"The Sami, who call themselves "the real people," are nomadic indigenous people of Northern Scandinavia and adjacent areas of Russia. They practice an animistic religion which invests godlike qualities in animals such as the fox and the bear, and in certain features of the landscape. They believe that the sun (male) and the earth (female) mated to make a son, who then found a bride and fathered human beings. The earth and sun share our daily experience of living, as do all plant and animal creatures. This form of dynamic interdependence has been expressed over time in a wealth of songs and stories told by Sami shamans and wizards. The stories are characterized by great reverence for our natural environment, which can form a strong spiritual foundation for sustainable living." This is a spiritual resource for sustainable living of stories and folklore in a poetic setting adapted from the Sami people of Northern Europe. The last four chapters contain an essay which outlines a spiritual basis for sustainable living.

“One of the best collections I’ve ever read. Every single story is a standout.”—Roxane Gay WINNER OF THE CHAUTAUQUA PRIZE • LONGLISTED FOR THE STORY PRIZE • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR • Refinery29 • BookRiot “Fuses science, myth, and imagination into a dark and gorgeous series of questions about our current predicaments.”­—Anthony Doerr, author of All the Light We Cannot See A dystopian tale about genetically modified septuplets who are struck by a mysterious illness; a love story about a man bewitched by a mermaid; a stirring imagining of the lives of Nigerian schoolgirls in the aftermath of a Boko Haram kidnapping. The stories in All the Names They Used for God break down genre barriers—from science fiction to American Gothic to magical realism to horror—and are united by each character’s brutal struggle with fate. Like many of us, the characters in this collection are in pursuit of the sublime. Along the way, they must navigate the borderland between salvation and destruction. NAMED A MUST-READ BOOK BY Harper’s Bazaar • Entertainment Weekly • AM New York • Reading Women AND A TOP READ BY Elle • Fast Company • The Christian Science Monitor • Bustle • Shondaland • Popsugar • Refinery29 • Bookish • Newsday • The Millions • Asian American Writers’ Workshop • HelloGiggles “Strange and wonderful . . . delightfully unexpected.”—The New York Times Book Review “Completing one [story] is like having lived an entire life, and then being born, breathless, into another.”—Carmen Maria Machado “Captivating.”—NPR “Gripping.”—Los Angeles Review of Books “[A] remarkable debut . . . Sachdeva is seemingly fearless and her talent limitless.”—AM New York “This phenomenal debut short-story collection is filled with stories that bring the otherworldly to life and examine the strangeness of humanity.”—Bustle “So rich they read like dreams . . . They are enormous stories, not in length but in ambition, each an entirely new, unsparing world. Beautiful, draining—and entirely unforgettable.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Are there 10,000-year-old secret societies that still exist today? Was there a race of giants that once inhabited the Americas? Did ancient Egypt and ancient China have heretofore undiscovered ties? Lost Secrets of the Gods delves into these ancient mysteries and many more in articles by some of the world’s most intrepid and knowledgeable researchers. The old paradigms of history are being radically transformed as we discover more evidence of little-known cultures and what they achieved. Many ancient cultures spoke and wrote of visitors that gave them knowledge and helped shape their societies. Who were they, and where did they come from? We now know that many ancient cultures had advanced knowledge of science, agriculture, and astronomy, only some of which has been rediscovered in the last 100 years. Were The Iliad and The Odyssey really about an epic struggle in pre-Celtic Europe? What happened to the Persian army that completely disappeared from Egypt 2,500 years ago? Did the ancients know how to create psychic guard dogs to protect sacred sites? There is much more to history than what has officially been recorded. Lost Secrets of the Gods reveals startling truths and asks fascinating questions traditional historians have long ignored.

