Baseball pitcher Dwight Gooden describes his life and career, including his time with the New York Mets, his addiction to drugs, and recovery.

This groundbreaking book challenges the prominent definitions of pragmatics and the assumption that specific topics belong on the pragmatics turf.

What if magic was real? Not the magic of tribal shaman, Indian mystics, Wiccan witches, nor even the legerdemain of telephone psychics, but real honest-to-goodness magic. The Christian Bible is full of references to real magic, from Moses to a pantheon of Angels and demons, Powers which walk the Earth and skulk in shadows, the mythos of the supernatural. And demons. The Biblical demon, the Legion, was only banished, its diabolical power only diminished, when it was confronted with the Son of God. What if it came back? Returning to Earth after almost 2000 years, the demon has a mission: to open a gateway to Hell, shift the infernal balance of power, and trigger an Armageddon which makes Revelations pale in comparison. Standing against the demon is an ancient order of sorcerers and warriors, descended from the Angels themselves. But the demon, able to possess more than a thousand people simultaneously, may prove too powerful for even them, and the world's fate will rest on the shoulders of a seventeen year old girl warrior-in-training, and the mysterious powers of her equally enigmatic boyfriend.

Big city detective Ethan Reed is working deep undercover at a Christian youth detention center. The kind of place he spent some harrowing time in as a kid. Ethan's mission: ferret out who's recruiting resident teens for a drug ring. He expects help from the lovely, devoted director of Hope Manor. But Kim Corbett won't tell Ethan anything—even when she's threatened and attacked. When Ethan discovers what Kim is protecting, his guarded heart opens just a bit wider. Enough to make this the most dangerous assignment of his career.

Why do we love wizards? Where do these magical figures come from? Thinking Queerly traces the wizard from medieval Arthurian literature to contemporary YA adaptations. By exploring the link between Merlin and Harry Potter, or Morgan le Fay and Sabrina, readers will see how the wizard offers spaces of hope and transformation for young readers. In particular, this book examines how wizards think differently, and how this difference can resonate with both LGBTQ and neurodivergent readers, who’ve been told they don’t fit in.

Its been said there are no guarantees in life. Heres a guarantee you can bank on: Open this book and youll see that youve never met preschoolers like theseinimitable, wholly unique, and quirky, each with a distinctive agenda and way of looking at the world. These interconnected stories are full of whimsy and heart and color. They show us that our differences, rather than keeping us apart, should bind us together. Whether you relate to the beleaguered teacher or harried principal or to any one of the dazzling array of winning tots themselves (or a bit of all of them!), youre sure to laugh out loud while reading. At the books core, youll discover the power of creativity, the strength of imagination, the audacity of wishes, the excitement of synthesis, and the breathtaking potential of our minds. With unforgettable and vividly-drawn characters like Clarice (and the Odor Police), Jack (and the Intolerable Yak), and Abby (and the Bit Too Grabby), theres something for everyone, of all temperaments and ages. The Psychotic Preschoolers is perfect as a collection of read-aloud bedtime stories for kids or as a fun way for adults to de-stress after another day in the grind. Whether you savor each charmingly rhymed and cleverly-conceived story on an individual basis, or plunge into them all and appreciate the breadth and scope of the entire book, youll come away with new admiration for and insight into the child mind, a mind that is not inferior to the adult version in any way, and actually, possesses a special clarity all its own. It is that sparkling specialness that the author has captured in these pages. And no matter how grumpy your day may have made you, you cant help but smile when you powwow with these preschoolers guaranteed!

The illustrated, digitally-augmented story of a sixteen-year-old who discovers heavy metal and the son of god in one heady summer in Roman-occupied Nazareth For sixteen-year-old Darryl, life in Roman-occupied Nazareth is a real drag—especially when everyone at your high school thinks you’re a loser, and you’re convinced the spots on your forehead are sure signs of leprosy. But everything changes with the arrival of a new refugee neighbor, Jay, the son of god. When Jay decides to join Darryl’s band, they discover the most potent force of all time: the power of METAL. And friendship. But mostly METAL. A radical, hilarious, and touching story of teen angst, The Book of Darryl is an augmented reality novel (via an app that allows you to view animated pages of the print book) featuring GIF animations from the cult artist Scorpion Dagger, sound effects, and an original heavy metal score. Cowritten and directed by the Webby Award–winning team the Goggles (Welcome to Pine Point, Adbusters) and Closer (Shut Up Little Man!, Sam Klemke’s Time Machine), The Book of Darryl recounts the genesis of heavy metal and the friendship behind one of the greatest untold musical partnerships in history.

Darryl’s friendless. Bored out of his skull. It’s the middle of summer, in the middle of the desert, in the middle of a fly-blown suburb of Roman-occupied Nazareth. Tough times for a sixteen-year-old boy in any era, never mind two millennia ago, when the only thing to look forward to is the next sandstorm, and you’re spending every waking moment worrying that the spots on your forehead are for sure signs of leprosy. But everything changes when Darryl meets his new refugee neighbor, Jay, who just so happens to be the messiah before he was *the Messiah.* Jay brings good news to Darry’s life and soaring, otherworldly vocals to his band with fellow teen Nazarenes Mary and Jude. Together, they help each other survive life in the year 16 AD—and miraculously, they invent a beguiling new musical form that they call METAL, one of many epic revelations in this heretofore unheralded early chapter in the greatest story ever told. This special edition of The Book of Darryl is illuminated by world-famous GIF artist Scorpion Dagger, with images that come to animated life—accompanied by a splendorous heavy metal score—through augmented reality, in a lost gospel here resurrected by leading Darryl scholars and storytelling pioneers Matt Bate and the Goggles.

The Rook family run a little business: ghost hunting. And things has picked up recently. Something’s wrong. It’s been getting noticeably worse since, ooh, 2016? Bad spirits are abroad, and right now they're particularly around Coldbay Island, which isn’t even abroad, it’s only 20 miles from Skegness. The Rooks’ ‘quick call out’ to the island picks loose a thread that begins to unravel the whole place, and the world beyond. Is this the apocalypse? This might be the apocalypse. Who knew it would kick off in an off-season seaside resort off the Lincolnshire coast? I’ll tell you who knew - Linda. She’s been feeling increasingly uneasy about the whole of the East Midlands since the 90s.