Showing results by narrator "Lesa Lockford" in All Categories

Lakshmi is worshipped as the goddess of wealth. Her arrival is considered auspicious, while her departure is bad and inauspicious. In temples, gods are bedecked with jewels; during festivals, our houses are decorated with flowers, lamps and Lakshmi’s footprints. Clearly, she is a much-desired goddess. Yet, some friends and relatives—even gurus—tell us not to be money-minded. How to Become Rich is a simple retelling of the stories of Lakshmi found in the Vedas and Puranas. Devdutt Pattanaik deftly explains what Hinduism says about economics at a personal level as well as at the social level.

It's not you; it's your schedule. Does it sound like magic? It's not. We've all heard of circadian rhythms - those biological processes that give us jet lag and make us night owls or early birds. But few of us know just how profoundly these diurnal patterns affect our overall health. Bad habits - like skipping meals, squeezing in workouts, working late into the night and then trying to catch up on sleep during the weekend - disrupt our natural cycles. A growing body of research on chronobiology reveals just how sensitive the human body is to these rhythms all the way down to the genetic level.

In a compelling narrative that introduces historical and contemporary research on self-directed education, Unschooled also spotlights how a diverse group of individuals and organizations are evolving an old schooling model of education. These innovators challenge the myth that children need to be taught in order to learn.

Liberate yourself from the life purpose trap. Leading life coach, regular contributor to Psychology Today, and renowned author Eric Maisel presents a contemporary philosophy that challenges the conventional wisdom surrounding how to live.

This essay collection from renowned journalist and novelist Slavenka Drakulic, which quickly became a modern (and feminist) classic, draws back the Iron Curtain for a glimpse at the lives of Eastern European women under Communist regimes. Provocative, often witty, and always intensely personal, How We Survived Communism and Even Laughed cracks open a paradoxical world that through its rejection of capitalism and commoditization ends up fetishizing both.

The year is 2393, and the world is almost unrecognizable. Clear warnings of climate catastrophe went ignored for decades, leading to soaring temperatures, rising sea levels, widespread drought, and the disaster now known as the Great Collapse of 2093. Dramatizing science in ways traditional nonfiction cannot, The Collapse of Western Civilization reasserts the importance of scientists and the work they do, providing a welcome moment of clarity amid the cacophony of climate-change literature.

At your last health checkup, your healthcare team said your heart medications are working well and your cholesterol numbers are improving. Also, there's a new medicine for arthritis if you'd like to try it for your joint pain. All good news, yet you still don'f feel all that great and you're not a big fan of the ever-increasing size of your pill box. Might there be other ways to boost your health besides medications, injections and other medical interventions? Could acupuncture really help with knee pain? Does massage therapy do more than just boost feel-good endorphins? Is CBD helpful?

In her celebrated fiction, Shirley Jackson explored the darkness lurking beneath the surface of small-town America. But in Life Among the Savages, she takes on the lighter side of small-town life. In this witty and warm memoir of her family's life in rural Vermont, she delightfully exposes a domestic side in cheerful contrast to her quietly terrifying fiction. With a novelist's gift for character, an unfailing maternal instinct, and her signature humor, Jackson turns everyday family experiences into brilliant adventures.

On Bittersweet Place is the powerful coming-of-age story of Lena Czernitski, a young Russian Jew whose family flees their homeland in the Ukraine after the October Revolution. The story unfolds in Chicago during the Jazz Age of the 1920s, where Lena's impoverished family has settled and where she must traverse the early years of adolescence. Lena's new world is large and beautiful and full of promise, but it is also cold and unwelcoming and laden with danger.

Lily Danziger wanted more than the shallow life she'd been living in so-called New England society. She wanted more security than money could buy. So she packed up her newborn daughter and headed for a new start - until a blizzard stopped them in their tracks and she had to ask a stranger for help, the rugged traveler their one chance for survival. He led them to a temporary refuge, but could he also hold the key to a future Lily has only dreamed of?

In The Teen Interpreter, psychologist Terri Apter looks inside teens’ minds—minds that are experiencing powerful new emotions and awareness of the world around them—to show how parents can revitalize their relationship. She illuminates the rapid neurological developments of a teen’s brain, explains the power of teenage friendships, and explores the positives and pitfalls of social media.

April 1910. Women's rights activist Alvera Fields mysteriously vanishes from her home one night, leaving her newborn baby and husband behind, and the case is never solved.

With his trademark wit and distinctive voice, legendary Ball Four author Jim Bouton recounts his battle against local elites' efforts to replace Wahconah Park, one of the oldest parks in the United States, against the wishes and votes of local citizens. But Foul Ball is more than just a lively romp about saving an old ballpark near Bouton's home in Massachusetts.

Meet Nives: widow, Tuscan through and through, survivor. Nives recently lost her husband of 50 years. She didn’t cry when she found him dead in the pig pen, and she didn’t cry at the funeral, but now loneliness has set in. When she decides to bring her favorite chicken inside for company, she is shocked, confused, and a little bit guilty to discover that the chicken’s company is a more-than-adequate replacement for her dead husband.

When the gentle woodcarver Geppetto builds a marionette, Pinocchio, to be his son, a fairy brings the toy to life. But Pinocchio is not yet a human boy. He must earn the right by proving that he is brave, truthful, and unselfish. But even with the help of Jiminy, a cricket who the fairy assigns to be his conscience, Pinocchio goes astray. He joins a puppet show instead of going to school, he lies instead of telling the truth, and he travels to Pleasure Island instead of going straight home.

For anyone burdened by stress and anxiety, just the thought of trying to make a positive life change can feel utterly overwhelming. Wanting to live a healthier life may sound easy, but what about the time needed for meal prepping? What about the added meal-plan costs to your budget? Do you have to wake up at dawn to take that meditation class? When you are surrounded by stress, it’s all too easy to completely derail yourself...with more stress. Life is hard enough - the road to a stress-free life should feel easy!

Former North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation agent Rachel Carver blames herself for the collateral death of an innocent woman in her last case. Unable to accept her superior’s attempts to cover up the incident, she turned in her badge. But when a former partner asks her to consult on a new murder case, she reluctantly agrees, traveling to a small remote mountain community, where she’s tasked with leading a group of inexperienced detectives on a hunt for the killer.

Caught between a greedy corporation and a desperate love of the land, Maria Porterfield barely has time to mourn her father's death. If her family is to survive, it'll be up to her to take charge - but she can't do it alone. When a mysterious drifter rides into town, the handsome cowboy seems like an answer to her prayers. But Chet isn't interested in settling down, no matter how tempting the offer.... Chet made his way West looking for a fresh start - the last thing he wants is to get involved in someone else's fight.

Dan "The Man" Currington is back in fighting form with a mission that takes him 4,000 miles south of BKI headquarters, high in the Andes Mountains of Peru. Dan's searching for a rogue CIA agent selling classified government secrets to the highest bidder when Penni DePaul appears. Keeping Penni safe becomes Dan's priority. A lot has changed since former Secret Service Agent Penni DePaul last saw Dan. Now a civilian, she's excited about what the future might hold.

On the morning of Isabella's birthday in 1944, she and her family were deported to Auschwitz, the Nazi extermination camp. There she and her siblings fought the greatest evil in human history with the only weapon they had: love. Isabella's Pulitzer-nominated memoir will take you into a world of darkness where she will reveal humanity described in the voice of a poet.