The Two Lives of Lydia Bird: A Novel, by Josie Silver, $2.99
(add Audible narration for $9.49*)
2,573 ratings
5-star: 58%
4-star: 24%
3-star: 12%
Lydia and Freddie. Freddie and Lydia. They’d been together for more than a decade and Lydia thought their love was indestructible. But she was wrong. On Lydia’s twenty-eighth birthday, Freddie died in a car accident.
So now it’s just Lydia, and all she wants is to hide indoors and sob until her eyes fall out. But Lydia knows that Freddie would want her to try to live fully, happily, even without him. So, enlisting the help of his best friend, Jonah, and her sister, Elle, she takes her first tentative steps into the world, open to life—and perhaps even love—again.
But then something inexplicable happens that gives her another chance at her old life with Freddie. A life where none of the tragic events of the past few months have happened.
Lydia is pulled again and again through the doorway to her past, living two lives, impossibly, at once. But there’s an emotional toll to returning to a world where Freddie, alive, still owns her heart. Because there’s someone in her new life, her real life, who wants her to stay.
https://www.amazon.com/Two-Lives-Lydia-Bird-Novel-ebook/dp/B07SQMV166/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-two-lives-of-lydia-bird-josie-silver/1129717173?ean=9780593135242
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-two-lives-of-lydia-bird-2
The Immortal Irishman: The Irish Revolutionary Who Became an American Hero, by Timothy Egan, $2.99
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1,385 ratings
5-star: 78%
4-star: 15%
3-star: 5%
A dashing young orator during the Great Hunger of the 1840s, Thomas Francis Meagher led a failed uprising against British rule, for which he was banished to a Tasmanian prison colony for life. But two years later he was “back from the dead” and in New York, instantly the most famous Irishman in America. Meagher’s rebirth included his leading the newly formed Irish Brigade in many of the fiercest battles of the Civil War. Afterward, he tried to build a new Ireland in the wild west of Montana — a quixotic adventure that ended in the great mystery of his disappearance, which Egan resolves convincingly at last.
https://www.amazon.com/Immortal-Irishman-Revolutionary-Became-American-ebook/dp/B011H55RD6/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-immortal-irishman-timothy-egan/1122371627?ean=9780544272477
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-immortal-irishman
Free to Focus: A Total Productivity System to Achieve More by Doing Less, by Michael Hyatt, $1.99
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1,385 ratings
5-star: 78%
4-star: 13%
3-star: 5%
Everyone gets 168 hours a week, but it never feels like enough, does it? Work gobbles up the lion's share--many professionals are working as much as 70 hours a week--leaving less and less for rest, exercise, family, and friends. You know, all those things that make life great.
Most people think productivity is about finding or saving time. But it's not. It's about making our time work for us. Just imagine having free time again. It's not a pipe dream.
In Free to Focus, New York Times bestselling author Michael Hyatt reveals to readers nine proven ways to win at work so they are finally free to succeed at the rest of life--their health, relationships, hobbies, and more. He helps readers redefine their goals, evaluate what's working, cut out the nonessentials, focus on the most important tasks, manage their time and energy, and build momentum for a lifetime of success.
https://www.amazon.com/Free-Focus-Productivity-System-Achieve-ebook/dp/B07F3DM7C1/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/free-to-focus-michael-hyatt/1128873114?ean=9781493409549
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/free-to-focus
The Ultimate Evil: The Search for the Sons of Sam, by Maury Terry, $2.99
601 ratings
5-star: 82%The History Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained
4-star: 12%
3-star: 5%
On August 10, 1977, the NYPD arrested David Berkowitz for the Son of Sam murders that had terrorized New York City for over a year. Berkowitz confessed to shooting sixteen people and killing six with a .44 caliber Bulldog revolver, and the case was officially closed.
Journalist Maury Terry was suspicious of Berkowitz’s confession. Spurred by conflicting witness descriptions of the killer and clues overlooked in the investigation, Terry was convinced Berkowitz didn’t act alone. Meticulously gathering evidence for a decade, he released his findings in the first edition of The Ultimate Evil. Based upon the evidence he had uncovered, Terry theorized that the Son of Sam attacks were masterminded by a Yonkers-based cult that was responsible for other ritual murders across the country.
After Terry’s death in 2015, documentary filmmaker Josh Zeman (Cropsey, The Killing Season, Murder Mountain) was given access to Terry’s files, which form the basis of his docuseries with Netflix and a companion podcast. Taken together with The Ultimate Evil, which includes a new introduction by Zeman, these works reveal the stunning intersections of power, wealth, privilege, and evil in America—from the Summer of Sam until today.
https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Evil-Search-Sons-Sam-ebook/dp/B08NFVHPP5/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-ultimate-evil-maury-terry/1137975280?ean=9781683692850
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-ultimate-evil
Apollo 13, by James Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger, $2.99
(add Audible narration for $12.99*)
823 ratings
5-star: 87%
4-star: 9%
3-star: 3%
Apollo 13 tells the full story of the moon shot that almost ended in catastrophe. Minutes after a mid-flight explosion, the three astronauts are forced to abandon the main ship for the lunar module, a tiny craft designed to keep two men alive for just two days.
