Dancing With Butterflies

In Dancing with Butterflies, Reyna Grande renders the Mexican immigrant experience in “lyrical and sensual” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) prose through the poignant stories of four women brought together through folklorico dance. Dancing with Butterflies uses the alternating voices of four very different women whose lives interconnect through a common passion for their Mexican heritage and a dance company called Alegría. Yesenia, who founded Alegría with her husband, Eduardo, sabotages her own efforts to remain a vital, vibrant woman when she travels back and forth across the Mexican border for cheap plastic surgery. Elena, grief-stricken by the death of her only child and the end of her marriage, finds herself falling dangerously in love with one of her underage students. Elena's sister, Adriana, wears the wounds of abandonment by a dysfunctional family and becomes unable to discern love from abuse. Soledad, the sweet-tempered illegal immigrant who designs costumes for Alegría, finds herself stuck back in Mexico, where she returns to see her dying grandmother. Reyna Grande has brought these fictional characters so convincingly to life that readers will imagine they know them.

The closest he will ever come to happiness is when he's hurting her. Will she let him? A beautiful and twisted story of first love and innocence lost -- written when the author was just eighteen. Sphinxie and Cadence. Promised to each other in childhood. Drawn together again as teens. Sphinxie is sweet, compassionate, and plain. Cadence is brilliant, charismatic. Damaged. And diseased. When they were kids, he scarred her with a knife. Now, as his illness progresses, he becomes increasingly demanding. She wants to be loyal -- but fears for her life. Only the ultimate sacrifice will give this love an ending.

Shunned as an outsider and mistreated due to an undiagnosed learning disability, the young and imaginative Mari-Jen Delene retreats into silence. Around her, the fictional community of Ste. Noire, Cape Breton, hosts a vividly drawn cast of characters: the uncompromising and bitter Mother Superior; the dangerous Uncle Jule; the kind-hearted holocaust survivor Daniel Peter; and Mari-Jen's rebellious and powerfully intelligent brothers, who sleep next to a map of the world they yearn to explore. Elegantly written and profoundly touching, Butterflies Dance in the Dark stands as a testament to the vibrant resiliency of youth and the enduring powers of the imagination.

Oh no! What's this feeling Leah has as she prepares for her very first dance recital? Her mommy thinks it's butterflies, but that cannot be. Everyone knows butterflies aren't in our tummies. Or are they? In this meditation for beginners' book, Leah learns that deep breathing exercises are not only relaxing, but the perfect way to calm her tummy. This beautifully illustrated mommy and me book encourages readers to manage anxiety with an easy-to-read story. Designed to educate children and parents on the power of breathing techniques to overcome anxiety, this book encourages African-American children to recognize the beauty in body awareness, so they have the confidence to dance their way to their dreams!

Magic Boy wanders drunkenly through a hallucinogenic nightmare world of Cancer Robots, softball showdowns, dance parties, time machines and injury.

Kai and Ami are dancing butterflies from Taiwan! They have a performance coming up at the Winter Festival dance show in the southern part of the island. They are currently in northern Taiwan, so they need to hurry and start flying south. That's far for a butterfly! Kai is worried about the long journey, and about the big show too. Can Kai step up to the challenge? Kai the Dancing Butterfly celebrates Taiwan's natural scenic wonders, amazing animal species, and incredible Indigenous cultures. This children's book is a marvelous read for all those who love Taiwan, or for those who'd like to learn more about Taiwanese culture. This elaborately illustrated picture book makes an ideal gift: *Real locations in Taiwan make for an inspiring geography, history and cultural lesson *Storyline sparks dialogue around empathy, kindness, courage, faith, perseverance, friendship, and the support between siblings *Exquisite illustrations of Taiwan's majestic animals and endangered species fosters learning around ecological conservation and habitat protection *This is the first English-language children's fiction featuring Taiwan's fascinating Purple Crow Butterfly migration. This natural phenomenon is one of the planet's only mass butterfly seasonal migration. *The author Crystal Z. Lee, and the illustrator Allie Su, both grew up in Taiwan. This book is an homage to their beautiful home. About the Author Crystal Z. Lee was raised in a bilingual household in Taiwan and in California. Her great-grandparents and grandparents are originally from Taichung, Hualien, and Jinguashi area in Taipei. Crystal grew up in Taipei, and later returned to live there in her adult years. Some of her favorite memories in Taiwan include lighting lanterns with her family in Pingxi, attending a school field trip in Yehliu, boating at Sun Moon Lake, dining at grand banquets with relatives, hiking at Yangming mountain with her parents, sampling every boba tea possible with her sister, taking wedding photographs in Tamsui, and even giving birth to her child in Taipei! Her young children love dancing and adore butterflies, and have been learning how to grow plants that are beneficial for butterflies. Crystal is also the author of the children's book A Unicorn Named Rin, and the novel, Love and Other Moods. About the Illustrator Allie Su was born and raised in Yunlin county, Taiwan. She attended Nanhua University in Chiayi city, majoring in Visual Arts. She is a professional illustrator, specializing in oil painting and ink painting. Allie adores vegetarian food and hot coffee. She believes in bringing joy to people worldwide through art.

"The Dancing Butterflies" is an imaginary voyage of butterflies through fields of flowers and enchanted rainbows.

The composition of Chinese poetry (kanshi) in the Japanese court dates to the mid-seventh century. During the Heian age (794-1185), kanshi emerged as one of two preeminent poetic genres employed by aristocrats, scholar-officials, and priests; over the centuries it developed into one of Japan's most enduring literary forms. This anthology, comprising some 300 kanshi by 80 poets, is the largest collection of translated kanshi ever produced. It includes an introduction to the kanshi genre, biographies of the poets, and extensive annotations. The poems sketch a graceful panorama of life in the Heian capital and in the provinces, offering rare glimpses into the private concerns, tastes, and aspirations of the well-born people of the times.Kanshi continued to flourish in Japan through early modern times, remaining vital down to the Taisho era (1912-1926). Its longevity was partly a function of its permeation to the townsmen class and to a larger range of female practitioners. Although the era of kanshicomposition has passed, some 5 million Japanese continue to participate in kanshirecitation circles. While Japanese vernacular literature has been studied extensively and is relatively well-known in the West, kanshi have received little scholarly attention in either Japan or abroad. It is hoped that the present anthology will bring this important genre more squarely into both the mainstream of Japanese studies and the consciousness of Western readers.