Designers Don't Read


Austin Howe - 2009
    He believes “in the wonder and exuberance of someone who gets paid-by clients to do what he loves.” Howe places immense value on curiosity and passion to help designers develop a point of view, a strong voice. He explores the creative process and conceptualization, and delves into what to do when inspiration is lacking. If there’s a villain in these elegant, incisive, amusing, and inspiring essays, it’s ad agencies and marketing directors, but even villains serve a purpose and illustrate the strength of graphic design “as a system, as a way of thinking, as almost a life style.” Howe believes that advertising and design must merge, but merge with design in the leadership role. He says that designers should create for clients and not in the hope of winning awards. He believes designers should swear “a 10-year commitment to make everything we do for every client a gift.” If this sounds like the designer is the client’s factotum, not so. Howe also argues in favor of offering clients a single solution and being willing to defend a great design. Organized not only by topic, but also by how long it will take the average reader to complete each chapter, Designers Don’t Read is intended to function like a “daily devotional” for designers and busy professionals involved in branded communications at all levels. Begun as a series of weekly essays sent every Monday morning to top graphic designers, Designers Don’t Read quickly developed a passionate and widespread following. With the approximate time each chapter might take to read, Designers Don’t Read’s delight and provocation can be fit into the niches in the life of a time-challenged designer. Or it may be hard to resist reading the entire book in one sitting!

The Complete Professor Challenger Stories


Arthur Conan Doyle - 2013
    This complete Professor Challenger collection contains the following works:The Lost WorldThe Poison BeltThe Land of MistThe Disintegration MachineWhen the World Screamed

Meet Me in the Moon Room


Ray Vukcevich - 2001
    Dick Award finalist* Locus Recommended Reading Here are 33 weird, wonderful stories concerning men, women, teleportation, wind-up cats, and brown paper bags. By turns whimsical and unsettling—frequently managing to be both—these short fictions describe family relationships, bad breakups, and travel to outer space.    Vukcevich's loopy, fun-house mirror take on everyday life belongs to the same absurdist school of work as that of George Saunders, David Sedaris, Ken Kalfus, and Victor Pelevin, although there is no one quite like him. Try one of these stories, it won't take you long, but it will turn your head inside out.Contents:By the Time We Get to Uranus (1998)The Barber's Theme (1995)Beatnicks with Banjoes (2001)Finally Fruit (1997)Pretending (2001)Mom's Little Friends (1992)No Comet (1994)There Is Danger (1993)Pink Smoke (2001)Season Finale (1995)The Sweater (2001)Home Remedy (1996)A Breath-Holding Contest (1991)Fancy Pants (2000)In the Refrigerator (2001)The Perfect Gift (1994)Message in a Fish (2001)Catch (1996)The Finger (1995)Rejoice (1999)My Mustache (1993)We Kill a Bicycle (1995)A Holiday Junket (1998)Giant Step (1994)Quite Contrary (1994)Doing Time (1992)The Next Best Thing (1998)Beastly Heat (1999)Ceremony (1991)Poop (2000)White Guys in Space (1996)Whisper (2001)Meet Me in the Moon Room (1998)

Why Does Batman Carry Shark Repellent?: And Other Amazing Comic Book Trivia!


Brian Cronin - 2012
    Cronin has teamed up with some of the top comic book writers and artists of today to present 100 trivia lists, including: - Nine Celebrities That Guest-Starred in Comic Books...without Their Permission- Seven Bands That Got Their Names from Comics- Ten Crazy Items Found on Batman's Utility Belt- Five Comic Book Inventions That Eventually Became Real- Five Stupidest Superhero Origins- And much, much more!From Batman to Spiderman, Aquaman to the X-Men, each list in Why Does Batman Carry Shark Repellent? will entertain and inform whether you're a hardcore geek or a casual fan.

