From one of America's most beloved authors comes a raw and unnerving memoir that explores the transformation of an angry young man into the bestselling author we know today.
When Victor Villaseñor stood at the podium and looked at the group of teachers amassed before him, he became enraged. He had never spoken in public before. His mind was flooded with childhood memories filled with humiliation, misunderstanding, and abuse at the hands of his teachers. With his heart pounding, he began to speak of these incidents. To his disbelief, the teachers before him responded to his embittered recollection with a standing ovation. Many could not contain their own tears.
So begins a touching memoir of an extremely angry adolescent. Highly gifted and imaginative, Villaseñor coped with an untreated learning disability (he was finally diagnosed with extreme dyslexia at the age of forty-four) and the frustration he felt growing up Latino in an English-only American school system that had neither the cultural understanding nor the resources to deal with Hispanic students.
Often beaten by his teachers because he could not speak English, Villaseñor was made to feel ashamed about his heritage, and even questioned the core values prioritized by his tight-knit family. Villaseñor's dyslexia, and growing frustration over not fitting in, fueled his dream to one day become a writer. He is now considered one of the premier writers of our time.
With his signature passion, his gift as a storyteller, and his own incredible story, Villaseñor allows readers into the soul of a young life touched by insecurity yet encouraged by a personal sense of artistic destiny. Burro Genius, a complex and inspiring coming-of-age story, is certain to become an American classic. Views: 462
Henry Wright is a retired Chief of Police from tiny Eagle Lake, Wisconsin. He retired several months after his beloved wife's unexpected death and moved to California. He settled in Palm Springs at the request of his old friend Wayne Johnson, who is a captain in the Palm Springs police department. Henry spends a lot of his time at his computer helping the FBI profile victims of violent crimes. Wayne, and some of his other law enforcement colleagues request his assistance solving the most difficult times. Henry lives with his roommate, retired high school teacher Charles Knightly III. (Please don't call him Chuck.)
Henry is getting his home in Palm Springs ready for a visit from an important out-of-town friend when his regular weekly breakfast with his friend Wayne results in a request to assist with an investigation.
The world famous Palm Springs Tramway's last ride of the day arrives with a dead body in the gondola and no signs of a weapon or a murderer. Henry solves this bizarre crime with the help of his friend Gloria, who adds her women's intuition and interviewing skills to Henry's unique crime solving abilities. Views: 462
Dorothy Dale: A Girl of To-Day By Margaret Penrose Views: 461
Two of Shakespeare's important and illuminating history plays in a comprehensive and scholarly update. This edition includes a discussion and criticism of Shakespeare's life, world, and theater by outstanding scholars past and present, stage histories of notable actors, directors, and producers, and clear, readable text and commentaries.
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This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
--This text refers to the Paperback edition.
--This text refers to the Paperback edition. Views: 459
Harry and Bertie Pendergast are two young brothers eager for adventure and keen to make their way in the world. Harry convinces his brother to go with him to the remote country of Peru in an effort to find a fortune. Ultimately, it is not money, but the heart of the lovely Hilda that Harry seeks. Harry has two years to prove to Hilda\'s father that he has the means to care for her. Once in Peru, the brothers team up with a native guide and muleteer, Dias and his wife Donna Maria. The small group encounters fierce tribes and bandits in their quest for riches. Will the brothers survive the trials of Peru? Will Harry earn the permission of Hilda\'s father to marry his love? These and other questions will be answered in The Treasure of the Incas: A Story of Adventure in Peru by G. A. Henty. Set in the nineteenth century in Peru and England, The Treasure of the Incas includes more than 40 geographical, historical, and explanatory footnotes to aid the modern reader. Views: 459
November 1694. The streets of Edo are erupting in violence as two
factions struggle for control over the ruling Tokugawa regime. One is
led by the shogun's cousin, Lord Matsudaira, and the other by the
shogun's second-in-command, Chamberlain Yanagisawa. Each side pressures
Sano Ichiro, the shogun's most honorable investigator, to join its
ranks.When one of the shogun's most trusted advisers is found
dead, Sano is forced to honor a posthumous request for a murder
investigation. Senior Elder Makino believed that his death would be the
result of assassination rather than natural causes. Although he and Sano
were bitter enemies, Makino knew that the incorruptible Sano would be
duty-bound to oblige his final wish.Under the watchful eyes and
thinly veiled threats of both Lord Matsudaira and Chamberlain
Yanagisawa, Sano moves with caution. Each is eager to implicate the
other in Makino's death. Sano must discover whether the death was indeed
murder, and if so, whether it was motivated by politics, love, or sex.
