In a nutshell – as should be only obvious according to Pinker – these building blocks are the ones we’d describe as such literally: the genes. Who Should Read “The Blank Slate”? And Why?Īs you can infer from the subtitle, The Blank Slate is not one of your skim-on-the-beach or speed-read-in-your-bed just-to-pass-the-time-or-fall-asleep books.Īfter all, Steven Pinker’s objective in it is to challenge most of the modern views on what makes us human and to demonstrate that, due to modern politics and sociology, most of us are in denial when it comes to the basic building blocks of the human nature. No matter what they say, a large part of who you are is due to your genes – and there’s nothing you can do to change that.
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The stark beauty of the Arctic ocean, where pack ice can crush a ship like an eggshell, and the empty sweep of the tundra, alternately a snow-muffled wasteland and an unexpectedly gentle meadow, are vividly evoked. The affair survives the growing tensions between the two groups, but then, after one more glorious summer on the Greenland coast, Jakob joins his leader on an extended trip into the interior, with devastating results. When he and Flora meet, all thoughts of science and exploration give way before a sudden, all-consuming love. Jakob de Beyn was raised in Manhattan, but his yearning for new horizons leads him to the Arctic as part of a rival expedition. Now she is returning to the frozen seas as the head of her own exploration expedition. Flora Mackie was twelve when she first crossed the Arctic Circle on her father's whaling ship. Doing the nasty? Bring it on!īut Poppy must do battle with the slimy councilor Demascus, and an extremist group opposed to the Pact. Pardon my French? Knock it off? But Wheaton is soon smitten and eager to turn Poppy’s good-morning kisses into an all-day affair. Sexy, long-haired, leather-pants-wearing Wheaton was a bit more than she bargained for.ĭiplomat Wheaton expected a cultured Earthling to help in his mission, not some crazy-haired woman named after a flower and whose speech baffles his translator. Poppy is bored to tears with her dead-end job and dull life, so when a species of alien warlords arrives on Earth, seeking women to help repopulate their race, why wouldn’t she sign up? She doesn’t care who she’s matched with-until she meets him. It holds up to multiple readings, like the classic I think it will turn out to be' New York Times 'An audacious debut that's wicked smart and wicked funny' Publisher's Weekly, starred review 'Addictively compelling' School Library Journal, starred review holds up to multiple readings, like the classic I think it will turn out to be' New York Times'An audacious debut that's wicked smart and wicked funny' Publisher's Weekly, starred review'Addictively compelling' School Library Journal, starred review Shipping may be from our UK warehouse or from our Australian or US warehouses, depending on stock availability. Check it out!' Rick Riordan 'Unlike any children's book I've ever read. 'Gidwitz manages to balance the grisly violence of the original Grimms' fairy tales with a wonderful sense of humor and narrative voice. It may be frightening, it's certainly bloody, and it's definitely not for the faint of heart. In this dark story, Hansel and Gretel are hunted, killed and sent to hell and back In a remarkable twist on the classic fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm. But if you dare, turn the page and learn the true story of Hansel and Gretel - the story behind (and beyond) the bread crumbs, edible houses and outwitted witches. Warlocks with dark spells, hunters with deadly aim, and bakers with ovens retrofitted for cooking children lurk within these pages. Most, however, struggle for funds to undertake large production runs. "It's been 15 years of continuously valuing books."ĭespite its low literacy rate, Guinea boasts a rich literary heritage and more than a dozen publishing houses. "We Guinean authors have mobilized strongly to come together and promote this event," Conakry-based author Bademba Barry said between bouts of signing copies of his works. The annual three-day event is aimed at celebrating books and promoting literacy in a nation where over half the population is illiterate, according to World Bank figures, and access to libraries is limited. The 15th edition of Guinea's "72 Hours of the Book" festival unfolded in venues across the capital Conakry, bringing together a wide array of writers, publishers, and readers from the West African country and across the continent. CONAKRY, April 28 (Reuters) - Guinea's national sports stadium buzzed with people seeking a different kind of workout this week, as minds flexed and stretched in pursuit not of muscle gains, but literary enrichment. Based on David Chidester’s understanding of religion, this paper argues that the power of carbon capture narratives is grounded in religious tropes and ideas. This paper will discuss and explore the underlying ideas behind carbon capture and storage technologies and discuss how language used to talk about the climate opportunities they offer transcends the everyday and the ordinary. Language and imagery on websites and in marketing material presents these technologies as transformative technologies: they promise to transform something harmful in the atmosphere (CO2) into paradisiacal plentitude: carbon as infinite energy resource. Once such example are carbon capture and storage