Only in America could Walter A. Soplata, the son of penniless Czech immigrants, accomplish so much single-handedly saving historic aircraft from World War II and other periods. After a childhood spent building model airplanes while dreaming about having his own airfield, Soplata worked in a large scrapyard taking apart hundreds of warplane engines. Shocked to see a rare engine or sometimes a complete warplane on its way to the recycling furnace, he began collecting whatever he could find and afford. He eventually collected nearly 20 complete airplanes and countless pieces of others. One of his Corsair fighters included the experimental F2G Corsair #74 that won the Cleveland National Air Races in 1947. Among other priceless airplanes he rescued was an experimental XP-82 Twin Mustang, an F-82E Twin Mustang, an X-prototype Skyraider, a stainless steel BT-12, and an F7U Cutlass--Soplata hauled the Cutlass fuselage home by stuffing it inside a junked school bus for its 600-mile journey. The story of a workaholic father and his aviation-obsessed son, this book records the accomplishments of a rare bird, just like the many airplanes he saved.

Is the idea of self-publishing daunting to you? According to a New York Times report, 81% of Americans aspire to write a book but few ever write one and even fewer ever publish a book. The obstacles seem great, but as Martin Luther King said, "You don't have to see the whole staircase - just take the next step." Whether you're an aspiring writer, have already written a book or are a trade published author looking for a different publishing direction, there is no better time than now to get your words out there through self-publishing. This is not a motivational book. Instead, this book walks you through the steps of self-publishing; from ideas on how to flex your writing muscles to word processing choices to finally seeing your book sold on Amazon. Save your money. There is no reason to spend hundreds or even thousands on expensive, unnecessary publishing services. From editing, formatting and cover design to finally self-publishing your e-book on Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing, this book suggests steps and self-publishing tools carefully picked with those on a budget in mind. Self-publishing is not complicated. In fact, it is a simple process. Simple, however, does not mean easy. Gleaning information from many bestselling self-published authors, and written by a bootstrapped self-published author of over a dozen books (8 which hit Amazon's category bestseller lists), this book will show you how you can write your first word to publishing your final product on Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing without even spending a dime.

Young readers can join the Backyardigans as they search for buried treasure, blast off to outer space, and explore the Icy North in this collection of seven stories.

Quick, easy, effective activities support standards and help students improve skills they need for success in testing.