Book picks similar to
Penguins and Their Chicks by Margaret C. Hall


early-readers
exploring-mini-library
exploring-topic
family-read-alouds

True Crime Addict: How I Lost Myself in the Mysterious Disappearance of Maura Murray


James Renner - 2016
    That obsession led Renner to a successful career as an investigative journalist. It also gave him post-traumatic stress disorder. In 2011, Renner began researching the strange disappearance of Maura Murray, a University of Massachusetts student who went missing after wrecking her car in rural New Hampshire in 2004. Over the course of his investigation, he uncovered numerous important and shocking new clues about what may have happened to Murray but also found himself in increasingly dangerous situations with little regard for his own well-being. As his quest to find Murray deepened, the case started taking a toll on his personal life, which began to spiral out of control. The result is an absorbing dual investigation of the complicated story of the All-American girl who went missing and Renner's own equally complicated true-crime addiction.True Crime Addict is the story of Renner's spellbinding investigation, which has taken on a life of its own for armchair sleuths across the web. In the spirit of David Fincher's Zodiac, it's a fascinating look at a case that has eluded authorities and one man's obsessive quest for the answers.

Unrelenting: The Real Story: Horses, Bright Lights and My Pursuit of Excellence


George H. Morris - 2016
    He has represented our country as an athlete and a coach and, at one time or another, instructed many of our nation’s best horsemen and women. His carefully chosen, perfectly enunciated words are notoriously powerful. They can raise you up or cut you to the quick. His approval can be a rainmaker; his derision can end a career.But as much as people know and respect (or, perhaps, fear) the public face of George Morris, he has lived, in other ways, a remarkably private life, keeping his own personal struggles with insecurity, with ambition, and with love behind closed doors. It is only now that he has chosen, in his own words, to share the totality of his life—the very public and the incredibly private—with the world. This engrossing autobiography, the real story of the godlike George Morris, beautifully demonstrates his ultimate humanity.

Baseball: A History of America's Game


Benjamin G. Rader - 1992
    A lively, compact history of the game, including commentary on baseball in the 1990s.

Note to Self: 30 Women on Hardship, Humiliation, Heartbreak, and Overcoming It All


Andrea J. Buchanan - 2008
     Life rarely works out exactly as we plan. Rejection by a cherished friend, the onset of an unexpected illness, struggle with body image and self-perception -- these experiences may challenge us, but our triumphs come to define us. We find comfort, joy, tears, and laughter in the wisdom, insight, and empathy we gain. In Note to Self, thirty dynamic women share their inspirational stories with writer, director, and television and film producer Andrea Buchanan. Celebrities such as Grammy Award-winning rock star Sheryl Crow and Emmy Award-winning actress Camryn Manheim join stuntwoman Stacy Courtney, football player Katie Hnida, seventy- year-old HIV-positive grandmother Beverly London, and alcoholic-turned-interventionist Candy Finnigan to reflect on their unforgettable stories of redemption. Punctuated by tears and laughter, these poignant tales are full of incredible strength, invaluable knowledge, insurmountable odds, helpful survival instincts, amazing willpower, humiliation -- sometimes on a national level -- and a hefty dose of humor. These unstoppable women emerged stronger, wiser, and more successful from the often painful and humbling turning points in their lives. While none of their unique stories will fit neatly on a sticky note you can tape to your wall, each of them carries an indelible message that can.

In the Deep Heart's Core


Michael Johnston - 2002
    At Greenville High School, he confronted a racially divided world in which his African-American students had to struggle daily against a legacy of crippling poverty and the scourges of drug addiction and gang violence that ravaged their community. In the Deep Heart's Core tells the story of how Johnston reached out to inspire his teenage students with all the means at his disposal — from the language of the great poets to the strategies of chess to the vigor of athletics. Vibrantly alive with the rich atmosphere of the Mississippi Delta — the haunting beauty of its hollows and the aching tragedy of its history — In the Deep Heart's Core is a compassionate, eloquent, and profoundly moving book. It is an inspiring and unforgettable story of one young man's experience in the Teach for America program, and of how a new generation of teachers is reaching out to give hope to the students society has forgotten.

Anatomy of a Secret Life: The Psychology of Living a Lie


Gail Saltz - 2006
    But we can never know for certain, because what really goes on inside another’s head and heart is essentially a secret. How do you know if that secret is something that will hurt you? Your husband turns to face you in bed. Is he thinking about you or your closest friend? Your boss shows up in another new outfit. Did she get a raise or is she a compulsive shopper who is stealing money from the company? Your teenaged daughter is upstairs in her bedroom. Is she doing her homework or chatting online with a man twice her age? Anatomy of A Secret Life will take you inside the minds of secret-keepers and show you how secrets start, how they’re kept, and how they exact their devastating emotional and social toll. Using contemporary case studies and historical examples, Dr. Gail Saltz shows you how to spot—through subtle behaviors and clues—and safely stop the potentially dangerous secrets that someone, even you, might be concealing from the world.

