A “magnificent and intimate” (Harper’s) modern classic of Russian history, the spellbinding story of the love that ended an empire—from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Peter the Great, The Romanovs, and Catherine the Great “A moving, rich book . . . [This] revealing, densely documented account of the last Romanovs focuses not on the great events . . . but on the royal family and their evil nemesis. . . . The tale is so bizarre, no melodrama is equal to it.”—Newsweek In this commanding book, New York Times bestselling author Robert K. Massie sweeps readers back to the extraordinary world of the Russian empire to tell the story of the Romanovs’ lives: Nicholas’s political naïveté, Alexandra’s obsession with the corrupt mystic Rasputin, and little Alexis’s brave struggle with hemophilia. Against a lavish backdrop of luxury and intrigue, Massie unfolds a powerful drama of passion and history—the story of a doomed empire and the death-marked royals who watched it crumble.

In the darkest days of the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union, when all talk of the Romanovs was punishable at the very least by banishment to Serbia, a group of archivists were exempt. They sorted and filed the thousands of letters and photographs of the last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas II, his wife, Alexandra (a granddaughter of Queen Victoria), and their five children. In all, some 13,000 letters have survived. Those between 1889 and 1914 have never before been published. They run the gamut from matters of state to intimate expressions of love and longing. In addition there are the letters of their four daughters and their only son, the haemophiliac Alexis, whose health was to introduce the crucial and some say malign influence of Rasputin. The editors also draw on Nicholas's diaries, letters to his mother, and the diaries and memoirs of their close contemporaries. It includes first hand accounts of the murder of Rasputin in 1916 and the assassination of the Romanovs at Ekaterinburg in 1918.

How lessons from kindergarten can help everyone develop the creative thinking skills needed to thrive in today's society. In kindergartens these days, children spend more time with math worksheets and phonics flashcards than building blocks and finger paint. Kindergarten is becoming more like the rest of school. In Lifelong Kindergarten, learning expert Mitchel Resnick argues for exactly the opposite: the rest of school (even the rest of life) should be more like kindergarten. To thrive in today's fast-changing world, people of all ages must learn to think and act creatively—and the best way to do that is by focusing more on imagining, creating, playing, sharing, and reflecting, just as children do in traditional kindergartens. Drawing on experiences from more than thirty years at MIT's Media Lab, Resnick discusses new technologies and strategies for engaging young people in creative learning experiences. He tells stories of how children are programming their own games, stories, and inventions (for example, a diary security system, created by a twelve-year-old girl), and collaborating through remixing, crowdsourcing, and large-scale group projects (such as a Halloween-themed game called Night at Dreary Castle, produced by more than twenty kids scattered around the world). By providing young people with opportunities to work on projects, based on their passions, in collaboration with peers, in a playful spirit, we can help them prepare for a world where creative thinking is more important than ever before.

A good marriage isn’t something found; it’s something made. In this revised and updated edition of the bestselling book A Lifelong Love, author Gary Thomas shares that when couples pursue spiritual purpose and worship it builds lasting intimacy and friendship between them. In A Lifelong Love, Thomas takes couples on three essential journeys leading to a strong marriage: The journey toward each other The journey toward God The journey toward love Whether readers are feeling discouraged about their marriage or simply want to infuse their relationship with greater spiritual and relational passion, A Lifelong Love offers the guidance they need to embrace the eternal intentions that God has for them.

Among Stephen Jay Gould's many gifts was his ability to write eloquently about baseball, his great passion. Through the years, the renowned palaeontologist published numerous essays on the sport which have now for the first time been collected in a volume alive with all the candour and insight that characterized Gould's writing. Here are his thoughts on the complexities of childhood streetball and the joys of opening day; tributes to Mickey Mantle, Babe Ruth, and lesser-knowns such as deaf-mute centerfielder 'Dummy' Hoy; and a frank admission of the contradictions inherent in being a lifelong Yankees fan with Red Sox season tickets. So, too, does Gould deftly apply the tools of evolutionary theory to the demise of the 0.400 hitter, the Abner Doubleday creation myth, and the improbability of Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak. This book is a delight - an essential addition to Gould's remarkable legacy, and a fitting tribute to his love for the game.

