But for a word that's grown so popular, what does being vegan actually mean? The vegan community has grown hugely in the last decade, but is surrounded by questions of ethics, of community, of celebrity food fads and spurious health claims. For the last seven years, Fat Gay Vegan has been a voice that cuts through the fuss and the fads, and calling bullshit wherever he finds it. Now, he brings together his story and those of others in the vegan community to answer to the questions both vegans and non-vegans alike might have: Why should I be vegan in the first place? Does not being vegan mean I'm a bad person? What should my friends and family do... and are they bad people? Do I need to be a gym bunny to be worthy of veganism? (answer: no) Can I still eat junk food if I'm vegan? (answer: definitely yes!) In Sean's own words: When a wave of realisation swamps you and you come to learn how incredibly simple and sensible choosing veganism is, you'll have me sitting up there in your head like a friendly, fat uncle whispering, "I knew you could do it." The day will arrive when you proclaim, "Hey, if that fat gay guy can do it, so can I!" Packed with personal stories and non-preachy advice, this is a compassionate, no-nonsense guide to veganism from one of the community's biggest celebrities.

    He watched a cooking show and thought, I can do that, enjoying the simplicity of a recipe that sounded and looked delicious but was so easy he didn't have to write it down to make it himself. After moving to Los Angeles, he discovered he loved cooking, and found a cooking job where he learned the ins and outs of a professional kitchen. This led to the position of executive chef for Veggin' Out, a vegan home delivery service, and he experimented with veganism. He discovered he lost weight and felt great, with more energy and vitality, and he's been a vegan ever since. But, he's still the "regular dude" who wants to eat sandwiches, sliders, onion rings, pizza, and drink beer and cocktails while he watches the game.He became The Sexy Vegan by posting a video cooking demonstration on YouTube. He posted another, and another, and discovered that many people wanted what he wanted in a cooking demo: easy, failure-proof recipes that they'd cook again and again for food that satisfied in flavor and quantity. This new cookbook covers the basics of cooking, from slicing vegetables to finding the right type of tofu to recreating favorites without meat or dairy. With more than 100 recipes, Brian covers everything from cocktails (according to the Sexy Vegan, the most important meal of the day) to amazing breakfast sandwiches to desserts such as Sailor Peanut Rum Ice Cream. There are appetizers and nachos, pizza and "tuna-like" sandwiches as well as plenty of salads, pasta, and main dish choices.The Sexy Vegan's signature style is efficient, lively, and funny. He doesn't take himself seriously, but he takes his food seriously, and he delivers great options for enjoying food while staying healthy and protecting the planet.

    Giamatti begins with the conviction that our use of free time tells us something about who we are. He explores the concepts of leisure, American-style. And in baseball, the quintessential American game, he finds its ultimate expression. "Sports and leisure are our reiteration of the hunger for paradise- for freedom untrammeled." Filled with pithy truths about such resonant subjects as ritual, self-betterment, faith, home, and community, Take Time for Paradise gives us much more than just baseball. These final, eloquent thoughts of "the philosopher king of baseball" (Seattle Weekly) are a joyful, reverent celebration of the sport Giamatti loved and the country that created it.

    Plus, you′ll find tips onHow to turn your mortgage into a wealth-enhancing toolWhy small investments work better than big onesHow to max out on your employer-sponsored retirement planWhen to hold investments and when to fold themWhen to pay attention to financial news and when to turn it offLet your neighbours lend you a hand. And let Ric Edelman guide you through their lessons in this eye-opening journey with thousands of ordinary folks who found their way to extraordinary wealth.

    There's nothing cool about Céline Dion, and nothing clever. That's part of her appeal as an object of love or hatred — with most critics and committed music fans taking pleasure (or at least geeky solace) in their lofty contempt. This book documents Carl Wilson's brave and unprecedented year-long quest to find his inner Céline Dion fan, and explores how we define ourselves in the light of what we call good and bad, what we love and what we hate.

