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books tagged “Adventure”
books tagged “Adventure”
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The Adventures of Pinocchioby Carlo Collodi, Roberto InnocentiISBN 0394821106 (0-394-82110-6)
Hardcover, Random House Childrens Books
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The Adventures of Pinocchioby Stephanie Spinner, Carlo Collodi, Diane GoodeISBN 0394959108 (0-394-95910-8)
Hardcover, Random House Childrens Books
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Adventures of Tintin and the Picarosby HergeISBN 0416851703 (0-416-85170-3)
Hardcover, French & European Pubns
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Adventures of Tintin and the Picaros'Book summary:Finished in 1976, Tintin and the Picaros was Herge's final completed Tintin adventure, and interestingly, he used it to return to a scene from 40 years earlier: The South American republic of San Theodoros, where Tintin met General Alcazar in The Broken Ear. Alcazar is again facing trouble from his rival, General Tapioca, and numerous other characters from the past weave themselves into the story. While Tintin and the Picaros is entertaining, Herge was slow to finish it, and his world-weariness is reflected in the attitudes of some of the characters. --David Horiuchi [via]
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The Aeneidby Virgil, Robert FitzgeraldISBN 0394725964 (0-394-72596-4)
Softcover, Vintage Books
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Aeneid'Book summary:Arma virumque cano: "I sing of warfare and a man at war." Long the bane of second-year Latin students thrust into a rhetoric of sweeping, seemingly endless sentences full of difficult verb forms and obscure words, Virgil's Aeneid finds a helpful translator in Robert Fitzgerald, who turns the lines into beautiful, accessible American English. Full of betrayal, heartache, seduction, elation, and violence, the Aeneid is the great founding epic of the Roman empire. Its pages sing of the Roman vision of self, the Roman ideal of what it meant to be a citizen of the world's greatest power. The epic's force carries across the centuries, and remains essential reading. [via]
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The Aeneidby Robert Fitzgerald, VirgilISBN 0394528271 (0-394-52827-1)
Hardcover, Random House Publishing Group
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Aeneid'Book summary:Arma virumque cano: "I sing of warfare and a man at war." Long the bane of second-year Latin students thrust into a rhetoric of sweeping, seemingly endless sentences full of difficult verb forms and obscure words, Virgil's Aeneid finds a helpful translator in Robert Fitzgerald, who turns the lines into beautiful, accessible American English. Full of betrayal, heartache, seduction, elation, and violence, the Aeneid is the great founding epic of the Roman empire. Its pages sing of the Roman vision of self, the Roman ideal of what it meant to be a citizen of the world's greatest power. The epic's force carries across the centuries, and remains essential reading. [via]
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Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in Secret of Terror Castleby Robert Arthur, Harry KaneISBN 0394837665 (0-394-83766-5)
Hardcover, Random House
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in The Secret of Terror Castle'Book summary:The Three Investigators search for an authentic haunted house. [via]
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Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in the Mystery of the Stuttering Parrotby Robert Arthur, Harry KaneISBN 0394822005 (0-394-82200-5)
Hardcover, Random House
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in the Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot'Book summary:In searching for a lost parrot who recites Shakespeare with a stutter, Jupiter Jones' firm of young detectives becomes involved with a missing masterpiece. [via]
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- Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in the Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot: ISBN 0394837673 (0-394-83767-3)
Hardcover, Random House - Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in the Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot: ISBN 0394912438 (0-394-91243-8)
Hardcover, Random House Childrens Books - Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in the Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot: ISBN 0394822005 (0-394-82200-5)
Hardcover, Random House
- Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in the Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot: ISBN 0394837673 (0-394-83767-3)
Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators in the Secret of Skeleton Islandby Robert ArthurISBN 0394815521 (0-394-81552-1)
Hardcover, Random House Childrens Books
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The Ape Who Guards the Balanceby Elizabeth PetersISBN 0380976579 (0-380-97657-9)
Hardcover, Harpercollins
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Arabian Nightsby Husain Haddawy, Muhsin MahdiISBN 0393313670 (0-393-31367-0)
Softcover, W W Norton & Co Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Arabian Nights'Book summary:Readers for more than three centuries have delighted in The Arabian Nights--a world wherein magic is woven into the fabric of everyday life; a touching, exhilarating mixture of flamboyance, pathos, beauty, and humor. This first serious English translation fully exploits the Middle-Eastern storyteller's art and the variety of levels at which the stories move. [via]
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Azazelby Isaac AsimovISBN 038524410X (0-385-24410-X)
Hardcover, Bantam Dell Pub Group
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Blue Nileby Alan MooreheadISBN 0394714490 (0-394-71449-0)
Softcover, Random House Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Blue Nile'Book summary:An account of the course of the Blue Nile from the Ethiopian Highlands, through the Sudan and Egupt to the sea. The book contains an historical narrative which starts in the eighteenth century and ends in 1869. The period was dominated by four men: James Bruce, the Scot who journeyed to the supposed source of the Blue Nile, and stayed in warring Ethiopia; Napoleon who, needing military glory to further his political ambitions, led a brilliantly conceived expedition to Egypt; Mohammed Ali, the Turkish viceroy, who sent his son to conquer the Sudan in a ruthless quest for gold and slaves; and Emporer Theodore of Ethiopia, a tyrant who held British subjects captive. [via]
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The Bourne Ultimatumby Robert LudlumISBN 0394584082 (0-394-58408-2)
Hardcover, Random House Publishing Group
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Bourne Ultimatum'Book summary:The world's two deadliest spies in the ultimate showdown. At a small-town carnival two men, each mysteriously summoned by telegram, witness a bizarre killing. The telegrams are signed Jason Bourne. Only they know Bourne's true identity and understand the telegram is really a message from Bourne's mortal enemy, Carlos, known also as the Jackal, the world's deadliest and most elusive terrorist. And furthermore, they know that the Jackal wants: a final confrontation with Bourne. Now David Webb, professor of Oriental studies, husband, and father, must do what he hoped he would never have to do againassume the terrible identity of Jason Bourne. His plan is simple: to infiltrate the politically and economically Medusan group and use himself as bait to lure the cunning Jackal into a deadly trapa trap from which only one of them will escape.
