Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy. Views: 401
Sadira Pascal's father is declared dead when his hovership, the 'Bright Star', crashes. But as Sadira looks into her father's crash, she realizes he might just be alive.It's bad enough that Sadira Pascal's father doesn't make it home to celebrate her fifteenth birthday. He might be a busy hovership engineer pulling overtime on a new design, but he's always been home for the important things. It's worse when she discovers her father decided to ride on the maiden voyage of his newest ship, the CAS Bright Star, without even telling her. But things really fall apart during Sadira's field trip with her class to observe the hovership launch. Instead of a successful flight, she watches the Bright Star fall out of the sky. The Central government confirms her father's death, leaving Sadira to pick up the pieces of her former life. While she struggles with her loss, Private Baruj Haddad tries to convince her that her father and the rest of the Bright Star crew are still alive. At first, Sadira doesn't believe there's any hope. But then she stumbles across a message that makes her think maybe, just maybe, her father is still alive. As she digs deeper into the Bright Star's crash, Sadira uncovers secrets about her father's work, secrets that put her and everyone she loves in danger. Views: 401
This short story is a politically charged speculative thriller composed in 2008. It was visionary when originally written. It is alarmingly uncanny today. It’s only fiction until it’s not.The short story titled The Modern Day Gadianton Golden Boy is a speculative political thriller that links the current usurpation of American executive power to an ancient order of secrecy that employed dark oaths to murder and get gain. Prophetic warnings both ancient and modern come into play in this provocative narration. Views: 401
A suspicious distress signal pulls fourteen year old, mechanical genius, and socially inept girl, Aiyela off course to investigate a frigate without a crew, drifting in space, with the unknown lurking in its cargo holds. What looks like wasted time doing a good deed, may turn out to cost more than Aiyela bargained for when she finds out someone else is looking for the ship too.Scott has just captured a video of ball lightning and posted it online. After countless efforts he has finally created his first viral video. The only problem is that everyone else is making viral videos now too and common sense seems to be in short supply. It's up to Scott to figure out what is going on and set things right. Views: 401
"A brilliant study of the mundane, full of unexpected detours and driving prose. Hjorth's novel ingeniously orbits the intimate stories that are possible only when a character has put words on paper and sent them through the post." – New York Times Book Review, "The Best Post Office Novel You Will Read Before the Election""Vigdis Hjorth is one of my favorite contemporary writers." – Sheila Heti, author of Motherhood and How Should a Person Be?From the author of the 2019 National Book Award Longlisted Will and TestamentEllinor, a 35-year-old media consultant, has not been feeling herself; she's not been feeling much at all lately. Far beyond jaded, she picks through an old diary and fails to recognise the woman in its pages, seemingly as far away from the world around her as she's ever been. But when her coworker vanishes overnight, an unusual new task is dropped on her desk. Off she goes to meet the Norwegian Postal... Views: 401
In idyllic Rosewood, Pennsylvania, where Burberry earmuffs keep diamond-studded ears warm, four very pretty girls have done some very wicked things. . . . High school juniors Hanna, Spencer, Emily, and Aria have paid dearly for their sins. A stalker named "A" terrorized them for months and revealed their darkest secrets. But now that A's true identity has been revealed, the girls can finally go back to their pretty little lives. Only, once a pretty little liar, always a pretty little liar - and these girls just can't help but be bad. Hanna will do anything to be Rosewood's queen bee. Spencer starts stealing . . . from her parents. Emily can't stop thinking about her new boyfriend. And Aria approves a little too strongly of her mom's taste in men. As the secrets get darker and the scandals juicier, the consequences turn deadly. After all, girls who forget the past are condemned to repeat it. And in Rosewood, someone is always watching. . . . Views: 401
Felis Dirus is a trio of dark tales distilled from urban madness and scraped from the underbelly of suburban America. From the Lovecraftian “Mother of Crawly Things” to the chilling title story, Berkeley Hunt’s debut collection of short fiction signals the arrival of a bold new talent.Six-year-old Olympia Octavia Penelope Smith hates her name - all three of them. Of course, finding something else would require an okay by her mom and dad, and that's not something they are likely to support. But nothing can stop her from finding a nickname. So one morning, Olivia sets out to find one. Something short, easy-to-remember, and just right for her. Join Olympia as she visits neighborhood friends in her search for the perfect nickname. This is an "Anytime" story for children because it isn't just for reading at bedtime, but it's great for any time. Views: 401
