Book picks similar to
The Rhyme of the Flying Bomb by Mervyn Peake
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Grief is the Thing with Feathers
Max Porter - 2015
Their father, a Ted Hughes scholar and scruffy romantic, imagines a future of well-meaning visitors and emptiness.In this moment of despair they are visited by Crow - antagonist, trickster, healer, babysitter. This self-described sentimental bird is attracted to the grieving family and threatens to stay until they no longer need him. As weeks turn to months and physical pain of loss gives way to memories, this little unit of three begin to heal.In this extraordinary debut - part novella, part polyphonic fable, part essay on grief, Max Porter's compassion and bravura style combine to dazzling effect. Full of unexpected humour and profound emotional truth, Grief is the Thing with Feathers marks the arrival of a thrilling new talent.
Mr. Darcy and the Angel of Kent: A Variation on Pride & Prejudice
Martin Hunnicutt - 2021
They are touring the towns in Kent beginning with Canterbury’s famous Cathedral before making their way to Ramsgate. In this coastal town, Elizabeth meets Georgiana Darcy and an interesting couple from the nobility. Summoned by the Duke of Portland to Ramsgate after his wife dismisses Mrs. Young as being totally unsuited to be a young gentlewoman’s companion, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy arrives and immediately clashes with the opiniated Miss Elizabeth Bennet.Now a larger party, the troupe journeys along the coast to Dover to escape from Mr. George Wickham who haunts Ramsgate for unknown reasons. Then the party travels to Folkstone, another coastal town in Kent and near Rosings Park. However, just as the party is to set out for a picnic outside the town, someone fires cannons into the town. Near the docks, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth see that a French battleship is firing on the small English town! Fearing General Bonaparte is leading the French armies to invade England, the party flees to Rosings Park, only two hours away.The next morning, the Gouldings depart with Miss Darcy for London while Mr. Darcy returns to Folkstone to investigate the size of the invasion force. Despite Mr. Goulding’s protests, Elizabeth remains at the manor house to help care for the Duchess of Portland who collapsed during the bombardment. The duchess dies after another day, leaving Elizabeth and the servants to help the duke deal with his grief and prepare to send the body of the duchess to London.Mr. Darcy returns with news that the attack at Folkstone was a feint to create fear among the common people of invasion, and to kidnap the Duke of Portland, a former Prime Minister. Unwilling to await the arrival of the regular army, Mr. Darcy seeks the assistance of the militia in Ashland to restore order to Folkstone. In his absence, Mr. Wickham appears at Rosings Park with French soldiers and Marshal Joachim Murat, seeking to take the Duke of Portland prisoner.Despite threats from Wickham and the Frenchmen, Elizabeth and the servants help Lord William, Duke of Portland to slip away from the potential kidnappers. That same day, Mr. Darcy returns with the militia, and they drive the invaders away from Rosings Park. In the final minutes, as the French retreat toward Folkstone, Mr. Darcy duels a French captain who is trying to get Marshal Murat away. During the duel, Elizabeth subdues the Marshal just before Darcy is wounded as he dispatches his opponent.When he awakens, Mr. Darcy believes an angel has come to Kent to save him. When his vision clears, he realizes his angel is none other than Miss Elizabeth Bennet and for some unknown reason, she is applying honey to his head wound. Mr. Darcy’s cousin, Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam, arrives with the regular units of the British Army and they capture the last of the French invaders at Folkstone.Elizabeth returns to London where she remains at Gracechurch Street until George Wickham and Marshal Murat are tried by the Royal Courts. Safe with her aunt and uncle, Elizabeth cannot dismiss her reaction to her experiences at Rosings Park but letters from her family and friends help. When she returns to Longbourn, regular day-to-day tasks are welcome but also confining.That autumn, at the Assembly Ball, the gentleman who has become the Netherfield tenant brings his sisters and a friend to the gathering. Mrs. Bennet is hopeful that a suitable gentleman has appeared in Meryton and immediately believes Jane can capture his attention. But many ladies and gentlemen are disturbed when they see his friend – how can their daughters display themselves before Mr. Bingley with that fierce looking friend around him? But then Elizabeth catches sight of the man and she is excessively pleased to discover that Mr. Bingley’s friend is Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy.
