Book description: After seven years writing for blogs and for anthologies, the author has gathered in this book his best-rated short stories and chronicles. They touch on diverse themes, ranging from the children's universe to the daily lives of adults. Although the author is a military police officer, he avoided as much as possible dealing with themes such as insecurity and violence, although one or another text touches lightly on these subjects, but always bringing nuances of hope, friendship and joy. Many of the stories takes back to a grandfather telling stories to his grandchildren, as they would do in the old times. The literary tenderness of the author guarantees that his direct prose with no flourishes can convey to us the emotions and feelings of its protagonists. Amongst them, these ones stand out: The rattlesnake at the Gabiroba tree (2012 "Best Storyteller" Interarte Award – Goiás Velho Letter Academy) Survivors of the end of the World (Winner of the XXXV International Literary Contest of Edições AG publishing company) The Boa's Breath (Participation Prize on the Great Contest of the Rio de Janeiro City, at the Taba Cultural publishing company)

In Search of the Sorcerer's Apprentice is the first book in English to be devoted to Lucian's Philopseudes or Lover of Lies (c. 170s AD). It comprises an extensive discussion, with full translation, of this engaging and satirical Greek text with its ten tales of magic and ghosts. One of these is the famous story of The Sorcerer's Apprentice, and this conveys the flavour of the rest. In other tales a plague of snakes is blasted with a miraculous scorching breath, a woman is drawn to her admirer by an animated cupid doll, and a haunted house is cleansed of its monstrous ghost. The Philopseudes stands at the intersection of three of the liveliest fields in the study of antiquity: magic, traditional narratives, and the Lucianic oeuvre itself. Ogden's cross-fertilising expertise in all three of these fields enables him to build sophisticated analyses for each of the tales and to place them sensitively in their historical, cultural and literary contexts. Among the themes of the work are Lucian's methods of adapting motifs from traditional narratives, and the text's overlooked Cynic voice.

In many ways, being an outdoorsman on the plains and prairies of North America is much the same today as it was one hundred years ago. The hunting concept of "fair chase," the respect for the environment, even the dangers associated with being out on the prairie on a frigid winter day in pursuit of game hasn't changed over time. Frick's Creek and Other Tales takes the reader on a humorous and thought provoking journey across the plains. It loosely follows one extended family in a tight-knit community, showing how youngsters are taught the code and how adults live by it. A short novella about a champion bird dog, told through the mind of the dog, is included as well. The author has been training and competing with these rare dogs for over thirty-five years, and he has come to understand their true nature as much as a person can. Anyone who has owned, trained, and/or handled these dogs knows there is something different about the way they think. This novella gives the reader a good idea of what that thinking is. The journey starts at birth and continues well beyond the dog's competitive years. At times heartwarming and tragic, this story is riveting throughout.

"Lydia Peelle has given us a collection of stories so artfully constructed and deeply imagined they read like classics. It marks the beginning of what will surely be a long and beautiful career." —Ann Patchett In Reasons for and Advantages of Breathing, Lydia Peelle brings together eight brilliant stories—two of which won Pushcart Prizes and one of which won an O. Henry Prize—that peer straight into the human heart. In startling and original prose, she examines lives derailed by the loss of a vital connection to the land and to the natural world of which they are a part. Reasons for and Advantages of Breathing conveys an almost Faulknerian ache for the pre-modern South, for a landscape and a way of life lost to the ravages of money and technology.

Ellen Schneider is a young Christian who doesn’t believe in the word impossible. As she boards an airplane for France with three of her girlfriends, she excitedly looks forward to her adventure in a foreign country. But all of that is about to change when she hears a loud boom and the plane goes dark. In a collection of diverse short stories, Anthony Scavillo shares fascinating sometimes shocking insights into American life while portraying characters trapped in difficult situations and often unable to resolve the problems confronting them. Eight-year-old Angel loves ice cream sundaes, late evening snacks, and treats at fast food restaurants. Even though her parents try their best to make her happy, they are never home. Will Angel find a way to love herself unconditionally? For weeks, Marge and her husband, David, have barely been speaking. Now it is their tenth wedding anniversary and she cannot help but wonder if it will be their last. Mary feels much older than her fifty-eight years. When she receives a stunning diagnosis, Mary’s faith is tested in ways she never imagined. Down and Out in a Double-Wide and Other Tales of Modern Life asembles modern tales that delve into the American psyche while questioning our deepest beliefs.

The Sage of Wales' adventures continue in this exciting new collection by Andrew Ian Dodge In a short novel, The Sage must help his friend, Reginald Wiggenbottom, discover strength out of legend in order to save his unborn son from a nasty conspiracy Followed by three additional short tales First, the Sage must help a man come to grips with a dangerous family legacy. In the second, he must stop an overly detailed writer from accidentally freeing the Elder God, Cthulhu, from his watery cave and so bringing about the end of mankind. And finally, he must devise a way to keep an evil offshoot of Islam from raising a bloodthirsty pharaoh.