Winner of the PEN American/Ernest Hemingway Foundation Special Citation Family Night cracks open one American family and shows us the values—and the dysfunctions—that make up the gothic attractions within it.At the center of this family stands a mysterious father figure, whom Margaret and her stepbrother, Cam, have never met: All they know is that he had been a model, the last Arrow Collar Man. Tracy, Margaret’s lover, ever eager to enrich his encyclopedic awareness of fixations, cajoles Margaret and Cam into a trip to find this absent father. The Arrow Collar Man as missing patriarch.Margaret, Cam, and Tracy—themselves haunted by recent divorces, by their own children, by their undecided instincts—set out in a powder blue Plymouth Duster on an unpredictable journey through the intimacies, obligations, and obsessions that bind us to each other. Family Night is an American family romance that neither Freud nor James Cain could have imagined.From Publishers WeeklyIn her fiction debut, Flook, the author of two poetry collections, produces finely wrought sentences, but her story falls flat. Heroine Margaret has, as the title implies, a dark relationship with her family, a tangle of step-siblings and ex-spouses. She also has a boyfriend named Tracy, a member of Sex Anonymous who engages in various forms of sexual congress with Margaret in full view of her relatives and ultimately prods her into committing incest with her stepbrother Cam. At Tracy's instigation, Margaret, Cam and Tracy seek out Cam's father, whom Cam has never met and of whom Cam knows only that he was once a model for Arrow Collars. Flook's style is frequently arresting; describing a car speeding dangerously through lanes of traffic, she writes: "It was a reverse wake, a terrible seam ripping upwards." But her version of the family romance--a catalogue of wayward deeds, odd sexual encounters, ugly secrets and uglier psychodramas--is more exhibitionistic than revelatory, and it becomes increasingly difficult to share her brittle characters' overwhelming interest in themselves. Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. ReviewWinner of the PEN American/Ernest Hemingway Foundation Special Citation“Family Night is a wild book, a savage sexual roller coaster, whose ultimate destination is a quirky juncture of memory and desire, a place where the pull of family and the pull of the erotic blur together. A powerful work, exquisitely written, it captures the dark, muddy world or the carnal unconscious as well as any novel I’ve read.”—Robert Boswell, author of Crooked Hearts “Family Night, Maria Flook’s debut as a novelist, reminds me of another notable debut, Knife in the Water, Roman Polanski’s first film. In both, one feels the immediate recognition of a unique sensibility; in both, the vision is mature, taut, edgy—and both are kept on the edge by an unremitting, underlying erotic current.”—Stuart Dybek, author of The Coast of Chicago “Maria Flook’s novel goes straight to the broken heart of an American family, where its wild children take shelter in each other. This is a book of desperate moves, by a writer gifted with a fierce wit and an amazingly sweet sensuality.”—Judith Grossman, author of Her Own Terms Views: 58
Another hilarious, action-packed adventure from the Astro-nomically popular Steve Cole.Meet Captain Teggs Stegosaur and the crew of the amazing spaceship DSS Sauropod as the ASTROSAURS fight evil across the galaxy! Tegg's new mission is to save a carnivore king from deadly space mumps. If the king can't be cured, his evil nephew will start a terrible war! The astrosaurs race to the rescue with a special doctor - but are soon trapped in a palace of peril. With enemies all around and a mad meat-chomping monster on the loose, can Teggs escape the heart-stopping horror of the Carnivore Curse? Views: 58
'Marcovaldois an enchanting collection of stories, both melancholy and funny, about an Italian peasant's struggle to reconcile country habits with urban life. Oblivious to the garish attractions of the town, Marcovaldo is the attentive recorder of natural phenomenon. The reader's heart bleeds for Marcovaldo in his tenacious pursuit of lost domains, but the stories are full of mirth and fun. They lie between farce and fantasy, combining comical disasters with a surrealistic view of city life through the eyes of an outsider…Nothing, as always with Calvino, is quite as it seems. Books and Bookmen Views: 58
With two men vying for Amy Hawkin's heart and an attractive female horse trainer who promises trouble, how will she ever get her first novel written? Views: 58
Grendel prowled in, hating all men and all joy and hungry for human life. So swift was his attack that no man heard an outcry; but when the dawn came, thirty of Hothgar's best and noblest thanes were missing. Only Beowulf, foremost among warriors, has the strength and courage to battle with Grendel the Night-stalker. In this thrilling re-telling of the Anglo-Saxon legend, Rosemary Sutcliff recounts Beowulf's most terrifying quests: against Grendel the man-wolf, against the hideous sea-hag and, most courageous of all - his fight to the death with the monstrous fire-drake. Views: 58
