You will be creating for the rest of your life. You might as well do it on purpose. Everyone was an artist, once. But somewhere between kindergarten and now, we lost the confidence to create. We’ve crumbled under the pressure to find our place in the “real, grown-up” world and now see the art room as a happy memory with no real value. Instead of approaching the world with childhood freedom and peace, we fear unmet ambitions. We fear that our lives have little meaning, purpose, or value. We fear that God has a plan for us, but we’re missing it. Yet if we travel back to our seats in the art room, art teacher Matt Appling reminds us of lessons we’ve forgotten, the joy of creating, and the freedom we had to succeed or fail. We can relearn these lessons and practice them to lead the contented, joy-filled, and productive lives that God created us to live.

In addition to a stirring personal narrative, Chasing Silhouettes is comprised of advice from some of the nation's top eating disorder experts, sample prayers for when yours run out, as well as stories of others who've battled, and overcome, eating disorders.

For women who have grown up in the tension between third-wave feminism and Martha Stewart, it can be a struggle to define and embrace the meaning of home. There is constant pressure to do things a certain way, and sometimes intense criticism from those who think you're doing it wrong. But what if home isn't really about whether or not you homeschool or have a career? What if it's more about who you are than what you do? A self-proclaimed "former subversive," Emily T. Wierenga has learned the art of making a home and the joy of settling down. Emily takes readers on an unconventional journey through marriage, miscarriage, foster parenting, and the daily struggle of longing to be known, inviting them into a quest for identity in the midst of life's daily interruptions. Through soul-stirring writing, she helps women understand that homemaking is much more than old-fashioned tradition; rather, it's a timeless art requiring mind, body, and spirit.

Sometimes it feels like life's falling apart at the seams. Sometimes you're completely worn out by stresses that never seem to end. For every woman who has been disappointed, who has watched a dream die, whose life isn't what she imagined it would be, bestselling author Holley Gerth has a heartfelt message of hope--you really are going to be okay. And it is possible to live with joy, resilience, and strength in both the good times and the bad. In fact, she says, that's what God desires for us. With her trademark positive encouragement and probing questions for self-reflection, Holley encourages women to spend less of their lives regretting and more of their lives truly living. She shows them how to guard their hearts against despair and look to the future with confidence, remembering that they are part of a greater plan and nothing can stop God's purposes for them.

Determined never to fall in love, Scarlett Faye Turner, who thrives on scandal, is thwarted by her attraction to gorgeous Gina Jamison, an infatuation that leads her on a powerful journey of self-discovery, in an engaging and erotic debut novel that explores the unpredictable nature of love. Original. 10,000 first printing.

It is acknowledged that creative writing, anywhere, remains a rather intensely personal affair, without being private. And indeed, it is because of the lack of privacy in creative writing that a nation should encourage the growth of its literary tradition. Writers do not just tell their stories or poets show their emotions; in their moods, they assume a multidimensional posture so as to be able to tell universally acceptable stories to appeal to different human senses. The contributors to this anthology are mostly first time writers, whose works have not appeared in mainstream literary journals and publications. While a few names among these contributors may be known in the local Sierra Leonean literary circles as having produced one kind of work or the other, their names are largely unknown outside of Sierra Leone. This situation has to change and is the reason that Leoneanthology has been compiled and published.

An insider's look at the cutting-edge science of today's planet hunters In Strange New Worlds, renowned astronomer Ray Jayawardhana brings news from the front lines of the epic quest to find planets—and alien life—beyond our solar system. Only in the past two decades, after millennia of speculation, have astronomers begun to discover planets around other stars—thousands in fact. Now they are closer than ever to unraveling distant twins of the Earth. In this book, Jayawardhana vividly recounts the stories of the scientists and the remarkable breakthroughs that have ushered in this extraordinary age of exploration. He describes the latest findings--including his own—that are challenging our view of the cosmos and casting new light on the origins and evolution of planets and planetary systems. He reveals how technology is rapidly advancing to support direct observations of Jupiter-like gas giants and super-Earths—rocky planets with several times the mass of our own planet—and how astronomers use biomarkers to seek possible life on other worlds. Strange New Worlds provides an insider's look at the cutting-edge science of today's planet hunters, our prospects for discovering alien life, and the debates and controversies at the forefront of extrasolar-planet research. In a new afterword, Jayawardhana explains some of the most recent developments as we search for the first clues of life on other planets.

Spectrum of Thoughts is a team of winners, for the writers and by the writers. We believe every writer has a different and unique story to share. Together these stories form a beautiful gallery with a touch of individuality just like the beautiful Violet flowers, thus the name Violaceous.

We all want someone to think we’re sensational. We desire to be recognized, to be valued, to be respected. To be loved. Yet this natural yearning too often turns into an idol of one of God’s most precious gifts: love itself. If you, like so many of us, spend your time and energy trying to earn someone’s approval—at work, home, and church—all the while fearing that, at any moment, the facade will drop and everyone will see your hidden mess . . . then love may have become an idol in your life. In this poignant and hope-filled book, Jennifer Dukes Lee shares her own lifelong journey of learning to rely on the unconditional love of God. She gently invites us to make peace with our imperfections and to stop working overtime for a love that is already ours. Love Idol will help us dismantle what’s separating us from true connection with God and rediscover the astonishing joy of a life full of freedom in Christ.

"Slobodchikoff's ground-breaking research" (Jonathan Balcombe) shows us that animals have much to teach us about language Groundbreaking research has been done teaching animals human language, but what about the other way around? Studies have shown that lizards, squid, monkeys, and birds are talking to each other, communicating information about food, predators, squabbles, and petty jealousies. These animal languages are unique and highly adaptive. By exploring them, we come to appreciate the basis of our own languages; understanding or even "speaking" them allows us to get closer to the other species who inhabit this planet with us. The implications of animals having language are enormous. It has been one of the last bastions separating "us" from "them." Slobodchikoff's studies of the communication system of prairie dogs over twenty-five years have attracted a considerable amount of attention from the media, including a one-hour documentary on his work produced by BBC and Animal Planet. In Chasing Doctor Dolittle, he posits that the difference is one of degree, not the vast intellectual chasm that philosophers have talked about for millennia. Filled with meticulous research, vivid examples and daring conclusions, this book will challenge the reader's assumptions and open up new possibilities of understanding our fellow creatures.