From the Paperback edition. [via]More editions of The Bourne Ultimatum:
Burning Shoreby Wilbur A. SmithISBN 0385187386 (0-385-18738-6)
Hardcover, Bantam Dell Pub Group
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Candideby VoltaireISBN 0394605225 (0-394-60522-5)
Hardcover, Random House Publishing Group
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Candide or Optimism: A Fresh Translation, Backgrounds, Criticismby VoltaireISBN 0393960587 (0-393-96058-7)
Softcover, W W Norton & Co Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Candide or Optimism: A Fresh Translation, Backgrounds, Criticism'Book summary:Robert M. Adams's superlative revised translation of Candide provides the basis for this widely adopted Norton Critical Edition.
The accompanying apparatus has been revised in accordance with recent biographical and critical materials. The Backgrounds and Criticism sections provide important essays that shed light on major critical issues relevant to Candide and to the intellectual climate of the period. In addition to the reports of five English visitors to Ferney, essays by Haydn Mason, Erich Auerbach, Ernst Cassirer, and Robert M. Adams are included. The final section of the edition, "The Climate of Controversy," summarizes the debate surrounding Voltaire's works and includes essays by Peter Gay, Raymond Naves, Gustave Lanson, and John Morley. Also included are a series of quotations about Voltaire by such prominent figures as Gustave Flaubert, Frederick the Great, and Stendhal, as well as the text of "Pangloss's Song," a ballad from the 1956 Candide-based operetta by Richard Wilbur. [via]More editions of Candide or Optimism: A Fresh Translation, Backgrounds, Criticism:
Canyonsby Gary PaulsenISBN 0385301537 (0-385-30153-7)
Hardcover, Random House Children's Books
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The Complete Sherlock Holmesby Arthur Conan DoyleISBN 0385006896 (0-385-00689-6)
Hardcover, Doubleday
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Complete Sherlock Holmes'Book summary:This volume, authorized by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's estate, contains all 4 full-length novels and all 56 short stories featuring Sherlock Holmes. At over a thousand pages, the weighty tome is a perfect gift for budding amateur sleuths, and it is an ideal companion for a long stay on a desert island (or a leisurely trip through the English countryside). As the reader wades past the tense introductions of A Study in Scarlet and moves towards such classic tales as The Hound of the Baskervilles, "The Adventure of the Speckled Band," and "The Final Problem," she is sure to draw her own conclusions about Holmes's veiled past and his quirky relationship with his "Boswell," Watson. Doyle never revealed much about Holmes's early life, but the joy of reading the complete Holmes is assembling the trivia of each story into something like a portrait of the detective and his creator. By the end of the long journey through London and across Europe (with a long stopover at Reichenbach Falls), one is apt to have found a friend for life. --Patrick O'Kelley [via]
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A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Courtby Mark TwainISBN 0393951375 (0-393-95137-5)
Softcover, W W Norton & Co Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court'Book summary:This edition of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court reprints the text of the first American edition, approved by Clemens and published by his own company. Accompanying the text are thirteen of the original illustrations by Daniel Carter Beard, many of which are caricatures of well-known figures of the day. Annotations point out significant textual problems and variants, as well as explaining unfamiliar references within the text.
"Backgrounds and Sources" includes selections on King Arthur from the Oxford Companion to English Literature; on the total eclipse from The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus by Washington Irving; and on the "king's touch," the ascetic saints, and the financing of the Mansion House by W. E. H. Lecky. Selections from Clemens's letters, notebooks, autobiography, and other writings and newspaper reports of his 1886 manuscript reading at Governor's Island show how the novel developed. A section of the Beard illustrations includes material by Beard, Clemens, and Henry Nash Smith. The English edition is discussed by Dennis Welland.
Early critical views are by Sylvester Baxter, William Dean Howells, Andrew Lang, Rudyard Kipling, Charles Whibley, Albert Bigelow Paine, John B. Hoben, and anonymous reviewers in the London Daily Telegraph and the Boston Literary World. The later critical essays are by Howard G. Baetzhold, James D. Williams, Kenneth S. Lynn, James M. Cox, Louis J. Budd, Henry Nash Smith, David Ketterer, and Everett Carter.
A Selected Bibliography is also included. [via]More editions of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court:
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Crocodile on the Sandbankby Elizabeth PetersISBN 0396070809 (0-396-07080-9)
Hardcover, Dodd Mead
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Crocodile on the Sandbank'Book summary:Elizabeth Peters's unforgettable heroine Amelia Peabody makes her first appearance in this clever mystery. Amelia receives a rather large inheritance and decides to use it for travel. On her way through Rome to Egypt, she meets Evelyn Barton-Forbes, a young woman abandoned by her lover and left with no means of support. Amelia promptly takes Evelyn under her wing, insisting that the young lady accompany her to Egypt, where Amelia plans to indulge her passion for Egyptology. When Evelyn becomes the target of an aborted kidnapping and the focus of a series of suspicious accidents and mysterious visitations, Amelia becomes convinced of a plot to harm her young friend. Like any self-respecting sleuth, Amelia sets out to discover who is behind it all. [via]
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Cuba Libreby Elmore LeonardISBN 0385323840 (0-385-32384-0)
Softcover, Dell Publishing
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The Curse of the Pharaohsby Elizabeth PetersISBN 0396079636 (0-396-07963-6)
Hardcover, Dodd Mead
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Danny the Champion of the Worldby Roald Dahl, Jill BennettISBN 0394831039 (0-394-83103-9)
Hardcover
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Danny the Champion of the World'Book summary:"My father, without the slightest doubt, was the most marvelous and exciting father any boy ever had." Danny feels very lucky. He adores his life with his father, living in a gypsy caravan, listening to his stories, tending their gas station, puttering around the workshop, and occasionally taking off to fly home-built gas balloons and kites. His father has raised him on his own, ever since Danny's mother died when he was four months old. Life is peaceful and wonderful... until he turns 9 and discovers his father's one vice. Soon Danny finds himself the mastermind behind the most incredible plot ever attempted against nasty Victor Hazell, a wealthy landowner with a bad attitude. Can they pull it off? If so, Danny will truly be the champion of the world. Danny is right up to Roald Dahl's impishly brilliant standards. An intense and beautiful father-son relationship is balanced with sublegal high jinks that will have even the most rigid law-abider rooting them on. Dahl's inimitable way with words leaves the reader simultaneously satisfied and itching for more. (Ages 9 to 13) --Emilie Coulter [via]
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The Enemy: A Jack Reacher Novelby Lee ChildISBN 0385336675 (0-385-33667-5)
Hardcover, Dell Publishing
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Enemy: A Jack Reacher Novel'Book summary:Jack Reacher. Hero. Loner. Soldier. Soldiers son. An elite military cop, he was one of the armys brightest stars. But in every cops life there is a turning point. One case. One messy, tangled case that can shatter a career. Turn a lawman into a renegade. And make him question words like honor, valor, and duty. For Jack Reacher, this is that case.
