As Madeleine L' Engle once observed, " The great thing about getting older is that you don' t lose all the other ages you' ve been." In 20 Over 60, editors Beth Weinhouse and David Galef showcase twenty brilliant short stories by authors over sixty— including luminaries such as Paul Theroux, Joyce Carol Oates, and Jane Gardam— offering a wide-ranging portrait of life in later years: vibrant, unexpected, and full of humor, wisdom, and surprise. Readers will encounter a retired couple whose ...

Obsession takes over two lives: one brazenly, the other more sneakily in this witty black comedy of lust, academia, and Southern manners. When bachelor history professor, Max Finster, arrives in the university community of Oxford, Mississippi, and moves in next door to Don and Susan Shapiro, all of their lives head for dramatic change. Narrator Don, a professor of English, gradually becomes fascinated by Max, his mysterious past, polymathic mind, chameleon personality and strange sexual ag...

In Brevity, David Galef provides a guide to writing flash fiction, from tips on technique to samples by canonical and contemporary authors to provocative prompts that inspire powerful stories in a little space. Galef traces the genre back to its varied origins, from the short-short to nanofiction, with examples that include vignettes, prose poems, character sketches, fables, lists, twist stories, surrealism, and metafiction. The authors range from the famous, such as Colette and B...

Even Monkeys Fall From Trees: The Wit and Wisdom of Japanese Proverbs, with a foreword by Edward G. Seidensticker, is a collection of the hundred most common Japanese proverbs, with direct translations and their English equivalents.A delightful window into the heart of everyday Japan, Even Monkeys Fall From Trees is an indispensable guide for the traveler, student, or businessman-or anyone curious about the culture of Japan.

Tony Mazza is no stranger to bad days; in fact, they often seem to define his life, including stints at a real estate agency, a bike shop, and a bar. After his latest job, as a hospital orderly, he faces jail time for driving off in a stolen ambulance. " Where did I go wrong?" he wonders as he thinks back on his failed relationships, a disastrous investment, and family challenges dating back to high school and earlier...all the way back to his birth, as recounted by his much-put-upon mothe...

"Destroy a nation, but its mountains and rivers remain."—Japanese proverbThis is a collection of 200 Japanese proverbs with illustrations and explanations for each saying.Japanese Proverbs: Wit and Wisdom is a delightfully illustrated compilation of traditional Japanese sayings and maxims. Some of the classic Japanese quotes and quotations, like "Fall down seven times, get up eight," capture the dogged perseverance of the Japanese heart. O...

"Another fabulous story—a mystery to solve, danger and romance all wrapped together. If you're not already a fan of Barbara Freethy, this story is sure to make you one." – Susan D., GoodreadsWhen firefighter Hunter Callaway makes a grisly discovery during a scorching fire at the house of his former high school sweetheart, everything he thought he knew about his past is now in question. The girl he'd loved, the one who'd broken his heart when she'd run away...

Written by one of the world's greatest living t'ai mantis system teachers, Beyond the Known is about the martial arts quest, and a mediation on the art of discipleship.In a series of parables relating the experiences of an unusually talented but otherwise typical martial artist, it calls for teachers and practitioners of all martial arts to question their motives and goals, to go beyond the superficial dazzle of prizes and awards, beyond repetition of tech...

A New York Times Book Review EDITORS' CHOICE.From the National Book Critics Circle Award-winning author of Motherless Brooklyn, comes the vividly told story of Dylan Ebdus growing up white and motherless in downtown Brooklyn in the 1970s. In a neighborhood where the entertainments include muggings along with games of stoopball, Dylan has one friend, a black teenager, also motherless, named Mingus Rude. Through the knitting and unraveling of the bo...

A gripping debut novel about friendship, loss and love; a confession of what passed between two women who met as girls in 1960s Pasadena, CaliforniaComing of age in the patrician neighborhood of Pasadena, California during the 1960s, Rebecca Madden and her beautiful, reckless friend Alex dream of lives beyond their mothers' narrow expectations. Their struggle to define themselves against the backdrop of an American cultural revolution unites them early on, until one...

Housekeeper For The HolidaysDuring the Christmas season, Rebecca Yoder agrees to help new preacher Caleb Wittner with his mischievous daughter. Amelia's turned the community of Seven Poplars upside down. Only Rebecca can see the pain hidden beneath the little girl's antics-and her father's brusque manner. After losing his wife in a fire, Caleb's physical scars may be healing, but his emotions have not. Yet Rebecca's sweet manner soon has him smiling and laughing with his daughter-a...

Alex has hit rock bottom. She’s living in her old van parked in an alley behind an abandoned warehouse. One night she sees a woman take a little girl into the derelict building and come out without her. Suddenly Alex realizes she hasn’t given up everything that makes her human, hasn’t stopped caring about others. This insight is quickly followed by another. To save the child she may destroy what’s left of her own life. How far is she willing to go – as far as murder?