In Greek mythology, Ariadne held authority over the mazes and labyrinths located beneath the palace of Knossos on Crete, including the labyrinth that housed the deadly Minotaur. When Theseus came to attempt to free the people from the Minotaur, Ariadne gave Theseus a ball of red thread to mark his passage in and out of the labyrinth. The thread was the key to successfully navigating the labyrinth’s many twists and turns, and Theseus ultimately confronted the Minotaur. In her teaching, Julie Tallard Johnson notes that metaphorically, we all spend our lives in a labyrinth, regularly having to face forked paths, contradictory twists and turns, and dead ends. Red thread is a rich analogy for the wisdom passed on to us from generations of spiritual teachers, and this wisdom guides us through our labyrinths. In The Clue of the Red Thread, Johnson, longtime student of author, teacher, and activist Parker J. Palmer, offers numerous practices and strategies for navigating what she calls the greatest adventure of our lifetime: going inward to discover who we truly are, then returning outward to blossom into a fearless and compassionate citizen, living with integrity while both keeping hold of the red thread in our own lives and moving forward to pass it on to others.

In Crete during World War II, Alenka, a young woman who fights with the resistance against the brutal Nazi occupation, finds herself caught between her traitor of a brother and the man she loves, an undercover agent working for the Allies. May 1941. German paratroopers launch a blitzkrieg from the air against Crete. They are met with fierce defiance, the Greeks fighting back with daggers, pitchforks, and kitchen knives. During the bloody eleven-day battle, Alenka, a young Greek woman, saves the lives of two Australian soldiers. Jack and Teddy are childhood friends who joined up together to see the world. Both men fall in love with Alenka. They are forced to retreat with the tattered remains of the Allied forces over the towering White Mountains. Both are among the seven thousand Allied soldiers left behind in the desperate evacuation from Crete’s storm-lashed southern coast. Alenka hides Jack and Teddy at great risk to herself. Her brother Axel is a Nazi sympathizer and collaborator and spies on her movements. As Crete suffers under the Nazi jackboot, Alenka is drawn into an intense triangle of conflicting emotions with Jack and Teddy. Their friendship suffers under the strain of months of hiding and their rivalry for her love. Together, they join the resistance and fight to free the island, but all three will find themselves tested to their limits. Alenka must choose whom to trust and whom to love and, in the end, whom to save.

Blood, rust, lava, wine—the flush of passion and the glow of approaching night—no color arrests our attention more than the color red. Today it is the flag of danger and seduction, of spirit and revolution, but throughout nearly all of human history it has held a special place in our aesthetics. In this book, Spike Bucklow brings us into the heart of this fiery hue to better understand the unique powers it has had over us. Bucklow takes us from a thirty-four-thousand-year-old shaman burial dress to the iPhone screen, exploring the myriad of purposes we have put red to as well as the materials from which we have looked to harvest it. And we have looked for it everywhere, from insects to tree resin to tar to excitable gasses. Bucklow also details how our pursuit of the color drove medieval alchemy and modern chemistry alike, and he shows us red’s many symbolic uses, its association with earth, blood, and fire, its coloring of caves and the throne rooms of goddesses, as well as national flags, fire trucks, power grids, and stoplights. The result is a material and cultural history that makes one see this color afresh, beating with vibrancy, a crucial part of the human visual world.

Renza, Shawn Rosenheim, and Laura Saltz.--Kenneth Dauber, State University of New York, Buffalo

