New Releases

If just the word “grammar” makes you cringe, this is the book you’ve been waiting for. In 37 Things to Know About Grammar, Matteson Claus takes an irreverent look at common grammar gaffes and gives you the tools to slay your grammar gremlins. 

• Puzzle out your verb tenses while you hang out with pirates.
• Parse your prepositions with camel-riding bank robbers.
• Conquer parallelism during a discussion of vampire viscera.
• Learn how to corral your commas while Petunia chomps a clerk.
• Avoid the dreaded sentence fragment and still have fun with Dick and Jane.
• And more!

Also included in this handy reference tool are lists of the most commonly misused and misspelled words. This is the book for people at work and leisure so spooked by the grammar gremlins that they’ve heard a bump in the night every time they put pen to paper. Until now.

Have You Found “the One”? 

The decision to get engaged is one of the most exciting and important decisions you will ever make. 51 Things You Should Know Before Getting Engaged offers the insights and techniques necessary for a successful engagement and marriage. Psychotherapist Michael Batshaw gives you the tools to decide whether your partner is the right one for you, and if so, how to keep it that way. 

Some of his advice: 

• Beware the person of your dreams. 
• Couples who do everything together do not have a relationship that can survive. 
• Couples who do not argue are in trouble. 
• Hollywood gets it wrong. 
• The truth of the moment is not the whole truth.

At the poker table, just like in the ocean, baitfish get gobbled up by sharks. To help you ascend to the top of the poker food chain, 52 Things To Pick Up Your Poker Game answers all the game’s most important questions with over 50 tips and strategies to give you the upper hand. So whether you’re a seasoned pro or a bare-bones beginner, this handy, information-packed guide will take your poker game to the next level by helping you discover:

• Bluffing techniques and when to use them—or not use them
• Winning strategies when you don’t have a winning hand
• What players to choose or avoid as your opponent
• How to help determine your opponent’s hand
• How to capitalize on your opponent’s weaknesses and your strengths

• What it is that makes smoking so addictive
• The benefits and downsides to quitting “cold turkey”  
• The latest treatments that have been proven to work, including natural approaches 
• How to deal with your withdrawal symptoms

• What it is that makes smoking so addictive
• The benefits and downsides to quitting “cold turkey”  
• The latest treatments that have been proven to work, including natural approaches 
• How to deal with your withdrawal symptoms

Do your kids need to move more and lose some weight? In 35 Things to Know to Raise Active Kids you will discover fun, inexpensive, and nontraditional ways to get your kids off the couch and outside playing. These activities are for all children, not just the already fit or sports-obsessed. With bonus tips and stories from fitness celebrities, this easy-to-read, humorous guide will help you:

• Role model an active lifestyle
• Use TV to get your kids in shape
• Turn household chores into exercise
• Teach your child to play alone
• Create memories and rituals that get the whole family moving

Feeling that you and your spouse need some new sparkle for that old marriage, but you’re too busy to take a seminar? Here is a guide filled with simple pointers for reviving the luster in that all-important relationship. In 75 Things To Improve Your Marriage Without Your Spouse Even Knowing, Barbara Bartlein offers an array of tips for rubbing the tarnish from the routine. Here are a few:

• Put out the fancy dishes for no particular reason
• Surprise them with a water balloon!
• Compliment them in public
• Dance in the living room
• Say, “I have confidence in you,” and say it often
• Have an attitude of gratitude

Every year, 1 in every 100 children in America are diagnosed with autism. Although autism has reached epidemic proportions, it is far from understood. In 41 Things To Know About Autism, Chantal Sicile-Kira provides a clear, instructive explanation of autism. If you know someone with autism and would benefit from a quick, straightforward explanation of the condition, this book is for you. 41 Things explores questions such as:

• What are the causes of autism? Can vaccines cause autism?
• How can I recognize the symptoms of autism?
• What are the emotional effects of autism on the family? 
• Why do children and teens with autism act the way they do?

