Recommended Reads

A relaxing retreat to Camp David turns deadly after a faraway earthquake sets off a a chain of disastrous events that traps the president's twelve-year-old son, Luke, and his two friends within the compound.

When the Sudanese civil war reaches his village in 1985, eleven-year-old Salva becomes separated from his family and must walk with other Dinka tribe members through southern Sudan, Ethiopia, and Kenya in search of safe haven. Based on the life of Salva Dut, who, after emigrating to America in 1996, began a project to dig water wells in Sudan.

Twelve-year-old twins Ashley and Ryan are tested to the extreme when faced with a powerful avalanche while skiing in Wyoming's Grand Teton mountains. Includes survival tips from the National Avalanche Center and U.S. Forest Service.

Four determined homeless children make a life for themselves in Chennai, India.

Hatchet meets Long Way Down in this heartfelt and gripping novel in verse about a young girl's struggle for survival after a climbing trip with her father goes terribly wrong. One year after a random shooting changed their family forever, Nora and her father are exploring a slot canyon deep in the Arizona desert, hoping it will help them find peace. Nora longs for things to go back to normal, like they were when her mother was still alive, while her father keeps them isolated in fear of other people. But when they reach the bottom of the canyon, the unthinkable happens: A flash flood rips across their path, sweeping away Nora's father and all of their supplies. Suddenly, Nora finds herself lost and alone in the desert, facing dehydration, venomous scorpions, deadly snakes, and, worst of all, the Beast who has terrorized her dreams for the past year. If Nora is going to save herself and her father, she must conquer her fears, defeat the Beast, and find the courage to live her new life.

After escaping the Black Hook Gang in 1860 New York City, twelve-year-old twins Alexander and Cleopatra flee to New Orleans, become separated, and try to find each other in San Francisco, while being followed by pirates who think they hold the key to treasure.

Hannah Steele loves living on Pelling, a tiny island near Seattle. It's a little disconnected from the outside world, but she's always felt completely safe there. Which is why when she's asked one day to babysit after school, she thinks it's no big deal. Zoe and Oscar are her next-door neighbors, and Hannah just took a babysitting class that she's pretty sure makes her an expert. She isn't even worried that she left her inhaler at home. Then the shaking begins. The terrifying earthquake only lasts four minutes but it changes everything, damaging the house, knocking out the power, and making cell service nonexistent. Even worse, the ferry and the bridge connecting the kids to help--and their parents--are both blocked. Which means they're stranded and alone... With Hannah in charge, as things go from bad to dangerous.

Three fictional stories, told in graphic novel format, about soldiers in World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War who were aided by combat dogs. Based on true stories.

In one of the darkest periods in history, one boy struggles to In this gripping new addition to the bestselling I Survived series, a young Jewish boy joins the resistance "partisan" fighters outside the Warsaw ghetto. Does he have what it takes to survive the Nazis--and fight back?

Ranger, the time-traveling golden retriever, has landed in Viking age Iceland, where he meets a girl named Helga, who seems perfectly able to take care of herself--until an erupting volcano and an early arriving baby forces Ranger and Helga to journey through the ash and smoke to find her father and bring him home.

LOST IN THE PACIFIC is the first book in a new narrative nonfiction series that tells the true story of a band of World War II soldiers who became stranded at sea and had to fight for survival. World War II, October 21, 1942. A B-17 bomber drones high over the Pacific Ocean, sending a desperate SOS into the air. The crew is carrying America's greatest living war hero on a secret mission deep into the battle zone. But the plane is lost, burning through its final gallons of fuel.At 1:30 p.m., there is only one choice left: an emergency landing at sea. If the crew survives the impact, they will be left stranded without food or water hundreds of miles from civilization. Eight men. Three inflatable rafts. Sixty-eight million square miles of ocean. What will it take to make it back alive?

Lupe Impala, Elirio Malaria, and El Chavo Octopus are now the proud owners of their own garage--but when a series of earthquakes hit their town and Genie, their beloved cat, disappears they find themselves traveling to the realm of Mictlantecuhtli, Aztec god of the Underworld, who is keeping Genie prisoner.

Every time it is invaded the City gets a new name, but to the natives in is the Nameless City, and they survive by not letting themselves get involved--but now the fate of the City rests in the hands of Rat, a native, and Kaidu, one of the Dao, the latest occupiers, and the two must somehow work together if the City is to survive.

When a school bus accident leaves sixteen-year-old Jessica an amputee, she returns to school with a prosthetic limb and her track team finds a wonderful way to help rekindle her dream of running again.

After moving to California, seventh-grader Devin is afraid she will not make the soccer team but finds, instead, a team is so bad that she is compelled to take the lead and turn it into something the players and coach can all be proud of.

Twelve-year-old Paul, who lives in the shadow of his football hero brother Erik, fights for the right to play soccer despite his near blindness and slowly begins to remember the incident that damaged his eyesight. Includes author's afterword and reader's guide.

After he is cut from his travel basketball team--the very same team that his father once led to national prominence--twelve-year-old Danny Walker forms his own team of cast-offs that might have a shot at victory.

Native American Jim Thorpe became a super athlete and Olympic gold medalist. Indomitable coach Pop Warner was a football mastermind. In 1907 at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, they forged one of the winningest teams in American football history. Called "the team that invented football," they took on the best opponents of their day, defeating much more privileged schools in a series of breathtakingly close calls, genius plays, and bone-crushing hard work. Sheinkin provides an true underdog sports story -- and an unflinching look at the U.S. government's violent persecution of Native Americans and the school that was designed to erase Indian cultures.

A biographical novel tells the story of Cassius Clay, the determined boy who would one day become Muhammad Ali, one of the greatest boxers of all time.

Orphaned thirteen year-old Carlos learns what it truly means to be a teammate when he must help save his new wheelchair basketball team's gym from destruction.

When a popular student encourages her to join the soccer team, Faith signs up even though she has never played the game and learns about loyalty and friendship.

Artie King's hopes for easing into life at Camelot Middle School are dashed when he opens a mysterious locker filled with useful, wonderful items and is pulled into a do-or-die dodgeball game that pits Artie and his friends against the school's toughest kids.

