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万本电子书0元读

The Ringer
The Ringer
Scheft, Bill
¥85.05
Morton Martin Spell -- a once-brilliant, now-infirm seventy-five-year-old writer -- is sliding into delirium. He thinks Mount Sinai Hospital is an exclusive golf course and his catheter is a gym bag. His only link to reality is his thirty-five-year-old nephew, who makes his living as a hired gun for thirteen softball teams and still goes by the name College Boy.But College Boy's body has begun to betray him -- almost as much as his lack of ambition. (His only legitimate paycheck comes from a gig as a laugher on a morning radio show.) Not only that, the Dirt King, a small-time gangster who controls all the replacement soil in Central Park, is after College Boy. As their lives collide, College Boy takes refuge in the arms of Sheila -- his uncle's cleaning woman and a part-time call girl. And then it gets weird.
Border-Line Personalities
Border-Line Personalities
Mulligan, Michelle Herrera
¥85.05
Why, in the minds of most Americans, are Latinas still thought of as maids, seductresses, and booty-shaking salsa divas?Never has the concept of Latina identity been more relevant. Also, never has there been a new generation of Latinas so ready to say what they mean and even criticize the Latina generation that preceded them. Until now.In Border-Line Personalities, twenty writers share their poignant and wickedly funny stories about fighting with their mothers, struggling with speaking Spanish, and dealing with the men who've done them wrong, among a myriad of other topics. In the end, each essay encompasses a different point of view, lending credence to the theory that no one can label any one item, idea, or person more Latina than the other.Questions posed to Latinas of all ages in Border-Line Personalities: Why do many of us often feel more American than LatinaHow important is Spanish, reallyDo we all really fit under one cultural umbrellaWhen thinking about having children, do we really have to consider being stay-at-home moms as most of us were raised to believe was law, or can Latinas even consider the possibility of raising children while workingWhat do we do when we fall in love with someone (male or female) outside our culture?
Far from Zion
Far from Zion
London, Charles
¥85.05
"Are you Jewish?" It was a question Charles London heard everywhere he went. Raised in a nonreligious Jewish family, London knew his heritage but had no strong desire to experience it personally. He even spent much of his teen years pretending not to be Jewish. But in the summer of 2004, while doing relief work with children in Bosnia, he stumbled upon a community the likes of which he had not seen before where Jews worked alongside Muslims and Christians to rebuild a city ravaged by war. London liked this idea of a humanitarian Judaism, and though he didn't realize it at the time, this encounter gave him the idea for a journey that would take him around the world and back to his roots. The Jews' frequent flights from persecution have seen the establishment of communities in some of the most surprising places, and despite efforts by Israel to bring these scattered people home to Zion, many have chosen to remain in the land of their birth. From a shopkeeper selling Jewish trinkets in Iran, to a Hanukkah celebration in an Arkansas bowling alley; from Rangoon, where a fifty-seven-year-old chain-smoking caretaker keeps watch over an all-but-forgotten synagogue, to an engineering professor in Cuba proud of his Jewish heritage, yet even prouder of his Communist ideals, pockets of the Diaspora endure, despite intense pressure to flee. Their decision to stay put offers hope that peace may lie not in congregating behind borders but in the promise of a global community of neighbors. Far from Zion is the story of these Jews in far-flung places, and it's through their experiences that London examines his own identity. As he explores widespread Jewish communities struggling with their relationship to the larger world, he too grapples with his heritage and comes to terms with his own connection to Zion.
The Beautiful Game
The Beautiful Game
Littman, Jonathan
¥85.05
Once nobody noticed Santa Rosa's Thunder. They were a ragtag team of girls who wanted to play soccer, and no one took them seriously. Their male coach expected little from his "ladies, " and their mediocre performance convinced them he was right.Then a kind of miracle happened. Emiria Salzmann, Thunder's new coach, a top player herself, knew what it took to win--discipline, relentless drills, thigh-burning sprints, and an inspired passing game. The girls hated it, but their coach never let up. Tough and determined, she showed them what it felt like to be winners--and they loved it. As the momentum grew with a string of victories, the girls thrived on the competition, believing they had the right stuff to become champions.They were right! With spirits soaring, Thunder won its league on the last day of the season and headed for the state cup, emerging not just as powerful athletes but as strong, confident, emotionally healthy human beings--champions in the game of soccer, and in the game of life.
