In a collection of separate, mostly unrelated essays written for his newspaper column over many years, Workman charms with his grace, comforts with his wisdom and makes us smile with his wit. Like his previous collections of inspirational columns, Open Windows and Fireflies in a Fruitjar, this is a book to be read and given as a gift to those we love.

A stunning new novel from the two-time Man Booker shortlisted author of The Secret Scripture. Sebastian Barry's latest novel, A Thousand Moons, is now available. Irishman Jack McNulty is a “temporary gentleman”—an Irishman whose commission in the British army in World War II was never permanent. Sitting in his lodgings in Accra, Ghana, in 1957, he’s writing the story of his life with desperate urgency. He cannot take one step further without examining all the extraordinary events that he has seen. A lifetime of war and world travel—as a soldier in World War II, an engineer, a UN observer—has brought him to this point. But the memory that weighs heaviest on his heart is that of the beautiful Mai Kirwan, and their tempestuous, heartbreaking marriage. Mai was once the great beauty of Sligo, a magnetic yet unstable woman who, after sharing a life with Jack, gradually slipped from his grasp. Award-winning author Sebastian Barry’s The Temporary Gentleman is the sixth book in his cycle of separate yet interconnected novels that brilliantly reimagine characters from Barry’s own family.

Life is filled with ups and downs, joys and sorrows, heartache and happiness. In Dear Peanut, author Bill Johnson tries to prepare his unborn grandchildren for the roller coaster of life through a series of forty-two thought-provoking letters touching on multiple subjects. While written with unborn grandchildren in mind, the short, simple messages address adults who are still learning about themselves and their place in life. A helpful roadmap for daily life, Dear Peanut conveys practical wisdom and discusses an array of topics that affect everyday living—faith, social interaction, communication, true friends, seeing life as a blessing, grace, and miracles. Touching on spirituality, psychology, and social life, this collection of lessons helps those seeking to understand themselves better and to answer those silent but persistent questions we all have about our own lives. Dear Peanut serves as a gentle reminder that there are more important things in life than the daily grind. It reminds us to live simply and abundantly each day.

"Annotated bibliography:" p. 243-252.

Drawing on primary sources such as commemorative prints, newspaper accounts, and diary entries, this book investigates just how essential these fanciful designs were in creating events with lasting impact and popular appeal. The author also delves into the various materials used for construction and embellishment: applications of sugar, sand, marble dust, or chalk lent lustre and colour to surfaces, while stand-alone firework temples and temporary reception rooms were often crafted of little more than wood, canvas, paint, and paste.