Shenice Lockwood dreams of leading the Fulton Firebirds to the U12 softball regional championship. But Shenice's focus gets shaken when her great-uncle Jack reveals that a career-ending-and family-name-ruining-crime may have been a setup. It's up to Shenice to discover the truth about her family's past--and fast--before secrets take the Firebirds out of the game forever.

Lori Block and her best friend Sophia are dedicated to their Fourth-Grade basketball team, despite being relegated to the 5th quarter, an extra period before the real game starts, where the not-so-good kids play, and the points don't count. That doesn't matter to Lori though, because basketball is a place where working hard and getting better gives her hints of self-confidence. At school, she is awkward and unsure, and at home Lori's parents are consumed by her mother's bid for local government. With athletic promise and a dogged determination to keep improving, Lori pursues her passion while navigating awkward social dynamics, her own expectations and her first overnight away from home. Can she find her confidence in school, at home, and on the court?

When her school is shut down due to an asbestos problem, all-star pitcher Gabby Garcia is sent to an upscale private school that already has a star pitcher, and to make matters worse, she has trouble making friends and finding her place.

In 1921, New York Yankees slugger Babe Ruth smashed a home run that sailed 575 feet (175 m), the longest homer ever hit in a Major League Baseball game. Ruth's home runs thrilled fans and revolutionized the game. One hundred years later, the home run is still the most exciting play in baseball. Read about the longest, strangest, and most important home runs in baseball history. See how the game's superstars hit the ball so far, and learn about the ways players have cheated to hit home runs, from performance-enhancing drugs to corked bats and stolen signs. Take a high-flying journey from baseball's early days to today's biggest sluggers.

When the Tiki and Ronde make the junior high school basketball team, they see that they each have their own skills and the most important skill is teamwork.

When Tiki and Ronde move up to seventh grade football, they learn that seniority rules over skills, and they must decide whether to stay with the team even if it means being bench warmers, in this book based on the childhood experiences of football players Tiki and Ronde Barber.

The first female African American principal dancer in American Ballet Theatre history recounts her road to stardom, from her first ballet class to her rise through the professional ranks while dealing with a challenging home life.

Eighth-grade star quarterback Nate Brodie's family is feeling the stress of the troubled economy, and Nate is frantic because his best friend Abby is going blind, so when he gets a chance to win a million dollars if he can complete a pass during the halftime of a New England Patriot's game, he is nearly overwhelmed by the pressure to succeed.

Lupe Wong is going to be the first female pitcher in the Major Leagues. She's also championed causes her whole young life. Some worthy ... like expanding the options for race on school tests beyond just a few bubbles. And some not so much...like complaining to the BBC about the length between Doctor Who seasons. Lupe needs an A in all her classes in order to meet her favorite pitcher, Fu Li Hernandez, who's Chinacan/Mexinese just like her. So when the horror that is square dancing rears its head in gym? Obviously she's not gonna let that slide.

Sydney Taylor Award-winning novel Berlin Boxing Club is loosely inspired by the true story of boxer Max Schmeling's experiences following Kristallnacht. Karl Stern has never thought of himself as a Jew. But the bullies at his school in Nazi-era Berlin, don't care that Karl has never been in a synagogue or that his family doesn't practice religion. Demoralized by attacks on a heritage he doesn't accept as his own, Karl longs to prove his worth. So when Max Schmeling, champion boxer and German national hero, makes a deal with Karl's father to give Karl boxing lessons, A skilled cartoonist, Karl has never had an interest in boxing, but now it seems like the perfect chance to reinvent himself. But when Nazi violence against Jews escalates, Karl must take on a new role: protector of his family. And as Max's fame forces him to associate with Hitler and other Nazi elites, Karl begins to wonder where his hero's sympathies truly lie. Can Karl balance his dream of boxing greatness with his obligation to keep his family out of harm's way? Includes an author's note and sources page detailing the factual inspirations behind the novel.

Twelve-year-old figure skater Ana strives to win her competitions while learning about gender identity--Ana's own and that of a new friend--and how to navigate the best path forward.

A young girl tells how her family celebrates the festive holiday, Girgian, which comes in the middle of the holy month of Ramadan. The special clothing, the foods, the crafts, and the greatest joy of all, the joy of giving.

A boy observes the Muslim holy month of Ramadan with his family.

Follows Ibraham's family through the month of praying and fasting until the feast and celebration of Eid al'Fitr that ends Ramadan, explaining the basic beliefs of Islam and the life of the Prophet Muhammad as well as offering an intimate look at a devout Islamic family.

Fasting, praying, and charitable acts mark the Islamic holiday of Ramadan, which ends with the festival of Id-ul-Fitr when the fast is broken. Readers of this book will learn the history and meaning of these holidays as well as the activities that take place during this reflective time of year.

Nine-year-old Shirin wants to join her family and other Muslims in fasting for Ramadan but is told she is too young, and so she seeks other ways to participate including, perhaps, getting along better with her older brother, Ali.

On the first day of Ramadan, the day that Muslims eat and drink nothing all day, Magid's parents say he is too young to fast, but he is impatient and decides to fast in secret, only to find that it is not as easy as he thought.

For Muslims, Ramadan is a time for fasting, prayer, and thinking of others. Rashad tries to be good all month. When it's time for Eid al-Fitr, he feasts and plays! Find out how people celebrate this special time of year.

Now that she is ten, Lailah is delighted that she can fast during the month of Ramadan like her family and her friends in Abu Dhabi, but finding a way to explain to her teacher and classmates in Atlanta is a challenge until she gets some good advice from the librarian, Mrs. Scrabble.

Moses Feldman and Mohammed Hassan both live on Flatbush Avenue, but when they meet at the grocery store they quickly become best friends, sharing a picnic while their families prepare for the holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Ramadan.

Yasmeen has a wonderful time celebrating the Muslim holy month of Ramadan with her family and friends.

Sarah is sad because she cannot find an Eid gift for her mother, so she takes a walk along the secret path in the woods that always makes her feel better. There she finds the first flower of spring—God's perfect gift to the world. Leaving her gift in its place to share with her entire family, Sarah grows in her understanding and appreciation of nature and what it means to live in submission to God.

