Middle grades and young adult authors speak candidly on the unspoken "rules" of adolescence in this collection of moving, inspiring, and often funny essays. This unique volume encourages readers to break with conformity and defy age-old, and typically inaccurate, orthodoxy—including such conventions as Boys can't be gentle, kind, or caring; One must wear Abercrombie & Fitch in order to fit in; Girls should act like girls;

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Lovers of the printed book, arise! Thirty of today's top writers are here to tell you you're not alone.
In Bound to Last,an amazing array of authors comes to the passionate defense of the printed book with spirited, never-before-published essays celebrating the hardcover or paperback they hold most dear — not necessarily because of its contents, but because of its significance as a one-of-a-kind, irreplaceable object. Whether...

FASCINATING BACKGROUND FACTS, STORIES AND MYTHOLOGICAL INFORMATION FOR THE MAGNUS CHASE AND THE GODS OF ASGARD SERIES
Long ago in the legendary land of Asgard, battles raged throughout the Heavens and Earth between powerful gods, Viking heroes and deadly monsters. These timeless tales of bravery, deceit and love come alive in this all-new illustrated guide.
As enthralling today as when first told around arctic campfires, these...

Here are eight stories from master American writers of the nineteenth century. They vary from sinister tales by Ambrose Bierce – why is that window boarded up? – and a reflective moment in the life of a woman without children, forced to look after children, to classic short stories by O. Henry and Stephen Crane. There is even an elegiac description of an eclipse by James Fenimore Cooper, author of The Last of the Mohicans. Read with sensitivity

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The New York Times–bestselling author of Packing for Mars presents fascinating essays by Jonathan Lethem, Jaron Lanier, Malcom Gladwell and others.

Good science writing, as Mary Roach explains in her introduction, is a cure for ignorance and fallacy. But great science writing adds honey—in the form of engaging characters, stories, and wit—to make the medicine go down. This anthology reveals the essential humanity

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This middle-grade biography explores the life and works of Madeleine L'Engle -written by her granddaughters. This elegant and insightful biography of Madeleine L'Engle (1918–2007) was written by her granddaughters, Charlotte Jones Voiklis and Léna Roy. Using never-before-seen archival materials that include photographs, poems, letters, and journal entries from when Madeleine was a child until just after the publication of her classic, A Wrinkle...

Sparky Sweets, PhD. and Wisecrack proudly present this outrageously funny, ultra-sharp guide to literature based on the hit online series, Thug Notes. Inside, you'll find hilarious plot breakdowns and masterful analyses of sixteen of literature's most beloved classics, including: The Catcher in the Rye, To Kill A Mockingbird, Pride & Prejudice, The Color Purple, Hamlet, Things...

Planning a school or amateur Shakespeare production? The best way to experience the plays is to perform them, but getting started can be a challenge: The complete plays are too long and complex, while scene selections or simplified language are too limited. "The 30-Minute Shakespeare" is a new series of abridgements that tell the "story" of each play from start to finish while keeping the beauty of Shakespeare's language intact. Specific stage directions...

Available for the first time and collected in one volume, the letters of one of America's most beloved authors, Laura Ingalls Wilder-a treasure trove that offers new and unexpected understanding of her life and work. The Selected Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder is a vibrant, deeply personal portrait of this revered American author, illuminating her thoughts, travels, philosophies, writing career, and dealings with family, friends, and fans as never...

"A literary history of the Federal Writers Project"--