*Silver medal winner in the 'Middle Grades Fiction' category of the Nautilus Book Awards 2015* Astie has always been different. Her 12th birthday is looming and she still has not decided on her thesis. All the Learners at the Hub picked theirs years ago. If it wasn't for her cousin, Jakob, life would be unbearable on Elemental Island. On the verge of being diagnosed with Social Syndrome, she stumbles upon Danny who has landed in a forbidden flight machine. To protect him, Astie persuades Jakob to tamper with the Overseer's memory. On the run from the Monitors together, Astie calls on her unique qualities to forge a friendship with the stranger and discover his reason for coming to the island. What she finds will shake the foundations of the place she calls home. Set on a secretive island utopia where science and logic rule, this intriguing novel explores and celebrates differences in people from an alternative perspective. It is engaging reading for children aged 8-13.

As an "all-consuming darkness" threatens to swallow the planet of Everade, a group of unlikely heroes are spiritually called to embark on a journey of a lifetime, while the universe paves their paths behind the scenes with a variety of sharp-witted, fun-loving, and somewhat odd allies. Each future hero of the enchanted world must endure their own trials and hardships while traveling to the island they are destined to protect, an island that harbors a powerful secret of its own. Share in the emotional turmoil that unfolds before your eyes. Witness the traumatic events that lead to deep insights and healing as they battle their way through the seductive and subtle lures of the dark side and some not-so-subtle attacks. Immerse yourself in a world of wonder and intrigue where the oldest war of all time still rages: The war of light and darkness.

A lost colony is reborn in this heart-pounding fantasy adventure set in the near future. Enter the world of the Elementals, which James Dashner called “completely gripping and full of intrigue, revelation, mystery, and suspense.” Sixteen-year-old Thomas has always been an outsider. The first child born without the power of an element—earth, water, wind, or fire—he has little to offer his tiny, remote Outer Banks colony. Or so the Guardians would have him believe. In the wake of an unforeseen storm, desperate pirates kidnap the Guardians, intent on claiming the island as their own. Caught between the Plague-ridden mainland and the advancing pirates, Thomas and his friends fight for survival in the battered remains of a mysterious abandoned settlement. But the secrets they unearth will turn Thomas’s world upside-down, and bring to light not only a treacherous past but also a future more dangerous than he can possibly imagine. Written by an award-winning author, this dynamic series is perfect for fans of dystopian thrillers like James Dashner’s The Maze Runner and Marie Lu’s Legend. “Plenty of action for readers who enjoy survival stories with a twist of the supernatural and a hint of romance.” –School Library Journal “The novel’s captivating storyline, rapid pace, and cliffhanger ending are sure to leave fans of novels like Grant’s Gone series absorbed with the action and anxious for a sequel.” –Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books "Engaging characters and plenty of mystery, adventure, and action." -Publishers Weekly

"A few hundred years ago, there was a group of humans who were known as' Force Awakened ones'. They have the unimaginable power of ordinary humans and the ability to rule the world. However ... Awakened ones are not united and in the end, they are separated into two factions. The group was called the Yang Awakened ones, also known as the Sky Sun Clan. The other faction was the Yin Awakened ones, also known as the Earth Yin Tribe. A hundred years ago, the Sky Sun and Earth Yin Tribes finally had an unprecedented, decisive battle. In the end, the Sky Sun Clan won, and the Earth Yin Tribe was completely wiped out. The world was eventually ruled by the Heavenly Sun tribe, who began to call themselves the Heavenly God race. After the war between Yin and Yang, the Earth Yin Tribe was demoted to the "Earth Devil Race" by the God of Heaven. Although the Earth demons had been killed and wounded in the great battle, the clan's most precious treasure, the "Earth Yin Saint (Demon) Codex", had been left behind and had set off a wave of bloodshed.

"Over the past four billion years of Earth's history, three organisms-cyanobacteria, plants, and humans--have altered the planet in profound ways by harnessing the availability of five key elements. Hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus are the most common elements in all forms of life on Earth, and all five circulate between the biotic and abiotic world in biogeochemical cycles. When organisms tap into stores of these elements and change these cycles, they change the atmosphere, climate, and, by extension, the trajectory of life on earth. In the first part of the book, Porder explains how cyanobacteria and plants harnessed critical elements and how their success in doing so was followed by environmental collapse in the form of ice ages. Porder then turns to human-caused climate change. He explores the dramatic ways humans have altered the cycles of these five essential elements and explains the profound effect our actions have on the planet. Porder concludes by exploring how we can reduce our impact on the Earth-both individually and societally-by reorienting ourselves toward recycling critical elements instead of extracting them from more and more obscure sources. Ultimately, understanding the role of element cycling is essential to understanding how humans came to be so successful and to putting us on a path to a sustainable future"--

It has been many centuries since the last human left Earth, believing it to be a dying world. The Elementals have continued their mission of undoing the damage they have left. However, one of them thinks that perhaps there is a possibility of there being other Elementals on the new plants that have been colonized and wishes to bring these individuals back to Earth. The others are convinced that this would spell disaster for Earth. Could they be right?

Under the guidance of phenomenological insights, this book presents the sensuous in its elemental sense. The elemental is not to be confused here with the classical notion of the atom, which is viewed as a self-contained entity into which all reality is reducible. Rather, the elemental is a living creative force that resists categorization. This force embodies the principle of openness and opening, a principle celebrated and given expression by numerous artists and other friends of the sensuous. As elemental, the sensuous irreducibly expresses itself in multiple ways. The editors of this volume avoid posting themselves between the sensuous and those to whom it presents itself. Each of the contributors here responds to the call of the elemental, and each finds his or her starting point where everyone else starts and ends. The multiple voices brought together here constitute a concert, with the elemental sensuous as the conductor. In reading this book, the reader will become more aware of himself or herself, and more aware of the world in which he or she lives.