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African American Poetry: 250 Years of Struggle & Song (LOA #333)

Kevin Young

A literary landmark: the biggest, most ambitious anthology of Black poetry ever published, gathering 250 poets from the colonial period to the present

Across a turbulent history, from such vital centers as Harlem, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and the Bay Area, Black poets created a rich and multifaceted tradition that has been both a reckoning with American realities and an imaginative response to them. Capturing the power and beauty of this diverse tradition in a single indispensable volume, African American Poetry reveals as never before its centrality and its challenge to American poetry and culture.

One of the great American art forms, African American poetry encompasses many kinds of verse: formal, experimental, vernacular, lyric, and protest. The anthology opens with moving testaments to the power of poetry as a means of self-assertion, as enslaved people like Phillis Wheatley and George Moses Horton and activist Frances Ellen Watkins Harper voice their passionate resistance to slavery. Young’s fresh, revelatory presentation of the Harlem Renaissance reexamines the achievements of Langston Hughes and Countee Cullen alongside works by lesser-known poets such as Gwendolyn B. Bennett and Mae V. Cowdery. The later flowering of the still influential Black Arts Movement is represented here with breadth and originality, including many long out-of-print or hard-to-find poems.

Here are all the significant movements and currents: the nineteenth-century Francophone poets known as Les Cenelles, the Chicago Renaissance that flourished around Gwendolyn Brooks, the early 1960s Umbra group, and the more recent work of writers affiliated with Cave Canem and the Dark Room Collective. Here too are poems of singular, hard-to-classify figures: the enslaved potter David Drake, the allusive modernist Melvin B. Tolson, the Cleveland-based experimentalist Russell Atkins. This Library of America volume also features biographies of each poet and notes that illuminate cultural references and allusions to historical events.

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The Poetry of William Carlos Williams of Rutherford

Wendell Berry

A “superb study” that “reminds us that Williams remains our contemporary not only for the lively cadences and fresh imagery that animate his poems, but for the ethical imperative of his example” (The Sewanee Review).

Acclaimed essayist and poet Wendell Berry was born and has always lived in a provincial part of the country without an established literary culture. In an effort to adapt his poetry to his place of Henry County, Kentucky, Berry discovered an enduringly useful example in the work of William Carlos Williams. In Williams’ commitment to his place of Rutherford, New Jersey, Berry found an inspiration that inevitably influenced the direction of his own writing.

Both men would go on to establish themselves as respected American poets, and here Berry sets forth his understanding of that evolution for Williams, who in the course of his local membership and service, became a poet indispensable to us all.

“Generously quoting many of Williams’ best lines . . . Berry produces a work of aesthetics more than evaluation, of love more than critique.” —Booklist

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Great Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe

Enriched Classics offer readers accessible editions of great works of literature enhanced by helpful notes and commentary. Each book includes educational tools alongside the text, enabling students and readers alike to gain a deeper and more developed understanding of the writer and their work.

The melancholy, brilliance, passionate lyricism, and torment of Edgar Allen Poe are all well represented in this collection. Here, in one volume, are his masterpieces of mystery, terror, humor, and adventure, including stories such as The Tell-Tale Heart, The Cask of Amontillado, The Black Cat, The Masque of the Red Death, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, and The Pit and the Pendulum, and his finest lyric and narrative poetry—The Raven and Annabel Lee, to name just a few—that defined American romanticism and secured Poe as one of the most enduring literary voices of the nineteenth century.

Enriched Classics enhance your engagement by introducing and explaining the historical and cultural significance of the work, the author’s personal history, and what impact this book had on subsequent scholarship. Each book includes discussion questions that help clarify and reinforce major themes and reading recommendations for further research.

Read with confidence.

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Beowulf

Michael Alexander

The Anglo-Saxon poem 'Beowulf' marks the beginning of English literature. Eighth-century in origin, composed to be recited aloud, it told its Anglo-Saxon listeners a story of their Scandinavian ancestors. It celebrates the hero Beowulf, who goes to Denmark and slays the monster Grendel and Grendel's mother. He later becomes the king of Geatland, and in old age meets death in combat with a dragon. Blending history with legend and richly allusive in its narrative, Beowulf portrays an epic conflict of good and evil, generosity and vengeance, life and death. In this edition, the Old English verse text is faced by a page on which almost every word is glossed. Michael Alexander provides full critical apparatus including notes, a map and an illuminating introduction to the poem and its provenance.

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The Invisible Ladder

Liz Rosenberg

Sitting by the barbecue
waiting for sausages and hot dogs
..........
I see a tiny spider
..........
a silver speck
glistening
at its mouth,
climbing the invisible ladder

--from "Dinner Together" by Diana Rivera

This anthology of poems by America's best poets glistens too, and offers its own silvery ladder for readers to climb.

Liz Rosenberg, herself an accomplished poet, wanted to make contemporary poems for adults accessible to a broader readership. She searched for works which, in both feeling and expression, could reach from one age group to another. Then she asked the poets to write about the links between poetry and childhood, and to send photos that showed how they looked when they were young, and who they are today.

The Invisible Ladder is a gift from everyone who contributed to it: a hand extended from those whose art is crafting words to a new generation of readers and writers.

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The Age of Phillis

Honorée Fanonne Jeffers

In 1773, a young, African American woman named Phillis Wheatley published a book of poetry that challenged Western prejudices about African and female intellectual capabilities. Based on fifteen years of archival research, The Age of Phillis, by award-winning writer Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, imagines the life and times of Wheatley: her childhood in the Gambia, West Africa, her life with her white American owners, her friendship with Obour Tanner, and her marriage to the enigmatic John Peters. Woven throughout are poems about Wheatley's "age"—the era that encompassed political, philosophical, and religious upheaval, as well as the transatlantic slave trade. For the first time in verse, Wheatley's relationship to black people and their individual "mercies" is foregrounded, and here we see her as not simply a racial or literary symbol, but a human being who lived and loved while making her indelible mark on history.

mothering #1
Yaay, Someplace in the Gambia, c. 1753

after
the after-birth
is delivered
the mother stops
holding her breath
the mid-wife gives
what came before
her just-washed pain
her insanity pain
an undeserved pain
a God-given pain
oh oh oh pain
drum-talking pain
witnessing pain
Allah
a mother offers
You this gift
prays You find
it acceptable
her living pain
her creature pain
her pretty-little-baby
pain

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Arroz con leche

Jorge Argueta

Award-winning author Jorge Argueta treats young readers to a bilingual recipe/poem for the classic Latin American version of rice pudding with cinnamon. From sprinkling the rice into the pot to adding a waterfall of white milk followed by cinnamon sticks, salt stars, and sugar snow, ArguetaÕs recipe is both easy to follow and poetic. Lively illustrations by highly acclaimed Brazilian artist Fernando Vilela feature an enthusiastic young cook who finds no end of joy in making and then slurping up the rice pudding with his family. In ArguetaÕs world, cooking not only satisfies hunger with delicious food but also provides an opportunity for all the senses Ñ and the imagination Ñ to experience joy and fulfillment. This book is wonderful family fun for those who already love rice pudding as well as for those tasting it for the first time.

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From One Mom to a Mother

Jessica Urlichs

** Hardback includes 20 bonus pages of additional poetry!**

 

"I want to tell you everything I know

carry you and guide you

yet somehow, as your tiny finger points

to things in wonder

and your eyes meet mine

the paradigm shifts

I once thought I was to show you the world

when all along you came to show me."

 

Poignant, raw and beautifully honest pieces on motherhood.

This book comprises 55 poems and prose including viral pieces, 'Dear Mama' & 'I Would Tell Her'.

Jessica Urlichs shares her truths from a vulnerable place of becoming a new Mother. Written from the heart, Jessica's words are inspirational and relatable.

'From One Mom to a Mother' is written in a refreshingly honest tone that will touch the soul of so many on this same beautiful, yet challenging journey. Whether you laugh or cry you will put it down feeling less alone and having made a friend in a book . Jessica shares her passion and love for her children on this tale of self discovery, that two people were born that day.

 

"A beautiful and emotive collection of writing that made me feel seen and understood through the early stages of motherhood." - Nikki Wolff (Nikki Makeup)

 

"Your writing can bring a tear to my eyes or a smile to my face, it really helps me feel less alone".

"You put words to feelings I didn't know I had".

"I've never read such incredible words like you write to describe becoming a mother and being a mother"

"Your book and words have saved me over and over again"

 

'From One Mom to a Mother' is the first book in Jess's collection of poetry with 'All I See is You' being her second and her third and final in the series, 'My After All'. Combined, Jess's poetry books have sold tens of thousands worldwide.

 

Jessica is also a best selling author of 'The Rainbow In My Heart', a children's picture book on emotions.

 

Jess's poems can also be found on Etsy!

www.jessicaurlichs.com

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Her Words

Felicia Mitchell

Over the last generation, Appalachia has produced a number of women poets who have refined and redefined the boundaries of the region's literature and identity. Her Words focuses on the work of twenty such poets, whose diverse voices have enriched Appalachian literature in particular and American poetry in general. Combining poems, interviews, critical essays, and comments by the poets themselves--some acclaimed nationally and others best known regionally--Her Words celebrates the work of these writers and demonstrates their rightful place as part of the literary canon both within and beyond Appalachia.

Each chapter opens with two poems by the writer under consideration, followed by a commentary that highlights the contributions and distinctive characteristics of that poet. The poets' own perspectives on their work are revealed in conversations and interviews with the critics. This multifaceted approach allows readers an unusually balanced view of the poetic voice and what inspires it. Moreover, Her Words reveals a diversity within Appalachian poetry and culture that is often overlooked. In their work, the poets reflect this richness of the Appalachian experience, whether the writer is a native of the region, a transplant, an "expatriate" living elsewhere, or a sojourner. That legacy includes a pervasive sense of place, particularly as revealed in language and dialect; the value of family; the power of solitude and isolation; and the importance of religious faith.

Her Words sheds light not only on Appalachian women's poetry in all its complexity but also on a segment of contemporary American literature that has too often been neglected by scholars and critics alike.

The Editor: Felicia Mitchell is associate professor of English and director of the writing program at Emory & Henry College in Emory, Virginia. She edited Words & Quilts, a book of poetry, and has published two collections of poetry, Case Hysteries and Earthenware Fertility Figure.

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Contemporary American Poetry: "Not the End, But the Beginning"

Sheila Griffin Llanas

Poet William Stafford wrote, "A poem is not the end, but the beginning, of an excursion." This collection, highlighting American poets born after the beginning of the twentieth century, helps young readers get started on their excursion into understanding poetry. The book includes brief biographies of eleven poets, ranging from Theodore Roethke to Allen Ginsberg, Sylvia Plath, and Billy Collins, along with several poems for each writer. It also introduces the techniques of analysis to deepen readers' appreciation of poetry.

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One-Punch Man

ONE

A manga series that packs quite the punch!

Nothing about Saitama passes the eyeball test when it comes to superheroes, from his lifeless expression to his bald head to his unimpressive physique. However, this average-looking guy has a not-so-average problem—he just can’t seem to find an opponent strong enough to take on! Every time a promising villain appears, he beats the snot out of ’em with one punch! Can Saitama finally find an opponent who can go toe-to-toe with him and give his life some meaning? Or is he doomed to a life of superpowered boredom?

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The Way of the Househusband, Vol. 1

Kousuke Oono

It’s a day in the life of your average househusband—if your average househusband is the legendary yakuza “the Immortal Dragon”!

A former yakuza legend leaves it all behind to become your everyday househusband. But it’s not easy to walk away from the gangster life, and what should be mundane household tasks are anything but!

He was the fiercest member of the yakuza, a man who left countless underworld legends in his wake. They called him “the Immortal Dragon.” But one day he walked away from it all to travel another path—the path of the househusband! The curtain rises on this cozy yakuza comedy!

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The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins

Clint McElroy

Welcome to The Adventure Zone! If your heart sings for Critical Role and Dimension 20, you’ll want to dive right into this gorgeous graphic novel adaptation of the trailblazing D&D podcast, which illustrates exploits of three lovable dummies on their journey from small-time bodyguards to world-class artifact hunters!

Join Taako the elf wizard, Merle the dwarf cleric, and Magnus the human warrior for an adventure they are poorly equipped to handle AT BEST, guided ("guided") by their snarky DM, in a graphic novel that will tickle your funny bone, tug your heartstrings, and probably pants you if you give it half a chance.

With endearingly off-kilter storytelling from master goofballs Clint McElroy and the McElroy brothers, and vivid, adorable art by Carey Pietsch, The Adventure Zone: Here There be Gerblins is the comics equivalent of role-playing in your friend's basement at 2am, eating Cheetos and laughing your ass off as she rolls critical failures and dies to a slime

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The Librarianist

Patrick deWitt

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

From bestselling and award-winning author Patrick deWitt comes the story of Bob Comet, a man who has lived his life through and for literature, unaware that his own experience is a poignant and affecting narrative in itself.

