Collection: Adult

This important addition to our understanding of art history's masterworks puts some of the world's most famous paintings under a magnifying glass to uncover their most small and subtle elements and all they reveal about a bygone time, place, and culture.

Guiding our eye to the minutiae of subject and symbolism, authors Rose-Marie and Rainer Hagen allow even the most familiar of pictures to come alive anew through their intricacies and intrigues. Is the bride pregnant? Why does the man wear a beret? How does the shadow of war hang over a scene of dancing? Along the way, we travel from Ancient Egypt through to modern Europe, from the Renaissance to the Roaring Twenties. We meet Greek heroes and poor German poets and roam from cathedrals to cabaret bars, from the Garden of Eden to a Garden Bench in rural France.

As we pick apart each painting and then reassemble it like a giant jigsaw puzzle, these celebrated canvases captivate not only in their sheer wealth of details but also in the witness they bear to the fashions and trends, people and politics, loves and lifestyles of their time.

Super serious Asahi Suzumura and laidback, easygoing Mitsuki Sayama might seem like an odd couple, but they made a deal; they'll vacation around the world and when they get back to Japan, they'll get married.

As they travel from country to country, the different people, cultures and cuisine they encounter begin to bring them closer together. After all they're not just learning about the world, but about themselves too.

In this cornerstone of modern liberal social theory, Peter Kropotkin states that the most effective human and animal communities are essentially cooperative, rather than competitive. Kropotkin based this classic on his observations of natural phenomena and history, forming a work of stunning and well-reasoned scholarship. Essential to the understanding of human evolution as well as social organization, it offers a powerful counterpoint to the tenets of Social Darwinism. It also cites persuasive evidence of human nature's innate compatibility with anarchist society.
"Kropotkin's basic argument is correct," noted evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould. "Struggle does occur in many modes, and some lead to cooperation among members of a species as the best pathway to advantage for individuals." Anthropologist Ashley Montagu declared that "Mutual Aid will never be any more out of date than will the Declaration of Independence. New facts may increasingly become available, but we can already see that they will serve largely to support Kropotkin's conclusion that 'in the ethical progress of man, mutual support--not mutual struggle--has had the leading part.'" Physician and author Alex Comfort asserted that "Kropotkin profoundly influenced human biology by his theory of Mutual Aid. . . . He was one of the first systematic students of animal communities, and may be regarded as the founder of modern social ecology."

An addictively gripping coming-of-age story about an all-consuming, insidious love affair between a college freshman and a mysterious older woman, from an unforgettable new voice in fiction

Eighteen-year-old Natalie has just arrived at her first year of university in Toronto, leaving her remote, forested hometown for the big, impersonal city. Everyone she encounters seems to know exactly who they are. She reads advice listicles and watches videos online and thinks about how to fit in, how to really become someone, whoever that might be.

And then she meets Nora, an older woman who takes an unexpected interest in her, and is drawn unstoppably into Nora's orbit. She begins spending more and more of her time at Nora's perfect, tidy home in her beautiful, quiet world. Natalie lies to her floormates about her absence, inventing a fake off-campus boyfriend, and care­fully protects this sacred, adult relationship. This only deepens her obsession, even as she comes to suspect Nora is hiding something. As the secrets multiply and the intensity of the romance threat­ens to overwhelm her, Natalie realizes that the new, adult identity she had imagined for herself is far from the one she's actually coming to know.

With atmospheric, electric prose that captures the anxiety and emotional intensity of young adulthood like never before, The Adult is about sex, yearning, poetry, and learning to free one­self from the expectations of others. Bronwyn Fischer is an immensely talented new writer to watch.

All four of Arthur Conan Doyle's legendary Sherlock Holmes novels, collected in a unique Graphic Deluxe edition with an introduction by Michael Dirda

In 1886, an unsuccessful ophthalmologist on the southern coast of England decided to try his hand at writing a detective story. Unlike his historical romances, which required the utmost care, this could be dashed off quickly. The first draft, featuring a Mr. Sherrinford Holmes, was a bit rough around the edges, but with a little revision, something astonishing emerged: Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, and A Study in Scarlet. As if with no warning, they sprung forth from their creator's head, fully-formed in a new style so well-defined it felt immediately like an established genre. Their partnership cemented within pages of the book's opening-the sum of their parts accomplishing far more than they could apart. Sporting his signature billowing coat and pipe in hand, the genius investigator Holmes captivated readers with his alluring melancholy and superhuman intuition, while Watson remained ever the perfect foil, a classic Victorian gentleman with brilliant intellect.

