Meet The Bear—a cat who carries the weight of the world on his furry shoulders, and whose wise, owl-like eyes seem to ask, Can you tell me why I am a cat please? Like many intellectuals, The Bear would prefer a life of quiet solitude with plenty of time to gaze forlornly into space and contemplate society's ills. Unfortunately, he is destined to spend his days surrounded by felines of a significantly lower IQ. There is Janet, a large man cat who often accidentally sets fire to his tail by walking too close to lighted candles; Ralph, a preening tabby who enjoys meowing his own name at 5AM; and Shipley, Ralph's brother, who steals soup but is generally relaxed once you pick him up and turn him upside down. And then there's Tom Cox, writing with wit and charm about the unexpected adventures that go hand-in-hand with a life at the beck and call of four cats. This heartwarming Sunday Times bestselling memoir about a man at the mercy of his unpredictable,... Views: 6
Fourteen-year-old Ben Tracy goes to Pakistan with his environmental-activist mother, who then travels across the border into Afghanistan, leaving Ben behind, where it’s safe. But Ben and his new friend, Aarya, are kidnapped and find themselves caught up in a terrifying planned Taliban attack that could destroy Southern Afghanistan killing thousands. And when Ben sees their kidnappers are carrying some sort of weapon that looks like a suitcase, he realizes that their lives are in serious danger. Views: 6
What have we not done to live forever? Adam Leith Gollner, the critically acclaimed author of The Fruit Hunters, weaves together religion, science, and mythology in a gripping exploration of the most universal of human obsessions: immortality. Raised without religion, Adam Leith Gollner was struck by mankind’s tireless efforts to cheat aging and death. In a narrative that pivots between profundity and hilarity, he brings us into the world of those whose lives are shaped by a belief in immortality. From a Jesuit priest on his deathbed to antiaging researchers at Harvard, Gollner— sorting truth from absurdity—canvasses religion and science for insight, along with an array of cults, myths, and fringe figures. He journeys to David Copperfield’s archipelago in the Bahamas, where the magician claims to have found “a liquid that reverses genes.” He explores a cryonics facility, attends a costume party set in the year 2068 with a group of radical life-extensionists, and soaks in the transformative mineral waters at the Esalen Institute. Looking to history, Gollner visits St. Augustine, Florida, where Ponce de León is thought to have sought the Fountain of Youth. Combining immersive reporting, rigorous research, and lyrical prose, Gollner charts the rise of longevity science from its alchemical beginnings to modern-day genetic interventions. He delves into the symbolic representation of eternal life and its connection to water. Interlaced throughout is a compelling meditation on the nature of belief, showing how every story we tell about immortality is a story about the meaning of death. “Part journalist, part detective, part scientist.” (New York Post). Adam Leith Gollner has written a rollicking and revelatory examination of our age-old notion of living forever.** Views: 6
In this lively and colorful book of popular history, journalist Betsy Israel shines a light on the old stereotypes that have stigmatized single women for years and celebrates their resourceful sense of spirit, enterprise, and unlimited success in a world where it is no longer unusual or unlikely to be unwed. Drawing extensively on primary sources, including private journals, newspaper stories, magazine articles, advertisements, films, and other materials from popular media, Israel paints remarkably vivid portraits of single women—and the way they were perceived—throughout the decades. From the nineteenth-century spinsters, of New England to the Bowery girls of New York City, from the 1920s flappers to the 1940s working women of the war years and the career girls of the 1950s and 1960s, single women have fought to find and feel comfortable in that room of their own. One need only look at Bridget Jones and the Sex and the City gang to see that single women still maintain an uneasy relationship with the rest of society—and yet they radiate an aura of glamour and mystery in popular culture. As witty as it is well researched, as thoughtful as it is lively, Bachelor Girl is a must-read for women everywhere. Views: 6
M?lodie is the heartfelt memoir of a Japanese man's life with his golden retriever—or rather of his golden retriever's life with him. Fidelity, patience, attachment, love and family ties are illuminated through the demands and joys of living with a large dog in a small apartment in Tokyo.Akira Mizubayashi's attachment to M?lodie profoundly transforms how he lives his life and makes him reimagine the nature of relationships between humans and animals.In his homage to M?lodie, Mizubayashi offers a moving account of faithful love and compromise. Views: 6
