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We'll be launching the "Spill the Tea with the TopKnotch Dogs" podcast soon! -
Forbidden love and fierce rivalry drive Jeff Hollister, a street-smart high school senior and gang leader of the Hurricanes, to the brink of disaster. Thinking he’s got the world in his back pocket, and the police at a safe distance, he and his scrappy gang of teenage delinquents come to discover they don’t always come out on top after all. A deadly vow by a member of the rival Tornadoes gang sets Jeff and his friends on a roller coaster of knife fray and gunplay, foot races and car chases, trust and betrayal, and murder. The death of a beloved friend serves a painful slap of reality to the Hurricanes that incites a burning desire for vengeance among the gang. With angry players going rogue, and weapons in the wrong hands, even the leaders are out of their depth. To make matters worse, Jeff is sidetracked by his budding love for Cindy, whose father just so happens to be the new police chief—the one person the Hurricane leader most wants to avoid. Yet she might also be the catalyst that can save Jeff from his own devices—if it doesn’t kill her first... -
No more diets, guilt, or shame. Instead—a step-by- step process of self-discovery to heal your relationship with food and your body.
The Cherry Pie Paradox will help you:
- Leave the self-critic behind; instead, engage your curiosity and your inner coach.
- Uncover and let go of the old stories, hidden beliefs, and toxic messages that have undermined your confidence and perseverance.
- Sharpen your taste buds and your attention, so you can savor the foods you love without feeling the need to overeat.
- Tune up your inner fuel gauge, so what you eat better matches your body’s needs.
- Nurture a kinder, more appreciative connection with your body, ”warts and all.”
- Put into daily practice 8 SuperTools that will help you eat wisely. For life.
- And so much more. You’ll soon realize this process also works on other life challenges. -
Every family has a story. Every story, eventually, must be told.
For most of their lives, Julian Perel and his sister, Paula, lived in a house cast in silence, witnesses to a father struggling with a devastating secret too painful to share. Though their father took his demons to the grave, his past refuses to rest.
As adults, brother and sister struggle to find their voices. A scientist governed by numbers and logic, Julian now lives an ordered life of routine and seclusion. In contrast, Paula has entered the world as eagerly as Julian retracts from it. An aspiring opera singer, she is always moving, buoyant with sound.
Yet both their lives begin to change on a Wednesday, miercoles, the day that sounds like miracles.
Before embarking on a European opera tour, Paula asks her housekeeper, Sola, to stay at her place--and to look after Julian in the apartment above. Sola, too, has a story.
As Paula uncovers pieces of her father's early life in Budapest and the horrifying truth of his past, Julian bears witness to Sola's story--revelations that help all three learn how to both surrender and revere the shadows that have followed them for so long.
The Speed of Light is a powerful novel about three unforgettable souls who overcome the tragedies of the past to reconnect with one another and the world around them. Elizabeth Rosner has created a beautifully interwoven story of love and redemption that proves the pain of the untold story is far greater than even the most difficult truth.
