The Most Fun Thing

Named a Best Book of the Year by NPR • Southwest Review • Electric Literature Perfect for fans of Barbarian Days, this memoir in essays follows one man's decade-long quest to uncover the hidden meaning of skateboarding, and explores how this search led unexpectedly to insights on marriage, love, loss, American invention, and growing old. In January 2012, creative writing professor and novelist Kyle Beachy published one of his first essays on skate culture, an exploration of how Nike’s corporate strategy successfully gutted the once-mighty independent skate shoe market. Beachy has since established himself as skate culture's freshest, most illuminating, at times most controversial voice, writing candidly about the increasingly popular and fast-changing pastime he first picked up as a young boy and has continued to practice well into adulthood. What is skateboarding? What does it mean to continue skateboarding after the age of forty, four decades after the kickflip was invented? How does one live authentically as an adult while staying true to a passion cemented in childhood? How does skateboarding shape one's understanding of contemporary American life? Of growing old and getting married? Contemplating these questions and more, Beachy offers a deep exploration of a pastime—often overlooked, regularly maligned—whose seeming simplicity conceals universal truths. THE MOST FUN THING is both a rich account of a hobby and a collection of the lessons skateboarding has taught Beachy—and what it continues to teach him as he strugglesto find space for it as an adult, a professor, and a husband.

These widely acclaimed essays from the author of Infinite Jest -- on television, tennis, cruise ships, and more -- established David Foster Wallace as one of the preeminent essayists of his generation. In this exuberantly praised book -- a collection of seven pieces on subjects ranging from television to tennis, from the Illinois State Fair to the films of David Lynch, from postmodern literary theory to the supposed fun of traveling aboard a Caribbean luxury cruiseliner -- David Foster Wallace brings to nonfiction the same curiosity, hilarity, and exhilarating verbal facility that has delighted readers of his fiction, including the bestselling Infinite Jest.

Named a Best Book of the Year by NPR • Southwest Review • Electric Literature Perfect for fans of Barbarian Days, this memoir in essays follows one man's decade-long quest to uncover the hidden meaning of skateboarding, and explores how this search led unexpectedly to insights on marriage, love, loss, American invention, and growing old. In January 2012, creative writing professor and novelist Kyle Beachy published one of his first essays on skate culture, an exploration of how Nike’s corporate strategy successfully gutted the once-mighty independent skate shoe market. Beachy has since established himself as skate culture's freshest, most illuminating, at times most controversial voice, writing candidly about the increasingly popular and fast-changing pastime he first picked up as a young boy and has continued to practice well into adulthood. What is skateboarding? What does it mean to continue skateboarding after the age of forty, four decades after the kickflip was invented? How does one live authentically as an adult while staying true to a passion cemented in childhood? How does skateboarding shape one's understanding of contemporary American life? Of growing old and getting married? Contemplating these questions and more, Beachy offers a deep exploration of a pastime—often overlooked, regularly maligned—whose seeming simplicity conceals universal truths. THE MOST FUN THING is both a rich account of a hobby and a collection of the lessons skateboarding has taught Beachy—and what it continues to teach him as he strugglesto find space for it as an adult, a professor, and a husband.

