Many have written about the evolution of our grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary, but only Lerer situates these developments in the larger history of English, America, and literature.Lerer begins in the seventh century with the poet Caedmon learning to sing what would become the earliest poem in English. He then looks at the medieval scribes and poets who gave shape to Middle English. He finds the traces of the Great Vowel Shift in the spelling choices of letter writers of the fifteenth century and explores the achievements of Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of 1755 and The Oxford English Dictionary of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He describes the differences between English and American usage and, through the example of Mark Twain, the link between regional dialect and race, class, and gender. Finally, he muses on the ways in which contact with foreign languages, popular culture, advertising, the Internet, and e-mail continue to shape English for future generations.Each concise chapter illuminates a moment of invention-a time when people discovered a new form of expression or changed the way they spoke or wrote. In conclusion, Lerer wonders whether globalization and technology have turned English into a world language and reflects on what has been preserved and what has been lost. A unique blend of historical and personal narrative, Inventing English is the surprising tale of a language that is as dynamic as the people to whom it belongs.

    Ernst Gräfenberg was among the most sought-after gynecologists in pre-World War II Germany. The creator of the first IUD, known as the Gräfenberg ring, he was posthumously credited with identifying the eponymous "Gräfenberg spot" or G-spot. He was also a Jew in Nazi Germany, and by 1938 he had been stripped of his practice, his possessions, and his freedom and was languishing in a Nazi prison. After being allegedly ransomed from confinement by Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger, Gräfenberg fled to America, where he eventually became the only male doctor at Sanger's birth control clinic.In this bracing essay, Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow rescues from near obscurity the pioneering inventor of a contraceptive device that unleashed decades of controversy. And as we see efforts to roll back reproductive rights, it is also a cautionary tale as relevant today as it was nearly a century ago.RUNNING TIME ➼ 1hr. and 9mins.©2020 Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow (P)2019 Brilliance, Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

    He knows the stories that we need to sell the stuff tableside . . . he can disrupt the entire luxury foods market." ---From the Foreword by David Chang Ian Purkayastha is New York City's leading truffle importer and boasts a devoted clientele of top chefs nationwide, including Jean-Georges Vongerichten, David Chang, Sean Brock, and David Bouley. But before he was purveying the world's most expensive fungus to the country's most esteemed chefs, Ian was just a food-obsessed teenager in rural Arkansas--a misfit with a peculiar fascination for rare and exotic ingredients. The son of an Indian immigrant father and a Texan mother, Ian learned to forage for wild mushrooms from an uncle in the Ozark hills. Thus began a single-track fixation that led him to learn about the prized but elusive truffle, the king of all fungi. His first taste of truffle at age 15 sparked his improbable yet remarkable adventure through the strange--and often corrupt--business of the exotic food trade. Rife with tales from the hidden underbelly of the elite restaurant scene, Truffle Boy chronicles Ian's high stakes dealings with a truffle kingpin in Serbia, meth-head foragers in Oregon, crooked businessmen and maniacal chefs in Manhattan, gypsy truffle hunters in the forests of Hungary, and a supreme adventure to find "Gucci mushrooms" in the Himalayan foothills--the land of the gods. He endures harsh failures along the way but rebuilds with tremendous success by selling not just truffles but also caviar, wild mushrooms, rare foraged edibles, Wagyu beef, and other nearly unobtainable ingredients demanded by his Michelin-starred clients.<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]-->Truffle Boy is a thrilling coming-of-age story and the incredible but true tale of a country kid who grows up to become a force in the world of fine dining.

    

    From puppyhood to old age, this book provides an in-depth guide to raising your labrador, making for a contented owner and a happy dog.Pippa Mattinson is in touch with over 300,000 dog owners every month through her website www.thelabradoresite.com and online forum www.thelabradorforum.com and knows exactly what labrador owners want. Founder of The Gundog Trust, her first two books Total Recall and The Happy Puppy Handbook have won praise from many happy dog owners.

    From shopping through chopping, from making flawless gravy to fearlessly carving the bird, he offers tips, insight, and inspiration every steop of the way. Whether it a tradition holiday feast with turkey and all the traditional trimming, chutneys, and chowders; a vegetarian dinner with just the trimmings; or new ideas for regional classics, including Cajun- or Italian-inspired tastes, Thanksgiving 101 serves up a delicious education for novice and experienced cooks alike.

