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Eight lyrical and provocative tales from one of the world's premier literary fantasistsAmerica boasts no finer, more acclaimed or accomplished… literary fantasist than Elizabeth Hand. Poetry, magic, and love intermingle as she tears down the walls that separate the mundane from faerie and fancy. In this stunning collection of eight "strange stories," the multiple Nebula Award- and World Fantasy Award-winning author weaves spells that enrapture her readers, ranging freely from Greek mythology to the contemporary nightmares of AIDS and 9/11.The celebrated chiller "Cleopatra Brimstone" chronicles the aftermath of a brutal rape and the bizarre transformation of a young entomology student into a vengeful angel of death. An emotionally unmoored tattoo artist discovers an unusual deck of tarot cards that enables her to profoundly alter bare skin and her personal reality in the mind-expanding masterwork "The Least Trumps." An artist attempts to capture her wayward modern-day Odysseus in oils and otherwise; a woman tragically in love isolates herself from a catastrophe-prone world; the death of a dear friend inspires profound personal reflections and strange pagan rituals; and in the brilliant concluding story, an artifact from a lost world reveals the inescapable vulnerability of our own. Odd and touching, provocative and disturbing, the selections in this magnificent collection showcase a master of the fantastic at the very peak of her storytelling powers.
Daniel Stern's sparkling reinventions of six great literary worksTwice Told Tales is a new take on some of literature's greatest… stories. In a bravura performance, acclaimed novelist Daniel Stern channels the particular styles and spirits of six classic pieces--even the writings of Sigmund Freud--into unexpected new settings. E. M. Forster, Henry James, and Ernest Hemingway are updated in brilliantly drawn portraits, at once affectionate and satirical. Stern's approach is deft and witty, yet always attentive to the timeless characters and ideas with which he works.
Romance naturally emanates from Venice, a city of passion and eroticism. This was the case for Mara, a Nebraskan writer… who had emigrated from the United States fourteen years previously. One of her newly-published novels brings passion to her, when the son of an ex-lover comes looking for resolution. Having read the book, which Mara based on her and her lover's real-life interlude, James finds Mara and they are instantly enamored with each other. As the story unfolds, they encounter sensuality, love, and danger.
A dynamic collection of stories that portrays different generations and explores various genres with compassion and dry witIn The Melting… Pot, nothing is ever what it seems. In these short stories from critically acclaimed author Lynne Sharon Schwartz, characters grapple with the desires and needs of daily life, no matter how absurd or mundane. In the title story, a woman finally reveals her tangled family history to her widowed lover. In another tale, an ageing womanizer undergoes more than just a midlife crisis. In "So You're Going to Have a New Body!" a woman experiences a surreal surgical sterilization. The Melting Pot demonstrates Schwartz's many talents coalescing into a determined and striking whole.
A book of profound and candid stories by one of America's best novelistsTemporary Shelter is a collection of twenty expertly… crafted short stories by Mary Gordon. The characters here are of diverse ages, classes, and nationalities, yet all are alike in their desperate need of safe harbor. A crippled girl must contend not only with disability, but also with her toxic mother and aunts, who block her on the path to maturity. Elsewhere, a woman afflicted by a fearful anxiety that has given her a "death in life" grapples with how not to pass the same curse on to her daughter.As in Gordon's acclaimed novels, these stories dissect fraught relationships between men and women, from the shattering effects of divorce to marriages turned numb and cold. Skillfully and empathetically plumbing her characters' depths, Gordon yields rare catharsis with Temporary Shelter.
West's enlightening collection--now available as an ebookA collection of short stories and other unpublished works that highlight West's deft hand… at fictionPublished posthumously, these short stories and excerpts from unfinished works highlight what made West a highly regarded novelist: sensuous descriptions, self-sufficient yet vulnerable heroines wrestling with the meanings of identity and love, and even brushes with magic and mysticism. West's powerful narrative style draws readers into her worlds, whether via a comic sketch, a romance, or a thriller. Many of these characters will remind West's fans of their later published incarnations. Sure to be a pleasure for new readers and seasoned fans alike, this insightful collection informs as much as it entertains.
