Young teenage boy (Peter Poppin) loses sight in one eye while trying to get a piece of driftwood to carve a mermaid for his mother. As Peter struggles with his sightloss, an eagle mysteriously becomes his protector and guide. Befriending a local native-American boy, Peter learns that a Shaman can restore his sight. The ceremony results in his sight being restored, but the price Peter pays for this "gift" is vision into the past. Peter reveals that he discovered a rare jewel-an emerald-part of a priate's booty while searching on the beach for the wood. He vows to return the jewel to its rightful owner, but two odd newcomers to his village pose a threat. The villagers devise a plan to thwart the theft of the jewel by the old pirates. What results is a miracle. The would-be thieves have a change of heart. Peter and the townspeople welcome them into the village. Contrition for past wrongdoings and forgiveness rule.
By the New York Times bestselling author of The Bone Clocks and Cloud Atlas | Longlisted for the Man Booker Prize Selected by Time as One of the Ten Best Books of the Year | A New York Times Notable Book | Named One of the Best Books of the Year by The Washington Post Book World, The Christian Science Monitor, Rocky Mountain News, and Kirkus Reviews | A Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist | Winner of the ALA Alex Award | Finalist for the Costa Novel Award From award-winning writer David Mitchell comes a sinewy, meditative novel of boyhood on the cusp of adulthood and the old on the cusp of the new. Black Swan Green tracks a single year in what is, for thirteen-year-old Jason Taylor, the sleepiest village in muddiest Worcestershire in a dying Cold War England, 1982. But the thirteen chapters, each a short story in its own right, create an exquisitely observed world that is anything but sleepy. A world of Kissingeresque realpolitik enacted in boys’ games on a frozen lake; of “nightcreeping” through the summer backyards of strangers; of the tabloid-fueled thrills of the Falklands War and its human toll; of the cruel, luscious Dawn Madden and her power-hungry boyfriend, Ross Wilcox; of a certain Madame Eva van Outryve de Crommelynck, an elderly bohemian emigré who is both more and less than she appears; of Jason’s search to replace his dead grandfather’s irreplaceable smashed watch before the crime is discovered; of first cigarettes, first kisses, first Duran Duran LPs, and first deaths; of Margaret Thatcher’s recession; of Gypsies camping in the woods and the hysteria they inspire; and, even closer to home, of a slow-motion divorce in four seasons. Pointed, funny, profound, left-field, elegiac, and painted with the stuff of life, Black Swan Green is David Mitchell’s subtlest and most effective achievement to date. Praise for Black Swan Green “[David Mitchell has created] one of the most endearing, smart, and funny young narrators ever to rise up from the pages of a novel. . . . The always fresh and brilliant writing will carry readers back to their own childhoods. . . . This enchanting novel makes us remember exactly what it was like.”—The Boston Globe “[David Mitchell is a] prodigiously daring and imaginative young writer. . . . As in the works of Thomas Pynchon and Herman Melville, one feels the roof of the narrative lifted off and oneself in thrall.”—Time
Ever dream about the perfect crime? Sean Howser and his friends have discovered it. Sean is a rising mixed-martial arts star with a troubled past and a major gambling problem. When his debts and his life spin out of control, two of his college friends offer him a solution: act as the muscle in a foolproof international kidnapping. The crime is shockingly simple and one hundred percent possible-no one will get hurt, and there's no way they can get caught. Sean and his friends can't wait to start living the good life. But, when unforeseen events cause their dream crime to unravel into a nightmare, the friends soon become the subjects of an international manhunt. Worse, Sean finds himself falling for their beautiful hostage. Can Sean redeem himself, even if it means risking his friendships, his freedom and possibly his life?
