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Author: Stephen Purvis
Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
ISBN: 9781474605069
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
WINNER OF THE CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION GOLD DAGGER FOR NON-FICTION 2017 'In its tragic absurdity, Close But No Cigar reads like a Graham Greene story, with a cast of characters to make Hemingway proud' Daily Telegraph For over a decade Stephen Purvis had been a pillar of Havana's expat community, one of many foreign businessmen investing in Cuba's crawl from Cold War communism towards modernity. But for reasons unknown to him he was also under State Security's microscope. One morning during the height of President Raúl Castro's purges in 2012, while his family slept, the unmarked Ladas of State Security arrived at his home and he was taken away into the absurd and brutal world of Cuban justice. In this engrossing memoir, Purvis recounts his fifteen-month ordeal. Accused at first of selling state secrets, he is taken to the notorious interrogation centre Villa Marista, where he endures brutal conditions designed by the KGB and Stasi to break the bodies and minds of spies and political prisoners, and resists the paranoia and incompetence of his jailers. Later, held in a maximum-security prison, he finds himself surrounded by a motley crew of convicts: people-smugglers and drug-runners together with a handful of confused businessmen also awaiting formal charges. From his arrest to his farcical secret trial and sudden release, Purvis exposes the madness of modern Cuba with wit, grit and a sharp eye for character. As tourists flock to Havana to marvel at a city frozen in time, he shows that despite reforms and international reconciliation the Castro regime remains a corrupt, dictatorial relic. Close But No Cigar is part thriller, part comedy and part morality tale, but most of all a true story that takes the reader into a dark side of a sunny place that remains an enigma.
Author: Stephen Purvis
Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
ISBN: 9781474605069
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
WINNER OF THE CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION GOLD DAGGER FOR NON-FICTION 2017 'In its tragic absurdity, Close But No Cigar reads like a Graham Greene story, with a cast of characters to make Hemingway proud' Daily Telegraph For over a decade Stephen Purvis had been a pillar of Havana's expat community, one of many foreign businessmen investing in Cuba's crawl from Cold War communism towards modernity. But for reasons unknown to him he was also under State Security's microscope. One morning during the height of President Raúl Castro's purges in 2012, while his family slept, the unmarked Ladas of State Security arrived at his home and he was taken away into the absurd and brutal world of Cuban justice. In this engrossing memoir, Purvis recounts his fifteen-month ordeal. Accused at first of selling state secrets, he is taken to the notorious interrogation centre Villa Marista, where he endures brutal conditions designed by the KGB and Stasi to break the bodies and minds of spies and political prisoners, and resists the paranoia and incompetence of his jailers. Later, held in a maximum-security prison, he finds himself surrounded by a motley crew of convicts: people-smugglers and drug-runners together with a handful of confused businessmen also awaiting formal charges. From his arrest to his farcical secret trial and sudden release, Purvis exposes the madness of modern Cuba with wit, grit and a sharp eye for character. As tourists flock to Havana to marvel at a city frozen in time, he shows that despite reforms and international reconciliation the Castro regime remains a corrupt, dictatorial relic. Close But No Cigar is part thriller, part comedy and part morality tale, but most of all a true story that takes the reader into a dark side of a sunny place that remains an enigma.
Author: Melissa Miller
Publisher: Dove Books
ISBN: 9780787112912
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 280
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Book Description
Assembled by Miller as a surprise for her guardian angel in anticipation of his 100th birthday, this collection of anecdotes, photos, letters, and comedy routines showcases her once-in-a-lifetime friendship with George Burns.
Author: Lee Siegel
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300216637
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 176
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Book Description
Born Julius Marx in 1890, the brilliant comic actor who would later be known as Groucho was the most verbal of the famed comedy team, the Marx Brothers, his broad slapstick portrayals elevated by ingenious wordplay and double entendre. In his spirited biography of this beloved American iconoclast, Lee Siegel views the life of Groucho through the lens of his work on stage, screen, and television. The author uncovers the roots of the performer’s outrageous intellectual acuity and hilarious insolence toward convention and authority in Groucho’s early upbringing and Marx family dynamics. The first critical biography of Groucho Marx to approach his work analytically, this fascinating study draws unique connections between Groucho’s comedy and his life, concentrating primarily on the brothers’ classic films as a means of understanding and appreciating Julius the man. Unlike previous uncritical and mostly reverential biographies, Siegel’s “bio-commentary” makes a distinctive contribution to the field of Groucho studies by attempting to tell the story of his life in terms of his work, and vice versa.
Author: Ian Woodrow
Publisher: Author House
ISBN: 1467018406
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 144
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Book Description
Problems are a ubiquitous feature of any business plan or venture and the manager’s prime role is to ensure that these obstacles are resolved in an orderly and painless manner. Unfortunately, in real life, most of the solutions developed and implemented, are sub-optimal and result in the underlying problem lurking, only surface again later. Business history is littered with cases where the chosen solution to a problem was, as the saying goes, ‘Close, but no cigar’! In this book, Ian Woodrow offers a unique problem-solving approach for business - and life - problems, and explains why these practices are so pervasive and how one can avoid the common mistakes. By applying his six-step methodology contained in the simple mnemonic CIGARS, you will learn to: · Avoid the pitfalls of emotional perspectives · Clearly distinguish root problems from symptoms · Develop innovative solutions to problems · Effectively assess the most beneficial alternatives · Ensure that optimal solutions are selected and implemented. In addition, the book includes summaries of effective problem-solving techniques used by leading organisations today. There is also a fascinating chapter on how to improve one’s creative ability in order to develop truly innovative solutions. Close, but no Cigars is an indispensable guide for anyone wishing to improve their problem-solving abilities.
