American Spirit: Profiles in Resilience, Courage, and Faith - Hardcover

Sometimes life leads us through painful and lonely territory. But what happens when you see challenge as an opportunity to discover your purpose—and change the world? Join Taya Kyle and thirty-five remarkable Americans on their extraordinary journeys from despair to lives of passion and service.

After losing her husband, “American Sniper” Chris Kyle, bestselling author Taya Kyle entered a period of inconsolable grief. And yet this darkness has served as a catalyst for profound growth. Taya found her own reserve of strength with the help of the generous love and support of family and friends—and also many strangers across America, who selflessly shared their own stories of suffering, survival, and triumph. Inspired by her experience, Taya found her calling: spreading a message of how love, passion, and service can combine to help us persevere over personal pain and heal our communities.

Working with trusted collaborator Jim DeFelice, coauthor of American Sniper and American Wife, Taya tells her story, as well as those of other Americans who have built extraordinary lives after traveling down life’s most difficult roads—through loss, illness, and all manner of setback. They embody the “American spirit” of resilience, faith, and togetherness that has built the nation.

American Spirit profiles more than thirty individuals, young and old, rich and not-so-rich, famous and unknown, who have overcome hardship and done extraordinary things for their communities and for the nation at large. The 9/11 survivor, badly burned over 60 percent of his body, who asked himself, What debt do I owe to God? And to my fellow human beings? What am I supposed to do with this miracle of survival? The man with the hole in his heart who runs ultramarathons. The young cancer victim whose lemonade stand inspired a revolutionary new model for fighting the deadly disease. The blind cyclist; the pastor who became an undercover investigator; and more.

In the end, these stories teach us how to find purpose and heal the world, no matter the difficulty. “Every action, big or small,” Taya writes, “has the potential to spark someone else’s movement.”

Taya Kyle is executive director of the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation. Chris and Taya’s story was the subject of Clint Eastwood’s blockbuster film American Sniper, starring Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller. She is a featured speaker on the Patriot Tour, with Marcus Luttrell, David Goggins, and Chad Fleming. Taya is the New York Times bestselling author of American Wife. She lives in Texas.

Jim DeFelice is the co-author, with former U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, of the multi-million-copy bestseller American Sniper, the source for Clint Eastwood’s film starring Bradley Cooper. His other books include Omar Bradley: General at War; Rangers at Dieppe; and West Like Lightning: The Brief, Legendary Ride of the Pony Express. He lives in upstate New York.