"The emotional and moral complexity that [Jane Smiley] uncovers in the characters of these resonant novellas confirms [her] singular talent. ORDINARY LOVE & GOOD WILL is an extraordinary achievement."
THE WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLD
ORDINARY LOVE
At a reunion with her grown children, a woman recalls the long-ago affair that ended her relationship with their father--and changed all their lives irrevocably.
GOOD WILL
Despite the carefully self-sufficient life he has designed for his small family, a man discovers that even the right choices have unexpected consequences--sometimes heart-breaking ones.
From the Paperback edition. Views: 539
Fans of Neil Gaiman, Holly Black, and Maggie Stiefvater will embrace the richly drawn, Norse-influenced alternate world of the United States of Asgard, where cell phones, rock bands, and evangelical preachers coexist with dragon slaying, rune casting, and sword training in schools. Where the president runs the country alongside a council of Valkyries, gods walk the red carpet with Hollywood starlets, and the U.S. military has a special battalion dedicated to eradicating Rocky Mountain trolls.
Signy Valborn was seven years old when she climbed the New World Tree and met Odin Alfather, who declared that if she could solve a single riddle, he would make her one of his Valkyrie. For ten years Signy has trained in the arts of war, politics, and leadership, never dreaming that a Greater Mountain Troll might hold the answer to the riddle, but that’s exactly what Ned the Spiritless promises her. A mysterious troll hunter who talks in riddles and ancient poetry, Ned is a hard man to trust. Unfortunately, Signy is running out of time. Accompanied by an outcast berserker named Soren Bearstar, she and Ned take off across the ice sheets of Canadia to hunt the mother of trolls and claim Signy’s destiny.
From the Hardcover edition. Views: 538
The Lady of the Barge and Others, Entire Collection is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of W. W. (William Wymark) Jacobs then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. Views: 538
OUR NEW NEIGHBORS AT PONKAPOG BY THOMAS BAILEY ALDRICH When I saw the little house building, an eighth of a mile beyond my own, on the Old Bay Road, I wondered who were to be the tenants. The modest structure was set well back from the road, among the trees, as if the inmates were to care nothing whatever for a view of the stylish equipages which sweep by during the summer season. For my part, I like to see the passing, in town or country; but each has his own unaccountable taste. The proprietor, who seemed to be also the architect of the new house, superintended the various details of the work with an assiduity that gave me a high opinion of his intelligence and executive ability, and I congratulated myself on the prospect of having some very agreeable neighbors. It was quite early in the spring, if I remember, when they moved into the cottage—a newly married couple, evidently: the wife very young, pretty, and with the air of a lady; the husband somewhat older, but still in the first flush of manhood. It was understood in the village that they came from Baltimore; but no one knew them personally, and they brought no letters of introduction. (For obvious reasons, I refrain from mentioning names.) It was clear that, for the present at least, their own company was entirely sufficient for them. They made no advance toward the acquaintance of any of the families in the neighborhood, and consequently were left to themselves. That, apparently, was what they desired, and why they came to Ponkapog. For after its black bass and wild duck and teal, solitude is the chief staple of Ponkapog. Perhaps its perfect rural loveliness should be included. Lying high up under the wing of the Blue Hills, and in the odorous breath of pines and cedars, it chances to be the most enchanting bit of unlaced disheveled country within fifty miles of Boston, which, moreover, can be reached in half an hour\'s ride by railway. But the nearest railway station (Heaven be praised!) is two miles distant, and the seclusion is without a flaw. Ponkapog has one mail a day; two mails a day would render the place uninhabitable. The village—it looks like a compact village at a distance, but unravels and disappears the moment you drive into it—has quite a large floating population. I do not allude to the perch and pickerel in Ponkapog Pond. Along the Old Bay Road, a highway even in the Colonial days, there are a number of attractive villas and cottages straggling off toward