A highly-researched guide on responding to bullying, social conflict, and peer victimization. Weaving in beautiful prose and real stories with actionable advice and expert resources, Bullied is a must-read for parents, teachers and kids.

For the first time in history, women make up half the educated labor force and are earning the majority of advanced degrees. It should be the best time ever for women, and yet... it’s not. Storm clouds are gathering, and the worst thing is that most women don’t have a clue what could be coming. In large part this is because the message they’re being fed is that they now have it made. But do they? In The New Soft War on Women, respected experts on gender issues and the psychology of women Caryl Rivers and Rosalind C. Barnett argue that an insidious war of subtle biases and barriers is being waged that continues to marginalize women. Although women have made huge strides in recent years, these gains have not translated into money and influence. Consider the following: - Women with MBAs earn, on average, $4,600 less than their male counterparts in their first job out of business school. - Female physicians earn, on average, 39 percent less than male physicians. - Female financial analysts take in 35 percent less, and female chief executives one quarter less than men in similar positions. In this eye-opening book, Rivers and Barnett offer women the real facts as well as tools for combating the “soft war” tactics that prevent them from advancing in their careers. With women now central to the economy, determining to a large degree whether it thrives or stagnates, this is one war no one can afford for them to lose.

Written by Josh Richman and Anish Sheth, M.D. (the power poo couple who brought you the adult poo reference version — “What’s Your Poo Telling You”), this book is actually remarkably fascinating and useful.

We first saw her as a beautiful Vulcan in 1982's Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan, and then we laughed and cried when she played the neurotic Rebecca Howe on Cheers from 1987-1993, a role that garnered her an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and People's Choice Award. We saw her marry--and later divorce--a former Hardy Boy and Baywatch star, then we stood by as she gained weight...lost it...gained it back...and lost it again. We saw her appear on Oprah (in a bikini!) in the talk show queen's highest rated episode of 2006, and finally, we laughed at her ups and downs on Dancing with the Stars, where she became one of the show's most beloved contestants.

Art’s book, Smart Change: Five Tools to Create New and Sustainable Habits in Yourself and Others delves into how the motivational system works. Art explores how to utilize those brain mechanisms that affect behavior, either for good or for bad. Listen in for Art’s practical advice on how to make permanent changes in your life, and reach your business goals.

In her charming and self-effacing voice, Jenifer Ringer covers the highs and lows of what it’s like to make it to the top in the exclusive, competitive ballet world. From the heart-pounding moments waiting in the wings before a performance to appearing on Oprah to discuss weight and body image among dancers, Dancing Through It is moving and revelatory. Raised in South Carolina, Ringer led a typical kid’s life until she sat in on a friend’s ballet class, an experience that would change her life forever. By the age of twelve she was enrolled at the elite Washington School of Ballet and soon moved to the School of American Ballet. At sixteen she was a professional dancer at the New York City Ballet in Manhattan, home of the legendary George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. Ringer takes us inside the dancer’s world, detailing a typical day, performance preparation, and the extraordinary pressures that these athletes face. Ringer shares exhilarating stories of starring in Balanchine productions, working with the famous Peter Martins, and of meeting her husband and falling in love at the New York City Ballet. Ringer also talks candidly of Alistair Macauley’s stinging critique of her weight in his 2010 New York Times review of The Nutcracker that ignited a public dialogue about ballet and weight. She unflinchingly describes her personal struggles with eating disorders and body image, and shares how her faith helped her to heal and triumph over these challenges.

