Upon the recent publication of Fasting,
Feasting, critics raved about Anita Desai: "Desai is more than smart; she's an
undeniable genius" (Washington Post Book World). The Wall Street Journal called
Fasting, Feasting "poignant, penetrating . . . a splendid novel, " while the
Boston Globe celebrated Desai's "beautiful literary universe." Now, in this
richly diverse collection, Desai trains her luminous spotlight on private
universes, stretching from India to New England, from Cornwall to Mexico.
Skillfully navigating the fault lines between social obligation and personal
loyalties, the men and women in these nine tales set out on journeys that
suddenly go beyond the pale -- or surprisingly lead them back to where they
started from. In the mischievous title story, a beloved dog brings nothing but
disaster to his obsessed master; in other tales, old friendships and family ties
stir up buried feelings, demanding either renewed commitment or escape. And in
the final exquisite story, a young woman discovers a new kind of freedom in
Delhi's rooftop community.With her trademark "perceptiveness, delicacy of
language, and sharp wit" (Salman Rushdie) in full evidence here, Anita Desai
once again gloriously confirms that she is "India's finest writer in English"
(Independent). Views: 48
Struggling to make a life for his young son when the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company takes a dive, Forrest Gump shares a second series of offbeat adventures that entangle him with the Coca-Cola company and Oliver North. Views: 48
Andrew, Lord Drake, has been cut out of his father's will because of his dissolute manner of living. To be reinstated, Andrew decides to pretend that he has changed his wicked ways.As part of his plan, he wants to convince his father that he is courting a respectable woman with the intention of marrying her. The problem is, he doesn't know any decent women, except for his friend's spinster sister, Miss Caroline Hargreaves. He blackmails the reluctant Caroline into helping him, and so the charade begins . . . Views: 48
Palace Walk is the first novel in Nobel Prize-winner Naguib Mahfouz’s magnificent Cairo Trilogy, an epic family saga of colonial Egypt that is considered his masterwork. The novels of the Cairo Trilogy trace three generations of the family of tyrannical patriarch al-Sayyid Ahmad Abd al-Jawad, who rules his household with a strict hand while living a secret life of self-indulgence. Palace Walk introduces us to his gentle, oppressed wife, Amina, his cloistered daughters, Aisha and Khadija, and his three sons — the tragic and idealistic Fahmy, the dissolute hedonist Yasin, and the soul-searching intellectual Kamal. The family’s trials mirror those of their turbulent country during the years spanning the two world wars, as change comes to a society that has resisted it for centuries. Views: 48
A local superstition or one of history’s monsters come to life? Deep in the Bavarian forest, archaeologists unearth a medieval human skull with a brick stuffed in its mouth. When Annja Creed catches wind of the strange discovery, the TV host and archaeologist rushes to join the dig. But the superstitious locals are furious, fearing the excavation has angered one of the chewing dead - those who rise from their graves to feast on human flesh and blood. And soon she and her colleagues are facing down violent mobs and death threats. As far as Annja is concerned, though, the vampire myth is a load of bunk. Then a child goes missing. Suddenly ensnared in the Czech Republic’s black market underworld, Annja has no trouble believing that someone wants blood. But in this world, evil comes in human form, and Annja has no choice: she must wield Joan of Arc’s sword to protect the innocent. Views: 48
Best-selling author Alice Hoffman's luminous tale of nostalgia and enchantment, for readers both young and old. Hailey and Claire are spending their last summer together when they discover something at the bottom of the murky pool at the Capri Beach Club. There in the depths is a mysterious and beautiful creature with a sharp tongue and a broken heart: a mermaid named Aquamarine who has left her six sisters to search for love on land. Now, as this mythological yet very real being starts to fade in the burning August sun, a rescue is begun. On the edge of growing up, during a summer that is the hottest on record, Hailey and Claire are discovering that life can take an unpredictable course, friendship is forever, and magic can be found in the most unexpected places. Views: 48
Earthquake aftershocks trap Mayor Patrick O'Shea and his assistant Briana Bliss in an elevator. But emergency services are stretched to the limit with 911 calls. The mayor and Briana wait. And passions flare… Briana Bliss planned to use her job as Mayor Patrick O'Shea's assistant to get back at him for allegedly destroying her uncle's political chances. But she's unprepared for the way Patrick makes her feel. And in the close confines of the stalled elevator, Patrick and Briana give in to the attraction that's been sizzling between them for months. Now how will Briana ever prove to Patrick that she acted out of love…and not revenge? Views: 48
