"There was waking, and there was sleeping. And then there were books," she writes, "a kind of parallel universe in which anything might happen and frequently did, a universe in which I might be a newcomer but never really a stranger. My real, true world." Later, she quotes editor Hazel Rochman: "Reading makes immigrants of us all. It takes us away from home, but, most important, it finds homes for us everywhere." Indeed, Quindlen's essays are full of the names of "friends," real or fictional—Anne of Green Gables and Heidi; Anthony Trollope and Jane Austen, to name just a few—who have comforted, inspired, educated, and delighted her throughout her life. In four short essays Quindlen shares her thoughts on the act of reading itself ("It is like the rubbing of two sticks together to make a fire, the act of reading, an improbable pedestrian task that leads to heat and light"); analyzes the difference between how men and women read ("there are very few books in which male characters, much less boys, are portrayed as devoted readers"); and cheerfully defends middlebrow literature:Most of those so-called middlebrow readers would have readily admitted that the Iliad set a standard that could not be matched by What Makes Sammy Run? or Exodus. But any reader with common sense would also understand intuitively, immediately, that such comparisons are false, that the uses of reading are vast and variegated and that some of them are not addressed by Homer.

    Designed for experienced developers ready to advance their status, Exam Ref focuses on the critical-thinking and decision-making acumen needed for success at the Microsoft Specialist level.Focus on the expertise measured by these objectives:Implement and manipulate document structures and objectsImplement program flowAccess and secure dataUse CSS3 in applicationsThis Microsoft Exam Ref:Organizes its coverage by exam objectives.Features strategic, what-if scenarios to challenge you.Includes a 15% exam discount from Microsoft. (Limited time offer)

    It is a transformational expedition that will lead you on an inward journey to greater health, happiness, and success as you learn to live from the inside out—as we are told by Jesus in the book of Matthew: “Ignite the kingdom life within you, a fire within you . . . changing you from the inside out . . . make a clean sweep of your lives” (Matthew 3:11).When all is well with the souls of humanity, all will be well in the world. When you have peace in your soul, you will bring that peace to bear on the world around you—you will become the change you are hoping to see. Churches, organizations, small groups, and families are encouraged to travel together on this 40-day journey to greater mental, emotional, and spiritual health. If everyone who picks up this book takes it upon him or herself to encourage others to participate, we would create an unstoppable movement! You may think that one healed soul cannot heal the world, but it can.The 40 Day Soul Fast promises to bring the best out of you so that you can impact your world for good. Have the courage to follow your heart! Step out and engage with your authentic self—it will be the best 40 days of your life!

    Written for 'The School of Life series, Foley takes one of his favourite philosophers, Henri Bergson, and highlights the ideas from Bergson that are most relevant to our ordinary everyday dilemmas.

    Whether books are your addiction or your phobia, Lit! offers up solid advice to help you think about reading in fresh ways.With all the practical suggestions built on a firm gospel foundation, this book will help you flourish in the essential skills necessary for a balanced reading diet of Scripture, serious works of theology, and moving devotional works, but without overlooking the importance of how-to books from expert practitioners, the storytelling genius of historians, and rich novels written by skilled artists of fiction.Literature scholar Leland Ryken calls Lit! “a triumph of scholarship,” but mostly it’s a practical and unpretentious book about the most urgent skills you need to enjoy a luminously literate life in honor of God.

    He was intense, rough, sexy and definitely something. He also just moved in next door.THE BET was made between the jocks so that one particular player had to try to win over the most hard to get girl.The bad boy turned out to be not so bad, the good girl turned out to be not so strong and the bet made it possible for their worlds to literally collide when they got into a car accident.With endless of fights, drama and heartbreak, Astrid was torn between her former crush and her new love.

    Extensive research and statistics regarding people of color worldwide represent their honorable past-and the agonizing circumstances that have tormented them for the past 300 years.You will learn the answers to these and many more questions: What or who is holding Blacks back from achieving their dreams? Why has the person of color been used and abused for generations? Why is the richest continent, Africa, inhabited by the poorest people? Can a victimization mentality be overcome? So what's wrong with being Black? Nothing.About the Author:Matthew Ashimolowo pastors the largest church in Western Europe, Kingsway International Christian Centre in London. His daily television ministry encourages millions of viewers worldwide, as do his radio programs. Born in Nigeria and now living in Europe, he is a teacher, evangelist, businessman, and award-winning author

    Living the fast life way before her adult years, she finally met her match when she fell in love with Rex. Although she thought he was everything she’d been missing, she soon learned Rex was not the man she thought. Now over twenty years later, she’s desperate to find her long lost daughter who she was forced to abandon all those years ago. Oneca Alvarez has always tried to live her life as a good girl. Growing up as a self- proclaimed daddy’s girl, she always did everything in her power to make her daddy proud. Despite her efforts, trouble is always near, and no matter how far she runs, there’s nothing this timid twenty-five year old virgin can do to escape it. Ocean Robinson has never been the type to let anyone run over her. A self-certified bitch, she constantly leaves a path of destruction behind her. Ocean, always the one to be in control, feels she has the best of both worlds as she can manipulate any situation she’s involved in. Soon, Ocean will realize that everything she thought was real just can’t be, and she actually never had any control at all. When life hits them with full force, they learn that the past will always come back around. These 3 ladies will all have to face the truths in their lives all while discovering the connection they all share.

