“A beautifully spun tale” set in a tiny town in Latvia—“an astonishing alchemy of history, romance, and fable” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). Maris was born knowing things: His very large, very special ears enable him to hear the secrets of the dead, as well as the memories that haunt his Latvian hometown. As a boy, he finds himself heir to an odd assortment of hidden letters, from which he would weave a story that could finally expose—and maybe even patch—the holes in the fabric of his family and their town. With humor, heart, and her characteristic “luminous writing [and] affection for her characters,” Gina Ochsner creates an intimate, hopeful portrait of a fascinating town in all its complications and charm. From the onset of World War II through the cold shock of independence, we see how, despite years of distrust, a community can come through love and loss to the joy of understanding (The New York Times). A finalist for the Oregon Book Awards Ken Kesey Award for Fiction, The Hidden Letters of Velta B. is “a captivating novel of secrets, love, and memory . . . This terrific novel knocked me out” (Janet Fitch, author of Paint It Black). “Intimate, vibrant, and richly colored.” —Portland Monthly “A gift on par with Joanne Harris’s Chocolat . . . Quirky, ethereal, hilarious, and sorrowful.” —Shelf Awareness “[An] extraordinary feat of storytelling . . . A spellbinding novel as tough as it is beautiful.” —Helen Simonson, author of The Summer Before the War
From a critically acclaimed fiction writer comes the moving story of a boy with extraordinary ears who--with the help of a cache of his great-grandmother's letters--brings healing to a town burdened by the sins of its past.
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James is a classic ghost story that continues to captivate readers over a century after its initial publication. Set in the late 19th century, the novella follows a young governess who is hired to care for two young children, Flora and Miles, at the remote and eerie Bly Manor. As the governess begins her duties, she becomes increasingly convinced that the manor is haunted by the spirits of the previous governess, Miss Jessel, and her lover, Peter Quint, who both died under mysterious circumstances. The story unfolds as the governess tries to protect the children from the malevolent ghosts, while also questioning her own sanity and the motives of the children in their interactions with the spirits. One of the most intriguing aspects of The Turn of the Screw is its unreliable narrator. The story is told through the perspective of the governess, whose mental state and perceptions of events are constantly called into question. This creates a sense of ambiguity and uncertainty, leaving readers to question whether the ghosts are real or just figments of the governess's imagination. James masterfully plays with the theme of perception and reality, leaving readers to draw their own conclusions about the events at Bly Manor. Another striking element of the novella is its use of Gothic elements. The isolated location, the decaying mansion, and the presence of ghosts all contribute to the eerie atmosphere of the story. James also incorporates psychological horror, as the governess's fears and paranoia intensify throughout the story, building tension and suspense. The Turn of the Screw is a prime example of Gothic literature, with its exploration of the dark side of human nature and the blurred lines between the living and the dead. One of the most controversial aspects of the novella is its ambiguous ending. The governess's final confrontation with the ghosts and the fate of the children are left open to interpretation, inviting readers to ponder the true meaning of the story. Some critics argue that the ghosts are a product of the governess's overactive imagination, while others believe that they are real and that the children are in danger. This open-ended conclusion has sparked countless debates and interpretations, making The Turn of the Screw a thought-provoking and enduring piece of literature. In addition to its literary merits, The Turn of the Screw also offers insight into the societal norms and expectations of the time period in which it was written. James explores themes of gender roles and class distinctions through the character of the governess, who is expected to be subservient and obedient to her male employer and to maintain the social hierarchy between herself and the children. The story also touches on the taboo subject of sexual relationships, particularly in regards to the ghosts and their influence on the children. Ultimately, The Turn of the Screw is a haunting and enigmatic work that continues to captivate readers with its complex characters, Gothic atmosphere, and thought-provoking themes. It is a testament to Henry James's mastery of storytelling and his ability to create a sense of unease and suspense that lingers long after the final page. A must-read for anyone interested in Gothic literature, psychological thrillers, or the blurred lines between reality and the supernatural.
Eleven soulful stories span the globe, using folklore and myth to explore the territory separating life from death. Winner of the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction.
