arnold schwarzenegger autobiography

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Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story Hardcover – October 1, 2012

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• Print length 656 pages
• Language English
• Publisher Simon & Schuster
• Publication date October 1, 2012
• Dimensions 6.13 x 1.9 x 9.13 inches
• ISBN-10 1451662436
• ISBN-13 978-1451662436
• See all details

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• ASIN ‏ : ‎ 1451662432
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Simon & Schuster; First Edition (October 1, 2012)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 656 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1451662436
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1451662436
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.45 pounds
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.13 x 1.9 x 9.13 inches
• #2,780 in Political Leader Biographies
• #4,799 in Actor & Entertainer Biographies
• #16,256 in Memoirs (Books)

About the authors

Arnold schwarzenegger.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is a bodybuilder, actor, businessman, philanthropist, bestselling author, and public servant. He offers free daily inspiration through his newsletter, Arnold’s Pump Club.

Peter Petre

Peter Petre (www.peterpetre.com) co-wrote Arnold Schwarzenegger’s memoir Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story, a New York Times bestseller published in 2012. Mr. Petre also co-authored Alan Greenspan’s memoir The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World, a No. 1 New York Times bestseller in 2007. Michael Kinsley noted in a New York Times review of the book, “Not only can Greenspan discourse lucidly on economic matters, but he has also written the most unexpectedly charming Washington insider memoir since Katharine Graham's a decade ago.”

Mr. Petre has co-authored two other bestsellers: General H. Norman Schwarzkopf’s It Doesn’t Take A Hero and Thomas J. Watson, Jr.’s Father, Son & Co.: My Life at IBM and Beyond. The Los Angeles Times called the Schwarzkopf memoir “a fine and lucid book, teeming with vitality …. Schwarzkopf is a compelling storyteller.” Writing about Father, Son & Co. in the New York Times, Joe Nocera declared it “the only great ghost-written CEO autobiography ever .... No one else — not even Lee Iacocca or Jack Welch — even comes close.”

Mr. Petre assisted on Robert S. McNamara’s In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam and on Steven Rattner’s Overhaul: An Insider’s Account of the Obama Administration’s Emergency Rescue of the Auto Industry. In 2014 he co-authored a private memoir with billionaire philanthropist David M. Rubenstein.

Mr. Petre was executive editor at Fortune, where he directed coverage of information technology, biotech, medicine, industrial technology, and science, and was a founding partner of the Techonomy conferences on science, technology, economics and business. He is treasurer of the Authors Guild, the largest association of book authors in the United States, and of the Authors Guild Foundation. He holds a B.A. from the University of Iowa and an M.A. from Johns Hopkins. He and his wife Ann Banks live in Manhattan.

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Customers find the book easy to read and well-written. They find the life lessons inspiring and positive. The book provides interesting details about Arnold's life and autobiography. Readers appreciate the sense of humor and amusing moments. They praise his intelligence, work ethic, and sophisticated planning skills. Overall, they describe him as a remarkable person with a fabulous personality.

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Customers find the book engaging and enjoyable to read. They appreciate the author's humanity, caring, and goodness. The middle part of the book is good, but doesn't match up with the first part. Overall, readers find the book worth admiring and a must-read for fans.

"...In this highly readable and fast going narrative, Arnold tells his story from his humble origins in Austria, to the dreams he gave himself growing up..." Read more

"...not a sparkly out of the box movie star turned governor, and worth your admiration ...." Read more

"...Arnold's story is a very motivational story ...." Read more

"...It is entertaining, it is still timely , and I do hope that at some point, Arnold will give us a second edition, to update us about the last 10 years...." Read more

Customers find the book inspiring and entertaining. They appreciate the insightful information on Arnold's acting and political career. The book covers a range of topics and life lessons through his experiences. Readers mention that the book is one of the most interesting and enjoyable books they've read.

