After their deaths, each year on the anniversary of the broadcast, their souls would return to the Chinese village of their younger days. It’s where they had fought—and survived—a war that shook the world and changed their own lives in unimaginable ways. Now, seventy years later, the pledge is being fulfilled by American missionary Pastor Billy, brash gunner’s mate Ian Ferguson, and local soldier Liu Zhaohu.All that’s missing is Ah Yan—also known as Swallow—the girl each man loved, each in his own profound way.As they unravel their personal stories of the war, and of the woman who touched them so deeply during that unforgiving time, the story of Ah Yan’s life begins to take shape, woven into view by their memories. A woman who had suffered unspeakable atrocities, and yet found the grace and dignity to survive, she’d been the one to bring them together. And it is her spark of humanity, still burning brightly, that gives these ghosts of the past the courage to look back on everything they endured and remember the woman they lost.

    Magic runs in Jane Howard's family. Her brother hunts werewolves, her sister vanished without trace twenty-five years ago, her mother is the worst witch of all, and her grandmother just might blow up the world - despite having drowned somewhere on the ferry route from Cairnryan to Largs. Jane wants to be a good witch . . . but that's not all she wants.

     Marcus Aurelius wrote the 12 books of the Meditations as a source for his own guidance and self-improvement. These books have been carefully adapted into a contemporary form to allow for easy reading.

    Brimming with the joy of process and a love of art history, Brian Rutenberg reveals the places, people, and experiences that led to the paint­ings for which he is well known today. This book is packed with ideas, observations, techniques, and career advice all thought­fully arranged into six sections designed to inspire artists of all levels, as well as anyone interested in creativity.Clear Seeing Place is a companion to the artist's popular YouTube series, "Brian Rutenberg Studio Visits," and is a love letter to painting written by a painter.

    Their clients are the richest people in the country and they pay a lot of money to stay safe. He works on the outer perimeter of a security team and is one of the best in the business. From running with gangs as a teenager, and with the US Army in Iraq during the surge, he has a unique set of skills to keep his team alive.It was a standard operation, a bread and butter job, get a client from one point to another and back again.Badger works the perimeter as always, and the client is a beautiful young singer, a rising star who is going to a nightclub in the gritty belly of the city after midnight. Everything is going smooth until the convoy is ambushed, and Badger wakes up in the hospital with no memory of what happened.Everyone else in the convoy is dead, the singer is missing, and Badger is a prime suspect.The agency is in trouble, more ruthless than the mob, and they’ll get answers out of him using any means necessary, if they can only get their hands on him.He is on the run from the agency, the kidnappers, and the police, and he has to find the girl, or die trying.

    For millennia, China was the largest and richest nation on earth. Two centuries ago, however, its economy sank into a depression from which it had not fully recovered—until now. China's modern resurgence as the world's largest nation in terms of population and its second-largest economy—where 800 million people have been lifted out of poverty in the space of a few decades—is the greatest untold story of the 21st century.A Brief History of China tells of the development of a rich and complex civilization where the use of paper, writing, money and gunpowder were widespread in ancient times and where silk, ceramics, tea, metal implements and other products were produced and exported around the globe. It examines the special conditions that allowed a single culture to unify an entire continent spanning 10 billion square kilometers under the rule of a single man—and the unbelievably rich artistic, literary and architectural heritage that Chinese culture has bequeathed to the world. Equally fascinating is the story of China's decline in the 19th and early 20th century—as Europeans and Americans took center stage—and its modern resurgence as an economic powerhouse in recent years. In his retelling of a Chinese history stretching back 5,000 years, author and China-expert Jonathan Clements focuses on the human stories which led to the powerful transformations in Chinese society—from the unification of China under its first emperor, Qinshi Huangdi, and the writings of the great Chinese philosophers Confucius and Laozi, to the Mongol invasion under Genghis Khan and the consolidation of Communist rule under Mao Zedong. Clements even brings readers through to the present day, outlining China's economic renaissance under Deng Xiaoping and Xi Jinping. What really separates this book from its counterparts is the focus on women, and modern themes such as diversity and climate change. Chinese history is typically told through the stories of its most famous men, but Clements' telling gives women equal time and research—which introduces readers of this book to equally important, but less commonly-known facts and historical figures.Often seen in the West in black or white terms—as either a savage dystopia or a fantastical paradise—China is revealed in the book as an exceptional yet troubled nation that nevertheless warrants its self-description as the Middle Kingdom.

