A collection of essays discussing mathematics - what it is, how it is done - in the context of my experiences as a world traveler and multifaceted individual.

From the acclaimed author of Secrets of a Charmed Life and As Bright as Heaven comes a novel about a German American teenager whose life changes forever when her immigrant family is sent to an internment camp during World War II. In 1943, Elise Sontag is a typical American teenager from Iowa—aware of the war but distanced from its reach. Then her father, a legal U.S. resident for nearly two decades, is suddenly arrested on suspicion of being a Nazi sympathizer. The family is sent to an internment camp in Texas, where, behind the armed guards and barbed wire, Elise feels stripped of everything beloved and familiar, including her own identity. The only thing that makes the camp bearable is meeting fellow internee Mariko Inoue, a Japanese-American teen from Los Angeles, whose friendship empowers Elise to believe the life she knew before the war will again be hers. Together in the desert wilderness, Elise and Mariko hold tight the dream of being young American women with a future beyond the fences. But when the Sontag family is exchanged for American prisoners behind enemy lines in Germany, Elise will face head-on the person the war desires to make of her. In that devastating crucible she must discover if she has the will to rise above prejudice and hatred and re-claim her own destiny, or disappear into the image others have cast upon her. The Last Year of the War tells a little-known story of World War II with great resonance for our own times and challenges the very notion of who we are when who we’ve always been is called into question.

Tell your own story with a little help from Dr. Seuss in this DIY dream activity book that's all about YOU! A perfect gift to celebrate a new school year, birthdays, milestones and all the amazing things YOU accomplish! How tall are YOU? How many teeth do YOU have? Where do YOU live? What do YOU like to eat? Kids will answer these questions and more, celebrating their unique selves while creating their very own biographies in this classic activity book from Dr. Seuss, illustrated by Roy Mckie. With fill-in-the-blanks, lists, check boxes, and drawing prompts, this book allows readers to write and draw right on the fun-filled pages! From the number of freckles you have, to the kind of house you live in, to the silly animal sounds you can make, Dr. Seuss guides kids through an interactive reading experience with a creative spark. The perfect gift for special birthdays or for year-round fun, this book will hold special memories long after it's filled in.

In this thoroughly researched and groundbreaking biography of Bill Wilson, cofounder of Alcoholics Anonymous, acclaimed author Susan Cheever creates a remarkably human portrait of a man whose life and work both influenced and saved the lives of millions of people. Drawn from personal letters and diaries, records in a variety of archives, and hundreds of interviews, this definitive biography is the first fully documented account of Bill Wilson's life story. Alcoholics Anonymous is a worldwide organization that since 1935 has helped people break free from the destructive influence of intoxicating and addictive substances. This great wave of comfort and help that has covered the world had its beginning in one man, born shortly before the start of the twentieth century. Utilizing exhaustive research, Cheever traces Bill Wilson's life beginning with his birth in a small town in Vermont, where, following the breakup of his parents' marriage, he was raised primarily by his grandparents. Handsome and intelligent, with a wit and charm that both women and men responded to, he seemed at the outset to be capable of achieving anything he wanted. Wilson, however, also suffered from deep-seated insecurity, and once he was away from the provincial Vermont town, he found that alcohol helped relieve his self-doubts and brought out the charm and wit that had made him a favorite in school. "Help" eventually turned to dependence, and years after his first beer -- consumed at a Newport, Rhode Island, dinner party -- Bill Wilson finally had to come to terms with the fact that, while he loved the way alcohol made him feel, his life was spiraling out of control. Through a painful process of trial and error, using a blend of experiences, ideas, and medical knowledge gained through several hospitalizations, he was able to stop drinking. A few months later, when he met Dr. Robert Smith of Akron, Ohio, and was able to help him stop drinking also, Alcoholics Anonymous was born. Each man found in the other the support he needed to overcome the hold alcohol had on them. Together they discovered the power they had to help other alcoholics. Success did not come overnight, however, and as Cheever compellingly relates, Wilson had many struggles in a life fraught with controversies, including experiments with LSD and an unconventional fifty-three-year marriage. As one of the most influential and important thinkers of the twentieth century, Bill Wilson changed the way our society deals with addiction, and his ideas in turn have benefited countless individuals and their families. His life was complex, and in Susan Cheever's fascinating biography, he emerges as a man of great passion and courage; it is a story fully told for the first time.

In this laugh-out-loud funny installment of a #1 New York Times bestselling series, Rafe inherits a million dollars—and a million problems—as he finds himself struggling to fit in at one of the snobbiest schools in the country. When Rafe discovers that he's inherited a fortune, it's not all good news. Sure, he gets an all-expenses-paid trip to glamorous Beverly Hills…. but he also has to go to school while he's in California. Blergh. And not just any school–St. Benedict’s, the snobbiest of snobby establishments. You can bet your bottom dollar that Rafe doesn’t exactly fit in. Toss in a ramshackle house Rafe’s family has to live in before they can inherit the money and a group of bullies who make Miller the Killer look downright friendly, and this trip might be more trash than treasure. Rafe finds himself in the middle of a very big mess. Can he tidy his life up, or will he be sent packing?

Part of the four-book Queens of the Resistance series, saluting some of the most beloved boss ladies in Congress: a celebration of Representative Maxine Waters, who reclaimed her time and led the first calls for impeachment Maxine Waters is an icon for a generation of women powerbrokers in politics. She is an “unbought and unbossed” acolyte of all the legendary firebrands, like Shirley Chisholm, Barbara Jordan, Tupac, and Malcolm X. The daughter of a single mom from St. Louis, she’s smart, sassy, and an outright firecracker. She is the first woman of color, and the first person of color, to regulate the boyz at the big banks as the powerful chair of the House Financial Services Committee. Auntie Maxine called out the crimes and corruption of this Oval Office with precision before anyone else dared to take a stand. Make no mistake, she is coming for the “king,” and whenever she aims, Maxine Waters doesn’t miss. With illustrations, deep research, and writing as endlessly quotable as she is, Queens of the Resistance pays tribute to this phenomenal woman. About the series: Each book of the Queens of the Resistance series will be a celebration of the rebellion against the oppression of women and an embracement of the new in the United States government. The series is adorned with sass, discernment, and the badassery of the present and future leadership. The Doomsday Clock is at a minute to midnight, and the patriarchal power grid that lights “the shining city on a Hill” is about to black out. It’s time to yield to the alternative—the power of women.