Set on the snaking, sinuous Danube River, Algernon Blackwood's tale "The Willows" represents a high point in the development of the horror genre. Indeed, acknowledged master H.P. Lovecraft regarded it as the best supernatural tale ever written. More awe-inspiring and thought-provoking than gory or terrifying, "The Willows" is a must-read for fans of classic ghost stories.
Willow is shy. VERY shy. Her home is in an abandoned mailbox, and she'd rather stay put. Outside kids scream and soccer balls collide, trees look like monsters, and rain is noisy in a scary kind of way. It's much nicer to stay inside, drawing. But then a young boy drops a letter in Willow's mailbox: it's a note to the moon asking for a special favor. Willow knows that if she doesn't brave the world outside, the letter will never be delivered, and the boy will be heartbroken. Should she try? Can she? Cat Min delivers a breathtakingly illustrated story about shyness, the power of empathy, and what it means to make a friend.
The touching and nuanced portrait of the rise and fall of Nazi Germany through the eyes of a resourceful German boy. Ludwig is an odd and introverted child, growing up in Hitler’s Germany. While Ludwig’s father, Wilhelm, is a senior Nazi and a true believer, Ludwig escapes the unfolding catastrophe by withdrawing into nature and books. Eventually, when the Allied bombing campaign intensifies, Ludwig is sent to a Hitler Youth camp, where his oddness makes him a target for bullying. As the war turns against Germany, the Hitler Youth camp becomes ever more severe and militaristic, and the atmosphere spirals towards chaos. After the Nazis abandon the camp, Ludwig returns home, and his father is presumed dead. With Ludwig’s mother descending into depression, the 11-year-old bears increasing responsibility for the survival of the family as starvation sets in under Russian occupation. Soon, it will be impossible to leave the Russian zone, so Ludwig decides that he must rally his despondent mother and lead her and his three younger siblings in an escape attempt to the west. Based on a true story, The Willow Wren is a unique, touching exploration of extremism, resilience, and the triumph of the small.
Bobby is young and black. His life is irrevocably shattered when he and his Hispanic girlfriend Maria are savagely beaten by a vicious street gang. Bobby's bruised and battered body is discovered by Moishe, a concentration camp survivor, and an unlikely friendship begins.
Memoir by music and fashion icon Ava Cherry, lover and muse to music legend David Bowie. Cherry sang backup and collaborated with Bowie during his golden recording era of the 1970s. Cherry, who grew up on Chicago's South Side, is credited with the soul influence on Bowie's Young Americans album. Cherry was friends with many of the world's leading musicians, including John Lennon, Bob Marley and Mick Jagger. Cherry later sang backup for Luther Vandross for a number of years. She is currently enjoying a resurgence as a singer-producer and performing around the world.
The insecure, bookish Willow became fast friends with Buffy upon her arrival to Sunnydale. As a high-tech Slayerette, Willow used her computer skills for good and, with time, her powers turned to the realm of magic. She's always longed for more parental guidance, but when Sunnydale's adults are swept up in a witch-hunt, Willow finds that her mother's judgement really burns. And who knew that forays into the black arts would bring Willow face-to-face with a side of herself she never imagined existed?
Struggling with a sleep paralysis and a lifetime of unexplained paranormal events, Willow Graves just wants to find a place to settle down. Lake Serenity seems like the perfect place to begin unraveling the webs spinning from her head. For almost a year, she feels as if she made the right choice, that is, until the locals start turning up dead and a corrupted sheriff is hell-bent on blaming Sterling Walker, one of few people Willow has grown to trust.Suddenly, the real reason as to why the mountain is so different from any other place makes itself known, and Willow's past, and that of the mountain, entangles her within a dangerous web greater than those that haunt her mind.Can Willow survive, or is she even meant to? Just what brought her to the lake to begin with, and who is she really? That's what Willow Graves is about to find out even if it's the last thing she ever learns.
Included in the "Most Anticipated Books of 2024" by the Chicago Review of Books In the backyard of Margaret and Joe Dowling’s new house in the north suburbs of Chicago, Joe plants a young willow tree as a symbol of home, belonging, and growth. As the years pass, the willow becomes a place for Margaret to share life’s wisdom with their four young daughters. Years after leaving the nest, now in their early forties, the Dowling women find themselves faced with changes that will define their lives. Debra, the oldest, is shattered when she is asked for a divorce. Rose, who has long hidden her true self, finally begins to evaluate her pattern of being in uncommitted relationships. Linney fears losing Magnolia, the magical shop where she works. Charlotte, the youngest, is the only one who knows their mother is terminally ill, and has been charged by her with keeping it a secret. And Margaret, now faced with the greatest of challenges and struggling with whether she has done enough to help her daughters find their way in life, calls them all to the family home to reunite under the willow one last time. A metaphorically rich and reflective tale of sisterhood and strength, The Wisdom of the Willow is a story of hope and healing, of the choices that shape our lives, and the challenges we all face as we seek to find our places in the world.
Octavio Paz (México, 1914–1998) was one of the foremost poets and essayists of the twentieth century. Read in translations into many of the world’s languages, Paz received numerous awards and prizes during his lifetime, participated in major artistic and political movements of the twentieth century, served as Mexico’s ambassador in India (1962–1968), and was the editor of Plural and Vuelta, two literary journals of prominent influence in Mexico, Latin America, and Spain. In 1990 Paz was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. This book of essays is a commemoration of Octavio Paz on the first centenary of his birth, a celebration undertaken with Paz’s distinguishing legacy: criticism, internationally inclusive, and open to differing viewpoints. The Willow and the Spiral: Essays on Octavio Paz and the Poetic Imagination contains studies in English and in Spanish by top-ranking Paz scholars from various continents and wide-ranging literary traditions, as well as by an emerging generation of critics who approach the work of Octavio Paz from diverse and recent theoretical methods. Specially written for this volume, the fourteen essays are in-depth studies of Paz’s poetry and essays in relation to art, eroticism, literary history, politics, the art of translation, and to Paz’s life-long reflections on world cultures and civilizations as represented by China, France, India, Japan, the United States and, among others, Mesoamerica. The essays range from new critical analyses of Piedra de sol (Sunstone) and Blanco, to studies of Renga, the haiku tradition and, among other topics, Marcel Duchamp and the literary Avant-Garde. This book will be of importance to Paz scholars, teachers, students, and the general reader interested in Octavio Paz and in topics related to artistic, literary, and cultural movements that shaped the twentieth century and that continue to inspire and steer artists and writers in the twenty-first century.
Bim's unique and varied life is reflected in his observations, humor, and the wonder he experiences in every day. This book represents a collection of entries, poems, and thoughts from the journals of his life.