    . . As manager of the family teddy bear shop and factory, thirty-one-year-old Sasha Silverman leads a charmed life. Well, except for the part about being a single divorcee with a ticking biological clock in small-town Silver Hollow. And that's just kid's stuff compared to Will Taylor, the sales rep who's set on making drastic changes to the business her parents built from scratch with or without Sasha's approval . . . But before Will digs his claws in, someone pulls the stuffing out of his plan . . . and leaves his dead body inside the factory. Reeling from shock, Sasha's hit with more bad news police suspect her hot-tempered Uncle Ross may have murdered him. Sasha knows her uncle would never do such a thing, and she's launching her own little investigation to expose the truth. As she tracks Will's biggest rivals and enemies for clues, Sasha can't get too comfy or she'll become the next plaything for a killer . . .

    Her crime—the gruesome murders of dozens of female servants, mostly young girls tortured to death for displeasing their ruthless mistress. Her opponents painted her as a bloodthirsty škrata—a witch—a portrayal that would expand to grotesque proportions through the centuries.In this riveting dramatization of Erzsébet Báthory’s life, the countess tells her story in her own words, writing to her only son—a final reckoning from his mother in an attempt to reveal the truth behind her downfall. Countess Báthory describes her upbringing in one of the most powerful noble houses in Hungary, recounting in loving detail her devotion to her parents and siblings as well as the heartbreak of losing her father at a young age. She soon discovers the price of being a woman in sixteenth-century Hungary as her mother arranges her marriage to Ferenc Nádasdy, a union made with the cold calculation of a financial transaction. Young Erzsébet knows she has no choice but to accept this marriage even as she laments its loveless nature and ultimately turns to the illicit affections of another man. Seemingly resigned to a marriage of convenience and a life of surreptitious pleasure, the countess surprises even herself as she ignites a marital spark with Ferenc through the most unromantic of acts: the violent punishment of an insolent female servant. The event shows Ferenc that his wife is no trophy but a strong, determined woman more than capable of managing their vast estates during Ferenc’s extensive military campaigns against the Turks. Her naked assertion of power accomplishes what her famed beauty could not: capturing the love of her husband. The countess embraces this new role of loving wife and mother, doing everything she can to expand her husband’s power and secure her family’s future. But a darker side surfaces as Countess Báthory’s demand for virtue, obedience, and, above all, respect from her servants takes a sinister turn. What emerges is not only a disturbing, unflinching portrait of the deeds that gave Báthory the moniker “Blood Countess,” but an intimate look at the woman who became a monster.

    But a killer is about to come sniffing around . . .   Gwen Franklin is looking forward to spending her retirement drinking her favorite coffee and reading mystery novels. Those peaceful plans are brought to heel by her best friend, Nora. Sporting stiletto heels, leggings, and a “more is better” makeup routine, fifty-something Nora Goldstein has a penchant for marrying—and divorcing—rich men. Now that Gwen’s got free time, Nora figures they should start a dog-walking and pet-sitting service together.   But it’s far from a walk in the park when the corpse of Linda Fletcher is found in Nora’s kitchen. Linda was Nora’s nemesis, and the large knife protruding from her chest points to murder. With no doubt that her bestie’s being framed, Gwen puts her sleuthing skills—acquired from reading every Agatha Christie mystery—to the test as she digs through suspects, including four disgruntled ex-husbands, ten greedy ex-stepchildren, not to mention all her exes’ exes. But with death threats and another body surfacing, can Gwen curb a killer before her own (dog) days come to an end?

    Targeted fold-out area maps guide your explorations through the sights and neighborhoods of Paris, both on and off the beaten path. Insider tips accompany this compilation of must-not-miss landmarks; arts and entertainment venues; and places to eat, drink, shop, and stay. You can't do without it! 216 pages plus 10 fold-out maps.