While the debate over our changing environment rages on, one thing remains clear: being green is a hot topic—socially, politically, and economically. Whether you’ve “been green” from birth or don’t even know what the three “Rs” stand for, 48 Things To Know About Sustainable Living can help you make small, affordable (or free!) changes that will have a major impact on the environment and simplify your everyday life. Chock-full of tips and useful Web sites, 48 Things will show you how to easily become planet-friendly by: 

• Discovering eco-friendly substitutions for everything from food and clothing to appliances, cleaning products, office supplies, and transportation
• Reducing waste and electricity, saving you time and money
• Taking advantage of both modern green technology and renewable natural resources

In a place where murder isn’t supposed to happen—Southern Illinois—deputy sheriff and investigator Harry Spiller learned the hard reality: murder is all around us. It doesn’t matter whether you live in a big city or small county with farms and churches—murder is swift and can happen to anyone, anywhere, and any time. All too often, victims fall prey in places we think are safe to raise our families, where we take walks on hot summer nights, where our children play in the park or yard without concern, and where we leave our doors unlocked at night.

Murder in the Heartland tells the stories of innocent victims in these seemingly innocent places. From his research and investigations of twenty murder cases, Spiller recounts the gruesome details of an axe murder, a hitchhiking incident, serial killings, and even a victim buried within the concrete floors of her own basement.

As much as we like to think we’re safe, murder can happen even in rural America—and it does. Join Spiller in his first of three installments of these horrifying murders in the heartland.

In a place where murder isn’t supposed to happen—rural Missouri and Southern Illinois—deputy sheriff and investigator Harry Spiller learned the hard reality: murder is all around us. It doesn’t matter whether you live in a big city or small county with farms and churches—murder is swift and can happen to anyone, anywhere, and any time. All too often, victims fall prey in places we think are safe to raise our families, where we take walks on hot summer nights, where our children play in the park or yard without concern, and where we leave our doors unlocked at night.

Murder in the Heartland, Book 2 tells the stories of innocent victims in these seemingly innocent places. From his research and investigations of ten murder cases, Spiller recounts the gruesome details of a fraternity hazing gone deadly, teen killings, and even murders by those living and working with the victims.

As much as we like to think we’re safe, murder can happen even in rural America—and it does. Join Spiller in the second installment of his three-book series of these horrifying murders in the heartland.

Cabernet, pinot noir, tannins, residual sugar. The language of wine is foreign to many of us, and wine itself is a topic that can also seem foreign—and snobbish. An unpretentious presentation of the essentials of wine, 34 Things To Know About Wine is an easy way to gain straightforward information about a simple yet complex subject. This book, presented in an easy-to-understand, entertaining format, will allow you to better:

• Enjoy wine in all its complexity
• Be at ease in the wine environment
• Save money by making choices that suit your palate
• Understand the language of wine
• Choose wines to complement meals

Is your sales career green and growing or ripe and rotting? Whatever condition you find it in, 97 Things to Take Your Sales Career to the Next Level shares simple but practical insights to help you become a high-performing sales professional. Unlike other business guides, this handbook features easy-to-understand strategies you can begin practicing in just minutes for high payoffs. So take your sales career to the next level by learning how to:

• Develop positive, productive daily habits from the moment you rise
• Diminish stress, work overload, and problems from difficult clients
• Understand prospects’ and clients’ needs with the four social styles
• Develop confidence, trust, and greater self-motivation

Every couple for whom marriage is forever unearths nuggets of wisdom along the way. In Love for a Lifetime: Daily Wisdom and Wit for a Long and Happy Marriage, columnist Mary Hance shares a wealth of golden tips, collected far and wide from young couples just setting out to those whose wedding vows still echo through half a century and more. Here are a few:

• “Throw the word fair out the window. In one year of a marriage, one person may need 99 percent of the love, effort, or focus of the other; another year, it may be just the opposite.”
• “What my father always told me when I was planning my wedding: ‘You have to want to have a marriage, not just a wedding. Remember the difference.’ ”
• “Learn fast that the grass is not greener on the other side of the fence!”
  
• “After several years of marriage, there is no way I’m training another husband, so I will just keep the one I have!”