Milton, which are occupied for the summer by people from the city. These birds of passage are a distinct class from the permanent inhabitants, and the two seldom closely assimilate unless there has been some previous connection. It seemed to me that our new neighbors were to come under the head of permanent inhabitants; they had built their own house, and had the air of intending to live in it all the year round. "Are you not going to call on them?" I asked my wife one morning. "When they call on us," she replied lightly. "But it is our place to call first, they being strangers." This was said as seriously as the circumstance demanded; but my wife turned it off with a laugh, and I said no more, always trusting to her intuitions in these matters.... Views: 538
Sharp& young-business executive has a hidden secret... McMasters, renowned for work-excellence; viewed by this thirty year-old as a difficult-trap& the only way-out is through drugs. Years of use, he finally, realizes that he must find new-life... Leaving everything behind he takes mementos of his life with him including A diary of a great-grandmother during the gold-rush...Baumgartner P.McMasters III, is an executive business-man's caveat. Having a large office, a Condo and other riches, only one thing, he is a druggee. He'd sell his blood for a nickel bag. Then one day, he has to make a decision, when his drug-seller threatens to go public for not paying him on time. He decides to cut all ties, and leave it all behind. He shows up, a year-later in worn and tattered-clothes, and sits alone in a diner somewhere in AZ with a nap-sack full of his own old-mementos. Then, he reads.. What will become of him, and what if anything will save him. Views: 537
The classic Western, now newly repackaged as part of Bantam's Louis L'Amour's Lost Treasures program—with never-before-seen material from Louis and his son, Beau L'Amour.It was just a godforsaken mountainside, but no place on earth was richer in silver. For a bustling, enterprising America, this was the great bonanza. The dreamers, the restless, the builders, the vultures—they were lured by the glittering promise of instant riches and survived the brutal hardships of a mining camp to raise a legendary boom town. But some sought more than wealth. Val Trevallion, a loner haunted by a violent past. Grita Redaway, a radiantly beautiful actress driven by an unfulfilled need. Two fiercely independent spirits, together they rose above the challenges of the Comstock to stake a bold claim on the future.Louis L'Amour's Lost Treasures is a project created to release some of the author's more unconventional manuscripts from the family archives.... Views: 537
In creating his acclaimed masterpiece Parade's End, Ford Madox Ford wanted the Novelist in fact to appear in his really proud position as historian of his own time . . . The 'subject' was the world as it culminated in the war. Published in four parts between 1924 and 1928, his extraordinary novel centers on Christopher Tietjens, an officer and gentleman- the last English Tory-and follows him from the secure, orderly world of Edwardian England into the chaotic madness of the First World War. Against the backdrop of a world at war, Ford recounts the complex sexual warfare between Tietjens and his faithless wife Sylvia. A work of truly amazing subtlety and profundity, Parade's End affirms Graham Greene's prediction: There is no novelist of this century more likely to live than Ford Madox Ford. Views: 537
It’s the 1830’s, and life has changed forever. A virus has swept across
the world, and now when you die, you’ll be coming back as one of the
undead - a Zombie – or Zum as people call them. The only way to prevent a
Zum infestation is to remove the head immediately after expiration –
and the sooner the better! Otherwise, they will be clawing their way out
of a coffin or a shallow grave. Huckleberry Finn – Tom Sawyer’s
best friend – is prudent around the dead, but he’s more afraid of his
father, a mean alcoholic who has taken to looting the newly-deceased for
easy drinking money. When Huck meets up with a runaway slave named Jim,
they decide to head out for a Northern free state. All they have to do
is steer clear of the local authorities, outrun Huck’s paw, and avoid
getting torn to pieces by wandering Zum. But the Zum have been
evolving… they’re learning how to speak and how to plan, and what
they’re planning is beyond anyone’s worst nightmares. They’re more
dangerous now than ever. Some criminals are even willing to kill
themselves just to make themselves a more terrible threat. The Undead.