Bob Comet is a retired librarian passing his solitary days surrounded by books and small comforts in a mint-colored house in Portland, Oregon. One morning on his daily walk he encounters a confused elderly woman lost in a market and returns her to the senior center that is her home. Hoping to fill the void he's known since retiring, he begins volunteering at the center. Here, as a community of strange peers gathers around Bob, and following a happenstance brush with a painful complication from his past, the events of his life and the details of his character are revealed.

Behind Bob Comet's straight-man façade is the story of an unhappy child's runaway adventure during the last days of the Second World War, of true love won and stolen away, of the purpose and pride found in the librarian's vocation, and of the pleasures of a life lived to the side of the masses. Bob's experiences are imbued with melancholy but also a bright, sustained comedy; he has a talent for locating bizarre and outsize players to welcome onto the stage of his life.

With his inimitable verve, skewed humor, and compassion for the outcast, Patrick deWitt has written a wide-ranging and ambitious document of the introvert's condition. The Librarianist celebrates the extraordinary in the so-called ordinary life, and depicts beautifully the turbulence that sometimes exists beneath a surface of serenity.

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The Disaster Artist

Greg Sestero

Now a major motion picture—directed by and starring James Franco

From the actor who somehow lived through it all, a “sharply detailed…funny book about a cinematic comedy of errors” (The New York Times): the making of the cult film phenomenon The Room.

In 2003, an independent film called The Room—starring and written, produced, and directed by a mysteriously wealthy social misfit named Tommy Wiseau—made its disastrous debut in Los Angeles. Described by one reviewer as “like getting stabbed in the head,” the $6 million film earned a grand total of $1,800 at the box office and closed after two weeks. Ten years later, it’s an international cult phenomenon, whose legions of fans attend screenings featuring costumes, audience rituals, merchandising, and thousands of plastic spoons.

Hailed by The Huffington Post as “possibly the most important piece of literature ever printed,” The Disaster Artist is the hilarious, behind-the-scenes story of a deliciously awful cinematic phenomenon as well as the story of an odd and inspiring Hollywood friendship. Greg Sestero, Tommy’s costar, recounts the film’s bizarre journey to infamy, explaining how the movie’s many nonsensical scenes and bits of dialogue came to be and unraveling the mystery of Tommy Wiseau himself. But more than just a riotously funny story about cinematic hubris, “The Disaster Artist is one of the most honest books about friendship I’ve read in years” (Los Angeles Times).

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The Monster Stick

Paul Lepp

Winner of PLA/ALLS Best New Books for New Adult Readers Storytelling World Award

What's the Monster Stick? It's Paul's "nine-foot, surf casting rod full of six miles of brand new 50-pound test Stren Carp cord with 20 pound, custom made, stainless steel, slip-sliding sinkers." The adventures Paul finds himself in from the day the Monster Stick comes into his life rival those of Paul Bunyan but add a modern twist, as when he somehow sets the hook in a DC-10 flown by drug smugglers.

Then there's Buck-dog, Bil's "extraordinary hunting dog, whose mama was a German shepherd but whose daddy was a determined and extremely prolific basset hound." Buck is smarter than your average human and stronger than four CS&X train engines pulling in unison, which he proves repeatedly as he takes on anything, including the government. These tall tales led the Lepp brothers to so many championships in the West Virginia State Liars' Competition that their amateur status was nearly revoked. But that's another tale...

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Raney

Clyde Edgerton

A new edition of Edgerton's first novel, an uproarious Southern story of love, music, and heartache

Clyde Edgerton's Raney is the comic love story of a marriage between Raney, a small-town Southern Baptist, and Charles, a librarian with liberal leanings from Atlanta, united by their shared enthusiasm for country music. The novel both interrogates and honors the faiths and foibles of its subjects as the relationship is tested through trials and revelations. Despite the couple's differences, their marriage slowly evolves into a relationship of equals in which both are willing to compromise for the good of the other and the marriage. Told though Raney's naive and mesmerizing perspective as a southern storyteller, serious and sometimes heartbreaking moments give way to a humorous and joyful tale that pokes fun at and holds respect for just about everyone who passes through these pages.

Raney, Edgerton's first novel, was originally published in 1985. It represents some of Edgerton's most comic, candid, and ambitious writing. This Southern Revivals edition includes a new introduction by the author and a preface from series editor Robert H. Brinkmeyer Jr., director of the University of South Carolina Institute for Southern Studies.

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Walking Across Egypt

Clyde Edgerton

She has as much business keeping a stray dog as she would walking across Egypt–which not so incidentally is the title of her favorite hymn. She’s Mattie Rigsbee, an independent, strong-minded senior citizen who, at seventy-eight, might be slowing down just a bit. When teenage delinquent Wesley Benfield drops in on her life, he is even less likely a companion than the stray dog. But, of course, the dog never tasted her mouth-watering pound cake. Wise and witty, down-home and real, Walking Across Egypt is a book for everyone.

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The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Douglas Adams

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Extremely funny . . . inspired lunacy . . . [and] over much too soon.”—The Washington Post Book World

SOON TO BE A HULU SERIES • Now celebrating the pivotal 42nd anniversary of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy!

Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read

It’s an ordinary Thursday morning for Arthur Dent . . . until his house gets demolished. The Earth follows shortly after to make way for a new hyperspace express route, and Arthur’s best friend has just announced that he’s an alien.

After that, things get much, much worse.

With just a towel, a small yellow fish, and a book, Arthur has to navigate through a very hostile universe in the company of a gang of unreliable aliens. Luckily the fish is quite good at languages. And the book is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy . . . which helpfully has the words DON’T PANIC inscribed in large, friendly letters on its cover.

Douglas Adams’s mega-selling pop-culture classic sends logic into orbit, plays havoc with both time and physics, offers up pithy commentary on such things as ballpoint pens, potted plants, and digital watches . . . and, most important, reveals the ultimate answer to life, the universe, and everything.

Now, if you could only figure out the question. . . .

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The Color of Magic

Terry Pratchett

Terry Pratchett's profoundly irreverent, bestselling novels have garnered him a revered position in the halls of parody next to the likes of Mark Twain, Kurt Vonnegut, Douglas Adams, and Carl Hiaasen.

The Color of MagicM is Terry Pratchett's maiden voyage through the now-legendary land of Discworld. This is where it all begins -- with the tourist Twoflower and his wizard guide, Rincewind.

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Delicatessen

Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro

Post-apocalyptic surrealist black comedy about the landlord of an apartment building who occasionally prepares a delicacy for his odd tenants.

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Raw Dog

Jamie Loftus

A NEW YORK TIMES AND INDIE BESTSELLER!

Part travelogue, part culinary history, all capitalist critique—comedian Jamie Loftus's debut, Raw Dog, will take you on a cross-country road trip in the summer of 2021, and reveal what the creation, culture, and class influence of hot dogs says about America now.

A Best Book of the Year from NPR and Vulture. Featured in: NPR Weekend Edition • Bon Appétit • Oprah Daily • Glamour • NY Mag • Splendid Table The Wall Street Journal • Eater • Betches • USA Today • Boston Globe • Eater • Slate • The Next Big Idea Club • Buzzfeed and more

“Wise and funny” —ANDY RICHTER • “Revealing, funny, sad, horny, and insatiably curious” —SARAH MARSHALL • “A wild ride” —ROBERT EVANS • “Deeply incisive and hilariously honest” —JACK O’BRIEN • “Gonzo yet vulnerable” —GABE DUNN • “Hot dog Moby-Dick —BRANSON REESE • “One of the freshest and most insightful new comedic voices of this decade.” —LINDSAY ELLIS

Hot dogs. Poor people created them. Rich people found a way to charge fifteen dollars for them. They’re high culture, they’re low culture, they’re sports food, they’re kids' food, they’re hangover food, and they’re deeply American, despite having no basis whatsoever in America's Indigenous traditions. You can love them, you can hate them, but you can’t avoid the great American hot dog.

Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs is part investigation into the cultural and culinary significance of hot dogs and part travelog documenting a cross-country road trip researching them as they’re served today. From avocado and spice in the West to ass-shattering chili in the East to an entire salad on a slice of meat in Chicago, Loftus, her pets, and her ex eat their way across the country during the strange summer of 2021. It’s a brief window into the year between waves of a plague that the American government has the resources to temper, but not the interest.

So grab a dog, lay out your picnic blanket, and dig into the delicious and inevitable product of centuries of violence, poverty, and ambition, now rolling around at your local 7-Eleven.

The hardcover edition of Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs includes gorgeous endpapers, an illustrated case, as well as illustrations by the author throughout.

"Raw Dog will leave you nourished." —BuzzFeed

"You will certainly never read a funnier book about taking a hot dog-themed road trip across America." —Glamour

"A journey both silly and profound." —Vulture, Best Books of 2023

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Hot Dog Girl

Jennifer Dugan

A fresh and funny contemporary YA rom-com about teens working as costumed characters in a local amusement park.

Elouise (Lou) Parker is determined to have the absolute best, most impossibly epic summer of her life. There are just a few things standing in her way:

 

 

  • She's landed a job at Magic Castle Playland . . . as a giant dancing hot dog.
  • Her crush, the dreamy diving pirate Nick, already has a girlfriend, who is literally the princess of the park. But Lou's never liked anyone, guy or otherwise, this much before, and now she wants a chance at her own happily ever after.
  • Her best friend, Seeley, the carousel operator, has always been up for anything, but she's decidedly not on board when it comes to Lou's quest to set her up with the perfect girl or Lou's scheme to get close to Nick.
  • And it turns out that this will be their last summer at Magic Castle Playland—ever—unless she can find a way to stop it from closing.

  • Jennifer Dugan's sparkling debut coming-of-age queer romance stars a princess, a pirate, a hot dog, and a carousel operator who find love—and themselves—in unexpected people and unforgettable places.

 

 

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Hardcore 24

Janet Evanovich

 

 

Janet Evanovich's #1 New York Times bestselling sensation Stephanie Plum returns in her twenty-forth thriller as mutilated corpses litter the streets of New Jersey... Trouble comes in bunches for Stephanie Plum. First, professional grave robber and semi-professional loon, Simon Diggery, won't let her take him in until she agrees to care for his boa constrictor, Ethel. Stephanie's main qualification for babysitting an extremely large snake is that she owns a stun gun--whether that's for use on the wandering serpent or the petrified neighbors remains to be seen.

Events take a dark turn when headless bodies start appearing across town. At first, it's just corpses from a funeral home and the morgue that have had the heads removed. But when a homeless man is murdered and dumped behind a church Stephanie knows that she's the only one with a prayer of catching this killer.

If all that's not enough, Diesel's back in town. The 6-foot-tall, blonde-haired hunk is a man who accepts no limits--that includes locked doors, closed windows and underwear. Trenton's hottest cop, Joe Morelli isn't pleased at this unexpected arrival nor is Ranger, the high-powered security consultant who has his own plans for Stephanie.

As usual Jersey's favorite bounty hunter is stuck in the middle with more questions than answers. What's the deal with Grandma Mazur's latest online paramour? Who is behind the startling epidemic of mutilated corpses? And is the enigmatic Diesel's sudden appearance a coincidence or the cause of recent deadly events?

 

 

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Lean Mean Thirteen

Janet Evanovich

New secrets, old flames, and hidden agendas are about to send bounty hunter Stephanie Plum on her most outrageous adventure yet!

MISTAKE #1
Dickie Orr. Stephanie was married to him for about fifteen minutes before she caught him cheating on her with her arch-nemesis Joyce Barnhardt. Another fifteen minutes after that Stephanie filed for divorce, hoping to never see either one of them again.

MISTAKE #2
Doing favors for super bounty hunter Carlos Manoso (a.k.a. Ranger). Ranger needs her to meet with Dickie and find out if he's doing something shady. Turns out, he is. Turns out, he's also back to doing Joyce Barnhardt. And it turns out Ranger's favors always come with a price...

MISTAKE #3
Going completely nutso while doing the favor for Ranger, and trying to apply bodily injury to Dickie in front of the entire office.
Now Dickie has disappeared and Stephanie is the natural suspect in his disappearance. Is Dickie dead? Can he be found? And can she stay one step ahead in this new, dangerous game? Joe Morelli, the hottest cop in Trenton, NJ is also keeping Stephanie on her toes—and he may know more than lets on about her...It's a cat-and-mouse game for Stephanie Plum, where the ultimate prize might be her life.

