Library New Items

Meet the hardest-working cats in show biz! Join Meredith Grey, Olivia Benson, and Benjamin Button--Taylor Swift's BFFs (best feline friends)--as they walk you through life with the world's biggest star. Follow along as they pull the invisible strings to help her smile, dream, write, perform, and more!

"Children are invited to explore more than forty countries through the universal language of food. Through fun facts and fascinating information, unique ingredients, and culinary customs from across all five continents are celebrated. Also featured are over 40 authentic, kid-friendly recipes inspired by country cuisines around the world, from Vietnamese pho and Mexican salsa verde cruda to Italian focaccia and Nigerian jollof rice. Each entry includes a recipe with simple, step-by-step instructions and lively illustrations of the finished dish. Accessible to all skill levels, the book includes a beginner-friendly section teaching key kitchen vocabulary and skills. There are plenty of recipes made in under thirty minutes, as well as more hands-on projects to excite ambitious young chefs. Through delicious recipes, fascinating facts, and irresistible illustrations, A World of Flavour is so much more than a cookbook: it's a mouth-watering road trip for the mind and the taste buds, teaching curious kids about the many ways cultures and cuisines are unique -- and how much they have in common."

Tiny Floating Coral starts small with a tiny coral planula floating through the ocean in a soup of plankton, looking for the perfect place to settle, divide, and grow. It finds a place on a healthy reef off the coast of Australia. Learn about the remarkable life of coral, how it feeds, starts a colony and becomes a part of Australia's Great Barrier Reef-a vast underwater city where other animals live, feed, hide, and bring up their young. The story's narrative progresses in a way that builds understanding, and the delicate illustrations bring the story to life.

Meet the most unusual, most fantastical, creepiest, and-yes-grossest creatures that call Earth home in this lively, fact-filled guide to the world's oddest animals. Did you know that the axolotl can regrow nearly any body part? Or that the hagfish can fill a bucket with slime in less than a minute? Get ready to say "WHOA!" in this wacky book about the most bizarre animals in the world! Readers will encounter hundreds of far-out facts about animals with bizarre behaviors, strange superpowers, and mind-blowing mannerisms. They'll learn where these animals live, how their strange skill sets help them survive, and what makes them so wonderfully weird. There are animals of all shapes and sizes to ogle here-from the spindly-fingered aye-aye to a sea slug shaped like a fuzzy bunny to a shrimp that launches bubbles from its claws. With jaw-dropping photos and upbeat, straightforward text, this fast-paced book will delight animal-obsessed readers.

"Did you know that there are glasses to prevent motion sickness...Or that astronauts can get "space sick?" This hilarious and wacky illustrated book is jam-packed with silly facts, crazy activities, and even recipes (Barf-day cake, anyone?) that will have you learning all about the fascinating world of barf, our bodies, and beyond. Presented in alphabetical order."-- Provided by publisher.

"AFrom the big stage to the US Navy, from laboratories to the boardroom, from the Olympics to the pages in books, these girls and women lead every line. Bold, bright, and empowering profiles by ... artist Nína Mata place these incredible changemakers at the very front and inspire readers to tap into their own greatness."--Publisher.

Kamala Harris always wanted to help people and solve problems. Even as a young girl, she helped her community create changes that would impact all of their lives for the better. When she grew up, Kamala wanted to continue helping people, so she worked hard and became a lawyer and a senator to do just that. Then she went on to become the first woman to ever be vice president of the United States-and she might even become president too! Through it all, Kamala continues to do her best to help as many people as she can. In this chapter book biography by acclaimed author Raakhee Mirchandani, readers learn about the amazing life of Kamala Harris-and how she persisted. Complete with an introduction from Chelsea Clinton, black-and-white illustrations throughout, and a list of ways that readers can follow in Kamala Harris's footsteps and make a difference!

"An introduction to the unique characteristics of the quokka"-- Provided by publisher.

