Somewhere Beautiful


Kay Bratt - 2016
    Though she is used to being forgotten, she’s grown tired of being labeled as unwanted. The years have been hard on her, making it impossible to get close to anybody, except for her best friend Kai who has made it all bearable. When bureaucracy threatens to tear them apart, Willow and Kai make a run for it. The only problem is, they aren’t alone. They’ll have to figure out if their excess baggage—a sassy girl who holds an extra chromosome—will be the glue that keeps them together as they navigate street life, or the obstacle that jeopardizes their new found freedom. A fascinating look into modern day orphanage life and what it’s like to feel as though you belong to no one, Kay Bratt’s novel, Somewhere Beautiful, is the first in the two-book Life of Willow series. In Somewhere Beautiful, Bratt weaves a story of loss and loyalty that will have you following three teens as they battle their way through life’s obstacles in the search for the always elusive happily ever after.

The Last Correspondent


Michael Smith - 2021
    After five days under consular protection, Smith was evacuated from a very different China to the country he first visited 23 years earlier.The visit marked a new twist in Australia’s 50-year diplomatic relationship with China which was now coming apart at the seams. But it also symbolised the authoritarianism creeping into every aspect of society under President Xi Jinping over the last three years.From Xinjiang’s re-education camps to the tear-gas filled streets of Hong Kong, Smith’s account of Xi Jinping’s China documents the country’s spectacular economic rise in the years leading up to the coronavirus outbreak.Through first-person accounts of life on the ground and interviews with friends as well as key players in Chinese society right up to the country’s richest man, The Last Correspondent explores what China’s rise to become the world’s newest superpower means for Australia and the rest of the world.

The New Hot: Cruising Through Menopause with Attitude and Style


Meg Mathews - 2020
    Rejecting the idea that we should live in fear, suffer silently, or medicate ourselves unnecessarily through this hormonal shift, Mathews set out to get answers and advice from the medical establishment, alternative therapists, and her many friends in the midst of "the change." When she launched the Megs Menopause website, it quickly became the trending online destination for pre- and menopausal women all over the world.Now, in The New Hot, Mathews offers the results of all her research and discussions: the latest information about hormone treatments (hormone replacement therapy and bioidentical hormone therapy), her best tips and techniques for coping with menopausal symptoms (there are officially thirty-four possible symptoms; Mathews has dealt with thirty-two!), and dishy, girlfriend-to-girlfriend advice about what to really expect when you're aging. Entertaining, stylish, and informative, The New Hot will be the resource women everywhere are talking about, learning from, and recommending to one another.

French Chic - The "Secret" to French Style


Ali Martine - 2015
    French women know the intrinsic value of classic basics and integrate their favorite clothes and accessories based upon years of experience perfecting their unique sense of style. French women know how to create a sense of intrigue. And it’s not achieved by wearing a barrage of latest trends or designers. It’s about having the confidence to dress up a simple white button-down, incorporating their signature flair, for a far more interesting and sophisticated look. Most women tend to buy everything that catches their eye. There’s not much discernment, just buying power. And these women have the overstuffed closets to show for it. I must warn you – This book is not just another simplistic buying guide to achieve a French chic look. Nor will I insult you with cliché advice on incorporating scarves into your daily wardrobe. I would like to offer you a different perspective. This book includes advice and insights about making empowering choices when it comes to what is hanging in your closet. The choice to simplify, buy less, and keep only fabulous items. The choice to honor your body first and foremost. And the choice to invest in your wardrobe.

That's My Color: Discover Your 5 Signature Colors And Transform Your Life


Jennifer Thoden - 2018
     Jen Thoden describes the five colors that will become your signature go-to always-know-these-colors-look-amazing-on-me colors, which include: - 2 colors that will bring you immediate confidence in yourself - 1 color that will pull your wardrobe together - 2 colors that will have you digging deep on who you really are Jen Thoden discovered her five signature colors when she was struggling with her own identity. She was depressed, divorced, 40 and seemed to have no purpose. She managed to transform her life into one of success and happiness using the steps she’s outlined in this book. Discovering her five signature colors helped her get to know her true self, gain confidence in owning her strengths and flaws and the creativity to design a life that truly brings her happiness. Jen Thoden believes that you can live a happy fulfilled life when you are being your authentic self. Being yourself is so much easier than trying to be someone else. Join Jen on this personal journey and start transforming your life with your signature colors.