When six-year-old Eric's family makes a sudden move to a new home far away in Hawaii, he finds himself in some very unusual situations. Eric and his trusty dog take many magical and interesting adventures, filled with action and intrigue to capture your child's imagination. They are on a top-secret mission to find Eric's missing teddy bear - the teddy bear his Nana gave him before they moved away.A note to parents: This is the story of a six-year-old boy named Eric. Eric lives in Canada with his mother and father, two big sisters, a baby brother and his Nana. Eric loves his big and happy family very much. When Eric's family makes a sudden move to a new home far away in Hawaii, he finds himself in some very unusual situations. Eric and his faithful dog take many magical and interesting adventures, filled with action and intrigue to capture your child's imagination. They are on a top-secret mission to find Eric's missing teddy bear - the teddy bear his Nana gave him before they moved away. His Nana did not move to Hawaii with the rest of the family, and Eric missed her very much. Now he must find his lost bear.Eric and his golden Labrador Retriever, Golden Bear, make some very unusual friends and unique finds on their travels to find Eric's lost toy. Interesting creatures of all shapes and sizes await Eric in this children's series. The series is geared to spark your child's creativity as they learn a new life-lesson with each venture. Stories you can read to your child without fear of monsters to frighten them... only magic to delight them. In this series, our promise to you, the caregiver, is simple; you can be confident that these books will never contain anything other than good, pure fun for your youngster. With each lesson, we are only reinforcing the positive morals and values that you are already teaching your child as they embark on their own journey through life.So cuddle up in a cosy chair with your child, and together you can plunge into a new odyssey of pure excitement! This is the first book in the 'Adventures With Eric' series. Views: 401
They were friends. They were people. But those around them were not.This is a short stream-of-consciousness story experiment.They were friends. They were people. But those around them were not.Thundertime is a short story experiment in an ultra-modern stream-of-consciousness form, released free as play. Views: 401
A memoir of a young woman, the product of a strict upbringing by conservative Indian parents, who decides to go on a Ram-Singha, her Indian version of the rumspringa, and learns how to dance, swim, drive, travel, and play in order to be happy. Rupinder Gill was raised under the strict rules of her parents' Indian upbringing. While her friends were practicing their pliés, having slumber parties, and spending their summers at camp, Rupinder was cleaning, babysitting her siblings, and watching hours on end of American television. But at age 30, Rupinder realized how much she regretted her lack of childhood adventure. Stepping away from an orderly life of tradition, Rupinder set put to finally experience the things she missed out on. From learning to swim and taking dance lessons, to going to Disney World, her growing to-do list soon became the ultimate trip down non-memory lane. What began as a desire to experience all that had been denied to her leads to a... Views: 401
This is the account of the experiences of Ruth and Naomi from the Bible book of Ruth. It tells the conversations that might have taken place when Ruth is trying to decide to go with her Mother-in-law or stay with her own family.Have you ever wondered what actually took place when Naomi announced she wanted to go home to Israel? This is my interpretation of the conversations that might have happened as Ruth and Orpha try to decide to go with Naomi or stay with their own families in Moab.See if your feelings would be the same as I felt for the two young women as they work through this tough decision. Thrill with them as they both come to the decision that is best for them with the blessings of their Mother-in-law. Views: 401
As a child, David Astle's hero was the Riddler. Figuring out brainteasers like 'Where is a man drowned but still not wet?' (quicksand) and 'How many sides has a circle?' (two - the inside and the outside) became an obsession and, eventually, his life: his cryptic crosswords now appear in The Age and Sydney Morning Herald every week, to the delight and frustration of thousands. In Puzzled, Astle offers a helping hand to the perplexed and the infatuated alike, taking us on a personal tour into the secret life of words. Beginning with a Master Puzzle, he leads us through each of the clues, chapter by chapter, revealing the secrets of anagrams, double meanings, manipulations, spoonerisms and hybrid clues. More than a how-to manual and more than a memoir, Puzzled is a book for word junkies everywhere. Views: 400
In late nineteenth century Lucknow, two rival story-tellers, Syed Muhammad Husain Jah and Ahmed Husain Qamar, wrote a fantasy in the Urdu language whose equal had not been heard before, and which has never been rivalled since. It was called Tilism-e Hoshruba. The writers claimed that the tale had been passed down to them from story-tellers going back centuries: it was a part of the beloved oral epic, The Adventures of Amir Hamza which had come to the Indian subcontinent via Persia and had gained in popularity during the reign of Akbar, the Mughal emperor.The Tilism-e-Hoshruba is the subcontinent's first wholly indigenous Indo-Islamic fantasy epic. It tells the stories of Amir Hamza's military forces, his grandson and his loyal band of tricksters (masters of wit and disguise) as they go to war with Afrasiyab, the sorcerer who rules the magical land of Hoshruba. Fantasy, the occult, adventure and romance play themselves out in a typically... Views: 400
