Lessons

Lessons

Ian Mcewan

Literature & Fiction

From the best-selling author of Atonement and Saturday comes the epic and intimate story of one man's life across generations and historical upheavals. From the Suez Crisis to the Cuban Missile Crisis, the fall of the Berlin Wall to the current pandemic, Roland Baines sometimes rides with the tide of history, but more often struggles against it.When the world is still counting the cost of the Second World War and the Iron Curtain has closed, eleven-year-old Roland Baines's life is turned upside down. Two thousand miles from his mother's protective love, stranded at an unusual boarding school, his vulnerability attracts piano teacher Miss Miriam Cornell, leaving scars as well as a memory of love that will never fade.Now, when his wife vanishes, leaving him alone with his tiny son, Roland is forced to confront the reality of his restless existence. As the radiation from Chernobyl spreads across Europe, he begins a search for answers that looks deep into...
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Whispering in the Wind

Whispering in the Wind

Alan Marshall

Literature & Fiction / Nonfiction

Peter sets out into the Australian bush on his pony that leaps like lightning to find a princess to rescue from a dragon—something only a brave and good person can attempt. Along the way he meets a trusty companion, a kangaroo with a bottomless pouch, and together they follow the directions of the helpful Willy Willy Man across the landscape. With a trip to the moon with the Pale Witch to sweep it clear of Russian and American cameras, a journey across the Plain of Clutching Grass, a visit to a giant's castle and a battle with the Doubt Cats, Peter's bravery and kindness are put to the test.This humorous and enchanting Australian fairy tale will enthrall readers of all ages.Alan Marshall, born in 1902, was an Australian writer, story teller, humanist and social documenter. Marshall received the Australian Literature Society Short Story Award three times. He died in 1984.
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Summer Breeze

Summer Breeze

Nancy Thayer

Literature & Fiction / Women & Gender Studies

New York Times bestselling author Nancy Thayer never fails to imbue her novels with warmth and wisdom. In Summer Breeze, the author of Beachcombers and Heat Wave tells the wonderfully moving story of three women who forge a unique bond one sun-drenched summer on New England's Dragonfly Lake. Morgan O'Keefe feels trapped in a gilded cage. True, the thirty-year-old mother agreed to put her science career on hold to raise her young son while her husband pursued his high-powered job. But though Morgan loves many things about staying home with her child, she misses the thrill of working with her colleagues in the lab. She's restless and in dire need of a change. Fed up with New York City's hectic pace, Natalie Reynolds takes up her aunt's offer to move to the Berkshires and house-sit her fabulous lakeside house for a year. Passionate about applying brush to canvas, Natalie is poised to become the artist she has forever longed to be....
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You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams: My Life in Stories and Pictures

You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams: My Life in Stories and Pictures

Alan Cumming

Literature & Fiction / Nonfiction

A magical concoction of the mischievous, tender, whimsical, and debauched real-life adventures of Alan Cumming, told in his own words and pictures. Described by the New York Times as “a bawdy countercultural sprite” and named one of the most fun people in show business by Time magazine, Alan Cumming is a genuine quadruple threat—an internationally acclaimed, award-winning star of stage, television, and film, as well as a New York Times best-selling author whose real-life vivacity, wit, and charm shine through every page of his third book, You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams. In these forty-five picture essays, Cumming recounts his real-life adventures (and often, misadventures), illustrated by his own equally entertaining photographs. From an awkward bonding session with Elizabeth Taylor to poignant stories about his family and friends to some harsh words of wisdom imparted by Oprah that make up the title of this collection, You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams is as eclectic, enchanting, and alive as its author. **About the Author Alan Cumming is the author of two books: Tommy’s Tale: A Novel of Sex, Confusion, and Happy Endings and the #1 New York Times best-selling memoir Not My Father’s Son. He has also had an exhibition of his photographs, Alan Cumming Snaps! His day job is acting, and most recently he was seen on TV as Eli Gold in the CBS drama The Good Wife, on Broadway in his Tony Award–winning role as the Master of Ceremonies in Cabaret, and in concert, touring the world with his cabaret show, Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs, which was also released as a live album. Alan is also a loudmouth—sorry, activist—who believes that knowledge is power and equality is a right, not a privilege. To find out every single thing he’ s ever done, visit www.alancumming.com, and to find out what he’s doing on a daily basis follow @alancumming on Twitter and @alancummingsnaps on Instagram. 
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Midnight Thunder(INCR)

