Books published by Atria Books

';A memoir for our times.' Michael Stipe ';A coming-of-age drama captured through poetic prose and convincing honesty.' Kirkus Reviews';I swim for every chance to get wastedafter every meet, every weekend, every travel trip. This is what I look forward to and what I tell no one: the burn of it down my throat, to my soul curled up in my lungs, the sharpest pain all over itit seizes and stretches, becoming alive again, and is the only thing that makes sense.' At fifteen, Casey Legler is already one of the fastest swimmers in the world. She is also an alcoholic, isolated from her family, and incapable of forming lasting connections with those around her. Driven to compete at the highest levels, sent far away from home to train with the best coaches and teams, she finds herself increasingly alone and alienated, living a life of cheap hotels and chlorine-worn skin, anonymous sexual encounters and escalating drug use. Even at what should be a moment of triumphcompeting at age sixteen in the 1996 Olympicsshe is an outsider looking in, procuring drugs for Olympians she hardly knows, and losing her race after setting a new world record in the qualifying heats. After submitting to years of numbing training in France and the United States, Casey can see no way out of the sinister loneliness that has swelled and festered inside her. Yet wondrously, when it is almost too late, she discovers a small light within herself, and senses a point of calm within the whirlwind of her life. In searing, evocative, visceral prose, Casey gives language to loneliness in this startling story of survival, defiance, and of the embers that still burn when everything else in us goes dark.

De inmigrante a ciudadano: Cmo obtener o cambiar su estatus migratorio en Estados Unidos La inmigracin en Estados Unidos es un asunto complejo. Y al igual que cualquier otra meta que valga la pena, obtener la ciudadana en este pas exige muchsimo trabajo. Se enfrentar a mltiples obstculos, pero educarse acerca del proceso es el primer paso para llegar a obtener sus papeles. Este sencillo manual lo orientar a travs de la complicada red de la burocracia y responder a muchas de sus preguntas. Por ejemplo: Qu pasa si entra en EE.UU. sin documentos? Qu puede impedirle la obtencin de la tarjeta verde? Cules son los distintos tipos de visa? Tambin encontrar advertencias para protegerlo de ofertas fraudulentas y del riesgo de la deportacin. Y algo sumamente importante, el Rdo. Corts le informa cules son sus derechos, porque ya sea inmigrante legal o no, usted tiene derechos en este pas.

'Princess Michael...writes with style and panache and serves up marvelous details of pageantry, court fashion, and gossip.' DOMINICK DUNNE

From Simon & Schuster, The Male Body is Abraham Morgentaler's physician's guide to what every man should know about his own sexual health.The Male Body: A Physician's Guide to What Every Man Should Know About His Sexual Health covers genital injuries, vasectomies, prostate cancer, AIDS prevention, infertility, and sexual problems.

Adventurist Jim Wickwire has lived life on the edge -- literally. An eyewitness to glory, terror, and tragedy above 20,000 feet, he has braved bitter cold, blinding storms, and avalanches to become what the Los Angeles Times calls "e;one of America's most extraordinary and accomplished high-altitude mountaineers."e; Although his incredible exploits have inspired a feature on 60 Minutes, an award-winning PBS documentary, a Broadway play, and a full-length film, he hasn't told his remarkable story in his own words -- until now.Among the world's most intrepid and fearless climbers, Jim Wickwire has traveled the globe, from Alaska to the Alps, from the Andes to the Himalayas, in search of fresh challenges and new heights to conquer. Along the way he accumulated an extraordinary roster of historic achievements. He was one of the first two Americans to reach the summit of the 28,250-foot K2, the world's second highest peak, acknowledged as the toughest and most dangerous to climb. He completed the first alpine-style ascent of Alaska's forbidding Mt. McKinley, spending several nights without tents in snowcaves, crevasses, and open bivouacs. But with the triumphs came harrowing incidents of suffering and loss that haunt him still. On one climb, his shoulder broken by a fall, he watched helplessly as a friend slowly froze to death, trapped in an ice crevasse. Buffeted by storms, Wickwire spent two weeks utterly alone on a remote glacier before his rescue. On two other expeditions he witnessed three fellow climbers plunge thousands of feet, vanishing into the mountain mist.A successful Seattle attorney, Wickwire climbed his first mountain in 1960 and discovered the wonder of leaving behind the complexities of the civilized world for the pure life-and-death logic of granite, glacier, and snow. Deeply compelled by the allure of nature and the thrill of risk, he pushed himself to the limits of physical and mental endurance for thirty-five years, ultimately climbing into legend.After more than three decades of uncommon challenges, Wickwire faced a crisis of heart -- a turning point that threatened his faith in himself and his hope in the future. How he reassessed his priorities and rededicated his life -- to his family and to his community -- completes a unique and moving portrait of one man's courage, commitment , and grace under pressure. Addicted to Danger is a tale of adventure in its truest sense.

Synopsis coming soon.......

