From two-time Pulitzer Prizewinning historian Arthur M.Schlesinger, Jr., comes one of the most important and influentialinvestigations of the American presidency. The Imperial Presidencytraces the growth of presidential power over two centuries, fromGeorge Washington to George W. Bush, examining how it has bothserved and harmed the Constitution and what Americans can do aboutit in years to come. The book that gave the phrase imperialpresidency to the language, this is a work of substantialscholarship written with lucidity, charm, and wit (The NewYorker).

Jay Gatsby is the man who has everything. But one thing will always be out of his reach ... Everybody who is anybody is seen at his glittering parties. Day and night his Long Island mansion buzzes with bright young things drinking, dancing and debating his mysterious character. For Gatsby - young, handsome, fabulously rich - always seems alone in the crowd, watching and waiting, though no one knows what for. Beneath the shimmering surface of his life he is hiding a secret: a silent longing that can never be fulfilled. And soon this destructive obsession will force his world to unravel.

尼克和艾米是一对具有完美吸引力的男女，是别人眼中的模范夫妻。艾米每天都用日记来记录婚后生活，每个结婚纪念日都会精心设置充满惊喜的“寻宝游戏”，但生活却不可阻挡地越来越平淡如水……然而，这仅仅是表象。 在他们结婚五周年纪念日当天，豪宅里美丽聪慧的女主人离奇失踪了！尼克焦虑无奈，通过媒体深情告白，然而，被发现的艾米的日记指向尼克有*的嫌疑……尼克的一连串谎言、欺瞒和失控也随之曝光，真相反转。顿时，人人都重新审视自己的枕边人，而这，才仅仅是开始。 'What are you thinking, Amy?' The question I'veasked most often during our marriage, if not out loud, if not tothe person who could answer. I suppose these questions stormcloudover every marriage: 'What are you thinking? How are you feeling?Who are you? What have we done to each other? What will we do?'Just how well can you ever know the person

"Softly he brushed my cheek, then held my face between his marble hands. 'Be very still,' he whispered, as if I wasn't already frozen. Slowly, never moving his eyes from mine, he leaned toward me. Then abruptly, but very gently, he rested his cold cheek against the hollow at the base of my throat." As Shakespeare knew, love burns high when thwarted by obstacles. In Twilight, an exquisite fantasy by Stephenie Meyer, readers discover a pair of lovers who are supremely star-crossed. Bella adores beautiful Edward, and he returns her love. But Edward is having a hard time controlling the blood lust she arouses in him, because--he's a vampire. At any moment, the intensity of their passion could drive him to kill her, and he agonizes over the danger. But, Bella would rather be dead than part from Edward, so she risks her life to stay near him, and the novel burns with the erotic tension of their dangerous and necessarily chaste relationship.Meyer has achieved quite a feat by making this scenario completely human and

Lizbreath Salamander is young and beautiful. Her scales have aniridescent sheen, her wings arch proudly, her breath has a tang ofsulfur. And on her back a tattoo of a mythical creature: a girl.But when Lizbreath is drawn into a dark conspiracy she will have torely on more than her beauty and her vicious claws the size ofsabres ...A dragon has disappeared, one of a secretive clan. AsLizbreath delves deeper into their history she realises that thesedragons will do anything to defend their secrets. Welcome to theworld of The Dragon With The Girl Tattoo. A world of gloomy Nordicdragons leading lives uncannily like our own (despite their size,despite the need for extensive fireproofing of home furnishings), aworld of money hoarded, a world of darkness and corruption. A worldwhere people are the fantasy.

A daring, deeply affecting third novel by the author of "A Home at the End of the World "and "Flesh and Blood." In "The Hours," Michael Cunningham, widely praised as one of the most gifted writers of his generation, draws inventively on the life and work of Virginia Woolf to tell the story of a group of contemporary characters struggling with the conflicting claims of love and inheritance, hope and despair. The narrative of Woolf's last days before her suicide early in World War II counterpoints the fictional stories of Samuel, a famous poet whose life has been shadowed by his talented and troubled mother, and his lifelong friend Clarissa, who strives to forge a balanced and rewarding life in spite of the demands of friends, lovers, and family. Passionate, profound, and deeply moving, this is Cunningham's most remarkable achievement to date. Michael Cunningham was raised in Los Angeles and lives in New York City. He is also the author of the novels "A Home at the End of the World" and "Flesh and Blood." His w

