Search results for ""author sly"

In 1969, among Harlem’s Rabelaisian cast of characters are bandleader King Curtis, soul singers Aretha Franklin and Donny Hathaway, and drug peddler Jimmy ‘Goldfinger’ Terrell. In February a raid on tenements across New York leads to the arrest of 21 Black Panther party members and one of the most controversial trials of the era. In the summer Harlem plays host to Black Woodstock and concerts starring Sly and the Family Stone, Stevie Wonder and Nina Simone. The world’s most famous guitarist, Jimi Hendrix, a major supporter of the Black Panthers, returns to Harlem in support of their cause. By the end of the year Harlem is gripped by a heroin pandemic and the death of a 12-year-old child sends shockwaves through the USA, leaving Harlem stigmatised as an area ravaged by crime, gangsters and a darkly vengeful drug problem.

Read more less

Everyone's crowing about Arlo & Pips, with Kirkus praising book 1 as "a perfect match for newly independent readers"! Arlo is lonely and is looking for more friends in the city. This second book in the quirky graphic chapter book series from acclaimed author Elise Gravel is perfect for fans of Narwhal and Jelly and Castronauts.Crows are very social birds, and even with Pips as company, Arlo misses hanging out with other crows. One day, he and his pal Pips meet a very special crow who knows how to do all kinds of cool stuff. Despite being super-smart himself, Arlo realizes that he might still have things to learn!Has Arlo finally met his match? Elise Gravel presents a sequel full of her signature witty humor and more fascinating crow facts. An Eisner nominee for Best Publication for Early ReadersMore praise for Arlo & Pips #1: King of the Crows: A New York Public Library Best Book * A Chicago Public Library Best of the Best * A Junior Library Guild Selection * "An unexpected friendship story! In three short graphic chapters marked by [Gravel’s] signature sly humor, facts about crows are sprinkled throughout, making the reader believe that maybe crows are truly as amazing as Arlo says.” —The Horn Book (starred review)

Read more less

From Penelope Lively, winner of the Booker PrizeWhen . . . Charlotte is mugged and breaks her hip, her daughter Rose cannot accompany her employer Lord Peters to Manchester, which means his niece Marion has to go instead, which means she sends a text to her lover which is intercepted by his wife, which is . . . just the beginning in the ensuing chain of life-altering events.In this engaging, utterly absorbing and brilliantly told novel, Penelope Lively shows us how one random event can cause marriages to fracture and heal themselves, opportunities to appear and disappear, lovers who might never have met to find each other and entire lives to become irrevocably changed.Funny, humane, touching, sly and sympathetic, How It All Began is a brilliant sleight of hand from an author at the top of her game.'Contains some of Lively's funniest and most enjoyable character studies . . . she remains a sublime storyteller'Guardian'Deeply comical, essentially kind-hearted, wonderfully written and seasoned with a rare wisdom' Literary Review'More stylish than many writers half her age . . . Lively knows a thing or two about storytelling . . . her candour is refreshing, and reminds us that you don't have to lie to yourself to live life finely until the very end' The Times

Read more less

A private eye turned moderately successful poet leads readers on a satiric, hopeful tour of how to make a life in the arts, while still having a life. Revealing, hilarious, and peppered with sly takes on the ins and outs of contemporary American poetry (chapters include "The Silence of the Iambs," "The Revisionarium, Ask Dr. Frankenpoem," and "The Periodic Table of Poetic Elements"), Jeffrey Skinner offers advice, candor, and wit. Revision is the process a poem endures to become its best self. Or, if you are the poet, you are the process a poem endures to become its best self. Endures because a first draft, like all other objects in the universe, has inertia and would prefer to stay where it is. The poet must not collaborate. Best self because the poem is more like a person than a thing, and does not strenuously object to personification. Yo, poem. But let's not get carried away. It's your poem and you can treat it as you wish; sweet talk it; push it around if that's what it takes. Alfred Hitchcock notoriously said of the actors in his movies, "They are cattle." Jeffrey Skinner is the author of five books of poetry, most recently Salt Water Amnesia (Ausable Press, 2005). His poems have appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The Nation, The American Poetry Review, Poetry, BOMB, and The Paris Review, and his work has earned awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, The Ingram Merrill Foundation, and the Howard Foundation.

Read more less

Packed full of sticker scenes, puzzles, games and over 400 stickers, The Singing Mermaid Sticker Book is ideal for mermaid fans and perfect for birthdays, rainy days and school holidays – a great gift for any child.Based on the bestselling picture book by the unstoppable creative team of Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks, who also created the modern classic What the Ladybird Heard series.Join the Singing Mermaid as she tries to escape from the circus and return to the freedom of her ocean home. The crowds love her voice, but the poor mermaid is kept in a tank by the wicked circus owner, Sam Sly. The mermaid will need the help of all her circus friends to get back home to the sea. . .

