Making moonshine, working blue-collar jobs, picking fights in bars, chasing women, and living hardscrabble lives . . . Clayton and Saford Hall were born in the backwoods of Virginia in 1919, in a place known as The Hollow. Incredibly, they became legends in their day, rising from mountain-bred poverty to pickin’ and yodelin’ all over the airwaves of the South in the 1930s and 1940s, opening shows for the Carter Family, Roy Rogers, the Sons of the Pioneers, and even playing the most coveted stage of all: the Grand Ole Opry. They accomplished a lifetime’s worth of achievements in less than five years—and left behind only a few records to document their existence. Fortunately, Ralph Berrier, Jr., the grandson of Clayton Hall and a reporter for the Roanoke Times, brings us their full story for the first time in IF TROUBLE DON'T KILL ME. He documents how the twins’ music spread like wildfire when they moved from The Hollow to Roanoke at age twenty, and how their popularity was inflamed by their onstage zaniness, their roguish offstage shenanigans, and, above all, their ability to play old-time country music. But just as they arrived on the brink of major fame, World War II dashed their dreams. Berrier follows the Hall twins as they travel overseas, leaving behind their beloved music, and are thrust into the cauldron of a war that reshaped their lives and destinies. Through the brothers’ experiences, the story of World War II unfolds—Saford fought from the shores of North Africa to Sicily and Europe and finally into Germany; Clayton fought the Japanese in the brutal Pacific theater until the savage, final battle on Okinawa. They returned home after the war to find that the world had changed, music had changed . . . and they had, too. IF TROUBLE DON'T KILL ME paints a loving portrait of a vanishing yet exalted southern culture, shows us the devastating consequences of war, and allows us to experience the mountain voices that not only influenced the history of music but that also shaped the landscape of America.

A poor art student living in New York stumbles on a bag of diamonds . . . but they come at a price in this unforgettable novel from "America's #1 storyteller" (Forbes). Matthew Bannon, a poor art student living in New York City, finds a duffel bag filled with diamonds during a chaotic attack at Grand Central Station. Plans for a worry-free life with his stunning girlfriend Katherine fill his thoughts - until he realizes that he is being hunted, and that whoever is after him won't stop until they have reclaimed the diamonds and exacted their revenge. Trailing him is the Ghost, the world's greatest assassin, who has just pulled off his most high-profile hit: killing Walter Zelvas, a top member of the international Diamond Syndicate. There's only one small problem: the diamonds he was supposed to retrieve from Zelvas are missing. Now, the Ghost is on Bannon's trail but so is a rival assassin who would like nothing more than to make the Ghost disappear forever. From the world's #1 writer comes a high-speed thrill ride of adrenaline-fueled suspense you'll never forget.

Don’t Kill Me contains adventures of life-risking confrontations with animals. Stories of how the young generation, during their school and college period, take revenge on people for a very small incident and how that small incident escalates to a big-bloody episode with many losing their lives. In some instances, young people tried dangerous and life-risking activities to prove their potential. There are untold stories of birds and how they bond with human beings, how one lovely couple is being separated by society in the name of caste, how people are so cruel to animals, and how they are slowly, gradually yet prominently killing them. An account of how ancient people lived in miserable conditions – the experience of life in bullock carts and wooden boats. Stories that narrate how the bonds between people and animals are just like with our families – the tale of why crocodiles do not attack wooden boats, how houses were built and completely ruined after fires and how people came together to help one another during calamities.

“Kill Me is that rarest of creations—a thinking-person’s thriller. In this age of the same-old same-old-fiction, White’s novel stands dizzyingly above the pack. The concept is unique (and brilliant), the writing is sharp, observant, and wry (White’s trademark), and every page is filled with perfectly realized human emotion—about life, death, and family. Superb.”—New York Times bestselling author Jeffery Deaver He’s fabulously wealthy and lives life to the fullest—enjoying fast, expensive cars, the love of his beautiful wife, and adventures in every corner of the globe. When a friend is stricken down by a terrible illness, he realizes his only fear is to be diminished by disease. That’s when he meets the Death Angels, who promise to end his life should he ever face such a fate. The only hitch is that the contract is irrevocable. And once he signs it, he discovers he has one more all-important task to carry out before it’s executed...

New York Times–Bestselling Author: “Action-packed, littered with dead bodies, and brimming with heartfelt emotion, this edgy thriller keeps the tension high.” —Library Journal (starred review) One secret, one nightmare, one lie. You guess which is which. 1. I have the scar of a gunshot on my forehead. 2. I have willfully misrepresented my identity to the US military. 3. I’m the new mother of a seven-year-old girl. Kellen Adams suffers from a year-long gap in her memory. A bullet to the brain will do that. But she’s discovering the truth, and what she learns changes her life, her confidence, her very self. She finds herself in the wilderness, on the run, unprepared, her enemies unknown—and she is carrying a priceless burden she must protect at all costs. The consequences of failure would break her. And Kellen Adams does not break. What doesn’t kill her . . . had better start running. “An unforgettable protagonist . . . who makes Jack Reacher look like a slacker . . . and an ingenious plot that includes plenty of white-knuckle twists and turns.” —Booklist (starred review) “Sign me up for anything Christina Dodd writes.” —Karen Robards, New York Times–bestselling author of The Girl from Guernica

"Should be read by anyone with a body. . . . Relentlessly researched and undeniably smart." —The New York Times Named one of BuzzFeed's "Best Books of 2021" What Doesn't Kill You is the riveting account of a young journalist’s awakening to chronic illness, weaving together personal story and reporting to shed light on living with an ailment forever. Tessa Miller was an ambitious twentysomething writer in New York City when, on a random fall day, her stomach began to seize up. At first, she toughed it out through searing pain, taking sick days from work, unable to leave the bathroom or her bed. But when it became undeniable that something was seriously wrong, Miller gave in to family pressure and went to the hospital—beginning a years-long nightmare of procedures, misdiagnoses, and life-threatening infections. Once she was finally correctly diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, Miller faced another battle: accepting that she will never get better. Today, an astonishing three in five adults in the United States suffer from a chronic disease—a percentage expected to rise post-Covid. Whether the illness is arthritis, asthma, Crohn's, diabetes, endometriosis, multiple sclerosis, ulcerative colitis, or any other incurable illness, and whether the sufferer is a colleague, a loved one, or you, these diseases have an impact on just about every one of us. Yet there remains an air of shame and isolation about the topic of chronic sickness. Millions must endure these disorders not only physically but also emotionally, balancing the stress of relationships and work amid the ever-present threat of health complications. Miller segues seamlessly from her dramatic personal experiences into a frank look at the cultural realities (medical, occupational, social) inherent in receiving a lifetime diagnosis. She offers hard-earned wisdom, solidarity, and an ultimately surprising promise of joy for those trying to make sense of it all.

Surviving a traumatic experience is difficult and takes time to move on from, but this book makes the argument that with proper care and understanding, survivors can grow and reshape their lives in a positive way. For the past twenty years, pioneering psychologist Stephen Joseph has worked with survivors of trauma. His studies have yielded a startling discovery: that a wide range of traumatic events-from illness, divorce, separation, assault, and bereavement to accidents, natural disasters, and terrorism-can act as catalysts for positive change. Boldly challenging the conventional wisdom about trauma and its aftermath, Joseph demonstrates that rather than ruining one's life, a traumatic event can actually improve it. Drawing on the wisdom of ancient philosophers, the insights of evolutionary biologists, and the optimism of positive psychologists, What Doesn't Kill Us reveals how all of us can navigate change and adversity- traumatic or otherwise-to find new meaning, purpose, and direction in life.