With Janet Evanovich's flair for hilarious situations, breathtaking action, and unforgettable characters, Lean Mean Thirteen shows why no one can beat Evanovich for blockbuster entertainment.

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Mama Learns to Drive

Donald Davis

Presents stories from the author's youth in 1950s North Carolina as well as stories describing the childhood of his mother, who came of age in the Smoky Mountains in the 1930s.

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Dad is Fat

Jim Gaffigan

In Dad is Fat, stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan, who's best known for his legendary riffs on Hot Pockets, bacon, manatees, and McDonald's, expresses all the joys and horrors of life with five young children--everything from cousins ("celebrities for little kids") to toddlers' communication skills ("they always sound like they have traveled by horseback for hours to deliver important news"), to the eating habits of four year olds ("there is no difference between a four year old eating a taco and throwing a taco on the floor"). Reminiscent of Bill Cosby's Fatherhood, Dad is Fat is sharply observed, explosively funny, and a cry for help from a man who has realized he and his wife are outnumbered in their own home.

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The World According to Star Wars

Cass R. Sunstein

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

#1 Washington Post Bestseller 

There’s Santa Claus, Shakespeare, Mickey Mouse, the Bible, and then there’s Star Wars. Nothing quite compares to sitting down with a young child and hearing the sound of John Williams’s score as those beloved golden letters fill the screen. In this fun, erudite, and often moving book, Cass R. Sunstein explores the lessons of Star Wars as they relate to childhood, fathers, the Dark Side, rebellion, and redemption. As it turns out, Star Wars also has a lot to teach us about constitutional law, economics, and political uprisings.

In rich detail, Sunstein tells the story of the films’ wildly unanticipated success and explores why some things succeed while others fail. Ultimately, Sunstein argues, Star Wars is about freedom of choice and our never-ending ability to make the right decision when the chips are down. Written with buoyant prose and considerable heart, The World According to Star Wars shines a bright new light on the most beloved story of our time.

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Shakespeare Insult Generator

Barry Kraft

Put dullards and miscreants in their place with more than 150,000 handy mix-and-match insults in the bard's own words. This entertaining insult generator and flip book collects hundreds of words from Shakespeare's most pointed barbs and allows readers to combine them in creative and hilariously stinging ways. From "apish bald-pated abomination" to "cuckoldly dull-brained blockhead" to "obscene rump-fed hornbeast," each insult can be chosen at random or customized to fit any situation that calls for a literary smackdown. Featuring an informative introduction on Shakespearean wit, and notes on which terms were coined or only used once by the author in his work, this delightful book will sharpen the tongue of Shakespeare fans and insult aficionados without much further ado.

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The Wit & Wisdom of Tyrion Lannister

George R. R. Martin

The perfect gift for fans of George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire novels and HBO’s Game of Thrones: a collection of wicked one-liners from the incomparable Imp of Casterly Rock, fully illustrated by Jonty Clark!
 
“My mind is my weapon. My brother has his sword, King Robert has his warhammer, and I have my mind . . . and a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone if it is to keep its edge.”
 
The jealous masses of the Seven Kingdoms may call him Halfman, but none have ever accused Tyrion Lannister of being a halfwit. His golden tongue has saved his skin slightly more often than it has landed him in mortal peril. Now, this special illustrated volume preserves his most essential knowledge for future generations, featuring time-tested guidance on such varied subjects as . . .
 
The art of persuasion
“The best lies are seasoned with a bit of truth.”
 
Fine dining
“A little honest loathing can be refreshing, like a tart wine after too much sweet.”
 
The fair sex
“The young ones smell much better, but the old ones know more tricks.”
 
Royal politics
“Crowns do queer things to the heads beneath them.”
 
Common ailments
“A sword through the bowels. A sure cure for constipation.”
 
At once charming, insightful, and ruthlessly irreverent, The Wit & Wisdom of Tyrion Lannister is short on pretense and overflowing with finely crafted gems—just like the man himself.

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Ten Big Ones

Janet Evanovich

Janet Evanovich is the hottest author in America, and her Stephanie Plum novels have taken the nation by storm!

#1 New York Times
#1 Wall Street Journal
#1 Los Angeles Times
#1 Entertainment Weekly
#1 Publishers Weekly

She's accidentally destroyed a dozen cars. She's a target for every psycho and miscreant this side of the Jersey Turnpike. Her mother's convinced she'll end up dead . . . or worse, without a man. She's Stephanie Plum, and she kicks butt for a living (well, she thinks it sounds good to put it that way. . . .).

It begins as an innocent trip to the deli-mart, on a quest for nachos. But Stephanie Plum and her partner, Lula, are clearly in the wrong place at the wrong time. A robbery leads to an explosion, which leads to the destruction of yet another car. It would be just another day in the life of Stephanie Plum, except that she becomes the target of a gang---and of an even scarier, more dangerous force that comes to Trenton. With super bounty hunter Ranger acting more mysteriously than ever (and the tension with vice cop Joe Morelli getting hotter), she finds herself with a decision to make: how to protect herself and where to hide while on the hunt for a killer known as the Junkman. There's only one safe place, and it has Ranger's name all over it---if she can find it. And if the Junkman doesn't find her first. With Lula riding shotgun and Grandma Mazur on the loose, Stephanie Plum is racing against the clock in her most suspenseful novel yet. Ten Big Ones is page-turning entertainment, and Janet Evanovich is the best there is.

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End Game

David Baldacci

Will Robie and Jessica Reel are two of the most lethal people alive. They're the ones the government calls in when the utmost secrecy is required to take out those who plot violence and mass destruction against the United States. And through every mission, one man has always had their backs: their handler, code-named Blue Man.

But now, Blue Man is missing.

Last seen in rural Colorado, Blue Man had taken a rare vacation to go fly fishing in his hometown when he disappeared off the grid. With no communications since, the team can't help but fear the worst.

Sent to investigate, Robie and Reel arrive in the small town of Grand to discover that it has its own share of problems. A stagnant local economy and a woefully understaffed police force have made this small community a magnet for crime, drugs, and a growing number of militant fringe groups.

But lying in wait in Grand is an even more insidious and sweeping threat, one that may shake the very core of America. And when Robie and Reel find themselves up against an adversary with superior firepower and a home-court advantage, they'll be lucky if they make it out alive, with or without Blue Man...

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$9 Therapy

Megan Reid

A tongue-in-cheek collection of the tips, tricks, and recipes that will fix your life without busting your budget.



$9 Therapy proves that it's possible to take self-care seriously without taking yourself too seriously.

Self-professed lifestyle gurus Nick Greene and Megan Reid know that sometimes it takes as little as spending nine dollars on an act of self-care to turn your day around. While working their first, low-paying jobs out of school, Nick and Meg learned to spend wisely--and fabulously--and firmly came to believe in the radical potential of simple pleasures. In $9 Therapy, they use their hard-won wisdom to show how small, inexpensive treats can elevate your adulting game: whether it's mindfully repotting a plant to finally drinking from a decent wine glass (even if you can afford only one), to recipes you'll actually want to cook, to design tips to make even the tiniest spaces look like Instagram-bait.

With enthusiasm and sass, (and featuring 30 colorful illustrations), $9 Therapy brings together the lifehacks and mini-upgrades that encourage you to make your life a little bit easier, a little bit less stressful, a little bit better, a little more loving toward yourself and the humans around you.

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Fitter. Calmer. Stronger

Ellie Goulding

Combining a mindful approach to exercise with delicious, nutritious recipes, global superstar Ellie Goulding will help you kick-start healthy habits, develop a positive mindset, and establish clear, achievable goals.

Ellie Goulding has amassed multiple UK #1 singles, Brit Awards, and Grammy nominations over the span of her career. Now, after years of inspiring fans with her love of fitness and wellness, Fitter. Calmer. Stronger. shares her favorite recipes, workouts, and training principles.

Ellie's much sought-after fitness and health philosophy is based on becoming the brightest, strongest version of yourself. In this book, the pop powerhouse provides advice and regimens to improve your health and fitness, such as:

  • a holistic approach to feeling and being your best
  • learning to listen to your body
  • establishing permanent rituals that work for you

Going far beyond just diet and exercise, Fitter. Calmer. Stronger. encompasses all that improves your relationship with your physical and mental health. This means prioritizing self-care and flexibility and approaching wellness from a perspective that is sustainable--one that doesn't allow anxiety to win or leaves you feeling like you've failed and, most importantly, allows for fun and creativity. Drawing on Ellie's experiences, as well as the advice of friends and experts like Ant Middleton, Fearne Cotton, and Katie Taylor, you can use these tools and techniques every day to build a fitter, calmer, stronger you.

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Healthy Liver

Chris Beer

Keep your liver healthy and experience effortless weight loss.

Your liver is one of the most important organs in your body and its role in your general wellbeing cannot be overlooked.

A healthy liver performs an amazing 500 different functions, from breaking down fat to extracting vitamins, storing energy and fighting infection. Yet, due to our modern lifestyles and environment, our livers can really take a hit. The time to take action is now, and Healthy Liver contains all the tools and recipes you need to heal and restore this essential organ. With an easy-to-follow diagnosis questionnaire and a simple Liver Detox Plan, this book is your definitive guide to ultimate liver health.

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Self-Care for People with ADHD

Sasha Hamdani

Destress, find your community, and practice self-love with these 100+ exercises to reinforce ADHD as a strength.

When you have ADHD, it can be hard to stay on top of your wellness. Self-Care for People with ADHD is here to help!

This book can help you engage in some neurodiverse self-care—without pretending to be neurotypical. You’ll find more than 100 tips to accepting yourself, destigmatizing ADHD, finding your community, and taking care of your physical and mental health. You’ll find solutions for managing the negative aspects of ADHD, as well as ideas to bring out the positive aspects. With expert advice from psychiatrist and clinician Sasha Hamdani, MD, Self-Care for People with ADHD will help you live your life to the fullest!

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Loving Yourself to Great Health

Louise Hay

For decades, best-selling author Louise Hay has transformed people's lives by teaching them to let go of limiting beliefs. Now in this tour de force, Louise teams up with her go-to natural health and nutrition experts,Ahlea Khadro and Heather Dane, to reveal the other side of her secret to health, happiness, and longevity: living a nutrient-rich life.
Unlike any health book you've ever read, this work transcends fads, trends, and dogma to bring you a simple yet profound system to heal your body, mind, and spirit that is as gentle as changing the way you think. Louise, Ahlea, and Heather show you how to take your health, your moods, and your energy to the next level.
In Loving Yourself to Great Health, you will:

  • Tap into the secrets Louise has used for decades to supercharge the effectiveness of affirmations and bring your body back into alignment with your mind;
  • Discover what nutrition really means and how to cut through the confusion about which diets really work;
  • Learn to hear the stories your body is eager to reveal; and
  • Uncover techniques for longevity, vitality, good moods, deep intuition, and for meeting your body's unique healing needs at all stages of life.

At 88 years of age, Louise has much wisdom to share about what it takes to live a long, happy, healthy life. We invite you to join us on an amazing journey that will turn your life into your greatest love story.

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Outlive

Peter Attia, MD

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • OVER ONE MILLION COPIES SOLD • A groundbreaking manifesto on living better and longer that challenges the conventional medical thinking on aging and reveals a new approach to preventing chronic disease and extending long-term health, from a visionary physician and leading longevity expert
 
“One of the most important books you’ll ever read.”—Steven D. Levitt, New York Times bestselling author of Freakonomics

AN ECONOMIST AND BLOOMBERG BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

Wouldn’t you like to live longer? And better? In this operating manual for longevity, Dr. Peter Attia draws on the latest science to deliver innovative nutritional interventions, techniques for optimizing exercise and sleep, and tools for addressing emotional and mental health.
 
For all its successes, mainstream medicine has failed to make much progress against the diseases of aging that kill most people: heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and type 2 diabetes. Too often, it intervenes with treatments too late to help, prolonging lifespan at the expense of healthspan, or quality of life. Dr. Attia believes we must replace this outdated framework with a personalized, proactive strategy for longevity, one where we take action now, rather than waiting.
 
This is not “biohacking,” it’s science: a well-founded strategic and tactical approach to extending lifespan while also improving our physical, cognitive, and emotional health. Dr. Attia’s aim is less to tell you what to do and more to help you learn how to think about long-term health, in order to create the best plan for you as an individual. In Outlive, readers will discover:
 
• Why the cholesterol test at your annual physical doesn’t tell you enough about your actual risk of dying from a heart attack.
• That you may already suffer from an extremely common yet underdiagnosed liver condition that could be a precursor to the chronic diseases of aging.
• Why exercise is the most potent pro-longevity “drug”—and how to begin training for the “Centenarian Decathlon.”
• Why you should forget about diets, and focus instead on nutritional biochemistry, using technology and data to personalize your eating pattern.
• Why striving for physical health and longevity, but ignoring emotional health, could be the ultimate curse of all.
 
