Books in Thorndike Press large print Literacy Bridge series

From the "New York Times "bestselling author of the Legend series "I am tired of being used, hurt, and cast aside." Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina's black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a "malfetto," an abomination, ruining their family's good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever's survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars--they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites. Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it's Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all. Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society. This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they've never seen. Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn't belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her. "It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt."

In a tiny Russian-occupied Polish village, twelve-year-old Patryk and his friends entertain themselves with dares -- some more harmful than others -- until Germans bomb the schoolhouse and the Great War crashes in. The ringleader of the friends devises the best dare yet: whichever boy steals the finest military button will be king. Newbery Medalist Avi delivers an unflinching tale of boys in wartime determined to prove themselves with a dare that spins disastrously out of control.

The newest heartwrenchingly powerful novel from the bestelling author of IF I STAY. When her best friend Meg drinks a bottle of industrial-strength cleaner alone in a motel room, Cody is understandably shocked and devastated. She and Meg shared everything so how was there no warning? But when Cody travels to Meg s college town to pack up the belongings left behind, she discovers that there s a lot that Meg never told her. About her old roommates, the sort of people Cody never would have met in her dead-end small town in Washington. About Ben McAllister, the boy with a guitar and a sneer, and some secrets of his own. And about an encrypted computer file that Cody can t open until she does, and suddenly everything Cody thought she knew about her best friend s death gets thrown into question. "I Was Here"is Gayle Forman at her finest, a taut, emotional, and ultimately redemptive story about redefining the meaning of family and finding a way to move forward even in the face of unspeakable loss."

#1 New York Times bestselling author Nelson DeMille, writing with his son, screenwriter Alex DeMille, delivers a blistering new thriller featuring a brilliant and unorthodox Army investigator, his troubling new partner, and their hunt for the Army's most notorious--and dangerous--deserter. When Captain Kyle Mercer of the Army's elite Delta Force disappeared from his post in Afghanistan, a video released by his Taliban captors made international headlines. But circumstances were murky: Did Mercer desert before he was captured? Then a second video sent to Mercer's Army commanders leaves no doubt: the trained assassin and keeper of classified Army intelligence has willfully disappeared. When, a year later, Mercer is spotted in Caracas, Venezuela by an old army buddy, top military brass task Scott Brodie and Maggie Taylor of the Criminal Investigation Division fly to Venezuela and bring Mercer back to America--preferably alive. Brodie knows this is a difficult mission, made more difficult by his new partner's inexperience, by their undeniable chemistry, and by Brodie's suspicion that Maggie is reporting to the CIA. With ripped-from-the-headlines appeal, an exotic and dangerous locale, and the hairpin twists and inimitable humor that are signature DeMille, The Deserter is the first in a timely and thrilling new series from an unbeatable team of true masters: the #1 New York Times bestseller Nelson DeMille and his son, award-winning screenwriter Alex DeMille.

Now in a mass-market paperback premium edition the instant #1 "New York Times" bestseller! Stephen King delivers an outstanding ("USA TODAY") collection of stories, featuring revelatory autobiographical comments on when, why, and how he came to write (or rewrite) each story. " I ve made some things for you, Constant Reader. Feel free to examine them, but please be careful. The best of them have teeth. " Since "Nightshift," published thirty-five years ago, Stephen King has dazzled an entire generation of readers with his genius as a prominent writer of short fiction. Now in his latest collection, he once again assembles a generous array of unforgettable, tantalizing tales including those that, until recently, have never been published in a book (such as the story Cookie Jar, which is exclusive to this edition). There are thrilling connections between these works themes of mortality, the afterlife, guilt, and what we would do differently if we could see into the future or correct the mistakes of the past. Magnificent, eerie, and utterly compelling, "The Bazaar of Bad Dreams" is one of Stephen King s finest gifts to readers everywhere a master storyteller at his very best."

A one-of-a-kind mystery collection that showcases the immense storytelling talent #1 New York Times bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark has honed over her tremendous career--including a bone-chilling, previously unpublished short story forty years in the making.In 1974, master storyteller Mary Higgins Clark began writing a novella inspired by the dark side of the New York City fashion world. She then put the unfinished manuscript aside to write Where Are the Children?, the novel that would launch her career. Forty years later, Clark returned to that novella and wrote its ending. Now--for the first time ever--Death Wears a Beauty Mask is available for readers along with a stunning array of short fiction that spans her remarkable career.From Clark's first-ever published story (1956's "Stowaway"), to classic tales featuring some of her most memorable characters, Death Wears A Beauty Mask And Other Stories is a jewel of a collection brimming over with the chills and heart-pounding drama we've come to expect from the Queen of Suspense. Death Wears A Beauty Mask And Other Stories is a spine-tingling read and a special glimpse into the evolution of a world-class writing career.

In Being Mortal, bestselling author Atul Gawande tackles the hardest challenge of his profession: how medicine can not only improve life but also the process of its endingMedicine has triumphed in modern times, transforming birth, injury, and infectious disease from harrowing to manageable. But in the inevitable condition of aging and death, the goals of medicine seem too frequently to run counter to the interest of the human spirit. Nursing homes, preoccupied with safety, pin patients into railed beds and wheelchairs. Hospitals isolate the dying, checking for vital signs long after the goals of cure have become moot. Doctors, committed to extending life, continue to carry out devastating procedures that in the end extend suffering.Gawande, a practicing surgeon, addresses his profession s ultimate limitation, arguing that quality of life is the desired goal for patients and families. Gawande offers examples of freer, more socially fulfilling models for assisting the infirm and dependent elderly, and he explores the varieties of hospice care to demonstrate that a person's last weeks or months may be rich and dignified.Full of eye-opening research and riveting storytelling, Being Mortal asserts that medicine can comfort and enhance our experience even to the end, providing not only a good life but also a good end.