Chosen by the editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries, these words will appeal to anyone who wants to be a more compelling communicator—as a worker, consumer, advocate, friend, dinner companion, or even as a romantic prospect.The book includes a colorful variety of words, including handy words of just one syllable (such as glib) and words derived from the names of famous people (such as Freudian slip and Machiavellian).There are expressions from popular culture (Catch-22) and words that date back to classical civilization (spartan and stoic). Each word is clearly defined and shown in context with quotations from contemporary sources: magazines, newspapers, broadcast media, movies, and television. For many words, quotations from distinguished authors and speakers are also given and word histories are explained.Like its predecessors in this successful series, 100 Words to Make You Sound Smart provides an affordable and enjoyable way to communicate more effectively. It offers the coveted gift of gab to anyone who needs to “say it right”—and to anyone who wants to sound more articulate.

    This edition contains four new cultural collages which trace four topics, such as "The City", up to the present day. An accompanying audiotape for instructors is also available.

    YouTube and Facebook dominate the web. In Reality Hunger: A Manifesto, his landmark new book, David Shields (author of the New York Times best seller The Thing About Life Is That One Day You’ll Be Dead) argues that our culture is obsessed with “reality” precisely because we experience hardly any.Most artistic movements are attempts to figure out a way to smuggle more of what the artist thinks is reality into the work of art. So, too, every artistic movement or moment needs a credo, from Horace’s Ars Poetica to Lars von Trier’s “Vow of Chastity.” Shields has written the ars poetica for a burgeoning group of interrelated but unconnected artists in a variety of forms and media who, living in an unbearably manufactured and artificial world, are striving to stay open to the possibility of randomness, accident, serendipity, spontaneity; actively courting reader/listener/viewer participation, artistic risk, emotional urgency; breaking larger and larger chunks of “reality” into their work; and, above all, seeking to erase any distinction between fiction and nonfiction.The questions Reality Hunger explores—the bending of form and genre, the lure and blur of the real—play out constantly all around us. Think of the now endless controversy surrounding the provenance and authenticity of the “real”: A Million Little Pieces, the Obama “Hope” poster, the sequel to The Catcher in the Rye, Robert Capa’s “The Falling Soldier” photograph, the boy who wasn’t in the balloon. Reality Hunger is a rigorous and radical attempt to reframe how we think about “truthiness,” literary license, quotation, appropriation.Drawing on myriad sources, Shields takes an audacious stance on issues that are being fought over now and will be fought over far into the future. People will either love or hate this book. Its converts will see it as a rallying cry; its detractors will view it as an occasion for defending the status quo. It is certain to be one of the most controversial and talked-about books of the year.

    He examines the aspirations of the owners, the realities of construction and the anticipation of the first sea-tests, revealing that the seeds of disaster were sown by the failure to implement sealed bulkheads.Barratt then looks at the Titanic’s maiden voyage in April 1912, examining the lives of various passengers in more detail, from the first-class aristocrats to the families in third-class and steerage. Similarly, the stories of representatives from the White Star Line who were on board, as well as crew members, are told in their own words to offer a very different perspective on the voyage.Finally, the book examines the disaster itself when Titanic struck the iceberg and sank hours later. Survivors from passengers and crew recount what happened, taking us back in time to the full horror of that freezing Atlantic night when up to 1,520 people perished.From the Trade Paperback edition.

    Grammar is about much more than rules: it’s about choices, too—since a thought can always be expressed correctly in multiple ways.In Grammar for a Full Life, author Lawrence Weinstein reveals how our grammatical choices either stifle or boost our…sense of agency in lifecreativitydepth of connection to othersand mindfulness.Weinstein shows that certain tweaks to a person’s grammar can bring consequential changes in his or her fulfillment and well-being. In this wonderfully readable book, he describes some forty transformative moves that can be made with English punctuation and syntax. In the book, you’ll learn, for instance, why a greater use of active voice constructions builds assertive energy in us. You’ll discover how—paradoxically—cutting back on the “intensifiers” (exclamation marks and words like really, absolutely) heightens our awareness of the world.There is not too much about personality and life that Weinstein doesn’t see benefitting from a wiser use of grammar. In a chapter titled “Bonding,” even sex comes in for some grammatical attention. Even fear of death receives its own, almost lyrical chapter near book’s end.The farther one gets into this remarkable book, the clearer it becomes that Weinstein’s wish—for both himself and us—is actualization of “the whole person,” through language.No reader should be intimidated by Weinstein’s university credentials. As important a book as his is, it’s conversational throughout—and it’s packed with numerous compelling, clear examples. You will never think of commas or possessive pronouns in the same way again. Your regard for the conjunction “but” is likely to soar.Praise for Grammar for a Full Life has been coming in from thought leaders of all kinds, ranging from well-known authors on language, such as Anne Fadiman, Lynne Truss, and Richard Lederer, to influential spiritual thinkers, like Rabbi Lawrence Kushner. Cornel West calls it “brilliant and original.” Pioneer in mind-body studies Joan Borysenko writes, “If you read just one book this year, let this be the one.” (For a sampling of endorsements, see Editorial Reviews, below.)[PLEASE NOTE: Grammar for a Full Life is not a book intended for the person new to the English language. It assumes familiarity with many of the basics of English.]

    He was also our first environmentalist president, setting aside nearly 200 million acres for national parks and wildlife refuges.You'll also find a section on "The First Ladies"-short takes on all the presidents' wives. The book ends with a special feature that's just in time for the 2012 election: how a president gets elected. From the first presidential election to recent recounts, this chapter clearly explains to a young audience how we choose the next leader of our country.

    Just look up the weak verb you'd like to replace, and choose a stronger verb from the alphabetized lists. For example: Weak: Sally walked across the room. Stronger: Sally scurried across the room. Weak: Harry lightly touched the edge of the book. Stronger: Harry trailed his fingers along the edge of the book. Weak: Karen ran as quickly as she could to her closet. Stronger: Karen charged her closet in a panic. Weak: Lucy hit her palm on the desk. Stronger: Lucy smacked her palm on the desk. Ready to weed out the weak verbs and not-so-helpful adverbs in your writing and replace them with strong verbs? Let's get started! Indie Author Resources Book 2

    Poverty thrust them forward instead of keeping them back. Therefore, if you are poor make your circumstances a means to an end. Have ambition, keep a goal in sight and bend every energy to reach that goal. A story is told of Thomas Carlyle the day he attained the highest honor the literary world could confer upon him when he was elected Lord Rector of Edinburgh University. After his installation speech, in going through the halls, he met a student seemingly deep in study.

    It offers practical and inspiring advice on such subjects as structuring a plot and handling rejection. And it combines one of today's most successful fiction writers with a published non-fiction writer who teaches creative fiction. HOW I WRITE is the perfect reference for anyone looking to improve their writing, and for those fans who are hungry to find out more about just how Janet Evanovich ticks.

    Presentation of subject makes learning prosthodontics a more easy, simple and pleasurable experience as at the first glance it would be quickly understandable. The topics covered follow the sequence of the procedures done in practice which make learning faster and retention quicker and long lasting. It presents a clinically oriented account of the subject, covering all the key concepts that students need to know with no gaps.