In his dazzling new book of stories, Butler explores America by finding artistic inspiration in an unlikely and fascinating place--the backs of postcards from the early 20th century.
NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • “A gripping and poignant ode to a messy, loving family in all its glory.” —Madeline Miller, bestselling author of Circe In this “rich, complex family saga” (USA Today) full of long-buried family secrets, Marilyn Connolly and David Sorenson fall in love in the 1970s, blithely ignorant of all that awaits them. By 2016, they have four radically different daughters, each in a state of unrest. Wendy, widowed young, soothes herself with booze and younger men; Violet, a litigator turned stay-at-home-mom, battles anxiety and self-doubt; Liza, a neurotic and newly tenured professor, finds herself pregnant with a baby she's not sure she wants by a man she's not sure she loves; and Grace, the dawdling youngest daughter, begins living a lie that no one in her family even suspects. With the unexpected arrival of young Jonah Bendt—a child placed for adoption by one of the daughters fifteen years before—the Sorensons will be forced to reckon with the rich and varied tapestry of their past. As they grapple with years marred by adolescent angst, infidelity, and resentment, they also find the transcendent moments of joy that make everything else worthwhile.
The bestselling workbook and grammar guide, revised and updated! Hailed as one of the best books around for teaching grammar, The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation includes easy-to-understand rules, abundant examples, dozens of reproducible quizzes, and pre- and post-tests to help teach grammar to middle and high schoolers, college students, ESL students, homeschoolers, and more. This concise, entertaining workbook makes learning English grammar and usage simple and fun. This updated 12th edition reflects the latest updates to English usage and grammar, and includes answers to all reproducible quizzes to facilitate self-assessment and learning. Clear and concise, with easy-to-follow explanations, offering "just the facts" on English grammar, punctuation, and usage Fully updated to reflect the latest rules, along with even more quizzes and pre- and post-tests to help teach grammar Ideal for students from seventh grade through adulthood in the US and abroad For anyone who wants to understand the major rules and subtle guidelines of English grammar and usage, The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation offers comprehensive, straightforward instruction.
Phil M. Jones has trained more than two million people across five continents and over fifty countries in the lost art of spoken communication. In Exactly What to Say, he delivers the tactics you need to get more of what you want.
Start closing sales like top producers! Have you ever found yourself at a loss for what to say when the gatekeeper asks you what your call is about? Have your palms ever sweated when the decision maker shuts you down with: “I wouldn’t be interested”? Has your heart taken a fast dive into your stomach when, at the start of your presentation, your prospect tells you that they’ve thought about it and are just going to pass? If you’re in sales, then the question isn’t “Have you ever felt this way?”, but rather, “How often do you feel this way? Are you finally ready to learn how to confidently and effectively overcome these objections, stalls, and blow-offs? If so, Power Phone Scripts was written for you! Unlike other books on sales that tell you what you should do (like build value – hard to do when the prospect is hanging up on you!), Power Phone Scripts provides word-for-word scripts, phrases, questions, and comebacks that you can use on your very next call. Learn to overcome resistance, get through to the decision maker, and then, once you have him or her on the phone, make an instant connection and earn the right to have a meaningful conversation. You’ll be equipped with proven questions, conversation starters, and techniques to learn whether or not they are even right for your product or service, and, if they aren’t, who else in their company or another department might be. Power Phone Scripts is the sales manual you’ve been looking for: over 500 proven, current, and non-salesy phrases, rebuttals, questions, and conversation openers that will instantly make you sound more confident – just like the top producing sales pros do right now. Gone will be your call reluctance; gone will be your fear of calling prospects back for presentations and demos; gone will be the fear of asking for the sale at the end of your pitch! This practical guide is filled with effective scripts for prospecting, emailing, voice mails, closes, and tons of rebuttals to recurring objections you get like: “It costs too much” “We already have a vendor for that” “I’m going to need to think about it” “I need to talk to the boss or committee” and so many others... More than just phone scripts, this book provides practical, comprehensive guidance that every inside sales rep needs. Conquer concerns, provide answers, motivate action, and be the conduit between your prospect’s problems and your solution. Actionable, fun, and designed to work within the current sales environment, this invaluable guide is your ticket to the top of the leader board. With Power Phone Scripts, you will never be at a loss of what to say to a prospect or client. Communication is everything in sales, and being on top of your game is no longer enough when top producers are playing a different game altogether. You cannot achieve winning stats if you're not even on the field. If you're ready to join the big league, Power Phone Scripts is the playbook you need to win at inside sales.
Soon to be a Paramount+ exclusive docuseries! The New York Times Bestseller The Explosive National Bestseller "A backstage pass to the wildest and loudest party in rock history—you'll feel like you were right there with us!" —Bret Michaels of Poison Nothin' But a Good Time is the definitive, no-holds-barred oral history of 1980s hard rock and hair metal, told by the musicians and industry insiders who lived it. Hard rock in the 1980s was a hedonistic and often intensely creative wellspring of escapism that perfectly encapsulated—and maybe even helped to define—a spectacularly over-the-top decade. Indeed, fist-pumping hits like Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It,” Mötley Crüe’s “Girls, Girls, Girls,” and Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle” are as inextricably linked to the era as Reaganomics, PAC-MAN, and E.T. From the do-or-die early days of self-financed recordings and D.I.Y. concert productions that were as flashy as they were foolhardy, to the multi-Platinum, MTV-powered glory years of stadium-shaking anthems and chart-topping power ballads, to the ultimate crash when grunge bands like Nirvana forever altered the entire climate of the business, Tom Beaujour and Richard Bienstock's Nothin' But a Good Time captures the energy and excess of the hair metal years in the words of the musicians, managers, producers, engineers, label executives, publicists, stylists, costume designers, photographers, journalists, magazine publishers, video directors, club bookers, roadies, groupies, and hangers-on who lived it. Featuring an impassioned foreword by Slipknot and Stone Sour vocalist and avowed glam metal fanatic Corey Taylor, and drawn from over two hundred author interviews with members of Van Halen, Mötley Crüe, Poison, Guns N’ Roses, Skid Row, Bon Jovi, Ratt, Twisted Sister, Winger, Warrant, Cinderella, Quiet Riot and others, as well as Ozzy Osbourne, Lita Ford, and many more, this is the ultimate, uncensored, and often unhinged, chronicle of a time where excess and success walked hand in hand, told by the men and women who created a sound and style that came to define a musical era—one in which the bands and their fans went looking for nothin’ but a good time...and found it.