rapids a novel tim parks a riveting white-water ride down a raging river in the italian alps pitting people against nature in the novel tim parks was born to write sunday telegraph london tim parks is the author of 18 books of fiction and nonfiction including the booker prize finalist europa destiny and a season with verona he lives in verona italy with his wife and three children when 15 vacationers six adults and nine adolescents arrive in the italian alps to test their kayaking skills against the wild waters of the upper aurino river they have no idea what harrowing events await them among the group are the bank mogul vince recently widowed and trying to make sense of his life and his teenage daughter louise their hosts are clive an enigmatic but commanding leader and his alluring but fragile girlfriend michela their lives intertwine over the next week in ways none could have foreseen as they test their courage and varying abilities against the roaring waters the rocks both seen
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the da vinci notebooks leonardo da vinci edited and introduced by emma dickens for everyone who has read dan brown s the da vinci code here is an exceptional insight into da vinci s inner world in his own words and images a dazzling array of invention and observation from perhaps the greatest genius of western civilization leonardo da vinci was an italian painter sculptor architect musician engineer and scientist his many works include the last supper and the mona lisa towering across time as the painter of the mona lisa forever famous as a sculptor and inventor leonardo da vinci was one of the greatest minds of both the italian renaissance and western civilization dan brown s the da vinci code and recent in-depth biographies have stimulated renewed interest in da vinci and his complex and inquiring intelligence this brand-new selection of sketches diagrams and writings from his notebooks is a beautiful and varied record of da vinci s theories and observations embracing not only art bu
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strange times my dear the pen anthology of contemporary iranian literature edited by nahid mozaffari and ahmad karimi hakkak now in paperback a rich and varied collection of short stories extracts from novels and poetry that showcases the latest developments in iranian literature from which we have been virtually cut off since the islamic revolution of 1979 nahid mozaffari earned her ph.d in history and middle eastern studies from harvard university she has taught middle eastern history at the new school in new york and at cabot university in rome she lives in new york city despite war repression and censorship a renaissance has taken place in iran over the past quarter-century not only in literature but in music art and film since the 1979 revolution however the united states has been virtually cut off from that country now for the first time in paperback we have in translation selections from the work of over 40 writers from three generations both men and women which displays the pro
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the good works of ayela linde a novel in stories charlotte forbes from an o henry prizewinner this dazzling novel in stories marks the arrival of a powerfully original and beguiling new voice in american fiction charlotte forbes is the winner of an o henry prize and a nominee for the best new american voices 2006 her stories and articles have appeared in literary reviews and newspapers across the u.s she lives in new york city and is working on a novel the linked stories that make up this spare and beautifully written novel follow the life of ayela the illegitimate daughter of a mexican dressmaker born in 1933 in the texas border town of santa rosalia raised by her mother and superstitious grandmother thought to be a witch by the townsfolk ayela is breathtakingly striking aloof fearful flamboyant and headstrong and her stories are told by those who know her or think they do a girlhood friend her housekeeper the pork butcher members of the altar guild a travel agent her daughter-in-la
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the pastures of beyond an old cowboy looks back at the old west dayton o hyde now in paperback a young man s rollicking journey through the old west filled with colorful tales of cowboys indians and the horses they rode this is a moving homage to a now mythical era in american memory dayton o hyde is the author of 15 books including the classic don coyote he has won awards for his writing and conservation work and is the founder of the black hills wild horse sanctuary in south dakota where he now lives he still breaks horses at age 13 dayton hyde a spirited beanpole of a boy ran away from home in marquette michigan to his uncle s ranch in eastern oregon this was in the 1930s and yamsi was one of the last great cattle operations in the west soon the boy nicknamed hawk was riding a horse soaking up all facets of ranch life from the hired hands and winning the cowboys respect a natural at bronco busting he eventually became a rodeo rider bull fighter clown and photographer working all
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the other side of loneliness a spiritual journey ned o gorman every once in a great while out of nowhere a very special person appears with the courage and conviction to change the destiny of others such a person is ned o gorman ned o gorman is a poet and writer he has been the founder and head of the children s storefront school in harlem since 1966 he lives in new york city n i ck seaver born to wealth and privilege ned o gorman a gifted poet dreamed of becoming a priest after he had spent a year at the catholic seminary the father superior decided poetry and the priesthood could not mix wandering in harlem one day ned saw an abandoned storefront and there he met his calling and future he would start a tuition-free school for the underprivileged my life has been a trek to discover the other side of loneliness writes the author for over 30 years single-handedly without fanfare and on a shoestring ned o gorman has opened his doors to the children of the streets of harlem taking their
