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The Ministry of S.U.I.T.s (Ministry of S.U.I.T.s)
by Paul GambleMemo: For Ministry of Strange, Unusual, and Impossible Things Operatives OnlyRE: The Ministry of SUITs by Paul Gamble (winner of the Eilís Dillon award for a first children’s book)A series of strange incidents have been reported in Belfast:* Oddball kids are going missing* There are several unconfirmed signs of pirates.* A wild bear known to be a very sore loser at musical statues has escaped from the museum and is on the rampage.Fortunately, our newest recruits, Jack Pearse, a curious boy skilled at logical thinking and seeing what's actually there, and Trudy Emerson, the most dangerous girl in his school, are on the case. As per Ministry policy, they are currently being trained in the use of The Speed (patent pending) and will have full access to Ministry supplies (assuming they manage to navigate the paperwork without going insane), so we are confident that they will succeed in their mission to discover and foil this villainous plot.Please provide all assistance possible, as a) they don't know who they are actually up against, b) the world is much stranger than they realized, and c) they are only 12 and have to be in bed by 10 p.m.P.S.-Could all Ministry operatives who have borrowed dinosaurs in the past two weeks please return them? We're running low on inventory.
The Ministry of Time: One of the Observer's Debut Novels of 2024
by Kaliane BradleyThe Time Traveller's Wife meets David Mitchell meets Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow meets Kate & Leopold in this debut novel from an award-winning writer.There are several ways to tell a story.A boy meets a girl. The past meets the future. A finger meets a trigger. The beginning meets the end. England is forever; England must fall.A civil servant starts working as a 'bridge' - a liaison, helpmeet and housemate - in an experimental project that brings expatriates from the past into the twenty-first century. This is a science-fiction story.In a London safehouse in the 2020s, a disorientated Victorian polar explorer chain smokes while listening to Spotify and learning about political correctness. This is a comedy.During a long, sultry summer - as the shadows around them grow long and dangerous - two people fall in love, against all odds. This is a romance.The Ministry of Time is a novel about Commander Graham Gore (R.N. c.1809-c.1847) and a woman known only as the bridge. As their relationship turns from the strictly professional into something more and uneasy truths begin to emerge, they are forced to face the reality of the project that brought them together. Can love triumph over the structures and histories that shape them? (P)2024 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
The Ministry of Time: The Instant Sunday Times and New York Times Bestseller
by Kaliane Bradley'A thrilling debut . . . It's very smart; it's very silly; and the obvious fun never obscures completely the sheer, gorgeous, wild stretch of her ideas'Guardian'Fast moving and riotously entertaining, a genre-busting blend of wit and wonder'OBSERVER, 10 best new novelists for 2024'Terrific, moving . . . Crack this book open and you'll see how time can disappear'FINANCIAL TIMES'I loved its combination of extreme whimsy, high seriousness and cool understatement'THE TIMES'A high-energy story with thoughtful things to say about belonging'INDEPENDENT'Utterly winning . . . Readers, I envy you: There's a smart, witty novel in your future'WASHINGTON POST'Clever, witty and thought-provoking'KATE MOSSE, author of The Ghost Ship'Make room on your bookshelves for a new classic'MAX PORTER, author of Shy'As electric, charming, whimsical and strange as its ripped-from-history cast'EMILY HENRY, author of Happy Place'Thought-provoking and horribly clever - but it also made me laugh out loud'ALICE WINN, author of In Memoriam'A feast of a novel - singular, alarming and (above all) incredibly sexy'JULIA ARMFIELD, author of Our Wives Under the Sea'A weird, kind, clever, heartsick little time bomb of a book'FRANCIS SPUFFORD, author of Golden HillA BOY MEETS A GIRL. THE PAST MEETS THE FUTURE. A FINGER MEETS A TRIGGER. THE BEGINNING MEETS THE END. ENGLAND IS FOREVER. ENGLAND MUST FALL.In the near future, a disaffected civil servant is offered a lucrative job in a mysterious new government ministry gathering 'expats' from across history to test the limits of time-travel.Her role is to work as a 'bridge': living with, assisting and monitoring the expat known as '1847' - Commander Graham Gore. As far as history is concerned, Commander Gore died on Sir John Franklin's doomed expedition to the Arctic, so he's a little disoriented to find himself alive and surrounded by outlandish concepts such as 'washing machine', 'Spotify' and 'the collapse of the British Empire'. With an appetite for discovery and a seven-a-day cigarette habit, he soon adjusts; and during a long, sultry summer he and his bridge move from awkwardness to genuine friendship, to something more.But as the true shape of the project that brought them together begins to emerge, Gore and the bridge are forced to confront their past choices and imagined futures. Can love triumph over the structures and histories that have shaped them? And how do you defy history when history is living in your house?
