A story with a message and never a dull moment. 17-year-old Frankie Vincente was sent back to the ninth grade due to an accident that affected his brain function. But in spite of his disabilities he never gave up. A likeable kid with a big heart, he lived with his family on their 100-acre grape orchard in central California. His sister Anna was an attractive 22-year-old who gave Frankie a ride to Walnut Street School in her red convertible classic Mustang every Friday. When Calvin, a mean school bully, saw Frankie being driven to school by his hot sister, he became furiously jealous. He and his cronies wouldn’t stop bullying Frankie, until Katie, who they called Red Headed Kate, saved the day on Christmas morning. Some would think that Katie had a crush on Frankie, but she would never tell. Thanks to Kate’s help, Frankie, who had been the victim, victoriously becomes the town hero.
Twelve-year-old Frankie Parsons has a head full of questions. Only Ma takes him seriously, but unfortunately she is the cause of the most worrying question of all, the one Frankie can never bring himself to ask. Then a new girl arrives at school with questions of her own, questions that make Frankie's carefully controlled world begin to unravel . . .
In the debut middle grade novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Gayle Forman comes a poignant and powerful coming-of-age story that follows a young girl and her new friend as they learn about family, friendship, allyship, and finding your way in a complicated world. It’s the summer of 1987, and all ten-year-old Bug wants to do is go to the beach with her older brother and hang out with the locals on the boardwalk. But Danny wants to be with his own friends, and Bug’s mom is too busy, so Bug is stuck with their neighbor Philip’s nephew, Frankie. Bug’s not too excited about hanging out with a kid she’s never met, but they soon find some common ground. And as the summer unfolds, they find themselves learning some important lessons about each other, and the world. Like what it means to be your true self and how to be a good ally for others. That family can be the people you’re related to, but also the people you choose to have around you. And that even though life isn’t always fair, we can all do our part to make it more just.
'A lovely and poignant novel, filled with insight and dry wit... The painful, funny struggles of the women in this book - mothers, daughters, sisters, neighbours, doctors, patients - will resonate with readers everywhere.' KATHERINE HEINY, author of GAMES AND RITUALS 'Goodbye Birdie Greenwing is one of those books that lingers... I laughed, cried and felt more compassionate for reading it. A triumph.' JENNIE GODFREY, author of THE LIST OF SUSPICIOUS THINGS 'Oh, the exquisite, tender misfits in Goodbye Birdie Greenwing! I love them all. I love the way loneliness is gathered up into such a delightfully odd community. I love the entire book.' CATHERINE NEWMAN, author of WE ALL WANT IMPOSSIBLE THINGS ___________ Great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave and impossible to forget ... Birdie Greenwing has been at a loose end ever since her beloved twin sister and husband passed away. Too proud and stubborn to admit she is lonely, Birdie’s world has shrunk. But then some new neighbours move in to the house next door. Jane has come to Brighton for a fresh start, away from her ferociously protective mother Min. While Jane finds it hard to stand up for herself, her daughter Frankie has no problem telling people what she does and doesn’t want. Ada Kowalski has come to England to follow her dreams, but her new life is harder than she expected. When a series of incidents brings their lives crashing together, the three find that there is always more to a person than meets the eye ... Goodbye Birdie Greenwing celebrates relationships in all their quirky, complicated uniqueness. It is a story about the choices we make and how we justify them. About finding out who we are, not who other people think we should be. ___________ PRAISE FOR DOG DAYS: 'Funny, sad, gritty and beautifully told, this story will make you look at life again and appreciate the small acts of kindness that make everything worthwhile.' HAZEL PRIOR, author of AWAY WITH THE PENGUINS 'A charming, surprising and moving story of three troubled characters' encounter with love, grief, healing.' CLARE CHAMBERS, author of SMALL PLEASURES 'Moving, uplifting, full of charm and warmth, [Dog Days] gave me much paws for thought.' EMMA STONEX, Sunday Times bestselling author of THE LAMPLIGHTERS 'A Russian doll of a book that twists and tugs each outer husk, revealing delicate and poignant inner layers.' BETH MORREY, author of SAVING MISSY 'Perfect for fans of A Man Called Ove and Eleanor Oliphant, Ericka Waller's wonderful debut is both laugh out loud funny and immensely moving.' AJ Pearce, author of DEAR MRS BIRD