Malika is delighted when Nana surprises her with a beautiful new pair of red shoes! And with a click-clack-click and a swish, swish, swish , Malika wears her wonderful new shoes everywhere she goes. But one day, the shoes begin to pinch Malika's toes. And alas, they don't let her forget that her feet have grown! Soon Malika and Nana are off to the Rare Finds Resale Shop, where the shoes can be resold — so somebody else can enjoy them! Who will be the next to wear the red shoes? Malika wonders. Then Inna Ziya buys the shoes, and readers follow the shoes all the way across the world to Ghana in Africa, where Amina, another little girl, who has fasted her first time for Ramadan is about to get an amazing gift! Karen English and Ebony Glenn have crafted a satisfying and heartwarming story about a pair of shoes, two girls, and a connection they share across continents.

Introduces the main religious festivals of Islam, telling the story behind each festival, describing how it is celebrated around the world, and providing instructions for related activities.

In a true tale of a young girl in Iran and her grandmother, this beautiful ode to family celebrates small moments of love that become lifelong memories.

Zahra wishes for a sister, never dreaming that volunteering with her mother at a refugee shelter might make her wish come true.

A New Masculinity is a practical guide for men of all ages to embrace their on-going process of developing a balanced, compassionate, and positive masculinity.

Powerful and practical tools to help you support your loved one with serious mental illness, while also making room for your own needs. If you have a loved one—a spouse, adult child, or other family member—who has a mental illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or depression and is experiencing symptoms like psychosis, you need help right now. Delusions and hearing voices can be frightening. Mania can be unpredictable. Isolation and withdrawal can make things worse. Things are made even more challenging when your loved one is resistant to treatment. You may feel helpless watching them struggle. And you may question whether you can handle the myriad everyday practical and emotional challenges ahead. It’s important to know that you are not alone. Authors Katherine Ponte and Izzy Goncalves have been there. They are there. During Katherine’s ongoing eighteen-year recovery from severe bipolar disorder and depression, her husband Izzy has been her primary caregiver. Together through trial, trauma, and triumph, they have amassed an unmatched store of lived experiences, shared perspectives, and lessons learned. They now bravely share, for the first time, everything they have come to understand about the challenges they’ve faced and surmounted together.

Escape the “family trap,” help your loved one on the road to recovery, and take back your life. If you have a family member who suffers from mental illness, but refuses to seek treatment, you may feel like you’re caught in a trap. If you try making life easier for your loved one, you wind up perpetuating dependency and entitlement. If you push for treatment, you are met with resistance or outright animosity. And when you reach out to professionals for help, you are told that nothing can be done unless your family member is ready to change. So, how can you escape the “family trap?” Written by clinicians and introducing the innovative family well-being approach (FWBA), this essential guide provides validation and doable strategies for anyone who feels trapped by a family member or loved one suffering from mental illness. Using the skills in this book, you’ll learn how your responses to your loved one can worsen and even perpetuate the very problems you are trying to resolve. You’ll also discover ways to promote healthy behavior in recovery avoiders, but only after the whole family is emotionally and strategically prepared to follow through successfully.

Easy, accessible guidance for addressing an essential element to college success: mental health. While being in college can be an exciting time, it can also be a period of uncertainty, anxiety, loneliness, and even depression. The College Student’s Guide to Mental Health is for any college student who wants to understand and maintain mental and emotional health. Mia Nosanow, a licensed psychologist and college therapist, has drawn upon her more than twenty years of direct experience counseling a diverse college student body to write a comprehensive mental and emotional health manual designed specifically for college students.

During her junior year at Poplar Grove High School, Aria found herself sliding into a worsening depression. She had what she described as the perfect life, including fabulous vacations, her dream car, and more importantly, a big loving family, close friends, and a boyfriend she adored, but daily life had become unbearable. Though she knew how badly her suicide would hurt everyone around her, her psychological pain ultimately overwhelmed her. Aria ended her life twelve days after she started her journal, excerpted with her parents' permission, above.

An enlightening and practical guidebook for mothers to help them navigate mental health challenges during and after pregnancy—based on cutting-edge science by one of the world’s foremost researchers of maternal mental health.

Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt lays out the facts about the epidemic of teen mental illness that hit many countries at the same time. He then investigates the nature of childhood, including why children need play and independent exploration to mature into competent, thriving adults. He explains why social media damages girls more than boys and why boys have been withdrawing from the real world into the virtual world, with disastrous consequences for themselves, their families, and their societies. Haidt describes steps that parents, teachers, schools, tech companies, and governments can take to end the epidemic of mental illness and restore a more humane childhood.

Trauma, heartbreak, anxiety, and mourning are all parts of the human experience, and Josh Fletcher's mission in life is to normalize the need to find a trusted professional with whom you can discuss all of life's scariest aspects. Through the lens of four of his patients--you'll share in their self-discovery and recovery as they untangle themselves from an all-too-familiar web of emotions. In between sessions, Fletcher struggles to balance his own well-being with that of his patients as details from his sometimes messy but always heartfelt personal life reveal that therapists aren't immune to getting tripped up by the same hurdles as the rest of us.

ADHD makes it hard to maintain a healthy lifestyle, but an unhealthy lifestyle can make ADHD more difficult to live with. Health and fitness coach Lisa Dee experienced this firsthand when symptoms of her undiagnosed ADHD began wreaking havoc on her physical and mental health. Executive dysfunction left her in a constant state of overwhelm. She turned to unhealthy foods to cope with her exhaustion and seek stimulation, leading to unwanted weight gain. After finally receiving an ADHD diagnosis at age thirty-one, Lisa realized she needed to consider the unique ways her ADHD brain and body operated if she wanted to feel her best. In Healthy Happy ADHD, she shares the mindset shifts, systems, and habits that transformed her life and form her foundation for healthy living as a woman with ADHD. Drawing from her lived experience, she shows you how to revamp your routines, build new habits, and bring ease to your busy brain by learning to: Ditch the restrictive rules, shame-based ideas, and neurotypical expectations about what exercise, healthy eating, and rest "should" look like; Eat well with "ADHD Easy Meals," get curious about how food affects your energy and mood, and avoid the decision paralysis that comes with meal planning and grocery shopping; Prepare for the impacts of hormonal fluctuations on your ADHD symptoms and recognize the link between ADHD, PMS, and PMDD; Reconnect with yourself and practice self-compassion through introspective exercises that encourage self-reflection and mindfulness. Featuring creative wellness hacks and empowering practices presented in easy-to-digest chapters with an ADHD-friendly design, Healthy Happy ADHD offers a life-changing blueprint for becoming your most vibrant self, both inside and out.