"Before she thinks of herself as Little Alien, our protagonist is a lonely girl who doesn't understand the world the way other children seem to. So when a late-night TV special introduces her to the mysterious Voynich Manuscript--an ancient tome written in an indecipherable language--Little Alien experiences something she hasn't before: hope. Could there be others like her, who also feel like they're from another planet? Convinced the Voynich Manuscript holds the answers she needs, Little Alien and her best (and only) friend Bobby decide they must find this strange book. Where that decision leads themwill change everything."-- Provided by publisher.

"In 1984, Jim Davis created a groundbreaking series of illustrated short stories called Garfield: His 9 Lives, setting the ever so hungry and lazy-yet-lovable Cat in various eras, which became an instant classic. Inspired by the original His 9 Lives stories and the 1988 animated special, here are all-new, unique interpretations of Garfield from the Stone Age to beyond the stars Meanwhile, Garfield explores what life is like outside of the friendly confines of Jon's house. Feeling mistreated and unappreciated, Garfield embarks on a search for a new home. Along the way, he meets up with a clown who works in an old-timey traveling circus. Convinced that this is the place for him, Garfield becomes part of the act. Wait. What is that cannon for?Join Garfield as he travels to find the perfect home, and as he finds a lot of not-so-perfect homes along the way"-- Provided by publisher.

Sacajawea was a brilliant, multilingual Shoshone girl who was torn from her home at a young age. In 1804, she set out with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, acting as an interpreter and guide across hundreds of miles of unmapped land to reach the Pacific Ocean. Almost 200 years later, she became the first Indigenous woman to appear on a US coin. This is her story.

"When Tyler Merritt was diagnosed with cancer, everything he thought he knew about what mattered in life changed. Though he made it through a highly invasive surgery and thought he was in the clear, Tyler soon realized that the cancer had other plans. It wasn't a question of if the tumor would come back for an encore, his doctors told him. It was a question of when. The clock was ticking. This Changes Everything is a humorous and optimistic love letter to this beautiful life. As Tyler counts down the days until his next scan, he begins to understand that none of us have time for anger, for being unforgiving, for foolishness, for letting relationships drift, or for letting friendships to be lost. It's a clear-eyed reckoning with the reality that our time on this earth is limited and a hopeful vision of how each of us can make the most of the time we have left. Laced with Tyler's trademark humor, love of pop culture, and arguably too many musical theater references, This Changes Everything is a story about how wrestling with the idea of death can birth a whole new outlook on life, how we live it, and the urgency that comes when you grasp that time is a precious commodity"-- Provided by publisher.

There are five towns in the U.S. named " Normal" and seventeen-year-old Gemma Leonardo plans on visiting every one of them. Right after she escapes Children' s Hospital in Harrisburg, where she' s being treated for anorexia. Enter Lucas Polizzi, a high school wrestler with bulimia and, more importantly to Gemma, a getaway car. Sick of being told they' re sick, Gemma and Lucas team up for a themed road trip to " the Normals" on one condition-- they can' t mention food, ever. But as each passing mile puts their lives at greater risk, they soon realize it is their growing love and friendship, not a place on a map, that will put them on the path to recovery.

Port Stirling, Oregon, police chief Matt Horning and his special agent wife, Fern, finally get their well-deserved vacation on a getaway to Shetland and the Scottish Highlands. But their heart-warming holiday turns deadly in a pulse-pounding game of cat and mouse when they reach Edinburgh. Did this shocking, brazen crime originate back home in Port Stirling? Is it the fallout of one – or several – previous cases resolved by Matt and Fern? Matt must rely on his local team of detectives in Oregon to revisit recent cases while he navigates the labyrinth of Edinburgh’s cobblestone streets, and the maze of Police Scotland. Unused to giving up control, Matt is required to work with his new colleague, DCI Stuart MacLean, to assist in the investigation. So many motives…so many reasons to kill. Can the team beat the ticking clock deadline, or will the unimaginable happen for Matt in his nerve-shattering fight for all that he loves?

