Steinbeck's tough yet charming portrait of people on the margins of society, dependant on one another for both physical and emotional survival Published in 1945, Cannery Row focuses on the acceptance of life as it is: both the exuberance of community and the loneliness of the individual. Drawing on his memories of the real inhabitants of Monterey, California, including longtime friend Ed Ricketts, Steinbeck interweaves the stories of Doc, Dora, Mack and his boys, Lee Chong, and the other characters in this world where only the fittest survive, to create a novel that is at once one of his most humorous and poignant works. In her introduction, Susan Shillinglaw shows how the novel expresses, both in style and theme, much that is essentially Steinbeck: “scientific detachment, empathy toward the lonely and depressed…and, at the darkest level…the terror of isolation and nothingness.” For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators. From the Trade Paperback edition.

Long-overdue reissue of beautifully lyrical translations of "Asiatic love poems" from a variety of languages.

A beautiful scarf connects two women touched by tragedy in this compelling, emotional novel from the author of As Bright as Heaven and The Last Year of the War. September 1911. On Ellis Island in New York Harbor, nurse Clara Wood cannot face returning to Manhattan, where the man she loved fell to his death in the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. Then, while caring for a fevered immigrant whose own loss mirrors hers, she becomes intrigued by a name embroidered onto the scarf he carries...and finds herself caught in a dilemma that compels her to confront the truth about the assumptions she’s made. What she learns could devastate her—or free her. September 2011. On Manhattan’s Upper West Side, widow Taryn Michaels has convinced herself that she is living fully, working in a charming specialty fabric store and raising her daughter alone. Then a long-lost photograph appears in a national magazine, and she is forced to relive the terrible day her husband died in the collapse of the World Trade Towers...the same day a stranger reached out and saved her. But a chance reconnection and a century-old scarf may open Taryn’s eyes to the larger forces at work in her life. “[Meissner] creates two sympathetic, relatable characters that readers will applaud. Touching and inspirational.”—Kirkus Reviews

Paul Zindel's compelling and inspirational Pulitzer Prize-winning play that was made into a motion picture directed by Paul Newman starring Joanne Woodward. The old, converted vegetable shop where Tillie lives is more like a madhouse than a home. Tillie's mother, Beatrice, is bitter and cruel, yet desperate for her daughters' love. Her sister, Ruth, suffers epileptic fits and sneaks cigarettes every chance she gets. In the midst of chaos, Tillie struggles to keep her focus and dreams alive. Tillie — keeper of rabbits, dreamer of atoms, true believer in life, hope, and the effect of gamma rays on man-in-the-moon marigolds.

In Breeder, author Eugenia Collier disturbs the peace. Unsettling tales steeped in the African American oral tradition recall a shameful past and foreshadow an uncertain future. A master storyteller, Collier changes voices with the ease of a chameleon, spanning broad emotional spectrum from dark moods to bright moments. Included in this collected is the ever-popular short-story, Marigolds.

Playing on our universal fascination with reality TV, Emily Whitson’s Beneath the Marigolds is the Bachelor(ette) gone terribly wrong. Reese Marigold saved Ann Stone from a life of addiction by introducing Ann to AA and serving as her sponsor in recovery. Despite their differences—Reese is a hopeless romantic, while Ann is a no-nonsense attorney—the women remain close ten years later. So when Reese goes missing after attending Last Chance, an exclusive singles’ retreat off the coast of Hawaii, Ann infiltrates the retreat. Quickly, Ann realizes there’s more to Last Chance than meets the eye. With its extravagant clothes, never-ending interviews, and bizarre dates, Ann begins to suspect the retreat is a front for a reality dating show. Could Reese be safe and sound, keeping a low profile until the premier, or did something more sinister occur? As Ann traces Reese’s last known movements, partakes in the unusual “journey,” and meets the other attendees who all have something to hide, she jeopardizes her career, her sanity, and her life to find her missing friend. Told from the perspective of both Ann and Reese, Beneath the Marigolds is a fast-paced thriller that explores friendship, women in recovery, and the traditional marriage path idealized by today’s numerous dating and relationship reality shows.