BASKETBALL Smartiepants is the most complete book on basketball ever written. Basketball Smartiepants was written for any reader that has any interest in basketball including the serious player, the pickup player, coaches, officials and every level of fan. Topics include NBA history, today's player, fundamentals for improving a player's game, Chemistry, The versatile and efficient player, limiting turnovers, practice and training, footwork, angles and spacing, individual and team offense and defense, passing, rebounding, coaching, Emotional Intelligence, pickup game etiquette, Characteristics of winning teams, common basketball injuries and rehabilitation, the senior player, and inspirational comments. Also covered are coaching "blind spots" and mistakes, why officials sometimes do not make calls, why games are at times inconsistently officiated, how to recognize a good official and how to properly work an official. For the basketball fan topics discussed include attending and watching games, Bacteriology and wagering on games and basketball on social media. Also discussed are personal interaction stories with famous basketball personnel including Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Mark Cuban and others. The single best informational source on basketball ever written. Author is a former coach, former official and has been playing since 1966.

As Jonathan Lethem put, Steve Erickson's journal of the last 18 months of the Trump Presidency "sears the page." Erickson, one of our finest novelists, has long been an astute political observer, and American Stutter, part political declaration, part humorous account of more personal matters, offers a particularly moving reminder of the democratic ideals that we are currently struggling to preserve. Written with wit, eloquence, and a controlled fury as event unfold, Erickson has left us with an essential record of our recent history, a book to be read with our collective breath held.* Steve Erickson is the author of ten novels and two books about American culture. For 12 years he was founding editor of the national literary journal Black Clock. Currently he is the film/television critic for Los Angeles magazine and a Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Riverside. He has received a Guggenheim fellowship, the American Academy of Arts and Letters award, and the Lannan Lifetime Achievement award.

She's smart, beautiful, and she doesn't need a man to look after her. But sports agent Myron Bolitar has come into her life—big time. Now Myron's next move may be his last. . . Brenda Slaughter is no damsel in distress. Myron Bolitar is no bodyguard. But Myron has agreed to protect the bright, strong, beautiful basketball star. And he's about to find out if he's man enough to unravel the tragic riddle of her life. Twenty years before, Brenda's mother deserted her. And just as Brenda is making it to the top of the women's pro basketball world, her father disappears too. A big-time New York sports agent with a foundering love life, Myron has a professional interest in Brenda. Then a personal one. But between them isn't just the difference in their backgrounds or the color of their skin. Between them is a chasm of corruption and lies, a vicious young mafioso on the make, and one secret that some people are dying to keep—and others are killing to protect.... Praise for One False Move “Fast-moving, funny—an altogether good read!”—Los Angeles Times “Consistently entertaining . . . Coben moves himself into the front ranks of mystery fiction alongside heavy hitters like Robert B. Parker, Sue Grafton and Robert Crais.”—Houston Chronicle “Must read . . . combines Chandler's wry wit with Ross Macdonald's moral complexity.”—Philadelphia Enquirer “A superb book!”—Christian Science Monitor

Fifth grade is turned upside for two best friends when a spunky new student joins their class in this illustrated middle grade novel—the second book in the funny and engaging Rip and Red series. Just when they think they've got the hang of things, Rip and Red find that fifth grade continues to challenge them in head-spinning ways. Tiki, a new girl whose Egyptian dad is an animal-rights activist, has just joined their class. She's charismatic, funny—and she's got game! Rip has his world turned upside down as Tiki proves to be tough competition on the Clifton United basketball team and leads a rebellion against the lousy new food service in the school cafeteria. Red, who has autism, is struggling with the upheavals as well. But as these two funky and funny best friends discover, sometimes radical change is the right move, on the court and off. With an energetic and authentic story from author Phil Bildner and dynamic black-and-white illustrations from Tim Probert, Rookie of the Year is a fresh, fun book about school, sports, and friendship. Featuring a diverse cast of characters and an array of kid-friendly discussable topics, this series is perfect for reluctant readers and in-class or independent reading. Don’t miss any of Rip and Red’s adventures for elementary and middle school readers ages 8-12: ● A Whole New Ballgame ● Rookie of the Year ● Tournament of Champions ● Most Valuable Players

Edgar Award-winner Harlan Coben brings us his most astonishing—and deeply personal—novel yet. And it all begins when Myron Bolitar’s ex tells him he’s a father . . . of a dying thirteen-year-old boy. Myron never saw it coming. A surprise visit from an ex-girlfriend is unsettling enough. But Emily Downing’s news brings him to his knees. Her son Jeremy is dying and needs a bone-marrow transplant—from a donor who has vanished without a trace. Then comes the real shocker: The boy is Myron’s son, conceived the night before her wedding to another man. Staggered by the news, Myron plunges into a search for the missing donor. But finding him means cracking open a dark mystery that involves a broken family, a brutal kidnapping spree, and the FBI. Somewhere in the sordid mess is the donor who disappeared. And as doubts emerge about Jeremy’s true paternity, a child vanishes, igniting a chain reaction of heartbreaking truth and chilling revelation. Praise for Darkest Fear “A slam dunk . . . You race to turn the pages . . . both suspenseful and often surprisingly funny.”—People “Terrific.”—Boston Globe “A winner.”—Orlando Sentinel “Fast-paced . . . layered with both tenderness and fun . . . Coben [is] a gifted storyteller.”—Denver Post

Coretta Scott King Honor winner Brenda Woods introduces introverted, daydream-prone Zoe, who’s afraid her real life will never be as exciting as her imaginary one. Zoe Reindeer considers herself “just Zoe”—never measuring up to her too-perfect older sister or her smarty-pants little brother. Truthfully, though, she’d rather just blend in with the plants at the family business, Doc Reindeer’s Exotic Plant Wonderland. She does have one friend, Q, and he’s the best one ever—but he’s moving away, leaving Zoe to fend for herself, and she doesn’t know what she’ll do without him. That is until a tall astronomer from Madagascar comes to the nursery looking for a Baobab tree. His visit starts a ball rolling that makes Zoe long for real adventures, not just imaginary ones—and shows her that perhaps her first real adventure is finally beginning.

Growing up in the 70s and 80s in Tennessee leaves Jesse Aimes confused about pretty much everything. Nothing makes sense to her at all. Not bell-bottoms or crazy teachers and especially not boys. But when she finally wins a spot on the high school basketball team, she begins to feel comfortable in her own skin. Then her childhood best friend Stephanie comes back to town and stirs feelings in Jesse that leave her even more confused. She knows those feelings must be wrong. She only has to listen to the “you’re going to hell” sermons by her preacher father to know it. But romance secretly blossoms between the two girls…until their secret is blown wide open by a jealous classmate. As the truth comes out it threatens everything—Jesse’s future in basketball, her family and even her relationship with Stephanie. What can she do when there seems to be no way out?