"Everybody calls me Liar. They don't mean no harm by it, it's just a plain fact that I am the finest truth bender in all of Dixon County. And not little weeny white lies. Big fat whopper ones that make people forget the question they asked in the first place." When a new girl, Justine, moves to town, Pete Larson -- better known as Liar -- is smitten. He gets his chance to impress her after a strange spacecraft crashes in the woods. Along with the class science geek, Bobby Ray Dobbs, they discover that the crashed UFO holds an amazing key to the future. But who's going to believe a kid named Liar? Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle (creators of the hit animated series Kim Possible) introduce a character with a fresh and distinctive voice in this very funny, pitch-perfect look at three unlikely friends who try to make a difference.

A collection of 32 short stories and novellas by DJ Lyons: * “White Reindeer”?Lost on a Norwegian mountain, DJ faces rock slides, raging waterfalls and other challenges. Miraculously, a white reindeer appears and leads her to safety. * “Kudzu Monster”?An unlikely love story involving a young frontier girl and the Kudzu Monster who saves her life. * “Trapped in Beaumaris Castle”?Gwyn agrees to spend the night in a haunted castle. What he sees finally puts to rest a 700-year-old question: How did the king's archer die? * “Grandmother Lyons' Tales”?True stories about a tornado, a Civil War love story, a scam, a premonition saving two lives and a scary Rag Man. * “12 Tales of Wonder” plus “12 Stories for the Young At Heart”?Exciting adventures involving ghosts, wishes, secrets, bullies, animals, amazing characters, a Broccoli Monster, fairy godmothers, magic and fun.

Written with a focus on the English Language Arts Common Core Standards, this book provides a complete plan for developing a literacy program that focuses on boys pre-K through grade 12. Despite the fact that reading and literacy among boys has been an area of concern for years, this issue remains unresolved today. Additionally, the emphasis and focus have changed due to the implementation of the English Language Arts Common Core Standards. How can educators best encourage male students to read, and what new technologies and techniques can serve this objective? The Common Core Approach to Building Literacy in Boys is an essential resource and reference for teachers, librarians, and parents seeking to encourage reading in boys from preschool to 12th grade. Providing a wide array of useful, up-to-date information that emphasizes the English Language Arts Common Core Standards, the bibliographies and descriptions of effective strategies in this book will enable you to boost reading interest and performance in boys. The chapters cover 16 different topics of interest to boys, all accompanied by a complete bibliography for each subject area, discussion questions, writing connections, and annotated new and classic nonfiction titles. Information on specific magazines, annotated professional titles, books made into film, websites, and apps that will help you get boys interested in reading is also included.

Cotillion: A formal gathering of bright young women on the verge of entering adulthood, the society pages, and prospective high-tax-bracket marriages. Think a Civil War reenactment with crisp, clean white dresses. Catfight: An impromptu gathering of not-so-young women on the verge of losing their cool. Think a cotillion with hair-pulling. It’s been more than a year since the Kudzu Debutantes exacted sweet, merciless revenge on their cheating husbands, but the repercussions are still palpable throughout Ithaca, Georgia: Nita is anxiously preparing herself for marriage to Jimmy Lee, a man thirteen years her junior; Lavonne, despite having dropped her husband–and eighty pounds–and launched her own business, longs for love; and while Eadie remains married to Trevor, she feels more neglected than ever. So the occasion of Nita’s second wedding seems like just the ticket to cheer up the disconsolate Debs. But they’ve made a formidable enemy in Virginia Broadwell, first lady of Ithaca and the bride’s ex-mother-in-law. Hell-bent on vengeance and determined to restore old-school social mores, Virginia hatches a plan so devious it makes her pedicured toes curl in anticipation. Soon enough, the women are knocked for a loop–but you can keep a Kudzu Debutante down for only so long. The one thing stronger than Virginia’s wrath is the bond between the three friends, who soon learn that one of Virginia’s Jimmy Choos contains an irresistible Achilles’ heel. With spirit, wit, and down-home gumption, the take-no-prisoners trio decides it’s time to ditch their cotillion manners as they rally to save Nita’s marriage, Lavone’s business, Eadie’s sanity . . . and the honor of Kudzu Debs the world over. Packed with authentic Southern flavor and characters as colorful as an azalea in full bloom, The Secret Lives of the Kudzu Debutantes serves up stinging one-liners and earthy wisdom in equal measure.