When beach-volleyball star and fashion model Reece (Big Girl in the Middle, 1998) became a mother, she tackled it just like she did everything else in her life: head-on and with no baloney. With the assistance of Karbo (How Georgia Became O'Keeffe, 2011, etc.), Reece blends simple wisdom on being a mom, wife and friend with personal anecdotes. The end result is mostly a series of platitudes on life—"exercise is the key to everything," "spending time with couples who are making their marriages work ups the odds that you'll make yours work, too," "eating well is not complicated," "if you want your partnership to last, you better plan on being naked and smiling”—with humorous comments on being a new mom and wife. Reece covers birthing, exercise, diet, sex, commitment and the need for community service, but most of the information is similar to what can be found in many women’s magazines. Reece advocates for less computer and electronic-gadget time—get outdoors and enjoy the scenery, she writes—stresses the importance of children knowing who's in charge while allowing them time to become their own independent selves, and encourages women to take time for themselves, even for an hour. The end result is not that women have it all, but that they are the queens of their domains; if they have the kindness, generosity and work ethic to reach for that goal, then they “will live interestingly ever after."

A renowned authority on the secret world of opium recounts his descent into ruinous obsession with one of the world’s oldest and most seductive drugs, in this harrowing memoir of addiction and recovery. A natural-born collector with a nose for exotic adventure, San Diego–born Steven Martin followed his bliss to Southeast Asia, where he found work as a freelance journalist. While researching an article about the vanishing culture of opium smoking, he was inspired to begin collecting rare nineteenth-century opium-smoking equipment. Over time, he amassed a valuable assortment of exquisite pipes, antique lamps, and other opium-related accessories—and began putting it all to use by smoking an extremely potent form of the drug called chandu. But what started out as recreational use grew into a thirty-pipe-a-day habit that consumed Martin’s every waking hour, left him incapable of work, and exacted a frightful physical and financial toll. In passages that will send a chill up the spine of anyone who has ever lived in the shadow of substance abuse, Martin chronicles his efforts to control and then conquer his addiction—from quitting cold turkey to taking “the cure” at a Buddhist monastery in the Thai countryside. At once a powerful personal story and a fascinating historical survey, Opium Fiend brims with anecdotes and lore surrounding the drug that some have called the methamphetamine of the nineteenth-century. It recalls the heyday of opium smoking in the United States and Europe and takes us inside the befogged opium dens of China, Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos. The drug’s beguiling effects are described in vivid detail—as are the excruciating pains of withdrawal—and there are intoxicating tales of pipes shared with an eclectic collection of opium aficionados, from Dutch dilettantes to hard-core addicts to world-weary foreign correspondents. A compelling tale of one man’s transformation from respected scholar to hapless drug slave, Opium Fiend puts us under opium’s spell alongside its protagonist, allowing contemporary readers to experience anew the insidious allure of a diabolical vice that the world has all but forgotten.

In a time when all the news seems bad, people are searching for a little dose of hope. For those in the thick of troubling times, Ronda Rich offers heaping helpings of comfort and sound advice in There's A Better Day A-Comin'. Here Rich shares stories of courage, spunk, and perseverance that she has either witnessed or (as in the case of Paula Deen and race car champion Dale Earnhardt), learned in conversation with them as they personally told their stories of dark times that turned brighter than their wildest imaginations. Rich knows that there is incredible power in stories, especially those that are true and have strong, wise lessons to impart. Incorporating her Southern storytelling style and vernacular, There's A Better Day A-Comin' is a collection of Rich's feel-good true stories that folks can use for inspiration and encouragement.

We all know expectations matter—in school, in sports, in the stock market. From a healing placebo to a run on the bank, hints of their self-fulfilling potential have been observed for years. But we’ve never fully understood why. Journalist Chris Berdik offers a captivating look at the frontiers of expectations research, revealing how our assumptions bend reality. We learn how placebo calories can fill us up, how fake surgery can sometimes work better than real surgery, and how imaginary power can be corrupting. Mind Over Mind is a journey into the most exciting area of brain research today.