Read more less

Although an idyllic setting, where violent crime is thankfully rare, the Channel Islands have a shadier side. Contained within the pages of this book are twenty-five historic cases of murder committed in the Channel Islands. They include a fatal assault on John Francis in 1894, which remains unsolved; the murder by Philippe Jolin of his father in 1829; and the murder and suicide committed by Eugenie Toupin in 1881, all of which occurred in Jersey. In Guernsey, elderly widow Elizabeth Saujon was murdered during the course of a robbery in 1853, Edward Hooper drunkenly beat his wife to death in 1890, and housekeeper Elizabeth de la Mare murdered her elderly employer in 1935, wanting to hasten his demise on the understanding that she was the sole beneficiary of his will. Nicola Sly’s carefully researched and enthralling text will appeal to everyone interested in true crime and the shady side of Jersey, Guernsey and Alderney’s history.

Read more less

Humanity's greatest heroes battle the gods for the survival of the human race!Once every millennium, the gods assemble to decide if humanity is worthy of its continued existence or if it should be destroyed! When the verdict is destruction, the final battle between the gods and mortal heroes will decide the survival or extinction of the human race—a battle known as Ragnarok!The initial expectation of an easy first win for the gods in the Valhalla Arena is shattered as the human hero Lü Bu (with some help from Brunhilde on the sly) proves to be a match for the mighty Thor. But can Lü Bu stand up to the thunder god’s most powerful attack? With the tournament going into its second round, a surprise fighter for the gods decides to step into the ring. His human opponent? None other than the first man himself—Adam!

Read more less

'Part Moulin Rouge, part Alfred Hitchcock' Grazia 'A sly, erotic thriller concerned with doubleness and duplicity' Guardian Mesdames et Messieurs, presenting La Petite Mort, or, A Little Death ... A silent film, destroyed in a fire in 1914 at the Pathé studio, before it was seen even by its director. A lowly seamstress, who makes the costumes she should be wearing, but believes her talent - and the secret she keeps - will soon get her a dressing room of her own. A famous and dashing creator of spectacular cinematic illusions - husband to a beautiful, volatile actress, the most adored icon of the Parisian studios. All fit together, like scenes in a movie. One with a twist that will leave you breathless ...

Read more less

However the act of murder was committed, in cold blood or hot, Eve Dallas was sworn to pursue it to its root. And serve the dead.' At the luxurious Roarke Palace Hotel, a maid walks into suite 4602 for the nightly turndown - and steps into her worst nightmare. A killer leaves her dead, strangled by a thin, silver wire. He's Sly Yost, a virtuoso of music and murder; a hit man for the elite. Lieutenant Eve Dallas knows him well. But in this twisted case, knowing the killer doesn't help solve the crime. Because there's someone else involved. Someone with a very personal motive. And Eve must face a terrifying possibility that the real target may, in fact, be her husband, Roarke.

Read more less

Tempted by the promise of fame and fortune, the Singing Mermaid joins a circus. The crowds love her, but the poor mermaid is kept in a tank by the wicked circus owner Sam Sly, and she soon longs to return to the freedom of her ocean home.The Singing Mermaid is a delightful tale from the stellar picture book partnership of Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks, creators of What the Ladybird Heard. With brilliant rhyming verse, bright and distinctive illustrations this story is loved by children and parents alike.Enjoy all the stories from Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks: Sharing a Shell, The Princess and the Wizard, The Rhyming Rabbit, The Singing Mermaid, Sugarlump and the Unicorn, Princess Mirror-Belle and the Dragon Pox, What the Ladybird Heard, What the Ladybird Heard Next, What the Ladybird Heard on Holiday and The Girl, the Bear and the Magic Shoes.

Read more less

Beloved by generations, the funny story of reaping what you sow comes to life in this classic board book with Caldecott Honoree Paul Galdone’s dynamic, amusing pictures.When the Little Red Hen asks a cat, dog, and mouse for help planting some wheat, she gets no takers: "‘Not I!’ said the cat. ‘Not I!’ said the dog. ‘Not I!’ said the mouse." They won’t water, cut, or grind the wheat . . . or help bake a cake with it, either.So in the end, the Little Red Hen eats the cake all by herself as well!Paul Galdone’s delightfully detailed ink and wash illustrations—packed with charming details—add plenty of sly humor to the well-loved story that not only offers a sage message but also shows children what it takes to make a cake from the ground up!