Over the past decade, the mental health crisis among teens has reached alarming levels. Being there for a friend in need can have a major impact if they are in a time of need. The effectiveness and impact of peers helping one another through mental health issues cannot be understated.

In You Are Not Alone for Parents and Caregivers, child psychiatrist and NAMI's Associate Medical Director Dr. Christine M. Crawford provides a comprehensive, compassionate, and practical resource for anyone concerned about a child's mental health. Drawing on her own clinical experience and guidance from leading experts, Dr. Crawford provides a lens through which to understand the many complex factors affecting children's mental health. Analyzing young people from preschool to high school, she shares insights into how mental health conditions may manifest at different ages, what kind of interventions may be necessary, and what to do to help kids thrive. Throughout, the book channels the collective wisdom of the NAMI community. Parents, caregivers, and young people themselves share personal stories about their paths to recovery, ensuring readers know that they are not alone.

The prevalence of mental health disorders in children is rising in the United States. In fact, recent studies estimate that one in six children ages six to seventeen have a mental health disorder. Your Child's Mental Health Diagnosis: A Comprehensive and Compassionate Guide for Parents is a valuable resource for parents who have a child diagnosed with a mental health disorder or who are concerned about their child’s emotional well-being. Jacqueline Corcoran, an academic and clinical expert with personal experience on the subject, draws back the curtain on how diagnoses are determined in the U.S., the limits of labels, and how labels can help. Then, organized by common mental health disorders, Corcoran provides comprehensive information about each condition’s symptoms, frequently co-occurring disorders, contributory factors, evidence-based treatments, medication options, working with your child’s school, and insight from parents’ own experiences. Your Child's Mental Health Diagnosis also addresses the overwhelming emotions parents may feel when witnessing their child suffer and emphasizes the importance of parents looking after their own mental health and relationships. An empathetic guide backed by up-to-date research, this book provides the support, information, and practical strategies parents need to help their child thrive despite the challenges they may face.

Daisy and Agnes have always had each other. And that's all they've ever needed--or wanted, at least. So when Agnes's mom drops the bombshell that she and Agnes are moving at the end of the summer, the girls are crushed. All seems lost until the pair unearth "The History of Everything," an old friendship scrapbook with the ultimate bucket list to make their last summer together unforgettable. But when Daisy starts dating a charming drummer, her social calendar suddenly has less room for her best friend. Insecurities bubble to the surface, and Daisy and Agnes begin to question if their friendship is meant to last the summer, much less forever. In this tender graphic novel debut, Victoria Evans delves into the heart of a best friendship and explores what it means to grow up without growing apart.

In the not-too-distant future, most of humanity resides on its last-ditch effort at utopia: Meridian, a remote alien planet where you're more likely to be born superhuman than left-handed. None of that is important to Oberon Afolayan. Since his mildly public breakdown, his whole life seems to be spiraling out of control--from dropping out of university to breaking up with his boyfriend, it seems like only a karmic inevitability when he wakes up one day with the ability to conjure his dreams in the real world. Oberon's newfound powers come with a facsimile of his high school crush, Kon, who mysteriously dropped off the face of the planet almost three years ago and who is a little more infuriating (if not also infuriatingly hot) than Oberon remembers. Kon makes it his mission to turn Oberon's life around, and while they struggle to get a handle on his powers and his disastrous personal life (not to mention the appearance of strange nightmare creatures), it turns out this dream version of Kon has secrets of his own--dangerous ones. Oberon might have more on his plate than he originally thought, but is giving up his dreams--even the one he might have accidentally fallen in love with--the only way to find happiness in reality?

Graphic novel about an underground punk band caught in a loop of an eternally repeating tour--from National Book Award-winning cartoonist Nate Powell. At first glance, Diamond Mine seems to have emerged in 1979 as Arkansas's first punk band. Instead, this quartet is revealed to be interdimensional travelers from 1994, guided--largely against their will--by vocalist Diana's powerful spell embedded into their song "Fall Through." As Diamond Mine tours the country, each performance of the song triggers a fracturing of space-time perceptible only by the band members as they're transported to alternate worlds in which they've never existed, but their band's legend has. That is, until Jody, the band's bassist and the story's protagonist, finds herself disrupting Diana's sorcery, even at the cost of her own beloved work and legacy. While some band members perpetually seek the free space offered by the underground punk scene to escape from their mundane or traumatic lives, others work toward it as a means of expression, connection, and growth--even if that means eventually outgrowing Sisyphean patterns and inevitably outgrowing their beloved band-family altogether. Master cartoonist Nate Powell has crafted a graphic novel that serves as both a brilliant example of circular storytelling, reminiscent of Netflix's Russian Doll, and a love letter to the spirit of punk communities. Fall Through will stay with the reader long after they've turned the last page, asking the impossible question: Would you burn down everything you love in order to save it all?

Tessa Hulls delves into her own family history and the intergenerational trauma caused by mental illness and political strife.

On the outside, Dina Demille is the epitome of normal. She runs a quaint Victorian bed and breakfast in a small Texas town, owns a Shih Tzu named Beast, and is a perfect neighbor. Her biggest problem should be what to serve her guests for breakfast. But Dina is ... different: Her broom is a deadly weapon, and her inn is magic. Meant to be a lodging for otherworldly visitors, the only permanent guest is a retired Galactic aristocrat who can’t leave the grounds because she’s responsible for the deaths of millions and someone might shoot her on sight. Under the circumstances, "normal" is a bit of a stretch for Dina. And now, something with wicked claws and deepwater teeth has begun to hunt at night. ... Feeling responsible for her neighbors, Dina decides to get involved. Before long, she has to juggle dealing with the annoyingly attractive ex-military new neighbor, Sean Evans—an alpha-strain werewolf—and the equally arresting cosmic vampire soldier, Arland, while trying to keep her inn and its guests safe. But the enemy she’s facing is unlike anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s smart, vicious, and lethal, and putting herself between this creature and her neighbors might just cost her everything.

