This is the story of the funny, loving, and tragic Cooper family living in the 70s. Louise, the indomitable matriarch, has had cancer for twenty years. Her son Danny, a lawyer, lives in a New Jersey suburb with his lover Walter, who is slowly growing obsessed with on-line sex; her daughter April is a lesbian activist and folk singer (who knows how to perform a do-it-yourself artificial insemination using basic kitchen utensils). As Louise battles the slow withdrawal of her husband (who is having an affair with Lillian) and the ravages of her disease (that ends in death), and as the entire Cooper family struggles to come to terms with her illness, David Leavitt reveals the profound depth and compassion of his narrative command. Views: 18
A routine investigation turns into a nuclear mystery for the Hardy Boys. While in Nova Scotia looking into a shipping scam, Frank and Joe uncover the Assassins' latest scheme: a plan to detonate nuclear bombs in both the U.S. and Nova Scotia! Views: 18
From the acclaimed thriller writer, Joe Weber, comes a chilling novel of the Cold War. The United States and Soviet Union are at the brink of war. Fearful of US plans for an anti-missile defense system that could defeat a USSR first strike, the Soviet General Secretary, the conservative successor to Gorbachev, conceives a plan to act first. Russian Bear bombers violate US airspace, leading to a response by American F-15s. A US Navy battle group is attacked in the North Atlantic. And in orbit, a Soviet hunter-killer satellite attacks an American space shuttle. As the world careens towards a nuclear conflict, only a lone CIA operative stands between peace and utter destruction. But can he act in time? Vividly portraying the real world of military hardware and combining it with page-turning action, DEFCON One is the definition of a classic thriller.From Publishers WeeklyA first novel, this gripping techno-thriller is set in the early 1990s, with the Soviet system falling apart and the U.S. about to take a commanding lead in the arms race, thanks to a combination of Stealth technology and SDI. The assassination of the Soviet premier brings to power a hard-liner with a daring plan: to force the U.S. to the brink of war--a state called Defense Readiness Condition Two, only one stage below maximum readiness, DefCon One--and then suddenly relax the pressure. If, as expected, the U.S. forces stand down, the U.S.S.R. will launch a surprise first strike. Weber, a former Marine fighter pilot, handles the military aspects of the developing confrontation convincingly, concentrating on air and naval operations. The novel's secret-agent aspect, a fast-paced escape-and-evasion trail through the heart of the Soviet Union, is only slightly less effective. The process by which responses to Russian provocation escalate to the limit is frighteningly credible, even in the age of glasnost. 100,000 first printing; $150,000 ad/promo. Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library JournalWhen aging Soviet hard-liner Zhilinkov attains power, he bullies his Politburo comrades into "testing" the speed of U.S. military reactions. The scenes shift rapidly from gripping air and naval battles to national strategy centers in Washington and Moscow as an equally determined President increases U.S. readiness posture towards Defense Condition One. Weber's forte is his ability to tell a fast-paced war story filled with accurate details of the latest weapons systems. The only characters who emerge as human beings are Dimitri Karpov, a Russian-speaking mole, and Steve Wickham, the senior CIA agent in Moscow, as they battle throughout the book to escape the clutches of the KGB and GRU with their critical information about Zhilinkov's intentions. In this first novel about the sunset of nuclear war, Weber chooses to ignore the roles Congress, the media, and the public would play in deciding U.S. responses. Recommended. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 5/15/89.- Elsa Pendleton, Computer Sciences Corp., Ridgecrest, Cal.Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. Views: 18
Passion and betrayal, violent desperation, ambivalent love that hinges on hatred, and the quest for acceptance by those who stand on the edge of society-these are the hard-hitting themes of a stunningly crafted first collection of stories by the bestselling author of House of Sand and Fog.A vigilant young man working in a halfway house finds himself unable to defend against the rage of one of the inmates in the title story. In "White Trees, Hammer Moon," a man soon to leave home for prison finds himself as unprepared for a family camping trip in the mountains of New Hampshire as he has been for most things in his life. And in the award-winning "Forky," an ex-con is haunted by the punishment he receives just as he is being released into the world. With an incisive ability to inhabit the lives of his characters, Dubus travels deep into the heart of the elusive American dream. Views: 18
In this ninth installment in the Hornblower series, the incomparable Horatio Hornblower, recently knighted and settled in as squire of the village of Smallbridge, has been designated commodore of his own squadron of ships, led by the two-decker Nonsuch and bound for the Baltic. It is 1812, and Hornblower has been ordered to do anything and everything possible, diplomatically and militarily, to protect the Baltic trade and to stop the spread of Napoleon's empire into Sweden and Russia. Though he has set sail a hero, one misstep may ruin his chances of ever becoming an admiral. Hostile armies, seductive Russian royalty, nautical perils such as ice-bound bays, assassins in the imperial palace—Hornblower must conquer all before he can return home to his beloved new wife and son, as his instructions are to sacrifice every man and ship under his command rather than surrender ground to Napoleon. Views: 18
Terror rises from the dank gutters and alleyways of New York City as an abhorrent series of savage murders goes unsolved. Police lieutenant Frank Mooney suspects there are two killers of shadow-like similarity, and soon he is trapped in a gruesome triangle of spiraling terror and consummate evil. Views: 17
