Look At Me

A compelling biography of SoundCloud sensation and rising star XXXTENTACION -- from his candid songwriting and connection with fans to his tragic death. At the age of twenty, rapper Jahseh Dwayne Onfroy-aka XXXTENTACION-was gunned down during an attempted robbery on the streets of Deerfield Beach, Florida, mere months after signing a $10 million record deal with Empire Music. A rising star in the world of SoundCloud rap, XXXTENTACION achieved stellar levels of success without the benefit of a major label or radio airtime, and flourished via his passionate and unfettered connection to his fans. In Look at Me!, journalist Jonathan Reiss charts the tumultuous life and unguarded songwriting of the SoundCloud sensation. Unlike most rap on the platform, XXXTENTACION's music didn't dwell on money, partying, and getting high. He wrote about depression, suicide, and other mental health issues, topics that led to an outpouring of posthumous appreciation from his devoted fanbase. It was XXXTENTACION's vulnerability that helped him stand apart from artists obsessed with being successful and "cool." Yet these insecurities also stemmed from-and contributed to-his fair share of troubles, including repeated run-ins with the law during his teen years, a disturbing proclivity toward violence, and a prison sentence that overlapped with the release of his first single. Through the memories of the people who knew him best, Look at Me! maps out the true story of an unlikely cultural icon and elucidates what it was about him that touched the post-millennial generation so deeply.

A National Book Award Finalist In this ambitiously multilayered novel from the acclaimed and award-winning writer Jennifer Egan, a fashion model named Charlotte Swenson emerges from a car accident in her Illinois hometown with her face so badly shattered that it takes eighty titanium screws to reassemble it. She returns to New York still beautiful but oddly unrecognizable, a virtual stranger in the world she once effortlessly occupied. With the surreal authority of a David Lynch, Jennifer Egan threads Charlotte’s narrative with those of other casualties of our infatuation with the image. There’s a deceptively plain teenaged girl embarking on a dangerous secret life, an alcoholic private eye, and an enigmatic stranger who changes names and accents as he prepares an apocalyptic blow against American society. As these narratives inexorably converge, Look at Me becomes a coolly mesmerizing intellectual thriller of identity and imposture.

A classic Munsch tale with a fresh new look! When Madison's grandma comes for a visit, they visit a face painter in the park. Madison doesn't want an ordinary picture on her face, though -- not a scary face, not a regal tiger, not a delicate butterfly. Instead she asks the face painter for just one really real rose on her cheek. Then the family goes shopping . . . and suddenly the rose starts to GROW. "That's nice," says her dad as he looks at tools in the hardware store. "That's nice," says her mom as she looks at pots in the kitchen store. And at first Madison is intrigued by her amazing painting. But that all ends when she realizes that she has twenty-five roses growing on her, and there is a leaf coming out of her ear! Grandma is the one who finally listens. They go to the doctor, but the doctor doesn't know what to do. Next they go to the garden store, where the clerk suggests weed killer. Madison refuses. She wants to be kind to the rose, so she buys a huge pot and goes home to take a nap next to it. When she wakes up, the rose is growing in the pot. Grandma takes it home and plants it in her garden, where it waits for its next victim . . .

Cammy Chameleon has been blending in all her life to help her catch bugs, but lately it seems like no one is paying attention to her. One day, Cammy has an idea. She carefully concentrates and then, suddenly, she turns bright red! Everyone is impressed with her new colors, and Cammy can’t stop showing them off. She has never felt so beautiful . . . or hungry, because the bugs notice her bright colors, too. Soon Cammy realizes that showing off isn’t always worth it and that she can be happy being a regular chameleon again—at least most of the time! Rose Williamson’s Look at Me! Look at Me! teaches kids to be thankful for what they’re given in a silly and colorful way. Doreen Marts’s friendly and expressive illustrations are fun to look at, and Cammy’s vibrant and telling journey will resonate with those who aim to stand out while also fitting in. Sky Pony Press, with our Good Books, Racehorse and Arcade imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of books for young readers—picture books for small children, chapter books, books for middle grade readers, and novels for young adults. Our list includes bestsellers for children who love to play Minecraft; stories told with LEGO bricks; books that teach lessons about tolerance, patience, and the environment, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Frances Hinton is shy and clever. By day she works in a medical library and every evening she goes back to the solitude of her London flat to write fiction. When she is adopted by Nick and his wife, she is ripe to begin her sentimental education.