Two not-so-human teenagers and a friendly ghost radish face the fantasy adventure of a lifetime.

An epic journey across the South Side of Chicago for Darius, his little sister Cissy, and his best friend Booger as they set out to find an armored truck that has lost a payload of cash.

Originally designed as an educational supplement for the renowned Stanford courses Computer Science 106A and 106B, Bit by Bit is a comic-style resource that uses fractal grids, custom-drawn characters, and fun graphics as a visually immersive introduction to the key concepts of beginner coding, learning pedagogy, education, and visual thinking. Bit by Bit takes readers on a journey that encompasses the full scope of both courses; beginning with the chief elements and fundamentals of programming such as functions, variables, and integers; carrying readers through the basics of Python and C++ into the conceptual world of efficiency and recursion; and walking them through collections of linked data structures. Throughout each section, course and Stanford alum Ecy Femi King is there to guide, cajole, and assist, simultaneously providing useful tips to encourage maximum knowledge absorption and engaging commentary for readers at every level. In short, this book is more than just a cohesive "study buddy" for introductory Stanford courses. Rather, it delivers a far-reaching guide of both pedagogical interest and practical use to students, educators, and researchers worldwide.

The inferno' is the first part of Dante's 'Divine comedy,' a great classic of Italian literature. While the narrative is complex, the central idea is simple. Guided by the poet Virgil, Dante traverses the nine circles of Hell to reunite with his beloved Beatrice in Paradise. Paul and Gaëtan Brizzi have done a remarkable job of rewriting to make this renowned and challenging work accessible without compromising or betraying the spirit of the Italian genius. They have translated it into a graphic novel while being sure to preserve the essentials: a taste for excess, the dramatic tension of the narrative, and the inevitable darkness of the subject matter.

Memorably introduced by Ishiguro himself, The Summer We Crossed Europe in the Rain collects the lyrics of sixteen songs he wrote for world-renowned American singer Stacey Kent, which were set to music by her partner, Jim Tomlinson. An exquisite coming together of the literary and musical worlds, the lyrics are infused with a sense of yearning, melancholy, love, and the romance of travel and liminal spaces. Further exploring the notion of collaboration and interpretation, the collection is illustrated by the acclaimed Italian artist Bianca Bagnarelli, whose work perfectly captures the atmosphere and sensibility of the songs.

Big names in Italian comics gathered in a unique and powerful anthology to say enough to gender-based violence. Ellie, Sabrina, Rose, Laura, Liz, Camilla. Their stories touch us deeply because they happened and they happen to us too, to our sisters, friends, neighbors. Sometimes we don't even realize it, we minimize it, we don't have the tools to understand, react, talk about it out loud. And that's exactly why this book was born: to break the silence and fill it in our stories and our words, to ensure that situations like this never happen again. Gender-based violence takes many forms, from subtle manipulation to outright physical abuse, and it knows no boundaries. Loud: Stories to Make Your Voice Heard is a powerful anthology curated by a feminist collective of Italian comics creators working in solidarity to unite, support, and empower others in the fight against toxic masculinity, both in the comics industry and beyond.

Following the events of Knight Terrors, a new Superman supervillain arises! Following the events of Knight Terrors and the events of Superman Vol. 1: Supercorp, Superman has learned that Lex Luthor kept a prisoner beneath Stryker's Island for decades. Who are they and why did Lex lock them up? Can Superman unlock the secrets of the Chained?

Blanca is running away. Away from her mother--the overbearing and strict Reina--and her mother's narrow idea of what shape Blanca's life should take. While Reina finds Blanca's dream of pursuing fashion design a wasteful flight of fancy, Blanca sees possibility . . . and she knows if she doesn't leave now, she might never. Of course, following your passion isn't easy, and when Blanca arrives in New York City without a job or a roof over her head, she's rescued by a kindly baker named Emile, who takes her in. With Emile comes his eclectic group of roommates, all living in the same brownstone, who welcome Blanca into their weird, wonderful world. Together, Blanca and her new chosen family discover that love and encouragement are key ingredients in the recipe for making your dreams come true.

Captain Jacoby is too broke to reject a shady deal from a group of Russians looking to get from Alaska back to Kamchatka on his freighter ship, The Persophone, but things get turned upside down when a crew member gets butchered. The captain and his crew suspect something far stranger at play.

Novelistic worlds in miniature. Hilarious hijinks. The occasional twist ending... The stories in Six Treasures of the Spiral: Comics Formed Under Pressure are inventive and wide-ranging, sometimes funny, occasionally sad, and always offbeat. The New York Times called Matt Madden a "stuntman-philosopher" because he creates comics in the crucible of formal constraints -- one comic is a visual palindrome, another maps on to the letters of the alphabet, several follow the rules of demanding poetic forms like the villanelle and the haiku. It may seem that strict limitation would stymie creativity; on the contrary, the massive pressure it exerts on the author's process bonds atoms of text and image together into comic diamonds that Booklist has called "formally rigorous and narratively lucid.

In 1947, Kenneth Arnold flew his Call-Air A-2 over the skies of the Pacific Northwest when all of a sudden he saw a blinding flash of silver light. What followed was a bizarre and difficult to explain encounter with several flying objects that would change the course of his life forever.

After retiring to Metropolis following his "death," Oswald Cobblepot finds himself forced back into the unpredictable and violent Gotham City underworld as a pawn for the United States intelligence community! Gotham's criminal element has been evolving since he was last in the city, with his bastard twin children ruling the Iceberg Lounge. And what of the man he framed for his death-Batman? Is the Penguin walking into a death sentence? From award-winning and bestselling writer Tom King (Batman, The Human Target) and artist Stefano Gaudiano (Gotham Central, The Walking Dead) comes a bloody, hard-boiled tale of redemption and revenge!

