Books with author C.S. Thompson

“Maggie the Magnificent” is something entirely different in children’s nature stories. Readers of previous books by this author have realised that he approaches the popular theme of Australian bird and animal lore from an angle never before attempted by a writer of Juvenile books—sheer entertainment deftly combined with authenticity of detail.The birds do not talk, but they LIVE. “Maggie the Magnificent” is an exceedingly well-written story of Australia’s most popular black and white bird, the magpie. Though Maggie himself is the chief character and his life and adventures are portrayed faithfully, we meet a number of humans who are drawn so naturally that they might be your next door neighbours.There is real human interest as well as bird interest in “Maggie.” The episodes range from grave to happy, many being of such laughter-provoking quality as to go down in juvenile fiction history.Though designed primarily for the child mind, adults will appreciate the story as a rich page torn from the diary of their grandparent's childhood.

Facebook's algorithms shaping the news. Self-driving cars roaming the streets. Revolution on Twitter and romance on Tinder. We live in a world constructed of code--and coders are the ones who built it for us. Programmers shape our everyday behavior: When they make something easy to do, we do more of it. When they make it hard or impossible, we do less of it. From acclaimed tech writer Clive Thompson comes a brilliant anthropological reckoning with the most powerful tribe in the world today, computer programmers, in a book that interrogates who they are, how they think, what qualifies as greatness in their world, and what should give us pause.In pop culture and media, the people who create the code that rules our world are regularly portrayed in hackneyed, simplified terms, as ciphers in hoodies. Thompson goes far deeper, taking us close to some of the great programmers of our time, including the creators of Facebook's News Feed, Instagram, Google's cutting-edge AI, and more. Speaking to everyone from revered "10X" elites to neophytes, back-end engineers and front-end designers, Thompson explores the distinctive psychology of this vocation--which combines a love of logic, an obsession with efficiency, the joy of puzzle-solving, and a superhuman tolerance for mind-bending frustration. Along the way, Coders ponders the morality and politics of code, including its implications for civic life and the economy and the major controversies of our era. In accessible, erudite prose, Thompson unpacks the surprising history of the field, beginning with the first coders -- brilliant and pioneering women, who, despite crafting some of the earliest personal computers and programming languages, were later written out of history. At the same time, the book deftly illustrates how programming has become a marvelous new art form--a source of delight and creativity, not merely danger. To get as close to his subject as possible, Thompson picks up the thread of his own long-abandoned coding skills as he reckons, in his signature, highly personal style, with what superb programming looks like. To understand the world today, we need to understand code and its consequences. With Coders, Thompson gives a definitive look into the heart of the machine.

Book lovers of all ages can take an enchanted journey through a labyrinthinefantasy library filled with every book ever written, where the shelves comealive at night, like teeming miniature cities. One night, a young boy whoresides in a cookbook stumbles upon a long-lost file card for a book called "How to Live Forever" and sets off to find the missing volume. Thusbegins a journey through mystifying literary mazes in Colin Thompson's tour deforce of wit, wisdom, and boundless imagination.

Betty and Ffiona cooking dinner? Run for your lives!Betty and her friend FFiona love cooking. The trouble is, they are both so useless at it that their families make themselves ill just to avoid their meals.It isn't that their families are too kind to tell the girls how bad their cooking is - they actually tell them all the time. But Betty and Ffiona don't believe them, and now the girls are planning to open Transylvania Waters's first gourmet restaurant.Queen Mordonna forbids them . . . unless they can prove their cooking skills by winning TV's most popular cooking contest. Will they poison all the judges, or will The Cheffie Olympics be Betty and Ffiona's finest hour?

“Rubi’s Best Friend by Sonya Thompson is a delightful story that speaks into the friendship between an American girl and a German boy. Rubi Johnson and Peter Kramer become inseparable playmates after Rubi’s father is assigned to be stationed in Germany for two years. But what happens after the two years are over and Rubi and her military family must return to the States? Author Sonya Thompson gives a modern solution to the age-old problem of maintaining a ‘friendship across the miles’ in this colorful, charming tale that is so relevant today.” —Carolyn King-Stephens, EdD When seven-year-old Rubi’s dad is stationed in Germany, she wonders how her family will ever live happily in a foreign country. But when she meets Peter and his loving German family, Rubi and her parents forge great friendships that will go on to span a lifetime—and the globe—no matter the distance!

What happens when the King goes Doolally? Find out in the latest Floods adventure. Everyone gets old, even witches and wizards. Their backs get stiff. Their feet get sore, and their brains go and live far, far away. Not even Nerlin Flood, the King of Transylvania Waters, is immune to the curse of old age. The rest of the family have noticed that Nerlin is slipping into total Doolallyness – he even has an invisible friend called Geoffrey-Geoffrey, who warns him not to eat broccoli because it will give him global warming. Will the Old Crones be able to cure him, or is Nerlin doomed to spend his twilight years talking to the wall, wearing a crooked jacket* and incompetence pants?* Which is actually a more accurate description of a straitjacket.