"...The following chapters are glittering, enticing and very entertaining aspects of this philosophy . * Chapter 10 - Stay Hungry *..." Read more

"...He is a real person , not a sparkly out of the box movie star turned governor, and worth your admiration...." Read more

"...few pages grabbed me, and I found "Total Recall" to be one of the most interesting and enjoyable books that I'd read in a long time...." Read more

"...He is a hard working and motivated person . When he makes a movie he does go over the top to promote it. He was always very political...." Read more

Customers enjoy the book's insights into Arnold's life. They find the biographical details interesting and the author's perspective engaging. The book is described as a smooth read with a clear, simple, and straightforward tone. Readers appreciate the descriptions of his early business efforts, including selling ice cream by the lake in summer, and stories about body building.

"...First what are we dealing with here? This is an autobiography , so don't look for the reality of what this man's life and actions have truly been...." Read more

"...I especially enjoyed his descriptions of his early business efforts , selling ice cream by the lake in the summer and ditching school to panhandle..." Read more

"...the book, Arnold uses a clear, simple, and blunt tone to describe his life in great detail ...." Read more

"...His book describe very well how he rose to fame and prestige ...." Read more

Customers enjoy the book's entertainment value. They find it amusing, with humorous behind-the-scenes memories and a sense of humor. The author's personality keeps readers entertained throughout his speech.

"... Throughout the book you will laugh , you will reflect, and you will marvel that the American dream is still alive and worthwhile...." Read more

"...This book hit the shelves in 2012, and it's now 2022. It is entertaining , it is still timely, and I do hope that at some point, Arnold will give us..." Read more

"...on his training and pursuing a movie career. This book is often funny (see Arnold's brief tank driving career), but always interesting...." Read more

"...It was actually a bit sad and depressing, and you can tell the book losses it's mojo. But there are some valuable lessons in those mistakes...." Read more

Customers appreciate the author's intelligence and work ethic. They find his bodybuilding career detailed, his business and selling skills well-supported by a good brain. Readers are impressed with his sophisticated planning and determination to succeed. The book is described as thorough and enjoyable, describing the life story of one of the most successful people.

"...The bodybuilding career is well detailed , although I'm not sure the readers will come away with an appreciation for how much work it was, because..." Read more

"...a leading man type, and finally politics, I was fasciated by his sophistication , his methodical planning, his focus, and how brilliantly he hit all..." Read more

"...He is a hard working and motivated person. When he makes a movie he does go over the top to promote it. He was always very political...." Read more

"...his character, persistence, resoluteness and a very sharp and natural business acumen . "..." Read more

Customers find Arnold's personality remarkable and inspiring. They appreciate his character, persistence, and resoluteness. While he has a large ego, he is gracious about others.

"This is a fabulous story about a fabulous personality . Is it self-serving? Of course it is. Is it an honest portrayal about an American icon?..." Read more

"...Time and time again, he is gracious about everyone he encountered , and quickly owns up to his mistakes, including his infidelity and the breakup of..." Read more

"...me there's a lot more to admire about him than his movies; it's his character , persistence, resoluteness and a very sharp and natural business..." Read more

"Arnold is truly a remarkable person - so many accomplishments and yet he always moves on to the next triumph...." Read more

Customers appreciate the book's value for money. They mention the last chapter is worth the price of the book alone.

"...This last chapter is worth the price of the book alone for in it, he tells you what he believes are the driving daily habits behind his success...." Read more

"...At least they made four beautiful children together, and lots of money ." Read more

"...let's try boring, (consequently taking forever to read) un-interesting and intellectually dishonest...." Read more

"...into Arnold's business mind, to this point in the book, has provided so much value , it blows my mind...." Read more

Customers enjoy the book's portrayal of the American dream. They find it a true-to-life story about an American self-made man who has succeeded in pursuing his dream. The book provides motivation, passion, and historical facts about California. Readers appreciate the details on cultural differences between America and Europe and wise political opinions.

"...will laugh, you will reflect, and you will marvel that the American dream is still alive and worthwhile...." Read more

"...Let it be Arnold’s tenacity , his determination to be successful, his confidence to not follow the rules...." Read more

"...Despite his great failure with infidelity, he was otherwise a man with strong character and clearly a loving husband and father...." Read more

"... Interesting details about cultural differences between America and Europe and many wise political "bipartisan" considerations...." Read more

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Perhaps my favorite business book of all time

Top reviews from the United States

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5.0 out of 5 stars The Ultimate American Success Story - Truthful well YES and NO - Five Stars for Arnold

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Autobiography

Top reviews from other countries, 5.0 out of 5 stars sensacional.

