Tuesday, September 22, 2020

iTunes Store: Top 25 Books in Fiction & Literature 2020-09-22

Jodi Picoult - The Book of Two Ways artwork The Book of Two Ways
Jodi Picoult
Genre: Fiction & Literature
Price: $16.99
Publish Date: September 22, 2020
Publisher: Random House of Canada
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

From the #1 bestselling author of A Spark of Light and Small Great Things , a riveting novel about the choices that change the course of our lives . Everything changes in a single moment for Dawn Edelstein. She's on a plane when the flight attendant makes an announcement: prepare for a crash landing. As thoughts flash through her mind, Dawn braces herself for impact. The shocking thing is the thoughts are not of her husband but of a man she last saw fifteen years earlier.      Miraculously, Dawn survives the crash, but so do all the doubts she suddenly feels. She has led a good life. Back in Boston, she has her husband, Brian, her beloved daughter, and her work as a death doula who helps to ease the transition between life and death for her clients. But somewhere in Egypt is Wyatt Armstrong, who works as an archaeologist unearthing ancient burial sites, a job she once studied for, but was forced to abandon. Now, when it seems that fate is offering her second chances, she is not as sure of the life choices she once made.      After the crash, once they've been checked out by a doctor, the airline offers the passengers flights to a destination of their choice. The obvious thing for Dawn is to fly home, to her work, to her family. The other option that occurs to her, though, is to travel to the archaeological site she left years before, reconnect with Wyatt and their unresolved history, and maybe even complete her research on The Book of Two Ways--the first known map of the afterlife.      As the story unfolds, Dawn's two futures unspool side by side, as do the secrets and doubts she's kept buried. And then there are the questions she's never truly asked: What does a well-lived life look like? When we leave the earth, what do we leave behind? Do we make choices or do our choices make us? And, who would you be, if you hadn't turned into the person you are right now?     



Susan Howatch - The Wheel of Fortune artwork The Wheel of Fortune
Susan Howatch
Genre: Historical
Price: $15.99
Publish Date: October 09, 2012
Publisher: Open Road Media
Seller: OpenRoad Integrated Media, LLC

An “emotion-packed” New York Times –bestselling saga by the author of Cashelmara , set on a Welsh family estate in the early twentieth century ( San Francisco Chronicle ). Tucked in the hills of South Wales is Oxmoon, the ancestral estate of the Godwin family. In the summers before 1914, music streams through the family home as the Godwins, at the height of their prosperity, dance in the ballroom with their guests. But despite the remarkable talents of heir-apparent Robert Godwin, the fates have a rough, tough ride planned for him and those he loves. Fortunes shift during two world wars, disastrous love affairs leave the family battered, and finally jealousy threatens to destroy Oxmoon and all it symbolizes. Based on a true story that has been updated to modern times, The Wheel of Fortune is a timeless tale of love, hatred, revenge, redemption, and forgiveness.  This ebook features an illustrated biography of Susan Howatch including rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the author’s personal collection.



Ken Follett - The Evening and the Morning artwork The Evening and the Morning
Ken Follett
Genre: Historical
Price: $18.99
Publish Date: September 15, 2020
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author, a thrilling and addictive new novel--a prequel to The Pillars of the Earth --set in England at the dawn of a new era: the Middle Ages It is 997 CE, the end of the Dark Ages. England is facing attacks from the Welsh in the west and the Vikings in the east. Those in power bend justice according to their will, regardless of ordinary people and often in conflict with the king. Without a clear rule of law, chaos reigns. In these turbulent times, three characters find their lives intertwined. A young boatbuilder's life is turned upside down when the only home he's ever known is raided by Vikings, forcing him and his family to move and start their lives anew in a small hamlet where he does not fit in. . . . A Norman noblewoman marries for love, following her husband across the sea to a new land, but the customs of her husband's homeland are shockingly different, and as she begins to realize that everyone around her is engaged in a constant, brutal battle for power, it becomes clear that a single misstep could be catastrophic. . . . A monk dreams of transforming his humble abbey into a center of learning that will be admired throughout Europe. And each in turn comes into dangerous conflict with a clever and ruthless bishop who will do anything to increase his wealth and power. Thirty years ago, Ken Follett published his most popular novel, The Pillars of the Earth. Now, Follett's masterful new prequel The Evening and the Morning takes us on an epic journey into a historical past rich with ambition and rivalry, death and birth, love and hate, that will end where The Pillars of the Earth begins.



