"A collection of long-form essays on joy, in which the author turns his curious and poetic mind to everything from skateboarding and cover songs, basketball and race, dancing and academia, death and laughter, and, always, the garden and the natural world"--

"Over the past few years, Brianna Wiest has gained renown for her deeply moving, philosophical writing. This new compilation of her published work features pieces on why you should pursue purpose over passion, embrace negative thinking, see the wisdom in daily routine, and become aware of the cognitive biases that are creating the way you see your life. Some of these pieces have never been seen; others have been read by millions of people around the...

"This collection represents part of the enduring legacy of Barry Lopez, ... when he died in December 2020. [A] ... steward of the land, fearless traveler, and unrivaled observer of nature and culture in all its forms, Lopez lost much of the Oregon property where he had lived for over fifty years when it was consumed by wildfire, likely caused by climate change. Fortunately, some of his papers survived, including four never-before published pieces...

Student essays, scholarship committee members' notes, and other writings reveal interactions between a group of modern-day students at an exclusive New South Wales high school and their strange connection to a young Irishman transported to Australia in the early 1800s.

While researching the existence of dragons for an essay that could win him a trip to the Arctic, David opens himself to the possibility that a great, ancient treasure exists there, guarded by bears, and that he has some role in its protection.

When thirteen-year-old Sherry Baldwin's essay wins a magazine contest, she, her father, and best friend Junie go to Hollywood, where she helps her ghost-detective mother and another ghost investigate a series of burglaries.

"Most books on the Roman Empire deal with famous figures or events, but Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants focuses on things that seldom appear in history books: myths and magic, barbers and birth control, fine wine and the daily grind. This book, based on questions Roman historian Garrett Ryan, PhD, gets asked most often on Quora and the popular Reddit forum AskHistorians, reveals the nitty gritty details on how Romans and Greeks lived...

"From acclaimed author Ursula K. Le Guin, and with an introduction by Karen Joy Fowler, a collection of thoughts--always adroit, often acerbic--on aging, belief, the state of literature, and the state of the nation. Ursula K. Le Guin has taken readers to imaginary worlds for decades. Now she's in the last great frontier of life, old age, and exploring new literary territory: the blog, a forum where her voice -- sharp, witty, as compassionate as it...

"In her ... memoir-in-essays, Mary Pipher ... taps into a cultural moment to offer wisdom, hope, and insight into loss and change. Drawing from her own experiences and expertise as a psychologist specializing in women, trauma, and the effect of our culture on our mental health, she looks inward [here] to what shaped her as a woman, one who has experienced darkness throughout her life but was always drawn to the light. Her plainspoken depictions of...

"This first practice test is designed familiarize you with the essay question found in the Missouri General Education Assessment (MoGEA) Writing (067) subtest. Like the official subtest, you will be asked to respond to an educational issue presented in two passages that offer opposing viewpoints on that issue. You can then grade yourself using a detailed scoring guide." --