Once the toast of good society in Victoria's England, the extraordinary conjurer Edward Moon no longer commands the respect that he did in earlier times. Still, each night he returns to the stage of his theater to amaze his devoted, albeit dwindling, audience, aided by his partner, the Somnambulist—a silent, hairless, hulking giant who, when stabbed, does not bleed. But these are strange, strange times in England, with the oddest of sorts prowling London's dank underbelly. And the very bizarre death of a disreputable actor has compelled a baffled police constabulary to turn once again to Edward Moon for help—inevitably setting in motion events that will shatter his increasingly tenuous grasp on reality. From Publishers WeeklyStarred Review. Set in Victorian London, this superb debut from British author Barnes raises the bar for historical thrillers, starting with its curious opening line: Be warned. This book has no literary merit whatsoever. A page-turner, it's full of peculiar characters, notably Edward Moon, a highly unorthodox detective, and Moon's bizarre sidekick, known only as the Somnambulist. Moon, a conjuror by profession whose act has fallen on hard times, has cracked some of the city's most notorious murders. Now, he's leading the investigation into a shadowy religious group aiming to overtake London and do away with its oppressive, bourgeois tendencies. Moon is a remarkable invention, a master of logic and harborer of all sorts of unnatural habits and mannerisms. The Somnambulist—a giant, milk-swigging mute—doesn't appear to be human at all, yet serves as Moon's moral as well as intellectual compass. Together, they wend their way through a London rich in period detail. Barnes saves his best surprise for the story's homestretch, when he reveals the identity of his narrator, who's been cleverly pulling strings since the opening. (Feb.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Review"A cheeky tale...salvaged from the sensationalist novels of the past three centuries....it doesn't take an English-lit wonk to appreciate the antic mind that would name two of the grotesquely deformed prostitutes in Mrs. Puggsley's brothel after virginal victims of Count Dracula." (New York Times )"A cheeky tale...salvaged from the sensationalist novels of the past three centuries....it doesn’t take an English-lit wonk to appreciate the antic mind that would name two of the grotesquely deformed prostitutes in Mrs. Puggsley’s brothel after virginal victims of Count Dracula." -- New York Times"A comic extravaganza, deftly plotted, fiendishly clever, and wonderfully funny. . . . One of the classiest entertainments I've read." (Christopher Bram, author of Exiles in America )"A comic extravaganza, deftly plotted, fiendishly clever, and wonderfully funny. . . . One of the classiest entertainments I’ve read." -- Christopher Bram, author of Exiles in America"A first novel that shows all the polish and poise of a master storyteller..By turns disquieting, funny, and taunting." (St. Louis Post-Dispatch )"Anyone who loves a good, kind of creepy thriller most likely will find something to love in [these] pages.. Thoroughly enjoyable." (Kansas City Star )"Macabre wit and stylistic panache. Parliament should immediately pass a law requiring Barnes to write a sequel." (James Morrow, author of The Last Witchfinder and The Philosopher's Apprentice )"Magical, dark, beautifully odd-and utterly compelling-this is an astonishing debut." (Michael Marshall, author of The Intruders )"Old school entertainment in the penny-dreadful tradition that almost succeeds in being as sublime as it is ridiculous." (Entertainment Weekly )"Sneaky, cheeky, and dark in the best possible way, Jonathan Barnes' massively entertaining THE SOMNAMBULIST manages to make the familiar daringly unfamiliar. I enjoyed the heck out of this novel." (Jeff Vandermeer )"Strange, outrageous, and wonderful . There is much that is strange, magical, and darkly hilarious about this book . An original and monumentally inventive piece of work by a writer still in his 20s. Barnes seems to leave himself room for a sequel-a consummation devoutly to be wished." (Washington Post )"The Somnambulist is not your great-grandfather's mystery yarn." (Richmond Times-Dispatch )"This superb debut from British author Barnes raises the bar for historical thrillers." (Publishers Weekly )"This superb debut from British author Barnes raises the bar for historical thrillers." -- Publishers Weekly"[B]rilliant...Barnes crafts one of the finest first novels of the young century...Truly surprising plot twists and red herrings abound." (Austin Chronicle )"[B]rilliant...Barnes crafts one of the finest first novels of the young century...Truly surprising plot twists and red herrings abound." -- Austin Chronicle Views: 6
Gwen Bishop, wife, mother, and struggling real estate agent, has two big fears: claustrophobia and being buried in suburban obscurity. When she signs her dream listing, a multi-million dollar beachfront property in Laguna Beach, California, she's sure her problems are behind her. And they would be, if it wasn't for the secret in the basement and the body in an upstairs bedroom.When the crime scene tape comes down, Gwen enlists the aid of a handsome co-worker with a background in construction to help her ready the house for sale and bolster her flagging courage. But every time they're ready to put it back on the market, something goes horribly wrong. She must face old fears and new ones, temptations and buried truths. Gwen is determined to sell the dream house—or die trying. Views: 6
"I have no intention of marrying you!" Lizzie was astounded when her widowed father decided to marry Noah Jordan's beautiful sister. It made her all the more aware that it was time she found a husband of her own! But that didn't mean she was about to accept Noah's marriage proposal.... Noah was rich, gorgeous, charming, but he saw marriage to Lizzie simply as a means of keeping her under control--a temporary measure to give the newlyweds time alone. Lizzie was determined not to become a convenient bride--but Noah was equally determined to have her! Views: 6