Luis Sepulveda - Histoire d'une mouette et du chat qui lui apprit à voler artwork Histoire d'une mouette et du chat qui lui apprit à voler
Luis Sepulveda
Genre: Literary
Price: $8.99
Publish Date: May 05, 2011
Publisher: Métailié
Seller: Bragelonne

Zorbas le chat grand noir et gros a promis à la mouette qui est venue mourir sur son balcon de couver son dernier œuf, de protéger le poussin et de lui apprendre à voler. Tous les chats du port de Hambourg vont se mobiliser pour l'aider à tenir ces promesses insolites. À travers les aventures rocambolesques et drôles de Zorbas et Afortunada, on découvre la solidarité, la tendresse, la nature et la poésie. Prix Sorcière 1997 de l'Association des libraires spécialisés jeunesse.



Jeffrey K Walker - None of Us the Same artwork None of Us the Same
Jeffrey K Walker
Genre: Historical
Price: $0.99
Publish Date: May 18, 2017
Publisher: Jeffrey K. Walker
Seller: Ingram DV LLC

2017 The Independent Author Network Book of the Year Awards Finalist 2017 B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree  2017 Wishing Shelf Book Awards Bronze Medal 2017 Discovering Diamonds Review 2018 Goethe Award for Historical Fiction Finalist & 1st Place Category Winner Fiery Dublin nurse Deirdre Brannigan has opinions on everything. She certainly hates the very idea of war in 1914. But the crushing weight of a guilty conscience pushes Deirdre to leave Ireland, landing her directly in the fray. Across the ocean, childhood friends Jack Oakley and Will Parsons think it will be a grand adventure in France. The pals from Newfoundland blithely enlist. After all, the war can't possibly last long...  Deirdre's long days and nights blur together on the hospital wards. As she relentlessly struggles to save young lives, her own unravels. For the Newfoundlanders in their fine new uniforms aching to prove themselves on the field of battle, the horrors of war quickly descend.  Deirdre encounters Jack and Will when they’re brought to her field hospital the first day of the slaughter on the Somme, each silently carrying unimaginable suffering. Burdened with physical and emotional scars, their lives aimlessly diverge. Yet somehow, a glimmer of hope and redemption emerges when their paths cross once again in St. John’s. Although fragile and ragged, they are not beaten. None of Us the Same will leave you pulling for these battered survivors. Follow this unforgettable portrayal of love and war and resilience.



Beatrice Macneil - The Girl He Left Behind artwork The Girl He Left Behind
A Novel
Beatrice Macneil
Genre: Fiction & Literature
Price: $1.99
Publish Date: May 12, 2020
Publisher: HarperAvenue
Seller: Harper Collins Canada Limited

Fifteen years ago, Willow Alexander was jilted at the altar by her high school sweetheart, Graham Currie, who left their wedding rehearsal the night before knowing he would not be returning the next day.  Confused and devastated, Willow remains in the small town of Glenmor in Cape Breton, caring for her ailing parents and nursing her heartache. What no one knows is that Willow lost more than her marriage on that shocking day, which is why she remains on her family’s expansive property, in the shadow of Christy’s Mountain, unable to let go of the secret she has kept hidden for more than a decade.  Soon after her fortieth birthday, Willow finds out that Graham is returning to town, without his new wife, after years of working as a doctor in New York City. As Willow grapples with her emotions, wondering how she will deal with Graham’s arrival, tragedy strikes again: her dear friend, Kathleen, and her husband, local doctor James Millhouse, are found dead. Willow was the last one to see the couple on the night they died and fears that she may have accidently had a hand in their deaths.  Fearing both Graham’s return and her own imminent arrest, Willow holes up in her family home, reflecting on her past and bracing for her uncertain future. The Girl He Left Behind is a moving story about how confronting life’s greatest uncertainties is often the only way forward. 



