Bruce Chatwin's death from AIDS in 1989 brought a meteoric career to an abrupt end, since he burst onto the literary scene in 1977 with his first book, In Patagonia. Chatwin himself was different things to different people: a journalist, a photographer, an art collector, a restless traveller and a best-selling author; he was also a married man, an active homosexual, a socialite who loved to mix with the rich and famous, and a single-minded loner who explored the limits of extreme solitude. From unrestricted access to Chatwin's private notebooks, diaries and letters, Nicholas Shakespeare has compiled the definitive biography of one of the most charismatic and elusive literary figures of our time.Amazon ReviewBruce Chatwin was the golden child of the contemporary English novel; by the time he died of an AIDS-related illness aged 49 in January 1989 he had produced the startlingly original masterpieces that made his name. Chatwin came late to being a published writer; In Patagonia, his instant classic of what can loosely be termed "travel literature", came out in 1977. In the preceding years this precocious, intense figure had been an art specialist at Sotheby's, a journalist with The Sunday Times, an archaeologist and a restless, questing traveller. By the time his novel of studying the Aboriginal dreamtime in Australia, The Songlines, was published, he had gained a worldwide audience. An obsessive art collector, Chatwin also acquired people as he did fabulous objects. He took both male and female lovers while continuing to remain married to his wife Elizabeth, seemingly the most enduring relationship of his life. It is her cooperation and tenacity which enabled this biography to come about, as well as Nicholas Shakespeare's exhaustive research (the book was eight years in the making). It is the international span of Chatwin's experiences that makes the reader appreciate his desire to know all cultures and disciplines. There is some excellent, evocative writing here, particularly in Shakespeare's account of Chatwin's last weeks, his disappointment at not winning the Booker Prize for Utz and the detailed passage describing Chatwin's awful, miserable death surrounded by friends and family. There are a plethora of adjectives used to describe Chatwin such as "elusive", "mercurial", and "charismatic". Yet what Nicholas Shakespeare brings across in this immense, excellent life of Chatwin is the complete aloneness of the man. He was a flamboyant fabulist, an unparalleled conversationalist, yet, as the Australian poet Les Murray is quoted as saying: "He was lonely and he wanted to be. He had those blue, implacable eyes that said: 'I will reject you, I will forget you, because neither you nor any other human being can give me what I want.'"--Catherine TaylorReview"Of my contemporaries he had the most erudite and possibly the most brilliant mind" (Salman Rushdie) "An epic piece of work of immense satisfaction... Awe-inspiring" (The Times) "A fascinating account of the man behind the myth" (Guardian) "Comprehensively researched, elegantly written, perfectly balanced between the life, the books and the ideas" (Independent on Sunday) "Quite simply, one of the most beautifully written, painstakingly researched and cleverly constructed biographies of this decade... Original, intelligent and observant" (Literary Review) Views: 59
At age twenty six, Agatha Raisin has already come a long way. She has clawed her way up since leaving the Birmingham slum where she was born. She's lost her Birmingham accent, run away from her drunken husband, and found a job at a public relations office as a secretary. Then her boss asks Agatha to go to the home of Brian Devese to tell him that he is soon going to be arrested for the murder of his wife and that the agency no longer wants to represent him.Brian, impressed with the pugnacious Agatha, asks her to handle PR for him and even offers her an office and tells her she can hire a staff. Certainly the best thing Agatha can do for her first client is to find out who really murdered his wife and clear his name. And with her wits and gumption, Agatha sets out to do just that. New York Times bestseller M. C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin is beloved by millions and this brand new short story take us back to where it all began with Agatha's first case. Views: 59
Science Fiction/Fantasy. 59970 words long. Views: 59