Midnight Thunder(INCR)

Vicki Lewis Thompson

Literature & Fiction / Romance / Humor

The lost cowboy… Thunder Mountain Ranch was the only place cowboy Cade Gallagher had ever called home. But after he and Lexi Simmons broke each other’s hearts, he left it behind, along with his foster family. Since then, Cade has drifted, looking for something—anything—to call home. Until a call from Lexi changes everything… Cade has been gone too long. His foster mother is hospitalized, and the ranch is in deep financial trouble. Yet even as his world crumbles, Cade’s hunger for Lexi is almost as tangible as the taste of her lips and the way her body fits deliciously against his. It’s bittersweet surrender. But Lexi isn’t the girl she used to be, and she’s determined to have the hot cowboy in her bed only if she keeps him out of her heart.
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The Book of Khalid

The Book of Khalid

Ameen Rihani

Poetry / Literature & Fiction / History

This long-awaited re-publication of the first Arab-American novel--inspiration for Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet--deals with Arab/American relations, religious conflict and the American immigrant experience.Told with great good humor and worldly compassion, and with illustrations by Kahlil Gibran, The Book of Khalid recounts the adventures of two young men, Khalid and Shakib, who leave Lebanon for the United States to seek their fortune in turn-of-thecentury New York. Together, they face all the difficulties of poor immigrants--the passage by ship, admittance through Ellis Island and the rough immigrant life. Khalid, always the dreamer, tries to participate in the political and cultural life of the teeming city--to often humiliating and comic result.Tiring of their sojourn, he convinces Shakib they should return to Lebanon. But their heads are now full of New World ideas. And Khalid, trying to improve his brethren, turns his understanding of...
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The Silent Sounds of Chaos

The Silent Sounds of Chaos

Kristina Circelli

Literature & Fiction / Young Adult

A silent call for help began the friendship between two children. A bond unlike any other kept them together. Finn was just a kid when he first heard Snow’s voice inside his head, two children in need of a friend and finding one in mysterious strangers. Never meeting in person, the pair grows up as opposites – Finn the boy who loves to get in trouble and works for the toughest drug lord in town, Snow the good, sheltered girl who wants to be a doctor. The bond built upon a strange ability to hear each other’s thoughts is threatened when Snow is abducted, her screams for help consuming Finn’s mind until they disappear completely, submerging him in a terrifying silence he’s never known before. Now it’s up to Finn to save her, led only by Snow’s sporadic thoughts as she floats in and out of consciousness. But the search for Snow leads him to a truth he isn’t prepared to face, a truth that has the power to unravel his entire world. The people he thought he knew, the life he thought he’d made, the best friend he thought he could protect – all point toward a brutal reality should he fail. And as Finn struggles to find Snow before she slips away, he must fight to keep that reality out, lest he let the chaos in. **
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The Christmas Pony

The Christmas Pony

Melody Carlson

Literature & Fiction / Young Adult

Eight-year-old Lucy Turnbull knew better than to wish for a pony that Christmas in 1937. Her mother had assured her in no uncertain terms that asking for a pony was the same as asking for the moon. Besides, the only extra mouths they needed at their boarding house were the paying kind. But when an interesting pair of strangers comes to town, Lucy starts to believe her Christmas wishes might just come true after all.The queen of the Christmas novel, Melody Carlson pens another magical tale of expectation and excitement as one little girl dreams big and the impossible becomes possible.
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Riding High

Riding High

Vicki Lewis Thompson

Literature & Fiction / Romance / Humor

Saddle up! There ain't a rider that can't be thrown. And large-animal veterinarian Regan O'Connelli was thrown hard when he discovered his fiancée with his best friend. Now he's starting his life over at the Last Chance Ranch, run by the tightly knit Chance clan. But damned if his libido hasn't perked up over the spirited redhead who looks a lot like trouble.... Lily King is the queen of anti-structure. Turns out, that makes running a horse sanctuary a challenge. Regan's help is exactly what Lily needs--not to mention the seriously sexy sparks that are flying between them. Now she just has to convince this fallen cowboy to dust himself off and get back in the saddle...and into her bed!
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Chalcot Crescent