Collected here are all four Holmes novels-A Study in Scarlet, The Sign of Four, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and The Valley of Fear-tracing the origins of the pair up through their greatest showdowns with arch-enemy Professor Moriarty. Set in the seductive shadow-world of Victorian London, they are at once an indelible portrait of their time and immortal stories unmarred by passing time. Though endlessly reinterpreted, reinvented and imitated, they have never been surpassed: the stories of Holmes and Watson lives on as immediate and original in our time as in their own.

An exquisite, lovingly crafted meditation on plants, trees, and our place in the natural world, in the tradition of Robin Wall Kimmerer's Braiding Sweetgrass and Annie Dillard's Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

"Sumana Roy has written--grown--a radiant and wondrous book."--Robert Macfarlane, author of The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot

"Beautiful. . . . Roy weaves together science, nature, personal narrative, literature, sociology, and more to keep the reader turning pages--and to turn us all into tree-lovers."--Kateri Kramer, The Rumpus

"I was tired of speed. I wanted to live to tree time." So writes Sumana Roy at the start of How I Became a Tree, her captivating, adventurous, and self-reflective vision of what it means to be human in the natural world.

Drawn to trees' wisdom, their nonviolent way of being, their ability to cope with loneliness and pain, Roy movingly explores the lessons that writers, painters, photographers, scientists, and spiritual figures have gleaned through their engagement with trees--from Rabindranath Tagore to Tomas Tranströmer, Ovid to Octavio Paz, William Shakespeare to Margaret Atwood. Her stunning meditations on forests, plant life, time, self, and the exhaustion of being human evoke the spacious, relaxed rhythms of the trees themselves.

Hailed upon its original publication in India as "a love song to plants and trees" and "an ode to all that is unnoticed, ill, neglected, and yet resilient," How I Became a Tree blends literary history, theology, philosophy, botany, and more, and ultimately prompts readers to slow down and to imagine a reenchanted world in which humans live more like trees.

Enjoy more joy, abundance, and blessings with this 365-day guide--with removable pages--building on The Secret's powerful truths. Perfect for your work desk or your bedside table.

All around the world, The Secret is helping millions achieve the lives of their dreams. Now, with The Secret Daily Teachings, Rhonda Byrne takes readers through the next vital steps in living The Secret.

Byrne illuminates facets of the law of attraction that lead to more joy, abundance, and blessings--every single day of the year. This beautifully designed book has removable pages so you can share your favorite teachings or take your most cherished inspirations with you as you go about the day.

The Secret Daily Teachings supports you in harnessing the hidden, untapped power of the Universe within yourself. Remember, as one of the daily teachings says, "No matter where you are, no matter how difficult things may appear to be, you are always being moved toward magnificence. Always."

"Wow, beautifully written. An incredibly exciting, interesting and wonderful vampire story. The romance is exquisite! A pure delight in every sense." ★★★★★

Haruka is alive, but not quite living. Surviving but not thriving. As an elite purebred vampire in the twenty-first century, he is broken. Content in his subpar existence.

He is done with life. But life is not finished with him.

When he receives a formal request to oversee an antiquated vampire ritual at Hertsmonceux Castle, Haruka grudgingly leaves his home to meet another purebred. The vampire is not what he expects. Truly, he is unlike any vampire Haruka has ever encountered: cautious, innocent and with the warmth and gravitational pull of the sun.

A visionary work that combines speculative fiction with deep philosophical inquiry, The Sparrow tells the story of a charismatic Jesuit priest and linguist, Emilio Sandoz, who leads a scientific mission entrusted with a profound task: to make first contact with intelligent extraterrestrial life. The mission begins in faith, hope, and beauty, but a series of small misunderstandings brings it to a catastrophic end.

Praise for The Sparrow

"A startling, engrossing, and moral work of fiction."--The New York Times Book Review

"Important novels leave deep cracks in our beliefs, our prejudices, and our blinders. The Sparrow is one of them."--Entertainment Weekly

"Powerful . . . The Sparrow tackles a difficult subject with grace and intelligence."--San Francisco Chronicle

"Provocative, challenging . . . recalls both Arthur C. Clarke and H. G. Wells, with a dash of Ray Bradbury for good measure."--The Dallas Morning News

"[Mary Doria] Russell shows herself to be a skillful storyteller who subtly and expertly builds suspense."--USA Today

2018 Reprint of 1962 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition. Not reproduced with Optical Recognition software. Reprint of the first edition of this landmark title. The black experience in America--starting from its origins in western Africa up to 1961--is examined in this seminal study from a prominent African American figure. The entire historical timeline of African Americans is addressed, from the Colonial period through the civil rights upheavals of the late 1950s to 1961, the time of publication. "Before the Mayflower" grew out of a series of articles Bennett published in Ebony magazine regarding "the trials and triumphs of a group of Americans whose roots in the American soil are deeper than the roots of the Puritans who arrived on the celebrated Mayflower a year after a 'Dutch man of war' deposited twenty Negroes at Jamestown." Bennett's history is infused with a desire to set the record straight about black contributions to the Americas and about the powerful Africans of antiquity. While not a fresh history, it provides a solid synthesis of current historical research and a lively writing style that makes it accessible and engaging reading.

