Jake Ali Mathews and his unique brand of AWESOMENESS is back! With summer break finally here, Jake Ali Mathews is looking forward to some relaxing kid time. But his dad has different ideas of what Jake's summer should look like. And soon enough, Jake, his dad, and his diabolical sister, Alexis, are on their way to Camp Wild Survial, hosted by celebrity wildnerness survivalist, Thunder Banks. All is not as it seems and soon, the Mathews family and their friends find themselves in some harrowing, not to mention hilarious, situations. Will Jake's brand of AWESOMENESS be enough to come out at the other end of summer break alive?

Follows the experiences of young Jake, a boy who endures the drama and frustrations of being the new kid in school.

Sixth grader Jake Ali Mathews is slowly climbing his way back up the ladder of popularity. Increasingly settled in his new school and with a great new best friend, Michael, everything seems to be going okay for Jake. Until Jake's beloved teacher, Mrs. Pilsner, has a baby and the students in Jake's homeroom are handed off to the super-scary substitute, Ms. Cane. Rather than teach through traditional methods, Ms. Cane decides to have these go-getters help her with a fledgling pet-grooming company. Dogs, cats, and more get bathed, popularity struggles become boardroom struggles, and Jake's friendship with Michael is tested. Even Jake's diabolical sister, Alexis, gets in on the puppy-cleaning action and hilarity ensues. But will Jake's brand of AWESOMENESS be enough to clean up this furry mess?

Do you feel like you are coasting through life? Are you struggling to find meaning after countless mistakes and the circumstances they put you in? Do you feel completely lost?Everything changes the moment we discover why we went through the turbulent times. How exactly do we find the answer?Join author Jake Kneeland as he guides you through Why You Need To Fail - a roadmap to rediscovering your purpose, energy, and vibrancy for life. Inside you will find moments of transformation, step by step techniques, and the momentum you've unleashed by removing previously held self-limiting beliefs.Are you ready? Grab your journal and pen and begin. A better understanding is at your fingertips. There's no time to waste!

Winner of the Crystal Kite Award, this touching story explores what it mean to be a good friend, how you should react to a bully, and makes the events of September 11th, 2001 personal. In this story about growing up in a difficult part of America’s history, Jake Green is introduced as a cross country runner who wants to be a soldier and an American hero when he grows up. Before he can work far towards these goals, September 11th happens, and it is discovered that one of the hijackers lives in Jake’s town. The children in Jake’s town try to process everything, but they struggle. Jake’s classmate Bobby beats up Jake’s best friend, Sam Madina, just for being an Arab Muslim. According to his own code of conduct, Jake wants to fight Bobby for messing with his best friend. The situation gets more complicated when Sam’s father is detained and interrogated by the FBI. Jake’s mother doubts Sam’s father’s innocence. Jake must choose between believing his parents and leaving Bobby alone or defending Sam.

As seen on the Today Show and CBS Evening News, New York Times Best Selling Kid Author Jake Marcionette explodes into the middle grade diary style genre with a new kind of story. Meet sixth-grader Jake Mathews, whose life is turned upside down when his family moves from Florida to Maryland, where Jake must adapt to a new school. Jake has always ranked the kids at school in his hand-made, humorous “Kid Cards,” and when he arrives at his new school, Jake starts building a new collection, befriending as many people as he can while staying under the radar from the school bully. But what happens when the school bully decides Jake's next in line for annihilation and his Kid Cards get into the wrong hands?!! JUST JAKE is a genuine—and as Jake himself would say, AWESOME!—world of school, family, friends, and teachers; it’s the product of a writer talented well beyond his years.