How to Be More Paddington: A Book of Kindness
Michael Bond - 2020
Welcome to the wise and wonderful world of everyone’s favourite bear.Paddington Bear is a beacon of happiness – well meaning, funny and always kind.Explore Paddington’s unique and universal take on life in this very special collection of warm words about friendship, family, love, laughter … and everything in between.
Five Get Beach Body Ready
Bruno Vincent - 2017
Now, in this new series of Enid Blyton for Grown-Ups, George, Dick, Anne, Julian and Timmy are keen to hone their physiques ready for the summer holidays. All it will take is a bit of effort and willpower . . . and pulling together as a team. What could possibly stand in their way?True to form, the path to the body beautiful is less straightforward than they hope!
Halo: Tales from Slipspace
Frank O'Connor - 2016
Suit up and deploy into the electrifying universe of Halo® with this original comics anthology from Dark Horse!Praise for Halo: Escalation (previous Dark Horse comics series): “This series has been a must-read for all Halo fans.”—Gaming Canon“This comic is a successful comic book adaptation, not just a comic inspired by the games.”—Adventures In Poor Taste“Writer Duffy Boudreau seems to have a knack for writing stories that are fast paced and entertaining.”—We The Nerdy
Abide With Me
Ian Ayris - 2012
Eight year old John watches his beloved West Ham win the cup, whilst at the same time, Kenny tumbles out the front door of the house opposite, blood all over his face.Fourteen years later, both boys' childhoods ripped apart in the broken streets of London's East End, John and Kenny find themselves frontin up local gangster, Ronnie Swordfish.John's got a lifetime of hurt to put right - for him and for Kenny.But with John layin on the ground half unconscious and Ronnie with a sword to Kenny's head, whatever way you look at it, it don't look good . . .ABIDE WITH ME is the story of two boys forced to walk blind into the darkness of their shattered lives . . .. . . and their struggle to emerge as men.
Collected Poems
Edward Thomas - 1974
The present edition offers the complete poems together with detailed editorial apparatus in what has become acknowledged as the standard edition by R. George Thomas. It also includes Thomas's remarkable prose War Diary of 1917.
Egghead; or, You Can't Survive on Ideas Alone
Bo Burnham - 2013
100 million people viewed those videos, turning Bo into an online sensation with a huge and dedicated following. Bo taped his first of two Comedy Central specials four days after his 18th birthday, making him the youngest to do so in the channel's history. Now Bo is a rising star in the comedy world, revered for his utterly original and intelligent voice. And, he can SIIIIIIIIING!In EGGHEAD, Bo brings his brand of brainy, emotional comedy to the page in the form of off-kilter poems, thoughts, and more. Teaming up with his longtime friend, artist, and illustrator Chance Bone, Bo takes on everything from death to farts in this weird book that will make you think, laugh and think, "why did I just laugh?"
The Long Take
Robin Robertson - 2018
Suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and unable to face a return to his family home in rural Nova Scotia, he goes in search of freedom, change, anonymity and repair. We follow Walker through a sequence of poems as he moves through post-war American cities of New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.
Think Again
JonArno Lawson - 2010
Your heart is designed To be broken and mended. --- ?The Heart?These quietly beautiful and surprisingly humorous four-line poems reveal the many aspects of first love --- the longing, the frustration and the joy. The poet writes not from a single point of view but instead embraces the duality of first love, alternating between the perspectives of a boy and a girl. The poems and revealing illustrations by Julie Morstad combine to inspire young readers to think ... and think again.