"An important and rewarding collection." --Houston ChronicleThe short stories from In the Country of the Young feature characters struggling to… find hope and connection--or just escape--through art, work, and love. The title story, a moving account of an angst-ridden seventeen-year-old nearly overwhelmed by his family's aspirations for him, is a paean to the brief moment when the promise of youth and selfhood are untarnished by the disenchantments of life. In "Foxx Hunting," a widower travels to LA to find a porn actress, though the movie he saw her in was shot decades earlier. "Lunch with Gottlieb" captures a young man of ambition hunting for the legendary advertising genius Gottlieb, lost in the jungles of business lunch.Garnering comparisons to the work of Bernard Malamud and Saul Bellow, the stories of In the Country of the Young are written with the rare empathy and skill of a short fiction master.
These thirteen stories by acclaimed writer Valerie Miner explore family and intimacy in ways that are simultaneously surprising and deeply… familiarThe complex nature of relationships is at the foreground of this poignant and tender collection. In the opening story, a father's lonely death causes his children to reconsider their family life. In another tale, a stalwart woman's fight to save an old olive tree in a rapidly transitioning San Francisco unexpectedly turns into a brutal battle.Miner's prose is intensely personal and suffused with warmth. Populated by characters being tested by their own lives, these insightful stories offer readers keenly felt portraits of people in transition.
The recognition of failure and success is the theme of these eight short stories and the title novella from three-time… National Book Award finalist Hortense CalisherExtreme Magic is Hortense Calisher's third collection of shorter works, after In the Absence of Angels (1951) and Tale for the Mirror (1962). Follow a drifting husband as he returns home and finds middle age in "A Christmas Carillon." Listen with a daughter as she overhears a painful argument between her parents in "The Gulf Between." Travel with a broken man as he heals after a tragic loss in "Extreme Magic." Once again, Calisher captivates with her expressionistic prose and intricate characters.
Featuring the Nebula and World Fantasy Award-winning novella "Last Summer at Mars Hill"Twelve exceptional stories by the multiple award-winning author… of Waking the Moon and Black Light prove that Elizabeth Hand is just as adept with short fiction as she is in the novel form. The title story traces a world-changing summer at a New England artists' colony for young Shadowmoon Starlight Rising, who comes to know life, death, and an unbelievable secret about the strange apparitions that dwell in her community. Other stories include "Snow on Sugar Mountain," which features a young boy who has the power to shapeshift into any form with the help of a Native American artifact; "The Bacchae," in which womankind rules a savage futuristic version of our world; and "The Erl-King," where a fairy tale horrifyingly comes true. Each story includes an afterword by the author. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Elizabeth Hand including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author's personal collection.
More sly and imaginative tributes to some of the greatest writing of the modern age, from author Daniel SternIn Twice… Told Tales, Stern wonderfully reimagined classics of world literature--from Forster to Freud--in homage to their authors and the power of great writing.Twice Upon a Time continues the project, though this time Stern goes further, weaving stories around texts as diverse as Marx and Engels's The Communist Manifesto and the poetry of Wallace Stevens. In "Bartleby the Scrivener," Melville's famous copyist is relocated to Hollywood; the hero is an agent who "would prefer not to retire."Infectiously clever, Twice Upon a Time enchants like the best of the authors to whom it pays tribute.
El Sol está muriendo y la única opción de la humanidad es alejarse de él, sin abandonar la Tierra. «Nunca… he visto la noche. Nunca he visto las estrellas. Tampoco he visto la primavera ni el otoño ni el invierno. Nací a finales de la Era de la Frenada, justo cuando la Tierra dejó de girar.» Así empieza uno de los mejores relatos, adaptado a la pantalla por Netflix, del creador de la aclamada Trilogía de los Tres Cuerpos. El sol se está muriendo, y la Tierra, consumida por los últimos suspiros de esta estrella, también desaparecerá. Pero la humanidad, en lugar de abandonar el planeta, construye doce mil grandiosos motores de fusión para desorbitar la Tierra y propulsarla hacia Próxima Centauri en un viaje que durará siglos... La crítica ha dicho:«La escritura de Cixin Liu revive la edad dorada de la ciencia ficción.»The Guardian «La película demuestra que los productores chinos pueden competir con otras compañías de efectos visuales del mundo.»James Cameron
In When the Nines Roll Over, David Benioff (The 25th Hour, City of Thieves) uses humor and rich characterizations to… explore the sometimes thrilling, sometimes pathetic emotional lives of a diverse set of characters. Over the course of eight stories, we are introduced to a host of young people on the cusp of discovery and loss. As he evokes the various states of agony and pleasure--humiliation, rebellion, camaraderie, and desire--Benioff displays a profound understanding of the transformative power of a single moment and how sadness can be illuminated by a humorous flip side. When the Nines Roll Over confirms the promise of a gifted writer emerging as a storytelling force.
