One summer’s eve Ola, Lina, Sina, and Trina leave their village to gather firewood in the forest, when they’re surprised by the hideous call of the terrible troll-bird, a giant rooster who pops up out of the treetops and swoops down to devour their beloved horse Blakken. Little does the terrible troll-bird know that in Ola, Lina, Sina, and Trina he has finally met his match: his terrible days of terrorizing are over. Before long the whole village is celebrating the monster’s demise, and even the gnomes and hulder-maidens are coming out of their hiding places in the woods to participate in a great feast. All celebration is cut short, though, with the startling appearance of two monstrous moss-grown trolls even more terrible than the terrible troll-bird himself. Luckily, the children rise to the occasion once more, saving the day before they set out on a splendid new adventure. Filled with vibrant illustrations and telling a story of childhood ingenuity and bravery, The Terrible Troll-Bird is a delightful companion to Ingri and Edgar Parin d’Aulaire’s more comprehensive books of Norwegian folklore, D’Aulaires’ Book of Norse Myths and D’Aulaires’ Book of Trolls.

In this spectacular follow-up to their beloved Book of Norse Myths, the husband-and-wife team of Ingri and Edgar Parin d’Aulaire explore the uncanny reaches of Norse mythology, an enchanted night-world populated by trolls of all kinds—mountain trolls, forest trolls, trolls who live underwater and trolls who live under bridges, uncouth, unkempt, unbreakable, unforgettable, and invariably unbelievably ugly trolls—who work their wiles and carry on in the most bizarre and entertaining fashions. With their matchless talent as storytellers and illustrators, the d’Aulaires bring to life the weird and wonderful world of Norse mythology.

THE CELEBRATED HUSBAND-AND-WIFE TEAM OF INGRI AND EDGAR PARIN D’AULAIRE prepared this exceptionally beautiful volume for their own son Ola, and it is as fresh and enchanting today as it was when it first sprung from their imaginations. D’Aulaires’ Book of Animals introduces young children to the creatures of every continent. Here more than fifty animals lithographed in full color form one side of a book that can be read page by page or unfolded to form a continuous panorama; the flipside of the panorama reveals the nighttime world of the animals in the very same settings. Each tableau presents the subjects in their native environments—from the tropical to the arctic—and is rendered with the exemplary richness of color and delightful understanding of the children’s world that distinguish the d’Aulaires’ much-loved retellings of the Norse and Greek myths and their wildly playful Book of Trolls. Young children, meeting animals from all over the world for the first time, will be delighted not only with the animals themselves but with the simple and engaging text which provides information about the way they act, the world they live in, and—best of all—the sounds they make. D’Aulaires’ Book of Animals is not only a perfect picture book for preschoolers, but a work of art that can be enjoyed by all.

In The Two Cars the celebrated husband and wife team of Ingri and Edgar Parin d’Aulaire, famous for their illustrated versions of Norse and Greek myths, offer young children a playful modern twist on the ancient fable of the tortoise and the hare. Two cars sit side by side in the same garage. One is fast, shiny, and ready to go; the other is a comfortable old jalopy, a little worse for wear but as reliable as can be. On a magic moonlit night, the doors of the garage swing open and they head out for a spin, each determined to prove that he is the “best car on the road.” Over hill and dale and roundabout they go, encountering—and narrowly missing—trains, trucks, wildlife, and even, in the form of a policeman on a motorcycle, the long arm of the law. Before the two cars’ nocturnal caper is over, each will have discovered the being the “best” is not so simple as you might suppose.

After Jack becomes apprenticed to a Druid bard, he and his little sister Lucy are captured by Viking Berserkers and taken to the home of King Ivar the Boneless and his half-troll queen, leading Jack to undertake a vital quest to Jotunheim, home of the trolls.

USA Today bestseller For five centuries, a witch’s curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the ruins of Forsaken Mountain—time enough for their nefarious magic to fade from human memory and into myth. But a prophecy has spoken of a union that will set the trolls free, and when Cécile de Troyes is taken beneath the mountain, she learns there is far more to the myth than she could have imagined. Cécile has only one thing on her mind after she is brought to Trollus: escape. But if she is to succeed, she must bide her time and find a way to outsmart the clever, fast, and inhumanly strong trolls that hold her captive. But while awaiting the perfect opportunity, Cécile unexpectedly falls for the enigmatic troll prince to whom she has been bonded and married. Their love gradually changes her perspective, opening her heart to new friends and opening her eyes to the hardships of the enslaved half-troll, half-human creatures of Trollus. As rebellion brews and the political games of Trollus escalate, Cécile becomes more than a trapped father’s daughter. She becomes a princess, a witch, and the hope of a people—someone who has the power to change Trollus forever.