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“Heart-Dreamer: Stepping into Life, Love, Creativity and Dreams – No Matter What” is an award-winning motivational book written for anyone who has a dream, lost their dreams along the way, or never knew how to dream. Rooted in the ebb and flow of Cheryl Melody Baskin’s life as an unstoppable dreamer, creative visionary, musician, and motivational life coach, Heart-Dreamer lights the way toward more moments of self-discovery, self-love, inner healing, soaring dreams, and hope. “As soon as I saw the sentence 'allow your heart to guide you,' I knew Heart Dreamer contained the truth about life." - Bernie Siegel, MD., New York Times best-selling author and physician As you listen to the author’s heart-centered and interactive presentation, breathe in all the support, journal writing prompts, life wisdom, self-talk dialogues, inner child healing, creative imagination, soothing visualizations and meditations, self-care strategies, life-changing positive affirmations, sound healing, inspirational songs, and transformational wisdom from people around the world. "This isn't just a book, it's a way of life." Ricky Kej, Grammy award-winner and United Nations humanitarian artist. With Heart-Dreamer by your side, discover how to believe in yourself and in new possibilities; release fears, doubts and the perfection syndrome; shoo away your inner critic; ignore the inner voices of naysayers from your past or present; unleash your creative spirit; tap into your inner child's imaginative side; experience nerve-busting tools and how to write effective positive affirmations; listen to the intuitive voice of your wise inner guru; learn how to become your own best friend; ignite a spark of adventurous curiosity and choose to begin again with new visions of hope. “Melody invites me to be gentle with myself and with everyone around me, and at the same time, she challenges me to dare to dream big.” Reverend Dr. Deborah L. Clark, Multi-faith coordinator, pastor, and yoga instructor Simi -
REWRITE THE RULES. SURPASS EXPECTATIONS. OWN YOUR SUCCESS. Tired of the same old advice, and certain there must be another way? Feeling limited by how society limits what you can achieve? Meet Chrissy Grigoropoulos, self-made millionaire and legal powerhouse. A bold spirit who carves her own path and thrives on her own terms, Chrissy is a Ladyshark. And she believes that you can become one, too. So whether you’re fresh out of high school, feeling hopeless because you don't have a fancy college degree or top-notch network, are stuck in a dead-end job, or dream of a life beyond the ordinary, Chrissy wants to help! Her book is built around the 8 steps YOU can take to unleash your inner Ladyshark. You'll learn how to: • Overcome self-doubt and harness your inner badass. • Unshackle your potential and achieve the financial freedom to live the life you desire and deserve. • Identify opportunities and create strategies for business success, even without an elite degree, family wealth or a killer network. • Dig into a mindset shift that catapults you from doubting to doing. Plus, you’ll have the chance to hear Chrissy's inspiring journey, filled with Greek wisdom and real-life lessons from her successful immigrant father. This book isn't just a guide; it's a revolution. So ditch those limitations. Step outside the box. Embrace your fire. And become the LADYSHARK you were destined to be! -
Set in one of the roughest neighborhoods in the city of St. Louis, Jayrin Foster grapples with the absence of his father, while Kamree Covington copes with her own struggles as her father serves time in prison. Aceson Denner, residing in a more affluent neighborhood, faces a different challenge – his father's emotional detachment. As these teenagers navigate the turbulent waters of adolescence, the void left by their fathers becomes an insurmountable hurdle. Jayrin's entanglement with a local drug dealer jeopardizes his academic pursuits, places his life at risk, and strains his longstanding friendship with Kamree. Kamree, in pursuit of an ideal and perfect world, confronts her own imperfections through self-reflection. Meanwhile, Aceson's explosive temper and social awkwardness lead to isolation in his school. Through the authentic voices of these compelling characters, the harsh reality of socio-economic challenges confronting today's youth unfolds. As they grapple with loneliness, poverty, drugs, and violence, and develop racial awareness, their separate journeys unexpectedly intertwine. The resulting tapestry weaves a narrative of tragedy, awakening, and the potential for redemption. -
San Francisco, 1967. A teenager comes of age during the Summer of Love at her rock & roll wedding. Her story relates the saga of life and relationships from then until the present through many lessons learned the hard way, until when, in 2005 she transitioned into yet another challenging marriage to the founder of an iconic winery in the Valley of the Moon. An inspirational narrative of one woman’s perseverance, creativity and stamina to overcome the cultural norms of patriarchy through years of controlling abuse and moving on through the learning curve of personal growth. The publication of this story was inspired and encouraged by the now prominent #MeToo Movement. -
