The 1, 2, 3s of adulthood differ ever so slightly from the popular grade-school primers of yesteryear inside Ross and Kathryn Petras's 1, 2, Can't Reach My Shoe. This clever counting book for the middle-aged (which the United States Census Bureau defines as age 35 and above) is perfect for readers of a certain vintage who intend to grow old gracefully—and with a sense of humor.Featuring full-color, retro illustrations in a playful board book format, 1, 2, Can't Reach M...

A compilation of musings to motivate and inspire readers in need of a quick pick-me-up.We all want to be the person who marches into a meeting brimming with self-confidence, unbothered by what others think of them right before making a killer speech. But all too often, crippling self-doubt creeps in. This book is a self-esteem boosting collection of pocket-sized pep talks from successful people in a multitude of fields, including Serena Williams, Stephen King, Hele...

Full of insight and humor, this quote book is a thoughtful and surprising meditation on aging.Collected by Kathryn and Ross Petras, who have a perfect ear for quotes, Age Doesn't Matter Unless You're A Cheese brings together Albert Einstein's equation for happiness, Colette's thoughts on the virtues of astonishment, and Julia Child's secret of longevity: "Red meat and gin."As profound as it is clever, Age Doesn't Matter Unless You're A Cheese

A grab bag of historic spleens, chins, and more, this is your ultimate literary dissection of body parts throughout history!From famous craniums to prominent breasts, ancient spleens and bound feet, this book will bring history to life in a whole new way. With their inimitable wit and probing intelligence, authors Kathy and Ross Petras look at the role the human body has played throughout history as each individual part becomes a jumping-off point for a wider look ...

Timeless in their wisdom, thought-provoking in their message, surprising in their truth and memorable in their originality, the right words can give direction, inspiration, and sometimes a tangible boost onto the right path. For example, Steve Jobs once read “Stay hungry Stay foolish” on the back cover of The Whole Earth Catalog, and those four words came to guide his life.Created by Kathryn and Ross Petras, connoisseurs of quotes, whose books and calendars have over 56 mi...

A gift that celebrates being yourself, in your own unique way.Do you ever feel different? A little weird, a little wacky? It’s time to own it, because, as Meryl Streep proclaimed, “what makes you different or weird, that’s your strength.” In this inspiring collection, singers, poets, actors, activists, comedians, designers, athletes, and philosophers share wise and pithy reflections on what it’s like to march to the beat of a different drummer. Every statement is a...

For word nerds and grammar geeks, a witty guide to the most commonly mispronounced words, along with their correct pronunciations and pithy forays into their fascinating etymologies and histories of use and misuse.With wit and good humor, this handy little book not only saves us from sticky linguistic situations but also provides fascinating cocktail-party-ready anecdotes. Entries reveal how to pronounce boatswain like an old salt on the deck of a ship, trompe ...

An entertaining and informative guide to the most common 150 words even smart people use incorrectly, along with pithy forays into their fascinating etymologies and tangled histories of use and misuse.Even the most erudite among us use words like apocryphal, facetious, ironic, meteorite, moot, redundant, and unique incorrectly every day. Don’t be one of them. Using examples of misuse from leading newspapers, prominent public figures and famous writers, among others...

Uncommon times call for uncommon wisdom. It’s inspiring to hear from people who’ve graduated from the school of hard knocks, yet kept a sense of humor. People like Twain, Voltaire, Oscar Wilde. People who've said the thing so well that we all wish we'd said it. People who've been there, done that, and refuse to sugarcoat what they've learned. People who know, as Sherry Hochman puts it, that "Every day is a gift—even if it sucks."From Kathryn and Ross Petras, curators of cr...

A compendium of 100 words and phrases smart people use--even if they only kinda sorta (secretly don't) know what they mean--with pithy definitions and fascinating etymologies to solidify their meanings.Your boss makes a joke about Schrodinger's cat--which is something you've heard of but you're a little vague about what exactly happened (or didn't happen) with that cat. Or you're reading a New Yorker article that explains that "Solecism slipped into solips...

A book of inspirational quotations from some of the smartest people who ever lived, reminding us that happiness is everywhere and the glass is half-full—the perfect gift of optimism, for good times and not-so-good times.A book of inspirational quotations, Nothing Is Worth More Than This Day presents hundreds of reminders from moving and iconic individuals—from Dr. Seuss to Erma Bombeck, Thich Nhat Hanh to Lena Dunham.

Required reading from great poets of our time. Drew Barrymore: “Upon Pondering Breasts.” Tom Cruise: “An Exegesis on Psychiatry.” Ann Coulter: “My Kind of Fun.” And Trump and Sheen and Snooki, John Boehner and Michelle Bachman, Miley and Ke$ha. Hugo Chavez. Even a Zen haiku by Emmitt Smith:I think it’s his self-confidence in himself thatmakes him confident.With their great gift for curating the inane public utterances of celebrities, politicians, and ...