ECW Press,Canada – serie

Vince Russo, known as the most successful writer in the history of professional wrestling, brought the World Wrestling Federation to its greatest success during the Attitude Era, creating a brand of wrestling that brought the industry to record heights. Three decades later, Russo is still talked about as one of the most influential men in the industry. Following the success of his first two books, Forgiven (covering his years with Vince McMahon's WWE) and Rope Opera: How WCW Killed Vince Russo (his time with Ted Turner's rival), TOTAL NONSTOP AGONY: The Rise and Fall of TNA picks up Russo's story as he begins work with the upstart TNA, where the daily drama proved greater than ever. The storylines here feature an indecisive millionaire southern belle, Dixie Carter, who cared more about her image then her wrestling company; the demise of his friendship with his best friend, Wrestling Superstar Jeff Jarrett; the network executives at Spike TV, who understood very little about the business they were in; and the return of his mortal enemies from WCW, Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan. Russo's TNA stories are epic, and many have never been told before. The politics, runaway egos, backstabbing, and underhandedness make the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills look like Little Women. Finally, the time has come to discuss TNA: this is the tell-all that no one has ever dared, and no one can tell the story better than Vince Russo.

Like it or not, playing golf will pull you inside out and expose your soul - and there's no place to hide. Zokology isn't just a book about golf. It's about learning to think when the way you've always thought is no longer working. And for Dick Zokol, that meant learning how to navigate the noise in his head and figuring out how to survive on the PGA Tour. Zokol's Cinderella story began when he 'walked on' the Brigham Young University golf team. Four years later, he captained BYU to victory in the NCAA Championship. Later that summer he won the Canadian Amateur and got through the notorious PGA Tour Q-School. But the fairy tale ended and Zokol struggled as a rookie on the PGA tour. Dealing with intense anxiety, expectations, and feeling he didn't belong, he battled the loneliness of life on the road. He was soon desperately searching for something that would help him find solid ground. From here, Zokol opens up about the real stuff - the mental and emotional toil that defined his 22 years on the PGA Tour. His two wins on the PGA Tour, both in 1992 were evidence his path had taken hold. In his career, Zokol played over 450 Tour events and learned success wasn't about the golf swing - success and failure are about your mind. Employing a thought-protocol can get you through those difficult situations. Zokology is raw, real, and sometimes uncomfortable. It's a guide for when you get off track - on the course or just in your own mind.

For Larry David, success was no sure thing. A frustrated New York comic who was known to walk off the stage in disgust, David was barely making a living. At least until his friend Jerry Seinfeld asked him to create a new kind of television sitcom for NBC. The result - Seinfeld - started slowly but became a gigantic hit. But most people didn't know that the real genius behind the show was Larry David. Rich beyond his wildest dreams, David still had something to prove - and some television boundaries to push. And so he created Curb Your Enthusiasm, the improvised comedy that cast aside political correctness and made for hilarious, cringeworthy TV, a show that dared to relive the disastrous Seinfeld finale and turn it into a triumph. This second, fully updated edition of Pretty, Pretty, Pretty Good offers a complete episode-by-episode guide to the series and recounts David's early struggle to succeed in television and movies, the creation and development of his hit sitcoms, and his later success starring in the HBO film Clear History and the Broadway hit Fish in the Dark. It also explores Larry's on and offscreen relationships with famous pals like Richard Lewis, Ted Danson, and Jerry, Jason, Julia, and Michael. Filled with candour and humour David himself would respect, Pretty, Pretty, Pretty Good is an essential companion to a comedic force.

Father Brennan Burke's father, Declan, gathered up his family and fled Ireland under the cover of night four decades ago after disobeying an order from his commanding officer in the IRA. Declan has not set foot in Ireland since. Until now. Why now? And why not? What could go wrong after all this time? All he tells his family is that 'it's time' to see his beloved homeland again. But sons Brennan and Terry, knowing their father's checkered past, suspect there is more to this sudden impulse than merely 'it's time,' so they insist on going with him. And sure enough, when they get to Ireland, there are men in the shadows. Knowing. Waiting to settle old scores. After an evening in the pubs of Dublin, Declan and Brennan call it a night, but Terry isn't ready to leave his barstool quite yet. The next morning when Brennan wakes up, he sees that Terry never came home. Had the men in the shadows missed their chance to grab Declan and taken Terry instead? Brennan and Declan are frantic to find him, and they call upon the services of Declan's brother Finn and Brennan's old friend Detective Shay Rynne. As Brennan searches for the motives behind this action against his family, he is joined by lawyer Monty Collins, and they learn things about Brennan's father that he had never wanted revealed. The revelations are not limited to the Burke family's long campaign against the British occupiers of their country. Some matters are much more personal.