Painter, sculptor, writer, and filmmaker, Salvador Dalí (1904-1989) was one of the century's greatest exhibitionists and eccentrics--and was rewarded with fierce controversy wherever he went. He was one of the first to apply the insights of Sigmund Freud and psychoanalysis to the art of painting, approaching the subconscious with extraordinary sensitivity and imagination. This publication presents the artist's painted oeuvre. After many years of research, Robert Descharnes and Gilles Néret finally located the paintings of this highly prolific artist. Many of the works had been inaccessible for years--in fact so many that almost half the illustrations in this book had rarely been seen in public.

A wistful summer blossoms between two high-school boys finding themselves and each other through a shared love of movies in this moving, dramatic, two-volume BL romance series, perfect for fans of Seven Days, Given, or I Hear the Sunspot.

SUMMER DAYS, SUMMER NIGHTS

After graduating from high school, Chiharu returns to Tokyo to start university, and spend another summer with his now-boyfriend Wataru. The two boys might be busy with their part-time jobs and schoolwork, but they're living in the same city again at last, which sets off new sparks and adventures. In addition to their usual weekend movie plans, they shake things up with a night out at a fireworks festival before continuing their summer pilgrimage to a deserted island. And then, when Wataru misses the last train home, he spends the night at Chiharu's. In return, Chiharu asks for just one thing...

2022 Hardcover Reprint of 1942 First Edition. Markham is often described as "the first person" to fly the Atlantic east to west in a solo non-stop flight, though most now dispute this claim. When Markham decided to take on the Atlantic crossing, no pilot had yet flown non-stop from Europe to New York, and no woman had made the westward flight solo, though several had died trying. Markham hoped to claim both records. On September 4, 1936, she took off from Abingdon, England. After a 20-hour flight she crash-landed at Baleine Cove on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. In spite of falling short of her goal, Markham had become the first woman to cross the Atlantic east-to-west solo, and the first person to make it from England to North America non-stop. She was celebrated as an aviation pioneer. Markham chronicled her many adventures in her memoir, West with the Night, published in 1942. Despite strong reviews in the press, the book sold modestly, and then quickly went out of print. After living for many years in the United States, Markham moved back to Kenya in 1952, becoming for a time the most successful horse trainer in the country.

A doting mother and her two beloved sons, one of whom she thinks is probably gay, go about their daily lives in this hilarious and heartwarming LGBTQIA+-friendly family comedy!

Despite belonging to a family of four, the Aoyama residence is typically home to three, with Dad away for work. Mom Tomoko and her two darling sons, Hiroki and Yuri, go about their everyday lives with little to disturb their gentle routines.

But as Hiroki begins his first year of high school, Tomoko can't help but wonder if her eldest has fallen for another boy. Though Tomoko is content to cheer on her son from the sidelines and let him work things out for himself, Hiroki's slips of the tongue are hard to ignore! With little talent for keeping his "secret," Hiroki might just die of embarrassment before all is said and done!

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts comes a trilogy about the land we're drawn to, the family we learn to cherish, and the people we long to love...

Book One of The Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy
Dark Witch

With indifferent parents, Iona Sheehan grew up craving devotion and acceptance. From her maternal grandmother, she learned where to find both: a land of lush forests, dazzling lakes, and centuries-old legends.

Ireland. County Mayo, to be exact. Where her ancestors' blood and magic have flowed through generations--and where her destiny awaits.

Iona arrives in Ireland with nothing but her Nan's directions, an unfailingly optimistic attitude, and an innate talent with horses. Not far from the luxurious castle where she is spending a week, she finds her cousins, Branna and Connor O'Dwyer. And since family is family, they invite her into their home and their lives. When Iona lands a job at the local stables, she meets the owner, Boyle McGrath. Cowboy, pirate, wild tribal horsemen, he's three of her biggest fantasy weaknesses all in one big, bold package.

Iona realizes that here she can make a home for herself--and live her life as she wants, even if that means falling head over heels for Boyle. But nothing is as it seems. An ancient evil has wound its way around Iona's family tree and must be defeated. Family and friends will fight with each other and for each other to keep the promise of hope--and love--alive...

Don't miss the other books in the Cousins O'Dwyer Trilogy
Shadow Spell
Blood Magick