What makes an effective quote? How can I infuse my writing with style and voice? How can a sharp lead kick-start my story? What are the tricks to writing for the Web? What can I do to get an editor to listen to my idea? These topics and more are handled smartly, succinctly, and simply in the latest edition of Words Worth, an invaluable toolkit for writers aspiring to perfect the craft of nonfiction writing. Brooks and Quigleys expert views on the essence of a feature story give struggling beginners, their teachers, and professional writers alike the tools necessary to create powerful writing. As a precise guide to writing and promoting nonfiction, Words Worth furnishes a map to the world of reporting for the Web and blogging, well-crafted exercises to hone skills, and savvy advice to help writers enrich their style and make their work more marketable.

This guide provides a single-source, comprehensive listing of a fascinating and helpful group of books-picture books for older readers. A multitude of ideas about how to use them in the classroom supplements this list of carefully selected quality fiction and nonfiction books that focuses on universal themes, appeals to all ages, addresses important issues, and is accessible to multiple learning styles. Picture books aren't just for the very young. Innovative educators and parents have used them for years with readers of all ages and reading levels, knowing that students comprehend more from the visual-verbal connections these books offer. They are great tools for teaching visual literacy and writing skills; are effective with reluctant readers, ESL students, and those reading below grade level; and can easily be used to support various curriculum. This guide provides a single-source, comprehensive listing of a fascinating and helpful group of books and a multitude of ideas about how to use them in the classroom. The authors have carefully selected quality fiction and nonfiction that focus on universal themes, appeal to all ages, treat important issues, and are accessible to multiple learning styles.

Crone's Book of Magical Words (previously published as The Crone's Book of Words) by Valerie Worth is the book you've been waiting for! In its pages are over 125 spells, incantations, and charms. If you can think of a purpose for a spell, it's probably in this book. Need a spell to summon a ghost? Or perhaps you want the opposite: a spell to free a house from being haunted. They're both in this book. Do you need something to help you lose weight or have longevity? You'll find them here. Or perhaps you want to pass through a locked door. It's all in this book. Even if you don't know a thing about magic, you can use this book. The spells are easy, poetic, and evocative. For example, to cure a wart the instructions are: "Stamp within a silver cup mullein and houseleek together. Stir them with a sparrow's feather. Let it draw the juices up; Twenty times upon one day, brush them over the excrescence; Under sunlight dry the essence--Soon the wart must shrink away." The range in this book is phenomenal. You'll find a simple fertility charm and a way to conjure with smoke. You'll read about how to bring rain and how to stop rain from falling. You'll learn how to tell fortunes with sand or with tea leaves. This is more than just a book about magic, it is a folklorist's bonanza. If you're ready to win another's love or to sweeten someone's disposition, if you want to turn hair long and golden or discover tree spirits, this is the book you must have. Whether you have been doing magic for a long time or are a beginner, this book is a must.

The bulk of the book is essentially a partial English dictionary, with parts of speech, definitions, sample sentences, and ratings indicating both at what grade level a word may be expected to be known, and what priority should be put on it in teaching.

Life has always gone Indigo Burns's way. She's smart, pretty, and talented, and she knows exactly what she wants. A photography internship at her hometown's local newspaper is the next step in her well-laid plans for her future. But her long-term goals are put to the test when her boyfriend Brian proposes--two years before he's supposed to and in front of all the guests at her college graduation party. Too concerned about his feelings to say no, she heartily agrees, but inside she's cringing. Indigo knows in her heart that she's not prepared to sacrifice her dreams to become Brian's wife--not before she has achieved any of them. Will she find the answers among family and friends in Jubilant, Texas? Or will the picture-perfect life she dreams of be left behind?

A superb collection of some of the greatest tales of the genre; many are classics while others are lesser-known gems unearthed from the vintage era of the supernatural.

Ever since Tillie Green's car accident left her with a severe limp, she's kept herself hidden behind her camera. Through the lens, she watches her family and classmates, spotting the small details and secret glances that tell a much bigger story than what people usually see. Students call her "Lost and Found," because her camera knows when you last had your headphones. Tillie is good at finding things, but she isn't prepared for Jake's request: to find his father. In a matter of days, Tillie goes from silent observer to one half of a detective duo, searching the college-town community for clues to explain Jake's dad's disappearance. When the truth isn't what Jake wants it to be, and taking photographs starts exposing people's secrets, Tillie has to decide what (and who) is truly important to her.