"Mitford's funny and unforgiving book is the best memento mori we are likely to get. It should be updated and reissued each decade for our spiritual health."--The New York Review of BooksOnly the scathing wit and searching intelligence of Jessica Mitford could turn an exposé of the American funeral industry into a book that is at once deadly serious and side-splittingly funny. When first published in 1963 this landmark of investigative journalism became a runaway bestseller and resulted in legislation to protect grieving families from the unscrupulous sales practices of those in "the dismal trade."Just before her death in 1996, Mitford thoroughly revised and updated her classic study. The American Way of Death Revisited confronts new trends, including the success of the profession's lobbyists in Washington, inflated cremation costs, the telemarketing of pay-in-advance graves, and the effects of monopolies in a death-care industry now... Views: 8
Charlie Bucktin, a bookish thirteen year old, is startled one summer night by an urgent knock on his bedroom window. His visitor is Jasper Jones, an outcast in their small mining town, and he has come to ask for Charlie's help. Terribly afraid but desperate to impress, Charlie follows him into the night.Jasper takes him to his secret glade, where Charlie witnesses Jasper's horrible discovery. With his secret like a brick in his belly, Charlie is pushed and pulled by a town closing in on itself in fear and suspicion. He locks horns with his tempestuous mother, falls nervously in love, and battles to keep a lid on his zealous best friend. In the simmering summer where everything changes, Charlie learns why the truth of things is so hard to know, and even harder to hold in his heart.From the Hardcover edition. Views: 8
In the close-knit community of Chesapeake Shores, Maryland, Susie O'Brien and Mack Franklin's "not dating" claim befuddles everyone, especially since the two spend every spare minute together. Susie's thrilled when their friendship finally heats up. Then, just when happily-ever-after seems within reach, Mack loses the job he loves and Susie faces a devastating diagnosis.But O'Briens always unite in a crisis. Even her cousin Jess, Susie's rival for most of their lives, becomes her staunchest supporter—especially when Mack's former lover comes to town. The stakes are higher than ever before, but Susie's definitely up to the challenge...as long as Mack's right there by her side. Views: 8
Fashions changeChase Etheridge is organizing the most challenging event of his career—his sister's bachelorette party. Normally cool under pressure, the situation has Chase hot under the collar, and he knows exactly who to blame: Lola Lombard, party organizer, queen of all things vintage, and absolute bombshell!But true love is timeless!Behind Lola's pin curls and red lipstick hides a girl who's never believed she amounts to much. It's up to Chase to convince her that he loves her just the way she is, whether dressed in old-style glamour or as his brand-new bride! Views: 8
Barney Thomson — awkward, diffident, Glasgow barber — lives a life of desperate mediocrity. Shunned at work and at home, unable to break out of a twenty-year rut, each dull day blends seamlessly into the next. However, there is no life so tedious that it cannot be spiced up by inadvertent murder, a deranged psychopath, and a freezer full of neatly packaged meat. Barney Thomson’s uninteresting life is about to go from 0 to 60 in five seconds, as he enters the grotesque and comically absurd world of the serial killer… Views: 8
The first time Georgia gets behind a mic at her college radio station (because of a guy, of course...), she's hooked and amazed to find a job where a boss could appreciate her big mouth. Too bad being a smart-mouth can't keep her from getting hurt by one jerk after another. With help from her friends - and loyal listeners - will she finally figure out the real deal about love, dating...and herself? Views: 8
The book that launched the career of one of the world's most popular thriller writers of all time, HMS Ulysses tells the story of enlisted men who rose to great heroism in savage conditions.Alongside The Caine Mutiny and The Cruel Sea, HMS Ulysses is one of the classic novels of the navy at war and a gripping survival tale. On a desperate voyage to Murmansk, the men of convoy FR77 are pushed to the limits of human endurance, crippled by relentless enemy attack and the bitter cold of the Arctic."A story of exceptional courage which grips the imagination." —Daily Telegraph"A brilliant, overwhelming piece of descriptive writing." —The Observer"It deserves an honorable place among twentieth-century war books." —Daily Mail Views: 8