Bøger udgivet af DAVID R GODINE PUBL

In his richly perceptive essay, Corboz takes to task previous European analyses of the American city which, he suggests, are little more than reflections of their own old-world bad faith. Using post-modern Los Angeles¿the L.A. of contemporary cultural theorists Frederic Jameson and Mike Davis¿as the terrain upon which his argument advances, he makes the case for a new city without a center yet united by what he sees as a typically American gregarious individualism.

We know the Buchan formula well, although few may remember it was he who set the mold: take an apparently ordinary man, and let him be drawn into a mystery he only vaguely understands; give him a task to perform, and set obstacles in his path; see that he cannot turn to established authority, see that he cannot be certain who he can trust "¬‚¬" and then, set the clock ticking. . . The novel is set during May and June 1914; war was evident in Europe, Richard Hannay the protagonist and narrator, an expatriate Scot, returns to his new home, a flat in London, after a long stay in Rhodesia to begin a new life. One night he is buttonholed by a stranger, a well-travelled American, who claims to be in fear for his life. The man appears to know of an anarchist plot to destabilize Europe, beginning with a plan to assassinate the Greek Premier, Constantine Karolides, during his forthcoming visit to London. The man reveals his name to be Franklin P. Scudder, a freelance spy, and remarks that he is dead, which holds Hannay's attention. Scudder explains that he has faked his own death to avert suspicion. Scudder claims to be following a ring of German spies called the Black Stone who are trying to steal British plans for the outbreak of war. Hannay lets Scudder hide in his flat, and sure enough the next day another man is discovered having apparently committed suicide in the same building. A couple of days later Hannay returns home to find Scudder dead with a knife through his heart. And that is just the beginning.

Young Sara Crewe, adored only child of a rich, indulgent father, arrives at Miss Minchin's Seminary for Young Ladies in a flurry of silks and satins. The envy of the pupils, who spitefully call her "the little princess," she lives a life of luxury "š€š" until her father dies and the unscrupulous Miss Minchin reduces the girl to rags and relegates her to the attic. Thrown back on her own resources, and especially to her powerful imagination, Sara demonstrates that purity of spirit can overcome material poverty, displaying the nobility of a real princess throughout her travail. The tale of how Sara's fortunes change again, as if by magic, to bless her with untold wealth and a new family has entranced generations of children since 1905.

For anyone who loves sailing and adventure, Arthur Ransome's classic Swallows and Amazons series stands alone. Originally published in the UK over a half century ago, these books are still eagerly read by children, despite their length and their decidedly British protagonists. We attribute their success to two facts: first, Ransome is a great storyteller and, second, he clearly writes from first-hand experience. Independence and initiative are qualities any child can understand and every volume in this collection celebrates these virtues. Swallows and Amazons, the book that started it all in 1930, introduces the Walker family, the camp on Wild Cat Island, the able-bodied catboat "Swallow," and the two intrepid Amazons, plucky Nancy and Peggy Blackett.

What would happen if every creature on land and sea were free to be as rotten as possible? If every day was a free-for-all; if plants grew barbed wire; if the ocean were poison? That's life on Rotten Island. For creatures that slither, creep, and crawl (not to mention kick, bite, scratch, and play nasty tricks on each other), Rotten Island is paradise. But then, on a typically rotten day, something truly awful happens. Something that could spoil Rotten Island forever. Out of a bed a gravel on the scorched earth, a mysterious, beautiful flower begins to grow]š€š]