Mary Sharratt - Illuminations artwork Illuminations
A Novel of Hildegard von Bingen
Mary Sharratt
Genre: Historical
Price: $17.99
Publish Date: October 09, 2012
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Seller: OpenRoad Integrated Media, LLC

From the author of  Ecstasty , a novel of a girl who triumphed against impossible odds to become the most extraordinary woman of the Middle Ages. Hildegard von Bingen—Benedictine abbess, healer, composer, saint—experienced mystic visions from a very young age. Offered by her noble family to the Church at the age of eight, she lived for years in forced silence. But through the study of books and herbs, through music and the kinship of her sisters, Hildegard found her way from a life of submission to a calling that celebrated the divine glories all around us. In this brilliantly researched and insightful novel, Mary Sharratt offers a deeply moving portrait of a woman willing to risk everything for what she believed, a triumphant exploration of the life she might well have lived. “Sharratt brings one of the most famous and enigmatic women of the Middle Ages to vibrant life in this tour de force, which will captivate the reader from the very first page.” —Sharon Kay Penman,  New York Times –bestselling author of  The Land Beyond the Sea “One could not anticipate this majesty and drama… Illuminations  is riveting, following von Bingen through…to emerge as one of the significant voices of the 12th century…Unforgettable.” — January Magazine “Gripping…Like Ann Patchett’s  Bel Canto , [ Illuminations ] is primarily about relationships forged under pressure.”— Publishers Weekly “Masterful.”— Saint Paul Pioneer Press



Paul Austin Ardoin - The Watchful Coroner artwork The Watchful Coroner
Paul Austin Ardoin
Genre: African American
Price: $5.99
Publish Date: September 22, 2020
Publisher: Pax Ardsen
Seller: Draft2Digital, LLC

"A joy to read from start to finish." —Jamie Thornton, New York Times Bestselling Author A murder in the city's most exclusive hotel. The main suspect? Her boyfriend's ex-wife. There's another killing in the cozy beach town of Estancia. This time, Coroner Fenway Stevenson needs to solve the murder of one of the most prominent businessmen in town.  But everyone has ulterior motives. The new mayor is pressuring her to make a quick arrest. Is he eager for justice or does he have something to hide? Fenway's relationship with her boyfriend is strained when the investigation threatens to unearth a terrible secret and tear his family apart. Her father lies comatose after being shot by a bullet meant for Fenway. His company is on the brink of disaster. The investigation quickly turns into a political and personal battleground. Her friends, colleagues, and family get caught in the web of complicated relationships and contradictory evidence—and as the mayor turns the screws on Fenway, her emotions reach the boiling point. When the main suspect's alibi changes, Fenway knows something isn't right. Is she trying to hide a bigger secret or is she playing a more nefarious game? Will Fenway arrest an innocent woman to save herself?  Can she uncover the truth before it's too late? Grab your copy of this bestselling medical thriller today! "The Watchful Coroner will captivate readers from the first page." —C.B. Samet, EVVY Award-Winning Author "This is as good a mystery series as you will find in print. You do not want to miss a single one of these books." —David Marvin, Scintilla Book Reviews "A taut, compelling mystery... I devoured it." —Ian W. Sainsbury, bestselling author of The Picture on the Fridge



Ken Follett - Le Crépuscule et l'Aube artwork Le Crépuscule et l'Aube
Ken Follett
Genre: Historical
Price: $29.99
Publish Date: September 17, 2020
Publisher: Robert Laffont
Seller: Interforum, S.A.

Avant Les Piliers de la Terre ... En l'an 997, à la fin du haut Moyen Âge, les Anglais font face à des attaques de Vikings qui menacent d'envahir le pays. En l'absence d'un État de droit, c'est le règne du chaos. Dans cette période tumultueuse, s'entrecroisent les destins de trois personnages. Le jeune Edgar, constructeur de bateaux, voit sa vie basculer quand sa maison est détruite au cours d'un raid viking. Ragna, jeune noble normande insoumise, épouse par amour l'Anglais Wilwulf, mais les coutumes de son pays d'adoption sont scandaleusement différentes des siennes. Aldred, moine idéaliste, rêve de transformer sa modeste abbaye en un centre d'érudition de renommée mondiale. Chacun d'eux s'opposera au péril de sa vie à l'évêque Wynstan, prêt à tout pour accroître sa richesse et renforcer sa domination. Dans cette extraordinaire épopée où se mêlent vie et mort, amour et ambition, violence, héroïsme et trahisons, Ken Follett, l'un des plus importants romanciers de notre temps, revient à Kingsbridge et nous conduit aux portes des Piliers de la Terre .