5.0 out of 5 stars Me pareció muy ameno de leer

5.0 out of 5 stars Total Recall che vita incredibile Arnold !

5.0 out of 5 stars Wer Arnold Fan ist, wird sich nicht langweilen

5.0 out of 5 stars great book.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger

Using his bodybuilding fame as a launching point, Arnold Schwarzenegger has become a huge Hollywood star and served as the governor of California.

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Who Is Arnold Schwarzenegger?

Quick facts, early years, bodybuilding champion, action star: "conan," "the terminator," "total recall" and beyond, wife and children, governor of california, return to hollywood: "the expendables" and "terminator" sequels, health problems.

1947-present

Austrian-born Arnold Schwarzenegger rose to fame as the world’s top bodybuilder, launching a career that would make him a giant Hollywood star in the 1980s via films like Conan the Barbarian , The Terminator , and Total Recall . After years of blockbuster movie roles, Schwarzenegger went into politics, serving as governor of California from 2003 to 2011. Since leaving office, he has returned to the big screen, finding success with The Expendables franchise and a return to the Terminator series.

FULL NAME: Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger BORN: July 30, 1947 BIRTHPLACE: Thal, Austria SPOUSE: Maria Shriver (1986-2021) CHILDREN: Katherine, Christina, Patrick, Christopher, and Joseph ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Leo

Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger was born on July 30, 1947, in Thal, Austria, near the city of Graz. Schwarzenegger’s childhood was far from ideal. His father, Gustav, was an alcoholic police chief and one-time member of the Nazi Party, who clearly favored Arnold’s brother, Meinhard, over his gangly, seemingly less athletic younger son.

Gustav is reported to have beaten and intimidated Schwarzenegger and, when he could, pitted his two boys against one another. He also ridiculed Schwarzenegger’s early dreams of becoming a bodybuilder. “It was a very uptight feeling at home,” Schwarzenegger later recalled. So uptight and uncomfortable, in fact, that Schwarzenegger would later refuse to attend the funeral of his father, who died in 1972, or his brother, who was killed in a car crash in 1971.

Arnold was much closer to his mother, Aurelia, who resided in Austria throughout her life and was active in local wildlife programs. She died of a heart attack at age 76 in August 1998. “With the loss of my mother, my world has fallen apart,” Schwarzenegger said at the time.

As an escape, Schwarzenegger turned to the movies, in particular those of Reg Park, a bodybuilder and star in B-level Hercules movies. The films also helped propel Schwarzenegger’s own obsession with America, and the future he felt awaited him there. Getting to his new country was the issue. Schwarzenegger found his answer in Joe Weider, the man behind the International Federation of Body Building, an organization that sponsored contests such Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia.

Weider loved Schwarzenegger’s bravado, sense of humor, and the potential he saw in the young bodybuilder. Weider’s instincts couldn’t have been more dead-on. In all, Schwarzenegger would win an unprecedented five Mr. Universe titles and seven Mr. Olympia crowns during his bodybuilding career.

Equally significant, Schwarzenegger, who immigrated to the United States in 1968, helped propel the sport into the mainstream, culminating in the 1977 documentary, Pumping Iron , which tells the tale of Schwarzenegger’s defense of his Mr. Olympia crown. He became a U.S. citizen in 1983.

With his ascension to the top of the bodybuilding world, it was only a matter of time before Schwarzenegger would move over to the big screen. After a few small parts, Schwarzenegger received a Golden Globe Award for Best Newcomer for his performance in Stay Hungry (1976).

With his immense physical strength and size, Schwarzenegger was a natural for action films. He became a leading figure in several popular 1980s action movies, including Conan the Barbarian (1982) and its sequel, Conan the Destroyer (1984). Schwarzenegger also starred as a deadly machine from the future in The Terminator (1984), and later reprised the role for Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) and Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003).

