Social Games

Grace Kinsella is social. But she likes the anonymity of being a blue bird on Twitter, where she can shoot arrows of pithy filth at her favorite movie star. Virtual love is right up her alley. Vaughn Asher is dominant. But only in private. A former child actor turned mega-movie action hero, Vaughn knows how to navigate a world filled with paparazzi, avoid the tabloids, and have his fun, too.

There’s a moment when you sense something is off. Their words sound caring, but the tone cuts, and you walk away confused, guilty, or doubting your own memory. You start apologizing for things you didn’t do, shrinking yourself just to keep the peace, without ever understanding how they ended up pulling the strings. This is the invisible battlefield of psychological games played by partners, bosses, friends, parents, and even strangers who know exactly how to bend situations their way. You feel the pressure and the manipulation, but no one ever taught you the rules of their game.

Harriet, Jack, and Toby are treasure hunters, searching the Minecraft world for its most valuable hidden secrets. In an abandoned mineshaft, they discovered the first of three lost journals that once belonged to William, a legendary explorer who has gone missing. The journals have taken them on a daring adventure to a secret temple deep within a desert biome, then into the perilous depths of the Nether. Now the treasure hunters are facing their greatest challenge yet.

If you are stuck in someone's control or don't want to be, you must know this favorite mind game of great manipulators. It is so powerful that most people won't be able to detect it even for many years of being enslaved. Why? Gaslighting is a very common method of manipulation that when intentionally or even unintentionally used, you'll be so influenced emotionally that you cannot think for yourself or for your own good. Sound nasty? It is. But you'll never know when you're participating as the inflictor or the prey until you explore this book.

“One morning, as Gregor Samsa was waking up from anxious dreams, he discovered that in bed he had been changed into a monstrous verminous bug.” With this startlingly bizarre sentence, Kafka begins his masterpiece, The Metamorphosis. It is the story of a young traveling salesman who, transformed overnight into a giant, beetle-like insect, becomes an object of disgrace to his family, an outsider in his own home, a quintessentially alienated man. Rather than being surprised at the transformation, the members of his family despise it as an impending burden upon themselves.

In Pimpology, star of the documentaries Pimps Up, Ho's Down and American Pimp and Annual Players Ball Mack of the Year winner Ken Ivy pulls a square's coat on the unwritten rules that took him from the ghetto streets to the executive suites. Ken's lessons will serve any person in any interaction. Whether at work, in relationships, or among friends, somebody's got to be on top. To be the one with the upper hand, you've got to have good game, and good game starts with knowing the rules.

In this fascinating and entertaining look at games throughout history, Tim Clare explores the legal highs of a good dice roll, the thrills of a predatory race game, and the tactile pleasures of the games that age with us through our lives. Drawing on Roman anti-cheating devices, organised crime card games, and dice contests that link Chaucer to Warren G, The Game Changers will show you why games are more popular now than ever, and how playing them helps us win more often, become better losers and stay one step ahead - on and off the board. Through play, we become fully ourselves.

Raam Patel is eager to prove himself ever since he didn't make the middle school's basketball team. So, when Hoop Con comes to town he is determined to be there and take his shot. His big moment proves to be unforgettable . . . but not in the way he'd hoped. Raam gets schooled by the camp's golden boy right in front of his NBA idol. To make matters even worse, this fail goes viral.

A Olaf, el adorable muñeco de nieve de Arendelle, le encanta leer. Un día, un mensaje inesperado lleva a Olaf y a sus amigos Anna, Kristoff y Sven en busca de un lugar conocido como Haus-Biblio, descrito como un 'mar de historias'. Este audio libro narra el viaje del grupo a Haus-Biblio mientras atraviesan montañas, buscan monstruos bajo los puentes y conversan con simpáticas ovejas. Durante sus viajes, Olaf hace nuevos amigos y escucha muchas historias emocionantes a lo largo del camino.

This book is more for men who like to build rotations, have long term non-monogamous relationships and maintain them, or men who like long term monogamous relationships whether that be marriage or just the regular committed relationship.

Today, most Westerners still see the war in Afghanistan as a contest between democracy and Islamist fanaticism. That war is real, but it sits atop an older struggle between Kabul and the countryside, between order and chaos, between a modernist impulse to join the world and the pull of an older Afghanistan - a tribal universe of village republics permeated by Islam. Now, Tamim Ansary draws on his Afghan background, Muslim roots, and Western and Afghan sources to explain history from the inside out and to illuminate the long, internal struggle that the outside world has never fully understood.

Those who have been lured by the sound of skate blades slicing into fresh ice and everything-or-nothing attitude of the game know that hockey can seem like its own world. Yet in another light, that tight community can turn insular; the values of teamwork and humility can manifest as collective silence in the face of abuse and discrimination. In Game Misconduct, reporters Evan Moore and Jashvina Shah reveal hockey's toxic undercurrent which has permeated the sport throughout the junior, college, and professional levels.

Industry expert Alex Aniel spent two years interviewing key former members of Capcom staff, allowing him to tell the inside story of how Resident Evil was envisioned as early as the late 1980s, how its unexpected and unprecedented success saved the company from financial trouble, how the series struggled at the turn of the century, and, eventually, how a new generation of creators was born after the release of Resident Evil 4.

A riveting account of the birth and remarkable evolution of the most important development in entertainment since television, Replay is the ultimate history of video games. From its origins in the research labs of the 1940s to the groundbreaking success of the Wii, Replay sheds new light on gaming's past.

Olaf, l'adorabile pupazzo di neve di Arendelle, ama leggere. Un giorno, un messaggio inatteso porta Olaf e i suoi amici, Anna, Kristoff e Sven ad affrontare un'impresa verso un luogo conosciuto come Haus Biblio, descritto come "un mare di storie". Questo Audible Original racconta il viaggio che il gruppo di amici compie alla volta della Haus Biblio, oltrepassando montagne, alla ricerca di mostri sotto ai ponti e chiacchierando con affabili pecore. Nel viaggio, Olaf stringe nuove amicizie e ascolta tante storie entusiasmanti.

A Olaf, el adorable muñeco de nieve de Arendelle, le encanta leer. Un día, un inesperado mensaje lleva a Olaf y a sus amigos Anna, Kristoff y Sven a emprender una misión a un lugar desconocido llamado Haus Biblio, descrito como "un mar de historias". Este Audible Original nos cuenta el viaje del grupo hasta Haus Biblio mientras cruzan montañas, buscan a monstruos debajo de puentes y tienen conversaciones con simpáticas ovejas. Durante su aventura, Olaf hace nuevos amigos y escucha un montón de emocionantes historias por el camino.

One of the Best Technology Books of 2020—Financial Times “Levy’s all-access Facebook reflects the reputational swan dive of its subject. . . . The result is evenhanded and devastating.”—San Francisco Chronicle “[Levy’s] evenhanded conclusions are still damning.”—Reason “[He]...

Transform the competitive sports field into a discipleship opportunity as you help your young athlete become not just a better player but a devoted follower of God.

In The Long Game, Rush Doshi draws from a rich base of Chinese primary sources, including decades worth of party documents, leaked materials, memoirs by party leaders, and a careful analysis of China's conduct to provide a history of China's grand strategy since the end of the Cold War.

Everyone in Bayport can't wait for the biggest event of the season: the premiere of G-Force - the newest ride by the world-renowned Piperato Brothers. Their creation is going to change the fortunes of Funsport, Bayport's small and recently run-down amusement park. Frank and Joe are friends with Daisy Rodriguez, the owner's daughter, and are first in line for the ride's launch. Purple lights click off, a huge whoosh emanates from the floor, loud music pulses....