Jeanine Cummins - American Dirt (Oprah's Book Club) artwork American Dirt (Oprah's Book Club)
A Novel
Jeanine Cummins
Genre: Fiction & Literature
Price: $15.99
Publish Date: January 21, 2020
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Seller: Macmillan

#1 New York Times Bestseller OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK “ Extraordinary .” — Stephen King “This book is not simply the great American novel; it’s the great novel of las Americas . It’s the great world novel! This is the international story of our times. Masterful.” —Sandra Cisneros También de este lado hay sueños. On this side, too, there are dreams . Lydia Quixano Pérez lives in the Mexican city of Acapulco. She runs a bookstore. She has a son, Luca, the love of her life, and a wonderful husband who is a journalist. And while there are cracks beginning to show in Acapulco because of the drug cartels, her life is, by and large, fairly comfortable. Even though she knows they’ll never sell, Lydia stocks some of her all-time favorite books in her store. And then one day a man enters the shop to browse and comes up to the register with a few books he would like to buy—two of them her favorites. Javier is erudite. He is charming. And, unbeknownst to Lydia, he is the jefe of the newest drug cartel that has gruesomely taken over the city. When Lydia’s husband’s tell-all profile of Javier is published, none of their lives will ever be the same. Forced to flee, Lydia and eight-year-old Luca soon find themselves miles and worlds away from their comfortable middle-class existence. Instantly transformed into migrants, Lydia and Luca ride la bestia —trains that make their way north toward the United States, which is the only place Javier’s reach doesn’t extend. As they join the countless people trying to reach el norte , Lydia soon sees that everyone is running from something. But what exactly are they running to? American Dirt will leave readers utterly changed. It is a literary achievement filled with poignancy, drama, and humanity on every page. It is one of the most important books for our times. Already being hailed as "a Grapes of Wrath for our times" and "a new American classic," Jeanine Cummins's American Dirt is a rare exploration into the inner hearts of people willing to sacrifice everything for a glimmer of hope.



George Orwell - Animal Farm artwork Animal Farm
George Orwell
Genre: Classics
Price: $0.99
Publish Date: August 07, 1945
Publisher: Mustbe Interactive
Seller: Mustbe Interactive

Animal Farm is an allegorical and dystopian novel by George Orwell, published in England on 17 August 1945. According to Orwell, the book reflects events leading up to the Russian Revolution of 1917 and then on into the Stalin era in the Soviet Union.



Delia Owens - Where the Crawdads Sing artwork Where the Crawdads Sing
Delia Owens
Genre: Literary
Price: $14.99
Publish Date: August 14, 2018
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING PHENOMENON More than 6 million copies sold A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick A Business Insider Defining Book of the Decade  "I can't even express how much I love this book! I didn't want this story to end!"--Reese Witherspoon "Painfully beautiful."-- The New York Times Book Review For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life--until the unthinkable happens. Where the Crawdads Sing  is at once an exquisite ode to the natural world, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story, and a surprising tale of possible murder. Owens reminds us that we are forever shaped by the children we once were, and that we are all subject to the beautiful and violent secrets that nature keeps.



Andie Newton - The Girl from Vichy artwork The Girl from Vichy
an emotional and gripping historical fiction page turner
Andie Newton
Genre: Fiction & Literature
Price: $0.99
Publish Date: August 13, 2020
Publisher: Head of Zeus
Seller: Head of Zeus

'A compelling and powerful read' Gill Thompson, USA TODAY bestselling author of The Child on Platform One 'A powerful and thoughtful novel' Louise Fein, author of Daughter of the Reich 'A gripping tale of wartime sacrifice and innocence lost... in the cause of freedom' Jina Bacarr, author of Her Lost Love 1942, France. As the war in Europe rages on, Adèle Ambeh dreams of a France that is free from the clutches of the new regime. The date of her marriage to a ruthless man is drawing closer, and she only has one choice – she must run. With the help of her mother, Adèle flees to Lyon, seeking refuge at the Sisters of Notre Dame de la Compassion. From the outside this is a simple nunnery, but the sisters are secretly aiding the French Resistance, hiding and supplying the fighters with weapons. While it is not quite the escape Adèle imagined, she is drawn to the nuns and quickly finds herself part of the resistance. But her new role means she must return to Vichy, and those she left behind, no matter the cost. Each day is filled with a different danger and as she begins to fall for another man, Adèle's entire world could come crashing down around her. Adèle must fight for her family, her own destiny, as well as her country. Praise for The Girl from Vichy : 'A beautiful story' NetGalley Reviewer 'A great historical read' NetGalley Reviewer 'This book is a wonderful book' NetGalley Reviewer 'Andie Newton's realistic, well-researched, and seamlessly delivered story-writing, immediately engages the reader in The Girl from Vichy ' NetGalley Reviewer ' The Girl from Vichy offers the reader fully formed characters, a heart-pounding plot, and an ending that brought a tear to my eye' NetGalley Reviewer Praise for Andie Newton: 'A powerful debut!' Gill Paul, author of The Secret Wife 'A captivating story with a twist of romance threaded throughout' Glynis Peters, author of The Secret Orphan 'A heart-clenching emotionally evocative debut!' Terry Lynn Thomas, author of The Silent Woman 'A compelling tale of friendship, courage and espionage in a frightening and uncertain world' Charlotte Betts, author of The Dressmaker's Secret ' The Girl I Left Behind made me cry and left me wanting more, which to me are signs of a truly wonderful book, one that will stay with me long after I've finished reading' Lana Kortchik, author of The Story of Us 'Wonderful story where it has you on the edge of your seat but have the tissues with you!' NetGalley Reviewer 'The author has a gift for creating a sense of place whether the setting was on a snowy mountain or the streets of Germany in the early 1940's' NetGalley Reviewer 'Excellent story. Strong characters' NetGalley Reviewer