Tindle urges readers to give positive psychology a chance for the sake of a longer, healthier, happier life, in this powerful call to action. The assistant professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine begins by presenting sobering evidence for the detrimental physiological effects of negative emotional states—a correlation has been shown between feelings of anger and hostility and heart disease, and tests indicate that individuals with “high levels of emotional distress” are more likely to suffer from dementia. In order to avoid these and other pitfalls, Tindle elucidates her “7 Steps of Attitudinal Change,” beginning with a self-assessment to help readers achieve the first goal: “Determine your current attitude latitude.” From there, she guides readers along a proactive path intended to redirect their gaze upward and onward. Practical activities along the way include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy techniques and guided meditation, and Tindle provides several successful case studies to demonstrate the real-world effects of her prescriptions. Anyone looking to make an attitude adjustment for his or her physical or mental health will find something of value in Tindle’s advice, and her final chapter on applying her ideas to the betterment of a larger community is inspiring.

For an accident-prone "normal girl from Norfolk" who didn't run a serious race until she was 25, Chrissie Wellington has done pretty well for herself. A multiple world champion and record-holder, she remained unbeaten in 13 straight races at her chosen event, the Ironman triathlon, before her retirement in December. And what a fiendish event it is – a 2.4-mile swim followed by a 112-mile bike ride, topped off with a marathon. Wellington's account of how she graduated from entering her first marathon on a whim in 2002 to the Ironman – surely Ironwoman would be more apt – title five years later is inspirational in the truest sense, because she feels strongly that sport can make ordinary people do extraordinary things. She was helped/bullied on her way by a tyrannical coach with a chequered past but was obviously deeply competitive by nature, and her accounts of the more brutal aspects of Ironman are not for the squeamish; if a competitor was illegally slipstreaming her in the cycling phase, for instance, she would let fly an airborne stream of pee to make them back off.

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me. This children’s rhyme is as familiar as it is debated in today’s society.  With the rise of bullying in its many forms, words can actually be quite harmful.  In her recent book, Sticks and Stones, Emily Bazelon tackles this issue head on. Bazelon began her investigation into bullying when she was still an editor at Slate magazine in 2010.  She investigated the high-profile suicide of Phoebe Prince, a Massachusetts high school student.  From that experience, Bazelon’s interest was captured.  Sticks and Stones is a continuation of the work she began in 2010

Birth School Metallica Death is the definitive story of the most significant rock band since Led Zeppelin. Volume 1 covers the band’s formation up to their breakthrough eponymous fifth album, aka “The Black Album.” The intense and sometimes fraught relationship between aloof-yet-simmering singer, chief lyricist, and rhythm guitarist James Hetfield and the outspoken and ambitious drummer Lars Ulrich is the saga’s emotional core. Their earliest years saw the release of three unimpeachable classics—Kill ’Em All, Ride the Lightning, and Master of Puppets—genre-defining masterpieces that took hard rock to a new level, both artistically and commercially. During these tumultuous times, the band persevered through line-up changes when guitarist Dave Mustaine was replaced by Kirk Hammet, and their bass player, the beloved Cliff Burton, was tragically killed in a bus crash while on tour in Europe.

Pop stars will always have their die-hard fans, and superstar Lady Gaga (real name Stefani Germanotta) is no different. Lady Gaga calls her fans "little monsters," and in Monster Loyalty, marketing and social media author and speaker Jackie Huba shows why the singer known for her outrageous costumes and mega-hits can serve as a model for developing sustained customer loyalty. Huba, whose previous books are Creating Customer Evangelists and Citizen Marketers, draws seven key business lessons from Gaga’s career: focus on your one percenters, lead with values, build community, give fans a name, embrace shared symbols, make them feel like rock stars, and generate something to talk about.

Marilyn & Me, a memoir in words and photographs, is an intimate story of Monroe before her fall and a young photographer on his way to the top. Schiller’s original text and extraordinary photography is a story that has never been told before, and he tells it with tact, humor and compassion. What emerges during the final months of her life is a portrait of an artist self-aware, in control of her image, yet fragile and vulnerable, and uniquely touching.

