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Stuff Every Cheese Lover Should Know

The perfect gift for the cheese lover in your life, this pocket guide includes a brief history of cheese, a primer on the different types of cheese, cheese pairing guides, essential cheese recipes, home cheese-making tips, how to host a cheese tasting, and more.

It's hard to think of a more universally beloved food than cheese. But cheese lovers know there's more to the world of cheese than grilled cheese, parmesan on salads, and a plate of cheese and crackers.

There are over a thousand different types of cheeses produced worldwide, offering a wide variety of flavors, textures, and aromas. All of them are unique depending on the type of milk used, the aging process, pasteurization, herbs and spices added, and more. Even the biggest cheese lover has a lot to learn about the age-old art of cheese. How is cheese made? What makes certain cheeses so stinky? What is raw cheese? Why do some cheeses melt better than others? How should one store cheese? And why are some cheeses banned by the FDA?

Within the pages of this pocket-sized guide, you'll find information, how-tos, and trivia for cheese lovers at all levels. Experts and newbies alike will learn:

    Highlights from Cheese History
    Types of Cheese
    Perfect Cheese Pairings
    Essential Cheese Gadgets
    How to Make Cheese at Home
    How to Host a Cheese Tasting
    And more!<

Posted by impart

Secret Santa

The Office meets Stephen King, dressed up in holiday tinsel, in this fun, festive, and frightening horror-comedy set during the horror publishing boom of the ’80s, by New York Times best-selling satirist Andrew Shaffer.

Out of work for months, Lussi Meyer is desperate to work anywhere in publishing. Prestigious Blackwood-Patterson isn’t the perfect fit, but a bizarre set of circumstances leads to her hire and a firm mandate: Lussi must find the next horror superstar to compete with Stephen King, Anne Rice, and Peter Straub. It’s the ’80s, after all, and horror is the hottest genre.

But as soon as she arrives, Lussi finds herself the target of her co-workers’ mean-spirited pranks. The hazing reaches its peak during the company’s annual Secret Santa gift exchange, when Lussi receives a demonic-looking object that she recognizes but doesn’t understand. Suddenly, her coworkers begin falling victim to a series of horrific accidents akin to a George Romero movie, and Lussi suspects that her gift is involved. With the help of her former author, the flamboyant Fabien Nightingale, Lussi must track down her anonymous Secret Santa and figure out the true meaning of the cursed object in her possession before it destroys the company—and her soul.

Posted by impart

Redemption

Filled with quotes from Bob Marley’s speeches, interviews, and writings, this collection is sure to resonate with fans of his music and political activism, at a time when we need exemplary heroes. 

Redemption has many meanings, but there is one definition that embodies the spirit of Bob Marley’s beliefs and music: to reform, or to change for the better. Forty years after the release of his iconic “Redemption Song,” his desire to make the world a better place through mental and spiritual emancipation—important first steps to physical emancipation for the larger community—remains powerful and vital to this day.

Using Marley’s own words from interviews and his powerful song lyrics, his eldest daughter, Cedella Marley, creates a powerful narrative about the hard but rewarding path to redemption.

Posted by impart

Crystal Clear

From amethyst to obsidian, Basic Witches author Jaya Saxena explores the multi-faceted meanings and history behind eleven popular crystals in this relatable personal essay collection.

Highly prized for their beauty, crystals can take the shape of jewelry, household objects, and an array of self-care products. But it’s the ideas they stand for that draw people to their raw forms. Like astrology, tarot, and modern witchcraft, crystals help practitioners understand themselves and the wider world around them.

In this collection of sharply observed essays, Jaya Saxena reflects on–and challenges–the ideas associated with eleven popular stones, including unconditional love (rose quartz), happiness and success (citrine), balance (amethyst), self-care (black tourmaline), purity (pearl), imposter syndrome (pyrite), toxic positivity (carnelian), change (opals), traditional concepts of marriage (diamonds), presentation versus identity (obsidian), and death (amber).

The result is a deeply personal book with universal appeal, exploring how we assign meaning and power to crystals in order to give meaning and power to our lives.

Posted by impart

Cursed Objects

Beware…this book is cursed! These strange but true stories of the world’s most infamous items will appeal to true believers as well as history buffs, horror fans, and anyone who loves a good spine-tingling tale. 

They’re lurking in museums, graveyards, and private homes. Their often tragic and always bizarre stories have inspired countless horror movies, reality TV shows, novels, and campfire tales. They’re cursed objects, and all they need to unleash a wave of misfortune is . . . you.

Many of these unfortunate items have intersected with some of the most notable events and people in history, leaving death and destruction in their wake. But never before have the true stories of these eerie oddities been compiled into a fascinating and chilling volume. Inside, readers will learn about:

• Annabelle the Doll, a Raggedy Ann doll that featured in the horror franchise The Conjuring
• The Unlucky Mummy, which is rumored to have sunk the Titanic and kick-started World War I
• The Dybbuk box, which was sold on eBay and spawned the horror film The Possession 
• The Conjured Chest, which has been blamed for fifteen deaths within a single family
• The Ring of Silvianus, a Roman artifact believed to have inspired J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit 
• And many more! 

Posted by impart

William Shakespeare’s The Merry Rise of Skywalker

Complete your collection of the William Shakespeare’s Star Wars® series and experience the blockbuster finale to the Star Wars® saga in a brand-new way, here reimagined as though it had been penned by the Bard of Avon.

As our story opens, a sea of troubles threatens the valiant Resistance, who are pursued by the sound and fury of the vile First Order. Can Rey, Poe, Finn, Rose, BB-8, Chewbacca, and their allies overcome such toil and trouble? Shall Kylo Ren be proven fortune’s fool or master of his fate? What will become of the House of Skywalker? And is all well that ends well?

Authentic meter, stage directions, reimagined movie scenes and dialogue, and hidden Easter eggs will entertain and impress fans of Star Wars® and Shakespeare alike. Every scene and character from the film appears in the book, along with twenty woodcut-style illustrations that depict an Elizabethan version of the Star Wars® galaxy.

Posted by impart