How to Draw the Most Fun Things for Kids is perfect for artists of any level - from ages 8 and up. Does a young budding artist you know want to develop his/her drawing skills and wants to learn to draw the most fun things? Give a young artist the gift of art so that they can develop their own drawing confidence and creativity - to last a lifetime! This book is perfect for kid's birthday gifts, summer activities, no-mess art projects, portable travel activities, homeschool art class, elementary school art lessons, drawing for kids, and weekend screen-free time! This specially designed drawing book has your kids in mind, and has been Kid Tested and Kid Approved, ages 8+. These 10-minute drawing projects are based on the actual interests of younger artists. This How to Draw book for kids includes: Basic Drawing Principles: shape sketching and shading tips are provided Projects for any level: Projects are split into 3 levels for variety, and for the artist to grow as their confidence and ability develops. The drawing book starts out with easier levels suitable for ages 8-12 and gradually moves onto trickier projects, which makes it a great drawing book for teens or young adults. Step-by-Step Instructions: Starts from sketching out the shape to filling in the details 45+ Fun Drawing and Doodling Projects that include: Venus Fly Trap Snakes Novelty Glasses (with Nose and Moustache) Sharks Insects Water Gun Funny Faces Vintage Robot Garden Gnome Cactus Cool Waves A Chattering Teeth Wind-Up Toy 3D Letters and MANY more projects that your young artist will be raving about! Hours of Creativity - young creatives can be fully immersed in drawing and are able to stay off their screens for hours - a win for slow parenting, mindful parenting, and parents who want to minimize screen time. Details: 8 x 10" in size 90+ pages Soft Cover Designed by Wink Eye Press These are great as: A Summer Activity Book for Kids Birthday Gifts for Kids No-mess art projects, Portable Travel Activities Homeschool and Elementary School Art Lessons Weekend Screen-Free Fun

Race against the clock as you search for over 1,000 hidden objects An exciting seek-and-find activity book for kids, 1,001 Things to Find in Less Than One Minute will not only engage and entertain; it also adds an extra element of fun with the time challenge. Featuring 25 brain-stimulating visual puzzles with dozens of items to find in each, every cartoon art-inspired puzzle page promotes problem-solving skills and mental agility - all while the clock is ticking ngels Navarrro is a play therapist and psychomotor education specialist. The author of more than 100 children's books, she has also produced television programs, hands-on learning game kits, and online games for kids.

Crafted by childhood experts, The Highlights Book of Things to Do is the essential book of pure creativity and inspiration, filled with over 500 screen-free things to do with kids. From future chefs and scientists to budding humanitarians, children ages 7 and up will be inspired to explore, invent, create and do great things! This highly visual, hands-on activity book will banish boredom, foster imagination and unlock new interests. Your child can try engaging outdoor ideas like starting a bucket garden; tasty projects like making rock candy; science activities like building a water microscope; and so much more. Organized by interest and covering all aspects of childhood, chapters include: Things to Build, Things to Do in the Kitchen, Things to Do with Color and more. The final chapter, Do Great Things, encourages kids to become caring individuals, confident problem-solvers, and thoughtful people who can change the world. With sturdy hardcover binding and a ribbon bookmark, this 372-page deluxe activity book is a perfect gift for kids 7+. The Highlights Book of Things to Do is the winner of the 2020 National Parenting Seal of Approval, National Parenting Product Award (NAPPA), Mom's Choice Award, Gold, and was named one of Bank Street College of Education, Best Children's Books of the Year.

The newest journal in the Do One Thing Every Day series is the perfect prompted journal for kids ages 6-10 to unplug, think critically, and get creative! With this journal, kids can embark on a journey of creative exploration. Daily prompts in this journal range from mindful check-ins and drawing exercises to questions based on quotes from your kiddo's favorite books. Boasting quotes from big sellers like Harry Potter, Wonder, and The Dork Diaries, this journal will engage kids who love to read and write

NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • “A gripping and poignant ode to a messy, loving family in all its glory.” —Madeline Miller, bestselling author of Circe In this “rich, complex family saga” (USA Today) full of long-buried family secrets, Marilyn Connolly and David Sorenson fall in love in the 1970s, blithely ignorant of all that awaits them. By 2016, they have four radically different daughters, each in a state of unrest. Wendy, widowed young, soothes herself with booze and younger men; Violet, a litigator turned stay-at-home-mom, battles anxiety and self-doubt; Liza, a neurotic and newly tenured professor, finds herself pregnant with a baby she's not sure she wants by a man she's not sure she loves; and Grace, the dawdling youngest daughter, begins living a lie that no one in her family even suspects. With the unexpected arrival of young Jonah Bendt—a child placed for adoption by one of the daughters fifteen years before—the Sorensons will be forced to reckon with the rich and varied tapestry of their past. As they grapple with years marred by adolescent angst, infidelity, and resentment, they also find the transcendent moments of joy that make everything else worthwhile.