Books published by publisher Outskirts Press (2014-02-07)

Is she the choosen one? The heat raged with retribution, developing experience with every spark released. It grew massively strong, tall, and surface area....She was the fire. She was raging with retribution, taller, stronger, and gained more experience with every flare released....She admitted to herself that the only intolerable thing about being one with the flame was the damage to her appearance. Her dermis changed from porcelain to copper and the loosely charred dead skin flew with the wind.She rotates her head, owl-like, surveying the room. The square area around her was minuscule; there were rhythmic, infrequent intervals of wind coming through the open window high above ground level, enticing the flame. The guilty red-stained black walls were practically invisible, blocked by miniature bookshelves not occupied with books but jars, glasses, pipettes, and undefiled candles. Strange liquids rested inside them. Catching her eye, a decaying ash-brown five-foot toothpick podium stood amid the upper right corner. On top of the podium rusts away a forgotten war-fought, gold and black manuscript that he used.He was there too. She saw his silhouette now, most of him hidden within the opposing lower walls, but she knew. He observed her, took mental notes, and made conclusions like she was an experiment. It was admirable, the way he was meticulous about things. He was reserved, but everything about him was concise, deliberate, and mindful. His true qualities took time to pinpoint, but she knows now that he is the slow-and-conquer type. Time was not a problem for him--there was no need for haste. That's something she admired about him.K. McNee & Co is the author of The Reaper's Wife and more. For more info visit www.kmcneeandco.com

**Don't Blame Hazel! is a Gold Award Winner of Mom's Choice Awards!!** "Being a BULLY doesn't make you look good!" Hazel may dress different but she loves the way she looks. At her new school Hazel is bullied over and over until one day the bully shows up at her front door as a slimy green toad!! What happens next may surprise you... "Don't Blame Hazel!" is a story that helps children recognize signs of bullying. It will encourage them to be themselves and empower them to maintain their individuality and confidence. They will discover that bullies have their own weaknesses, and that through understanding and forgiveness, a new friendship can be formed. Don't Blame Hazel! is a recipient of the prestigious Mom's Choice Award. The Mom's Choice Awards® (MCA) evaluates products and services created for parents and educators and is globally recognized for establishing the benchmark of excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. Using a rigorous evaluation process, entries are scored on a number of elements including production quality, design, educational value, entertainment value, originality, appeal and cost. Around the world, parents, educators, retailers and members of the media trust the MCA Honoring Excellence seal when selecting quality products and services for families and children.

This tells of why and how a young Rhodesian army Captain decided in 1963 not to fight the oncoming war over majority rule. His future unknown, he leaves the country for studies in Cape Town; marries; wins a Beit Fellowship to Oxford; and is recruited to a career at the World Bank. In time he becomes an expert on Eastern Europe. Invited home in 1975 to help prepare Rhodesia's transition to Zimbabwe, he spends three years living through the very war he chose to avoid. Rejoining the Bank, he works on Hungary and, in a unique period after communism fell in 1989, he lives in Poland as Resident Representative. A man of two transitions, he explains how they are separate but ironically linked. His book, a testament to the value of education and the power of family, is written as a memoir to his grandchildren. Now himself a proud American, he offers them a world view-what he calls a moral equilibrium- to harmonize their vexed heritage with today's divided America. Happy with his life, he regrets the outcomes in the country he left. He describes a different path to majority rule his countrymen could have taken, instead of herd-think support of Ian Smith's UDI and war. Had they done so, both the war as well as the brutality, corruption and devastation of Mugabe's Zimbabwe could well have been avoided. As a life's message to his grandchildren, he exhorts them not to make similar mistakes: beware the herd; think for yourself.

The main characters of Finding Lord Stanley are three sisters who started their summer vacation in the usual manner, playing with friends. Playing games in the front yard turned into a surprise discovery under a bush in the neighbor's yard, a tiny grey kitten. The girls set out to convince their Mom and Dad that the kitten needed a home. Although Mom was easily convinced, their Dad would be a challenge. This delightful story takes a few twists and turns until the sisters gave this lost kitten a "furever" home.

Alex and Tony are observant seven year old fraternal twin brothers who admire their parents and are constantly learning from each of them. One morning during breakfast when Tony finally decides to ask dad why he always pulls out a chair from under the table for mom to sit down, Alex and Tony both learn a valuable lesson about what it means to be a gentleman. It isn't until later that day at school that the boys are able to actually put that lesson to use and experience what it feels like to be gentlemen. In the first of an upcoming series of children's character building books from author, Antonee Boykin, Alex and Tony Learn to be Gentlemen is perfect lesson teaching literature that will undoubtedly spark dialogue in families and schools about the importance of courteous behavior. It's an ideal book for children of both sexes in that it not only focuses on how little boys should conduct themselves as gentlemen but also how little girls should expect to be treated as well. Alex and Tony's father serve as an excellent example for his young sons in the way that he acts towards their mother. He also further displays exemplary role model characteristics in the way that he takes time to carefully explain to his children why he treats their mother the way that he does and why it is equally as important for them to behave as gentlemen towards the girls and women that they encounterGeared towards K-3 elementary school age children, Alex and Tony Learn to be Gentlemen, is a must read for children of both sexes and all races.