June has spent a lifetime tending to the infinite needs of her four children, especially the youngest, Jimmy, who was the black sheep from the very beginning and who has dragged her down to hellish places she never expected or wanted to go: court, rehab, prison. After Jimmy's latest relapse, June makes a break for it. She heads south to a place where so many like her have found their happiness: Boca. For the first time in her life, she does what she wants - until Jimmy knocks on her door unannounced with that strange hollow look in his eyes. But the prodigal son is not made for paradise, and he disappears not long after he arrives. June's search for him draws her into the shadiest corners of this sunlit Shangri-La, where there are dirty cops, ambitious gangsters, and vicious henchmen waiting for her. Opportunities wait in the darkness, too. And after a lifetime of sacrifice and self-denial, why shouldn't June partake of them? After all, Florida is expensive - she needs a new roof, a new car, a new face - and June is on a fixed income. Plus, you can't become the queen without breaking a few rules.

Monsters are real. Well, monstros are, anyway - an emerging group of citizens trying to find their place in Brindlewatch, ever since the Camillites made a splash in the small town of Quixx, and the Jettites climbed out of their subterranean city beneath Lake Mallion. The Far Cities are bristling with newcomers looking for a fresh start in this brand-new world, but is it as safe for them as they think? Sable, a Camillite who still lives on Mount Quixx, isn't so sure. She sees the world through the distorted lens of the novels she steals from Professor Bedouin's observatory and is slow to trust the strangers in the world beyond the page. She is a side-character in her own story, and she wants to keep it that way. But a desperate letter begging for help rewrites Sable as the protagonist sleuth of her favourite novels, and hot on the trail trying to find her vanished friend, Sable uncovers more than she bargained for in the bright lights of the big city: a famous author with the ability to make every monstro's dream come true, a dastardly underworld targeting vulnerable monstros, and a sweet bookseller who may be at the heart of the mystery. And on the airwaves, a broadcast like no other promises a bold new world for everyone. Will Sable find her voice and save those terrified of speaking up, before it's too late?

Don Pyle's tantalising memoir, Rough Description, recalls first bands, the absurdity and incredible rewards of touring, and dubious-dealing stories of the groups he's been in, most prominently as drummer and co-founder of beloved group Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet. It recounts friend and work relationships with musician Dallas Good, venerable producer/engineer Steve Albini, iconic comedy troupe Kids in the Hall, whose series and theme his group created, and others. Alternately melancholic and hilarious, this book chronicles Pyle's bonkers experiences while attending hair school, his evolving relationship with his mother, how the Ramones affected his young teen brain, a life-changing car accident, and other situations from a creative life lived fully, providing oodles of salacious dish. You'll discover how a punk rock pen pal led to a career in showbiz and how to put out the same record over and over again. Photography, performing and writing music in bands, recording and producing numerous other artists, writing about music, and scoring for film and TV are all part of Pyle's distinct observer's eye - one that sees all creative media as aspects of the same stream.

Banks writes direct, accessible poems with strong allusions and 100% certified 'fresh' images so seasoned poetry fans and those not accustomed to the genre can both find something to enjoy. He reminds readers that everyone needs 'a bushel of smiles' or 'a first aid / kit of laughing gas' to poison our anxieties with joy, and he does not shy away from difficult topics like toxic masculinity or mental health struggles. 'Beauty is not beauty / without the ugliness surrounding it,' Banks says. In Bureau of Useless Splendour, Banks lets his imagination roam across the science of DNA sequencing, internet memes, space-time physics, Canadian nationalism, a lunar discussion between Canadian poet Gwendolyn MacEwen and American poet Frank Stanford, and even reimagined fortune cookie 'fortunes' - as if to illustrate that tucked away among the allusions to pop culture and Shakespeare, poems about Johannes Gutenberg and the Martian mountain Olympus Mons, there exists a dusty old office where the poet sits, creating vivid, delightful pieces and mischievous 'invoices' dedicated to the beauty and wonder of this world.

