Frank follows the motto, "Honesty is the best policy." He tells the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Frank never lies to his schoolmates, he always tells the truth to adults, and he's always honest with police officers. The balancing act of finding tact, that fine line between telling the truth and telling too much truth, is the main theme of this story, and it's very funny—although not necessarily to his friend Dotti whose freckles remind Frank of the Big Dipper, or to the teacher who hears that her breath smells like onions, or to the principal who is told that his toupee looks like a weasel. No one is quite as impressed with Frank's honesty as he thinks they should be. He is sweet and straightforward, and, well, very frank, but with everyone annoyed at him, Frank is now honestly unhappy. He decides to visit his confidante and pal, Grandpa Ernest, who has a history of frankness himself. With a few lessons from Grandpa, Frank begins to understand that the truth is important, but so is not being hurtful. With amusing characters and expressive artwork, this story tells the powerful message of finding the good in everything—a lesson that sends compassion and understanding to take the place of rudeness in the complex concept of truth.

Franklin Benjamin Sanborn was born December 15, 1831, in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire. In 1850, Sanborn studied Greek with a private tutor then entered Phillips Exeter Academy and, after, entered Harvard, from which he graduated in 1855. Sanborn moved to Concord, Massachusetts, where he taught school. Active in politics as a member of the Free Soil Party in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, in 1856 Sanborn became Secretary of the Massachusetts Kansas Commission, where he came into contact with John Brown. Sanborn was one of The Secret Six, who knew in advance of Browns impending raid on Harper's Ferry in October 1859. On the night of April 3, 1860, five federal marshals from Virginia arrived at Sanborn's Concord home, handcuffed him, and attempted to wrestle him into a waiting coach in order to take him to Washington, DC, to answer questions before the Senate regarding his entanglements with John Brown. Some 150 townspeople rushed to his defense. Louisa May Alcott wrote a friend, "Sanborn was nearly kidnapped. Great ferment in town. Annie Whiting immortalized herself by getting into the kidnapper's carriage so that they could not put the long legged martyr in." Though Sanborn would disavow his having had any advance knowledge of John Browns attack, he would defend Browns actions to the end of his life, assisting in the support of his widow and children and making periodic pilgrimages in later years to John Brown's grave. He would not only write a biography of John Brown but also of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Samuel Gridley Howe, and others. From 1863 to 1867 Sanborn was editor of the Boston Commonwealth, from 1867 to 1897 editor of the Journal of Social Science, and from 1868 to 1914 a correspondent of the Springfield Republican. He was associated with the National Conference of Charities, the National Prison Association, the Massachusetts Infant Asylum, and the Clarke School for the Deaf. In 1863, he became secretary of the Massachusetts State Board of Charities. He was secretary from 1863 to 1868 and again from 1874 to 1876. In 1865, he was one of the founders of the American Social Science Association and was its secretary from 1865 to 1897. In 1879 he became state inspector of Massachusetts Charities under a new board and helped reorganize the entire charities system, focusing especially on the care of children and insane persons. He served as chairman until 1888. Sanborn was twice married. In 1854, he married Ariana Walker, who died just eight days later. Sanborn courted the nineteen-year-old daughter of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Edith Emerson, proposing to her in 1861. He was rejected. In 1862, Sanborn married his cousin Louisa Leavitt, who had worked as a schoolteacher at the Concord school Sanborn had founded. They would have three sons. In the end, Sanborn was revered as a relic from a golden age gone by a tall and venerable figure moving picturesquely through Boston and Concord. He died on February 24, 1917, after being struck by a railway baggage cart during a visit to his son Francis in New Jersey. He was buried at the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord, near the graves of his friends and mentors Ralph Waldo Emerson, Bronson Alcott, Ellery Channing, and Henry Thoreau. Concord's flags were flown at half-mast for three days. At the end of the month, February 1917, just prior to America's entering World War I, the Massachusetts House of Representatives recognized Sanborns dedication to the unfortunate, the diseased, and the despised."

"From New York Times bestselling author and economics columnist Robert Frank, a revelatory look at the power and potential of social context. As psychologists have long understood, social environments profoundly shape our behavior, sometimes for the better, but often for the worse. Less widely noted is that social influence is a two-way street: Our environments are in large part themselves a product of the choices we make. Society embraces regulations that limit physical harm to others, as when smoking restrictions are defended as protecting bystanders from secondhand smoke. But we have been slower to endorse parallel steps that discourage harmful social environments, as when regulators fail to note that the far greater harm caused when someone becomes a smoker is to make others more likely to smoke. In Under the Influence, Robert Frank attributes this regulatory asymmetry to the laudable belief that individuals should accept responsibility for their own behavior. Yet that belief, he argues, is fully compatible with public policies that encourage supportive social environments. Most parents hope, for example, that their children won't grow up to become smokers, bullies, tax cheats, sexual predators, or problem drinkers. But each of these hopes is less likely to be realized whenever such behaviors become more common. Such injuries are hard to measure, Frank acknowledges, but that's no reason for policymakers to ignore them. The good news is that a variety of simple policy measures could foster more supportive social environments without ushering in the dreaded nanny state or demanding painful sacrifices from anyone"--