The Debt Consolidation Myth: A Proven Method to Help You Get Out of Debt While Still Living Your Life


Jesse Mecham - 2017
    Let’s have you destroy your debt. Let’s have you be rid of it forever. That’s exactly what this 80/20 guide is going to give you—a sure-fire, bulletproof, tried and true method for destroying your debt. Debt, in almost any form, is lame. Nope, “lame” is probably not a strong enough word for it. Debt is a burden. Debt’s a drain. It’s a mood killer. It’s a relationship strainer. It’s a cash flow crusher. Sheesh. It takes the fun out of just about everything. Sure, you’ll hear fancy-pants people tell you about “good” debt and “bad” debt and the like. They’ll discuss fancy terms like “opportunity cost” or the value of using “OPM” (other people’s money, and if you didn’t know what OPM meant, bless you). They may even use another three-letter acronym like “ROI” when they’re talking about how you can leverage debt and get a better return on your investment. Well, we’re not talking about capitalization of a multi-conglomerate business. We’re talking about your personal finances. And when it comes to personal finances, debt is a draining, mood-killing, cash flow-crushing burden—and it’s lame. Heck, debt collectors, big banks, attorneys ... they all make debt personal. So I think it’s safe to say that your debt belongs right square in the middle of what we’d call your personal finance. Yes, let’s make this very personal. Let’s talk about how you got into this mess of debt, where you want to go, and how you’ll get there. And, true to our 80/20 guide form, I’ll tell you everything you need to know and do as quickly as possible. Unless I see a good opportunity for a joke, where I’ll drag it out just a bit longer.

The Blobfish Book


Jessica Olien - 2016
    But this book isn’t about Blobfish...or is it?This true (clever) story about the (misunderstood) Blobfish is sure to make you smile. Full of fun facts about sea creatures in the deepest reaches of the ocean, this book is perfect for any science lover. From Jessica Olien, the author/illustrator of Shark Detective.

Molly Ivins: Letters to The Nation


Molly Ivins - 2013
    

First Steps to Free-Motion Quilting: 24 Projects for Fearless Stitching


Christina Cameli - 2013
    With a refreshingly new approach to free-motion stitching, First Steps to Free-Motion Quilting encourages you to make something beautiful while improving your free-motion quilting skills. You'll find 24 projects and quilts that are light on assembly so you can spend most of your time stitching. A handy troubleshooting guide ensures success every step of the way.

Edgar Allan Poe: The Fever Called Living


Paul Collins - 2014
    He died broke and alone at the age of forty, but not before he had written some of the greatest works in the English language, from the chilling “The Tell-Tale Heart” to “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”—the first modern detective story—to the iconic poem “The Raven.”Poe’s life was one of unremitting hardship. His father abandoned the family, and his mother died when he was three. Poe was thrown out of West Point, and married his beloved thirteen-year-old cousin, who died of tuberculosis at twenty-four. He was so poor that he burned furniture to stay warm. He was a scourge to other poets, but more so to himself.In the hands of Paul Collins, one of our liveliest historians, this mysteriously conflicted figure emerges as a genius both driven and undone by his artistic ambitions. Collins illuminates Poe’s huge successes and greatest flop (a 143-page prose poem titled Eureka), and even tracks down what may be Poe’s first published fiction, long hidden under an enigmatic byline. Clear-eyed and sympathetic, Edgar Allan Poe is a spellbinding story about the man once hailed as “the Shakespeare of America.”

Twisted Whiskers: Solving Your Cat's Behavior Problems


Pam Johnson - 1994
    This book will help cat owners regain the loving relationship they’ve always wanted with their cat. For new cat owners, this book is a must.

Ghost Hunting: True Stories of Unexplained Phenomena from The Atlantic Paranormal Society


Jason Hawes - 2007
    Their hair-raising investigations, fueled by their unique abilities and a healthy dose of scientific method, have made them the subject of a hit TV show: the SCI FI Channel's Ghost Hunters. Now their experiences are in print for the first time, as Jason and Grant recount for us, with the help of veteran author Michael Jan Friedman, the stories of some of their most memorable investigations. The men and women of T.A.P.S. pursue ghosts and other supernatural phenomena with the most sophisticated scientific equipment available -- from thermal-imaging cameras to electromagnetic-field recorders to digital thermometers -- and the results may surprise you. Featuring both cases depicted on Ghost Hunters and earlier T.A.P.S. adventures never told before now, this funny, fascinating, frightening collection will challenge everything you thought you knew about the spirit world.

Finding Peace for Your Heart: A Woman's Guide to Emotional Health


Stormie Omartian - 1991
    Join her on a personal journey as she walks you through issues such as recognizing that God is on your side and showing you how to live in obedience so that you can gain the wholeness you desire.

The Little CBT Workbook


Michael Sinclair - 2012
    With interactive exercises and checklists, this book is suitable for self-teaching or for supplementing a CBT course.