In 1999, after three years of secular living in Eastern Europe, Joelle Kidd moved back to Canada and was enrolled in the strange world of an evangelical Christian school. In Jesusland, Joelle writes about the Christian pop culture that she was suddenly immersed in, from perky girl bands to modest styling tips, and draws connections between this evangelical subculture and the mainstream, a tense yet reciprocal relationship that both disavows the secular while employing its media markers. But none of this was just about catchy songs: every abstinence quiz in a teen magazine was laying the foundation for what would become a conservative Christian movement that threatens women's healthcare, attacks queer and trans rights, and drives present-day political division. Through nine incisive, honest, and emotional essays, Jesusland exposes the pop cultural machinations of evangelicalism, while giving voice to aughts-era Christian children and teens who are now adults looking back at their time measuring the length of their skirts, and asking each other if their celebrity crush was Christian enough. With care and generosity, Jesusland shows us how the conservative evangelical movement became the global power it is today by exploring the pop culture that both reflected and shaped an entire generation of young people.

From dealing with the cantankerous and cheapskate owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs to hosting radio hotline shows to anchoring a revolutionary late-night program, Sportsline, Mark Hebscher finally tells the unheard stories from his 45 years in the bizarre business of sports broadcasting. How would you react if hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky sweated all over your dress pants during a live TV interview? What if heavyweight boxing champion Leon Spinks threatened to harm you if you didn't dance with his wife? These are just two of the occupational obstacles faced by Mark Hebscher during his checkered career in sports media. From covering Harold Ballard, the cantankerous owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, to helping lead a cultural revolution in sports broadcasting on the late-night program Sportsline, Hebscher tells stories of his 45 years in the business in his new book, Madness: The Rise and Ruin of Sports Media. This is a compelling look at the evolution of sports journalism and how today's media coverage drastically differs from the days of newspapers and magazines. At the same time, it explores the effect that radio, TV, and later technology has had on sports coverage, and how men like Howard Cosell changed the way sports was reported on. How did Wide World of Sports and Hockey Night in Canada become so ingrained in popular culture? What was it about Sportsline that made it mandatory viewing? Who were the athletes, sportswriters, sportscasters, reporters, and play-by-play announcers that fueled his desire to be a part of the sports media landscape? In the end, Hebscher's encounters with the Great One, MC Hammer, Youppi!, Doug Flutie, and Doug Gilmour are more than mildly amusing ... and his unparalleled knowledge of the sports media universe shines throughout.

Offering the atmosphere of Twin Peaks and the queer camaraderie of comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For, Veal is a thrilling exploration of friendship, fear, and the thin line between justice and vengeance. Delores 'Lawrence' Franklin is a failed capitalist and a runaway headcase. Following a corporate meltdown, she decides to start fresh in Mistaken Point, a small town known for two things - Mistaken Point University, where she and her best friend, Anastasia Lanes, are now enrolled, and the grisly murders of countless young women. At her new part-time arcade job, Lawrence meets Francesca 'Franky' Delores - gritty, off-putting, and chronically serious, as opposite to Lawrence as her name would suggest. Soon, Lawrence discovers Franky is convinced there is a monster on the loose, a patchwork creature born of hatred and responsible for the supposedly solved string of violence haunting the town. Against the advice of Franky's closest friend, Pippa, Lawrence and Stasia join Franky in a sticky, summertime search for a yellow-eyed monster between classes, shifts at the arcade, and eating popsicles by the pool. Motivated mostly by her unquenchable attraction to Franky, Lawrence allows herself to be pulled in strange directions, trying to appease Franky's mania. Through the trials of hunting a monster only some of them believe in, Pippa, Lawrence, Stasia, and Franky discover truths about womanhood, relationships, and the reliability of urban legends.

In 1970, Scott McIntyre cofounded what became Canadian publisher Douglas & McIntyre. In the intervening years, he has watched the rise and fall of publishers, booksellers, and book trends from every corner of the industry. He saw the founding of a significant independent Canadian publisher in British Columbia, the growth of Indigenous literature and government support for publishers, and the increasing global demand for Canadian books. Scott McIntyre has lived the story of Canadian book publishing. Beginning his career at McClelland & Stewart in 1967, he went on to cofound his own publishing house, Douglas & McIntyre, in 1970 and made his mark on the industry amid the country's exhilarating literary coming-of-age. Becoming one of Canada's largest and most respected publishing houses and among the first to embrace Indigenous issues, Douglas & McIntyre and its associated children's publisher, Groundwood Books, published some 900 authors and 2,000 books in less than 50 years. For McIntyre, the authors always came first, and he worked closely with many important figures, including Doris Shadbolt, Wayson Choy, Richard Wagamese, Anna Porter, Will Ferguson, Doug Coupland, Hugh Brody, Robert Bringhurst, Wade Davis, and Farley Mowat. Telling stories featuring a colourful array of characters who rebuilt the publishing world following WWII and anecdotes about how book publishing works, McIntyre touches upon the guiding philosophy and historic traditions still animating the industry today. More than the story of one publisher and his company, this is a first-person account of the buoyant period when writers, their books, and the companies who published them changed the nation.