How 4chan and 8chan fuel white nationalism, inspire violence, and infect politics. The internet has transformed the ways we think and act, and by consequence, our politics. The most impactful recent political movements on the far left and right started with massive online collectives of teenagers. Strangely, both movements began on the same website: an anime imageboard called 4chan.org. It Came from Something Awful is the fascinating and bizarre story of sites like 4chan and 8chan and their profound effect on youth counterculture. Dale Beran has observed the anonymous messageboard community's shifting activities and interests since the beginning. Sites like 4chan and 8chan are microcosms of the internet itself—simultaneously at the vanguard of contemporary culture, politics, comedy and language, and a new low for all of the above. They were the original meme machines, mostly frequented by socially awkward and disenfranchised young men in search of a place to be alone together. During the recession of the late 2000’s, the memes became political. 4chan was the online hub of a leftist hacker collective known as Anonymous and a prominent supporter of the Occupy Wall Street movement. But within a few short years, the site’s ideology spun on its axis; it became the birthplace and breeding ground of the alt-right. In It Came from Something Awful, Beran uses his insider’s knowledge and natural storytelling ability to chronicle 4chan's strange journey from creating rage-comics to inciting riots to—according to some—memeing Donald Trump into the White House.

This delightful storybook by the incomparable d'Aulaires, based on a poem by Hans Christian Andersen, will charm a whole new generation of little readers Don't count your chickens before they hatch, as the saying goes--but what about counting your eggs?! A woman with a good little house, a cat and a dog, and a fine hen who lays an egg every day (and even with a rooster who crows as if he'd laid the egg) sets off for town with a basket of fresh eggs. How much will she get for them? the woman wonders. Soon she is dreaming and scheming and beaming, counting the eggs and the coins they will fetch . . . and the hens the money will buy . . . and the eggs the new hens will lay! What bounty those eggs will bring her! She will buy two geese and a little lamb, which will give her wool . . . why not? Wait and see what happens in this playful take on a beloved Hans Christian Andersen poem. A true classic, Don't Count Your Chicks brings a timeless story to vivid life with all the old-world charm, humor, and brilliant colors that have made so many of the d'Aulaires' children's books perennial favorites.

What do medieval Icelanders mean when they say "troll"? What did they see when they saw a troll? What did the troll signify to them? And why did they see them? The principal subject of this book is the Norse idea of the troll, which the author uses to engage with the larger topic of paranormal experiences in the medieval North. The texts under study are from 13th-, 14th-, and 15th-century Iceland. The focus of the book is on the ways in which paranormal experiences are related and defined in these texts and how those definitions have framed and continue to frame scholarly interpretations of the paranormal. The book is partitioned into numerous brief chapters, each with its own theme. In each case the author is not least concerned with how the paranormal functions within medieval society and in the minds of the individuals who encounter and experience it and go on to narrate these experiences through intermediaries. The author connects the paranormal encounter closely with fears and these fears are intertwined with various aspects of the human experience including gender, family ties, and death. The Troll Inside You hovers over the boundaries of scholarship and literature. Its aim is to prick and provoke but above all to challenge its audience to reconsider some of their preconceived ideas about the medieval past.

Entertainment Weekly's 27 Female Authors Who Rule Sci-Fi and Fantasy Right Now Winner of the 2017 Nebula Award for Best Novel Finalist for the 2017 Hugo Award for Best Novel Paste's 50 Best Books of the 21st Century (So Far) List “The book is full of quirkiness and playful detail...but there's an overwhelming depth and poignancy to its virtuoso ending.” —NPR From the former editor-in-chief of io9.com, a stunning Nebula Award-winning and Hugo-shortlisted novel about the end of the world—and the beginning of our future An ancient society of witches and a hipster technological startup go to war in order to prevent the world from tearing itself apart. To further complicate things, each of the groups’ most promising followers (Patricia, a brilliant witch and Laurence, an engineering “wunderkind”) may just be in love with each other. As the battle between magic and science wages in San Francisco against the backdrop of international chaos, Laurence and Patricia are forced to choose sides. But their choices will determine the fate of the planet and all mankind. In a fashion unique to Charlie Jane Anders, All the Birds in the Sky offers a humorous and, at times, heart-breaking exploration of growing up extraordinary in a world filled with cruelty, scientific ingenuity, and magic. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.