Heart of Deception
Heart of Deception
Malcolm, M.L.
¥85.05
From M. L. Malcolm, the acclaimed author of Heart of Lies, comes a powerful sequel that spans the years from World War II to the turbulent 1960s—the riveting story of a family struggling with choices forced upon them by war . . . and the consequences that will take a generation to unfold.Aman of many contradictions, Leo Hoffman is a Hungarian national with a French passport, a wealthy businessman with no visible means of support, and a devoted father who hasn't seen his daughter in years. He is also a spy.Recruited by the Allies to help lay the groundwork for their invasion of North Africa, Leo intends to engage in as little espionage as possible—just enough to earn his American citizenship so he can get to New York and reunite with his daughter, Maddy. But while Leo dodges death in France and Morocco, Maddy is learning shocking truths about her father's mysterious past—haunting knowledge that will compel her down her own dangerous path of deception and discovery.
Celebrity Chekhov
Celebrity Chekhov
Greenman, Ben
¥85.05
Q: What do Tiger, Paris, Lindsay, Alec, and Oprah have in common with the enduring characters of Anton Chekhov?A: Love, loss, pride, yearning, heartbreak, renewal, transcendence: the very stuff of life.The immortal stories of Anton Chekhov have long entranced readers with their insights into the universal truths of human behavior . . . but you've never read them quite like this. Former friends Nicole and Paris exchange prickly pleasantries in "Tall and Short."Talk-show host Dave narrowly averts another potential domestic crisis in "A Transgression."Reality star Kim shares her newfound notoriety with Khloe and Kourtney in "Joy."In a witty, graceful, and revelatory feat of literary reinvention, acclaimed novelist and humorist Ben Greenman takes nineteen of Chekhov's greatest stories and recasts them with some of the best-known luminaries of our time—with eye-opening, and oddly ennobling, results.
The River Road
The River Road
Osborn, Karen
¥85.05
David and Michael Sanderson are brothers, inseparable since childhood from each other and from their neighbor Kay Richards, a complicated young woman involved in a passionate and obsessive love affair with David. One spring night, while at home on a break from college, the threesome embarks on a night of adventure and experimentation, driving recklessly through the Connecticut Valley. Stopping at the French King Bridge, David -- full of hubris and hallucinogens -- dares to jump, mistakenly believing he'll be able to swim ashore. With this one act, he sets in motion an inexorable chain of events that indelibly alters the lives of everyone involved.Told through the alternating voices of Kay, Michael, and David's father, Kevin, The River Road is a closely observed and psychologically penetrating narrative of the accusations, murder investigation, and courtroom battle that follow.
Síla v kordech rodu Wellnsburg?:Knihy osud?
Síla v kordech rodu Wellnsburg?:Knihy osud?
Erika P. Hamlet
¥85.05
P?íběh se odehrává na konci 17. století v době, která jakoby se zastavila u mocného kardinála Richelieua, kterému t?i mu?ket??i p?ipravili mnoho bezesn?ch nocí. Tě?k? je ?ivot chudého lidu, kde honby na ?arodějnice a udava?ství jsou na denním po?ádku a moc církve a bohaté ?lechty je naprosto nep?emo?itelná. Knihy osud? otvírají vyprávění o těch, kte?í se narodili do slavn?ch, nebo chud?ch rodin v?této nelehké době. Katarine a Martrek, kte?í ?ijí sv?j ?ivot v?anonymitě a stranou od prot?elé aristokracie jsou obda?eni dvoj?aty, chlape?kem Christopherem a p?vabnou hol?i?kou Elizabeth. Rána osudu v?ak zp?etrhá v?echny rodinné pouta a to krátce po jejich narození. Elizabeth je p?esvěd?ena, ?e její bratr zem?el a Christopher, pohledn? mlad? ?lechtic je zase p?esvěd?en o tom, ?e Elizabeth je dívkou jeho srdce i p?esto v?echno, ?e nemá modrou krev. P?i narození těchto dvoj?at jim jejich sudi?ky p?edur?ily osud, na kterém je budou doprovázet bez toho, aby jim daly najevo, kdo jsou a pro? jsou s?nimi. T?i veselé sestry, podobné těm z?klá?tera, jen? zasvětily sv?j ?ivot Bohu, budou bravurně, se v?í grácii a humorem plnit sv?j úkol na kter? byly vyslány.