Aging and longevity are far more malleable than we think; our fate is not set in stone. With the right roadmap, you can plot a different path for your life, one that lets you outlive your genes to make each decade better than the one before.

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Man's Search for Meaning

Viktor E. Frankl

We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life-daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual.

When Man's Search for Meaning was first published in 1959, it was hailed by Carl Rogers as "one of the outstanding contributions to psychological thought in the last fifty years." Now, more than forty years and 4 million copies later, this tribute to hope in the face of unimaginable loss has emerged as a true classic. Man's Search for Meaning--at once a memoir, a self-help book, and a psychology manual-is the story of psychiatrist Viktor Frankl's struggle for survival during his three years in Auschwitz and other Nazi concentration camps. Yet rather than "a tale concerned with the great horrors," Frankl focuses in on the "hard fight for existence" waged by "the great army of unknown and unrecorded."

Viktor Frankl's training as a psychiatrist allowed him a remarkable perspective on the psychology of survival. In these inspired pages, he asserts that the "the will to meaning" is the basic motivation for human life. This simple and yet profound statement became the basis of his psychological theory, logotherapy, and forever changed the way we understand our humanity in the face of suffering. As Nietzsche put it, "He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how." Frankl's seminal work offers us all an avenue to greater meaning and purpose in our own lives-a way to transcend suffering and find significance in the act of living.

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The Art of Simple Living

Shunmyo Masuno

"Does for mental clutter what Marie Kondo has done for household clutter." --Publishers Weekly

Relax and find happiness amid the swirl of the modern world with this internationally bestselling guide to simplifying your life by the renowned Zen Buddhist author of Don’t Worry.


In clear, practical, easily adopted lessons--one a day for 100 days--renowned Buddhist monk Shunmyo Masuno draws on centuries of wisdom to teach you to Zen your life. Discover how . . .

 

 

 

  • Lesson #4: lining up your shoes after you take them off can bring order to your mind;
  • Lesson #11: putting down your fork after every bite can help you feel more grateful for what you have;
  • Lesson #18: immersing yourself in zazen can sweep the clutter from your mind;
  • Lesson #23: joining your hands together in gassho can soothe irritation and conflict;
  • Lesson #27: going outside to watch the sunset can make every day feel celebratory;
  • Lesson #42: planting a flower and watching it grow can teach you to embrace change;
  • Lesson #67: understanding the concept of ichi-go ichi-e can make everyday interactions more meaningful;
  • Lesson #85: practicing chisoku can help you feel more fulfilled.

  • A minimalist line drawing appears opposite each lesson on an otherwise blank page, giving you an opportunity to relax with a deep breath between lessons. With each daily practice, you will learn to find happiness not by seeking out extraordinary experiences but by making small changes to your life, opening yourself up to a renewed sense of peace and inner calm.

    A PENGUIN LIFE TITLE

 

 

 

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Lagom

Niki Brantmark

In a fast-paced world, wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could slow down and enjoy a life with less pressure, less stress, and more time for the things you love? 

Sweden is ranked in the top three of the world’s happiest places to live, and lagom, which means “not too much and not too little—just right,” is the Swedish philosophy for enjoying balance in every aspect of life—from work and leisure to family and food, and everything in between. Experienced bakers know by touch when the dough they are kneading is lagom—not too moist and not too dry. At the office, professionals who work hard—but not to the detriment of other parts of their lives—are following the lagom ideal. Lagom is moderation, balance, and equality.

By using the Swedish lifestyle as an example, Niki Brantmark offers insightful suggestions and bite-sized actions to help you make subtle changes to your life, so you too can make time for the things that matter most and find greater happiness.

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The Soul of a Woman

Isabel Allende

 

From the New York Times bestselling author of A Long Petal of the Sea comes “a bold exploration of womanhood, feminism, parenting, aging, love and more” (Associated Press).

The Soul of a Woman is Isabel Allende’s most liberating book yet.”—Elle

“When I say that I was a feminist in kindergarten, I am not exaggerating,” begins Isabel Allende. As a child, she watched her mother, abandoned by her husband, provide for her three small children without “resources or voice.” Isabel became a fierce and defiant little girl, determined to fight for the life her mother couldn’t have.

As a young woman coming of age in the late 1960s, she rode the second wave of feminism. Among a tribe of like-minded female journalists, Allende for the first time felt comfortable in her own skin, as they wrote “with a knife between our teeth” about women’s issues. She has seen what the movement has accomplished in the course of her lifetime. And over the course of three passionate marriages, she has learned how to grow as a woman while having a partner, when to step away, and the rewards of embracing one’s sexuality.

So what feeds the soul of feminists—and all women—today? To be safe, to be valued, to live in peace, to have their own resources, to be connected, to have control over our bodies and lives, and above all, to be loved. On all these fronts, there is much work yet to be done, and this book, Allende hopes, will “light the torches of our daughters and granddaughters with mine. They will have to live for us, as we lived for our mothers, and carry on with the work still left to be finished.”

 

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I Am Love

Susan Verde

Companion to I Am Human and I Am Peace
"Practical and empowering for young ones learning how to emotionally attend to themselves and others." --Kirkus Reviews

Celebrate kindness, compassion, self-care, and love in all its forms in this beautifully illustrated book!

Love means showing kindness, living with gratitude, and taking care of our minds and bodies. Letting our hearts lead the way can help move us closer to a better world. "I put my hands on my heart and listen. And that is where I find the answer: I have compassion. I act with tenderness. I am love."

I Am Love asks readers to look inward when they feel afraid, angry, hurt, or sad. When a storm is brewing inside us and the skies grow dark, the transformative power of love lets the light back in. Includes heart-opening yoga poses and a guided meditation.

Also available:
I Am Me
I Am Yoga
I Am Peace
I Am Human
I Am One
I Am Courage
I Am . . . A Box of Goodness!

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Do It Scared

Ruth Soukup

Equal parts encouragement and tough love, Do It Scared combines easy-to-implement tips with the motivation to help you stare down your fears and start making real changes that lead to big results.

What would you do if fear no longer stood in your way? What would happen if you were no longer afraid to dive in headfirst and go after your dreams instead of sitting on the sidelines of your own life?

We tell ourselves we're too busy to pursue our dreams, but what if the real reason we're putting off our goals is fear? It's the fear that we're not good, smart, talented, or capable enough. It's the fear that others might laugh at us or that we'll get hurt or be rejected. It's the fear that pursuing our true potential will simply be too hard. And most of all, it's the fear that we'll fail.

But having courage doesn't mean we're never afraid. True courage means taking action despite fear. True courage means doing it scared.

The question is--how? How do we face those fears and take that first step in the right direction? How do we overcome the obstacles that stand in our way and sometimes feel insurmountable?

In Do It Scared, popular blogger and podcast host Ruth Soukup will help you:

  • Identify your own unique Fear Archetype(TM)--the specific type of fear that keeps you stuck--and learn how to conquer it
  • Dare to start thinking bigger about your life and your goals
  • Learn how to seek out honest feedback to accomplish big things
  • Embrace the core beliefs you need to overcome different types of fears
  • Discover why our magical idea of "balance" is totally overrated
  • Let go of the guilt once and for all

Get ready to get off the sidelines and jump into your own life as you dare to Do It Scared.

Praise for Do It Scared:

"If you're tired of playing small and are ready to embrace your future, Ruth Soukup offers the actionable steps you need to get started. Do It Scared is a practical guide to identifying your limiting beliefs, overcoming your fears, and creating the life you've dreamed of."

--Michael Hyatt, New York Times bestselling author

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Grief Is Love

Marisa Renee Lee

"In Grief is Love, author Marisa Renee Lee reveals that healing does not mean moving on-healing means learning to acknowledge and create space for your grief. She guides you through the pain of early grief and shows you how to to honor your loss. It's common to plow through our feelings in the name of being "OK," but grief is so inextricably tied to love that you don't just "get over it." Grief is Love is about making space for the transformation that this constant state of learning requires. It is about learning to love yourself and the one you lost with the same depth, passion, joy, and commitment you did when they were alive, perhaps even more. Lee shows that there isn't only one way to grieve, and so your expression of it should be unique. She shepherds you through your grief as it arises and falls again and again. The transformation we each undergo after loss is the indelible imprint of the people we love on our lives, which is the true meaning of legacy. Healing after loss is not about burying pain but about acknowledging it and allowing grief to move through you in order to be whole. How do you manage the holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries? How do you get through the next year or even tomorrow? In beautiful, compassionate prose, Lee elegantly offers wisdom about what it means to authentically and defiantly claim space for these complicated feelings and emotions. And Lee is no stranger to grief herself, after losing her mother, her fertility, a pregnancy, and, most recently, a cousin to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this book, she also explores the unique impact of grief on Black people, Black women in particular, and reveals the key factors that proper healing requires: acknowledgement, rest, community, reflection, support, care and more. At its core, Grief is Love explores what comes after death, and shows us that if we are able to own and honor what we've lost, we can have a beautiful and joyful life in the midst of grief"--

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The Undervalued Self

Elaine N. Aron

Elaine Aron follows up her bestsellers on the highly sensitive person with a groundbreaking new book on the undervalued self. She explains that self-esteem results from having a healthy balance of love and power in our lives. Readers will learn to incorporate love into situations that seem to require power and deal with power struggles that mask themselves as issues of love. From the bedroom to the boardroom, her strategies will enable us to escape feelings of shame, defeat, and depression; dissolve relationship hostility; and become our best selves. With Aron's clear, empathetic writing and extraordinary scientific and human insight, THE UNDERVALUED SELF is a simple and effective guide to developing healthy, fulfilling relationships, and finding true self-worth.

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A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow

Laura Taylor Namey

A New York Times bestseller
A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club YA Pick

Love & Gelato meets Don’t Date Rosa Santos in this charming, heartfelt story following a Miami girl who unexpectedly finds love—and herself—in a small English town.

For Lila Reyes, a summer in England was never part of the plan. The plan was 1) take over her abuela’s role as head baker at their panadería, 2) move in with her best friend after graduation, and 3) live happily ever after with her boyfriend. But then the Trifecta happened, and everything—including Lila herself—fell apart.

Worried about Lila’s mental health, her parents make a new plan for her: spend three months with family friends in Winchester, England, to relax and reset. But with the lack of sun, a grumpy inn cook, and a small town lacking Miami flavor (both in food and otherwise), what would be a dream trip for some feels more like a nightmare to Lila…until she meets Orion Maxwell.

A teashop clerk with troubles of his own, Orion is determined to help Lila out of her funk, and appoints himself as her personal tour guide. From Winchester’s drama-filled music scene to the sweeping English countryside, it isn’t long before Lila is not only charmed by Orion, but England itself. Soon a new future is beginning to form in Lila’s mind—one that would mean leaving everything she ever planned behind.

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The Tea Dragon Society

K. O'Neill

From the award-winning author of Princess Princess Ever After comes The Tea Dragon Society, a charming all-ages book that follows the story of Greta, a blacksmith apprentice, and the people she meets as she becomes entwined in the enchanting world of tea dragons. 

After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives--and eventually her own. 

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Homegrown Tea

Cassie Liversidge

Homegrown Tea explains how to grow a large variety of plants in your own garden, on a balcony or even on a window sill could become your tea cupboard. It shows you how to grow your tea from seeds, cuttings, or small plants, as well as which parts of the plant are used to make tea. Liversidge lays out when and how to harvest your plants, as well as information on how to prepare the plant, including how to dry tea leaves to make tea you can store to last you throughout the year. As a guide to using tea to make you feel better, there are nutritional and medicinal benefits. Finally, there is an illustrated guide to show how to make up fresh and dried teabags and how to serve a delicious homegrown tea. It is sustainable way to look at a beverage, which is steeped in history and tradition.

Sample drinks include well-known plants such as rose hips, mint, sage, hibiscus, and lavender, as well as more obscure ones like chicory, angelica, apple geranium, and lemon verbena.

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Cervical Cancer

Kris Hirschmann

According to the National Cancer Institute, Cervical cancer can usually be cured if it is found and treated in the early stages. This crucial volume will aid your readers in understanding this disease. Readers will learn what causes it, and how it is detected and treated. This book also explores prevention and future challenges. Personal narratives are also shared and fast fact information is presented through graphs and charts.