Up to the Mountains and Down to the Countryside


Quincy Carroll - 2015
    The first, Thomas, is an entitled deadbeat, content to pass the rest of his days in Asia skating by on the fact that he's white, while the second, a recent college graduate named Daniel, is an idealist at heart. Over the course of the novel, these two characters fight to establish primacy in Ningyuan, a remote town in the south of Hunan, with one of their more overzealous students, Bella, caught in between. Quincy Carroll's cleverly written debut novel examines what we bring from one country to another.

The Rise and Fall of the House of Bo


John Garnaut - 2012
    Now, as the Party's 18th National Congress oversees the biggest leadership transition in decades, and installs the Bo family's long-time rival Xi Jinping as president, China's rulers are finding it increasingly difficult to keep their poisonous internal divisions behind closed doors.Bo Xilai's breathtaking fall from grace is an extraordinary tale of excess, murder, defection, political purges and ideological clashes going back to Mao himself, as the princeling sons of the revolutionary heroes ascend to control of the Party. China watcher John Garnaut examines how Bo's stellar rise through the ranks troubled his more reformist peers, as he revived anti-'capitalist roader' sentiment, even while his family and associates enjoyed the more open economy's opportunities. Amid fears his imminent elevation to the powerful Standing Committee was leading China towards another destructive Cultural Revolution, have his opponents seized their chance now to destroy Bo and what he stands for? The trigger was his wife Gu Kailai's apparently paranoid murder of an English family friend, which exposed the corruption and brutality of Bo's outwardly successful administration of the massive city of Chongqing. It also led to the one of the highest-level attempted defections in Communist China's history when Bo's right-hand man, police chief Wang Lijun, tried to escape the ruins of his sponsor's reputation.Garnaut explains how this incredible glimpse into the very personal power struggles within the CCP exposes the myth of the unified one-party state. With China approaching super-power status, today's leadership shuffle may set the tone for international relations for decades. Here, Garnaut reveals a particularly Chinese spin on the old adage that the personal is political.

Glamour's Big Book of Dos and Don'ts


Cindi Leive - 2006
    This text takes Glamour magazine's best-loved feature and distils the advice into a guide for any fashion occasion.

Taming Poison Dragons


Tim Murgatroyd - 2009
    But the "poison dragons" of misfortune shatter his orderly existence. First, when his village is threatened by a vicious civil war, his family stability is threatened by his second son, a brutal rebel officer. Meanwhile, Yun Cai struggles to free an old friend, P'ei Ti, from a hellish prison—no easy task when P'ei Ti is the rebels' most valuable hostage, and Yun Cai sees himself only as a frightened old man. Throughout his ordeals, Yun Cai draws from the glittering memories of his youth, when he journeyed to the capital to study poetry, joined the upper ranks of the civil service, and secured the friendship of P'ei Ti. Above all, he reflects Su Lin, a great love he won and lost, and for which he paid with his freedom and almost his life. Yun Cai is forced to reconsider all that he is and all that he has ever been in order to summon the wit and courage to confront the warlord General An-Shu and his beautiful but cruel consort, the Lady Ta-Chi.

Pretty Woman Spitting: An American's Travels in China


Leanna Adams - 2012
    Leanna Adams moved to China in 2006, was nearly robbed, held her co-worker’s hand as she died in a filthy, smoke-filled hospital, bonded with many of her three hundred students and left part of her heart in Wuhu, China. Adams’s contrasting experiences highlight the differences that make the two cultures unique and the similarities that make all people human.

Influence


Mary-Kate Olsen - 2008
    In the pages of Influence, Ashley and Mary-Kate take readers on a journey through their celebrated young lives, pausing to reflect on what has helped shape them into who they are today. Influence will be filled with never-before-seen photographs from Ashley and Mary-Kate's private collections, pages of original material by Ashley and Mary-Kate, and interviews with some of the most influential tastemakers in the world. Internationally famous photographer Rankin shot the cover image and many interior shots. The book is designed by renowned book-designer Rodrigo Corral and edited by fashion and arts writer Derek Blasberg. Influence has 4 major sections: Fashion, Environment, Art and Giving Back, as well as an introduction and conclusion. This category-breaking book will show that with an open mind and a little bit of curiosity, everyone can have INFLUENCE.

The Humble Administrator's Garden


Vikram Seth - 1985
    The poet Donald Davie writes: 'Vikram Seth's poems should have an impact far beyond much noisier pieces; for when did we last see a volume in which the poet's eye is on what is objectively before him, rather than on the intricacies of his own sensibility?'

