Showing results by narrator "Eric Michael Summerer" in All Categories

Heaster Wharton is dead, and his passing might mean an end to hostilities between the Manders and the Coys. If the the elderly patriarch showed the kindness and foresight to split his land cleanly between his feuding descendants, then a truce could be arranged. But his final request is a strange one, delivered across the country to the straggling remnants of his tribe. Representatives from both families must visit a cave at the edge of his property in the hills of Kentucky.

Pioneering oceanographer Curtis Ebbesmeyer unravels the mystery of marine currents, uncovers the astonishing story of flotsam, and changes the world's view of trash, the ocean, and our global environment. Curtis Ebbesmeyer is no ordinary scientist. He's been a consulting oceanographer for multinational firms and a lead scientist on international research expeditions, but he's never held a conventional academic appointment.

What begins with a sense that Michael's deceased grandfather might be inhabiting his body soon escalates to "slipping" into to the river of the dead. When Michael slips, he relives moments of his grandfather's life and tries to help him find peace. But each time he ventures into the river it's harder to come out again. Michael will have to depend on an unlikely group of friends to keep him from slipping... permanently. A penetrating twist on the classic ghost story, full of humor and insight about family relationships.

Fifteen-year-old Jeff Jacobson had never heard of Jeffrey Dahmer, the infamous serial killer who brutally murdered seventeen people more than twenty years ago. But Jeff's life changes forever when the man he'd thought was his father hands him a government file telling him he was constructed in a laboratory only seven years ago, part of a top-secret government cloning experiment called 'Project CAIN.' There, he was created entirely from Jeffrey Dahmer's DNA.

The start of a mischievous new middle-grade series has trouble written all over it. Twelve-year-old Seamus Hinkle is a good kid with a perfect school record—until the day he accidently kills his substitute teacher with an apple. Seamus is immediately shipped off to a detention facility—only to discover that Kilter Academy is actually a school to mold future Troublemakers, where demerits are awarded as a prize for bad behavior and each student is tasked to pull various pranks on their teachers in order to excel.

What happens to a regular guy who dopes? Surprised to learn that pro athletes aren’t the only ones taking performance-enhancing substances, journalist Andrew Tilin goes in search of the average juicing Joe, hoping to find a few things out: Why would normal people take these substances? Where do folks get them? Does the stuff really work? But these controversial drugs often silence their users, and so his queries might have gone unanswered had Tilin not looked in the mirror and succumbed to curiosity....

In a far-distant future, the Uman Empire has conquered and colonized worlds. Once thought invincible, its reign is now fragile as alien subjects and enemies conspire against it. On holiday in the capital city, cop Jack Cato gets a glimpse of the Emperor-and realizes what he's looking at is a supposedly dead shape- shifter. His mortal enemy is still alive and once again on the run. And the fate of the Empire - and Cato's own honor - are at stake....

Over a generation ago, the Council ordered the systematic extermination of the magic wielding, Runic Race. In the face of the damning orders, a few Dragonics refused to participate and instead demanded justice. But their call to defiance came too late - no Runics survived. Now, those against the Council's oppressive reign have long since been outcast to the fringes of society - their numbers and determination dwindling.

From the author of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying comes...A confidential manual prepared as part of a survival kit for Americans living in Britain, showing how to get rich in England, how to rise quickly and easily to the top of British society, examining the blessings, foibles, and weaknesses of British life, and providing the reader with his just share of wealth, warmth, wisdom, and happiness.

Returning home after eight months overseas, Air Force lieutenant Rick Walsh learns that his girlfriend, Maia, has been kidnapped. Walsh's determination to find her leads him into a conspiracy that spans two universes, because Maia is from an alternate world - and she's not the only person who knows how to walk between the two.

In a far-distant future, the Uman Empire has spread to the stars and beyond, conquering and colonizing worlds, ruling with a benevolent - but iron - fist. The Pax Umana reigns, and all is well. But on one planet, the remnants of a violent, shape-shifting race called the Sagathis are confined, kept captive by xeno-cops, who have been bio-engineered to be able to see through their guises.

