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Brother, Brother
by Clay CarmichaelThe day his grandmother dies, seventeen-year-old Billy "Brother" Grace discovers that he has a twin who has recently made headlines by nearly overdosing on drugs. His twin also happens to be the son of a powerful senator. His newly discovered family may not be all that interested in a cheery reunion, but Brother is determined to get answers. When he arrives on the secluded island off the coast of North Carolina where the senator and his family live, sparks will fly, old resentments will be released, and secrets revealed. Part coming-of-age story, part love story, Clay Carmichael's Brother, Brother is a book about finding out that who you are and where you come from aren't necessarily the same thing.
Twenty Minutes in Manhattan
by Michael SorkinEvery morning, the architect and writer Michael Sorkin walks downtown from his Greenwich Village apartment through Washington Square to his Tribeca office. Sorkin isn't in a hurry, and he never ignores his surroundings. Instead, he pays careful, close attention. And in TwentyMinutes in Manhattan, he explains what he sees, what he imagines, what he knows—giving us extraordinary access to the layers of history, the feats of engineering and artistry, and the intense social drama that take place along a simple twenty-minute walk.
A Pleasure and a Calling: A Novel
by Phil HoganA DELICIOUSLY UNSETTLING TALE OF PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE THAT DELVES INTO THE MIND OF A MAN WITH A CHILLING DOUBLE LIFE.Mr. Heming loves the leafy English village where he lives. As a local real estate agent, he knows every square inch of the town and sees himself as its protector, diligent in enforcing its quaint charm. Most people don't pay much attention to Mr. Heming; he is someone who fades easily into the background. But Mr. Heming pays attention to them. You see, he has the keys to their homes. In fact, he has the keys to every home he's ever sold in town. Over the years, he has kept them all so that he can observe his neighbors, not just on the street, but behind locked doors. Mr. Heming considers himself a connoisseur of the private lives of others. He is witness to the minutiae of their daily lives, the objects they care about, the secrets they keep. As details emerge about a troubled childhood, Mr. Heming's disturbing hobby begins to form a clear pattern, and the reasons behind it come into focus. But when the quiet routine of the village is disrupted by strange occurrences, including a dead body found in the backyard of a client's home, Mr. Heming realizes it may only be a matter of time before his secrets are found out. A brilliant portrait of one man's obsession, A Pleasure and a Calling by Phil Hogan is a darkly funny and utterly transfixing tale that will hold you under its spell.
Declining by Degrees: Higher Education at Risk
by Richard H. Hersh and John MerrowWhat is actually happening on college campuses in the years between admission and graduation? Not enough to keep America competitive, and not enough to provide our citizens with fulfilling lives.When A Nation at Risk called attention to the problems of our public schools in 1983, that landmark report provided a convenient "cover" for higher education, inadvertently implying that all was well on America's campuses.Declining by Degrees blows higher education's cover. It asks tough--and long overdue--questions about our colleges and universities. In candid, coherent, and ultimately provocative ways, Declining by Degrees reveals:- how students are being short-changed by lowered academic expectations and standards;-why many universities focus on research instead of teaching and spend more on recruiting and athletics than on salaries for professors;-why students are disillusioned;-how administrations are obsessed with rankings in news magazines rather than the quality of learning;-why the media ignore the often catastrophic results; and-how many professors and students have an unspoken "non-aggression pact" when it comes to academic effort.Declining by Degrees argues persuasively that the multi-billion dollar enterprise of higher education has gone astray. At the same time, these essays offer specific prescriptions for change, warning that our nation is in fact at greater risk if we do nothing.
