They have only begun to adjust to this remarkable civilization before heading off on separate quests. Will takes to the sky as the pilot of a giant pterosaur known as a skybax, while Arthur leads an excavation deep underground to discover the origins of the world beneath Dinotopia. Little does either of them know of the dangers they are about to face ...

    Myst captivated the world when it was first conceived and created by brothers Rand and Robyn Miller. Its extraordinary success has gone on to spawn Riven, Myst III Exile, and most recently, Uru: The Ages Beyond Myst. Devoted fans of these surreal adventure games gather yearly at "Mysterium" (whose event sites are spreading to other countries) to exchange game strategies, share stories, and meet up with old friends.The Myst Reader is a literary companion to the CD-ROM games and a compendium of the bestselling official Myst trilogy: The Book of Atrus, The Book of Ti'ana, and The Book of D'ni. Devoted fans and new players alike will be delighted to have three books in this mythic saga together for the first time in one value-priced volume, which will be published in time to coincide with the long-awaited release of Myst Revelations.

    Griffin's best-selling series. Millions of readers have been swept away by W.E.B. Griffin's remarkable novels of the Marine Corps, a saga filled with crackling realism and adventure, rich characters, real heroes, and a special flair for the military heart and mind. Here, together for the first time, are books IV,V, and VI of that series: Battleground, Line of Fire, and Close Combat. Together, these three novels present an epic tale of the battle between American and Japanese forces for the Solomon Islands in 1942. A general on a ticklish diplomatic mission finds himself in harm's way A first lieutenant, twenty-one years old but already one of only two pilots remaining from the fighter squadron's original sixteen, must learn what it is like to lead men - and to lose them A dare-devil squad attempts to rescue two Island, under the very noses of the Japanese A young private volunteers for a mission for a mission so secret he cannot be told where it is - or what he'll be doing Sweeping in scope but meticulous in detail, the books bring to life the men of the Corps - generals, colonels, and of an elite fraternity united by a tradition of courage and honor. This is The Corps.

    A prince who makes everyone laugh is sent on a quest to turn him into a person worthy of being a king, but he gets everything wrong except for the meaning of life.

    First novelist Forward explores the complications that arise from a surfeit of "goodness" in the world. The result is a skewed version of the epic fantasy that features an assassin, a thief, an evil sorceress, a dark knight, and an implacable druid as the villains-turned-heroes who must restore the delicate balance of opposing forces before their world disappears in a blinding flash of Goodness and Light. -- Library JournalForward's first novel gives the concept of the balance between good and evil a most ingenious twist: What if good were so totally triumphant that it became a worse danger than evil, and a band of unemployed evil characters had to go on a desperate quest to find the means of putting the saving bit of evil back into the world? The result of this twist is an almost straightforward quest tale, with numerous well-drawn characters (including a centaur who starts off as a secret agent for good and eventually joins the side of evil), great ingenuity about magic, very creditable world-building, and considerable wit. Although bearing its share of first-novel flaws, it has many more virtues, which include an underlying, serious examination of the good-evil dichotomy that is the basis of so many role-playing games. -- Roland Green

    Includes: The Bean Trees, Homeland and Other Stories, Animal Dreams, and Pigs In Heaven.

    Featuring 25 countries, The World′s Most Dangerous Places, 5th Edition offers a brief up-to-the-minute history of each nation, provides tips on how to get in, out and around safely, and uncovers their dangers, from diseases, land mines, and kidnapping to mercenaries and militias. Completely revised, this edition has a number of countries who have been added to the hot list.With firsthand accounts of breathtaking adventure in each country, the book also provides the latest indispensable information on contacts for nongovernmental and rescue organizations, environmental groups, political activists, training schools in outdoor survival, commando techniques, and other potentially life-saving advice.

    Their four books of lightweight Himalayan expeditioning are here published in one volume for the first time.

     On an isolated Greek island, a World War I fighter plane attacks a modern U.S. Air Force base--a mysterious saboteur preys on an American scientific expedition--and Dirk Pitt plays a deadly game of hunter and hunted with the elusive head of an international smuggling ring.

