Mastermind

The New York Times bestselling guide to thinking like literature's greatest detective. "Steven Pinker meets Sir Arthur Conan Doyle" (Boston Globe), by the author of The Confidence Game. No fictional character is more renowned for his powers of thought and observation than Sherlock Holmes. But is his extraordinary intellect merely a gift of fiction, or can we learn to cultivate these abilities ourselves, to improve our lives at work and at home? We can, says psychologist and journalist Maria Konnikova, and in Mastermind she shows us how. Beginning with the “brain attic”—Holmes’s metaphor for how we store information and organize knowledge—Konnikova unpacks the mental strategies that lead to clearer thinking and deeper insights. Drawing on twenty-first-century neuroscience and psychology, Mastermind explores Holmes’s unique methods of ever-present mindfulness, astute observation, and logical deduction. In doing so, it shows how each of us, with some self-awareness and a little practice, can employ these same methods to sharpen our perceptions, solve difficult problems, and enhance our creative powers. For Holmes aficionados and casual readers alike, Konnikova reveals how the world’s most keen-eyed detective can serve as an unparalleled guide to upgrading the mind.

Eli Frieden lives in the most perfect town in the world: Serenity, New Mexico. In this idyllic place, every lawn is perfectly manicured and everyone has a pool and a treehouse. Honesty and integrity are valued above all else in Serenity. The thirty kids who live there never lie—they know it’s a short leap from lying to the awful problems of other less fortunate places. Eli has never left Serenity. Why would he want to? Then one day he cycles to the city limits, and something so crazy and unexpected happens, it changes everything. Eli convinces his friends to help him investigate further, and soon it becomes clear that nothing is as it seems in Serenity. The clues mount to reveal a shocking secret that connects their ideal, crime-free community to some of the greatest criminal masterminds ever known. The kids realize they can trust no one—least of all their own parents. So they hatch a plan for what could be the greatest breakout in history. But will they survive? And if they do, where will they go from there? The first book in a thrilling new series from bestselling (non-criminal) mastermind Gordon Korman. “A terrific page-turner, full of unexpected twists and revelations. Buckle up.” —JAMES PATTERSON, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE MIDDLE SCHOOL SERIES “Just when you think no writer can outdo Gordon Korman, someone does—Gordon Korman. Masterminds is a masterpiece—a mind-bending adventure in a shocking but all-too-possible present; a tale of friendship and ultimate sacrifice with characters who will reach inside you and not let go. It’s that rare book that scares you to the core while you’re laughing your head off. Warning: reading this book while trying to do anything else is dangerous—it’s that good. I can’t wait to know what happens next.”—PETER LERANGIS, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE SEVEN WONDERS SERIES

The incredible true story of the decade-long quest to bring down Paul Le Roux—the creator of a frighteningly powerful Internet-enabled cartel who merged the ruthlessness of a drug lord with the technological savvy of a Silicon Valley entrepreneur. “A tour de force of shoe-leather reporting—undertaken, amid threats and menacing, at considerable personal risk.”—Los Angeles Times NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review • NPR • Evening Standard • Kirkus Reviews It all started as an online prescription drug network, supplying hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of painkillers to American customers. It would not stop there. Before long, the business had turned into a sprawling multinational conglomerate engaged in almost every conceivable aspect of criminal mayhem. Yachts carrying $100 million in cocaine. Safe houses in Hong Kong filled with gold bars. Shipments of methamphetamine from North Korea. Weapons deals with Iran. Mercenary armies in Somalia. Teams of hit men in the Philippines. Encryption programs so advanced that the government could not break them. The man behind it all, pulling the strings from a laptop in Manila, was Paul Calder Le Roux—a reclusive programmer turned criminal genius who could only exist in the networked world of the twenty-first century, and the kind of self-made crime boss that American law enforcement had never imagined. For half a decade, DEA agents played a global game of cat-and-mouse with Le Roux as he left terror and chaos in his wake. Each time they came close, he would slip away. It would take relentless investigative work, and a shocking betrayal from within his organization, to catch him. And when he was finally caught, the story turned again, as Le Roux struck a deal to bring down his own organization and the people he had once employed. Award-winning investigative journalist Evan Ratliff spent four years piecing together this intricate puzzle, chasing Le Roux’s empire and his shadowy henchmen around the world, conducting hundreds of interviews and uncovering thousands of documents. The result is a riveting, unprecedented account of a crime boss built by and for the digital age. Praise for The Mastermind “The Mastermind is true crime at its most stark and vivid depiction. Evan Ratliff’s work is well done from beginning to end, paralleling his investigative work with the work of the many federal agents developing the case against LeRoux.”—San Francisco Book Review (five stars) “A wholly engrossing story that joins the worlds of El Chapo and Edward Snowden; both disturbing and memorable.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