Dead Funny: Flying Dutch and Faust Among Equals


Tom Holt - 2000
    One little swig from the wrong bottle and you go from being an ordinary Dutch sea-captain to an unhappy immortal, drifting around the world with your similarly immortal crew. Little does Cornelius Vanderdecker, the Flying Dutchman, suspect that a chance encounter in an English pub might just lead to the end of his cursed life.FAUST AMONG EQUALS - The management buy-out of Hell wasn't going quite as planned. For a start, there had been that nasty business with the perjurers, and then came the news that the Most Wanted Man in History had escaped. But Kurt 'Mad Dog' Lundqvist, the foremost bounty hunter of all time, is on the case, and he can usually be relied on to get his man - even when that man is Lucky George Faustus ...Exuberant comedy from Tom Holt at his inventive best.This omnibus contains two of Tom Holt's best-loved stories. In Flying Dutch, we learn of the amazing problems drinking can get you into. One little swig from the wrong bottle, and you go from being an ordinary Dutch sea captain to an unhappy immortal, drifting around the world with your similarly immortal crew, suffering from peculiarly whiffy side effects. Little does Cornelius Vanderdecker, the Flying Dutchman, suspect that a chance encounter in an English pub might just lead to the end of his cursed life, one way or another. In Faust Among Equals, the management buy-out of Hell wasn't going quite as planned. For a start, there had been that nasty business with the perjurers, and then came the news that the Most Wanted Man in History had escaped, and all just as the plans for the new theme park, Eurobosch, were underway. But Kurt 'Mad Dog' Lundqvist, the foremost bounty hunter of all time, is on the case, and he can usually be relied on to get his man - even when that man is Lucky George Faustus...Exuberant comedy from Tom Holt at his inventive best.

Veronica's Passport


Dan Parent - 2009
    The jet-setting darling of all debutantes has glammed her way to stardom with her romantic and often perilous tales around the globe! Now, for the first time, Archie Comics is proud to bring to their loyal readers the stories of Veronica's travels as she meets alluring men, fights crime, and experiences the diversity of world culture from Africa to Asia, South America to Europe, and everywhere in-between!

One Hundred Great Essays (Penguin Academics Series)


Robert DiYanni - 2001
    The anthology combines classic essays of great instructional value together with the most frequently anthologized essays of recent note by today's most highly regarded writers. The selections exhibit a broad range of diversity in subject matter and authorship. All essays have been selected for their utility as both models for writing and for their usefulness as springboards for independent writing. An introductory section informs readers about the qualities of the essay form and offers instruction on how to read essays critically and use the writing process to develop their own essays. For those interested in learning about reading, writing and critical thinking by studying examples of great writing.

Trout Fishing in America / The Pill vs. the Springhill Mine Disaster / In Watermelon Sugar


Richard Brautigan - 1967
    Trout Fishing in America is by turns a hilarious, playful, and melancholy novel that wanders from San Francisco through America's rural waterways; In Watermelon Sugar expresses the mood of a new generation, revealing death as a place where people travel the length of their dreams, rejecting violence and hate; and The Pill Versus the Springhill Mine Disaster is a collection of nearly 100 poems, first published in 1968.

Canada and Other Matters of Opinion


Rex Murphy - 2009
    Johnson’s greatness to Bono’s gratingness, from doubts about Obama to utter belief in Don Cherry, from Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s outstanding oeuvre to — well, Pamela Anderson.The topics are as eclectic and wide ranging as the intelligence that put them together. The perspective is thoroughly Canadian, and so are many of the recurring topics and themes: of our domestic politics and our military involvements abroad, of our national identity, of human rights and human decency. You’ll find assessments of the reputations of Paul Martin, Conrad Black, Adrienne Clarkson, and Tim Hortons; tough but affectionate views of Newfoundland — of course — but also from Rex Murphy’s constant travels across Canada.But all the world is here, in all its glory and folly. The hard-hitting attacks on politicians, celebrities, those who would ban smoking, and anyone who uses the expression “global warming denial” will have you cheering or tearing your hair out, depending. You will be informed, infuriated perhaps, but always fascinated.