New Years Day, 1990. The Berlin Wall is coming down. The world is changing. And in a North Carolina hot-sheets motel, a two-star general is found dead. His briefcase is missing. Nobody knows what was in it. Within minutes Jack Reacher has his orders: Control the situation. But this situation cant be controlled. Within hours the generals wife is murdered hundreds of miles away. Then the dominoes really start to fall.
Two Special Forces soldiersthe toughest of the toughare taken down, one at a time. Top military commanders are moved from place to place in a bizarre game of chess. And somewhere inside the vast worldwide fortress that is the U.S. Army, Jack Reacheran ordinarily untouchable investigator for the 110th Special Unitis being set up as a fall guy with the worst enemies a man can have.
But Reacher wont quit. Hes fighting a new kind of war. And hes taking a young female lieutenant with him on a deadly hunt that leads them from the ragged edges of a rural army post to the winding streets of Paris to a confrontation with an enemy he didnt know he had. With his French-born mother dyingand divulging to her son one last, stunning secretReacher is forced to question everything he once believed&about his family, his career, his loyaltiesand himself. Because this soldiers son is on his way into the darkness, where he finds a tangled drama of desperate desires and violent deathand a conspiracy more chilling, ingenious, and treacherous than anyone could have guessed. [via]More editions of The Enemy: A Jack Reacher Novel:
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Even Cowgirls Get the Bluesby Tom RobbinsISBN 0395245109 (0-395-24510-9)
Softcover, Houghton Mifflin
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Even Cowgirls Get the Blues'Book summary:Listeners follow Sissy Hankshaw's odyssey from Virginia to chic Manhattan to the Dakota Badlands, where FBI agents, cowgirls, and ecstatic whooping cranes explode in a deliciously drawn-out climax. Unabridged. 12 CDs.[via]More editions of Even Cowgirls Get the Blues:
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The Falcon at the Portalby Elizabeth PetersISBN 0380976587 (0-380-97658-7)
Hardcover, HarperCollins Publishers
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Falcon at the Portal'Book summary:"'Really,' I thought in mounting exasperation, 'there never was a household in which so many people felt free to offer their unsolicited opinions!'" This, of course, is the eminent Egyptologist and dedicated crime solver Amelia Peabody, setting the stage and the tone (an updated Oscar Wildean irony) for Elizabeth Peters's 11th book. And it's true that there are no shrinking violets in this particular household, from the redoubtable Amelia and her hot-tempered archaeologist husband Emerson (his native diggers call him the Father of Curses), to their dashing, unpredictable son Ramses (born Walter). Also, let's not forget their lovely ward, Nefret (rescued from a desert tribe several books back), and their butler, Gargery, "who wields a cudgel as handily as he carves a roast."
As she has so many times before, Peters presents us with this quaint--even campy--little group of people, plops them down in an exotic Egyptian setting, and then surprises us by involving them in a story of great strength and emotion.
It's 1911, and David Todros, a young Egyptian who has just married into the Peabody family, is suspected of dealing in forged antiquities, possibly to help support a rising nationalist movement. Amelia, Emerson, Ramses, and Nefret all take various actions to help David, and there are serious, dangerous consequences for everyone involved. Despite the melodramatic setting and the theatrical language, Peters's story is--as always--modern, believable, and exciting.
Other books in the Peabody series available in paperback are The Ape Who Guards the Balance, The Crocodile on the Sandbank, The Curse of the Pharaohs, and The Hippopotamus Pool. --Dick Adler [via]
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Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas; A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream,by Hunter S. ThompsonISBN 0394464354 (0-394-46435-4)
Hardcover, Random House Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas; A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream,'Book summary:Heralded as the "best book on the dope decade" by the New York Times Book Review, Hunter S. Thompson's documented drug orgy through Las Vegas would no doubt leave Nancy Reagan blushing and D.A.R.E. founders rethinking their motto. Under the pseudonym of Raoul Duke, Thompson travels with his Samoan attorney, Dr. Gonzo, in a souped-up convertible dubbed the "Great Red Shark." In its trunk, they stow "two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high-powered blotter acid, a salt shaker half-full of cocaine and a whole galaxy of multicolored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers.... A quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of Budweiser, a pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls," which they manage to consume during their short tour.