    He climbed with an audacity and panache that epitomized the purest spirit of alpinism, and inspired an entire generation of climbers. Jon Krakauer calls him one of my heroes. He is not only a mountaineer of astonishing talent and vision, but one of the world's most engaging writers about mountaineering.Bonatti has also been dogged by controversy and often been at odds with the climbing community. The Mountains of My Life not only collects the best of Bonatti's writing telling of adventures in the Alps, the Himalayas, and little-known South American peaks it also tells Bonatti's version of what really happened on the Italian expedition that made the first ascent of K2 in 1954. Bonatti's selfless actions helped avert disaster, yet in the expedition's aftermath he found himself cast as a scapegoat. Part detective story, part hair-raising adventure, part meditation on his craft, The Mountains of My Life is as awe-inspiring and controversial as its author, and is beautifully illustrated with Bonatti's own photos.

    After his mother's brooch is stolen, Kasper leaves his home in the land of Nowhere and journeys to the land of Glitter and Gloom to get it back, confronting great dangers in a city ruled by a fierce orphan boy.

    An outcast and a traveler through the shifting times, his extraordinary power makes him feared by those who call themselves guardians of liberty. Ransom calls them enemy. Now, the predator has become the prey as the hunt begins for this fugitive who will never conform, cannot be tamed, and refuses to die.

    They were retracing the route of the Navajo deity Naay+(c)+(c)' neizgh+in+, the Slayer of Alien Gods, on his quest to restore beauty and balance to the Earth. More than a travelogue, Preston's account of the journey is a tale of two cultures meeting in a sacred land."

    The story told is of an expedition to the South Pole, led by a young, ardent American woman, Morgan Lamont - an expedition inspired and haunted by the tragic journey, eighty years before, of the British explorer Robert Falcon Scott. For Morgan, Scott's life, his dream, his death, and the very concept of Antarctic navigation are obsessive emblems of the search for integrity in a morally precarious age. Freed by her mother's quixotic and frightening sacrifice and the generosity of a hitherto estranged grandfather, she sets out to fulfil her own dream - to vindicate Scott by recreating his historic polar expedition.

     Old Yeller (Winner of the Newbery Honor)When his father sets out on a cattle drive for the summer, fourteen-year-old Travis is left to take care of his mother, younger brother, and the family farm. In the wilderness of early frontier Texas, Travis faces his new and often dangerous responsibilities, with many adventures along the way, all with the help of the big yellow dog who comes to be his best friend. Savage Sam In this sequel to Old Yeller, Travis and his younger brother are kidnapped by an Indian raiding party, and Savage Sam, the son of the beloved yellow dog, leads a frantic chase to bring them back. Sounder ( Winner of the John Newbery Medal)Sounder is a loyal family dog, determined to help his owners through thick and thin. This is the story of a great coon dog and the poor sharecroppers who own him, and of the courage and love that bind a black family together in the face of extreme prejudice from the outside world.

    But, in one of the finest series of historical short stories in literature, Doyle created Brigadier Etienne Gerard, a marvelous hero set against a backdrop of the Europe of Napoleon.

    

    When Joe's father loses his job, Lassie must be sold. Three times Lassie escapes from her new master, and three times she returns, until finally she is taken to the remotest part of Scotland-too far a journey for any dog to make alone.But Lassie is not just any dog. Traveling nearly one thousand miles over punishing terrain, Lassie makes her courageous and painful way home to Joe. They are never separated again.Lassie Come-Home is a classic, heart-warming tale about the love between a boy and his dog. The acclaimed picture-book edition by Rosemary Wells and Susan Jeffers is now a chapter book perfect for young readers

    Seeking vengeance on the rebel renegades who murdered his family, Civil War veteran Nathan Stone sets out on an odyssey that will take him throughout the United States and across the paths of the West's most famous--and infamous--characters, including Jesse James, "Wild" Bill Hickok, and John Wesley Hardin.

    Autopsies indicate that the killer cannot be human...But the museum's directors plan to go ahead with a big bash to celebrate the new exhibition, in spite of the murders.Museum researcher Margo Green must find out who-or what-is doing the killing. But can she do it in time to stop the massacre?

