Fin is a homeless man who lives in the tunnels under New York City. Fin explains, in this short excerpt from the novel FINDING VERITY, how he became homeless.Baumgartner P.McMasters III, is an executive business-man's caveat. Having a large office, a Condo and other riches, only one thing, he is a druggee. He'd sell his blood for a nickel bag. Then one day, he has to make a decision, when his drug-seller threatens to go public for not paying him on time. He decides to cut all ties, and leave it all behind. He shows up, a year-later in worn and tattered-clothes, and sits alone in a diner somewhere in AZ with a nap-sack full of his own old-mementos. Then, he reads.. What will become of him, and what if anything will save him.

A collection of thoughts, poems and monologues based around my life as it was.Delve into love; depression; winter and joy.The number 28 has great meaning to me and when I was going through a difficult emotional time I wrote most of the content in here. It is personal, and some of it may not be poetic so to speak, but I wanted to share these thoughts with whoever would like to read them. I have included a monologue in here that was due to be performed until I lost my nerve and I have added some photographs, all taken by me, in location such as Brighton and Greatstone. I hope you enjoy this brief look inside my emotions.

When a young artist paints the Mayor's portrait, he hangs it in City Hall. The trouble is that this is no ordinary painting. Everyone sees something different and whose account is true? The painting launches a train of strange events in a world that teeters on the edge of apocalypse. The story is told in four linked accounts woven together, ending at the same moment in time.Fifteen-year old Letty has painted the Mayor's portrait. He hangs it in City Hall for all the world to see, but the trouble is that this is no ordinary painting. Everyone sees something different and whose account is true? But Letty's painting is only one strange occurrence in a world that teeters on the edge of apocalypse. Michael, the reluctant soldier, is forced to join the General's rag-tag army. Assigned to the regiment in the capitol city, he finds his way into a company of mysterious people who are working to rescue the city's orphans from destitution. A man named Joe is the leader of this strange crew and Michael learns to trust him, even in the abyss called Belltown. Thaddaeus, the forgotten artist, stirs up the crowd of regulars at The Tower Inn with his disturbing paintings. Is he mad? Or is he a prophet? Marching to the beat of his own interior music, he never asks what the world thinks. He is too busy straining after an elusive tune, following wherever it might lead. Mayor Jared Hobic is happily corrupt: sucking up to the General, cheating on his wife, slithering like a snake into his position of power and influence. Everything is going his way until a young girl paints his portrait. Now he's plagued by a knocking sound. Is it in his head? Is he losing his mind? And who is this mysterious man named Joe who eludes his grasp? Mayor Hobic is certainly beginning to lose his grip on his carefully constructed life. The story is told in four linked accounts woven together and ending at the same moment in time. Threaded throughout the tales are images of a strange man named Joe, the paintings of Letty; and the bread lady, mysterious and serene, who is always at her table in the market square.

An alternate cover edition exists here. Sue Monk Kidd's phenomenal debut, The Secret Life of Bees, became a runaway bestseller that is still on the New York Times bestseller list more than two years after its paperback publication. Now, in her luminous new novel, Kidd has woven a transcendent tale that will thrill her legion of fans. Telling the story of Jessie Sullivan -- a love story between a woman and a monk, a woman and her husband, and ultimately a woman and her own soul -- Kidd charts a journey of awakening and self-discovery illuminated with a brilliance that only a writer of her ability could conjure.

