Gork, the Teenage Dragon

Author: Gabe Hudson
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0375713417
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 417

Book Description
A TODAY Show Summer Pick “Hilarious. . . . Gork is less Game of Thrones and more The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.” —Rolling Stone Gork is the nerdiest dragon at WarWings Military Academy. He has a giant heart and tiny horns. His nickname is Weak Sauce. Today before his high school graduation, he must ask a female dragon to be his queen. The result is a rollicking quest for true love on the most madcap day ever known to a high school senior – dragon or otherwise. Along the way, Gork gets help from his best friend Fribby, a fierce female robot dragon who is brilliant, snarky, and totally obsessed with death; and Athenos II, his sentient spaceship who carries a shocking secret from his childhood. Ultimately, Gork will have to lock horns with his evil grandfather, Dr. Terrible. Can a quest for true love make a hero out of a dragon?

Dear Mr. President

Author: Gabe Hudson
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0307425460
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 123

Book Description
A bracing amalgamation of devastating humor and brilliant cultural observation, in which Gabe Hudson fearlessly explores the darker implications of American military power. "Weird, wonderful, and worrisome.” —The Washington Post Book World “Dear Mr. President is a war book like no other. It’s as if Salvador Dali had rewritten All Quiet on the Western Front.” —USA Today Everybody’s Gulf War Syndrome is a little bit different. Or so believes Larry, who returns home from Desert Storm to find his hair gone and his bones rapidly disintegrating. Then there’s Lance Corporal James Laverne of the US Marines, who grows a third ear in Kuwait. And in the audaciously comic novella “Notes from a Bunker Along Highway 8,” a Green Beret deserts his team after seeing a vision of George Washington, only to find a new calling—administering aid to wounded Iraqi civilians; he’s hindered only by the furtive nature of his mission and an unruly band of chimpanzees.

Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks

Author: Ethan Gilsdorf
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 0762766786
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 335

Book Description
An amazing journey through the thriving worlds of fantasy and gaming What could one man find if he embarked on a journey through fantasy world after fantasy world? In an enthralling blend of travelogue, pop culture analysis, and memoir, forty-year-old former D&D addict Ethan Gilsdorf crisscrosses America, the world, and other worlds—from Boston to New Zealand, and Planet Earth to the realm of Aggramar. “For anyone who has ever spent time within imaginary realms, the book will speak volumes. For those who have not, it will educate and enlighten.” —Wired.com “Gandalf’s got nothing on Ethan Gilsdorf, except for maybe the monster white beard. In his new book, Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks, Gilsdorf . . . offers an epic quest for reality within a realm of magic.” —Boston Globe “Imagine this: Lord of the Rings meets Jack Kerouac’s On the Road.” —National Public Radio’s “Around and About” “What does it mean to be a geek? . . . Fantasy Freaks andGaming Geeks tackles that question with strength and dexterity. . . . part personal odyssey, part medieval mid-life crisis, and part wide-ranging survey of all things freaky and geeky . . . playful . . . funny and poignant. . . . It’s a fun ride and it poses a question that goes to the very heart of fantasy, namely: What does the urge to become someone else tell us about ourselves?” —Huffington Post

Everyone's a Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too

Author: Jomny Sun
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062821229
Category : Comics & Graphic Novels
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Book Description
The illustrated story of a lonely alien sent to observe Earth, where he meets all sorts of creatures with all sorts of perspectives on life, love, and happiness, while learning to feel a little better about himself—based on the enormously popular Twitter account. Here is the unforgettable story of Jomny, an alien sent to study Earth. Always feeling apart, even among his species, Jomny feels at home for the first time among the earthlings he meets. There is a bear tired of other creatures running in fear, an egg struggling to decide what to hatch into, a turtle hiding itself by learning camouflage, a puppy struggling to express its true feelings, and many more. The characters are unique and inventive—bees think long and hard about what love means, birds try to eat the sun, nothingness questions its own existence, a ghost comes to terms with dying, and an introverted hedgehog slowly lets Jomny see its artistic insecurities. At the same time, Jomny’s curious presence allows these characters to open up to him in ways they were never able to before, revealing the power of somebody who is just there to listen. Everyone’s a Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too is also the story behind the widely-shared and typo-filled @jonnysun twitter account. Since the beginning, Sun intentionally tweeted from an outsider’s perspective, creating a truly distinct voice. Now, that outsider has taken shape in the character of Jomny, who observes Earth with the same intelligent, empathetic, and charmingly naïve voice that won over his fans on social media. New fans will find it organic, and old fans will delight at seeing the clever words that made them fans in the first place. Through this story of a lost, lonely and confused Alien finding friendship, acceptance, and love among the animals and plants of Earth, we will all learn how to be a little more human. And for all the earth-bound creatures here on this planet, we will all learn how sometimes, it takes an outsider to help us see ourselves for who we truly are.

A Life of Adventure and Delight

Author: Akhil Sharma
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0393285359
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 114

Book Description
A Life of Adventure and Delight delivers eight masterful stories from dazzlingly original and critically acclaimed author Akhil Sharma. Hailed as a storyteller whose fiction is “a glowing work of art” (Wall Street Journal), Akhil Sharma is possessed of a narrative voice “as hypnotic as those found in the pages of Dostoyevsky” (The Nation). In A Life of Adventure and Delight, Sharma delivers eight masterful stories that focus on Indian protagonists at home and abroad and that plunge the reader into the unpredictable workings of the human heart. A young woman in an arranged marriage awakens one day surprised to find herself in love with her husband. A retired divorcé tries to become the perfect partner by reading women’s magazines. A man’s longstanding contempt for his cousin suddenly shifts inward when he witnesses his cousin caring for a sick woman. Tender and darkly comic, the protagonists in A Life of Adventure and Delight deceive themselves and engage in odd behaviors as they navigate how to be good, how to make meaningful relationships, and the strengths and pitfalls of self-interest. Elegantly written and emotionally immediate, the stories provide an intimate, honest assessment of human relationships between mothers and sons, sons and lovers, and husband and wives from a dazzlingly original, critically acclaimed writer.