In 1993, Lanie Bragg’s life is moving along nicely. She owns a successful boutique, has a talented daughter in college, and has recently moved in with her new love, attorney Jay Billings. Upon hearing news of the death of the eccentric Artis Moore, the owner of the antique shop beside her boutique, Lanie is tossed headfirst into the story of the older woman’s intriguing and mysterious life and loves, including Buster Whitmire and baseball player, Benjamin Mason. Artis Moore, the daughter of one of the wealthiest men in the south, should have a carefree and happy life. Instead, she endures a string of misfortunes and heartaches that will change the lives of so many people, including Lanie's, over forty years later. Lanie has been asked to attend the reading of Artis’s will, where a life-altering secret is revealed, changing everything she thought she knew about her family and her life. LIAR'S BLOODLINE follows the interconnected lives of Lanie Bragg and Artis Moore over the course of more than forty years.

In this coming-of-age novel, a white, small-town Kentucky teen uncovers dark secrets while investigating her mother’s suspicious death in 1972. In 1972, on Mudas Summers’s seventeenth birthday, her beloved Mama, Ella, is found hanging from the rafters of their home. Most people in Peckinpaw, Kentucky, assume that Ella’s no-good husband did the deed. Others think Ella grew tired of his abuse and did it herself. Muddy is determined to find out for sure either way, especially once she finds strange papers hidden amongst her mama’s possessions. But Peckinpaw keeps its secrets buried deep. Muddy’s almost-more-than-friend, Bobby Marshall, knows that better than most. Though he passes for white, one of his ancestors was Frannie Crow, a slave hanged a century ago on nearby Hark Hill Plantation. Adorning the town square is a seat built from Frannie’s gallows. A tribute, a relic—and a caution—it’s known as Liar’s Bench. Now, the answers Muddy seeks soon lead back to Hark Hill, to hatred and corruption that have echoed through the years—and lies she must be brave enough to confront at last. “Glorious… Liar’s Bench succeeds on many levels…. Much of any reader’s delight will be rooted in savoring the sounds, smells, tastes, and fragrances that enhance her captivating vision of a typical Southern small town during two linked periods of its history.”—Southern Literary Review “This has southern small-town charm… includes recipes and discussion questions and may appeal to those who like Rebecca Wells or Jennifer Chiaverini.”—Booklist “A satisfying mystery with thought-provoking historical elements, written in a sassy Southern voice.”—Historical Novels Review

Lies, deceit, and destruction divided the nation for decades. Back in 2080, the citizens had enough. A war to restore the country's honor took place. The new regime led by Chancellor Prumpt made any form of lying illegal. Now if anyone is caught lying, they are called in for questioning and killed on the spot if found guilty. Any citizen can report someone if they suspect them of lying. Present day: 2129 Roger Aimes is a 28-year old mine worker living through the brutal system. All he can hope to do is live another day. Trying to change the country for everyone he's lost and the love of his life, Marela will certainly get him killed. Danny Eurig, a slick talking business mogul will do whatever it takes to remove the Chancellor from office. How will they ever manage to find trustworthy allies in a nation where making new connections equals increasing your chances of getting killed.

Software engineer Tori Jaecar has made it. At least, that's what she tells herself. Her coworkers suck, she hates life in the big city, and she's starving for meaning in life since her brother's death, but who cares? Happiness is a small price to pay for success.When Tori's boss is murdered in front of her, she's saved by part-time monster hunter, full-time bad boy Vince Lenoir, and their destinies entwine. In their hunt for the killer, they embark on an odyssey of epic proportions—literally. Legendary villains from Greek mythology have moved to America. They threaten to send humanity back to the classical era. To stop them, Tori and Vince must answer three questions: who they are, who do they want to be, and who lies at the heart of it all?