In Times Like These Boxed Set: A Time Travel Adventure Series


Nathan Van Coops - 2018
    Start your time travel adventure today, because yesterday may be too late!

White House Confidential: The Little Book of Weird Presidential History


Gregg Stebben - 2001
    Focusing on the qualities that never made it into White House press releases, the authors look at their sexual misdeeds and strange family relationships, scandals that engulfed administrations, fights with enemies, and questionable money matters. Dip into these pages to find out: Which president was famous for being the richest man alive because of all his brilliant real estate deals? Which president was born in Canada, and was ineligible to hold the office of president? Which president caused some problems by trying to grow “strange herbs” in the White House garden? Which president often ordered White House staff to rub Vaseline into his scalp while he ate breakfast in bed? Which president often called his deputy chief of staff “Turd Blossom”?Updated with new material about many presidents including George W. Bush and Barack Obama, White House Confidential will have you laughing (and sometimes cursing!) as you take a second look at the next occupant of the Oval Office.

Man of Contradictions: Joko Widodo and the struggle to remake Indonesia


Ben Bland - 2020
    However, six years into his presidency, the former furniture maker is struggling to deliver the reforms that Indonesia desperately needs. Despite promising to build Indonesia into an Asian powerhouse, Jokowi, as he is known, has faltered in the face of crises, from COVID-19 to an Islamist mass movement.Man of Contradictions, the first English-language biography of Jokowi, argues that the president embodies the fundamental contradictions of modern Indonesia. He is caught between democracy and authoritarianism, openness and protectionism, Islam and pluralism. Jokowi’s incredible story shows what is possible in Indonesia – and it also shows the limits.

A Brief History of China: Dynasty, Revolution and Transformation: From the Middle Kingdom to the People's Republic


Jonathan Clements - 2019
    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 Broken Fountain


Thomas Belmonte - 1979
    Resisting standard depictions of the social and moral lives of the poor, Belmonte presents nuanced portraits of his subjects. He was also one of the first anthropologists to reflect on his own reactions and emotions. He describes the traumatic experience of living alone in a strange urban environment and his social interactions with the residents of Fontana del Re.

A Mysterious Lady for the Resolute Sheriff


Carol Colyer - 2019
    He's only got time to make sure everyone in his little town is safe from all danger - especially from the vicious Kinsley gang! After witnessing a fierce shooting, Trent swore to bring every single one of the gang's members to justice. For years they eluded him. They've become his obsession - until one day he meets someone else who captures his attention. Can he afford to succumb to this alluring distraction?Eliza Kinsley is a beautiful, mysterious woman trying to get a job as a new school teacher in town. But she has a well kept secret that revolves around her ties with the Kinsley gang. What is she hiding? She wants to make a new start, but someone is holding her back. Trent's feelings towards Eliza are growing rapidly, but she's keeping him at arm's length in order to protect him from the truth. Can she trust her heart, even if the risk is too high for them both?In this Romeo and Juliet kind of situation, can Eliza follow her heart and be happy, or will her secrets stand in the way of her true love? And will Trent be able to handle the truth about the woman who stole his heart?"A Mysterious Lady for the Resolute Sheriff" is a historical western romance novel of approximately 80,000 words. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed happily ever after.

Alpha Centauri: First Landing (T-Space: Alpha Centauri Book 1)


Alastair Mayer - 2016
    A multinational expedition is launched to land on and explore these worlds, but political intrigue and natural disasters threaten the mission . . . and what they find may threaten Earth itself.

If I Live to Tell


Akeela Hayder Green - 2013
    Many of them don’t survive their ordeals and those who do are often either too afraid or too ashamed to speak. If I Live to Tell is unique in that respect. It’s a real, first-person look at the world from the perspective of a woman who has endured tragedy, heartbreak, abuse and betrayal at almost every point in her life.Set on three continents, If I Live to Tell is a rare glimpse into the world and heart of the largely invisible victimized woman. Following one woman’s struggle to discover purpose and identity, If I Live to Tell shows how tragedy can become triumph and how pain can turn to purpose. This is a true story like you’ve never heard before.