"All Hamish Macbeth wants is a quiet life in his peaceful home in the Highland village of Lochdubh. But when his newly-assigned constable arrives, he presents Hamish with a surprise and a secret. Getting to the bottom of the secret becomes the least of Hamish's problems when he meets a family who have a score to settle with a sinister man who has mysteriously gone missing. Discovering a murdered woman's body puts further pressure on Hamish, especially when it becomes clear that the murdered woman and the missing man are linked. To Hamish's horror, he then finds himself working on the murder case with the despicable Detective Chief Inspector Blair--his sworn enemy--who has been drafted in under curious circumstances. With a growing list of suspects, ever more bewildering circumstances and Blair hindering him at every turn, Hamish must find the murderer before anyone else falls victim. Never has a quiet life seemed further from his grasp!"-- Provided by publisher.

"Stella Hobhouse is a brilliant rider, stalwart friend, skilled sketch artist and completely overlooked. Her outmodish gray hair makes her invisible to London society. Combined with her brother's pious restrictions and her dwindling inheritance, Stella is on the verge of a lifetime marooned in Derbyshire as a spinster. Unless she does something drastic . . . like posing for a daring new style of portrait by the only man who's ever really seen her. Aspiring painter Edward "Teddy" Hayes knows true beauty when he sees it. He would never ask Stella to risk her reputation as an artist's model but in the five years since a virulent bout of scarlet fever left him partially paralyzed, Teddy has learned to heed good fortune when he finds it. He'll do anything to persuade his muse to pose for him, even if he must offer her a marriage of convenience. After all, though Teddy has yearned to trace Stella's luminous beauty on canvas since their chance meeting, her heart is what he truly aches to capture . . ."-- Provided by publisher.

"France, 1531. Orphaned by the age of five, Marguerite de la Rocque was heir to a chateau with its own village and lands. But her guardian, Jean Francois de la Rocque de Roberval, sells Marguerite's property to embark on an expedition to New France, bringing Margueriteand her maidservant with him. Aboard the ship, the women are limited to the company of the captain, the navigator, Roberval, and his secretary--a man whose musical talent, literary knowledge, and dark eyes intrigue Marguerite. It isn't long before the two of them are meeting secretly to declare their love for one another. When Roberval discovers this transgression, he is furious, seeing their affection as betrayal. As punishment, he maroons them on a small island off thecoast, condemning them to certain death"-- Provided by publisher.

"Shaken from the aftermath of the Libertatem, the newly found star-maiden Astraea is determined to keep her freedom, even at the costof betraying her heart. But time is running out to recover her memories with the hope it will unveil her killer. Embarking on a journeyto discover her past, Astraea's awakening power spins the hourglasson a history threatening to repeat itself. While Nyte tries to regain control of the vampires hungry for bloodshed, a sinister plan by his brother to overthrow him sparks a dangerous feud. But are they willing to wear the blood of their kin to see it through?"-- Provided by publisher.

"Yeeran and Lettle are no longer prisoners to the fae court, but now they're bound by shackles of their hearts, in this sequel to Faebound from the national bestselling author. United by war. Betrayed by destiny. Cursed by love"-- Provided by publisher.

"Phoebe Atkinson is what society might call unconventional. Instead of marrying well like other women born to wealth, she chose to be a schoolteacher. Not to mention she lives in a leaky flat in an unfashionable part of town rather than stay in her parents' mansion. But when her most promising pupil goes missing and the police ignore her, she has only one option: beg her sister's best friend, the powerful Duke of Ellis, for help. If sending him a message from the police station doesn't get his attention, nothing will. The last thing William Margrave ever expected was to inherit a dukedom. But now that he has it, he's determined to act the part perfectly--and that includes marrying the perfect duchess. A bluestocking Bohemian schoolteacher is decidedly not duchess material. But he can't resist her plea for help regarding her missing student. As they fall further into the mystery, William discovers two things: that he never really got over his childhood crush on Phoebe, and he doesn't really want to"-- Provided by publisher.