Read more less

The third book in an hilarious twist on a timeless story - perfect for young readers! Chicken Little dislikes competition. So when a marathon featuring local-record holder, Hare, is announced in the barnyard, she doesn't understand all the fuss. Until she watches her brood fall beak over claw for the gamey Hare and ditch their training in favour of his smoothies, sweatbands and sneakers! Can Chicken Little prove this frontrunner's methods are phony or will she have to wing it and join the race? The plucky star of Chicken Little: The Real and Totally True Tale and Chicken Little and the Big, Bad Wolf will have young readers laughing and cheering all the way to the finish line in this fresh and funny reimagining of a timeless favourite spun with sly wisdom. full-colour insides gifty larger format

Read more less

“Dripping with bloody opulence, A Multitude of Dreams creeps up on you like a sly shadow. I couldn’t guess at the horrors until it was too late to look away! I loved this book.” —Erin A. Craig, New York Times bestselling author of House of Salt and SorrowThe bloody plague is finally past, but what fresh horror lies in its wake?Princess Imogen of Goslind has lived a sheltered life for three years at the boarded-up castle—she and the rest of its inhabitants safe from the bloody mori roja plague that’s ravaged the kingdom. But Princess Imogen has a secret, and as King Stuart descends further into madness, it’s at great risk of being revealed. Rations dwindle each day, and unhappy murmurings threaten to crack the facade of the years-long charade being played within the castle walls.Nico Mott once enjoyed a comfortable life of status, but the plague took everyone and everything from him. If not for the generosity of a nearby lord, Nico may not have survived the mori roja’s aftermath. But does owing Lord Crane his life mean he owes him his silence?When Lord Crane sends Nico to search for more plague survivors in the castle, Nico collides with a princess who wants to break out. They will each have to navigate the web of lies they’ve woven if they’re going to survive the nightmares ahead.

Read more less

Cats and dogs rule—and wreak humorous havoc—in this innovative picture book that reads from front to back and back to front! In this action-packed follow-up to Find Me: A Hide-and-Seek Book, readers will delight in tracking a sly cat, Big Meow, and an elusive dog, Little Woof, through 11 richly detailed scenes populated with dogs, cats, and other cute creatures. Finding each protagonist is made even more fun with vibrant color changes on every page. Open the book from the front to search for Big Meow, then open the book from the back to turn the tables and catch Little Woof. It's two seek-and-find experiences in one book!

Read more less

Herefordshire Murders brings together twenty-eight murderous tales, some which were little known outside the county and others which made national headlines. Herefordshire was home to one of Britain’s most infamous murderers, Major Herbert Rowse Armstrong, who, in 1921, poisoned his wife and attempted to poison a fellow solicitor in Hay-on-Wye. However, the county has also experienced many lesser known murders. They include the case of two-year-old Walter Frederick Steers, brutally killed in Little Hereford in 1891; eighty-seven-year-old Phillip Ballard, who died at the hands of two would-be burglars in Tupsley in 1887; Jane Haywood, murdered by her husband near Leominster in 1903; and the shooting of two sisters at Burghill Court, near Hereford, by their butler in 1926. Nicola Sly’s carefully researched and enthralling text will appeal to everyone interested in the shady side of Herefordshire’s history.

Read more less

Winner, the CAA Fred Kerner Book Award. Del Hanks is on the verge of academic tenure, but at forty she's also perched on the precipice of either the beginning or the end of the rest of her life. Black Star is a dark comedy, both bitingly funny and transgressive, an unflinching and unsentimental exploration of the female experience, academia, and the idea of power that burns in the mind as white as acid. Medved's new novel is a searing critique of a world we all know too well, one of sexual exploitation, manipulation, and the subtle machinations of power that Black Star filters through the lens of academia. It is at once poetic, tragic, disturbing and funny. PRAISE FOR BLACK STAR: "A "hideous narrative" about bad behaviour, Black Star elicits frequent guffaws. Philosopher-fools, what's not to like?" (Toronto Star) "The scholarly life has lent itself to fiction and satire for decades now (centuries, if you want to go back to Chaucer). ... Delorosa Hanks, the chaotic narrator of Black Star, is the latest heir in this line. By the second sentence of the scalding new novel by Vancouver author Maureen Medved, Hanks is referring to her academic rival as 'a lesion of carcinogenic proportions capable of rotting and destroying departments'. It just gets darker, funnier, and more acidic from there." (The Georgia Straight) "Maureen Medved masterfully explores her protagonists in all their spangled, fallible glory. Black Star plunges the reader into frantic academic rivalry. Is it paranoia or master manipulation? Every twist and turn will lead you down Medved's darkly compelling rabbit hole." (Eden Robinson, author of Son of a Trickster) "This wild novel is a powerful exploration of imposter syndrome taken to extremes and a story of how the sadistic, competitive world of academia intersects with one woman's unraveling sense of self. Suspenseful and beautifully written." (Zoe Whittall, author of The Best Kind of People, Giller Prize Finalist) "You can read this slender swift novel as a comedy of manners, or a sly take on the corrosions of academe, but on its lower frequencies Maureen Medved's brilliant new book is about the death of dreams and our lost hold on truth and reality, an often funny but finally harrowing look at a dystopia that's come to reside in each of our souls." (Charles D'Ambrosio, author of Loitering)