Life as a series of distractions is seldom passionate and may even feel purposeless. But eliminating all the background noise, in search of that one intelligent passion that imparts to life a meaningful goal, can be difficult. For those in search of their calling, 50 Things Your Life Doesn’t Need offers simple ways to fine-tune the frequency so that finding your passion becomes feasible. What are some things that you could eliminate to make your passionate contribution to the world a realizable goal? How about

• long commutes to and from the workplace
• storage units for all that extra stuff
• small dreams and bucket lists
• a tyranny of T-shirts
• unbatched errands and bad wine
• this book

That’s right, this book. But you will have to read it to find out why!

What makes a relationship healthy? Most men and women will respond that it's good communication to be able to openly express their own thoughts and feelings, and to better understand their partner's. Emotional Intelligence for Couples explains basic principles of emotional intelligence to equip you with common-sense ways to express your feelings, allowing you to enjoy greater intimacy, clearer communication, and a deeper connection than you have ever known. Discover answers to questions like:

What actions and behaviors will make our relationship healthier?

How can we practice healthy arguing and recognize healthy anger?

How can we prevent our criticism, manipulation, and blame games?

Why do I need personal boundaries?

Do you know what it takes to play the game? At the poker table, just like in the ocean, baitfish get gobbled up by sharks. To help you ascend to the top of the poker food chain, Pick Up Your Poker Game answers all the game's most important questions with over 50 tips and strategies to give you the upper hand. So whether you're a seasoned pro or a bare-bones beginner, this handy, information-packed guide will take your poker game to the next level by helping you discover:

• Winning strategies when you don't have a winning hand
• Bluffing techniques and when to use them
• What players to choose or avoid as your opponent
• How to help determine your opponent's hand
• How to capitalize on your opponent's weaknesses and your strengths

Acclaimed novelist Barbara Wood combines her superb storytelling gifts with medical and historical fact to create the epic adventure of an unusual and gifted young woman seeking her destiny in the ancient healing arts.

Born into the tumultuous world of ancient Antioch, Selene is orphaned at birth. But before her father dies, he leaves a puzzling clue to her heritage: she has come from the gods and has a special destiny to fulfill. In the coming years, Selene studies the primitive healing arts with Mera, the healer-woman who adopts her. She learns how to lower fevers by brewing Hecate's Cure from the willow tree, how to apply green mold to an open wound to prevent infection, and most important, how to calm a patient by summoning the inner power of the "soul flame." But on her sixteenth birthday, Selene falls in love with Andreas, a passionate and troubled surgeon. When fate cruelly separates them, Selene's search for Andreas takes her to the great centers of civilization in the ancient world—Egypt, Babylon, and Rome. Desperate to find Andreas, Selene is torn between love and her dreams of healing when a revolutionary vision brings her to the fulfillment of her destiny—and the dawn of modern medicine.

• How to prioritize your spending where it shows
• How to get bargains on everything from the venue and caterer to the florist 
• Where to look beyond the bridal salon for the best deals on gowns and accessories
• Easy, creative ideas for invitations, decorations, gifts, and more

Barbara Wood delivers a gripping story of family secrets, madness, and suspense in nineteenth-century England.

After her mother's death in 1857, Leyla's only links with her heritage and family are a letter and her last name—Pemberton. Resolved to seek out her past, she travels from London to the brooding countryside mansion of Pemberton Hurst. Leyla longs to find a loving family, but more important, she needs to uncover the truth of her past. But the Pembertons seem strangely reluctant to discuss family history, and the house feels smothered by the weight of untold secrets. Increasingly torn between the safety of life with her sophisticated fiancé in London and a new, dangerous love, Leyla is no longer sure where to turn and whom to trust. Then terror strikes. A murderer roams the corridors of Pemberton Hurst, and Leyla is suddenly thrown into a maelstrom of deceit, madness, and horror. With her life in jeopardy, Leyla must uncover the truth of her past before it destroys her.

From bestselling author Barbara Wood comes an exciting thriller teeming with adventure and suspense about two sisters caught in a deadly international game.