Ministering to troubled youth can easily tarnish a person's reputation.Mr. Bones, always striving to reach those falling through society's cracks, often finds his head on the chopping block.He isn't stupid; he knows all too well that it only takes one false allegation to ruin his career and his reputation throughout the community. But it's worth the risk... or is it?Carlos Estrada, his newest client, is different than most of the others the young probation officer supervises. With Carlos having a history of acting out sexually, Mr. Bones must proceed with caution.It's difficult to persuade a person to change his life around when he doesn't think he's doing anything wrong. Can Mr. Bones help Carlos before Carlos gets the best of him?If you've already read the first two books in the Worthy Battle series, you won't want to miss this one! Buy your copy of Reprogramming Carlos today to see if it's possible to redeem the teen before he ruins his own life.

In the final book of the Floods series, the job of running the Kingdom of Transylvania Waters is up for grabs. Who will replace King Nerlin? Nothing lasts forever, not even for Nerlin, King of the wizards. He is bored and tired and wants one of his children to take over as ruler of Transylvania Waters so he can retire to his holiday cottage in the Enchanted Valley and grow chickens. The trouble is, none of the children want the job. But then, out of nowhere, a long lost face from Nerlin’s past arrives and everything is thrown into disarray. Who is Gertrude and who will end up ruler of Transylvania Waters? The answers to this - and more - are inside this book . . .

Some might describe him as a spoiled wealthy brat overcome with entitlement issues.Dawson prefers to view himself as an attractive biracial male who just so happens to belong to the upper class.At fifteen, the boy has learned that money has many advantages. It can be used for bribing authorities, getting his peers to wait on him hand and foot, and even for plotting revenge.When Mr. Bones practically forces the teen into a mentoring relationship, Dawson’s rebellion rises to new heights. If he can’t buy the guy off, he’ll anger him to the point where Mr. Bones will voluntarily walk away.If only someone would have warned him about how stubborn that probation officer could be!This is going to be war!Reforming Dawson is a clean, inspirational novel about the power of one individual to make a difference. If you enjoy fiction stories that offer hope, encourage spiritual growth, and challenge you to get out of your comfort zone, you will love not only Reforming Dawson, but every book in the Worthy Battle series. Get your copy today!

Bryson Miller is a sixteen-year-old high school student who has already dealt with his mother's death and his father's subsequent alcoholism. When that happened, he adapted. He became the core of the family, making sure that groceries were bought and his sisters stayed out of trouble all while maintaining perfect grades with matching ambitions. Balancing his dysfunctional family life with a shining image became routine. He doesn't view himself as special or even especially unlucky. After all, there are plenty of people in his small town who are worse off. What is supposed to be just another normal Friday night, attending his friend Gary's party and keeping Gary out of trouble, becomes a nightmare when Bryson is attacked. In the days that follow, he does what he always does and attempts to adjust... to being a vampire. However, his sire won't leave him or his family alone. What she wants isn't something Bryson is willing to give, and when her threats to his girlfriend get Bryson killed, his soul ends up in the Underworld, ruled by the creator of vampires, the God of Temptation.Now Bryson is being asked to work for the god responsible not only for ruining his life but actually ending it. Although given a choice, the consequences for his refusal are far more complicated and far reaching than they seem. When he learns he won't be the one paying the price, how can he say no?Gods Don't Sleep is the first book in a planned trilogy. It serves as an origin story for the young protagonist and sets up the action to come.

The Floods take on Wall Street and solve the global financial crisis in the ninth book of their hilarious, bestselling adventures. The world is in a recession and millions of people have lost millions of dollars. And just when things are about to get even worse, the Floods set up Summer School in New York and take control. Hooray, help is at hand - but as they say, charity begins at home. So millions of people will probably lose millions more dollars, but it will all work out fine in the end. Well, for the Floods anyway. Hey, come on. They’re witches and wizards, not some sort of charity.

The caves under Transylvania Waters are about to be explored for the first time ever. What will the Floods find? The Floods are back in their rightful place as rulers of Transylvania Waters and there is an enormous amount to do to bring the country out of the Dark Ages. But what does a country need to become part of the modern world? Well, it needs socks, PlayStations and seventy-three varieties of genetically modified sausage, but above all else it needs maps. Winchflat's new wife, Maldegard, has been appointed Transylvania Waters's first ever Official Map-Maker. What she and Edna Hulbert discover during their travels will astound, terrify, amuse and intrigue you.