Orphan Memoir

When a DNA test blows apart her father’s hidden identity many years after his death, Deb finds she has a sister, Barbara, and an entirely new family she never knew. As the sisters work to unravel more of their father’s secrets, they find his connection to a dark chapter of British-Canadian history. Will the sisters finally get to the bottom of their father’s past? Or are some secrets meant to stay buried forever?

In the 1930s and 1940s, there was nothing bigger in Texas high school football than the Masonic Home Mighty Mites - a group of orphans bound together by hardship and death. These youngsters, in spite of being outweighed by at least 30 pounds per man, were the toughest football team around. They began with nothing - not even a football - yet in a few years were playing for the state championship on the highest level of Texas football. This is a winning tribute to a courageous band of underdogs from a time when America desperately needed fresh hope and big dreams.

Donald Maclean was one of the most treacherous spies of the Cold War era, a member of the infamous "Cambridge Five" spy ring. Yet little is known of this shrewd, secretive man. The full extent of his betrayal has never been documented - until now. Drawing on the recent release of previously classified files, A Spy Named Orphan meticulously documents the extraordinary story of a man leading a chilling double life until his exposure and defection to the USSR.

From the best-selling and award-winning author of novels Bone and Steer Toward Rock, Fae Myenne Ng’s Orphan Bachelors is an extraordinary memoir of her beloved San Francisco’s Chinatown and of a family building a life in a country bent on their exclusion.

1975: Saigon is on the brink of collapse. Amid the chaos, a young American is thrust into a race against time. A year earlier, 19-year-old Ross Meador arrived in Vietnam searching for purpose—determined to do good in a world consumed by war. But as the city crumbles around him, his mission becomes clear: help evacuate as many orphaned children as possible before it’s too late.

Albertina Zimmerman, known affectionately as “Oma” by her loving grandson, Bernard, was an endless source of fascination and narrator of true stories, whose protagonists were leading figures from music, politics, and the Viennese opera.

Alexandra Aldrich, a direct descendant of the famous Astor dynasty, grew up in the servants' quarters of Rokeby, the forty-three-room Hudson Valley mansion built by her ancestors. Her childhood was one of bohemian neglect and real privation. But it was fairly stable until the summer of her tenth...

The Galveston Orphans Home of Texas has been a fixture of the historic city for over a hundred years. Surviving the great storm of 1900 and giving children a place to call home, there are countless stories about the house’s rich history.

A Remarkable Yet Chilling Memoir of an Orphan from Africa From an orphan, environmental scientist and Fulbright Fellow comes a remarkable memoir of growing up in an unremarkable poor town in Zimbabwe that presents an alarming revelation of the oft ignored challenges of child-headed families in Africa. I Could Be Someone is an outstanding memoir on grace and grit, and the guts to forge an identity beyond the pain of being an orphan. At only nine, Edmond Sanganyado lost his father. By the time he turned 17, he had lost his mother and was taking care of his young brothers. I Could Be Someone ...

Instead of succumbing to life on the streets, Kimbrough sought the one thing that would redeem him from that dismal, expected fate—education. This is the story of a young man who, despite all the forces that worked against him, fiercely determined to make a better life for himself, and is resolute about showing others the way.

Based on the true story of her mother, Mona Golabek describes the inspirational story of Lisa Jura's escape from Nazi-controlled Austria to England on the famed Kindertransport. Jewish musical prodigy Lisa Jura has a wonderful life in Vienna. But when the Nazis start closing in on the city, life...

The Unbreakable Orphan 2 is the sequel to the Frank Nino IV childhood autobiography, now delving into the raw and unfiltered realities of his adulthood. This book recounts struggles with addiction, toxic relationships, loss, and personal failures, contrasted by moments of redemption, resilience, and the unconditional love for his children. Guided by his faith in God, the story highlights the journey from darkness to light, demonstrating how even in life’s toughest moments, God’s grace and love remain constant.

Double Luck is filled with examples of how the human spirit can triumph over adversity. In the Chinese language, the word crisis is written with two symbols: one meaning "danger" and the other meaning "opportunity". Although Chi Fa's childhood was filled with crisis, he always looked for opportunity. His successful triumph over crisis after crisis is an inspiration for all who seek hope in the face of great challenges.

Dr. Mabel E. Elliott, an American physician, served in Turkey, Armenia, and Greece from 1919 to 1923, helping Armenian and Greek refugees and orphans following World War I for Near East Relief and American Women's Hospitals, humanitarian organizations that served the region. She saw unimaginable massacres and torture while caring for thousands of refugees and orphans. Rose Wilder Lane, journalist and novelist, worked for the American Red Cross and Near East Relief from 1919 to 1923. Dr. Elliott agreed to work on a book for Near East Relief, and the two collaborated on a sweeping memoir that...

Undeterred is a moving ride through the life of one determined Vietnamese orphan boy named Long who, despite the bigotry and hate he faces, carves out a place for himself in America. This is a positive immigrant success story. With tanks approaching and bombs exploding mere yards away, five-year-old Long has only moments to decide whether to risk the jump to join his brother in the water below. The boys must leave everything they know to survive and unknowingly have embarked on an intense journey that will lead to a new life in America. The boys face new perils in the United States and find...

In literary circles of the mid-twentieth century, father and son, Ikbal and Idries Shah, spread seductive accounts of a mystical Middle East. Pitching themselves as the authentic voice of the Muslim world, they penned travelogues and exotic potboilers alongside weighty tomes on Islam and politics.

Growing up with a mother suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and a mostly absent father, Nikki Grimes found herself terrorized by babysitters, shunted from foster family to foster family, and preyed upon by those she trusted. At the age of six, she poured her pain onto a piece of paper late one night - and discovered the magic and impact of writing. For many years, Nikki's notebooks were her most enduing companions. In this accessible and inspiring memoir, Nikki shows how the power of those words helped her conquer the hazards - ordinary and extraordinary - of her life.

As the car approached the long, steep driveway, I was suddenly overcome by panic. I had never had much of a normal family life before. But now as the new foster home approached larger than life through the windshield, I realized for the first time that I was an orphan. Maybe not in the traditional sense of the word, but being given up by my father to live with some family was all I needed to be convinced that I was not wanted.

A detailed and well-written look at life in New York City from the 1920s to today through a memorable memoir about a boy who bounced around among different relatives and caregivers, through his school years, followed by his service during World War II. Cohen shares about his marriage and how he built a distinguished career as an educator in the New York City public school system despite his tough childhood and teen years, seeking out friends and romance resulting in a full and fulfilling life.

Euel Lee, alias Orphan Jones, was an African American accused of murdering his white employer and family over a single dollar. The tumultuous events and cast of characters surrounding the racially charged crime garnered national media attention and changed the course of Maryland history. With exacting research, former Maryland State's Attorney Joseph E. Moore reconstructs the murders, the ensuing roller coast of a trial, and the eventual conviction and execution of Orphan Jones. Moore details all of this in the context of Jim Crow and American society during the Great Depression.