In a series of essays that explore the notion of what brings significance to our existences, clarifying why we have this longing beyond the present moment and an insatiable dissatisfaction with where we are, scholar Frank Martela tackles the subject of finding meaning in life. With beautiful decorative elements and an engaging design, the book approaches its subject in a readily digestible form. It grapples with some of life’s most pressing questions, like "Is happiness a worthy goal?" and "What is the foundation for meaning in a secular society?" and "Is life an existential void?" yet Martela answers these questions and more in a relaxed, conversational tone and with a wry sense of humor, placing some of life’s greatest philosophical concerns and quandaries into a modern-day context. Martela quickly and concisely gets to the heart of the matter: your place in the world and how to find meaning in life as countless thinkers and philosophers have done before, yet the emphasis here is on what we do with the life we have and how we can make it more meaningful. Part prescriptive and part armchair philosophy book, A Wonderful Life is accessible to everyone, from the well-read scholar to the apprentice as well as anyone curious about how to extract the greatest meaning and sense of purpose from their existence.

"being frank" is my second memoir. Whereas my first contains motorcycle-centric stories, this one is a collection of other tales and philosophies that contribute to me "being frank. I've been blessed as I have loved my life, my family, my friends and my country. Having been so fortunate, I wanted to capture some of the countless ways in which those blessings have impacted my life. And yet another of those blessings is that YOU have decided to take a peek into the world of "being frank". I hope that you enjoy my stories while tolerating my advice. The purpose of this book is two-fold. I want to entertain you with tales from my childhood, hopefully providing examples of how wonderful and simple life used to be in America. Secondly, with my deep love for my family, I hope that my children, my grandchildren and family lineage beyond might read this book so that they, and perhaps even you, might utilize some advice on how to maximize your own lives. I can think of no better legacy or service than to prompt a joyful smile, heartfelt tear, or provide a helpful tip as you read my stories. I know that the latter chapters of my book will elicit consternation from my liberal brothers and sisters, so y'all may choose to avoid those chapters. If you decide to read those parts as well, I thank you for your consideration and tolerance. May we encourage open discourse even as we RESPECTFULLY disagree with each other. Different perspectives and opinions are invaluable and should always be fostered. We learn very little from listening to ourselves and others just like us. We should always be prepared to welcome disparate views as they will either shore-up our own, or cause a spark of change within us.

Before the Holocaust, Anne Frank's life was full of parties, tennis, bike riding, beaus and trips to the ice cream shop. Her world turned upside down when she and her family were confined to the Secret Annexe. Being Frank with Anne is a moving reflection on the entries in her diary, helping bring a deeper understanding of her world while hidden from view.

AN AMERICAN BOOKSELLERS ASSOCIATION ADULT DEBUT HONOR BOOK WINNER OF THE AUDIE AWARD FOR BEST FEMALE NARRATOR LOS ANGELES TIMES BESTSELLER A sparkling talent makes her fiction debut with this infectious novel that combines the charming pluck of Eloise, the poignant psychological quirks of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and the page-turning spirit of Where’d You Go, Bernadette. Reclusive literary legend M. M. “Mimi” Banning has been holed up in her Bel Air mansion for years. But after falling prey to a Bernie Madoff-style ponzi scheme, she’s flat broke. Now Mimi must write a new book for the first time in decades, and to ensure the timely delivery of her manuscript, her New York publisher sends an assistant to monitor her progress. The prickly Mimi reluctantly complies—with a few stipulations: No Ivy-Leaguers or English majors. Must drive, cook, tidy. Computer whiz. Good with kids. Quiet, discreet, sane. When Alice Whitley arrives at the Banning mansion, she’s put to work right away—as a full-time companion to Frank, the writer’s eccentric nine-year-old, a boy with the wit of Noel Coward, the wardrobe of a 1930s movie star, and very little in common with his fellow fourth-graders. As she slowly gets to know Frank, Alice becomes consumed with finding out who Frank’s father is, how his gorgeous “piano teacher and itinerant male role model” Xander fits into the Banning family equation—and whether Mimi will ever finish that book. Full of heart and countless “only-in-Hollywood” moments, Be Frank with Me is a captivating and unconventional story of an unusual mother and son, and the intrepid young woman who finds herself irresistibly pulled into their unforgettable world.