Star Heroes: 9 Novels of Space Exploration, Aliens, and Adventure


Lindsay BurokerChris Fox - 2016
    Exploration, alien invasions, genetic engineering, and artificial intelligence--it’s all here. Blast off with these adventures by New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling authors. Star Nomad by Lindsay Buroker In this fast-paced space adventure, Captain Alisa Marchenko must brave sadistic savages, fearsome cyborgs, and brutal pirates to steal a ship so she can find her way home. Starship Eternal by M.R. Forbes When a critical injury leaves Space Marine Captain Mitchell "Ares" Williams having visions of a lost starship and an alien invasion, he thinks he's going insane... He isn't. Icarus by Matt Verish Cole Musgrave’s dream of interstellar travel has become a nightmare. When a delivery is compromised aboard a classified cargo vessel, the unorthodox captain finds himself embroiled in a deadly assignment that will alter his life forever. Attack on Phoenix by Megg Jensen Two hundred years ago, an interplanetary expedition crashed on a deserted planet. Catching the attention of the dragzhi, an aggressive alien species, they found themselves in a war they were doomed to lose ... unless Torsten Vikker, a soldier who’d rather read than fight, can find a way to save them. Archangel Down by C. Gockel Commander Noa Sato doesn’t believe in aliens. She’s too busy trying to save the lives of millions and her own skin to ponder the existence of “others.” Fortunately for Noa, aliens believe in her. Destroyer by Chris Fox One maverick captain, an unlikely crew, and an aging vessel are all that stand between humanity and the Eradication. Space Carrier Avalon by Glynn Stewart Avalon was the first and most legendary of the Castle Federation's space carriers, but she is now old and obsolete. Accepting the inevitable, she is sent on a final flag-showing tour. But war clouds gather and this final tour will be anything but quiet. Symphony of War by David Adams Lieutenant Marcus Servus and his soldiers, a penal legion, stand against insectoid boogeymen from another galaxy. Marcus has a gift. An edge against the monsters: he hears music. Songs in his head guide him, granting him knowledge and foresight, a weapon against the alien hordes. But who plucks the strings? Allies and Enemies: Fallen by Amy J. Murphy Purpose-bred soldier of the Regime, Commander Sela Tyron is as subtle as a hammer. To hammers, any problem can look like a nail, but solutions aren’t always that easy. When Sela encounters a son she is forbidden to know, falls in love with a man who is clearly off-limits, and is abandoned on a planet of insurrectionists, things get complicated.

3 By Flannery O'Connor


Flannery O'Connor - 1960
    This anthology includes the masterpieces Wise Blood, Good man is hard to find, and The Violent Bear it Away.

Cinderella & Company: Backstage at the Opera with Cecilia Bartoli


Manuela Hoelterhoff - 1998
    In "Cinderella & Company," Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Manuela Hoelterhoff takes us on a two-year trip on the circuit with Cecilia Bartoli, the young mezzo-soprano who has captured an adoring public around the world. Here too are tantalizing glimpses of divinities large and small: Kathleen Battle's famously chilly limousine ride; Placido Domingo flying through three time zones to step into the boots of an ailing Otello; Luciano Pavarotti aiming for high C in his twilight years. And we meet the present players in Bartoli's world: Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorghiu, a.k.a. the Love Couple; Jane Eaglen, the Wagnerian web potato monitoring her cyberspace fan mail; the appealing soprano Renee Fleming, finally on the brink of stardom.

The Cthulhu Child


David Brian - 2013
    Nevertheless, it is often whispered by those who claim knowledge of such things, that a number of these Elder Gods - the lower rank and file, if you will - decided to hold this ground, so enamored were they by the cults who spilled blood in their names.Those times are all but forgotten, obscured by the shifting mists of history.Fast forward to today, and a wrong turn on a country lane is about to expose Jennifer Bueller, and her daughter Megan, to an unpleasant truth: Yes, times have changed, but ancient deities will adapt in order to thrive.Abandoned space gods, an unfaithful husband, a sociopath rapist, and a broken society with a social welfare system that presents horrors of its own; lastly, though by no means least in this eclectic collection of stories, a flash fiction homage to James Herbert, featuring his most infamous creation.

The Winds of Change and Other Stories


Isaac Asimov - 1983
    Asimov at his best! A 21-story saluteAbout Nothing • (1975)A Perfect Fit • (1981)Belief • (1953)Death of a Foy • (1980)Fair Exchange? • (1978)For the Birds • (1980)Found! • (1978)Good Taste • (1976)How It Happened • (1979)Ideas Die Hard • (1957)Ignition Point! • (1981)It Is Coming • [Multivac] • (1979)The Last Answer • (1980)The Last Shuttle • (1981)Lest We Remember • (1982)Nothing for Nothing • (1979)One Night of Song • [Azazel] • (1982)The Smile That Loses • [Azazel] • (1982)Sure Thing • (1977)To Tell at a Glance • (1983)The Winds of Change • (1982)

Dancing Cats and Neglected Murderesses


Edward Gorey - 1980
    1st Edition signed and numbered out of edition of 300 with special cover design by Edward Gorey