"When professional hockey player Sig Gauthier's car breaks down and his phone dies, he treks into a posh private country club to call a tow truck, where he encounters the alluring Chloe Clifford, the manic pixie dream girl who captivates him immediately with her sense of adventure and penchant for stealing champagne. Sparks fly during a moonlight kiss and the enamored pair can't wait to see each other again, but when Sig finally arrives to meet his dad's new girlfriend over dinner, Chloe is confusingly also there. Turns out the girlfriend is Chloe's mother. Oh, and they're engaged. Sig's dream girl is his future stepsister. Though the pair is now wary of being involved romantically, Chloe, a sheltered harp prodigy, yearns to escape her controlling mother. Sig promises to teach her the ins and outs of independence in Boston--but not inside his bedroom. They both know there can never be more than friendship between a famous hockey player and his high-society, soon-to-be stepsister. But keeping their relationship platonic grows harder amid the developing family drama, especially knowing they were meant for so much more..."-- Dust jacket flap.

"A young girl discovers nature's surprising beauty in this tale from a renowned Inuit storyteller. When Aggataa goes for a cold winter walk with her grandmother, she's surprised by a sudden CRAH! All the birds have flown south for the winter except one kind--the tulugarguat, the ravens. They're the ugliest birds that Aggaataa has ever seen. They look like they slept in their coats--coats that don't even fit! However, as the winter slowly moves towards spring, Aggataa connects with one small raven in particular. As the seasons change in full, the ravens leave and are replaced by seagulls, cranes, geese, ducks, and swans--all of them far more elegant than the "Ugly Bird." But where Aggataa once thought the ravens odd for visiting during the harshest part of the year, she now finds herself watching the horizon, waiting for the return of the most amazing bird. This touching story by award-winning author Michael Arvaarluk Kusugak reminds us of our lasting connection to nature, while art by celebrated illustrator Andrew Qappik, CM, illuminates the enduring magic of the changing seasons."-- Provided by publisher.

Young Maya always hears of everyone in her fishing village being scared of "The Beast," the giant wave that crashes into the shoreline every day, and after seeing boys surfing it she is determined to surf it herself, showing everyone the beauty it has to offer.

While going about his day, a boy experiences the challenges of being kind, but with enough pracitce he soon discovers how great it feels to be nice.

The Wills and the Won'ts can't seem to agree on anything, so they build a wall to keep the other out. Until a hopeful young May realizes that perhaps they can find some common ground, if only they work together.

A little bunny learns that while some days can feel more sad than happy, there's always a bright spot on the horizon.

The daughter of a professional robber, Ronja realizes the complicated nature of her father's profession when she befriends Birk, the child of a rival tribe. She struggles to balance this friendship with her family relationship but comes to understand; differences can be overcome with the help of love and understanding.

The power of three is tested as Clawdeen, Draculaura, and Frankie face new challenges at Monster High. New students, new powers, evolving friendships and a threat that could tear their friendship apart, changing the world forever.

Collects a variety of one-shot stories and other series such as "My Love Book," "A Folk Tale," "War Paint," "Frida, "and "Hernandez Satyricon" in which the characters deal with love, friendship, and bizarre occurrences.

"In 1943, when a frail old white woman shows up in Red Clay, Alabama, at the home of a Black former slave--on the morning following his funeral--his family hardly knows what to expect after she utters the words '...a lifetime ago, my family owned yours.' Adelaide Parker has a story to tell--one of ambition, betrayal, violence, and redemption--that shaped both the fate of her family and that of the late Felix H. Parker. But there are gaps in her knowledge, and she's come to Red Clay seeking answers from a family with whom she shares a name and a history that neither knows in full. In an epic saga that takes us from Red Clay to Paris, to the Côte d'Azur and New Orleans, human frailties are pushed to their limits as secrets are exposed and the line between good and evil becomes ever more difficult to discern"--Inside jacket flap.

