On a Saturday morning in May 1980, Melanie Bowen, a pretty fifteen year old, ran down the stairs of her parents' home in Port Talbot, grabbed her leather jacket and crash helmet, yelled a goodbye, and then walked out of the front door into the sunshine for what was to be the last time in her life. Never Say Die is the true story of what followed. Since the motorcycle crash that left her paralyzed from the chest down, Melanie's life has been one of extremes. On the down side, she has endured 5 horrific months of despair and indignity in rehabilitation, undergone a colostomy at 23, been in another serious car crash, suffered syringomyelia and the terrifying prospect of full quadriplegia, been diagnosed with breast cancer and had broken several bones. On the plus side, however, she's won medals in athletics for Wales, been humbled and inspired by Falklands veterans at RAF Chessington, raised thousands for charity, become a major disability poster girl in America, dabbled with the film world and been screen tested for a movie, met the Queen, and set up her own rehabilitation charity, whose patrons include the acclaimed actor Michael Sheen, Dame Tanni Grey Thompson, and former Welsh Rugby captain, Gwyn Jones. She has also, against all the odds, found lasting happiness, fallen in love, and married the surgeon who 25 years earlier told her she would never walk again.

Never Say Die

Biographies & Memoirs

Barrett-Lee, Lynne

Davies, Melanie

Community & Culture

HarperTrue

Chronicles the life of George, a nearly five foot tall, 245-pound Great Dane who was named the Tallest Dog in the World by Guinness World Records, but who is scared of both water and tiny dogs.

Giant George: Life with the World's Biggest Dog (Thorndike Press Large Print)

Nassar, Dave

Thorndike Press

Inspired by a true story, a fictional reimagining of a cat named Simon whose heroism and feline charisma won over the crew of a British warship just after World War II. Discovered in the Hong Kong docks in 1948 and smuggled onboard the H.M.S Amethyst by a British sailor who takes pity on the malnourished kitten, Simon quickly acclimates to his new water-borne home. The friendly feline soon established himself as the chief rat-catcher, while also winning the hearts of the entire crew. Then the Amethyst is ordered to sail up the Yangtze River to take over the guarding of the British Embassy, but the ship comes under fire from Communist guns. Tragedy strikes and many of the crew are killed and Simon is among those seriously wounded. Luckily, with the help of the ship’s doctor, the brave cat makes a full recovery and is soon spending time with the injured men, purring and keeping their spirits up. News of Simon’s heroics in dangerous wartime seas spreads and he becomes famous worldwide—but it is still a long journey back to England for both the crew and the plucky little cat known as “Able Seacat Simon”…

Able Seacat Simon: The Wartime Hero of the High Seas

Literature & Fiction

British & Irish

Simon Schuster(uk)

The amazing story of a girl who overcomes unique hardship and deprivation―growing up with a troop of capuchin monkeys―to find ultimate redemption.- As seen on The Today Show
In 1954, in a remote mountain village in South America, a little girl was abducted. She was four years old. Marina Chapman was stolen from her home and then abandoned deep in the Colombian jungle. That she survived is a miracle. Two days later, half-drugged, terrified, and starving, she came upon a troop of capuchin monkeys. Acting entirely on instinct, she tried to do what they did: she ate what they ate and copied their actions, and little by little, learned to fend for herself.
So begins the story of her five years among the monkeys, during which time she gradually became feral; she lost the ability to speak, lost all inhibition, lost any real sense of being human, replacing the structure of human society with the social mores of her new simian family. But her harrowing adventure was only beginning . . .
In the vein of Slumdog Millionaire and City of God, this rousing story of a lost child who overcomes the dangers of the wild and the brutality of the streets to finally reclaim her life will astonish readers everywhere.

The Girl With No Name: The Incredible Story of a Child Raised by Monkeys

Chapman, Marina

James, Vanessa

Pegasus Books

The true story behind Becca Aylward's murder, the slaying described by an incredulous media as having been committed for "the price of a breakfast"
On Saturday, October 23, 2010, Sonia Oatley waved off her 15-year-old daughter, Becca, to meet Joshua Davies, a former boyfriend. Becca’s hope was that the two of them would get back together, but it was not to be. By 3pm, oddly, she stopped answering her mobile. By 7:30 she was officially declared missing. And at 10am the following morning, while Sonia and the family were out searching, came the call that is every parent’s worst nightmare. The police had found the body of a young girl in local woodland: she’d been bludgeoned to death with a rock. But, as soon became clear, this was no crime of passion. Becca’s death had apparently been many months in the planning, by a calculating, cold-blooded killer. From the immediate arrest of 16-year-old Joshua Davies, to the lengthy investigation and harrowing five week trial that convicted him, this book is both an expression of a mother’s love and her pride in a daughter who had so much to live for, as well as an insight into the mind of a brutal murderer.

