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The Introvert Advantage: How to Thrive in an Extrovert World
At least one out of four people prefers to avoid the limelight, tends to listen more than they speak, feels alone in large groups, and requires lots of private time to restore their energy. They're introverts, and here is the book to help them boost their confidence while learning strategies for successfully living in an extrovert world. After dispelling common myths about introverts-they're not necessarily shy, aloof, or antisocial-- The Introvert Advantage explains the real issues. Introverts are hardwired from birth to focus inward, so outside stimulation-chitchat, phone calls, parties, office meetings-can easily become "too much." The Introvert Advantage dispels introverts' belief that something is wrong with them and instead helps them recognize their inner strengths-their analytical skills, ability to think outside the box, and strong powers of concentration. It helps readers understand introversion and shows them how to determine where they fall on the introvert/extrovert continuum. It provides tools to improve relationships with partners, kids, colleagues, and friends, offering dozens of tips, including 10 ways to talk less and communicate more, 8 ways to showcase your abilities at work, how to take a child's temperament temperature, and strategies for socializing. Finally, it shows how to not just survive, but thrive-how to take advantage of the introvert's special qualities to create a life that's just right for the introvert temperament, to discover new ways to expand their energy reserves, and even how, when necessary, to confidently become a temporary extrovert..
Price: $8.25
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The Hakawati
Amazon Guest Review: Amy Tan I've been a huge fan of Rabih Alameddine's work for many years, beginning with his first novel, Koolaids: The Art of War. Rabih is not only a writer whose work I admire, he is also the writer with whom I have spent the most time talking about books, writers, and literary ideas. He reads the most international fiction of anyone else I know. And for now, his French is better than mine—though I'm working on that. . . . Rabih is what I would call a writer of conscience, of self-consciousness, of subconsciouness, of the great big global unconscious Within his stories are provocative ideas, housed in fractured narratives, splendid images, daring language—and simply great storytelling. What some might call disjointed narratives, I think of as the way our perceptions of time and space actually unfurl themselves: not linearly, but in a revelatory sense. In The Hakawati, you are often set on a fabulist path, astride a horse, in the echoing halls of an emir's palace, a mythic time and place—but suddenly, it feels as if the emir is ringing your own doorbell as you read, asking if he can borrow a bale of hay for his horse. The Hakawati is already becoming known by both readers and critics as an important, timely story. In part it's because of the way the book integrates ancient tales from the Middle East into the lives of one unforgettable family. But it is also because of the upheavals--the violence--taking place in Lebanon today. Fiction has always been part of the wake of real political events. People read fiction, it seems to me, to understand the truth. And they will read The Hakawati to have a connection to those events--to the turmoil faced by real people not only in Lebanon but all across the Middle East. In fiction you can immerse your imagination in someone else's imagination. You are with characters the writer has imagined, and you are living beside them; they operate as your guides to life. By the end of the book, you love those characters. You have a profound interest in where they live. That's what Rabih has done in The Hakawati with Lebanon. It is no longer merely a fictional place, no longer a place you simply read about, or see on television, in the news. Yet The Hakawati is not only timely in that sense: it is a timeless novel. In the world of ideas, fabulist tales are the foundations of many religions, including those in the Middle East, be they Jewish, Christian, Sunni, Shiite, Druze. These tales generally start off with the same kings and genies, the same men and women who are cast out to solve a riddle, slay a monster, or bring back proof of paternity or the death of an enemy, or what have you. Then there are "revisionist" versions of the fabulist tales, because no writer can keep his or her hands off a story to make it his or her own. And so throughout the history of religion, these stories have gathered permutations. And these permutations have gathered followers and enemies. But soon a set of fabulist tales becomes the Tales of the True Believers, and religion itself becomes the one reality. Therein lies the source of conflict, and of so much bloody war. In The Hakawati, some of the bloody parts resonate in tragic ways, while in others they are amplified, magnified, often in bizarre and even in bizarrely humorous fashion, as if to poke fun at the seriousness in which people treat these details. Interwoven with the historical/fabulist stories in The Hakawati are other stories--those about one singular family's past. Invariably, as in any family's stories, there are secrets, scandals, something changed to fit what was best for the family reputation. Intersecting with the lore of the family's background is a narrative of what one man, Osama al-Kharrat, is experiencing now: the imminent death of his father; the reunion of relatives; his own shifting sense of home; the revisiting of relationships misappropriated and unwound--all tied back together in kaleidoscopic ways. And it's not only the stories themselves that Alameddine is after: it's the nature of stories generally: this is what is at the heart of The Hakawati. Our own lives are narratives; they don't exist on a single flat plane. They include the influences of myths, fables, reconstructed moral tales. They include the untold stories of our ancestors. They include supposition and hypotheses, bias, and grudge, sentimentality and affection. The Hakawati takes these myriad gorgeous threads and reweaves them brilliantly. And did I mention language? Usually, I know I'll like a book from the very first page. I can tell by the language. It shines and hums. It has imagery that makes me see more deeply. The characters say surprising things that are also perfectly true. And within the sentences I find knowledge, deep-seated and intelligent, brimming with an understanding of history, of character, or literature, of humor. From the very first lines of The Hakawati: "Listen. Allow me to be your god. Let me take you on a journey beyond imagining. Let me tell you a story," I knew this would be a book like that for me. I could go on and on ... but let me simply add one more thing. I am a good predictor of who will win prizes. And I am predicting major prizes for The Hakawati. And for Rabih, I am predicting the biggest of prizes one day. The Nobel in both Literature and Peace. I'm only half-kidding. For that reason alone, you should click and buy not just one copy, but several. If this book wins those prizes, then your edition today will be worth so much more later, especially when your friends see you had the perspicacity to recognize a good story when you heard one. As I wrote in my endorsement for the novel, "Rabih Alameddine is the hakawati, and in the very near future, everyone will know how to pronounce his name." --Amy Tan
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Price: $12.95
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The Anatomy of Story: 22 Steps to Becoming a Master Storyteller
John Truby is one of the most respected and sought-after story consultants in the film industry, and his students have gone on to pen some of Hollywood’s most successful films, including Sleepless in Seattle, Scream, and Shrek. The Anatomy of Story is his long-awaited first book, and it shares all of his secrets for writing a compelling script. Based on the lessons in his award-winning class, Great Screenwriting, The Anatomy of Story draws on a broad range of philosophy and mythology, offering fresh techniques and insightful anecdotes alongside Truby’s own unique approach for how to build an effective, multifaceted narrative. Truby’s method for constructing a story is at once insightful and practical, focusing on the hero’s moral and emotional growth. As a result, writers will dig deep within and explore their own values and worldviews in order to create an effective story. Writers will come away with an extremely precise set of tools to work with—specific, useful techniques to make the audience care about their characters, and that make their characters grow in meaningful ways. They will construct a surprising plot that is unique to their particular concept, and they will learn how to express a moral vision that can genuinely move an audience.