Our Better Angels: Seven Simple Virtues That Will Change Your Life and the World
by Jonathan ReckfordInspiring and insightful, Our Better Angels: Seven Simple Virtues That Will Change Your Life and the World celebrates the shared principles that unite and enable us to overcome life’s challenges together.“When the waters rise, so do our better angels.”—President Jimmy CarterJonathan Reckford, the CEO of Habitat for Humanity, has seen time and again the powerful benefits that arise when people from all walks of life work together to help one another. In this uplifting book, he shares true stories of people involved with Habitat as volunteers and future homeowners who embody seven timeless virtues—kindness, community, empowerment, joy, respect, generosity, and service—and shows how we can all practice these to improve the quality of our own lives as well as those around us.A Vietnam veteran finds peace where he was once engaged in war. An impoverished single mother offers her family’s time and energy to enrich their neighbors’ lives. A Zambian family of nine living in a makeshift tent makes room to shelter even more. A teenager grieving for his mother honors her love and memory by ensuring other people have a place to call home. A former president of the United States leads by example with a determined work ethic that motivates everyone around him to be the best version of themselves.These stories, and many others, illustrate how virtues become values, how cooperation becomes connection, and how even the smallest act of compassion can encourage actions that transform the world around us. Here are tales that will make readers laugh and cry and embrace with passion the calling of our better angels to change the way we take care of ourselves, our families, our communities, and the world.
Loose Cannon
by Dean IngFrom the bestselling author of The Ransom of Black Stealth OneDean Ing returns to his fascination with experimental aircraft, but this time instead of the big jets of The Ransom of Black Stealth One, this one is about smaller, more insidious flying machines.Rob Tarrant is a genius at designing flying things, and his work for General Standards Corporation has yielded more than one patent for the aviation giant. But Tarrant's hobby is building miniature UAVs -- Unmanned Arial Vehicles, tiny remote controlled drones. They could be toys, but Tarrant's latest version is so small, and so stable, that he thinks he might be able to mount other miniaturized technology on board: chemical analyzers, or listening devices.Being a good company man, Tarrant plans to give his little flying machine design to General Standards. But from the moment he describes the project to his boss, his life becomes a living hell -- for Tarrant has succeeded in building a device that has been the subject of a dozen top secret research projects. And everyone wants to stop him before he shows his new toys to the whole world.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
The Way to Game the Walk of Shame
by Jenn P. NguyenA 2017 Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, this witty and entertaining contemporary debut deftly combines high school drama with pitch-perfect flirty banter. Taylor Simmons is screwed. Things were hard enough when her dedication to her studies earned her the title of Ice Queen, but after she got drunk at a party and woke up next to bad boy surfer Evan McKinley, the entire school seems intent on tearing Taylor down with mockery and gossip. Desperate to salvage her reputation, Taylor persuades Evan to pretend they're in a serious romantic relationship. After all, it's better to be the girl who tames the wild surfer than just another notch on his surfboard.Readers will be ready to sign their own love contract after reading The Way to Game the Walk of Shame, a fun and addicting contemporary YA romance by Jenn P. Nguyen and chosen by readers like you for Macmillan's young adult imprint Swoon Reads.Praise for The Way to Game the Walk of Shame: "The Way to Game the Walk of Shame is the cutest heart-swelling romance to hit the shelves in ages." —Pooled Ink"A feel good romance with tons of laughs and flirty banter." —Young Adult Book Madness“I love that it's so funny, yet at the same time the characters have a lot of depth and emotional growth.” —Ashley Maker, reader on SwoonReads.com
Afterward: A Novel
by Jennifer MathieuA tragic kidnapping leads to an unlikely friendship in this novel about finding light in the midst of darkness from the author of The Truth About Alice.When Caroline's little brother is kidnapped, his subsequent rescue leads to the discovery of Ethan, a teenager who has been living with the kidnapper since he was a young child himself. In the aftermath, Caroline can't help but wonder what Ethan knows about everything that happened to her brother, who is not readjusting well to life at home. And although Ethan is desperate for a friend, he can't see Caroline without experiencing a resurgence of traumatic memories. But after the media circus surrounding the kidnappings departs from their small Texas town, both Caroline and Ethan find that they need a friend--and their best option just might be each other.
