Kaleidoscope
Darryl Wimberley - 2008
With debts to dangerous men piling up, he becomes an unwilling recruit for a Cincinnati gangster needing an expendable tool to recover his stolen cash and railroad bonds.
Clicking Her Heels
Lucy Hepburn - 2007
Amy embarks on a modern-day Cinderella quest to reclaim her pride and joy, travelling to New York, Ireland and Miami and meeting a whole host of unlikely characters - including some real-life ugly sisters and a very sexy Prince Charming...Amy begins to realise that her shoes aren't mere accessories - from her favourite killer heels to her late mother's beloved ballet slippers, each pair holds unforgettable memories. But as Amy is reunited with her most cherished possessions, she unearths secrets about her past - and a few home truths. Could it be that the important things in life don't always come boxed and gift-wrapped...?
Baba Evi - Avare Yıllar (Küçük Adamın Romanı 1-2)
Orhan Kemal - 2013
The Idle Years comprises two semi-autobiographical novels (My Father's House and The Idle Years) that form part of a series; these two are set during the 1920s and 1930s, a period of major social change in the new Turkish Republic. The unnamed narrator grows up in an affluent household in Adana with his brother, sisters, mother and formidable father, a well-known political agitator. When the father falls foul of the authorities the family migrates to Beirut, where the narrator becomes something of a rebel while attempting to support his now impoverished family. He returns alone to Adana as a disaffected teenager, but lack of money and prospects prompts him and his best friend to set off for Istanbul in an ill-fated attempt to seek fame and fortune. Soon, however, he is forced to return home as a humiliated and alienated youth struggling on the bottom rung of society. Things only begin to look up when he meets a young factory girl ..." In his writings Orhan Kemal examines the struggles that ordinary people face in order to survive in the harsh conditions that can result from social and economic upheaval. A master at portraying the relationship between the individual and society, he left an immortal literary legacy - not only to Turkey but to the world.
A Good Distance
Sarah Willis - 2004
Now the award-winning author delivers a heartrending story about mothers and daughters doing their best to negotiate the distance between freedom and love. Jennifer's mother, Rose, belongs in a home. At least that's what everyone else thinks. But Jennifer has walked away from her mother too many times already, and this is one duty she intends to fulfill herself. So she takes a leave of absence from her job and invites Rose to live with her and her family. Jennifer's teenage daughter and new husband can hardly tolerate Rose and her short temper, but Jennifer is desperate to know about the memories drifting in and out of her mother's reach, sometimes comforting her, sometimes tormenting her. Jennifer longs to use these memories to help rebuild her mother's life--to remind herself, and her mother, what went wrong, so she can ask for forgiveness--or is it the other way around?
Aria
Nassim Assefi - 2007
When faced with the sudden accidental death of Aria, her five-year-old daughter, she finds little solace in the healing advice she’s prescribed to her patients and their families. Lacking spiritual scaffolding or comforting rituals to cope, Jasmine buys a one-way ticket around the world. Along the way she writes letters: to her three greatest loves, all now dead, and to her devoted friends who encourage her to return home.This deeply spiritual novel is the record of Jasmine’s journey inward and a moving celebration of the fundamental elements of life: of planting maize in Guatemala, of silent meditation in the mountains of Tibet, and of the rituals of grieving in Iran. It is only when Jasmine, this modern American woman, connects with her ancient heritage that she can finally heal.
Pretty Little Liars: The Second Half 8-Book Collection: Twisted, Ruthless, Stunning, Burned, Crushed, Deadly, Toxic, Vicious
Sara Shepard - 2014
But not all that glitters is gold, and the town harbors secrets darker than anyone could imagine—like the truth about what really happened the night Alison DiLaurentis went missing. . .Includes:Pretty Little Liars #9: TwistedPretty Little Liars #10: RuthlessPretty Little Liars #11: StunningPretty Little Liars #12: BurnedPretty Little Liars #13: CrushedPretty Little Liars #14: DeadlyPretty Little Liars #15: ToxicPretty Little Liars #16: Vicious
Lost Ground
Michiel Heyns - 2010
The murder of a beautiful woman shatters the rural village peace of Alfredville, and her husband, the police station commander, is jailed as chief suspect. Her cousin Peter, a freelance writer in London, returns to South Africa for the first time in decades – unsettled, curious, but also in search of a career-defining story. On checking into the Queen’s Hotel he finds that things are not as straightforward as he imagined, and South Africa is not as he left it. His carefully ordered world is thrown into turmoil as his trip dredges up a long-abandoned past, forcing him to question the assumptions so easily held from the comfort of his London flat. He meets a mixture of locals, visitors, vagrants and migrants, but most momentously, Peter discovers that his bosom friend from school, Bennie Nienaber, is still in Alfredville – and is in fact now, acting station commander at the local police station. Peter re-establishes an awkward friendship with his erstwhile friend and the two warily circle each other, sharing reminiscences that hint at a bond much deeper than nostalgia. As Peter abandons the neatly patterned story he had planned and is forced to participate in a community that he once despised, he begins to reconsider his place in the world. In search of Desirée’s story, he now starts to rewrite his own – till events take an even more shocking turn….Lost Ground explores questions of xenophobia and prejudice, of national, sexual and personal identity, and what it means to be a foreigner wherever you go.Michiel Heyns is the author of four previous novels: The Children’s Day, The Reluctant Passenger, The Typewriter’s Tale and Bodies Politic. He is a translator and was professor of English at the University of Stellenbosch.