The discovery of secret alliances, both romantic and military, further
complicates matters. Sano's investigation has barely begun when violent
death claims another of the shogun's favorites.With his wife,
Reiko, working undercover, Sano and his chief retainer, Hirata, must not
only investigate multiple deaths, but stem the tide of an impending
civil war. Views: 455
Nineteenth-century New Orleans is a blazing hotbed of scorching politics and personal vendettas. And it's into this fire that Benjamin January falls when he is hired to follow Oliver Weems, a bank official who has absconded with $100,000 in gold and securities. But it's more than just a job for January. The missing money is vital to the survival of the school for freed slaves that he and his wife Rose have founded. Following the suspected embezzler--and the money--onto the steamboat Silver Moon, January, Rose, and their friend Hannibal Sefton are sworn to secrecy about the crime until they can find the trunks containing the stolen loot. And then the unexpected happens: Weems is found murdered and suddenly the job of finding the pirated stash grows not only more difficult--but more deadly. There is no shortage of suspects--from the sinister slave-dealer to the bullying steamship pilot to the suspiciously innocent "lady" with connections to every river pirate in the riotous port of Natchez-Under-the-Hill--who all seem to have something to hide. Now, with time running out, January seeks clues wherever he can find them--and allies among whoever can help. Working in tandem with a young planter named Jefferson Davies, he must uncover the dark web of corruption, betrayal, and greed that has already cost one man his life...and, if he can't catch a brutal, remorseless killer, will soon cost January and his friends theirs.From the Hardcover edition.From Publishers WeeklyHambly's brilliantly crafted eighth historical (after 2003's Days of the Dead) brings the antebellum South so alive you could swear the author traveled back in time to observe her settings firsthand. One day a week the slaves of New Orleans gather at Circus Square (aka Congo Square): "Those who had garden plots sold their surplus produce: tomatoes and corn… and peaches whose scent turned the thick hot air around them to molten gold." Series hero Benjamin January, a former slave, and his gracious wife Rose own a fine home in which they've begun a school to educate young girls of color. But when the president of the bank where all the Januarys' money has been deposited comes to them and confides that a bank employee has cleaned out the coffers, the pair have only one choice: follow the thief and recover the money before a substantial payment is due on their mortgage. Enlisting the aid of their cultured and charming white ne'er-do-well friend, Hannibal Sefton, the two pose as Hannibal's slaves/servants and board a steamboat heading up the Mississippi River. On the boat, they find themselves amid slave runners, abolitionists and a host of interesting, unsavory and downright terrifying individuals. So when their quarry is transformed into a corpse, it's no wonder the trio have no idea who might be trusted. This riveting novel of suspense is sure to win Hambly many new fans. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistThe latest entry in the deservedly popular Benjamin January series finds the amateur sleuth investigating a couple of mysteries. The bank that holds all his money has suddenly and suspiciously collapsed, and someone has apparently put a curse on a former student in the small school operated by January's wife, Rose. Just goes to show: New Orleans, circa 1836, is a wild and dangerous place. The January novels--this is the eighth since 1997--are solid mysteries, but most readers are not tuning in for the plots. Perhaps because she started out writing sf and fantasy novels (and still keeps her hand in the genre), the author has a sure grasp of the art of writing historical fiction, and the novels in this series are clever mixtures of scholarship and imagination. Where many writers of historical mysteries get bogged down in exposition, or in cataloging details that most readers are not interested in, Hambly keeps things moving, always focused on her characters and her story, and not on showing off the quantity of research she's done. Keep 'em coming! David PittCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved Views: 454
There's never a dull moment for the residents of Beaumont, South Carolina. Lately, a heat wave's spiked the mercury-and everyone's sex drive! These days, when Jamie runs into Max, it's all she can do not to tear his clothes off-and the feeling is mutual. But trouble seems to follow Max like moths to a flame, and Jamie suspects he's all wrong for her. Meanwhile, the lingerie shop is having a sale on edible underwear, while the bakery's selling aphrodisiac-laced brownies and x-rated birthday cakes. Even Jamie's dog, Fleas, is dodging passes from the amorous French poodle next door! But when someone starts bumping off some of the town's more annoying citizens, all clues lead straight to the new personals section in Jamie's newspaper. Pretty soon, things are getting hot and heavy, as Max and Jamie start uncovering secrets-and undressing each other... Views: 452
Enter the character-building Christ-centered world of Elsie Dinsmore. These 19th-century fictional chronicles of a beautiful young heiress in the post-Civil War South have captivated generations of 10- to 14-year-old readers eager to follow Elsie\'s life from childhood to motherhood and beyond. The story of the next generation of the Travilla family is continued in Hendrickson Publisher\'s exclusive reprints of original editions. Each book features a new custom cover illustration.Elsie\'s Kith and Kin, Book 12 While the rest of the family winters at Viamede, Edward and Zoe tend to affairs at Ion and endure an unwelcome guest. Later, while on a business trip, Edward is injured in a train wreck, and the rest of the family returns from Viamede to be with him.At sea, Captain Raymond receives news of a financial windfall and resigns from the Navy to be at home with Violet and his children. He arrives in time to learn that Lulu has accidentally injured her baby sister, Elsie, during a fit of anger.The baby recovers, and Lulu learns how much trouble an uncontrolled temper can be. The captain and Violet purchase Woodburn as their new home, and the family settles down to enjoy its first Christmas there. Views: 452
A collection of short stories. The narrator of the story, Bill Joyce a big, rough bruiser. Bill unfolds a drama that involves a young man’s wife back home and how he reunites the man and wife in wedded bliss. Bill also recalls a time prospecting with a different partner, called Kink, in Arizona who happens to shoot and kill an Indian. Another story of the collection involves a bunch of five Texas boys who travel to Indian Territory for a horse race. Their scheme is to get the Indians to match their money in a big wager and then take off with the pot before the race is over. Enjoy these works of Rex Beach as he give away different breathtaking stories all written in one book. Views: 452
What happens when the person who is your family is someone you aren't bound to by blood? What happens when the person you promise to love and to honor for the rest of your life is not your lover, but your best friend? In Truth & Beauty, her frank and startlingly intimate first work of nonfiction, Ann Patchett shines a fresh, revealing light on the world of women's friendships and shows us what it means to stand together.