     The research (conducted by the Center for the Study of Intent) uncovered a new dimension of human development and has revolutionized the way personal growth, meaning, happiness, and ultimately advanced spiritual topics such as ‘enlightenment’ are understood. The results, if you let them, will transform the quality of your life in ways you currently cannot even imagine as possible. During the research a formula was uncovered that is so effective at producing what seems like miracles in people’s lives it began to be referred to as the “God Formula” among participants and researchers. This book outlines that formula, and is the final version of the highly successful training material that was used with research participants. These researchers became the first scientists to successfully experiment with this new developmental continuum. The result has been the discovery of a series of techniques that lead from everyday consciousness to increased daily happiness and satisfaction, and finally to enlightenment and beyond (yes, there is a beyond!). This book covers the first stages of this process. You can view a summary of the results from the research phase that related to it, and later ones at: CenterForIntent.org/freedom. This book covers three primary components that combine to form a complete system of person growth, and an assortment of techniques for each component. While it provides the components, how they need to come together for maximum effectiveness will be unique to you. You’ll need to experiment with various combinations of these techniques until you find the one that works best for you. This may sound unusual. You’re probably used to reading books where the authors assert they have the one answer for everyone. The researchers at the Center tested an enormous number of techniques but didn’t find a single one that was helpful to more than a handful of individuals…when it was beneficial for anyone at all. However, they learned that there are a relatively small number of techniques that can be combined in ways that are incredibly effective. You just have to find the unique combination of these techniques that works for you right now. This book provides the distilled down wisdom from all of that testing. They were able to successfully identify core components from the methods that proved themselves. However, no one can tell you how to combine those components to get them to work best for you. People are simply too different for that to be possible. So, you’ll have to join the team, be your own scientist, and experiment! The good news is that the researchers spent an enormous amount of time and money narrowing down the possibilities for you. Most of the research participants were able to use this book to find the combination that worked for them quite quickly. It is likely the same will be true for you.It’s important that you not take the information this book contains lightly. Unlike other personal growth and self help books, this one is driven by a vast amount of actual research into what works. It was revised continually based on research participant feedback, so it’s very simple and easy to understand and use. But don’t let this simplicity fool you. Every line is there for a reason. This material has changed a lot of lives, if you’ll let it…yours can be next.

    Features over 200 incredible photos. Flying to a coffee table near you comes the new paperback edition of this authoritative and illustrated history of the most mind-bending military aircraft ever flown! Developed by the renowned Lockheed Skunk Works, the SR-71 was an awesome aircraft in every respect, setting world records for altitude and speed: an absolute altitude record of 85,069 feet on July 28, 1974, and an absolute speed record of 2,193.2 miles per hour on the same day.Written by a former Blackbird pilot, SR-71 covers every aspect of the aircraft's development, manufacture, and active service, all lavishly illustrated with more than 200 photos. The SR-71 remained in service with the U.S. Air Force from 1964 to 1998, when it was withdrawn from use, superseded by satellite technology. This authoritative history covers the spylane's entire phenomenal service.

    A deeply evocative narrative about the profound connections between mothers and daughters, The Valley of Amazement returns readers to the compelling territory of Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club. With her characteristic insight and humor, she conjures a story of inherited trauma, desire and deception, and the power and stubbornness of love.

    His first client was a transient who just learned that he was the sole beneficiary of his estranged brother’s multi-million dollar estate. His brother was brutally murdered and the alleged killer was on trial in what appeared to be an open and shut case. Zach observed the riveting courtroom drama as the case unfolded and in the process, discovered a dark, deadly secret left by the murder victim. He soon learned that he was way over his head in his new practice and that his first case could cost him not only his career but his life.

     Born a boy but raised a girl, Joe was 25 years old and still living as Joella when he discovered the full truth about his beginnings. For decades, doctors believed baby boys born without a penis should be classified as girls. When he was eight, Joe's plight attracted worldwide media attention – and touched the heart of Princess Diana. She's A Boy is Joe's story; a true survivor who has overcome unthinkable physical and emotional challenges and come out the other side with a firm sense of who he really is.

    The bullet tore through half a mile even before the ejected shell casing hit the ground.For some, death was a disturbing and haunting reality. For others, it was something never witnessed or spoken of. For Trey Stone, the death of his target meant many others would live. He had no problem falling asleep that night to the humming engines of the CIA yacht ... until a phone call spun his life around and threw him into a dark and very personal war.With thousands of copies sold, the Trey Stone Series is off to a thrilling start!Trey Stone is one of the government’s deadliest covert operators. When his own family is unexpectedly attacked while he’s on a mission he responds with lethality and precision. The product of elite and secretive CIA training, Trey is highly skilled and famously meticulous. He is fluent in half a dozen different languages, and armed with an exceptional memory. He’s known by everyone that needs to know.What Trey doesn’t expect is how close his enemies really are. His carefully cultivated inner balance is thrown off and his deepest friendships are tried when the ugly world of child trafficking intrudes in his most private life. When Trey discovers the involvement of his beautiful wife’s own mother, nothing will ever be the same between the members of his family.Readers are saying …“Brasso takes us on a truly international path of breathtaking action.”“I love every character in this book!”“This page-turner kept me up late at night reading.”“More! More! More!”Hunting the Midnight Shark is the first of an explosive series of books hitting the market right now!If you love Vince Flynn’s Mitch Rapp, Robert Ludlum’s Jason Bourne, Lee Child’s Jack Reacher, James Rollins’ SIGMA Force, Ben Coes’ Dewey Andreas or authors like David Baldacci, Nelson DeMille, Daniel Silva, Ward Larsen or Jeff Carson, then Conrad Brasso’s page-turning CIA Thriller series will suck you right in.

    In this book you will find the funniest 288 of them (with a few all-new funny pages squeezed in just because we couldn’t help ourselves). That’s page after page after page of laugh-out-loud dumb jokes, dumb jocks, toasts, pranks, kings, kittens, caboodles, and, of course, poorly translated kung-fu movie subtitles—such as. "It took my seven digestive pills to dissolve your hairy crab!” So whether you like your humor witty or witless, light or dark, or silly or sublime, you’ll laugh until your head explodes. Chortle at…Dumb crooks: The robber who ran face-first into a wall because he forgot to poke eye holes in his pillow case.Witty wordplay: If Snoop Doggy Dogg were to marry Winnie the Pooh, his name would become Snoop Doggy Dogg Pooh.Flubbed headlines: "British Left Waffles On House Floor”Quirky stars: Billy Idol’s concert rider demands he have one large tub of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter in his dressing room.Job Lingo: If you hear an E.R. doc mention a "VIP,” be on the lookout for a "Very Intoxicated Patient.”Comedian quips: "I wonder if deaf people have a sign for "Talk to the hand.’” --Zach GalifianakisSputtering sportscasters: "If only faces could talk.” --Pat SummerallAnd much, much more!

    This smart, quirky, wide-ranging book (the perfect conversation starter) considers the surprising science and psychology—and the sheer misery—of the well-ordered line. On the way, it takes us from boot camp (where the first lesson is to teach recruits how to stand rigidly in line) to the underground bunker beneath Disneyland’s Cinderella Castle (home of the world’s most advanced, state-of-the-art queue management technologies); from the 2011 riots in London (where rioters were observed patiently taking their turns when looting shops), to the National Voluntary Wait-in-Line days in the People’s Republic of China (to help train their non-queuing populace to wait in line like Westerners in advance of  the 2008 Olympics). Citing sources ranging from Harvard Business School professors to Seinfeld, the book comes back to one underlying truth: it’s not about the time you spend waiting, but how the circumstances of the wait affect your perception of time. In other words, the other line always moves faster because you’re not in it.

    Steeped in fact, and meticulously researched, Clouds Across the Sunis the story of just one of these children. From Naples, Florida, New York City, and Washington D.C. to Israel and then the killing grounds of Vilnius, Poland (Lithuania) this story is one of great romance, discovery, redemption, and enlightenment as Jotto Wells unravels the intrigue surrounding a plan to take over the government of the United States."