When singer Amy Winehouse was found dead at her London home in 2011, the press inducted her into what Kurt Cobain’s mother named the 27 Club. "Now he’s gone and joined that stupid club,” she said in 1994, after being told that her son, the front man of Nirvana, had committed suicide. "I told him not to….” Kurt’s mom was referring to the extraordinary roll call of iconic stars who died at the same young age. The Big Six are Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison of the Doors, Kurt Cobain and, now, Amy Winehouse. All were talented. All were dissipated. All were 27. Journalists write about the curse of the 27 Club as if there is a supernatural reason for this series of deaths. Others invoke astrology, numerology, and conspiracy theories to explain what has become a modern mystery. In this haunting book, author Howard Sounes conducts the definitive forensic investigation into the lives and deaths of the six most iconic members of the Club, plus another forty-four music industry figures who died at 27, to discover what, apart from coincidence, this phenomenon signifies. In a grimly fascinating journey through the dark side of the music business over six decades, Sounes uncovers a common story of excess, madness, and self-destruction. The fantasies, half-truths, and mythologies that have become associated with Jones, Hendrix, Joplin, Morrison, Cobain, and Winehouse are debunked. Instead a clear and compelling narrative emerges, one based on hard facts, that unites these lost souls in both life and death.

For years I was your basic dating nightmare. And then, under the influence of one magical woman my readers came to know as Orange Blossoms, I changed. Now I’m here to blow the lid off what you think you know about the way guys think. Because here’s the big secret I learned from being slayed by Blossoms: Women already have what it takes to get what they want from men; they just need to know how to use that power.

The way Nolan speaks about gardening might give the impression that she was raised on a farm. That’s hardly the case, and the book recounts her story of growing up in Winnetka and leaving home soon after she graduated from New Trier High School in search of an opportunity to get closer to nature. Through her experiences, she learned which crops play well together, which ones don’t and why good sunlight and soil are integral to the growing cycle. Nolan feels that she is living proof that anyone can learn to garden. “Just about anybody, anywhere, can garden and grow several crops,” she notes. “Gardening is very forgiving. Something will always grow.”

‘China is not a superpower, nor will she ever seek to be one,” said Deng Xiaoping to the United Nations in 1974. If China should ever “subject others to her bullying, aggression and exploitation,” continued Deng, “the people of the world should identify her social- imperialism, expose it, oppose it, and work together with the Chinese people to overthrow it.” To be fair, in 1974 Deng was not yet the Little Helmsman who would dismantle Maoism and introduce the market systems that within three decades turned China into a superpower with a growing appetite for social-imperialism. He was still lurking beneath the shadows of the Cultural Revolution and the Gang of Four. His words remind us nonetheless of how much has changed since the East was Red. They cannot come back now to embarrass Deng Xiaoping, who died in 1997 at 92 years. His successors are doubtless grateful that the people of China and the rest of the world failed to take them to heart. Deng’s protestations to the UN are quoted towards the end of China’s Silent Army. The thesis developed by Spanish journalists Juan Pablo Cardenal and Heriberto Araujo in the course of their extraordinary international investigations is that China is creating “a new, informal empire”, and not only in the developing world.

Tana Amen, creator of the Omni diet, is a nationally recognized speaker and nutrition consultant. She's also a registered nurse and heath expert. The Omni diet is a program that Amen used to help treat her own digestive troubles, infections and thyroid cancer. With this program, you'll eat healthy foods in a specific ratio to keep yourself healthy as well as controlling your weight. As with any new diet, it's important to talk to your doctor before getting started.

After years of struggling with her weight, Good Morning America weekly contributor Tory Johnson decided to make a change in her life—and lost 62 pounds in a year. She shares her success—and tells others how they too can make a change—in her just-published book, The Shift: How I Finally Lost Weight & Discovered a Happier Life. I asked Tory about her book, the inspiration behind it, and her weight-loss tips.

Naked wine is wine stripped down to its basics-wine as it was meant to be: wholesome, exciting, provocative, living, sensual, and pure. Naked, or natural, wine is the opposite of most New World wines today; Alice Feiring calls them “overripe, over-manipulated, and overblown” and makes her case that good (and possibly great) wine can still be made, if only winemakers would listen more to nature and less to marketers, and stop using additives and chemicals. But letting wine make itself is harder than it seems.