From Eisner Award winning writer Mark Russell and artist Roberto Meli comes a compelling new sci-fi series... Traveling to Mars tells the story of former pet store manager Roy Livingston, the first human to ever set foot on Mars. Roy was chosen for this unlikely mission for one simple reason: he is terminally ill and therefore has no expectation of returning. Roy is joined on his mission to Mars by Leopold and Albert, two Mars rovers equipped with artificial intelligence, who look upon the dying pet store manager as a sort of god. Against the backdrop of not only his waning days but those of human civilization as well, Roy has ample time to think about where things went wrong for both of them and what it means to be a dying god. A riveting story of planetary exploration and of finding meaning in your final days. Collects the critically acclaimed 11-issue series plus cover gallery and bonus material.

A lottery ticket + donuts = love in this steamy new fake dating romance from beloved author Denise Williams. Sybil Sweet has always been lucky, but lately she can't catch a break. After years of bouncing from job to job in search of something that feels right and from man to man in search of something special, Sybil is worried that she's the directionless, floundering daughter her family thinks she is. All she really wants now is a little financial stability and carb comfort. Lucky for her, she's got just enough in the bank to buy a lottery ticket, and the late-night donut store is open. Kiran Anderson put his dreams of becoming a doctor on hold to take over running his family's bakery, and after fighting a losing battle to save the place, he's exhausted, broke, and no closer to getting back to school. But when a whirlwind of a woman sweeps in late one night, flirty energy gives way to more...until she runs out the next morning, leaving behind her winning lottery ticket. Lucky for Kiran, his attempt to return the ticket looks like a grand romantic gesture and goes viral, sending sales through the roof. In an effort to keep the store afloat and to convince Sybil's family she can make good relationship choices, they agree to fake a relationship for three months. Even with hundreds of millions of dollars, finding each other might end up being the sweetest bit of luck for both of them.

One woman, the performance of a lifetime. Or two. A mesmerizing Mobius strip of a novel that asks who we are to the people we love. Two people meet for lunch in a Manhattan restaurant. She's an elegant and accomplished actress in rehearsals for an upcoming premiere. He's attractive, troubling, and young-young enough to be her son. Who is he to her - and who is she to him? In this compulsively readable, brilliantly constructed novel, two competing narratives unspool, rewriting our understanding of the roles we play every day - partner, parent, creator, muse - and the truths every performance masks, especially from those who think they know us best. Taut, hypnotic, Audition is Katie Kitamura at her virtuosic best.

The Navajo Nation police are on high alert when a U.S. Cabinet Secretary schedules an unprecedented trip to the little Navajo town of Shiprock, New Mexico. The visit coincides with a plan to resume uranium mining along the Navajo Nation border. Tensions around the official's arrival escalate when the body of a stranger is found in an area restricted for the disposal of radioactive uranium waste. Is it coincidence that a cult with a propensity for violence arrives at a private camp group outside Shiprock the same week to celebrate the summer solstice? When the outsiders' erratic behavior makes their Navajo hosts uneasy, Officer Bernadette Manuelito is assigned to monitor the situation. She finds a young boy at grave risk, abused women, and other shocking discoveries that plunge her and Lt. Jim Chee into a volatile and deadly situation. Meanwhile, Darleen Manuelito, Bernie's high spirited younger sister, learns one of her home health clients is gone--and the woman's daughter doesn't seem to care. Darleen's curiosity and sense of duty combine to lead her to discover that the client's grandson is also missing and that the two have become ensnared in a wickedly complex scheme exploiting indigenous people. Darleen's information meshes with a case Chee has begun to solve that deals with the evil underside of human nature.

Sometimes called Wind Walkers for their ability to command the wind, unlike their human rulers, the Feng people have bark faces, carved limbs, arms of braided branches, and hair of needle threads. Bound by duty and tradition, Liu Lufeng, the eldest princess of the Feng royalty, is the next bride to the human king. The negotiation of bridewealth is the only way to stop the expansion of the humans so that the Feng can keep their lands, people, and culture intact. As the eldest, Lufeng should be the next in line to lead the people of Feng, and in the past, that made her sisters disposable. Thankful that her youngest sister, Chuiliu, is too young for a sacrificial marriage, she steps in with plans to kill the king to finally stop the marriages. But when she starts to uncover the truth about her peoples' origins and realizes Chuiliu will never be safe from the humans, she must learn to let go of duty and tradition, choose her allies carefully, and risk the unknown in order to free her family and shape her own fate.

It's 1900 and Skerry, a small Scottish fishing village, is destined for an unyielding winter. During a storm, a young boy washes up on the shore. He bears an uncanny resemblance to teacher Dorothy's son, lost to the sea at the same age many years before, his body never found. The village is soon snowed in, and Dorothy agrees to look after the child until they can uncover the mystery of his origins. But over time, the lines between reality and desperate hope start to blur as the boy reminds Dorothy more and more of her own lost child. The boy's arrival also finally forces Dorothy to face the truth about her brief but passionate love affair with Joseph, the fisherman who found the boy on the shore and who has been the subject of whispers connecting him to the drowning of Dorothy's son years earlier. As the past rises to meet the present, long-buried secrets are unearthed within this tight-knit community, and the child's arrival becomes a catalyst for something far greater than any of them could imagine.

Last night, you and I were safe. Last night, in another universe, your father and I stood fighting in the kitchen. Annie is nine months pregnant and shopping for a crib at IKEA when a massive earthquake hits Portland, Oregon. With no way to reach her husband, no phone or money, and a city left in chaos, there’s nothing to do but walk. Making her way across the wreckage of Portland, Annie experiences human desperation and kindness: strangers offering help, a riot at a grocery store, and an unlikely friendship with a young mother. As she walks, Annie reflects on her struggling marriage, her disappointing career, and her anxiety about having a baby. If she can just make it home, she’s determined to change her life.

Liz Dawson weaves through a crowd with the ease of a tropical breeze, moving seamlessly through elite circles, sparking instant connections and making every new acquaintance feel like an intimate friend. She's clever, smooth, and confident--qualities that make her a brilliant serial con artist. Isabelle Beresford is strikingly beautiful, obscenely wealthy, and the new owner of Casa Esmerelda, a fabulous villa on the Mexican coast--attributes that make her the perfect mark. When she offers Liz a job handling the installation of a piece of art in her otherwise vacant home, Liz can't resist the allure of a beach retreat. She longs for a reset, a chance to finally shed the grip of her addiction to the conning game. But when Liz, with her lush dark hair and intense green eyes, is mistaken for Isabelle herself, Liz can't help effortlessly slipping into the socialite's identity. The transition is so easeful, it almost feels like fate. But just who is Isabelle Beresford really, and why does she seem to have abandoned this stunning life of hers? As Liz insinuates herself deeper into the dazzling--and deceptive--world of the Punta Mita resort community, she draws closer to the dangers surrounding the real Isabelle. Dangers that may have already ensnared Liz, too. This might not be the con of her life--but the con that ends it.