At first the stunts were fairly harmless--sneezing powder in the fog machine of a dance club--but now they've become more dangerous. When a historic Bayport mansion is torched, Frank and Joe are concerned. The clues lead them to a bizarre secret society . . . and their friend, Biff Hooper, is a member! Views: 17
From the multi-award winning and bestselling author behind the Tomorrow seriesStaying Alive in Year 5 is a monster hit for primary school readers from one of Australia's most popular storytellers, John Marsden.Scott and his friends are simply staying alive in year 5 until their surprising new teacher, Mr Murlin, comes along.Boring textbooks go into the bin, eating chocolate in class becomes compulsory and suddenly it's OK to be weird.But Mr Murlin is not popular with everyone. . . Views: 17
As the Great War of the Gods rages, it seems as though the terrible Quar, God of Reality, Greed and Law, will emerge the victor. Even the immortals have abandoned their mortal masters to join in the battle above. Trapped without their immortal servants on the shore of the Kurdin Sea, Khardan, Zohra and the wizard Mathew must cross the vast desert known as the Sun's Anvil--a feat no man has ever performed. Like the legendary Rose of the Prophet, the nomads struggle to survive the journey. If they succeed, they will face more than combat with the enemy, for the Amir's hardened warriors are led by Achmed, the fiercest of men...and Khardan's brother. Views: 17
The Starwolves are back in another action-packed adventure. The superbeings confront a Company death machine of vast lethal scale, designed solely to destroy them. Now they must fight a living engine of hate. Views: 17
Re-read this classic romance by USA Today bestselling author Carole Mortimer When Eve Eden discovers that successful art entrepreneur, Adam Gardener, is searching for the legendary English artist, The Unicorn, she nervously shies away. The Unicorn's true identity hits a little too close to home... But Eve is rattled—and intrigued—by Adam's mesmerizing presence, and his determination to entice her into his arms. As an engaged woman, she shouldn't be flirting with anyone, let alone the most delicious man she's ever laid eyes on... Can Eve resist the temptation of the forbidden? Originally published in 1989 Views: 16
Usually it takes Stringer a little while to rile folks in a new town. But no sooner does he step off the train in Tulsa, than some sidewinder is doing his best to turn Stringer into yesterday's news. The hot story in Tulsa is the oil boom. It seems you can't dig a grave without hitting black gold. And Stringer's there to write the story. But MacKail's never seen such a sorry assortment of low-down, hornswoggling bushwhackers. Because, as Stringer well knows, where there's money, there's outlaws and lawyers...and sometimes it's hard to tell them apart. Views: 16
Halberstam’s classic #1 bestseller, about the magical summer when baseball’s fiercest rivalry captured the nation’s imagination, and changed the sport foreverThe summer of 1949: It was baseball’s Golden Age and the year Joe DiMaggio’s New York Yankees were locked in a soon-to-be classic battle with Ted Williams’s Boston Red Sox for the American League pennant. As postwar America looked for a unifying moment, the greatest players in baseball history brought their rivalry to the field, captivating the American public through the heart-pounding final moments of the season. This expansive story captures an era, incorporating profiles of the players and their families, fans, broadcasters, baseball executives, and sportswriters. Riveting in its blend of powerful detail and exhilarating narrative, The Summer of ’49 is Pulitzer Prize–winner David Halberstam’s engrossing look at not only a sports rivalry, but at a time when America’s very identity was wrapped up in its beloved national game.This ebook features an extended biography of David Halberstam.Amazon.com ReviewWith the airwaves saturated with so much sporting choice, it's hard to imagine how, not that long ago, baseball so completely dominated the landscape and captured imaginations. Given the 1949 season that veteran journalist David Halberstam meticulously recreates, maybe it's not so hard after all. It was a season of great public and personal drama for the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees, with the conflict finally resolving itself in a Yankee pennant following a head-to-head showdown on the final day of the season. Each team was led by a star of the highest magnitude: Joe DiMaggio spurred the Yankees despite missing half the season with a foot injury; Ted Williams virtually carried the Sox on his back, missing an unprecedented third Triple Crown by mere decimal points on his batting average. Halberstam focuses much of his narrative on the trials of these two individual sporting giants, adding fine supporting performances by Yogi Berra, Ellis Kinder, Dom DiMaggio, even restaurateur Toots Shoor. Both on and off the field, Halberstam beautifully captures the ethos of a more innocent game that no longer exists, played by heroes far more driven by their pride than by their salaries. From Library JournalThis book is ostensibly about the pennant race between the Yankees and Red Sox that year and the "rivalry" between Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams. But, as he did in Breaks of the Game (LJ 11/15/81) and The Amateurs (LJ 7/85), Halberstam focuses on a season and studies an era. Baseball came of age in the summer of 1949. Postwar America looked to baseball for a sense of normalcy in its life; television began to have an impact on the sport; Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. Summer of '49 is more than a collection of anecdotes. It is a study of all the elements and personalities that influenced baseball that year and beyond. Halberstam brings them together in such an enjoyable, interesting, and informative manner that a reader needn't be a baseball fan to appreciate the book.- Martin J. Hudacs, Towanda H.S., Pa.Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. Views: 15