Young at Art: Teaching Toddlers Self-Expression, Problem-Solving Skills, and an Appreciation for Art
by Susan StrikerFrom the creator of the bestselling Anti-Coloring Book series with more than 600,000 copies sold, a new parenting guide to encouraging creativity in preschool-age childrenYoung at Art is the first and only comprehensive book for the general audience about the nature, value and impact of art on very young children. Directed towards parents and educators of one to five year olds, Susan Striker explains why children's art is not a frill, but the very foundation upon which all later fundamental skills are built. She drives home the idea that encouraging children's artistic growth will have beneficial effects on all other aspects of their emotional and intellectual development. At the core of this practical guide is the understanding that art is an important tool in teaching young children crucial concepts related to self-expression, reading and writing. As opposed to more structured exercises, such as coloring on dittos and underlining pictures in workbooks, Striker stresses that scribbling and free drawing experiments are the most important art activities a child can engage in; they better prepare children to read independently as they grow.Young at Art provides descriptions for age-appropriate art activities, tips for carrying them out safely, and helps parents recognize what a child's art work should look like at each stage of development. With Young at Art, parents will develop realistic expectations of their children's work, learn how to speak to their children about their art, and facilitate skills well beyond their creativity that will benefit children.
Layover
by Lisa Zeidner"Subtle, astute . . . With Layover, Zeidner joins the ranks of Doris Lessing, Margaret Atwood and Fay Weldon." —Karen Karbo, The New York Times Book ReviewClaire Newbold has watched her life collapse: her only child has died, her husband has been unfaithful, and she's just learned that she's infertile. She tries, dutifully, to go through the motions of her daily routine, but then she walks out of work on a whim, and soon she's living out of hotels—not always with the intention of paying for them—and confronting loss. As Claire indulges in a pattern of seduction and deception, she begins to feel that she is clairvoyant, capable of "reading" strangers without knowing them. As she struggles to find redemption in her marriage and her life, she finds herself wondering: Is she erratic or just full-on deranged?Lisa Zeidner's Layover is a provocative, affecting, and confident novel. As The New Yorker said, "Zeidner's writing is like her heroine: taut, intelligent, and seductive."
The Romantics
by Peter BrandvoldThe Romantics is a thrilling adventure shot through with danger and heroism, with greed and jealousy, and with love and honor.The daughter of a Hispanic landowner, Marina Clark has been given a map that purports to lead the way to a hidden cache of Spanish gold. To her husband, Adrian, his beautiful wife and her map are the keys to restoring his family's fortunes and honor, both lost during the Civil War.The Clarks' guide through sun- and sand-blasted lands of what will one day become the American Southwest is Jack Cameron, a deadly shot who has won fame as an Indian scout. It should be an easy trip, assuming they can avoid marauding Apaches and greedy Mexican rurales. But the Clarks are not the only ones seeking the gold. Gaston Bachelard, a former Confederate Army officer turned bandit, is hot on the Clarks' trail, eager to use the Spanish gold to fuel a revolution in Texas. Bachelard will kill anyone who stands in his way. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
How Do I Tax Thee?: A Field Guide to the Great American Rip-Off
by Kristin TateLibertarian journalist Kristin Tate provides a look into the wild world of frivolous taxation, aimed at educating members of her own generation in the evils of big government.In How Do I Tax Thee?, libertarian commentator and rising media star Kristin Tate takes us on a tour of the ways the government bleeds us dry in innumerable daily transactions and at various stages of life. We all know the government taxes our pay: federal, state, and local taxes are withheld by employers, as are social security payments. But what about the many other ways the government drains money from our wallets? Have you studied your cell phone bill? Customers in New York State pay an average of 24.36% in federal, state and local taxes on their wireless bills. They’re also charged for obscure services they didn’t ask for and don’t understand like a universal service fund fee, an FCC compliance fee, a line service fee, and an emergency services fee. These aren’t taxes, strictly speaking. The government imposes these administrative and regulatory costs, and your wireless provider passes them along to you. But the effect is exactly the same. What about your cable bill? Your power bill? Your water bill? The cost of a gallon of gas, a cab ride, a hotel stay and a movie ticket are all inflated by hidden fees. How much of what you pay at the pump, the box office, or the airport is really an indirect tax? In a series of short, pointed, fact-laden, humorous chapters, Tate exposes the vast government shakedown that consumes up to half of your income—and also explains where these hidden fees and taxes come from.