How to be Chic in the Winter: Living slim, happy and stylish during the cold season


Fiona Ferris - 2016
    You can feel everything growing still and soft; nature is slowing down and people are getting cozy. The most stunning colours can be found outdoors at this time. Despite the natural beauty, despite your looking forward to the coziness of winter, you find that a few short months later yes, again, things have gone awry. You have ploughed headlong into winter without design or plan; you are wearing the same clothes as last year because you have not put thought into your wardrobe; you have put on weight from indiscriminate eating and you are complaining in your head, or worse, out loud that ‘it’s cold today’. This was me! Many warm-blooded creatures hibernate when it is cold out and go with their natural instincts by doing so. They do not enter the spring season stressed out; rather, animals waking up from hibernation are coming to sleepily, well rested and ready for the warmer season; so, why don’t we? We would not go to sleep for months on end, but perhaps we can take a leaf out of their book and make each winter a mental spa time of rejuvenation, beauty and pleasure. I decided to write this book as a kind of insurance, to remind me of my exciting winter plans. It is easy to be enthusiastic about the winter season when the leaves are turning. Fall fashions are always fun to look forward to, even for a non-fashionista like me – the September issue of Vogue! I can rekindle my love for the colours of plum, navy and camel at this time of year. But a few months later the novelty has already worn off. This book is also a toolkit of all the ideas that have worked so well in previous winters, as well as new ideas I want to capture. I started this book in autumn, and am now finishing it up in spring. I am so pleased to have tried all my ideas out in a ‘test’ environment! Read ‘How to be Chic in the Winter’ to discover my strategy for not just surviving, but thriving this winter; on how to have a chic and beautiful winter season and emerge, like a butterfly ready for a gorgeous spring and summer. Contents Introduction Chapter 1. Know that winter is a different season Start winter with a goal Be ahead of the game Look forward to winter Chapter 2. Create a winter menu plan Breakfasts that are warming, filling and healthy Lunches for work and home Dinners – tweak the winter classics Snacks Fiona’s favourite winter recipes Red Lentil and Tomato soup Pumpkin Soup Vegetable soup Spaghetti Bolognese Savoury mince Shepherd’s pie Roast chicken ‘Bangers’ (sausages) and mash Parmesan chicken Crumbed chicken Pasta Bake Rice Bake Apple and Boysenberry Crumble Bliss Balls Chapter 3. Break up the long winter Learn something or have a project to complete Keep active Be social Chapter 4. Work on feeling good Home as your winter sanctuary Dress in clothes that make you feel good Be cozy when you are at home Take care of your grooming Keep well Chapter 5. Keep your motivation up Do things quickly If you are a summer person Make plans for the next six to twelve months Chapter 6. Create your ideal chic winter season Bonus journal questions To finish About the author

The Crimson Pagoda


Christopher Nicole - 1983
     She is desperately excited to explore not only the foreign land with all its alien culture but also the role of a wife and all the pleasures that come with it… In no time at all Constance is shocked on both accounts. China stuns her with its barbaric and improper behaviour which, almost against her will, begins to tease her imagination. At the same time, Mr Henry Baird, despairing of his sinful desires, proves unable to indulge Constance’s wishes. The marriage, failing from the beginning, spirals further and further out of control as Constance, aided by her only ally Kate, inadvertently becomes a famous ‘Devil Woman’ throughout the region and faces an audience with the Empress herself. As her new life unfolds, Constance finds herself tortured by desire, teetering on the edge of love and caught up in a dangerous whirlwind of international politics. She ricochets between the Chinese extremes of complete intimacy and deadly violence as they head slowly into war. What does ‘The Crimson Pagoda’ promise? ‘The Crimson Pagoda’ is a gripping and engaging historical romance by a master of the genre. Praise for Christopher Nicole: ‘Well-researched…Evocative descriptions of scenery and edifices, and exact period dialogue’ – Historical Novels Society Christopher Nicole was born and brought up in British Guyana and the West Indies. His output of books has been prolific and many of his novels are historical with a Caribbean background.

A Concubine for the Family: A Family Saga in China


Amy S. Kwei - 2012
     It also explores the circumstances surrounding the true-life event of my grandmother's gift of a concubine to my grandfather on his birthday to enhance the chance of an heir to the Family.