The Letter
Ruth Saberton - 2017
Perfect for fans of Downton Abbey, it is the story of an aristocratic family, a forbidden love affair and the darkest of secrets kept for over one hundred years. On the eve of the First World War aspiring poet Kit Rivers looks forward to a bright future. As the Lord of the Manor's heir, Kit’s duty is to the family estate but when he falls passionately in love he knows a hard choice must be made. Yet before the golden days of summer can fade into autumn, war comes and changes his world forever. One century later young widow Chloe exchanges London for an isolated Cornish house. Haunted by memories, Chloe’s interest in an obscure war poet, Kit Rivers, proves a welcome distraction from grief and leads her to piece together a forgotten history. Faced with more questions than answers, her own life soon becomes entwined with Kit's through love, loss, and the darkest of secrets… The novel is full of secrets, suspense and set in Cornwall so reminiscent of Daphne du Maurier and Rosamunde Pilcher. Romantic and suspenseful, it is also a tale of loss and love, the devastation of war and the shattered lives of those left behind. A #1 bestseller on Amazon UK, The Letter is a vivid novel of heart-break and passion, with characters - and an ending - the reader won't forget.
Tiepolo's Hound
Derek Walcott - 2000
Camille Pissarro, born in 1830, leaves his native St. Thomas to follow his vocation as a painter in Paris. The poet himself hunts for a detail -- a slash of pink on the inner thigh/of a white hound -- of a Venetian painting encountered on an early visit from St. Lucia to New York. Both journeys take us through a Europe of the mind's eye, in search of a connection between the lost, actual landscape of a childhood and the mythical landscape of empire. Published with twenty-six of Derek Walcott's own paintings, the poem is at once the spiritual biography of a great artist in self-exile, a history in verse of Impressionist painting, and a memoir of the poet's desire to catch the visual world in more than words.
Vinegar Street
Philip Ridley - 2000
No one bats an eyelid at her ankle-length black dress (decorated with a pattern of white skulls) or her long silk gloves (black, naturally)or her hair (very long, very straight and very black). And as for her shoes (the clumpiest, highest and--you've guessed it!--blackest platforms you've ever seen) ... well, amongst the rubble and weeds of Vinegar Street, Poppy fits in just fine.Vinegar Street is no ordinary street and Poppy Picklesticks is certainly no ordinary girl, but the two complement each other perfectly. So when Mandy Nylon--all blonde hair, perfect make-up, neon-white teeth, look-at-my-curves dresses and a backside that wiggles so hard you could attach cocktail shakers to it--moves into the street, Poppy's world is rocked. Everyone is charmed by the newcomer but Poppy and the tingling voice inside her head are pretty sure that there is more to this woman than meets the eye and a battle of wills that leaves the reader pretty breathless ensues.Philip Ridley certainly has a way with words and in Vinegar Street he lets rip with a barrage of snappy dialogue and crafty prose that runs like a river of poetry across the pages and into the imagination. Older readers will simply love the sharp and snappy humour, and the tight characterization that drives the unusual and intrepid plot as it races towards its conclusion.A dream of a book for readers like their fiction with a twist, Vinegar Street is a confident and unforgettable story that lets the imagination fly. Age 11 and over. --Susan Harrison
Endless Life: Selected Poems
Lawrence Ferlinghetti - 1981
The final section of the book includes the long poem 'Endless Life'.
The Flowers of Evil & Artificial Paradise
Charles Baudelaire - 2009
#Charles Baudelaire, poete maudit, the self-styled "Satanic man" whose collection THE FLOWERS OF EVIL (Les Fleurs du Mal) is marked by paeans to sexual degradation such as "The Litanies Of Satan" and "Metamorphosis Of The Vampire." Baudelaire himself revelled in a life of filth, and kept as his poetic muse a diseased mulatto prostitute. THE FLOWERS OF EVIL is now presented in a brand new translation that vividly brings Baudelaire's masterpiece to life for the new millennium. This volume also includes key texts from Baudelaire's ARTIFICIAL PARADISE, his notorious examination of the effects of intoxication by alcohol and psychotropic drugs. In "On Wine And Hashish" and "The Poem Of Hashish," Baudelaire brilliantly evokes the agony and ecstasy of addiction. With an introductory essay by Guillaume Apollinaire, published for the first time in English. Cover illustration by Odilon Redon. Solar Nocturnal presents classic texts by key forerunners of modernism.#One of the founders of Modernism, an early champion of Cubism, and inventor of the term "Surrealist." Critic, poet, novelist, theorist, pornographer. #Russell Dent lives in Brighton, UK, and has previously translated he works of Maurice Rollinat.