A spellbinding, inquisitive journey into the nature of the unseen for anyone as curious about the afterlife as they are about life Hauntings happen. But why? Are they caused by ghosts, or something else? What is a ghost, anyway? After centuries of ghost-hunting by experts and amateurs alike, are we any closer to knowing? Like many, Margo MacDonald once believed that all hauntings were the work of restless spirits, but after two decades spent engaging with firsthand accounts of paranormal encounters - and having a few of her own - she has more questions than answers. MacDonald asks: Why are we haunted by tragedy but not by joy? If a ghost lives in a house but no one experiences it, does it make a haunting? And what does our desire to believe in ghosts say about us? With insight and humor, A Curious Presence explores the theories that have shaped MacDonald's understanding of hauntings and the paranormal. Told through conversations with skeptics, sensitives, parapsychologists, investigators, and haunted-house dwellers - interwoven with vivid accounts of real experiences and visits to famously haunted locations - MacDonald proposes an unsettling idea: Perhaps it isn't the places that are haunted, but the people who move through them. Perhaps we have more in common with ghosts than we think.

Almost every other day, a woman in Canada is murdered by her partner. Domestic violence kills as many as 187 women each year while terrorizing or maiming untold thousands, including children and bystanders. Gender-related homicide of women and girls rose by 14 percent between 2020 and 2021, reaching its highest level since 2017. It is the most predictable category of murder, and yet too few of us know how this happens or how insidiously it affects everyone. Part memoir, part investigative journalism, She Ran: The Media and the Public Response to Domestic Violence explores how news media have helped perpetuate or correct myths surrounding intimate partner violence (IPV). Challenging the idea that IPV is simply an 'isolated incident,' author and journalist Ann Rauhala highlights its reality as a widespread crisis, making the case that the media - and the public - can and should help lead the way in prevention. Rauhala reviews her experiences as an editor and women's issues reporter for The Globe and Mail, her responsibilities as a journalism professor, her circumstances as a survivor of IPV, and her grief over the loss of her best friend. Dissecting media and public misconceptions, failures in legal and economic systems, and stigmas about IPV, Rauhala offers a vital perspective that calls for deeper awareness, wider accountability, and greater public commitment to confront this violence.

Jon 'Nasty' Mirasty and Zenon Konopka, two of the toughest men to ever play professionally, offer their contrasting opinions on the physical toll the game took on their bodies. Investigative journalist Rick Westhead and NHL super-agent Allan Walsh reflect on their long journeys inside and outside hockey, their vital roles as agents of change, and the opportunity to make the game better. Chris Nowinski, CEO of the Concussion Legacy Foundation, discusses ongoing research into brain injuries, CTE, and the safety of playing contact sports. Steffany Hanlen, the first woman to become an NHL power skating and strength coach, provides insight into youth hockey and gives essential advice to any minor hockey parent. Finally, Andrew Long recounts the horrific event that changed his life forever and forced him out of the limelight and into the shadows. After exposing the dark underbelly of junior hockey in his memoir, Conflicted Scars, Justin Davis is now determined to find a path forward by telling the stories of others. Breaking the Ice is an indispensable guide to parents of hockey hopefuls and players climbing the ranks of professional hockey.