Additional action flicks from the actor’s heyday include Commando (1985), Predator (1987), The Running Man (1987), Total Recall (1990), and True Lies (1994). He also used his oversized physique to comedic effect in Twins (1988) and Kindergarten Cop (1990).

Offscreen, Schwarzenegger continued his remarkable story, marrying into the Kennedy family in 1986 by tying the knot with Maria Owings Shriver, daughter of Eunice Kennedy Shriver and her husband R. Sargent Shriver. According to People , a mutual friend introduced the two at a tennis tournament in 1977. They began dating shortly after, and Schwarzenegger proposed eight years into their relationship.

In May 2011, the couple announced their decision to separate, after Schwarzenegger’s acknowledgment that he fathered a son, Joseph Baena, with Mildred Baena, a member of the family’s household staff. Schwarzenegger and Shriver finalized their divorced in 2021.

Schwarzenegger and Shriver have four children: Katherine, Christina, Patrick, and Christopher. Patrick followed his dad into the acting business, appearing in several films as a child before taking a leading role in the 2018 teen tear-jerker Midnight Sun .

In 2003, Schwarzenegger again showed his resolve to succeed when he threw his hat into the ring for the California governor’s race and won a seat in a special election. In a state that was mired in severe budget woes, the newly elected Republican governor promised to bring economic stability to his adopted state.

As expected, Schwarzenegger brought his own unique brand of confidence to his new job. “If they don’t have the guts, I call them ‘girlie-men,’” he said of Democrats, early in his first term. “They should go back to the table and fix the budget.”

In addition to focusing on the state’s financial situation, Governor Schwarzenegger worked to promote new businesses and protect the environment. In 2006, he easily won his bid for reelection. Throughout his political career, Schwarzenegger credited former U.S. President Ronald Reagan as a personal inspiration. Remembering his early years in the United States, Schwarzenegger once said: “I became a citizen of the United States when [Reagan] was president, and he is the first president I voted for as an American citizen. He inspired me and made me even prouder to be a new American.”

His second term in office did not run as smoothly, however, as Schwarzenegger struggled to help the state through difficult financial times. After leaving office in January 2011, he sought to revive his career in the entertainment industry. In March of that year, Schwarzenegger announced plans to work with famed comic book creator Stan Lee on a new animated series inspired by his time in office.

In 2010, Schwarzenegger appeared alongside Sylvester Stallone , Jason Statham , Jet Li , and Bruce Willis in the ensemble action film The Expendables . In August 2012, he reunited with the cast for The Expendables 2. Just one week after the sequel’s premiere, it had climbed to the No. 1 spot at the box office, bringing in nearly $28.6 million.

Schwarzenegger made headlines again later in 2012, when he admitted for the first time to having an affair with his Red Sonja co-star Brigitte Nielsen in the mid-1980s, while he was dating and living with Maria Shriver. Nielsen had written about the adulterous relationship in her 2011 memoir, You Only Get One Life , but Schwarzenegger didn’t publicly confirm Nielsen’s account until the fall of 2012, when his memoir, Total Recall , was published.

Continuing with his acting career, Schwarzenegger rejoined Stallone for The Expendables 3 in 2014. The following year, he returned to the film franchise that made him a star with Terminator Genisys .

In January 2017, Schwarzenegger replaced incoming U.S. President Donald Trump as host of NBC’s reality show The New Celebrity Apprentice, produced by Mark Burnett. However, the show stumbled to low ratings, and within a few months, the actor announced that he would not return.

That year, Schwarzenegger revealed that he was involved with a new Terminator film in the works. With the announcement that original costar Linda Hamilton was also returning, buzz built ahead of the fall 2019 release of Terminator: Dark Fate , though the big budget film ultimately disappointed with its opening weekend performance at the box office.

Most recently, Schwarzenegger has taken his acting career to the small screen, beginning with Stan Lee’s Superhero Kindergarten . The family-friendly cartoon, which released its first season in 2021, featured Schwarzenegger as Arnold Armstrong and Captain Courage. He also produced the show.

In 2023, Schwarzenegger headlined the Netflix series FUBAR about a father-daughter CIA duo. It quickly became the streaming platform’s No. 1 TV show, despite middling reviews from critics.