When Bethine Church moved to Washington, D.C., in 1957 with her son and her husband, Frank -- Idaho's newly elected Democratic senator and, at 32, the youngest member of the senate -- she was warned by the wife of a veteran politician that she would end up hating the capital. All the light will shine on her husband, and she will wither away in his shadow. But Bethine had been Frank's political partner since their earliest days together and she saw no reason why that would change. And in fact it didn't. In her own winsome words, A Lifelong Affair is the fascinating story of the woman people called "The Third Senator from Idaho." Critical chapters of our history, from civil rights battles and the Vietnam War to Senator Church's chairmanship of the Senate Intelligence Committee, come vividly to life here, as does the idealism and love of people that animate Bethine Church's entire career in politics. Bethine grew up in an Idaho family steeped in politics. Her father and an uncle both served as governor of Idaho; her cousin was a U.S. senator. Bethine's first active role in politics was in a campaign in the early 1930s, when she asked a shoe clerk to "boat for my daddy." In high school she was the one girl in a gang of students who gathered every week at Bethine's house to sit around and talk politics with her father. Those were the days of innocence in the West, when politics was seen as a civic duty, when winning an election depended on which candidate worked the hardest, shook the most hands, and could energize a crowd at a county fair or a church bazaar. Politics had not yet been distorted by huge advertizing budgets, corporate donations, media blitzes, and public cynicism. Besides being a tale of a political woman, A Lifelong Affair is a poignant love story. Close friends in high school, Bethine and Frank married after he returned from World War II service in China. Together they battled Frank's first encounter with cancer when he was a 24-year-old Stanford law student. That searing experience set the tone for their life together fighting as a team for causes they believed in strongly. When cancer reappeared in a more virulent form in the early 1980s, they couldn't beat it, and Frank died at the still young age of 59. Bethine, now in her eightieth year, remains active in Democratic politics at all levels and in Idaho wilderness preservation. Book jacket.

"Scientific analysis intersects with flat-out fandom. [Gould] could write, he was funny, and he loved, loved baseball."—Booklist Science meets sport in this vibrant collection of baseball essays by the late evolutionary biologist.Among Stephen Jay Gould's many gifts was his ability to write eloquently about baseball, his great passion. Through the years, the renowned paleontologist published numerous essays on the sport; these have now been collected in a volume alive with the candor and insight that characterized all of Gould's writing. Here are his thoughts on the complexities of childhood streetball and the joys of opening day; tributes to Mickey Mantle, Babe Ruth, and lesser-knowns such as deaf-mute centerfielder "Dummy" Hoy; and a frank admission of the contradictions inherent in being a lifelong Yankees fan with Red Sox season tickets. Gould also deftly applies the tools of evolutionary theory to the demise of the .400 hitter, the Abner Doubleday creation myth, and the improbability of Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak. This book is a delight, an essential addition to Gould's remarkable legacy, and a fitting tribute to his love for the game.

With his great knowledge of the Dutch Indies--although he never went there himself--P. J. Veth played an influential role in the shaping of Dutch identity, of which the vast Asian colony was an inseperable part. His numerous publications on a wide range of subjects attest to his knowledge and industriousness. Paul van der Velde describes Veth's turbulent life and his passionate desire to have the Dutch Indies accepted by the Neterlands as a full partner. Veth was the scourge of conservatives in the Netherlands, and, as one of the most eminent and internationally reputed Dutch scholars, played a remarkable role in the literary and political circles of his time. A Lifelong Passion gives a vivid insight into the life of this exceptional nineteenth-century man.

The Mediterranean Love Plan unveils the “7 Secrets of Passion” from some of the most romantic countries in the world: Italy, France, Spain, Greece and Israel. Most couples marry in a flurry of passion, but soon find themselves wondering “How do we keep love interesting, fun and romantic? How do we keep the spark growing for decades?” Steve and Misty Arterburn offer unique, ground-breaking answers to these age-old questions. Romance is much more than a date night out or a week away. A passionate, long-lasting love requires two people who are sensually in love with life and each other. In this fascinating book, the authors explore research on seven activities that prompt passion, then describe how Mediterranean cultures practice these secrets in everyday life. Steve and Misty also share how these fun-to-apply secrets have taken their own marriage from confused to confident, from discouraged to delighted– and how you can do it too. The Mediterranean Love Plan will help couples become more playful, creative, connected and romantic -- burning with passion that stands the test of time.