     Step into the hidden world of death care and explore the challenge of removing the deceased from the often-difficult, regularly awkward, and sometimes downright bizarre circumstances in which they die, the art and science of embalming, and the intrigue of forensic pathology. Sias is a veteran death investigator, former funeral director/embalmer intern, and paramedic with twenty-eight years of emergency response experience.

    In Tiny World Terrariums, authors Katy and Michelle of Brooklyn’s celebrated Twig Terrariums offer step-by-step instructions for building your own, from selecting glass containers to layering soil and filtration to adding moss, succulents, and other plants. To give each terrarium a whimsical, personal touch, Katy and Michelle demonstrate how to use tiny figurines and toys to create to-scale scenes, such as a couple at their wedding, a CSI crime scene, and Central Park in springtime. Photos of gorgeous finished terrariums and detailed instructions will empower anyone—whether green-thumbed or not—to create their own Lilliputian worlds. Praise for Tiny World Terrariums: "Terrariums have been popular with adults since Victorian times. But Katy Maslow and Michelle Inciarrano, authors of Tiny World Terrariums, make a case for younger enthusiasts too . . . Their enclosed gardens range from sophisticated to silly, with dinosaurs, unicorns and an array of other figurines telling enchanting stories in mossy tableaux. Their wonderful book provides detailed instructions to guide you through the process." —Chicago Tribune “[The authors] provide all the information needed to create the five layers of a terrarium . . . inspiration for readers who want to make their own mini world.” —Better Homes & Gardens Country Gardens (Spring 2013 issue) "I've been reading my fair share of how-to books on [terrariums] but I have a brand new favorite. Hands down . . . The tips on plant selection, preparation, and planting are the best I’ve seen (I learned a lot!)." —Babble.com "The book provides all the necessary instructions to create successfully healthy terrariums . . . But illustrations are the real delight. They show all sorts of tiny world photos labeled with container types, plant names, and more so you can more easily create contained life exactly as you envision it.” —Wired.com "If you love terrariums as much as we do, this is going to rock your world: Brooklyn-based Twig Terrariums will be selling a photographic collection of their finest miniature green gardens . . . with a step-by-step guide to creating tiny themed worlds that even the least green-thumbed person will be able to make and maintain.” —Inhabitat.com

    

    It is the rare culinary practice that makes less seem like more, and by which small amounts of food feed many.For centuries the Chinese have carried their woks to all corners of the earth and re-created stir-fry dishes, using local and sometimes nontraditional ingredients. The old expression: "One wok runs to the sky’s edge" means "one who uses the wok becomes master of the cooking world." And as the wok user becomes master of the cooking world, so does he become master of the stir-fry, one of the greatest techniques of Chinese cookery. The technique and tradition of stir-frying, which is at once simple yet subtly complex, is as vital today as it has been for hundreds of years. In Stir-Frying to the Sky’s Edge, James Beard Award-winning author Grace Young shares more than 100 classic stir-fry recipes that sizzle with heat and pop with flavor, from the great Cantonese stir-fry masters to the culinary customs of Sichuan, Hunan, Shanghai, Beijing, Fujian, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia, as well as other countries around the world. With more than 80 stunning full-color photographs, Young’s definitive work illustrates the innumerable, easy-to-learn possibilities the technique offers—dry stir-fries, moist stir-fries, clear stir-fries, velvet stir-fries—and weaves the insights of Chinese cooking philosophy into the preparation of such beloved dishes as Kung Pao Chicken, Stir-Fried Beef and Broccoli, Chicken Lo Mein with Ginger Mushrooms, and Dry-Fried Sichuan Beans. In honoring the traditions of her cultural ancestors who traveled the globe, Young offers delectable crossover recipes for Chinese Jamaican Jerk Chicken Fried Rice, Chinese Trinidadian Stir-Fried Shrimp with Rum, Chinese Burmese Chili Chicken, and Chinese American Shrimp with Lobster Sauce. Expert home cooks and professional chefs teach you the foundations of stir-fry mastery in the modern kitchen—everything from how to choose, season, and care for a wok and the best skillet alternative; the importance of marinades and the proper technique for slicing meat and poultry for optimum tenderness; to how to select and handle Asian vegetables; ways to shortcut labor-intensive preparations; and tips on how to control heat and choose the best cooking oil. Fascinating personal portraits illustrate how stir-frying is not just a cooking technique but a vital element of China’s rich culture. With this book, Grace Young has created the authoritative guide to stir-frying, a work that is at once rewarding and beautiful, much like the technique of stir-frying itself.