"In 1980's Oregon, Smokey is figuring out how to survive childhood with a young mom who is increasingly desperate in her search for love. As their mother's boyfriends come and go, Smokey aches for the comfort and safety their mother can never quite provide. When a dangerous new man moves into the house, Smokey seeks refuge in the nearby forests--finding comfort as they give themselves over to the strength and beauty of the natural world."--Page 4 of cover.

"Art student Jo Kozak and her fellow classmates and best friends, Caroline, Finch, Amrita, and Saz, are one another's muses--so close they have their own language and so devoted to the craft that they'll do anything to keep their inspiration alive. Even if it means naively resorting to the occult to unlock their creativity and to curse their esteemed, if notoriously creepy, professor. They soon learn the horrible price to be paid for such a transgressive ritual. In its violent aftermath, things are changing. Jo is feeling unnervingly haunted by something inexplicable. Their paintings, once prodigious and full of life, are growing dark and unhealthy. And their journey together--as women, students, and artists--is starting to crumble. To right the wrong they've done, these five desperate friends will take their obsession a step too far. When that happens, there may be no turning back" -- Publisher marketing.

"A young hospital security guard with a disturbingly unique taste in women. A maternity doctor with a horrifically unusual appetite. When the two of them meet, they embark on a journey of self-discovery while shattering societal norms and engaging in destructively aberrant behavior. As they unwittingly help each other understand a world in which neither seems to belong, they begin to realize what it truly means to be alive... And that it might not always be a good thing." -- Publisher's website.

"There is simply no A-Z like the alphabet of fiction writers who have appeared in the pages of The New Yorker in the last hundred years. The book boasts inarguable classics like Salinger's "A Perfect Day for Bananafish," Annie Proulx's "Brokeback Mountain," and Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" alongside stunners to be rediscovered. Some stories defined a moment or a now-lost world (Isaac Bashevis Singer's "The Cafeteria"); others showed us a whole new way fiction could sound and feel ("The Red Girl," by Jamaica Kincaid). With this vivid selection, Treisman showcases how our fiction has changed over time, and reminds us that past literary fashions continue to ripple outward in the fiction we love today. What does a Donald Barthelme mean to the craft of short fiction now? What will a Yiyun Li mean to the next generation of readers and writers? This exquisite tour of the form as practiced at its highest level will leap directly into the hearts of readers of all ages, all stripes, and is a beautiful tribute to the magazine's influence on our literary culture over the last century."-- Provided by publisher.

"PEN/Faulkner Award finalist, Pushcart Prize winner, and Best American Stories contributor, Eric Puchner returns with an ambitious and deeply moving novel set against the backdrop of the American West that follows three lifelong friends and the betrayal at the center of their entwined fates. Cece and Charlie are in love and a few weeks away from their summer wedding. But when Cece meets Charlie's best friend from college, Garrett, her long-held expectations for her future begin to crumble. As Garrett's gruff mask slips, Cece begins to anticipate the big day with dread as her feelings for Garrett become impossible to bury. And as she decides to follow her instincts, ditching her groom for his best man, she will alter the three of their lives forever, the events of that July reverberating through marriage, parenthood, and, in the end, across generations. Years later, Cece's daughter, Lana, and Charlie's son, Jasper, meet and become fast friends, finding themselves reunited again and again throughout their adolescence. Soon enough, they find themselves enacting their parents' mistakes, falling victim to duplicity and heartbreak, with age and mortality looming. With Montana's once-warm summers growing untenably hot, and the nearby lake all but drying up, obscured only by the ceaseless smoke of wildfires, Garrett's career as a wildlife researcher feels increasingly futile. As he watches Cece begin to lose herself, Charlie wonders whether he will ever find stability, especially with a son failing to adjust to the demands of adulthood. With delicacy, precision, and enormous heart, Dream State is at once a study of the unholy catastrophe of marriage, and a tender ode to the beauty of impermanence"-- Provided by publisher.

