Ten superb new stories by one of our most beloved and admired writersthe winner of the 2009 Man Booker International Prize. In the first story a young wife and mother receives release from the unbearable pain of losing her three children from a most surprising source. In another, a young woman, in the aftermath of an unusual and humiliating seduction, reacts in a clever if less-than-admirable fashion. Other stories uncover the “deep-holes” in a marriage, the unsuspected cruelty of children, and how a boy’s disfigured face provides both the good things in his life and the bad. And in the long title story, we accompany Sophia Kovalevskya late-nineteenth-century Russian émigré and mathematicianon a winter journey that takes her from the Riviera, where she visits her lover, to Paris, Germany, and, Denmark, where she has a fateful meeting with a local doctor, and finally to Sweden, where she teaches at the only university in Europe willing to employ a female mathematician. With clarity an
Come back to the Ringworld . . . the most astonishing feat ofengineering ever encountered. A place of untold technologicalwonders, home to a myriad humanoid races, and world of some of themost beloved science fiction stories ever written! The human, Louis Wu; the puppeteer known as the Hindmost;Acolyte, son of the Kzin called Chmeee . . . legendary beingsbrought together once again in the defense of the Ringworld.Something is going on with the Protectors. Incoming spacecraft arebeing destroyed before they can reach the Ringworld. Vampires aremassing. And the Ghouls have their own agenda--if anyone daresapproach them to learn. Each race on the Ringworld has always had its own Protector. Nowit looks as if the Ringworld itself needs a Protector. But who willsit on the Ringworld Throne? "Niven's work has been an intriguing and consistent universe, andthis book is the keystone of the arch. . . . [His] technique iswonderfully polished, his characters and their situations arenicely drawn . .
Jill Taylor was a 37-year-old Harvard-trained brain scientistwhen a blood vessel exploded in her brain. Through the eyes of acurious scientist, she watched her mind deteriorate whereby shecould not walk, talk, read, write, or recall any of her life.Because of her understanding of the brain, her respect for thecells in her body, and an amazing mother, Jill completelyrecovered. In My Stroke of Insight, she shares her recommendationsfor recovery and the insight she gained into the unique functionsof the two halves of her brain. When she lost the skills of herleft brain, her consciousness shifted away from normal realitywhere she felt "at one with the universe." Taylor helps others notonly rebuild their brains from trauma, but helps those of us withnormal brains better understand how we can consciously influencethe neural circuitry underlying what we think, how we feel and howwe react to life's circumstances.
This specially commissioned selection of Conrads matchless short stories includes such favourites as Youth. a modern epic of the sea; The Secret Sharer. a thrilling psychological drama: An Outpost of Progress.a blackly comic prelude to Heart of Darkness; Amy Foster. a moving story of a shipwrecked, alienated Pole: and The Lagoon and Karain. two exotic, exciting Malay tales. II Conde and The Tale are subtle portrayals of bewildered outrage: An Anarchist and The Infomer are sardonic depictions of revolutionaries:and Prince Roman is a tale of magnificent, doomed heroisrn set in Conrads native Poland during the Uprising of 1831. Both those new to Conrads work and those familiar with his novels will delight in this wide-ranging collection.
This is knock-out classic horror about the loneliest town offNevada's Interstate 50-and the scariest.
In Paris for a weekend visit, Elizabeth Bard sat down to lunchwith a handsome Frenchman--and never went home again. Was it love at first sight? Or was it the way her knife slideffortlessly through her pavé au poivre, the steak's pinkjuices puddling into the buttery pepper sauce? LUNCH IN PARIS is amemoir about a young American woman caught up in two passionatelove affairs--one with her new beau, Gwendal, the other with Frenchcuisine. Packing her bags for a new life in the world's mostromantic city, Elizabeth is plunged into a world of bustlingopen-air markets, hipster bistros, and size 2 femmesfatales . She learns to gut her first fish (with a little helpfrom Jane Austen), soothe pangs of homesickness (with the rise of achocolate soufflé) and develops a crush on her local butcher (whobears a striking resemblance to Matt Dillon). Elizabeth finds thatthe deeper she immerses herself in the world of French cuisine, themore Paris itself begins to translate. French culture, shediscovers, is not unlik
A nineteenth-century American travels back in time to sixth-century England in this darkly comic social satire. THIS ENRICHED CLASSIC EDITION INCLUDES: A concise introduction that gives the reader important background information A chronology of the author's life and work A timeline of significant events that provides the book's historical context An outline of key themes and plot points to guide the reader's own interpretations Detailed explanatory notes Critical analysis, including contemporary and modern perspectives on the work Discussion questions to promote lively classroom and book group interaction A list of recommended related books and films to broaden the reader's experience Enriched Classics offer readers affordable editions of great works of literature enhanced by helpful notes and insightful commentary. The scholarship provided in Enriched Classics enables readers to appreciate, understand, and enjoy the world's finest books to the
You'll lose a lot of sleep ...Ralph does. At first he starts waking up earlier. And earlier. Then the hallucinations start - the colours, shapes and strange auras. Not to mention the bald doctors who always turn up at the scene of a death. That's when Ralph begins to lose a lot more than sleep. When he begins to understand why his hitherto mild-mannered friend, Ed, is getting out of control - dangerously so. And why his home town is about to become the new Armageddon ...