It's been four years since Lydia Harris last spoke to her elder sister, Adele. When Adele telephones from Rome and interrupts Lydia's work as a nurse at the Santa Monica Emergency Hospital, she's more than a little surprised—and curious.

Adele explains that she sent a parcel to Lydia, and after Lydia receives it, she must come to Rome at once. Disturbed by her sister's cryptic message, Lydia is further puzzled when the parcel arrives containing a beautiful Egyptian gaming piece in the form of a jackal. When Lydia's apartment is suddenly burglarized, she's astonished that the only thing stolen is the wrapping paper in which the jackal was mailed.

Deeply concerned about her sister's fate, Lydia determines to track her down, flying first to Rome and then to Cairo. But the deeper she becomes involved in her search, the further she leaves behind the comfortable world of her hospital and the undeclared love of a handsome doctor. Drawn into a lethal battle of wits, Lydia confronts murder, mysterious strangers, and death threats. But in a final confrontation in the Valley of the Kings, Lydia just might face her worst nightmare.

If there ever was a time to find creative ways to do more with less, that time is now.

99 Things to Save Money in Your Household Budget shows you how to save money with a new way of thinking and prioritizing. The “doing more with less’’ mentality is easier said than done. Mary Hance (a.k.a. Ms. Cheap) offers simple tips and tactics to help creatively stretch your hard-earned dollars, allowing you to be who you are and do what you enjoy without going beyond your means. Learn how to:

• Have a budget: How to sit down and figure your worth and what you spend. 
• Keep in mind that nothing is a bargain if you don’t need it.
• Use a credit card to your fiscal advantage.
• Take advantage of garage sales for home improvement and adding to your wardrobe.
• Go green to save green: How less power usage is good for both the environment and your wallet.

Unlike other diet and fitness books that try to apply a one-size-fits-all approach or peddle the latest weight-loss “secret,” 5 Things to Know for Successful and Lasting Weight Loss is not a how-to book that prescribes a specific diet and exercise regimen. Rather, it teaches readers how to apply powerful techniques to achieve successful and lasting weight loss. These 5 Things will help you to: 

• Change your weight-loss desires into goals 
• Get motivated during the weak times and plateaus 
• Create easy, delicious recipes to adopt healthier eating habits 
• Stay motivated when facing other difficult journeys 

First Novel in the St. Simons Trilogy

A compelling, vibrant saga of conflict, love, and a young man's search to fulfill his dreams.

In this enthralling first novel of the St. Simons Trilogy, Eugenia Price shares the compelling story of James Gould, a young man with a passionate dream. Raised in post-Revolution Granville, Massachusetts, Gould could only imagine the beauty and warmth of lands to the south. It was there that he longed to build bridges and lighthouses from his very own design and plans. The gripping story unfolds as Gould follows his dream to the raw settlement of Bangor on the Penobscot River, to St. Simons Island off the coast of Georgia, to lawless Spanish East Florida, and back—at last and finally—to St. Simons. Along the way, he encounters hardship, peril, failure, and success, but it is the unwavering love of Janie Harris, an especially beautiful and strong-willed young woman, that fulfills his deep need for someone who can share the dream and the life he has chosen.

America’s bestselling author and inspirational columnist Catherine Galasso-Vigorito brings practical Biblical advice and true, modern-day stories to serve as illuminating encouragement in the face of life’s challenges.
Filled with encouraging true stories, rich Biblical passages, and pragmatic words of wisdom, The Open Window provides workable suggestions and concrete ways to help deal with the challenges of life. This unique devotional offers strengthening principles for difficult circumstances, as well as stories of encouragement that reveal how times of adversity can become windows of opportunity—if we can see that a window is open.

Featuring eight weeks of daily guidance, The Open Window will show how, with faith and trust in God, one can take focused steps to look beyond present difficulties and find the Light that is shining inside. In a captivating voice, Catherine Galasso-Vigorito shares personal moments from her own life as intimate examples of persistence. Recommended for individual or group study.

The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Wine—No Snobbery, Just Sips!