Read more less

"Hollywood & God" is a virtuosic performance, filled with crossings back and forth from cinematic chiaroscuro to a kind of unsettling desperation and disturbing - even lurid - hallucination. From the Baltimore Catechism to the great noir films of the last century to today's Elvis impersonators and Paris Hilton (an impersonator of a different sort), Polito tracks the snares, abrasions, and hijinks of personal identities in our society of the spectacle, a place where who we say we are, and who (we think) we think we are, fade in and out of consciousness, like flickers of light dancing tantalizingly on the silver screen. Mixing lyric and essay, collage and narrative, memoir and invention, "Hollywood & God" is an audacious book, as contemporary as it is historical, as sly and witty as it is devastatingly serious.

Read more less

The lady-in-waiting to the princess of a conquered kingdom must navigate a treacherous imperial court, in the second book in a medieval East Asia-inspired epic fantasy trilogy. The crown princess has been assassinated, reigniting tensions between her native Khir and the great Zhaon empire. Now her lady-in-waiting, Komor Yala, is alone in a foreign court, a pawn for imperial schemes. To survive and avenge her princess, Yala will have to rely on unlikely allies-the sly Third Prince and the war-hardened general who sacked her homeland. But as the Emperor lies upon his deathbed, the palace is more dangerous than ever before-for there are six princes, and only one throne.

Read more less

When My Search for Warren Harding, Robert Plunket’s glittering story of literary sleuthing and deceit, first appeared in 1983, it garnered immediate and far-reaching acclaim. Frank Conroy at The Washington Post exclaimed, “The author pulled me in so deftly, moved me up an escalating scale of sly hyperbole so cunningly, that after a hundred pages, I seemed to have turned over the keys, so to speak, of my nervous system”; Florence King at , “The most exciting event in American letters for a very long time: a momentous book.” More recently, though long out of print, it was canonised in The Guardian’s “1000 Novels Everyone Must Read,” ranked by the Washington Post as one of the top five books of “great American comic fiction,” and praised by Michael Leone in The Los Angeles Review of Books as “a classic picaresque novel in the tradition of Cervantes.” Set against the fading light of early-1980s Hollywood, our deeply flawed, bigoted, closeted antihero Elliot Weiner is a historian—Harvard BA, Columbia PhD—with a passion for Morris dancing and Warren Harding, “the shallowest President in history.” After Weiner receives a research grant to write a book on the tumultuous life of Harding, he gets wind of a trunkful of the 29th president’s bawdy billets-doux that is rumoured to be fiercely guarded by his ancient mistress Rebekah Kinney on her declining Hollywood Hills estate. Nothing and no one can stand in the way of Weiner getting his paws on the treasure, and along the way, as the words dance across the page, a hysterical, guffaw-inducing punchline around every corner, Weiner reaches new lows of humiliation and self-delusion.

Read more less

The centre of Tamara’s universe is Shopsin’s, her family’s legendary greasy spoon, aka “The Store,” run by her inimitable dad, Kenny - a loquacious, contrary, huge-hearted man who, aside from dishing up New York’s best egg salad on rye, is Village sheriff, philosopher, and fixer all at once. All comers find a place at Shopsin’s table and feast on Kenny’s tall tales and trenchant advice along with the incomparable chili con carne. Filled with clever illustrations and witty, nostalgic photographs and graphics, and told in a sly, elliptical narrative that is both hilarious and endearing, Arbitrary Stupid Goal is an offbeat memory-book mosaic about the secrets of living an unconventional life, which is becoming a forgotten art.

Read more less

A seeing-eye dog leads a blind man into a frozen river, a southern Baptist loses his memory and finds true love in Bel Air, an obese dot.com executive has "anorgasmic" latex sex with her CEO, and a homeless man in New York creates an intellectual universe based on Post-it notes stuck to the inside of his cardboard box shelter--Douglas Glover's stories are wildly inventive, deadpan comedies of our universal human catastrophe. They are sly, demanding and wise--stories about language, desire and love (in a very dark place). The humor veers from the wry and sardonic to the salacious, mordant and playful. And always there are moments of such stark emotional intimacy that the reader slides, almost without noticing, from laughter to lament.

