SUMMARY:The Pulitzer Prize-winning, bestselling novel from one of Americaa??s greatest contemporary writers, repackaged as part of the Perennial fiction promotion. Larry Cooka??s farm is the largest in Zebulon County, Iowa, and a tribute to his hard work and single-mindedness. Proud and possessive, his sudden decision to retire and hand over the farm to his three daughters, is disarmingly uncharacteristic. Ginny and Rose, the two eldest, are startled yet eager to accept, but Caroline, the youngest daughter, has misgivings. Immediately, her father cuts her out. In a??A Thousand Acresa??, Jane Smiley transposes the a??King Leara?? story to the modern day, and in so doing at once illuminates Shakespearea??s original and subtly transforms it. This astonishing novel won both of Americaa??s highest literary awards, the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Criticsa?? Circle Award. Views: 61
A little girl has been slain. Is it Special Agent Sam Jameson's fault? Homeland, Justice, and a powerful US Senator think so.And Sam is afraid they might be right. She's been suspended, and she even faces an indictment. With her beau stuck on an overseas deployment, she's left alone with her guilt, remorse and heartache - until a cryptic and terrifying message propels her out of her darkness and into a morass of international intrigue. Along the way, the clues start to add up, and Sam begins to wonder: was the little girl's tragic death an accident, or something much worse? And what does the CIA have to do with the horrible tragedy?Halfway across the globe, Sam runs into someone from her past. But something's different about him, and it quickly becomes clear he's in a desperate struggle of his own. Three important people in his life have been kidnapped and face a brutal death — that he himself has set in motion.Are all of their fates intertwined? Are Sam and the man from her past... Views: 61
A profoundly courageous and insightful memoir, An American Story documents the events that have shaped journalist Debra Dickerson's conscience.The daughter of former sharecroppers, Dickerson never imagined she would emerge from her squalid St. Louis neighborhood to become an acclaimed journalist with a Harvard Law degree. A constant reader and a straight-A student, nevertheless Dickerson's lack of confidence kept her from accepting the many colleges offers she received. Instead she enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, quickly rising through the ranks. In spite of her success, she recognized within herself deep-seated conflict at being a working class black woman living in a white man's world. Her path to self-acceptance is at the heart of this refreshing narrative.From the Trade Paperback edition. Views: 61
Adijan, a poor messenger girl in an Arabian Nights fantasy world, wishes she could build a world-spanning business empire. Shalimar, her wife, wishes Adijan would spend more time at home. Their landlord wishes Adijan would pay the rent. Adijan's brother-in-law wishes she would get trampled by a herd of camels so that he could marry his sister Shalimar to someone affluent and influential. And of all the wishes in the world, Adijan wishes the genie she's saddled with would grant her wishes instead of treating her with disdain. Be careful what you wish for in a world of genies, sorcerers, and flying carpets. Views: 61
Romance/Erotica. 36992 words long. First published in 2008, 2008 Views: 61
Product DescriptionThree novellas of squishy-noir from Jordan Krall.On the surface, Thompson looks like any other blue collar New Jersey town. But beneath the working class exterior lies a bizarro world of fetishistic crime, sleazy motels, and squid. In these three bizarro-noir novellas, the reader is thrown into a world of murderers, drugs made from squid parts, deformed war veterans, and a mischievous apocalyptic donkey... THE HABERDASHERRed Henry Hooper just got out on parole. He meets his friends, fellow small-time criminals Dix Hayden and Grant Minissi, in a cheap motel to drink a couple beers and perhaps plan another job. Things go sour when Grant takes some bad drugs. Meanwhile, in the next room, strange things are happening that will make Henry's day even worse: a woman is missing her feet and a notorious local gangster Robert Hapertas (aka The Haberdasher) is on his way. And he's not pleased... THE LONGHEADSTommy Pingpong knew it was a mistake sending his partner Jake into the meeting with their boss. Now they were on the run from Peachy, a diaper-wearing gangster who would like nothing better than to kill the both of them. On top of that, the deformed war veterans called the longheads are buying up all the guns in town, planning something big that'll have severe implications for the town of Thompson. THE APOCALYPSE DONKEYWhen Simon Palmer took the black envelope from the tall man in the parking lot, he didn't know that this case of mistaken identity would make his day take such a weird turn for the worst. When the man finally realizes that he gave the envelope to the wrong guy, Simon is thrown into a dangerous cat-and-mouse game that finally leads to a sleazy carnival of squid violence... From the Inside Flap"Krall has quite a flair for outrage as an art form, and with SQUID PULP BLUES, he's created a wholly unique terrascape of Ibsen-like naturalism and morbidity; an extravaganza of white-trash urban/noir horror." - EDWARD LEE, author of The Bighead and Brides of the Impaler"An intriguing mix of film noir storytelling strained through a colander of pure bizarro." - TOM PICCIRILLI, author of A Choir of Ill Children and The Midnight Road"SQUID PULP BLUES is a trip to the rusted underbelly of a sunken hulk, one loaded with enough nuclear waste to make Chernobyl seem like a giggle. By the time you return, strange new organs have blossomed within your brain, tentacles have replaced your limbs, and you couldn't be happier about it. Krall's vision of bizarro is not only dark and full of mystery, but guaranteed to entertain as well." - JOHN EDWARD LAWSON, author of Sin Conductor"Jordan Krall's writing takes you places you never knew you wanted to go. In Squid Pulp Blues, the place is called Thompson, New Jersey. And here, you'll find no shortage of violence, trauma, and more importantly, squid. The locals may not be friendly. In fact, most of them are psychopathic assholes. But as long as they stay on the pages where they belong, you'll have one bloody good time in their company." - JEREMY C. SHIPP, author of Vacation and Sheep and Wolves
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An agent like Matt Helm might be a nice man to live with, for a while -- but he's not the kind a woman would want to marry. Unless, perhaps, the marriage was part of an ingenious cover. Here the man whose daily bread is violence takes himself the most unlikely bride in the world -- just to make sure that death doesn't part them. Views: 61
A dragon. A scholar. A very short story about death.Approximately 850 words. Views: 61
