Publisher: Soma Publishing
Award-winning American short fiction writer Mark Antony Rossi has a lifetime of selected fiction ready for examination. With a highly specialized poetic style and the invention of "concrete" short fiction Rossi will bring the gritty urban experience to an intellectual plateau.
Jesse Ball has produced fourteen acclaimed works of deeply empathetic absurdism in poetry and fiction. Now, he offers listeners his first memoir, one that showcases his "humane curiosity" (James Wood) and invites the listener into a raw and personal account of love, grief, and memory. Inspired by the memoir Édouard Levé put to paper shortly before his death, Autoportrait is an extraordinarily frank and intimate work from one of America's most brilliant young authors.The subtle power of Ball's voice conjures the richness of everyday life. In each chapter, half-remembered moments are woven together with the joys and triumphs—and the mistakes and humiliations, too—that somehow tell us who we are, why we are here. Held at the same height as tragic accounts of illness or death are moments of startling beauty, banality, or humor: "I wake in the morning, I sit, I walk long distances. If there is somewhere to swim, I may swim. If I have a bicycle, I will ride it, especially to meet someone. There is no more preparing for me to do, other than preparing for death, and I do that by laughing. Not laughing at death, of course. Laughing at myself." An extraordinary memoir that reminds us what is possible, Autoportrait will leave you feeling utterly invigorated, inspired, and a little afraid.Show book
Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author’s brain, their soul and heart. A few pages can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere. In this series we try to offer up tried and trusted ‘Top Tens’ across many different themes and authors. But any anthology will immediately throw up the questions – Why that story? Why that author? The theme itself will form the boundaries for our stories which range from well-known classics, newly told, to stories that modern times have overlooked but perfectly exemplify the theme. Throughout the volume our authors whether of instant recognition or new to you are all leviathans of literature. Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made. If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something. Some of our earliest thrills – and fears – dwell within us because of a ghost story heard in childhood. Whether fearful or giggling in delight it carries through with us till adult times. These dark, foreboding works may raise many a goosebump, an unexpected laugh, or, a tinge or two of real fear but then, in these authors hands that may be just the beginning. 01 - The Top 10 - The Ghost Story 2 - The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe 3 - The Body Snatcher by Robert Louis Stevenson 4 - The Signalman by Charles Dickens 5 - The Phantom Rickshaw by Rudyard Kipling 6 - The Horla by Guy de Maupassant 7 - Strange Event in the Life of Schalken the Painter by Sheridan Le Fanu 8 - The Empty House by Algernon Blackwood 9 - Oh Whistle and I'll Come to You My Lad by M R James 10 - The Eyes by Edith Wharton 11 - The Case of Vincent Pyrwhit by Barry PainShow book
An unauthorized biography examining the inspirational Cinderella story of the British TV talent show competitor who shocked the world. On Britain’s Got Talent on 11 April 2009, forty-year-old spinster Susan Magdalane Boyle stepped out onto the stage to jeers and sniggers. As she announced she was going to sing “I Dreamed a Dream,” the judges Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan didn’t bother to hide their amusement. One minute later they, and very soon the world, were giving Susan Boyle a standing ovation. She had the voice of an angel, and her story was to become a modern day fairytale, a dream come true. In hours the news of Susan’s extraordinary, heartbreaking performance had spread around the globe. She was an instant international star. And today she holds the record for the fastest selling female debut album of all time. In this, the first book to explore Susan’s amazing rags to riches story, we follow her from her humble West Lothian background to topping the charts and performing for millions worldwide on TV. Whether it was bullying or nearly not entering Britain’s Got Talent because “it was a young person’s game,” when faced with the toughest challenges, Susan never gave up. The memory of her mother inspired her to give her dream one last chance.Show book
The inspiring stories of 6 people who changed history. Contents: William the Conqueror, the first Norman King of England Saladin, historic Muslim leader Genghis Khan, famous leader of the Mongol empire Catherine the Great, the woman who turned Russia into an empire Abraham Lincoln who stopped slavery in the USA Queen Victoria, the famous British Queen BRITISH ENGLISH Word count: 6,360 Headword count: 628 PLUS: visit www.collinselt.com/readers for videos, teacher resources and self-study materials. This book is Level 1 in the Collins ELT Readers series. Level 1 is equivalent to CEF level A2. About the Amazing People series: A unique opportunity for learners of English to read about the exceptional lives and incredible abilities of some of the most insightful people the world has seen. Each book contains six short stories, told by the characters themselves, as if in their own words. The stories explain the most significant parts of each character’s life, giving an insight into how they came to be such an important historic figure. After each story, a timeline presents the most major events in their life in a clear and succinct fashion. The timeline is ideal for checking comprehension or as a basis for project work or further research. Created in association with The Amazing People Club. About Collins ELT Readers: Collins ELT Readers are divided into four levels: Level 1 – elementary (A2) Level 2 – pre-intermediate (A2–B1) Level 3 – intermediate (B1) Level 4 – upper intermediate (B2) Each level is carefully graded to ensure that the learner both enjoys and benefits from their reading experience.Show book
An autobiography of the bookseller, library collector, man of letters, and historian of the American West edited by his great-great granddaughter. A bookseller in San Francisco during the gold rush, Hubert Howe Bancroft (1832–1918) rose to become the man who would define the early history of California and the West. Creating what he called a “history factory,” he assembled a vast library of over sixty thousand books, maps, letters, and documents; hired scribes to copy material in private hands; employed interviewers to capture the memories of early Spanish and Mexican settlers; and published multiple volumes sold throughout the country by his subscription agents. In 1890 he published an eight-hundred-page autobiography, aptly entitled Literary Industries. Literary Industries sparkles with the exuberance of nineteenth-century California and introduces us to a man of great complexity and wit. Edited for the modern reader and yet relating the history of the West as it was taking place—and as it was being recorded—Kim Bancroft’s edition of Literary Industries is a joy to read.Show book
Texas girl Babe Didrikson never tried a sport too tough and never met a hurdle too high. Despite attempts to keep women from competing, Babe achieved All-American status in basketball and won gold medals in track and field at the 1932 Olympics. Then Babe attempted to conquer golf. One of the founders of the LPGA, Babe won more consecutive tournaments than any golfer in history. At the height of her fame, she was diagnosed with cancer. Babe would then take her most daring step of all: go public and try to win again with the hope of inspiring the world. A rollicking saga, stretching across the first half of the 20th century, Wonder Girl is as fresh, heartfelt, and graceful as Babe herself.Show book