Histórias aconchegantes que sossegam a mente e ajudam a dormir. As mentes ocupadas precisam de um lugar seguro para descansar.… Se tem problemas para adormecer, acorda a meio da noite preocupado, ou fica ansioso durante o dia, este livro pode ser a solução. Em Quando nada acontece Kathryn Nicolai oferece uma forma saudável para sossegar a mente antes de dormir através do apelo intemporal das histórias de adormecer, numa versão para adultos. As histórias acontecem dentro e de uma cidade fictícia, cada uma revelando pequenos e doces momentos de alegria que se encontram no lugar-comum. À medida que os narradores sem nome e sem género contam os seus dias, evocam os distintos confortos oferecidos por cada uma das quatro estações e gentilmente acalmam o leitor até o sono. Desde celebrar a natureza e se deleitar com a alegria, ou ficar sozinho em casa, até o prazer de se perder nas estantes da biblioteca ou escolher o melhor tomatena feira, este tesouro tem algo para todos. Também encontrará dezasseis novas histórias nunca antes apresentadas no podcast Nothing Much Happens, junto com ilustrações, receitas e meditações. Com décadas de experiência como professora de meditação e ioga, Kathryn Nicolai cria um mundo para entrar, um mundo rico em experiências sensoriais que silenciosamente ensina a atenção plena e autocompaixão, acalma a ansiedade e cria hábitos sólidos para um bom sono. Os elogios da crítica: «Uma coleção encantadora de quase-contos que pretendem ser um antídoto para a insónia e a inquietação. Nicolai realiza o que nenhum outro autor gostaria de ouvir: essas histórias podem fazer as pessoas dormirem.»Publishers Weekly «Esta coleção de contos muito curtos foi projetada para ajudar os leitores a adormecer e ter um sono reparador. As histórias seguem as estações, a começar com o Inverno, e dependem muito dos sentidos; há muitos cheiros adoráveis,coisas suaves e confortáveis e comidas deliciosas, todos descritos em detalhes e muitas vezes acompanhados por ilustrações em tons suaves. São temperadas receitas, meditações e outras técnicas de relaxamento. As histórias têm sucesso no seu objetivo de ajudar os leitores a dormir melhor.» Booklist
Guo Songfen's short stories are masterful psychological portraits that play with the echoes of history and the nature of identity.… One of the few modernists to truly capture the fallout from such events as the February 28th Incident and the White Terror, Guo Songfen illuminates the quiet core of his characters through a spare and immediate style that is at once a symptom and an allegory of the trauma in which they live.In "Running Mother," a man is torn between his fear of abandonment and his guilt over leaving his family, and therefore his symbolic home, behind. "Moon Seal" follows a woman caught between traditional and modern worlds. In "Wailing Moon," a wife learns a shocking secret after her husband's death, realizing he was never the man she thought him to be. Set in the United States and Taiwan, "Snow Blind" is a multigenerational triptych that portrays the consequences of spiritual malaise, and in "Brightly Shines the Stars Tonight," a general wrestles with issues of memory and self-perception in the final moments before his execution. Guo Songfen's stories play with the hazards of miscommunication, the malevolence of human will, the arbitrary nature of fate, and the burden of historical circumstance. As the general discovers, life is a game of chess, the outcome of which is never certain though it might be logically designed. Showcasing the best of Taiwan's modernist style, these stories are not only an indictment of the human condition but also a powerful comment on the experience of postretrocession Taiwan.
The universe of the Lunar Chronicles holds stories - and secrets - that are wondrous, vicious, and romantic. How did… Cinder first arrive in New Beijing? How did the brooding soldier Wolf transform from young man to killer? When did Princess Winter and the palace guard Jacin realize their destinies?With six stories - two of which have never before been published - and an exclusive never-before-seen excerpt from Marissa Meyer's novel, Heartless, about the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland, Stars Above is essential for fans of the bestselling and beloved Lunar Chronicles.
