Children Of The Alley, by Mahfouz, Naguib
The history of a Cairo alley through several generations. Successive heroes struggle to restore the rights of the people to the trust fund set up by their ancestor Gebelaawi, usurped by embezzlers and tyrants. Mahfouz creates in all its detail a world on the frontier between the real and the imaginary. At a deeper level, the book is an allegory whose heroes relive the lives of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Moses, Jesus and Muhammed. Their appearance in a modern context invites the reader to see them as human beings relevant to the present day, not as remote sacred figures - to the consternation of some traditionalists. Most controversial is the significance of Gebelaawi, the immensely long-lived patriarch. Mahfouz himself has said that his character represents 'not God, but a certain idea of God that men have made', standing for the god of those who forget the absolute transcendence of God affirmed by Islam. Views: 592
In a world in which the police have telepathic powers, how do you get away with murder?
Ben Reichs heads a huge 24th century business empire, spanning the solar system. He is also an obsessed, driven man determined to murder a rival. To avoid capture, in a society where murderers can be detected even before they commit their crime, is the greatest challenge of his life. Views: 591
EDITORIAL REVIEW:THE SPRINGERS—those farflung Galactic traders are holding a summit meeting on the planet Goszul in order to plan an attack on Earth. Rhodan is worried--and rightly so. Then--a great break: a Springer traitor contacts Perry, willing to betray his own people. The Peacelord sends several of his best mutants on a dangerous mission to the rendezvous on Goszul. And the more-than-humans are discovered and captured! Thrill follows thrill aboard spaceship and aground on another world as Rhodan and his Mutant Corps encounter interplanetary conflicts! This is the stirring story of– the COSMIC TRAITOR! Views: 591
Turning under a blood-red sun, Darkover had always been a mystery to the Terrans. Its most puzzling riddles lay in the incredibly high mountains known as the Hellers. These jagged and almost impassable peaks sheltered races and enigmas that had become legend in the outside world--the howling inhuman Ya-men, the deadly Ghost Wind, the fiefs of barbaric brigand chieftains, decaying eldritch Dry-Towns...and the eerie forces that were worshiped as gods.
Dan Barron was a rational and highly efficient member of the Terran Spaceforce--until nightmare visions drove him from the safety of the Trade City into the unmapped heart of the Darkovan mountain ranges...into an ancient battle that would shape the destiny of more than one world. Views: 591
Cuando el doctor Humberto Huberman, médico homeópata y hombre dado a los placeres menores, llegó al moderno, cúbico y ligeramente siniestro hotel de Bosque del Mar, no sospechaba que se internaría en un laberinto de amor, de venganza y de muerte.
Esta novela riquísima trata de asesinatos por envenenamiento; de veleros que el mar arroja sobre las playas; de enamorados cuyo alfabeto amoroso está compuesto de crímenes; de personas aisladas durante cuatro días y cuatro noches, por una tormenta de viento, por las arenas, por el mar y por el cangrejal ominoso, con un asesino secreto y diligente.
Aquí el héroe no es, precisamente, el detective; aquí es Humberto Huberman, nada heroico y nada magnánimo, el amigo que espera a los lectores. Views: 590
The Other Side of the Sky presents a glimpse of our future: a future where reality is no longer contained in earthly dimensions, where man has learned to exist with the knowledge that he is not alone in the universe. These stories of other planets and galactic adventures show Arthur C Clarke at the peak of his powers: sometimes disturbing, always intriguing. Views: 590
A masquerade party quickly turns into a mystery when Nancy and Ned spy an enigmatic man in a black cloak and an exotic woman in a glittering Javanese costume. Are they members of the gang of wily thieves who sneak into parties hosted by wealthy citizens to rob jewels and painting treasures? Why is the owner of the black velvet hooded mask Ned found during the party desperate to retrieve it? To find the answers, Nancy and George switch identities. George soon discovers that it can be both exciting and dangerous to masquerade as Nancy Drew! This book is the revised text. The plot of the original story (©1953) is similar with minor revisions. Views: 590
Long out of print in English, this dizzying hybrid of novel, essay, and polemic has less to do with religion than with what Roth sees as the disintegrating moral fabric of the modern world