On assignment from a sports magazine to cover "the fabulous Mint 400"--a free-for-all biker's race in the heart of the Nevada desert--the drug-a-delic duo stumbles through Vegas in hallucinatory hopes of finding the American dream (two truck-stop waitresses tell them it's nearby, but can't remember if it's on the right or the left). They of course never get the story, but they do commit the only sins in Vegas: "burning the locals, abusing the tourists, terrifying the help." For Thompson to remember and pen his experiences with such clarity and wit is nothing short of a miracle; an impressive feat no matter how one feels about the subject matter. A first-rate sensibility twinger, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is a pop-culture classic, an icon of an era past, and a nugget of pure comedic genius. --Rebekah Warren [via]
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The Flag Captainby Alexander KentISBN 0425037347 (0-425-03734-7)
Softcover, Berkley Pub Group
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Flashman and the Redskinsby George MacDonald FraserISBN 0394528522 (0-394-52852-2)
Hardcover, Knopf Publishing Group
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Flashman's Ladyby George MacDonald FraserISBN 0394501357 (0-394-50135-7)
Hardcover, Random House Inc
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Gai-Jin: A Novel of Japanby James ClavellISBN 0385310161 (0-385-31016-1)
Hardcover, Dell Publishing
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Gai-Jin: A Novel of Japan'Book summary:Malcolm struan, the heir to the most powerful english trading company in the orient, finds his fate intertwined with that of a beautiful young french woman. By the author of shogun. 700,000 first printing. $700,000 ad/promo [via]
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Golden Gateby Alistair MacLeanISBN 0385116470 (0-385-11647-0)
Hardcover, Bantam Dell Pub Group
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Golden Soakby Hammond InnesISBN 0394484665 (0-394-48466-5)
Hardcover, Knopf
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Interesting Timesby Stephen BriggsISBN 0413772195 (0-413-77219-5)
Softcover, Methuen Publishing Limited
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Interesting Times'Book summary:Marvelous Discworld, which revolves on the backs of four great elephants and a big turtle, spins into Interesting Times, the 17th outing in Terry Pratchett's rollicking fantasy series. The gods are playing games again, and this time the mysterious Lady opposes Fate in a match of "Destinies of Nations Hanging by a Thread." --Blaise Selby [via]
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Journal of Researches into the Natural History and Geology: Of the Countries Visited during the Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle Round the World, under the Command of Capt Fitz Roy, R.N.by Charles DarwinISBN 040408401X (0-404-08401-X)
Hardcover, AMS Press
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L Etrangerby Albert Camus, Germaine Bree, Carlos LynesISBN 0423846108 (0-423-84610-8)
Hardcover, Methuen Educational
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› Find signed collectible books: 'L Etranger'Book summary:LÉtranger est un roman dAlbert Camus, paru en 1942. Il prend place dans la trilogie que Camus nommera « cycle de labsurde » qui décrit les fondements de la philosophie camusienne : labsurde. Cette trilogie comprend également lessai philosophique intitulé Le Mythe de Sisyphe ainsi que les deux pièces de théâtre Caligula et Le Malentendu. Le roman a été traduit en quarante langues et une adaptation cinématographique a été réalisée par Luchino Visconti en 1967.
En 1999. La revue Le Monde classa ce roman premier parmi les 100 romans du siècle.
Meursault, le narrateur, employé de bureau algérois, apprend la mort de sa mère. Il prend l'autobus pour se rendre à l'asile où elle a fini ses jours et assiste avec indifférence à la veillée et à l'enterrement. Le lendemain, samedi, il rencontre Marie dans un établissement de bains, l'emmène au cinéma et passe la nuit avec elle. Le dimanche s'étire dans l'ennui et le désoeuvrement. Meursault retrouve son bureau et ses voisins: Céleste le restaurateur, le vieux Salamano qui bat son chien, et Raymond Sintès, dont on dit dans le quartier qu'il «vit des femmes». Celui-ci demande à Meursault de rédiger une lettre destinée à une femme qui l'a trompé. Le samedi suivant, Meursault se rend à la plage avec Marie. Au retour, ils assistent à une scène violente au cours de laquelle Raymond frappe sa maîtresse. La police étant intervenue, Meursault accepte de témoigner en faveur de Raymond ... Meursault et Marie vont passer le dimanche à la plage, avec Raymond. Deux Arabes les ont suivis. L'un est le frère de la femme que Raymond a maltraitée. Une dispute éclate: Raymond est blessé d'un coup de couteau. Un peu plus tard, par une chaleur accablante, il revient provoquer son agresseur. Meursault, qui lui, a pris son revolver par précaution, se retrouve seul face à l'Arabe. Aveuglé par le soleil et l'éclat du couteau que celui-ci a sorti de sa poche, il tire sur lui...
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Lambby Christopher MooreISBN 0380813815 (0-380-81381-5)
Softcover, Harpercollins
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Lamb'Book summary:While the Bible may be the word of God, transcribed by divinely inspired men, it does not provide a full (or even partial) account of the life of Jesus Christ. Lucky for us that Christopher Moore presents a funny, lighthearted satire of the life of Christ--from his childhood days up to his crucifixion--in Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal. This clever novel is surely blasphemy to some, but to others it's a coming-of-age story of the highest order.
Joshua (a.k.a. Jesus) knows he is unique and quite alone in his calling, but what exactly does his Father want of him? Taking liberties with ancient history, Moore works up an adventure tale as Biff and Joshua seek out the three wise men so that Joshua can better understand what he is supposed to do as Messiah. Biff, a capable sinner, tags along and gives Joshua ample opportunities to know the failings and weaknesses of being truly human. With a wit similar to Douglas Adams, Moore pulls no punches: a young Biff has the hots for Joshua's mom, Mary, which doesn't amuse Josh much: "Don't let anyone ever tell you that the Prince of Peace never struck anyone." And the origin of the Easter Bunny is explained as a drunken Jesus gushes his affection for bunnies, declaring, "Henceforth and from now on, I decree that whenever something bad happens to me, there shall be bunnies around."
