As soon as it is discovered that the rule of Oz is lost--and with her all the important magical instruments in Oz--search parties, one for each of the four countries of Oz, set out to find her. Views: 1 631
The Phoenix and the Carpet By E. Nesbit - The Phoenix and the Carpet is a fantasy novel for children, written by E. Nesbit and first published in 1904. It is the second in a trilogy of novels that begins with Five Children and It (1902), and follows the adventures of the same five children: Cyril, Anthea, Robert, Jane and the Lamb. This middle volume of the trilogy that begins with Five Children and It and concludes with The Story of the Amulet, and deviates somewhat from the other two in that the Psammead is mentioned only briefly, and in this volume the five children live with both their parents in the family home in London. In both the other volumes, circumstances have forced the children to spend protracted periods away from their home and their father. A continuing theme throughout The Phoenix and the Carpet is the ancient element of fire. The story begins shortly before November 5, celebrated in Britain as Guy Fawkes Night. The four children have accumulated a small hoard of fireworks for the night, but they are too impatient to wait until November 5 to light them, so they set off a few samples in the nursery. This results in the fire that destroys the carpet. Their parents purchase a second-hand carpet which is found to contain an egg that emits a phosphorescent glow. The children accidentally knock this egg into the fire: it hatches, revealing a golden Phoenix who speaks perfect English. Views: 1 588
At the end of Five Children and It the five children promised not to ask the Psammead for another wish as long as they lived, but expressed a half wish to see it again some time. They find 'it' again in a pet shop in Camden Town, and their magic adventures start over again. 'It' leads them to a magic amulet - half of it actually - which they use it to try and find the other half. It takes them back to ancient Egypt and Babylon. The Queen of Babylon visits them in London, bringing all her ancient customs with her - which is awkward. They visit the lost continent of Atlantis. They see Julius Caesar in the flesh, but none of these adventures run smoothly, and if they forget the 'word of power' or lose the amulet, what would happen to them? Views: 1 357
Everything in Texas is bigger. . . even murder. Meet Tres Navarre. . . tequila drinker, Tai Chi master, unlicensed P. I. , with apenchant for Texas-size trouble. Jackson "Tres" Navarre and his enchilada-eating cat, Robert Johnson, pull intoSan Antonio and find nothing waiting but trouble. Ten years ago Navarre lefttown and the memory of his father's murder behind him. Now he's back, lookingfor answers. Yet the more Tres digs, trying to put his suspicions to rest, thefresher the decade-old crime looks: Mafia connections, construction sitepayoffs, and slick politicians' games all conspire to ruin his homecoming. It's obvious Tres has stirred up a hornet's nest of trouble. He gets attacked, shot at, run over by a big blue Thunderbird--and his old girlfriend, the one hewants back, turns up missing. Tres has to rescue the woman, nail his father'smurderer, and get the hell out of Dodge before mob-style Texas justice catchesup to him. The chances of staying alive looked better for the defenders of theAlamo. . . . "A standout. . . A crooked construction company, corrupt cops, oldenemies--you can almost feel the summer storms rolling over South Texas. " Views: 1 355
A failed revolutionary attempt drives the hero of Hudson's novel to seek refuge in the primeval forests of south-western Venezuela. There, in the 'green mansions' of the title, Abel encounters the wood-nymph Rima, the last survivor of a mysterious aboriginal race. The love that flowers between them is soon overshadowed by cruelty and sorrow... One of the acknowledged masters of natural history writing, W. H. Hudson forms an important link between nineteenth-century Romanticism and the twentieth-century ecological movement. First published in 1904 and a bestseller after its reissue a dozen years later, Green Mansions offers its readers a poignant meditation on the loss of wilderness, the dream of a return to nature, and the bitter reality of the encounter between savage and civilized man. Views: 1 302
A Faithful Story of the Astonishing Adventure Undertaken by the Tin Woodman, assisted by Woot the Wanderer, the Scarecrow of Oz, and Polychrome, the Rainbow's DaughterA Faithful Story of the Astonishing Adventure Undertaken by the Tin Woodman, assisted by Woot the Wanderer, the Scarecrow of Oz, and Polychrome, the Rainbow\'s Daughter Views: 1 210
The definitive edition of Calvino’s cosmicomics, bringing together all of these enchanting stories—including some never before translated—in one volume for the first time
In Italo Calvino’s cosmicomics, primordial beings cavort on the nearby surface of the moon, play marbles with atoms, and bear ecstatic witness to Earth’s first dawn. Exploring natural phenomena and the origins of the universe, these beloved tales relate complex scientific concepts to our common sensory, emotional, human world.