Ever heard yourself say, a part of me wants this, but another part of me wants that? Ever said, I'm in two minds... These statements make intuitive sense, because you intuitively know there are many parts to who you are, which seem to want different things. But have you ever stopped to wonder what these parts actually are? This book not only answers - in simple, accessible language, what parts are, how they work, and how they can help you understand your thinking, your emotions and your behaviors. And most importantly, how you can work with your parts to get out of your own way. Part of Me will take your self-awareness to the next level, by exploring your Inner Team, and the parts which populate it. Fifty of the most common parts are profiled in detail, so you can understand exactly what parts are driving you, and what parts you have neglected. Armed with this information, you'll be equipped to learn which parts are causing the problems you repeatedly experience, and what to do to get your Inner Team working for you, not against you. Part of Me is a comprehensive guide to the universe of parts within us, based on the Inner Team Dialogue coaching system. Written by the founder of Inner Team Dialogue, this book summarizes more than 25 years of practice, observation and exploration. The Inner Team Dialogue approach to personal development empowers you to experience: - A deeper, more nuanced understanding of who you are, and what drives you - An increase in self-compassion, and a reduction in self-criticism - Wiser decision-making, with less second guessing - Freedom to choose who you want to be - The feeling of being at peace with yourself. -
From IPPY gold medal winner Robert Cook comes the fourth installment in the Cooch series. With all the classic elements of a spy thriller—intrigue, violence, sex—The Mahdi is a narrative geopolitical battlefield where Islamic and Orthodox Jewish ideologies clash, seen through the lens of a modern, liberal Muslim. Raised in a blend of Bedouin tradition and Western education,Alex Cuchulain, Cooch, is a former US Marine, CIA operator, and entrepreneur. Partnered with Dr. Caitlin O’Connor, the self-described “smartest person in the world,” they make an unlikely yet formidable duo. When Alex takes on a mission to reclaim stolen Bedouin land, he finds himself imprisoned and branded a criminal. Meanwhile, Caitlin faces her own dangers, becoming the target of an extremist plot. But the rules of warfare change forever when Caitlin condenses an electromagnetic pulse into shootable ammunition and deploys an AI chatbot–quantum computer that can use the internet to control secure Israeli communications and provide strategic intel. As tensions escalate, some begin to believe that Alex may actually be the Mahdi, the prophesied redeemer of Islam. But can he shoulder that mantle? And can technology and enlightened thinking prevail over entrenched dogma? -
Benno Neuburger, a modest land investor from Munich and Anna Einstein daughter of a cattle dealer from Laupheim, marry in 1907. They begin their lives together with great hope. It is a relatively prosperous time and a very optimistic one for German Jews who are enjoying a social renaissance in the industrializing, urbanizing rising star that is Germany. It’s not clear that this good fortune might begin to unravel. Even as news of an assassination in an “obscure” Balkan corner of the continent passes like a cold wind through Munich on a warm beer-garden July day, people shudder but feel no great alarm. Yet what follows is a war provoked by inter-colonialist competition. It is prolonged and bloody, giving way to German defeat, revolution, a brief socialist interlude in Munich, a merciless counter revolution, and the pitiless demagoguery of defeated generals. So marks the commencement of an era of nearly relentless distress and turmoil for Germany. The lives of Benno and Anna and their extended families are amid this swirl—trying to make a life as they struggle to survive, as they cling to the hope of a peaceful resolution to crisis. But to no avail. Munich becomes the epicenter of German fascism fed by nationalist resentment and racial madness – an offspring of European rivalries and colonialism. In the 1920s the brown shirts of Germany’s former African colonial army become the uniform of a domestic legion of terror. In the 1920s Benno, Anna and their children live as close neighbors to the demagogue who will become the Nazi leader. A slow-moving horror show envelops them in the years that follow. In the 1930s and 1940s: Emigrating children, a pogrom, a new war, evictions, “resettlement” via a train ride east . . . desperate acts of resistance, arrest, trial – as the holocaust plays out— all up close and personal: A human story told through the voices of those who lived it. -
Imagine Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test meets Murder, She Wrote.
One part hippies grooving on the waterfront and fighting the man, one part murder mystery.It’s the 1970s, and the “houseboat wars” erupt in Sausalito on the site of Marinship, the abandoned World War II shipyard. Hippies and squatters are living free and easy on houseboats in a ramshackle shantytown, and greedy developers are determined to evict them and build new docks to attract affluent residents.
The counterculture is in full flower and the houseboaters, fearing their community will be destroyed, resist eviction with street theater, civil disobedience, monkeywrenching, and more. Like climbing into dinghies and pushing away police boats with oars. Like sinking a barge to block a pile driver. All in front of TV cameras!
Then, someone gets stabbed.
Pirates of Sausalito is fiction, but inspired by true events. As Larry Clinton, former president of the Sausalito Historical Society, said, “If it didn't happen exactly this way, it could have.”