"Always on the periphery, looking on, young Frankie Howe was never quite sure enough of herself to take center stage--after all, life had already judged her harshly. Now old, Frankie finds it easier to forget the life that came before. Then Damian, a young Irish caretaker, arrives at her London flat, there to keep an eye on her as she recovers from a fall. A memory is sparked, and the past crackles into life as Damian listens to the story Frankie has kept stored away all these years. Traveling from post-war Ireland to 1960s New York, a city full of art, larger-than-life characters and turmoil, Frankie shares a world in which friendship and chance encounters collide. A place where, for a while, life blazes with an intensity that can't last but will perhaps live on in other ways and in other people."-- provided by publisher.

A group of cousins searching for a missing child during a family gathering wander deeper into haunted woods, uncovering unsettling family secrets that challenge everything they know about their past, identity and inheritance.

"Sometimes bad people must decide to do good... On the run from his shady past, Lynch has just arrived in London, still looking over his shoulder. His phone is dead, he has no money, no contacts, no one at all. Until he runs into a young woman named Bobbie who mistakes him for her brother, Heydon Pierce, who disappeared 5 years ago without a trace. At Bobbie's suggestion, Lynch goes to the Pierce family home, posing as Heydon to try and con some money out of them. Unfortunately for Lynch, his subterfuge is instantly discovered. He instead strikes the devil's bargain with the family: their silence for his cooperation in finding out what really happened to Heydon. But Lynch's investigation goes too deep. Turns out, Heydon Pierce was tangled up with some dangerous and powerful people in London. Everyone has their own motives to keep Heydon well buried in the past. In such a conspiracy of mirrors, there's only one thing Lynch knows for certain: the only person he can trust is himself"-- Provided by publisher.

"From the author of Book of the Little Axe, nominated for the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, a riveting literary novel with the sharp edges of a thriller about the abuses of history and the costs of revenge, set between Washington, DC, and Johannesburg, South Africa. Prudence Wright seems to have it all: a loving husband, Davis; a spacious home in Washington, DC; and the past glories of a successful career at McKinsey, which now enables her to dedicate her days to her autistic son Roland. When she and Davis head out for dinner with one of Davis's new colleagues on a stormy summer evening filled with startling and unwelcome interruptions, Prudence has little reason to think that certain details of her history might arise sometime between cocktails and the appetizer course. Yet when Davis's colleague turns out to be Matshediso, a man from Prudence's past, she is transported back to the formative months she spent as a law student in South Africa in 1996. As an intern at a Johannesburg law firm, Prudence attended sessions of the Truth and Reconciliation hearings, which uncovered the many horrors and human rights abuses of the Apartheid state, and which fundamentally shaped her sense of righteousness and justice. Prudence experienced personal horrors in South Africa as well, long hidden and now at risk of coming to light. When Matshediso finally reveals the real reason behind his sudden reappearance, he will force Prudence to examine her most deeply held beliefs and to excavate inner reserves of resilience and strength. Lauren Francis-Sharma's previous two novels have established her as a deft chronicler of history and its intersections with flawed humans struggling to find peace in unjust circumstances. With keen insight and gripping tension, Casualties of Truth explosively mines questions of whether we are ever truly able to remove the stains of our past and how we may attempt to reconcile with unquestionable wrongs"-- Provided by publisher.

"At the ripe age of sixty-one, Judith Shakespeare, twin of the doomed Hamnet, finds herself fleeing provincial Stratford on horseback to avoid a witchcraft charge. Her traveling companions are a zealous Puritan woman and her mischievous young niece, both displaced by the civil war between the Royalists and Roundheads. Judith also leaves behind her marriage, which has foundered since the wrenching loss of two adult sons to the plague. Her travels take her to London, where she reunites with an old love from her acting days, and to the battlefield outside Oxford, where she serves as a surgeon for Cromwell's forces"-- Provided by publisher.

A young man's spiritual odyssey, filmed on location in Rishikesh and Bharatpur, and based on Hesse's novella.

"Brothers Mac and Mac are SO lucky that everything goes well - even when their frenemy Meatball plays tricks on them"-- Provided by publisher.