Katharina’s husband isn’t coming home for the weekend—again—so she’s on her own. When their chaotic daughter Helli has a nosebleed, Kat has to dash off to school to pick her up. Then their son, Alex, announces he’s bringing his new girlfriend home for the first time. Kat’s best friend from college is coming around tonight too, and she’s wondering if she should try to seduce him—but first she needs to do the shopping, the vacuuming and the laundry, deal with an exploding clothes-dryer, find their neighbour’s severed thumb in the front yard and catch a couple of escaped rodents. When she’s got all that sorted, perhaps she’ll have time to think about the thing she’s been trying not to think about—the lump she’s just found in her breast. Because you can’t just die and leave a huge mess for someone else to clean up...can you? And wasn’t there supposed to be more to life than this? Mareike Krügel lives in Schleswig-Holstein with her husband and their two children. She has received numerous literary awards, including the Friedrich Hebbel Prize. Look at Me is her fourth novel, and the first to be translated into English. ‘Funny, moving and thought-provoking.’ BookMooch ‘Kat and her family are deeply flawed but likeable characters; you want to cheer them on...A good read, suitable for long, dark evenings.’ Otago Daily Times ‘A quirky ride that masterfully blends a sardonic sense of humour with a deeply embedded fear of mortality.’ Readings ‘For all the chaos of Katharina’s life and for all the humour of her narrative voice, this well-written and surprisingly complex novel has an unexpected gravitas.’ Age ‘Definitely one of those “read in one sitting”, “hard to put down” books.’ Nudge Books ‘An enjoyable and thought provoking read.’ MindFood 'With a heroine so well-realised she feels like a friend, and piercingly true ruminations on the strange courses that life can take, Look At Me is a wildly impressive English-language debut.’ Culturefly ‘Full of whimsical inner monologues and snappy one liners.’ Booklist ‘Krügel knows her way around both the salty and sweet of marriage and motherhood.’ Kirkus Reviews

Four million adults in the United States say that becoming famous is the most important goal in their lives. In any random sampling of one hundred American adults, two will have fame as their consuming desire. What motivates those who set fame as their priority, where did the desire come from, how does the pursuit of fame influence their lives, and how is it expressed? Based on the research of Orville Gilbert Brim, award-winning scholar in the field of child and human development, Look at Me! answers those questions. Look at Me! examines the desire to be famous in people of all ages, backgrounds, and social status and how succeeding or failing affects their lives and their personalities. It explores the implications of the pursuit of fame throughout a person's lifetime, covering the nature of the desire; fame, money, and power; the sources of fame; how people find a path to fame; the kinds of recognition sought; creating an audience; making fame last; and the resulting, often damaged, life of the fame-seeker. In our current age of celebrity fixation and reality television, Brim gives us a social-psychological perspective on the origins of this pervasive desire for fame and its effects on our lives. "Look at Me! is a fascinating in-depth study of society's obsession with fame. If you ever wondered what it's like to be famous, why fame comes to some and is sought by others, it's all here . . ." ---Jeffrey L. Bewkes, Chairman and CEO, Time Warner "In a voice filled with wisdom and insight, daring and self-reflection, Orville Brim masterfully traces the developmental origins and trajectory of fame. Look at Me! lets us see---with new eyes---the cultural priorities and obsessions that feed our individual hunger and appetites. A rare and rewarding book." ---Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, Emily Hargroves Fisher Professor of Education at Harvard University and author of Respect and The Third Chapter Orville Gilbert Brim has had a long and distinguished career. He is the former director of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Successful Midlife Development, former president of the Foundation for Child Development, former president of the Russell Sage Foundation, and author and coauthor of more than a dozen books about human development, intelligence, ambition, and personality. Cover image ©iStockphoto.com/susib

Little Josh is ignored by his sister and her friend as they play, until he interests them in a game he creates.