An enchanting literary debut—already an international best-seller. At the height of Mao’s infamous Cultural Revolution, two boys are among hundreds of thousands exiled to the countryside for “re-education.” The narrator and his best friend, Luo, guilty of being the sons of doctors, find themselves in a remote village where, among the peasants of Phoenix mountain, they are made to cart buckets of excrement up and down precipitous winding paths. Their meager distractions include a violin—as well as, before long, the beautiful daughter of the local tailor. But it is when the two discover a hidden stash of Western classics in Chinese translation that their re-education takes its most surprising turn. While ingeniously concealing their forbidden treasure, the boys find transit to worlds they had thought lost forever. And after listening to their dangerously seductive retellings of Balzac, even the Little Seamstress will be forever transformed. From within the hopelessness and terror of one of the darkest passages in human history, Dai Sijie has fashioned a beguiling and unexpected story about the resilience of the human spirit, the wonder of romantic awakening and the magical power of storytelling.

In fifth century Britain, spy and master of disguise Marcus ap Iorwerth, while being squeezed between the politics of two powerful kings, accidentally sparks off what will become the quest for the holy grail. Book 4 of the Macsen's Treasure Series. Winner of the Colorado Book Award and National Indie Excellence Award!

There is a growing interest in the history of relations between the English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish as the United Kingdom and Ireland begin to construct new political arrangements and to become more fully integrated into Europe. This book brings together work on how these relations developed between 900 and 1300, a period crucial for the formation of national identities. The conquest of England by the Normans and the subsequent growth in English power required the inhabitants of Britain and Ireland to reassess their dealings with each other. Old ties were broken and new ones formed. Economic change, the influence of chivalry, the transmission of literary motifs, and questions of aristocratic identity are among the topics tackled here by leading scholars from Britain, Ireland and North America. Little has been published hitherto on this subject, and the book marks a major contribution to a topic of lasting interest.

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK • Odile Mével is a French clothing designer, her American husband, Max, an independent filmmaker. When Odile agrees to buy a selection of ceremonial May Day banners in the Soviet Union and deliver the contraband to Paris she earns a new job description: smuggler. Soon her fellow courier disappears, her apartment is ransacked, and her friend’s houseboat is firebombed. While Max has no inkling of Odile’s dealings, he finds himself embroiled in a baffling film world mystery of his own. As their escapades deepen and their deceptions multiply, Odile and Max discover their secrets are connected—endangering not only their marriage but their lives.

In Theodore Savage, a sudden aerial war in Europe has overtaken Britain and thrown all of British civilization into upheaval. Anybody would enjoy reading the adventurous tale of Theodore Savage, an educated civil servant trying to survive unlikely circumstances. Excerpt: Of the last few weeks in the world that was and ever should be, he recalled... very little of great hurrying and public events...