Culture Middle Ages

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Ernest Cline comes a mostly true tall tale about an unexpected friendship between a young girl and a music-loving colony of bats. After losing her mother, thirteen-year-old Opal moves in with her uncle Roscoe on the family farm. There, Opal bonds with...

Brought to you by Penguin. When Dante called despair “the sin that freezes the heart,” was he describing the first burnout? What can a painting by Giotto reveal about our hunger to see others fail? Can desire ever lift us closer to wisdom, not drag us from it? What can a twelfth-century monk...

Instagram star and comedian Ellen Skrmetti shares stories behind her wildly popular “Hey Jesus, It’s Me” sketches of a middle-aged, southern-woman's opinions on mamas, menopause, and menus—and on giving the Lord a bit of advice about those unspoken prayer requests. As a young girl...

Newbery and Caldecott honoree and New York Times bestselling author Grace Lin delivers a groundbreaking, lushly illustrated, and beautifully written full-color book that explores the whimsical myths and stories behind your favorite American Chinese food. From fried dumplings to fortune cookies...

A searing, deeply personal memoir of a tenacious Afghan girl who educated herself behind closed doors and fought her way to a new life. “Stories like this inspire me. Seeing the way people like Sola Mahfouz think about the world reinforces my optimism about the future.”―BILL GATES...

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR from NPR Set in Jaffa in between 1947 and 1951, this “fable-like historical novel of young love ... darkly humorous and touching” (Oprah Daily) is based on a true story during the beginning of the destruction of Palestine and displacement of its people. Based...

The Time Kitchen Adventure: A Time Travel Story Teaching Kids About Celebrations and Culture **A Thrilling Time-Travel Adventure That Teaches Kids Why Celebrations Matter!** When a real time traveler tumbles onto their favorite front steps, Imani, Tommy, and Maya are whisked away to the magical Time Kitchen—where all of history's celebrations are cooked up and preserved. But something's gone terribly wrong! December 8th's special days have been scrambled, and if the children don't fix the Great Recipe Book by sunset, these beloved traditions will vanish from history forever. **Perfect for...

Embark on the magical journey of Little Ranya, a brave and curious girl from the enchanting land of Oman. With dreams as tall as the mountains and a heart full of courage, Ranya sets out to prove that even the smallest among us can achieve great things. As she climbs real mountains—and the ones within her heart— Ranya discovers a strength she never knew she had. Will she reach the summit? Will her dream of becoming a queen come true, or will the challenges along the way prove too great? Step into Ranya's world and experience a land filled with beauty, wonder, and tradition, where one ...

This rags-to-riches story by an award-winning Ghanaian author has page-turning appeal with luminous literary resonance. Writing with effortlessly engaging prose, Wolo showcases the interweaving layers of Ghanaian culture to create a prismatic, multifaceted world in which two young girls...

Twelve-year-old Kai Nguyen is a nobody at school, but in StarForge, he’s NebulaKnight: fearless, famous, and almost cool enough to wear a cape. When a cruel prank turns his gamer glory into public humiliation, Kai retreats from reality… until a mysterious arcade cabinet, a glowing token, and a tabletop roleplaying game start to blur the line between game and life. With bullies on his trail, friendships on the edge, and a magical trial unfolding, Kai must find the courage to fight back, not with laser axes, but with loyalty, imagination, and one very unexpected team. It’s game on... ...

'American storytelling at its era-spanning best . . . An immersive, multi-layered portrait of a marriage, Nathan Hill’s follow-up to The Nix is a work of quiet genius.' – The Observer 'The incredible scope of this dazzlingly detailed state-of-the-nation satire almost defies description...

From leftover trenchers and stinky chamber pots to barber surgeons and the black plague, life could be really miserable for people during medieval times. Get ready to explore the nasty side of life in the Middle Ages.

Offers commentary for each story, revealing its historical context, cultural and esoteric associations, and hidden pagan beliefs Explores how the tales transformed over the ages and their origins in Classical Antiquity, the Middle East, and India Includes stories...

'American storytelling at its era-spanning best . . . An immersive, multi-layered portrait of a marriage, Nathan Hill’s follow-up to The Nix is a work of quiet genius' – The Observer An Oprah's Book Club Pick. Moving from the gritty 90s Chicago art scene to a suburbia of detox diets and home...

Striving children, aging parents, job pressures, financial anxieties, physical ailments, generalized hope and dread—a memoir of middle age that is both literary and confessional What is the most baffling period in our lives? Not childhood, not old age, but the decades of our forties and...

What happened to Generation X? Millenials dominate our Facebook feeds and people bang on about the baby boomers – but what about us? The lost generation, the middle youth, the middle child of today. Are we still cool? Generation X? Remember them? The kids who believed they'd never grow up. The...

Twelve-year-old Priya Patel wants to disappear. Between school bullies mocking her Indian heritage and a viral meme that calls her “CurryGirl12,” Priya feels invisible, or worse, like a joke. But everything changes when she discovers her late grandmother’s magical sewing machine, which opens a portal to the Loominary, a world where enchanted fabrics stitched from Indian folklore can heal hearts and protect joy. Joined by tech genius Harper and shy artist Lila, Priya enters the Secret Seamstress Society, battling Rakshasa-like villains called Threadbreakers who unravel happiness across...

In this charming journey into the past, a historian reveals medieval wisdom that can still guide us today "One of the most compelling medieval history books I have ever read." –Ian Mortimer, author of The Time Traveler’s Guide to Medieval England Peter Jones was teaching medieval history at...

Medieval Robots recovers the forgotten history of fantastical, aspirational, and terrifying machines that captivated Europe in imagination and reality between the ninth and 14th centuries. E. R. Truitt traces the different forms of self-moving or self-sustaining manufactured objects from their earliest appearances in the Latin West through centuries of mechanical and literary invention. This original and wide-ranging study reveals the convergence of science, technology, and imagination in medieval culture.

Love in the Kremlin is not all it's cracked up to be... Yehvah is a young, no-nonsense maid working in the Kremlin palace. She has no desire to become the mistress of some handsome courtier.... Until Nikolai Petrov looks her way. Nikolai wants to be out from under his father's oppressive thumb, and Yehvah is drawn to his ambition. But will he be strong enough to throw off his father's yoke? Yehvah must rise above tradition and the politics of the Russian court if she wants to secure her happiness with Nikolai. If she doesn't, she may fall prey to the dangers of the imperial court. Or worse,...