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77 Reasons Why Your Book Was Rejected
by Mike NappaA straightforward, practical reference for aspiring authors, 77 Reasons Why Your Book Was Rejected details the various reasons why editors and agents reject book ideas and pinpoints the mistakes that writers most often make in their proposals. This is an engaging resource for aspiring writers, delivering insider information on why editors and agents decline books and, more importantly, how to get them to stop passing on yours.
5 Steps to Decode your Dreams
by Gillian HollowayBeloved by dream experts and readers, this is a "practical, comprehensive guide" that is "especially useful for people who are baffled by the bizarre content of their dreams. " (editor of Dreamtime and Dreamwork). It's a short, quick, and easy method for dream interpretation that anyone can learn, based on a five-step method for identifying the revealing elements in any dream and using them to positive effect in daily life. Examples demonstrate how people have used the insights derived from their dreams to avoid danger, solve problems, and let go of negative patterns.
Fiske Real College Essays that Work 3E
by Edward B. Fiske Bruce G. HammondFrom the most trusted name in college admission resources comes the first application–essay book designed for those who need it most–bright students who aren't natural writers. By providing more than 100 real sample essays, college experts Edward Fiske and Bruce Hammond give students an all–inclusive guide to writing an application essay that will open the door to the college of their choice. Includes samples written with all degrees of proficiency and describes how to edit an essay, from initial draft to final submission.
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, (DSM-IV), 4th edition
by American Psychiatric AssociationSince the DSM-IV was published in 1994, we've seen many advances in our knowledge of psychiatric illness. This Text Revision incorporates information culled from a comprehensive literature review of research about mental disorders published since DSM-IV was completed in 1994. Updated information is included about the associated features, culture, age, and gender features, prevalence, course, and familial pattern of mental disorders. The DSM-IV-TR brings this essential diagnostic tool up-to-date, to promote effective diagnosis, treatment, and quality of care. Now you can get all the essential diagnostic information you rely on from the DSM-IV along with important updates not found in the 1994 edition. Stay current with important updates to DSM-IV-TR TM. Benefit from new research into Schizophrenia, Asperger's Disorder, and other conditions Utilize additional information about the epidemiology and other facets of DSM conditions Update ICD-9-CM codes implemented since 1994 (including Conduct,Disorder, Dementia, Somatoform Disorders) Sections on prevalence, gender/age/culture, course, and familial pattern have also been revised to reflect recent research findings. More comprehensive differential diagnoses have been incorporated for many of the disorders.
Virtual Words: Language on the Edge of Science and Technology
by Jonathon KeatsThe technological realm provides an unusually active laboratory not only for new ideas and products but also for the remarkable linguistic innovations that accompany and describe them. How else would words like qubit(a unit of quantum information), crowdsourcing (outsourcing to the masses), orin vitro meat (chicken and beef grown in an industrial vat) enter our language? In Virtual Words: Language on the Edge of Science and Technology, Jonathon Keats, author of Wired Magazine's monthly Jargon Watch column, investigates the interplay between words and ideas in our fast-paced tech-driven use-it-or-lose-it society. In 28 illuminating short essays, Keats examines how such words get coined, what relationship they have to their subject matter, and why some, like blog, succeed while others, like flog, fail. Divided into broad categories--such as commentary, promotion, and slang, in addition to scientific and technological neologisms--chapters each consider one exemplary word, its definition, origin, context, and significance. Examples range from microbiome(the collective genome of all microbes hosted by the human body) and unparticle(a form of matter lacking definite mass) to gene foundry (a laboratory where artificial life forms are assembled) and singularity (a hypothetical future moment when technology transforms the whole universe into a sentient supercomputer). Together these words provide not only a survey of technological invention and its consequences, but also a fascinating glimpse of novel language as it comes into being. No one knows this emerging lexical terrain better than Jonathon Keats. In writing that is as inventive and engaging as the language it describes, Virtual Words offers endless delights for word-lovers, technophiles, and anyone intrigued by the essential human obsession with naming.
