Sofia on the Balcony: flash reads by Himanshu Goel


Himanshu Goel - 2020
    

American Legends: The Life of Bing Crosby


Charles River Editors - 2014
    *Includes Crosby's quotes about his life and career. *Includes a bibliography for further reading. *Includes a table of contents. “I think popular music in this country is one of the few things in the twentieth century that have made giant strides in reverse.” – Bing Crosby A lot of ink has been spilled covering the lives of history’s most influential figures, but how much of the forest is lost for the trees? In Charles River Editors’ American Legends series, readers can get caught up to speed on the lives of America’s most important men and women in the time it takes to finish a commute, while learning interesting facts long forgotten or never known. In 1948, American polls rated Bing Crosby “the most admired man alive”, and it’s no surprise given how popular he was across every major form of entertainment during the decade. With a string of major hits, Crosby was the most popular singer in the country during that era, with classic songs like “White Christmas” helping pave the way for other singers as varied as Bob Hope, Dean Martin, and Frank Sinatra. In fact, young Sinatra modeled his clothing and style after Crosby, who was his idol growing up. And as good as he was at singing, Crosby’s work with radio technology helped pave the way for multitracking songs and making it possible to broadcast the same radio programs across the country without cutting another live version. All told, Crosby sold an estimated 500 million records in the 20th century. In addition to being one of America’s most beloved singers and an accomplished radio presence, Crosby not only made popular movies but acted well enough to be critically acclaimed. His Road To… movie series with Bob Hope produced some of the best-selling movies of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, and he won an Oscar for Best Actor in Going My Way (1944) by playing Father Chuck O’Malley. When he was nominated for the same role in the 1945 sequel The Bells of St. Mary’s, he became one of just 4 people nominated for two Oscars for playing the same role. American Legends: The Life of Bing Crosby examines the life and career of one of America’s greatest and most versatile entertainers. Along with pictures of important people, places, and events, you will learn about Kelly like never before, in no time at all.

Our Rose


Victor Pemberton - 1995
    When there's a family problem - her father's arrest for thieving, her mother losing her job at the London Transport Staff Canteen - it is Rose who somehow manages to bring the Humbles through the crisis, But as she grows older and war starts to cast its shadow over all their lives, Rose realises there are some problems a quick wit and a ready tongue cannot solve. And she also comes to see that there are people who are not all they seem...

Tina's Story: Urban Fiction Gone Viral


Tina Story - 2016
    Even her man, Dred, who was as sexy and wealthy as they come could not tame her. Dred was a powerful boss who ran half the city, his charm, wisdom and silent power helped him to reach the upper echelon of society. Mila was his Queen who wanted nothing more than to take his throne for herself.Mila found out she had lost Dred's love and knew that she had to get rid of his side piece,Tessa. There was no way she could let another women turn his head and undermine all of her devious plans. When Mila had her goons kidnap Tessa off the streets she thought she had solved her little problem. She didn't realize that Tessa's sister, Tina, was a forced to be reckoned with.Tina soon finds out that her sister is missing. A calculated and beautiful threat, Tina terrorizes the streets stopping at nothing to try and get her sister back safely.This story a polished action packed tale of passion, revenge and deceit. Make yourself comfortable because this is definitely a page turner. Don't Believe me? Read it.

Canvas of Life


Rabb Jyot - 2019
    In some way, the essence of the stories address the age-old question of what it means to be human.Therefore, you will easily correlate with the confusion of Lauren as she experiences changes within herself & continuously sees a man in her dream for no specific reason. You will feel excited to unravel the mystery faced by Rachit when he finds a strange draft research paper, which immediately attracts him. You will experience the shock of Nandita when she suddenly watches something in the pages of a book and blurts, 'this is impossible'. You will understand the suffering of Aaron caused by his repeated nightmares & his disappearance to some remote location.Book is available on Amazon. Order your copy.

Who Killed the Kaneez?


Vijay Kakwani - 2019
     Farzana is one of the prostitutes at Begum's kotha and Ramakant Bannerjee, the writer, loves her deeply. He's promised to marry her once he has enough money. He's currently writing his most ambitious novel, the story of Kaneez. As the story of Kaneez unfolds, so does the intriguing life of Farzana. What fate does she meet? Read on to find out.