One small problem with the narrative is that Biff and Joshua often do not have distinct voices. A larger difficulty is that as the tone becomes more somber with Joshua's life drawing to its inevitable close, the one-liners, though not as numerous, seem forced. True to form, Lamb keeps the story of Joshua light, even after its darkest moments. --Michael Ferch [via]
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Lamb : The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Palby Christopher MooreISBN 0380978407 (0-380-97840-7)
Hardcover, HarperCollins Publishers
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Lamb : The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal'Book summary:While the Bible may be the word of God, transcribed by divinely inspired men, it does not provide a full (or even partial) account of the life of Jesus Christ. Lucky for us that Christopher Moore presents a funny, lighthearted satire of the life of Christ--from his childhood days up to his crucifixion--in Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal. This clever novel is surely blasphemy to some, but to others it's a coming-of-age story of the highest order.
Joshua (a.k.a. Jesus) knows he is unique and quite alone in his calling, but what exactly does his Father want of him? Taking liberties with ancient history, Moore works up an adventure tale as Biff and Joshua seek out the three wise men so that Joshua can better understand what he is supposed to do as Messiah. Biff, a capable sinner, tags along and gives Joshua ample opportunities to know the failings and weaknesses of being truly human. With a wit similar to Douglas Adams, Moore pulls no punches: a young Biff has the hots for Joshua's mom, Mary, which doesn't amuse Josh much: "Don't let anyone ever tell you that the Prince of Peace never struck anyone." And the origin of the Easter Bunny is explained as a drunken Jesus gushes his affection for bunnies, declaring, "Henceforth and from now on, I decree that whenever something bad happens to me, there shall be bunnies around."
One small problem with the narrative is that Biff and Joshua often do not have distinct voices. A larger difficulty is that as the tone becomes more somber with Joshua's life drawing to its inevitable close, the one-liners, though not as numerous, seem forced. True to form, Lamb keeps the story of Joshua light, even after its darkest moments. --Michael Ferch [via]
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Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13by Jim Lovell, Kluger JeffreyISBN 0395670292 (0-395-67029-2)
Hardcover, Houghton Mifflin
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13'Book summary:In April 1970, during the glory days of the Apollo space program, NASA sent Navy Captain Jim Lovell and two other astronauts on America's fifth mission to the moon. Only fifty-five hours into the flight of Apollo 13, disaster struck: a mysterious explosion rocked the ship, and soon its oxygen and power began draining away. Commander Lovell and his crew watched in alarm as the cockpit grew darker, the air grew thinner, and the instruments winked out one by one. The full story of the moon shot that almost ended in catastrophe has never been told, but now Lovell and coauthor Jeffrey Kluger bring it to vivd life. What begins as a smooth flight is transformed into a hair-raising voyage from the moment Lovell calls out, "Houston, we've got a problem." Minutes after the explosion, the astronauts are forced to abandon the main ship for the lunar module, a tiny craft designed to keep two men alive for just two days. But there are three men aboard, and they are four days from home. As the hours tick away, the narrative shifts from the crippled spacecraft to Mission Control, from engineers searching desperately for solutions to Lovell's wife and children praying for his safe return. The entire nation watches as one crisis after another is met and overcome. By the time the ship splashes down in the Pacific, we understand why the heroic effort to rescue Lovell and his crew is considered by many to be NASA's finest hour. This riveting book puts the reader right in the spacecraft during one of the worst disasters in the history of space exploration. Written with all the color and drama of the best fiction, Lost Moon is the true story of a thrilling adventure and an astonishing triumph over nearly impossible odds. It was a major Oscar(R)-nominated motion picture directed by Ron Howard and starred Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon. [via]
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The Mosquito Coastby Paul TherouxISBN 0395318378 (0-395-31837-8)
Hardcover, Houghton Mifflin
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Mosquito Coast'Book summary:Allie Fox hates America and everything about the twentieth century. He takes his wife and two sons to the Honduran jungle to live a better, simpler life but when he starts to go mad, life for his family becomes much more frightening than ever before ... Tragedy and farce in the jungle. Harrison Ford starred in the smash-hit film. [via]
Mrs. Pollifax and the Hong Kong Buddhaby Dorothy GilmanISBN 0385199597 (0-385-19959-7)
Hardcover, Bantam Dell Pub Group
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Mrs. Pollifax on the China Stationby Dorothy GilmanISBN 038514525X (0-385-14525-X)
Hardcover, Bantam Dell Pub Group
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Mrs. Pollifax on the China Station'Book summary:"Absorbing and worthwhile...You won't want to put the book down"
PORTLAND TELEGRAM
Once again, Mrs. Pollifax, the cheerful little woman with the flyaway white hair and a penchant for old hats is plunged headfirst into another hair-raising CIA mission. Posing as a tourist in China, Emily Pollifax meets the sinister challenges of the Orient to safeguard a treasure for the CIA...and all but loses her life in the bargain. [via]More editions of Mrs. Pollifax on the China Station:
Nostromo : A Tale of the Seaboardby Joseph Conrad, Robert Penn WarrenISBN 0394604318 (0-394-60431-8)
Hardcover, Random House Publishing Group
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Pinocchio: Library Editionby Carlo Collodi, Ed YoungISBN 0399229418 (0-399-22941-8)
Hardcover, Philomel Books
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Pinocchio: Library Edition'Book summary:The Chinese-American illustrator Ed Young won a Caldecott Medal for his book Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story From China. Here he takes on another classic children's tale and transforms it with his collages from cloth, string, grainy paper, and scraps. Pinocchio's often frightening world is rendered in rich color and deep texture, so that the moral of the adventure, that honesty and modesty are the only sources of our humanity, becomes even more powerful. Young has also included some of the darker plot elements that subsequent Disneyfied versions chose to obscure or leave out. [via]
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The Power of Oneby Bryce CourtenayISBN 0385732546 (0-385-73254-6)
Hardcover, Random House Children's Books
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Power of One'Book summary:In 1939, hatred took root in South Africa, where the seeds of apartheid were newly sown. There a boy called Peekay was born. He spoke the wrong languageEnglish. He was nursed by a woman of the wrong colorblack. His childhood was marked by humiliation and abandonment. Yet he vowed to survivehe would become welterweight champion of the world, he would dream heroic dreams.
