Sixteen-year-old Clare Fern, a member of a family of psychics, helps the mayor and a skeptical detective solve a murder in a Cape Cod town during the height of tourist season--with her brother a prime suspect.

Shows readers how to liberate thinking and expand imagination by learning to synthesize dissimilar subjects, think paradoxically, and enlist the help of the subconscious mind.

"For 20 years, the Great Place to Work® Institute has been developing the annual ranking of the best companies to work for in the US and in 39 countries around the world. In the US, the ranking is published by FORTUNE and is best known as the FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For. In 2010, the list included among its finalists: SAS, Google, REI, Scripps Health, Hoar Construction, DreamWorks Animation, Zappos.com, Salesforce.com, Cisco, Marriott Interntional, American Express, Mayo Clinic, Microsoft. Drawing on the Institute's wide and deep body of knowledge acquired in the process of producing this ranking, Institute senior consultant Michael Burchell and research fellow Jennifer Robin reveal that what separates the great from the good companies to work for is the leader's ability to create Trust, Pride and Camaraderie in their companies. THE GREAT WORKPLACE explains the concept of a Great Place to Work--defined as one in which employees trust the people they work for, have pride in what they do, and enjoy the people they work with--and demystifies the Institute's Great Place to Work model, developed in 1984 and validated through its enduring resonance in both the United States and in 40 countries around the world. It also answers the fundamental question, "What is the business value of creating a great workplace?" and brings the definition of a Great Place to Work alive with anecdotes, best practices, and quotes from employees working at the best workplaces in the US (and ranked in the list). Companies featured in the book include: General Mills, Google, Gore, Microsoft, PricewaterhouseCoopers, SAS, Scripps Health, Wegman's and S.C. Johnson. As organizations grapple with the complexity and challenges of leveraging human capital in today's hyper-competitive work world--and as the Institute increases its presence across the world--THE GREAT WORKPLACE will be the "must read" source for understanding the essential ingredients in and trends of great places to work"--

Private enterprises are essential to a nation's economy and society - yet without finance, or risk capital, they may never get off the ground. Lack of risk capital on suitable terms thus frustrates entrepreneurial ambition, and checks economic growth. And, just as damaging, the search for finance can lead companies and businesses into unsuitable funding arrangements - such as bank loans or equity deals with external investors - that burden them with excessive debt or limit the ability of managers to run the business

"In 1991, Anita Hill's courageous testimony during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings sparked a national conversation on sexual harassment and women's equality in politics and the workplace. Today, she turns her attention to another potent and enduring symbol of economic success and equality-the home. Hill details how the current housing crisis, resulting in the devastation of so many families, so many communities, and even whole cities, imperils every American's ability to achieve the American Dream. Hill takes us on a journey that begins with her own family story and ends with the subprime mortgage meltdown. Along the way, she invites us into homes across America, rural and urban, and introduces us to some extraordinary African American women. As slavery ended, Mollie Elliott, Hill's ancestor, found herself with an infant son and no husband. Yet, she bravely set course to define for generations to come what it meant to be a free person of color. On the eve of the civil rights and women's rights movements, Lorraine Hansberry's childhood experience of her family's fight against racial restrictions in a Chicago neighborhood ended tragically for the Hansberry family. Yet, that episode shaped Lorraine's hopeful account of early suburban integration in her iconic American drama A Raisin in the Sun. Two decades later, Marla, a divorced mother, endeavors to keep her children safe from a growing gang presence in 1980s Los Angeles. Her story sheds light on the fears and anxiety countless parents faced during an era of growing neighborhood isolation, and that continue today. In the midst of the 2008 recession, hairdresser Anjanette Booker's dogged determination to keep her Baltimore home and her salon reflects a commitment to her own independence and to her community's economic and social viability. Finally, Hill shares her own journey to a place and a state of being at home that brought her from her roots in rural Oklahoma to suburban Boston, Massachusetts, and connects her own search for home with that of women and men set adrift during the foreclosure crisis. The ability to secure a place that provides access to every opportunity our country has to offer is central to the American Dream. To achieve that ideal, Hill argues, we and our leaders must engage in a new conversation about what it takes to be at home in America. Pointing out that the inclusive democracy our Constitution promises is bigger than the current debate about legal rights, she presents concrete proposals that encourage us to reimagine equality. Hill offers a twenty-first-century vision of America-not a vision of migration, but one of roots; not one simply of tolerance, but one of belonging; not just of rights, but also of community-a community of equals"--Provided by publisher.