solutions. Similarly, technologies that promise to deliver us from the impending climate apocalypse often come shrouded as savior-technologies. Warnings about climate change often come wrapped in apocalyptic language and scenarios, often as a rhetorical strategy to convey the sense of urgency with which action is required. It was a time when we recognized that if we wanted black children to become readers, it was important for them to find themselves and their lives reflected in the literature we exposed them to. There was also the promise of continuing progress as a spate of black writers - Virginia Hamilton, Lucille Clifton, Eloise Greenfield, Sharon Bell Mathis, Walter Dean Myers, and John Steptoe, to name a few - broke into print with the major publishers. As a result, in the years between the mid-'60s and late '70s there was a gratifying increase in the numbers of such books. True, during the conscience-stricken 1960s there was an outcry about the lack of children's books about blacks. Black authors of children's books are equally rare. Hard, that is, if you're searching between the covers of children's books or on the shelves of bookstores. Drawing on insights from neuroscience and psychology, she explains why one setting makes us feel anxious or competitive, while another fosters acceptance and delight - and, most importantly, she reveals how we can harness the power of our surroundings to live fuller, healthier, and truly joyful lives. In Joyful, designer Ingrid Fetell Lee explores how the seemingly mundane spaces and objects we interact with every day have surprising and powerful effects on our mood. According to research, joy may even add extra years to your lifespan. But what if the natural vibrancy of our surroundings is actually our most renewable and easily accessible source of joy? When you're feeling joyful, your body is better equipped to fend off illness and disease, thanks to improved immune function and lower inflammation. Increasingly, experts urge us to find balance and calm by looking inward - through mindfulness or meditation - and muting the outside world. We are often made to feel that the physical world has little or no impact on our inner joy. Have you ever wondered why we stop to watch the orange glow that arrives before sunset, or why we flock to see cherry blossoms bloom in spring? Is there a reason that people - regardless of gender, age, culture, or ethnicity - are mesmerized by baby animals, and can't help but smile when they see a burst of confetti or a cluster of colorful balloons. Designer and TED star Ingrid Fetell Lee presents groundbreaking research to explain how making small changes to your surroundings can create extraordinary happiness in your life. That its author is gay informs the latter insofar that when referencing love or attraction he is doing so about another man. The book is emphatically NOT about being gay, it is about being alive and open to the current. Because White discusses trysts (in terms High Romantic) with the same sex, it must be filed thusly? I don't get it, seriously. The fact that this is touted as "homoerotic" (twice in the jacket blurbs) or 'gay literature' is completely baffling to me. Read more, get more of the references, love your animals. Any aspersions of this not being linear or overly precious are a) bullshit and b) that ol' problem that arrives when the wrong/unprepared reader gets their hands on a book and is so, so distraught to find that the book isn't what they wanted it to be. The naysayers on Goodreads, of which there are a few I casually spy, must be those kind of people that require to have their hand held in a crowd despite the fact that they are a fully grown adult. This is almost sacred some holy amalgam of pantheistic shout-outs and simultaneous inventorying of human anatomy. I'd never read White, though his reputation for saying some pretty crazy shit precedes him, so I went in blind on the suggestion of a friend. I'm finding these short-sharp-shocks of books are perfect antidotal medicine to whatever it is that ails me. Literary zounds! I've been on a lucky streak lately. With that being said, there is always a blue sky above the clouds and within you. Feelings are like the weather, they change and it is important to remember that nothing ever stays the same. I would ask the children, “what’s the weather like inside of you?” They then responded “good like a sunny day” or “tired like a rainy day.” In the classroom, we often talk about the weather outside, so this exercise presents a tangible way to talk about feelings. I was able to incorporate its ideas into the classroom right away, such as the concept of your personal weather report. “As a teacher at a Buddhist School, I found Sitting Still to be an accessible resource. Here’s what Kelly Peck, a teacher at the Middle Way School, has to say about Sitting Still Like a Frog : The method has been used in several primary schools in the Netherlands. It is based on what author Eline Snel calls the “frog method,” which, according to her website, was developed based on scientific research and which has been found by several pilot studies to have positive influence on well-being. The book and accompanying CD, published in 2013, includes a number of helpful practices for children to work with their emotions, fall asleep more easily, and cultivate patience and awareness. Sitting Still Like a Frog offers an approachable resource for introducing children and their parents to mindfulness meditation. |