Surely one of the most beguiling books of this season, thisrich, sophisticated, often hilarious and disarming novel is theautobiography of a typical Englishman as told through his lifelongjournal. Born to British parents in Uruguay in 1906, LoganMountstuart attends an English prep school where he makes twofriends who will be his touchstones for the next eight decades. Theearly entries in his journal, which record his sexual explorationsand his budding ambitions, provide a clear picture of the snobberyand genteel brutality of the British social system. Logan is adecent chap, filled with a moral idealism that he will never lose,although his burning sense of justice will prove inconvenient inlater years. He goes down from Oxford with a shameful Third, findsearly success as a novelist, marries a rich woman he doesn't love,escapes to Spain to fight in the civil war and is about to embarkon a happy existence with his second wife when WWII disrupts hisand his generation's equilibrium. He's sent on a na?ve spyingmis

When Abigail Thomass husband, Rich, was hit by a car, his skullwas shattered, his brain severely damaged. Subject to rages,terrors, and hallucinations and with no memory of what he did thehour, the day, the year before he was sent to live in a nursingfacility that specializes in treating traumatic brain injuries.This tragedy is the ground on which Abigail had to build a newlife. How she built that life is a story of great courage andchange, of moving to a small country town, of a new family composedof three dogs, knitting, and friendship, of facing down guilt anddiscovering gratitude. It is also about her relationship with Rich,a man who lived in the eternal present, and the eerie poetry of hisoften uncanny perceptions. Hailed by Stephen King as "the bestmemoir I have ever read," this wise, plainspoken, beautiful bookenacts the truth Abigail has discovered since the accident: Youmight not find meaning in disaster, but you might, with effort,make something useful of it.

From Walt Disney Pictures and visionary director Tim Burton comes a magical re-imagining of one of the most beloved stories of all time. Mia Wasikowska stars as 19-year-old Alice, who returns to the whimsical world she first encountered as a young girl, reuniting with her childhood friends: the White Rabbit, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the Dormouse, the Caterpillar, the Cheshire Cat, and of course, the Mad Hatter. Alice embarks on a fantastical journey to find her true destiny and end the Red Queen's reign of terror.

Be prepared to meet three unforgettable women: Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone. Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken. Minny, Aibileen's best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody's business, but she can't mind her tongue, so she's lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new

Un ouvrier pris dans la tourmente de la Commune, déporté aubagne de Nouméa, s'évade et retrouve sa femme mariée à un autre...Mis à la retraite prématurément, un fonctionnaire se montreincapable de vivre en dehors du cadre étroit de l'administration...Sur son lit de mort, un riche paysan révèle sa double vie à sonfils et lui demande de prendre soin de sa ma?tresse... Voici deshistoires insolites contées par trois ma?tres du naturalisme.

This collection brings together perhaps the finest of Dickens' shorter novels, filled with event, character, and the unsurpassed brilliance of his story-telling. Oliver Twist enhanced and strengthened Dickens' reputation and contains classic Dickensian themes - grinding poverty, desperation, fear, temptation and the eventual triumph of good in the face of great adversity. Hard Times was attacked by Macaulay for its 'sullen socialism', but 20th-century critics - George Bernard Shaw and F.R. Leavis praised it in the highest terms. A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens' greatest historical novel, traces the lives of a group of people caught up in the cataclysm of the French Revolution and the Terror. A fascinating range of characters and Dickens' usual superb command of language combine to make this an exciting and tantalising story. Great Expectations traces the life of Philip Pirrip (Pip), from a boy of shallow dreams to a man of character. From its dramatic opening on the bleak Kentish marshes, the story abou

The Awakening: Elena Gilbert is used to getting what she wantsand she wants mysterious new boy, Stefan. But Stefan is hiding adeadly secret - a secret that will change Elena's life for ever...The Struggle: Elena is torn between her boyfriend, Stefan, andhis brother, Damon. But these brothers hide dark secrets and atragic past that threatens them all. Damon wants to lead Elenaastray - and he'd rather kill Stefan than let him possess her...