The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Series #14)
by Alexander Mccall SmithModern ideas get tangled up with traditional ones in the latest intriguing installment in the beloved, best-selling No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. Precious Ramotswe has taken on two puzzling cases. First she is approached by the lawyer Mma Sheba, who is the executor of a deceased farmer's estate. Mma Sheba has a feeling that the young man who has stepped forward may be falsely impersonating the farmer's nephew in order to claim his inheritance. Mma Ramotswe agrees to visit the farm and find out what she can about the self-professed nephew. Then the proprietor of the Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon comes to Mma Ramotswe for advice. The opening of her new salon has been shadowed by misfortune. Not only has she received a bad omen in the mail, but rumors are swirling that the salon is using dangerous products that burn people's skin. Could someone be trying to put the salon out of business? Meanwhile, at the office, Mma Ramotswe has noticed something different about Grace Makutsi lately. Though Mma Makutsi has mentioned nothing, it has become clear that she is pregnant . . . But in Botswana--a land where family has always been held above all else--this may be cause for controversy as well as celebration. With genuine warmth, sympathy, and wit, Alexander McCall Smith explores some tough questions about married life, parenthood, grief, and the importance of the traditions that shape and guide our lives. This is the fourteenth installment in the series.This ebook edition includes a Reading Group Guide.
The Minor Outsider
by Ted McdermottEd and Taylor, both aspiring young writers, fall in love during a summer of aimless drinking and partying in their university town of Missoula, Montana. Lonely and looking for love, they connect despite their profound differences: Ed is brooding, ambitious and self-destructive, living in denial of a mysterious tumour spreading from his limbs to his brain. Beautiful Taylor is positive, full of hope and emotional generosity, but like everyone, she has her limits. Their difficult relationship is intense, exciting yet doomed from the start, complicated further when Taylor falls pregnant. As Ed resists the harmony she brings to his life, Taylor's need to protect herself and their child also grows, until a dramatic finale.Ted Mc Dermott's stark book speaks truthfully and with a touch of dark humor for and to today's generation of young people trying to find hope in what feels to many like an existential void. The Minor Outsider will be read as the young literary voice of our dark times.
The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint: A Novel
by Brady Udall"An ingenious tale [that] takes its heart from Dickens and its soul from America’s great outlaw West." —ElleHalf Apache and mostly orphaned, Edgar Presley Mint’s trials begin on an Arizona reservation at the age of seven, when the mailman’s jeep accidentally runs over his head. As he is shunted from the hospital to a school for delinquents to a Mormon foster family, comedy, pain, and trouble accompany Edgar through a string of larger-than-life experiences. Through it all, readers will root for this irresistible innocent who never truly loses heart and whose quest for the mailman leads him to an unexpected home.