When Ed Morgan got word that his brother Ben had been released from prison, he set out to see him immediately, hoping for reconciliation between them. Instead, he found Ben near death, with one final request. He made Ed swear to recover the fifty thousand dollars that he had buried before he was captured. But other people felt they had a right to that money, too. And they weren't about to give it up without a fight...

"A picture book about a helpful toad tow truck driver who needs some help of his own."-- Provided by publisher.

"This visually stunning portrait of Black photographer Roy DeCarava, a child of the Harlem Renaissance and an artistic collaborator of Langston Hughes, takes readers through 1940s Harlem where beauty is everywhere as he immortalizes and documents the lives of ordinary Black people. Simultaneous eBook. Illustrations."-- Provided by publisher.

Changing how we work can feel overwhelming, like trying to budge an enormous boulder. We're stifled by the gravity of the way we've always done things and we spend so much time fighting fires--and fighting colleagues--that we lack the energy to shift direction. But with the right strategy, we can move the boulder. In Reset, Heath explores a framework for getting unstuck and making the changes that matter. Heath's secret is to find "leverage points": places where a little bit of effort can yield a disproportionate return. Then, we can thoughtfully rearrange our resources to push on those points. Heath weaves together examples, ranging from a fast-food drive-thru to a trick from couples therapy to a campaign that saved a million cats. You'll learn why the feeling of progress can be your secret weapon in accelerating change; how leaders can uncover and stop wasteful activities; why your team's motivation is often squandered--and how to avoid that mistake; and how you can jumpstart your change efforts by beginning with a "burst."

"From the telegraph and telephone in the 1800s to the internet and social media in our own day, the public has welcomed new communication systems. Whenever people gain more power to share information, the assumption goes, society prospers. Superbloom tells a startlingly different story. As communication becomes more mechanized and efficient, it breeds confusion more than understanding, strife more than harmony. Media technologies all too often bring out the worst in us. A celebrated commentator on the human consequences of technology, Nicholas Carr reorients the conversation around modern communication, challenging some of our most cherished beliefs about self-expression, free speech, and media democratization. He reveals how messaging apps strip nuance from conversation, how "digital crowding" erodes empathy and triggers aggression, how online political debates narrow our minds and distort our perceptions, and how advances in AI are further blurring the already hazy line between fantasy and reality. Even as Carr shows how tech companies and their tools of connection have failed us, he forces us to confront inconvenient truths about our own nature. The human psyche, it turns out, is profoundly ill-suited to the "superbloom" of information that technology has unleashed. With rich psychological insights and vivid examples drawn from history and science, Superbloom provides both a panoramic view of how media shapes society and an intimate examination of the fate of the self in a time of radical dislocation. It may be too late to change the system, Carr counsels, but it's not too late to change ourselves" --Front sleeve.

"How many times have you wanted to object, disagree, or opt out of something-but ended up swallowing your words, shaking your head, and just going along? Analyzing cases from corporate corruption to sexual abuse to everyday acquiescence at work, the doctor's office, and in our personal lives, award-winning organizational psychologist Dr. Sunita Sah delves deep into why the pressure to comply is a corrosive and often invisible force in our society. With her own revelatory research, she radically transforms our idea of defiance from a misunderstood negative trait into a crucial, positive force for personal and societal change. Taking us through her five stages of defiance, Dr. Sah equips readers with simple tools to make decisions that align with their values. Defy is the essential playbook for how to speak up and act when it matters most"-- Provided by publisher.

"Author Eiren Caffall is the inheritor of a family legacy of two hundred years of genetic kidney disease and the mother of a child who may inherit that legacy. A literary memoir on loss, chronic illness, and generational healing, Caffall's The Mourner's Bestiary is also a meditation on grief and survival told through the stories of animals in two collapsing marine ecosystems--the Gulf of Maine and the Long Island Sound--and the lives of a family facing a life-threatening illness on their shores. The Gulf of Maine is the world's fastest-warming marine ecosystem, and the Long Island Sound has been the site of conservation battles that predict the fights ahead for the Gulf."-- Provided by publisher.