He loves music of all kinds - jazz, classical, folk, rock - and has more than six thousand records at home. And when he writes, his words have a music all their own, much of it learned from jazz. Jay Rubin, a self-confessed fan, has written a book for other fans who want to know more about this reclusive writer. He reveals the autobiographical elements in Murakami's fiction, and explains how he developed a distinctive new style in Japanese writing. In tracing Murakami's career, he uses interviews he conducted with the author between 1993 and 2001, and draws on insights and observations gathered from over ten years of collaborating with Murakami on translations of his works.

    A chapter on clear e-mail communication and etiquette is brand new in this edition, as are many of the author’s challenging “Brain Ticklers.” Her helpful chapter on how to edit a school paper has also been heavily revised and updated. Barron’s popular Painless Series of study guides for middle school and high school students offer a lighthearted, often humorous approach to their subjects, transforming details that might once have seemed boring or difficult into a series of interesting and mentally challenging ideas. Most titles in the series feature many fun-to-solve “Brain Tickler” problems with answers at the end of each chapter.

    Irish makes it easy for beginners to learn the creative craft of woodburning in Pyrography Basics. All that aspiring beginners need is this book and an inexpensive woodburning tool to start adorning wood, gourds, leather, paper and more with beautifully burned images and patterns. The author provides a thorough introduction to basic tools, materials and techniques. Readers learn how to set up a practice board to experiment with strokes and settings before moving on to working projects with confidence. Six skill-building projects provide step-by-step exercises in using temperature, time, layering, and texturing to create artistic tonal values.

    Now this new edition of The Read-Aloud Handbook imparts the benefits, rewards, and importance of reading aloud to children of a new generation. Supported by delightful anecdotes as well as the latest research, The Read-Aloud Handbook offers proven techniques and strategies—and the reasoning behind them—for helping children discover the pleasures of reading and setting them on the road to becoming lifelong readers.

    Many of the best novels, plays, poetry, and films in the English language produced since Shakespeare’s death in 1616—from Jane Austen to The Godfather—are heavily influenced by Shakespeare’s stories, characters, language, and themes.  In a sense, his works are a kind of Bible for the modern world, bringing us together intellectually and spiritually.  Hamlet, Juliet, Macbeth, Ophelia, and a vast array of other singular Shakespearean characters have become the archetypes of our consciousness. To know some Shakespeare provides a head start in life.  In How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare, acclaimed playwright Ken Ludwig provides the tools you need to instill an understanding, and a love, of Shakespeare’s works in your children, and to have fun together along the way.Ken Ludwig devised his methods while teaching his own children, and his approach is friendly and easy to master. Beginning with  memorizing short specific passages from Shakespeare's plays, this method then instills children with cultural references they will utilize for years to come. Ludwig’s approach includes understanding of the time period and implications of Shakespeare’s diction as well as the invaluable lessons behind his words and stories.  Colorfully incorporating the history of Shakespearean theater and society, How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare guides readers on an informed and adventurous journey through the world in which the Bard wrote.This book’s simple process allows anyone to impart to children the wisdom of plays like A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Twelfth Night, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet. And there’s fun to be had along the way. Shakespeare novices and experts, and readers of all ages, will each find something delightfully irresistible in How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare.

    Although bento boxes are available to take out from restaurants and food stands, they are most frequently prepared at home, very often by parents wishing to provide their children with delicious, healthy, fun--and environmentally-responsible--lunch and snack-time alternatives.Kawaii Bento Boxes offers dozens of recipes and menus. For each box, the authors include detailed instructions for cooking, seasoning, decorating and assembling the components as well as an icon indicating how long it will take to prepare. The meals are not just easy to make, they are tasty, nutritious and economical, with each portion carefully calculated so that there are no leftovers. There are also suggestions for the right container for each meal. Most of the ingredients used are familiar and available to American cooks. Here are whimsical creations like soccer balls and animal faces made from shaped rice, tulips cut from dyed hardboiled eggs, hearts and stars carved out of vegetables, and much more. Perfect for parents looking to liven up their children's school lunches or park snacks, or for busy people who want to fix a quick and cheerful meal to take to work, Kawaii Bento Boxes highlights the Japanese passion for making food a treat for the eyes as well as for the mouth.CONTENTS:ONIGIRI BENTO(16 variations including faces, soccer ball, animals, triangles, spheres)RICE BENTO(11 variations including bear, rabbit, ship, seasoned rice, teriyaki chicken over rice, etc.)SUSHI BENTO(12 variations)BREAD BENTO(12 variations including mini-sandwiches, rolls, etc.)NOODLE BENTO(9 variations including spaghetti, yakisoba noodles, udon)SUMMER AND WINTER BENTO(12 variations including summer dishes that won't spoil in the heat and winter dishes that are better when eaten warm)TRADITIONAL/POPULAR/FAVORITE BENTO(11 variations including favorite dishes like hamburgers, fried shrimp, fried chicken)TIPS ON HOW TO STUFF THE BENTO BOXWHAT TO STUFF IN THE BENTO BOX (including calories, carbohydrates, protein, etc.)CUTTING AND DECORATINGMENUS BASED ON COLOREASY DESSERT RECIPES

    And if that’s too much to ask, remember the sage advice from the staff of a Taipei hotel: “If there is anything we can do to assist and help you, please do not contact us.”

    From Carmindy, the make-up artist of TLC’s #1 rated show What Not to Wear and the bestselling author of The 5-Minute Face, comes Crazy Busy Beautiful: an invaluable guide with more than 597 secret beauty tricks for busy women everywhere.

    Now revised and updated, the "Complete Horse Riding Manual" covers dressage, show jumping, and cross-country riding, detailing everything you need to know to compete in these events, whether you are a beginner or more experienced rider."Complete Horse Riding Manual" is brimming with advice on finding the best horse for you, training a young horse, forming the ultimate horse-and-rider team, boosting and maintaining your own physical fitness and suppleness, and building the fitness and stamina of your horse.