New York Times bestselling author Carrie Jones teams up with acclaimed cowriter Steven Wedel in the supernatural mystery, In the Woods...It should have been just another quiet night on the farm when Logan witnessed the attack, but it wasn't.Something is in the woods. Something unexplainable. Something deadly.Hundreds of miles away, Chrystal's plans for summer in Manhattan are abruptly upended when her dad reads tabloid coverage of some kind of grisly incident in Oklahoma. When they arrive to investigate, they find a witness: a surprisingly good-looking farm boy.As townsfolk start disappearing and the attacks get ever closer, Logan and Chrystal will have to find out the truth about whatever's hiding in the woods...before they become targets themselves.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied. Views: 228
When twin classmates are abducted from Bolton Prep, Tory and the Virals decide there’s no one better equipped than them to investigate. But the gang has other problems to face. Their powers are growing wilder, and becoming harder to control. Chance Claybourne is investigating the disastrous medical experiment that twisted their DNA. The bonds that unite them are weakening, threatening the future of the pack itself. The Virals must decipher the clues and track down a ruthless criminal before he strikes again, all while protecting their secret from prying eyes. And everyone seems to be watching. Views: 228
A compendium of the author’s Indian stage and
radio plays:"Slighted Souls" is a poignant love story set in rural
Telangana, beset with feudal exploitation of the downtrodden dalits. Besides forcing
the dalits to toil in the fields as bonded labor without
impunity, the land owning doras had no qualms in reducing the
womenfolk of this ilk as sex slaves in the gadis, which results in an armed rebellion engulfing two young lovers."Men at work on Women at work" is a tragic-comic episode
depicting the fallout of sexual harassment at the workplace in the Indian urban
setting with its traditional cultural underpinnings."Castle of Despair", built on the slippery ground of
man's innate urge for one-upmanship, portrays its facade of falsity on the
grand stage of human tragedy.
The radio play, "Love on Hold", lends voice to the felt
anxieties of a man and a woman as their old flame gets rekindled and the
dilemmas of possession faced by the couple in a conservative cultural
background.Book excerpt from Slighted souls - A political stage play' for a feel of its stage:Scene – 1Voice
Over: Under the British
Raj in India,
the self-indulging Nizams of Hyderabad abdicated the administration of their
vast principality to doralu, the
village heads, letting them turn the areas under their domain
into their personal fiefdoms. While the successive Nizams were obsessed with
building palaces and acquiring jewelry, the village heads succeeded in ushering
in an oppressive era of tyrannical order. Acting as loose cannon from their
palatial houses called gadis, the doralu succeeded in foisting an inimical
feudal order upon the downtrodden dalits.
Besides making these dalits toil for
them as cheap labor without impunity, the doralu
had no qualms in making vassals out of the hapless women folk. What with the
police patels and the revenue patwaris in nexus with the landed gentry
and the moneyed shaukars making a
common cause with the doralu in their
unabated exploitation, their sub-human condition ensured that the dalits were distressed economically, degraded socially and debased
morally. Ironically, lending the
privileged few the muscle power to perpetrate the inimical social order were
their henchmen from the other backward classes. Moreover, given the British
political pragmatism of an indifference to the Indian caste conundrum the
downtrodden dalits had nowhere to run
for cover. Though the merger of their province with
the Union of India brought the curtains down on the Nizams’ two-hundred year
misrule, the exploitation of the rural dalits
by the dora-patel-patwari nexus
continued unabated. And that led to the formation of 'communes' as part of a
peasant movement in July 1948 under the Telangana
Struggle that didn’t take off any way.
On the other hand as the seeds of egalitarianism began to take roots in the
urban Indian soil, in time, these “slighted souls” too began to envision the
dawn of an equitable era for them. However, the nascent upward mobility of the
downtrodden was at odds with the vested interests of the feudal order, and to
nip the dalit moral assertiveness in
the bud, the ‘axis of evil’ saw to it that such were brutalized to make an
example of them.“Slighted Souls” scripts the life of the
downtrodden of Rampur
nearly a decade after the famous but failed peasant struggle of Telangana.
