A celebration of family, culture, and the enduring bond between generations Sadie’s grandmother is studying art and invites Sadie to learn and share her passion. But Sadie’s grandmother passes on more than her love of art to her grandchild; she also shares her knowledge of Jewish cultural traditions. Sadie learns about the meaning of “chai”—the Hebrew word for life—and the significance of the lucky number eighteen. Her grandmother will soon graduate from college, so Sadie commits herself to finding a perfect way to celebrate with a gift that combines her love of art and newly learned traditions. Readers will appreciate the relationship at the heart of the story in which a passion for art and cultural traditions are lovingly shared between the generations. Eighteen Flowers for Grandma is where love, tradition, and creativity intersect; it will leave an indelible mark on the hearts of readers young and old. Backmatter includes additional information about several Jewish cultural references found in the book, the Hebrew alphabet, and a note about the author’s inspiration for the story.

"The life story of Ghanaian sculptor El Anatsui, a highly acclaimed African artist, whose tapestries made from repurposed bottle tops have been exhibited throughout the world"--

Describes the depth, height, and steadiness of one's love for another by comparing it with the deepest drill, tallest crane, and steadiest tugboat.

The first time I lost all memory of Tucker, we had just met. We were seventeen, stuck in the disco room of the children’s hospital, both of our heads covered in electrodes wrapped in gauze. Not exactly attractive. Except we were—attracted, that is. I never got to meet boys my age back then. Or any boys. Mother made sure of that. There was no point, she said. I would forget them the next time I had a seizure. That’s right. I didn’t mention that. I have epilepsy. It started in kindergarten. Spacing out. My eyes clocking back and forth. Then the whole enchilada. On the ground, shaking all over. Not all my seizures erase my memory. But some do. Every year or two I go down, and bam, that’s it. My entire history evaporates like water on a skillet. But on that first magical day, Tucker yelled, “Come here often?” over the mechanical thrashing of a song I’d never heard, at least not since my last memory reset. “Never! Do you?” I yelled back. That was all we got. The disco lights switched to strobes, the kind designed to cause a seizure. That’s why I was there. For the wires on my head to collect data. To show the doctors what was going on inside my brain. And hopefully, to help me. I took one more look at him as my legs gave way, and the sizzle in my head turned my vision black. Tucker. I had no idea then that I had just met the love of my life. In a few seconds, I wouldn’t remember him at all. ___ This Kiss is an extraordinary romance between two people with epilepsy who fall in love in the toughest of circumstances. As Tucker unfailingly convinces Ava to return to him over and over again, he teaches her that even when memory fails, the heart remembers. ---- -- With heartfelt sweetness and a poignant love story, this novel is a must-read for anyone seeking a touching and unforgettable romance. "This Kiss" is my new favorite book to make me cry! ~ Krista Lakes, New York Times bestselling author -- This compelling, heartfelt story is exactly what I love in romance reading. These truly special characters will burrow into your heart and their story will live in your soul long after the last page. ~ BookAddict -- This Kiss is a beautiful and emotional journey of finding your soulmate again and again. ~ Jenn Reads Romance Book Blog

A History of Zinnias brings forward the fascinating adventure of zinnias and the spirit of civilization. With colorful illustrations, this book is a cultural and horticultural history documenting the development of garden zinnias—one of the top ten garden annuals grown in the United States today. The deep and exciting history of garden zinnias pieces together a tale involving Aztecs, Spanish conquistadors, people of faith, people of medicine, explorers, scientists, writers, botanists, painters, and gardeners. The trail leads from the halls of Moctezuma to a cliff-diving prime minister; from Handel, Mozart, and Rossini to Gilbert and Sullivan; from a little-known confession by Benjamin Franklin to a controversy raised by Charles Darwin; from Emily Dickinson, who writes of death and zinnias, to a twenty-year-old woman who writes of reanimated corpses; and from a scissor-wielding septuagenarian who painted with bits of paper to the “Black Grandma Moses” who painted zinnias and inspired the opera Zinnias. Zinnias are far more than just a flower: They represent the constant exploration of humankind’s quest for beauty and innovation.

Celebrate the fortieth anniversary of the enduring gothic masterpiece Flowers in the Attic—the unforgettable forbidden love story that earned V.C. Andrews a fiercely devoted fan base and became an international cult classic. At the top of the stairs there are four secrets hidden—blond, innocent, and fighting for their lives… They were a perfect and beautiful family—until a heartbreaking tragedy shattered their happiness. Now, for the sake of an inheritance that will ensure their future, the children must be hidden away out of sight, as if they never existed. They are kept in the attic of their grandmother’s labyrinthine mansion, isolated and alone. As the visits from their seemingly unconcerned mother slowly dwindle, the four children grow ever closer and depend upon one another to survive both this cramped world and their cruel grandmother. A suspenseful and thrilling tale of family, greed, murder, and forbidden love, Flowers in the Attic is the unputdownable first novel of the epic Dollanganger family saga. The Dollanganger series includes: Flowers in the Attic, Petals in the Wind, If There Be Thorns, Seeds of Yesterday, Garden of Shadows, Beneath the Attic, and Out of the Attic.

Built on twenty years of fieldwork in rural Jiangyong of Hunan Province in south China, this book explores the world's only gender-defined and now disappearing "women's script" known as nüshu. What drove peasant women to create a script of their own and write, and how do those writings throw new light on how gender is addressed in epistemology and historiography and how the unprivileged social class uses marginalized forms of expression to negotiate with the dominant social structure. Further, how have the politics of salvaging this disappearing centuries-old cultural heritage molded a new poetics in contemporary society? This book explores nüshu in conjunction with the local women's singing tradition (nüge), tied into the life narratives of four women born in the 1910s, 1930s, and 1960s respectively, each representative in her own way: a nüge singer (majority of Jiangyong women), a child bride (enjoying not much nüshu/nüge), the last living traditionally-trained nüshu writer, and a new-generation nüshu transmitter. Altogether, their stories unfold peasant women's lifeworlds and forefronts various aspects of China's changing social milieu over the past century. They show how nüshu/nüge-registering women's sense and sensibilities and providing agency to subjects who have been silenced by history-constitute a reflexive social field whereby women share life stories to expand the horizon of their personal worldviews and probe beneath the surface of their existence for new inspiration in their process of becoming. With the concept of "expressive depths," this book opens a new vista on how women express themselves through multiple forms that simultaneously echo and critique the mainstream social system and urges a rethinking of how forms of expression define and confine the voice carried. Examining the multiple efforts undertaken by scholars, local officials, and cultural entrepreneurs to revive nüshu which have ironically threatened to disfigure its true face, this book poses a question of whither nüshu? Should it be transformed, or has it reached a perfect end point from which to fade into history?