Dangerous Waters: An Adventure on Titanic
by Gregory MoneA stowaway, a stolen book, a murderous villain: an adventure on the most famous shipwreck in history. The great ocean liner Titanic is preparing to cross the Atlantic. On board is a sinister thief bent on stealing a rare book that may be the key to unlocking infinite treasure, a wealthy academic traveling home to America with his rare book collection, and Patrick Waters, a twelve-year-old Irish boy who is certain that his job as a steward on the unsinkable ship will be the adventure of a lifetime. In Dangerous Waters, disguises, capers, and danger abound as the ship makes its way toward that fateful iceberg where Patrick will have to summon all his wits in order to survive.
Break and Enter: A Novel
by Colin HarrisonPeter Scattergood is a Philadelphia Assistant District Attorney, a relentless and clever prosecutor who has just landed the biggest case of his career--a double homicide, involving the mayor's nephew and his mistress. This is not the best time for his wife to walk out on their crumbling marriage and to disappear. As Peter tries to find his wife, and to build his case, he is drawn into an affair with an alluring stranger named Cassandra, a woman whose greatest skill is arousing suspicion. Break and Enter is an intense, intricate thriller about the thresholds we must cross in order to get at the truth.
Inside the Magic (Keyholders Series)
by Debbie Dadey Marcia Thornton JonesInside the Magic is the third in a series of light fantasy chapter books set in Morgantown, a town on the border between the real world and the magical world, by the authors of the Publishers Weekly best selling BAILEY SCHOOL KIDS—a series of 50 books with more than 30 million copies sold!Oh, no! Mr. Leery has been kidnapped by the evil Queen of the Boggarts. It's up to the apprentice Keyholders Penny, Luke, and Natalie to rescue him. Together with their links, a unicorn named Kirin, a dragon named Dracula, and a rat named Buttercup, the three Keyholders cross the border to the land inside the magic—a place where anything can happen. Will they find Mr. Leery in time?At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Beyond the Wall
by Edward AbbeyIn this wise and lyrical book about landscapes of the desert and the mind, Edward Abbey guides us beyond the wall of the city and asphalt belting of superhighways to special pockets of wilderness that stretch from the interior of Alaska to the dry lands of Mexico.
The Other Me
by Saskia SarginsonSometimes it is the people we think we know the best who surprise us the most.1986, London: Klaudia is about to start high school. She’s embarrassed by her German father—he’s the janitor at her school, he has a funny accent and a limp. And when the kids at school taunt her by saying he was a Nazi during the war, she can’t dispute them with confidence. She’s never known exactly what he may or may not have done during the war. It is a period of time no one will ever discuss.1995, Leeds: Eliza is in love. She has dropped out of university to pursue her passion—dance. But then talented artist Cosmo comes along and soon Eliza realizes that she might have room in her life for two loves. But can she really continue to lie to everyone around her? And why is she so afraid of the truth? 1930s, Germany: Two brothers are trying to fend for themselves during the chaos of the rise of the Third Reich. One brother rallies for the Fuhrer, one holds back. One is seemingly good, one bad. But history seems to tell a completely different story.All of these characters’ fates will collide in a novel that explores what we are ultimately willing to do for love. Saskia Sarginson hypnotically examines whether our identities are tied to where we’ve come from in a captivating mystery that shows how sometimes history doesn’t tell the true story.