Grade 9 Up–When Bella Swan moves from sunny Phoenix to Forks, Washington, a damp and dreary town known for the most rainfall in the United States, to live with her dad, she isnt expecting to like it. But the level of hostility displayed by her standoffish high school biology lab partner, Edward Cullen, surprises her. After several strange interactions, his preternatural beauty, strength, and speed have her intrigued. Edward is just as fascinated with Bella, and their attraction to one another grows. As Bella discovers more about Edwards nature and his family, she is thrown headlong into a dangerous adventure that has her making a desperate sacrifice to save her one true love. One of the more original vampire constructs around, this recording of Stephenie Meyers debut novel (Megan Tingley Books, 2005) is narrated with great style by Ilyana Kadushin, who makes the infinitely romantic tale of star-crossed lovers resonate with a bittersweet edge. Although Edward and Bellas romance and subsequent danger develops

First published in 1939, these three short novels secured theauthor's reputation as a master of short fiction.

A man went to knock at the king's door and said, Give me aboat. The king's house had many other doors, but this was the doorfor petitions. Since the king spent all his time sitting at thedoor for favors (favors being offered to the king, you understand),whenever he heard someone knocking at the door for petitions, hewould pretend not to hear . . ." Why the petitioner required aboat, where he was bound for, and who volunteered to crew for him,the reader will discover in this delightful fable, a philosophiclove story worthy of Swift or Voltaire.

Penelope Fitzgerald's first novel, THE GOLDEN CHILD, combinesa deft comedy of manners with a classic mystery set in London'smost refined institution -- the museum. When the glitteringtreasure of ancient Garamantia, the golden child, is delivered tothe museum, a web of intrigue tightens around its personnel,especially the hapless museum officer Waring Smith. While prowlingthe halls one night, Waring is nearly strangled. Two suspiciousdeaths ensue, and only the cryptic hieroglyphics of the Garamantescan bring an end to the mayhem. Fitzgerald has an unerring eye forhuman nature, and this satirical look at the art world delivers aterrifically witty read.

Twelve Years a Slave, a chronicle of the amazing ordeal of a free African-American kidnapped from Washington, D.C., and impressed into slavery in Louisiana, is one of the most compelling and detailed slave narratives in existence. Although a best-selling book in its time, Solomon Northup’s narrative has existed in the shadow of more academically prominent and popularly celebrated narratives like The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (1845). Nonetheless, Northup’s account of his kidnapping and enslavement is a masterpiece of historical detail, and the narrative has been noted for its easily researched and widely corroborated elements. The text and story were virtually unchallenged by Southern apologists or partisans of the era. Northup resists the urge to laud himself as an exemplary character or focus solely his own experience, giving contemporary readers a remarkable account of the lives of the slave community as a whole. As an educated man, torn from freedom and plunged into slavery, he

全书由一篇简介开始，简介的内容其实就象是聊天，作者与读者之间的聊天。写这篇文章时候的小花絮，那篇文章的灵感来自哪里，另外一篇写完之后的感受，诸如此类的话题，对于阅读理解后面的文章有一定的帮助。 这本集子的标题“烟与镜”的含义是，魔术师靠镜子与烟雾来表演，镜子能映照出实像，而45度斜放的镜子会让你看到假象，让你以为你所看到的是真的，这个概念在若干篇里都有出现。小说都是镜子，用来反映这个世界，而奇幻小说也是镜子，是魔术师常用的45度斜放的镜子，甚至是凹凸不平的变形镜，它们可以告诉我们一些事情，一些平时看不到的事情。读完所有的故事，你是不是也会看到一些平时看不到的事情呢？ An elderly widow finds the Holy Grail beneath anold fur coat. A stray cat fights and refights a terrible nightlybattle to protect his unwary adoptive fami

'Bein' an idiot is no box of chocolates' Laugh, cry, stand up and cheer: Forrest Gump is everyman's story, everyman's dream. A wonderfully warm, savagely barbed, and hilariously funny 'tale told by an idiot', from the razor-sharp pen of a contemporary wizard. No one is spared and everyone is included. If you've ever felt lacking, left out, put upon - or just wanted to have a rollicking good time this book is for you. At 6'6", 240 pounds, Forrest Gump is a difficult man to ignore, so follow Forrest from the football dynasties of Bear Bryant to the Vietnam War, from encounters with Presidents Johnson and Nixon to powwows with Chairman Mao. Go with Forrest to Harvard University, to a Hollywood movie set, on a professional wrestling tour, and into space on the oddest NASA mission ever. Forrest Gump lives! Thank heavens! 'A superbly controlled satire' 'FORREST GUMP is line bred out of Voltaire and Huck Finn; its humour is wild and coarse, a satire right on the money. It is not the less honest f