    Their Choices lead them to this moment. The Consequences cannot be avoided. Good and evil, light and dark, nothing is ever as it seems. Join Olivia and Holden as they fight for their impossible love in this complete three book box set. Secrets- While Olivia Martin observed life through her camera, the Abyss gazed back at her. She discovers mysterious men follow her around, people close to her are dying, and her dreams are no longer her own as she falls head over heels for a perfect stranger. A chance encounter leads to an obsession that could destroy everything she has ever known or loved. Olivia is about to find out there is a lot she doesn't know and sometimes what you don't know can kill you. Choices- Hearts break. Loved ones are lost. Life keeps moving. Olivia Martin’s afterlife was more dangerous and confusing than her life ever was. She thought she was ready to come back, to forget about Holden and to let go of the rage consuming her. Fulfilling her destiny as a guardian was all that mattered—the past could stay hidden in the crevices of her mind. However, when guardians are murdered and the evidence points towards jinn, she has to do something. To save anyone’s future, Olivia will have to confront the one person from her past she is terrified to see. Holden waited for Olivia with the hope he would see her one more time. But when she didn’t return, he found salvation in darkness. The black and twisted road made it easier to forget what he lost than to live with the memory of what he had. An unexpected promotion shoves him into a world of intoxicating power and influence. Holden will have to choose between his new life and the woman he thought was gone forever. Consequences-In the final installment of the Guardian Trilogy, hope is born, alliances change, and the fate of a world is held in the hands of two people. Forced to face the wrath of either Heaven or Hell, Olivia and Holden must choose a side before a war begins and tears their lives apart forever. They always felt an unseen force brought them together, but was it to prevent the end of their world or to ensure it?

    Done with men, human or other wise. Especially alien warriors like Grothar the Scourge. Ruthless. Heartless. Terrifying. He's happy to tell everyone that. They all believe it. I'm just not so sure. If he's the cruel space pirate he claims to be, I've got some questions... Why is he so protective of me and the children in my care? Why does the sight of his muscled, red body make my breath catch? And why does his touch make something in my chest flutter? Alien Warrior with Benefits is a fast and funny, action-packed steamy science fiction romance. No cheating and a guaranteed HEA for our couple. (Just don't tell Grothar.)

     Come join Jacque, Jen and Sally as they begin their journey into the paranormal world. Where werewolves are real, true mates are a thing and best friends have to learn to fight for who they love and what they want. Watch as each of the girls faces trials, evil, danger, joy, love, loss and the realization that there is more to life than living and dying. It's all the in between stuff that matters. Book 1 Prince of Wolves: Jacque Pierce was just an ordinary 17 year old girl getting ready to start her senior year in high school in Coldspring, Texas. When a mysterious foreign exchange student from Romania moves in across the street, Jacque and her two best friends, Sally and Jen, don't realize the last two weeks of their summer was going to get a lot more interesting. From the moment Jacque sets eyes on Fane she feels an instant connection, a pull like a moth to a flame. Little does she know that the flame she is drawn to is actually a Canis Lupus, werewolf, and she just happens to be his mate; the other half of his soul. The problem is Fane is not the only wolf in Coldspring, Texas. Just as Fane and Jacque are getting to know each other, another wolf steps out to try and claim Jacque as his mate. Fane will now have to fight for the right to complete the mating bond, something that is his right by birth but is being denied him by a crazed Alpha. Will the love Fane has for Jacque be enough to give him the strength to defeat his enemy, will Jacque accept that she is Fane's mate and complete the bond between them?

    Derek Attridge argues that such resistance represents not a dead end, but a crucial starting point from which to explore anew the power and practices of Western art.In this lively, original volume, the author:considers the implications of regarding the literary work as an innovative cultural event, both in its time and for later generations; provides a rich new vocabulary for discussions of literature, rethinking such terms as invention, singularity, otherness, alterity, performance and form; returns literature to the realm of ethics, and argues the ethical importance of the literary institution to a culture; demonstrates how a new understanding of the literary might be put to work in a 'responsible, ' creative mode of reading.The Singularity of Literature is not only a major contribution to the theory of literature, but also a celebration of the extraordinary pleasure of the literary, for reader, writer, student or critic.