Publisher: Al-Mashreq eBookstore
Cow Country follows the journey of Buddy Birnie, a young man immersed in the trials of ranch life on the Staked Plains. Through encounters with diverse cultures and the hardships of the frontier, Buddy's story is a poignant coming-of-age tale that reflects the complexities and richness of early Western life.
In 1912, three young women from wildly different backgrounds are bound together by their desire to have a say in their future.Charlotte, disappointed to discover that college isn't the key to the freedom she longed for, shocks her family when she moves to London and joins a group of suffragettes willing to upend social norms for the vote. Aristocratic Beatrice, with a law degree she legally can't put into practice and a fiancé she's not particularly excited to marry, escapes to London to spend her last months of unmarried life with the suffragettes, and falls deeply—and dangerously—into forbidden love. Emily, the daughter of the warden of the infamous Holloway Jail, grieves her mother and saves her wages for a better life outside the prison's walls. Her best chance at escaping the drudgery of her life is to stay out of trouble, but when the suffragettes land in her father's cells, she must consider risking not only her family's livelihood, but her own future.With the dangerous stakes of the suffrage campaign becoming a fight for the women's bodies and lives, they enter a treacherous world where the laws and justice system are stacked against them. They face violent protests, hunger strikes, and brutal forced feedings, and the women must decide how much they are willing to risk for their freedom and for each other.Show book
In 1939, Giacinta sets sail from Italy to Australia. Decades later, a granddaughter discovers the true story of her family. Imagine marrying someone you've never met ... When Sofie comes to stay with her grandmother in Stanthorpe, she knows little of Nonna Gia's past. In the heat of that 1984 summer, the two clash over Gia's strict Italian ways and superstitions, her chilli-laden spaghetti and the evasive silence surrounding Sofie's father, who died before she was born. Then Sofie learns Gia had an arranged marriage. From there, the past begins to reveal why no-one will talk of her father. As Nonna Gia cooks, furtively adding a little more chilli each time, she also begins feeding Sofie her stories. How she came to Australia on a 'bride ship', among many proxy brides, knowing little about the husbands they had married from afar. Most arriving to find someone much different than described. Then, as World War II takes over the nation, and in the face of the growing animosity towards Italians that sees their husbands interned, Gia and her friends are left alone. Impoverished. Desperate. To keep their farms going, their only hope is banding together, along with Edie, a reclusive artist on the neighbouring farm and two Women's Land Army workers. But the venture is made near-impossible by the hatred towards the women held by the local publican and an illicit love between Gia and an Australian, Keith. The summer burns on and the truth that unfolds is nothing like what Sofie expected ... The author of Mezza Italiana brings to life a unique point of migrant women's untold experience, in a resonant novel of family, food and love. 'A deeply engrossing and authentic story, with such passionate realism you must keep reading.' - JACKIE FRENCH 'An authentic and heartfelt read that examines the connections we make when faced with hardship ... It's an inspiring look at women coming together to form their own community.' - BETTER READINGShow book
A collection of the year’s best mystery and suspense short fiction selected by New York Times bestselling author S. A. Cosby, author of Razorblade Tears, and series editor Steph Cha. In his introduction, guest editor S. A. Cosby observes that writing short stories is “a special skill that combines brevity with wit and cleverness and the hint of the existential malaise that imbues crime fiction with its gravitas.” The stories in this col-lection overflow with gravitas in the most unexpected ways: a cryptic note left on a windshield, a murder for hire meets a game of Mouse Trap, a swipe right on a dating app goes horribly wrong. From an eleven-year-old drawn to the neighborhood spookhouse to a scholarship kid at an exclusive boarding school, a nefarious Old West gunman to a Florida woman’s struggle against both outer and inner demons, the characters in The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2024 are haunted and haunting, and wholly unforgettable. The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2024 includes MEGAN ABBOTT • ALYSSA COLE • TANANARIVE DUE • ABBY GENI • JORDAN HARPER • GAR ANTHONY HAYWOOD •TONI LP KELNER • BOBBY MATHEWS • LISA UNGER • and othersShow book
There are no rules against applying to a sorority – even if you're not a woman! Jim is a straight man and a fresh arrival at the local college where frats and sororities have influence over every part of the school. His girlfriend threatens to leave if he fails to join, but Jimmy unluckily arrives late for registration and is looking at a bleak few years – when he gets a chance to make it right. Jim applies, but he must go through the same rituals as the other pledges – exactly the same highly charged, body exploring rituals. He has to join the other young women as they complete their sexy tasks. He gets a makeover to mold him into the image of a sorority pledge and reluctantly does things – and men – he would never dream of while wearing clothes no woman would be seen in public in. All this to cling to a relationship with his girlfriend, but that relationship is tested as another man is allowed to ravage her body while he is made to watch – while his manhood trapped in a cage. PSA: This story contains a desperate man who feels forced into an undesireable situation. He’ll be dominated and humiliated by men and women alike, and gall darned if he doesn’t get off on... things... he never thought possible.Show book
Blake Alexander, the King of Death, is captured, and no one dies while he's caught by order of his captor; who also demands the soul of his wife be returned to him, or he will kill death. The grim reapers send the Necromancer, Death's son, with the soul. The soul pleads with their husband to let her go and let Death go. What will he do? How will this end? Will Death survive this or die?Show book
Little Claus and Big Claus is a lesser known fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. Little Claus is a smart, but poor man. Big Claus is a rich, but dumb man. By using his wits Little Claus is able to achieve great things. The moral of the story is: by using your smarts, you can achieve great things. Recommended for age 8+.Show book
