Egalitarian heroic fantasy. Experimental magical pedagogy, non-Euclidean ancestry, and some sort of horror from beyond the world.

Egalitarian heroic fantasy. Presumptive female agency, battle-sheep, and bad, bad odds.

National Geographic author Michael Farquhar uncovers an instance of bad luck, epic misfortune, and unadulterated mayhem tied to every day of the year. From Caligula's blood-soaked end to hotelier Steve Wynn's unfortunate run-in with a priceless Picasso, these 365 tales of misery include lost fortunes (like the would-be Apple investor who pulled out in 1977 and missed out on a $30 billion-dollar windfall), romance gone wrong (like the 16th-century Shah who experimented with an early form of Viagra with empire-changing results), and truly bizarre moments (like the Great Molasses Flood of 1919). Think you’re having a bad day? Trust us, it gets worse.

The "lucid, funny and darkly alive" (Daisy Lafarge) debut novel from the Booker-shortlisted, Giller Prize-winning author of Study for Obedience. A woman leaves the man she lives with and moves to a low stone cottage in a university town. She joins an academic department and, high up in her office on the thirteenth floor, begins a research project on the poet Paul Celan. She knows nothing of Celan, still less of her new neighbours or colleagues. She is in self-imposed exile, hoping to find dignity in her loneliness. Like everywhere, the abiding feeling in the city is one of paranoia. The weather is deteriorating, the ordinary lives of women are in peril, and an unexplained curfew has been imposed. But then she meets Clara, a woman who is her exact opposite: decisive, productive, and assured. As their friendship grows in intimacy Clara suggests another way of living—until an act of violence threatens to sever everything between them. A penetrating portrait of feminine vulnerability and cruelty, Sarah Bernstein’s extraordinary debut is intelligent, brutal, sure, and devastatingly funny.

"Long on sass and spirit . . . brims with brio. . . As a politician/raconteur with a hell of a tale to tell, he sure has my vote."—The New York Times Book Review In this inspiring and often humorous memoir, the outspoken Democratic congressman from Harlem—later the chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee—tells about his early years on Lenox Avenue, being awarded a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart for wounds sustained in a horrific Korean War battle (the last bad day of his life, he says), and his many years in Congress. A charming, natural storyteller, Rangel recalls growing up in Harlem, where from the age of nine he always had at least one job, including selling the legendary Adam Clayton Powell's newspaper; his group of streetwise sophisticates who called themselves Les Garçons; and his time in law school—a decision made as much to win his grandfather's approval as to establish a career. He recounts as well his life in New York politics during the 1960s and the grueling civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery. With New York street smarts, Rangel is a tough liberal and an independent thinker, but also a collegial legislator respected by Democrats and Republicans alike who knows and honors the House's traditions. First elected to Congress in 1970, Rangel served on the House Judiciary Committee during the hearings on the articles of impeachment of President Nixon, helped found the Congressional Black Caucus, and led the fight in Congress to pressure U.S. corporations to divest from apartheid South Africa. Best of all, this is a political memoir with heart, the story of a life filled with friends, humor, and accomplishments. Charles Rangel is one of a kind, and this is the story of how he became the celebrated person and politician he is today. He opens his memoir with a preface about the 2006 elections and an outline of his goals as chairman of Ways and Means. From day one he wants to put the public first so that more Americans can say they haven't had a bad day since.

Hark, favored ones, to the tale of Ali Baba and the forty thieves, whose quest for treasure led from an enchanted cavern to the Palace of Beautiful Women. Ah, I thought that would get your attention... When Ali Baba stumbles across the hidden lair of the notorious Forty Thieves, the thieves force the humble woodcutter to join their throng, and soon he is off on a quest for treasure and adventure.