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A Raven Named Grip: How a Bird Inspired Two Famous Writers, Charles Dickens and Edgar Allan Poe
by Marilyn SingerThe endearing true story of how a love of birds connected and inspired two literary giants--Charles Dickens and Edgar Allan Poe.Years before Edgar Allan Poe's raven said "Nevermore," Charles Dickens' pet raven, Grip, was busy terrorizing the Dickens children and eating chipped paint. So how exactly did this one mischievous bird make a lasting mark on literature? From England to the United States and back again, this is the true and fascinating story of how a brilliant bird captured two famous authors' hearts, inspired their writing, and formed an unexpected bond between them. This ingenious slice of history, biography, and even ornithology celebrates the fact that creative inspiration can be found everywhere.
A Reason for Hope
by Kristin von KreislerA heartwarming and uplifting story of healing, courage, love—and one irresistible yellow Labrador retriever—from the bestselling author of An Unexpected Grace and Earnest. On San Julian Island, across Puget Sound from Seattle, Tessa Jordan works as a bookmobile librarian, recommending books and poems to her patrons. In her spare time, she cares for a colony of feral cats. But Tessa&’s simple, satisfying life is shockingly upended after she meets Nick Payne, a respected community leader, and he invites her to dinner. Far from a pleasant first date, Tessa&’s evening with Nick leaves her feeling confused and upset. After deep soul-searching, she decides to step forward and accuse him of assault. Her distress grows when local prosecutor Will Armstrong declines to pursue her case, citing lack of evidence. Her main solace is Hope, a courthouse dog, trained to comfort victims through the difficult judicial process. As she lays her head in Tessa&’s lap, her gentle brown eyes seem to say, Don&’t worry. Everything will be all right. Will, who is Hope&’s primary handler, longs to get justice for Tessa, yet knows how rocky the path will be. It&’s Hope who, true to her name, shines a bright ray through the darkness. With Hope by their side, Will and Tessa find surprising strength in each other as they learn just how resilient a heart—whether human or canine—can be. &“Von Kreisler shows how the love between a dog and a person can prove transformative.&” —Modern Dog Magazine &“Von Kreisler writes masterfully about heartbreak and redemption.&”—Helen Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Cleo
A Reason to Stay: An Uplifting Inspirational Romance (K-9 Companions #9)
by Deb KastnerCaring for a little boy… Brings him more than he ever imagined Tied down with family and work responsibilities, Sharpe Winslow has always wondered about the world outside his small Colorado town. When newcomer Emma Fitzpatrick finds herself unsure about caring for the brother she never knew about, Sharpe and his rescue pup, Baloo, step in and take the boy under their wing. Sharpe knows he shouldn&’t get close to Emma or Aidan. But maybe they&’ll give him a reason to stay…From Love Inspired: Uplifting stories of faith, forgiveness and hope.K-9 Companions Book 1: Their Unbreakable Bond by Deb KastnerBook 2: Finding Her Way Back by Lisa CarterBook 3: The Veteran's Vow by Jill LynnBook 4: Her Easter Prayer by Lee Tobin McClainBook 5: Earning Her Trust by Brenda MintonBook 6: Guarding His Secret by Jill KemererBook 7: An Unlikely Alliance by Toni ShilohBook 8: The Cowboy's Journey Home by Linda GoodnightBook 9: A Reason to Stay by Deb KastnerBook 10: The Veteran's Holiday Home by Lee Tobin McClainBook 11: An Alaskan Christmas Promise by Belle CalhouneBook 12: A Steadfast Companion by Myra Johnson
A Reef in Time: The Great Barrier Reef from Beginning to End
by J.E.N. VeronLike many coral specialists fifteen years ago, J.E.N. Veron thought Australia’s Great Barrier Reef was impervious to climate change. “Owned by a prosperous country and accorded the protection it deserves, it would surely not go the way of the Amazon rain forest or the parklands of Africa, but would endure forever. That is what I thought once, but I think it no longer.” This book is Veron’s Silent Spring for the world’s coral reefs. Veron presents the geological history of the reef, the biology of coral reef ecosystems, and a primer on what we know about climate change. He concludes that the Great Barrier Reef and, indeed, most coral reefs will be dead from mass bleaching and irreversible acidification within the coming century unless greenhouse gas emissions are curbed. If we don’t have the political will to confront the plight of the world’s reefs, he argues, current processes already in motion will become unstoppable, bringing on a mass extinction the world has not seen for 65 million years. Our species has cracked its own genetic code and sent representatives of its kind to the moon—we can certainly save the world’s reefs if we want to. But to achieve this goal, we must devote scientific expertise and political muscle to the development of green technologies that will dramatically reduce greenhouse emissions and reverse acidification of the oceans.