Emily Post's Wedding Parties
by Anna PostWeddings today are so much more than just the Big Day--the parties start months ahead and continue well afterward. This portable guide is perfect for anyone involved in the many parties surrounding weddings. In Part 1, "It's a Party!" Anna Post covers the vital stats of each party, be it an engagement celebration, couples' shower, (bachelor)ette party, wedding week spa getaway, rehearsal dinner, reception, farewell brunch, or belated reception. Part 2, "Party Smarts," is packed with party-giving expertise to make every occasion a success: planning tips; figuring out finances; choosing food, flowers, and music; invitation how-to; handling uninvited guests and RSVP slackers; finding the perfect gift; making introductions and toasts; and more. Looking for ways to throw a super shower on a budget? Wondering if it's OK to e-mail invitations? Tongue-tied writing thank-you notes? Need ideas for adding just the right touch of style to everything from a garden barbecue to a seated dinner? It's all here. Whatever the occasion and whether you're the bride, host, or guest, Anna Post helps make every wedding party wonderful.
Doc Halligan's What Every Pet Owner Should Know
by Karen HalliganKeep your pets happy and healthy with this complete guide to pet healthcare. Dr. Karen Halligan is one of the country's most respected, leading authorities on preventative healthcare for pets. Doc Halligan's What Every Pet Owner Should Know offers real-life, useful tips for pet owners who want to improve their pets' health while still lowering veterinarian bills. In this first-of-its-kind, highly acclaimed book, Dr. Halligan shares her 20 years of veterinary expertise with pet owners. She provides a common sense, money-saving, and practical approach to pet healthcare and offers pet owners the information they need to avoid the emergency room and detect the most common signs of illness. Avoiding confusing medical jargon, Dr. Halligan offers well-organized chapters that guide pet owners through the various life stages of their dogs and cats and tips for every situation, from travel and holidays to disaster preparedness.
The Human Story
by James C. DavisHas there ever been a history of the world as readable as this? In The Human Story, James C. Davis takes us on a journey to ancient times, telling how peoples of the world settled down and founded cities, conquered neighbors, and established religions, and continues over the course of history, when they fought two nearly global wars and journeyed into space. Davis's account is swift and clear, never dull or dry. He lightens it with pungent anecdotes and witty quotes. Although this compact volume may not be hard to pick up, it's definitely hard to put down. For example, on the death of Alexander the Great, who in a decade had never lost a single battle, and who had staked out an empire that spanned the entire Near East and Egypt, Davis writes: "When they heard how ill he was, the king's devoted troops insisted on seeing him. He couldn't speak, but as his soldiers -- every one -- filed by in silence, Alexander's eyes uttered his farewells. He died in June 323 B.C., at the ripe old age of thirty-two." In similar fashion Davis recounts Russia's triumph in the space race as it happened on an autumn night in 1957: "A bugle sounded, flames erupted, and with a roar like rolling thunder, Russia's rocket lifted off. It bore aloft the earth's first artificial satellite, a shiny sphere the size of a basketball. Its name was Sputnik, meaning 'companion' or 'fellow traveler' (through space). The watchers shouted, 'Off. She's off. Our baby's off!' Some danced; others kissed and waved their arms." Though we live in an age of many doubts, James C. Davis thinks we humans are advancing. As The Human Story ends, he concludes, "The world's still cruel; that's understood, / But once was worse. So far so good."
Mental Floss Presents Condensed Knowledge
by Will Pearson Mangesh Hattikudur Elizabeth HuntLoaded with meaty trivia and tasty, bite-sized facts! mental_floss is proud to offer a delicious, hearty helping of brain-food that's sure to fire up your neurons and tantalize your synapses. Condensed Knowledge is a mouthwatering mix of intriguing facts, lucid explanations, and mind-blowing theories that will satisfy even the hungriest mind! Ingredients include: 5 tiny nations that get no respect * 4 civilizations nobody remembers * 5 classics written under the influence * 4 things your boss has in common with slime mold * 3 schools of thought that will impress the opposite sex * 4 things Einstein got wrong * 5 classical tunes you know from the movies * 3 famous studies that would be illegal today * 2 religious mysteries solved by chemistry * 5 scandals that rocked art, and much more ...