Making cohorts with Muthyal Rao the dora
in oppressing its dalits are Papa Rao
the Police Patel, Rami Reddy the Patwari, Papi Reddy the landlord and
Shaukar Suryam the moneylender. Beginning with the life and times of Yellaiah
and his wife Mallamma this play unfolds the urge of the deprived to unyoke
themselves, and the desperation of the privileged to rein in them.[Curtains up: Mallamma sits in front of
her thatched hut in the dalit mohalla
weaving a bamboo basket. Enter: Yellaiah, and seeing him, she goes into the hut
to fetch some water for him, and he takes over the work.]Mallamma [Back with a glass of water]: Why make
a mess of it maava.Yellaiah [Taking over the glass]: Take it I’m
giving them their due.Mallamma: I wonder how they’re harming you.Yellaiah [Having empted the glass]: Aren’t they
harsh on my darling’s delicate hands? Mallamma [Taking back the glass]: I’m glad
you’re still fond of your old woman.Yellaiah: Who said you’re old dear. I’m ever
scared that some dora or a patel might grab my Malli.Mallamma
[Taking the bamboo
work]: You know it would never be the case.Yellaiah: Well but still.Mallamma:
Leave alone the patels and the patwaris, would the dora ever forget that incident in a hurry? Besides, I’m behind the
bamboo curtain, am I not? Yellaiah: Well who can forget that potential
tragedy turned farce? [He laughs heartily]. But still it hurts to let you toil
day and night.Mallamma: So be it, till our Narsimma becomes a
big officer. Till then, the fact that you care keeps it going. Yellaiah: Where is Sarakka?Mallamma: Wonder why she hasn’t turned up yet.Yellaiah
[Making a move to get up]:
Why not I better check up at her school. Mallamma
[Holding him back]:
Isn’t it enough that you’ve been toiling like a mule all day long. Yellaiah: Why their lot is any day better dear.
They are well-fed by peddollu and
attended by doctors. See, they’ve doctors to look after them but we’ve to put
with the quacks. I hear even their lives are insured these days.Mallamma: Well, mules have a price tag on them,
but what about us. Don’t dalits come
cheaper by the dozen?[Enter: Maisaiah on his way in a hurry.]Yellaiah:
O Maisaiah, where are you running to now?Maisaiah: Running around on Shaukar’s errands,
oh, how I’ve forgot about memsaab. She said she has some work for me before he
returned from Warangal.[Exit: Maisaiah.]Yellaiah: Why, their women too boss over our
men, don’t they? How I wish our Narsimma won’t have to put up with all
that. Mallamma: Why should he as Pantulayya says he’s bright. He feels the same way about our
Sarakka, and Renuka. But I think Renuka
is better than both.Yellaiah: Don’t I know you’re always partial
towards your brother’s daughter.Mallamma: It’s as if I’m a stepmother to your
kids. Yellaiah: Why get hurt dear, I was just joking.
But still our kids are hot heads while she carries a clear head? If not for
you, wouldn’t they have become rebels by now?Mallamma: Whatever, once he sets his mind;
Narsimma is not the one to waver. And Sarakka too is developing the same
traits, isn’t she?Yellaiah: Well, how you’ve been drumming him not
to get distracted from his studies.Mallamma: Why not? You know how we’re undone by
being unpad. I want all three of them
to be well educated. I’ve been hoping that an educated Renuka makes an ideal
wife for our Narsimma. But sadly vadina
seems to have developed second thoughts about giving her to him.Yellaiah: Don’t I see Anasuya is rooting for
Saailu, her good for nothing brother. Well, we can only hope that your brother
Yadagiri puts his foot down for once.Mallamma: But can he do that? Any way, there is
still a long way to go. Let’s see what the future has in store for them.Yellaiah: What a wretched life ours is Malli? We
don’t even have a say in our own affairs. It’s Papi Reddy Patel who’s behind all this. And don’t I see his game plan? Mallamma: Don’t they say woman is woman’s enemy.
