Smart Smart Smart Steal...This is what I love: a gift that you can buy a bunch of and it works to give your teenager, her teacher and your husband. They will all love, but in different ways.
Teens, how cool is this concept? Finally, a book that allows you to be RIGHT all the time! This is a dictionary that gives YOU the ability to define your own words. Your VOICE, your WAY! You are that important at 15 years old, and totally have the right to define every word in the dictionary. SO here it is: The New American Dictionary.
Teachers, words mean different things to different people and for English and ESL teachers, this could be an invaluable tool to gain a snapshot of your students.
This is the kind of book that gets you real time info. on your students.
As for me? This is what I am going to do with this book: At my next party, I am going to use it as a "guestbook". Once I taught a Japanese Poetry Writing Workshop, and we did something like this: In Japan there is a type of poetry called "Renga". The host of the party writes a haiku:
Thank you my guests for coming
Eat drink Be merry
Enjoy until the night ends!

Each guest passes the table with the haiku and writes a similar haiku in reponse to the host's haiku, and so on, until their is a beautiful compilation of related poems from the evening.
Okay so back to how I will use the New American Dictionary: Each guest at my party will define a word. What a great, ever changing, ever evolving coffee table book!
IT's smart. It's a steal. It's only $19.95. (via Institue for Infinitely Small Things)