    This newest edition expands on the strengths of earlier versions, helping students bridge the gap between concepts and reasoning. Students are shown, rather than told about, how physics works and are given the opportunity to apply concepts to real-world problems. Each chapter and concept has been scrutinized to ensure clarity, currency, and accuracy while checkpoints, problem solving tactics, and sample problems help students make sense of new concepts. As always, Fundamentals of Physics covers every aspect of basic physics, from force and motion to relativity and will prepare today's students to be tomorrow's scientists.

    We feel love for our companions, certainly, and happiness at the thought that we’re providing them with a safe, healthy life. But there’s another emotion, less often acknowledged, that can be nearly as powerful: guilt. When we see our cats gazing wistfully out the window, or watch a goldfish swim lazy circles in a bowl, we can’t help but wonder: are we doing the right thing, keeping these independent beings locked up, subject to our control? Is keeping pets actually good for the pets themselves?   That’s the question that animates Jessica Pierce’s powerful Run, Spot, Run. A lover of pets herself (including, over the years, dogs, cats, fish, rats, hermit crabs, and more), Pierce understands the joys that pets bring us. But she also refuses to deny the ambiguous ethics at the heart of the relationship, and through a mix of personal stories, philosophical reflections, and scientifically informed analyses of animal behavior and natural history, she puts pet-keeping to the test. Is it ethical to keep pets at all? Are some species more suited to the relationship than others? Are there species one should never attempt to own? And are there ways that we can improve our pets’ lives, so that we can be confident that we are giving them as much as they give us?   Deeply empathetic, yet rigorous and unflinching in her thinking, Pierce has written a book that is sure to help any pet owner, unsettling assumptions but also giving them the knowledge to build deeper, better relationships with the animals with whom they’ve chosen to share their lives.

    Kindred Spirits shares the transformative power of his remarkable methods, explores how alternative healing is revolutionizing his profession, and, in the tradition of James Herriot, shares heartwarming stories of animals and their caretakers who have deeply enriched each other’s lives. Through moving scenes–such as an ailing German shepherd who fights to stay alive so he can assist and comfort his ailing human companion–Schoen details the ways in which the human-animal bond can provide a wellspring of love and support, and outlines his own special prescription for improving the care we give our animals through adopting simple healing practices at home. A remarkable new synthesis of science and spirit, Kindred Spirits at last reveals the many ways our animal friends can help us lead happier, healthier, more fulfilling lives.

    Preparing Fido’s food at home may seem daunting, but it’s really not, says Lew Olson in Raw & Natural Nutrition for Dogs. Olson discusses canine nutritional needs and explains the research on how home-prepared foods, particularly raw foods, can meet pets’ needs better than commercial, processed dog food. Step-by-step instructions and recipes make preparation easy. The book includes charts with the recipes, instructions on keeping diets simple and balanced, guidelines on preparation, suggestions for finding ingredients, and how much to feed a dog by body weight. There are recipes for healthy adult dogs as well as guidelines for puppies, senior dogs, and dogs with health conditions including pancreatitis, renal problems, gastric issues, allergies, heart disease, liver disease, and cancer. Pet owners seeking to give their dogs a better coat, better skin, and healthier teeth and gums, as well as longer lives and more stable temperaments, are sure to welcome this book.

    Sometimes you are the pillow." The bulldog who’s headfirst in her bowl—“Every meal is THE BEST MEAL EVER.” Cynthia L. Copeland has a gift for discovering those sorts of simple, timeless lessons. She did it when her children were younger with Really Important Stuff My Kids Have Taught Me. Now she distills all-new wisdom from her lifelong love of dogs. Really Important Stuff My Dog Has Taught Me is tender, funny, warm, and utterly inspiring. Pairing an irresistible photograph with just the right sentiment, every page delivers a life lesson that appeals as much to our hearts as our minds. It reminds us again and again of what’s important, like love: “Be there when others need you.” Compassion: “Even the smallest act of kindness matters.” Perseverance: “Keep going until you find your way home.” A healthy sense of self: “Make it squeak until someone pays attention.” Living in the present moment: “Scratch where it itches, when it itches.” And that happiness is a choice: “Leap higher than you have to.”