When Survivor premiered on CBS in 2000, it seemed like a cut-and-dry novelty: interesting, and immensely popular, but almost certainly doomed to be short-lived. It's not just that Survivor is still, 25 years later, on the air, pulling in huge ratings across its now 50 seasons. Reality television has transitioned from a widely derided flash in the pan to a fully legitimised medium enjoyed by millions of households across a huge variety of formats. From the observational drama of The Kardashians to competitive cooking shows like Top Chef and Hell's Kitchen, it's clear that reality isn't going anywhere - it's even made the leap to streaming, with shows like Love Is Blind proving that reality is here to stay. True Lies from New York Times reporter Calum Marsh, is about the history, the present, and the future of reality television - what it means, how it happened, and where it's taking us. Featuring revealing long-form interviews with the stars, producers, and hosts of some of the most popular reality shows, including Jeff Probst and Gordon Ramsay, as well as deep writing on reality TV's psychological and sociological dimensions, this book takes a hard look at a much-maligned genre from its origins in scientific experimentation to its decades-long evolution into what it is today. From the game show cheating scandals of the 1960s to the phenomena of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and Survivor, from network hits like The Amazing Race and Big Brother to modern streaming classics like Chef's Table and Last One Laughing, True Lies is a comprehensive study of the format that leaves no stone unturned.

Isobel 'Izzy' Ker, the last working artist of the Old Holy Order, lives a life of poverty in the Dumps outside of Mahl City, covertly selling her illegal paintings to the Old Order's few remaining devotees. But when her studio is ransacked by the city's enforcers, her only choice is to seek refuge with the Half-Light Rebels, a gang of anti-art radicals and glorified thieves. She agrees to help the rebels, but their first mission goes south, and Izzy is arrested and brought before the leader of the oppressive New Art Government, a group that keeps people in check by feeding their addiction to a novel and dangerous craft, Trigger Art. Izzy has a choice: Convert to their way of life, using her skills to debut as a Trigger Artist, or rot in the city's infamous prison. Izzy accepts and is thrust into the spotlight, now intoxicated by the luxury and power afforded her, not to mention her handsome bodyguard, Rilke. The wild, engrossing act of creating her first public piece almost makes her forget what life was like in the Dumps. Almost. All the while, Izzy is fanning the flames of rebellion, working in secret with the rebels and preparing to unveil her audacious debut piece. Written by a rising star in science fiction, Lavender Spike is a bold, wholly original cyberpunk novel in which art is both drug and religion.

When artist Sonali Menezes found herself struggling with mental illness, disordered eating, and the crushing weight of capitalism, she began to look for easy and delicious ways to feed herself that would both fulfil her hunger and her need for care. Her method - non-judgmental, anti-diet, and approachable - became Depression Cooking, a book that combines recipes, personal memoir, and illustrations to provide a guide for those moments in all of our lives when making a meal, and loving yourself, feels impossible. In each chapter, Sonali writes and draws about a challenging period in her life, when food seemed more like an enemy than an ally, and shares the recipes and cooking tips that nurtured her body and her soul. From dal to ramen to 'things on toast,' Depression Cooking lays out an approach that helps us through life's hardest challenges, whether that's becoming a new parent, being fired from a job, weathering grief, or living on our own for the first time. Part comic, part food memoir, part cookbook, Depression Cooking is a love letter to the sad, hungry, and exhausted versions of ourselves who always deserve care, community, and good food. This empathetic, innovative, and delightfully funny book is one of one, and exactly the permission we all need to enjoy beautiful meals just because we can.

On April 29, 2012, a private world of deceit and neglect came crashing down when Guy Mitchell, a 38-year-old man with developmental disabilities, died confused and alone, thrashing in a dark underground tank on the rural property where he lived. When police arrived, they found a far larger crime scene: a house of horror where Guy had been living with two other vulnerable individuals under the care of a young woman with serious psychological issues. The home had no running water and no heat. Human waste filled the toilets and covered bathtubs, walls, and floors. There was no food in the kitchen, and mounds of dirty laundry and garbage cluttered most rooms. Yet the agency overseeing the home gave it a pass just two days before Guy's death. Blame: Death, Disability, and the Search for Justice for Guy Mitchell attempts to find meaning and justice in the tragic death of a vulnerable individual whose circle of care failed him. Moving between the coroner's inquest and flashing back to real-time events, author Dustin Galer explores what happened to Guy Mitchell in meticulous detail. As each layer of Guy's support system is peeled back and examined, new facts emerge that reveal yet another missed opportunity to intervene in a rapidly deteriorating situation. Dramatic nonfiction that reads like a legal thriller, Blame resists easy answers, exposing a tangled web of negligence, indifference, and systemic failure and probing the deeper structural forces behind Guy's death. What emerges is a powerful indictment of a broken system and a strong argument that the duty to care for society's most vulnerable ultimately lies with us all.