Schwarzenegger endured a health scare while undergoing surgery for a catheter valve replacement at a Los Angeles hospital in March 2018. The valve replacement failed, resulting in emergency open-heart surgery that proved successful. According to his spokesman, Schwarzenegger was soon in stable condition, reportedly waking up with the words “I’m back,” in a nod to his famous Terminator character.

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Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story

Arnold schwarzenegger , peter petre  ( collaborator ).

656 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Arnold Schwarzenegger

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Arnold Schwarzenegger

Bodybuilder

38th Governor of California

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER is known all over the globe for his many accomplishments: world champion bodybuilder, Hollywood action hero, successful businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, best-selling author, and California's 38th Governor.

This world-famous athlete and actor was born in Thal, Austria in 1947, and by the age of 20 was dominating the sport of competitive bodybuilding, becoming the youngest person ever to win the Mr. Universe title. By generating a new international audience for bodybuilding, Schwarzenegger turned himself into a sports icon. With his sights set on Hollywood, he emigrated to America in 1968, and went on to win five Mr. Universe titles and seven Mr. Olympia titles before retiring to dedicate himself to acting. Later, he would go on to earn a college degree from the University of Wisconsin and proudly became a U.S. citizen.

But it is Schwarzenegger's commitment to giving something back to his state and to his country through public service that gives him the most satisfaction; donating his time, energy, and personal finances to serving others all over the world. Schwarzenegger acts as Chairman of the After School All-Stars, a nationwide after-school program, and serves as coach and international torch bearer for Special Olympics. He also served as Chairman of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports under George H. W. Bush and as Chair of the California Governor's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports under Governor Pete Wilson.

Since leaving office, Schwarzenegger co-founded the R20 Regions of Climate Action, a global non-profit dedicated to helping subnational governments develop, implement, and communicate the importance of low-carbon and climate resilient projects as well as their economic benefits. In December 2012, he was recognized as a 2012 Global Advocate by the United Nations Correspondents Association for his work with the organization.

In August 2012, the University of Southern California Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy launched to provide students an opportunity to focus on the responsibility of leaders to transcend partisanship in order to implement policies that most benefit the people they serve. Its five priority areas of focus are education, energy and environment, fiscal and economic policy, health and human wellness, and political reform.