Read more less

The ferociously readable, #1 bestselling crime thriller that led to the much-loved ITV show… ‘Wholly satisfying’ Ian Rankin Young girls are disappearing nationwide Dr Tony Hill sets his team a task: find a link between the cases. Only one officer comes up with a theory, but it’s too wild… that is, until one of their number is murdered and mutilated. Tony has started a game – one where hunter and hunted can all too easily be reversed. He has baited an aggressor whose charming manner hides a warped and sick mind… When a killer is hiding in plain sight Who can stop them? ‘Truly frightening’ The Times ‘Sly and sophisticated, weaving the mundane with the stomach-churningly depraved’ Express

Read more less

“I, Archimedes the mathematician, son of Phidias the astronomer, prostrate myself before the goddess of wisdom. May Athena restore our people to her favour and see us through the descending storm…” So begins The Beast in the Labyrinth, a story of sly and pitiless ambition. Hieron, the tyrant of Syracuse, is struggling to chart a course between the warring empires of Rome and Carthage. His only close confidante is his eccentric cousin, Archimedes. But Hieron is ninety years old, and his nobles are scheming in the shadows. The two old men turn to Dion, the kingdom’s most brutal warrior. Surrounded by smiling enemies, and menaced by the rival empires, Dion’s mental stability comes under increasing pressure. Will he prove the kingdom’s salvation or its destruction?

Read more less

Aesop is believed to have lived in the sixth century B.C., a slave on the Greek island of Samos. His ability to teach lessons in morality through story has made his name synonymous with the genre of 'fable'. In the witty and entertaining tales attributed to him sly foxes, wicked wolves, industrious ants, and others, provide a commentary on human behaviour while the storyteller recommends the virtues of common sense and worldly wisdom. The Fables had already been popular for centuries before Roger L'Estrange published a new English translation in 1692, with the declared intention of making a comprehensive selection addressed to children. Everyman reprints his text, together with Stephen Gooden's superb engravings which were first published in 1936 in a limited edition.

Read more less

Come to the grand opening of the Face Bug Museum where readers can join an insect crowd to see amazing close-up photographs of bug faces, meet the bugs featured, and participate in interactive museum exhibits. In this innovative book of poetry, drawings, and photographs, J. Patrick Lewis's sly, humorous poems introduce readers to each of fourteen bugs. Kelly Murphy's black-and-white drawings create a funny visual story about two beetle friends gleefully exploring this memorable museum. In addition, awe-inspiring, dramatic (very) close-up photos of bug faces decorate the museum walls. A book of poetry and photographs and a picture-book story rolled into one, Face Bug is a unique collaboration.

Read more less

The doggy duo is back, and this time there's pastry pandemonium in Paris!In this rhyming, picture book adventure, Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam have made it to the magical streets of Paris, baking a spectacular gingerbread Eiffel Tower for a VERY important art exhibition at "Galerie Bonbon". But a sneaky fox has made off across the Seine with the precious masterpiece. Will Shifty and Sam EVER catch the dastardly Cunningham Sly and dish up their tasty tower in time?Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam is a hugely successful, action-packed series about two baker-dogs who used to be robbers, but now solve mysteries and sniff out crimes!Tracey Corderoy is a multi-award-winning author and has written over 70 books for children including collaborations with Rosalind Beardshaw and Sarah Massini.Steven Lenton has created many books with Tracey Corderoy and also illustrates books by David Baddiel, Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Peter Bently. His books have won awards such as the Sainsbury's Children's Book Award and have been selected for the WHSmith Children's Book of the Year and Tom Fletcher Book Club.Every Nosy Crow paperback picture book comes with a free "Stories Aloud" audio recording. Just scan the QR code and listen along!Read all the Shifty and Sam picture book adventures: Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: The Cat Burglar Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: The Diamond ChaseShifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: The Missing MasterpieceHave you read Shifty and Sam's two-colour early readers? Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: Jingle Bells! Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: Up, Up and Away! Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: The Spooky School Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: The Aliens Are Coming!

Read more less

‘The writer who saved my life — or my soul.’ Merve Emre, The New Yorker ‘A true living hero of the American avant-garde.’ Jonathan Franzen ‘One of the very few contemporary prose writers who seem to be doing something independent, energetic, heartfelt.’ Lydia Davis A new collection of stories from the ‘godmother of flash fiction’ (The Paris Review). In Williams’ stories, life is newly alive and dangerous; whether she is writing about an affair, a request for money, an afternoon in a garden, or the simple act of carrying a cake from one room to the next, she offers us beautiful and unsettling new ways of seeing everyday life. In perfectly honed sentences, with a sly and occasionally wild wit, Williams shows us how any moment of any day can open onto disappointment, pleasure, and possibility.

Read more less

Moomin s pushy relations have come to stay, and in the process of getting them out, he unwittingly embarks on a quest for fame and fortune with his sly friend Sniff. But it s much harder to get rich than either of them expects, whether it s through selling rare creatures to the zoo, using a fortune-teller to find treasures, or making modern art. Through a stroke of luck, however, Moomin meets the love of his life, Snorkmaiden, and with her help he finds the self-confidence he needs to get his house back. The iconic first Moomin comic strip by Tove Jansson, Moomin and the Brigands is a thrilling introduction to the vibrant inhabitants of Moominvalley we ve come to know and love.

