Letters To Lily

In a frank and unpretentious series of letters addressed to a teenage granddaughter, this highly original book teaches us to know and understand the world we live in and its rules, and how to behave in it. In these thirty letters, Alan Macfarlane answers his granddaughter's questions about how the world works, how it got to be as it is, what it could be, and where she fits in. Lily's enquiries range from the intimate, personal and moral to the political, social and philosophical. What is the nature of good and evil? What is religion? How can I be truly me? Is right and wrong the same wherever you are? What is beauty? Does there have to be torture? Does money matter? Is knowledge always good? What is progress? What is truth? What is sex? Is democracy a good idea? These are just a few of the questions. In responding to Lily's challenging problems, Alan Macfarlane, from a lifetime's experience as a historian, anthropologist and teacher, ranges through history and across the world's cultures. Her questions are timeless. His answers add up to a classic.

Dear Lily, You don’t know it yet, but life is full of complications you could never imagine. The impossible, even the devastatingly so, can throw you off course and batter your heart along the way. I know, that doesn’t sound like the start of the best kind of letter a mother could write to her daughter, but there’s a bright side too. There are moments, choices, and course-corrections to get you back on track to the life you were meant to have. You are living proof of that. I won’t hold back. Some of what you’ll read might be hard to hear considering it’s about your mom and dad, but it will all be worth it if you learn from our mistakes. I like to think we went wrong so that you won’t have to one day. Besides, as you know, it all worked out in the end. Sasha I knew Kade was my one before he ever even realized I was a girl. He was mine for a moment, and then fate interceded to take him away from me… Kade Family drama took me away from her. A lie from a friend kept me away. Seeing her again, months later, with a swollen belly as I had my arms wrapped around another woman, that would stain my heart forever. Second chances don’t come often, but there was no way I couldn’t try. Too much was at stake. This is a 91,000+ word, new adult, college, second chance, secret baby, contemporary romance!

Lily, who has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and Abelard, who has Asperger's, meet in detention and discover a mutual affinity for love letters--and, despite their differences, each other.

When Lily was in kindergarten she enjoyed school and she was happy. Now, she’s in grade 2 and she doesn’t feel like she’s good at anything. The trouble is reading. Whenever she tries, the letters jump around and get all mixed up — and so does she. When Lily’s teacher announces that the children will read in front of their parents, Lily finally finds the courage to tell her mother about her problem. By working together, Lily’s mom, teacher, and friend Grace find a way to help Lily understand that she has very important strengths and talents. With hard work and new confidence, Lily surprises everyone — even herself — by the time the parents come to hear the kids read. Gentle illustrations by France Brassard realistically portray the fear, isolation, and low self-esteem that children with dyslexia can experience. Deborah Hodge’s Lily and the Mixed-up Letters is a reassuring read for any child in need of a boost in confidence.

What once gave me nightmares now gave me lustful dreams. I thought maybe it was just my curiosity at first, but now I was beginning to think there was a deeper desire. Something inside of me didn't just want to know more about the picture. Something told me I wanted to partake... With only a few weeks left of senior year, Zach can't wait to be out of high school. He's never been part of a clique, had a girlfriend, or felt accepted. With no direction, Zach sought the perfect opportunity to make himself feel noticed. But he never imagined that chance to come in the form of an unexpected letter. What Zach didn't know is that each mysterious letter depicted the image of an impending murder. With every new drawing, Zach discovers dark secrets within himself. How long can he hide from the truth before he's caught red-handed?

It only took Sasha until college to finally get her long time best friend, Kade, to see her as more. She ended up with two months of spectacular memories and a baby on the way to show for her efforts. When she went to tell Kade the news he was already gone. As in, moved across the country without saying a word before she could even tell him, gone. Kade's family drama, and a string of bad luck, had him flying to Vegas and then stuck there for months afterward while cleaning up their messes. Rumors reached him that his long time best friend, and the love of his life, was seen in the arms of another guy. As if the family drama wasn't enough to sink him, a broken heart damn near destroyed what was left. After months of communication failures, rumors, and broken hearted longing Kade and Sasha run into one another again, literally, in a diner off campus. The problem... Kade sees just how very pregnant Sasha is, and she sees him with his arms around another woman.

A narrative history of glass from discovery, through antiquity, the Enlightenment, the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions to the present. It charts the history of the technology but also the enabling effects of glass on such aspects of civilization as experimental science, perspective, astronomy, zoology and all manner of scientific instrumentation - plus the central role of window-glass technology in making the colder north habitable. The authors show how the divergence in glass technology between west and east (China and Japan) explains differential aspects of E/W development. The last chapter develops the intriguing thesis that glass is one of the principal factors in the development of western civilization.

While daydreaming in Chemistry class, Lily scribbles some of her favorite song lyrics onto her desk. The next day, she finds that someone has continued the lyrics on the desk. Soon, Lily and her anonymous pen pal are exchanging letters. As Lily attempts to unravel the mystery, she discovers that she may be falling for her mystery writer...