Chalcot Crescent

Fay Weldon

Literature & Fiction

Meet Frances, one-time national treasure, former famous writer... and Fay Weldon's might-have-been younger sister. It's 2013. Fay has long since emigrated (wouldn't you, if your imaginary sister stole your future?), and eighty-year-old Frances, her glory days gone, is savouring a slice of National Meat Loaf in her once-magnificent house. Communism's dead, capitalism's fallen, and now government bailiffs are banging on her door... How did it come to this? When did CiviCams and powdered egg replace gossipy dinners and chocolate mousse? As Frances tries to make sense of her story, fact and fiction begin to implode. What secrets are her family hiding? Is her skunk-smoking grandson plotting revolution upstairs? And just what makes National Meat Loaf so tasty?
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Someone to Watch Over Me bsr-1

Someone to Watch Over Me bsr-1

Lisa Kleypas

Romance / Literature & Fiction

Amazon.com Review Grant Morgan is one of London's most eligible and unattainable bachelors. He's also a powerful member of the Bow Street Runners, and when he's called to the waterfront late one night to investigate a drowning victim, Grant is stunned to recognize the face of Vivien Rose Duvall, a well-known woman of the night. He's even more startled when he realizes that she's alive. With no one to care for her, Grant carries Vivien to his home and revives her, only to learn that she is suffering from amnesia. Vivien hesitantly accepts her handsome rescuer's claim that she is his mistress, despite her misgivings about her true identity. Nevertheless, she can't deny the marks on her throat that prove her near-drowning in the Thames was not an accident, and now she must trust the man who claims her as his paramour, for her life is in danger. As Grant searches for Vivien's attacker, the two find themselves falling in love, all the while struggling to stay one step ahead of the evil forces that will stop at nothing to see Vivien dead. Kleypas's characters are not your run-of-the-mill Regency fare--Grant lacks a noble lineage while Vivien's "membership" in the demimonde is unusual to say the least--which makes them even more fascinating and thoroughly absorbing. Toss in a puzzling mystery to solve and an intriguing look inside the workings of the famous Bow Street Runners, and you've got a novel well worth reading. No wonder Lisa Kleypas's books are consistent bestsellers--you won't be able to put this one down.
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The Collaborator

The Collaborator

Gerald Seymour

Literature & Fiction

Deadlier than the Mafia, the Camorra never forget and never forgive.She is an Italian accountancy student in London, and her boyfriend Eddie teaches at a language school. But the reason Immacolata Borelli came to Britain was to look after her gangster brother, wanted for murder back home in Naples.For the Borelli clan are major players in the Camorra, a crime network more close-knit and ruthless than the Sicilian Mafia.When Immacolata calls senior Carabinieri investigator Mario Castrolami to say she is prepared to collaborate with justice – to betray her own family – he knows she is setting in motion a terrifying and unpredictable series of events.The Borellis will not lose their criminal empire without a vicious fight. They will use anything and anyone to prevent her from giving evidence against them.Even Eddie, and Eddie's life.
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Against All Odds (Arabesque)

Against All Odds (Arabesque)

Gwynne Forster

Literature & Fiction / Romance

The past could destroy their love... Struggling to keep her corporate-recruiting firm afloat, Manhattan executive Melissa Grant has no time for love. Then Adam Roundtree walks into her life. But the charismatic businessman is no ordinary client. He’s the man who can bring Melissa’s career—and her heart—to life...until a shocking discovery jeopardizes their blossoming relationship. ...Or fuel an unquenchable passion... For Melissa and Adam, fate couldn’t have played a crueler trick: their families have been embroiled in a stormy feud for generations, turning former business partners into lifelong enemies and leaving a bitter legacy that casts a long shadow. Then someone starts sabotaging Adam’s work, and everything points to Melissa. Now they could lose everything...unless their love is strong enough to close the door on the past and open their hearts to the promise of the future.
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