This book is about knowing when creative action is worth the risk and when it is not. This includes developing the awareness, courage, and confidence to support and take risks when it is beneficial to do so in the classroom. It also includes being able to recognize when certain risks should be avoided. The key is knowing when and how to take creative action in a way that not only makes sense for the situation at hand, but also stands to make a positive contribution to others. The aim of this book is to help you and your students identify the kinds of risks that are worth taking, better anticipate and navigate potential hazards associated with those risks, and maximize the potential benefits.

This is a book about what many teachers know but are increasingly being prevented from talking about: that real education always involves a risk. The risk is there because, as W. B. Yeats has put it, education is not about filling a bucket but about lighting a fire. It is there because students are not to be seen as objects to be moulded and disciplined, but as subjects of action and responsibility. The Beautiful Risk of Education is organised around a critical discussion of seven key educational concepts: creativity, communication, teaching, learning, emancipation, democracy, and virtuosity. By opposing the risk aversion that characterises many contemporary educational policies and practices, Gert J.J. Biesta makes a strong argument for giving risk a central place in our educational endeavours and brings risk taking to the forefront of a critical pedagogical practice.

*Winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Memoir/Biography* An Honor Book for the 2023 Stonewall Book Award—Israel Fishman Non-Fiction Book Award This witty memoir traces a touching and often hilarious spiralic path to embracing a gay, Latinx identity against a culture of machismo—from a cockfighting ring in Nicaragua to cities across the U.S.—and the bath houses, night clubs, and drag queens who help redefine pride I’ve always found the definition of machismo to be ironic, considering that pride is a word almost unanimously associated with queer people, the enemy of machistas . . . In a world desperate to erase us, queer Latinx men must find ways to hold on to pride for survival, but excessive male pride is often what we are battling, both in ourselves and in others. A debut memoir about coming of age as a gay, Latinx man, High-Risk Homosexual opens in the ultimate anti-gay space: Edgar Gomez’s uncle’s cockfighting ring in Nicaragua, where he was sent at thirteen years old to become a man. Readers follow Gomez through the queer spaces where he learned to love being gay and Latinx, including Pulse nightclub in Orlando, a drag queen convention in Los Angeles, and the doctor’s office where he was diagnosed a “high-risk homosexual.” With vulnerability, humor, and quick-witted insights into racial, sexual, familial, and professional power dynamics, Gomez shares a hard-won path to taking pride in the parts of himself he was taught to keep hidden. His story is a scintillating, beautiful reminder of the importance of leaving space for joy.

An Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller! An Instant Indie Bestseller! *An Amazon Best Book of the Year * A B&N Best Book of the Year* A great gift for tiny go-getters and big dreamers, including for back to school! NBA champion and superstar LeBron James pens a slam-dunk picture book inspired by his foundation’s I PROMISE program that motivates children everywhere to always #StriveForGreatness. Just a kid from Akron, Ohio, who is dedicated to uplifting youth everywhere, LeBron James knows the key to a better future is to excel in school, do your best, and keep your family close. I Promise is a lively and inspiring picture book that reminds us that tomorrow’s success starts with the promises we make to ourselves and our community today. Featuring James’s upbeat, rhyming text and vibrant illustrations perfectly crafted for a diverse audience by #1 New York Times bestselling and Geisel Honor winning artist Nina Mata, this book has the power to inspire all children and families to be their best. Perfect for shared reading in and out of the classroom, I Promise is also a great gift for graduation, birthdays, and other occasions. Plus check out the audiobook, read by LeBron James's mother and I Promise School supporter Gloria James!

Can he forgive himself in time to save the woman he loves?Former Delta Force operator, Trevor Matthews, has spent years trying to move on from the sins of his past. Nearly a decade later, he's still haunted by the deaths of his teammates and the woman he cared deeply for. Then, he meets Lexi--the beautiful waitress with an angelic smile--and almost instantly, his soul sparks back to life.Lexi Hamilton was well on her way to fulfilling her dream of becoming a world-class chef when tragedy strikes. After losing everything that mattered to her, she has no other choice but to spend her days waiting tables and praying for tips. Busy clawing her way back to the life she aspires to have, the last thing Lexi expects is to fall in love. That all changes the moment she meets Trevor.When the hunky private security expert protects her from a dangerous situation, they immediately form an unbreakable connection. But just as Trevor decides he's ready to give love another try, he realizes someone wants Lexi dead. Can Trevor fight off his own demons in time to save the woman he loves, or will the ghosts from his past cost him everything?***Beautiful Risk is a stand-alone romantic suspense with a sweet, burning love story and plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing. If you like hot, alpha men who will risk everything to protect the women they love, buy this book--the third in the new R.I.S.C. Series--today!**All R.I.S.C. novels are full-length and filled with hot romance, loads of action, and edge-of-your-seat suspense. Every R.I.S.C. member will get their own Happily Ever After...of course, they'll have to fight for it, first.R.I.S.C. Series in order:Book 1: Taking a Risk, Part One (Jake & Olivia's HFN)Book 2: Taking a Risk, Part Two (Jake & Olivia's HEA)Book 3: Beautiful Risk (Trevor & Lexi)Book 4: Intentional Risk (Derek & Charlotte "Charlie")Book 5: Unpredictable Risk (Grant & Brynnon)Coming Soon:Book 6: Title TBD (2020)Book 7: Title TBD (2020)Bravo Team Series:This spin-off series will follow the stories of each member of R.I.S.C.'s new Bravo Team and will be available to either purchase through Amazon or read through KU. All Bravo Team books will be part of Susan Stoker's Special Forces: Operation Alpha World and will include Ms. Blakey's Bravo characters, as well as appearances by members of Alpha Team and Susan Stoker's Deltas and SEALs.Book 1: Rescuing Gracelynn (Nate & Gracie) (September 10, 2019)Book 2: Rescuing Katherine (January 14, 2020)Book 3: Title TBD (March 10, 2020)Book 4: Title TBD (May 2020)