The Greatest Bed-Time Stories anthology curates a magical compendium of tales that traverse the vivid spectrums of fantasy, adventure, and whimsy. Within its pages lie a rich tapestry of literary styles, ranging from fairy tales and fables to animal adventures and fantasy epics, embodying the very essence of what it means to journey into realms beyond our imagining. This collection stands as a testament to the timeless allure of bedtime storytelling, showcasing seminal works that have captivated readers of all ages, drawn from a pantheon of influential authors whose narratives have become cornerstones of children's literature. The assortment of stories, while diverse, coalesces around the central theme of wonder and the importance of dreams, laying bare the infinite possibilities afforded by the imagination. The contributing authors and editors, a venerable whos who of literary giants from the 19th and early 20th centuries, including Lewis Carroll, Hans Christian Andersen, and Beatrix Potter among others, bring a remarkable depth of creative talent and philosophical insight to the collection. Their works, each a reflection of the socio-cultural and historical milieus from which they emerged, collectively encapsulate a golden era of storytelling. These stories, beyond their surface entertainment value, delve into the intricacies of moral lessons, societal norms, and the human condition, offering a window into the historical and cultural landscapes of their time. This ensemble of voices, with their unique stylistic signatures and thematic explorations, creates a rich mosaic that is both educational and inspirational. The Greatest Bed-Time Stories is not merely a collection to be read; it is an journey to be experienced, inviting readers to immerse themselves in the wonderment of storytelling. It presents a unique opportunity to explore the breadth and depth of narrative innovation across generations, making it an indispensable addition to the libraries of young readers, educators, and anyone with an interest in the art of storytelling. Through these pages, readers are offered a gateway into understanding the universal power of stories to connect us across time and space, fostering a deeper appreciation for the craft of storytelling and the enduring legacy of its practitioners.

The Enchanted Castle is a children’s fantasy tale by Edith Nesbit, author of The Railway Children, Five Children and It plus many Others. The Enchanted Castle a country estate in the West Country of England (Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset) seen through the eyes of three children, Jerry, Jimmy, and Kathy, who discover it while exploring during their school holidays in the early 1900’s. The lake, groves and marble statues, with white towers and turrets in the distance, make a fairy-tale setting, and then in the middle of the maze in the rose garden, they find a sleeping fairy-tale princess. The "princess" tells them that the castle is full of magic, and they almost believe her. She shows them the treasures of the castle, including a magic ring she says is a ring of invisibility, but when it actually turns her invisible she panics and admits that she is the housekeeper's niece, Mabel, and she was just play-acting. The children soon find that the ring has other magical powers (as all magical rings do) such as making the "Ugly-Wugglies" (Guy Fawkes style dummies they had made to swell the audience at one of their play-performances) come to life. They eventually discover that the ring is actually granting their own wishes, and that the disturbing results stem from their failure to specify those wishes precisely. The Enchanted Castle was written for both children and adults. It combines descriptions of the imaginative play of children, with a magic more muted than in her major fantasies. =============== KEYWORDS/TAGS: enchanted castle, west country, children’s fantasy, tale, folklore, myths, legends, Jerry, Jimmy, Kathy, school holidays, lake, groves, marble statues, white, gleaming, towers, turrets, explore, fairy-tale setting, maze, fairy tale princess, sleeping, asleep, castle, palace, magic, magic ring, invisibility, housekeeper, niece, mabel, play-acting, magical powers, ugly wuggly, ugly-wuggly, ugly wugglies, guy fawkes, contemporary fantasy, fiction, imagination, railway children, five children and it, Castle hall, magnificent, deceiver, head first, entrance, enchanted garden, red clue, across the grass, straight, breathless, result, game, question, candle, silver frame, mirror, shadow, bread and butter, missy, policemen, go home, stone beast, silver, sea chest, landing stage, stagger, water butt, eliza, dishevelled, breathless, french peck, lovely, blue-black hair, limp hand, telling lies, strange procession, pointed, painted, paper face, peer, pieces, hats, raised, crowded place, statue, monster lizard, tremble, swim, celestial picnic, eager, alert, very keen, American,