Jurnal
Jurnal
Rilke Rainer Maria
¥85.05
Un roman splendid de aventuri africane. Suspence. Intrig? erotic?. Speciali?ti de ?nalt? clas? angrena?i ?ntr-o textura epic? de o densitate surprinz?toare.?Jerome a fost ?oferul agen?iei noastre ONU din Abidjan, Coasta de Filde?. ?ofer, am zis? Cred c? am exagerat. El nu ?tia s? conduc?. Volanul, ambreiajul, fr?nele, acceleratorul, dar mai ales schimb?torul de viteze erau instrumente care-l ?ngrozeau. Nu ?tiu cum a ob?inut permisul de conducere. Nu ?tiu cum s-a strecurat pe lista personalului auxiliar al Programului Na?iunilor Unite pentru Dezvoltare – PNUD, local. ?n mod normal, dup? c?teva zile, ar fi trebuit s?-l schimb cu un adevarat ?ofer. Dar era prea t?rziu. M? ata?asem de el, de r?sul lui nechezat, de optimismul lui absurd, de povestirile lui tipic africane, ?n care realitatea se confund? cu imagina?ia ?i ?n care el juc? rolul fiec?rui erou, cel mai ?nzestrat fiind el ?nsu?i, bine?n?eles. El ne-a ajutat, cu riscul libert??ii ?i, uneori, chiar al vie?ii lui, s? aflam cine ?i pentru ce exper?ii Na?iunilor Unite din Coasta de Filde? erau lua?i ca ostateci, dac? nu pur ?i simplu asasina?i. Pentru toate acestea ?i pentru ?nc? altele, am considerat c? Jerome merit? s? fie cunoscut de un cerc mai larg dec?t cel al nostru, al exper?ilor, ?i am scris acest roman, povestit a?a cum m-a ?nv??at el, cu o realitate ce se confund? adesea cu imagina?ia.“ (Alcaz)
The Balance
The Balance
Garcia, Oz
¥85.05
Welcome to the wonderful wizardry of OzWhat is the balance?The Balance is a personalized plan to correct metabolic imbalances and boost your body's efficiency by combining nutritional planning and exercise with cutting-edge supplementation and stress management.Based on your answers to a 45-question health and lifestyle quiz, you will gain:Enhanced energy and enduranceImproved concentrationBetter ability to cope with stressA reduction in premature agingTo find out more, take the test today!
What's Your Number?
What's Your Number?
Bosnak, Karyn
¥85.05
How many men does it take to find true love?When Delilah Darling reads a survey revealing that most people have 10.5 sexual partners in their lifetime, she begins to feel like a tramp. She’s slept with nineteen men so far—almost twice the national average. During a self-help moment, she vows to cap her “number” at twenty, swearing she’ll save her last spot for the right guy. But after losing her job and having a wild night on the town, she falls into bed with Mr. Wrong. Unwilling to up her number, but also unable to imagine a life of celibacy, Delilah does the only thing a girl in her situation can do: she tracks down every man she’s ever slept with in a last-ditch effort to make it work with one of them.A hilarious romp through Delilah’s past loves, What’s Your Numbershines a spotlight on every woman’s dirty little secret and proves that, when it comes to matters of the heart, sometimes numbers tell only a fraction of the story.
