Dunkum's new basketball has been signed by his hero, David Robinson. Now Dunkum spends all his time playing with the ball. He's much too busy for his Cul-de-sac friends.When the ball disappears, Dunkum finds a secret code. Someone with a weird name has stolen the basketball! And he's leaving messages everywhere! Who is the mysterious Case D. Luc? And will the codes lead Dunkum to his treasured ball? The Mystery of Case D. Luc was chosen as a C.S. Lewis Noteworthy Book

The Cul-de-Sac Kids is a lighthearted chapter-book series for young readers written by the talented Beverly Lewis. Each book centers on the often-humorous escapades of these endearing neighborhood friends as they learn together the value of friendship and faith. An enjoyable read for both parents and kids! Volume One includes The Double Dabble Surprise, The Chicken Pox Panic, The Crazy Christmas Angel Mystery, No Grown-Ups Allowed, Frog Power, and The Mystery of Case D. Luc.

Eric Hagel wants to do something special for his grandpa for Father's Day. But Eric is broke--and can't think of anything to make!Then he remembers his grandpa's passion for pickles. Pickles on eggs, pickles on cheese, pickles on everything. What about a pickle pizza?When the girls in the cul-de-sac agree to a taste test, they gag and choke. Eric's pizza is a flop! Now what can he do?

Jason Birchall can't wait for Valentine's Day. His parents are going away for the weekend, and Grandma is coming! Jason has big plans. Will he be able to sneak some of his mother's yummy valentine chocolates? Can he trick Grandma into allowing him to change his bedtime?Strange things happen in the Cul-de-sac when Jason pigs out on gooey chocolates and stays up late for a scary show!

A century after the publication of Max Weber's The Protestant Ethic and the "Spirit" of Capitalism , a major new work examines network-based organization, employee autonomy and post-Fordist horizontal work structures.

The winners of the Nobel Prize show how economics, when done right, can help us solve the thorniest social and political problems of our day. Figuring out how to deal with today's critical economic problems is perhaps the great challenge of our time. Much greater than space travel or perhaps even the next revolutionary medical breakthrough, what is at stake is the whole idea of the good life as we have known it. Immigration and inequality, globalization and technological disruption, slowing growth and accelerating climate change--these are sources of great anxiety across the world, from New Delhi and Dakar to Paris and Washington, DC. The resources to address these challenges are there--what we lack are ideas that will help us jump the wall of disagreement and distrust that divides us. If we succeed, history will remember our era with gratitude; if we fail, the potential losses are incalculable. In this revolutionary book, renowned MIT economists Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo take on this challenge, building on cutting-edge research in economics explained with lucidity and grace. Original, provocative, and urgent, Good Economics for Hard Times makes a persuasive case for an intelligent interventionism and a society built on compassion and respect. It is an extraordinary achievement, one that shines a light to help us appreciate and understand our precariously balanced world.

According to Roger Caillois, play is an occasion of pure waste. In spite of this - or because of it - play constitutes an essential element of human social and spiritual development. In this study, the author defines play as a free and voluntary activity that occurs in a pure space, isolated and protected from the rest of life.