Frank Herbert - Dune: The Collection Frank Herbert artwork Dune: The Collection Frank Herbert
Books 1 - 6
Frank Herbert
Genre: Classics
Price: $11.99
Publish Date: June 23, 2020
Publisher: Riverhead Books Publishing
Seller: Riverhead Books Publishing

Perfect for longtime fans and new readers alike—this eBook collection includes all six original novels in the Dune Saga written by Frank Herbert. DUNE IS SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE directed by Denis Villeneuve, starring Timothée Chalamet, Josh Brolin, Jason Momoa, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Javier Bardem, Dave Bautista, Stellan Skarsgård, and Charlotte Rampling. In the far future, on a remote planet, an epic adventure awaits. Here are the first six novels of Frank Herbert’s magnificent Dune saga—a triumph of the imagination and one of the bestselling science fiction series of all time. The Dune Saga begins on the desert planet Arrakis with the story of the boy Paul Atreides—who would become known as Muad’Dib—and of a great family’s ambition to bring to fruition humankind’s most ancient and unattainable dream.... Includes Books 1 - 6: DUNE • DUNE MESSIAH • CHILDREN OF DUNE • GOD EMPEROR OF DUNE • HERETICS OF DUNE • CHAPTERHOUSE: DUNE



J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Enhanced Edition) artwork Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Enhanced Edition)
J.K. Rowling
Genre: Action & Adventure
Price: $11.99
Publish Date: November 20, 2015
Publisher: Pottermore Publishing
Seller: Pottermore Limited

"Turning the envelope over, his hand trembling, Harry saw a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, an eagle, a badger and a snake surrounding a large letter 'H'." Harry Potter has never even heard of Hogwarts when the letters start dropping on the doormat at number four, Privet Drive. Addressed in green ink on yellowish parchment with a purple seal, they are swiftly confiscated by his grisly aunt and uncle. Then, on Harry's eleventh birthday, a great beetle-eyed giant of a man called Rubeus Hagrid bursts in with some astonishing news: Harry Potter is a wizard, and he has a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An incredible adventure is about to begin!



Yaa Gyasi - Transcendent Kingdom artwork Transcendent Kingdom
Yaa Gyasi
Genre: Literary
Price: $15.99
Publish Date: September 01, 2020
Publisher: Doubleday Canada
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Yaa Gyasi's stunning follow-up to her acclaimed national bestseller Homegoing is a powerful, raw, intimate, deeply layered novel about a Ghanaian family in Alabama . Gifty is a fifth year candidate in neuroscience at Stanford University's School of Medicine studying reward-seeking behaviour in mice and the neural circuits of depression and addiction. Her brother, Nana, was a gifted high school athlete who died of a heroin overdose after a knee injury left him hooked on OxyContin. Her suicidal mother is living in her bed. Gifty is determined to discover the scientific basis for the suffering she sees all around her. But even as she turns to hard science to unlock the mystery of her family's loss, she finds herself hungering for her childhood faith, and grappling with the evangelical church in which she was raised, whose promise of salvation remains as tantalizing as it is elusive. Transcendent Kingdom is a deeply moving portrait of a family of Ghanaian immigrants ravaged by depression and addiction and grief--a novel about faith, science, religion, love. Exquisitely written and emotionally searing, this is an exceptionally powerful follow-up to Gyasi's phenomenal debut.



