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Contributor: Danny S.
 * //Touching The Void//** **by Joe Simpson**

Mountain climbing is challenging for anyone, now try it with one leg. This would be an impossible task for anyone, but in 1985, Joe Simpson climbed down Siula Grande, a mountain in Peru, by himself, after a disaster. Joe tells his remarkable story in his autobiography //Touching The Void.// Joe Simpson and his partner, Simon Yates, began their hike of the west side of Siula Grande, which was never climbed before. They were able to reach the summit, but on the descent the unexpected happened: Joe fell and broke his leg and ankle. The two climbers attempted to keep going, but both knew the odds of their survival were strongly against them. A further tragedy occurred when Simon was forced to cut the rope connecting him to Joe, sending Joe on another fall which separated the two from each other. Simon believed Joe was dead after the second fall, and was able to make it back to the base camp safely. Somehow, Joe survived the second fall and “crawled for three days without any food and a mouth-full of water” before returning to the base camp and the arms of the shocked people there, who thought he was dead. The reunion was truly magical. While this book had some slow moments in the beginning, it quickly changed into a jaw dropping, edge of the seat, exciting book. This book tells the true story of strength, survival, dedication, and friendship.

Contributor: Matt P.
 * // The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks //**** by Rebecca Skloot **

Law and religion forbid stealing, yet it is acceptable if medical professionals engage in this illegal activity? The doctors only knew Henrietta Lacks, a poor African American woman that lived in 1950s America, by one name, Hela, as that was the only way they intended to know her after they stole her cells. Rebecca Skloot, the author of //The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,// writes about the true Henrietta Lacks, instead of treating her as a cell line, with no human characteristics. Henrietta Lacks became important to the medical world one day in 1951, when Dr. George Gey was able to remove a sample of cancerous tissue from Henrietta and use it to grow the world's first “immortal” cell line. From then on, Henrietta Lacks was only known as the cell line Hela, and she was shipped around the world to help “develop the polio vaccine, uncover the secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects.” While her cells are crucial to scientific development then and now, was it humane to take Henrietta’s cells without her consent? The Lacks family certainly does not think so, as even after the cells were stolen, the family never received compensation in any way. Skloot’s book goes in-depth about who Henrietta really was, and what Hela means to the family.

**//The Jordan Rules//** **by Sam Smith** Contributor: Connor H.

Michael Jordan: the man, the legend, the icon. While many thought he could do no wrong, off the record he wasn’t the man everyone expected. Sam Smith’s book, //The Jordan Rules//, takes the reader behind the scenes to the highs and lows with Jordan during the Chicago Bulls’ ’90-91 championship basketball season. Jordan’s teammates knew he was their best player, and one player even regarded Jordan as “the greatest athlete I’ve ever seen.” His teammates just wished they were a more substantial part of the team: the greatest player the game has ever seen was not also the best teammate the game has ever seen. Throughout the year, players complained of him not passing the ball to them enough and that he wouldn’t run the offense when told to. He would vigorously slash through the opposing team’s defense leaving his teammates wide open, but rather than pass the ball to them for an easy bucket, he would take an extraordinarily tough shot. Michael could get away with it, but if any of the other players tried to do a similar thing, even if they were successful, they would be brought onto the bench and scolded by Coach Phil Jackson. These events led to the tension off the court and the basis upon which Jordan was treated, now known as “The Jordan Rules.” //**Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn**// **by Donald Spoto** ** Contributor: Grace B. **

Audrey Hepburn was born in Holland in 1929. Several days after her twelfth birthday, Holland fell to Nazi Germany. Hepburn started her life far from ordinary, but with big dreams. She once said “I wanted to dance more than I feared the Nazis.” She made it through those horrible times with a passion to “be something.” The story of her life unraveled, is vividly portrayed in Donald Spoto’s biography //Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn.// Rejected as a prima ballerina, even after years of hard work, she turned to a new life aspiration and was thrust into the hustle and bustle of film actress glamour in the forties and fifties. Her distinctive talent set her apart and she was successful in countless classic films. Captivated, audiences adored her. From a British princess to an Austrian nun, she could transform into any character and do it with beauty and charm. When the fast paced workaholic life didn’t satisfy her anymore, she set her mind on a new ambition: raising awareness of children’s hunger in Africa. Using her public attraction for good, Audrey worked relentlessly, traveling all over the world giving speeches and sharing her life story as a child during World War II. An icon for fashion and film and more recently a humanitarian, she remained acclaimed throughout her lifetime. However, cancer took its toll. She died in Switzerland in 1993. This story gives a tribute of her personal journey through the struggles of her life. It goes behind the storyline of her sets and screenplays and gives a perspective of Audrey Hepburn’s life that is truly enchanting.