As the hours tick away, the narrative shifts from the crippled spacecraft to Mission Control, from engineers searching desperately for a way to fix the ship to Lovell's wife and children praying for his safe return. The entire nation watches as one crisis after another is met and overcome. By the time the ship splashes down in the Pacific, we understand why the heroic effort to rescue Lovell and his crew is considered by many to be NASA's finest hour.
https://www.amazon.com/Apollo-13-James-Lovell-ebook/dp/B07NSN3CZH/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/apollo-13-james-lovell/1103016470?ean=9780547526232
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/apollo-13-4
The Physics Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained, by DK Publishing, $1.99
779 ratings
5-star: 84%
4-star: 10%
3-star: 4%
Explore the laws and theories of physics in this accessible introduction to the forces that shape our universe, our planet, and our everyday lives.
Using a bold, graphics-led approach, The Physics Book sets out more than 80 of the key concepts and discoveries that have defined the subject and influenced our technology since the beginning of time. With the focus firmly on unpacking the thought behind each theory-as well as exploring when and how each idea and breakthrough came about-five themed chapters examine the history and developments in specific areas such as Light, Sound, and Electricity.
Eureka moments abound: from Archimedes' bathtub discoveries about displacement and density, and Galileo's experiments with spheres falling from the Tower of Pisa, to Isaac Newton's apple and his conclusions about gravity and the laws of motion. You'll also learn about Albert Einstein's revelations about relativity; how the accidental discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation confirmed the Big Bang theory; the search for the Higgs boson particle; and why most of the universe is missing. If you've ever wondered exactly how physicists formulated-and proved-their abstract concepts, The Physics Book is the book for you.
https://www.amazon.com/Physics-Book-Ideas-Simply-Explained-ebook/dp/B082LS3KHT/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-physics-book-dk/1132012133?ean=9780744022254
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-physics-book-2
The History Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained, by DK Publishing, $1.99
1,182 ratings
5-star: 77%
4-star: 15%
3-star: 6%
This book includes short, descriptive explanations of key ideas, themes, and events of world history that are easy to understand. Explore topics such as the founding of Baghdad, the colonization of the Americas, and the inception of Buddhism without complicated jargon.
Don't stop at American history, explore the world! This book is full of fun facts from the human story, going as far back as the origins of our species to space exploration today. Discover all things revolution, from the French to the digital, including the rise of the internet.
Enjoy short and sweet biographies of some of the most important thinkers and leaders throughout history, like Martin Luther, Charles Darwin, and Nelson Mandela. You'll learn who said famous historical quotes, and what they really meant when they said it.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01F4OHXRO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-history-book-dk/1137713600?ean=9781465457752
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-history-book-3
The Classical Music Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained, by DK Publishing, $1.99
286 ratings
5-star: 78%
4-star: 13%
3-star: 5%
Who wrote the first true "opera"? Where did the system of musical notation come from? How do composers construct symphonies?
The Classical Music Book answers these questions and more by exploring the history of classical music in clear and easy-to-follow sections. More than 90 works by famous composers are analyzed, with explanations of their music theory and impact on society. You will also explore the fascinating stories about the lives of crucial composers and performers.
Covering Thomas Tallis in the early period, baroque masters like Bach and Handel, and the classical genius of Beethoven and Wagner all the way to the modern-day composers, this comprehensive book explores the key ideas rooted in the world's greatest classical compositions and musical traditions. The importance of each composition is explained, placing them into their wider social, cultural, and historical context.
https://www.amazon.com/Classical-Music-Book-Simply-Explained-ebook/dp/B07K8CRZFM/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-classical-music-book-dk/1127587234?ean=9781465483164
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-classical-music-book-1
*Audible narration only available for purchases at Amazon.com.
At B&N and Kobo:
Do Polar Bears Get Lonely: And 101 other intriguing science questions, by New Scientist, $1.99
[ebook is $3.99 at Amazon]
60 ratings
5-star: 60%
4-star: 10%
3-star: 21%
Do Polar Bears Get Lonely? is the third compilation of readers' answers to the questions in the 'Last Word' column of New Scientist, the world's best-selling science weekly.
Do Polar Bears Get Lonely? includes a bumper crop of wise and wonderful questions and answers such as:
Why does garlic make your breath smell? How toothpaste makers get the stripes in toothpaste? Why do we get 'pins and needles'? Why are some people left-handed and other people right-handed? Can insects get fat? Do elephants sneeze? And do fish get thirsty? What causes cells to stick together in the human body rather than simply fall apart? And why are pears pear-shaped (and not apple-shaped)?