The Scatter Here Is Too Great
The Scatter Here Is Too Great
Tanweer, Bilal
¥85.05
A vivid and intricate novel-in-stories, The Scatter Here Is Too Great explores the complicated lives of ordinary people whose fates unexpectedly converge after a deadly bomb blast at a train station in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city.Comrade Sukhansaz, an old communist poet, is harassed on a bus full of college students minutes before the blast. His son, a wealthy, middle-aged businessman, yearns for his own estranged child. A young man, Sadeq, has a dead-end job snatching cars from people who have defaulted on their bank loans, while his girlfriend spins tales for her young brother to conceal her own heartbreak. An ambulance driver picking up the bodies after the blast has a shocking encounter with two strange-looking men whom nobody else seems to notice. And in the midst of it all, a solitary writer, tormented with grief for his dead father and his decimated city, struggles to find words.Bilal Tanweer reveals the pain, loneliness, and longing of these characters and celebrates the power of the written word to heal lives and communities plagued by violence. Elegantly weaving together these voices into a striking portrait of a city and its people, The Scatter Here Is Too Great is a tale as vibrant and varied in its characters, passions, and idiosyncrasies as the city itself.
The Dog Fighter
The Dog Fighter
Bojanowski, Marc
¥85.05
The anonymous narrator of this remarkable debut novel is a young drifter in search of his future. The son of a passionate beauty and gentle doctor, he roams the border between the United States and Mexico, eventually settling in a sleepy Baja town on the verge of transformation. Here he learns to stand face-to-face with dogs in a makeshift ring, to fight for money and fame, and becomes involved with a powerful and corrupt entrepreneur. But when he finds friendship with a revolutionary old poet and love with a beautiful, innocent girl, everything changes. Caught between the ways of his past and the dreams of his future, he must make a devastating choice that could cost him everything.The Dog Fighter is an exhilarating tale of brutality and violence, love and wisdom, heartbreak and redemption.
Five Days Apart
Five Days Apart
Binchy, Chris
¥85.05
Bestselling Irish author Chris Binchy makes his American debut with a wonderfully charming and bittersweet story of friendship, love, and second chances.When the bright but tongue-tied David sees the magnetic Camille at a party, he plays it safe, asking his smooth and charming best friend, Alex, to make the introduction. But even though David was the one to notice Camille, it's the ever-confident Alex who makes the first move on her. As David watches his best friend walk away with the girl of his dreams, he becomes painfully aware of just what he has lost through his hesitant, overcautious approach to life. Shedding his disappointment, David leaves home in search of a new beginning. But neither distance nor time can erase the memory of Camille. Buoyed by his newfound self-assurance and a fresh perspective, David is ready to try again. He will face the would-be love of his life and act on his feelings, whatever the cost to his friendship with Alex.What happens when love gets in the way of lifelong friendshipHow far will a good guy go to win the love of his lifeIn the tradition of Nick Hornby, Roddy Doyle, and Michael Chabon, Chris Binchy delivers an addictive tale of looking back and looking forward. This funny and wise story interweaves the suspense of unforeseeable futures, unknowable circumstances, and irreversible mistakes; the misfortunes of bad timing; and the power of love.
Leaving Before It's Over
Leaving Before It's Over
Page, Jean Reynolds
¥85.05
From the author of The Space Between Before and After comes a compelling novel that explores the true meaning of family.When Roy Vines married his wife, Rosalind, he traded his family and his inheritance for love—a painful choice that has blessed them with years of joy nestled in rural North Carolina with their beautiful daughters, sixteen-year-old Lola and little Janie Ray.But their happiness is threatened when Rosalind suddenly falls ill. Desperate to get her the help she needs, Roy does the one thing he swore he'd never do—turn to his heartless and bitter identical twin brother, Mont, for help.The price is steep—and includes opening their home to a teenage boy who believes Roy is the father who abandoned him. As bad blood threatens to destroy her family, Rosalind must make a difficult choice. Should she walk away—like Roy once did—for love, or try to mend wounds that may never be healedAnd will the pain of choosing be more than her heart can bear?
