![]() ![]() They are often proprietary or otherwise shielded from prying eyes, so they have the effect of being a black box. They have three things in common: opacity, scale, and damage. Weapons of math destruction, which O’Neil refers to throughout the book as WMDs, are mathematical models or algorithms that claim to quantify important traits: teacher quality, recidivism risk, creditworthiness but have harmful outcomes and often reinforce inequality, keeping the poor poor and the rich rich. They come from the last chapter of a book in which she has illustrated again and again how, in the words of her subtitle, "big data increases inequality and threatens democracy." With Facebook's new trending topics algorithm and data-driven policing in the news, the book is certainly timely. ![]() It’s only the will we’re lacking.” These sentences from Cathy O’Neil’s new book Weapons of Math Destruction have been haunting me since I read it. ![]()
0 Comments
![]() Literary and historical themes or retellings of classic novels were presented in graphic form, too. ![]() In the 1970s and 1980s, though, superhero comics began to introduce complex storylines and elaborate artwork. Through the 1950s, this story format was given the label “comics’ in a time when the art and the storylines of these short, newsprint magazines were not complicated. These are not the comics that some parents and grandparents may remember from childhood. ![]() Rather, nonfiction and literary graphic novels offer an “alternative, appealing way for students to analyze literary conventions, character development, dialogue, satire, and language structures as well as develop writing and research skills.” ![]() Despite their often colorful appearance and sparse text, graphic novels and manga are not simply picture books for older children. While supporting your teen’s book habit, it’s good to know that manga and graphic novels are not only great entertainment, but also continue your child’s language development. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Not only was the book a personal achievement for Tan as an author, but it also was seen as a watershed moment, proving that a fictional book featuring intertwined multigenerational stories about Asian Americans could find mainstream success both on bookshelves and the silver screen. “No one had predicted the book’s trajectory, and I was stunned, as if I had won the lottery without having ever bought a ticket.” “I wrote The Joy Luck Club without the self-consciousness I would later feel when the book landed on the bestseller list,” she continued. ![]() Her 1989 book ended up on The New York Times bestseller list for more than six months and spawned a 1993 movie - which Tan co-wrote - that brought in $32 million worldwide. “I heard that it might last on the bookstore shelves six weeks - if you were lucky.”īut Tan got more than lucky. In fact, she found solace in the fact that she was able to write The Joy Luck Club with “no expectations.” “I had been told that the typical first book by an unknown writer might sell five thousand copies - if you were lucky,” she told Penguin Random House. Amy Tan didn’t set out to write a bestseller. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Dataĭescription: New York : Alfred A. Knopf, Borzoi Books, and the colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC.Įducators and librarians, for a variety of teaching tools, visit us at Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York. Published in the United States by Alfred A. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.Ĭover design by Isabel Warren-Lynch and Ericka O’RourkeĮxcerpt from Gallipoli (1981) reprinted with permission from David Williamson AOĮxcerpt from Chariots of Fire (1981) reprinted with permission from the Estate of Colin Welland and Enigma ProductionsĮxcerpt from Mad Max (1979) reprinted with permission from George MillerĪll rights reserved. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. THIS IS A BORZOI BOOK PUBLISHED BY ALFRED A. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() We actually tried to read Knight's Castle a few months back, but had to give up, because T was confused by and uninterested in all the Ivanhoe references - something I didn't mind as a child despite not having read Ivanhoe (or seen the movie, as the kids do in that book).ġ. A potential reader of this book would certainly do well to be familiar with those books. So, Tommy's frustrations aside, I still came away from the book with a certain satisfaction that I do seem to be producing a well-read child (even though he's not reading any of these on his own). Later on, we were briefly excited when The 13 Clocks got mentioned. ![]() Then he got frustrated, because the chapters stopped being about books so much, and the children never visited the world of The Hobbit, which he'd been desperately hoping for, despite one of the characters suggesting it as a possibility. So it was exciting to him, that the first magical adventure referenced the Oz books, the second Half Magic and the third the Little House books, all of which he's somewhat familiar with. Tommy was enthusiastic, especially at first, because he has lately been really into spotting "references" in books and TV shows (this largely brought about by his current fixation with The Simpsons). I know I read this as a child, but it must have been only once, because so much of it seemed fresh and new to me. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() As you delve into the book proper, it’s clear that Ackerman is going to re-build your vision of the world with powerful stories about ho0w the cutting edge of new science is upending all our assumptions about birds. They fire the imagination with grace, elegance and, importantly – fun.