We live in an incredible period in history. The computer revolution may be even more life-changing than the Industrial Revolution. We can do things with computers that could never be done before, and computers can do things for us that could never be done before. But our love of computers should not cloud our thinking about their limitations. The AI Delusion explains why we should not be intimidated into thinking that computers are infallible, that data-mining is knowledge discovery, and that black boxes should be trusted.

In 1963, the world followed the first American Mount Everest Expedition, and watched as "Big Jim" Whittaker became the first American to stand on top of the world. He returned home a hero. My Old Man and the Mountain is Leif Whittaker's engaging and humorous story of what it was like to "grow up Whittaker" - the youngest son of Jim Whittaker and Dianne Roberts, in an extended family of accomplished climbers. He shares glimpses of his upbringing and how the pressure to climb started early on.

Known as the age of democracy, the 19th century witnessed the extension of the franchise and the rise of party politics. As Daniel Carpenter shows, however, democracy in America emerged not merely through elections and parties, but through the transformation of an ancient political tool: the petition. A statement of grievance accompanied by a list of signatures, the petition afforded women and men excluded from formal politics the chance to make their voices heard and to reshape the landscape of political possibility.

The United Earth Fleet has established its home base on the terraformed island of Kauai, where humankind is starting over. But when an act of sabotage threatens their existence, Captain Bartholomew Quasar and his intrepid crew must return to space to hunt down the saboteur. Unbeknownst to them, rifts have opened between parallel worlds, and our heroes are flung into a dangerous reality where they encounter alternate versions of themselves as well as new friends and foes along the way.

In the era of mass incarceration, over 600,000 people are released from federal or state prison each year, with many returning to chaotic living environments. In these circumstances, how do former prisoners navigate reentering society? In Homeward, sociologist Bruce Western examines the tumultuous first year after release from prison. Drawing from in-depth interviews with over 100 individuals, he describes the lives of the formerly incarcerated and demonstrates how poverty, racial inequality, and failures of social support trap many in a cycle of vulnerability.

The road to self-discovery leads Maverick Kensington deep into the heart of New Orleans. The colorful characters, beautiful scenery, and a hot mess of a woman he finds along the way offer him the perfect place to reinvent himself. The French Quarter and Blue Bayou are exactly the change of pace he's looking for. Carys Matthews is young and inexperienced. Having her family's hotel dropped in her lap after her mother's untimely death.... She doesn't have time for relationships, but Maverick Kensington is worth an exception.

The Backpack: How to Understand and Manage Yourself While Loving Others Along the Way tells the story of Jon, Sofia, and Buddy, whose pathways merge on a life-changing flight. Written by a senior consultant with the Flippen Group (a worldwide leader in self-awareness training), the book brings together an angry passenger, a wise flight attendant, and a down-home cowboy. Their chance meeting leads to the ride of their lives as they fully grasp the importance and meaning of their backpacks. As this engaging story reveals, self-awareness is like a backpack!

Van Sato's got labels. Tourettes, ADHD, SPD - words that have defined his existence since the time he was old enough to know what they meant. Now, Van wants to prove he's more than an acronym, a syndrome, a problem kid. He takes a summer job as a day camp counselor to prove he's capable of independence and moving on to the next phase in his life. Maybe, he might even make a friend while there. Someone who's got just as many or even more labels than him. Someone who understands what it's like.

You're in a bind, and the only person who can help you wants something in return—but he won't reveal what it is until later. Do you dare take the risk? Paige is at a loss. She can't find any other way to describe her situation when her dance partner gets injured. How is she going to pass her final exam at the dance academy? It's not as if a man who knows all the relevant dances and pairs perfectly with her can just be found walking down the street. But when she visits her brother, Paige unexpectedly finds such a man.