Read more less

With a new introduction by Charlie Higson'Fantastic ... in my book Jim Thompson is still the greatest crime writer' Jo Nesbo'The best suspense writer going, bar none' NEW YORK TIMES'Jim Thompson holds a special place in my heart' Bruce SpringsteenNick Corey likes being the high sheriff of Potts County. But Nick has a few problems that he needs to deal with: like his loveless marriage, the pimps who torment him, the honest man who is running against him in the upcoming elections and the women who adore him. And it turns out that Nick isn't anything like as amiable, easy-going or as slow as he seems. He's as sly, brutal and corrupt as they come.

Read more less

In Half a Life we are introduced to the compelling figure of Willie Chandran. Springing from the unhappy union of a low-caste mother and a father constantly at odds with life, Willie is naively eager to find something that will place him both in and apart from the world. Drawn to England, and to the immigrant and bohemian communities of post-war London, it is only in his first experience of love that he finally senses the possibility of fulfilment. In its humorous and sensitive vision of the half-lives quietly lived out at the centre of our world, V. S. Naipaul’s graceful novel brings its own unique illumination to essential aspects of our shared history. ‘Parts are as sly and funny as anything Naipaul has written. Nobody who enjoys seeing English beautifully controlled should miss this novel’ – John Carey, Sunday Times

Read more less

It can be said that the modern high-gloss portrait corresponds to more of a phantasmagoria than reality. Staging and retouching are the tools for this kind of trickery. If one reverses the signs, however, we suddenly have a captivating, sensitive kind of photographic art. This is precisely the standout quality of Sofie Knijff’s pictures. They depict children from every country on Earth. But she allows the protagonists themselves to decide how they want to be seen. Knijff asks her subjects about their ideal selves, or dreams of themselves, and the answers she receives are photographs in which the girls and boys become reflections of their desires, possibilities, and hopes. Whether amusing or emotional, posed seriously or with a sly wink, the photographs always testify to an originality whose photographic imagination will perhaps soon be reality.

Read more less

These five late biblical books offer readers a range of pleasures not usually associated with the Bible. They are artful, entertaining literary works—innovative, even startling. Women often stand centre stage. The Song of Songs, a celebration of young love, frankly sensuous, with no reference to God, offers some of the most beautiful love poems of the ancient world. The story of Esther’s shrewd triumph is a secular entertainment that mixes farce with sly sexual comedy. The character of Ruth embodies the virtues of loyalty, love and charity in a harmonious world. Enigma replaces harmony in Daniel, whose feverish dreams envision the end of time. And the traditions of prophecy are recast in the tale of a fish that swallows Jonah. Alter’s translation restores the original power of these popular books.

Read more less

In the insular Portuguese fishing community of Provincetown, Josie Carvalho's life has been shaped by the annual influx of summer tourists and his great aunt's fervent, if idiosyncratic, Catholicism. The counterweight to these forces has always been Josie's relationship with his grandfather John Joseph, a drunk, clam-poaching old man who is nevertheless a sly and masterful storyteller.After a stranger starts dating Josie's mother and upsets the family's equilibrium, John Joseph heals the rift with the colorful and adventurous stories of their ancestor, Francisco Carvalho, a Portuguese explorer who just may have beaten Columbus to the New World. With the guidance of these obscure but inspired tales, Josie begins to find new ways of understanding his family and the outside world. This new edition of Leaving Pico makes Frank X. Gaspar's award-winning coming-of-age novel accessible to a new generation of readers.

Read more less

Florence, 1429 Giovanni de' Medici is dead. A lifetime of shrewd investment, strategic alliance and sly manipulation saw Giovanni climb from mere money-lender to the top echelon of Florentine society. But success has left a slew of bitter enemies in his wake – and there are whispers his untimely demise wasn't accidental. Florence is a nest of vipers, and with the Medici family's wealth in the hands of Giovanni's untested sons, Cosimo and Lorenzo, there are those who feel that now is the time to strike, to destroy the upstarts and seize their holdings. First in an award-winning, bestselling quartet charting ten generations of rise to power. Praise for Matteo Strukul: 'Strukul has a brilliant style and a rare imagination' TIM WILLOCKS 'One of the most important new voices in Italian crime fiction' JOE R. LANSDALE

Read more less

This sixth and final volume of W. H. Auden's prose displays a great writer's mind in its full maturity of wisdom, learning, and emotional and moral intelligence. It contains the full text of the only book that he regarded as an autobiography, A Certain World, in which he portrayed himself by selecting and commenting on writings by others that most affected him throughout his life. It also features late essays and reviews that in many cases present lightly disguised autobiographies, among them the most detailed account of his sexuality, in "Papa Was a Wise Old Sly-Boots." The appendixes gather lectures and public talks that are otherwise unpublished or unavailable. Edward Mendelson's comprehensive notes provide biographical and historical explanations of obscure references. The text includes corrections and revisions that Auden marked in personal copies of his work and that are published here for the first time.

