Heralded by Denis Goldberg, the renowned anti-apartheid activist imprisoned for life at the Rivonia Trial, as "beautifully constructed," "fascinating," and a "wonderful exploration of culture and conflict in South Africa." Both heartbreaking and triumphant, this compelling story is one of love, loss, struggle, and a search for identity set against dramatic historical events. From the ugly past of South African apartheid to a dazzling career in medicine, one man is determined to live up to his name: Courage.

A Boy Named Courage: A Surgeon's Memoir of Apartheid

Biographies & Memoirs

Himmet, Dajee

Historical

Cynren Press

Heralded by Denis Goldberg, the renowned anti-apartheid activist imprisoned for life at the Rivonia Trial, as "beautifully constructed," "fascinating," and a "wonderful exploration of culture and conflict in South Africa." Both heartbreaking and triumphant, this compelling story is one of love, loss, struggle, and a search for identity set against dramatic historical events. From the ugly past of South African apartheid to a dazzling career in medicine, one man is determined to live up to his name: Courage.

Dajee, Himmet

Community & Culture

This memoir of musicology is a must-read for music fans and those interested in Beatles history. At the helm of the rock n roll phenomenon that took over 60s pop music, the Beatles defined the Swinging Sixties and were at the forefront of the British music invasion. Offering fun and unique insights into the famous musicians and entertainers associated with the Beatles, including John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Victor Spinetti, and Hy Lit, through interviews and vignettes, and driven by the frenzy of fan clubs, Beatles concerts, and endless dreams and meeting schemes, Diary of a Beatlemaniac: A Fab Insider's Look at the Beatles Era romps through the heady, roller-coaster days of Beatlemania as seen through the eyes of one Philadelphia schoolgirl and her band of 'Beatle Buddies.' Compiled from the author's own diary and extensive scrapbooking, this extraordinary slice of life peeks into the heart of an inner-city teen at the forefront of Beatlemania. For Beatlemaniacs of any age, this memoir offers a unique glimpse into the groovy days of the Swinging Sixties and the chance to relive the magic of the pop-culture phenomenon called the Beatles.

Diary of a Beatlemaniac: A Fab Insider's Look at the Beatles Era: A Fab Insider's Look at the Beatles Era

Gallo-Stenman, Patricia

Arts & Literature

Psychoanalysis was her family's religion instead of wafers and wine, there were Seconals, Nembutals, and gin. Baptized into the faith at fourteen, Melissa Knox endured her analyst's praise of her childlike, victimized mother who leaned too close, ate off Melissa's plate, and thought pedophile meant silly person. Gaslighted with the notions that she'd seduced her father, failed to masturbate, and betrayed her mother, Melissa shouldered the blame. Her story of a family pulled into and torn apart by psychoanalysis exposes the abuse inherent in its authoritarianism as Melissa learns, with a startling sense of humor and admirable chagrin, that divorcing Mom is sometimes the least crazy thing to do.

Divorcing Mom: A Memoir of Psychoanalysis

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Knox, Melissa

Psychology & Counseling

Psychoanalysis was her family's religion—instead of wafers and wine, there were Seconals, Nembutals, and gin. Baptized into the faith at fourteen, Melissa Knox endured her analyst's praise of her childlike, victimized mother—who leaned too close, ate off Melissa's plate, and thought "pedophile" meant "silly person." Gaslighted with the notions that she'd seduced her father, failed to masturbate, and betrayed her mother, Melissa shouldered the blame. Her story of a family pulled into and torn apart by psychoanalysis exposes the abuse inherent in its authoritarianism as Melissa learns, with a startling sense of humor and admirable chagrin, that divorcing Mom is sometimes the least crazy thing to do.Divorcing Mom: A Memoir of Psychoanalysisby Melissa KnoxCynren Press book review by Barbara Bamberger Scott "She wanted me slaughtered…I imagined her drooling at the thought."With a hateful, uncaring mother, an alcoholic father, and a drug-addicted brother, it was inevitable that author Knox would end up in therapy. From her early teens through college, she talked regularly to a Freudian psychoanalyst, Dr. Sternbach, a Jew who had narrowly escaped the Holocaust. He rarely offered sympathy. When she became bulimic as a depressed young teen, he ordered her to stop vomiting; he told her repeatedly that she was masochistic and an exhibitionist. He asked her lurid questions about her sexual feelings, indicating a more than professional interest. He divulged her secrets to others while demanding that she say nothing about their sessions. And, possibly because her deranged, narcissistic mother was the one paying his fees, he sided with Mom. Near the end of his life, after she had thoroughly dispelled his influence, Sternbach insulted his former patient’s new husband. Ultimately, Knox was able to “divorce” both her mother and her therapist.Knox’s memories present in clear, intelligent prose the disturbing coming-of-age saga of an adolescent girl trying desperately to gain the respect from others that leads to self-respect, generally with no success. Hers is a painful chronicle whose humor is mostly in the form of irony and whose bright moments of respite or hopefulness are rare. The greatest relief comes at the end of the book when she reveals that, with a loving spouse and some tempered insights and advice from close friends and relatives, Knox has grown up and out of the trap of her emotionally scarring youth. Her book is also a studious examination, and rejection, of Freudian psychoanalysis, now discredited and no longer taught. Knox’s audience will include those who have lived with family dysfunction and grown beyond it, and those who, considering therapy, may wish to choose carefully among the varieties now offered.RECOMMENDED by the US ReviewDivorcing Mom is a story of horrifying and at times hilarious family dysfunction, compounded by the browbeating Freudian analyst whom Knox’s mother hired to “help” her. The pages seem to turn by themselves in this engrossing and courageous memoir, and we are left marveling at Knox’s strength of character and artistic gifts in tracing her family’s psychic trajectory from one generation to the next. Knox writes with the voice and vision that she was taught to discredit and ignore from an early age, and her book is a remarkable achievement, exploring family secrets and addressing disturbing issues of power differentials—between parent and child, doctor and patient, and men and women. Her intelligence, insight, and refreshing sense of humor are cause for celebration. —Helen Fremont, author of After Long Silence