Mental Floss Presents Instant Knowledge
by Editors Of Mental FlossMental_floss is proud to present a full-bodied jolt of inspiration for thirsty minds on the go. Blended with titillating facts, startling revelations, and head-scratching theories collected from around the world, Instant Knowledge will jumpstart riveting exchanges at cocktail parties, the watercooler, or any powwow. To experience the clean, rich flavor at home, just tear into a topic of your choice, and add conversation. It's that simple!
The Modern Girl's Guide to Life
by Jane BuckinghamA stylishly smart collection of practical advice for the busy modern woman With information on entertaining, etiquette, housekeeping, basic home repair, decorating, sex, and beauty, this indispensable book has everything today's young woman should know-but may not! The Modern Girl's Guide to Life is a collection of all the helpful tips and secrets that get passed on from generation to generation, but many of us have somehow missed. It's full of practical, definitive advice on the basics -- the day-to-day necessities like finding a bra that fits, balancing a checkbook, making a decent cup of coffee, and hemming a pair of pants. Modern Girl guru Jane Buckingham includes loads of savvy counsel to help us feel more refined, in charge, and together as we navigate the rocky terrain that is twenty-first-century womanhood.
Not Quite What I Was Planning
by Rachel Fershleiser Larry SmithDeceptively simple and surprisingly addictive, Not Quite What I Was Planning is a thousand glimpses of humanity-six words at a time. One Life. Six Words. What's Yours? When Hemingway famously wrote, "For Sale: baby shoes, never worn," he proved that an entire story can be told using a half dozen words. When the online storytelling magazine SMITH asked readers to submit six-word memoirs, they proved a whole, real life can be told this way too. The results are fascinating, hilarious, shocking, and moving. From small sagas of bittersweet romance ("Found true love, married someone else") to proud achievements and stinging regrets ("After Harvard, had baby with crackhead"), these terse true tales relate the diversity of human experience in tasty bite-sized pieces. From authors Jonathan Lethem and Richard Ford to comedians Stephen Colbert and Amy Sedaris, to ordinary folks around the world, everyone has a six-word story to tell.
One-Letter Words, a Dictionary
by Craig ConleyMerriam-Webster, move over! Until now, no English dictionary ever found the fun or the fascination in revealing the meanings of letters. One-Letter Words, a Dictionary illuminates the more than 1,000 surprising definitions associated with each letter in the English alphabet. For instance, Conley uncovers seventy-six distinct uses of the letter X, the most versatile, most printed letter in the English language. Using facts, figures, quotations, and etymologies, the author provides a complete and enjoyable understanding of the one-letter word. Conley teaches us that each letter's many different meanings span multiple subjects, including science-B denotes a blood type and also is a symbol for boron on the periodic table of elements-and history-in the Middle Ages, B was branded on a blasphemer's forehead. With the letter A, he reminds us that A is not only a bra size, but also a musical note. One-Letter Words, a Dictionary is a rich, thought-provoking, and curious compendium of the myriad definitions attributed to each letter of the English alphabet. This book is the essential desk companion, gift, or reference volume for a vast array of readers: wordsmiths, puzzle lovers, teachers, students, librarians, and armchair linguists will all find One-Letter Words, a Dictionary a must-have.