Karrion Kross's physique - a hulking 6'4', 265 pounds - and the unbridled intensity in his eyes is enough on its own to inspire fear in opponents. Factor in his unique combination of precision and abject ruthlessness, and it becomes clear that anyone stepping in the ring with Kross is in immediate danger. A master of catch wrestling and sambo, Kross has done battle around the world. He boasts an array of devastating suplexes, including his dreaded Doomsday Saito. And if that's not enough, he's more than happy to put opponents to sleep with the Kross Jacket. For all his menacing exterior, the human being behind the character - whose real name is Kevin Kesar - is a soft-spoken, highly thoughtful individual with a powerful story. Recognised by peers for his exceptional love for his profession, Kesar endured numerous setbacks on the way to achieving his dream. Along with his wife, Elizabeth - known in WWE as Scarlett - he has repeatedly found the fortitude to bounce back stronger, personally and professionally. This book is full of fascinating stories, heartache, humour, and even some advice for those with similar aspirations. Readers will be immersed into Kesar's unique mindset as he pulls back the curtain on what the journey (and the fight) to the top of sports entertainment is really like.

With the promise of nothing but fun in the sun, Zinnia, Fay, Kiara, and Valentina are all geared up to reconnect on their 10th annual girls' trip that brings them together from all different cities. What they don't know, however, is that some baggage comes on vacation whether you pack it or not. Their outside lives slowly seep into their seaside getaway, and when the weekend proves to be a series of secrets, snide remarks, and non-stop bickering, tensions escalate. Suddenly they are all forced to wonder: Have they outgrown their childhood friendships? Shedding light on the power and complications of lifelong friendships, This Is Why I Need You questions the choices we make in life that can bring us closer together - or pull us further apart - from people we need most: our friends.

From his beginnings in public housing in Ottawa to building acclaimed brands like Sully & Son Co., House of Hayla, and Black Designers of Canada, George Sully's journey defies the odds and the gatekeepers of an industry slow to embrace diversity. Through unflinching honesty and hard-won insight, Sully reflects on his triumphs and setbacks, navigating systemic exclusion, building his own platforms, and reimagining what it means to succeed on one's own terms. His story extends beyond fashion to entrepreneurship, identity, and the quiet courage it takes to keep building when no one is watching. From creating the iconic Starfleet Boot for Star Trek: Discovery to mentoring the next generation of designers, Sully has left an indelible mark on Canadian culture. But Designing in the Dark is not just a memoir of success, it is a blueprint for creative survival and self-determination. Poignant, inspiring, and deeply human, Sully's narrative illuminates the tension between legacy and reinvention, urging readers to rise above the darkness and design a life that endures beyond it.

Ray, a single mother and superior court judge, pounds a punching bag in her basement to manage her anger. She has concluded that life must be lived tightly leashed or chaos will move in. Her prime directive is to protect her daughter, Armada, from life's unruly forces. Ray deftly handles other people's problems, managing her courtroom and the politics of the judges' chambers, and defusing her neighbours' battles, all the while staying above the fray. But when her feckless, sweet brother re-enters Ray's life, bringing unpredictability and wayward emotion with him, and her sexy, but enervating Guatemalan ex crashes into her world, she realises that her carefully piloted ship is not watertight after all - it's no better than a sieve. Cascading events reveal to Ray that suffering cannot be held at bay and that life must be lived in all its messy glory. Peopled with a cast of characters for the ages, from the eccentrics that surround Ray's courtroom and her street to a flock of recalcitrant hens, and laden with her trademark sly wit, this is Strube's best novel yet - sharp, intensely humane, moving, and funny.

Immediately upon his release from a 25-year prison sentence, former veterinarian Trevor Westmore gets his first surprise as a free man: A guard gives him a German shepherd puppy. While Trevor anxiously tries to build a new life, his dog, Libby, provides the routine and responsibility he needs to navigate his re-entry into society. All Trevor wants is to earn a living, to stay out of trouble, and to be left alone - until he meets and falls for local veterinarian Laura Fenway. But they both have their secrets. When she learns the truth of Trevor's past will she consider a future together? And when he discovers the lengths she'll go to rescue dogs, will he jeopardize his long-awaited freedom Weaving together major environmental and political issues of the mid- to late-20th century that remain urgent today, Dog Days of Planet Earth asks what we're willing to risk for our personal convictions in a world where powerful and unjust forces often oppose them.