    In November 2018, the largest number of women ever was elected to the 116th Congress, resulting in a grand total of 87 in the House and 23 in the Senate. Ushered in on a groundswell of grassroots support, diverse in background, age, professional experience, and ideology, the new freshmen immediately began making history—and noise. These include Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the youngest woman to be elected to the House; Sharice Davids and Deb Haaland, the first Native American women in Congress; Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, the first Muslim women representatives; and Abigail Spanberg, a former CIA agent. The Firsts will tell their stories--their triumphs and obstacles, alliances and controversies--as they arrive in Washington, D.C., ready to carry their historic legacy into institutional change.  Veteran Hill reporter Jennifer Steinhauer will follow these women’s attempts to transcend the partisan rancor and dysfunction of Congress from their positions as upstarts and backbenchers in a Democratic caucus directed by leaders old enough to be their grandparents. Moving on from their trailblazing campaigns to the daily work of governance, these women will confront whether a gender and generational shift in the House can overcome institutional inertia. Will they work with their party’s leadership, or will they work to overthrow it? Will their protests of the power structure fizzle, or will they create a lasting legislative framework for their ideas? How will they get on with their older peers, some of whom may feel resentful or pushed aside? What do their new roles mean for their lives back home, and how do they adjust to the weird, exciting, and often toxically seductive trappings of public office in the age of the twenty-four-hour news cycle?  Above all, will Washington change the changemakers—or will these women, many already social media stars and political punching bags, truly rock the boat?

    100 Words Almost Everyone Confuses and Misuses is the perfect book for anyone seeking clear and sensible guidance on avoiding the recognized pitfalls of the English language.Each word on the list is accompanied by a concise and authoritative usage note based on the renowned usage program of the American Heritage® Dictionaries. These notes discuss why a particular usage has been criticized and explain the rules and conventions that determine what’s right, what’s wrong, and what falls in between. Troublesome pairs such as affect / effect, blatant / flagrant, and disinterested / uninterested are disentangled, as are vexing sound-alikes such as discrete / discreet and principal / principle. Other notes tackle such classic irritants as hopefully, impact, and aggravate, as well as problematic words like peruse and presently.A great graduation gift or stocking stuffer for anyone who cares about language, 100 Words Almost Everyone Confuses and Misuses is guaranteed to help keep writers and speakers on the up-and-up!

    Teacher, author, and master knitter Norah Gaughan shares her design principles and offers clear cable-making instruction throughout, always in a conversational, easy-to-understand voice that proceeds naturally, as one cable idea leads to the next. Master the art of cable knitting, then test your newfound skills with the 15 garment patterns for wraps, sweaters, and accessories. Also available from Norah Gaughan: Knitting Nature,Comfort Knitting and Crochet: Afghans and Comfort Knitting, and Crochet: Babies and Toddlers.

    Move over Betty Crocker--101 Things to Do With a Cake Mix will amaze your friends and leave them Jell-O green with envy! From Snickers Surprise Cookies to Christmas Rainbow Poke Cake, it's the best thing to happen in the kitchen since your last romantic rendezvous! So what are you waiting for? Grab a cake mix, whip up some goodies, and throw some flour on your face so it looks like you spent days in the kitchen.

    For these projects, Lisa Occhipinti rescues and repurposes orphaned and outdated books from flea markets and library sales and turns them into new art objects and practical items for the home. Her creations range from artfully constructed mobiles, wreaths, and vases, to functional items like shelves, storage boxes, and even a Kindle "keeper" for those who want to replicate the sensation of holding a "real" book while reading from an e-reader. Projects utilize every imaginable part of a book--from hardback cover to individual pages--and are a DIY celebration of a new way to view a book's potential.