    In 1926, two years after the plane crash death of his best friend, he attempted a solo flight record in a refitted Curtiss Jenny. Then, with half the journey completed, his plane was caught in a storm, went down, and for seventeen years he was missing, presumed dead. "The Longest Winter" is a fictional biography of John Robert Shaw's life. His story is one of despair and courage, tragedy and triumph. Stranded on an uncharted rocky island, his body broken by the crash, John Robert is adopted into a tribe of Eskimos. In this amazing tale, the author captures the Native American culture and vividly depicts one man's struggle to retain his sanity in a harsh, heartless environment.

    This reference covers snake classification, size, shape and colouration, ecology, eating habits, defensive behaviour, and mythology and superstition.

    Clayton was renamed "Tarzan" by the apes, and grew up in the wild without knowledge of his humanity. Both novels are classic examples of American pulp fiction, portraying Tarzan as the quintessential strong, wild, able-bodied hero.This elegantly designed clothbound edition features an elastic closure and a new introduction.

    With the exhilarating insight his readers have come to expect, Rick Bass describes the dangers and clues on the trail of the grizzly, the mystery and beauty of the animal, and the courage, hope, and friendships at the heart of the search. The Lost Grizzlies is more than a foray into deep wilderness. It is, ultimately, as much about humans as it is about bears.

    The view 16-year-old Thomas Osborne first had of Muskoka was at night, trudging alone with his even younger brother along unmarked primitive roads to find their luckless father who, in 1875, had decided to make a new start for his beleaguered family on some "free land" in the bush east of the pioneer village of Huntsville, Ontario. The miracle is that Thomas lived to tell the tale.For the next five years Thomas endured starvation, falling through the ice and freezing, accidents with axes and boats, and narrow escapes from wolves and bears. Many years later, after returning to the United States, Osborne wrote down all his adventures in a graphic memoir that has become, in the words of author and journalist Roy MacGregor, "an undiscovered Canadian classic."Reluctant Pioneer provides a brooding sense of adventure and un- sentimental realism to deliver a powerful account of pioneer life where tragedies arrive as naturally as rain and where humour resides in irony.

    Determined, after his mother's accidental death, to foil his stepfather's plans for his future, fourteen-year-old Jacob travels alone to Africa in search of his father, a biologist studying elephants in a remote area of Kenya.

    It tells of adventures in shark-infested waters around the Solomon Islands, along the River Ganges, and on Lake Malawi. Encounters across the language/culture barriers are also described.

    While in Ireland, Hellboy helps a family whose baby has been taken by faeries. The thieves demand Hellboy buries their dead friend, a drunken gambler, in hallowed ground. But in the world of Hellboy, nothing is ever as easy as it sounds.

    While Jean had faced Alaska's wilderness before — in a life-altering experience she chronicled in Arctic Daughter — this journey would be different. Dogged by sickness and hardships, cut off from the rest of the world, her family faced not only a test of endurance, but of its own well-being and survival....From a daily struggle against the elements to an encounter with a grizzly bear at arm's length, from moments of breathtaking beauty and self-realization to a harrowing, six-hundred-mile river passage back to civilization, Arctic Son chronicles fourteen remarkable months in the Arctic. At once a portrait of courage and a heart-pounding adventure story, Arctic Son portrays a family's extraordinary journey into America's last frontier.

    McManus's zany books on outdoor life are available in an attractively boxed set. Contains The Grasshopper Trap, A Fine and Pleasant Misery, Never Sniff a Gift Fish, and They Shoot Canoes, Don't They?

    Based on the best-selling CD-ROM game, a fantasy novel fills out the lives of the game's characters, tracing the strange apprenticeship of Atrus to his father, Gehn, who wields the power to create worlds.

    It includes detailed colour illustrati ons and maps and is packed with puzzles to solve and things to spot. '

    Pedlar, a yellow-necked mouse, has reached that point. Told to leave the Hedgerow and go on a long journey, the adventurous mouse says his farewells and sets out for a far-distant country knows as The House. Reaching his destination, Pedlar enters a strange new world inhabited by many warring tribes: the Stinkhorns of the cellar, the great Savage Tribe in the kitchen, the library Bookeaters, the Invisibles, the Deathshead and the rebellious 13-K Gang.