Mental Floss Presents Forbidden Knowledge
by Editors Of Mental FlossThink of anything bad, from art heists to Genghis Kahn, and it's likely to be included in this wickedly smart and humorous guide to the seedy underbelly of basically everything. The brainiac team at "mental_floss", creators of the hit magazine and last year's Condensed Knowledge, have scoured the darkest, dirtiest corners of history and the globe to gather this ultimate collection of the bad stuff you're not supposed to know and you certainly never learned in school. Organized by theme, with chapters for each of the seven deadly sins, the book includes feuds, plagiarists, hoaxes, lies, schemes, scandals, evil dictators, mob bosses, acts of revenge, angry queens, cannibals and much more, all organized into bite-sized--albeit foul-tasting--lists (i.e."The Fascist Style Guide: Five Dictator Grooming Tips", "Four Biblical Girls Gone Wild" and "Three Delicious Animals We Charbroiled Into Extinction."). It's the perfect way to add some spice to a dull conversation and proves that learning can be not only easy, but exquisitely sinful.
The Pocket Guide to the Saints
by Richard P. McbrienThis pocket edition of Richard McBrien's Lives of the Saints is the perfect concise, handy reference for scholars, students, and general readers.
The Pocket Guide to the Popes
by Richard P. McbrienThis pocket edition of Richard McBrien's acclaimed Lives of the Popes is a practical quick reference tool for scholars, students, and anyone needing just a few concise facts about all the popes, from St. Peter to Benedict XVI.
Don't Know Much About the Bible
by Kenneth C. DavisWith wit, wisdom, and an extraordinary talent for turning dry, difficult reading into colorful and realistic accounts, the creator of the bestselling Don't Know Much About®, series now brings the world of the Old and New testaments to life as no one else can in the bestseller Don't Know Much About® The Bible. Relying on new research and improved translations, Davis uncovers some amazing questions and contradictions about what the Bible really says. Jericho's walls may have tumbled down because the city lies on a fault line. Moses never parted the Red Sea. There was a Jesus, but he wasn't born on Christmas and he probably wasn't an only child. Davis brings readers up-to-date on findings gleaned from the Dead Sea Scrolls and Gnostic Gospels that prompt serious scholars to ask such serious questions as: Who wrote the Bible? Did Jesus say everything we were taught he did? Did he say more? By examining the Bible historically, Davis entertains and amazes, provides a much better understanding of the subject, and offers much more fun learning about it.
Don't Know Much About Anything
by Kenneth C. DavisIn his wildly entertaining, winningly irreverent, New York Times bestselling Don't Know Much About® series, author Kenneth C. Davis has amused and edified us with fascinating facts about history, mythology, the Bible, the universe, geography, and the Civil War. Now, the sky's the limit in his latest irresistible installment--a grand tour of knowledge that carries us from the Great Smoky Mountains to the Berlin Wall, from the Salem Witch Trials to Watergate, from Michelangelo to Houdini. Brimming with busted myths, gripping true stories, and peculiar particulars about a plethora of people, places, and events, this captivating compendium is guaranteed to delight information lovers everywhere as it feeds our insatiable appetite to know everything!
Do Elephants Jump?
by David FeldmanPonder, if you will ... Where do you find fascinating explanations for a multitude of mysteries? Why do pianos have 88 keys? How does the hole get in the needle of a syringe? Why is peanut butter sticky? Pop culture guru David Feldman demystifies these questions and much more in Do Elephants Jump? One of the Imponderables® series -- the unchallenged source of answers to civilization's everyday mysteries -- and charmingly illustrated by Kassie Schwan, this book provides you with small mysteries that puzzle and amaze us.
Why Do Pirates Love Parrots?
by David FeldmanAre you the type of person who stays up nights wondering how they get the paper tag into Hershey's Kisses? Or why portholes are round? Even if you don't lose sleep over such matters, you have to admit that such questions are, well, worthy of consideration. Here, from David Feldman, creator of the Imponderables® series, are the latest questions on the minds of his devoted readers and fans. No question from his readers is too small or obscure for Feldman to tackle. From the return of red M&Ms (they are back, if you've missed it) to new-car smell, the answers to life's little mysteries are dissected in these pages. Although it's all done in great fun, there is also an educational edge to the answers, as Feldman ferrets out top experts in diverse fields to come up with his entertaining answers. And their answers may surprise you-from the detailed physics involved in why cans of Diet Coke float but regular Coke doesn't, all the way to why they put crinkly paper into pairs of men's socks (but only one sock, not both). Complete with drawings by longtime Imponderables® illustrator Kassie Schwan, and a special section updating answers to questions in previous books in the series, this eleventh book of Imponderables® is sure to entertain the thousands of Feldman fans who have purchased over 2 million copies to date. Prepare to be delighted!
