In Painting the Christmas Trees, Joe Weil explores the meaning of neighborhood, both its rootedness and its transience in terms of the port city of Elizabeth, New Jersey, in which he was formed as a poet. His work mixes different registers of language, from the Rust Belt working class speech of his family and friends to the poetic influences of his first reading: Roethke, Williams, Stevens, and Yeats. His Irish Catholic working class upbringing instills his poetry with a sense of communion. The poems in this book are anchored to the loss and the brio of people he has known and worked among both as a toolmaker and as a poet. He is essentially a spiritual comic in so far as his interest lies as much with the vitally ugly and broken as it does with the smoothly eloquent. Unlike many volumes of poetry, Painting the Christmas Trees is full of characters, not unlike a novel. Weil believes a poet should reclaim the name of storyteller. He is not ashamed to be one.

Provides teachers and child carers with a wide collection of colour mixing and media application, printmaking and dyeing activities suitable for young children.

Welcome to the small town of Cloud Bay where the weather is great, the music is fire, and love is complicated… She’s locked her heart away but it’s all he wants for Christmas Mina Harper is the odd one out in the Harper dynasty. Unlike her siblings, she can’t carry a tune, she has no taste for fame, and she married her childhood sweetheart, convinced they were going to live happily ever after. Then he died and her world shattered. Since then, she’s wanted nothing more than to focus on her art and a quiet life in Cloud Bay. After all, true love doesn’t happen twice. Will Fraser fell in love with Mina the moment he saw her. Too bad for him she was madly in love with another man. And when her husband was killed by a drunk driver, Will knew the last man on earth she’d want would be one who owns a whiskey distillery. So he locked his feelings away. Until an accident brings Mina and Will together and he realizes this could finally be his chance. But while Mina might let down her grumpy guard enough for him to steal mistletoe kisses, he’s going to need some serious Christmas magic to convince her to take a chance that they could be something that lasts for more than just the season. Previously published as A Season Of You by Emma Douglas. Right Where You Left Me is the second book in the Cloud Bay series, a steamy small town island romance series. This series has beach vibes, rock’n’roll families, small town drama, the odd cute dog, and sexy times. Enjoy! Author's note: For tropes and CW, please check the author's website. KEYWORDS: Small town romance series, steamy beach romance books, small town island romance, musicians, rock’n’roll, strong heroine romance, widowed heroine, second chance at love, he fell first romance, holiday romance, contemporary romance, sensual, sexy, modern, kissing books, swoon, emotional

Presents lesson plans and reproducible patterns for and/or illustrations of finished work for thirty-six art lessons. Each lesson plan includes sections on the purpose of the lesson, its art history background, materials needed, procedures, assignment choices for students, and a connection section that links lesson contents with the work of a featured artist.

“[The] sections on airbrush tattoos, henna patterns, and nail decorations are likely to have a real teen appeal. Striking color photos.”—School Library Journal Forget the paper and posterboard-use your own body as the backdrop for colorful creations. Paint your face like a lion and roar with delight. Stencil a daisy on your arm for summer fun. With Mom or Dad’s help, any youngster can turn into a pirate, princess, or calico cat. Older kids can adorn a shoulder with a galloping zebra or tickle some toenails with a tropical scene. All the techniques from face painting to henna tattooing are described in detail and accompanied by color photos illustrating the before, during, and after of the process.

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