Me against my brother. Stories exploring the world of Somalia leading up to its explosive religious and ethnic war.

Ayan spends her days dreaming of being a doctor, but education is limited for a girl living in rural Somalia. Born into a nomadic family that raises goats and camels, Ayan longs to live in the city-Mogadishu-where she can fulfill her ambitions. With her grandmother's help, Ayan eventually travels to Mogadishu to live with her uncle and his family, and she attends school. But the garden wall surrounding her uncle's beautiful home cannot protect her forever, and the civil war soon appears at their doorstep. Ayan is forced to set out on a harrowing journey across the country as she seeks refuge. Through terrifying adventures and moments of touching generosity, Ayan arrives in Kenya, where she finds work as a maid, restarts her education, and discovers a love that alters the course of her life. Ultimately, she resettles in Minnesota, where she pursues her dream of being a doctor-now with all the challenges of a new life in a new land. Ayan, of the Lucky is an exquisite novel about the emotional turmoil of loss and refuge, the powerful bonds of family and love, and the bright promise of a young woman's dream.

In recent years, Minneapolis has become one of America’s literary powerhouses. With over fifty poems and essays, Under Purple Skies: The Minneapolis Anthology collects some of the most exciting work being done in, or about, Minneapolis and the Twin Cities area, with narrative threads that stretch back not just to Scandinavia, but across the world. Edited by Frank Bures (The Geography of Madness), the writers included here have won, or been shortlisted for, the Newbery Award, the Man Booker Prize, the Pulitzer, the Caldecott Award, the National Book Award, the Minnesota Book Award, and many others.

No home library is complete without the classics! The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Other Stories brings together the essential works from Arthur Conan Doyle in an elegant, leather-bound, omnibus edition—a keepsake to be read and treasured. There is one literary detective who stands above all others, whose powers of deduction are known the world over, whose influence can still be felt in today's most modern whodunits. Who is it, you ask? Why, it's elementary! Sherlock Holmes, the famous gumshoe of 221B Baker Street. And Sir Arthur Conan Doyle--the man who made him famous in such tales as The Hound of the Baskervilles and A Study in Scarlet--changed the world of mysteries, inspiring legions of devoted fans. Whether you're a devotee or you've yet to be awed by Holmes's powers of deduction, you'll love this Canterbury Classics edition of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous works, including The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The Sign of Four, The Valley of Fear, The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, The Return of Sherlock Holmes, and The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes. A classic keepsake for fans of detective novels, as well as all great literature, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Other Stories is the perfect addition to any library.

A New York Times bestseller The author of the beloved #1 New York Times bestseller Reading Lolita in Tehran returns with the next chapter of her life in books—a passionate and deeply moving hymn to America Ten years ago, Azar Nafisi electrified readers with her multimillion-copy bestseller Reading Lolita in Tehran, which told the story of how, against the backdrop of morality squads and executions, she taught The Great Gatsby and other classics of English and American literature to her eager students in Iran. In this electrifying follow-up, she argues that fiction is just as threatened—and just as invaluable—in America today. Blending memoir and polemic with close readings of her favorite novels, she describes the unexpected journey that led her to become an American citizen after first dreaming of America as a young girl in Tehran and coming to know the country through its fiction. She urges us to rediscover the America of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and challenges us to be truer to the words and spirit of the Founding Fathers, who understood that their democratic experiment would never thrive or survive unless they could foster a democratic imagination. Nafisi invites committed readers everywhere to join her as citizens of what she calls the Republic of Imagination, a country with no borders and few restrictions, where the only passport to entry is a free mind and a willingness to dream.

Chaka is a genuine masterpiece that represents one of the earliest major contributions of black Africa to the corpus of modern world literature. Mofolos fictionalized life-story account of Chaka (Shaka), translated from Sesotho by D. P. Kunene, begins with the future Zulu kings birth followed by the unwarranted taunts and abuse he receives during childhood and adolescence. The author manipulates events leading to Chakas status of great Zulu warrior, conqueror, and king to emphasize classic tragedys psychological themes of ambition and power, cruelty, and ultimate ruin. Mofolos clever nods to the supernatural add symbolic value. Kunenes fine translation renders the dramatic and tragic tensions in Mofolos tale palpable as the richness of the authors own culture is revealed. A substantial introduction by the translator provides valuable context for modern readers.