A Reindeer's First Christmas/New Friends for Christmas (Pictureback(R))
by Joe Mathieu Aristides Ruiz Tish RabeFans of the Cat in the Hat have cause to celebrate this holiday season with two stories based on the one-hour PBS Kids' primetime special The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About Christmas! In A Reindeer's First Christmas, narrator Ralph--a yearling caribou--tells how but for the help of the Cat in the Hat, Sally, Nick, and some new friends, he narrowly misses spending his first Christmas at home and pulling Santa's sled! And in New Friends for Christmas, Sally and Nick learn that with a little help from family and friends--and a spare mini Thinga-ma-jigger--its possible to accomplish almost anything!
A Remainder of One
by Elinor J. PinczesHup, two, three, four! We're in the 25th Army Corps. Queen's count! Two, three! We are the marching infantry! Poor Joe! He wants to march in the parade, but every time the lines are uneven, he must stand aside. What's a poor bug to do? Joe is determined. He studies the problem, relining the twenty-five bugs in his squadron from two lines to three lines to four lines, until inspiration and fortitude result in five lines of five -- and Joe fits in the last.
A Ride into Morning: The Story of Tempe Wick (Great Episodes)
by Ann RinaldiA &“suspenseful [and] exciting&” tale of a young woman&’s battle to save her beloved horse during the Revolutionary War, inspired by a true story (Booklist). The Revolutionary War is raging. Food and firewood are scarce, and Tempe Wick is worried that she will not be able to care for her ailing mother and her family and still maintain their farm in New Jersey, where troops are now camped. Her ability to hold on to her world is further threatened when a mutinous soldier demands that she lend him her beloved horse, Colonel, in exchange for keeping her brother&’s rum-smuggling activities secret from the authorities. This dramatic historical novel is based on a real event that has been popularized into American legend. &“Crammed with authentic detail.&” —Kirkus ReviewsA New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age
A Rider’s Survival from Tyranny
by Charles De KunffyCharles de Kunffy retells the dramatic events of his privileged and turbulent young life. A European nobleman in the stormy years of World War II and the Hungarian Revolution perseveres to become a prominent equestrian. During the Soviet occupation, de Kunffy finds a life-saving island of tranquility in the ancient art of classical horsemanship. Fascinating stories of his great mentors, 'professor' horses and remarkable characters are vividly described in an uncertain historical period. The extensive photograph collection included here remarkably survived war and revolution and bears witness to the impeccable equitation demanded of jumping riders schooled in the Caprilli system. The author's account of life under brutal tyranny, and the victorious survival of a civilized mind, are a testament to a determined and sensitive spirit. Tragic at times, funny at others, this true-life tale of travel through a rugged social landscape is graced with equestrian salvation.
A Ring of Endless Light (Austin Family Chronicles #4)
by Madeleine L'Engle"This wasn't the first time that I'd come close to death, but it was the first time I'd been involved in this part of it, this strange, terrible saying goodbye to someone you've loved."<P><P> These are Vicky Austin's thoughts as she stands near Commander Rodney's grave while her grandfather, who himself is dying of cancer, recites the funeral service. Watching his condition deteriorate over that long summer is almost more than she can bear. Then, in the midst of her struggle, she finds herself the center of attention for three young men. Leo, Commander Rodney's son, turns to her as an old friend seeking comfort but longing for romance. Zachary, whose attempted suicide inadvertently caused Commander Rodney's death, sees her as the one sane and normal person who can give some meaning to his life. And Adam, a serious young student working at the nearby marine-biology station, discovers Vicky, his friend's little sister, incipient telepathic powers that can help him with his experiments in dolphin communications. Vicky finds solace and brief moments of peace in her poetry, but life goes on around her, and the strain intensifies as she confronts matters of love and of death, of dependence and of responsibility, universal concerns that we all must face. The inevitable crisis comes and Vicky must rely on openness, sensitivity, and the love of others to overcome her private grief. Once again, Madeleine L'Engle has written a story that revels in the drama of vividly portrayed characters and events of the spiritual and moral dimensions of common human experiences.<P> Newbery Medal Honor book
A River Never Sleeps
by Thomas Mcguane Nick Lyons Louis Darling Roderick L. Haig-BrownFew books have captured the haunting world of music and rivers and of the sport they provide as well as A River Never Sleeps. Roderick L. Haig-Brown writes of fishing not just as a sport, but also as an art. He knows moving water and the life within it-its subtlest mysteries and perpetual delights. He is a man who knows fish lore as few people ever will, and the legends and history of a great sport.Month by month, he takes you from river to river, down at last to the saltwater and the sea: in January, searching for the steelhead in the dark, cold water; in May, fishing for bright, sea-run cutthroats; and on to the chilly days of October and the majestic run of spawning salmon. All the great joy of angling is here: the thrill of fishing during a thunderstorm, the sight of a river in freshet or a river calm and hushed, the suspense of a skillful campaign to capture some half-glimpsed trout or salmon of extraordinary size, and the excitement of playing and landing a momentous fish.A River Never Sleeps is one of the enduring classics of angling. It will provide a rich reading experience for all who love fishing or rivers.
A Roadmap to the Successful Development and Commercialization of Microbial Pest Control Products for Control of Arthropods (Progress in Biological Control #10)
by Willem J. RavensbergBiocontrol is among the most promising methods for a safe, environmentally benign and sustainable pest control. Microbial pesticides offer a great potential, and it is anticipated that they will become a substantial part of the use of all crop protection products. Their development and commercialization, however, has been difficult and with many failures. In this book a rational and structured roadmap has been designed for the development and commercialization of microbial pest control products for the control of arthropod pests. The building blocks of the entire process are identified and essential aspects highlighted. Biopesticides based on entomopathogenic bacteria, fungi, viruses and nematodes are elaborately discussed. This systematic roadmap with a strong focus on economics and market introduction will assist academic researchers and industrial developers of biopesticides in accomplishing their goal: the development of successful cost-effective microbial pesticides.
A Robin's Story
by Amanda Jane SmallmanScarlett is a young robin who, after losing her own mummy, wants to help the humans. Scarlett grows into her red breast and is kind and helpful. One day, she comes across Jack, a little boy who has also lost his mummy. Scarlett wants to help him smile again. Can she bring back Jack’s smile?
A Roman Holiday (Thea Stilton)
by Thea StiltonJoin Thea Stilton and the Thea Sisters on an adventure packed with mystery and friendship!The Thea Sisters spend the holidays in Rome!
A Rootin'-Tootin' Cowboy
by Bonnie Highsmith TaylorLittle Jim wants to become a cowboy. When a young calf escapes from the farm at night, he gets his chance to make his cattle roping dreams come true!
A Round of Robins
by Katie HestermanSixteen fresh and funny poems welcome a new batch of robins to the world!Food FightJumble, jostle, rumble, squirm;Dad has landed with a worm.Game of tug-of-war begins--Biggest bossy baby wins.Mama's a skillful architect, constructing a sturdy nest, while Dad's a champion turf defender. And those hatchlings! Such fluffs of plump perfection! Katie Hesterman's vibrant verse celebrates this awesome circle of bird life, as we follow a pair of robin parents from nest-building and egg-laying, to raising their hungry hatchlings, and finally sending off their flying fledglings. Sergio Ruzzier's brilliant, candy-colored art pays tribute to all these stages of a robin's life cycle, reminding us that while robins may be common, they are also extraordinary!
A Royal Fortune (The Fortunes of Texas: Cowboy Country #1)
by Judy DuarteHis kingdom for a cowgirl They go together like...chutney and barbecue. High tea and hot sauce. You couldn't come up with a more unlikely twosome than Jensen Fortune Chesterfield and Amber Rogers. So when the paparazzi catch the Fortune heir in a lip-lock with the free-spirited rodeo rider, Horseback Hollow goes wild. What is really going on here? Princes only fall for commoners in fairy tales, but who could blame Amber for crushing on Jensen? The sweet cowgirl can see the bighearted man beneath that buttoned-up Brit. Could it be that the simple life of the Hollow is exactly what Jensen needs? If only she can find a way to get him to see how she truly feels...and rope this aristocrat for keeps!
