A journey of two strangers, the writer and the reader, filled with words of love, pain, anger and passion.

    but this is NOT a typical blah-blah-blah memoirPlanning is for sissies. A solo bike ride across the country will be filled with sunshine, lollipops, rainbows, and 80 degree temps every day, right? Not so much. The Great Plains, Rocky Mountains, an alkaline desert, and the Sierra Nevadas lay miles and days ahead. Disappointment with unrealized potential, and the thirst for what’s next drew farther away in the rotating wide-angle shockproof convex rear-view mirror.I will ride my bike down a never-ending ribbon of asphalt wearing a backpack.Cory Mortensen began his bike ride across the United States from Chaska, Minnesota, to Truckee, California, without a route, a timeline, or proper equipment. Along the way, he gained more than technical skills required for a ride that would test every fiber of his physical being and mental toughness. Ride along as he meets “unusual” characters, dangerous animals, and sweet little old ladies with a serious vendetta for strangers in their town.Humor ■ Insight ■ Adventure ■ Gratitude ■ PeaceFrom long stretches of road ending in a vanishing point at the distant horizon, to stunning vistas, terrifying close calls, grueling conditions, failed equipment, and joyous milestones he stayed the course and gained an appreciation for the beauty of the land, the genius of engineering and marvel of nature.

    Young Mann hides his artistic aspirations from his father and his homosexual desires from everyone. He is infatuated with one of the richest, most cultured Jewish families in Munich, and marries the daughter Katia. They have six children. On a holiday in Italy, he longs for a boy he sees on a beach and writes the story Death in Venice. He is the most successful novelist of his time, winner of the Nobel Prize in literature, a public man whose private life remains secret. He is expected to lead the condemnation of Hitler, whom he underestimates. His oldest daughter and son, leaders of Bohemianism and of the anti-Nazi movement, share lovers. He flees Germany for Switzerland, France and, ultimately, America, living first in Princeton and then in Los Angeles.The Magician is an intimate, astonishingly complex portrait of Mann, his magnificent and complex wife Katia, and the times in which they lived—the first world war, the rise of Hitler, World War II, the Cold War, and exile.

    

    After Fuse is asked to leave his paper pending a disciplinary investigation, he has plenty of time on his hands. So when his oldest friend approaches him for advice after the man’s daughter says she was sexually assaulted by her boss, a prominent media star, Fuse agrees to help. He gives his buddy the only options he feels are available: report the incident to the police and risk a huge “he said/she said” smear campaign against the girl, or plan something even better—revenge. As a journalist, Fuse has a colorful background investigating criminals, politicians, gangsters, drug lords, and all-around shysters—and knows plenty of shady sources—so he’s the perfect person to enact a complex (and ultimately, entertaining) plan to bring the popular media mogul down in the court of public opinion . . . and make him pay.

    On the hunt for a new job? This book will show you exactly how to ace your next interview. Learn what to say, how to act, what to wear, and how to prepare for common interview questions. Discover the questions you should ask your would-be employers, and how to present your strengths and weaknesses in the best possible light. Furthermore, learn eight ways you can immediately improve your body language - and understand how to make sure it doesn't sabotage you during your next interview. Steven Fies is a business consultant who advises human resources departments on hiring the right people. He is also a certified professional behaviors and motivators analyst with TTI Success Insights, a recognized leader in workplace performance research. Job Interview Tips For Winners is his concise, no-nonsense guide to acing your next interview and landing the job. If you're in the market for a new job and want a clear strategy for sharpening your interviewing skills, Job Interview Tips For Winners is for you. Simple and to the point, it will teach you the most critical interviewing skills in no time.

    Victoria Goulding, a Protestant, falls in love with Canice Meagher, born on the Blasket Islands and a Roman Catholic. To be together they must elope. Before their escape, the hand of fate plays its cards and changes their lives irrevocably.Sixty-three years later, in the leafy suburbs of New York, Edith Goulding, Victoria’s sister, has died. Edith left Ireland in the winter of 1955 all those years ago, never to return. In her will she has insisted that her daughter Catherine and granddaughter Lainey visit Kilbride.Kilbride House, despite all its grandeur, holds shocking memories within its walls – memories that have slipped through the cracks of time. As the ghosts awaken the lies begin to unravel, and everything is altered. The past cannot remain untold.

    Living with her family in suburban Philadelphia, Diane had grown up knowing she was born in Stuttgart and adopted at age one from an orphanage. She'd been told her biological parents were dead. Then, in 2002, when she was forty-seven years old, Diane got a letter from Switzerland: her biological father, Otto, wanted to bring her into his life. With that, her world shifted on its axis. In the months that ensued, everybody had a different story to tell about Diane's origins, including Otto when they met in New York City. She struggled to understand what was at stake with the lies. Like a private eye, she sifted through competing versions of the truth only to find that, having traveled throughout Europe and back, identity is a state of mind. As more information surfaced, the myths gave way to a certain elusive peace; Diane discovered a tribe in her mother's family, found a Swiss husband, gained a voice, and, for the first time, began to trust in the intuition that had nudged her all along. One-part forensic investigation, one-part self-discovery, Fixing the Fates is a story about seeing behind artifice and living one's truth.

    Featuring programs and resources available throughout the U.S. and Canada"An authoritative and comprehensive overview of the benefits of energy-efficient homes." ---Kirkus ReviewsLive in a Home that Pays You Back lights the way for enjoying a home that is healthier, more comfortable, saves money, and reduces your carbon footprint. Whether you are planning to build, buy, or retrofit a home, award-winning author Anna DeSimone takes you on a virtual tour through the home of the future. A practical reference guide that can be used for years to come, this illuminating book uncovers every part and parcel of the sustainable home, with precise explanations and infographics, plus hundreds of resources for further exploration. You'll have fun exploring the world of renewable energy, such as solar photovoltaics, wind power, geothermal energy, hydro-electric power, and biomass fuels. You'll learn how "positive energy" puts money in your pocket through incentives such as net metering, net billing or renewable energy certificates--a tradeable commodity with cash value.This eye-opening book takes a look at the health benefits of living in an energy-efficient home, and includes guidance about water safety, biological pollutants and environmental toxins. Everything you need to know about energy scores, building certifications, and the home building options for net zero, net zero ready, passive homes, pre-fab, modular, log and timber, and more. Mortgage financing chapter covers down payment assistance, national energy-efficient loan programs, borrower qualification incentives, and how to roll in the cost of an energy retrofit into your mortgage.The path to zero can be taken in small steps. This book prepares you and your household to make informed decisions for implementing energy-efficient technologies according to your needs and budget. And you'll enjoy many kinds of payback, every step of the way.Book includes a directory of rebates and incentives by Canadian province and U.S. state. Available in paperback and e-book.

    Twenty-eight-year-old Mattie had to find a way to move forward and reconcile herself with a good God, even when He did not give her the healing miracle she prayed for. In Lemons on Friday, readers walk with Mattie Jackson Selecman during the first years of grief following Ben’s tragic death as she grapples with her loss and leans on a steadfast God. Based on Selecman’s journal writings, Lemons on Friday will speak to all readers who must carry on without their loved ones and take a hard look at faith when their lives have not gone as planned.Lemons on Friday grapples with questions like these:How did I get here?Will this always hurt?Who am I now?How do I move forward?“When fundamental parts of our lives are lost, when people and things we thought we’d never lose are suddenly gone, it’s natural to want answers,” writes Selecman. “Why did this happen? Who’s to blame? What could I have done differently? And for many of us in the aftermath of life-shattering change, we also want to know, where is God? Not just where was He when the tragedy happened, but where is He now in my darkest days of hurt, wondering, and longing for comfort? When I am on the floor, writhing in tears with no idea what the rest of my life will look like, where is God?” Lemons on Friday offers insight and peace for anyone grieving, but especially for young people experiencing loss and facing a future that feels full of question marks.

    Now she shares her story with the child she gave away.Adopted at birth, Marylee's parents told her she was a "chosen child." She tried her hardest to be a model daughter, but divorce sent her into the comforting arms of a handsome Catholic boy.It's a familiar story. Romeo and Juliet. Theirs was the love story of all time.Starry-eyed, she surrendered to passion. Unfortunately, it was 1961. Pregnant girls were sent away, and their babies given up for adoption. History was repeating itself.Nature vs. nurture: Which plays a greater role in who we become? The family we were raised in, or the parents we never knew?In telling her adult son the story of his birth, can the narrator find compassion for her own wounded inner child?If you like truthful accounts laced with the passion of youth and the wisdom of age, read Marylee MacDonald's funny and poignant memoir about how we grow up, grow old, and learn to accept ourselves.

    We are unhappy even after achieving what we desire. Happiness is all we want! suggests that the source of peace and happiness is within us, if we know the secret. The book's objective is to help us unlock that secret and attain a high level of overall well-being in order to lead a happy and fulfilling life and be the healthiest we can be, mentally and physically. A wide variety of tools and techniques are explained in simple language. Many real life experiences of the author as well as other people are interspersed through the book. Demystifying the spiritual aspect of wellbeing, this book integrates it with your life objectives. You can immensely improve not only the peace and happiness in your life but your beauty and appearance as well.self-development; self-improvement; personality development; wellbeing; physical;mental;spiritual; happiness; health;emotional

    But after falling backwards into the specialty, Dr. Fulkerson found neurosurgery to be a field filled with joy, sadness, a little humor, and courageous and inspiring patients.In an honest and compelling retelling of his long and winding road to train and then practice as a pediatric neurosurgeon, Dr. Fulkerson guides others through his journey from medical school to service on a small military base, through residency training, and finally, to a practice in a highly specialized children's hospital. The journey reveals the dramatic swings of emotions experienced by both patients and doctors in an increasingly hostile medical environment. Dr. Fulkerson also shares stories of dedicated professors who train medical students and resident surgeons to care for the tiniest neurosurgical patients.Nothing Good Happens at ... The Baby Hospital offers a compelling glimpse into the joys, tragedies, and hopeful moments that surround the highly specialized and sometimes silly world of pediatric neurosurgery.

    What she does have a problem with is what she would have least expected, a guy. Smart and sexy, Doug is focused on school responsibilities and post-graduation plans. Their paths intersect and Amanda must accept his help or risk losing her scholarship. Determined to maintain appearances, Amanda begins to lie to family and friends. The ease at which she repeatedly deceives those closest becomes disturbing and leaves her questioning: “Is this me?” Can Amanda find her way out of her contrived world?

    Kate Stringer is a woman in mourning, her murdered husband the latest victim of the notorious Catholic Jack slayer. A nationwide manhunt remains underway, but the serial killer continues to remain elusive. Now, unknown to her, Kate too has been targeted by the maniac. However, other forces are in play. Things moving in the shadows, with an agenda of their own...From those broken places, where trauma and distress cloister, they watch with accusing eyes. And if they judge us, they may look to share their pain.