Fredrik Backman - Anxious People artwork Anxious People
Fredrik Backman
Genre: Literary
Price: $13.99
Publish Date: September 08, 2020
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

#1 New York Times bestseller From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove and “writer of astonishing depth” ( The Washington Times ) comes a poignant comedy about a crime that never took place, a would-be bank robber who disappears into thin air, and eight extremely anxious strangers who find they have more in common than they ever imagined. Viewing an apartment normally doesn’t turn into a life-or-death situation, but this particular open house becomes just that when a failed bank robber bursts in and takes everyone in the apartment hostage. As the pressure mounts, the eight strangers begin slowly opening up to one another and reveal long-hidden truths. First is Zara, a wealthy bank director who has been too busy to care about anyone else until tragedy changed her life. Now, she’s obsessed with visiting open houses to see how ordinary people live—and, perhaps, to set an old wrong to right. Then there’s Roger and Anna-Lena, an Ikea-addicted retired couple who are on a never-ending hunt for fixer-uppers to hide the fact that they don’t know how to fix their own failing marriage. Julia and Ro are a young lesbian couple and soon-to-be parents who are nervous about their chances for a successful life together since they can’t agree on anything. And there’s Estelle , an eighty-year-old woman who has lived long enough to be unimpressed by a masked bank robber waving a gun in her face. And despite the story she tells them all, Estelle hasn’t really come to the apartment to view it for her daughter, and her husband really isn’t outside parking the car. As police surround the premises and television channels broadcast the hostage situation live, the tension mounts and even deeper secrets are slowly revealed. Before long, the robber must decide which is the more terrifying prospect: going out to face the police, or staying in the apartment with this group of impossible people. Rich with Fredrik Backman’s “pitch-perfect dialogue and an unparalleled understanding of human nature” ( Shelf Awareness ), Anxious People ’s whimsical plot serves up unforgettable insights into the human condition and a gentle reminder to be compassionate to all the anxious people we encounter every day.



Nahid Mozaffari & Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak - Strange Times, My Dear artwork Strange Times, My Dear
The PEN Anthology of Contemporary Iranian Literature
Nahid Mozaffari & Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak
Genre: Fiction & Literature
Price: $1.99
Publish Date: January 13, 2012
Publisher: Arcade
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

When Arcade Publishing originally contracted this extraordinary collection of poetry and literature, the Department of the Treasury was attempting to censor the publication of works from countries on America’s “enemies list.” Arcade, along with the PEN American Center, the Association of American Publishers Professional and Scholarly Publishing Division, and the Association of American University Presses, filed a lawsuit in federal court against the United States government. Their landmark case forced the Office of Foreign Assets Control to change their regulations regarding editing and publishing literature in translation, and Arcade is proud to reissue this anthology that showcases the developments in Iranian literature over the past quarter-century.    Since the Iranian revolution of 1979, the United States has been virtually cut off from that country’s culture. Despite severe difficulties imposed by social, political, and economic upheavals, as well as war, repression, and censorship, a veritable cultural renewal has taken place in Iran over the past quarter-century, not only in literature, but in music, art, and cinema. Over forty writers from three generations contributed to this rich and varied collection—or, to use the Persian term, golchine , a bouquet—one that provides a much-needed window into a largely undiscovered branch of world literature. In the wake of the Green Revolution and sweeping changes in the region, this particular golchine is more relevant than ever, and will bring literary enjoyment as well as a fuller understanding of a complex and ever-shifting culture. 



Frank Herbert - Dune artwork Dune
Frank Herbert
Genre: Classics
Price: $10.99
Publish Date: September 01, 1975
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE directed by Denis Villeneuve, starring Timothée Chalamet, Josh Brolin, Jason Momoa, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Javier Bardem, Dave Bautista, Stellan Skarsgård, and Charlotte Rampling. Frank Herbert’s classic masterpiece—a triumph of the imagination and one of the bestselling science fiction novels of all time. Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, heir to a noble family tasked with ruling an inhospitable world where the only thing of value is the “spice” melange, a drug capable of extending life and enhancing consciousness. Coveted across the known universe, melange is a prize worth killing for.... When House Atreides is betrayed, the destruction of Paul’s family will set the boy on a journey toward a destiny greater than he could ever have imagined. And as he evolves into the mysterious man known as Muad’Dib, he will bring to fruition humankind’s most ancient and unattainable dream.  A stunning blend of adventure and mysticism, environmentalism and politics, Dune won the first Nebula Award, shared the Hugo Award, and formed the basis of what is undoubtedly the grandest epic in science fiction.



