Following a unique five-step system, this practical guide teaches readers the basics of speed-reading in less than an hour. It includes tools and information on a variety of reading and memory techniques that allow readers to start using and practicing the techniques as they read--and therefore finish this book in a fraction of the time they would have taken previously. The book shows how to read effectively under pressure and concentrate in today's noisy, distracting environments.

    The Mexican Mafia controls every Hispanic neighborhood in Southern California and is rapidly expanding its influence across the country. Riding a wave of unchecked immigration and seemingly eluding law enforcement, the Mexican Mafia is poised to become the Cosa Nostra of 21st century America.

    Pitkin contains more than 300 recipes served by Aunt Bee and others on The Andy Griffith Show "TM". Includes wonderful, rare photos from the show and interesting sidebars. Illustrated and indexed.

    With the internet and 24 hour rolling news, scientific breakthroughs and technological innovations, DNA analysis and CCTV cameras we may fool ourselves into thinking that we know all there is to know. This is of course hubris. In reality, the world is full of grey areas and enigmas, of unsolved mysteries and unresolved stories, ones which can fascinate, intrigue and occasionally annoy us in equal measure.

    In its early days, Portland was a combination rough-and-ready logging camp and gritty, hard-punching deep-water port town," and as a young city (established in the late 1840s) it developed an international reputation for lawlessness and violence. In the early 1900s, the British and French governments filed formal complaints about Portland to the US state department, and Congressional testimony from the time cites Portland as the worst place in the world for crimping. Today, tours of the alleged Shanghai Tunnels offer Portland visitors a taste of that seedy past."

    Stephen Tow takes a second look at the music and community that vaulted the likes of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Mudhoney, and Soundgarden to international fame. Chock-full of interviews with the starring characters, Tow extensively chronicles the rise of rock 'n' roll s last great statement and contextualizes what the music really meant to the key players. Delving deep into the archives, Tow paints a vivid picture of the underground rock circuit of tattered warehouses and community centers. Seattle s heady punk scene of the late '80s gave birth to a rowdy and raucous movement, influenced by metal, but wholly its own. Seattle made its own sound, a sound that came to be known internationally as grunge. Tow walks the reader through this sonic evolution, interviewing members of every band along the way. In 1991, Seattle s sound took the world by storm--but this same storm had been brewing in the Pacific Northwest for a decade before it hit MTV.The Strangest Tribeis a reframing of this last transformative era in music. Not just plaid shirts, bleached hair, and angst, grunge is a word used to describe a rich community of artists and jokers."

    Unanswered prayers. Painful choices. Unresolved regrets. We’re called to have faith, and yet we doubt. We try to be perfect, but we fall short. This is the chaos. It’s all around us. There’s no limit to it. And there’s no quick fix for it.Both annoyingly honest and refreshingly humorous, Messy reassures Christians that God can reveal Himself in their clutter. Author and pastor A.J. Swoboda offers biblical insight and vivid, personal stories to redefine faith from something that must be perfect to something that is imperfect, but can still give beauty, meaning, and purpose to a messy life. As entertaining as it is challenging, this book teaches Christians what it means to trust in each other, in grace, in hope, and in a Savior who defied the rules of death. Here’s to finding joy in your chaos!

    He wanders the aisles of supermarkets, hardware stores, and secondhand shops, taking obsessively detailed notice of products and services that are either too obscure or weird for us to notice, or so ubiquitous that we've stopped seeing them at all. He reviews them all in his acclaimed 'zine, Beer Frame: The Journal of Inconspicuous Consumption. In Inconspicuous Consumption you'll find the very best of these hilarious reviews - 100 products and services that add up to an irresistible read. From kitschy novelties and wildly unappetizing food products to beautifully functional items, Inconspicuous Consumption is a delightful celebration of the sometimes elegant, sometimes ridiculous, and always unsung fringes of our late-twentieth-century consumer culture.

      Who played the first game of baseball? What’s a bicameral congress? Where did Mount Rushmore come from? Who is Geronimo and who do we yell his name when we jump?   Stuff Every American Should Know answers these questions plus great information on the Declaration of Independence, fireworks, the first Thanksgiving, “The Star-Spangled Banner,” assassination attempts on U.S. presidents, buffalo nickels, the Statue of Liberty, how to bake the perfect apple pie, and much, much more.

    Arranged into 13 chilling chapters like Haunted Hollywood, Blood Red Crosses and Gross Anatomy: Hospital Horrors, Bride of Bizarre, and Tales from the Cryptids, Beyond Bizarre tackles everything from female pirates and creepy candy stripers to psychic predictions and virgin shark birthsand much, much more.A word of warning: this book is not for the faint of heart!

    The useless information never ends in the newest, most crucially meaningless entry in the Useless Information series. This latest cornucopia of amazingly pointless facts and figures will have trivia buffs marveling at all the things they never needed to know.

    Right -- only to discover he's Mr. Dead Wrong? Are you spinning your wheels trying unsuccessfully to woo the object of your desire? Have you been searching high and low for that certain "something" in your love relationships? Look no further -- because the key to finding your perfect soulmate is in the stars! Now, Thelma Balfour, the author who brought you Black Sun Signs, presents a light-hearted and illuminating look at relationship, love, and sex under the stars. Maybe that Leo is too fiery for your oh-so-cool Cancer nature. Or perhaps your Aries personality is too feisty for the grounded Taurus who wants to bring you back down to earth. If you're trying to ignite a love connection -- or keep the fires burning in your current relationship -- you'll want a copy of Black Love Signs on your nightstand. Organized by sign, with special sections for men and for women, this is the essential guide for finding out what turns your mate on -- and off. From tips on how to hook up with potential partners to suggestions for the ideal date, Black Love Signs is a stellar guide to the intricacies -- and intimacies -- of loving relationships.

    The book contains 420 recipes, including contributions from well-known chefs and supporters of the sustainable agriculture movement.

    Of course, this is more than snippy waiters or rude drivers who cut you off. It is a finely honed selection of 738 exasperating things, people, situations, complaints, and attitudes that everyone who's ever had a bad day can appreciate. And which will make us all feel better, just because we know someone else is paying attention--at last. Talk about annoying:Yoga instructors who smoke.Pets that only show affection right before mealtime.Tipping someone who hasn't earned it only because you don't want to look cheap.Late fees for a video you didn't have time to watch.The second-to-last day of a two-week vacation.A sneeze that lingers in your nose, doesn't come out, and then is absorbed by your forehead.When your Cracker Jack has melted into one big Jack.When your doctor asks if you mind if an intern watches your colonoscopy.

    Navy history. In only 76 days of combat, Blackburn's Jolly Rogers downed a record 154 enemy warplanes, and Blackburn himself emerged as one of VF-17’s leading aces with eleven aerial combat victories to his credit. A complete history of the squadron from its commissioning in January 1943 to its disbanding in April 1944—including a harrowing account of the squadron’s intense, winning campaign against the Japanese over the northern Solomon Islands and Fortress Rabaul—this book offers a fascinating look at Blackburn’s approach to organizing, training, and leading his pilots—thirteen of whom, the author included, became air aces.