Now, The Complete Cosmicomics brings together all of the cosmicomic stories for the first time. Containing works previously published in Cosmicomics, t zero, and Numbers in the Dark, this single volume also includes seven previously uncollected stories, four of which have never been published in translation in the United States. This “complete and definitive collection” (Evening Standard) reconfirms the cosmicomics as a crowning literary achievement and makes them available to new generations of readers.
“It’s a joy to have all the cosmicomics within one cover . . . A landmark in fiction, the work of a master.”—Ursula K. Le Guin, Guardian Views: 1 207
Natsuo Kirino's novel tells a story of random violence in the staid Tokyo suburbs, as a young mother who works a night shift making boxed lunches brutally strangles her deadbeat husband and then seeks the help of her co-workers to dispose of the body and cover up her crime.
The ringleader of this cover-up, Masako Katori, emerges as the emotional heart of Out and as one of the shrewdest, most clear-eyed creations in recent fiction. Masako's own search for a way out of the straitjacket of a dead-end life leads her, too, to take drastic action.
The complex yet riveting narrative seamlessly combines a convincing glimpse into the grimy world of Japan's yakuza with a brilliant portrayal of the psychology of a violent crime and the ensuing game of cat-and-mouse between seasoned detectives and a group of determined but inexperienced criminals. Kirino has mastered a Thelma and Louise kind of graveyard humor that illuminates her stunning evocation of the pressures and prejudices that drive women to extreme deeds and the friendship that bolsters them in the aftermath. Views: 1 203
At first, Claudia hated going back to seventh grade. But things are definitely improving. She's on top of her schoolwork, she's made some great friends, and her new classmates really look up to her--so much that they nominate her for Queen of the Seventh Grade. And when the votes come in, the results are clear: Claudia's not just adjusting to seventh grade, she's ruling it!
Being queen is harder than it looks, though. There's a ton of work involved. And Mark Jaffe, the newly elected king, is no help at all. Claudia's determined to stop him from turning her glorious reign into a royal mess. but how? Views: 1 201
Determined to avenge her father's death, Courtney Johnston finds her destiny intertwined with Slayde Huntley, who hopes to ransom his missing sister with the cursed diamond his family has treasured for generations. Original. Views: 1 198
A mobile unit of video freelancers prowls the streets to sell the footage they capture to the highest network bidder. It is an exhilarating life. But tonight, two deaths will change everything. Views: 1 194
She expected sunshine and balmy breezes. What she saw was everyone's worst nightmare.
Bess Grady has heard the unmistakable sound before. She knows what it means. But not even the eerie lament of the howling dogs can prepare her for what has taken place in the small village. The seasoned photojournalist had been sent there on an easy assignment, and now she has stumbled upon something she was never meant to see. Amid chaos and fear, she joins forces with an intimidating stranger, a man whose alliances are unclear but whose methods have a way of leaving bodies in his wake. For what she has witnessed is only the first stage in a plan of terror that may kill us all. And she has no choice but to stop it—or die trying....
From the Paperback edition. Views: 1 185
The Australian Booksellers' Association Book of the Year begins in 1954, in Tasmania where Bojan Buloh brings his family to start a new life away from Slovenia's privations of war and refugee settlements. Bojan's wife abandons him to care for their three-year-old daughter Sonja alone. Sonja returns to Tasmania 35 years later, and to a father haunted by memories of the war and other recent horrors. Views: 1 185
What would you do if you were the only alien trapped on a strange planet? Probably freak out, right? Well, that's what Ax feels like doing. But as an Andalite warrior-cadet, he has to be pretty cool about stuff like that. He's been hanging out with the Animorphs ever since the Dome ship was destroyed by the Yeerks and his brother, Prince Elfangor, was destroyed by Visser Three.
Life on Earth is pretty different for Ax. But there is one thing he, Cassie, Marco, Jake, Rachel, and Tobias have in common. Something that one alien, four kids and a hawk know they have to do: stop the Yeerks... Views: 1 184
There is nothing more powerful than a bad idea whose time has come. And there can be few ideas less bad or more potentially apocalyptic than that hatched by genetic scientist Dr. Stephen Malone. Using DNA strands extracted from the dried blood on the Turin Shroud, Dr. Malone is cloning Jesus. Views: 1 172