HIV/AIDS is a scary subject. Not only can it destroy a body but it can also destroy a family, friendships, and even a community. Nobody likes to talk about it, but ignoring the problem won't make it go away. In fact, what you don't know can hurt you and somebody else. The only way we can overcome this disease is through education, precaution, and proper treatment, because nobody is immune. The Reverend Luis Corts teaches you how to understand the virus and the disease. Prevention is the best approach, but contracting HIV is no longer a death sentence. There are now a variety of treatment choices available and people are living with it, not dying from it. Above all, whether you or someone you know has HIV/AIDS, or you simply want to educate yourself, realize this: There is an answer.

EVERY DAY in Africa, approximately 7,000 men, women, and children are erased from the face of this planet by the devastating AIDS virus that -- even after more than two and a half decades -- continues to wreak havoc around the globe, especially in underdeveloped nations. No Place Left to Bury the Dead dares to go where media, governments, and ordinary individuals in the West seldom venture -- face-to-face with fellow humans suffering in the shadow of our collective ignorance and neglect. In this haunting investigation, acclaimed journalist Nicole Itano goes beyond traditional journalistic methods as she eats, sleeps, and lives with the women who struggle daily with the raging epidemic of AIDS. Working from the personal accounts of a few real women living with the disease, Itano traces their moments of discovery and diagnosis, their first symptoms, and the ways they cope with treatment and manage the news with their families. Itano's masterful blend of the personal, scientific, and historical turns statistics into stories and balances tragedy with hope as she outlines the scope of new treatment and prevention. In a time when celebrity and political heavy hitters such as Bono and Bill Clinton are rushing to find a remedy for Africa's increasing problem, No Place Left to Bury the Dead shows the world how the transformation of a few courageous women can heal entire communities and eradicate denial, and how books like these increase global awareness of one of the worst epidemics in human history. Like And the Band Played On and The Coming Plague, this book is a wake-up call that is urgently needed.

If money doesn't buy happiness, what does? From the founder and spiritual leader of the 28,000-member New York Christian Cultural Center comes a powerful tool that can help anyone escape the grip of negativity and achieve the spiritual prosperity that can come only with discipline and wisdom.Drawing on scripture, common sense, and inspirational quotes from an army of luminaries that includes Billy Graham, Mother Theresa, Quincy Jones, and Rick Warren, Happiness Is... explains what happiness is, how to find it, and how to keep it. "e;Happiness isn't a commodity that can be purchased in a store"e; counsels Bernard. "e;It's a by-product of the way you choose to live and the things you choose to think."e; Happiness Is... teaches you not to worry about things you can't control and instead inspires you to use the talents that God has already given you to lead a purposeful, principled life. Are you ready to celebrate your life today? God's love for you is infinite. Accept it joyfully...and be happy now.

Does your mother call you in a panic whenever there's a storm warning for your area? Does she act as though it's her duty to alert you to every health story on the news? Have you ever been briefly out of touch with your mother only to find she's phoned everyone short of the National Guard to track you down -- or, just maybe, are you that mother? Take comfort in knowing you're not alone, as Amy Borkowsky shares more than a decade's worth of maddening phone messages from her hilariously overprotective mom. Based on the hit CD of the same name, Amy's Answering Machine features actual messages in which Amy's mom warns her not to wear a red bathrobe because a friend's grandson "e;said that red is a gang color"e;...advises her not to get a cat because "e;what if you finally found a nice guy and he was allergic?"e;...cautions her not to wear crepe-soled shoes because "e;they were just saying on the news that if you're ever in a plane crash, crepe is no good if you have to go down the slide."e; Amy also reveals the stories behind the messages and shares calls not available on CD, each one brimming with the worry and annoying comments only a loving mother could dish out. The same warnings and suggestions that had Amy cringing are sure to have you doubled over with laughter. But before you turn the page, take some advice from Amy's mom: Make sure you have plenty of reading light, because squinting causes crow's feet.

"e;God bless my mother, all I am or ever hope to be I owe to her."e; -- Abraham Lincoln What are the family circumstances that have created our presidents? How did their upbring-ing shape their future and ours? New York Times bestselling author Doug Wead answers these questions in one of the most comprehensive studies of presidential families to date. When one thinks about the leadership qualities of George Washington and Theodore Roosevelt or the intellectual prowess of John Adams and Abraham Lincoln, it is hard to imagine them as children. It is even more difficult to envision the parents of our leaders, especially the larger-than-life idols of our political past. Our greatest presidents have entered the Oval Office armed with overwhelming ambition, intellect, and political savvy. But were these characteristics evident in childhood? The Raising of a President is a groundbreaking look at the parents of the American presidents, full of never-before-seen facts and anecdotes, as well as psychological profiles based on Wead's findings. He analyzes the types of families into which our presidents were born, and sheds a fascinating light on how their destinies were shaped during childhood. Using countless presidential correspondences and letters, as well as notes from hours of his own private conversations and interviews with six presidents and first ladies, Wead focuses specifically on the early life of our first president, George Washington; John Adams, John Quincy Adams, and the making of our nation's first political empire; the humble beginnings of our greatest president, Abraham Lincoln; the privileged upbringing of Franklin Delano Roosevelt; the ambitious rise of John Fitzgerald Kennedy; and the "e;quiet dynasty"e; led by George H. W. Bush and his son, George W. Bush. Throughout The Raising of a President, readers will find that the circumstances and events that would destroy most children were often the very things that sparked greatness in our nation's future leaders. These are the stories of the presidents' parents, but in a truer sense, they are the stories of the presidents themselves, from a perspective that is long overdue.

