An illustrated picture book that shares the inspiring story of artist, Carrie Schmitt.

A lush and beautiful fantasy set in a world where music is magic and the fate of many thrones lies with one girl… “Excellent.”—Booklist An Amazon #1 Children's Music Book at Release Twelve-year-old Elissa has been raised in seclusion as a devotee of the Mother Goddess. She is a special child, a blessed child, a child who can sing miracles into being. Her voice can heal wounds, halt landslides, cure hunger—and even end wars. But there are those who would use her gift for darker things. And when Elissa finds herself the farthest from home she’s ever been—along with her vain and jealous music tutor, Lucio—she will have to develop the judgment to decide who wants to use her song to heal… and who wants to use her song to hurt. In this astonishing debut—perfect for music lovers—Catherine Bakewell presents not only a wholly unique musical magic system, but a sumptuous baroque world filled with soaring basilicas, gilded palaces, dazzling food, and snow-piled wildernesses. It is a world both beautiful and treacherous, with a fiercely determined girl blazing brightly at its center. Can a lone voice change the world? “Spellbinding.”—The Horn Book “Beguiling.”—Publishers Weekly “Unique.”—BCCB “Captivating.”—School Library Connection “Enthralling.”—YA Books Central “Alluring.”—School Library Journal

Shinkei (1406-75), one of the most brilliant poets of medieval Japan, is a pivotal figure in the development of renga (linked poetry) as a serious art. In an age when anyone who wished to signal his denial of mundane concerns or make his way in the world with relative freedom donned the robes of a monk, Shinkei stood out by being a practicing cleric with a temple in Kyoto, the Japanese capital. His priestly duties and his devotion to Buddhist ideals are directly reflected in the intensely pure, lyrical longing for transcendence that is the most notable quality of his sensibility. Shinkei's life and work also provide a vivid portrayal of a tumultuous period of Japanese history that was one of the defining moments of its culture, when Zen Buddhism began to directly influence the arts. The book is in two parts. The first part is a literary biography based primarily on Shinkei's own writings - his critical essays, waka sequences, hokku collections, and commentaries - supplemented by various external sources. What emerges is the compelling portrait of a man who bore witness to the tragic anarchy of his times while clinging to the ideal of poetic practice as a mode of being and access to Buddhist enlightenment. Shinkei became embroiled in the factional struggles preceding the Onin War (1467-77) and died a refugee in what is now Kanagawa. The second part consists of annotated translations of Shinkei's most representative poetry: (1) selected hokku (opening verse of a sequence) and tsukeku (linked pairs of verses), along with Muromachi-period commentaries on them; (2) two 100-verse renga sequences - the first a solo composition from 1467, and the second a collaboration with Sogi and other poet-priests and samurai from 1468; and (3) a selection of one hundred waka poems highlighting Shinkei's most characteristic mode of ineffable remoteness. Throughout, the author's annotations seek to define and clarify the unique genre called "linked poetry."

This "utterly spectacular" book weighs the impact modern medical technology has had on the author's life against the social and environmental costs inevitably incurred by the mining that makes such innovation possible (Rachel Louise Snyder, author of No Visible Bruises). What if a lifesaving medical device causes loss of life along its supply chain? That's the question Katherine E. Standefer finds herself asking one night after being suddenly shocked by her implanted cardiac defibrillator. In this gripping, intimate memoir about health, illness, and the invisible reverberating effects of our medical system, Standefer recounts the astonishing true story of the rare diagnosis that upended her rugged life in the mountains of Wyoming and sent her tumbling into a fraught maze of cardiology units, dramatic surgeries, and slow, painful recoveries. As her life increasingly comes to revolve around the internal defibrillator freshly wired into her heart, she becomes consumed with questions about the supply chain that allows such an ostensibly miraculous device to exist. So she sets out to trace its materials back to their roots. From the sterile labs of a medical device manufacturer in southern California to the tantalum and tin mines seized by armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to a nickel and cobalt mine carved out of endemic Madagascar jungle, Lightning Flowers takes us on a global reckoning with the social and environmental costs of a technology that promises to be lifesaving but is, in fact, much more complicated. Deeply personal and sharply reported, Lightning Flowers takes a hard look at technological mythos, healthcare, and our cultural relationship to medical technology, raising important questions about our obligations to one another, and the cost of saving one life.

“Like a favorite recipe, a posy is meant to be savored and shared. Try it yourself, and … welcome a bit of floral enchantment into your life.” —Amy Stewart, author of The Drunken Botanist Inspired by the Victorian-era language of flowers, a posy is a small, round bouquet of flowers, herbs, and plants meant to convey a message, such as dahlias for gratitude, sunflowers for adoration, or thyme for bravery. These floral poems have become Teresa Sabankaya’s signature. Brides want them for their weddings, but a posy is a lovely gift any time of year, and one that readers can easily put together from their garden or with blooms from their local florist. In The Posy Book, Sabankaya shares step-by-step instructions, floral recipes for more than 20 posies, and ideas for seasonal variations. A modern floral dictionary, with 12 original paintings by celebrated illustrator Maryjo Koch, will help readers craft their own posies filled with personal meaning.

Fiona Cairns turns her attention to birthdays, adding a touch of bling to her trademark pretty style. The Birthday Cake Book has 52 new recipes and 61 cake decorations, including 16 cupcakes. Whether you are one or 100, a Goth or a gardener, there is the perfect cake for you here.