New York Times number one bestselling author Jeffrey Archer is a master of the short-story form, creating classic tales beloved… by his fans. Now the award-winning writer joins forces with renowned illustrator Paul Cox to re-imagine twenty of his most popular and fêted short stories alongside beautifully rendered watercolor illustrations in The Short, The Long and the Tall. Find out what happens to the hapless young detective from Naples who travels to an Italian hillside town to solve a murder and ends up falling in love; and the pretentious schoolboy whose discovery of the origins of his father’s wealth changes his life forever. Revel in the stories of the woman who dares to challenge the men at her Ivy League university during the 1930s, and another young woman who thumbs a lift and has an encounter she will never forget. Discover the haunting story about four men whose characters are tested to the point of death. Finally, a short parable about how pointless war is, and how decent people are caught up in the crossfire of their leaders’ ambitions. This will be a must-buy for dedicated fans of the work of both author and illustrator, and includes the following short stories:Never Stop on the Motorway Cheap At Half the Price Who Killed the Mayor? It Can’t Be October Already Stuck on You The Grass is Always GreenerThe Queen’s Birthday TelegramClean Sweep IgnatiusThe First MiracleCaste OffA Wasted Hour Just Good Friends Christina Rosenthal A Gentleman and a Scholar The Road To Damascus Old Love A Good Toss To Lose One Man’s Meat Endgame Confession
The New York Times bestselling author of Every Day, Someday, and Two Boys Kissing is back with a short story… collection about love--perfect for Valentine's Day or year-round reading! <P><P>A resentful member of a high school Quiz Bowl team with an unrequited crush. A Valentine's Day in the life of Every Day's protagonist "A." <P><P>A return to the characters of Two Boys Kissing.19 Love Songs, from New York Times bestselling author David Levithan, delivers all of these stories and more. <P><P>Born from Levithan's tradition of writing a story for his friends each Valentine's Day, this collection brings all of them to his readers for the first time. With fiction, nonfiction, and a story in verse, there's something for every reader here. Witty, romantic, and honest, teens (and adults) will come to this collection not only on Valentine's Day, but all year round.
Siamese fighting fish, cockroaches, cats, a snake, and a strange fungus all serve here as mirrors that reflect the unconfessable… aspects of human nature buried within us. The traits and fates of these animals illuminate such deeply natural, human experiences as the cruelty born of cohabitation, the desire to reproduce and the impulse not to, and the inexplicable connection that can bind, eerily, two beings together. Each Nettel tale creates, with tightly wound narrative tension, a space wherein her characters feel excruciatingly human, exploring how the wounds we incur in life manifest themselves within us, clandestinely, irrevocably, both unseen and overtly. In a precise writing style that is both subtle and spellbinding, Nettel renders the ordinary unsettling, and the grotesque exquisite. Natural Histories is the winner of the 3rd Ribera del Duero International Award for Short Narratives, an important Spanish literature prize. From the Hardcover edition.
New York Times-bestselling author, Grady Hendrix (Horrorstör, Paperbacks from Hell), savagely satirizes Victorian adventure fiction in this steampunk smackdown full… of decapitated heads that sing, Tong wars, bacon sex, German holiday demons, and the Potato Homunculus! Some of the most popular stories ever released on audio fiction platform Pseudopod, the White Street Society tells the tales of a band of 19th Century gentleman adventurers who investigate the supernatural, often with violence, sometimes with science.Sending up 19th century fears about women, Germans, the Irish, Chinatown, Southerners, politicians, and anyone who wasn’t the “right” kind of person (read: male and white) this collection of cases contains shocking details that are sure to tighten the corsets and spin the mustaches of all gentle readers. Animals and pregnant women are advised to KEEP AWAY from “The Hairy Ghost!”, “The Corpse Army of Khartoum!”, “The Yellow Peril!”, and “The Christmas Spirits!” as well as the shocking new story premiering in this collection, “The President Who Would Not Die!” For those bold readers who desire a strong blast of nonsense, allow us to introduce you to the supernatural wonders that these bold men of the 19th century were compelled to shoot, poison, burn, and beat to death with shovels, all in the name of PROGRESS!