Venus In Blue Jeans

When did my life start resembling a Hallmark movie? I suppose it all started when my charming fiancé turned out to be anything but, and I decided I wanted to push the reset button on my life. So, I packed up my business and moved to a small town in the Texas Hill Country, complete with the cast of small-town characters you’d expect and the ridiculously sexy new veterinarian. Being the new kids in town, Cal and I kept finding ourselves thrown togetherand even though men were the absolute last thing on my mind... one thing led to another. Now someone’s threatening my business, but I’m not the same woman I was when I arrived. And I’m ready to fight for what’s mine. Each book in the Konigsburg series is STANDALONE: * Venus in Blue Jeans * Wedding Bell Blues * Be My Baby * Long Time Gone * Brand New Me * Don’t Forget Me * Fearless Love * Hungry Heart

For generations, mothers and daughters have struggled to say the right thing -- or have said nothing at all -- when the time has come to discuss sex. VENUS IN BLUE JEANS brings refreshing hope and guidance for every mother who has been undone by such questions as "Mom, what’s French kissing" or "What’s oral sex?" or who has agonized over her teenage daughter’s newfound interest in boys. In this wise and radiant book, Nathalie Bartle tackles some of the toughest topics of sexual education: What do girls know about sex? When is the right time to begin talking with them about sex? How can mothers get the conversation right? Today’s teenagers face enormous pressures to become sexually active; by age nineteen more than 50 percent of American girls have had intercourse. From billboards to cyberspace, society is awash in sexual images. Parents assume that teens possess abundant sexual knowledge, but information gleaned from the media or the teenage grapevine can be woefully inaccurate: many teens list AIDS as the only sexually transmitted disease; others assume they can’t get pregnant "the first time." We need a new dialogue for this generation of young women, Bartle argues. Combining her own stories of raising a daughter with the generously honest voices of mothers and daughters who have struggled firsthand with this topic, she illuminates the invaluable role that mothers can play in their daughters’ sexual education -- without encouraging them to be sexually active. Adolescent girls crave information, but they may be too afraid or embarrassed to ask for it, worried that their moms will think less of them or assume they are preparing for sex. The rich stories here help dispel common myths, encourage candid conversation, and reveal the importance of placing sexual information within the broader context of relationships and a moral framework. Filled with strategies, keen understanding, and a warm sense of humor, VENUS IN BLUE JEANS will inspire mothers and others to persevere with these vital conversations and will empower girls to think of their sexuality as a natural part of adolescence rather than something they need be defiant about or shamed by. This is an indispensable book for anyone concerned with guiding today’s young women safely through the upsets, infatuations, and intimacies of adolescence.

“Everybody has to start somewhere. Businessmen start on the ground floor and try to work their way up the corporate ladder. Baseball players bide their time in the minor leagues wishing for an opportunity to move up and play in the majors. Musical compositions aren’t very different—some songs just don’t climb the charts the first time they’re recorded. However, with perseverance, the ideal singer, the right chemistry, impeccable timing, vigorous promotion, and a little luck, these songs can become very famous.” So writes Bob Leszczak in the opening pages of Who Did It First? Great Pop Cover Songs and Their Original Artists. In this second volume in the Who Did It First?series, Leszczak explores the hidden history of the most famous, indeed legendary, pop songs and standards. As he points out, the version you purchased, swayed to, sang to, and grew up with is often not the first version recorded. Like wine and cheese, some tunes do get better with age, and behind each there is a story. Included are little-known facts and amusing anecdotes, often gathered through Leszczak’s vast archive of personal interviews with the singers and songwriters, record producers and label owners, who wrote, sang, recorded, and distributed either the original first cut or one of its classic covers. The second in a series of titles devoted to the story of great songs and their revival as great covers, Who Did It First?Great Pop Cover Songs and Their Original Artists is the perfect playlist builder. So whether quizzing friends at a party, answering a radio station contest, or just satisfying an insatiable curiosity to know who really did do it first, this work is a must-have.

An essential reference book for sixties music lovers, this encyclopedic overview includes detailed chart statistics and biographical information for eighty songwriters and covers around two thousand songs, some of which are among the greatest ever written.

Many readers are unaware of the vast universe of Latin American science fiction, which has its roots in the 18th century and has flourished to the present day. Because science fiction is part of Latin American popular culture, it reflects cultural and social concerns and comments on contemporary society. While there is a growing body of criticism on Latin American science fiction, most studies treat only a single author or work. This reference offers a broad overview of Latin American science fiction. Included are alphabetically arranged entries on 70 Latin American science fiction writers. While some of these are canonical figures, others have been largely neglected. Since much of science fiction has been written by women, many women writers are profiled. Each entry is prepared by an expert contributor and includes a short biography, a discussion of the writer's works, and primary and secondary bibliographies. The volume closes with a general bibliography of anthologies and criticism.

This book is a collection of playlists for any occasion. The music is from many genres, including pop, rock, punk, jazz, hip hop, Western art music, classic country, swing, dance, doo wop, alternative, and many more. It also includes songs from many times periods and many levels of fame. Rather than separated by type of music, they're separated by common themes! Favorites include School, Man-Made Outdoor Lighting, The Deadly Sins, Songs Banned From Radio, and Rodentia! There are 138 themes that range from as broad as Water to as narrow as Bubble Gum, so there is a theme for anyone!

The Messy Self challenges the idea -- and the ideal -- of a coherent, harmonious self. Taken together, the essays illustrate how a flourishing self is inevitably divided, ambivalent, fractured, messy -- and how the self triumphs through disorder. Written in accessible language by award-winning writers and scholars, the book offers a diversity of perspectives on the complexities of the self. With chapters on creativity, love, self-understanding, self-deception, identity, responsibility, and well-being, The Messy Self gives a range of voices to the ordinary and extraordinary divisions, fragmentations, and uncertainties that mark our everyday experience.

THE STORY: Now an aspiring young architect in Terre Haute, Indiana, Willum Cubbert has often told his friends about the debt he owes to Rick Steadman, a fellow ex-GI whom he has never met but who saved his life after he was seriously wounded in Vie