Think nothing tastes as good as slim feels? You're obviously not eating the right food... Holly, Naomi and Kate are determined to win the battle of the bulge. So it's down to the local slimming club, where carbs are strictly off the menu and there's no escaping the scales. But calorie-counting isn't the only thing on their minds. Newly engaged Holly should be over the moon. So why does she blush every time her sexy boss walks into the room? Curvaceous Naomi finds herself the object of a very unusual fetish and a shocking secret is revealed when an unexpected visitor arrives on Kate's doorstep. Yet with a little group support (and a particularly brutal weight loss boot camp) the women manage to stick to their regime, in time for the glamorous Slimmer of the Year Awards. But with tempting buffet tables, highly competitive contestants and even the odd fat fetishist lurking, it's anyone's guess as to what will happen...

Fifteen-year-old Aaron lives amongst the rubbish piles in the slums of Cairo. His job? To collect broken glass. His life? Wasted. His hope? To find a future he can believe in...

Watch out for the mosquitoes', they called to one another, lyrically because warning wasn't any use anyway, as they walked out of their kimonos and dropped them like the petals of one big scattered flower on the bank behind them, and exposing themselves felt in a hundred places at once the little pangs'. Moon Lake is the story of a summer camp in Mississippi, a surly lifeguard, a rebellious orphan girl, and the fateful day when they learn the secrets of life and death. Pulitzer Prize-winner Eudora Welty's extraordinary short story is a lushly atmospheric and acutely observed portrayal of the strange, surreal time between childhood and adulthood.

Raised by his mother in a one-room house in the slums of Casablanca, Youssef El Mekki has always had big dreams of living another life in another world. Suddenly his dreams are within reach when he discovers that his father-whom he'd been led to believe was dead-is very much alive. A wealthy businessman, he seems eager to give his son a new start. Youssef leaves his mother behind to live a life of luxury, until a reversal of fortune sends him back to the streets and his childhood friends. Trapped once again by his class and painfully aware of the limitations of his prospects, he becomes easy prey for a fringe Islamic group. In the spirit of The Inheritance of Loss and The Reluctant Fundamentalist, Laila Lalami's debut novel looks at the struggle for identity, the need for love and family, and the desperation that grips ordinary lives in a world divided by class, politics, and religion.

The enigmatic performer known as the Body Artist takes the stage at Chicago's Club Gouge and allows her audience to use her naked body as a canvas for their impromptu illustrations. V. I. Warshawski watches as people step forward, some meek, some bold, to make their mark. The evening takes a strange turn when one woman's sketch triggers a violent outburst from a man at a nearby table. Quickly subdued, the man-an Iraqi war vet-leaves the club. Days later, the woman is shot outside the club. Sara Paretsky is a New York Times bestselling author.

An enchantingly imagined romance inspired by the true story of the typewriter's invention. Carolina Fantoni, a young contessa in nineteenth-century Italy, is going blind. Neither her parents nor her fianc believe her. Only her friend Turri, an eccentric local inventor, understands. As darkness erases Carolina's world, she discovers one place where she can still see-in her dreams-yet she remains isolated from the outside world. Desperate to communicate with Carolina, Turri creates a peculiar contraption for her: the world's first typewriter. His gift ignites a passionate love affair that will mark both their lives forever.

In Connecticut, the murder of a pharmaceutical bigwig brings in Savich and Sherlock, along with local Agent Bowie Richards and P.I. Erin Pulaski. Back in Washington, an important U.S. senator is terrorized by an unknown entity, and is calling for Savich's special skills. When the Vice President is nearly killed it's clear these crimes are linked, and Savich and Sherlock must act fast to stop a killer.

An uproarious, uplifting, and brazenly honest celebration of the single girl's life. Unsolicited relationship advice from relatives, disastrous dates, men who wear thumb rings, and the moments of deep satisfaction when a single girl realizes that she can do whatever she wants with her time — it's all here in Haiku for the Single Girl. Reading this brilliantly incisive and wittily illustrated collection, every woman — whether single or not-will laugh until she cries, and then start laughing all over again.

«A necessary book for anyone truly interested in what we take from the sea to eat, and how, and why.» Sam Sifton, «The New York Times Book Review.» Writer and life-long fisherman Paul Greenberg takes us on a journey, examining the four fish that dominate our menus: salmon, sea bass, cod, and tuna. Investigating the forces that get fish to our dinner tables, Greenberg reveals our damaged relationship with the ocean and its inhabitants. Just three decades ago, nearly everything we ate from the sea was wild. Today, rampant overfishing and an unprecedented biotech revolution have brought us to a point where wild and farmed fish occupy equal parts of a complex marketplace. «Four Fish» offers a way for us to move toward a future in which healthy and sustainable seafood is the rule rather than the exception.»

The New York Times bestseller — A beautifully written, thought-provoking novel. #1 New York Times bestselling author Kathryn Stockett. In 1940, Iris James is the postmistress in coastal Franklin, Massachusetts. Iris knows more about the townspeople than she will ever say, and believes her job is to deliver secrets. Yet one day she does the unthinkable: slips a letter into her pocket, reads it, and doesn't deliver it. Meanwhile, Frankie Bard broadcasts from overseas with Edward R. Murrow. Her dispatches beg listeners to pay heed as the Nazis bomb London nightly. Most of the townspeople of Franklin think the war can't touch them. But both Iris and Frankie know better... The Postmistress is a tale of two worlds-one shattered by violence, the other willfully na ve-and of two women whose job is to deliver the news, yet who find themselves unable to do so. Through their eyes, and the eyes of everyday people caught in history's tide, it examines how stories are told, and how the fact of war is borne even through everyday life.