Written while Roth was in exile from Germany and his native Austria following the rise of Nazism, this work was composed in cafés across free Europe after all his works in German went up in flames. Such events no doubt influence the apocalytic tones of The Antichrist's protaganist, J.R., a journalist hired by an inscrutable media mogul hellbent on exposing evidence of the "Antichrist" throughout the world. This mission leads J.R. to authoritarian political regimes such as Red Earth (the Soviet Union) but also other poisonous terrains like The Land of Shadows (Hollywood)—it becomes all too clear that it is Roth's mission to chart the whole of civilization's slide into moral and political chaos. But herein lies the extraordinary strength and appeal of this work, as Roth is powerfully and even hilariously prescient. Mixing the diatribe with his trademark sardonic wit, he miraculously predicts the advent of the Holocaust, globalization, multimedia—even the paparazzi. Combining beautiful but savage writing with visual imagery out of a Coen Brothers movie, this is an invaluable addition to the Roth canon in English. Views: 589
Some of the maps in this title are best viewed on a tablet device. A classic of travel writing, 'A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush' is Eric Newby's iconic account of his journey through one of the most remote and beautiful wildernesses on earth. It was 1956, and Eric Newby was earning an improbable living in the chaotic family business of London haute couture. Pining for adventure, Newby sent his friend Hugh Carless the now-famous cable - CAN YOU TRAVEL NURISTAN JUNE? - setting in motion a legendary journey from Mayfair to Afghanistan, and the mountains of the Hindu Kush, north-east of Kabul. Inexperienced and ill prepared (their preparations involved nothing more than some tips from a Welsh waitress), the amateurish rogues embark on a month of adventure and hardship in one of the most beautiful wildernesses on earth - a journey that adventurers with more experience and sense may never have undertaken. With good humour, sharp wit and keen... Views: 589
Available for the first time as an ebook, this illustrated edition of W.O. Mitchell's prairie classic Who Has Seen the Wind is a delight to discover again — or for the first time.Since its publication in 1947, Who Has Seen the Wind — a classic tale about a boy growing up on the Saskatchewan prairie — has been read and loved by millions. With his unique blend of poetry and humour, W.O. Mitchell perfectly captures childhood and small-town life. Featuring an unforgettable cast of characters — young Brian O'Connal and his family, including his fiery-tongued Uncle Sean and his formidable Scotch grandmother, and the colourful inhabitants of their prairie community — it is not only the story of one boy, but an ageless story of growing up and the search for meaning.This new edition commemorates the 75th anniversary of the book's publication, bringing together the complete and unabridged version of the text with... Views: 589
After WW II, Lucilla's soldier son George and his beautiful wife Nadine lived with their five children. They acquired an ancient pilgrim's inn on the river. Sally had never seen this face before, but as she studied the unfinished portrait of David Eliot, her untried heart knew the meaning of love. She would always know this face... the finely shaped head, the obstinate jaw, the hint of bitterness about the mouth. But David was tied, tied to a married woman who could not let him go. Theirs is an unforgettable story, one that will hold you spellbound as you enter the portals of Pilgrim's Inn... Views: 588
From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Lonesome Dove comes the novel that became the basis for the film Hud, starring Paul Newman. In classic Western style Larry McMurtry illustrates the timeless conflict between the modernity and the Old West through the eyes of Texas cattlemen.
Horseman, Pass By tells the story of Homer Bannon, an old-time cattleman who epitomizes the frontier values of honesty and decency, and Hud, his unscrupulous stepson. Caught in the middle is the narrator, Homer's young grandson Lonnie, who is as much drawn to his grandfather’s strength of character as he is to Hud's hedonism and materialism.
When first published in 1961, Horseman, Pass By caused a sensation in Texas literary circles for its stark, realistic portrayal of the struggles of a changing West in the years following World War II. Never before had a writer managed to encapsulate its environment with such unsentimental realism. Today, memorable characters, powerful themes, and illuminating detail make Horseman, Pass By vintage McMurtry. Views: 587
Filled with keen observations, autobiographical notes, and the seeds of many of Maugham's greatest works, A Writer's Notebook is a unique and exhilarating look into a great writer's mind at work. From nearly five decades, Somerset Maugham recorded an intimate journal. In it we see the budding of his incomparable vision and his remarkable career as a writer. Covering the years from his time as a youthful medical student in London to a seasoned world traveler around the world, it is playful, sharp witted, and always revealing. Undoubtedly one of his most significant works, A Writer's Notebook is a must for Maugham fans and anyone interested in the creative process. Views: 587