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/do-polar-bears-get-lonely-new-scientist/1119685157?ean=9781529381252
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/do-polar-bears-get-lonely-5
At Amazon:
The Beach House, by Jenny Hale, $0.99
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1,173 ratings
5-star: 64%
4-star: 25%
3-star: 8%
When her gram passes away, Melanie Simpson feels utterly lost. But her grandmother’s will gives her a purpose: an inheritance to buy a crumbling house in Rosemary Bay. They used to visit the village every summer, sit by the sparkling water on a beach the color of pearl, and daydream about turning the place on the corner into a bed and breakfast.
On her first night in her new hometown, Melanie meets local contractor and landowner Josh Claiborne, whose eyes match the dazzling sea. Melanie plans to restore the beach house to its original glory, and Josh is the perfect person to help renovate the wrap-around porch weathered by the coastal breeze and the peeling white paint faded by the sun.
But hiding in a closet is a yellowing stack of letters that could change everything. The looping handwriting reveals the mystery of the rickety house—a buried history that touches everyone in Rosemary Bay. Will its secrets bring Melanie and Josh together or tear them apart?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09169WS24/
What's Left Unsaid: A Novel, by Emily Bleeker, $1.99
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1,358 ratings
5-star: 53%
4-star: 29%
3-star: 13%
[#1 Best seller in Amazon's Romance Literary Fiction category.]
After a series of devastating losses, Chicago journalist Hannah Williamson has landed in Senatobia, Mississippi, to care for her bedridden grandmother and endure grunt work at a small newspaper. But in cleaning out its archives, Hannah discovers a compelling distraction from her life: a series of rejected articles from the 1930s that illuminate a long-hidden mystery.
The articles, penned by a young woman named Evelyn, are haunting accounts of first love, trauma, and surviving a mysterious shooting that left Evelyn paralyzed at the age of fourteen. The articles stir up more questions than answers, and Hannah becomes consumed by what’s left unsaid. Encouraged by Guy Franklin, a local middle school teacher, Hannah’s investigation into Evelyn’s past becomes more personal with each new reveal. For Hannah, as both a journalist and a woman bearing her own emotional wounds, this is a chance to move forward and bring closure to the story of the girl whose secrets are buried in Senatobia.
What Hannah’s about to discover next is that, even after nearly a century, the truth she’s been looking for still has the power to change lives. Especially her own.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PJVTMR4/
Free book recently released by Project Gutenberg ( gutenberg.org ):
The Mystery of the Deserted Village, by Elbert M. Hoppenstedt
Dr. Drew interviewed Scott Adams recently, and Scott Adams mentioned the absurdity that Republicans went to overthrow the government on Jan 6, but they neglected to bring their guns. On the first or second anniversary of the event, that alleged oversight made the narrative appear absurd to me, so I made a "video" that was supposed to be audio from January 6, captured on a video camera from which the lens cap had not been removed. I'm posting it again just because.
While I was waiting on hold to talk with a human at the IRS, I decided to put some food out for the dogs. I set the full bag of dog food on a chair, and walked away to get the bowls. When I turned around I saw the bag slowly tipping over, spilling much of its contents onto the floor. Fortunately I had help cleaning it up.
The main task for today is to begin revising McGuffey's Fourth Eclectic Reader. It may take a couple of weeks, possibly more. I still have to work at Publix, and next week I start a new job in the memory care unit of a rehab/nursing home facility, and I'll also be working at Publix at least one night.
After that I'll take a look at the double-slit experiment, and see if there is an interpretation that is consistent with my theory of wave physics.
Also, I came across the attached meme, which I had created two or three years (or so) ago. I thought I'd include it because I still like it.
I recently proposed a theory of matter and energy called Wave Physics. In this theory, the only things in the universe are energy and the universal membrane, which is the medium through which all energy is transfered and stored.
Tonight I realized that according to this theory, everyone and everything in the universe are connected to each other at all times. Things that would be impossible according to the standard model of particle physics, are very possible in the universe of wave physics. Psychic transmissions and the power of prayer are physically possible and make sense if the universe works in any way like the theory I proposed.
If you've ever heard the phone ring and felt sure who it was before answering it, and were proven correct, this makes sense in wave physics, but not with particle physics. If you've ever looked intently at someone, and had that person quickly turn and look directly at you (I have), that phenomenon makes sense if all of us are parts of the same vast, ...
I was only scheduled to work three days this week, so I decided to work on a theory I'd been playing around with for fun over the last few years. I'd never been a big fan of the standard model of particle physics, so a few years ago, just for fun, I thought about exploring some alternate ideas, with zero training and zero experiments.
This week I wrapped up a few loose ends, and posted it to a community I created called Wave Physics. Originally I had called it Alternative Physics, but I changed my mind, so the link still has alternativephysics in it, but the community name is Wave Physics. I'd love for people to pay $5.00 a month to tell me how wrong I am.
https://alternativephysics.locals.com/
I also posted it on my personal website:
