Rocky Rattlesnake is every bit as excited as the rest of his friends when he learns about the new amusement park being built in his hometown of Cactus Grove. But his excitement quickly fades when he finds out about the enormous rollercoaster at the center of the park. All of his life, Rocky's friends have admired his strength and bravery; after all he's rattlesnake, and nothing should scare him...right? Wrong! How can Rocky keep his friends from finding out how terrified he is about the new rollercoaster? Especially, since one of his friends is having her birthday party at the amusement park. What will his friends say if they discover Rocky's secret? And, does Rocky have what it takes to overcome his fear in order to help someone he cares about?
Recommended for kids 6-8. THE WISH Pete wishes he never made THAT STUPID wish! It's spring time and seven year old Pete had had it up the here with his annoying five year old brother Marty. So when Pete finds a shiny penny on the ground and tosses it into the new wishing well at the park, the natural thing to wish for is that he didn't have a little brother. But to Pete's surprise, the wish actually works...... Marty vanishes from his life, and no one but Pete even remembers him! For a few days, Pete is loving his Marty-less life. But after a while, he has to admit that he misses the little guy. So he goes back to the park to wish Marty back....only to find out that the magic wishing well has been moved! What will happen now? Is Marty gone from Pete's life forever?
THE PARTY WRECKER Eight-year-old Jordan is beyond horrified when he discovers that his mom has volunteered to let his ten-year-old neighbor Brad spend a week of summer vacation at their house while Brad's parents travel out of state for the funeral of a distant relative. All the kids in the neighborhood know that Brad is, without a doubt, the worst kid around. He's rude and obnoxious, not to mention the fact that he is absolutely the biggest party-wrecker in the world. And this is the worst possible timing because Jordan's ninth birthday is coming up--and nobody hates birthdays like Brad! Jordan is terrified that Brad will wreck his party. But no matter how many times Jordan complains to his parents about Brad, they brush off his concerns, telling him he's being silly. It's time for Jordan and the other kids to take matters into their own hands--before awful Brad can destroy Jordan's special day! Can Jordan and his friends stop Brad in time? Will Brad destroy Jordan's birthday party?
Why walk when you can soar... These are the opening words on Tracy Todd's website and they are a powerful affirmation of the person Tracy is today - a sought-after inspirational speaker whose uplifting presentations have inspired and given hope to many people. But it is difficult to imagine what she has overcome in a tough and often lonely journey. At the age of twenty-eight her life was turned upside down when a horrific road accident left her a quadriplegic, paralysed from the neck down. Her life as an athletic, marathon-running young mother and teacher was abruptly shattered. Despite months of rehabilitation, Tracy often found herself wondering if her life was worth living. Everything she had taken for granted was now beyond her reach and frustration at her helplessness threatened to overwhelm her. Against the odds, Tracy chose to live. Her strength of character and determination prevailed and, sustained by the support of her son, family and friends, her care assistants, and an unbelievably caring community, she set about gaining the independence to rebuild her life and reclaim her identity - which she has done, with dignity and grace. Brave Lotus Flower Rides The Dragon is an honest, inspiring and engaging memoir in which Tracy's natural warmth and humour are tangible and, most importantly, she embodies what the human spirit can achieve.
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jay Crownover returns with a heart-stopping new series… Welcome to the Point. There’s a difference between a bad boy and a boy who’s bad . . . meet Shane Baxter. Sexy, dark, and dangerous, Bax isn’t just from the wrong side of the tracks, he is the wrong side of the tracks. A criminal, a thug, and a brawler, he’s the master of bad choices, until one such choice landed him in prison for five years. Now Bax is out and looking for answers, and he doesn’t care what he has to do or who he has to hurt to get them. But there’s a new player in the game, and she’s much too innocent, much too soft…and standing directly in his way. Dovie Pryce knows all about living a hard life and the tough choices that come with it. She’s always tried to be good, tried to help others, and tried not to let the darkness pull her down. But the streets are fighting back, things have gone from bad to worse, and the only person who can help her is the scariest, sexiest, most complicated ex-con The Point has ever produced. Bax terrifies her, awakening feelings she never thought she’d have for a guy like him. But it doesn’t take Dovie long to realize . . . some boys are just better when they’re bad.
Nancy Andreasen, a leading neuroscientist who is also Editor-in-Chief of the prestigious American Journal of Psychiatry as well as the winner of the illustrious National Medal of Science, offers here a state-of-the-art look at what we know about the human brain and the human genome--and shows how these two vast branches of knowledge are coming together in a boldly ambitious effort to conquer mental illness. Scientists today know more about the brain than ever before, thanks to new imaging techniques and to discoveries in neuroscience and molecular biology. Andreasen gives us an engaging and readable description of how it all works, from the billions of neurons to the tiny thalamus to the moral monitor in our prefrontal cortex. She also shows the progress made in mapping the human genome, whose 30,000 to 40,000 genes are almost all active in the brain. In perhaps the most fascinating section of the book, we read gripping stories of the people who develop mental illness, the friends and relatives who share their suffering, the physicians who treat them, and the scientists who study them so that better treatments can be found. This section covers four major disorders--schizophrenia, manic depression, anxiety disorders, and dementia--revealing what causes them, what happens to the mind and brain, and how the illnesses are treated. Finally, the book shows how the powerful tools of genetics and neuroscience will be combined during the next decades to build healthier brains and minds. Andreasen's bestselling The Broken Brain broke new ground in the public understanding of mental illness. Now, by revealing how combining genome mapping with brain mapping can unlock the mysteries of mental illness, she again offers general readers a remarkably fresh perspective on these devastating diseases--their nature, treatment, and possible future prevention.
*Being a female shouldn’t mean you are less capable.* It was twenty-one years ago when Blair lost his birth family, and it took that long for him to understand why. Raised in a clan with a commitment to their kind with an unshakable belief that they must be protected from all threats, Blair is tasked with rescuing and protecting those endangered by his birth clan. Kobie, the last surviving member of the Alpha Family, is now protecting and leading the remaining women and children threatened and damaged by the clan struggles. But not knowing left her at a disadvantage, her father’s protection and secrecy left her unprepared, and the truth of the situation is laden with dangers and surprises. Kobie may be handicapped by the lack of information her father never shared, but her entire life has been dedicated to being more and better. She won’t be pushed aside for a male hunter, fighter, or protector, and after proving her worth time and time again and securing the trust of the women and children, she's faced with the difficult choice to step aside and allow Blair to help them. Perhaps the two can find a way to work together for the good of them all. ~ In Jacqueline Paige's Animal Senses Series, hearts and tempers collide with wild passions and animal instincts. Animal shifters live among normal humans (one-forms) and have since the dawn of time. They blend in without any cause for notice until a crime organization finds out and starts hunting them to sell off across the globe. The shifter alliance is formed to protect all their kind. Their teams are working endlessly to rescue all of theirs from lives of servitude and shutting down any involvement in the underground organization.