The Miracle at Speedy Motors (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency #9)
by Alexander Mccall SmithIn the ninth installment of this infinitely enjoyable and bestselling series, Precious Ramotswe is doing what she does best-solving crimes and taking care of business: her own and everybody else's. Investigating her latest case, Mma Ramotswe has to trek to a game preserve, where she rediscovers the breathtaking beauty of her beloved Botswana. She is there to uncover the truth about an elderly American traveller whose safari proved to be his last journey. What she discovers is a surprise to everyone concerned. Meanwhile, problems are also brewing back at the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency: Mma Makutsi has instituted the Complaint Half Hour in order to air her grievances-which works well for her until Mma Ramotswe decides to institute her own version. And life is no less complicated at Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors, where Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni-Mma Ramotswe's estimable husband-has suddenly decided to mortgage the garage. But without a doubt-and after several cups of bush tea-Precious Ramotswe will make sure, as only she can, that everything turns out as it should. From the Hardcover edition.
The Miracles of Jesus: The Brick Bible for Kids
by Brendan Powell SmithAs in all the Brick Bible books, Brendan Powell Smith creates a magical “brick” world—all in LEGOs—to illustrate stories from the Bible that are then photographed and accompanied by a simple text.In this book, there are many stories to tell. After being baptized, and in the company of his twelve disciples, Jesus began performing many great acts, including giving a blind man sight, raising a young girl from death, feeding five thousand people with two fish and five loaves of bread, and, perhaps the most famous of all, walking on water.
The Mirror World of Melody Black
by Gavin ExtenceIt all starts, as these things sometimes do, with a dead man.He was a neighbour, not someone Abby knew well, but still, finding a body when you only came over to borrow a tin of tomatoes, that comes as a bit of a shock.At least, it should.And now she can't shake the feeling that if she hadn't gone into Simon's flat, if she'd had her normal Wednesday night instead, then none of what happened next would have happened. And she would never have met Melody Black . . .Wild and witty, searing and true, THE MIRROR WORLD OF MELODY BLACK is about the fine line that separates normal from not - and how life can spin, very swiftly, out of control.
The Mirror World of Melody Black
by Gavin ExtenceIt all starts, as these things sometimes do, with a dead man.He was a neighbour, not someone Abby knew well, but still, finding a body when you only came over to borrow a tin of tomatoes, that comes as a bit of a shock.At least, it should.And now she can't shake the feeling that if she hadn't gone into Simon's flat, if she'd had her normal Wednesday night instead, then none of what happened next would have happened. And she would never have met Melody Black . . .Wild and witty, searing and true, THE MIRROR WORLD OF MELODY BLACK is about the fine line that separates normal from not - and how life can spin, very swiftly, out of control.
The Mirror World of Melody Black
by Gavin ExtenceIt all starts, as these things sometimes do, with a dead man.He was a neighbour, not someone Abby knew well, but still, finding a body when you only came over to borrow a tin of tomatoes, that comes as a bit of a shock.At least, it should.And now she can't shake the feeling that if she hadn't gone into Simon's flat, if she'd had her normal Wednesday night instead, then none of what happened next would have happened. And she would never have met Melody Black . . .Wild and witty, searing and true, THE MIRROR WORLD OF MELODY BLACK is about the fine line that separates normal from not - and how life can spin, very swiftly, out of control.(P)2015 Hodder & Stoughton
The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl (A Bestselling Memoir)
by Issa RaeThe &“brilliantly wry&” (Lena Dunham) and &“lovably awkward&” (Mindy Kaling) New York Times bestseller from the creator of HBO&’s Insecure. In this universally accessible New York Times bestseller named for her wildly popular web series, Issa Rae—&“a singular voice with the verve and vivacity of uncorked champagne&” (Kirkus Reviews)—waxes humorously on what it&’s like to be unabashedly awkward in a world that regards introverts as hapless misfits and black as cool.I’m awkward—and black. Someone once told me those were the two worst things anyone could be. That someone was right. Where do I start? Being an introvert (as well as “funny,” according to the Los Angeles Times) in a world that glorifies cool isn’t easy. But when Issa Rae, the creator of the Shorty Award-winning hit series The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl, is that introvert—whether she’s navigating love, the workplace, friendships, or “rapping”—it sure is entertaining. Now, in this New York Times bestselling debut collection written in her witty and self-deprecating voice, Rae covers everything from cybersexing in the early days of the Internet to deflecting unsolicited comments on weight gain, from navigating the perils of eating out alone and public displays of affection to learning to accept yourself—natural hair and all. The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl is a book no one—awkward or cool, black, white, or other—will want to miss.