Author: Jack Mannion
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 1491704659
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 221
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Book Description
Probation officer LP Cinch is burned out. Perpetually stuck on the bottom rung of the stairway to wealth, fame, and stature, Cinchs life is always close but no cigar. But as his retirement day looms on the horizon, one of his probationers is murdered; suddenly Cinchs humdrum existence is much busier. With the case at a dead end, Cinch is drawn into the task of solving the crime. He receives information that the probationer left a handbag behind and opens the bulky purse to discover the stuff dreams are made of: a bundle of bills totaling nearly fifty thousand dollars. While acquainting his replacement with the job and the parade of people in his world, Cinch sifts through a caseload that consists of the underbelly of society and soon unmasks a murderer. But something far more complicated remained unresolvedwhat should he do with the large sum of money now in his possession? In this mystery laced with intrigue, humor, and high-stakes crime, a probation officer struggles with a life-changing dilemma as he finds out once and for all if he again comes close but no cigar.
Author: Rheta Grimsley Johnson
Publisher: NewSouth Books
ISBN: 1603060596
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 226
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Book Description
For over a decade, syndicated columnist Rheta Grimsley Johnson has been spending several months a year in Southwest Louisiana, deep in the heart of Cajun Country. Unlike many other writers who have parachuted into the swampy paradise for a few days or weeks, Rheta fell in love with the place, bought a second home and set in planting doomed azaleas and deep roots. She has found an assortment of beautiful people in a homely little town called Henderson, right on the edge of the Atchafalaya Swamp. These days, much is labeled Cajun that is not, and the popularity of the unique culture’s food, songs and dance has been a mixed blessing. The revival of French Louisiana’s traditional music and cuisine often has been cheapened by counterfeits. Confused pilgrims sometimes look to New Orleans for a sampler platter of all things Cajun. Close, but no cigar. Poor Man’s Provence helps define what’s what through lively characters and stories. The book is both personal odyssey and good reporting, travelogue and memoir, funny and frank. This beguiling place is as exotic as it gets without a passport. The author shares what keeps her coming home to French Louisiana. And as NPR commentator Bailey White observes in her foreword, "Both Rheta's readers and the people she writes about will be comfortable, well fed, highly entertained, and happy they came to Poor Man's Provence."
Author: Terence O'Brien
Publisher: Publishamerica Incorporated
ISBN: 9781413736090
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 218
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Book Description
Terry is a young lad who spends his aimless childhood roaming the streets of Boston during the Second World War, engaging in childhood fantasies to escape an unstable family environment. During his adolescent and high school years, Terry discovers the art of juggling, which becomes his passion and his business, leading him into unusual situations. Foreign and domestic travel dominates Terry's young adult life with academic pursuits in Germany, France and Ireland, where more adventure abounds with a tour of Ireland as a performer with Duffy Circus. Misadventure follows Terry to Washington where, as a Naval officer, he becomes a linguist at the National Security Agency, and meets his wife - an analyst. The two "spooks" do the improbable and run away with the circus, spending fifteen years trouping around North America while raising a family.
Author: George Grimm
Publisher: Sports Publishing
ISBN: 9781510722309
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 384
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Book Description
We Did Everything But Win: An Oral History of the Emile Francis Era New York Rangers (1964–1976) is an entertaining account of one of the most exciting and unforgettable periods in the history of the Broadway Blueshirts as told by Francis as well as several of his players. George Grimm chronicles each season of the Francis era when “The Cat” transformed them from perennial league doormats to a team that made it to the Stanley Cup playoffs for nine consecutive seasons, including a Finals appearance in 1972. There are also chapters detailing Emile’s playing career and his hiring as general manager as well as the aftermath of his dismissal and an analysis of his tenure behind the bench and as GM. It was during those years that the National Hockey League doubled in size and the Rangers moved into a brand-new Madison Square Garden. As the popularity of the National Hockey League skyrocketed, who could forget the Rangers’ battles on the ice with Boston’s Big Bad Bruins and Philadelphia’s Broad Street Bullies and showdowns with the Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Black Hawks? All the great moments are here including a heart-stopping, triple-overtime victory in the 1971 playoffs and Vic Hadfield’s 50th goal the following season. We Did Everything But Win is a tribute to the Rangers of that era; Jacques Plante and Marcel Paille, Eddie Giacomin and Gilles Villemure, Harry Howell and Jim “The Chief” Neilson, “The Old Smoothies,” the “G-A-G Line,” and the “Bulldog Line.” It’s the story of colorful players with nicknames like “Boomer,” “Stemmer,” and “Sarge” and fan favorites such as Brad Park, Rod Gilbert, Jean Ratelle, Walt Tkaczuk. It’s all here—the highs and the lows, the inspiring victories, the devastating losses, and the funny moments along the way.
Author: Anwer Bati
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781850768159
Category : Cigars
Languages : en
Pages : 224
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Book Description
Author: Robert Machray
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Boxing
Languages : en
Pages : 322
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Book Description