Love wine but feel overwhelmed by all the terminology, tasting notes, and labels? Uncorked: A Beginner’s Guide to Wine is your friendly, easy-to-understand wine guide for beginners. Whether you're choosing wine for a dinner party or exploring your own palate, this no-nonsense book helps you feel confident in any setting—from restaurants to wine tastings and beyond.

Perfect for casual wine drinkers and curious newcomers alike, this entertaining wine book covers everything you need to get started—from how wine is made to how to choose the right wine for any meal or mood.

Inside this wine lover’s companion, you’ll learn how to:

• Understand the winemaking process from grape to glass
• Speak the language of wine—terms like tannins, oaked, dry, full-bodied, and more
• Taste and enjoy wine like a pro without the snob factor
• Confidently pair wines with food for any occasion
• Make informed wine choices that match your taste and save money

Complete with a handy glossary and bite-sized chapters, Uncorked is your go-to wine education book—fun, approachable, and packed with real-world tips.

If you're ready to stop guessing and start sipping smarter, this is the wine guide for you.

The definitive guide to the historic S.S. United States, featuring the classic text with a new foreword and introduction by the SS United States Conservancy.

The Big Ship: The Story of the S.S. United States is the fascinating behind-the-scenes story of one of the fastest ships in the world. Follow Frank Braynard, the nation’s leading maritime historian, as he chronicles the life of the S.S. United States, which still holds the West-bound speed record on the North Atlantic. This book stands as a fitting tribute of her maiden voyage, a celebration of her recent rescue efforts by the SS United States Conservancy, and an inspiration for future generations to restore the legacy of the greatest ocean liner this country has ever built.

THE BESTSELLING MEDITERRANEAN DIET BOOK IN THE MEDITERRANEAN

Join the hundreds of thousands who are eating well and getting slimmer with the new Mediterranean diet book. Featuring delicious, fat-burning, easy-to-make Mediterranean diet recipes, a simple plan, and the psychological tools to stay slimmer, this international bestselling diet sensation takes the incredible flavors of the Mediterranean and adds new fat-burning ingredients that get amazing results.

Harry Papas, a certified dietitian in Greece, lost over 100 pounds by creating a revolutionary nutrition plan: a delicious, fat-burning Mediterranean diet coupled with the self-awareness he needed to combat the triggers that contributed to his weight gain.

Unlike other diets, The New Mediterranean Diet’s delicious meal plan is designed to help you stay slim while actually enjoying what you eat. This easy-to-follow Mediterranean diet plan will allow you to get rid of those unwanted pounds with incredibly flavorful and satisfying meals, full of sustaining, wholesome foods—such as fresh fruits and vegetables, olive oil, and Greek yogurt—that have been enjoyed for centuries by those in the Mediterranean as well as celebrities visiting Papas’ family restaurant in Greece.

Packed with recipes and practical nutritional advice, The New Mediterranean Diet also helps you understand why you gained weight and provides the psychological support and encouragement you need to successfully lose weight and permanently retain the loss.

The New Mediterranean Diet features a winning combination of:

• Fat-burning ingredients from the Mediterranean
• 9-week meal-plan cycles featuring incredibly delicious, easy, and satisfying recipes, including several made with Greek yogurt
• Simple lifestyle changes practiced in the Mediterranean to help you eat, relax, and live well
• Testimonials and success stories from Harry’s Health and Diet Centre in Athens
• The psychology behind your weight-gain—how to understand your weight-gain triggers so that you can change your habits, eating and otherwise

Introduction: The Slimmer Story

PART I: THE SLIMMER NUTRITIONAL PROGRAM

Chapter 1: Slimmer and the Mediterranean Diet and Lifestyle
The Mediterranean Diet
The Mediterranean Lifestyle

Chapter 2: The Slimmer Program
Love at First Taste
The Slimmer Cycles
    Cycle A Menu Plan
    Cycle B Menu Plan
    Cycle C Menu Plan
The Recipes
    Cycle A
    Cycle B
    Cycle C
Frequently Asked Questions

Chapter 3: Maintaining Your Success

PART II: THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SLIMMER

Activating Your Goal: How to Get to and Maintain Your Ideal Weight

Conclusion

A practical guide to helping your teen tackle the tough issues and giving them the tools for success.

