Atmosphere: the Seven Elements of Great Design

You can feel the sense of atmosphere in the rooms Jim creates. . . . He is a master of making rooms magically come alive.” —Newell Turner, Editorial Director, ELLE Décor, House Beautiful, Veranda
Jim Howard creates luxe yet comfortable homes for sophisticated clients around the country. His design work is known for the sort of evocative atmosphere that characterizes the world’s great spaces. This book is a dramatic, colorful, elegant celebration of his interior design, of the homes and rooms he has created.
“Atmosphere” is the magic of a place, the embodiment of all its power to capture your attention and embrace you—some might call it the “wow factor.”
He writes in this introduction, “Atmosphere is the magic that an entire residence can have when it is beautifully designed—the complex murmur of mood and undercurrent of refinement in a lovely setting. It embodies the power a place has to capture your attention and please your senses, embracing you and making your eyes dance around your surroundings.”
Jim’s meticulous attention to architectural detailing and his lavish application of color, texture, and pattern are hallmarks of his style. Schooled in design at Parsons in New York, Jim developed a passion for both classical and modern elements of design and decoration early in his career. His architectural detailing, coupled with his understanding of furniture style and function enables him to effortlessly create extraordinary and timeless residences for his clients.
But even as it excites, atmosphere also soothes, offering an overall feeling of well-being and calm. Howard wrote this book to convey all he has learned about crafting atmosphere at home, wherever that home may be, whatever aesthetic it might have. Doing so isn’t just a matter of rules or formulas; it is a science as much as an art, which Jim shares in a dozen captivating chapters.
For everyone interested in the modern art of interior design, searching for ideas for their home, or who just admires beautiful design and beautiful rooms, this book will be an oversized, beauty-filled addition to their coffee table.

Wow Dinosaurs

(2019) Shout “WOW!” when your read about some surprising facts in this lively and fascinating picture book all about dinosaurs.

Did you know that the word dinosaur means “terrible lizard”, the heaviest dinosaur weighed as much as 17 African elephants and that Stegosaurus had a brain the size of a walnut? Learn more surprising facts in this lively and fascinating picture book all about dinosaurs.

Wow! is a fantastic series not only filled with the best and most amazing facts about popular science topics, but each book also includes beautiful illustrations with fun and interactive artwork clues that lead readers through the book and stimulate discussion. This appealing series is certain to make readers say “Wow!”over and over again.

The Story of Art

“The Story of Art, one of the best-known and best-loved books on art ever written, has been a world bestseller for over half a century. Professor Gombrich’s clear and engaging text combines with hundreds of full-colour illustrations to trace the history of art in an unfolding narrative, from primitive cave paintings to controversial art works of the present day.”

Confess

(2015) From bestselling author Colleen Hoover, comes a new novel about risking everything for love – and finding your heart somewhere between the truth and lies. Auburn Reed has her entire life mapped out. Her goals are in sight and there’s no room for mistakes. But when she walks into a Dallas art studio in search of a job, she doesn’t expect to find a deep attraction to the enigmatic artist who works there, Owen Gentry. For once, Auburn takes a risk and puts her heart in control, only to discover that Owen is keeping some major secrets from coming out. The magnitude of his past threatens to destroy everything important to Auburn, and the only way to get her life back on track is to cut Owen out of it. The last thing Owen wants is to lose Auburn, but he can’t seem to convince her that truth is sometimes as subjective as art. All he would have to do to save their relationship is confess. But in this case, the confession could be much more destructive than the actual sin.

You

(2015) ‘Thriller of the year’ Daily Mail

When aspiring writer Guinevere Beck strides into the bookstore where Joe works he is instantly smitten. Beck is everything Joe has ever wanted: tough, razor-smart and sexier than his wildest dreams. He’d kill to have her.

Soon Beck can’t resist her feelings for a guy who seems custom made for her. When a string of macabre incidents tears her world apart there is only one person she can turn to. But there’s more to Joe than Beck realises and much more to Beck than her perfect facade. The obsessive relationship quickly spirals into a whirlwind of deadly consequences…

A chilling account of unrelenting, terrifying deceit, Caroline Kepnes’ You is a thriller more perversely clever and dangerously twisted than any YOU have ever read.

Hopeless 1

(2013) Would you rather know a truth that makes you feel hopeless, or keep believing the lies? Colleen Hoover returns with the spellbinding story of two young people with devastating pasts who embark on a passionate, intriguing journey to discover the lessons of life, love, trust – and above all, the healing power that only truth can bring. Sky, a senior in high school, meets Dean Holder, a guy with a promiscuous reputation that rivals her own. From their very first encounter, he terrifies and captivates her. Something about him sparks memories of her deeply troubled past, a time she’s tried so hard to bury. Though Sky is determined to stay far away from him, his unwavering pursuit and enigmatic smile break down her defences and the intensity of their relationship grows. But the mysterious Holder has been keeping secrets of his own, and once they are revealed, Sky is changed forever and her ability to trust may be a casualty of the truth. Only by courageously facing the stark revelations can Sky and Holder hope to heal their emotional scars and find a way to live and love without boundaries. Hopeless is a novel that will leave you breathless, entranced, and remembering your own first love.

Hard Choices

Superworm

-2016

The Unicorn Creativity Book

(2019) Packed with gorgeous illustrations and activities based on these fabled creatures, this book is a must-have for all young unicorn lovers. Inside, you’ll find a host of boredom-busting activities involving everyone’s favourite mythical creatures, from cool colour-in ideas and sticker pages to a unicorn board game, doodle challenges, and lots more.

Puzzles, games, activities, 150 stickers, a personalised door hanger and unicorn-themed art paper that can be pulled out and used at home for craft projects make this a glorious way to enjoy your favourite unicorns.

Sorcery of Thorns

(2020) All sorcerers are evil. Elisabeth has known that as long as she has known anything. Raised as a foundling in one of Austermeer’s Great Libraries, Elisabeth has grown up among the tools of sorcery-magical grimoires that whisper on shelves and rattle beneath iron chains. If provoked, they transform into grotesque monsters of ink and leather.

Then an act of sabotage releases the library’s most dangerous grimoire, and Elisabeth is implicated in the crime. With no one to turn to but her sworn enemy, the sorcerer Nathaniel Thorn, and his mysterious demonic servant, she finds herself entangled in a centuries-old conspiracy. Not only could the Great Libraries go up in flames, but the world along with them.

As her alliance with Nathaniel grows stronger, Elisabeth starts to question everything she’s been taught-about sorcerers, about the libraries she loves, even about herself. For Elisabeth has a power she has never guessed, and a future she could never have imagined.

The heir apparent to Diana Wynne Jones, no one can match Rogerson’s dark whimsy or joyous magic. This book is sheer delight.”Jessica Cluess, author of the Kingdom on Fire trilogy

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