Are there moments in your life when your femaleness is a source of power or hardship? When does your voice ring its clearest? When have you been silenced? 
Feminine Rising: Voices of Power and Invisibility brings together international poets and essayists, both award winning and emergent, to answer these questions with raw, honest meditations that speak to women of all races, nationalities, and sexual orientations. It is an anthology of unforgettable stories both humorous and frightening, inspirational and sensual, employing traditional poetry and prose alongside exciting experimental forms. Feminine Rising celebrates women's differences, while embracing the source of their sameness--the unique experience of womanhood.

Feminine Rising: Voices of Power and Invisibility

Literature & Fiction

Literary

Is it possible to resurrect a life—and find love—from the ruins? Or will Sarah be forever haunted by the memories of what she lost?For thirteen-year-old Sarah Waldman, life in the small Polish town of Olkusz is idyllic, grounded in her loving, close-knit family and the traditions of their Jewish faith. But in 1939, as the Nazis come to power, a storm is gathering—a relentless, unforgiving storm that will sweep Sarah and her family into years of turmoil in the ghetto and concentration camps, tearing them apart. Will Sarah’s strong will and determination be enough for her to survive when everything she loves is taken from her? Part memoir, part fiction, What She Lost is the reimagined true-life story of the author’s grandmother growing into a woman amid the anguish of the Holocaust. It is a tale of resilience, of rebuilding a life, and of rediscovering love. About the AuthorMelissa W. Hunter is an author and blogger from Cincinnati, Ohio. She studied creative writing and journalism at the University of Cincinnati, receiving a BA in English literature and a minor in Judaic studies. She received the English Department’s Undergraduate Essay Award and Undergraduate Fiction Award over two consecutive years. In her senior year, she received a grant to study and write about the Holocaust at the United States Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC. Her articles have been published on Kveller.com and LiteraryMama.com, and her short stories have appeared in the Jewish Literary Journal. She is a contributing blogger to the Today Show parenting community, and her novella Through a Mirror Clear was published as a serial installment on TheSame.blog, an online literary journal written for women by women. Her novel What She Lost is inspired by her grandmother’s life as a Holocaust survivor. When not writing, Melissa loves spending family time with her husband and two beautiful daughters.

What She Lost

Hunter, Melissa W.

Genre Fiction

They put the tiny, red-faced bundle into her arms, and time stopped. She gazed at that puckered little face and whispered, Welcome to the world, baby girl.Little did she know that within weeks, she would become a single mother-not exactly what she had imagined for her daughters and herself, but exactly what needed to happen.This is the story of a single mother, but it's more than that. Sometimes funny, sometimes reflective, it's also your story-a story of that peculiar, trying, and wonderful state of motherhood.In Superwoman: A Funny and Reflective Look at Single Motherhood, popular humor blogger Mona Andrei brings you her sage and snickery insights on being a single mom, with all its gore and glory. Through a series of interviews, you'll also get a voyeuristic peek into the lives of other single mothers-and don't we all love that feeling of Thank goodness, I'm not the only one We're all superwomen here.

Superwoman: A Funny and Reflective Look at Single Motherhood

Andrei, Mona

They Called Us Girls: Stories of Female Ambition from Suffrage to Mad Men

In mid-twentieth-century America, women faced a paradox. Thanks to their efforts, World War II production had been robust, and in the peace that followed, more women worked outside the home than ever before, even dominating some professions. Yet the culture, from politicians to corporations to television shows, portrayed the ideal woman as a housewife. Many women happily assumed that role, but a small segment bucked the tide―women who wanted to use their talents differently, in jobs that had always been reserved for men. In They Called Us Girls: Stories of Female Ambition from Suffrage to Mad Men, author Kathleen Stone meets seven of these unconventional women. In insightful, personalized portraits that span a half-century, Kathleen weaves stories of female ambition, uncovering the families, teachers, mentors, and historical events that led to unexpected paths. What inspired these women, and what can they teach women and girls today?

Stone, Kathleen Courtenay

In The Receipt, poetry blends with history and its lessons in a tribute to the human spirit. Reeves's poems are a receipt for life lived through the ages. Whether pre-cataclysmic Pompeii, Michelangelo on horseback to Bologna, or a plague doctor's first encounter with Angel Island, Reeves's fine eye, ear, and imagination find the imagery, metaphors, and language to create rhythms of history.

The Receipt

Reeves, Trish

Poetry

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the Cynren Press publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Cynren Press

See the best price to sell, buy or rent books by the Cynren Press publisher. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

A Boy Named Courage: A Surgeon's Memoir of Apartheid

A Boy Named Courage: A Surgeon's Memoir of Apartheid

Diary of a Beatlemaniac: A Fab Insider's Look at the Beatles Era: A Fab Insider's Look at the Beatles Era

Divorcing Mom: A Memoir of Psychoanalysis

Divorcing Mom: A Memoir of Psychoanalysis

Feminine Rising: Voices of Power and Invisibility

What She Lost

Superwoman: A Funny and Reflective Look at Single Motherhood

They Called Us Girls: Stories of Female Ambition from Suffrage to Mad Men

The Receipt