My Lynda: Loving and losing my beloved wife, Lynda Bellingham


Michael Pattemore - 2015
    Lynda touched many lives in her memoir, There's Something I've Been Dying to Tell You, and in My Lynda, Michael tells his side of the story. He talks movingly about their ten years together and describes how, in the past year, he has struggled to cope. He shares candidly his experience of grief, offering hope and support to others who have lost partners and loved ones. His is a book to comfort those who loved Lynda, to tell the missing pieces of their life together, to write about how they both confronted the news of her illness, and how he managed to continue since that moment of hearing that she had a teminal illness.

Her Unexpected Husband


Chandra Priya - 2020
    He told her he would make her his wife and protect her. In her state of haze, she agreed.The stranger was her savior and she was thankful but was he really her husband? How did the handsome, charming man end up becoming Her Unexpected Husband?Note: This is a short and sweet romance with a happy ending.

The Concept


Kevin Wignall - 2012
    Everyone thinks he's a laughing stock now, including his ex-wife and even his agent. When it seems things couldn't get any worse, a chance encounter results in Robinson moonlighting as a hitman. But that's when things take a surprising turn, because the more people he kills, the more the art world seems to fall back in love with him. This blackly comic short story was first published in "Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine" in August, 2005.

If I Were to Die Today


J.D. Stockholm - 2013
    Some came to him in sleep while others seemed to appear at random through his musings. He had time travelled, in a way, to a place where the darkness of his abusive childhood occurred and alongside, also came the dark and sometimes painful reflections.These are the second collection of such thoughts, a continuation of The Dark Ramblings of the Phoenix.They are real and raw; emotionally explicit and even occasionally, healing. Walk with him through his poetic journey as he takes you to those tiny cracks that most of us will never see.Note: Please take special care that the writings in this book may be explicit in nature. If you have been abused in any way they may be triggering for you. Be considerate to yourself while you read.

Take Me By Surprise


Emma Scarlett - 2017
    Lisa hears a knock at the door. When she opens it, she finds a mysterious man in need of shelter. He got caught out in the storm while hunting, unaware of the storm that was bearing down on the small town. Lisa gives him shelter, happy to have some company to ride out the storm. Both people are there for their own reasons and as they get to know each other, the storm outside is matched by the one inside the small cabin. Late at night, Will goes to Lisa and the two find something to keep themselves warm during the long, cold night.

A Jersey Dreamboat


Georgina Troy - 2015
    Event planners Izzy and Jess are badly let down when a Jersey socialite hires them for the busiest weeks of the season and then cancels at the last minute, leaving the girls with no bookings and no money. Feeling despondent, they try a night out to cheer themselves up, and meet the captivating and aristocratic Ed, who invites the two on an luxury yacht cruise to Nice, together with his two brothers. Romance builds through heady days of blue sky and warm seas, but when a last-minute wedding booking is offered, the girls must return to Jersey, and real life has to begin again ... or has it?

If My Pussy Could Talk


Tamika Smith - 2012
    Makayla Young has over a thousand rules. She has rules about love, life and even sex. When will she ever learn you cannot control and keep a man with rules. Will her rules cause her to loose another man?

Secrets of the Wild


Dustin M. Hoffman - 2019
    Hoffman, however, things are not quite as ordinary as they seem. Quickly, these scenarios are flung down a surreal rabbit hole filled with bizarre taxidermy museums, and an outrageous relationship involving a silverback gorilla. Yet, amid all of its convention-smashing glee, Secrets of the Wild reveals a generous and moving portrait of a family, a family doing their best to keep it together—to play-act at normalcy, even sanity—in an American landscape slipping into madness.

Falling Suns


J.A. Corrigan - 2016
    Then his body is discovered. Her cousin Michael is found guilty of his murder and incarcerated in a secure psychiatric unit.Four years later, now divorced and back in the police force, Rachel discovers that Michael is being released to a less secure step-down unit, with his freedom a likely eventuality. Unable to cope with this, she decides upon revenge, assuming a new identity to hunt him down and kill him. However, as she closes in on her target, her friend Jonathan, a journalist, uncovers some unnerving information about her mother and others in her family and begins to suspect that Rachel’s perception of the truth might not be as accurate as she thinks – that she might be about to murder the wrong man…