    Walt Blackadar, a physician from a small town in Idaho. At the age of 49, he shocked the outdoor world when he made a solo kayak journey down the treacherous rapids of Turnback Canyon on the remote and wild Alsek River in Canada and Alaska. Blackadar's accomplishment on Turnback Canyon was the river equivalent of the first ascent of Everest, and when excerpts from his Alsek journal were published in Sports Illustrated, he became an instant sensation. He was at the top of his sport at an age when most athletes are long retired. Then suddenly, his spectacular rise veered wildly off course when a young woman tragically died on one of his kayaking expeditions. Heartbroken over her death and plagued with mounting physical problems, his kayaking technique began to deteriorate. Yet he had a spirit that was irrepressible, and pitting himself in a race against his body's clock, he sought out and faced off against the world's most formidable whitewater.

    Topographic and trailhead maps accompany clear and simple directions while text recounting the history and lore brings alive the colorful past of the Superstitions.

    Thus begins a terror-filled week during which she discovers that nearly everyone she loves is involved in some way with an international espionage ring – but are they the good guys or the bad guys?Is Bart, the man she has loved since they played together as children, a secret government agent – or does he answer to an underworld crime boss? If she doesn’t go along with his unbelievable scheme, will it cost them their lives? Does he really love her, or is he just using her? One by one, Allison uncovers a host of mysterious secrets – and just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, there’s another surprise to keep you guessing.This is a book to read when you’ve got all night, because you won’t want to put it down. Heart-stopping entertainment for anyone who enjoys a great romantic thriller.

    Read by the Author himself. The Enormous Crocodile The enormous crocodile has an even more enormous appetite and a head full of dirty tricks. But the other jungle animals plan to foil his nasty plans. Fantastic Mr FoxThe greedy farmers—Boggis, Bunce and Bean—are out to catch him, but they're no match for fantastic Mr Fox. The Magic FingerDon't get on the wrong side of the girl with the magic finger—you never know what might happen!

    Millie, a young lop-eared bunny, leaves her family's hutch and is finally on her own in a world of glorious fields and flowers. But Millie soon realizes that being in the wild means having to deal with hungry foxes and nasty wild rabbits. This lushly illustrated, charming story is perfect for anyone who's ever been a little scared of embarking on a new adventure away from home.

    A double amputee, Barr recounts his round the world journey on a motorcycle.

    Jones carries us to the sleepy Spanish ports of the 1950s, the pleasures of Buenos Aires in the last days of Peron, and the damp forests of Southeast Asia.

    The arrow bounces off Big Brown Bear and catches on Camel's crystal ball. A mysterious treasure chest is revealed, and with each new letter, rambunctious animals all the way from A to Z join the race for the buried treasure. With its bright and bold illustrations, this stunning, wordless picture book turns learning the alphabet into a guessing game and a hunt for hidden letters that children and adults alike will enjoy. And, with its many interconnected tales that flow from letter to letter and from page to page, this book will inspire even the youngest of readers to become storytellers themselves.

    Strengthened by a fearful and superstitious populace, the Church is seeking to harness a decaying Holy Roman Empire by asserting its absolute authority in interpreting the will of God. Aileran, a monk perceived as saintly, takes issue with the Church and is accused of heresy. Based on real events, places, and people, In the Falcon's Claw magically evokes the political and pastoral landscapes of tenth-century while exploring love, friendship and timeless spiritual and religious questions.

    He learns the ways of the jungle from the wise old bear, Baloo, and the great black panther, Bagheera. He is befriended by the faithful wolf, Gray Brother, and is carried off by the crafty Monkey-People -- only to be rescued by the mighty python, Kaa. And through it all, Mowgli knows that he must someday face his sworn enemy: the ferocious man-hating tiger, Shere Khan.Presented here in the author's preferred order are all of Kipling's thrilling Mowgli stories, as well as the beloved tale of the brave mongoose, Rikki-tikki-tavi. Brilliantly captured in eighteen lush watercolors by Caldecott Honor artist Jerry Pinkney, this handsome centenary edition will be treasured by readers of all ages.

