From the bestselling author of Kafka on the Shore: A magnificent coming-of-age story steeped in nostalgia, “a masterly novel” (The New York Times Book Review) blending the music, the mood, and the ethos that were the sixties with a young man’s hopeless and heroic first love. Now with a new introduction by the author. Toru, a serious young college student in Tokyo, is devoted to Naoko, a beautiful and introspective young woman, but their mutual passion is marked by the tragic death of their best friend years before. As Naoko retreats further into her own world, Toru finds himself drawn to a fiercely independent and sexually liberated young woman. Stunning and elegiac, Norwegian Wood first propelled Haruki Murakami into the forefront of the literary scene.
Outwardly, we live in an era that appears more open-minded, non-judgemental and tolerant than in any time in human history. The very term intolerant invokes moral condemnation. We are constantly reminded to understand the importance of respecting different cultures and diversities. In this pugnacious new book, Frank Furedi argues that despite the democratisation of public life and the expansion of freedom, society is dominated by a culture that not only tolerates but often encourages intolerance. Often the intolerance is directed at people who refuse to accept the conventional wisdom and who are stigmatised as 'deniers'. Frequently intolerance comes into its own in clashes over cultural values and lifestyles. People are condemned for the food they eat, how they parent and for wearing religious symbols in public. This book challenges the 'quiet mood of tolerance' towards morally stigmatised forms of behaviour. The author examines recent forms of 'unacceptable behaviour'. It will tease out the real motives and drivers of intolerance.
South of the Border, West of the Sun is the beguiling story of a past rekindled, and one of Haruki Murakami’s most touching novels. Hajime has arrived at middle age with a loving family and an enviable career, yet he feels incomplete. When a childhood friend, now a beautiful woman, shows up with a secret from which she is unable to escape, the fault lines of doubt in Hajime’s quotidian existence begin to give way. Rich, mysterious, and quietly dazzling, in South of the Border, West of the Sun the simple arc of one man’s life becomes the exquisite literary terrain of Murakami’s remarkable genius.
Hyperkinetic and relentlessly inventive, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World is Haruki Murakami’s deep dive into the very nature of consciousness. Across two parallel narratives, Murakami draws readers into a mind-bending universe in which Lauren Bacall, Bob Dylan, a split-brained data processor, a deranged scientist, his shockingly undemure granddaughter, and various thugs, librarians, and subterranean monsters collide to dazzling effect. What emerges is a novel that is at once hilariously funny and a deeply serious meditation on the nature and uses of the mind.
Originally published in 1941, Old Louisiana Plantation Homes and Family Trees is the definitive guide to the important plantation homes of the Pelican State, as well as the socially and historically prominent families who lived in them. Volume I of the two-volume, boxed set describes structures in several diverse sections of the state, from traditional, Spanish-moss-hung plantations in south Louisiana to the African-inspired structures on the rounds of Melrose Plantation in Natchitoches Parish. The first volume features many rare photographs of historically significant townhomes, plantations, and outbuildings--many no longer extant--and provides detailed genealogical and anecdotal information on a genteel society and lavish lifestyle that is now only a cherished memory. Some of the great houses discussed include D'Estrehan, Tezcuco, Seven Oaks, Parlange, Asphodel, Evergreen, and Rosedown. Volume II traces the history of several important families and features numerous portraits, coats of arms, and archival photographs. It also contains a wealth of genealogical and biographical information about many of the most prominent families in Louisiana history. Some of the family names included are La Frenier, De Livaudais, Forstall, Fortier, Schmidt, S�ghers, Milliken, Parlange, De Brierre, D'Herbigny, Butler, Pipes, Ellis, Percy, Plauch�, Barrow, Bringier, Kenner, Stauffer, Knox, Semmes, Walmsley, Ranlett, Smyth, Sully, De Marigny, De La Ronde, Almonaster, De Dreux, Villere, Beauregard, Matthews, Rathbone, De Buys, Hicky, Duggan, De Macarty, vonPhul, Cade, Du Brocca, Allain, D'Estrehan des Tours, De La Barr�, Koch, Muller, Bruce, Boehm, Seebold, De Bachell�, De Vilbiss, De Beaulieu de Marconnay, Konzelman, Parker, Pitkin, Levert, Ware, Prudhomme, Wilkinson, and Stewart.
A guidebook for hikers, bikers, and equestrians, Hiking from Portland to the Coast explores the many trails and logging roads that crisscross the northern portion of Oregon's Coast Range. Designed to showcase convenient "looped" routes, it also describes complete throughways connecting Portland to the coastal communities of Seaside and Tillamook. Each of the 30 trails described includes a backstory to help users appreciate the history and significance of the places through which they are traveling.
"Drawing on examples ranging from Chaucer to children's rhymes, Cole Porter to Carol Ann Duffy, and from around the English-speaking world, it looks at aspects including : how technical aspects such as rhythm and measures work; how different tones of voice affect a poem; how poetic language relates to everyday language; how different types of poetry work, from sonnets to free verse; and how the form and 'space' of a poem contribute to its meaning." "Poetry: The Basics is an invaluable and easy-to-read guide for anyone wanting to get to grips with reading and writing poetry."--Jacket.
