A “magnificent and intimate” (Harper’s) modern classic of Russian history, the spellbinding story of the love that ended an empire—from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Peter the Great, The Romanovs, and Catherine the Great “A moving, rich book . . . [This] revealing, densely documented account of the last Romanovs focuses not on the great events . . . but on the royal family and their evil nemesis. . . . The tale is so bizarre, no melodrama is equal to it.”—Newsweek In this commanding book, New York Times bestselling author Robert K. Massie sweeps readers back to the extraordinary world of the Russian empire to tell the story of the Romanovs’ lives: Nicholas’s political naïveté, Alexandra’s obsession with the corrupt mystic Rasputin, and little Alexis’s brave struggle with hemophilia. Against a lavish backdrop of luxury and intrigue, Massie unfolds a powerful drama of passion and history—the story of a doomed empire and the death-marked royals who watched it crumble.

In the darkest days of the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union, when all talk of the Romanovs was punishable at the very least by banishment to Serbia, a group of archivists were exempt. They sorted and filed the thousands of letters and photographs of the last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas II, his wife, Alexandra (a granddaughter of Queen Victoria), and their five children. In all, some 13,000 letters have survived. Those between 1889 and 1914 have never before been published. They run the gamut from matters of state to intimate expressions of love and longing. In addition there are the letters of their four daughters and their only son, the haemophiliac Alexis, whose health was to introduce the crucial and some say malign influence of Rasputin. The editors also draw on Nicholas's diaries, letters to his mother, and the diaries and memoirs of their close contemporaries. It includes first hand accounts of the murder of Rasputin in 1916 and the assassination of the Romanovs at Ekaterinburg in 1918.

How lessons from kindergarten can help everyone develop the creative thinking skills needed to thrive in today's society. In kindergartens these days, children spend more time with math worksheets and phonics flashcards than building blocks and finger paint. Kindergarten is becoming more like the rest of school. In Lifelong Kindergarten, learning expert Mitchel Resnick argues for exactly the opposite: the rest of school (even the rest of life) should be more like kindergarten. To thrive in today's fast-changing world, people of all ages must learn to think and act creatively—and the best way to do that is by focusing more on imagining, creating, playing, sharing, and reflecting, just as children do in traditional kindergartens. Drawing on experiences from more than thirty years at MIT's Media Lab, Resnick discusses new technologies and strategies for engaging young people in creative learning experiences. He tells stories of how children are programming their own games, stories, and inventions (for example, a diary security system, created by a twelve-year-old girl), and collaborating through remixing, crowdsourcing, and large-scale group projects (such as a Halloween-themed game called Night at Dreary Castle, produced by more than twenty kids scattered around the world). By providing young people with opportunities to work on projects, based on their passions, in collaboration with peers, in a playful spirit, we can help them prepare for a world where creative thinking is more important than ever before.

A good marriage isn’t something found; it’s something made. In this revised and updated edition of the bestselling book A Lifelong Love, author Gary Thomas shares that when couples pursue spiritual purpose and worship it builds lasting intimacy and friendship between them. In A Lifelong Love, Thomas takes couples on three essential journeys leading to a strong marriage: The journey toward each other The journey toward God The journey toward love Whether readers are feeling discouraged about their marriage or simply want to infuse their relationship with greater spiritual and relational passion, A Lifelong Love offers the guidance they need to embrace the eternal intentions that God has for them.

The Mediterranean Love Plan unveils the “7 Secrets of Passion” from some of the most romantic countries in the world: Italy, France, Spain, Greece and Israel. Most couples marry in a flurry of passion, but soon find themselves wondering “How do we keep love interesting, fun and romantic? How do we keep the spark growing for decades?” Steve and Misty Arterburn offer unique, ground-breaking answers to these age-old questions. Romance is much more than a date night out or a week away. A passionate, long-lasting love requires two people who are sensually in love with life and each other. In this fascinating book, the authors explore research on seven activities that prompt passion, then describe how Mediterranean cultures practice these secrets in everyday life. Steve and Misty also share how these fun-to-apply secrets have taken their own marriage from confused to confident, from discouraged to delighted– and how you can do it too. The Mediterranean Love Plan will help couples become more playful, creative, connected and romantic -- burning with passion that stands the test of time.

From her vantage point as an octogenarian gardener, Elisabeth Sheldon knows that one of the most important elements in the making of both a great garden and a great gardener is the passage of time. Now, in Time and the Gardener, Sheldon shares with readers the lessons, triumphs, tips, and favorite plants that have inspired her over the last three decades.

From the last time Linda and Thomas meet, at a charmless hotel in a distant city, to the moment, thirty-five years earlier, when a chance encounter on a rocky beach binds them fatefully together, this hypnotically compelling novel unfolds a tale of intense passion, drama, and suspense. The Last Time They Met is a singularly ambitious and accomplished work by one of today's most widely celebrated novelists.