    But once the River speaks, the man becomes a superfluous distraction and a woman finds herself standing alone, in living water, defying and wowing the self. This is the moment the fly fisher is born. This beautiful birth is the heartbeat of these stories." -David James Duncan, author of "The River Why" and "The Brothers K" Includes stories by Pulitzer-Prize-winner E. Anne Proulx, "Cowboys Are My Weakness" author Pam Houston, fly casting champion Joan Slavato Wulff, Lorian Hemingway, LeAnne Schreiber, and more Since the success of "Fly Fishing Through the Midlife Crisis" and "A River Runs Through It," fly fishing has been growing in popularity among both sexes Both men and women will enjoy these sometimes poignant, more often humorous tales of uniformly high literary quality.

    

    But just when he thinks Mr Woodland Mouse is safely on his way home, the plan goes horribly wrong...

    The spirit of discovery continues today, in the laboratories, where ancient DNA is studied, and in expeditions.

    They were pioneering women naturalists who observed, studied, and experimented, then returned to write up their findings. What resulted were exquisitely written and scientifically accurate accounts of their explorations into natural science--a field long dominated by men. Marcia Myers Bonta has collected the most charming and sensitive writings of twenty-five women naturalists of the late nineteenth through early twentieth centuries and supplemented them with well-researched biographical profiles. From Susan Fenimore Cooper's early warnings about the profligate use of natural resources to Mary Treat's tenacious defense of her scientific discoveries, from Alice Eastwood's defiance of convention and Caroline Dormon's, Lucy Braun's, and Rachel Carson's impassioned pleas to save the earth, American Women Afield catalogs the determination and devotion of these early scientists and acknowledges their invaluable contributions to ornithology, entomology, botany, agrostology, and ecology.Each excerpt in this book reveals the important role these women played not only as writers but as popularizers of nature study at a time when very little literature on this subject was available to the general public. Whether scientist or generalist, the reader will discover insights into their methods of field work as they tame wasps, camp out in jungles, climb unnamed mountaintops, or sit patiently in the woods for hours.Written as a companion book to Bonta's earlier published Women in the Field: America's Pioneering Women Naturalists, American Women Afield adds an additional dimension to female scientific history by presenting the authors' own words. Luckily for the reader, Bonta has scoured libraries, museums, and private collections to uncover letters, out-of-print journal articles, field notes, and selected book chapters from the recesses of academia. Each selection is unique in style, tone, and subject and clearly shows not only the authors' love of nature but their desire to communicate that love to others.American Women Afield is a charming, informative, and revealing account of pioneering women--mentors whose lives have been forgotten for far too long.

    The story of Johnny Schnarr's career as the most successful rumrunner to work the Pacific Northwest during the era of US prohibition.

    Not just a sniper. He was America's best, with a record-breaking kill in Vietnam - a man who could be hidden, motionless, for days at a time, waiting for the microsecond in which he would take out an enemy with one clean shot at 1,300 yards. He did this 96 times. In recognition, the Marine Corps renamed its sniper range in his honor. Now Gray just wants to quietly live out his life as an assistant U.S. district attorney in New York, where he is raising three adopted children, all victims of the war he is trying resolutely to forget - and atone for. He never wants to see a rifle again. But suddenly, twenty-five years after Gray placed his Winchester rifle in the Marine Corps museum, a sniper is hunting him through the streets of New York City. The sniper's bullets find their mark. But the mark is not Gray. The sniper is challenging him, warning him that he will keep on killing until Gray picks up his rifle one more time.... Gray, falling in love with a woman who is beginning to break through his shell, is determined to protect her and his children. Reluctantly caught up once again in a game that both repels and excites him, Gray leads his rival into the woods of his native Idaho, where the two best-trained killers in the world will shoot it out to the death.

    Not only are they  frightening they're deadly. Is the price of  admission worth your life?

    As they sail from Boston to Honolulu, he records the sights along the way in his illustrated journal. The journal is filled with penguins, monkeys, and the story of a race with another clipper ship.