Shiny Red Sneakers

Tim and Robert were friends, they did everything together. They wore the same clothing, ate the same foods, just about everything. Everyday they would walk past “Vincent’s Sports Shop” to see the latest sneakers.

Everything you need to know is sitting inside - open up, and you will see.

Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things. Glitter reveals the complexity of an object often dismissed as frivolous. Nicole Seymour describes how glitter's consumption and status have shifted across centuries-from ancient cosmetic to queer activist tool, environmental pollutant to biodegradable accessory-along with its composition, which has variously included insects, glass, rocks, salt, sugar, plastic, and cellulose. Through a variety of examples, from glitterbombing to glitter beer, Seymour shows how this substance reflects the entanglements of consumerism, emotion, environmentalism, and gender/sexual identity. Object Lessons is published in partnership with an essay series in The Atlantic.

In Popular Trauma Culture, Anne Rothe argues that American Holocaust discourse has a particular plot structure—characterized by a melodramatic conflict between good and evil and embodied in the core characters of victim/survivor and perpetrator—and that it provides the paradigm for representing personal experiences of pain and suffering in the mass media. The book begins with an analysis of Holocaust clichés, including its political appropriation, the notion of vicarious victimhood, the so-called victim talk rhetoric, and the infusion of the composite survivor figure with Social Darwinism. Readers then explore the embodiment of popular trauma culture in two core mass media genres: daytime TV talk shows and misery memoirs. Rothe conveys how victimhood and suffering are cast as trauma kitsch on talk shows like Oprah and as trauma camp on modern-day freak shows like Springer. The discussion also encompasses the first scholarly analysis of misery memoirs, the popular literary genre that has been widely critiqued in journalism as pornographic depictions of extreme violence. Currently considered the largest growth sector in book publishing worldwide, many of these works are also fabricated. And since forgeries reflect the cultural entities that are most revered, the book concludes with an examination of fake misery memoirs.

This title examines the life of Pharrell Williams. Readers will learn about Williams's childhood, family, education, and rise to fame. Colorful graphics, oversize photos, and informative sidebars accompany easy-to-read text that explores Williams's early interest in music and talent in songwriting that led to writing songs for other artists and eventually the release of his solo albums. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Essential Library is an imprint of Abdo Publishing, a division of ABDO.

These men are going undercover to reveal some shady business in a thriller by the #1 New York Times-bestselling author… The Sisterhood: a group of women bound by friendship and a quest for justice. Now their male allies, the Men of the Sisterhood, have formed a top-secret organization of their own, with the same goal of helping the helpless and righting the wrongs of the world... Investigative reporter Dennis West joined forces with the men of the Sisterhood to help fight corruption and greed on behalf of underdogs everywhere. Now he and his band of brothers are on a mission to help an old friend in danger: Toby Mason was a whip-smart college nerd—nothing like the buff dancer at the Supper Club who’s reached out to Dennis. The owners of the Supper Club adult-entertainment franchise have expanded their empire through tours, contests, and calendars. But Toby suspects the Supper Clubs offer a convenient front for a major drug trafficking operation—and those suspicions have become known to his employers. At the top-secret headquarters of BOLO Consultants, Dennis, Jack, Abner, Ted, Harry, and the rest of the crew gather to formulate a plan. It’ll mean going deep undercover, but the men of the Sisterhood are breaking out their most impressive moves to stop a criminal network that’s stayed two steps ahead of justice for too long... “Michaels listens to fans and delivers one hell of a punch.”—RT Book Reviews on Double Down

Part-time caregiver Thea Gayle is left to care for two young girls who've been abandoned by their father. She turns to the man who is the only family the twins have--their uncle, Logan McCall. But is Logan--a wildland firefighter who is never home--up to the job? Thea has to know, because she won't leave the twins with someone else who is going to let them down. Logan's been in a slump ever since the girls' mom, his twin sister, died. The biggest mistake of his life was allowing his nieces to be taken away, all because he thought he couldn't raise them on his own. But he's going to try to make it right this time by giving the girls--and Thea--the happiest home he can"--Page 4 of cover.

In 1979 Billy McEwan is drifting through his last year of college (or, at any rate, his last year as an undergraduate.) But then he meets a troubled young woman named Tammi Honig. He does not save her life, but perhaps she saves his. Thanks to her, he enjoys (or experiences, at least) many adventures on New York's Upper West Side, back in the days when the City was still dangerous, dirty, and romantic, back in the days of punk rock, Thai stick, and Checker cabs. Indeed, his adventures eventually lead him beyond the boundaries of the Upper West Side. He doesn't just venture south of West 72nd Street or north of West 125th Street: at various times, he finds himself as far afield as Boston, Atlanta, and even the San Fernando Valley.