Pride and Prejudice
by Jane AustenWhat's a girl to do?Scatterbrained, social climbing Mrs. Bennet makes one demand of her five daughters.Marry. Marry well. Marry RICH.But sweet Jane is hopelessly in love with Mr. Bingley, who doesn't seem to notice. Flighty Lydia wants a man--any man--preferably one in uniform. Kitty just wants to have fun. Shy Mary has her nose in a book. And Elizabeth--brilliant, stubborn, independent Lizzy--refuses the advances of the most "marriageable" man in town--haughty, handsome, wealthy Mr. Darcy.Mrs. Bennet's in hysterics, Mr. Bennet's in his study, Lydia's eloped with a soldier and Jane's heart may well be broken. Will any of the Bennet girls find true love and fortune?At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Riot Days
by Maria AlyokhinaA Pussy Rioter’s riveting, hallucinatory account of her years in Russia’s criminal system and of finding power in the most powerless of situationsIn February 2012, after smuggling an electric guitar into Moscow’s iconic central cathedral, Maria Alyokhina and other members of the radical collective Pussy Riot performed a provocative “Punk Prayer,” taking on the Orthodox church and its support for Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian regime.For this, they were charged with “organized hooliganism” and were tried while confined in a cage and guarded by Rottweilers. That trial and Alyokhina’s subsequent imprisonment became an international cause. For Alyokhina, her two-year sentence launched a bitter struggle against the Russian prison system and an iron-willed refusal to be deprived of her humanity. Teeming with protests and police, witnesses and cellmates, informers and interrogators, Riot Days gives voice to Alyokhina’s insistence on the right to say no, whether to a prison guard or to the president. Ultimately, this insistence delivers unprecedented victories for prisoners’ rights.Evocative, wry, laser-sharp, and laconically funny, Alyokhina’s account is studded with song lyrics, legal transcripts, and excerpts from her jail diary—dispatches from a young woman who has faced tyranny and returned with the proof that against all odds even one person can force its retreat.
Save Room for Pie: Food Songs and Chewy Ruminations
by Roy Blount Jr.Our best-laid plans will yield to fate.And we will say, “We lived. We ate.”Roy Blount Jr. is one of America’s most cherished comic writers. He’s been compared to Mark Twain and James Thurber, and his books have been called everything from “a work of art” (Robert W. Creamer, The New York Times Book Review) to “a book to read till it falls apart” (Newsweek). Now, in Save Room for Pie, he applies his much-praised wit and charm to a rich and fundamental topic: food.As a lifelong eater, Blount always got along easy with food—he didn’t have to think, he just ate. But food doesn’t exist in a vacuum; there’s the global climate and the global economy to consider, not to mention Blount’s chronic sinusitis, which constricts his sense of smell, and consequently his taste buds. So while he’s always frowned on eating with an ulterior motive, times have changed. Save Room for Pie grapples with these and other food-related questions in Blount’s signature style. Here you’ll find lively meditations on everything from bacon froth to grapefruit, Kobe beef to biscuits. You’ll also find defenses of gizzards, mullet, okra, cane syrup, watermelon, and boiled peanuts; an imagined dialogue between Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; input from Louis Armstrong, Frederick Douglass, and Blaze Starr; and of course some shampooed possums and carjacking turkeys.In poems and songs, limericks and fake (or sometimes true) news stories, Blount talks about food in surprising and innovative ways, with all the wit and verve that prompted Garrison Keillor, in The Paris Review, to say: “Blount is the best. He can be literate, uncouth, and soulful all in one sentence.”
Brown White Black: An American Family at the Intersection of Race, Gender, Sexuality, and Religion
by Nishta J. MehraIntimate and honest essays on motherhood, marriage, love, and acceptanceBrown White Black is a portrait of Nishta J. Mehra's family: her wife, who is white; her adopted child, Shiv, who is black; and their experiences dealing with America's rigid ideas of race, gender, and sexuality. Her clear-eyed and incisive writing on her family's daily struggle to make space for themselves amid racial intolerance and stereotypes personalizes some of America's most fraught issues. Mehra writes candidly about her efforts to protect and shelter Shiv from racial slurs on the playground and from intrusive questions by strangers while educating her child on the realities and dangers of being black in America. In other essays, she discusses growing up in the racially polarized city of Memphis; coming out as queer; being an adoptive mother who is brown; and what it's like to be constantly confronted by people's confusion, concern, and expectations about her child and her family. Above all, Mehra argues passionately for a more nuanced and compassionate understanding of identity and family. Both poignant and challenging, Brown White Black is a remarkable portrait of a loving family on the front lines of some of the most highly charged conversations in our culture.