Playing House
Playing House
Pearson, Patricia
¥85.05
Even in a tiny apartment, there were enough rooms for Frannie to get into trouble...First, there was the bedroom...where it all began in such a casually romantic way.Next, the bathroom...where things took a suspicious turn.Finally, the living room...where she picked up the phone and prepared to break the news to the boyfriend she barely knew...When Frannie Mackenzie got sick all over the sweater section of a major urban retailer, she couldn't quite believe that this was a reaction to gray being this year's black. So she went back to her postage-stamp-sized apartment and took inventory. Jeans tighterYes. Boobs biggerYes. And the absolute proof-positive...the stick had turned blue.Frannie decides to give up cocktails, late nights, and anything else fun that the big city has to offer. But one thing -- or rather person -- she's not sure she's going to get to keep is the surprised father in the situation -- an experimental jazz musician with the improbable name of Calvin, who'd taken off to Europe before Frannie figured out parenthood had awkwardly united them. Falling in love was the last thing that Frannie expected, and the happiest surprise of all.
Stone Garden
Stone Garden
Moynahan, Molly
¥85.05
A smart young woman making her way through the privileged terrain of northeastern prep-school land, Alice McGuire is certain of her world and her future -- until the summer her best friend and soul mate, Matthew Swan, vanishes on a trip to Mexico. Stunned, Alice and the rest of the close-knit town that adored Matthew search for answers. For Alice, the journey of heartbreak leads from everything that is familiar to forbidden places and forgotten people who will teach her about kindness and forgiveness: lessons that will open her to new possibilities and unexpected hope.Vividly wrought, deeply resonant, and told in a remarkable voice that sparkles with wit and wisdom, Stone Garden is a splendid triumph from an accomplished new writer.
A Secret Alchemy
A Secret Alchemy
Darwin, Emma
¥85.05
The cruel fate of the Princes in the Tower is one of the most fascinating—and most troubling—of all England's historical murder mysteries. But what was the truth behind the deaths of the young Edward V and his brother, Dickon, taken from their mother, Elizabeth Woodville, King Edward IV's beautiful widow, and their guardian, Anthony WoodvilleAnd what about the man who would become King Richard III?In a brilliant feat of historical daring, the acclaimed author of The Mathematics of Love reimagines the tragedy of the youngest victims of the Wars of the Roses. Through the voices of Elizabeth, Anthony, and Una—a historian who herself knows grief, betrayal, and secret love—Emma Darwin re-creates the lethal power struggles into which the boys were born, their heart-wrenching imprisonment, and the ultimate betrayal of their innocence.
Matters of Chance
Matters of Chance
Haien, Jeannette
¥85.05
Matters of Chance is a glorious, aptivating novel about Morgan and Maude Shurtliff, who fall in love and marry in the years before World WarII. Unable to have children of their own, Morgan and Maude adopt twin girls. The four go home to their beautiful house in the country outside ofNew York City and begin to settle into what they hope will be a long and happy life. When the twins are still young, Morgan is called to serve inWorld War II, leaving Maude to raise her daughters alone. Jeannette Haien has rendered Morgan's war experiences with astonishing detail, just as she has captured the American post-war era with a precision that is unrivaled in recent fiction.
Strange Skies
Strange Skies
Marinovich, Matt
¥85.05
What kind of man would lie to his own wife about having cancerA man desperate to avoid being saddled with life's responsibilities. A man like Paul.On a miserable October afternoon, as he stares down at his brother's whiny new baby, Paul realizes he's run out of excuses. His wife wants a family, but the last thing Paul wants is dirty diapers and a constantly screaming stranger robbing him of sleep. Then a lump is discovered on his arm, and with a little elaboration, the parenthood question is rendered moot.With the dwindling time he pretends he's got left, he intends to start looking out for number one. But his "cancer vacation" hits a snag when he meets a mother and son in an airport bar who turn everything around—and even bring Paul to the brink of a life he thought he never wanted—because sometimes a man's got to lose himself completely to discover who he really is.
The Sunday Tertulia
The Sunday Tertulia
Carlson, Lori Marie
¥85.05
Claire is a young, struggling New Yorker whose understanding of life is enriched after a group of older and wiser Latina women bring her into a close-knit circle: their Upper West Side tertulia. Once a month, they come together for a Sunday afternoon of revelry, at which delicious food and strong opinions are served up in equal measure.Through their recollections and counsel, Claire comes to know the colorful, exotic, and sometimes contradictory attitudes that through a prism more poetic and worldly. Humorous and bittersweet, The Sunday Tertulia brings to life cherished Latin traditions and celebrates women's wisdom and spirituality.