The Misadventures of Max Crumbly 3: Masters of Mischief (The Misadventures of Max Crumbly #3)
by Rachel Renée RussellFrom #1 New York Times bestselling Dork Diaries author Rachel Renée Russell comes the third book in a series about Max Crumbly and his daily ups and downs in middle school.When we last left our courageous hero, Max Crumbly, and his trusty sidekick Erin, they had just finished foiling the plans of some bumbling thieves. But Max and Erin were trapped in a smelly, dangerous dumpster of doom and about to be discovered by the last people they wanted to find them. Now in this latest installment of Max&’s journals, Max and Erin face foes both new and old as their misadventures continue. Can the two friends avoid detection—and detention!—while keeping South Ridge Middle School safe from bullies and criminals?
The Misadventures of Millicent Madding #1: Bully-Be-Gone
by Brian TacangAs an inventor, Millicent knows this formula by heart. But a series of failures -- like the Ever-Juicy Gum Enhancer Pellet (a bit too juicy) and the Retractable Ponytail Holder (a hairy mess) -- have left her a few beakers short on faith. Even Millicent's best friends in The Wunderkind Club are ready to give up on her inventions. Bully-Be-Gone, her latest creation, should be the breakthrough Millicent needs. After all, her formula for thwarting the enemies of overachievers everywhere is foolproof. Almost foolproof. Before long, Millicent has a disaster of monumental proportions on her hands. With only days to concoct an antidote, her friendships -- and her future as an inventor -- hang in the balance. Brian Tacang's debut novel takes readers on a wild ride through the fantastic town of Masonville, where eccentric scientists and burly librarians, long-lost circus performers and bullies abound, and where science and miracles sometimes collide.
The Misanthrope And Tartuffe
by MolièreThe Pulitzer Prize winner’s classic translations of Moliere’s comic masterpieces satirizing shallowness, self-righteousness, and hypocrisy.The Misanthrope is a searching comic study of falsity, shallowness, and self-righteousness through the character of Alceste, a man whose conscience and sincerity are too rigorous for his time. In Tartuffe, a wily, opportunistic swindler manipulates a wealthy prude and bigot through his claims of piety. This latter translation earned Wilbur a share of the Bollingen Translation Prize for his critically acclaimed work of this satiric take on religious hypocrisy.In brilliant rhymed couplets, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Richard Wilbur renders two of seventeenth-century French playwright Moliere's comic masterpieces into English, capturing not only the form and spirit of the language but also its substance.“Mr. Wilbur has given us a sound, modern, conversational poetry and has made Moliere’s The Misanthrope brilliantly our own.” —The New York Times Book Review“Richard Wilbur’s translation of Tartuffe is a continuous delight from beginning to end.” —Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award–winning poet Richard Eberhart
The Misanthrope's Guide to Life
by Meghan Rowland Chris Turner-NealMisanthrope, n. : 1. ) One who hates mankind; a curmudgeon; a loner; 2. ) The guy in your office who responded to your e-mail of baby photos with "D-. Passing, but not college material"; 3. ) A Realist FromThe Misanthrope's Guide to Life In this guide, you'll learn how to get away from the pain-in-the-asses who make you seriously consider investing in a fallout shelter and making it your new home. You'll take isolated comfort in these survival strategies, including how to: Conduct managed incoherence to get the delivery boy from the lobby to your door Take a "French leave" in order to eat alone at work Get ousted from your kickball league by dressing as Magnum, P. I. for every game Get back at the jerk yapping on his cell phone by reciting the lyrics to Harry Chapin's version of "Cat's in the Cradle" End a conversation by "Gwynething" (also known as playing the "I'm delightfully foreign" act) someone to death This is the survival guide you will be annoyed not to have.
