People knew the basics: men and women had sex, and sometimes babies followed. But beyond that the origins of life were a colossal mystery. The Seeds of Life is the remarkable and rollicking story of how a series of blundering geniuses and brilliant amateurs struggled for two centuries to discover where, exactly, babies come from. Taking a page from investigative thrillers, acclaimed science writer Edward Dolnick looks to these early scientists as if they were detectives hot on the trail of a bedeviling and urgent mystery. These strange searchers included an Italian surgeon using shark teeth to prove that female reproductive organs were not 'failed' male genitalia, and a Catholic priest who designed ingenious miniature pants to prove that frogs required semen to fertilize their eggs. A witty and rousing history of science, The Seeds of Life presents our greatest scientists struggling-against their perceptions, their religious beliefs, and their deep-seated prejudices-to uncover how and where we come from.

    It starts when he meets Ranna, a beautiful photographer with something to hide. Alex stopped believing in love a long time ago, yet here in the middle of East Africa, it’s found him again.Alex knows a thing or two about chaos—wherever he goes, it follows. When an IT billionaire washes up onshore after seasonal flooding, he finds himself at the center of an investigation with Ranna as the main suspect. It turns out she may have a good reason for hiding her past.Wherever she goes, murder follows.Alex should be used to these cat-and-mouse games, but this time it’s different. Should he listen to his heart and help Ranna hide the bloody trail leading to her? Or should he use his head and run for his life?

    Making his way to Paris at the end of World War II, Clébert took to living on the streets, and in Paris Vagabond, a so-called “aleatory novel” assembled out of sketches he jotted down at the time, he tells what it was like. His “gallery of faces and cityscapes on the road to extinction” is an astonishing depiction of a world apart—a Paris, long since vanished, of the poor, the criminal, and the outcast—and a no less astonishing feat of literary improvisation: Its long looping breathless sentences, streetwise, profane, lyrical, incantatory, are an adventure in their own right. Praised on publication by the great novelist and poet Blaise Cendrars, and embraced by the young Situationists as a kind of manual for living off the grid, Paris Vagabond—here published with the starkly striking photographs of Clébert’s friend Patrice Molinard—is a raw and celebratory evocation of the life of a city and the underside of life.

    Now a major motion picture form Warner Brothers, starring Kevin Bacon, Diane Lane, Luke Wilson, Frankie Muniz, and "Eddie" from the TV show Frasier (as Skip), and produced by Mark Johnson (Rain Man).In 1943 in a sleepy town on the banks of the Yazoo River, a boy fell in love with a puppy with a lively gait and an intellingent way of listening.  The two grew up together having the most wonderful adventures.  A classic story of a boy, a dog, and small-town America, My Dog Skip belongs on the same shelf as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Russell Baker's Growing Up.  It will enchant readers of all ages for years to come.

    Librarian note: an alternate cover for this edition can be found here.Michel Foucault examines the archeology of madness in the West from 1500 to 1800 – from the late Middle Ages, when insanity was still considered part of everyday life and fools and lunatics walked the streets freely, to the time when such people began to be considered a threat, asylums were first built, and walls were erected between the “insane” and the rest of humanity.

    These full-color graphic novels broke new ground when they were first released and became the inspiration for countless modern-day comic artists.This repackaged hardcover volume contains 3 classic Tintin stories, including: The Castafiore Emerald, Flight 714 to Sydney, and Tintin and the Picaros.

    Yu's four-volume translation of Hsi-yu Chi, one of the most beloved classics of Chinese literature. The fantastic tale recounts the sixteen-year pilgrimage of the monk Hsüan-tsang (596-664), one of China's most illustrious religious heroes, who journeyed to India with four animal disciples in quest of Buddhist scriptures. For nearly a thousand years, his exploits were celebrated and embellished in various accounts, culminating in the hundred-chapter Journey to the West, which combines religious allegory with romance, fantasy, humor, and satire.

    Every day they stop by to feed him tidbits and say, “Bonjour, Happy Lion.” Naturally, when the lion finds his door open, he decides it would only be proper to visit all his friendly neighbors in return. But, wait—sacré bleu! Why is everyone fleeing in terror?“Louise Fatio’s timeless tale about friendship still sparkles and Roger Duvoisin’s elegant illustrations are as engaging as ever in this 50th Anniversary edition.” —School Library Journal

    The Penseés is a collection of philosohical fragments, notes and essays in which Pascal explores the contradictions of human nature in pscyhological, social, metaphysical and - above all - theological terms. Mankind emerges from Pascal's analysis as a wretched and desolate creature within an impersonal universe, but who can be transformed through faith in God's grace.

    He finds himself removed from Paris to the south of France, far away from political power. Or so it would seem. The stress is too much for his marriage, and he attempts to manage the break up while trying to settle into his new life in Provence in a 200-year-old, half-ruined house. At the same time, Blanc is tasked with his first murder case: A man with no friends and a lot of enemies, an outsider, was found shot and burned. When a second man dies under suspicious circumstances in the quaint French countryside, the Capitaine from Paris has to dig deep into the hidden, dark undersides of the Provence he never expected to see.