Let’s hope Renuka’s fate prevails over vadina’s
whims.Yellaiah: How I wish that happens.Mallamma: I’m quite hopeful, more so as times
are changing.Yellaiah: Wish I’ve your strength of belief
Malli.Mallamma: Maava,
if you want change, you’ve got to dream about it. Yellaiah: How’re we to dream Malli, when life
itself is a nightmare? Oh, how the peddollu
have reduced us.[Enter Sarakka with a slate and a few
school books, and collapses in front of them.]Yellaiah: Malli quick, fetch some water for
Sarakka.[Even as Mallamma brings in some water,
Yellaiah takes Sarakka in his lap. After the mother sprinkles some water on
her, the girl gets up and greedily drinks from the tumbler.]Mallamma: What happened to you my child?Sarakka: I felt thirsty on the way amma. But they didn’t allow me to drink
from their well.Yellaiah: They refuse water to a thirsty child!
Oh, how lowly are these peddollu.Mallamma: Well, their well is full of frogs, yet
they think it gets polluted if we drink from it. What an irony?Yellaiah: Why, being a frog in the well is
better than the bane of being a dalit. Mallamma: Oh, why did God make it so inhuman for
us?Yellaiah: And see their gall; they say its God’s
own will. Isn’t it like rubbing salt on our wounds?Mallamma: He must be a cruel God to say that.
But did He say that?Sarakka: We’re dearer to God, that’s why
Gandhiji said we’re harijan. We’ve
that lesson in our class.Yellaiah: If only Gandhiji lived long enough to
make it true for us.Sarakka: Maastaaru
says God helps only those who help themselves.Mallamma: Who knows another mahatma might be waiting in the wings to pick up the threads?Yellaiah: Having made us anguthachaps all along, mercifully, they’re letting our children
study these days.Mallamma: Well, grudgingly. Whatever, it’s going
to be the turning point for us.[Enter a tired Narsimma with his
schoolbag] Yellaiah: How our poor Narsimma has to walk all
those miles. If only we’ve a high school here.Mallamma: Why’re you so dull my boy? Narsimma: I couldn’t go to school amma.Yellaiah: Why what’s the matter?Narsimma: I was crossing the gadi and the dorasani held me. As their Maali
fell ill, she made me work all day in the garden.Mallamma: Why, when it’s julum on us, the dorasanlu score
no less.Narsimma: And all the while she was yelling,
Narsiga, Narsiga, Narsiga. It’s as if she can’t get my name right.Yellaiah: Well, they think we’re not entitled to
our name even.Mallamma
to Narsimma: Bear all
that for now my boy. Once you’re a B.A., all will call you Narsimma. Yellaiah
to Mallamma: I’ll sell
my shirt to make him a B.A., and it’s my word to you. [There is a commotion outside, and
Sarakka exits.] Sarakka
[Reenters]: Maisaiah mama is being carried on a cart. Shaukar Saab is also there. Yellaiah: Let me find out what’s the
matter. Mallamma: I’ll also come. Lachamma might need me.[Exit: Yellaiah and Mallamma leaving
Narsimma and Sarakka. Curtains down.] Views: 227
If You Could Change Your Life by Reversing Your Biggest Regrets, Sorrows and Mistakes...Would You?
1 New York Times bestselling author and renowned radio and television host Glenn Beck delivers an instant holiday classic about boyhood memories, wrenching life lessons, and the true meaning of the gifts we give to one another in love.
We weren't wealthy, we weren't poor -- we just were. We never wanted for anything, except maybe more time together....
When Eddie was twelve years old, all he wanted for Christmas was a bike. Although his life had gotten harder -- and money tighter -- since his father died and the family bakery closed...Eddie dreamed that somehow his mother would find a way to have his dream bike gleaming beside their modest Christmas tree that magical morning.
What he got from her instead was a sweater. "A stupid, handmade, ugly sweater" that young Eddie left in a crumpled ball in the corner of his room.
Scarred deeply by the realization that kids don't always get what they want, and too young to understand that he already owned life's most valuable treasures, that Christmas morning was the beginning of Eddie's dark and painful journey on the road to manhood. It will take wrestling with himself, his faith, and his family -- and the guidance of a mysterious neighbor named Russell -- to help Eddie find his path through the storm clouds of life and finally see the real significance of that simple gift his mother had crafted by hand with love in her heart.