What are the origins of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu? Is it merely a by-product--a rebel offspring--of Judo? What was the nature and content of the art that Mitsuyo Maeda, a.k.a. "Count Koma", and other Japanese were teaching in the Amazon? Was it Judo? Jiu-Jitsu? His own personal fight-tested style, built on a foundation of Judo and informed by his dozens and dozens of matches around the world? What was the bridge between the art he learned at the Kodokan and the Brazilian style that claims him as its godfather: a style now practiced by millions worldwide (and growing bigger every day)? Should Maeda even be at the center of this story? And what role did Carlos and Hélio Gracie play in all of this? Did they "invent" BJJ? Would BJJ exist without them? And, if so, what--if anything--did they create? And why does this history matter to the average BJJ practitioner today? Any history possesses its official narrative with its own favorite characters and events. But true history is seldom simple, and more oft than not the real story is far richer than the popular version that is widely repeated and handed down. The history of BJJ and MMA in Brazil doesn't escape this paradigm. The recent renaissance in research in regards to the history of martial arts in Brazil led to the author's curiosity, which in turn led to the documentary Closed-Guard: The Origins of Jiu-Jitsu in Brazil, which in turn led to this book. This manuscript started as an account of the author's recollections of the film's production, and quickly grew into much more. Opening Closed Guard: The Story Behind the Film contains conclusions, analysis, and historical interpretations, as well as the story behind the documentary itself and the many challenges it faced along the way. It contains interviews, research articles pertaining to the history of Jiu-Jitsu in Brazil, as well as the author's own take on the current state of BJJ and MMA. Finally, it is the story of the author rediscovering his love for Jiu-Jitsu in a completely new and unexpected way. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Born in the US from a Brazilian mother and American father, and having spent his life between these two countries, Robert Drysdale remains the only American competitor to have ever won both the IBJJF and ADCC World Championships, the two most prestigious tournaments in all of Jiu-Jitsu. Furthermore, he has also cultivated a career in MMA, both as a fighter and as a coach. The author also holds a Bachelor's Degree in History, as well as a long-held passion for this discipline. He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he teaches Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and MMA. He is also the co-founder of the international team Zenith Jiu-Jitsu, and is the father of two girls.

Jake Marrazzo is seventeen year old with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy who wrote a children's book, One Wants to be a Letter. The book is a story about being different. The main character is named One. One is a number whose friends are all letters. He has felt different and wants to be just like his friends. Throughout the story, One keeps trying to be a letter, when in the end he finds out that being a Number One was what he was meant to be. The book has received rave reviews and sold over 700 copies since being released on October 1, 2020.

The betrayal at the Requiem has passed, but the foreboding presence of the Dark Man still exists. While whispers of a new threat roll across the Dark Lands, Webb Thompson is plagued by a recurring nightmare that warns of a looming evil powerful enough to transform not just his life, but also that of his sister, Sundown, and her counselor, Raven. After the Dark Man initiates a move that destabilizes the shaky balance of good and evil in the Dark Lands, Webb realizes the only resolution may lie within a shadowy region known to few and traversed by even less. But does the cryptic Not-Where hide the source of tribulation or is it a place to release more insidious forces? As the paths of Webb, Sundown, and Raven surreptitiously intertwine, they realize too late that despite their caution and steadfastness, destiny cannot be tempered as new evils are unleashed, secrets are revealed, and a vast army rises. Now only time will tell if they can stop the Dark Man from escaping his otherworldly prison...

Would you trade fame for privacy? Movie star Maggie Malone has a glamorous lifestyle with everything money can buy―except privacy. Hounded by the paparazzi and ridiculed for her faith, Maggie secretly struggles with severe anxiety and loneliness. All she desires is to be herself--southern girl by birth, ranch lover by heart. When an anonymous benefactor invites Maggie to participate in a secret project, will her hopelessness find a new direction? Or will she become another celebrity travesty? What if she discovers Hollywood is not Home? Her faith, family, love, and future hang in the balance . . . Endorsements I have long believed that if you can tell a great story, you earn the right to share your message, and the best life-lessons come from the best stories. Within these pages, you are going to take a journey with Annmarie and discover a lot about her, but even more, you are going to discover who you are and who you are meant to be. Jim Stovall Best-selling author, The Ultimate Gift Hollywood Is Not Home is a gift. The ease of digesting the content is remarkable. I haven't felt so close to a story’s characters. Their developing is so subtle and down to earth, I begged for more. Projecting the outcome of this story was impossible . . . waiting for the surprises, of which there are many. Annmarie’s approach to Southernism rings soft and true. One can hear the gentile South and feel the dynamics of a family and community who love each other. A story well written. I look forward to the sequel. Gale B. Crawford Award-Winning Woman Leader in Business, Keynote Speaker and Seminar Leader for Women's Issues, Retired Board Member of Financial and Educational Institutions It is easy to say that we would never be Maggie, but how can we know if our Christian roots are deep enough until something begins to tear us from them? Roberts gives us plenty of reason to ponder on what it means to be true to oneself, to one's values―and most importantly, to one's Lord. Dr. Tom LeGrand University Chaplain and Professor