Read more less

*As seen on BBC’s BETWEEN THE COVERS * A #2 Times bestseller * A New York Times bestseller ‘Humming with a sly, exhilarating magic’ BRIDGET COLLINS ‘A much-heralded epic’ OBSERVER ‘Empowering’ GLAMOUR Three women, five centuries, one spellbinding story In the present day, Kate flees a traumatic relationship to the Cumbrian cottage she inherited from her great-aunt; but the cottage hides secrets of its own. In 1942, Violet rebels against her father’s ideas of a ‘proper young lady’ . . . until he takes matters into his own hands. In 1619, Altha is on trial for witchcraft, implicated in the gruesome death of a local man. Three women they tried to cage – but Weyward women belong to the wild. And they cannot be tamed… Weyward was a Times bestseller w/e 18-02-2023.

Read more less

"A chilling and hard-hitting first novel" - The Herald. At the age of thirty, Campbell Johnstone is a failure. He’s stuck behind the bar of a shabby pub, watching from the sidelines while everyone else makes a success of their lives. The most visible is Eve Sadler, a childhood friend and rising Hollywood star. When Campbell tries to rekindle their relationship, he longs for the glitter of her success to rub off on him – but a single shocking night changes everything, in ways he could never have predicted. When the dust settles, Cam’s life is transformed. The recognition he’d given up on is within reach – but at what cost? The Last Treasure Hunt explores our obsession with fame and celebrity with great intelligence and sly wit – it’s a modern media morality tale with bite.

Read more less

The Book of Judas, Brendan Kennelly’s 400-page epic poem in twelve parts, was the number one bestselling book in Ireland. The Little Book of Judas is a distillation of that literary monster, purged to its traitorous essence. But Judas never goes away. He continued to worm his way into Kennelly’s imagination long after the original book was “finished”, and The Little Book of Judas includes some damning new revelations from the eternal scapegoat and outcast. Not merely lost but irredeemable, Kennelly’s bitterly articulate Judas speaks, dreams and murmurs – of past and present, history and myth, good and evil, of men, women and children, and of course money – until we realise that the unspeakable perpetrator of the apparently unthinkable, in penetrating the icy reaches of his own world, becomes a sly, many-voiced critic of ours.

Read more less

The title says it all: this fun debut is a comedic take on potty training with a clever message at the end. Two children bring home a pet porcupine, but they can only keep her if she's house-trained! After a whirlwind of increasingly zany approaches, the kids learn that sometimes the best way to solve a problem is to ask nicely. While the 'How To' concept is not new in the picture book genre, the porcupine and potty-training mash-up is fresh and funny, and the popularity of these books does not seem to be waning. Tom's spare, dry writing style, strong sense of composition, and expressive artwork with sly details suggest he is a talent to grow; his charming style gives him great commercial appeal, while his clever voice and sophisticated style will make him appealing to the indie markets as well.

Read more less

*SHORTLISTED FOR THE CWA DAGGER FOR NON-FICTION* 'Extraordinary' Kate Mosse 'Electric' Lemn Sissay 'Searing' Julia Samuel One Omaha winter day in 1978, when Debora Harding was just fourteen, she was abducted at knife-point, thrown into a van, assaulted, held for ransom, and left to die. But what if this wasn't the most traumatic, defining event in her childhood? Undertaking a radical project, Debora Harding dexterously shifts between the past and present to unravel her story. From the immediate aftermath to the possibility of restorative justice twenty years later, Dancing with the Octopus lays bare the social and political forces that act upon us after the experience of serious crime. A vivid, sly and intimate portrait of one family's disintegration, this is a darkly humorous and ground-breaking narrative of reckoning and recovery.

Read more less

Polar bears and arctic foxes team up for a hunt in this photo-filled non-fiction book for young wildlife fans. One powerful polar bear + one sly arctic fox = a dream team! Discover how two vastly different animal species team up to find food. With super-smell and tremendous strength, polar bears are the Arctic’s deadliest hunters. So much so, these big-time beasts often have leftovers. Cue the arctic foxes! These clever opportunists are game for any meal and will clean up after polar bears, lickety-split. With eye-popping photographs, quick facts and beyond-the-book back matter, Polar Bears and Arctic Foxes Team Up! will have young readers and wildlife fans rooting for these animal allies.