The foundations of story that Truby lays out are so fundamental they are applicable—and essential—to all writers, from novelists and short-story writers to journalists, memoirists, and writers of narrative non-fiction.
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Price: $18.71
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Swallows and Amazons (Godine Storyteller)
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The Wounded Storyteller: Body, Illness, and Ethics
In At the Will of the Body, Arthur Frank told the story of his own illnesses, heart attack and cancer. That book ended by describing the existence of a "remission society," whose members all live with some form of illness or disability The Wounded Storyteller is their collective portrait. Ill people are more than victims of disease or patients of medicine; they are wounded storytellers. People tell stories to make sense of their suffering; when they turn their diseases into stories, they find healing. Drawing on the work of authors such as Oliver Sacks, Anatole Broyard, Norman Cousins, and Audre Lorde, as well as from people he met during the years he spent among different illness groups, Frank recounts a stirring collection of illness stories, ranging from the well-known—Gilda Radner's battle with ovarian cancer—to the private testimonials of people with cancer, chronic fatigue syndrome, and disabilties. Their stories are more than accounts of personal suffering: they abound with moral choices and point to a social ethic. Frank identifies three basic narratives of illness in restitution, chaos, and quest. Restitution narratives anticipate getting well again and give prominence to the technology of cure. In chaos narratives, illness seems to stretch on forever, with no respite or redeeming insights. Quest narratives are about finding that insight as illness is transformed into a means for the ill person to become someone new. .
Price: $11.00
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The English Teacher's Companion, Second Edition: Complete Guide to Classroom, Curriculum, and the Profession
In the four short years since publication, the first edition of The English Teacher's Companion quickly became the instructional bible for English teachers. Covering the entire English curriculum, from basic reading and writing to digital literacy, media literacy, and integrated instruction, it proved to be a revolutionary guide for preservice and inservice teachers alike. And with it author Jim Burke became one of the most trusted names in secondary English. Now, in this new edition, ETC2, Jim incorporates his current thinking. He also shows how teachers can address standards and assessment issues while maintaining their commitment to meaningful, engaging curriculum. With all this, plus updated revisions and 40 percent completely new material, his ETC2 is a must-have addition to every English teacher's bookshelf. Written for the way most teachers readon the run, in search of a particular solutionthe second edition retains the original's highly structured format with a new more open design for ease of use. Chapters are clearly subdivided; lessons are presented step-by-step; and assessment is integrated throughout. Outstanding new features include:increased emphasis on theoretical foundationscompletely revised major curriculum areas, especially reading and writingchanges that reflect the latest use of technology in the classroomupdated recommendations for the latest resourcesimproved alignment with the latest standards and assessmentssample instructional sequences to show how a complete unit looks new instructional design and planning toolsexpanded strategies for helping English Language Learners.Discoveror rediscovera valued colleague who challenges you to reexamine your own classroom practice. Read ETC2, reference it, share it, but most of all USE itas your primary source of information about classroom management, curriculum content, professional development, and more..
Price: $23.99
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Impro for Storytellers (Theatre Arts (Routledge Paperback))
Impro for Storytellers is the follow-up to Keith Johnstone's classic Impro, one of the best-selling books ever published on improvisation. In this book, Johnstone takes a further decade of experience as a teacher and coach and explores how an individual's potential can be released in group settings. "Be more boring!" he might yell to a student striving to be original. "Be more obvious!" he could advise a clever performer. These are unorthodox techniques, but ones that are part of the games that have made Johnstone's work uniquely effective in the theatre community. Beyond its strictly theatrical applications, Impro for Storytellers aims to take jealous and self-obsessed beginners and teach them to play games with good nature and to fail gracefully. If you've ever been clumsy and awkward, this book will improve your interpersonal skills and encourage a life-long study of human interaction..
Price: $25.26
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Storytellers, Saints, and Scoundrels: Folk Narrative in Hindu Religious Teaching (Contemporary Ethnography)
Supplements eight folk narratives with discussion of audience participation and response as well as relevant Hindu themes. .
Price: $13.50
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