The rapidly increasing availability and low cost of e-book technology make it perfect for schools and educators looking to expand their resources for readers. This book introduces the unique features that have established e-books as a powerful, effective learning tool for all grade levels and for special needs students. It includes descriptions and illustrations of the most popular e-book platforms and programs, as well as dozens of practical ideas for using e-books for reading instruction, personal productivity, and curricular enrichment. Brimming with interactive lesson ideas, teaching tips, and online resources, this book is a must-have for teachers in all content areas and library media specialists. Descriptions of the most popular and affordable e-book devices, software, and content for educators Guidelines for accessing the free digital library resources available on the Web and for creating your own e-books using basic software tools Strategies for using the annotation, reference, and hypertext capabilities of electronic text to promote active reading.

The author of the acclaimed Proust and the Squid follows up with a lively, ambitious, and deeply informative book that considers the future of the reading brain and our capacity for critical thinking, empathy, and reflection as we become increasingly dependent on digital technologies. A decade ago, Maryanne Wolf’s Proust and the Squid revealed what we know about how the brain learns to read and how reading changes the way we think and feel. Since then, the ways we process written language have changed dramatically with many concerned about both their own changes and that of children. New research on the reading brain chronicles these changes in the brains of children and adults as they learn to read while immersed in a digitally dominated medium. Drawing deeply on this research, this book comprises a series of letters Wolf writes to us—her beloved readers—to describe her concerns and her hopes about what is happening to the reading brain as it unavoidably changes to adapt to digital mediums. Wolf raises difficult questions, including: Will children learn to incorporate the full range of "deep reading" processes that are at the core of the expert reading brain? Will the mix of a seemingly infinite set of distractions for children’s attention and their quick access to immediate, voluminous information alter their ability to think for themselves? With information at their fingertips, will the next generation learn to build their own storehouse of knowledge, which could impede the ability to make analogies and draw inferences from what they know? Will all these influences change the formation in children and the use in adults of "slower" cognitive processes like critical thinking, personal reflection, imagination, and empathy that comprise deep reading and that influence both how we think and how we live our lives? How can we preserve deep reading processes in future iterations of the reading brain? Concerns about attention span, critical reasoning, and over-reliance on technology are never just about children—Wolf herself has found that, though she is a reading expert, her ability to read deeply has been impacted as she has become increasingly dependent on screens. Wolf draws on neuroscience, literature, education, and philosophy and blends historical, literary, and scientific facts with down-to-earth examples and warm anecdotes to illuminate complex ideas that culminate in a proposal for a biliterate reading brain. Provocative and intriguing, Reader, Come Home is a roadmap that provides a cautionary but hopeful perspective on the impact of technology on our brains and our most essential intellectual capacities—and what this could mean for our future.

People have been reading on computer screens for several decades now, predating popularization of personal computers and widespread use of the internet. But it was the rise of eReaders and tablets that caused digital reading to explode. In 2007, Amazon introduced its first Kindle. Three years later, Apple debuted the iPad. Meanwhile, as mobile phone technology improved and smartphones proliferated, the phone became another vital reading platform. In Words Onscreen, Naomi Baron, an expert on language and technology, explores how technology is reshaping our understanding of what it means to read. Digital reading is increasingly popular. Reading onscreen has many virtues, including convenience, potential cost-savings, and the opportunity to bring free access to books and other written materials to people around the world. Yet, Baron argues, the virtues of eReading are matched with drawbacks. Users are easily distracted by other temptations on their devices, multitasking is rampant, and screens coax us to skim rather than read in-depth. What is more, if the way we read is changing, so is the way we write. In response to changing reading habits, many authors and publishers are producing shorter works and ones that don't require reflection or close reading. In her tour through the new world of eReading, Baron weights the value of reading physical print versus online text, including the question of what long-standing benefits of reading might be lost if we go overwhelmingly digital. She also probes how the internet is shifting reading from being a solitary experience to a social one, and the reasons why eReading has taken off in some countries, especially the United States and United Kingdom, but not others, like France and Japan. Reaching past the hype on both sides of the discussion, Baron draws upon her own cross-cultural studies to offer a clear-eyed and balanced analysis of the ways technology is affecting the ways we read today--and what the future might bring.

The Digital Media Reader combines a number of chapters relating to media practice, identity and culture, and society and politics. Its advantage over other textbooks is its focus on contemporary digital media and cultures. A significant number of the chapters relate to the hacktivist movement Anonymous and contemporary events like the Arab Spring and Citizen Journalism.

Twisty fast-paced story of genius, hope, and family set amid the chaos and bloodshed of the Congo of the near future. When 15-year-old Lemba Adula and his twin sister flee their war-imperiled village, they have no idea what's in store for them. Lemba becomes a drone-loving computer whiz in the mega-city of Kinshasa, while Josiane aspires to be a rumba star. But murderous gun-worshippers kidnap the brilliant techie, and to keep his parents safe, he must fight for the wrong side. He must even become a sea-going pirate. Meanwhile Josiane faces different menaces as bad as his. Only Lemba can save her. And for now, he is a captive of the thuggish Congolese Purification Army--led by a seven-foot whackjob all too handy with his AK-47 and machete. As Lemba fights both the Purifiers and their enemies, he also battles to keep his humanity while protecting the people he loves. The Congolese rebels pride themselves on not letting their child soldiers escape alive, but they've never met Lemba Adula. Lemba is headed for greatness. But first he must survive. Just how? Told as Lemba's war memoir. A compelling, inspirational story for young adults and older.

“Wolf restores our awe of the human brain—its adaptability, its creativity, and its ability to connect with other minds through a procession of silly squiggles.” — San Francisco Chronicle How do people learn to read and write—and how has the development of these skills transformed the brain and the world itself ? Neuropsychologist and child development expert Maryann Wolf answers these questions in this ambitious and provocative book that chronicles the remarkable journey of written language not only throughout our evolution but also over the course of a single child’s life, showing why a growing percentage have difficulty mastering these abilities. With fascinating down-to-earth examples and lively personal anecdotes, Wolf asserts that the brain that examined the tiny clay tablets of the Sumerians is a very different brain from the one that is immersed in today’s technology-driven literacy, in which visual images on the screen are paving the way for a reduced need for written language—with potentially profound consequences for our future.

From the author of the Jack Ryan series comes an electrifying #1 New York Times bestseller—a standalone military thriller that envisions World War 3... A chillingly authentic vision of modern war, Red Storm Rising is as powerful as it is ambitious. Using the latest advancements in military technology, the world's superpowers battle on land, sea, and air for ultimate global control. It is a story you will never forget. Hard-hitting. Suspenseful. And frighteningly real. “Harrowing...tense...a chilling ring of truth.”—TIME