Dick Pariseau reveals the excitement, adventures, and predicaments one can get into if one is afraid to miss anything, welcomes every opportunity, seeks excitement, and listens to one's poker buddies when they suggest new or unfamiliar areas to explore. He earned a PhD at night school because he thought decision makers would more readily accept his analysis if it was authored by a doctor. Denied the opportunity to play basketball--his most accomplished sport--in college, he chose to play lacrosse and became a First Team All-American. Seeking an advantage over the competition at singles dances, he took dance lessons and ended up as a dance host and instructor aboard a cruise ship. Uncomfortable with the casual disrobing of the co-ed models at the university painting class, his poker buddies recommended that he "get over it" by spending time at a nudist camp. As an adventuresome traveler, he has sailed the Nile River and flown in a hot air balloon over the Valley of the Kings, gone hut-to-hut hiking in the Swiss Alps, and learned to throw a boomerang with the aboriginals in Cairns, Australia. Be entertained by the adventures and humorous predicaments of this ordinary man, and use it as a catalyst to document the adventures in your life.
Fleeing the end of an affair, and troubled by the feeling that she belongs nowhere after working in East Africa for fifteen years, Frankie Rowley comes home to the small New Hampshire town of Pomeroy and the farmhouse where her family has always summered. On her first night back, a house up the road burns to the ground. Is it an accident? Over the weeks that follow, as Frankie comes to recognise her father's slow failing and her mother's desperation, and she tentatively gets to know the new owner of the local newspaper, another house burns, and then another. These frightening events open the deep social fault lines in the town and raise questions about how and where one ought to live, and what it really means to lead a fulfilling life.
Friends since high school, four 30-something women reunite for a Christmas ski trip filled with a few unexpected bumps—and lots of laughter – in this sun-filled celebration of holiday magic and female friendship from #1 New York Times bestselling author Fern Michaels… The perfect stocking stuffer for fans of Robyn Carr, Mary Kay Andrews, Debbie Macomber, and RaeAnne Thayne! When longtime friends Amy, Frankie, Rachael and Nina reunited for a holiday singles cruise, it not only deepened their bond, it changed their lives. Now they’re getting together for another adventure, and what better winter setting than a fabulous ski lodge? Crisp snow and fresh air by day, cozy fires and delicious food by night, capped off by meeting up with their significant others for a New Year’s Eve celebration—it’s perfect. At least, it’s perfect until Frankie decides to go snowshoeing alone. When she twists her ankle right after losing her phone in the snow, Frankie wonders how she’ll be able to summon help—only to be rescued by a reclusive Grizzly Adams lookalike who lives nearby and introduces himself as Troy Manchester. Troy saves the day by helping the injured Frankie back to the ski lodge, but in the process, encounters a part of the L.A. life he’s tried to leave behind. Nina, visiting the gift shop to buy magazines for a recuperating Frankie, is similarly shocked to glimpse someone to whom she was once connected. Even in this unlikely spot, it seems there’s no way to avoid their pasts. And as the mischievous Rachael and her sidekick Amy go to great lengths to patch up old friendships and spread the spirit of the season, the New Year may contain all kinds of new beginnings. . .
‘They say I’ve killed 40 people and who am I to disagree? I’ve always liked even numbers.’ Branded the dentist for using pliers to extract the teeth of those who owed money to his boss Charlie Richardson, Frankie Fraser was labelled the most dangerous man in Britain by two Home Secretaries. He is famous for his crimes, many of which have entered gangster folklore. In these diaries, however, originally published when he was 78, Mad Frank delved into areas he had never chosen, or dared, to talk about before. His day-by-day entries record unsolved murders, shoot-outs, crooked coppers, bribery, extortion, wrongful convictions, and even sex in prison. And by contrast, he also opens up with personal memories of growing up in poverty, in London's East End, and the reality of having to steal food to feed the family. Frankie Frasier died in 2014, and this rare True Crime classic is first-hand history at its most compelling.
