but you can grab a copy here!
This is not the first time where Ashley Judd has provided revelations about her early life as well as her difficult road towards independence and individuality.
But this time she has provided additional details, the kind of details that could provide hope and inspiration for others who have suffered difficult and extremely painful bouts of anxiety, depression and/or a lack of passion for work.
Perhaps Judd's greatest courage comes in chronicling the various sexual abuses she endured. As of this writing, her family is reportedly (according to media coverage) unhappy with Ashley's revelations.
But breaking the silence surrounding childhood sexual abuse is an act of courage and every celeb and other person who doesn't flinch or waver from the hard truth can help others cope as well. Even more admirable? Judd transcended her own personal pain to reach out for social justice instead of remaining mired in depression and fear - and instead of feeling powerless for the rest of her life.
Hard for adults to understand, perhaps, but Judd makes clear that children don't automatically understand that sexual predators are being "abusive." Instead, children can feel a range of emotions, from confusion to fear ...or even shame.
For anyone familiar with the press surrounding the Judd family, it is no secret that there have been tensions, even outright breaks in the family. Unlike Wynonna and Naomi Judd, famed as singers, Ashley opted to become primarily an actress - and then she seemed to fade from the spotlight. "All That is Bitter and Sweet" explains why this happened and how Ashley's feelings affected her decision to veer from acting.
Among other challenges, Judd struggled with depression and a loss of passion for her acting craft - even while she was still strongly in demand. But read about her early abuse and family struggles and it becomes clear that she worked hard to face her painful past and continuing struggles - instead of living in denial and finding it harder and harder to keep up a facade that hid so much.
By coming forward and writing about her own painful past, Judd provides hope for others who have suffered neglect, abuse, depression, and other potentially crippling problems. Judd also reveals her own methods for finding peace, including work with others who need help.She connects intimately with those who have HIV/AIDS. She trys not to be a celeb who stays distant from those she helps. It is also clear that Judd finds solace and help from the people she meets along the way.
It must have been hard for someone like Ashley Judd to reveal so much about herself. Whenever I watched her in movies,I got the sense that she was a deeply private person and some of that reserve came through - and ironically,even strengthened the believability of the characters she played - on screen. But it is far different to play a movie role than it is to strip away the celeb facade and write such an open memoir.
She has finally found peace within herself & declares her painful past as her greatest asset! On overall, this is a great emotional roller-coaster ride (bitter) memoir with a positive (sweet) that is candid/engaging, a highly recommended book/memoir reading.
Over the last thirty years, Christopher Hitchens has established himself as one of the world's most influential public intellectuals. His originality, bravery, range, and wit made him first a leading iconoclast of the political left and then, later in his career, a formidable advocate of secular liberalism. When the Twin Towers were attacked in September 2001, Hitchens was re-energised again, quickly emerging as one of the fiercest and most influential advocates of war on Iraq. In this long-awaited and candid memoir, Hitchens re-traces the footsteps of his life to date, from his childhood in Portsmouth, with his adoring, tragic mother and reserved Naval officer father; to his life in Washington DC, the base from which from he would launch fierce attacks on tyranny of all kinds. Along the way, he recalls the girls, boys and booze; the friendships and the feuds; the grand struggles and lost causes; and, the mistakes and misgivings that have characterized his life. "Hitch-22" is, by turns, moving and funny, charming and infuriating, enraging and inspiring. It is an indispensable companion to the life and thought of our pre-eminent political writer.
OUR THOUGHTS: Before reading this I knew Hitchens was a controversial figure - but I wasn't familiar with why (to be honest i thought he must have been a wealthy brattishtory - I'm glad i was wrong (although wealthy stories also write good books)).
As a 39-year-old comprehensive school-educated middle-manager, this very readable book took me on a fabulous trip of what happened to someone who was in the right place at the right time (i think i read recently that people born in 1949 had the best of all worlds). Hitchens has experienced at first hand some of the more fundamental developments in human history of the last 40 years. He writes about his experiences with genuine warmth, insight and honesty without pretentiousness. It's the most enjoyable book I've read in a while - and having just finished it I feel more connected to some of the big issues being played out in the world and I'm motivated to read more deeply & widely.