Following the best-selling triumph of Kafka on theShore—“daringly original,” wrote Steven Moore in The WashingtonPost Book World, “and compulsively readable”—comes a collectionthat generously expresses Murakami’s mastery. From the surreal tothe mundane, these stories exhibit his ability to transform thefull range of human experience in ways that are instructive,surprising, and relentlessly entertaining. As Richard Eder haswritten in the Los Angeles Times Book Review, “He addresses thefantastic and the natural, each with the same mix of gravity andlightness.” Here are animated crows, a criminal monkey, and an iceman, aswell as the dreams that shape us and the things we might wish for.Whether during a chance reunion in Italy, a romantic exile inGreece, a holiday in Hawaii, or in the grip of everyday life,Murakami’s characters confront grievous loss, or sexuality, or theglow of a firefly, or the impossible distances between those whoought to be the closest of all. “While
But now he is marked for death, caught in a maddening puzzle,racing for survival through the deep layers of his buried past intoa bizarre world of murderous conspirators -- led by Carlos, theworld's most dangerous assassin. And no one can help Jason Bournebut the woman who once wanted to escape him.
With over eight million copies of her beloved books in print,Sophie Kinsella is a true phenomenon. Now Becky Brandon (neeBloomwood) is back, in a hilarious new" "Shopaholic novel Becky'slife is blooming She's working at London's newest big store, TheLook, house-hunting with husband Luke (her secret wish is a ShoeRoom)...and she's pregnant She couldn't be moreoverjoyed--especially since discovering that shopping cures morningsickness. Everything has got to be perfect for her baby: from thedesigner nursery...to the latest, coolest pram...to the celebrity,must-have obstetrician. But when the celebrity obstetrician turnsout to be Luke's glamorous, intellectual ex-girlfriend, Becky'sperfect world starts to crumble. She's shopping for two...but arethere three in her marriage?
Praise for A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE: 'In the grand epic fantasy tradition, Martin is by far the best …tense, surging, insomnia-inflicting' Time Magazine ‘An absorbing, exciting read … Martin’s style is so vivid that youwill be hooked within a few pages’ The Times ‘The sheer mind-boggling scope of this epic has sent other fantasywriters away shaking their heads …Its ambition: to construct theTwelve Caesars of fantasy fiction, with characters so venomous theycould eat the Borgias’ Guardian ‘Colossal, staggering … Martin captures all the intoxicatingcomplexity of the Wars of the Roses or Imperial Rome in hisimaginary world … The writing is always powerful …' SFX
The editors of the best-selling rediscovered Tolkien novelRoverandom present an expanded fiftieth anniversary edition ofTolkien's beloved classic Farmer Giles of Ham, complete with a map,the original story outline, the original first-editionillustrations by Pauline Baynes, and the author's notes for anunpublished sequel. Farmer Giles of Ham is a light-hearted satirefor readers of all ages that tells the tale of a reluctant hero whomust save his village from a dragon. It is a small gem of a talethat grows more delightful with each rereading.
Only two rival spies—and one mysterious woman—can stop them:Scofield, CIA, and Talaniekov, KGB. They share a genius forespionage—and a life of terror and explosive violence. Swornenemies, they have vowed to terminate each other—yet now they mustbecome allies. Because only they possess the brutal skills andice-cold nerves vital to destroy an international circle ofkillers, the Matarese.
The Stephen King Amusement Park - an unnerving experience, with rides every which way to hell . . . and a few to glory. A solitary finger pokes out of a drain. Novelty teeth turn predatory. The Nevada desert swallows a Cadillac. Meanwhile, the legend of Castle Rock returns . . . and grows on you. What does it all mean? What else could it mean? Stephen King is here with a powerful collection of stories - a vast, many-chambered cave of a volume. The long reach of Stephen King's imagination will take you on a roller coaster to places you've never been before. You will lose sleep. But Stephen King, writing to beat the devil, will do your dreaming for you.
“After Dark is a streamlined, hushed ensemble piece. …Standing above the common gloom, Murakami detects phosphorescence everywhere, but chiefly in the auras around people, which glow brightest at night and when combined.” The New York Times Book Review A sleek, gripping novel of encounters set in Tokyo during the spooky hours between midnight and dawn, by an internationally renowned literary phenomenon. Murakami’s trademark humor, psychological insight, and grasp of spirit and morality are here distilled with an extraordinary, harmonious mastery. Combining the pyrotechnical genius that made Kafka on the Shore and The Wind-up Bird Chronicle international bestsellers, with a surprising infusion of heart, Murakami has produced one of his most enchanting fictions yet. “Murakami is masterful with symbolism.. . . Night. . . can’t blacken the ever-shifting shutter speeds of Murakami’s cockeyed Kodak.. . . It is straight- ahead jazz with a quiet grace.” The Los Angeles Times
In the fifth novel in King's bestselling epic fantasy series, the farming community in the fertile lands of the East has been warned the wolves are coming back. Four gunslingers, led by Roland of Gilead, are also coming their way. And the farmers of the Calla want to enlist some hard calibers. Torn between protecting the innocent community and his urgent quest, Roland faces his most deadly perils as he journey through the Mid-World towards the Dark Tower.