Ann Patchett and Lucy Grealy met in college in 1981, and, after enrolling in the Iowa Writers' Workshop, began a friendship that would be as defining to both of their lives as their work was. In her critically acclaimed and hugely successful memoir, Autobiography of a Face, Lucy Grealy wrote about losing part of her jaw to childhood cancer, the years of chemotherapy and radiation, and then the endless reconstructive surgeries. In Truth & Beauty, the story isn't Lucy's life or Ann's life, but the parts of their lives they shared. This is a portrait of unwavering commitment that spans twenty years, from the long, cold winters of the Midwest, to surgical wards, to book parties in New York. Through love, fame, drugs, and despair, this book shows us what it means to be part of two lives that are intertwined.
This is a tender, brutal book about loving a person we cannot save. It is about loyalty, and about being lifted up by the sheer effervescence of someone who knew how to live life to the fullest. Views: 451
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. Views: 451
On a whim of the shogun's mother, a procession has left the sweltering heat of Edo, bound for the cooler climate of Mount Fuji. Among her traveling companions are Reiko, the beautiful wife of Sano Ichiro, the shogun's Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People; Reiko's friend Midori, nine months pregnant; and Lady Yanagisawa, the deranged wife of the shogun's powerful second-in-command. None of them look forward to the trip. But their troubles have only begun when their procession is stopped suddenly on a deserted road. The entire retinue is viciously slaughtered and the four women are bound and taken away, imprisoned by a mysterious kidnapper.Sano now finds himself faced with the most important case of his career. The shogun demands quick action, and under the threat of death, Sano is forced to work with his bitter enemies-Chamberlain Yanagisawa and Police Commissioner Hoshina. The delivery of a ransom note only complicates matters-forcing both Sano and Reiko to take desperate measures.In The Dragon King's Palace, Laura Joh Rowland’s dazzling combination of history and storytelling once again draws us into a sumptuous and treacherous world.From Publishers WeeklyIn Rowland's eighth engrossing 17th-century Japanese mystery (after 2002's The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria), Sano Ichiro, the shogun's Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations and People, is roused in the middle of the night when the shogun's mother and Sano's wife, Reiko, are kidnapped en route to Mount Fuji and their escort slaughtered. The crisis is exacerbated by the identities of the two other abductees: the wife of Sano's primary rival, the chamberlain Yanagisawa, the real power behind the shogun; and the pregnant wife of Sano's chief assistant. Sano's considerable deductive, strategic and diplomatic skills are repeatedly tested as he juggles the caprices of his ruler, who struggles with his figurehead status, Yanagisawa's ambitions for succession and the interests of the court's other power players. The organizer of the crimes, who calls himself the Dragon King after a traditional folk tale, makes an unusual ransom demand that only adds to the mystery of his identity and motivation. While her husband races to put the pieces of the puzzle together before the shogun's recklessness imperils the hostages, Reiko, bright and self-reliant, schemes to free herself and her companions. Rowland's masterful evocation of the period enables the reader to identify with the universal human emotions and drives that propel her characters while absorbing numerous telling details of a different culture and era.Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. From BooklistThe eighth Sano Ichiro mystery is pretty much like its forerunners, which is both good and bad. Good, because the latest adventure of the seventeenth-century Japanese Samurai combines modern detective work with sharp historical drama; bad, because we've seen it all before, seven times, and, aside from the plot (involving the kidnapping of the hero's wife), Rowland isn't really doing anything very new here. Good, because fans of period-themed mysteries will be pleased with the author's narrative style, with the way she introduces historical details subtly, making them part of the story's natural flow; bad, because this same narrative style is becoming rather predictable, as we are now beginning to expect these details to appear at certain points in the story. What began as fresh and exciting, then, has now reached the point where it's becoming formulaic, and that does not bode well for the future. Still, series fans won't be ready to give up yet. This remains a good series, but it needs a second wind. David PittCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved Views: 450
