Marva is an absent-minded inventor whose day is a series of mixed-up colors and illusions. She puts her blue jeans in the washing machine with her yellow scarf and her red shirt (the shirt turns purple and the scarf comes out green). The story is propelled by a host of clever optical tricks worked seamlessly into bold cut-paper illustrations.
A family is haunted by a curse that has followed them for generations. Through the struggles, tragedies, lust, deceit, and challenges, they are determined to do whatever it takes to destroy the curse. The Right Wish
Marva Dawn opens up her own experiences of deep loneliness in these personal stories and reflections on the Psalms. By evoking the wordless comfort contained in these songs, Dawn teaches us to wait prayerfully on God.
This story was told to Anthony Weathers years ago. Upon hearing it, he felt compelled to write a story based on these tragic, true events. Why Ruin Another Life is set in the 1970s in black Mississippi. It is a generational journey about how lives can be altered by an event or person. Hattie is a Black woman in her thirties who sets off a chain of events that unravel, creating a domino effect. It affects the lives of her daughter, granddaughter, and everyone around them. This one event caused a thunderstorm for generations to come, and the lessons learned were very costly.
It was Marva Collins' attitude that made children learn. It was her constant "You can do it, "that convinced her students there wasn't anything they could not do. This independent minded teacher's drive, courage and dedication helped her children reach their full learning potential.
As the name suggests, Lonely, Passionate, and Vulnerable Women is primarily about the way "today's men" treat and take advantage of women who, by virtue of being lonely and entrapped by the obsession of passion, become easy victims of unscrupulous men who use their dynamic personalities and peculiar situation to captivate women's minds for their own gains and ego. However, the novel is broad-based, and thus covers several significant aspects of everyday life. For example, it illustrates how men who become workaholics have very little time for their wives or partner, and hence, open avenues or expose them to waiting vultures. It also deals with the impact of lack of sexual compatibility as well as the effects of the excessive use of alcohol leading to impotence and how this, too, can cause the woman to become vulnerable. There are, however, some women who do not take everything that vicious men have to give out. Two such women in the book are Marva and Denise. These two women, after having their feelings hurt, went on a vengeful spree against men; taking all that they could get, and eventually joining forces to shatter one of these men, Tom Branche, who was having an affair with them both. The book does show, however, that anyone going after revenge not only succeeds in destroying the intended victim, but also end up destroying themselves as well. Finally, the book provides a summary that opens the eyes of the blind on this sensitive topic. Facts are highlighted that put women in a position to clearly see the course of action they can take to avoid abuse. In fact, some of the issues in the book itself allows them to see how the abuse can and does occur. What makes the book great is that it is not only informative and highlights the issue but goes on to provide solutions.
In an attempt to combat the widespread confusion regarding sexual issues, Dawn offers a clear biblical understanding of human sexuality. Her fresh perspectives will challenge and encourage readers and her engaging, non-preachy style will appeal to parents, ministers, youth group leaders, and others coping with life in our sex-saturated society.
In the humorous, heartfelt new novel by the author of The Next Thing on My List, a personal organizer must somehow convince a reclusive artist to give up her hoarding ways and let go of the stuff she’s hung on to for decades. Lucy Bloom is broke, freshly dumped by her boyfriend, and forced to sell her house to send her nineteen-year-old son to drug rehab. Although she’s lost it all, she’s determined to start over. So when she’s offered a high-paying gig helping clear the clutter from the home of reclusive and eccentric painter Marva Meier Rios, Lucy grabs it. Armed with the organizing expertise she gained while writing her book, Things Are Not People, and fueled by a burning desire to get her life back on track, Lucy rolls up her sleeves to take on the mess that fills every room of Marva’s huge home. Lucy soon learns that the real challenge may be taking on Marva, who seems to love the objects in her home too much to let go of any of them. While trying to stay on course toward a strict deadline—and with an ex-boyfriend back in the picture, a new romance on the scene, and her son’s rehab not going as planned—Lucy discovers that Marva isn’t just hoarding, she is also hiding a big secret. The two form an unlikely bond, as each learns from the other that there are those things in life we keep, those we need to let go—but it’s not always easy to know the difference.
Set in San Francisco during the early 1980s, Don't Ever Leave This Country draws a connection between the narcissism of America and that of a reckless young man on the loose for the first time. You might not want to trade places with the protagonist, Evan Bando, but you will stay with him through the good times and then the hard lessons learned until the fateful conclusion that catapults the reader to the present day. This strange and funny novel starts out as a simple tale of youthful excess and indiscretion, and goes beyond with its intriguing storytelling and strong emotional impact.
Snarky, delicious fun! The Camilla Randall mysteries are a laugh-out-loud mashup of romantic comedy, crime fiction, and satire: Dorothy Parker meets Dorothy L. Sayers. Perennially down-and-out socialite Camilla Randall is a magnet for murder, mayhem and Mr. Wrong, but she always solves the mystery in her quirky, but oh-so-polite way. Usually with more than a little help from her gay best friend, Plantagenet Smith. Ghostwriters In The Sky: When a young writer is found dead in her gay best friend's bed at a writer's conference in California wine country, Camilla must enlist the help of a cross-dressing dominatrix to clear Plant's name. Unfortunately, she suspects the hot LA cop who has stolen her heart may be the murderer. In Sherwood Ltd. a homeless Camilla lands in Robin Hood country, where some not-so-merry men may be trying to kill her, and of course Camilla once again ends up in the most improbable, but always believable, circumstances. The Best Revenge is a prequel to the series, and takes us back to Camilla Randall's teen years, when she first meets Plantagenet Smith—and is accused of murder herself! "These stories are so carefully crafted and so cleverly presented that virtually every page offers a unique insight, experience, or perspective, that grabs my attention, tickles my imagination, and makes me laugh out loud." "A trio of light but intelligent reads. What a pleasure to spend a few days with bits of suspense, as well as some slightly ditzy but loveable characters, all tossed about together in a comical hurricane." "Serious and absorbing plots. Lighthearted at the same time. "