Everywhere, local citizens have armed themselves and are willing to do
whatever it takes to stop this new horror. The old days are gone
forever. Huck has to stay a few steps ahead of anyone and everyone who
means to do him harm. It’s going to be difficult, and perhaps
impossible…but there aren’t any other options. Views: 536
From the author of The Loosening Skin and The Beauty, Aliya Whiteley, Skein Island is a powerful and disturbing look at the roles we play, and how they form and divide us. This new edition features a brand new novelette set in the same world as Skein Island.Skein Island, a private refuge twelve miles off the coast of Devon, lies in turbulent waters. Few receive the invitation to stay for one week, free of charge. If you are chosen, you must pay for your stay with a story from your past; a Declaration for the Island's vast library.What happens to your Declaration after you leave the island is none of your concern.From the monsters of Ancient Greece to the atrocities of World War II, from heroes to villains with their seers and sidekicks by their sides, Skein Island looks through the roles we play, and how they form and divide us. Powerful and disturbing, it is a story over... Views: 535
Christ Church, Oxford is the location of this tale of the Leigh family, set in the days of Queen Elizabeth I.
In her notes about the origin of the book Elizabeth Goudge writes: "It is impossible to live in an old city and not ask oneself continually, what was it like in ages gone by? Who were the men, women and children who lived in my home centuries ago, and what were their thoughts and actions as they lived out their lives day by day in the place where I now live mine?"
"Goudge brings to life a number of traditional Oxford legends. The book has that indescribable quality, charm." (B-O-T Editorial Review Board) Views: 535
First published in 1962, a year after Revolutionary Road, this sublime collection of stories seems even more powerful today. Out of the lives of Manhattan office workers, a cab driver seeking immortality, frustrated would-be novelists, suburban men and their yearning, neglected women, Richard Yates creates a haunting mosaic of the 1950s, the era when the American dream was finally coming true - and just beginning to ring a little hollow. Views: 534
A young rider encounters well-known horses and new friends in the final installment of the Ellen and Ned trilogy by Pulitzer Prize winner Jane Smiley.Ellen's family has moved to a new town...but some things, like her love for horses, remain the same. Ellen is now the proud owner of her own horse, Tater. She's learning new skills and challenging herself as a rider...but she still can't stop thinking about Ned, the fiesty former racehorse she sees on the ranch during her lessons.In the meantime, Ellen's making new friends and encountering old ones. Most exciting of all is Da, a boy from a riding family who has a spirit of mischief and daring and knows his own mind.Ellen still has a lot to learn...about horses, friendship, and herself. And will she ever be able to get Ned off her mind? Views: 534
This fifteen page book follows best friends Maggie (an atheist) and Joan (a Christian) through illuminating situations. Each chapter sees the majesty of life from two lines of sight. Maggie finds a comfortable place in her atheism where she sees a beautiful a world without having to explain it away to a supernatural God. Joan disagrees, but they keep their mutual respect.After living what seemed to be a perfect life with the perfect man, Adrianna makes a life shattering discovery. When his supposedly dead family shows up, disturbing truths come to light. Everything about her life was a lie, especially her husband. Through powers unknown to her, Torstein controlled every move she made, every thought she had. With her life falling to pieces around her, could only focus on one thought. Not WHO her husband was, but WHAT? Views: 533
Get Ready to Root for the Villain...Serena is the new girl in a school that caters to not just "Norms," but the sons and daughters of the world's greatest Superheroes. The problem? She's the daughter of the Night Witch, a cardinal member of the League of Extreme Evil. She'd love to join the other super teens and prove she isn't the villain that her mother was, but...New Girl (Anti-Heroes Book I) by Louise Bohmer & K.H. KoehlerGet Ready to Root for the Villain...Serena is the new girl in a school that caters to not just "Norms," but the sons and daughters of the world's greatest Superheroes. The problem? She's the daughter of the Night Witch, a cardinal member of the League of Extreme Evil. She'd love to join the other super teens and prove she isn't the villain that her mother was, but it isn't long before she falls in with a group of Supervillains that the school calls the Geek Squad, which includes a biochemically created vampire named Nikki, a genetically altered jock named Isaac, and Jinx, the son of Satan himself!She's immediately attracted to Jinx, but Serena has vowed to do what's right. But there are secrets buried deep within Serena's past that threaten to kill her, and even rock the foundation of Earth itself! An evil decay is reaching out from a distant star, and the Supers and Geeks will need to work together in order to defeat it--if they can keep from killing each other. The Supers thought the greatest battle for control of Earth had been fought and won, but a cosmic war is coming, and it isn't long before it's difficult to tell the difference between hero and villain.Book I in a new online serial! Views: 532