SUMMARY:The international bestseller that inspired the movie Maybe Baby.Birds do it. Bees do it. Why can't Sam and Lucy?When Lucy first suggested they make a baby, Sam was gung ho --after all, sleeping with his wife is one of Sam's favorite things to do. Then out came the thermometers, followed by the holistic home remedies -- not to mention some humiliating bouts with specimen jars. Soon Lucy's demands are driving Sam out of his mind. That is, until Sam conceives a plan of his own: He'll write a screenplay based on his and Lucy's poignant (and often uproarious) efforts to conceive a child. It could be a big hit. It might even make Sam's career. Or cost him his marriage . . .From the award-winning author of Popcorn and Blast from the Past comes this hilarious and heartbreaking new novel --a provocative two-sided look at one couple's inconceivable dilemma. From sperm that swim backward to aromatherapy run amok, procreation for Lucy and Sam has turned into a grisly little war. But if Lucy feels barren as the Sahara, and Sam thinks his gay friends will be fathers before he is, they're about to have yet another problem on their hands: saving the love that once was everything they had. . . . Views: 59
Prose; fiction, Masculine Views: 59
Iron Eyes was a deadly bounty hunter who never brought his quarry back alive.Riding into a small town, he soon gunned down a wanted outlaw called Dan Hardy, and dragged his body down to the sheriff's office to collect his blood money. There was just one problem. Only the law in El Paso was authorized to pay the reward.Iron Eyes set out for the big city ... unaware that Hardy's younger brothers were already dogging his trail.As if that wasn't enough trouble for a man to handle, Iron Eyes became involved with a mysterious woman and a Mexican rancher along the way, who had a dangerous mission in mind for him.Only his deadly skill with a gun would give him any chance of getting his money ... and staying alive to spend it. Views: 59
When Dan and Ursula become lost in a thick mist, they have no idea that once they step out of the other side they will find themselves in an England of thousands of years ago and embroiled in a civil war between ancient Britons and Romans. Soon they will have to rely on strengths that neither of them knew they had as they battle both physical and magical enemies, not only to ensure their own safety, but also to try and help save the lives of the Combrogi who face the might and power of the Roman army. In this powerful and sweeping epic novel, survival depends on learning magical arts and respecting codes of behaviour that pre-date all modern life. It is a difficult world to survive in. Are Dan and Ursula able to master all they need to know in time to ensure that they do not become victims of a time far harsher than any they could ever have imagined? Views: 59
Explorer is a Genesis companion novella, by the author of the Exodus Trilogy.The war is over.Aurora is at peace.Now the Aurorans can begin building their new world, and explore its wonders.In the far North of Verdi, the only continent where man has set foot, a small coastal town has grown. By the pier lies the Explorer, a ship designed to sail the high seas, almost ready to cast off.Tina Hammer, a hero of the revolution, cannot wait to go. She says goodbye to a dying friend and leaves with a small crew. Nobody knows how long the journey will last, and Tina is content with that, tired as she is of war and strife.But the journey on which she embarks will be her toughest challenge so far, and she will be tested to her limits. For the sea holds deadly secrets, deep beneath the waterline, and the North is an unforgiving place.Note: If you haven´t read the Exodus Trilogy, you should do so before reading Explorer.Accolades for the Exodus Trilogy:"Congrats Andreas Christensen, you just... Views: 59
He had great hopes of becoming a legend...Geoffrey de Servian showed excellent promise of becoming a first-rate knight until one day he falls off a horse, leaving him physically and mentally broken. His ambition of becoming a celebrated knight is shattered, and he is left a shadow of the man he once was. But the fall was not an accident as everyone implies, and he sets out to find the culprit that dared to ruin his dream. In the meantime, he must find work and shelter, laying low until the opportunity arises, and he can meet his nemesis face to face.She only wanted to lead a simple life...Finally, Widow Karina can enjoy a modicum level of success. Her abusive husband is long dead, and her scented candles are slowly starting to sell. Unfortunately life as a female merchant is not easy, especially when the guild master is harassing her. But her fortune turns when an attractive stranger arrives at her door, looking for work. He offers protection from the guild master, and... Views: 59
In these fifteen deftly crafted stories, Mary Morris takes us to a Greek village, Cape Canaveral, South America, New York City in the heat of August—and into the heads and hearts of characters coming to know a bit more about their worlds. A Panamanian girl searches for her beautiful sister; a typewriter reveals unspoken secrets to a vacationing couple; the employees of a copy shop long for the lives of their customers. Morris's wistful, knowing style and her grasp of the tiny elements that mark the turning points in relationships make her stories resonate with lingering emotional truths. Views: 59