Just Friends
by Tiffany PitcockA new spin on the classic smart-girl-and-bad-boy setup, this witty contemporary romance shows how easily a friendship – even one built on an elaborate lie – can become so much more.Jenny meets Chance for the very first time when she is assigned as his partner in their Junior Oral Communications class. But after they rescue a doomed assignment with one clever lie, the whole school is suddenly convinced that Little-Miss-Really-Likes-Having-A’s and the most scandalous heartbreaker in school have been best friends forever. It’s amazing how quickly a lie can grow—especially when you really, really want it to be the truth. With Jenny, Chance can live the normal life he’s always kind of wanted. And with Chance, Jenny can have the exciting teen experiences that TV shows and movies have always promised. Through it all, they hold on to the fact that they are “just friends.” But that might be the biggest lie of all.Debut author Tiffany Pitcock delivers a spot-on depiction of first love and the high school rumor mill in Just Friends, chosen by readers like you for Macmillan's young adult imprint Swoon Reads.Praise for Just Friends from the Swoon Reads community:"The story is great. It caught my attention and kept it. In fact, I stayed up all night to finish it!" —KFox, reader on SwoonReads.com"I really loved this book. The characters were lovable and I found myself attached to them almost instantly. The dialogue was snappy, witty, and most importantly, believable." —C. Thomas, reader on SwoonReads.com"What truly in my opinion sets this apart from other best friends turn to lovers plots is that their entire relationship started with a lie and made it work through high school. Definitely something I will read, and read again." —Xanthia Strohl, reader on SwoonReads.com"OMG, I read this book from start to finish non stop! I fell absolutely in love with Chance and Jenny. This book had me feeling every single emotion and I just could not get it enough of it! I wanted more, and more, AND MORE!!" —Twila James, reader on SwoonReads.com
The Biographical Dictionary of Popular Music: From Adele to Ziggy, the Real A to Z of Rock and Pop
by Dylan JonesThe Biographical Dictionary of Popular Music is an incredible and opinionated collection of celebrated cultural critic Dylan Jones's thoughts on more than 350 of the most important artists around the world—alive and dead, big and small, at length and in brief. This A to Z reference is the true musical heir to David Thomson's seminal The New Biographical Dictionary of Popular Film. Jones writes entertainingly about bands that have inspired, bedeviled, and fascinated him over the years.
A College of Magics
by Caroline StevermerTeenager Faris Nallaneen is the heir to the small northern dukedom of Galazon. Too young still to claim her title, her despotic Uncle Brinker has ruled in her place. Now he demands she be sent to Greenlaw College. For her benefit he insists. To keep me out of the way, more like it!But Greenlaw is not just any school-as Faris and her new best friend Jane discover. At Greenlaw students major in . . . magic.But it's not all fun and games. When Faris makes an enemy of classmate Menary of Aravill, life could get downright . . . deadly.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
The Last Pilot: A Novel
by Benjamin JohncockWinner of the Author's Club Best First Novel AwardA Finalist for the East Anglian Book Award for FictionOne of The Guardian's Favorite Reads of the Year (Chosen by Jenny Rohn) “The Last Pilot made me cry and brought back all my old Right Stuff feels. A brilliant debut. I loved it.”—Helen Macdonald, author of H is for HawkJim Harrison is a test pilot in the United States Air Force, one of the exalted few. He spends his days cheating death in the skies above the Mojave Desert and his nights at his friend Pancho’s bar, often with his wife, Grace. She and Harrison are secretly desperate for a child, and when, unexpectedly, Grace learns that she is pregnant, the two are overjoyed. America becomes swept up in the fervor of the Space Race, while Harrison turns his attention home to welcome his daughter, Florence, into the world. But as he and Grace confront thrills and challenges of parenthood, they are met with sudden tragedy.The aftermath will haunt the Harrisons and strain their marriage, as Jim struggles to make life-and-death decisions under circumstances that are altogether new. Set against the backdrop of one of the most emotionally charged periods in American history, The Last Pilot by Benjamin Johncock is the mesmerizing story of a couple’s crisis of faith—in themselves, and in each another—and the limits they test to rediscover it.