Showing results by narrator "Laural Merlington" in All Categories

From trust to terror... from security to survival...The author of The Stranger Beside Me brings her brilliantly informed understanding of the sociopath to this riveting true crime collection. Only Ann Rule, who unknowingly worked alongside the smart and charming Ted Bundy - America's most notorious serial killer - could lend her razor-sharp insight into these cases of the spouse, lover, family member, or helpful stranger who is totally trusted but whose lethally violent nature, though masterfully disguised, can and will kill.

For many Americans, the birth certificate is a mundane piece of paper, unearthed from deep storage when applying for a driver's license, verifying information for employers, or claiming state and federal benefits. Yet as Donald Trump and his fellow "birthers" reminded us when they claimed that Barack Obama wasn't an American citizen, it plays a central role in determining identity and citizenship. The Birth Certificate: An American History traces the document's two-hundred-year history to explain when, how, and why birth certificates came to matter so much in the United States.

This book continues Chicken Soup for the Soul's focus on inspiration and hope in these difficult times. These inspirational stories remind us that each day holds something to be thankful for - whether it is having the sun shine or having food on the table. These stories of the joy of giving, attitude, and being grateful for what you have remind us of the simple pleasures of family, home, health, and inexpensive good times.

After years of trying to become pregnant without success, Rachel Dawson and her husband Thomas felt their dreams had finally come true the day they brought home their newly adopted twin babies. Though the lawyer Baron Bell who arranged for the surrogate mother charged a hefty six-figure fee, one glance into the eyes of their precious children told them it was all worth it - until the birth mother reappeared, first demanding more money, then the twins themselves.

Judy L. Mandel was born into a family crippled by grief. But it would be years before she would discover the shocking circumstances of their loss. In her award-winning memoir, Replacement Child - now a New York Times best seller - Mandel tells the true story of a horrifying accident: A plane crashes into a family's home, leaving one daughter severely burned and another dead. The death of the child leaves a hole in the family that threatens to tear it apart. In an attempt to fill the painful gap, the parents have a "replacement child."

Joy Anderson was innocent, young, and trusting when she met Gabe Venture. An aspiring journalist with worlds to conquer, Gabe came to New Mexico to explore the natural wonders of Lost River Cave, with Joy acting as his guide. Surrounded by staggering beauty they both surrendered to a passion too powerful to deny - and Joy gave herself freely to the most extraordinary man she had ever known.

Former Marine sergeant and judo instructor Roland Pitre Jr. claimed it was all an elaborate plan to win back his wife's love - it wasn't supposed to end with her dead body in the trunk of a car. Nearly twenty years later, he acknowledged that he had hired someone to kill his estranged wife in 1988, though his alleged excuse for why a monstrous "mistake" happened is as shocking and convoluted as the crime itself. Eventually, he was charged with first-degree murder in the long-unsolved death of Cheryl Pitre, after a mysterious witness betrayed Pitre to save his own skin.

A bear wakes to wonderful smells that lead him to the house of Bubba Brayna. Bubba Brayna makes the best latkes in the village, but at 97, she doesn't hear or see well. When the bear arrives at her door, she believes he is her rabbi. Bubba Brayna and the bear light the menorah, play the dreidel game, and eat all the latkes. The mix-up is revealed, Bubba Brayna has a laugh about it, and everyone works together to make more latkes.

John Timmons' life is planned and orderly. He cares for his mother and four younger brothers, and their future depends on him to keep their Colorado ranch profitable. Ember Farrar (Bert) has run away from her lawbreaking family in search of a new life. But, when she attempts to return a horse that her brother had stolen, ranch hands believe she is a thief and a boy, and they plan to hang her.

In an age when corporate executives are focused on smoothing out differences and achieving consensus, Saj-nicole Joni and Damon Beyer contend that happy workers aren't always productive; they often become prone to boredom and complacency. While organizational harmony and strategic alignment are important, the health and well-being of organizations also depend on carefully constructed and constructive conflict.

Generations of readers young and old, male and female, have fallen in love with the March sisters of this, Louisa May Alcott's most popular and enduring novel. Here are talented tomboy and author-to-be Jo, tragically frail Beth, beautiful Meg, and romantic, spoiled Amy - united in their devotion to each other and their struggles to survive in New England during the Civil War.

When Judith's son Alexander announces that he; his wife, Marla; their daughter, Olivia (age five); and their two sons, Isaac (age two) and Toby (four months); will be staying with her and her husband for 90 days while their house was being renovated, Judy doesn't know quite how to respond.

In the magical lands of Noland and Ix, two regions adjacent to Oz, the fairies of the forest of Burzee have made an incredible magic cloak that grants its wearer one wish. Queen Zixi, who is now 683 years old but appears just 16, covets the cloak in the hopes of reversing a curse that makes mirrors reflect her true age.

Eleanor Merritt, a do-gooding American family-planning worker, was drawn to Kenya to improve the lot of the poor. Unnervingly, she finds herself falling in love with the beguiling Calvin Piper despite, or perhaps because of, his misanthropic theories about population control and the future of the human race. Surely, Calvin whispers seductively in Eleanor's ear, if the poor are a responsibility they are also an imposition.

What goes better with mistletoe and merriment than the sweet beginnings of romance?

Alexandra Rafferty works nights for the Miami PD, capturing all the grisly details of crimes scenes on film. She lives with her father, an ex-cop who is slipping into senility, and her louse of a husband, who spends his days dreaming about the perfect crime - and his nights with his mistress. A serial killer is leaving the bodies of young women twisted into strange symbols. Juggling crime photos, Alexandra realizes that the symbols are, in reality, letters of the alphabet -- and that they spell out her name.

Books on Whittaker Chambers and Alger Hiss abound, as countless scholars have labored to uncover the facts behind Chambers's shocking accusation before the House Committee on Un-American Activities in the summer of 1948---that Alger Hiss, a former rising star in the State Department, had been a Communist and engaged in espionage.

Sometimes, justice is a long time coming. That’s the case with Julie Wyatt, whose story strikes close to home for the original founder of the Sisterhood, Myra Rutledge, and her best friend - and fellow Sister - Annie. Julie is convinced her greedy daughter-in-law, Darlene, had something to do with the mysterious circumstances surrounding her son Larry’s death. She desperately wants to get a confession out of Darlene - and to ensure the safety of Larry’s daughter, Olivia. As Myra, Annie, and their cohorts dig deeper into Darlene’s shady dealings, events unfurl in a way that no one could have predicted....

Thanks to her superstitious mother, Esther knows some tricks for avoiding bad luck: toss salt over your left shoulder, never button your shirt crooked, and avoid black cats. But even luck can't keep her family safe from the Great Depression. When Pa loses his job, Esther's family leaves their comfy Chicago life behind for a farm in Wisconsin. Living on a farm comes with lots of hard work, but that means there are plenty of opportunities for Esther to show her mother how helpful she can be.

A parent becomes a new person the day the first grandchild is born. Formerly serious adults become grandparents who dote on their grandchildren. This new audiobook includes the best stories on being a grandparent from past Chicken soup books, representing a new listening experience for even the most devoted Chicken Soup fan. Everyone can understand the special ties between grandparents and grandchildren - the unlimited love, the mutual admiration and unqualified acceptance.