First there was Bird. Then there was Bird-Bird. And now, Third Bird.Magnolia's daddy won the beloved cockatiel Third Bird at a carnival, just before he died in a car accident. Magnolia promised to always take good care of Third Bird . . . but then she loses him, when she accidentally allows the bird to fly from his cage at her mama's beauty salon.Magnolia's grief, for her father and for her lost bird, opens up a whole new world of friends as they search not...

Award-winning author Steve Cole delivers a poignant quick-read for struggling teen readers, expertly capturing resilience and hope amidst the devastating impact of war.Danylo watches fearfully as war edges ever closer to his peaceful life on a Ukrainian farm. To prepare for the worst, he and his mother build a shelter for protection.But when the missiles eventually drop, they’re unprepared for the devastating impact and must cling to all they have left in o...

A stirring call for humanity vs machines issued by the leader of the Roman Catholic Church . . .Artificial intelligence encroaches on our lives more insidiously by the day, bent on destroying everything that makes us human. In the first encyclical of his papacy, Pope Leo XIV makes a ringing defense of the value of human life, thought, and expression. A bold statement of faith and values, the Pope’s manifesto immediately becomes an essential document of our time.

Four friends travel to Paris for a weekend that will change their lives. As relationships unravel and old certainties fade, they encounter the mysterious world of the Winter Circus and an unexpected network of activists determined to resist the growing authoritarianism of our times. Blending memoir, political reflection and intimate storytelling, The Winter Circus explores how our lives combine with extraordinary moments of change. In a world marked by crisis and revolution, Leo Zeilig ask...

Some loves deserve a do-over**…**Like theirsEllie Bancroft made a fortune as an inspirational speaker and writer telling the world that love conquered all. Now, after losing her savings, her reputation and even her fiancé, she knows better. All she has left is her parents’ old run-down house. But Ellie’s dreams of quickly fixing her childhood home, selling it and returning to sunny Florida rely on one guy: her high school ex, Kai T...

Harlequin® Heartwarming celebrates wholesome, heartfelt relationships that focus on home, family, community and love. Experience all that and more with four new novels in one collection!This Harlequin Heartwarming box set includes:A COWBOY TO REMEMBERThe Bluegrass Blackwellsby USA TODAY bestselling author Melinda CurtisHis family’s legacy…Is their chance at loveDesperat...

For over fifteen years, The Well-Grounded Rubyist has taught beginner and developing Ruby programmers the veteran secrets of Ruby. This new fourth edition of the groundbreaking classic goes beyond syntax and commands into how a Rubyist really thinks. Fully updated for Ruby 3.4, this approachable guide shows you Ruby principles in a way that’s friendly, clear, and packed with code samples.You don’t need to know every Ruby function or add-on library to be a well-grounded Rubyist. All...

Have you ever looked at the towers, houses, bridges and parks around you, and wondered how they got there? The answer is in the greatest experiment in human history: the city.In The Story of the City, urban historian Leo Hollis takes readers on a captivating journey through the history of cities, from the first settlements in ancient Mesopotamia to the megacities of today. This isn't just a story about concrete and steel, but about the people who d...

By eliminating theory from the academy, the valiant warriors of antitheory believe that they are saving it from appreciative peril. This Is Not the End of Theory presents a host of arguments against this claim. It demonstrates that the elimination of theory from the academy has quite the opposite effect. Namely, it foreshadows the death of the academy.This is not the end of theory because our ability to think, interpret, and judge critically depends on it—and a world without theory ...

Risen infestation, man-eating beasts, and a Bound lost to the feral wilds.The untamed north is not empty. Foreign expeditions fight for territory. Kaethlan bands struggle in opposition. Dina has succumbed to her Gift, unable to unite her people.Tristan and his Bound remember their debts. Sacred valleys devoid of life draw the Risen north, but the Kaethlans will not be left to guard their homeland alone.What lies beneath the ice?A fell miasma...

NARCO TALES True Stories from America's War on DrugsLeo Silva's education in organized crime didn't begin at the DEA Academy. It began years earlier, when he was a teenage busboy in a glittering Brownsville nightclub, refilling water glasses for the men who built the Gulf Cartel—close enough to hear deals struck through the cigarette smoke. Years later, their faces stared back at him from wanted posters. And he was the one sent to hunt them.Drawn from real events, Narco Tal...

Leo Mackrow delivers a chilling collection of New York nightlife stories-some grim, others haunting-crafted to unsettle anyone who dares step into the city after dark. From pimps to police officers, and every shadowy figure in between, each tale exposes a hidden world where danger lingers just beneath the surface. These stories warn that it is safer to stay inside after dark-and never answer the phone after 10 p.m.