Books with author Christine Archer

Senior moment. Think outside the box. Idioms like these can't be understood just from the words that make them up. The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms explores the meanings of idioms, including phrasal verbs such as kick back, proverbs such as too many cooks spoil the broth, interjections such as tough beans, and figures of speech such as elephant in the room. Since the publication of the first edition 15 years ago, author Christine Ammer has made extensive revisions that reflect new historical scholarship and changes in the English language. This second edition defines over 10,000 idiomatic expressions in greater detail than any other dictionary available today. English language learners will find this dictionary especially useful.

PATIENT: DENISE BUTLER I don’t care what anyone says. My name is not Denise Butler. It’s Toni Douglas. And I’m telling the truth: The Omegas are coming. If they find me, they’ll kill me. They’ll kill us all. Why doesn’t anyone believe me? SYMPTOMS: MEMORY LOSS, PARANOIA I don’t know how I got here. I should be back with my friends. The six of us were fighting the Omegas. But somehow I ended up in this hospital. Now these doctors are saying I’m crazy—that “Toni Douglas” is just a character in a book I read. That my friends don’t exist. That there’s no such thing as Omegas. I almost wish it were true. Because if I’m not crazy, we’re all in deep trouble . . .DIAGNOSIS: OUT OF HER MIND

There are lots of weird stories about Metier, Wisconsin. People talk about alien abductions and UFO sightings. Some even say that the aliens have landed. Some say they never left . . .My name is Ethan Rogers. I always wanted to see an alien. Just not in the mirror. People used to think I was a wimp. But not anymore. Something happened overnight. Now I am master of a thousand fighting styles—martial arts, wrestling, weaponry. I’d think it was pretty cool . . . if I wasn’t running for my life.

NAME: TONI DOUGLASDid you ever wish you had special powers? Don’t. Your wish could come true, like mine did. And that’s when the real trouble starts . . . AGE: 13What a birthday. First, it started storming like crazy. Then, a gang of kids chased me for no apparent reason. Then, right as they were about to catch me, the entire group was struck by lightning! A birthday gift from above? Yeah, that’s what I thought, too, until it hit me. The lightning bolt didn’t come from the sky . . . it came from me. DANGER: HIGH VOLTAGE

There are lots of weird stories about Metier, Wisconsin. People talk about alien abductions and UFO sightings. Some even say that the aliens have landed. Some say they never left . . . My name is Ashley Rose. I never believed in aliens. Until I found one in the scariest place of all. When I slipped through the ice, I should have died. But somehow I lived. Since then things have been different. I can do amazing things like stay underwater for as long as I like. I don’t know why it happened, but now someone wants me dead.

YOU CAN RUN . . . When we hijacked the UFO, we have no idea where it would take us. You don’t exactly have time to think when you’re being hunted by shape-shifting aliens. Besides, if we ended up lost in deep space, or on some distant planet, so what? At least we’d have gotten away, right? Wrong. YOU CAN HIDE . . . The ship took us right back where we started. Right back to our small town of Metier, Wisconsin. Right back into the aliens’ clutches. Only thing time, things are much worse. Because this time isn’t our time. It’s the future. And the aliens have taken over. BUT YOU CAN NEVER ESCAPE . . .

TO: JACK RAYNES It arrived on my thirteenth birthday: an anonymous note, saying my life was in danger. I figured it was just some stupid prank. So I ignored it. That was a big mistake . . . ADDRESS: METIER, WISCONSIN Since then, something strange has happened to me. When my teacher asked me a question in Spanish, I could answer her fluently—even though I’ve only been taking Spanish for two months. And suddenly I understood French. And Japanese. And Arabic. And Dutch. Any language. It was totally excellent, until I overheard someone talking about me—talking about killing me—in a language I’d never heard before. A language that wasn’t even human . . . MESSAGE: RUN FOR YOUR LIFE

WHERE DID I GO? I don’t remember much about the night I disappeared. One minute I saw a strange light in the sky. The next minute I woke up in the hospital. The thing is, it wasn’t the next minute. It was nine months later . . . WHAT HAPPENED TO ME?Some people think I was kidnapped. Others say I was abducted by aliens. I don’t know what do believe. But I do know this: I’m not the same as before. I’ve changed. And I keep changing. Suddenly I can make myself look like different people. Anyone I want. The only problem is, I’m forgetting who I really am. WHO AM I?

BEWARE, ELENA . . . Do you believe in aliens? A lot of people in my town do. They say aliens are watching from their UFOs, waiting to abduct us. As for me, I always said I’d believe in aliens when I saw one with my own eyes. Well, now I have . . . THEY’RE COMING FOR YOUI know it sounds crazy, but ever since my thirteenth birthday I’ve been having weird visions. Small stuff at first, like what the weather would be, or what questions would turn up on the math test. When my visions started coming true, I told people I was psychic. Now I’m praying that I’m not. Because today I saw myself being chased by a creature with horrible black eyes. A creature that wanted to kill me . . . TIME IS RUNNING OUT

Spies. Underground tunnels. Old maps. New enemies. Pirate oaths. Hidden treasure. Endless danger.This series has real boy appeal. It has a fast pace, adventure, international intrigue, and more.George is fascinated by his family's legacy, the stories that link his ancestors to the infamous pirate Captain Kidd. But for 12 years, everyone has told him the stories are rumors. Now George has discovered the truth. And the truth is hidden in the web of tunnels mysteriously dug underneath his house in Manhattan. There are secrets to be revealed, friendships to be tested, and ancient injustices to be set right.George and his friends will sink deep underground to a secret city in search of treasure, but they'll find they aren't the only ones looking for it - and there's much more at stake.

When George and his friends find an ancient map hidden in his house, they think they're in for a modern-day treasure hunt -- but they soon discover that there's more at stake than buried riches.Now that George and his friends have explored the mysterious tunnels beneath his house and discovered the journal of the pirate Captain Kidd, they begin to believe there really is a treasure. But the only truly real thing is the danger.There is still a lot they don't know. They know there are 4 maps, but they don't know what they lead to. They know there are weird guys hanging out in the tunnels. And it looks like someone's been digging, but why? They know the tunnels are lined with booby traps. But who set them? They know the truth is hidden down there. But is it worth it?