Contributor: Megan D.
 * //sTori Telling//** **by Tori Spelling**

The saying "don’t judge a book by its cover” applies not only to Tori Spelling’s autobiography //sTori Telling//, but also to Tori herself. Spelling gets her chance to voice her side of the story of behind-the-scenes drama on //Beverly Hills 90210//, trying to make peace with her mother, and leaving her first husband for Dean McDermott. After reading just the first few chapters readers begin to get a feel of what life is like as the daughter of the renowned producer Aaron Spelling. People who think that Tori Spelling is an arrogant daddy’s girl will discover that, although she adored her father, Spelling often times was judged by directors and producers because of where she came from so she made it her goal to “live down” her own name. //Beverly Hills 90210// was a huge hit series that Tori Spelling starred on it all the seasong it was on air, from when she played the tiniest background character given to her by her father in the first couple seasons all the way until the last season, where she worked her unimportant role up to the top to become one of the main characters on the show without any help from her father. Everyone has heard of the never-ending clash between Tori and her mother but no on truly understands how it all began and, luckily, it is a main issue explained throughout the book. In the book, readers will learn where Tori went wrong when it came to her love life, how she met the love of her life Dean McDermott, and what her life is like with her husband Dean and her son Liam. The readers of this incredible book get to experience the true Tori Spelling through her own words.

**//Young Woman and the Sea //****by Glenn Stout ** Contributor: Emily P.

Who was Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle? She was a German immigrant’s daughter, an underdog turned Olympian, and, finally, an inspiration. However, what could perhaps be the greatest definition of her life was conceived by Glenn Stout. As is the title of his inspiring book, Trudy Ederle’s life could be most accurately described as that of a //Young Woman and the Sea.// At age fifteen, two years after starting to swim, she rose from the dust to defeat some of the country’s most renowned female swimmers in her very first race. Already a worldwide phenomenon, she swam for the U.S. Olympic team in 1924, bringing home one gold and two bronze medals. All of this led to her most marvelous accomplishment yet: swimming across the English Channel. She was forced to overcome many hardships throughout her career, such as a hearing disability and her coach’s alleged attempts to poison—both literally and figuratively—her first attempt to swim the Channel. What may have been just as important as her fantastic feat, however, was the impact she had upon the prevalent belief that women were “the weaker sex.” Despite beliefs of the public that a female swimmer was practically an oxymoron, it was always her goal to be the best. In August of 1926, after swimming the English Channel in approximately 14 hours and 39 minutes, she had done it. Trudy Ederle had crushed the men’s record by almost two hours to become “faster than any man, anyone, ever.” This inspirational story illustrates the enormous impact caused by the unprecedented accomplishments of a single person. Trudy Ederle’s story of love, devotion, and triumph is one which continues to motivate men and women alike.

Contributor: Nicholas T
 * //Tour De Lance// by Bill Strickland**

After being diagnosed with lung, brain, and testicular cancer, most human beings would have false hope. Unlike ordinary people in this world, superstar athletes tend to have hearts of champions. They have the will to never give up, and to not let anything, including sickness, come close fogging their dreams. Lance Armstrong is the prime example of a person who never lost faith. His determination to return to bicycle racing after overcoming a low chance of survival, due to extensive cancer, is a feat that is praised in the sports world. In Bill Strickland’s biography, //Tour De Lance//, the explanation of Armstrong’s journey is brilliantly told. The introduction in this piece of literature sets the stage with Armstrong being characterized as a “young, cocky, naive, and natural athlete.” Reporters claimed that Armstrong would win amateur races with burst speed and ignorant techniques that were not of a typical professional racer. Critics stated that Armstrong could never compete with the best, saying that he was too “muscular” and did not have the “bike-racing figure” to compete and succeed in the multiple day Tour De France event. Armstrong, of course, proved all of his doubters wrong after becoming the most successful cyclist in history, with seven Tour De France wins. This was after Armstrong survived his battle off the race track, with cancer. Armstrong was under the most extensive care in the world. After a slow recovery, Armstrong got back on the bike. He continued to do what he loved: racing. Armstrong will not only be remembered as one of the best athletes who ever lived, but also as a hero to those who have lost hope.