He wants me, he needs me. I never thought I could be in this position; propositioned to be a surrogate to his child, the likely heir of his fortune and family's legacy. And he'll pay me! Enough to put off my money worries for the rest of my life... Views: 58
Pia Thomason is torn between two Dark Ones: her husband Kristoff—who doesn't trust her—and his best friend, Alec, who is MIA. So Pia goes back to her humdrum Seattle life, but fate has other plans. And she realizes that if she and Kristoff are going to be shackled together for better or worse, she may as well start to enjoy it. Views: 58
Be your own gods. Go home and tell other people this secret: the secret of God is that he's in the mirror. Views: 58
"Straight's portrayal of a black woman's life is nearly miraculous in its astonishing richness of detail, its emotional honesty and its breadth of human thought and feeling." -- USA TodayFrom Publishers WeeklySet primarily in a tiny Gullah-speaking village in South Carolina, Straight's elegant coming-of-age novel--a BOMC selection in cloth--is as monumental as the tall, taciturn woman whose life it traces. Selected as one of PW 's best books of 1992. Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. From School Library JournalYA-- Large, silent, 14-year-old, blue - black Marietta Cook leaves tiny Gullah-speaking Pine Gardens, South Carolina to seek her uncle and her fortune in Charleston when her mother dies. Learning the rhythms of the city, working for Frank in the fish market, going home to bear twins, working on a rice plantation, returning to Charleston and raising her boys--her life unfolds. Students can experience vicariously the community, family, and friendships that form the pulse of this woman's life from 1959 to her settling into her role as grandmother, California home owner, and perhaps, future bride in 1983. Time, place, and character are all well developed. A solid recommendation for students seeking a good story and a strong female protagonist as well as for those who need a book on black history.- Barbara Hawkins, Oakton High School, Fairfax, VACopyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. Views: 58
Three fantasy romances by Mercedes Lackey, Tanith Lee, and C. Murphy. Stories include: "Moontide" by Mercedes Lackey In an isolated land wher the lure of the "Moontide" leads to shipwrecks, a woman is torn between obeying her father or her king. When she chooses to follow a Fool, she discovers magic she'd never expected... at a price that might be too high.... "The Heart of the Moon" by Tanith Lee Struggling under the curse of a dead comrade, Clirando, a warrior priestess unready to face the powers trapped within her, must face "The Heart of the Moon" to reveal what has been hidden.... "Banshee Cries" by C.E. Murphy In "Banshee Cries," ritual murders under a full moon lead Jo Walker to confront a Harbinger of Death. Maybe this "gift" she has is one she shouldn't ignore- because the next life she has to save might be her own! Views: 58
Beautiful Jim Key -- the one-time ugly duckling of a scrub colt who became one of the most beloved heroes of the turn of the century -- was adored not for his beauty and speed but rather for his remarkable abilities to read, write, spell, do mathematics, even debate politics. Trained with patience and kindness by one of the most renowned horse whisperers of his day -- former slave, Civil War veteran, and self-taught veterinarian Dr. William Key -- Jim performed in expositions across the country to wildly receptive crowds for nine glorious years, smashing box office records, clearing towering hurdles of skepticism and prejudice, and earning the respect and admiration of some of the most influential figures of the era, from Booker T. Washington to President William McKinley.This is the remarkable true saga of a truly exceptional animal -- and the no less exceptional man who led him to greatness. Views: 58
When a wealthy man is set ablaze by the "incinerator"--a deranged pyromaniac who is stalking the homeless of L.A.--professor-turned-private investigator Simeon Grist is determined to catch the killer. Reprint. AB. From Publishers WeeklyTiresome hero and narrator Simeon Grist duels with a homicidal pyromaniac, while willfully alienating his lady love, his best friend and the LAPD. Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library JournalAfter the serial murderer who immolates skid-row bums torches her father--an Alzheimer's sufferer who disappeared from Chicago--ultra-rich Annabelle Winston hires LA investigator Simeon Grist ( The Four Last Things , LJ 5/1/89) to track down the villain. When she splashes the story across the front page of the Sunday paper, the "Incinerator" contacts Grist, the police realize they must act, and Grist dubiously coordinates a plan to entrap the ubiquitous villain. Quite different from Fyfield in style and setting, but just as vital and full of conflict. Highly recommended.Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. Views: 58
