Bendy Elephant

The president of Juxon is killed and his supporters are on a murderous rampage, plunging the small country into instant civil war. As the headmaster of a prestigious school and a high profile target for the insurgents, Frederick Wiggins and his family are forced to flee their comfortable lifestyle. Fourteen year old Luther’s highest value, his family, is immediately challenged when they have to leave without his eight year old sister Ellie, who is sleeping over at her grandmother’s in the next town. As the conflict escalates, the family has to adapt constantly to deal with petty hostilities as well as the lack of humanitarian assistance. After a humbling experience with some soldiers, Luther is determined to become street wise. During a major clash between the rebels and the army, they have to flee yet again, this time into neighbouring Belling. All they have is the clothes they are wearing. Now they too must live in a refugee camp. Here they live for nearly a year, surviving and dealing with crisis after crisis. A final catastrophe splits the family. Again, it is Luther’s focus on his highest value that keeps him going when wandering in the forest, searching for his errant older sister. Finally, recovering from his ordeal in the forest, he is helped to come to terms with his new life.

In The Lagoon, acclaimed biologist Armand Marie Leroi recovers Aristotle's science. He revisits Aristotle's writings and the places where he worked. He goes to the eastern Aegean island of Lesbos to see the creatures that Aristotle saw, where he saw them. He explores Aristotle's observations, his deep ideas, his inspired guesses--and the things he got wildly wrong. He shows how Aristotle's science is deeply intertwined with his philosophical system and reveals that he was not only the first biologist, but also one of the greatest.

With a double-page spread for every letter of the alphabet, this handbook gives guidance on introducing each lower case letter, how to write it correctly, how to pronounce each letter sound and how to explain the corresponding capital letter shape. It also shows how to introduce the new Letterland characters in a simple and fun way.

"America the Great" is the result of five years' research and writing that began in late 2009 in response to the contemporary American "tea party" movement and criticisms that the movement's participants did not know the history and theory of the original 1773 Boston Tea Party from which the modern movement takes its name. The extensive library of original books, newspapers, magazines, etc., now available (primarily via "google books") to anyone over the Internet, means that researchers have available to them the university libraries of the world. The availability of accurate original documents made it possible to expand the original scope of research into other historical events, and into other countries (primarily Great Britain), and enabled the work to develop into a more general examination of theories of human dignity, and of the differing conception of government that arises depending on the conception of human dignity that is characteristic of the people that is creating that government.

The Times Best Food Books of the Year 2021 'Ben McFarland and Tom Sandham bring a much-needed lightness of touch to what can perversely be a very dry subject.' The Times No matter what day of the year it is and regardless of the occasion, there is always a very good reason to enjoy a drink. Responsibly of course. Aimed at discerning drinkers keen to broaden their booze horizons and those looking to become more adventurous in their elbow-bending, this enlightening and alternative almanac celebrates every day of the year with an appropriate alcoholic drink - featuring everything from Absinthe and Zinfandel to Martinis and Monastic beers. It's a cocktail of cultural history, eccentric events, unlikely anniversaries, recipes and recommendations infused with all manner of 'interestingness', several dashes of drinking did you knows, fascinating facts, famous folk, unsung heroes, lesser-known legends from all walks of life and major weird, wonderful and well-known moments from our past.

"We conceive of the individual animal as a small world, existing for its own sake, by its own means. Every creature is its own reason to be. All its parts have a direct effect on one another, a relationship to one another, thereby constantly renewing the circle of life. Thus, we are justified in considering every animal physiologically perfect." --Goethe Every animal on earth has its own unique character --the slow sloth, the burrowing mole, the towering giraffe, the huge but flexible elephant. In vivid portrayals of nine different animals, Craig Holdrege shows how all of an animal's features are interconnected and reveal the animal as a whole. Moreover, every animal intersects with and influences the larger environment in dynamic ways. Seeing the Animal Whole provides a nuanced sense for what it means to be a living being. With the open-ended question "Who are you?" and with the will to let the animals themselves be his guide, Holdrege avoids the pitfalls of mechanistic and anthropomorphic perspectives that skew our concepts of animals and even lead to their mistreatment. This book presents an integrative view of animals and nature that you won't find elsewhere. The author presents a different way of seeing and relating to nature, leading to a groundbreaking understanding of animal development and evolution as creative processes with the animals as active participants. Further evolution of life on earth depends largely on human activity, and this book shows a way to learn from nature's living qualities so we can further --rather than disrupt --the health of the planet --which belongs to all of its inhabitants. And that matters.

“At his most flippant, Chin is downright charming.”—Publishers Weekly While trying to make sense of this ever-churning, terror-filled world, poet Justin Chin found himself traveling repeatedly home to Southeast Asia—a region unnerved and raging with SARS and the Avian Flu—to help care for his father who had suddenly been declared terminally ill with cancer. In addition to his father’s illness, Chin was managing his own health and medical annoyances and preparing for a looming US citizenship test. At the beginning of this difficult period, Chin quietly vowed not to speak publicly about his troubles until they had been suitably resolved. These poems mark the end of that resolution. Gutted is a document of growing older—a massively moving work of grief, loss, comfort, illness, and resolve—imbued with Chin's unique screwy perspective, ever-defective grace, and scabrous humor. Justin Chin is the author of two poetry collections, Harmless Medicine and Bite Hard (Manic D Press), and two collections of essays, Burden of Ashes (Alyson Books) and Mongrel: Essays, Diatribes and Pranks (St. Martin's Press). Chin’s writings have also been anthologized widely, notably in The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry (Thunder's Mouth Press), American Poetry: The Next Generation (Carnegie Mellon University Press), The World In Us: Lesbian and Gay Poetry of the Next Wave (St. Martin's Press), and Chick For A Day (Simon & Schuster). He has performed his work throughout the United States. He lives in San Francisco.

Curious Nambo is so clumsy with his short snout. No one will play with him or answer all his questions! He just wants to know what crocodiles eat for lunch. Annoyed, Hippopotamus tricks Nambo into finding out the answer for himself. So when Hippopotamus gets stuck in the river, Nambo must decide whether or not to help her. Find out just how the elephant got its long trunk in this unique twist on the tale!

When the Whales Walked is an exquisitely illustrated exploration of the most incredible events in evolution, through 13 case studies. Discover a world where whales once walked, crocodiles were warm-blooded, and rhinos ruled the Earth!

This book provides a comprehensive review of fundamental issues in the dynamical modeling and vibration control design for several flexible mechanical systems, such as flexible satellites, flexible aerial refueling hoses, and flexible three-dimensional manipulators. Offering an authoritative reference guide to the dynamics and control of flexible mechanical systems, it equips readers to solve a host of problems concerning these systems. It provides not only a complete overview of flexible systems, but also a better understanding of the technical levels involved. The book is divided into ten chapters: Chapters 1 and 2 lay the foundations, while the remaining chapters explore several independent yet related topics in detail. The book’s final chapter presents conclusions and recommendations for future research. Given its scope, the book is intended for researchers, graduate students, and engineers whose work involves control systems, flexible mechanical systems, and related areas.