The Misanthrope's Guide to Life
by Meghan Rowland Chris Turner-NealMisanthrope, n.: 1.) One who hates mankind; a curmudgeon; a loner; 2.) The guy in your office who responded to your e-mail of baby photos with "D-. Passing, but not college material"; 3.) A RealistFrom The Misanthrope's Guide to LifeIn this guide, you'll learn how to get away from the pain-in-the-asses who make you seriously consider investing in a fallout shelter and making it your new home. You'll take isolated comfort in these survival strategies, including how to:Conduct managed incoherence to get the delivery boy from the lobby to your doorTake a "French leave" in order to eat alone at workGet ousted from your kickball league by dressing as Magnum, P.I. for every gameGet back at the jerk yapping on his cell phone by reciting the lyrics to Harry Chapin's version of "Cat's in the Cradle"End a conversation by "Gwynething" (also known as playing the "I'm delightfully foreign" act) someone to deathThis is the survival guide you will be annoyed not to have.
The Misanthrope's Guide to Life: (Go Away!)
by Meghan RowlandMisanthrope, n.:1.) One who hates mankind; a curmudgeon; a loner;2.) The guy in your office who responded to your e-mail of baby photos with "D-. Passing, but not college material";3.) A RealistFrom The Misanthrope's Guide to LifeIn this guide, you'll learn how to get away from the pain-in-the-asses who make you seriously consider investing in a fallout shelter and making it your new home. You'll take isolated comfort in these survival strategies, including how to:Conduct managed incoherence to get the delivery boy from the lobby to your doorTake a "French leave" in order to eat alone at workGet ousted from your kickball league by dressing as Magnum, P.I. for every gameGet back at the jerk yapping on his cell phone by reciting the lyrics to Harry Chapin's version of "Cat's in the Cradle"End a conversation by "Gwynething" (also known as playing the "I'm delightfully foreign" act) someone to deathThis is the survival guide you will be annoyed not to have.
The Miseducation of Evie Epworth: The Bestselling Richard & Judy Book Club Pick
by Matson TaylorThe Bestselling Richard & Judy Summer Book Club Pick 2021 The Bestselling Radio 2 Book Club Selection &‘Tight, clever and riddled with wit. Like discovering Adrian Mole or Bridget Jones for the first time.&’ Joanna Nadin, author of The Queen of Bloody Everything &‘A sweet, fizzy sherbet dib-dab of a book - deliciously nostalgic, hugely funny and ultimately heartwarming. The perfect book for our times.&’ Veronica Henry &‘Such a joyful and uplifting read. Just the sort of thing that people will want to be reading right now.&’ Anita Rani, Radio 2 Book ClubIt is the summer of 1962 and sixteen-year-old Evie Epworth stands on the cusp of womanhood. But what kind of a woman will she be? Up until now, Evie&’s life has been nothing special: a patchwork of school, Guides, cows, lost mothers, lacrosse and village fetes. But, inspired by her idols (Charlotte Brontë, Shirley MacLaine, the Queen), she dreams of a world far away from rural East Yorkshire, a world of glamour lived under the bright lights of London (or Leeds). Standing in the way of these dreams, though, is Christine, Evie&’s soon-to-be stepmother, a manipulative and money-grubbing schemer who is lining Evie up for a life of shampoo-and-set drudgery at the stinky local salon. Luckily Evie is not alone. With the help of a few friends, and the wise counsel of the two Adam Faith posters on her bedroom wall (&‘brooding Adam&’ and &‘sophisticated Adam&’), Evie comes up with a plan to rescue her future from Christine&’s pink and over-perfumed clutches. She will need a little luck, a dash of charm and a big dollop of Yorkshire magic if she is to succeed, but in the process she may just discover who exactly it is she is meant to be. Moving, inventive and achingly funny, with an all-star cast of bold-as-brass characters, The Miseducation of Evie Epworth is a perfectly pitched modern fairytale about love, friendship and following your dreams while having a lot of fun along the way. 