From beloved author Diana López comes an exciting middle grade story about three friends, a magic competition, and how far they'll go to succeed. Sixth graders Dominic, Loop, and Z stumble upon a new magic shop in town and can't wait to spend their summer mastering cool tricks to gain access to the Vault, a key holders-only back room bound to hold all kinds of secrets. And once they get in, they set their sights even higher: a huge competition at the end of the summer. They work on their card tricks, sleights, and vanishing acts, trying to come up with the most awesome routines possible....Problem is, the trip is expensive, and it's money that each guy's family just doesn't have. To make things worse, the shop-owners' daughter, Ariel (who just so happens to be last year's competition winner), will do anything to make sure the boys don't come out on top. Even pit them against one another. Will they make it to the competition? And if so, at what cost? Diana López, author of Confetti Girl and Ask My Mood Ring How I Feel, offers a story that's just the right mix of heart, high jinks, and a bit of magic.

Do you ever feel like you don’t have what it takes? Like you can’t be as good as those around you? Well, after waiting decades for his time to lead, Joshua had some big shoes to fill. He may have felt slightly intimidated by the task at hand. Joshua’s predecessor, Moses, had a near spotless résumé: he led the Jews out of Egypt, parted the Red Sea, and even conversed directly with God. Not exactly an easy act to follow. Yet Joshua’s fearless confidence in God proved to be more than enough. God used Joshua in miraculous ways. All his life, the people of Israel followed and trusted Joshua’s lead. The Fresh Life series was created by women for women, who crave a profound experience of God’s Word without an overwhelming time commitment. In just 20 minutes a day, you will come to a deeper understanding of the truths of the Bible. With a group or by yourself, use this easy-to-use study to develop a fearless, Joshua-like confidence in God so you can accomplish everything He asks you to do.

Apolonia "Lina" Flores is a sock enthusiast, a volleyball player, a science lover, and a girl who's just looking for answers. Even though her house is crammed full of books (her dad's a bibliophile), she's having trouble figuring out some very big questions, like why her dad seems to care about books more than her, why her best friend's divorced mom is obsessed with making cascarones (hollowed eggshells filled with colorful confetti), and, most of all, why her mom died last year. Like colors in cascarones, Lina's life is a rainbow of people, interests, and unexpected changes. In her first novel for young readers, Diana López creates a clever and honest story about a young Latina girl navigating growing pains in her South Texan city.

It's summer before eighth grade, and Erica "Chia" Montenegro is feeling so many things that she needs a mood ring to keep track of her emotions. She's happy when she hangs out with her best friends, the Robins. She's jealous that her genius little sister skipped two grades. And she's passionate about the crushes on her Boyfriend Wish list. And when Erica's mom is diagnosed with breast cancer, she feels worried and doesn't know what she can do to help. When her family visits a cuarto de milagros, a miracle room in a famous church, Erica decides to make a promesa to God in exchange for her mom's health. As her mom gets sicker, Erica quickly learns that juggling family, friends, school, and fulfilling a promesa is stressful, but with a little bit of hope and a lot of love, she just might be able to figure it out. Confetti Girl author Diana Lopez returns with this sweet, funny, and utterly honest story about being a girl in a world full of good (and bad) surprises.

Award-winning author Diana Lopez returns to her middle-grade sweet spot in this delightful novel perfect for fans of Wendy Mass, Charise Mericle Harper, and Angela Cervantes. You can choose your friends, but you can't choose your primas...Luna Ramos has more cousins than she can count, and even though her mom says that makes her lucky, Luna knows that every time she gets in trouble, one of her primas is responsible.But when Luna locks her know-it-all cousin Claudia in the bathroom at their cousin's quinceanera, Luna has no one to blame but herself. Her punishment? No hats for a whole month-which is a big deal because Luna's always been embarrassed by her hair, and hats make her feel more comfortable.To make things even worse, Claudia is transferring to her school, and now she'll have a chance to tattle on Luna even more than she already does! Her grandmother offers some sage advice, but since it's in Spanish, Luna gets it all wrong, and when the kids at school begin making fun of Claudia, Luna must decide what matters more: family or her reputation.

"A staggeringly comprehensive review of the state of modern cryptography. Essential for anyone getting up to speed in information security." - Thomas Doylend, Green Rocket Security An all-practical guide to the cryptography behind common tools and protocols that will help you make excellent security choices for your systems and applications. In Real-World Cryptography, you will find: Best practices for using cryptography Diagrams and explanations of cryptographic algorithms Implementing digital signatures and zero-knowledge proofs Specialized hardware for attacks and highly adversarial environments Identifying and fixing bad practices Choosing the right cryptographic tool for any problem Real-World Cryptography reveals the cryptographic techniques that drive the security of web APIs, registering and logging in users, and even the blockchain. You’ll learn how these techniques power modern security, and how to apply them to your own projects. Alongside modern methods, the book also anticipates the future of cryptography, diving into emerging and cutting-edge advances such as cryptocurrencies, and post-quantum cryptography. All techniques are fully illustrated with diagrams and examples so you can easily see how to put them into practice. Purchase of the print book includes a free eBook in PDF, Kindle, and ePub formats from Manning Publications. About the technology Cryptography is the essential foundation of IT security. To stay ahead of the bad actors attacking your systems, you need to understand the tools, frameworks, and protocols that protect your networks and applications. This book introduces authentication, encryption, signatures, secret-keeping, and other cryptography concepts in plain language and beautiful illustrations. About the book Real-World Cryptography teaches practical techniques for day-to-day work as a developer, sysadmin, or security practitioner. There’s no complex math or jargon: Modern cryptography methods are explored through clever graphics and real-world use cases. You’ll learn building blocks like hash functions and signatures; cryptographic protocols like HTTPS and secure messaging; and cutting-edge advances like post-quantum cryptography and cryptocurrencies. This book is a joy to read—and it might just save your bacon the next time you’re targeted by an adversary after your data. What's inside Implementing digital signatures and zero-knowledge proofs Specialized hardware for attacks and highly adversarial environments Identifying and fixing bad practices Choosing the right cryptographic tool for any problem About the reader For cryptography beginners with no previous experience in the field. About the author David Wong is a cryptography engineer. He is an active contributor to internet standards including Transport Layer Security. Table of Contents PART 1 PRIMITIVES: THE INGREDIENTS OF CRYPTOGRAPHY 1 Introduction 2 Hash functions 3 Message authentication codes 4 Authenticated encryption 5 Key exchanges 6 Asymmetric encryption and hybrid encryption 7 Signatures and zero-knowledge proofs 8 Randomness and secrets PART 2 PROTOCOLS: THE RECIPES OF CRYPTOGRAPHY 9 Secure transport 10 End-to-end encryption 11 User authentication 12 Crypto as in cryptocurrency? 13 Hardware cryptography 14 Post-quantum cryptography 15 Is this it? Next-generation cryptography 16 When and where cryptography fails