The rascals from the world’s friendliest family circus are back in the second installment of this “smafunderful”* fully illustrated series. Everyone knows Sir Sidney’s Circus is the best in the world. But who’s the star of the show? The Circus Times is having a contest to find out. Just thinking about it gives Sir Sidney a worrywart, and it’s quickly clear why. Soon after he goes off to rest, the performers start thinking too much about winning the trophy and not enough about putting on a good show. Meanwhile, it looks as if ringmaster-in-training Barnabas Brambles might need some help managing the crew, so Bert and Gert, the sly brother-and-sister mice who travel with the show, set out to write a book to teach him how it’s done. Does Bert and Gert’s plan work? And who is the star of the circus? All will be revealed in The Greatest Star on Earth. *Kirkus Reviews

While there are guides to the visible sky, this is the first book to encompass the most important stars known in the universe at a level accessible to the layperson. The noted astronomer James Kaler takes us on a tour of the 100 most interesting stars, describing their characteristics and importance in words and vivid pictures. James B. Kaler is an internationally recognized expert on stars and their formation. A professor of astronomy at the University of Illinois, he is the author of "Stars and Their Spectra" (Cambridge), "Stars" (Freeman/Scientific American Library), "Cosmic Clouds" (Freeman/Scientific American Library), and numerous articles for popular and professional astronomy magazines.

Everyone in Harry's family is a star performer in the circus, everyone that is except Harry. Harry can't do anything extraordinary himself. At least, that's what he thinks....John Prater's exuberantly illustrated story reveals that we all have talent -- if we look for it.

When Louis de Rougemont steps onto the stage to recount his astonishing experiences, he is forced to confront the consequences of his storytelling.

Planet Earth. Four elements. One incredible story. Lonely Planet Kids' The Big Earth Book takes children on a rollercoaster ride through history, geography, science and more to show how four elements - earth, fire, air and water - created the world and everything that exists today. Amazing facts, photography and illustrations bring our planet and its past to life in an exciting, engaging way. Written by Mark Brake, a science writer and broadcaster who's worked for NASA, the BBC and the National Science Museum of Thailand, and created in consultation with Dr Mike Goldsmith, a research scientist and writer with a PhD in astrophysics from Keele University in the UK. Highlights include: Earth: How the Earth was formed The structure of the Earth Plate tectonics and rocks Earthquakes and volcanoes Humans in the stone age Hunter-gatherers and farming Fossils and digging for treasure DNA: the code of life Fire: Ingredients for fire Fire and humans The history of fire The dangers of wildfire The Great Fire of London Gunpowder and fireworks The combustion engine Carbon and global warming Air: What's air made of? The Northern Lights How animals learned to fly Dinosaurs in the air Birds and bats The history of flight Speech and language Music and instruments Weather and climate Water: The origins of water Rivers and oceans The water cycle The Hanging Gardens of Babylon Canals, bridges and dams Exploring the seas The age of exploration Tsunamis and waterfalls About Lonely Planet Kids: Come explore! Let's start an adventure. Lonely Planet Kids excites and educates children about the amazing world around them. Combining astonishing facts, quirky humour and eye-catching imagery, we ignite their curiosity and encourage them to discover more about our planet. Every book draws on our huge team of global experts to help share our continual fascination with what makes the world such a diverse and magnificent place - inspiring children at home and in school. Important Notice: The digital edition of this book may not contain all of the images found in the physical edition.

Beautifully illustrated and filled with rich historical detail and colorful anecdotes, this is a vibrant history for all those who have ever dreamed of running away to the circus, now in paperback. “Step right up!” and buy a ticket to the Greatest Show on Earth—the Big Top, containing death-defying stunts, dancing bears, roaring tigers, and trumpeting elephants. The circus has always been home to the dazzling and the exotic, the improbable and the impossible—a place of myth and romance, of reinvention, rebirth, second acts, and new identities. Asking why we long to soar on flying trapezes, ride bareback on spangled horses, and parade through the streets in costumes of glitter and gold, this captivating book illuminates the history of the circus and the claim it has on the imaginations of artists, writers, and people around the world. Traveling back to the circus’s early days, Linda Simon takes us to eighteenth-century hippodromes in Great Britain and intimate one-ring circuses in nineteenth-century Paris, where Toulouse-Lautrec and Picasso became enchanted with aerialists and clowns. She introduces us to P. T. Barnum, James Bailey, and the enterprising Ringling Brothers and reveals how they created the golden age of American circuses. Moving forward to the whimsical Circus Oz in Australia and to New York City’s Big Apple Circus and the grand spectacle of Cirque du Soleil, she shows how the circus has transformed in recent years. At the center of the story are the people—trick riders and tightrope walkers, sword swallowers and animal trainers, contortionists and clowns—that created the sensational, raucous, and sometimes titillating world of the circus.