Books with author J. R. Hutchinson

She’s feisty. She’s fearless. She’s fifteen. Meet Mui, the assassin’s daughter.When a book filled with cryptic handwriting falls into Mui’s possession, she thinks nothing of the scribbling—until she realizes the writings are hidden messages, and one is connected to her past.But Mui’s not the only one interested in deciphering the symbols. Someone is killing anyone with knowledge of that information. Will Mui fall victim while figuring out her connection to the book?A Book of Truths is the first installment in a gripping series about a mother-and-daughter assassin duo.

My respected Publisher has suggested that a Preface may be expected. His opinion on such a subject ought to be law; but as I fear my readers may think that I have already sufficiently bored them, I will beg them, in Irish fashion, to refer any formalist, who considers a Preface necessary, to the conclusion of the work, where a statement will be found of the motive which induced me to write.

Natural history is deservedly a popular subject. The manifestations of life in all its varied forms is a theme that has never failed to attract all who are not destitute of intelligence. From the days of the primitive cave-dwellers of Europe, who lived with mammoths and other animals now lost to the world; of the ancient Egyptians, who drew and painted on the walls of their magnificent tombs the creatures inhabiting the delta of the Nile; of the Greeks, looking out on the world with their bright and child-like curiosity, down to our own times, this old, yet ever new, theme has never failed. Never before was there such a profusion of books describing the various forms of life inhabiting the different countries of the globe, or the rivers, lakes, and seas that diversify its scenery. Popular writers have done good service in making the way plain for those who wish to acquaint themselves with the structures, habits, and histories of living animals; while for students a still greater supply of excellent manuals and text-books has been, and still continues to be, forthcoming.But in our admiration for the present we forget the great past. How seldom do we think of that innumerable [x]host of creatures that once trod this earth! How little in comparison has been done for them! Our natural-history books deal only with those that are alive now. Few popular writers have attempted to depict, as on a canvas, the great earth-drama that has, from age to age, been enacted on the terrestrial stage, of which we behold the latest, but probably not the closing scenes.Another object which the writer has kept in view is to connect the past with the present. It cannot be too strongly urged that the best commentary on the dead past is the living present. It is unfortunate that there is still too great a tendency to separate, as by a great gulf, the dead from the living, the past from the present, forms of life. The result of this is seen in our museums. Fossils have too often been left to the attention of geologists not always well acquainted with the structures of living animals. The more frequent introduction of fossil specimens side by side with modern forms of life would not only be a gain to the progress and spread of geological science, but would be a great help to students of anatomy and natural history. The tree of life is but a mutilated thing, and half its interest is gone, when the dead branches are lopped off.It is, perhaps, justifiable to give to the term “monster” a somewhat extended meaning. The writer has therefore included in his menagerie of extinct animals one or two creatures which, though not of any great size, are nevertheless remarkable in various ways—such, for instance, as the winged reptiles, and anomalous birds with teeth, of later times, and others. Compared with living forms, these creatures appear to us as “monstrosities,” and may well find a place in our collection.Extinct Monsters : A Popular Account of Some of the Larger Forms of Ancient Animal Life, FLYING DRAGONS, SEA-SERPENTS, THE MAMMOTH, TRICERATOPS , IGUANODON, RHINOCEROS

Writing from the perspective of a student of life, history, law, politics, and theology, Don Hutchinson draws on all of these areas in Under Siege to offer perceptive insight into the Christian Church of today's Canada. The reader will receive the benefit of his thirty years of church leadership, Christian witness, constitutional law, and public policy experience to gain a practical understanding of how we, the Church, may cast the deciding votes on the future of Christianity in our constitutionally guaranteed "free and democratic society." How did we get here? What happened to "Christian" Canada? Do we not have Charter rights like everyone else? What does the Bible say? Many Christians sense that an advancing secularism is trying to force upon Canadians a culture in which faith is meant to be private. Hutchinson presents historic, legal, and theological grounds for us not to hide our faith in stained-glass closets, but instead to enter Canada's contested public space with confidence. Together as individual Christians, congregations, denominations, and para- congregational ministries, we are the Church in Canada. And together we have the capacity to impact the nation for God's good, the good of our neighbours, and the good of ourselves. Will we?

Natural history is deservedly a popular subject. The manifestations of life in all its varied forms is a theme that has never failed to attract all who are not destitute of intelligence. From the days of the primitive cave-dwellers of Europe, who lived with mammoths and other animals now lost to the world; of the ancient Egyptians, who drew and painted on the walls of their magnificent tombs the creatures inhabiting the delta of the Nile; of the Greeks, looking out on the world with their bright and child-like curiosity, down to our own times, this old, yet ever new, theme has never failed. Never before was there such a profusion of books describing the various forms of life inhabiting the different countries of the globe, or the rivers, lakes, and seas that diversify its scenery. Popular writers have done good service in making the way plain for those who wish to acquaint themselves with the structures, habits, and histories of living animals; while for students a still greater supply of excellent manuals and text-books has been, and still continues to be, forthcoming. But in our admiration for the present we forget the great past. How seldom do we think of that innumerable host of creatures that once trod this earth! How little in comparison has been done for them! Our natural-history books deal only with those that are alive now. Few popular writers have attempted to depict, as on a canvas, the great earth-drama that has, from age to age, been enacted on the terrestrial stage, of which we behold the latest, but probably not the closing scenes. When our poet wrote “All the world’s a stage,” he thought only of “men and women,” whom he called “merely players,” but the geologist sees a wider application of these words, as he reviews the drama of past life on the globe, and finds that animals, too, have had “their exits and their entrances;” nay more, “the strange eventful history” of a human life, sketched by the master-hand, might well be chosen to illustrate the birth and growth of the tree of life, the development of which we shall briefly trace from time to time, as we proceed on our survey of the larger and more wonderful animals of life that flourished in bygone times. We might even make out a “seven ages” of the world, in each of which some peculiar form of life stood out prominently, but such a scheme would be artificial.

From the Days of Dirt is the memoir of Marcus Hastings, a rebellious teenager who grew up in Maine in the 1990's. Marcus believed it was his mission as a young person to have as much fun as possible by causing "high-quality mischief". Even when he isn't looking for trouble, which isn't often, trouble seems to find him. Marcus' journal entries trigger a series of stories chronicling his crooked, haphazard journey into adulthood. His cynical and oddly refreshing perspective on what it means to feel alive finds humor in just about everything- whether that be setting his pants on fire, falling in love or being thrown in jail. Many of his recollections are timeless and relatable. We all had that crazy friend or that weird neighbor, and if not, now you do.

Dylan is a playful and curious dog who has many things to do with his time, including the most important thing of all: finding the big fat cat that lives next door. This beautifully illustrated book follows Dylan as he chases, sniffs, catches and follows birds, flowers, pots, neighbors and more, all the while frantically looking for the big fat catuntil he finds it, that is. Dylans Day is a funny and endearing story that teaches kids its OK to sometimes be a little scared.