Chess: Conquer your Friends with 8 Easy Principles: Chess Strategy for Casual Players and Post-Beginners (The Skill Artist's Guide - Chess Strategy, Chess Books)


Maxen Tarafa - 2015
    No complex terminology. ★FREE eBook Download inside★ Your dad taught you how to play Chess, but he didn’t teach you much. You already know how to checkmate and move the pieces, but let’s face it, your friends and family still beat you more than you’d like. You don't just want to play. You want to win and possibly CONQUER ALL YOUR FRIENDS! You sly dog! I know the feeling and I’m here to help. My name is Maxen R. Tarafa and I’m a Skill Artist. In a few short months, I went from a struggling post-beginner to an adept intermediate player and doubled my Chess ability by teaching myself. In this book, I show you how you can double, even triple, your Chess ability like I did, but faster. But I’m going to tell you right now. My method is rather controversial. You see, most chess “experts” bombard you with complex Chess notation (QxB6?) and expect you to read complex Chess terminology. I don’t do that. I’ll give you a cheat sheet of what you NEED to remember, and you’ll be off to the Chess boards and killing Queens like it’s nobody’s business. In this book, you learn: -How to play your first 10 moves so YOU control the game (Chess Openings) -How to use 3 techniques (or Chess tactics) like bringing light sabers to a knife fight -How to identify one weakness, if you simply recognize it, you can win in one move -How to cut your training time in ½. Know what to study and apply brainhacking techniques. -How to avoid common beginner mistakes with time-tested Chess strategy -Where to find FREE Chess websites, apps, videos, and technology to double your skills -How to use the one principle I taught to Eduardo that took him from losing miserably to unbeatable -How to “bend” the Chess rules with little-known special moves (it’s not cheating!) -And more I taught a 9-year-old these principles and a week later he was beating 17-year-olds. Anyone, even you, can learn how to double your Chess ability by learning a few easy principles. You’ll even learn how to speed your decision-making and play speed chess. If you’re looking for quick and easy Chess instruction to double your skills, but don’t want to learn complex terminology and notation, this book is for you! Don’t let your friend, brother, dad, or roommate beat you again! Join the Casual Chess revolution! Plain-English Chess Instruction for Casual Players, Post-Beginners, and People who Want to Learn Fast! ★Now Available in Paperback! To buy paperback, scroll up and click the Paperback link (by the cover image)★

Life is Hard: Machismo, Danger, and the Intimacy of Power in Nicaragua


Roger N. Lancaster - 1993
    . . . As one young Sandinista commented, 'Rambo is like the Nicaraguan soldier. He's a superman. And if the United States invades, we'll cut the marines down like Rambo did.' And then he mimicked Rambo's famous war howl and mimed his arc of machine gun fire. We both laughed."—from the bookThere is a Nicaragua that Americans have rarely seen or heard about, a nation of jarring political paradoxes and staggering social and cultural flux. In this Nicaragua, the culture of machismo still governs most relationships, insidious racism belies official declarations of ethnic harmony, sexual relationships between men differ starkly from American conceptions of homosexuality, and fascination with all things American is rampant. Roger Lancaster reveals the enduring character of Nicaraguan society as he records the experiences of three families and their community through times of war, hyperinflation, dire shortages, and political turmoil.Life is hard for the inhabitants of working class barrios like Doña Flora, who expects little from men and who has reared her four children with the help of a constant female companion; and life is hard for Miguel, undersized and vulnerable, stigmatized as a cochón—a "faggot"—until he learned to fight back against his brutalizers.Through candid discussions with young and old Nicaraguans, men and women, Lancaster constructs an account of the successes and failures of the 1979 Sandinista Revolution, documenting the effects of war and embargo on the cultural and economic fabric of Nicaraguan society. He tracks the break up of families, surveys informal networks that allow female-headed households to survive, explores the gradual transformation of the culture of machismo, and reveals a world where heroic efforts have been stymied and the best hopes deferred. This vast chronicle is sustained by a rich theoretical interpretation of the meanings of ideology, power, and the family in a revolutionary setting.Played out against a backdrop of political travail and social dislocation, this work is a story of survival and resistance but also of humor and happiness. Roger Lancaster shows us that life is hard, but then too, life goes on.