Read more less

Nerve Squall is a field guide like no other, a surreal handbook to a landscape at the crossroads of meteorology and neurology, where the electrical storms without and the electrical impulses within converge. Legris's fascination with weather, ghosts and brain disorders is the starting point for a collection of poetry that ensures you'll never look at nature the same way again. You'll find snow golems and ghost cats, and a sky filled with fish swimming the winds of a storm. And you'll find a haunted terrain where the natural world becomes an allegory for our most intimate fears. Despite their dark and often cinematic approach, these poems are also tinged with a sly, apocalyptic wit that can't help but laugh as the sky falls. Nerve Squall is a vital exploration of the symbiosis of storm, nerve and language, a sure-handed guide to the end of the world.

Read more less

"FAULTLESS." —The Guardian *** "A SLY PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER." —The Observer Like every other girl in her class, twelve-year-old Justine is drawn to her glamorous, charismatic new teacher and longs to be her pet. However, when a thief begins to target the school, Justine’s sense that something isn’t quite right grows ever stronger. With each twist of the plot, this gripping story of deception and the corrosive power of guilt takes a yet darker turn. Young as she is, Justine must decide where her loyalties lie. Set in New Zealand in the 1980s and probing themes of racism, misogyny and the oppressive reaches of Catholicism, Pet will take a rightful place next to other classic portraits of childhood betrayal: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, The Go-Between, Heavenly Creatures and Au Revoir Les Enfants among them.

Read more less

Faber Stories, a landmark series of individual volumes, presents masters of the short story form at work in a range of genres and styles. A wily cat, a strange romance, detestable daughters: the great American poet Marianne Moore retells three stories originally written by Charles Perrault to amuse the niece of Louis XIV.Modern readers may be surprised to find that the prince does not wake Sleeping Beauty with a kiss - the more he cares, the less willing he is to intrude - and that his mother is descended from ogres. Characterised by vivid imagery, uncluttered prose, inventive alliteration and a sly sceptic's wit, Moore's versions do more than tell a tale: 'Having seen a problem solved,' she writes, each one leaves 'a pattern of order in the mind.'Bringing together past, present and future in our ninetieth year, Faber Stories is a celebratory compendium of collectable work.

Read more less

“A lively outing, complete with sly shout-outs to Jane Austen and gritty police procedurals.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)In Terry Pratchett’s delightful New York Times bestselling tale of crime, class, prejudice, and punishment, Commander Sam Vimes of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch is on vacation. But this is Discworld, where nothing goes as planned—and hilarious adventure ensues.It is a truth universally acknowledged that a policeman taking a holiday would barely have had time to open his suitcase before he finds his first corpse.At long last, Lady Sybil has lured her husband, Sam Vimes, on a well-deserved and long-overdue holiday. But for the commander of the City Watch, a vacation in the country is anything but relaxing. The balls, the teas, the muck—not to mention all that fresh air and birdsong—are more than a bit taxing on a cynical c

Read more less

“Wait until the full moon rises, sit at the bank and play a beautiful tune. Then you will see what happens.” Giant beanstalks, trickster cats, magic pipers, royal werewolves, marauding trolls, and wooden battle spoons? You may think you know where these are going but take another look; your favorite European folktales are refreshed, rebooted, and totally reimagined in this high-spirited and hilarious comics collection! This third volume of the "Cautionary Fables and Fairytales" graphic novel series is a wildly unexpected romp through some of Europe’s most famous fables and lesser known favorites, spanning the realm from sly humor to dark fireside tales and everything in between. Featuring the work of CARLA SPEED McNEIL, MARY CAGLE, K.C. GREEN, KATIE SHANAHAN, and more!

Read more less

Grace Miceli's How to Deal offers sly, illustrated observations about our daily anxieties: loneliness, Internet overwhelm, social anxiety, substance abuse, lack of boundaries, and all the other emotional obstacles millennials hurdle over in their earnest pursuit of mental health. With a mix of comic strips, modern day motivational posters, and illustrated lists and diary entries, the thematic chapters explore how your comfort zone may be a trap, places to hide your phone when you want to get things done (buried in the dirt of your dying houseplant...), and how to stay when you want to run away, while diary entries reveal self-imposed catastrophic thinking but also some loving introspection and a path to making peace with your demons.

Read more less

A dazzling new collection from an award-winning poet--longlisted for the 2015 National Book Award for PoetryAmy Gerstler has won acclaim for sly, sophisticated, and subversive poems that find meaning in unexpected places. The title of her new collection, Scattered at Sea, evokes notions of dispersion, diaspora, sowing one’s wild oats, having one’s mind expanded or blown, losing one’s wits, and mortality. Making use of dramatic monologue, elegy, humor, and collage, these poems explore hedonism, gender, ancestry, reincarnation, bereavement, and the nature of prayer. Groping for an inclusive, imaginative, postmodern spirituality, they draw from an array of sources, including the philosophy of the ancient Stoics, diagnostic tests for Alzheimer’s disease, 1950s recipes, the Babylonian Talmud, and Walter Benjamin’s writing on his drug experiences.

Read more less