THE ALCHEMIST meets THE SNOW CHILD in this beautiful odyssey through the snowy landscapes of northern Finland. Shortly after her sixteenth birthday, Ritva is sent away to Seili - a remote island to the south of Finland. A former leper colony, Seili is now home to 'hopeless cases' - women who have been outcast from society. But Ritva can't understand why her father has allowed her to be taken there, and she longs to be reunited with her little sister. Hope arrives in the form of Martta, a headstrong girl who is a Sami, and who reminds Ritva of her lost mother and her tales - of Vaja the reindeer, the stolen sealskin, and of a sacred drum hidden long ago. When Ritva and Martta decide to escape, there is only one place that calls to them. And so they begin the long journey North, to the land of the Sami, in search of healing and forgiveness... Readers say: 'Some books make a lasting impression and I think this is definitely one of them. .. It's a celebration of the human spirit and our connection to nature.' Rosie Evans, Good Reads, 5 stars 'I love losing myself in a book & this one is one of those for me. I was transported to the land of the midnight sun.' Lynda, Good Reads 5 stars 'It has been one of those books that I have felt I have escaped into, because the setting is so richly described and the story line sweeps you up and carries you along.' https://becomingfinnishsite.wordpress.com 'The setting in Scandinavia and the lands at the top of the world was so well described as to almost be a character in itself and I was fascinated by the details relating to the indigenous people of this region - the Sami - and their way of life.' Bruce Gargoyle, Good Reads, 4 stars

This book helps to ask questions about God no matter what you believe. Who is God? Where do I go when I die? Is God even real? This book answers none of these questions, but it asks them all! It is a thoughtful book that enforces no views but stresses the importance of a healthy dialogue, curiosity, love, and wonder.

Now a major motion picture starring Rachel McAdams and Kathy Bates! A Time Best YA Book of All Time Margaret shares her secrets and her spirituality in this iconic Judy Blume novel, beloved by millions. Margaret Simon, almost twelve, likes long hair, tuna fish, the smell of rain, and things that are pink. She’s just moved from New York City to Farbook, New Jersey, and is anxious to fit in with her new friends—Nancy, Gretchen, and Janie. When they form a secret club to talk about private subjects like boys, bras, and getting their first periods, Margaret is happy to belong. But none of them can believe Margaret doesn’t have religion, and that she isn’t going to the Y or the Jewish Community Center. What they don’t know is Margaret has her own very special relationship with God. She can talk to God about everything—family, friends, even Moose Freed, her secret crush. Margaret is funny and real. As you read her story, you’ll know why this book has been the favorite of millions of readers. It’s as if Margaret is talking right to you, sharing her secrets with a friend.

You may be the only Jesus some people ever meet! Suppose that the 2:00 am feeding of your infant daughter was not just meeting a physical need but also was teaching her that God’s provision could be trusted? And suppose her cries for succor were also teaching you to respond to the cries of Jesus when he presents himself as “the least of these”? Based on the Great Commandment, this book examines relationships common to us all—those of intimacy, authority, rivalry, and otherness— and shows how learning to love within those relationships affects our relationship with God. Supported by biblical examples and references to psychological studies, this book examines all our basic relationships—family relationships, relationships with authority figures, friends and enemies, companion animals, even virtual relationships—to show how learning to love within those relationships is truly divine work. In a culture where relationships are often divisive and exploitative, and where the call to love enemies often seems impractical, this book offers the reminder that every relationship provides an opportunity to love God in the other and to be “God with skin on” for that person in return.

Shadow is a man with a past. But now he wants nothing more than to live a quiet life with his wife and stay out of trouble. Until he learns that she's been killed in a terrible accident. Flying home for the funeral, as a violent storm rocks the plane, a strange man in the seat next to him introduces himself. The man calls himself Mr. Wednesday, and he knows more about Shadow than is possible. He warns Shadow that a far bigger storm is coming. And from that moment on, nothing will ever he the same...

Analyzes the attitudes of Christians toward other religions and examines how the major religions of the world establish a relationship with God

Dr. Ardy Sixkiller Clarke, author of Encounters With Star People, vowed as a teenager to follow in the footsteps of two 19th-century explorers, John L. Stephens and Frederick Catherwood, who brought the ancient Maya cities to the world’s attention. Dr. Clarke set out on a seven-year adventure (from 2003 through 2010) through Belize, Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico, collecting stories of encounters, sky gods, giants, little people, and aliens among the indigenous people. She drove more than 12,000 miles, visiting 89 archaeological sites (Stephens and Catherwood visited only 44) and conducting nearly 100 individual interviews. The result is an enthralling series of unique, original, true stories of encounters with space travelers, giants, little people, and UFOs. Sky People may very well change the way you perceive and experience the world.