Science For Adults

Stories provide portals into other worlds, both real and imagined. The promise of escape draws people from all backgrounds to speculative fiction, but when people of color seek passageways into the fantastic, the doors are often barred. The Dark Fantastic is an engaging and provocative exploration of race in popular youth and young adult speculative fiction. Grounded in her experiences as YA novelist, fan-fiction writer, and scholar of education, Thomas considers four black girl protagonists from some of the most popular stories of the early 21st century.

Princess or adventurer. Duty or freedom. Her Kingdom or the storm hunter she loves. If Aurora knows anything, it's that choices have consequences. To set things right, she joins a growing revolution on the streets of Pavan. In disguise as the rebel Roar, she puts her knowledge of the palace to use to aid the rebellion. But the Rage season is at its peak, and not a day passes without the skies raining down destruction. Yet these storms are different - they churn with darkness and attack with a will that's desperate and violent.

The long-awaited tournament has finally begun, and, under Lumina's tutelage, Teacher and Fran are ready to claim their rightful spot as champions. There's just one problem, though--as they advance through the rounds, they find themselves facing off against old friends and A-rank adventurers Amanda and Forlund!

For the first time, an Empress Redemptor sits on Aritsar’s throne. To appease the sinister spirits of the dead, Tarisai must now anoint a council of her own, coming into her full power as a Raybearer. She must then descend into the Underworld, a sacrifice to end all future atrocities. Tarisai is determined to survive. Or at least, that’s what she tells her increasingly distant circle of friends. Months into her shaky reign as empress, child spirits haunt her, demanding that she pay for past sins of the empire.

Veteran video-game designer Dustin Hansen takes YA listeners on a fun and fascinating trip through the brief but intensely innovative history of video games. Find out about the fast and furious growth and evolution of video games (including how they are quickly taking over the world!) by looking at some of the most popular, innovative, and influential games ever, from Pong, the very first arcade game ever, to modern hits like Uncharted.

The Archive, an otherworldly library, contains the bodies of everyone who has ever died. But when the Archive is compromised from within, 16-year-old Mackenzie Bishop must use her skills as a Keeper to identify the traitor and prevent violent Histories from escaping into our world.

England, 1882. Evelyn is bored with society and its expectations. So when her beloved sister, Rose, mysteriously vanishes, she ignores her parents and travels to London to find her, accompanied by the dashing Mr. Kent. But they're not the only ones looking for Rose. The reclusive young gentleman Sebastian Braddock is also searching for her, claiming that both sisters have special healing powers. Evelyn is convinced that Sebastian must be mad, until she discovers that his strange tales of extraordinary people are true.

A fascinating and enlightening deep dive into the infamous Disney adult community from the woman behind the popular website The Disney Food Blog.

Our future. Noncitizens and individuals of low social standing can only find work in one place: the virtual world of Disgardium. And that might mean mining ore; it could just as well mean cleaning pigsties or washing dishes in a tavern, but that's about as glamorous as it gets. Fifteen-year-old schoolboy Alex has dreams of working as a space guide. All he can think about is the stars, but life gets in the way, and now his only path to achieving that goal is through the game.

While most of her peers were obsessed with their iPhones, Instagramming and Snapchatting their lives, and glued to streaming TV, 19-year-old Amy Crouch was growing up with minimal technology. In My Tech-Wise Life, she and her father, Andy Crouch, share how intentional and controlled use of modern devices, apps, and services has helped her avoid many of the negative experiences of her peers and cultivate positive experiences interacting with the real world.

What's more exciting than a prison break? Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin escaped from Alcatraz in 1962 and have never been caught. Many authorities are certain they died crossing San Francisco Bay. Relatives claim they made it to Brazil. The theories of what happened to them are endless.

A plan to take down the New World Order. When Solomon calls in a favor, Josh is obligated to hold up his end of the bargain. He quickly regrets binding himself and the group to the open-ended agreement after hearing what Solomon has in mind. The mission is not only dangerous and foolish, but Josh considers it to be down-right impossible. Lucius Alexander’s OASIS cities are living up to their namesake by providing security, healthcare, food, shelter, and even recreation. But admission to these modern utopias come at a cost.

Let's face it: Life gives you plenty of reasons to get angry, sad, scared, and frustrated - and those feelings are okay. But sometimes it can feel like your emotions are taking over, spinning out of control with a mind of their own. To make matters worse, these overwhelming emotions might be interfering with school, causing trouble in your relationships, and preventing you from living a happier life.

Against all odds, Katniss has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and her longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be. Gale holds her at an icy distance. Peeta has turned his back on her completely. And there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol - a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create. Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she’s afraid she cannot stop.

Eric Bergman used to be treated like an outcast, cripple, and freak. Some pitied him, others squirmed in his presence, while others still mocked him to his face. He himself even thought he was born cursed by the gods. But bit by bit, all that changed. That which was once considered a flaw or defect transformed into an advantage. And Eric slowly learned to use it to his benefit.

From the bestselling author of the Noah Hunter series, and Grim Measures, comes a novel that spans centuries as a farmer from the 1700s and an FBI agent travel through time to stop a black hole from destroying the world. "Darling has crafted a truly fantastic time-travel novel. Riveting, page-turning, and mind-bending from end to beginning..." - James Downe, author of Sisters of Jade. FBI Special Agent Bradley Holman has been hand-picked to investigate the mother of all cover-ups: a three-hundred-year-old meteorite fragment, sealed away in Fort Knox, was stolen from under the government’s...

Wicca has changed Morgan’s life. She’s lost old friends, made new ones, and discovered her heritage. She also found love and betrayal. But there’s so much more to learn. She knows Wicca can be used for good or for evil. The hard part is knowing which is which.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire - for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past.... She has embraced her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight. She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die just to see her again. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison.

Zul'var's altar is no more. In one fell swoop, it was destroyed, Leg Ondo lost his shot at becoming a full-fledged wizard, and Liara Slick disappeared without a trace. The emperor is doing everything he can to impede the upstart clan's growth. A mysterious wizard following Bashorg is filling Brown Bear lands with terrifying demons. And then there's the academy and final exams.

The fate of a kingdom rests on the shoulders of three young wizards. Bakari is a brilliant scholar wizard who's more at home in a library than a battlefield. Alli is a beautiful young battle wizard whose grace in battle is both enchanting and deadly. Roland is a counselor wizard with a seemingly limitless depth of untapped power - and the ego to match it. As the magical barrier protecting the kingdom of Alaris from dangerous outsiders begins to fail, and a fomenting rebellion threatens to divide the country in a civil war, the three wizards are in the middle....