Time Present, Time Past: A Memoir


Bill Bradley - 1996
    Senate, Bill Bradley won a national reputation for thoughtfulness, decency, and a willingness to take controversial positions on issues ranging from tax reform to the rights of Native Americans. All these qualities inform this best-selling memoir, in which Bradley assesses his political career and the experiences that shaped his convictions, and looks beyond them to consider the state of the American union on the eve of the 21st century. Time Present, Time Past offers an intimate portrait of the day-to-day working of the Senate: how legislation gets passed and sometimes thwarted; how money is raised and at what cost. But Bradley also writes about deeper questions: What does it means to be an American in an ago of dwindling opportunities and increasing inequality? How much can we expect from our public servants? What do we owe our fellow citizens? The result is a genuinely revelatory book, informed by intelligence, compassion, and unprecedented candor."Strikingly reflects the realities of modern politics, what it looks like, feels like, from the inside."--New York Times Book Review

A Brief History of Indonesia: Sultans, Spices, and Tsunamis: The Incredible Story of Southeast Asia's Largest Nation


Tim Hannigan - 2015
    Indonesian history and culture are especially relevant today as the Island nation is an emerging power in the region with a dynamic new leader. It is a land of incredible diversity and unending paradoxes that has a long and rich history stretching back a thousand years and more. Indonesia is the fabled "Spice Islands" of every school child's dreams—one of the most colorful and fascinating countries in history. These are the islands that Europeans set out on countless voyages of discovery to find and later fought bitterly over in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. This was the land that Christopher Columbus sought, and Magellan reached and explored. One tiny Indonesian island was even exchanged for the island of Manhattan in 1667! This fascinating history book tells the story of Indonesia as a narrative of kings, traders, missionaries, soldiers and revolutionaries, featuring rough sea crossings, fiery volcanoes, and the occasional tiger. It recounts the colorful visits of foreign travelers who have passed through these shores for many centuries—from Chinese Buddhist pilgrims and Dutch adventurers to English sea captains and American movie stars. For readers who want an entertaining introduction to Asia's most fascinating country, this is delightful reading.

You Can't Say That: Memoirs


Ken Livingstone - 2011
    From his eccentric South London working class childhood to running one of the biggest cities in the world, Ken Livingstone delivers the turbulent true story of his life as one of Britain's foremost politicians.

Texarkana Love


Kathryn Brocato - 2015
    Everybody wins! Old Christmas: When professional chef Casey Gray returns to the southeast Texas town where she grew up, she doesn't expect to feel anything for her former lover Kalin McBride. It will take every bit of determination Kalin has, plus a little help from the magical spirit of the holiday, to convince Casey that her future lies with him. Sutherland's Pride: Pride Donovan's former lover, Flynn Sutherland, does not recognize her little boy as his when she returns to the Texas Gulf Coast town of Anahuac. But he definitely wants his Pride back - can their second chance withstand the bombshell she's about to drop into his life? Georgie's Heart: Georgeanne Hartfield, author of the explosive nonfiction book Faking It, never counted on meeting a man like Zane Bryant, who makes her feel like a woman for the first time in her life. But if he ever discovers she's behind the infamous Fritzi Field pen name, how could he possibly believe that her response to him is the real thing? The Counterfeit Cowgirl: Felicity Clayton has carefully cultivated her fashion-house cowgirl image, so she's astonished to find the citizens of Foxe, Texas, dislike her almost before she steps out of her Dodge pickup. Aaron Whitaker, a local rancher, has no use for a flashy, fake cowgirl - so why is he beginning to feel an unwanted attraction to her? The Look-Alike Bride: Leonie Daniel leads a double life, often standing in for her glamorous older sister who works as a government agent. All Leonie has to do this time is spend a few weeks in Zara's lakeside cabin near Hot Springs, Arkansas, behave like Zara, and avoid Adam Silverthorne, the man her sister is interested in. But now Adam is falling for Leonie . . . or is he? Bride by the Book: Small-town Arkansas attorney Garner Holt badly needs an assistant to sort out his cluttered office, but he didn't expect a super-secretary like Miss Angelina Brownwood. She's perfect until an online search reveals a flaw: Angelina isn't a secretary. But does her secret mean she's also not the girl for him? Sensuality Level: Behind Closed Doors

