Discover birds who survive winter against all odds in this poetic, gorgeously illustrated picture book Snowflakes whirling, snow-flocks swirling, streaks of white twirl through the night . . . You’ve heard of birds who migrate to warmer climates in the wintertime—but what about those who persevere through snowy weather and freezing temperatures? With elegant verse and striking illustrations, Snow Birds salutes the brave and resourceful birds who adapt to survive the coldest months.
BOY Novak turns twenty and decides to try for a brand-new life. Flax Hill, Massachusetts, isn't exactly a welcoming town, but it does have the virtue of being the last stop on the bus route she took from New York. Flax Hill is also the hometown of Arturo Whitman - craftsman, widower, and father of Snow. SNOW is mild-mannered, radiant and deeply cherished - exactly the sort of little girl Boy never was, and Boy is utterly beguiled by her. If Snow displays a certain inscrutability at times, that's simply a characteristic she shares with her father, harmless until Boy gives birth to Snow's sister, Bird. When BIRD is born Boy is forced to re-evaluate the image Arturo's family have presented to her, and Boy, Snow and Bird are broken apart.
This is the first ethnographic study of Snowbird, North Carolina, a remote mountain community of Cherokees who are regarded as simultaneously the most traditional and the most adaptive members of the entire tribe. Through historical research, contemporary fieldwork, and situational analysis, Sharlotte Neely explains the Snowbird paradox and portrays the inhabitants' daily lives and culture. At the core of her study are detailed examinations of two expressions of Snowbird's cultural self-awareness--its ongoing struggle for fair political representation on the tribal council and its yearly Trail of Tears Singing, a gathering point for all North Carolina and Oklahoma Cherokees concerned with cultural conservation.
One of the most familiar North American birds, the snowbird, otherwise known as the Dark-eyed Junco, can be seen darting across forest floors, pecking at suburban birdfeeders, and foraging at the edges of parks, streams, and roads all across the continent. By one estimate, upwards of 630 million Juncos populate North America: twice the number of people living here in the U.S. No Bird Like the Snowbird: Integrative Approaches to Understanding Evolutionary Diversity in the Avian Genus Junco presents diverse expertise not just on the Dark-eyed Junco, but on the Junco genus more broadly. Collectively, the contributors draw on research, methods, and findings from organismal biology and evolutionary biology in order to show how juncos match their physiology and behavior to their environment via endocrine and timing mechanisms, and how Junco evolutionary history can provide insight into population divergence and the formation of new species. In so doing, they not only provide a definitive account of the Junco genus and speak to the its continuing importance as a model organism in a time of rapid global change, they also merge two major biological fields that are typically kept apart, with the goal of offering biologists an integrative framework for further studies into adaptation and population divergence.
“Enchanting . . . the most surprising, confounding, and oddly insightful couple’s trip in recent literary history.” —Entertainment Weekly The prize-winning, bestselling author of Gingerbread; Boy, Snow, Bird; and What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours returns with a vivid and inventive new novel about a couple forever changed by an unusual train voyage. When Otto and Xavier Shin declare their love, an aunt gifts them a trip on a sleeper train to mark their new commitment—and to get them out of her house. Setting off with their pet mongoose, Otto and Xavier arrive at their sleepy local train station, but quickly deduce that The Lucky Day is no ordinary locomotive. Their trip on this former tea-smuggling train has been curated beyond their wildest imaginations, complete with mysterious and welcoming touches, like ingredients for their favorite breakfast. They seem to be the only people on board, until Otto discovers a secretive woman who issues a surprising message. As further clues and questions pile up, and the trip upends everything they thought they knew, Otto and Xavier begin to see connections to their own pasts, connections that now bind them together. A spellbinding tale from a star author, Peaces is about what it means to be seen by another person—whether it’s your lover or a stranger on a train—and what happens when things you thought were firmly in the past turn out to be right beside you.
On the eve of burying her only son, she stays awake all night, examining old photographs, cherishing warm memories, and sometimes disturbed by uneasy ghosts from the past. She recalls her son's tragic death, his failed romance, and Louise, who for a short while looked like the partner that might make her son happy.
Dark-eyed and distant Alma Rubens was one of the first female stars of the early feature film industry in the 1910s. She was a major star by 1920, but before the decade was over her screen career was marked and marred by cocaine abuse. She died in 1931 at age 33--a Hollywood beauty, a casualty of Hollywood "snow," yet much more. As an actress she was versatile, demonstrating a talent that was ahead of its time with her gentle and subtle expressions. This book contains Rubens's autobiography, a text titled This Bright World Again that was serialized in newspapers in 1931. Ghost-written or not or somewhere in between, this long forgotten document deals with Rubens's addiction and despair. In addition, a new biography of Rubens takes the reader from her birth in San Francisco through an impoverished upbringing, three short-lived marriages, and her career in pictures for Triangle Film, Cosmopolitan, Fox and other production companies. The story of her film career mingles with a tale of desperate drug addiction that led to hospital stays, violence and deception. A filmography lists her credits from 1913 to 1929.
Snowbird Secrets: A Guide to Big Mountain Skiing is "a collection of lessons learned by skiing big mountains, as taught by big mountains." It reveals how this 3-ring resort is affected by wind, weather and exposure and how, in turn, this knowledge informs one's choice of descent down its multi-faceted terrain. The 22 chapters take readers on a tour of this gigantic winter playground, in the process sharing the secrets to mastering the mountain. Even elite expert skiers will discover perspectives they may have experienced and been unable to express. Mike Rogan, the Professional Ski Instructors of America (PSIA) National Alpine Team Captain and the living embodiment of the perfect turn, notes, "Nowhere else will you understand the white dance as inside these scrolls. You will not be a complete Alpine Slider until you finish this book." Secrets is like a backstage pass to an arena concert; its authors, Jackson Hogen and "Guru" Dave Powers, make you feel the beating pulse that invests every run down these natural amphitheaters with the invisible energy of the gravity stream. No other book on skiing has illuminated the concept of flow with such vivid examples, drawn from two lifetimes devoted to skiing in sync with the mountain. "Secrets is about flowing into the zone, be it the athletic performance zone or the Zone of Life. It should be required reading for all students... and their instructors," says the creator of the cutting-edge Clendenin Ski Method (CSM) and 2-time World Freestyle Champion John Clendenin. Whether you're already a master of the mountain or one who aspires to be, Secrets has countless lessons intertwined between its covers. You'll learn the advantages of being early in the turn, of drifting instead of carving and taking what the mountain gives you. "Snowbird Secrets applies to all skiing," observes the prime mover behind expertskier.com, Peter Keelty, "from the local bunny hill to the vast reaches of the Chugash. We believe it to be among the most important skiing books ever written. In our opinion, Secrets is must reading for anyone serious about skiing. Moreover, Secrets is a cracking good read."