The seven essential tools for keeping projects on time and under budget You're executing risk management, leadership, and planning--all hallmarks of outstanding project management. And yet you're still having trouble keeping your projects on schedule. Creative Project Management adds two new elements to the mix: creativity and innovation. Internationally renowned project management consultants Michael Dobson and Ted Leemann combine traditional project management skills, such as risk evaluation, decision-making, and human dynamics, with outside-the-box thinking and business creativity. They provide seven new tools and approaches you can apply to any project.

At a boarding school in Switzerland, fourteen-year-old Alex Van Helsing learns that vampires are real, that he has a natural ability to sense them, and that an agency called the Polidorium has been helping his family fight them since 1821.

"Kouzes' and Posner's bestselling The Leadership Challenge has been the most trusted source for becoming a better leader for millions of executives. This new guide from Kouzes and Posner, written in conjunction with coaching experts Elaine Biech, provides practical information and tools for integrating The Practices of Exemplary Leadership into a coaching practice or program. Filled with best practices and success stories as well as worksheets and checklists, this comprehensive resource enables coaches to quickly and easily adapt their coaching regimen to include The Leadership Challenge and the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI)"--

"Environmental issues often span long periods of time, far-flung areas, and labyrinthine layers of complexity. In Greening through IT, Bill Tomlinson investigates how the tools and techniques of information technology (IT) can help us tackle environmental problems at such vast scales. Tomlinson describes theoretical, technological, and social aspects of a growing interdisciplinary approach to sustain ability, "Green IT," offering both a human-centered framework for understanding Green IT systems and specific examples and case studies of Green IT in action." "Tomlinson contrasts the broad ranges of time, space, and complexity against which environmental concerns play out with the relatively narrow horizons of human understanding; it's hard for us to grasp thousand-year projections of global climatic disruption or our stake in melting icecaps thousands of miles away. IT can bridge the gap between human scales of understanding and environmental scales." "Tomlinson offers many examples of efforts toward sustainability supported by IT - from fishers in India who maximized the sales potential of their catch by coordinating their activities with mobile phones to the installation of smart meters that optimize electricity use in California households - and discusses three detailed studies of specific research projects that he and his colleagues have undertaken: EcoRaft, an interactive museum exhibit to help children learn principles of restoration ecology; Trackulous, a set of Web-based tools with which people can chart their own environmental behavior; and GreenScanner, an online system that provides access to environmental-impact reports about consumer products. Taken together, these examples illustrate the significant environmental benefits that innovations in information technology can enable."--BOOK JACKET.

"A fresh look at what it means to lead from two of the biggest names in leadership In these turbulent times, when the very foundations of organizations and societies are shaken, leaders need to move beyond pessimistic predictions, trendy fads, and simplistic solutions. They need to turn to what's real and what's proven. In their engaging, personal, and bold new book, Kouzes and Posner reveal ten time-tested truths that show what every leader must know, the questions they must be prepared to answer, and the real-world issues they will likely face. Based on thirty years of research, more than one million responses to Kouzes and Posner's leadership assessment, and the questions people most want leaders to answer. Explores the fundamental, enduring truths of leadership that hold constant regardless of context or circumstance-leaders make a difference, credibility, values, trust, leading by example, heart, and more. Shows emerging leaders what they need to know to be effective; fans of The Leadership Challenge will find a dynamic new look at the real challenges leaders face today. Drawing from cases spanning three generations of leaders from around the world, this is a book leaders can use to do their real and necessary work-bringing about the essential changes that will renew organizations and communities."--

Legendary designer and artist Vera Neumann (1907-1993) believed in art's ability to inspire and enrich lives. An innovator and one of the most successful female entrepreneurs of her time, Vera built her company on a radical philosophy: fine art should be accessible to everyone, not just a select few. Known for her iconic images of cheerful flowers, trendy geometrics, and vibrant ladybugs, she believed people should surround themselves with beauty. For the first time, "Vera: The Art and Life of an Icon," tells her inspiring story through the art and designs she created. In this volume, richly illustrated with Vera's original sketches, paintings, and photographs of her worldwide travels, readers are introduced to the amazing woman behind the dynamic designs that continue to inspire and influence art, design, and fashion.