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Soon to be a Hulu Original series • The internationally acclaimed author of Wild collects the best of The Rumpus's Dear Sugar advice columns plus never-before-published pieces. Rich with humor and insight—and absolute honesty—this "wise and compassionate" (New York Times Book Review) book is a balm for everything life throws our way. Life can be hard: your lover cheats on you; you lose a family member; you can’t pay the bills—and it can be great: you’ve had the hottest sex of your life; you get that plum job; you muster the courage to write your novel. Sugar—the once-anonymous online columnist at The Rumpus, now revealed as Cheryl Strayed, author of the bestselling memoir Wild—is the person thousands turn to for advice.

Successful software depends as much on scrupulous testing as it does on solid architecture or elegant code. But testing is not a routine process, it's a constant exploration of methods and an evolution of good ideas. Beautiful Testing offers 23 essays from 27 leading testers and developers that illustrate the qualities and techniques that make testing an art. Through personal anecdotes, you'll learn how each of these professionals developed beautiful ways of testing a wide range of products -- valuable knowledge that you can apply to your own projects. Here's a sample of what you'll find inside: Microsoft's Alan Page knows a lot about large-scale test automation, and shares some of his secrets on how to make it beautiful Scott Barber explains why performance testing needs to be a collaborative process, rather than simply an exercise in measuring speed Karen Johnson describes how her professional experience intersected her personal life while testing medical software Rex Black reveals how satisfying stakeholders for 25 years is a beautiful thing Mathematician John D. Cook applies a classic definition of beauty, based on complexity and unity, to testing random number generators All author royalties will be donated to the Nothing But Nets campaign to save lives by preventing malaria, a disease that kills millions of children in Africa each year. This book includes contributions from: Adam Goucher Linda Wilkinson Rex Black Martin Schröder Clint Talbert Scott Barber Kamran Khan Emily Chen Brian Nitz Remko Tronçon Alan Page Neal Norwitz Michelle Levesque Jeffrey Yasskin John D. Cook Murali Nandigama Karen N. Johnson Chris McMahon Jennitta Andrea Lisa Crispin Matt Heusser Andreas Zeller David Schuler Tomasz Kojm Adam Christian Tim Riley Isaac Clerencia

An Amazon Best Business Book of 2018 Selected by Audible as the Best Business Book of 2018 Named “Best New Book” by People Magazine and Refinery29 Named a Most Anticipated Title of April 2018 by Bustle and Levo A Women@Forbes “Boss Moves Book Club” pick A candid guide for ambitious women who want to succeed without losing themselves in the process Fran Hauser deconstructs the negative perception of "niceness" that many women struggle with in the business world. If women are nice, they are seen as weak and ineffective, but if they are tough, they are labeled a bitch. Hauser proves that women don’t have to sacrifice their values or hide their authentic personalities to be successful. Sharing a wealth of personal anecdotes and time-tested strategies, she shows women how to reclaim “nice” and sidestep regressive stereotypes about what a strong leader looks like. Her accessible advice and hard-won wisdom detail how to balance being empathetic with being decisive, how to rise above the double standards that can box you in, how to cultivate authentic confidence that projects throughout a room, and much more. THE MYTH OF THE NICE GIRL is a refreshing dose of forward-looking feminism that will resonate with smart, professional women who know what they want and are looking for real advice to take their career to the next level without losing themselves in the process.

Her husband died in a plane crash on Mount Blanc. It was a tragic accident. These are the simple facts. Except someone’s not telling the truth . . . After nine months of sorrow and grief, Junie Lagarde – a brilliant forensic accountant and passionate guitarist – is gradually accepting life without her beloved husband Olivier, a French safety consultant and climate-change expert, whom she lost in a tragic plane accident over Mont Blanc. If only she could have found her loyal hearing-dog Leo, who ran off in the terrifying aftermath of the crash, before she had to return home to America. But then Junie receives an unexpected call from France . . . Capitaine Philippe Brevard, the man in charge of investigating Olivier’s death, has seen recent CCTV footage which shows Leo being held by a man who closely resembles Olivier . . . right down to his distinctive jacket. It’s not Olivier. It can’t be . . . can it? But who is the man – and what else is Capitaine Brevard hiding from her? Junie knows she must go to Chamonix, rescue her dog, and uncover the truth . . . but there are those who mean her harm, and soon Junie’s learning dangerous secrets. Secrets that will shake her faith in her closest friends and put more than just her own life in the gravest of danger. The Beautiful Risk is an intelligent, thought-provoking standalone thriller from internationally bestselling author Lynn Hightower. It’s a story of grief, of a dangerous mountain with a dark history, of corruption and greed, of ecoterrorism . . . and of a vulnerable woman with hearing loss, an injured dog and a broken heart, who’ll stop at nothing to uncover the truth.

The heart is too much a mystery for us to approach its healing as a simple matter of finding and fixing the problem. Methods alone cannot meet the deep, aching need of souls that cry not for solutions, but for connection. 'The Beautiful Risk' encourages us to trade cure for care, expertise for partnership, and mastery for love. With perspective-shifting insights and examples, Dr. James Olthuis helps us -- both counselors and those who come for counsel -- to move beyond control and technique and join in a risky but glorious dance of relationship, love, and healing.