īut the fun does not stop with names. The names of the birds, the plants, the places, the people, prove to be irresistible. ![]() Ackerman manages to translate the beauty of her subject effortlessly, with an understated poetic flair that is truly a joy to read. This book is from sentence one, a joy to read. From the get-go, it’s clear that Ackerman herself is a purveyor of beauty. And, if you read Jennifer Ackerman’s latest book, The Bird Way: A New Look at How Birds Talk, Work, Play, Parent, and Think, it’s a two-for-one deal. Fortunately, it’s more common than we expect. ![]() ![]() ![]() The story of fast food begins in the 1950s. So if you're brave enough, let's briefly look a lot closer at those friendly colorful buildings, serving us up those familiar favorites. While we're also told what goes into producing a typical fast food burger, it's the ethical ramifications that also leave a lingering bad taste. Not only has food production impacted climbing obesity rates and health problems, but it's also had devastating economic and social effects. In this fascinating exposé on the fast food industry, we're taken through the history of how we got to where we are today in terms of food production, and how the contemporary food chain has changed. ![]() Even if you've never eaten fast food, you've been impacted by it, and world-renowned and award-winning investigative journalist Eric Schlosser is here to tell us why. Being informed about this industry is essential, because it's not just about the food they sell us there are more sinister aspects to the business model.įast Food Nation uncovers the unsavory aspects of the food industry and globalization. It's okay to succumb to guilty pleasures once in a while we're human, and as the saying goes, 'to err is human.' However, according to our author, being oblivious to the global behemoth that is the fast food industry is no longer an option. ![]() Have you ever heard of cognitive dissonance? Well, when it comes to food, many of us are guilty of knowing that what we're eating isn't good for us, but continuing anyway. ![]() ![]() I hurried to finish my then current read, and was then falling into the pages of this fabulous book! I liked the sound of it so off I toddled with my signed copy of The Thirteenth. I met Georgia while she was signing books in Waterstones, Nottingham toward the end of 2010. Georgia Twynham is the self published author of the new Thirteenth series. ![]() Georgia spends time with her daughter in their little white cottage in Leicestershire and her life is filled with promoting her books, writing, running, and walking. And so Val Saunders, daughter to Mike and Susan Saunders, was born. ![]() She also wanted a main character that had a normal family, with problems that most teenagers/young adults in this country might be experiencing and could relate to. Georgia felt there was a need for a strong British female heroine. Writing for her own web site and articles for magazines helped to support her and her daughter. ![]() Georgia wrote short stories and poetry from an early age but her real passion for writing didn’t truly emerge until she was 31. A new country and a new language helped her come out of her shell and for eleven years, she lived and worked on the beautiful island of Menorca. Born in Wellingborough in 1972, Georgia was brought up with her two older brothers in a sleepy Leicestershire village until at the age of fifteen, her parents decided to move abroad, taking her with them. ![]() ![]() ![]() But with the rebels chipping away at the Asteri’s power, the threat the rulers pose is growing. The Asteri have kept their word so far, leaving Bryce and Hunt alone. Maas's sexy, groundbreaking CRESCENT CITY series continues with the second installment.īryce Quinlan and Hunt Athalar are trying to get back to normal―they may have saved Crescent City, but with so much upheaval in their lives lately, they mostly want a chance to relax. Sequel to the #1 New York Times bestseller! Maas weaves a captivating story of a world about to explode – and the people who will do anything to save it. In this sexy, action-packed sequel to the #1 bestseller House of Earth and Blood, Sarah J. ![]() And they've never been very good at staying silent. But as they learn more about the rebel cause, they face a choice: stay silent while others are oppressed, or fight. ![]() Dragged into a rebel movement they want no part of, Bryce, Hunt and their friends find themselves pitted against the terrifying Asteri – whose notice they must avoid at all costs. But can they resist when the crackling tension between them is enough to set the whole of Crescent City aflame?Īnd they are not out of danger yet. As they process the events of the Spring they will keep things … platonic … until the Solstice. ![]() Maas's sexy, groundbreaking CRESCENT CITY series continues with this second installment.īryce Quinlan and Hunt Athalar have made a pact. Sequel to the #1 New York Times bestseller. ![]() ![]() ![]() The teenager, the shark’s fifth victim, was bitten in the creek less than a half-hour later and survived. ![]() A young man named Watson Stanley Fisher attempted to save the boy, but was fatally injured in the process. On July 12, Lester Stillwell, 11, was playing in the creek 16 miles inland when the shark attacked. The rogue great white traveled 30 miles north of Spring Lake and into Matawan Creek. Five days later, and 45 miles to the north, in Spring Lake, New Jersey, Charles Bruder, a young bellhop at a local hotel, met a similar fate. A lifeguard pulled him ashore, but he quickly bled to death. A shark sunk its teeth into Charles Vansant, the 25-year-old son of a Philadelphia businessman, out for an evening swim in the resort town of Beach Haven on July 1. In the summer of 1916, panic struck the Jersey Shore. ![]() |