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  Lindbergh's Artificial Heart -...

  Steve Silverman

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  An all-new compendium of strange-but-true history and science facts from the author of Einstein’s Refrigerator. When high school teacher Steve Silverman started posting fascinating facts on the internet, what began as a Web site for his students became an internationally sensation. He then compiled the silliest, most peculiar stories into the book Einstein's Refrigerator. Now comes silliness squared with Lindbergh's Artificial Heart, Silverman's second collection of offbeat and often hilarious stories that are absolutely true, yet not often taught in school.  Fascinating entries include:  The exploding whale: What did the Oregon Department of Transportation do with a dead whale that washed up on one of its beaches? Suffice it to say their decision to blow it up was quite the blubber blunder.  Nose picking: Delve into the humorous findings of a study of this bad habit conducted by one of our institutions of higher learning.  The fastest charcoal lighter ever: Using liquid oxygen at your family barbecue may speed up the cooking, but it does have its drawbacks . . . such as vaporizing your grill.

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  Blue Thirst - Tales of Life Abroad

  Lawrence Durrell

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  A pair of lectures from one of the twentieth century’s most mesmerizing speakersLawrence Durrell was in his early twenties when, tired of the stiffness of London life, he took his family to live in Corfu. Interwar Greece, whose hard beds and mosquito swarms Durrell documented so tenderly in Prospero’s Cell, was no more. In the first of this pair of lectures, given during a 1970s visit to California, Durrell recalls those days, talking of family, poetry, and the joy of the islands as no other writer can. When war came to the Mediterranean, Durrell was swept into diplomatic service, an adventure he recounts in his second lecture. Though a diplomat of the modern world, he served under men whose experience stretched back to the days before the telephone, when solutions for crises had to be devised by the ambassador, and not phoned in from London. These two lectures on long-vanished worlds are an elegant demonstration of the evocative power of Durrell’s unmatched storytelling.

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  Chasing Neotropical Birds

  Bob Thornton, Vera Thornton

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  “This book is for anyone who loves nature photography or birding . . . A fine introduction to the beauty and diversity of this region.” —Southeastern Naturalist   From Belize to Brazil, the forests of the American neotropics are home to an astonishing array of birds—over 3,700 different species, or nearly forty percent of all the birds on earth. Birding enthusiasts Vera and Bob Thornton have spent fifteen years photographing these special and exotic birds in the rainforests of eleven different countries of Central and South America. In this book, you’ll find more than a hundred spectacular color photographs they took during their travels, along with a highly entertaining account of their adventures—and misadventures—in chasing these exotic neotropicals.   The birds pictured here are among the Thorntons’ personal favorites—birds that, in their words, “either dazzled us with their beauty, or charmed us by their behavior, or, in a few cases, simply challenged us by the mystique of their rarity.” This latter category includes such elusive and sought-after birds as the Black-crowned Antpitta, the Zigzag Heron, the Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo, the Bare-necked Umbrellabird, and the monkey-eating Harpy Eagle. In the accompanying text, Bob Thornton engagingly describes the challenges as well as the magic of negotiating the neotropical rainforests in search of colorful birds to photograph. For those who would like to follow in the Thorntons’ footsteps, there are also helpful tips about photographic gear and techniques, preferred places to see the birds, lodging, and guides. For everyone who enjoys excellent nature photography, Chasing Neotropical Birds is a must-have volume.

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  Tips for the Savvy Traveler -...

  Deborah Burns

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  Planes, trains, automobiles and ships… Whatever your mode of transportation, Tips For The Savvy Traveler can help you—the businessperson, family with children, senior, or solo vacationer—avoid the inconveniences and pitfalls of travel within the U.S., or around the world. From the essential items that can’t be left behind (passports, visas) to the last-minute details that ensure a well-planned trip, this audiobook covers many common, and not-so-common, travel situations. And when you’re at your destination, Tips For the Savvy Traveler helps with jet lag, shopping, exchange rates and even your safety, health and security, in addition to suggestions for duties, customs and the unexpected culture shock of returning home. Pick up Tips For The Savvy Traveler and be prepared to make your next trip the best it can be!

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  Stories in Stone Paris - A Field...

  Douglas Keister

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  The intrigue of death in the City of Love 
  Paris, city of  lights, city of love, city of magic, city of art, city  of death. Around  twelve million people call the Paris metropolitan area  home, and  millions more call it their permanent home, including upwards  of seven  million in the catacombs in the Montparnasse district. 
  The  cemeteries and monuments in Stories in Stone Paris cut across a  wide  swath of the last two hundred years of Paris history. With this  field  guide in hand, discover the funerary architecture, memorials and   symbolism within twenty-eight of Paris’ notable resting places,   including GPS coordinates for many gravesites. 
  Douglas Keister has  authored more than thirty-five critically  acclaimed books. His wealth  of books on architecture has earned him the  title “America’s most noted  photographer of historic architecture.” His  book Stories in Stone: A  Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism has garnered a  number of glowing  reviews. Keister has also authored additional  cemetery guides titled  Forever Dixie, Forever L.A., and Stories in Stone  New York. He lives in  Chico, California.

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  Ask a Native New Yorker -...

  Jake Dobkin

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  Ask a Native New Yorker is Jake Dobkin's essential guide to the Big Apple's culture, people, and lifestyles.As a third-generation New Yorker who was born, bred, and educated there, Jake Dobkin was such a fan of his hometown that he started Gothamist, a popular and acclaimed website with a focus on news, events, and culture in the city, and Ask a Native New Yorker became one of its most popular columns. This book version features all original writing and aims to help newbies evolve into real New Yorkers with humor and a command of the facts.In forty-eight short essays and eleven sidebars, the book offers practical information about transportation, apartment hunting, and even cultivating relationships for anyone fresh to the Big Apple. Subjects include "Why is New York the greatest city in the world?," "Where should I live?," "Where do you find peace and quiet when you feel overwhelmed?," and "Who do I have to give up my subway seat to?"Part philosophy, part anecdote collection, and part no-nonsense guide, Ask a Native New Yorker will become the default gift for transplants to New York, whether they're here for internships, college, or starting a new job.

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