But his dreams were nothing compared to what awaited him. For he embarked on an epic journey, where he would learn the power of words, the power to transform lives, and the mystical power that would sustain him even when it appeared that villainy would rule the world: The Power of One. [via] -
The Red Badge of Courageby Stephen CraneISBN 0393319547 (0-393-31954-7)
Softcover, W W Norton & Co Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Red Badge of Courage'Book summary:First published in 1895, America's greatest novel of the Civil War was written before 21-year-old Stephen Crane had "smelled even the powder of a sham battle." But this powerful psychological study of a young soldier's struggle with the horrors, both within and without, that war strikes the reader with its undeniable realism and with its masterful descriptions of the moment-by-moment riot of emotions felt by me under fire. Ernest Hemingway called the novel an American classic, and Crane's genius is as much apparent in his sharp, colorful prose as in his ironic portrayal of an episode of war so intense, so immediate, so real that the terror of battle becomes our own ... in a masterpiece so unique that many believe modern American fiction began with Stephen Crane.
"The Red Badge Of Courage" has long been considered the first great 'modern' novel of war by an American--the first novel of literary distinction to present war without heroics and this in a spirit of total irony and skepticism." -- Alfred Kazin [via]
More editions of The Red Badge of Courage:
- The Red Badge of Courage: ISBN 0393964302 (0-393-96430-2)
Softcover, W W Norton & Co Inc - The Red Badge of Courage: ISBN 0393013456 (0-393-01345-6)
Hardcover, W W Norton & Co Inc - The Red Badge of Courage: ISBN 0394604938 (0-394-60493-8)
Hardcover, Random House Inc - The Red Badge of Courage: ISBN 0393319547 (0-393-31954-7)
Softcover, W W Norton & Co Inc
- The Red Badge of Courage: ISBN 0393964302 (0-393-96430-2)
The Red Badge of Courageby Sculley Bradley, Stephen Crane, E. Hudson Long, Donald Pizer, Richmond Croom BeattyISBN 0393044351 (0-393-04435-1)
Hardcover, W W Norton & Co Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Red Badge of Courage'Book summary:Stephen Crane's classic work [via]
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Rising Sunby Michael CrichtonISBN 0394589424 (0-394-58942-4)
Hardcover, Knopf Publishing Group
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Rising Sun'Book summary:During the grand opening celebration of the new American headquarters of an immense Japanese conglomerate, the dead body of a beautiful woman is found. The investigation begins, and immediately becomes a headlong chase through a twisting maze of industrial intrigue and a violent business battle that takes no prisoners.
From the Paperback edition. [via]More editions of Rising Sun:
Seawitchby Alistair MacLeanISBN 0385128525 (0-385-12852-5)
Hardcover, Bantam Dell Pub Group
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Shackleton's Boat Journeyby Frank Arthur WorsleyISBN 0393318648 (0-393-31864-8)
Softcover, W W Norton & Co Inc
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The Sign of the Beaverby Elizabeth George SpeareISBN 0395338905 (0-395-33890-5)
Hardcover, Houghton Mifflin
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Sign of the Beaver'Book summary:When his father returns East to collect the rest of the family, 13-year-old Matt is left alone to guard his family's newly built homestead. One day, Matt is brutally stung when he robs a bee tree for honey. He returns to consciousness to discover that his many stings have been treated by an old Native American and his grandson. Matt offers his only book as thanks, but the old man instead asks Matt to teach his grandson Attean to read. Both boys are suspicious, but Attean comes each day for his lesson. In the mornings, Matt tries to entice Attean with tales from Robinson Crusoe, while in the afternoons, Attean teaches Matt about wilderness survival and Native American culture. The boys become friends in spite of themselves, and their inevitable parting is a moving tribute to the ability of shared experience to overcome prejudice. The Sign of the Beaver was a Newbery Honor Book; author Elizabeth Speare has also won the Newbery Medal twice, for The Witch of Blackbird Pond and The Bronze Bow. (Ages 12 and older) --Richard Farr [via]
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Signal-Close Actionby Alexander KentISBN 0399114483 (0-399-11448-3)
Hardcover, Putnam
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Sloop of Warby Alexander KentISBN 0399109757 (0-399-10975-7)
Hardcover, Putnam
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The Strangerby Albert Camus, Matthew WardISBN 0394533054 (0-394-53305-4)
Hardcover, Random House Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Stranger'Book summary:Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Hesperides Press are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork. [via]
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The Strangerby Chris Van AllsburgISBN 0395423317 (0-395-42331-7)
Hardcover, Houghton Mifflin
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Stranger'Book summary:The enigmatic origins of the stranger that Farmer Bailey hits with his truck and brings home to recuperate seem to have a mysterious relation to the weather. Could he be Jack Frost?[via]More editions of The Stranger:
The Sunbirdby Wilbur A. SmithISBN 0385007108 (0-385-00710-8)
Hardcover, Bantam Dell Pub Group
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Taggerungby Brian Jacques, Peter StandleyISBN 0399237208 (0-399-23720-8)
Hardcover, Philomel Books
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A Tale of Two Citiesby Charles DickensISBN 0382099931 (0-382-09993-1)
Softcover, Silver Burdett Pr
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› Find signed collectible books: 'A Tale of Two Cities'Book summary:This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. [via]
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Terry Pratchett's the Truthby Terry Pratchett, Stephen BriggsISBN 0413771164 (0-413-77116-4)
Softcover, Methuen Pub Ltd
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Terry Pratchett's the Truth'Book summary:A new stage adaptation of one of Pratchett's best-selling novels[via]
There's been a murder. Allegedly. William de Worde is the Discworld's first investigative journalist. He didn't mean to be - it was just an accident. But, as William fills his pages with reports of local club meetings and pictures of humorously shaped vegetables, dark forces high up in Ankh-Morpork's society are plotting to overthrow te city's ruler, Lord Vetinari.More editions of Terry Pratchett's the Truth:
The Three Investigators in The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrotby Robert ArthurISBN 0394864026 (0-394-86402-6)
Softcover, Random House
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The Three Investigators in The Secret of Terror Castleby Robert Arthur, Harry KaneISBN 0394864018 (0-394-86401-8)
Softcover, Random House
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Three Investigators in The Secret of Terror Castle'Book summary:The Three Investigators search for an authentic haunted house. [via]
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Tracksby Robyn DavidsonISBN 0394721675 (0-394-72167-5)
Softcover, Random House Inc
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The Truthby Terry PratchettISBN 0380818191 (0-380-81819-1)
Softcover, Harpercollins
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Truth'Book summary:Terry Pratchett's acclaimed Discworld novels have been number one bestsellers in England for more than a decade. In fact, this prolific author sold more hardcover books in the United Kingdom during the 1900's than any other living novelist. Critically recognized as one of the most celebrated practitioners of satire and parody -- in the company of Kurt Vonnegut, Douglas Adams, and Carl Hiaasen -- Pratchett, with his unique brand of irreverent humor, is at last being embraced across America.