A Royal Tea (Mermaid Tales #9)
by Debbie DadeyWhen Shelly meets the Queen of the Western Oceans in this Mermaid Tales adventure, she encounters a royal dilemma!When a royal messenger announces that Queen Edwina is coming to tea, Shelly is as jittery as a jellyfish! After all, the Queen of the Western Oceans is her great aunt. And despite being a princess, Shelly has never met a queen before. How should she act? What should she wear? Then Pearl tells Shelly that the queen is going to take Shelly to live in Neptune’s Castle: “It’s where a real princess would live,” Pearl tells her. Shelly is terrified of leaving her home, friends, and beloved grandfather behind. When the royal carriage arrives, she’s trembling from the top of her head to the tip of her tail. What will Queen Edwina think of Princess Shelly? And will she really take Shelly away from the home she loves?
A Sailor Called Wet Paint and Other Secret Stories from History
by Nandini Nayar"What can a lady in a thin sari do to survive in COLD England?How will a ship's crew RETURN home without any money?When did the young ayah last see her OWN family?And why, oh why, did the sailor write WET PAINT in a young girl's diary?Nannies and sailors taken 4,000 miles away to England to work...it's the same SORRY tale. Often ABANDONED, they have to find their own way across the sea, back home to India! It's upsetting. It's shocking. It's breaking our hearts. What are we to DO? Well, here are stories - a whole SHEAF of them about AYAHS in a foreign land and the Indian crew of LASCARS on ships, questioning why the British don't treat these people kindly. Asking to give them the home, the care and the freedom they deserve. But is ANYONE listening? Are YOU? "
A Salad Only the Devil Would Eat: The Joys of Ugly Nature
by Charles HoodIn these wry and explosively funny essays, nature obsessive Charles Hood reveals his abiding affection for the overlooked and undervalued parts of the natural world. Like a Bill Bryson of the Mojave exurbs, Hood takes us on a joyride through the obscure, finding wilderness in Hollywood palms, the airports of Alaska, and the empty lots of Palmdale. In a zinger-filled whirl of literary and artistic allusions, he celebrates Audubon’s droopy condor, the world-changing history of a cactus parasite, and the weird art of natural history dioramas. This debut collection of creative nonfiction from a widely published poet, photographer, and wildlife guide unveils the wonderment of nature’s underbelly with poetic vision and singular wit.
A Salamander's Tale: My Story of Regeneration?Surviving 30 Years with Prostate Cancer
by Paul SteinbergStaring in the face of prostate cancer at age thirty-five and metastatic disease and proposed surgical castration at age forty, Paul Steinberg was forced to take two simultaneous journeys. The first was to transition from doctor to patient and surrender his physical health to a medical establishment he knew from firsthand knowledge would be using approaches that would be outdated within a few years. The second was a spiritual journey. His search for a higher meaning in his life sent him as far as walking over hot coals with Tony Robbins. Using the salamander as his role model, Steinberg, a college-health and sports psychiatrist, takes a look at the evolution of the regenerative capabilities of cold-blooded vertebrates like the salamander and at what we as humans have lost and gained in our warm-bloodedness. How do human beings regenerate? How do we redeem ourselves when our capacity for regeneration is limited? How did the prostate evolve, and how does prostate cancer develop? With wit and humor, Steinberg tackles lust and sex, and ultimately time and death and the gods. Having lived longer than virtually anyone else with metastatic prostate cancer, he uses his knowledge as a doctor and experience as a patient to provide a story of endurance and perseverance, weaving a tale of grace, regeneration, and redemption--just not the kind of regeneration and redemption that he or anyone else would expect.
A Sassy Surprise (Big Apple Barn #3)
by Kristin EarhartJust when Happy Go Lucky is starting to feel at home at Big Apple Barn, everything changes. There is a new pony in the barn: Sassafras Surprise, otherwise known as Sassy. Everyone wants to learn more about her.
A Scientific Approach to Improving Animal Research in Biomedicine: Giving Animals a Chance
by Bradley K. WeinerThis book examines animal research conducted with the goal of medical translation to humans. It is written by Dr. Bradley Weiner, a surgeon who is active at a high level clinically and in biomedical research. After documenting that the vast majority of biomedical animal research fails to result in benefits to humans via translation, the book examines the sources of such failure; including the failure to justify the use of animals, the failure to properly apply scientific methods, the failure to perform the research properly in the lab, the failure to consider the possibility of translation a priori, and systematic sources of failure built into the biomedical research enterprise. The book then explores options to improve the situation, for the benefit of both the animals and humans.