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot like Cowboys, Volume 2


Susette Williams - 2017
     Jeremiah Scott was returning to Weatherton, Wyoming after a six-year absence While in Cheyenne, arranging business deals and outfitting his ranch, he decided to find an impromptu bride. But when the bride was more than he bargained for, will it destroy his plans for marriage?" TO LOVE AND TO HONOR By Heather Blanton Joel Chapman feels like a failure. Losing a leg in battle, he failed to fulfill his duty as a captain. According to his wife, without two good legs, he’s failed as a husband and provider. Along with his self-respect, his spirit is dying a slow, painful death. Angela Fairbanks is the daughter of a tyrant—a cattle baron known for his iron fist and cold heart. She has no doubt once he learns she is carrying an illegitimate child, he will banish her from the ranch. Compassion and honor overtaking his good sense, Joel offers a noble lie to protect Angela and secure a home for her and the baby: one day as her husband, and then he’ll “abandon” her. Will the noble lie become simple deceit? Or is he man enough to resist his heart and keep his vows? A GROOM FOR CHRISTMAS By Tina Dee Addie Langford is desperate. Christmas is just around the corner and she’d love nothing more than a holiday break from the constant meddling of her family and their determination to find her a husband. Just when she thinks she’d gotten rid of one poor fellow, she lands right on top of another—literally. When he looks past her physical imperfection, will she also learn to look past it and find love? Rhett Marshall just wants to make his way in the world. He’s looking for a job as a ranch hand, but after a shotgun wedding he finds he’s gained a wife instead. The problem is that Addie was so much more than what she seemed, like no girl he’d ever met. After getting to know her, the big question is whether he’ll stay or go when the choice finally arrives. THE COWBOY’S CHRISTMAS PRAYERS By Laura J. Marshall 1905, South Dakota Stone Tyler Wayne, the man with three first names is just a simple cowboy. He has little to show for his hard-working ways other than the calluses on his hands, yet he folds these hands in consistent prayer to the One who sees his heart. Nan Kinsey is the boss’ daughter. Her father plans to marry her off to the ranch owner’s son next door. The problem is, she is drawn instead to Stone. Will their Christmas prayers be answered? MISTLETOE MISTAKE By Lynette Sowell Matthew Thomas cooked up the idea of helping the crumbling town of Angel Vale, Wyoming by arranging for mail order brides from the East--including a bride for himself until his feet get colder than a Wyoming blizzard. Widowed Sophia Webster tries to make a new start in Wyoming by staying true to her word and helping Matthew establish his newspaper, but come spring, it’ll be back East for her--unless Matthew’s change of heart can convince her otherwise. HUSBAND OF THE BRIDE By USA TODAY BESTSELLING Susette Williams Widowed for years, Ma has been the matriarch of the family, facing the challenges of raising four boys who are now men. With the arrival of her first grandchild imminent, Ma finds herself face-to-face with the town doctor who has very differing views than her own.