A love story. An artistic journey. A matter of life and death... In 2000, Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen embarked on a tour across America -- one that would give them a glimpse of the darker side of the justice system and, at the same time, reveal to them just how resilient the human spirit can be. They were a pair of young actors from New York who wanted to learn more about our country's exonerated -- men and women who had been sentenced to die for crimes they didn't commit, who spent anywhere from two to twenty-two years on death row, and who were freed amidst overwhelming evidence of their innocence. The result of their journey was The Exonerated, New York Times number one play of 2002, which was embraced by such acting luminaries as Ossie Davis, Richard Dreyfuss, Danny Glover, Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon, and Robin Williams. Living Justice is Jessica and Erik's fascinating, behind-the-scenes account of the creation of their play. A tale of artistic expression and political awakening, innocence lost and wisdom won, this is above all a story about two people who fall in love while pursuing their passion and learn -- through the stories of the exonerated -- what freedom truly means.

On a foggy July evening in 1956, the Italian cruise liner Andrea Doria, bound for New York, was struck broadside by another vessel. In eleven hours, she would sink nearly 250 feet to the murky Atlantic Ocean floor. Thanks to a daring rescue operation, only 51 of more than 1,700 people died in the tragedy. But the Andrea Doria is still taking lives.Considered the Mt. Everest of diving, the Andrea Doria is the ultimate deepwater wreck challenge. Over the years, a small but fanatical group of extreme scuba divers have investigated the Andrea Doria, pushing themselves to the very limits of human endurance to explore her -- and not all have returned. Diver Kevin McMurray takes you inside this elite club with a hard, honest look at those who go deeper, farther, and closer to the edge than others would ever dream.Deep Descent is the riveting true story of the human spirit overcoming human frailty and of fearsome, mortal risks traded for a hard-core adrenaline rush. Chronicling these adventures in his page-turning narrative and in dozens of dramatic photos, McMurray draws us deeper into the cold heart of the unforgiving sea, giving us a powerful vision of a place to which few will ever have the skills -- or the courage -- to go.

"e;Writing this book is the second most difficult thing I have ever done, next to burying Casey."e; On April 4, 2004, Cindy Sheehan learned that Casey, the eldest of her four children, had been killed in Iraq, where he was serving in the United States Army. After struggling through crippling grief for three weeks, she came to an epiphany: "e;I will spend my life trying to make Casey's sacrifice count for peace and love, not killing and hate."e; Peace Mom is the heartfelt and profoundly moving story of Cindy's journey to activism. She recounts the dark days following Casey's death, when it seemed her life would never have meaning again. She tells of her June 2004 meeting with President Bush, and how that encounter ultimately set her on a path that would take her to hearings in the Capitol, test old friendships and family ties, and culminate outside Crawford, Texas, in a monthlong peace action that would draw thousands of supporters and worldwide attention. Here are the stories Cindy has never shared before about her own experiences at the center of a media firestorm, the life-altering events that were sparked by her simple act of defiance one hot August day in Texas. Going behind the headlines and sound bites, Cindy writes candidly about the toll her activism has taken on her own life and her family, as well the unforeseen rewards her quest for peace has brought. Through days of rage, despair, laughter, and tears, Cindy has found ways to celebrate the life of her son Casey and give meaning to his death. Her story points the way to a future of peace and justice for the world and for our children. Heartrending and powerful, Peace Mom is at once an honest account of one woman's triumph over loss and a clarion call to all those who wonder if they can make a difference.

Fear is devastatingly real. All of us -- at some point -- have faced it. In fact, approximately one out of ten people has experienced a panic attack or a crisis situation. From fear of public speaking to fear of spiders, this feeling can prevent us from reaching our full potential. Large or small, the things we fear may seem insurmountable, but they're not. How to Overcome Fear teaches you that the closer you get to your fears, the more you understand them and the more easily you can defeat them. Speaking from his own experience, Marcos Witt takes readers on a clear path toward following the word of God as a bridge to living a life of victory and freedom, without fear. The first step toward conquest is to acknowledge that the problem exists. The second step is to seek help. Let Marcos lead the way. He has inspired millions with his songs and his sermons. Now let him inspire you with his words.