    The victim is Marty Diamond, a mattress mogul known for his high pressure sales tactics and schlocky TV ads. Unfortunately, the local police detective suspects that Chloe's good friend Kristina Miller is the killer. To prove Kristina's innocence, Chloe has to take matters into her own hands and find the real killer herself. 3 books included from this series: Mattress Mart Murder, Reunions Can Be Deadly, and Killer Finale.The Deanna Devlin SeriesWelcome to Desert Palms, a cozy Arizona tourist town set up against the mountains. Deanna Devlin is a thirty-two year old reporter who dreams of tackling hard-nosed stories, but is stuck writing puff pieces for the local paper. When a murder strikes Desert Palms, Deanna suddenly gets her chance to cover some hard-hitting news. Unfortunately, one of Deanna's good friends is wrongly suspected as the killer by the local police detective. To prove her friend's innocence, Deanna has no choice but to take matters into her own hands and find the real killer herself.2 books included from this series: A Prescription To Die For and A Novel To Die For.The Daisy McDare SeriesDaisy McDare wants nothing more than to find the man of her dreams and build a thriving interior decorator business. Instead she finds herself heartbroken and in the middle of a murder investigation. Daisy is in the middle of a decorating job at a famed local celebrity's mansion when the arrogant painter is found murdered in his backyard studio. Suddenly there's a house full of suspects, each with a bigger reason to want the victim dead than the next. 5 books included from this series: The Deadly Art Affair, The Deadly Legal Affair, The Deadly Directorial Affair, The Deadly Rock Star Affair, and The Deadly Restaurant Affair.

    The immaculately dressed Chowringhee, radiant in her youth, had just stepped on to the floor at the nightclub.’ Set in 1950s Calcutta, Chowringhee is a sprawling saga of the intimate lives of managers, employees and guests at one of Calcutta’s largest hotels, the Shahjahan. Shankar, the newest recruit, recounts the stories of several people whose lives come together in the suites, restaurants, bar and backrooms of the hotel. As both observer and participant in the events, he inadvertently peels off the layers of everyday existence to expose the seamy underbelly of unfulfilled desires, broken dreams, callous manipulation and unbidden tragedy. What unfolds is not just the story of individual lives but also the incredible chronicle of a metropolis. Written by best-selling Bengali author Sankar, Chowringhee was published as a novel in 1962. Predating Arthur Hailey’s Hotel by three years, it became an instant hit, spawning translations in major Indian languages, a film and a play. Its larger-than-life characters—the enigmatic manager Marco Polo, the debonair receptionist Sata Bose, the tragic hostess Karabi Guha, among others—soon attained cult status. With its thinly veiled accounts of the private lives of real-life celebrities, and its sympathetic narrative seamlessly weaving the past and the present, it immediately established itself as a popular classic. Available for the first time in English, Chowringhee is as much a dirge as it is a homage to a city and its people.An excerpt (Chapter 1) from the book :http://arunavasinha.in/2011/05/27/cho...

    . . Arthur the dog vs. Queenie the cat.From the outside, Queenie the cat and Arthur the dog appear to have a lot in common. Both pets live in the charming Blackberry Hill inn. They both love their humans, twins Harmony and Bro. They both have a fondness for sausage. But that doesn't change the fact that they are mortal enemies. Goofy, big-hearted Arthur loves everyone he's ever met . . . except the snobby, scheming cat who's devoted her life to ruining his. Queenie is a bit choosier. And who can blame her? When you're brilliant AND exquisitely beautiful, you can't be expected to rub tails with commoners. Especially not slobbery dogs. But when the twins' beloved cousin is framed for murder, Queenie and Arthur must work together to clear his name . . . something Queenie finds even more distasteful than inexpensive caviar. Can two enemies put aside their differences long enough to solve the mystery?

     Tovi books are designed in a simple animated way to give young readers the impression of watching a short film where Tovi and his friends play out their adventures. The books are aimed at children aged 2-6 (picturebooks), who hopefully will join Tovi in his mini-adventures, and learn something about life and the world around them. As the lovable characters in these books share a whole range of experiences, they learn about sharing, about helping each other, and most important, they learn the value of friendship. You'll be surprised what an exciting time little penguins can have! Tovi the Penguin is a children's book series also available to buy on Amazon: Tovi the Penguin - goes away for Christmas (Volume 2) and Tovi the Penguin - goes to London (Volume 3). A great book for toddlers or children up to 6 years old. www.tovithepenguin.com

    DudeMichaela, Dottie and Angel work the kidnapping of a young women who never returns home from a job interview.The Case of the Dead DowagerFear grips Richmond, Virginia as madmen invade restaurants and bars and terrorize patrons.The Case of the Man OverboardMic, Dottie, and Angel take a restful Mediterranean cruise until a research scientist goes overboard and Michaela finds her clothes cut to shreds in her stateroom.