The story begins with a parting of the sands - the construction of the Suez Canal that united the Mediterranean with the Arabian Sea. It opened the door of opportunity for people living insecurely on the fringes of a turbulent Europe. The Middle East is understood today through the lens of unending conflict and violence. Lost in the litany of perpetual strife and struggle are the layers of culture and civilisation that accumulated over centuries, and which give the region its cosmopolitan identity. It was once a region known poetically as the Levant - a reference to the East, where the sun rose. Amid the bewildering mix of races, religions and rivalries, was above all an affinity with the three monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Today any mixing of this trinity of faiths is regarded as a recipe for hatred and prejudice. Yet it was not always this way. There was a time, in the last century, when Arabs and Jews rubbed shoulders in bazaars and teashops, worked and played together, intermarried and shared family histories. Michael Vatikiotis's parents and grandparents were a product of this forgotten pluralist tradition, which spanned almost a century from the mid-1800s to the end of the Second World War in 1945. The Ottoman empire, in a last gasp of reformist energy before it collapsed in the 1920s, granted people of many creeds and origins generous spaces to nestle into and thrive. The European colonial order that followed was to reveal deep divisions. Vatikiotis's family eventually found themselves caught between clashing faiths and contested identity. Their story is of people set adrift, who built new lives and prospered in holy lands, only to be caught up in conflict and tossed on the waves of a violent history. Lives Between the Lines brilliantly recreates a world where the Middle East was a place to go to, not flee from, and the subsequent start of a prolonged nightmare of suffering from which the region has yet to recover.

Told in their separate voices, sixteen-year-old Prince Oliver, who wants to break free of his fairy-tale existence, and fifteen-year-old Delilah, a loner obsessed with Prince Oliver and the book in which he exists, work together to seek his freedom.

Contains ideas for teaching reading and writing in the K-12 curriculum that include qualities of good writing, introducing literature, and rethinking of the writing workshop.

Part 1: Even tethered to his high performance fire-engine red Jeep Cherokee wheelchair, Kenny was a force of nature. His spirit and zest for life made his shenanigans and antics even more laughable. There was nothing that he couldn't do, and he did everything with style and panache. His teacher, Mr. Sap, was Kenny's biggest fan and advocate. When Kenny was growing up and becoming his own person, Mr. Sap realized it was time to let him go. Part 2: The forest and grasslands in the western part of the United States were ablaze. Sap and the Ground Pounders of the Southern Colorado Wildland Firefighting Crew were called to action to the Beaver Mountain ski resort in Logan, Utah. Together with the combined efforts of the Lone Peak Hotshot Prisoner Crew from the Department of Corrections and the Rosebuds Native American crews, the mischief of the fire was managed. Soon the healing of the land would begin, and Sap knew that it was time for him to let it go.

From the acclaimed creator of Subway Book Review, Between the Lines gloriously takes to the underground and showcases in over 170 interviews what moves us forward—a thrilling ride as unexpected as New York City itself. “Subway Book Review has changed how we look at books.” —Forbes “[Beutter Cohen’s] rosy view of the subway is a refreshing contrast.” —The Cut, New York magazine “Subway Book Review is one of the few purely good things on the internet.” —Esquire For the better part of a decade, Uli Beutter Cohen rode the subway through New York City’s underground to observe society through the lens of our most creative thinkers: the readers of books. Between the Lines is a timely collection of beloved and never-before-published stories that reflect who we are and where we are going. In over 170 interviews, Uli shares nuanced insights into our collective psyche and gives us an invaluable document of our challenges and our potential. Complete with original photography, and countless intriguing book recommendations, Between the Lines is an enthusiastic celebration of the ways stories invite us into each other’s lives, and a call to action for imagining a bold, empathetic future together. Meet Yahdon, who reads Dapper Dan: Made in Harlem and talks about the power of symbols in fashion. Diana shares how Orlando shaped her journey as a trans woman. Saima reads They Say, I Say and speaks about the power of her hijab. Notable New Yorkers open up about their lives and reading habits, including photographer Jamel Shabazz, filmmaker Katja Blichfeld, painter Devon Rodriguez, comedian Aparna Nancherla, fashion editor Lynn Yaeger, playwright Jeremy O. Harris, fashion designer and TV personality Leah McSweeney, designer Waris Ahluwalia, artist Debbie Millman, activist Amani al-Khatahtbeh, and esteemed authors such as Jia Tolentino, Roxane Gay, Ashley C. Ford, Eileen Myles, Min Jin Lee, and many more.

The Daily Telegraph correspondent tells his “fascinating history, not just of newspapers, but of his personal life, fleeing Nazi Germany, as a child” (The Independent). Berlin-born, John Izbicki lived through the horrors of Nazi persecution and, on the day after his eighth birthday, he witnessed the Kristallnacht, and the smashing of his parents’ shop windows. On the day Germany invaded Poland and Berlin experienced its first wartime blackout, the Izbickis escaped to Holland and from there on to England. The author describes what it feels like to have been a refugee, unable to speak or understand a single word of English, and how he was persuaded by a kind policeman to change his name from Horst to John. He also leads the reader along the remarkable journey he traveled from school to university, the first of his family to enter higher education, and through his adventurous time as a commissioned army officer during two years of national service spent in Egypt and Libya. But the best part of his life was yet to come when this young refugee decided to make journalism his profession. The boy who, not that many years earlier, could speak not a word of English, became the distinguished education correspondent of the country’s leading quality newspaper, the Daily Telegraph. After eighteen years in that responsible position, he was sent to Paris to head the Telegraph’s office there. When he left the newspaper to join the Committee of Directors of Polytechnics, he played a leading part in transforming the country’s polytechnics into its “new universities.” “From Nazi Germany to Fleet Street—the story of a charming survivor.” —The Guardian

In this new book, renowned dog trainer Kathy Sdao reveals how her journey through life and her decades of experience training marine mammals and dogs led her to reject a number of sacred cows including the leadership model of dog training.