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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Rebecca Skloot

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “The story of modern medicine and bioethics—and, indeed, race relations—is refracted beautifully, and movingly.”—Entertainment Weekly

NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE FROM HBO® STARRING OPRAH WINFREY AND ROSE BYRNE • ONE OF THE “MOST INFLUENTIAL” (CNN), “DEFINING” (LITHUB), AND “BEST” (THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER) BOOKS OF THE DECADE • ONE OF ESSENCE’S 50 MOST IMPACTFUL BLACK BOOKS OF THE PAST 50 YEARS • WINNER OF THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE HEARTLAND PRIZE FOR NONFICTION

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review • Entertainment Weekly • O: The Oprah Magazine • NPR • Financial Times • New York • Independent (U.K.) • Times (U.K.) • Publishers Weekly • Library Journal • Kirkus Reviews • Booklist • Globe and Mail

Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine: The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, which are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions. 

Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave.

Henrietta’s family did not learn of her “immortality” until more than twenty years after her death, when scientists investigating HeLa began using her husband and children in research without informed consent. And though the cells had launched a multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials, her family never saw any of the profits. As Rebecca Skloot so brilliantly shows, the story of the Lacks family—past and present—is inextricably connected to the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we are made of. 

Over the decade it took to uncover this story, Rebecca became enmeshed in the lives of the Lacks family—especially Henrietta’s daughter Deborah. Deborah was consumed with questions: Had scientists cloned her mother? Had they killed her to harvest her cells? And if her mother was so important to medicine, why couldn’t her children afford health insurance? 

Intimate in feeling, astonishing in scope, and impossible to put down, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks captures the beauty and drama of scientific discovery, as well as its human consequences.

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Chicken Soup for the Soul: I Can't Believe My Dog Did That!

Jack Canfield

This collection contains one incredible dog story after another— you won’t be able to stop reading! Read all 101 stories about the crazy antics of our canine companions. What a great gift for dog lovers.

What has that dog done now? You’ll see your own dog in this entertaining collection of stories about the incredible things that dogs do.

From alpha dogs to dogs that hide under the bed — from dogs that eat wood to dogs that catch fish — from dogs that smell cancer to dogs that just... smell—you won’t believe what you’re reading. You’ll see your own dog with new eyes after reading these true stories about:

 

  • dogs with an uncanny understanding of spoken language
  • dogs with amazing intuition and empathy
  • dogs that change people’s lives
  • dogs that outsmart their humans
  • dogs that care for other animals... and have their own pets
  • dogs performing acts of heroism and saving lives
  • dogs that play tricks and have a sense of humor

 

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Rin Tin Tin

Susan Orlean

He believed the dog was immortal.

So begins Susan Orlean’s sweeping, powerfully moving account of Rin Tin Tin’s journey from orphaned puppy to movie star and international icon. Orlean, a staff writer at The New Yorker who has been hailed as “a national treasure” by The Washington Post, spent nearly ten years researching and reporting her most captivating book to date: the story of a dog who was born in 1918 and never died.

It begins on a battlefield in France during World War I, when a young American soldier, Lee Duncan, discovered a newborn German shepherd in the ruins of a bombed-out dog kennel. To Duncan, who came of age in an orphanage, the dog’s survival was a miracle. He saw something in Rin Tin Tin that he felt compelled to share with the world. Duncan brought Rinty home to California, where the dog’s athleticism and acting ability drew the attention of Warner Bros. Over the next ten years, Rinty starred in twenty-three blockbuster silent films that saved the studio from bankruptcy and made him the most famous dog in the world. At the height of his popularity, Rin Tin Tin was Hollywood’s number one box office star.

During the decades that followed, Rinty and his descendants rose and fell with the times, making a tumultuous journey from silent films to talkies, from black-and-white to color, from radio programs to one of the most popular television shows of the baby boom era, The Adventures of Rin-Tin-Tin. The canine hero’s legacy was cemented by Duncan and a small group of others—including Bert Leonard, the producer of the TV series, and Daphne Hereford, the owner of the current Rin Tin Tin—who have dedicated their lives to making sure the dog’s legend will never die.

At its core, Rin Tin Tin is a poignant exploration of the enduring bond between humans and animals. It is also a richly textured history of twentieth-century entertainment and entrepreneurship. It spans ninety years and explores everything from the shift in status of dogs from working farmhands to beloved family members, from the birth of obedience training to the evolution of dog breeding, from the rise of Hollywood to the past and present of dogs in war. Filled with humor and heart and moments that will move you to tears, Susan Orlean’s first original book since The Orchid Thief is an irresistible blend of history, human interest, and masterful storytelling—a dazzling celebration of a great American dog by one of our most gifted writers.

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Oogy

Larry Levin

In the bestselling tradition of Rescuing Sprite comes the story of a puppy brought back from the brink of death, and the family he adopted.

In 2002, Larry Levin and his twin sons, Dan and Noah, took their terminally ill cat to the Ardmore Animal Hospital outside Philadelphia to have the beloved pet put to sleep. What would begin as a terrible day suddenly got brighter as the ugliest dog they had ever seen--one who was missing an ear and had half his face covered in scar tissue--ran up to them and captured their hearts. The dog had been used as bait for fighting dogs when he was just a few months old. He had been thrown in a cage and left to die until the police rescued him and the staff at Ardmore Animal Hospital saved his life. The Levins, whose sons are themselves adopted, were unable to resist Oogy's charms, and decided to take him home.

Heartwarming and redemptive, OOGY is the story of the people who were determined to rescue this dog against all odds, and of the family who took him home, named him "Oogy" (an affectionate derivative of ugly), and made him one of their own.

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Your Dog's Golden Years

Jennifer Kachnic

Twenty canine experts reveal the stages of your dog's life, ailments he may encounter and provide remedies and solutions for your senior dog's care. They share therapies, treatments and simple techniques for the senior dog that embrace both veterinary and natural practices.
Your Dog's Golden Years provides you the information, answers and options you need. With them, you become empowered to make the best decisions for your senior dog's care. Throughout, you will be guided by a variety of canine professionals who love and care for them. You and your dog will benefit from their wisdom and expertise as they share experiences about their own as well as of thousands that they have skillfully treated and nurtured through the years.
Your Dog's Golden Years book delivers the answers and tools to help you provide your senior dog with a longer, happier and healthier life.

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My Life Among the Underdogs

Tia Torres

From one of the most respected figures in the dog rescue community come the harrowing, funny, and inspiring stories of nine incredible dogs that shaped her life.

 

 

Tia Torres, beloved underdog advocate and star of Animal Planet's hit show Pit Bulls & Parolees, chronicles her roller-coaster life in this heartwarming memoir featuring some of her best-loved dogs. With inimitable honesty and characteristic brashness, Tia captures the spirit and heart of these intelligent and loving canines, while carrying us behind the scenes of her TV show, into the heart of post-Katrina New Orleans, onto the soundstages of Hollywood films, and even to the jungles of Sri Lanka.

 

Tia has devoted her life to shattering the stereotype that pit bulls are dangerous, vicious predators. As the top dog at the Villalobos Rescue Center in New Orleans, the largest pit bull rescue in the United States, she and her team have rescued, rehabilitated, and rehomed hundreds of animals that might otherwise have been destroyed. As she puts it, "Most of the stories in this book are about animals (and a few humans) that needed someone to believe in them and a purpose in order to show their true nobility."

 

Each dog Tia writes about here has overcome abuse, trauma, neglect, or just bad luck to become a stalwart, loving companion to Tia and her family. You'll meet Duke, whose intelligence and matinee-idol looks made him a star in movies and music videos; Junkyard Joe, whose single-minded passion for tennis balls was channeled into expertise as a drug-sniffing dog; Bluie, the unswerving protector of Tia's daughter Tania; and a host of other unforgettable canines.

 

My Life Among the Underdogs is above all a love story--one that is sure to grip the heart of anyone who has ever loved a dog.

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Another Good Dog

Cara Sue Achterberg

A warm and entertaining memoir about what happens when you foster fifty dogs in less than two years—and how the dogs save you as much as you save them.

When Cara felt her teenaged children slipping away and saw an empty nest on the horizon, she decided the best way to fill that void was with dogs—lots of them—and so her foster journey began.

In 2015, her Pennsylvania farm became a haven for Operation Paws for Homes. There were the nine puppies at once, which arrived with less than a day’s notice; a heart- worm positive dog; a deeply traumatized stray pup from Iraq; and countless others who just needed a gentle touch and a warm place to sleep. Operation Paws for Homes rescues dogs from high-kill shelters in the rural south and shuttles them north to foster homes like Cara’s on the way to their forever homes.

What started as a search for a good dog, led to an epiphany that there wasn’t just one that could ll the hole left in her heart from her children gaining independence—she could save dozens along the way. The stories of these remarkable dogs— including an eighty-pound bloodhound who sang arias for the neighbors—and the joy they bring to Cara and her family (along with a few chewed sofa cushions) fill the pages of this touching and inspiring new book that reveals the wonderful rewards of fostering.

When asked how she can possibly say goodbye to that many loveable pups, Cara says, “If I don’t give this one away, I can’t possibly save another.” Filled with humanity and hope, Another Good Dog will take the reader on an journey of smiles, laughs, and tears—and lead us to wonder how many other good dogs are out there and what we can do to help.

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How to Raise the Perfect Dog

Cesar Millan

 

From the bestselling author and star of National Geographic Channel's Dog Whisperer, the only resource you’ll need for raising a happy, healthy dog.
For the millions of people every year who consider bringing a puppy into their lives–as well as those who have already brought a dog home–Cesar Millan, the preeminent dog behavior expert, says, "Yes, you can raise the perfect dog!" It all starts with the proper foundation in the early years. Here, Cesar tells you everything you need to know to create the best environment for a well-balanced dog in order to avoid behavior issues in the future, and shows you how to correct the most common behavior issues for young dogs.

Based on Cesar’s own detailed experiences raising individual puppies from some of the most popular breeds, How to Raise the Perfect Dog is like having Cesar right beside you, as your own personal expert, coaching you and your dog from the first day of your life together.

Packed with new information aimed specifically at the particular needs of puppies and adolescents, and written in Cesar's friendly, accessible style, How to Raise the Perfect Dog answers all the most commonly asked questions and guides you towards a loving, satisfying life-long relationship with your best friend.

#1 New York Times bestselling author, Cesar Millan shows you how to raise the perfect dog and prevent behavior issues before they start, including:
• what to expect from each stage of your puppy's development
• quick and easy housebreaking
• the essentials of proper nutrition
• the importance of vaccinating–and of not over-vaccinating
• creating perfect obedience from day one through rules, boundaries, and calm-assertive leadership
• how to avoid the most common mistakes owners make raising puppies and young dogs
• how to correct any issue before it becomes a problem
• unique exercises and play to bring out the best in every breed

 

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Dog Years

Amanda Jones

Dog Years is a heartwarming look at the lives and stories of 30 dogs. By presenting portraits of each dog as a puppy and again as an older dog, photographer Amanda Jones reveals the unique spark of personality that lasts a lifetime. These beautiful images of breeds ranging from golden retrievers and Great Danes to pugs and French bulldogs are accompanied by reflections from loved ones on the lives they share with their furry companions. The result is a celebration of each dog and a tribute to the relationships we share with our four-legged friends.

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Dog Medicine

Julie Barton

An honest and deeply moving debut memoir about a young woman’s battle with depression and how her dog saved her life

A New York Times Bestseller


Dog Medicine simply has to be your next must-read.” —Cheryl Strayed 

At twenty-two, Julie Barton collapsed on her kitchen floor in Manhattan. She was one year out of college and severely depressed. Summoned by Julie’s incoherent phone call, her mother raced from Ohio to New York and took her home.

Haunted by troubling childhood memories, Julie continued to sink into suicidal depression. Psychiatrists, therapists, and family tried to intervene, but nothing reached her until the day she decided to do one hopeful thing: adopt a Golden Retriever puppy she named Bunker. Dog Medicine captures the anguish of depression, the slow path to recovery, the beauty of forgiveness, and the astonishing ways animals can help heal even the most broken hearts and minds.

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The Loved Dog

Tamar Geller

Every dog owner must make a choice: Do you want a fearful and submissive pet, or do you want a happy, joyful, and well-mannered member of the family?

Tamar Geller's mission in life is to teach her cruelty-free method of "life coaching" for dogs and their people. Her revolutionary play-training uses mutual understanding and respect -- and puts an end to outdated methods that rely on physical exhaustion, choke chains, prong collars, dominance rollovers, or stressful aggression of any kind.

A former Israeli intelligence officer who witnessed the horrors of military dog training methods, Tamar went on to observe wolves in the wild. She discovered that wolves educate and socialize their cubs with games, bonding, and body language, not dominance or punishment. As a result, she developed teaching systems that address a dog's authentic nature, part wolflike and part toddlerlike. Learning can be a positive experience that dogs enjoy and look forward to, and we can actually make it fun for our dogs to listen to us and behave as we want them to.