Widow Mimi lives on idyllic Mackinac Island where cars are not allowed and a Gibson with three onions at the witching hour is compulsory. Her granddaughter, Addie, is getting over the heartbreak of her fiancé, Brian, dumping her and cutting her out of the deal for the brilliantly successful video game, Murderscape, they invented together (with Addie doing most of the heavy lifting). When Mimi gets an invitation from local socialite Jane Ireland--a seventysomething narcissist who is having an affair with her son-in-law--to a charity auction, it is the perfect excuse to get Addie to join her for the weekend. What Mimi isn’t telling Addie is that a blackmail threat from Jane looms over the party’s invitation. In case the scene wasn’t already set for a turbulent weekend, a big storm rolls in, trapping everyone in the mansion. And then, Jane’s body is found. Soon Mimi and Addie are caught in a dangerous game, relying on their skills (Mimi loves a crossword puzzle, and Addie is a brilliant game designer, after all) to narrow down the suspects. When another body turns up, the sleuthing pair realize someone else is playing a deadly game, and they might not survive the night.

Kasey Nottingham returns to her grandmother's small-town dessert business to secure a corporate deal, but as mysterious deaths of abusive men coincide with their pie deliveries, she teams up with her crush, Jackson, to uncover secrets while navigating love, danger and family loyalty.

A chilling historical horror novel set in the American west in 1912 following a Lutheran priest who transcribes the life of a vampire who haunts the fields of the Blackfeet reservation looking for justice. A diary, written in 1912 by a Lutheran pastor is discovered within a wall. What it unveils is a slow massacre, a chain of events that go back to 217 Blackfeet dead in the snow. Told in transcribed interviews by a Blackfeet named Good Stab, who shares the narrative of his peculiar life over a series of confessional visits. This is an American Indian revenge story written by one of the new masters of horror, Stephen Graham Jones.

On their Martha's Vineyard estate, the Carter family prepares to celebrate. But when the billionaire patriarch dies right before his seventieth birthday, the media is quick to question the future of the multi-industry conglomerate that makes the Carters living legends. Amid the succession crisis, his daughter, Kennedy, is questioning her father's past. Kennedy is an aspiring filmmaker, and the documentary she'd planned to present at her father's party begins an inquest into the life of a man she never really knew. A thoughtful outlier in an elite and fiercely guarded dynasty, she's not interested in keeping up the appearances that define her impeccably poised mother or in the capitalist games her ruthless brother plays. Kennedy wants only to understand the origins of their empire, and the lethally ambitious man behind it. That understanding comes at a cost. As a twisted history emerges, the fault lines in the family grow. Torn between morality and the promise of maintaining wealth, Kennedy must decide what's most important--the Carter legacy or exposing the shocking truth of how it was built.

During World War II, a girl makes an unbreakable connection with a boy sheltering in her family's Tuscan villa, where the treasures of the Uffizi Galleries are hidden. A moving coming-of-age story about the power of art in wartime, based on true events.

In 1480 John Collan's greatest anxiety is how to circumvent the village's devil goat on his way to collect water. But the arrival of a well-dressed stranger from London upends his life forever: John is not John Collan, not the son of Will Collan but the son of the long-deceased Duke of Clarence, and has been hidden in the countryside after a brotherly rift over the crown--and because Richard III has a habit of disappearing his nephews. Removed from his humble origins,sent to Oxford to be educated in a manner befitting the throne's rightful heir, John is put into play by his masters, learning the rules of etiquette in Burgundy and the machinations of the court in Ireland, where he encounters the intractable Joan, the delightfully strong-willed and manipulative daughter of his Irish patrons, a girl imbued with both extraordinary political savvy and occasional murderoustendencies. Joan has two paths available her--marry or become a nun. Lambert's choices are similarly stark: he will either become kingor die in battle. Together they form an alliance that will change the fate of the English monarchy.

While Beth is proud of her Malibu beach shop, Surf Sandwiches, she's even prouder of her charismatic brother Rick, who rose from foster care through surgical residency. She makes subs, he saves lives. Life takes a turn for the happy after she finds out Rick is dating her new best friend, Jana. Then Jana's handsome brother adds even more sparkle to Beth's days...and nights. But when she catches Rick with another woman--like, with-with--her visions of an idyllic family future disappear in one awful instant. Either she betrays her brother, or she keeps his secret and risks losing the man she loves and her best friend.

Hannah is a fusion scientist working alone at a remote cottage off the coast of Scotland when she sees a figure making his way from the sea. It is a visitor from the future, a young man from a human settlement on Mars, traveling backwards through time to try to make a crucial intervention in the fate of our dying planet, and he needs Hannah's help. Laboring in the warmth of a Scottish summer, Hannah and the stranger are on the path towards a breakthrough-and then things go terribly wrong. Joe Mungo Reed's intricately crafted novel expands from this extraordinary event, drawing together the stories of four lives reckoning with what it means to take fate into their own hands, moving from the last days of civilization on Earth through the birth of another on Mars. Roban lives in the Colony, one of the first generation born to this sterile new outpost, where he is consumed by longing for the lost wonders of a home planet he never knew. Between Hannah and Roban, two generations, a father and a daughter, face an uncertain future in a world that is falling apart. Andrew is a politician running to be Scotland's First Minister. Andrew believes there is still time for the human spirit to triumph, if only he can persuade people to band together. For his starkly rationalist daughter Kenzie, this idealism doesn't offer the hard tools needed to keep the rising floods at bay. And so, she signs on to work for a company that would abandon Earth for the promise of a world beyond-in contravention of all Andrew stands for.In considering which concerns should guide us in a time of crisis-social, technological, or familial-and reckoning with the question of whether there is meaning to be found in the pursuit of salvation beyond success itself, Joe Mungo Reed has written a novel of elegiac wonder and beauty.