Drinking. Being popular. Making good grades. Being thin and fit. Today’s teens are constantly bombarded with issues from their classmates, friends, and the media. Trying to handle everything causes stress that can lead to anxiety, depression, alcohol abuse, eating disorders, and even suicidal thoughts. Don’t be left in the dark. With fact-driven research and practical advice, Stress-Proof Your Teen addresses these problems to help you help your teens de-stress and live up to their full potential. Topics include: 

The Pope. The Holy Eucharist. The Blessed Virgin Mary. The Seven Sacraments.

Catholicism is filled with great mysteries, so you've probably been confused about this 2,000-year-old religion at one time or another. In 29 Things To Know About Catholicism, the Catholic Church is beliefs are explored in easy-to-understand terms for the devout Catholic and the curious non-Catholic alike.

This quick go-to guide helps answer these questions:

• Was the Catholic Church the first Christian church?
• Do Catholics worship Mary and pray to saints?
• How do I know what to do in Mass with all its Latin chants and prayers, kneeling, holy water, confession, and communion?
• Does the communion bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ?
• Can the priest—a human–forgive sins?

Set in the untamed landscape of mid-nineteenth century Australia, The Dreaming is a rich and potent tale of hidden passion and broken taboo.

Australia, 1871—Following her mother’s sudden death, Joanna Drury sets sail from India and arrives in Melbourne to claim the property left to her by her mother—and to trace the mysteries of her family’s past.

From her first steps on shore, Joanna becomes entangled with a lost boy who leads her to the fascinating Hugh Westbrook. She agrees to look after the child in exchange for Hugh’s help in finding her inheritance. But she falls deeply in love with Hugh and with life at his sheep station, Merinda.

When strange nightmares begin to plague her—the same that tormented her mother—Joanna starts to notice the Aborigines’ strange reaction to her. Delving into Australia’s past, she discovers the tragic events that have marked her family’s destiny and her own life, events that happened long ago in the time the Aborigines call “the Dreaming.”

Full of intriguing historical detail, Wood’s compelling story brings the clash of immigrant and Aboriginal cultures to stunning life, capturing the danger, mystery, and romance of an emerging country.

The savviest bargainista bride knows that creativity—not money—is the greatest influence on wedding style. Now more than ever, brides have freedom to express their unique, imaginative style to create extraordinary weddings on any budget. 52 Things Brides on a Budget Should Know will keep you from feeling trapped by your budget constraints, steer you away from unnecessary spending, and convince you that you don’t need to go into debt to have an incredibly personal, chic wedding. In this simple, practical guide you’ll learn:

• How to get bargains on everything from the venue to the florist
• How to prioritize your wedding spending where it shows
• Where to look beyond the bridal salon for the best deals on gowns and more

• How to recognize what problems may be leading to a divorce
• What you can do to protect your marriage from divorce
• How to find the right experts to help you through the process
• Steps you can take to change the outcome of your divorce

From master storyteller Barbara Wood comes an engrossing suspense novel about a young girl caught between the possibilities of science and the mysteries of faith.

According to the doctors, seventeen-year-old Mary McFarland is pregnant. But Mary knows she is a virgin, despite her strange symptoms. In 1960s America, a woman's worst social disgrace is to become pregnant out of wedlock. A good Catholic high school girl, Mary suddenly finds herself at the center of a scandal, rejected and ostracized by family, friends, and even her priest. Although she believes emphatically in her own innocence, no one else believes the truth. When a doctor begins to wonder if Mary's claim to innocence could possibly be justified, he begins to investigate. The scientific theory he develops to explain her pregnancy is so bizarre and such a medical oddity that he knows the McFarland family, the church—and the world—will very likely refuse to accept it. But if he is right, what kind of child is Mary carrying? Mary and her family are suddenly trapped in a chilling conflict between the possibilities of science—and the mysteries of faith.