A CLASSIC FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF *THE THINGS THEY CARRIED "To call Going After Cacciato a novel about war is like calling Moby-Dick a novel about whales." So wrote The New York Times of Tim O'Brien's now classic novel of Vietnam. Winner of the 1979 National Book Award, Going After Cacciato captures the peculiar mixture of horror and hallucination that marked this strangest of wars. In a blend of reality and fantasy, this novel tells the story of a young soldier who one day lays down his rifle and sets off on a quixotic journey from the jungles of Indochina to the streets of Paris. In its memorable evocation of men both fleeing from and meeting the demands of battle, Going After Cacciato stands as much more than just a great war novel. Ultimately it's about the forces of fear and heroism that do battle in the hearts of us all. Now with Extra Libris material, including a reader’s guide and bonus content From the Trade Paperback edition. **Amazon.com Review "In October, near the end of the month, Cacciato left the war." In Tim O'Brien's novel Going After Cacciato the theater of war becomes the theater of the absurd as a private deserts his post in Vietnam, intent on walking 8,000 miles to Paris for the peace talks. The remaining members of his squad are sent after him, but what happens then is anybody's guess: "The facts were simple: They went after Cacciato, they chased him into the mountains, they tried hard. They cornered him on a small grassy hill. They surrounded the hill. They waited through the night. And at dawn they shot the sky full of flares and then they moved in.... That was the end of it. The last known fact. What remained were possibilities." It is these possibilities that make O'Brien's National Book Award-winning novel so extraordinary. Told from the perspective of squad member Paul Berlin, the search for Cacciato soon enters the realm of the surreal as the men find themselves following an elusive trail of chocolate M&M's through the jungles of Indochina, across India, Iran, Greece, and Yugoslavia to the streets of Paris. The details of this hallucinatory journey alternate with feverish memories of the war--men maimed by landmines, killed in tunnels, engaged in casual acts of brutality that would be unthinkable anywhere else. Reminiscent of Joseph Heller's Catch-22, Going After Cacciato dishes up a brilliant mix of ferocious comedy and bleak horror that serves to illuminate both the complex psychology of men in battle and the overarching insanity of war. --Alix Wilber Review NATIONAL BOOK AWARD WINNER "Simply put, the best novel written about the war. I do not know . . . any writer, journalist, or novelist who does not concede that position to O'Brien's Going After Cacciato." *—Miami Herald "A novel of great beauty and importance." *—Boston Globe* "Stark . . . rhapsodic. . . . It is a canvas painted vividly, hauntingly, disturbingly by Tim O'Brien." *—Los Angeles Times "As a fictional portrait of this war, Going After Cacciato is hard to fault, and will be hard to better." *—*John Updike, *The New Yorker*

Sang Sorenson is forced to suffer through another of her mother’s extreme punishments. It almost kills her. The Academy boys vow it will be the last. They're determined to keep Sang safe, especially from her own family. Their solution: complete invasion of her life. Kota, Luke, Silas, Nathan, Victor, Gabriel and North do everything within their power to show Sang what true loyalty means. It takes more than blood to make a family and they want Sang in theirs. In this third book of The Academy series Sang experiences a taste of freedom and what it’s like to truly be cared for...to be wanted. Sang learns a bit more about the boys’ broken families and the boys discover more than they could ever have bargained for about Sang’s. The Academy was the answer to their problems. Could it be hers? Sang’s actions will force her mother to reveal a startling truth. A truth that will change Sang’s life and the boys’ lives in unpredictable ways. Forever. The Academy, Allegiance

A Princess on her own . . . Mia has been invited to speak at a gala for Domina Rei, an elite society of powerful businesswomen. But what could she possibly have to say? Michael has broken up with her, her bff Lilly won't speak to her, and her parents are forcing her to see a therapist. Even J.P.'s efforts to cheer Mia up (he's being really sweet ) aren't helping. Just when things couldn't get worse, Mia discovers a long--forgotten diary of a teenage princess of Genovia. It could be just the inspiration Mia needs to write her speech--but what it reveals might change everything.

A wealthy Pasadena widow with a mean streak, a missing daughter-in-law with a past, and a gold coin worth a small fortune-the elements don't quite add up until Marlowe discovers evidence of murder, rape, blackmail, and the worst kind of human exploitation. "Raymond Chandler is a star of the first magnitude."-- Erle Stanley Gardner "Raymond Chandler has given us a detective who is hard-boiled enough to be convincing . . . and that is no mean achievement." -- The New York Times "From the Trade Paperback edition."

In a Pennsylvania meadow, a young fireman and an angry gambler are forced to build a wall of fifteenth-century stone. For Jim Nashe, it all started when he came into a small inheritance and left Boston in pusuit of "a life of freedom." Careening back and forth across the United States, waiting for the money to run out, Nashe met Jack Pozzi, a young man with a temper and a plan. With Nashe's last funds, they entered a poker game against two rich eccentrics, "risking everything on the single turn of a card." In Paul Auster's world of fiendish bargains and punitive whims, where chance is a shifting and powerful force, there is redemption, nonetheless, in Nashe's resolute quest for justice and his capacity for love.