Bye Mam, I Love You

Oatley, Sonia

True Crime

John Blake

When Vikie Shanks met Paul, he seemed to be everything a girl could ever want.\nHandsome, attentive, caring and musically gifted, he felt like the antidote to all the bad things that had happened in her life. Sexually abused by her eldest brother and dominated by a violent father, Vikie's childhood ended with the death of her mother when she was just sixteen.\nUnravelled is the story of Vikie's life with Paul, and the years in which his behaviour and mental state became increasingly erratic. It's the account of his casual cruelty, his spying, his inexplicable and sudden rages before he committed suicide; of his growing obsession with having more and more children, and of naming them according to a precise set of rules; of how, over a period of years, he all but gutted their family home, tearing down most of the internal walls and removing almost everything but basic furniture, while simultaneously creating a secret home for himself, made out of plywood, in what used to be a shed; and of his secret diaries - the tens of thousands of entries he made, documenting every minute of every day.\nAfter his death, it would be these writings that would provide such compelling evidence of what further tragedy might have happened had he not made the decision that he did to take his own life. Because whatever was wrong with him was like a ticking bomb that even Vikie hadn't properly heard, as it seemed he'd spent time planning to kill the whole family.\nVikie Shanks was born in 1958 in Aden (now South Yemen), where her father was stationed in the RAF, the youngest of three children, and lived from the age of five in Waterbeach near Cambridge. At the age of seventeen she left home and moved to London to start work as a trainee buyer in Harrods but left after a year and became a croupier. After two years working in London and a further year in Spain she became a full time model back in the UK. Aged 25 she met Paul Shanks, who was to become her husband and father to her seven children, whom it transpired was mentally very ill. Paul committed suicide aged 51.\nLynne Barrett-Lee is a full time novelist and ghostwriter and has co-authored over thirty Sunday Times bestsellers. She has also penned two writing guides, both published by Lume, based on the creative writing courses she teaches in Cardiff. Lynne's latest work of fiction is a psychological thriller, Can You See Me?.

Unravelled: The inspirational true story of a journey out of darkness

Self-Help

Shanks, Vikie

Death & Grief

Lume Books

Have you always wanted to write a novel but not known where to start? Then you have come to the right place. In Novel: Plan It, Write It, Sell It the prolific Lynne Barrett-Lee outlines the secrets of her craft. It has never been easier to get your work out into the world. But if you want real commercial success then you also need to learn the tricks of the trade. Step-by-step, Novel takes you through the key stages to creating a global blockbuster. The author of more than ten novels, including hits such as Julia Gets A Life, Lynne Barrett-Lee answers the key questions every aspiring author needs to grapple with. How do you make you book unputdownable? How do you develop memorable characters? How do you build effective plots and sub-plots and how do you engineer the perfect twist. How do you write convincing dialogue that zips off the page. Barrett-Lee gives you expert guidance written by an insider. If there is a book burning inside you, then this is the place to start. Lynne Barrett-Lee is a full time novelist and ghostwriter and has co-authored over thirty Sunday Times bestsellers. She has also penned two writing guides, both published by Lume, based on the creative writing courses she teaches in Cardiff. Lynne's latest work of fiction is a psychological thriller, Can You See Me?.

Novel: Plan It, Write It, Sell It (Lynne Barrett-Lee Creative Writing Course)

Creativity

Fed up, frustrated and fast approaching forty, Charlie Simpson hasn't had many high points in her life just lately. The only peak on the horizon is her ambition to climb Everest, if she could only get organized and save up the cash. Unfortunately, though, she has more pressing things to deal with; her eldest son moving out, her father moving in, and her best friend moving two hundred miles away. She finds solace, however, via her newly acquired modem, when she stumbles upon a stranger who's a like-minded soul. Like-minded, perhaps, but no fantasy dream date. Though virtual, he's of the real-life variety - he may be a hero, but he has a wife. Charlie hasn't a husband, but she certainly has principles, and they're about to be hauled up a mountain themselves. And, of course, her mum's always said she shouldn't talk to strangers. The question is, is now the time to start breaking the rules?

Virtual Strangers

Contemporary

Accent Press Ltd.

Shortlisted for the Meliassa Nathan Romantic Comedy Awards - Barefoot in the Dark is a modern twist on Cinderella Radio Wales DJ Jack Valentine finds a lost trainer on a station platform. With echoes of Cinderella, he appeals on his show for its owner, Hope Shepherd, to come forward. Hope handles publicity for a Cardiff based charity, Heartbeat. Encouraged by colleagues to secure Jack Valentine to raise the profile of an upcoming fun run, she reluctantly heads for the studios. The attraction between Hope and Jack is immediate but, bruised and battered by their recent divorces, they are reluctant to risk romance again. Barefoot In The Dark is a bitter-sweet novel about taking the first steps towards trusting again. But when love at first sight is the last thing you’re after, is a fairytale ending an impossible dream?

Barefoot in the Dark

Romance

Accent Press

`It was then that it struck me, with terrifying clarity. I was going to die. I was going to die at any moment. I was going to die, moreover, in a pair of tartan pyjamas and a grubby black cardigan. For whatever was attached to the headlights in front of me was actually driving on my side of the road...' So begins Sally Matthews' date with destiny. She doesn't actually believe in destiny, of course - she's way too busy looking after her husband, arranging her step-daughter's wedding, and humouring her mum-on-a-mission (which currently involves Tony Blair). No surprise, then, that she's out late at night, with nothing but a dog and a cricket bat for company. In short, Sally hasn't time for a near-death experience. However handsome the man who's about to run her off the road...

Straight on Till Morning

UNKNO

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