No Pressure


Book Description




No Pressure


Book Description

PROLOGUE Inside the beautiful opulent house, the two men stood up from the sofa and walked out onto the patio. The summer weather was calm and tranquil. The older man took out a rolled blunt and lit it up. It was the best marijuana that money could buy. As he puffed on his fat, rolled up blunt, his young friend stood there staring out at the lovely scenery. Moments later, a beautiful dark brown woman walked out onto the patio and passed both men cold bottles of Heineken. She quickly disappeared back into the house. The man didn't pass his young friend the weed because he knew he didn't smoke. Loud sounds of Reggae were coming from inside the house. “I want you to remember, my friend, that in this cruel world, there are two types of people.” The younger one listened intently as his older friend spoke. Every time he would drive over to his beautiful large home, his friend would bring him out onto the empty patio and drop nothing but jewels on him. Today was no different. “What're the two types of people in this world?” the young man asked. Taking another long puff on his blunt, the older one blew thick smoke from his nose and looked into his young friend's curious brown eyes. “They are the people who sit around and watch things happen, and the people who stand up and make things happen.” “When I look into your eyes, I see a young man on a serious mission. Kind of reminds me of my own younger days. Street smart, cautious and focused,” the man said, taking another puff on his blunt. As the young man sipped on his Heineken, he continued to listen to every word. This was his mentor. Everything he said were words of wisdom. “I want you to always remember what I taught you. The streets have no friends. We are all their enemies. Every single hustler, drug dealer, pimp, gangster, crackhead or baller will one day fall victim to the streets. Only the sharpest and wisest can beat the streets.” The man put his arms around his young friend's shoulders and smiled. “It will take a lot more than just your mind, my young friend. A whole lot more,” he laughed. After he had smoked his blunt and both bottles were empty, the man walked his young friend to the front door. They gave each other a pound and a hug, then the young man walked out the door and got into his car. After his friend had left, the older man walked over and sat down on the sofa. Two large Rottweilers walked into the living room and sat down on the floor by his feet. Then the beautiful young woman walked from downstairs and joined him on the sofa. “So what do you think?” she asked him. After a long sigh, the man looked into his beautiful woman's eyes and said, “He's one of the people that's gonna make things happen! The eyes never lie.” Compelling Pittsburgh street drama adapted based on a true story written by Roddell Smalls and featuring contributing writer, Jimmy DaSaint.




No Pressure: Sex, Lies, and Consequences


Book Description

PROLOGUE Inside the beautiful opulent house, the two men stood up from the sofa and walked out onto the patio. The summer weather was calm and tranquil. The older man took out a rolled blunt and lit it up. It was the best marijuana that money could buy. As he puffed on his fat, rolled up blunt, his young friend stood there staring out at the lovely scenery. Moments later, a beautiful dark brown woman walked out onto the patio and passed both men cold bottles of Heineken. She quickly disappeared back into the house. The man didn't pass his young friend the weed because he knew he didn't smoke. Loud sounds of Reggae were coming from inside the house. “I want you to remember, my friend, that in this cruel world, there are two types of people.” The younger one listened intently as his older friend spoke. Every time he would drive over to his beautiful large home, his friend would bring him out onto the empty patio and drop nothing but jewels on him. Today was no different. “What're the two types of people in this world?” the young man asked. Taking another long puff on his blunt, the older one blew thick smoke from his nose and looked into his young friend's curious brown eyes. “They are the people who sit around and watch things happen, and the people who stand up and make things happen.” “When I look into your eyes, I see a young man on a serious mission. Kind of reminds me of my own younger days. Street smart, cautious and focused,” the man said, taking another puff on his blunt. As the young man sipped on his Heineken, he continued to listen to every word. This was his mentor. Everything he said were words of wisdom. “I want you to always remember what I taught you. The streets have no friends. We are all their enemies. Every single hustler, drug dealer, pimp, gangster, crackhead or baller will one day fall victim to the streets. Only the sharpest and wisest can beat the streets.”The man put his arms around his young friend's shoulders and smiled. “It will take a lot more than just your mind, my young friend. A whole lot more,” he laughed. After he had smoked his blunt and both bottles were empty, the man walked his young friend to the front door. They gave each other a pound and a hug, then the young man walked out the door and got into his car. After his friend had left, the older man walked over and sat down on the sofa. Two large Rottweilers walked into the living room and sat down on the floor by his feet. Then the beautiful young woman walked from downstairs and joined him on the sofa. “So what do you think?” she asked him.After a long sigh, the man looked into his beautiful woman's eyes and said, “He's one of the people that's gonna make things happen! The eyes never lie.”Compelling Pittsburgh street drama adapted based on a true story written by Roddell Smalls and featuring contributing writer, Jimmy DaSaint.