SAS Sergeant Geordie Sharp is required to undertake two top-secret missions, in the full knowledge that, if things go wrong, the authorities will deny all involvement. In the first mission he is to serve as a commander of a hit team on a Black, or 100 per cent non-attributable operation assigned to the SAW, the Regiment's ultra-secret Subversive Action Wing. His target is an Iraqi who defected to Libya after the Gulf War. The aim is to kill him and leave no clue to the identity or origin of the assassins. Returning to base, Sharp finds he must also carry out a high-level political assassination on mainland Britain. If he fails, his four-year-old son will die at the hands of the IRA. Trapped between opposing forces in a fight to the death, he twists and turns through a nightmare maze, desperately seeking some way of averting tragedy. Who will be hit the hardest — Geordie Sharp or the British government? Views: 6
Burqas, car bombs, and Bombay Sapphire – welcome to life in post-Taliban Kabul from the viewpoint of Sally Cooper, an Australian journalist and aid worker who took a job training journalists for a United Nations humanitarian news agency.When she arrived in Afghanistan, Sally knew next to nothing about the country. Once in Kabul, she moved into the Karwan Sara guesthouse – and quickly met a cast of characters that drew her into the strange realities of life in "the Ghan".Some of the many questions posed include: What do you do when you discover your male hotel cleaner wearing your clothes? How do you blend into the background at a Friday night dog fight when you're the only woman there – and you're a blonde Westerner? Under what circumstances do you decide that wearing a burqa is for your own protection? How do you live and work in a place where the car next to yours at the traffic lights could be driven by a suicide bomber?Irreverent, action-packed,... Views: 6
In A Killing in the Hills, a powerful, intricate debut from Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Julia Keller, a mother and a daughter try to do right by a town and each other before it's too late.What's happening in Acker's Gap, West Virginia? Three elderly men are gunned down over their coffee at a local diner, and seemingly half the town is there to witness the act. Still, it happened so fast, and no one seems to have gotten a good look at the shooter. Was it random? Was it connected to the spate of drug violence plaguing poor areas of the country just like Acker's Gap? Or were Dean Streeter, Shorty McClurg, and Lee Rader targeted somehow?One of the witnesses to the brutal incident was Carla Elkins, teenaged daughter of Bell Elkins, the prosecuting attorney for Raythune County, WV. Carla was shocked and horrified by what she saw, but after a few days, she begins to recover enough to believe that she might be uniquely placed to help her mother do her job.After all, what better way to repair their fragile, damaged relationship? But could Carla also end up doing more harm than good—in fact, putting her own life in danger?Review"A Killing in the Hills superbly evokes the hard times and wooded beauty of a poverty-stricken county in West Virginia. . .A finely written and engrossing debut."—*Houston Chronicle“A Killing In The Hills* is a gripping, beautifully-crafted murder mystery that shows that small-town West Virginia is no longer Mayberry. Great reading.”—SCOTT TUROW“Julia Keller is that rare talent who combines gripping suspense, a fabulous sense of place and nuanced characters you can't wait to come back to. A must read.”—KARIN SLAUGHTER“A Killing in the Hills is a remarkably written and remarkably tense debut. I loved it.”—DENNIS LEHANE"Julia Keller's A Killing in the Hills is a terrific debut—atmospheric, suspenseful, assured. I hope there's more to come in the story of Bell Elkins and Acker's Gap."—LAURA LIPPMAN"Be careful opening this book because once you do you won't be able to close it. Instead, clear the weekend, silence the phone and settle into Acker's Gap, a place as fascinating and fraught with violence and beauty as Daniel Woodrell's Ozarks or William Gay's Tennessee. A killer novel."—TOM FRANKLIN“Outstanding. . .Keller does a superb job showing both the natural beauty of Appalachia and the hopeless anger of the people trapped there in poverty. . .Unforgettable.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review, Pick of the Week)"A page-turner with substance and depth, this is as suspenseful and entertaining as it is accomplished."—Booklist (starred review)“A fictional debut for a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, born and raised in West Virginia, whose love for the state, filled with natural beauty and deep poverty, pervades a mystery that has plenty of twists and turns and a shocking conclusion.”—Kirkus (starred review) About the AuthorJULIA KELLER was born and raised in West Virginia, and now lives in Chicago and Ohio. In her career as a journalist, she won the Pulitzer Prize for a three-part series she wrote for the Chicago Tribune about a small town in Illinois rocked by a deadly tornado. A Killing in the Hills is her first mystery. Views: 6
Bell Elkins, prosecuting attorney for Raythune county, West Virginia, had always believed what she'd been told: Her mother abandoned the family when Bell and her sister, Shirley, were children. Later, Teresa Dolan died somewhere out West.And then comes a shattering discovery.During an excavation in a remote area of the county, a skeleton is found. DNA testing proves it is related to DNA already on file: that of a convicted felon named Shirley Dolan. Along with the age and approximate time of death, the DNA link leads to a chilling conclusion: These are the remains of Bell's mother, Teresa Dolan. She didn't run away. She was here all along. And further examination reveals that she was a homicide victim.Bell automatically pins the blame on her late father, Donnie Dolan. But evidence emerges that it could not have been him. And so Bell must solve the most agonizingly personal case of her career: Who murdered her mother?A Haunting of the Bones is another... Views: 6