A Sea Dog's Tale: The True Story of a Small Dog on a Big Ocean
by Peter MuilenburgA family with wanderlust, a sailboat to carry them across oceans, and an 11-pound dog to watch over them... These are the elements of this delightful memoir of adventurous living. Young newlyweds Peter and Dorothy Muilenburg found their way from New Hampshire to the Virgin Islands. He had been a civil rights Freedom Fighter, jailed in Mississippi while protesting racial injustice. In St. John, she founded the Pine Peace School. They both taught. On an East End beach, he built a sailboat strong enough to take them anywhere, and they put to sea with their two young sons. But their crew was not yet complete. Santos, a schipperke, came to them as a tiny puppy and sailed with them all his life--75,000 deep-sea miles--four times across the Atlantic, crisscrossing the Caribbean, coasting the U.S. eastern seaboard, exploring the Med, ranging up African rivers. A lightning rod for trouble, he survived a kidnapping, hurricanes, raging surf, being lost overboard at sea, and was twice given up for dead. And he watched over his family with fierce and abiding devotion. If you want to see the world--really see it--go by sailboat. And if you want to absorb the world through every pore, take a venturesome dog as your guide. The bright spirit named Santos became a legend to millions of readers through the pages of SAIL and Reader's Digest magazines. Now Peter Muilenburg--a wise and observant chronicler with a true wanderer's desire to engage the world on authentic terms--has written this captivating story of familial love and adventure, unforgettable people and places, and an amazing schipperke who has sailed right into the sea dog hall of fame.
A Sea Full of Turtles: The Search for Optimism in an Epoch of Extinction
by Bill StreeverAn inspired and impassioned story of adventure that explores the richness of marine life and charts a path of resilience and hope. Everyone alive today is witnessing a mass extinction event caused by the more than eight billion humans who share this planet. At times, it seems there is little hope. Climate change, resource exploitation, agrochemicals, overfishing, plastics, dead zones in our oceans, drought and desertification, conversion of habitat to housing, farming, and industrial infrastructure—the list of impacts and insults goes on and on. We are, it seems, on an unalterable path that will continue to decimate biodiversity. A feeling of hopeless, while not unwarranted, is part of the problem. Without hope, without some belief in the possibility of positive outcomes, the fight for nature is over. Why even try if the battle is already lost? While staring the problems squarely in the face, A Sea Full of Turtles offers hope for those who care about our living world. Delivered as a travel narrative set in Mexico&’s Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez), at one level the book focuses on dramatically underfunded but highly successful efforts to protect sea turtles. But the book goes beyond Mexico and beyond sea turtles to look at how some humans have changed their relationship with nature—and how that change can one day end the extinction crisis. Enchanting, galvanizing, and brimming with joy and wonder, A Sea Full of Turtles will inspire immediate action to face the great challenges that lie ahead. Pessimism is the lazy way out. Optimism, it turns out, is both a reasonable and an essential attitude for us all as we fight for the beautiful diversity of life on our Earth.
A Sea Monster's Tale: In Search of the Basking Shark (Wild Nature Press)
by Colin SpeedieThere are few marine creatures as spectacular as the Basking Shark. At up to 11 metres in length and seven tonnes in weight, this colossal, plankton-feeding fish is one of the largest in the world, second only to the whale shark. Historically, Basking Sharks were a familiar sight in the northern hemisphere – off the coasts of Norway, Scotland, Ireland, Canada and the USA, for example. In an 18th Century world without electricity, they became the focus of active hunting for their huge livers containing large amounts of valuable oil, primarily used in lamps.Catch numbers were small enough to leave populations largely intact, but during the 20th Century a new breed of hunter joined the fray, some driven as much by a need for adventure as for financial gain. With improved equipment and experience, they exploited the shark on an industrial scale that drastically reduced numbers, leading to localised near-extinction in some areas.From the 1970’s onward a new generation took to the seas, this time with conservation in mind to identify where the shark might still be found in the waters around the British Isles, employing new technologies to solve long-standing mysteries about the behaviour of this elusive creature. Using the best of both old and new research techniques, the case was built to justify the species becoming one of the most protected sharks in the oceans.Today, the Basking Shark is a much-loved cornerstone of our natural heritage. There are positive signs that the population has stabilised and may even be slowly recovering from the damage of the past, proving that timely conservation measures can be effective. Join us on a journey amidst wild seas, places, people and conservation history in the battle to protect this iconic creature – a true sea monster’s tale.