Unspeakable Things


Book Description

Shortlisted for The Green Carnation Prize 2014 'This is not a fairytale. This is a story about how sex and money and power police our dreams.' Clear-eyed, witty and irreverent, Laurie Penny is as ruthless in her dissection of modern feminism and class politics as she is in discussing her own experiences in journalism, activism and underground culture. This is a book about poverty and prejudice, online dating and eating disorders, riots in the streets and lies on the television. The backlash is on against sexual freedom for men and women and social justice – and feminism needs to get braver. Penny speaks for a new feminism that takes no prisoners, a feminism that is about justice and equality, but also about freedom for all. It's about the freedom to be who we are, to love who we choose, to invent new gender roles, and to speak out fiercely against those who would deny us those rights. It is a book that gives the silenced a voice – a voice that speaks of unspeakable things.




Sex, Lies, and Consequences


Book Description




Sex Lies & Alibis


Book Description

The average person starts a relationship putting their best foot forward. They are dressed to impress and quite often personal fulfillment is very much on their mind. This book has over ten years of uncut and candid observations about why the current relationship culture continues to fail. It exposes relationship games in a way that informs and empowers, while providing a new approach to success. In addition, it provides a fresh perspective to the questions: • Is Love at first sight possible? • Are all men dogs? • How long should I date someone before marrying them? In public forums these are just a few of many questions that come up, but there is often not enough time to elaborate, as people are desperately longing for answers. This book will become a relationship map at your fingertips. All you have to do is open it and began reading this insightful exposé of the game, and let it transform your relationships.




The Great Sex Rescue


Book Description

What if it's not your fault that sex is bad in your marriage? Based on a groundbreaking in-depth survey of 22,000 Christian women, The Great Sex Rescue unlocks the secrets to what makes some marriages red hot while others fizzle out. Generations of women have grown up with messages about sex that make them feel dirty, used, or invisible, while men have been sold such a cheapened version of sex, they don't know what they're missing. The Great Sex Rescue hopes to turn all of that around, developing a truly biblical view of sex where mutuality, intimacy, and passion reign. The Great Sex Rescue pulls back the curtain on what is happening in Christian bedrooms and exposes the problematic teachings that wreck sex for so many couples--and the good teachings that leave others breathless. In the #metoo and #churchtoo era, not only is this book a long overdue corrective to church culture, it is poised to free thousands of couples from repressive and dissatisfying sex lives so that they can experience the kind of intimacy and wholeness God intended.




No Filter and Other Lies


Book Description

You should know, right now, that I'm a liar. They're usually little lies. Tiny lies. Baby lies. Not so much lies as lie adjacent. But they're still lies... Golden-haired Max Monroe has it all: beauty, friends, and tons of followers. Her picture-perfect existence seems eminently enviable. Except it's all fake. "Max" is actually Kat Sanchez, a quiet and sarcastic 17-year-old living in drab Bakersfield, California. Nothing glamorous about her existence—just bad house parties, a crap school year, and the awkwardness of dealing with best friend Hari's unrequited love. But while Kat's life is far from perfect, she thrives as Max: doling out advice, sharing beautiful photos, networking with fans, even finding a real friend (or more?—Is Kat into girls!?) in a gorgeous Fat follower named Elena. But the closer Elena and "Max" get, the more Kat feels she has to keep up the façade. "Max" is the first time people have really listened to what Kat has to say—and after a lifetime of invisibility (including ice-cold indifference from her parents) can she really give that up? But when one of Kat's posts goes viral and gets back to the girl she's been stealing photos from, her entire world—real and fake—comes crashing down around her. Can she escape the web of lies she's woven without hurting the people she loves? This insightful, provocative novel—hilarious and raw by turns—is the second book from Crystal Maldonado, author of smash-hit New England Book Award Winner Fat Chance, Charlie Vega. Brilliantly plotted, deeply sensitive, and rich in voice, No Filter and Other Lies deftly addresses FOMO, first love, one-sided love, frayed family ties, raced exclusion on social media, queer awakenings, and learning to live with—and love—yourself. Because the most powerful lies are the lies we tell ourselves. Named to the ALA Rainbow Roundtable's Rainbow Book List! A POPSUGAR Best YA • A Seventeen Best YA • A Good Housekeeping Best YA Novel of the Year • A Latina Media Most Anticipated Latina Book of the Year • A Nerdist Most Anticipated Book • A School Library Journal Not-to-Miss Latinx Book • A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection "Ultrasmart."—Publishers Weekly, starred review "Stunning."—Nerdist "Brings me to tears."—Latinxs in Kid Lit




Unintended Consequences


Book Description

Originally published in hardcover in 2013 by G.P. Putnam's Sons.




That's Not What Happened


Book Description

From New York Times bestseller Kody Keplinger comes an astonishing and thought-provoking exploration of the aftermath of tragedy, the power of narrative, and how we remember what we've lost. It's been three years since the Virgil County High School Massacre. Three years since my best friend, Sarah, was killed in a bathroom stall during the mass shooting. Everyone knows Sarah's story--that she died proclaiming her faith. But it's not true. I know because I was with her when she died. I didn't say anything then, and people got hurt because of it. Now Sarah's parents are publishing a book about her, so this might be my last chance to set the record straight . . . but I'm not the only survivor with a story to tell about what did--and didn't--happen that day. Except Sarah's martyrdom is important to a lot of people, people who don't take kindly to what I'm trying to do. And the more I learn, the less certain I am about what's right. I don't know what will be worse: the guilt of staying silent or the consequences of speaking up . . .