Writer and scholar George Steiner's Massey Lectures are just as cogent today as when he delivered them in 1974 — perhaps even more so. He argues that Western culture's moral and emotional emptiness stems from the decay of formal religion. He examines the alternate mythologies (Marxism, etc.) and fads of irrationality (astrology, the occult). Steiner argues that this decay and the failure of the mythologies have created a nostalgia for the absolute that is growing and leading us to a massive clash between truth and human survival. Ultimately he suggests that we can only reduce the impact of this collision course if we continue, as disinterestedly as possible, to ask questions and seek answers in the face of our increasingly complex world. Views: 23
Ten years on from Trainspotting, Simon 'Sick Boy' Williamson is back in Edinburgh after a long spell in London. Having failed spectacularly as a hustler, pimp, husband, father and businessman, Sick Boy taps into an opportunity, which to him represents one last throw of the dice. However, to realize his dream of directing and producing a pornographic movie, Sick Boy must team up with old pal and fellow exile Mark Renton and a motley crew that includes the city's favourite ex-aerated-water-salesman, 'Juice' Terry Lawson. In the world of Porno, however, nothing is straightforward, as Sick Boy and Renton find out that they have unresolved issues to address, concerning the increasingly unhinged Frank Begbie, the troubled, drug-addled Spud, but, most of all, with each other. Views: 23
Angel-in-training Ella helps an injured bunny in this third magical book of the whimsical new Angel Wings series!The first angel in Ella's grade has earned her sapphire halo—and Ella's friends aren't far behind. But Ella still has several halo points to collect, and she doesn't want to be the last to earn her sparkling halo. When a magical bunny with an injury is brought to the school, nasty angel Primrose jumps at the opportunity to care for it. But all Primrose really cares about is collecting more halo points than anyone else. It's up to Ella to take responsibility for the bunny, a task that she doesn't mind at all. Ella loves animals! But will she ever get enough halo points to earn a sapphire halo of her own? Views: 23
The Bronze Age. The era of Troy, of Gilgamesh, of the dawning of human mastery over the earth. For decades, fantasists have set tales of heroism and adventure in imagined worlds based on the real Bronze Age, from the "Hyborean Age" of the Conan stories to the Third Age of Middle-earth.Now bestselling SF and fantasy author Harry Turtledove, a noted expert on the ancient world, teams up with author and Egyptologist Noreen Doyle to present fourteen new tales of the real Bronze Age from some of the best writers in SF.Here is Gene Wolfe's mock-journal of a man from the future who travels with figures out of history and mythology; Judith Tarr's tale of a a town that sends its resident goddess to try to learn the secrets of the morose God of Chariots; Harry Turtledove's story about mythological beings witnessing the devastating effect of the first humans on the Earth's natural order; and a poignant new story from the late Poul Anderson, in which a modern scholar... Views: 22
SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARD 2015A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK'A passionate memoir.' Neil MacGregor'A superb portrait of twentieth century Germany seen through the prism of a house which was lived in, and lost, by five different families. A remarkable book.' Tom Holland'Personal and panoramic, heart-wrenching yet uplifting, this is history at its most alive.' A.D. Miller In the spring of 1993, Thomas Harding travelled to Berlin with his grandmother to visit a small house by a lake. It was her 'soul place', she said – a sanctuary she had been forced to leave when the Nazis swept to power. The trip was a chance to see the house one last time, to remember it as it was. But the house had changed.Twenty years later Thomas returned to Berlin. The house now stood empty, derelict, soon to be demolished. A concrete footpath cut through the garden, marking where the Berlin Wall had stood... Views: 22
One night a year the witches of Phoenix House are allowed to act out pleasures of the flesh. Curvy witch Celeste is determined to make this Halloween a night of ecstasy to sustain her. and brooding werewolf Draco will fulfill her wish... Warning: Explicit material! Adults Views: 22
1577. Queen Elizabeth I has imprisoned scheming Mary Queen of Scots, and Alyce's mother is burned at the stake for witchcraft. Alyce flees to London—but as she discovers her own dark magic, powerful forces are on her trail. Soon she finds herself deep in a secret battle between rival queens... Views: 22