After accidentally being seen by a human, an Icelandic Yule Lad named Stekkjastaur finds he must rely on a young shepherd boy to keep his troll identity a secret. Stekkjastaur gives a gift just to ensure the child's silence, but the little boy's happiness makes Stekkjastaur happy as well. He learns that one of the greatest gifts you can receive is the joy in giving to someone else. One by one, the Yule Lads each take a break from his own mischief, and each one learns the happiness gained from gift-giving. Even from a source as unlikely as a troll, a selfish act wrapped up in the Christmas spirit can grow into something wonderful.Iceland's rich history of legends and folktales featuring a host of mystical creatures is reflected in this unique Christmas tale about trolls. This modernized version of the Icelandic Yule Lads brings new life to a very old story. The legend of the Yule Lads is well-known among Icelanders and has been passed down from generation to generation for over 1,500 years.The original tale was told to discourage bad behavior in youngsters and had a distinctly bogeyman vibe. After a law was passed in 1746 by the Danish government to prohibit parents from terrorizing their children with the Yule Lad stories (and their ogre-mother, Gryla), the Yule Lads gradually became the mischievous pranksters they are in modern stories.

"Posey Tales" are true, humorous individual stories about the 5 ambitious Posey children when they were small. Children are inquisitive and the titles of each story give a hint as to what the story is about to raise the curiosity of children. Each story has a special little character that follows the child. The children will have fun finding the Frog, Cricket, Bird, Kitty, or Dog that follows the child and sometimes hides on some pages. Children will be able to understand and relate to the stories because they are written in their language style. Each story has an "intended lesson learned message" to help children with making correct decisions. At the end of each story, the children reading the book are asked if they know what lesson the Posey child has learned and asks them to turn to the next page for the answer. An adorable photo of each child, at the age of the story, appears with their short message on the lesson they learned. These stories will not only relate and be loved by children, but adults will also be able to relate and enjoy them as well. We all were small once upon a time.

Speaking frankly, not peddling fantasy, and writing honestly and sharply, in About Black Women, My Grandmother Told Me: Worthy Advice for Future Generations, Narcisse Nguema offers 791 bits of time-tested advice for everyone, but especially for African American women.Women are the core of society, and the black woman's authenticity is not a matter of negotiation or discomfort--the black authenticity is pride, and shall remain immaculate. The more black women accept themselves in their entirety, the better the black community will be.With Nguema's firm but clear guidance, readers of About Black Women will again claim the feminine behaviors that civilized culture before: the actions that built up ethics, morals and rules, and law and wealth.

A feisty teen and her radical multicultural friends are fed up with life's challenges: School ClosingsRacismBroken Friendships/RelationshipsBullyingLosing Loved OnesParents Losing Their JobsUnwanted Sexual Advances and much more!Through this novel's usage of humor, realistic school scenes, youth dialogue, and heart-wrenching events, youth are shown that the only way to survive and overcome adversity is to find their inner strength and to lean on faith, rather than lose control.Young Adult themes in Never Predictablez: Transition, School Adjustments, Family Issues, Conflict-Resolution, Self-Esteem, Academic Excellence, Peer Pressure, and Choices and Consequences.Recommended for 11-17 year olds.

When Serial Killers Terrorize a California Beach Community, One Woman Stands in Their WayEmily Stone doesn’t have a badge. But that hasn’t stopped her from tracking down some of the West’s most dangerous child-killers. Armed with a digital SLR camera, laptop computer and her trusty Beretta, Stone uses her innate gift for detective work to identify the perps ― and then anonymously e-mail the evidence to the cops.Now, the hunt for two brazen serial killers on the loose right in her own coastal California town threatens to expose Stone’s identity ― unraveling her carefully constructed cover and jeopardizing her life’s work. But when she gets too close to the action, this razor-sharp hunter becomes the hunted. Cooperating with the handsome local police detective could be the only hope for stopping the rampage directed at unsuspecting young women ― and saving herself. Can they piece together the clues in time?Compulsion mixes CSI-style investigation with a ripped-from-the-headlines plot and a dose of romance for a keeps-you-guessing, fast-paced and savvy thriller, right up until the shocking finale.

Book 1 in Series A party was called for tonight at End House, but no host or guests greeted you at the front door, only candles lighting a path through the hallway of the deserted mansion.You're standing in a pool of water in the basement, wearing your party clothes. Is your heart beating too fast? The door locks behind you. You and friends charge through the dark water, past the falling cages with sharp edges, ready to snare their next victim. Circular saws descend, looking for heads to slice. Steps appear on the far wall, leading to a closed door. The door opens, two of your friends run through the doorway right before it disappears into the wall. Meanwhile, Linda is upstairs with the others, trying to escape a maze of rooms, where bloody body parts fall into a blazing fire in the living room, and a skeleton sleeps on a bed. Are these illusions or traps in a deadly game? What should you do? Run. The owner of End House takes no prisoners. The Dead Game has begun.