Other books that might interest you

• 

  Relentless

  Bill Hicks

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  Raising the spiritual and philosophical stake considerably, Relentless is pure comedic catharsis.

  Show book

• 

  Family Troubles

  Maria Krestovskaya

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  Literary critic, E. A. Koltonovskaya, described the literary style of novelist Maria Krestovskaya as follows, “Her pen, for all its feminine agility, is often remarkable for its nearly masculine reticence. She has none of the chaotic flood of thoughtless emotions, which so frequently plagues the works by female writers. She does not like lyrical diversions and allows her characters to speak and act for themselves. Even during the most dramatic scenes, her tone remains restrained. Her formulation of women’s issues gives one the sense of a broad, universal foundation. There is none of the narrowness, exclusiveness, and bias so prevalent in the topic as described by ideological feminists.” 
  The story that follows is quintessential Krestovskaya - complete with humor, deftly delivered touches of real life, and ample food for thought.

  Show book

• 

  Wish Granted - 25 Stories of...

  Don Yaeger

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  “Those kids are my heroes and by actively deciding to help them continue their fight with a little more hope, you’re one of my heroes, too.”—Michael Jordan, from the IntroductionPoignant stories from this nation’s best loved athletes include Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps, John Cena, Bethany Hamilton, Danica Patrick, Tony Hawk, the New England Patriots, and many more.Imagine a seriously ill child who gets to make one wish . . . and that wish is to meet you. How would you measure up? Wish Granted shows how twenty-five of the most celebrated professional athletes of all time answered this question by sharing what it is like to transform the lives of Make-A-Wish kids. You will find out that these wishes are game changers, not just for the kids . . . for the athletes themselves. Some, like record-breaking gold medalist Michael Phelps, discover the tremendous impact wish kids have had on wish granters’ perspectives, on their understanding of real strength, and on how we all want to live our lives.Sports fans will be thrilled to get an insider’s look into the deeply personal moments of their favorite superstars, and every reader will find inspiration in the amazing gift of human connection.

  Show book

• 

  Delight

  J. B. Priestley

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  ‘An exquisitely-written, generous, funny, thoughtful book about the everyday joys of being alive. I love it.’ Dolly Alderton 
  ‘J. B. Priestley is one of our literary icons of the 20th Century and it is time that we all became re-acquainted with his genius.’ Dame Judi Dench 
  ‘My apology, my little bit of penitence, for having grumbled so much, for having darkened the breakfast table, almost ruined the lunch, nearly silence the dinner party, for all the fretting and chafing, grousing and croaking, for the old glum look and the thrust-out lower lip. So my long-suffering kinsfolk, my patient friends, may a glimmer of that delight which has so often possessed me, but perhaps too frequently in secret, now reach you from these pages.’ 
  There are times when there doesn’t seem much to smile about. And for those times, there is this book. J. B Priestley’s 1949 classic teaches us that joy may be found in even the simplest things, and that we all have the capacity to appreciate them. 
  Delight comprises a series of short essays, all focussing on a single simple pleasure, from reading detective stories in bed to smoking a pipe in the bath; from ‘Cosy planning’ to the earliest summer mornings; and from mineral water in the bedrooms of foreign hotels to the smell of bacon in the morning. 
  Combining poignant memories of his childhood with glimpses of his interior world, panoramas of life abroad with thoughts about writing, music, theatre – some strictly personal, some universal –this highly readable book bursts with humour and literary flare on every page. 
  In his autobiography, Priestley takes us on a travel through his life, sharing collections of moments that brought him happiness. This non-fiction memoirs book is a top pick for anyone seeking growth. 
  For fans of Rory Stewart (Politics On the Edge), Marion Turner (The Wife of Bath), Felicity Cloake (Red Sauce Brown Sauce), and Ross Gay (The Book of Delights). 
  HarperCollins 2023

  Show book

• 

  Mostly Stories

  Tom Segura

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  The bearded, bawdy and comically bitter Tom Segura gets real about body piercings, the "Area 51" of men's bodies, and the lie he told Mike Tyson.

  Show book

• 

  Absalom and Achitophel

  John Dryden

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  John Dryden published Absalom and Achitophel: A Poem in 1681. It is an elaborate historical allegory using the political situation faced by King David (2 Samuel 14-18) to mirror that faced by Charles II. Each monarch had a son whom a high-ranking minister attempted to use against him. James Scott, first Duke of Monmouth, Charles II's illegitimate son, was detected planning a rebellion late in 1681, supposedly instigated by the Earl of Shaftesbury, who was tried for high treason, and it is believed that Dryden wrote the poem in an effort to sway the jury in his trial. The fates of both Absalom (Monmouth) and Achitophel (Shaftesbury) are left unspecified at the end of the poem (Monmouth did rebel in 1685, after his father's death, and was executed, and Shaftesbury was acquitted), but we are left to surmise that their fates would resemble those of their Biblical counterparts: Absalom was killed against David's instructions and Achitophel hanged himself.The poem can be enjoyed without any special knowledge of either the Bible or seventeenth-century English history, but it is useful to understand why Monmouth (AKA Absalom) was such a useful tool to use against his father: Charles had many illegitimate offspring, but his wife was barren, so at his death the crown would pass (did pass) to his brother, James, who was Catholic, but Monmouth was Protestant as well as well-beloved by both the king and the people. England had good reason to dread a return of officially enforced Catholicism. The narrator's urbane attitude toward David's amatory adventures in the opening of the poem and his burlesque of the supposed Jebusitical plot (the "Popish Plot" of 1678) establish clearly his Tory bias in favor of the Establishment and his disdain of the panic caused by fear of Catholicism (Dryden himself converted to the Catholic faith at some time before 1685).

  Show book