Don't Know Much About Anything Else
by Kenneth C. DavisFor years, Kenneth C. Davis has enlightened and enthralled us, opening our minds and tickling our fancies with his wonderfully irreverent, fun, and factual Don't Know Much About® books. He has carried readers on wild and edifying rides through history, mythology, geography, the Bible, the Civil War, even across the universe. Now, following on the heels of his triumphant New York Times bestseller Don't Know Much About® Anything, comes Don't Know Much About® Anything Else, his latest one-stop potpourri of intriguing information. Chock-full of delightful historical snippets and fascinating people, remarkable milestones and boneheaded blunders, and eye-opening, brain-boggling facts about simply anything and everything in the world, here is the ideal companion for those long car rides, plane flights, quality family hours, or relaxing downtime.
Why Do Clocks Run Clockwise?
by David FeldmanPonder, if you will ... What is the difference between a kit and a caboodle? Why don't people get goose bumps on their faces? Where do houseflies go in the winter? What causes that ringing sound in your ears? Pop-culture guru David Feldman demystifies these topics and so much more in Why Do Clocks Run Clockwise? -- the unchallenged source of answers to civilization's most nagging questions. Part of the Imponderables® series and charmingly illustrated by Kassie Schwan, Why Do Clocks Run Clockwise? challenges readers with the knowledge about everyday life that encyclopedias, dictionaries, and almanacs just don't have. And think about it, where else are you going to get to the bottom of why hot dogs come ten to a package while hot dog buns come in eights?
When Do Fish Sleep?
by David FeldmanPonder, if you will ... Why are tennis balls fuzzy? How come birds don't tip over when they sleep on telephone wires? What makes yawning contagious? Why, oh why, do roosters have to crow so early in the morning? Pop-culture guru David Feldman demystifies these topics and so much more in When Do Fish Sleep? -- the unchallenged source of answers to civilization's most baffling questions. Part of the Imponderables® series and charmingly illustrated by Kassie Schwan, When Do Fish Sleep? arms readers with the knowledge about everyday life that encyclopedias, dictionaries, and almanacs just don't have. And think about it, where else are you going to get to the bottom of why Mickey Mouse has only four fingers?
Imponderables(R): Fun and Games
by David FeldmanIn gathering the most fascinating questions asked about sports and entertainment into a handy Gem format, pop culture guru David Feldman demystifies these and much more in Imponderables®: Fun and Games. Providing you with information you can't find in encyclopedias, dictionaries, or almanacs, Fun and Games is a fun look at the little things that make life so interesting.
Don't Know Much About Literature
by Kenneth C. DavisFrom Homer to Harry Potter, from Chaucer to Charlotte's Web, a compelling book of quizzes on history's most influential literary works and writers Did a whale named "Mocha Dick" inspire Melville's masterpiece? Who was the first poet to speak at a presidential inauguration? Which French-speaking high school football star shook up the literary world? Do you freeze when someone mentions Faulkner? When the conversation turns to the Odyssey, do you want to take a hike? Have no fear. For years, Kenneth C. Davis's New York Times bestselling Don't Know Much About® books have enlightened and enthralled us with a winning blend of fascinating facts and wonderfully irreverent fun. Now he sets his sights on our literary IQ in Don't Know Much About® Literature. With this rich treasure trove of knowledge and intriguing information about the world's great books and authors, Kenneth Davis and his daughter, Jenny, demystify Dracula, capture Kafka, and help you brush up on your BrontË in the inimitable and endlessly entertaining Don't Know Much About® style.