“Fans of live music will get a kick out of” this Texas Country Music Hall of Famer’s “fond but brutally honest memories, playing gigs with Willie Nelson” (Publishers Weekly). When it comes to Texas honky-tonk, nobody knows the music or the scene better than Johnny Bush. Author of Willie Nelson’s classic concert anthem “Whiskey River,” and singer of hits such as “You Gave Me a Mountain” and “I’ll Be There,” Johnny Bush is a legend in country music, a singer-songwriter who has lived the cheatin’, hurtin’, hard-drinkin’ life and recorded some of the most heart-wrenching songs about it. He has one of the purest honky-tonk voices ever to come out of Texas. And Bush’s career has been just as dramatic as his songs—on the verge of achieving superstardom in the early 1970s, he was sidelined by a rare vocal disorder. But survivor that he is, Bush is once again filling dance halls across Texas and inspiring a new generation of musicians. In Whiskey River (Take My Mind), Johnny Bush tells the twin stories of his life and of Texas honky-tonk music. He recalls growing up poor and learning his chops in honky-tonks around Houston and San Antonio. Bush vividly describes life on the road in the 1960s as a band member for Ray Price and Willie Nelson. Woven throughout Bush's autobiography is the never-before-told story of Texas honky-tonk music, from Bob Wills and Floyd Tillman to Junior Brown and Pat Green. For everyone who loves genuine country music, Johnny Bush, Willie Nelson, and stories of triumph against all odds, Whiskey River (Take My Mind) is a must-read.
Franny’s mom says every mad scientist needs a lab assistant. So for Valentine’s Day Franny gets just that—a Lab assistant. Except Igor isn’t a pure Lab. He’s also part poodle, part Chihuahua, part beagle, part spaniel, part shepherd—and all thumbs. Franny is fuming. She doesn’t even need an assistant. What’s she supposed to do with a good-for-nothing one like Igor? And things get even worse when a giant, fifty-foot, arrow-shooting cupid starts causing trouble all over town. Franny knows it’s up to her—and only her— to save the day. Or could she use a little help?
Franny K. Stein is not your average girl—she’s a mad scientist. She prefers poison ivy to daisies, and when Franny jumps rope, she uses her pet snake. The kids in Franny’s class think she’s weird, wacky, and just plain creepy. Tired of being stared at, Franny decides to attempt her most dangerous experiment yet—she’s going to fit in. But when a giant Monstrous Fiend attacks the class, everyone knows only a true mad scientist can save the day. But has Franny lost her creepy, crawly ways?
Marni Freedman invites you to fall in love with the magic that is writing with writer-tested-and-approved tools on story structure, scene creation, plot, voice and character. You need this kind of kick in the pants. The master coach whose credits include writing a play that was turned into a Disney movie offers fresh and practical ideas on writing, including: The 15 Essential Plot Spots-a plotting tool for everything from novels to memoirs to screenplays The big list of 55 Character Archetypes Insights into figuring out how you (yes, you) work as a writer The 5 elements that will ensure you have a compelling story idea A clear explanation of anti-heroes, anti-villains and everything in between The 9 elements of crafting a dynamic character 3 steps to finding and boldly using your unique writer's voice "Can a book be practical and inspirational at the same time? Offer both structure and soul? Oh, yes it can. Master writing coach and teacher, Marni Freedman, does it all with good humor, a little bit of sass, and a great deal of heart, in her book, 7 Essential Writing Tools. Get it and get to work!" - Judy Reeves, author of Wild Women, Wild Voices and A Writer's Book of Days
Mississippi, 1967. It’s the Summer of Love, yet unwed mothers’ maternity homes are flourishing, secret closed adoptions are routine, and many young women still have no voice. In You’ll Forget This Ever Happened, Laura Engel takes us back to the Deep South during the turbulent 1960s to explore the oppression of young women who have committed the socially unacceptable crime of becoming pregnant without a ring on their finger. After being forced to give up her newborn son for adoption, Engel lives inside a fortress of silent shame for fifty years—but when her secret son finds her and her safe world is cracked open, those walls crumble. Are you still a mother even if you have not raised your child? Can the mother/child bond survive years of separation? How deep is the damage caused by buried family secrets and shame? Engel asks herself these and many other questions as she becomes acquainted with the son she never knew, and seeks the acceptance and forgiveness she has long denied herself. Full of both aching sadness and soaring joy, You’ll Forget This Ever Happened is a shocking exposé of a shameful part of our country’s recent past—and a poignant tale of a mother’s enduring love.