In this, his twenty-fifth Discworld novel, Pratchett turns his pen on, well, the pen. Or, rather, the press, and its power to disseminate and create the truth. The lesser son of one of Ankh most privileged families, William de Worde a struggling scribe, hits on the brilliant idea of producing his upper-crust newsletter with a newfangled printing press.
Truer to the family motto, Le Mot juste, than his disapproving father can ever realize, de Worde soon finds that his Ankh-Morpork Times is a success. So big, in fact, that certain nefarious factions would like nothing better than to put him out of business. They begin their own rival Ankh-Morpork Inquirer--full of salacious bits -- to do just that. Soon, though, de Worde has more than just the competition to fret over. Lord Vetinari, the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork, is accused of a serious crime in a seemingly airtight case. But William de Worde knows that facts aren't always the truth. Along with a much too prim and proper assistant, a roving photographer vampire with a nasty reaction to his flashgun, and a talking dog who holds the key to the mystery, William de Worde will stop at nothing to get the truth.
And that's the truth.
A dead-on look at the revered fifth estate, the nature of news, and bareknuckled political intrigue, The Truth shall make you free. From everything else you'd be doing instead of enjoying it, that is. [via]
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Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faithby Jon KrakauerISBN 0385509510 (0-385-50951-0)
Hardcover, Bantam Dell Pub Group
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith'Book summary:In 1984, Ron and Dan Lafferty murdered the wife and infant daughter of their younger brother Allen. The crimes were noteworthy not merely for their brutality but for the brothers' claim that they were acting on direct orders from God. In Under the Banner of Heaven, Jon Krakauer tells the story of the killers and their crime but also explores the shadowy world of Mormon fundamentalism from which the two emerged. The Mormon Church was founded, in part, on the idea that true believers could speak directly with God. But while the mainstream church attempted to be more palatable to the general public by rejecting the controversial tenet of polygamy, fundamentalist splinter groups saw this as apostasy and took to the hills to live what they believed to be a righteous life. When their beliefs are challenged or their patriarchal, cult-like order defied, these still- active groups, according to Krakauer, are capable of fighting back with tremendous violence. While Krak! auer's research into the history of the church is admirably extensive, the real power of the book comes from present- day information, notably jailhouse interviews with Dan Lafferty. Far from being the brooding maniac one might expect, Lafferty is chillingly coherent, still insisting that his motive was merely to obey God's command. Krakauer's accounts of the actual murders are graphic and disturbing, but such detail makes the brothers' claim of divine instruction all the more horrifying. In an age where Westerners have trouble comprehending what drives Islamic fundamentalists to kill, Jon Krakauer advises us to look within America's own borders. --John Moe [via]
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Unfinished Talesby J. R. R. TolkienISBN 0395324416 (0-395-32441-6)
Softcover, Houghton Mifflin
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Unfinished Tales'Book summary:Edited by Christopher Tolkien, Unfinished Tales is a posthumous collection of narratives ranging from the time of The Silmarillion - the Elder days of Middle-earth - to the end of the War of the Ring in The Lord of the Rings. Among the stories told are Gandalf's account of sending the dwarves to Bibo's party at Bag End, the tale of the appearance of the sea-god Ulmo before the eyes of Tuor along the coast of Beleriand, and a description of the military organization of the Riders of Rohan. It also contains the only story from the long ages of Numenor before its downfall, and all that is known of such matters as the Five Wizards, the Palantiri, and the legend of Amroth. [via]
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Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-Earthby J. R. R. TolkienISBN 0395299179 (0-395-29917-9)
Hardcover, Houghton Mifflin
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-Earth'Book summary:Edited by Christopher Tolkien, Unfinished Tales is a posthumous collection of narratives ranging from the time of The Silmarillion - the Elder days of Middle-earth - to the end of the War of the Ring in The Lord of the Rings. Among the stories told are Gandalf's account of sending the dwarves to Bibo's party at Bag End, the tale of the appearance of the sea-god Ulmo before the eyes of Tuor along the coast of Beleriand, and a description of the military organization of the Riders of Rohan. It also contains the only story from the long ages of Numenor before its downfall, and all that is known of such matters as the Five Wizards, the Palantiri, and the legend of Amroth. [via]
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Virgil's Aeneidby Virgil, Cecil Day LewisISBN 0385093187 (0-385-09318-7)
Softcover, Knopf Publishing Group
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Virgil's Aeneid'Book summary:This deluxe edition of Virgil's epic poems, recounting the wanderings of Aeneas and his companions after the fall of Troy, contains an introduction by Allen Mandelbaum and fourteen powerful renderings created by Barry Moser to illustrate this volume.[via]More editions of Virgil's Aeneid:
The Voyage of the Beagleby Charles DarwinISBN 0385027672 (0-385-02767-2)
Softcover, Knopf Publishing Group
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The Voyage of the Narwhalby Andrea BarrettISBN 0393319504 (0-393-31950-4)
Softcover, W W Norton & Co Inc
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› Find signed collectible books: 'The Voyage of the Narwhal'Book summary:In Andrea Barrett's extraordinary novel of Arctic and personal exploration, maps are deceitful, ice all-powerful, and reputation more important than truth or human lives. When the Narwhal sets sail from Philadelphia in May 1855, its ostensible goal is to find the crew of a long-vanished expedition--or at least their relics--and be home before winter. Of course, if the men can chart new coasts and stock up on specimens en route, so much the better. And then there's the keen prospect of selling their story, fraught with danger and discovery, to a public thirsting for excitement. Zeke Voorhees, the Narwhal's young commander, is so handsome that he makes women stare and men "hum with envy"--perhaps not the best qualification for his post--but he seems loved by all. Only his brother-in-law-to-be, a naturalist, quietly mistrusts him, though he's determined to stand by the youth for his sister Lavinia's sake. At 40, eternal low-profiler Erasmus Darwin Wells has one disastrous expedition behind him and is praying for another scientific chance. He is, however, familiar with the physical risks they're taking, as well as the "long stretches when nothing happened except that one's ties to home were imperceptibly dissolved and one became a stranger to one's life."
