Named a "Notable Naval Book of 2012" by Proceedings Magazine Their stories needed to be told. And classmates working together, under a blanket of trust and friendship, was the only way to allow people to open up. It was a three year journey into the hearts and souls of America’s youngest heroes to gather these important historical accounts, but it was worth every hour spent. Inside this book are the voices the first Annapolis graduates into a decade of war and they remind us that America is in good hands. They were walking to class on 9/11, wearing Naval Academy “summer working blues”, when the towers were struck. The campus went to general quarters, battle stations. They would be the first class after this attack to graduate into a nation at war and would be faced, like so many past graduates, of rising to the challenge to keeping America great. President Bush and Vice President Cheney articulated a world at the crossroads, and the U.S. would preemptively in seek enemies who threatened the national interest, America would not again be terrorized. In the Shadow of Greatness addresses issues that go beyond one USNA class, it explains the trials of most military veterans of this era. Understanding how a young person enlists to serve, deploys to the fight, and returns home is unknown to most Americans. Veterans pack up their uniforms, but never lose the call for service when the return to civilian society. The profiles in this book represent the “Next Great Generation” of American leaders. Men and women who lost their innocence in battle and their youths to a decade of deployments, throughout which they never gave up hope. In exchange for down range scars, they gained an unbreakable sense of purpose to America’s ideals—freedom, equality, and democracy. The compilation is the most authentic and raw narrative to emerge from the Wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and beyond. The reader enjoys a spectrum of stories, each patriotic and honorable. The narratives are meant to inspire, educate, and reveal a world many don’t understand. Its contents are readable and easy to appreciate. The Class of 2002—and more broadly, the one million veterans of the Long War—are America’s leaders of tomorrow. Read this book to learn what they endured and why they are prepared.

Standing in the Shadows of Greatness tells the story of Henry J. Pankey. Pankey attended over 10 colleges, received three college degrees, earned 13 licenses in either education or administration, invited to thousands of speaking engagements, earned hundreds of awards, worked as a field hand, cotton picker, bus driver, cook, security guard, typist, teacher, published author, playwright, actor, comedian, impressionists, drug counselor, assistant principal, principal, education consultant and school improvement expert. Pankey credits his success to his ancestors from Pankey Town, North Carolina.

Simple instructions for drawing dragons, knights and their weapons, and castles and the people who lived in them.

"Greetings to all, as we voluntarily set sail from the Motherland, to the Diaspora, and Beyond. You cannot play in my Sand Box anymore!" Our boys will grow up to become young men and our girls will grow up to become young women. They should evolve to become Kings and Queens and their children born as princes and princesses all in a world that reviles them and envies their right to existence, with disdain. Woe to those who are in denial; we have something for them to reckon with, and try with all their might to "indoctrinate or destroy" only to fail, wholesale. Please read this story to find out where you stand "Living in the shadows between love and happiness." HDS "Harold, you are erudite." -L. Kirshbaum, Literary professional. "Find out where you stand." -T. Wingfield, Retired Army Veteran. "Great synopsis of our History." -J. Johnson, Entrepreneur

Make your table a place where your family and friends long to be—where they will find rest, renewal, and a welcome full of love. Beloved author Sally Clarkson (The Lifegiving Home, Own Your Life, Desperate) believes that meals lovingly served at home—and the time spent gathered together around the table—are a much-needed way to connect more deeply with our families and open our kids’ hearts. Food and faith, mingled in everyday life, become the combination for passing on God’s love to each person who breaks bread with us. In The Lifegiving Table, Sally shares her own family stories, favorite recipes, and practical ideas to help you get closer to the people you love . . . and grow in faith together.

When the gods are stripped of their powers, Elminster must carry the weight of Mystra’s magic upon his mortal shoulders It was the eve of the Time of Troubles. The chaos of spilled blood, lawless strife, monsters unleashed, and avatars roaming Faerûn was still to come. Unbeknownst to mortals, the gods had been summoned together—and among them was Mystra, grown proud and willful in the passing eons. With the others, she was about to be stripped of her godhood. The secret of her power gave her an idea. She made certain preparations, looking always for one who would be her successor . . . But until that person's ascension, her power must be preserved. A lone mortal must carry the greater share of her divine energy until the power could be reclaimed, and it was the fate of this mortal to risk being destroyed or driven wild, involuntarily and without warning. This was the occasion of Elminster's Doom.