'Full of fabulous characters, sprinkled with joy and drenched in wit.&’ Milly Johnson 'Funny and original with a cast of eccentric characters, this debut novel is a tour de force. Not to be missed.' Sunday Express 'A rich triumph of comic writing.' Waterstones.com 'One of the funniest, wittiest and most joyful books you will read this year.' Lancaster Guardian
The Miseducation of Henry Cane
by Charles BrooksA stunning coming-of-age novel about one young man's eye-opening sexual awakening at the hands of an intriguing older woman. Henry Cane knows exactly what he’s going to do with the rest of his life. That’s the problem. Born into the rarefied world of Manhattan wealth and privilege, after graduating from Princeton, Henry is about to start his perfectly planned out life. He's always known he will move back to Manhattan and be groomed to take over his father’s publishing business. He's destined to date a string of appropriate girls until he dates the most appropriate girl and asks her to marry him. It’s all so awfully tedious. But Henry's been given eight weeks to do something else, to be an entirely different person. When his parents leave him alone in their Sag Harbor estate for the summer, Henry embarks on a double life as Joe, a blue collar fisherman on the other side of the bay. Once ensconced in his fake identity, he finds himself entangled in an affair with an alluring, older European woman—who happens to be married. As he becomes more and more infatuated with her, their affair threatens to unravel his tightly wound story, and could jeopardize his entire future. This is the story of a boy becoming a man, shaped by the hands of women who truly control the narrative.
The Miser Of Mayfair (A House for the Season #1
by M. C. Beaton[From the back cover:] "Is 67 Clarges Street the unluckiest house in Mayfair? Every Season, the fashionable set of the Regency hire houses in the heart of London's popular West End, and yet 67 Clarges Street, a town house complete with staff, remains vacant year after year. Could it be tainted with ill luck? Something must be done so that the servants of this house don't lose their livelihood. Salvation seems to come in the form of Roderick Sinclair, who confirms he wishes to rent the house. The staff are overjoyed--until they discover that Mr Sinclair is a terrible miser who is planning no parties. Furthermore, his ward, Fiona, though a dazzling Highland beauty, appears to be somewhat empty-headed. But it is Rainbird, the clever and elegant butler, who sees through her facade and resolves to help his mysterious mistress in whatever way he can..." You'll find many more novels by this popular author in the Bookshare collection including the other 5 novels in the House for a Season series which are #2 Plain Jane, #3 The Wicked Godmother, #4 Rake's Progress, #5 The Adventuress and #6 Rainbird's Revenge. Try the Six volume series, The Six Sisters as well. Marion Chesney also writes under the name M. C. Beaton. Her hilarious cozy mysteries series featuring Agatha Raisin has also been prepared for Bookshare, as well as her Hamish Macbeth series.