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Chapter 1 Out of Austria I was born into a year of famine. It was 1947, and Austria was occupied by the Allied armies that had defeated Hitler’s Third Reich. In May, two months before I was born, there were hunger riots in Vienna, and in Styria, the southeastern province where we lived, the food shortages were just as bad. Years later, if my mother wanted to remind me about how much she and my father sacrificed to bring me up, she’d tell me how she’d foraged across the countryside, making her way from farm to farm to collect a little butter, some sugar, some grain. She’d be away three days sometimes. Hamstern, they called it, like a hamster gathering nuts; scrounging for food was so common. Thal was the name of our very typical farm village. A few hundred families made up the entire population, their houses and farms clustered in hamlets connected by footpaths and lanes. The unpaved main road ran for a couple of kilometers up and down low alpine hills covered with fields and pine forests. We saw very little of the British forces who were in charge—just an occasional truck with soldiers rolling through. But to the east, Russians occupied the area, and we were very conscious of them. The Cold War had begun, and we all lived in fear that the Russian tanks would roll in, and we’d be swallowed up into the Soviet empire. The priests in church would scare the congregation with horror stories of Russians shooting babies in the arms of their mothers. Our house was on the top of a hill along the road, and as I was growing up, it was unusual to see more than one or two cars come through a day. A ruined castle dating back to feudal times was right across from us, one hundred yards from our door. On the next rise were the mayor’s office; the Catholic church where my mother made us all go to Sunday Mass; the local Gasthaus , or inn, which was the social heart of the village; and the primary school attended by me and my brother, Meinhard, who was a year older than me. My earliest memories are of my mother washing clothes and my father shoveling coal. I was no more than three years old, but the image of my father is especially sharp in my mind. He was a big, athletic guy, and he did a lot of things himself. Every autumn we’d get our winter supply of coal, a truckload dumped in front of our house, and on this occasion he was letting Meinhard and me help him carry it into the cellar. We were always so proud to be his assistants. My father and mom both originally came from working-class families farther north—factory laborers, mostly, in the steel industry. During the chaos at the end of World War II, they’d met in the city of Mürzzuschlag, where my mother, Aurelia Jadrny, was a clerk in a food-distribution center at city hall. She was in her early twenties, and a war widow—her husband had gotten killed just eight months after their wedding. Working at her desk one morning, she noticed my father passing on the street—an older guy, in his late thirties, but tall and good looking and wearing the uniform of the gendarmerie, the rural police. She was crazy about men in uniforms, so every day after that she watched for him. She figured out when his shift was so she would be sure to be at her desk. They’d talk through the open window, and she’d give him some food from whatever they had on hand. His name was Gustav Schwarzenegger. They got married late in 1945. He was thirty-eight, and she was twenty-three. My father was assigned to Thal and put in charge of a four-man post responsible for the village and nearby countryside. The salary was barely enough to live on, but with the job came a place to live: the old forester’s lodge, or Forsthaus . The forest ranger, or Forstmeister , lived on the ground floor, and the Inspektor and his family occupied the top. My boyhood home was a very simple stone and brick building, well proportioned, with thick walls and little windows to keep out the alpine winters. We had two bedrooms, each with a coal oven for heat, and a kitchen, where we ate, did our homework, washed ourselves, and played games. The heat in that room was supplied by my mother’s stove. There was no plumbing, no shower, and no flushing toilet, just a kind of chamber pot. The nearest well was almost a quarter mile away, and even when it was raining hard or snowing, one of us had to go. So we used as little water as we could. We’d heat it and fill the washbasin and give ourselves sponge or cloth baths—my mother would wash herself first with the clean water; next, my father would wash himself; and then Meinhard and I would have our turn. It didn’t matter if we had slightly darker water as long as we could avoid a trip to the well. We had wood furniture, very basic, and a few electric lamps. My father liked pictures and antiques, but when we were growing up, these were luxuries he couldn’t afford. Music and cats brought liveliness to our house. My mother played the zither and sang us songs and lullabies, but it was my father who was the real musician. He could play all the wind and reed instruments: trumpets, flügelhorns, saxophones, clarinets. He also wrote music and was the conductor of the region’s gendarmerie band—if a police officer died anywhere in the state, the band would play at the funeral. Often on Sundays in summer, we’d go to concerts in the park, where he would conduct and sometimes play. Most of our relatives on his side were musical, but that talent never made it to Meinhard or me. I’m not sure why we had cats instead of dogs—maybe because my mother loved them and they cost nothing because they caught their own food. But we always had lots of cats, running in and out, curling up here and there, bringing down half-dead mice from the attic to show off what great hunters they were. Everyone had his or her own cat to curl up with in bed at night—that was our tradition. At one point, we had seven cats. We loved the cats, but never too much, because there was no such thing as going to the vet. If one of the cats started falling over from being too sick or too old, we’d wait to hear the shot from the backyard—the sound of my father’s pistol. My mother, Meinhard, and I would then go out and make a grave with a little cross on top. My mother had a black cat named Mooki that she constantly claimed was unique, although none of us could see why. One day when I was about ten, I was arguing with my mother about not wanting to do my homework. Mooki was nearby, curled up on the couch, as usual. I must have said something really uppity because my mother moved to smack me across the face. I saw it coming and tried to fend her off, but instead I hit her with the back of my arm. In a second, Mooki was off the couch—she leaped up between us and started clawing at my face. pulled her off me and yelled, “Ow! What is this!?” Mom and I looked at each other and burst out laughing, even though I had blood running down my cheek. Finally, she had proof that Mooki was special.

Around this time of year, television shows, magazines, and half the Internet are inundated with the same old tired tutorials on creating unique Halloween costumes at home. I don’t know about you, but I’m no Martha Stewart, and I don’t have the time or energy to spend hours with a glue gun creating crepe-paper bird masks […]

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