Nicole Monroe, still haunted by her sister Kasey's unexplained disappearance seven years ago, teams up with Jenna Connor, whose sister vanished under similar circumstances, as they unravel buried secrets and risk everything to uncover the truth about their missing loved ones.

A middle-aged couple struggles with the husband's descent into early-onset Lewy Body dementia in this profound and deeply moving novel shot through with Kirshenbaum's lacerating humor. It begins with hallucinations. From their living room window, Leo sees a man on stilts, an acting troupe, a pair of swans paddling on the street. Initially, Leo believes the visions are related to visual impairment-they are something he and his wife, Addie, can joke about. Then, he starts to experience occasional, but fleeting, oddities that mimic myriad brain disorders: aphasia, the inability to perform simple tasks, Capgras Syndrome, audial hallucinations he believes to be real. The doctors have no answers. Leo, a scientist, and Addie, a collage artist, had a loving and happy marriage. But as his periods of lucidity become rarer, Addie finds herself less and less able to cope. Eventually, Leo is diagnosed with Lewy Body disease. Life expectancy ranges from 3 to 20 years. A decidedly uncharacteristic act of violence makes it clear that he cannot come home. He moves first to an assisted living facility and then to a small apartment with a caretaker where, over time, he descends into full cognitive decline. Addie's agony, anger, and guilt result in self-imposed isolation, which mirrors Leo's diminished life. And so for years, all she can do is watch him die-too soon, and yet not soon enough. Kirshenbaum captures the couple's final years, months, and days in short scenes that burn with despair, humor, and rage, tracking the brutal destruction of the disease, as well the moments of love and beauty that still exist for them amid the larger tides of loss.

Everyone loves Alison, the new remote employee at a major energy company. She's a rising star in the virtual workspace, displaying incredible intelligence and efficiency with digital technology. But Linda, her manager, has growing suspicions that Alison is not the person she claims to be. As Linda probes Alison's background, Alison fights back through cyber-attacks, ravaging Linda's work, her family and her safety. Linda must uncover the truth to save herself and discovers Alison's past history is a lie - in fact, she has none. Is it possible Alison isn't human at all?

A taut, lyrical, and life-affirming debut, All That Life Can Afford is a tale of aspirations, high society, and the bittersweet journey of turning over a new leaf while staying true to one's roots. I would arrive, blank like a sheet of notebook paper, and write myself new. As a child, Eva devoured London through library books-savoring its soft, dreamlike edges of castles and dances, a far cry from her life of co-pays and Craigslist and caring for her diabetic mother. She wanted to climb through the pages and live there. But when she arrives after college to a mildewed flat full of mousetraps, the real London, that free, intoxicating life of plenty, feels just as inaccessible as it did from America. Then she meets the Wilders-her stubborn, brilliant tutee Pippa, who whisks her off to Saint Tropez for winter lessons, and sphinxlike Faye, who dolls Eva up in her clothing and makeup, toting her around like a shiny new bauble. From Lisbon to Highgate, Eva is thrown into a heady whirlpool of luxury and excess, uncovering a hidden side of Europe, one where confidence is a birthright and blue blood runs through bulletproof veins. This life feels like a play upon a high, distant stage, but when Eva starts to take the role a little too seriously, she risks forgetting who she is underneath her borrowed clothes.

Fourteen-year-old Charlie Matters is up to no good, but for a very good reason. Without parents, peerage, or merit, he steals what he needs, living day-to-day until he’s old enough to enlist to fight the Germans. After barely surviving the Blitz, Charlie knows there’s no telling when a falling bomb might end his life. Fifteen-year-old Molly Wakefield has just returned to a nearly unrecognizable London. One of millions of children to have been evacuated to the countryside Molly has been away from her home for nearly five years. Her return, however, is not the homecoming she’d hoped for as she’s confronted by a devastating reality: neither of her parents are there. Without guardians and stability, Charlie and Molly find an unexpected ally and protector in Ignatius Oliver, and solace at his bookshop, The Book Keep. Mourning the recent loss of his wife, Ignatius forms a kinship with both children, and in each other they rediscover the spirit of family each has lost. But Charlie’s escapades in the city have not gone unnoticed, and someone’s been following Molly since she returned to London. And Ignatius is harboring his own secrets, which could have terrible consequences for all of them. As bombs continue to bear down on the city, Charlie, Molly, and Ignatius learn that while the perils of war rage on, their coming together and trusting one another may be the only way for them to survive. 

When renowned painter Mira Novak arrives at Wadia hospital in Bombay after a miscarriage, she's expected to make a quick recovery, and her nurse, Sona, is excited to learn more about the vivacious artist who shares her half-Indian identity. Sona, yearning for a larger life, finds herself carried away by Mira's stories of her travels and exploits and is shocked by accounts of the many lovers the painter has left scattered throughout Europe. When Mira dies quite suddenly and mysteriously, Sona falls under suspicion, and her quiet life is upended. The key to proving Sona's innocence may lie in a cryptic note and four paintings Mira left in her care, sending the young woman on a mission to visit the painter's former friends and lovers across a tumultuous Europe teetering toward war. On the precipice of discovering her own identity, Sona learns that the painter's charming facade hid a far more complicated, troubled soul. In her first stand-alone novel since her bestselling debut, The Henna Artist, Alka Joshi uses the life of painter Amrita Sher-Gil, the "Frida Kahlo of India," as inspiration for the story's beginning to explore how far we'll travel to determine where we truly belong.

Sami Kierce, a young college grad backpacking in Spain with friends, wakes up one morning, covered in blood. There's a knife in his hand. Beside him, the body of his girlfriend. Anna. Dead. He doesn'tknow what happened. His screams drown out his thoughts--and then heruns. Twenty-two years later, Kierce, now a private investigator, is a new father who's working off his debts by doing low-level surveillance jobs and teaching wannabe sleuths at a night school in New York City. One evening, he recognizes a familiar face at the back of the classroom. Anna. It's unmistakably her. As soon as Kierce makeseye contact with her, she bolts. For Kierce there is no choice. He knows he must find this woman and solve the impossible mystery that has haunted his every waking moment since that terrible day.