The Miser's Dream (Eli Marks Mystery #3)
by John Gaspard“An intriguing cross between noir and cozy, with fascinating details about magic tricks and plenty of quirky characters” (Library Journal). A casual glance out his apartment window turns magician Eli Marks’ life upside down. After spotting a dead body in the projection booth of the movie theater next door, Eli is pulled into the hunt for the killer. As he attempts to puzzle out a solution to this classic locked room mystery, he must deal with a crisis of a more personal nature: the appearance of a rival magician who threatens not only Eli’s faith in himself as a performer, but his relationship with his girlfriend. But the killer won’t wait and starts taking homicidal steps to bring Eli’s investigation to a quick and decisive end. Things get even worse when his magician rival offers his own plausible solution to the mystery. With all the oddball suspects gathered together, Eli must unveil the secrets to this movie-geek whodunit or find himself at the wrong end of the trick. “A finely-tuned, diabolical, sneaky, smart, stylish mix of magic and mayhem that plunges our hero Eli through a tangled web of danger and deceit that’ll keep you guessing.” —Steve Spill, magician and author of I Lie For Money “With twists and turns, flurries of romance, and a cast of characters that seem to be the unholy spawn of The Maltese Falcon and The Third Man, The Miser’s Dream keeps the pages turning and the reader delighted from start to finish.” —Jeffrey Hatcher, screenwriter, Mr. Holmes
The Miser's Dream (Eli Marks Mystery #3)
by John Gaspard“An intriguing cross between noir and cozy, with fascinating details about magic tricks and plenty of quirky characters” (Library Journal). A casual glance out his apartment window turns magician Eli Marks’ life upside down. After spotting a dead body in the projection booth of the movie theater next door, Eli is pulled into the hunt for the killer. As he attempts to puzzle out a solution to this classic locked room mystery, he must deal with a crisis of a more personal nature: the appearance of a rival magician who threatens not only Eli’s faith in himself as a performer, but his relationship with his girlfriend. But the killer won’t wait and starts taking homicidal steps to bring Eli’s investigation to a quick and decisive end. Things get even worse when his magician rival offers his own plausible solution to the mystery. With all the oddball suspects gathered together, Eli must unveil the secrets to this movie-geek whodunit or find himself at the wrong end of the trick. “A finely-tuned, diabolical, sneaky, smart, stylish mix of magic and mayhem that plunges our hero Eli through a tangled web of danger and deceit that’ll keep you guessing.” —Steve Spill, magician and author of I Lie For Money “With twists and turns, flurries of romance, and a cast of characters that seem to be the unholy spawn of The Maltese Falcon and The Third Man, The Miser’s Dream keeps the pages turning and the reader delighted from start to finish.” —Jeffrey Hatcher, screenwriter, Mr. Holmes
The Miserable Mill (A Series of Unfortunate Events #4)
by Lemony Snicket Brett Helquist Michael Kupperman<P>I hope, for your sake, that you have not chosen to read this book because you are in the mood for a pleasant experience. If this is the case, I advise you to put this book down instantaneously, because of all the books describing the unhappy lives of the Baudelaire orphans, The Miserable Mill might be the unhappiest yet. <P>Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire are sent to Paltryville to work in a lumber mill, and they find disaster and misfortune lurking behind every log. The pages of this book, I'm sorry to inform you, contain such unpleasantries as a giant pincher machine, a bad casserole, a man with a cloud of smoke where his head should be, a hypnotist, a terrible accident resulting in injury, and coupons. <P>I have promised to write down the entire history of these three poor children, but you haven't, so if you prefer stories that are more heartwarming, please feel free to make another selection. <P>With all due respect, <P>Lemony Snicket
The Misfortunates: A Novel
by Dimitri VerhulstFrank, tender, and brutally funny, Dimitri Verhulst's semi-autobiographical story details the vibrantly entertaining journey of a boy growing up in a family of alcoholics in BelgiumSobriety and moderation are alien concepts to the men in Dimmy's family. Useless in all other respects, his three uncles have a rare talent for drinking, a flair for violence, and an unwavering commitment to the pub. And his father Pierre is no slouch either. Within hours of his son's birth, Pierre plucks him from the maternity ward, props him on his bike, and takes him on an introductory tour of the village bars. His mother soon leaves them to it and as Dimmy grows up amid the stench of stale beer, he seems destined to follow the path of his forebears and make a low-life career in inebriation, until he begins to piece together his own plan for the future.Bringing to life the shambolic upbringing that The Guardian describes as, "the odd, ugly, excremental poetry of their grubby lives," The Misfortunates "can be unexpectedly tender as well as uncomfortably funny… this novel continually surprises and intrigues."