Based on a deeply personal true story, The Christmas Sweater is a warm and poignant tale of family, faith and forgiveness that offers us a glimpse of our own lives -- while also making us question if we really know what's most important in them. Views: 227
In Eat the cookie...Buy the shoes, well known authorand speaker Joyce Meyer brings the issue of balance in our lives to the forefront. Not diminishing the importance of discipline, she lets us know that every once in a while it's okay to get off our structured regimen and enjoy a cookie, buy that pair of shoes you've been eyeballing, or even both! Views: 227
From the internationally bestselling author of Ender’s Game comes the riveting finale to the story of Rigg, a teenager who possesses a secret talent that allows him to see the paths of people’s pasts.
In Pathfinder, Rigg joined forces with another teen with special talents on a quest to find Rigg’s sister and discover the true depth and significance of their powers. Then Rigg’s story continued in Ruins as he was tasked to decipher the paths of the past before the arrival of a destructive force with deadly intentions. Now, in Visitors, Rigg’s journey comes to an epic and explosive conclusion as everything that has been building up finally comes to pass, and Rigg is forced to put his powers to the test in order to save his world and end the war once and for all. Views: 226
The War is over, won by Ender Wiggin and his team of brilliant child-warriors. The enemy is destroyed, the human race is saved. Ender himself refuses to return to the planet, but his crew has gone home to their families, scattered across the globe. The battle school is no more.
But with the external threat gone, the Earth has become a battlefield once more. The children of the Battle School are more than heroes; they are potential weapons that can bring power to the countries that control them. One by one, all of Ender's Dragon Army are kidnapped. Only Bean escapes; and he turns for help to Ender's brother Peter.
Peter Wiggin, Ender's older brother, has already been manipulating the politics of Earth from behind the scenes. With Bean's help, he will eventually rule the world. Views: 226
Helga has more danger in her life than most beasts her age—Wrackshee slavers after her, a vicious attack by bandits that nearly kills her, a race against dragons pursuing her, and leading a daring rebellion against the insidious WooZan. A dangerous quest to solve mysteries in her own past leads Helga and her comrades on a journey that will forever change them, and upset ancient civilizations. Views: 226
Nineteen-year-old Nayeli works at a taco shop in her Mexican village and dreams about her father, who journeyed to the US to find work. Recently, it has dawned on her that he isn't the only man who has left town. In fact, there are almost no men in the village--they've all gone north. While watching The Magnificent Seven, Nayeli decides to go north herself and recruit seven men--her own "Siete Magníficos"--to repopulate her hometown and protect it from the bandidos who plan on taking it over.
Filled with unforgettable characters and prose as radiant as the Sinaloan sun, INTO THE BEAUTIFUL NORTH is the story of an irresistible young woman's quest to find herself on both sides of the fence. Views: 226
On October 11 the television star Jason Taverner is so famous that 30 million viewers eagerly watch his prime-time show. On October 12 Jason Taverner is not a has-been but a never-was -- a man who has lost not only his audience but all proof of his existence. And in the claustrophobic betrayal state of Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said, loss of proof is synonyms with loss of life.
Taverner races to solve the riddle of his disappearance", immerses us in a horribly plausible Philip K. Dick United States in which everyone -- from a waiflike forger of identity cards to a surgically altered pleasure -- informs on everyone else, a world in which omniscient police have something to hide. His bleakly beautiful novel bores into the deepest bedrock self and plants a stick of dynamite at its center. Views: 226
One family’s household has been in a state of disarray because of one small furry problem. Meet Houdini, an extraordinarily brilliant escapologist. No, not that Houdini. This one is a hamster. Once you meet him, you will understand that his owners just couldn’t name him anything else, for his name is quite fitting. He can escape from anything—a cage or the clutches of a mean cat. While on his escapades, he causes all kinds of trouble from chewing through wires to causing a flood. But Houdini thinks it’s all worth it, because he is desperate to explore the great Outdoors. But once he gets out, will he ever come back? Or will this be his final escape?
From the Trade Paperback edition. Views: 225
In beautiful, evocative prose, Gide's short novel explores such themes as love, blindness, honor, and mortality. Views: 225
In this gripping novel, Saint-Exupéry tells about the brave men who piloted night mail planes from Patagonia, Chile, and Paraguay to Argentina in the early days of commercial aviation. Preface by André Gide. Translated by Stuart Gilbert. Views: 225