Tamar's insights have brought dog training into the twenty-first century, and her groundbreaking techniques have won the approval of the Humane Society of the United States, for which she is a longtime advisor. Her celebrity clients include Oprah Winfrey, Ben Affleck, Courteney Cox-Arquette, Owen Wilson, and the Osbournes, and she has appeared as an expert on the Today show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Animal Planet, and more.

In "The Loved Dog, " Tamar gives you all the instruction, insights, and tips you need to teach your dog good manners, as well as to troubleshoot specific problems and unwanted behaviors. She helps you and your dog learn a common language, resulting in a loving, respectful relationship that will bring you years of joy and companionship. Tamar's play-training approach is so gentle, even children can get involved.

Whether you use Tamar's methods to raise a puppy or teach an old dog new tricks, you'll love "The Loved Dog."

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Dog Songs

Mary Oliver

“The popularity of [Dog Songs] feels as inevitable and welcome as a wagging tail upon homecoming.” —The Boston Globe
 
Mary Oliver’s Dog Songs is a celebration of the special bond between human and dog, as understood through the poet’s relationships to the canines that have accompanied her daily walks, warmed her home, and inspired her work. Oliver’s poems begin in the small everyday moments familiar to all dog lovers, but through her extraordinary vision, these observations become higher meditations on the world and our place in it.

Dog Songs includes visits with old friends, like Oliver’s beloved Percy, and introduces still others in poems of love and laughter, heartbreak and grief. Throughout, the many dogs of Oliver’s life merge as fellow travelers and as guides, uniquely able to open our eyes to the lessons of the moment and the joys of nature and connection. 

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The Dog Who Could Fly

Damien Lewis

An instant hit in the UK, this is the true account of a German shepherd who was adopted by the Royal Air Force during World War II, joined in flight missions, and survived everything from crash-landings to parachute bailouts—ultimately saving the life of his owner and dearest friend.

In the winter of 1939 in the cold snow of no-man’s-land, two loners met and began an extraordinary journey that would turn them into lifelong friends. One was an orphaned puppy, abandoned by his owners as they fled Nazi forces. The other was a different kind of lost soul—a Czech airman bound for the Royal Air Force and the country that he would come to call home.

Airman Robert Bozdech stumbled across the tiny German shepherd—whom he named Ant—after being shot down on a daring mission over enemy lines. Unable to desert his charge, Robert hid Ant inside his jacket as he escaped. In the months that followed the pair would save each other’s lives countless times as they flew together with Bomber Command. And though Ant was eventually grounded due to injury, he refused to abandon his duty, waiting patiently beside the runway for his master’s return from every sortie, and refusing food and sleep until they were reunited. By the end of the war Robert and Ant had become British war heroes, and Ant was justly awarded the Dickin Medal, the “Animal VC.”

With beautiful vintage black-and-white photos of Robert and Ant, The Dog Who Could Fly is a deeply moving story of loyalty in the face of adversity and the unshakable bond between a man and his best friend.

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The 50+ Dog Owner

Mary Jane Checchi

The 50+ Dog Owner provides up-to-date information and advice about choosing and caring for a dog to match canine companionship with the lifestyles of Americans entering their golden years—the fastest growing demographic within the population. Written in an engaging, straightforward, senior-to-senior style by a proud member of the "50+ club," the in-depth expert advice is both easily accessible and appropriate for seniors who want, or already have, the companionship of a dog. The topics covered are especially relevant to any senior—whether an empty-nester, newly retired, or widowed—and include travel, housing, cost of care, and equipment, as well as the numerous health benefits linked to dog ownership for those with depression, loneliness, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Each chapter features "Money Saving Tips" to make dog ownership more cost effective and "Make It Easy" suggestions for time-saving services and products that suit your income and activity level. Every page of the book is designed with easy-to-read print and spacing.
 

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I Want to Kill the Dog

Richard M. Cohen

A hilarious book by Richard M. Cohen, the New York Times bestselling author of Blindsided and Strong at the Broken Places, about living with his wife, Meredith Vieira, and her band of difficult dogs.

“Has a couple ever gone to war or a spouse moved to another country because a pet came between them? Have two people other than my wife and me ever had such opposing feelings when it comes to domestic animals?”

So wonders Richard M. Cohen, who has endured the beasts his wife, Meredith Vieira, has brought into the house to enrich their lives. Despite her unshakable affection for these furry creatures, the various animals have destroyed the serenity of a once calm household. Friends watch in stunned silence as the family frantically struggles to keep peace in this lawless land. Delivery people have fled in fear. Guests have cowered or simply laughed at the hideous shrieks, the current mutt’s stab at intimidation. Then there are the cats that think they are ferocious jungle creatures. Weary of having animals run the show, Richard is fed up. These animals are destroying a home, and the life of one simple soul who seeks only peace and quiet. The King has been overthrown. The Queen and her court have taken over. That would be Meredith and her minions.

I Want to Kill the Dog is more than a countercultural ode to those weary of the pet pedestal. It is a portrait of a marriage and of the redemptive power of humor and family when banishing the beast is not an option.

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Puppy Training in 7 Easy Steps

Zoom Room Dog Training

Raise a happy, well-behaved puppy in 7 simple steps

Teach your pup the ropes with Puppy Training in 7 Easy Steps. This step-by-step guide shows you how to combine positive reinforcement with your dog's natural instincts during training. They'll learn essential manners and boundaries—while both of you bond and have lots of fun!

Discover dog training fundamentals, and start implementing straightforward techniques that build up your pup's skills in stages. You'll gain a solid understanding of your puppy's perspective, behavior, and body language—so you know why they're doing what they're doing, not just how to change their behavior or train a command.

In this beginner-friendly dog training manual, you'll find:

 

  • Complete dog training—Get guidance for bringing your puppy home, crate and potty training, preventing food aggression, socializing, learning key commands, and leash walking.
  • Prep and puppy-proofing—Explore the best ways to prepare for getting a puppy, from checking off an essential list of supplies to doing a safety check around your home.
  • Tips and troubleshooting—Learn how to see each dog training step from your puppy's viewpoint and get quick advice in case things don't go according to plan.


You and your pup will learn all the essentials with this handy guide that makes dog training easy.

 

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The beginner's dog training guide : how to train a superdog, step by step

Gwen Bailey

Unleash your dog's potential and build a rewarding relationship that will last a lifetime!

From walking on a loose lead to carrying the shopping, The Beginner's Dog Training Guide has everything you need to know to train your dog and ensure you have a happy canine companion. Choose the right dog breed for you and then keep your dog healthy by understanding their exercise, diet, and grooming needs. Follow clear, step-by-step explanations and illustrations to learn every aspect of owning and training a dog, from basic obedience to advanced tricks.


Expert advice accompanied by over 800 clear photographs provide a user-friendly visual guide to training your dog, by showing you exactly what to do. Filled with tips and tricks, this book will help you become the owner of a well-behaved, healthy, and happy dog!

This dog training book promises:

-  An easy-to-follow approach to understanding dog behavior and dog training based on the latest research into canine intelligence
- Offers expert guidance on selecting the right dog for you, with a catalog of the most popular breeds
- Features behavioral analysis to help you understand what your dog is thinking
- More than 800 photographs provide clear visual guidance so you know exactly what to do to succeed with your dog

A must-have volume for families training their new pet, for first-time dog owners and experienced owners alike as well as those interested in training theory and dog psychology.
 
 

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Chinese New Year

Leslie C. Kaplan

Students will learn about the history and traditions of Chinese New Year. When is it celebrated? What does the dragon symbolize? Why do families clean their houses at this time of year? All of these questions and more are answered through interesting, well-written text, and exciting color photographs.

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A Different Light

Noam Zion

A how-to guide for a creative celebration of candle-lighting, blessings, songs, stories, and readings for adults, teenagers and children. Features 'The Maccabees' Megillah' which retells the dramatic conflict between King Antiochus and Mattathias the Priest; the heroism of Judah the Maccabee and Judith; and the martyrdom of Hannah and her seven sons.

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My True Love Gave To Me

Stephanie Perkins

If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you're going to fall in love with My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories by twelve bestselling young adult writers (Holly Black, Ally Carter, Matt de La Peña, Gayle Forman, Jenny Han, David Levithan, Kelly Link, Myra McEntire, Rainbow Rowell, Stephanie Perkins, Laini Tayler and Kiersten White), edited by the international bestselling Stephanie Perkins. Whether you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah, Winter Solstice or Kwanzaa, there's something here for everyone. So curl up by the fireplace and get cozy. You have twelve reasons this season to stay indoors and fall in love.

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Kwanzaa

Maitefa Angaza

Traditionally, Kwanzaa brings family, friends, and the community together for a winter celebration. But Kwanzaa can be a part of your life year-round. The 20 million people of African descent who celebrate this holiday steeped in cultural richness observe the holiday for its seven principles�principles that inspire the individual and promote community. Whether you�re a first-time celebrant or a seasoned veteran, Kwanzaa: From Holiday to Every Day is a must-have reference for making Kwanzaa special for you and your loved ones. With this book, you�ll learn:

� Planning for daily observance and festive gatherings
� The seven principles at the heart of Kwanzaa
� How to involve everyone in your Karamu (feast)
� Recipes for traditional dishes you can make at home
� Zawadi (gifts) that reflect your values
� Popular Kwanzaa songs and even one Kwanzaa rap
� Where to find the best Kwanzaa accessories
� And more!

Let this holiday guide show you how to turn your Kwanzaa observance into a way of life to enrich your family, friends, and community.

"Of the several books on Kwanzaa, few are invested with such utility as Maitefa Angaza's thorough-going discussion and analysis . . . a meaningful, wonderful guide." �Herb Boyd, author of We Shall Overcome: The History of the Civil Rights Movement As It Happened

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The Art of Hanukkah

Nancy M. Berman

A rich celebration of Hanukkah, featuring centuries of extraordinary art and artifacts. One of the most joyous weeks in the Jewish year is when families gather for eight evenings to celebrate the festival of Hanukkah. Jews the world over mark this holiday of freedom with the lighting of the Hanukkah menorah, while children spin a dreidel and eat sufganiyot and potato latkes. Presents are exchanged, and the story of Hanukkah is retold through songs and prayers. The Art of Hanukkah, through its selection of forty-eight masterpieces of holiday ceremonial and fine art, tells the story of the desecration of the holy Temple, its subsequent reclaiming and rededication, and the miracle of the single, tiny cruse of oil that continued to provide light for eight days. From individual oil lamps to medieval creations, through the sumptuous flourishes of Baroque decorations to contemporary times, these Hanukkah menorahs reflect the adaptability of Jewish culture throughout the Diaspora. Menorahs, paintings, dreidels—all the wonderful elements of the celebration of Hanukkah from around the world and throughout the centuries have been brought together in this one marvelous book. Clear, insightful, and thought-provoking commentaries make this book a perfect complement to the holiday.

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Christmas Treasury of Yuletide Stories and Poems

James Charlton

More than 50 wonderful Christmas tales and poems make this the brightest package of the holiday season. Traditional and modern, funny and touching, these works by great writers shine with Christmas spirit, warmth, and good cheer. Includes works by Tennyson, Longfellow, Dickens, Frost, and many more.

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The Atlas of Christmas

Alex Palmer

Discover the fascinating (and sometimes downright odd!) ways that people and nations celebrate the holiday season and share this festive compendium's unique traditions together with family and friends.
Do you know that in Guatemala there's a "Burn the Devil" tradition to kick off the Christmas season, where revelers gather to set fire to devil-piñatas? In Sweden, a popular figure in Christmas traditions is the Yule Goat, a rowdy, menacing character who demands gifts. And in Japan, a big bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken has become the classic Christmas Day feast. These and many other global Christmas traditions are featured here in this delightful book. From decorations and activities to feasts and special treats, there's a wide range of both lovely and unusual traditions from around the globe.

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Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas

Ace Collins

Ever wonder where some of our unique and meaningful Christmas traditions come from? Why are red and green popular colors of the season? Why is exchanging gifts a family tradition? Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas reveals the people, places, and events that shaped the best-loved customs of this merriest of holidays and how they all point to Christ.

Stories Behind the Great Traditions of Christmas includes insights about:

  • Gift giving
  • Christmas trees
  • Caroling
  • Nativity scenes
  • Yule logs
  • Stockings
  • Advent wreaths
  • Mistletoe
  • Holly, and more!

This is the perfect gift to infuse your celebration with spiritual insights, true-life tales, and captivating legends to intrigue you and your family. Bring new luster and depth to your modern traditions while you celebrate Jesus' birth. The traditions of Christmas lend beauty, awe, and hope to the holiday, causing people all over the world to anticipate it with joy. Warm your heart as you rediscover the true and eternal significance of Christmas.

