National Geographic Tales of the Weird: Unbelievable True Stories

When a farmer in Spain captured a two-headed snake in 2002, scientists wanted to study it. When "National Geographic Daily News" published a story about the discovery, people wanted to read all about it. More than a million people clicked on the site and kept coming back for more unbelievably true stories. An Internet sensation was born.
Since then, more than 100 million individuals have clicked on stories put together by David Braun and his crack team of editors for "National Geographic Daily News." And readers cannot get enough information about the often weird, sometimes miraculous things being discovered by scientists every day--incredible flying sharks, the strange sex lives of ducks, mind-controlling fungus that turns ants into zombies, and the darkest planet in the universe.
This reader features the most wildly popular, incredibly weird, and totally true stories from National Geographic's "Daily News" site presented in a compact, fact-filled reader. It will be a must-have for fans of Braun's website and for fans of "fun fact" books like the "Uncle Johns Bathroom Reader" series. The millions of fans who follow David Braun's "National Geographic Daily News" will be thrilled with this incredible reader filled with their favorites from the website. The most popular ones are all here presented in a lively, engaging format that is entertaining for the mind and easy on the wallet.

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Martin Luther King Jr.: A King Family Tribute

Martin Luther King Jr.'s family comes together for the first time to share their reflections and memories of the great civil rights leader. Included are contributions from his sister (the only surviving member of his immediate family), his children, his in-laws, his nieces and nephews, and even his grandchildren, who, although they never met him, explain what his legacy means to them. Unlike the iconic persona normally associated with the man, the book presents a more personal, warm, and loving portrait: wrestling with his brother on the bed (despite their being in their thirties), sneaking naps during holiday meals, as well as playing games with his nieces and nephews. Alongside these tributes are never-before-published family photos of Dr. King, as well as new photographs of the memorial dedicated to him in August 2011 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

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Double Victory: How African American Women Broke Race and Gender Barriers to Help Win World War II

""Allow all black nurses to enlist, and the draft won't be necessary. . . . If nurses are needed so desperately, why isn't the Army using colored nurses?"""" ""My arm gets a little sore slinging a shovel or a pick, but then I forget about it when I think about all those boys over in the Solomons."" "Double Victory" tells the stories of African American women who did extraordinary things to help their country during World War II. In these pages young readers meet a range of remarkable women: war workers, political activists, military women, volunteers, and entertainers. Some, such as Mary McLeod Bethune and Lena Horne, were celebrated in their lifetimes and are well known today. But many others fought discrimination at home and abroad in order to contribute to the war effort yet were overlooked during those years and forgotten by later generations. "Double Victory" recovers the stories of these courageous women, such as Hazel Dixon Payne, the only woman to serve on the remote Alaska-Canadian Highway; Deverne Calloway, a Red Cross worker who led a protest at an army base in India; and Betty Murphy Phillips, the only black female overseas war correspondent. Offering a new and diverse perspective on the war and including source notes and a bibliography, "Double Victory" is an invaluable addition to any student's or history buff's bookshelf.

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The Stories of the Mona Lisa: An Imaginary Museum Tale about the History of Modern Art

"Dad, will you tell me a story?" asks a little girl. "Sure," artist Piotr Barsony responds. "I'll tell you a story about a painting. And the Mona Lisa, the most beautiful painting in all the world, will be our subject." Thus begins the fascinating history of modern painting through what many consider the most famous work in the history of art: the Mona Lisa by L onardo De Vinci. Piotr acts as the museum guide for his young daughter throughout the book, taking us on a journey through an imaginary museum. He describes famous art movements and artists, including: impressionism, cubism, expressionism, favism, minimalism, surrealism; Monet, Manet, C zanne, Picasso, Bacon, Pollock, and more. All of the most famous painters of the modern and contemporary art movements are explained with their own Mona Lisa portraits, in their signature styles. Throughout the book, Piotr acts as a guide, explaining to his daughter (and the reader) each genre of paintings in a clear, simple, and entertaining way. By the end of the book, we discover that he's actually the artist who's been painting all those Mona Lisas--and the results are spectacular. The Stories of the Mona Lisa is the perfect book for any child who loves art, history, and a good story.

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