Share the joy of reading to your little ones and take them into the magical land of dragons, fairies, elves and fantasies with this meticulously edited collection by e-artnow:_x000D_ Dragon Tales:_x000D_ My Father's Dragon_x000D_ The Reluctant Dragon_x000D_ The Book of Dragons_x000D_ Animal Tales & Fables:_x000D_ The Tale of Peter Rabbit_x000D_ The Tale of Benjamin Bunny…_x000D_ Mother West Wind Series_x000D_ The Burgess Bird Book for Children_x000D_ The Burgess Animal Book for Children_x000D_ The Velveteen Rabbit_x000D_ Uncle Wiggily's Adventures & Other Tales_x000D_ Little Bun Rabbit_x000D_ Mother Goose in Prose_x000D_ Lulu's Library_x000D_ The Jungle Book…_x000D_ White Fang_x000D_ Black Beauty_x000D_ The Story of Doctor Dolittle…_x000D_ Aesop Fables_x000D_ The Panchatantra_x000D_ Russian Picture Fables for the Little Ones_x000D_ The Russian Garland_x000D_ Fairy tales & Fantasies:_x000D_ Complete Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen_x000D_ Complete Fairy Tales of Brothers Grimm_x000D_ Complete Fairy Books of Andrew Lang_x000D_ Peter Pan_x000D_ Five Children and It…_x000D_ Alice in Wonderland_x000D_ Through the Looking Glass_x000D_ The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Collection_x000D_ At the Back of the North Wind_x000D_ The Princess and the Goblin_x000D_ Tanglewood Tales_x000D_ The Happy Prince and Other Tales_x000D_ All the Way to Fairyland_x000D_ Friendly Fairies…_x000D_ Old Peter's Russian Tales_x000D_ Childhood Adventures:_x000D_ Robin Hood_x000D_ Pinocchio_x000D_ Gingerbread Man_x000D_ Little Women_x000D_ The Secret Garden_x000D_ A Little Princess_x000D_ The Adventures of Tom Sawyer_x000D_ Journey to the Centre of the Earth_x000D_ Treasure Island…_x000D_ Anne of Green Gables Collection…_x000D_ The Wind in the Willows_x000D_ The Box-Car Children_x000D_ The Railway Children_x000D_ Oliver Twist_x000D_ David Copperfield…_x000D_ Classics Retold_x000D_ The Iliad of Homer _x000D_ Odysseus_x000D_ The Arabian Nights Entertainments_x000D_ Viking Tales_x000D_ Tales of King Arthur and the Round Table_x000D_ Chaucer for Children_x000D_ Tales from Shakespeare_x000D_ Don Quixote_x000D_ The Pilgrim's Progress_x000D_ Robinson Crusoe_x000D_ Voyage to Lilliput_x000D_ Little Goody Two-Shoes & Mrs Margery Two-Shoes_x000D_ Charles Dickens' Children Stories_x000D_ The Story of Hiawatha_x000D_ Uncle Tom's Cabin_x000D_ Pocahontas

The Enchanted Castle is a country estate in the West Country seen through the eyes of three children – Gerald, James and Kathleen, who discover it while exploring during the school holidays. The lake, groves and marble statues, with white towers and turrets in the distance, make a fairy-tale setting, and then in the middle of the maze in the rose garden they find a sleeping fairy-tale princess. Edith Nesbit (1858-1924) was the author of world famous books for children - the tales of fantastical adventures, journeys back in time and travel to magical worlds.

Edith Nesbit (1858-1924) was the author of world famous books for children - the tales of fantastical adventures, journeys back in time and travel to magical worlds. Nesbit also wrote for adults, including novels, short stories and four collections of horror stories. This edition includes: The Psammead Trilogy: Five Children and It The Phoenix and the Carpet The Story of the Amulet The Mouldiwarp Chronicles: The House of Arden Harding's Luck The Enchanted Castle The Magic City The Wonderful Garden Wet Magic The Book of Dragons: The Book of Beasts Uncle James, or The Purple Stranger The Deliverers of Their Country The Ice Dragon, or Do as You Are Told The Island of the Nine Whirlpools The Dragon Tamers The Fiery Dragon, or The Heart of Stone and the Heart of Gold Kind Little Edmund, or The Caves and the Cockatrice The Magic World: The Cat-hood of Maurice The Mixed Mine Accidental Magic The Princess and the Hedge-pig Septimus Septimusson The White Cat Belinda and Bellamant Justnowland The Related Muff The Aunt and Amabel Kenneth and the Carp The Magician's Heart Nine Unlikely Tales: The Cockatoucan Where you want to go to The Blue Mountain The Prince, Two, Mice, and some Kitchen Maids Melisande Fortunatus Rex and Co. The Sums That Came Right The Town in the Library, in the Town in the Library The Plush Usurpe Edith Nesbit (1858-1924) was the author of world famous books for children - the tales of fantastical adventures, journeys back in time and travel to magical worlds. Nesbit also wrote for adults, including novels, short stories and four collections of horror stories.