And what of the women left behind? Lavinia knows little of the dangers of ice (though she's well schooled in isolation) and lives only for Zeke's return. Her companion, Alexandra Copeland, is less sanguine. Even after she's been given a secret career break--ghosting for an ailing engraver--she knows how invisible she is and how threatening her family's "dense net of obligations" will always be. Though they get less page time, Barrett is in fact as concerned with these women as she is with her seafarers. Like the heroines of her National Book Award-winning Ship Fever, who bump up against science and history in which only men's triumphs are written, they must somehow escape social tyranny or retreat into the consolations of storytelling or silence.
There is tyranny on board the Narwhal as well, as Zeke alternates between good will and paranoia, his closest companion an arctic fox he has "civilized" and who sits on his shoulder "like a white epaulet." (Alas, Sabine, like many of the men, is not to survive the journey.) Encounters with the Esquimaux--who might know more about the lost expedition than they're willing to share--not having gone according to plan, Zeke determines in late August to head for Smith Sound rather than home, despite the crew's protests. By mid-September, however, the craft is ice-locked, and it's clear they'll have to "winter over." At first the men make the best of their situation, magically sculpting cottages, castles, palaces, even a whale--and offering informal seminars in butchery, Bible studies, and basic navigation. However, as the weather worsens and Zeke grows increasingly despotic, morale plummets.
Barrett excels in both physical and social description, writing with a naturalist's precision and a passionate imagination. With quick strokes (backed up by intense research), she can fill us in on some sensible but threatening Esquimaux footgear: "All five were dressed in fur jackets and breeches, with high boots made from the leg skins of white bears. The men's feet, Erasmus saw, were sheltered by the bears' feet, with claws protruding like overgrown human toenails. Walking, the men left bear prints on the snow." The author also shines in panoramic scenes--her descriptions of the Arctic can only be called magnificent--and in small, precarious, personal moments. When Erasmus eventually returns to Philadelphia, minus his toes and his future brother-in-law, a grieving Lavinia takes to her bed. Eventually, however, she relents: "Lavinia stared straight ahead. Straight at Erasmus, her right hand tucked in her lap while her left turned a silver spoon back to front, front to back, the reflections melting, re-forming, and melting again.... Lavinia said softly, 'I forgive you.' Everyone knew she was speaking to Erasmus."
The Voyage of the Narwhal is full of blood-freezing surprises, a score of indelible characters, and heart-stopping mysteries. As Erasmus watches Alexandra draw landscapes he has seen before but missed something in, each pencil stroke is "like a chisel held to a cleavage plane: tap, tap, and the rock split into two sharp pieces, the world cracked and spoke to him." Readers of Andrea Barrett's novel will experience this sensation again and again. Packed with harsh truths about the not-always-true art of discovery, it is also among the most emotionally wrenching, subtle works of the century. --Kerry Fried [via]
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Where the Red Fern Growsby Wilson RawlsISBN 0385323301 (0-385-32330-1)
Hardcover, Random House Childrens Books
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› Find signed collectible books: 'Where the Red Fern Grows'Book summary:
Book Details:- Format: Hardcover
- Publication Date: 1/1/2000
- Pages: 328
- Reading Level: Age 12 and Up
A Wind in the Doorby Madeleine L'EngleISBN 041681090X (0-416-81090-X)
Hardcover, Methuen
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The Wreckersby Iain LawrenceISBN 0385325355 (0-385-32535-5)
Hardcover, Random House Children's Books
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L Etrangerby Albert Camus, Ray DavisonISBN 0415025869 (0-415-02586-9)
Softcover, Routledge
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› Find signed collectible books: 'L Etranger'Book summary:Condamné à mort, Meursault. Sur une plage algérienne, il a tué un Arabe. À cause du soleil, dira-t-il, parce qu'il faisait chaud. On n'en tirera rien d'autre. Rien ne le fera plus réagir : ni l'annonce de sa condamnation, ni la mort de sa mère, ni les paroles du prêtre avant la fin. Comme si, sur cette plage, il avait soudain eu la révélation de l'universelle équivalence du tout et du rien. La conscience de n'être sur la terre qu'en sursis, d'une mort qui, quoi qu'il arrive, arrivera, sans espoir de salut. Et comment être autre chose qu'indifférent à tout après ça ?
Étranger sur la terre, étranger à lui-même, Meursault le bien nommé pose les questions qui deviendront un leitmotiv dans l'oeuvre de Camus. De La Peste à La Chute, mais aussi dans ses pièces et dans ses essais, celui qui allait devenir Prix Nobel de littérature en 1957 ne cessera de s'interroger sur le sens de l'existence. Sa mort violente en 1960 contribua quelque peu à rendre mythique ce maître à penser de toute une génération. --Karla Manuele [via]
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