Once a rising star of indie rock, Kate is now a middle-aged single mum living far out of the spotlight. Everything changes for her when an unprecedented heat wave and a stolen car set off a chain of events that threaten to upend her new, peaceful life. Fired from her job, separated from her children, and overwhelmed by public shaming, Kate must navigate the cold realities of the child welfare and family court systems while struggling to stay cool in an increasingly unbearable world. Determined to rebuild, Kate finds herself forging new connections and fostering a sense of community - something she hasn't felt since her music career ended in disaster more than a decade before. As Kate finds a new voice, she makes her way back to her children and her love of music, and steps closer to reconciling with her former bandmate and arch-rival: her little sister. If building community is Kate's way of reckoning with the mistakes of her past, can it also be a way to mitigate the deeper, more urgent issues and structural injustices that threaten our future?

Most agree on the urgent need for climate action, yet we are often divided on how to stop the destruction of the natural world. Earth for Sale exposes the danger of governments giving over this responsibility to powerful private interests, namely the same energy, chemical, agribusiness, and bottled water corporations that brought us to this ecological brink. Their answer? Put a price on nature and bring it into the market. Under the inviting language of 'nature-based solutions' and 'ecosystem services,' this financialisation and commodification of nature takes many forms: carbon trading; debt-for-nature swaps; water pollution trading; biodiversity credits; green, blue, and wildlife conservation bonds; plastics offsets; water futures; and more. Renowned activist Maude Barlow, who sounded the alarm decades ago on the corporate assault on water, argues the financialisation of nature is dangerous and surprisingly few understand the implications, including many in environmental movements. With detailed examples and meticulous research, Earth for Sale unmasks this insidious new form of corporate plunder. We must not allow the movement to protect nature and biodiversity to be handed over to private interests whose driving motive is, and always has been, profit.

When The Hills debuted on May 31, 2006, the world was unprepared for its shiny, cocktail-fueled, and unprecedented success. Seemingly overnight, fans were either Team Lauren or Team Heidi, although everyone could agree that Justin Bobby was the worst. In You Know What You Did, culture writer Lisa Whittington-Hill charts the explosive rise of one of television's first polished (and possibly scripted) docusoaps, one that set the trajectory for how women who were 'famous for being famous' - from the Real Housewives to the Kardashians - would be seen by the world for the decades to come. The Hills followed Lauren Conrad as she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dreams of working in fashion. At the show's peak, 4.8 million viewers tuned in to watch Lauren and her friends Heidi, Audrina, and Whitney intern at Teen Vogue, spill tea over sushi, and lounge by the pool at the Roosevelt Hotel. As their popularity grew, they became bona fide celebrities, experiencing the same vicious tabloid culture as other young female stars, navigating familiar rumors about sex tapes, plastic surgery, and addictions. Soon, slick docusoaps focused on the lifestyles of the wannabe rich and almost famous were everywhere and encouraged their female leads to stay skinny, behave badly, and, above all else, keep their names in the headlines. With a healthy dose of cynicism and empathy for the chaos of the Hollywood maelstrom, You Know What You Did shows us that, no matter your team, you loved The Hills for its skinny jeans, black eyeliner, and dating angst. But now you can also love - and question - it for changing everything we know about celebrity, reality, and young womanhood.

You might know Dr. Cliff Redford as the friendly veterinarian who answers burning pet questions on Canada's Global News, but Dr. Cliff is also a globetrotter, a risk-taker, a marathoner, a black belt, a loving father, and a guy who just can't sit down. But his best-known role is as a champion to animals the world over: the Worldwide Vet. In this charming memoir, Dr. Cliff opens up about his life and travels as a veterinarian without borders, sharing insights from his surprising, funny, sometimes heart-wrenching, and often dangerous work. From well-fed Athens street cats, to a monkey in India in a dangerous situation, a cyclopean crocodile in Jamaica named one-eyed Jack, and people's beloved pets around the globe - Dr. Cliff helps them all, with his vast veterinary knowledge, his jovial wit, and his big heart. Part vet stories and part personal odyssey, Far and Wild shines a light on the trials and tribulations of veterinary medicine as Dr. Cliff carefully details the techniques and procedures he uses to diagnose and treat his patients. It will also teach you a little about that most enigmatic of animals - people - as he tells the story of his own journey and highlights passionate teams all around the world who dedicate their lives to fight for the creatures who can't fight for themselves.