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Forgiving what You Can't Forget

Lysa TerKeurst

*#1 New York Times Bestseller*

You deserve to stop suffering because of what other people have done to you.

Have you ever felt stuck in a cycle of unresolved pain, playing offenses over and over in your mind? You know you can't go on like this, but you don't know what to do next. Lysa TerKeurst has wrestled through this journey. But in surprising ways, she's discovered how to let go of bound-up resentment and overcome the resistance to forgiving people who aren't willing to make things right.

With deep empathy, therapeutic insight, and rich Bible teaching coming out of more than 1,000 hours of theological study, Lysa will help you:

  • Learn how to move on when the other person refuses to change and never says they're sorry.
  • Walk through a step-by-step process to free yourself from the hurt of your past and feel less offended today.
  • Discover what the Bible really says about forgiveness and the peace that comes from living it out right now.
  • Identify what's stealing trust and vulnerability from your relationships so you can believe there is still good ahead.
  • Disempower the triggers hijacking your emotions by embracing the two necessary parts of forgiveness.
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It Wasn't Your Fault

Beverly Engel

Shame is one of the most destructive of human emotions. If you suffered childhood physical or sexual abuse, you may experience such intense feelings of shame that it almost seems to define you as a person. In order to begin healing, it's important for you to know that it wasn't your fault. In this gentle guide, therapist and childhood abuse expert Beverly Engel presents a mindfulness and compassion-based therapeutic approach to help you overcome the debilitating shame that keeps you tied to the past. By following the step-by-step exercises in this book, you'll gain a greater understanding of the root cause of your shame. And by cultivating compassion toward yourself, you will begin to heal and move past your painful experiences. Recent studies show that trauma survivors, particularly those with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) resulting from abuse, can greatly benefit from incorporating elements of self-compassion into their treatment. Furthermore, the practice of self-compassion has been shown to decrease PTSD symptoms, including, self-criticism, thought suppression, and rumination. This book is based on the author's powerful and effective Compassion Cure program. With this book, you will develop the skills needed to finally put a stop the crippling self-blame that keeps you from moving on and being happy. You'll learn to focus on your strengths, your courage, and your extraordinary ability to survive. Most of all, you'll learn to replace shame with its counter emotion--pride.

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Men Too

Dr Kelli Palfy

Male sexual abuse occurs far more commonly than previously suspected, yet too few victims ever seek support. Countless remain silent. They cope through avoidance, isolation, substance abuse, hyper-masculinity, etc.

Men Too: Unspoken Truths About Male Sexual Abuse is for male survivors and their supporters. It is an educational, heart-wrenching look at 13 male sexual abuse victims experience, written from the perspective of a retired police officer and registered psychologist.

Using their narrative accounts Dr. Palfy offers:

  • Healing for male victims through insight and support.
  • Strategies for parents and teachers to identify the grooming tactics of predators, plus suggestions to better protect children.
  • Information for helping professionals to recognize traumatized boys and men, plus explanations for why male victims often remain silent for so long.

Conversations about male sexual abuse need to increase. Men Too highlights the complex and unique barriers boys and men face during and after abuse. Help put them on the road to recovery.

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Let's Talk about Body Boundaries, Consent and Respect

Jayneen Sanders

Teaching young children about body boundaries, both theirs and others, is crucial to a child's growing sense of self, their confidence and how they should expect to be treated by others. A child growing up knowing they have a right to their own personal space, gives that child ownership and choices as to what happens to them and to their body. It is equally important a child understands, from a very young age, they need to respect another person's body boundary and ask for their consent when entering their personal space. This book explores these concepts with children in a child-friendly and easily-understood manner, providing familiar scenarios for children to engage with and discuss. It is important that the reader and the child take the time required to unpack each scenario and explore what they mean both to the character in the book, who may not be respecting someone's body boundary, and to the character who is being disrespected. It is through these vital discussions that children will learn the meaning of body boundaries, consent and respect. Learning these key social skills through such stories as 'Let's Talk About Body Boundaries, Consent and Respect' and role-modelling by significant adults can, importantly, carry forward into a child's teenage years and adult life.

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Not Quite Healed

Cecil Murphey

Survivors of sexual abuse face a long road to recovery. With every bump and bruise and setback, they may wonder if total healing is even possible. In fact, the feeling that "I should be healed by now" is one that every survivor will have to deal with at some time. A survivor himself, Cecil Murphey writes, "I absolutely affirm that God can produce such a miracle. I don't know of any, but I still think that it is possible."

So how are survivors to overcome the challenges they are sure to face? Finding strength in community with other survivors is one key to recovery. In Not Quite Healed, two survivors join forces to share insight and encouragement on the issues that challenge them most. After a candid discussion about each issue, the authors provide a self-affirming statement that men can study, memorize, and recite on their darkest days--statements such as:
-Forgiveness is a difficult task for me, but it's a simple thing for God.
-Accountability is the first step to livability.
-God wants to heal my pain to bring healing to others.

Whether men are struggling with relying on God, living behind a mask, dealing with flashbacks and recurring dreams, or learning to forgive, Cecil Murphey and Gary Roe offer hope and comfort for the ongoing journey of recovery from sexual abuse.

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Protecting Your Child from Sexual Abuse

Elizabeth Jeglic

A guide that empowers and equips us with the right knowledge and concrete strategies to curb sexual violence on our children.

Sexual violence against our children is a real and everyday danger. Protecting them from the threat of sex predators is one of our top concerns and fears—for both parents and educators—as we send our sons and daughters off to school and play. Unfortunately, not many of us know the right way—or even how—to think about and address such a sensitive topic.

Protecting Your Child from Sexual Abuse empowers parents by providing much needed knowledge about a subject that is hard for many to discuss, much less take action on. Seeking both to present the right information as well as dispel misconceptions based on unfounded fears, this guide presents comprehensive research and evidence in an accessible way, equipping guardians with practical solutions, concrete tools, and tangible skills designed to keep kids of all ages—from child to tween to teen—safe from sex crimes. Learn about:

 

  • The realities of child sex offenders
  • How online registries function
  • What threats and risks exist online
  • What to do if you suspect abuse
  • How to develop open and honest communication with your children on these dangers.


With easily digestible facts and figures, highlighted key points, and discussion group questions, Protecting Your Child from Sexual Abuse is a necessary guide for any parenting or community group to begin the conversation—and develop sexual violence prevention strategies in their communities that will make a difference.

 

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Misinformation Concerning Child Sexual Abuse and Adult Survivors

Charles L. Whitfield

Successfully navigate the minefield of misinformation that can prevent justice from being done in child sexual abuse cases!

From the Foreword, by Robert Geffner, PhD, editor of the Journal of Child Sexual Abuse: “Too often, the public and some professionals have been misled by media publicity and articles . . . that appear scientific, but in reality, are biased opinions or over-generalized research. Forensic cases are being decided in many courts based upon the recommendations of so-called 'expert witnesses’who do not actually know the clinical research or understand the dynamics of such abusive relationships.”

This much-needed book points out and corrects misinformation that everyone who works with victims, offenders, or families in which sexual abuse has occurred needs to understand clearly. Especially vital in today's political climate, Misinformation Concerning Child Sexual Abuse and Adult Survivors gives you state-of-the-science information on such myths as “false memory syndrome,” “recovered memory therapy,” and the “lack of harm” to some sexually abused boys.

Misinformation Concerning Child Sexual Abuse and Adult Survivors examines:

  • forensic issues, including the “false memory” defense and how the long-term impact of childhood sexual abuse is often misrepresented in court
  • three separate expert examinations of Rind, Tromovitch, and Bauserman's well-known--and often misrepresented--review of long-term child sexual abuse outcomes
  • treatment recommendations and guidelines for addressing the memory controversy in clinical practice
  • the fascinating case history/cautionary tale of the child molester Robert Halsey, who was convicted and sentenced to two life sentences in 1993, and how public and academic resources were misused to claim he was wrongly convicted
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Psychopath Free (Expanded Edition)

Jackson MacKenzie

 

 

From the author of Whole Again comes a significantly expanded edition of Psychopath Free—containing new chapters, updated content, and real survivor experiences—that will help you recover from emotionally abusive relationships with narcissists, sociopaths, and other toxic people.Have you ever been in a relationship with a psychopath? Chances are, even if you did, you would never know it. Psychopaths are cunning charmers and master manipulators, to the point where you start to accept the most extreme behaviors as normal...Even if it hurts you.
 
All around us, every single day, human beings devoid of empathy are wreaking havoc and destroying lives in the coldest, most heartless ways imaginable. In constant pursuit of money, sex, influence, or simple entertainment, psychopaths will do whatever it takes to gain power over others. They hide behind a veil of normalcy, arranging their friends and partners like pawns in a game of chess.
 
Using false praise and flattery to get what they want, they can lure any unsuspecting target into a relationship.  Once hooked, their charming promises spin into mind games and psychological torture. Victims are left devastated and confused, unable to recognize—or even put into words—the nightmare that just took place.
 
Written from the heart, Psychopath Free is the first guide for survivors written by a survivor, offering hope for healing and thriving after psychopathic abuse. Say goodbye to the chaos, self-doubt, and victimization. You are free.

 

 

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Beyond Betrayal

Richard B. Gartner

"With compassion and clarity, Richard Gartner shares insights from years of working with male survivors. Among this book's greatest strengths is the extensive use of examples from Dr. Gartner's clinical practice to illustrate problems and solutions on the path to healing. Beyond Betrayal offers support, encouragement, and useful skills to men in recovery."
--Mike Lew, M.Ed., author of Victims No Longer and Leaping upon the Mountains

"If you have been sexually abused, this book will give you information, hope, direction, and most importantly, the assurance that you are not alone. Dr. Gartner has written an accessible, compassionate book that clearly lays out the healing process for men who were hurt or abused as children. Whether you were abused by a mother, a camp counselor, a neighborhood boy, or a priest, Beyond Betrayal will give you the tools you need to reclaim your life and move on. If you're going to take one book with you on the healing journey, this should be the one."
--Laura Davis, coauthor of The Courage to Heal and author of The Courage to Heal Workbook

"Compassionate, insightful, and hopeful, Beyond Betrayal shines a bright light. It is a must-read for anyone concerned."
--Kenneth M. Adams, Ph.D., author of Silently Seduced

"Beyond Betrayal cuts through the shame, confusion, misunderstanding, and fear that so often accompany the abuse of males and replaces them with clear information. I will begin to use it immediately with my patients and think that other clinicians will do so as well."
--Christine A. Courtois, Ph.D., author of Healing the Incest Wound and Recollections of Sexual Abuse

"Beyond Betrayal offers men straightforward words of hope and a meaningful way to overcome the invisibility, stigma, and shame they have endured. Many men and their families will find this book a healing aid."
--Jack Drescher, M.D., author of Psychoanalytic Therapy and the Gay Man

"Dr. Gartner writes in a manner any reader will find accessible. Not only does he understand the topic of males, sexual abuse, and recovery, but he can explain it to those who need to know."
--Dr. Mic Hunter, author of Abused Boys and editor of Adult Survivors of Sexual Abuse: Treatment Innovations

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New Beginnings

Doane

New Beginnings is an empowering book for any woman who has experienced an abusive relationship and wants to move forward with a new life. Using creative writing as part of the healing process, the book offers guidance, support, and concrete steps for rebuilding your self-confidence and rediscovering your personal strength and independence.
Each chapter presents a new topic, including first-person stories from formerly abused women, and a guided writing exercise that will spark your creativity and help you explore issues such as grieving and letting go of the old relationship, staying emotionally and physically safe after you have left, establishing a new network of friends and supporters, recognizing and nurturing new relationships that are healthy and satisfying, and setting new life goals - and achieving them.

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Violent Partners

Linda G. Mills

A radical new take on the crisis of intimate abuse, Violent Partners argues that as a culture we misunderstand the root causes and basic effects of abuse, and until that changes there is no hope of fixing the problem. Dr. Linda Mills challenges assumptions, tears down myths, and offer solutions, all the while telling riveting stories of couples who have conquered violence in their relationships. In Violent Partners, she describes several programs that hold promise for addressing intimate abuse, including two nationally known and groundbreaking treatment programs-Peacemaking Circles and Healing Circles. Controversial, provocative, and accessible, Violent Partners is unlike any other book on abuse and relationships, and highlights in great detail the complexities of violence through the stories of men and women who have acknowledged their abuse and sought to do something about it. This is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand violence in their own relationship, friends and family members of victims and abusers, and legal and mental health practitioners looking for a new and valuable approach to treating couples in crisis.

