New Releases by Charlotte Foltz Jones

Baked Alaska, melba toast, hush puppies, and coconuts. You''d be surprised at how these food names came to be. And have you ever wondered why we use the expression "selling like hotcakes"? Or how about "spill the beans"? There are many fascinating and funny stories about the language of food--and the food hidden in our language! Charlotte Foltz Jones has compiled a feast of her favorite anecdotes, and John O''Brien''s delightfully pun-filled drawings provide the dessert. Bon appetit!

The greatest discoveries are made outside the classroom! Learn all about mistakes that changed the world with this collection of the strange stories behind everyday inventions! It''s no accident that you''ll love this book! SANDWICHES came about when an English earl was too busy gambling to eat his meal and needed to keep one hand free. POTATO CHIPS were first cooked by a chef who was furious when a customer complained that his fried potatoes weren’t thin enough. Coca-Cola, Silly Putty, and X rays have fascinating stories behind them too! Their unusual tales, and many more, along with hilarious cartoons and weird, amazing facts, make up this fun-filled book about everyday items that had surprisingly haphazard beginnings. And don''t miss Eat Your Words about the fascinating language of food! “A splendid book that is as informative as it is entertaining . . . a gem.” —Booklist, Starred Review

From Wheaties to telephones, microwave ovens to yo-yos, here are the inspiring and often funny stories of 50 mistakes and misunderstandings that helped bring about life as we know it. With hilarious cartoons and wacky facts, this fascinating compendium illustrates the adage "If you don''t learn from your mistakes, there''s no sense making them."

Could an animal really hold an important office? It''s happened: Incitatus the horse was made a consul in the Roman Empire. He had a marble stable, eighteen servants, and ate oats mixed with flakes of gold. Then there was Saur, a dog declared king during the days of the Vikings, who signed decrees with his paw. And one can''t forget Pigasus, nominated as presidential candidate by a group of Vietnam War protestors, or Clay Henry the goat and his descendants, who became mayors of a small Texas town. The government truly has gone to the dogs--and to the cats, mules, and elephants too--as shown in this fascinating and engaging history.

The men who opened the West were an astounding breed. They went for days without food, waited out howling blizzards in makeshift shelters, repeatedly capsized their canoes in treacherous rapids, and hung on for their very lives while dangling from cliffs. What inspired these intrepid trailblazers to go to such extremes? Whether it was due to grandiose dreams of glory, determination to map unknown lands, or insatiable curiosity, the knowledge they brought back changed the course of North American history. This absorbing group biography includes eleven noteworthy explorers: navigators Robert Gray, George Vancouver, and Alexander Mackenzie; mountain men John Colter, James Bridger, Jedediah Strong Smith, and Joseph Reddeford Walker; military men Zebulon Montgomery Pike and John C. Fremont; and master surveyors Stephen Harriman Long and John Wesley Powell. Their incredible stories cannot help but enthrall and inspire modern readers.

Presents the stories behind forty things that were invented or named by accident, including aspirin, X-rays, frisbees, silly putty, and velcro.

Gold fever!When the steamships Excelsior and Portland docked in San Francisco and Seattle in the spring of 1897 bringing news that gold had been discovered in the Canadian Yukon, gold fever hit. Soon thousands of stampeders from as far away as Europe were making their way to the Klondike, sure that they were going to strike it rich. Very few had even the slightest idea of just how inhospitable the Klondike was, how dangerous the journey would be, and how slim their chances were of making enough money there just to turn around and get home. With striking and often poignant archival photographs and an engaging text, Charlotte Jones explains the events leading up to the Yukon gold rush and the amazing events that followed the discovery of gold and changed Alaska forever. Maps, bibliography, and index are included.

Describes the many different methods used to solves crimes including skeletal and facial reconstruction, botanical or geological information, voiceprints, and hypnosis.

Advice for the only child on being lonely, being spoiled, taming one''s feelings, having friends, and the advantages and disadvantages of being a child with no siblings.