Lisa Jewell - The Girls in the Garden artwork The Girls in the Garden
A Novel
Lisa Jewell
Genre: Fiction & Literature
Price: $1.99
Publish Date: June 07, 2016
Publisher: Atria Books
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

One of People ’s, Glamour ’s, and BuzzFeed ’s Best Reads of Summer, from the New York Times bestselling author of Then She Was Gone “Jewell expertly builds suspense by piling up domestic misunderstandings and more plot twists than an SVU episode. It’s a page-turner for readers who like beach reads on the dark side.” — People “Faithful to the thriller genre, Jewell makes liberal use of red herrings and plot twists… The answer to the whodunit is a sly—and satisfying—surprise.” — The New York Times Imagine that you live on a picturesque communal garden square, an oasis in urban London where your children run free, in and out of other people’s houses. You’ve known your neighbors for years and you trust them. Implicitly. You think your children are safe. But are they really? On a midsummer night, as a festive neighborhood party is taking place, preteen Pip discovers her thirteen-year-old sister Grace lying unconscious and bloody in a hidden corner of a lush rose garden. What really happened to her? And who is responsible?



Kirker Butler - Pretty Ugly artwork Pretty Ugly
A Novel
Kirker Butler
Genre: Fiction & Literature
Price: $1.99
Publish Date: March 31, 2015
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group
Seller: Macmillan

From a writer/producer of Family Guy, a satirical look at a dysfunctional southern family complete with an overbearing stage mom, a 9 year-old pageant queen, a cheating husband, his teenage girlfriend, a crazy grandmother, and Jesus. After eight-and-a-half years and three hundred twenty-three pageants, Miranda Miller has become the ultimate stage mother. Her mission in life is to see that her nine-year-old daughter, Bailey, continues to be one of the most successful child pageant contestants in the southern United States. But lately, that mission has become increasingly difficult. Bailey wants to retire and has been secretly binge eating to make herself "unpageantable;" and the reality show Miranda has spent years trying to set up just went to their biggest rival. But Miranda has a plan. She's seven months pregnant with her fourth child, a girl (thank God), and she is going to make damn sure this one is even more successful than Bailey, even if the new girl is a little different. Miranda's husband, Ray, however, doesn't have time for pageants. A full-time nurse, Ray spends his days at the hospital where he has developed a habit of taking whatever pills happen to be lying around. His nights are spent working hospice and dealing with Courtney, the seventeen-year-old orphan granddaughter of one of his hospice patients who he has, regrettably, knocked up. With a pregnant wife, a pregnant teenage mistress, two jobs, a drug hobby, and a mountain of debt, Ray is starting to take desperate measures to find some peace. Meanwhile, the Millers' two sons are being homeschooled by Miranda's mother, Joan (pronounced Jo-Ann), a God-fearing widow who spends her free time playing cards and planning a murder with Jesus. Yes, Jesus. A bright new voice in satirical literature, Kirker Butler pulls no punches as he dissects our culture's current state of affairs. It's really funny, but it's also pretty ugly.



Maggie O'Farrell - Hamnet and Judith artwork Hamnet and Judith
A novel
Maggie O'Farrell
Genre: Literary
Price: $13.99
Publish Date: July 21, 2020
Publisher: Knopf Canada
Seller: Penguin Random House Canada

WINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION "[An] exceptional winner.... It expresses something profound about the human experience that seems both extraordinarily current and at the same time, enduring." --Martha Lane Fox, Chair of The Women's Prize for Fiction judges TWO EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE. A LOVE THAT DRAWS THEM TOGETHER. A PLAGUE THAT THREATENS TO TEAR THEM APART. England, 1580. A young Latin tutor--penniless, bullied by a violent father--falls in love with an eccentric young woman: a wild creature who walks her family's estate with a falcon on her shoulder and is known throughout the countryside for her unusual gifts as a healer. Agnes understands plants and potions better than she does people, but once she settles on the Henley Street in Stratford she becomes a fiercely protective mother and a steadfast, centrifugal force in the life of her young husband. His gifts as a writer are just beginning to awaken when their beloved twins, Hamnet and Judith, are afflicted with the bubonic plague, and, devastatingly, one of them succumbs to the illness. A luminous portrait of a marriage, a shattering evocation of a family ravaged by grief and loss, and a hypnotic recreation of the story that inspired one of the greatest literary masterpieces of all time, Hamnet & Judith is mesmerizing and seductive, an impossible-to-put-down novel from one of our most gifted writers. Published as Hamnet in the US and the UK.



