An account of the origins of hip-hop music as presented by its founders and stars traces the work of such performers as DJ Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash, and DMC.

The creator of "Grey's Anatomy" and "Scandal" details the one-year experiment with saying "yes" that transformed her life, revealing how accepting unexpected invitations she would have otherwise declined enabled powerful benefits.

Black's funny, thoughtful, and unpredictable investigation enters the world of professional public speakers, where he visits the speaker hall of fame, crashes the National Speakers Conference, and signs up for the Landmark forum.

Yes, You Can! gives you good advice, and it gives you more: it tells how you can make that advice part of your daily life. Whether your goal is to speak eloquently, discover hidden talents, or find fulfillment at work, this book can help. It covers more than 125 personal goals with the clear, practical advice for which Deep and Sussman are known. The result is an inspiring guide to improving yourself and improving your relationships, balancing work and home, and building lasting success. Many books will tell you that you can achieve your goals. Yes, You Can! gives you the tools to make that happen.

Yaul the porcupine likes to say "no!" In fact, it's the only thing he likes. But with a little help from rap duo Hip and Hop, this prickly porcupine might just discover something he can say "yes" to. Straight from Oldskool County, this hilarious companion to Hip & Hop, Don't Stop!, introduces a brand-new character that kids will love! Featuring short raps read at varying speeds and comic book elements, this jacketed picture book is a rollicking read aloud that will have kids saying "yes!"

“YES YOU CAN—Finish High School and go to College” is a book about possibility. At its best it seeks to motivate, inspire and empower young people to achieve their goal of going to college. This book will be useful and helpful to any student, but it will be especially useful to those students who have what it takes to finish high school and go to college but who may be experiencing doubts and lack of motivation. The first chapter is titled “Why you must go to college.” It makes a strong argument that “any young person wishing to retain the slimmest hope of financial security or even a decent standard of living must get some form of education or training beyond high school.” The book opens with a quote from Dorothy J. Hulst which says in part “there are efforts and results and the strength of the effort is the measure of the result . . .” I truly believe that dreams can come true and goals can be achieved. In fact, I know that any young person can finish high school and go to college, if that is what they truly desire to do and if they are willing to make some sacrifices and do the work. I know that this is possible because there are those of us who faced significant life challenges and who had similar fears and yet we persisted and succeeded. With the help of family, friends and many caring adults we finished high school, enrolled in college and managed to graduate. It can happen for young people today as well. They really don’t know what they are capable of until they commit themselves to a goal and begin working towards its fulfillment. In the United States, the richest country in the world, over one million students drop out of high school each and every year! Retired General Colin Powell, founder of America’s Promise Alliance said this state of affairs “is more than a problem, it’s a catastrophe.” This book is, in part, my small attempt to help to change the odds of students dropping out of high school by getting them to think about the consequences of their actions. Today we know that "the number one predictor of a young person’s future success is whether they graduate from high school.” And for those who go on to college they will earn a million dollars more than the average high school graduate during their lifetime. A college education is even more important today as we see major problems in the U.S. economy. In 2008, over 700,000 Americans lost their jobs. Many of these jobs went to workers in other countries like India and China. More job losses are projected for 2009. In recent months, major banks and other financial institutions have failed or had to be rescued by the Federal Government. Across the country many American families have lost their homes to foreclosure. I share these facts to underscore the point that young people and adults simply must have some marketable skills to have any chance of getting and keeping a job and making a decent wage in this rapidly changing economy. So, it is vitally important that teens give themselves a chance in life by finishing high school and by going to college. They can do it and this book will help.

Everything You Need from A to Z to Influence Others to Take Action Do you want to consistently get what you ask for? Do you want to completely eliminate the possibility of misinterpretations? This book will give you practical and immediate skills and techniques for all face-to-face communication. Communicating with influence takes work and requires constant attention. Throughout the book we offer our own suggestions for practicing techniques under the heading of Yes You Can! following each chapter. This book will work for you not because of the ideas we give you but because of what you do with them. The proven skills and techniques in this book have given thousands the ability to be at their personal best.