The Mythology of Supernatural

Author: Nathan Robert Brown
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101517522
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 203

Book Description
A look into the paranormal legends, lore, mythology, and monsters featured on the hit television show Supernatural. From angels to demons, The Mythology of Supernatural explores the religious roots and the ancient folklore of the otherworldly entities that brothers Sam and Dean Winchester face on the hit television show Supernatural—and that have inhabited the shadows of human imagination across countless cultures and centuries.

Colonial Spirits

Author: Steven Grasse
Publisher: Abrams
ISBN: 1613122217
Category : Cooking
Languages : en
Pages : 311

Book Description
This tour of early American alcohol shares recipes, “fun facts and anecdotes about our forefathers’ drinking habits with a 21-century sense of humor” (Chicago Tribune). In Colonial Spirits, legendary distiller Steven Grasse presents a historical manifesto on drinking, including 50 colonial era– inspired cocktail recipes. The book features a rousing timeline of colonial imbibing and a cultural overview of all kinds of alcoholic beverages: beer, rum and punch; temperance drinks; liqueurs and cordials; medicinal beverages; cider; wine, whiskey, bourbon and more. The book is spiced with delightful illustrations and liquored-up adages from our founding fathers. Grasse shares expert guidance on DIY home brewing, plus recipes like the Philadelphia Fish House Punch (a crowd pleaser!) and Snakebites (drink alone!). Hot beer cocktails and rattle skulls have never been so irresistible.

The New Net Zero

Author: Bill Maclay
Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing
ISBN: 160358448X
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 578

Book Description
The new threshold for green building is not just low energy, it's net-zero energy. In The New Net Zero, sustainable architect Bill Maclay charts the path for designers and builders interested in exploring green design's new-frontier net-zero-energy structures that produce as much energy as they consume and are carbon neutral. In a nation where traditional buildings use roughly 40 percent of the total fossil energy, the interest in net-zero building is growing enormously--among both designers interested in addressing climate change and consumers interested in energy efficiency and long-term savings. Maclay, an award-winning net-zero designer whose buildings have achieved high-performance goals at affordable costs, makes the case for a net-zero future; explains net-zero building metrics, integrated design practices, and renewable energy options; and shares his lessons learned on net-zero teambuilding. Designers and builders will find a wealth of state-of-the-art information on such considerations as air, water, and vapor barriers; embodied energy; residential and commercial net-zero standards; monitoring and commissioning; insulation options; costs; and more. The comprehensive overview is accompanied by several case studies, which include institutional buildings, commercial projects, and residences. Both new-building and renovation projects are covered in detail. The New Net Zero is geared toward professionals exploring net-zero design, but also suitable for nonprofessionals seeking ideas and strategies on net-zero options that are beautiful and renewably powered.

Dare to Inspire

Author: Allison Holzer
Publisher: Da Capo Lifelong Books
ISBN: 0738285730
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 287

Book Description
"Dare to Inspire shows how to spark and sustain exponential growth." --Shawn Achor, New York Times bestselling author of Big Potential and The Happiness Advantage Inspiration is a most critical resource to be managed in modern work. The problem is that the power of inspiration often feels fleeting. But what if you could design your own way to be inspired at work on a regular basis? What if you could make your own inspiration last? Rooted in 18 engines of inspiration that emerged from interviews with leaders across different industries, Dare to Inspire shows how to supercharge inspiration for yourself, your team, and your organization. Each chapter offers tools, strategies, and examples of how to make inspiration happen and last. Through stories of pioneers in business, health, education, and other industries, readers learn how to effectively use the engines to spark inspiration, along with specific practices to sustain it. Dare to Inspire features Chef Wes Avila, the founder of L.A. sensation Guerrilla Tacos, who was inspired to revolutionize his industry; crowdfunding pioneer Charles Best, who founded DonorsChoose to meet the challenge of connecting teachers in need with donors interested in supporting educational programs; and many others. This will be a vital book for anyone interested in creativity, success, achievement, and happiness.

Runaways

Author: Michael Seidlinger
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781892061898
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 86

Book Description
In Runaways: A Writer's Dilemma, author Michael J. Seidlinger centers a magnifying glass on the creative journey, with an honest and unabashed search into how and why someone would want to be accepted as a writer in a world that might not care. The book's breezy narrative contrasts with the despair that is often triggered by the wasteland of social media and the Internet. This is a story that reminds the reader that they aren't alone in a culture that pressures us to measure our work on a purely capitalistic level, driven by likes, hearts, and money. Like a darker and more skewed literary version of the metaphysical classic, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Seidlinger's Runaways: A Writer's Dilemma shows us how our art, often made in solitary, can be the more important and inspiring part of living. "A portrait of the writer as a procrastinator, professional self-doubter, caffeine connoisseur, and social-media addict, Runaways wallows in the manifold frustrations of this extravagantly frustrating process--yet it ultimately left this fellow sufferer feeling optimistic and ready to confront the blank page once more." -Mason Currey, author of Daily Rituals: How Artists Work