Out on a Limb
Lynne Barrett-Lee - 2007
Either slightly dramatic or seriously dramatic. That this is the latter means just the one thing. That my day is about to get worse...' And for single mum, Abbie, life is complex enough. So once her eldest son, Seb, has gone on his gap year, she's decided it's time to make changes. She's just left her old job and started a new one (to escape the gorgeous man-who-turned-out-to-be-married), and is planning some space for herself at long last. But fate seems to have something else in mind for Abbie, in the shape of her demanding and incorrigible mother, whose feckless fourth husband, Hugo, has just died. Temporarily in a wheelchair after a recent knee op, Diana - retired TV fitness icon and dancer - will need looking after, so will have to move in. Still, Abbie tells herself - gritting her teeth - it won't be for more than a few weeks... However, Abbie hasn't figured on the sudden arrival of Hugo's 20 years' estranged son.
Eggs, Cookies, and Leeches: Memorable Writing from The
The New YorkerSasha Frere-Jones - 2005
The authors include such best sellers as Malcolm Gladwell, Seymour Hersh, and Jonathan Franzen - and the subjects range from the lives of short-order cooks to the secrets of college admissions.In all, there are nine stories:ANNALS OF TECHNOLOGY"The Bakeoff" by Malcolm Gladwell: Project Delta aims to create the perfect cookie. (Originally published Sept. 5, 2005)COMMENT"Mired" by Hendrik Hertzberg: Evolution vs. creationism vs. intelligent design. (Originally published Aug. 22, 2005)ANNALS OF MEDICINE"Bloodsuckers" by John Colapinto: Leeches are good for you after all. (Originally published July 25, 2005)BOOKS"A Cloud of Dust" by John Updike: A review of E. L. Doctorow's new novel, The March. (Originally published Sept. 12, 2005)THE TALK OF THE TOWN:"Watergate Days" by Seymour Hersh: The veteran investigative reporter writes about the revelation of the identity of "Deep Throat" and his own reporting experiences. (Originally published June 13 & 20, 2005)IN THE KITCHEN"The Egg Men" by Burkhard Bilger: What it takes to be a short-order cook in Las Vegas. (Originally published Sept. 5, 2005)A CRITIC AT LARGE"Getting In" by Malcolm Gladwell: The social logic of Ivy League admissions. (Originally published Oct. 10, 2005)ANNALS OF ADOLESCENCE"The Retreat" by Jonathan Franzen: Memories of a church youth group. (Originally published June 6, 2005)POP MUSIC"The Gift and the Curse" by Sasha Frere-Jones: The "vexing brilliance" of Jack White and the latest release by The White Stripes. (Originally published June 13 & 20, 2005)The articles in this collection were selected by Audible in cooperation with the editorial staff of The New Yorker. Narration by William Dufris, Todd Mundt, and Christine Marshall.(P) and ©2005 The New YorkerListening Length: 4 hours and 32 minutes
The Complete Elizabeth Gilbert
Elizabeth Gilbert - 2010
In Rome, she indulges herself and gains nearly two stone. In India, she finds enlightenment through scrubbing temple floors. Finally, in Bali a toothless medicine man reveals a new path to peace, leaving her ready to find love again. Despite vowing in EAT PRAY LOVE never to go near marriage again, in COMMITTED we find Gilbert about to wed the man she fell in love with at the end of EAT, PRAY, LOVE. Once again approaching with this most ancient of institutions, with wit and intelligence Gilbert explores marriage on a personal & global level to discover what it really means. In THE LAST AMERICAN MAN, Gilbert presents a fascinating, intimate portrait of the American naturalist and brilliant modern hero Eustace Conway, who at the age of seventeen ditched the comforts of his suburban existence to escape into the wild. Attempting to instil in people a deeper appreciation of nature, Conway stops at nothing in pursuit of bigger, bolder adventures. In Gilbert's first novel STERN MEN, the eighteen-year-old irredeemably unromantic Ruth Thomas returns home from boarding school determined to join the 'stern-men'. Throwing her education overboard, this feisty and unforgettable American heroine helps work the lobster boats and brushes up on her profanity, eventually falling for a handsome young lobsterman. In PILGRIMS, Gilbert's sharply drawn and tenderly observed collection of twelve short stories, tough heroes and heroines, hardened by their experiences, struggle for their epiphanies and seek companionship as fiercely as they can.
Call of the Crocodile
F. Gardner - 2020
After a boy is eaten alive by a crocodile, his family begins a descent into madness and terror in this odyssey of modern horror.Part of a series of interconnected horror novels that can be read in any order. Each book serves as a stand alone story, yet builds a greater picture behind a sinister mystery in Chicago.
Spyhunt
Michele Ashman Bell - 2004
S. Ambassador. They are especially excited about having time to play their favorite game, Spyhunt, which takes them all over the city, riding busses, streetcars and subways in search of imaginary adventures. But for some reason, Seth and Sadie’s parents are more concerned than usual about the twins’ safety. To make matters worse, they announce that a blind boy named Fami is going to spend several weeks with them. The twins are afraid their fun will be over before it begins. Then they discover that Fami is a great kid who enjoys doing the things they like best. In the midst of their fun, the children spot a mysterious man who seems to pop up everywhere they go. Soon Seth, Sadie, and Fami will have an opportunity to play Spyhunt for real—in a dangerous game that puts their lives in jeopardy.