Phillip Margulies

In the home where Arabella Godwin was raised it is forbidden to speak her name, and her picture is turned to the wall. But in the turbulent America of the 1850s, everyone knows her as "Belle Cora," madam of San Francisco's finest bordello. Judges and senators do her bidding; a vicious newspaper editor plots her downfall; a preacher looks at her from across his pulpit and tries to forget that once she was his wife. Merchant's daughter, farm girl, prostitute, mother, madam, murderess, avenger, protector--she has worn all these masks: the only thing that never changes is her tireless pursuit of the one man who can see her for who she really is.

Rheumatic fever is a disease that occurs in people a few weeks after recovering from a strep throat infection, which can affect the heart, joints, skins, and brain. This new title explains what the disease is, living with the condition, and methods used to treat it.

Headlines carried the news of the first West Nile Virus outbreaks in the United States in the summer of 1999. The fear of the disease prompted people to stay indoors after sunset. Cities and towns in the northeast regularly sprayed to control mosquito populations. Where did it come from? How did it get here? Though it was first seen in Uganda in 1937, it is new to the United States. Spread mainly by mosquitoes, human illness from the virus is rare, even in the areas where the virus has been reported. This book looks at the origins of the disease, and how it spread to the United States. Finally, it provides vital information on how to avoid contracting it.

Six High-interest Books Sure to Intrigue Your Students Nothing captures the interest of readers like tales of heroism and tragedy. Featuring such disasters as the wreck of the now-famous fishing boat the Andrea Gail during the "perfect storm, " the nuclear meltdown at Three Mile Island, and the Exxon Valdez oil spill, this new Rosen Central series is perfect for use as part of the social studies curriculum. The books illustrate the dangers to the individual and to society posed by an incomplete mastery of technology and a misplaced faith in human competence and judgment. The gripping accounts of these tragic events are supplemented with compelling narrative timelines and enthralling firsthand testimonies. Each title includes a discussion of how, in the aftermath of tragedy, changes in technology and procedure were brought about to help ensure that a similar disaster would never strike again. A negligent captain, a reckless decision, frozen waters, and a treacherous reef all created the largest oil spill and perhaps the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history. The grounding of the Exxon Valdez upon Bligh Reef in Alaska's Prince William Sound and the resulting spill and mismanaged cleanup of 240,000 barrels of oil were not, however, simply due to a series of mistakes and bad decisions on board the tanker. The disaster was made possible by the greed of oil industry executives, politicians, government bureaucrats, and Alaskan taxpayers who became blinded to environmental and safety concerns.