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Violence against Women in Kentucky

Carol E. Jordan

For more than two centuries, Kentucky women have fought for the right to vote, own property, control their wages, and be safe at home and in the workplace. Tragically, many of these women's voices have been silenced by abuse and violence. In Violence against Women in Kentucky: A History of U.S. and State Legislative Reform, Carol E. Jordan chronicles the stories of those who have led the legislative fight for the last four decades to protect women from domestic violence, rape, stalking, and related crimes.

The story of Kentucky's legislative reforms is a history of substantial toil, optimism, advocacy, and personal sacrifice by those who proposed the change. This compelling narrative illustrates, through their own points of view, the stories of survivors who serve as inspiration for change. Jordan analyzes national legislative reforms as well as the strategies that have been used to enact and enforce legislation addressing rape and domestic violence at a local level.

Violence against Women in Kentucky is the first book to look at the history of domestic violence and rape in a state that consistently falls at the bottom of women's rights rankings, as told by the activists and survivors who fought for change. Detailing the successes and failures of reforms and outlining the work that is still to be done, this volume reflects on the future of women's rights legislation in Kentucky.

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Beyond Bruises

Sherri Mabry Gordon

Abuse, in the form of domestic violence, relational abuse, or bullying, is a problem faced by many children and teens today. Sherri Mabry Gordon looks at different kinds of abuse and what teens can do if they are being abused or know someone who is. She also explores what communities can do to help end the violence.

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Escaping Domestic Abuse

Jane Boucher

In this revealing book, you will meet courageous women who broke away from abusive relationships to escape the agonizing pain and find lasting peace. You, too, will recognize the signs of abuse, conquer timidity and helpless dependency, develop the strength to start over, heal your emotional and physical scars, defeat the fear of being alone, and enjoy healthy relationships. Physical battery is the number one cause of injuries among women--more than automobile accidents, rapes, and muggings combined. Are you one of the women who are being abused? You can escape the controlling power of your abuser.

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No Visible Bruises

Rachel Louise Snyder

WINNER OF THE HILLMAN PRIZE FOR BOOK JOURNALISM, THE HELEN BERNSTEIN BOOK AWARD, AND THE LUKAS WORK-IN-PROGRESS AWARD * A NEW YORK TIMES TOP 10 BOOKS OF THE YEAR * NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST * LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE FINALIST * ABA SILVER GAVEL AWARD FINALIST * KIRKUS PRIZE FINALIST

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF 2019 BY: Esquire, Amazon, Kirkus, Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, BookPage, BookRiot, Economist, New York Times Staff Critics

“A seminal and breathtaking account of why home is the most dangerous place to be a woman . . . A tour de force.” —Eve Ensler

"Terrifying, courageous reportage from our internal war zone." —Andrew Solomon

"Extraordinary." —New York Times ,“Editors' Choice”

“Gut-wrenching, required reading.” —Esquire

"Compulsively readable . . . It will save lives." —Washington Post

“Essential, devastating reading.” —Cheryl Strayed, New York Times Book Review

An award-winning journalist’s intimate investigation of the true scope of domestic violence, revealing how the roots of America's most pressing social crises are buried in abuse that happens behind closed doors.

We call it domestic violence. We call it private violence. Sometimes we call it intimate terrorism. But whatever we call it, we generally do not believe it has anything at all to do with us, despite the World Health Organization deeming it a “global epidemic.” In America, domestic violence accounts for 15 percent of all violent crime, and yet it remains locked in silence, even as its tendrils reach unseen into so many of our most pressing national issues, from our economy to our education system, from mass shootings to mass incarceration to #MeToo. We still have not taken the true measure of this problem.

In No Visible Bruises, journalist Rachel Louise Snyder gives context for what we don’t know we’re seeing. She frames this urgent and immersive account of the scale of domestic violence in our country around key stories that explode the common myths—that if things were bad enough, victims would just leave; that a violent person cannot become nonviolent; that shelter is an adequate response; and most insidiously that violence inside the home is a private matter, sealed from the public sphere and disconnected from other forms of violence. Through the stories of victims, perpetrators, law enforcement, and reform movements from across the country, Snyder explores the real roots of private violence, its far-reaching consequences for society, and what it will take to truly address it.

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All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages

Saundra Mitchell

Take a journey through time and genres to discover stories where queer teens live, love, and shape the world around them.

Seventeen young adult authors across the queer spectrum have come together to create a collection of beautifully written diverse historical fiction for teens.

From a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood set in war-torn 1870s Mexico featuring a transgender soldier...to two girls falling in love while mourning the death of Kurt Cobain...to forbidden love in a sixteenth-century Spanish convent...and an asexual girl discovering her identity amid the 1970s roller-disco scene, All Out tells a diverse range of stories across cultures, time periods, and identities, shedding light on an area of history often ignored or forgotten.

"Readers searching for positive, nuanced, and authentic queer representation--or just a darn good selection of stories--need look no further than this superb collection."
--Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Featuring original stories from:
Malinda Lo
Mackenzi Lee
Robin Talley
Kody Keplinger
Elliot Wake
Anna-Marie McLemore
Shaun David Hutchinson
Dahlia Adler
Tess Sharpe
Kate Scelsa
Natalie C. Parker
Sara Farizan
Nilah Magruder
Tessa Gratton
Tehlor Kay Mejia
Alex Sanchez
Scott Tracey

Read the entire set of companion anthologies featuring queer teens in the past, present, and future!
All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens throughout the Ages
Out Now: Queer We Go Again!
Out There: Into the Queer New Yonder (coming soon!)

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Queer

Meg-John Barker

Activist-academic Meg John Barker and cartoonist Julia Scheele illuminate the histories of queer thought and LGBTQ+ action in this groundbreaking non-fiction graphic novel. A kaleidoscope of characters from the diverse worlds of pop-culture, film, activism and academia guide us on a journey through the ideas, people and events that have shaped 'queer theory'.

From identity politics and gender roles to privilege and exclusion, Queer explores how we came to view sex, gender and sexuality in the ways that we do; how these ideas get tangled up with our culture and our understanding of biology, psychology and sexology; and how these views have been disputed and challenged.

Along the way we look at key landmarks which shift our perspective of what's 'normal', such as Alfred Kinsey's view of sexuality as a spectrum between heterosexuality and homosexuality, Judith Butler's view of gendered behavior as a performance, the play Wicked, which reinterprets characters from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, or moments in Casino Royale when we're invited to view James Bond with the kind of desiring gaze usually directed at female bodies in mainstream media.

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Gay Poems for Red States

Willie Edward Taylor Carver

No one will protect you. Months after being named the 2022 Kentucky Teacher of the Year, Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr. announced his decision to leave the public school system. His career as a high school English teacher had spanned more than a decade but ended abruptly--another casualty of the cruel and dangerous anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination that is creeping back into the halls of government and the homes of Americans. At the beginning of Carver's career, an administrator warned him about discussing his otherwise openly gay identity at work: "No one will protect you, including me." A new administration allowed for more freedom, but the initial warning eventually rang true. School officials failed repeatedly to address harassment of students and of Carver himself, until he could no longer endure such a purposeful deterioration of human rights. While Carver's testimony before the House of Representatives brought much-needed attention to the need for protections for LGBTQ+ people in schools, the damage was done.

In Gay Poems for Red States, Carver counters the injustice of a persistent anti-LGBTQ+ movement by asserting that a life full of beauty and pride is possible for everyone. More than a collection of poetry, Carver's earnest and heartfelt verses are for those wishing to discover and understand the vastness of Appalachia, and for the LGBTQ+ Appalachians who long for a future--for a home--in an often unwelcoming place.

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The 2000s Made Me Gay

Grace Perry

From The Onion and Reductress contributor, this collection of essays is a hilarious nostalgic trip through beloved 2000s media, interweaving cultural criticism and personal narrative to examine how a very straight decade forged a very queer woman

A Lambda Literary Award Finalist

"Honest, funny, smart, and illuminating.” —Anna Drezen, co-head writer of SNL

"If you came of age at the intersection of Mean Girls and The L Word: Read this book.” —Sarah Pappalardo, editor in chief and co-founder of Reductress

Today’s gay youth have dozens of queer peer heroes, both fictional and real, but former gay teenager Grace Perry did not have that luxury. Instead, she had to search for queerness in the (largely straight) teen cultural phenomena the aughts had to offer: in Lindsay Lohan’s fall from grace, Gossip Girl, Katy Perry’s “I Kissed A Girl,” country-era Taylor Swift, and Seth Cohen jumping on a coffee cart. And, for better or worse, these touch points shaped her adult identity. She came out on the other side like many millennials did: in her words, gay as hell.

Throw on your Von Dutch hats and join Grace on a journey back through the pop culture moments of the aughts, before the cataclysmic shift in LGBTQ representation and acceptance—a time not so long ago, which many seem to forget.

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Silas House

Sylvia Bailey Shurbutt

"Bestselling author, music journalist, playwright, and activist Silas House has focused nearly all of his work on Appalachia, its people, and its cultures. His acclaimed and diverse body of work includes the novels Clay's Quilt, A Parchment of Leaves, The Coal Tattoo, Eli the Good, and Southernmost. Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Studs Terkel praised his book Something's Rising: Appalachians Fighting Mountaintop Removal, coauthored with Jason Kyle Howard, as "oral history at its best." Well known for its lyrical style, diverse and sympathetic characters, and political engagement, House's work is overdue for deeper critical study. In this groundbreaking book, editor Sylvia Shurbutt brings together established and rising scholars to discuss the author and his writings through a critical lens. Various chapters address different aspects of House's fiction and nonfiction, including the ways in which he deconstructs regional stereotypes, how he explores issues of diversity, and how House-a musician himself-infuses his writing with music and musical motif's. The contributors also consider his environmental activism and his approach to LGBTQ issues. The collection concludes with a chapter by celebrated poet Maurice Manning exploring the lyricism that distinguishes House's work and a foreword by Denise Giardina. Featuring an interview with the author that further illuminates his philosophy and art, this timely volume offers an important critical appraisal of Silas House's oeuvre to date and illustrates why he is one of the most engaging voices in Appalachian and American literature today"--

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Stonewall Riots

Gayle E Pitman

In The Stonewall Riots: Coming Out in the Streets, Gayle E. Pitman's "fresh storytelling brings emotion and depth to the history of a movement and the establishment that served as an epicenter for social change" (Publishers Weekly).

The Stonewall Riots were a series of spontaneous, often violent demonstrations by members of the gay (LGBTQ+) community in reaction to a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. The Riots are attributed as the spark that ignited the LGBTQ+ movement.

The author describes American gay history leading up to the Riots, the Riots themselves, and the aftermath, and includes her interviews of people involved or witnesses, including a woman who was 10 at the time. Profusely illustrated, the book includes contemporary photos, newspaper clippings, and other period objects. A timely and necessary read, The Stonewall Riots helps readers to understand the history and legacy of the LGBTQ+ movement.

"With meaningful content delivered in an innovative format, The Stonewall Riots deserves to be required reading for people of all ages." --Shelf Awareness (Starred Review)

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Stonewall: A Building. An Uprising. A Revolution

Rob Sanders

Celebrate Pride every day with the very first picture book to tell of its historic and inspiring role in the gay civil rights movement, from the author of the acclaimed Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag.

A powerful and timeless true story that will allow young readers to discover the rich and dynamic history of the Stonewall Inn and its role in the LGBTQ+ civil rights movement--a movement that continues to this very day. In the early-morning hours of June 28, 1969, the Stonewall Inn was raided by police in New York City. Though the inn had been raided before, that night would be different. It would be the night when empowered members of the LGBTQ+ community--in and around the Stonewall Inn--began to protest and demand their equal rights as citizens of the United States.
Movingly narrated by the Stonewall Inn itself, and featuring stirring and dynamic illustrations, Stonewall: A Building. An Uprising. A Revolution is an essential and empowering civil rights story that every child deserves to hear.

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Stonewall

Martin Duberman

 

The definitive account of the Stonewall Riots, the first gay rights march, and the LGBTQ activists at the center of the movement. 
“Martin Duberman is a national treasure.”—Masha Gessen, The New Yorker

On June 28, 1969, the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York's Greenwich Village, was raided by police. But instead of responding with the typical compliance the NYPD expected, patrons and a growing crowd decided to fight back. The five days of rioting that ensued changed forever the face of gay and lesbian life.

In Stonewall, renowned historian and activist Martin Duberman tells the full story of this pivotal moment in history. With riveting narrative skill, he re-creates those revolutionary, sweltering nights in vivid detail through the lives of six people who were drawn into the struggle for LGBTQ rights. Their stories combine to form an unforgettable portrait of the repression that led up to the riots, which culminates when they triumphantly participate in the first gay rights march of 1970, the roots of today's pride marches. 

Fifty years after the riots, Stonewall remains a rare work that evokes with a human touch an event in history that still profoundly affects life today.

 

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