Readers will find fascinating details about the discovery, whereabouts, and value of famous opals, from such classic specimens as the Burning of Troy Opal to the Bonanza Opal and other more recent discoveries. Finally, the book surveys today's major opal-producing areas and provides current information on opal occurrence worldwide. Punctuating the text are useful tables, extensive glossaries of opal types and opal-related terms, and beautiful photographs that capture the essence and mystery of this most exquisite stone.

This book is the latest in the popular Fred Ward Gem Book Series. The full-color photographs give the buyer and enthusiast all the information needed to understand the various types of opals and the ability to buy them wisely.

Opals emit a rainbow of colors, which makes them perfect gems to place in stunning pieces of jewelry. How do opals go from raw stones to beautiful gems? Readers discover the answer to this question as they learn the steps that must be taken and the technology that is used to find, cut, and polish opals. Clear main text and informative fact boxes help readers become experts on opals. Colorful photographs of these gems are sure to keep readers engaged as they learn.

New edition with added chapters and sections. Provides all the information necessary for complete analysis and evaluation of any opal from a true gem. Properly identify opals from all over the world and what characteristics affect value. Breathtaking color photos throughout.

Darius Thorne has learned to use his wit and intelligence to strategize a better life for himself. He is the White Knight amidst the small secret circle of Gentlemen known only as the Jaded. The handsome scholar shields his heart by keeping a studied distance from the world…until he rescues a beautiful woman. Isabel Netherton isn’t merely a damsel in distress. A high born lady of quality unwilling to be a pawn, she is defiantly escaping an abusive husband. But under Darius’s protection she discovers an unexpected champion--a man who teaches her the power of true desire and what it means to be treated like a queen. However, the law of the land supports her husband’s cruel claim. It will take all of Darius' wit to keep one step ahead of their enemies and protect Isabel. In a deadly game of chess, Darius must defeat the Black Knight and sacrifice himself for his Ivory Queen or forfeit all.

Opal Plumstead might be plain, but she has always been fiercely intelligent. Yet her scholarship and dreams of university are snatched away when her father is sent to prison, and fourteen-year-old Opal must start work at the Fairy Glen sweet factory to support her family. Opal struggles to get along with the other workers, who think her snobby and stuck-up. But Opal idolises Mrs Roberts, the factory’s beautiful, dignified owner, who introduces Opal to the legendary Mrs Pankhurst and her fellow Suffragettes. And when Opal meets Morgan - Mrs Roberts’ handsome son, and the heir to Fairy Glen – she believes she has found her soulmate. But the First World War is about to begin, and will change Opal's life for ever. The brilliantly gripping wartime story from the bestselling, award-winning Jacqueline Wilson.

"A beautiful and poignant reminder of the industry, joy and resilience of Black people in America."-Trey Ellis, Peabody and Emmy winning producer of King in the Wilderness andTrue Justice: Bryan Stevenson's Fight for Equality The year is 1921, and Opal Brown would like to show you around her beautiful neighborhood of Greenwood in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Filled with busy stores and happy families, Opal also wants you to know that "everyone looks like me." In both words and illustrations, this carefully researched and historically accurate book allows children to experience the joys and success of Greenwood, one of the most prosperous Black communities of the early 20th Century, an area Booker T. Washington dubbed America's Black Wall Street. Soon after the day narrated by Opal, Greenwood would be lost in the Tulsa Race Massacre, the worst act of racial violence in American history. As we approach the centennial of that tragic event, children have the opportunity through this book to learn and celebrate all that was built in Greenwood.

Caelum and his friends find themselves searching for the fragments of a powerful artifact. The pieces of the Opal Dragon are relics of the indigenous people of The New World and they enhance magical abilities. Caelum needs to find the fragments in order to return the land to health and prevent them falling into the hands of those who would use them for their own gain. His journey will take him through the varied and amazing landscape of the continent and it will open his eyes to the injustices done to its original inhabitants. It will make Caelum question who he is and his place in the world.Travel with him and his friends as they battle deadly knights and powerful monsters. Yet the most dangerous enemy may be one of their group.This edition had been professionally edited.