This brand-new full-color activity book with over 500 stickers stars Nintendo's classic team of Mario and Luigi, and their most fearsome foes! Super Mario fans will love this full-color activity book featuring Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and all their foes--Bowser, Koopalings, Wario, Waluigi, and more! It's filled with action-packed activities and over 500 stickers for gamers of all ages! Mario made his debut in the 1980s in arcades around the world and has since gone on to star in many adventures, evolving into the beloved icon he is today. He is a video-game sensation, appearing across all genres--from action platformers to sports, kart racing, and beyond.

Five Wild Kratts Step into Reading leveled readers in one book! PBS’s hit animated show Wild Kratts follows the adventures of zoologists Chris and Martin Kratt as the duo travels to animal habitats around the globe. Along the way, they encounter incredible creatures while combining science education with fun. Boys and girls ages 4 to 6 will dive into this Step into Reading collection featuring five Wild Kratts leveled readers about sharks, reptiles, and other wild things, together in one volume! Step 2 readers use basic vocabulary and short sentences to tell simple stories. For children who recognize familiar words and can sound out new words with help.

THE THRILLING FINALE TO THE AWARD-WINNING SERIES The clones of Project Osiris are on the run again. Now separated into pairs, Eli and Tori and Amber and Malik are fighting to survive in the real world. Amber and Malik track down the one person they think can help them prove the existence of Project Osiris, notorious mob boss Gus Alabaster, also known as Malik’s DNA donor. But as Malik gets pulled into the criminal world—tantalized by hints of a real family—his actions put him and Amber into greater danger. Eli and Tori get sucked into even bigger conspiracies as they hunt down Project Osiris’s most closely guarded secret—who does Eli’s DNA come from? With a surprising new ally and another cross-country adventure, the four will have to work together to overcome the worst parts of themselves if they are going to end Project Osiris once and for all.

Gordon Korman’s new novel poses the question: what would you do if you were given the chance to do things over? Mason and Ty have been best friends since they were old enough to form thoughts. But one day an atomic warhead walks into their seventh-grade classroom ready to annihilate their friendship: Ava Petrakis, the new transfer student from New York. Mason finds himself competing against his best friend for the first time in his life, and it’s not pretty. So they make a pact: a non-Ava treaty. If it worked for the Romulans and the Klingons, it has to work for them. At least that’s what Mason thought until he realized Ava might actually like him back. Before he realizes it, he’s kissing Ava beside the wrecked Tilt-a-Whirl sign in the middle of a freak storm, and his friendship with Ty is obliterated. Five years later, Mason’s life is a mess. He has no friends, no girlfriend, his dog has been hit by a Roto-Rooter truck, his parents are divorced and he has just been expelled from school in his senior year. Everything has gone wrong and he can trace all of it back to that one day by the Tilt-a-Whirl sign. If he could go back he would do everything differently. That’s exactly what he’s thinking when his Volkswagen crashes into a furniture van. When he wakes up, he’s 12 years old again. This is his chance for a do-over. Will Mason be able to fix everything, or are some things just a matter of fate?

"Principals and other building leaders can take control of their own professional development through the structure of a mastermind"--