Meet the Special, the school superheroes and supersheroes--Jump Rope, Ace+, Spitball, and Noise. We’re glad they are at our school. This time, the Specials match wits with Bad, a disgruntled teenager who tries to take over the school with his banned of masked delinquents--Graffito, Class Clown,Tease, and Out-Of-Order.

In Special Assignments, Erast Fandorin, nineteenth-century Russia’s suavest sleuth, faces two formidable new foes: One steals outrageous sums of money, the other takes lives. “The Jack of Spades” is a civilized swindler who has conned thousands of rubles from Moscow’s residents–including Fandorin’s own boss, Prince Dolgorukoi. To catch him, Fandorin and his new assistant, timid young policeman Anisii Tulipov, must don almost as many disguises as the grifter does himself. “The Decorator” is a different case altogether: A savage serial killer who believes he “cleans” the women he mutilates and takes his orders from on high, he must be given Fandorin’s most serious attentions. Peopled by a rich cast of eccentric characters, and with plots that are as surprising as they are inventive, Special Assignments will delight Akunin’s many fans, while challenging the gentleman sleuth’s brilliant powers of detection. Praise from England: “Boris Akunin’s wit and invention are a source of constant wonder.” –Evening Standard “[Fandorin is] a debonair combo of Sherlock Holmes, D’Artagnan and most of the soulful heroes of Russian literature. . . . This pair of perfectly balanced stories permit the character of Fandorin to grow.” –The Sunday Telegraph “Agatha Christie meets James Bond: [Akunin’s] plots are intricate and tantalizing. . . . [These stories] are unputdownable and great fun.” –Sunday Express “The beguiling, super-brainy, sexy, unpredictable Fandorin is a creation like no other in crime fiction.” –The Times

A groundbreaking and comprehensive order of battle for German ground troops in WWII, from the invasion of Poland to the final defeat in Berlin. An indispensable reference work for Second World War scholars and enthusiasts, German Ground Forces of World War II captures the continuously changing character of Nazi ground forces throughout the conflict. For the first time, readers can follow the career of every German division, corps, army, and army group as the German armed forces shifted units to and from theaters of war. Organized by sections including Theater Commands, Army Groups, Armies, and Corps Commands, it presents a detailed analysis of each corresponding order of battle for every German field formation above division. This innovative resource also describes the orders of battle of the myriad German and Axis satellite formations assigned to security commands throughout occupied Europe and the combat zones, as well as those attached to fortress commands and to the commanders of German occupation forces across Europe. An accompanying narrative describes the career of each field formation and includes the background and experience of many of their most famous commanding officers.

Formerly published by Chicago Business Press, now published by Sage Effective Training: Systems, Strategies, and Practices is unique in its integration of theory with effective and practical training applications. Authors P. Nick Blanchard, James W. Thacker, and Dana Cosby examine the relationship between change management and training, introduce the ADDIE model as an overarching framework for the training process, and consider perspectives relevant to small businesses. Additionally, this text provides a step-by-step process for developing learning objectives and highlights the importance of integrating both learning and design theories in creating successful training programs. The Seventh Edition adds new material while enhancing the ease of reading and understanding. The end of each relevant chapter (needs analysis, design, development and implementation, and evaluation) features an example of the process of developing an actual training program (Fabrics, Inc.). At the end of each chapter are discussion questions, cases, and exercises to enhance understanding.