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india from independence to today shashi tharoor one of the best in a generation of indian authors new york times book review shows how the challenges facing the world s largest and most diverse democracy will also affect america and the west in the 21st century now available in paperback with a new preface by the author shashi tharoor was born in london and educated in india and the united states tharoor is undersecretary general for communications and public information at the united nations he lives in new york city at the stroke of midnight on august 15 1947 a new nation was born it has 17 major languages and 22,000 distinct dialects it has over a billion individuals of every ethnic extraction known to humanity it has a population that is 32 percent illiterate but also one of the world s largest pools of trained scientists and engineers its ageless civilization is the birthplace of four major religions a dozen different traditions of classical dance and 300 ways of cooking a potat
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across the savage sea the first woman to row across the north atlantic maud fontenoy preface by gérard d aboville translated from the french by martin sokolinsky over 1,000 men have climbed mount everest 12 have walked on the moon and only six have rowed the atlantic from west to east no woman had yet accomplished this feat until maud fontenoy maud fontenoy was born to the sea having jean-chr istop he l esp ag nol lived on her parents 55-foot schooner for the first 15 years of her life when she accomplished her miraculous crossing she was 25 years old on march 26 2005 she became the first woman to row solo across the south pacific when 25-year-old maud fontenoy began planning her journey across the north atlantic in her 24-foot boat pilot defying all odds she had little idea of what was in store from the moment of her departure back-to-back storms with 20-foot waves tossed maud and pilot up and down relentlessly as if they were nature s playthings leaving mariner and boat battered and
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playback a graphic novel raymond chandler adapted by ted benoit illustrations by françois ayroles preface by philippe garnier a heart-pounding tale of betrayal blackmail and murder that will take you to the edge of your seat on a storyboard ride through raymond chandler s last thriller raymond chandler was born in chicago in 1888 but spent his youth in england after fighting in world war i he settled in california where he became director of a number of independent oil companies he died in la jolla california in 1959 unearthed from the universal studios archives and adapted as a graphic novel the script for playback is classic chandler exposing the highs and lows of the human heart in the raw light of a hard-boiled crime story betty mayfield is blond and beautiful and has just been found guilty of the murder of her husband but the judge realizes the jury is terrified of her father-in-law the man who owns everything in this small north carolina town and overturns the verdict her father
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last notes and other stories tamas dobozy in the tradition of aleksandar hemon s the question of bruno and david bezmozgis s natasha a stunning debut collection of short fiction that nails with deadpan irony the dislocations of exile and the disconnects of daily life tamas dobozy of hungarian descent has published his stories in journals throughout north america he teaches in the department of english and film studies at wilfrid laurier university and lives with his family in ontario shot through with wit profundity a strong sense of the bonds of history and a love of the absurd last notes is a virtuoso performance that will dazzle the imagination and touch the heart as it explores the ways in which we come together and are pulled apart with stories such as tales of hungarian resistance and four uncles tamas dobozy reveals the cultural no-man s land that many children of immigrants are trapped within others such as the title piece the story of a dying composer and his legacy probe
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reluctant genius alexander graham bell and the passion for invention charlotte gray a major new biography of one of the giants of the golden age of invention whose innovations revolutionized the modern world charlotte gray a historian biographer teacher columnist and radio and television commentator is one of canada s best known and most highly respected writers she has written five bestsellers and won numerous awards for her work she lives in ottawa the popular image of alexander graham bell shows an elderly american patriarch memorable only for his paunch his santa claus beard and the invention of the telephone in this magisterial reassessment based on thorough new research acclaimed biographer charlotte gray reveals bell s wide-ranging passion for invention and delves into the private life that supported his genius the child of a speech therapist and a deaf mother and possessed of superbly acute hearing bell developed an early interest in sound his understanding of how sound waves m
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