Emma Donoghue - The Pull of the Stars artwork The Pull of the Stars
A Novel
Emma Donoghue
Genre: Historical
Price: $16.99
Publish Date: July 21, 2020
Publisher: HarperAvenue
Seller: Harper Collins Canada Limited

Dublin, 1918: three days in a maternity ward at the height of the Great Flu. A small world of work, risk, death and unlooked-for love, by the bestselling author of The Wonder and ROOM. In an Ireland doubly ravaged by war and disease, Nurse Julia Power works at an understaffed hospital in the city center, where expectant mothers who have come down with the terrible new Flu are quarantined together. Into Julia’s regimented world step two outsiders—Doctor Kathleen Lynn, on the run from the police, and a young volunteer helper, Bridie Sweeney. In the darkness and intensity of this tiny ward, over three days, these women change each other’s lives in unexpected ways. They lose patients to this baffling pandemic, but they also shepherd new life into a fearful world. With tireless tenderness and humanity, carers and mothers alike somehow do their impossible work. In The Pull of the Stars, Emma Donoghue once again finds the light in the darkness in this new classic of hope and survival against all odds. 



Ann Patchett - The Dutch House artwork The Dutch House
A Novel
Ann Patchett
Genre: Literary
Price: $14.99
Publish Date: September 24, 2019
Publisher: Harper
Seller: Harper Collins Canada Limited

Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize New York Times Bestseller | A Read with Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick | A New York Times Book Review Notable Book | TIME Magazine's 100 Must-Read Books of 2019 Named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR, The Washington Post; O: The Oprah Magazine, Real Simple, Good Housekeeping, Vogue, Refinery29, and Buzzfeed Ann Patchett, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Commonwealth, delivers her most powerful novel to date: a richly moving story that explores the indelible bond between two siblings, the house of their childhood, and a past that will not let them go. The Dutch House is the story of a paradise lost, a tour de force that digs deeply into questions of inheritance, love and forgiveness, of how we want to see ourselves and of who we really are. At the end of the Second World War, Cyril Conroy combines luck and a single canny investment to begin an enormous real estate empire, propelling his family from poverty to enormous wealth. His first order of business is to buy the Dutch House, a lavish estate in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. Meant as a surprise for his wife, the house sets in motion the undoing of everyone he loves. The story is told by Cyril’s son Danny, as he and his older sister, the brilliantly acerbic and self-assured Maeve, are exiled from the house where they grew up by their stepmother. The two wealthy siblings are thrown back into the poverty their parents had escaped from and find that all they have to count on is one another. It is this unshakeable bond between them that both saves their lives and thwarts their futures. Set over the course of five decades, The Dutch House is a dark fairy tale about two smart people who cannot overcome their past. Despite every outward sign of success, Danny and Maeve are only truly comfortable when they’re together. Throughout their lives they return to the well-worn story of what they’ve lost with humor and rage. But when at last they’re forced to confront the people who left them behind, the relationship between an indulged brother and his ever-protective sister is finally tested.



Jude Deveraux - Lavender Morning artwork Lavender Morning
A Novel
Jude Deveraux
Genre: Fiction & Literature
Price: $2.99
Publish Date: March 31, 2009
Publisher: Pocket Books
Seller: Simon & Schuster Canada

A heartwarming romance about a woman who finds true love in a small town, from New York Times bestselling author, Jude Deveraux. Jocelyn Minton is a woman torn between two worlds. Her mother grew up attending private schools and afternoon teas, but she married the local handyman. After her mother died when Joce was only five years old, her father remarried into his own class, and Joce became an outsider -- until she met Edilean Harcourt. Although she was sixty years Joce's senior, Miss Edi was a kindred soul who understood her like no one else ever had. When Miss Edi passes away, she leaves Joce all her worldly possessions, including an eighteenth-century house and a letter with clues to a mystery that began in 1941. In the letter, Miss Edi also mentions that she has found the perfect man for Joce -- a handsome young lawyer. Joce is shocked to learn that the mystery, the house, and the future love of her life are all in Edilean, a small town in Virginia that Miss Edi never told her about. Hurt that the woman who meant so much to her kept so many secrets, Jocelyn moves to this tight-knit village in an attempt to understand the legacy that has been left to her. As she begins to dig into Miss Edi's mystery, she soon discovers some shocking surprises about her family's history and her own future -- and she meets a man with his own mysterious past.