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"Once associated with gang members, criminals, and sailors, tattoos are now mainstream. An estimated twenty percent of all adults have at east one, and women are increasingly getting tattoos and are now more likely than men to have one. But many of the tattoos that women get are gender-appropriate: they are cute, small, and can be easily hidden. A small dolphin on the ankle, a black line on the lower back, a flower on the hip, and a child's name on the shoulder blade are among the popular choices. But what about women who are heavily tattooed? Why would a woman get "sleeves"? And why do some collect larger-scale tattoos on publicly visible skin, of imagery not typically considered feminine or cute, like skulls, zombies, snakes, or dragons? Drawing on five years of ethnographic research and interviews with more than seventy heavily tattoed women, 'Covered in Ink' provides insight into the increasingly visible subculture of tattoed women. Author Beverly Yuen Thompson spent time in tattoo parlors and at tattoo conventions in order to further understand women's love of ink and their imagery choices as well as their struggle with gender norms, employment discrimination, and family rejection. Still, many of these women feel empowered by their tattoes and believe they are creating a space for self-expression that also presents a positive body image. 'Covered in Ink' investigates this complicated subculture and finds out the many meanings of the love of ink"--Page 4 of cover.

Traumatized as a child, Marty Wilkens struggles to come to grips with himself and to understand the dark forces driving his life. He may have been seen as living a normal childhood. But inwardly, Marty lived in a world of his own creation. It was a dark and dangerous world which influenced everything he thought and did and which ultimately framed his perception of himself—small, weak, not very bright, and always a failure. Fortified by one misadventure after another, that perception was firmly implanted in his mind. All that changed, however, when Marty joined the US Navy where, removed from his childhood environment, he was able to gauge himself against other boys his own age. And he found that he wasn’t what he thought he was. Instead, he was a strong, confident, popular, successful, and typical young sailor— that is, until his childhood trauma came back to haunt him, this time with a vengeance that all but destroyed his life. Returning home after his service, he found that nothing had changed and soon was again the boy he once was but now driven to succeed, if for no other reason than to prove to himself that he could do it. Faced with a choice of majors, he chose electronic engineering because it was thought to be the most difficult course of study. Later, sensing that something was wrong with him emotionally, and deeming it psychological, he embarked on a private journey, hoping to unearth the root cause of his problems. After reading several books on psychology, he attempted self-analysis. The effects were devastating. He became paranoid and began having thoughts of suicide. Ultimately, an unexpected event forced him to confront the truth, and his childhood trauma was finally brought into the light of day.

On October 15, 1942, Japanese carrier planes attacked and sank the destroyer USS MEREDITH off Guadalcanal Island. When the attack became imminent, the crew of the accompanying tug VIREO was taken aboard MEREDITH. Of the 329 men, only 96 survived. For four days they struggled, combating dehydration, injuries, burns, shark attacks, and strafing by enemy planes. Robert Robinson miraculously survived the sinking of MEREDITH. He served with Medical Officer Barry Friedman, on another destroyer, USS RUSSELL. Lt. Cmdr Robinson died in 2004 after serving in three wars. Dr. Friedman retired after a career as an orthopaedic surgeon and lives in San Diego. "Although both a thrilling sea adventure and a fascinating historical insight into a little known aspect of the sea battle for Guadalcanal, Dr. Friedman's work is more than just a book, it is a heritage, something of great value that must be passed on to future generations. "The Short Life of a Valiant Ship grants insight into the world of the `Tin Can' sailors of the US Navy's destroyer fleet, a group of very average young men from all across America who were lifted out of their peacetime existences to be plunged, half-trained, out-numbered and ill-equipped, into the most cataclysmic naval campaign in history, and of how they arose triumphant at a terrible price. "'The Greatest Generation' is a phrase that has been much bandied about in recent years, but it's not a cliché, it's a simple truth." -James H. Cobb Author of the Amanda Garrett Naval Thrillers; Choosers of the Slain, Sea Strike, Sea Fighter, & Target Lock "I enjoyed reading The Short Life of a Valiant Ship very much. The miracle of this nation is that, for over 200 years, generations of' Americans have fought and died for the freedoms we all enjoy. It is important to revisit the time when the issue of the war in the Pacific was firmly in doubt and the odds faced by ships like USS MEREDITH were daunting. The manner in which the officers and men of MEREDITH responded to their challenges is inspirational.... A gripping story that is well told!" -Rear Admiral Peter H. Daly, Assistant Chief Naval Operations for Information, Plans and Strategy