The story of the Spanish Armada, sent crashing to destruction in stormy seas by English battleships, is one of the most famous & popular of British history. Philip II of Spain's crusade to conquer Protestant England was the culmination of an undeclared war between the two nations which had simmered for years. The dramatic destruction of the Spanish fleet by Howard, Drake & their men ensured that England kept her political & religious freedom--but it wasn't the end of the story. This history places the Spanish Armada in its true context, as the most spectacular of Spain's continued attempts to return England to Catholicism, first thru friendship, then by marriage, finally through war. It explains that the 1588 battle was only one in a series of Spanish naval campaigns against England--it wasn't until the 17th century that peace was fully assured. Winston Graham, author of the Poldark novels, brings all his gifts as a storyteller to this fascinating work, making the momentous sea battles come to life & telling a tale of human hostility & passions.

17-year-old Kate has lived her whole life in abject poverty, with an alcoholic father and drug-addicted mother, who severely abuses Kate. At school, her second-hand clothing marks her as a target. Her refusal to stand up for herself makes her the recipient of her classmates taunts and bullying. That is, until Henry returns. Henry Jamison moved away six years earlier, just as he and Kate had begun to develop feelings for one another. He returns to find the bright, funny, outgoing girl he had known now timidly hiding in corners, barely speaking to anyone around her, suspicious of even him. Kate can't figure out what game Henry is playing with her - for surely it is a game. What else would the gorgeous, popular boy from her past want with her? Kate finally decides to trust Henry's intentions, opening her heart to him. Just when it seems he might be genuine in his friendship, tragedy strikes, threatening everything Kate has worked so hard to gain. Can Henry help her to overcome this new devastation, or will it tear them apart forever?

Robert Ranke Graves (7/24/1895–12/7/1985) was an English poet, translator & novelist. This edition contains a linked table of contents

A moving short story. Set in the grim world of early Sixties Ireland, it tells the harrowing story of a boy making his way to school. Beware - this is not for the fainthearted!Doctor Samuel Louiston was a dead man. At least he would be if the thugs from the Cranston Corporation caught up with him! But when Randal McNally, a covert agent for The Company and the Inner-system Navy, shows up...things really get crazy! Together, Louiston and McNally must discover why hundreds of comet-haulers in the Oort cloud are disappearing along with their loads. That is, if they can avoid the battle-cruisers of the Sector Patrol! Join Doctor Louiston, Randal McNally and beautiful Claire Cranston on a wild joy-ride that uncovers a fantastic plot threatening the entire Sol system and defining the future of Mankind itself! Sci-Fi noir.

A collection of 13 wonderfully witty, superb suspense, and seriously sad fiction tales; situated in various locations from Japan, Australia, Philippines and New Zealand. The themes in the stories are as varied as the locations, with comedy, romance and suspense, sometimes in the one story. Lengths vary from 750 words to a 15,000 novella. Easily readable without a dictionary by your side.For people who enjoy a variety in the type of stories they read, this collections stories vary from light-hearted, to stories that will grab you by the heart. The length also varies, which means a story can be selected according to the reading time available. A 15,000 word novella has a mixture of all moods. The 13 fictional stories aree situated in various countries including Japan, Australia, Philippines and New Zealand, sometimes with comedy, romance and suspense all in the one story. The lengths vary from 750 words to a 15,000 word novella. Written with the intention of allowing the reader to relax in their reading without struggling over the meaning of words.

Since most Americans have little to no knowledge of how our present military works, it is the responsibility of those of us who do to educate the public. Nobody has appointed us to do this. However, if we don't, who will? The military services belong to the people.Following a nuclear holocaust, Nathan Taylor and his family face grim choices in order to stay alive. Fleeing deadly radiation, plague and desperate men, Nathan, an army officer, leads his wife and their two teenage sons away from chaos and madness toward his ancestral home in Kentucky. Horrors lie in their path. From the prison struggling to maintain control of its inmates, to the desperadoes who enslave anyone who comes their way, even survival may cost Nathan his humanity...or that of his sons, Joshua and David. Nathan struggles to keep his family intact, but it requires making brutal choices. He wants to protect his sons, but knows they now must be deadly and cold at times.Nathan's home has been spared from the worst of the destruction, but a larger conflict over scarce resources erupts. For the survivors to have any chance they will have to fight and the desperate journey has transformed young Joshua and David into men called upon to lead and sacrifice. Torn between harsh realities, and wanting to hold onto fleeting childhoods, they are often conflicted and angry about the roles thrust upon them. Much will depend on how Nathan and his sons respond to a madman and his military regime seeking to conquer the fledgling community they are helping to build.GLIMMER OF HOPE is an epic tale of one family's endurance and triumph after tomorrow's apocalypse.