And the Land Lay Still is nothing less than the story of a nation. James Robertson's breathtaking novel is a portrait of modern Scotland as seen through the eyes of natives and immigrants, journalists and politicians, drop-outs and spooks, all trying to make their way through a country in the throes of great and rapid change. It is a moving, sweeping story of family, friendship, struggle and hope — epic in every sense.

What could go wrong when a wife pawns the mink coat that her lover gave her as a parting gift? What happens when a priceless piece of furniture is the subject of a deceitful bargain? Can a wronged woman take revenge on her dead husband? This title explores the sinister side of human nature: the cunning, sly, selfish part of each of us.

The Cold War is over and Ned has been demoted to the training academy. He asks his old mentor, George Smiley, to address his passing-out class. There are no laundered reminiscences; Smiley speaks the truth — perhaps the last the students will ever hear. As they listen, Ned recalls his own painful triumphs and inglorious failures, in a career that took him from the Western Isles of Scotland to Hamburg and from Israel to Cambodia. He asks himself: Did it do any good? What did it do to me? And what will happen to us now? In this final Smiley novel, the great spy gives his own humane and unexpected answers.

Topping and tailing this collection are The Visitor and Bitch, stories featuring Dahl's notorious hedonist Oswald Hendryks Cornelius (or plain old Uncle Oswald) whose exploits are frequently as extraordinary as they are scandalous. In the middle, meanwhile, are The Great Switcheroo and The Last Act , two stories exploring a darker side of desire and pleasure. In the black comedies of Switch Bitch, Roald Dahl brilliantly captures the ins and outs, highs and lows of sex.

This volume reproduces the 1932 Modern Library edition, for which Bennett A. Cerf chose the most famous and representative stories from Sir Richard F. Burton's multi-volume translation, and includes Burton's extensive and acclaimed explanatory notes.

The short stories of Kingsley Amis — the great master of post-war comic prose — are dark, playful, moving, surprising and extremely funny. This definitive collection gathers all Amis' short fiction in a single volume for the first time and encompasses five decades of storytelling. In The 2003 Claret, written in 1958, a time machine is invented for the weighty task of sending a man to 2010 to discover what the booze will taste like. In Boris and the Colonel a Cambridge spy is unearthed in the sleepy English countryside with the help of a plucky horse, while in Mason's Life two men meet inside their respective dreams. The collection spans many genres, offering ingenious alternative histories, mystery and horror, satirical reflections and a devilishly funny attacks. Amis' stories reveal the scope of his imagination and the warmth beneath his acerbic humour, and they all share the unmistakable style and wit of one of Britain's best loved writers.

'I pushed her back into the house without saying anything, shut the door. We stood looking at each other inside. She dropped her hand slowly and tried to smile. Then all expression went out of her white face and it looked as intelligent as the bottom of a shoe box... I lit my cigarette, puffed it slowly for a moment and then asked: What are you doing here? Before creating Philip Marlowe, Raymond Chandler perfected the hardboiled private detective story in the pages of Blask Mask magazine — tough, spare tales of gumshoes and murder, laced with a weary lyricism and deadpan, laconic wit. Killer in the Rain is vintage Chandler, the groundwork for his classic first novel The Big Sleep.

Feeling the itch to stitch and the urge to preserve? Well then, get your craft on with crafter-about-town Jazz Domino Holly. As the daughter of rock-royalty and founder of the Shoreditch Sisters Women's Institute, Jazz is the perfect guide. Have fun and impress your friends and family with your crafting skills as you learn how to: unravel the mystery of knits and purls and whip up a Girlie Bow Headband; fix your stitches and sew a string of Heart-Felt Bunting; feel the heat in the kitchen and bake a batch of Queen of Crafts Jam Tarts; preserve tradition and fill your empty jars with delicious Oh My Darling Clementine Marmalade; get green-fingered and plant a Herbal Tea Garden; become your own beauty expert and mix up a pot of Get Lippy Lip Balm. Jazz will show you how to make all these things and many, many more. You'll be hosting the perfect tea party, organising a bake-off and setting up your own knitting circle in no time (and having a lot of fun along the way).

Based on the classic story The Elves and the Shoemaker, this vibrantly illustrated story is sure to become a favourite in every home. Meet the poor and hungry shoemaker who wakes up one morning to find that his shoes have been magically made for him! Part of the Ladybird First Favourite Tales series — a perfect introduction to fairy tales for preschoolers — this hardback book contains lots of funny rhythm and rhyme to delight young children. Ideal for reading aloud and sharing with 2-4 year olds.

Welcome a brand-new edition of Insight Guide France, with new features, new maps, and specially commissioned color-photographs throughout the entire guide. A full-color, highly visual guide to the whole of France, covering all the major cities, with expert recommendations to the best sights, cross-referenced with Insights respected mapping and detailed Travel Tips!