In the spirit of Muriel Spark and Walker Percy, The Age of Infidelity's eleven stories embrace the comic, the absurd, and the dead serious. Faithless parents betray their children, the young betray the old, and lovers betray each other--but somehow these characters cling to hope. Aging white cheerleaders shout through an online megaphone, remembering a time when racial equality seemed almost possible; a teenager endures her father's abandonment as her mother's psychotic episodes pick up pace; an old couple on the lam from the Constitutional Guard of the future hides out in a garage reminiscent of our consumerist past. In an age many call post-religious, these characters want to believe in something, but they're not always sure what that something is. Set in landscapes from the small-town South to New York City, from a parched Midwest to a deserted Dublin, these stories time-travel from our Jim Crow past to an imagined future of warehouses for the aged where robots do the nursing. With what the Washington Post describes as her ""distinctive brutal elegance,"" Valerie Sayers writes playfully, powerfully, and musically. These stories form an album riffing on our age, the Age of Infidelity.
Sustainable horticulture is gaining increasing attention in the field of agriculture as demand for the food production rises to the world community. Sustainable horticultural systems are based on ecological principles to farm, optimizes pest and disease management approaches through environmentally friendly and renewable strategies in production agriculture. It is a discipline that addresses current issues such as food security, water pollution, soil health, pest control, and biodiversity depletion. Novel, environmentally-friendly solutions are proposed based on integrated knowledge from sciences as diverse as agronomy, soil science, entomology, ecology, chemistry and food sciences. Sustainable horticulture interprets methods and processes in the farming system to the global level. For that, horticulturists use the system approach that involves studying components and interactions of a whole system to address scientific, economic and social issues. In that respect, sustainable horticulture is not a classical, narrow science. Instead of solving problems using the classical painkiller approach that treats only negative impacts, sustainable horticulture treats problem sources.
A global study of the psychospiritual body and its central role in the esoteric and spiritual traditions of the world • Explains the nature, purpose, and functions of the subtle body • Explores the role of the subtle body in such traditions as Alchemy, Ayurveda, Tantra, Qi Gong, and Yoga • Shows how the various layers of the subtle body provide a map for various levels of consciousness Ancient traditions of both the East and West have long maintained that the human being is a complex of material and nonmaterial systems, or energy bodies. The “subtle body” is an energetic, psychospiritual entity of several layers of increasing subtlety and metaphysical significance through which the aspirant seeks knowledge of the self and the nature of God. In many traditions, the component parts of the subtle body serve as a map of the different levels of consciousness. The practices and disciplines that evolved from an awareness and understanding of the subtle body, and how the material and nonmaterial work together, form a coherent system of psychospiritual transformation that is central to numerous and extremely diverse spiritual practices--including those of the Gnostics, Sufis, Native Americans, Vedic seers, Chinese, and Greeks. The subtle body plays an essential part in more recent traditions such as Anthroposophy and Gurdjieff’s Fourth Way and the cutting-edge science of Ervin Laszlo’s research into the Akashic field. But the benefits of understanding the role of the subtle energy body are not confined solely to the spiritual plane. The energetic bodies provide a coherent system of life-affirming principles and practices for the diagnosis and treatment of the whole person that is not only part of many traditional healing systems, such as Acupuncture and Ayurveda, but also is forming the basis for a synthesis of traditional and contemporary healing practices that could lay the foundation for the medicine of the future.
The story of a famous abstract painter at the end of her life--her family, her art, and the long-buried secrets that won't stay hidden for much longer. Ninety-three-year-old Violet Swan has spent a lifetime translating tragedy and hardship into art, becoming famous for her abstract paintings, which evoke tranquility, innocence, and joy. For nearly a century Violet has lived a peaceful, private life of painting on the coast of Oregon. The "business of Violet" is run by her only child, Francisco, and his wife, Penny. But shortly before Violet's death, an earthquake sets a series of events in motion, and her deeply hidden past begins to resurface. When her beloved grandson returns home with a family secret in tow, Violet is forced to come to terms with the life she left behind so long ago--a life her family knows nothing about. A generational saga set against the backdrop of twentieth-century America and into the present day, Pale Morning Light with Violet Swan is the story of a girl who escaped rural Georgia at fourteen during World War II, crossing the country alone and broke. It is the story of how that girl met the man who would become her devoted husband, how she became a celebrated artist, and above all, how her life, inspired by nothing more than the way she imagined it to be, would turn out to be her greatest masterpiece.
