This classic guide, from the renowned novelist and professor, has helped transform generations of aspiring writers into masterful writers—and will continue to do so for many years to come.John Gardner was almost as famous as a teacher of creative writing as he was for his own works. In this practical, instructive handbook, based on the courses and seminars that he gave, he explains, simply and cogently, the principles and techniques of good writing. Gardner’s lessons, exemplified w...

Sixteen James Bond stories from master-storyteller John Gardner.Bundle comprises of: BROKENCLAW; COLD; DEATH IS FOREVER; FOR SPECIAL SERVICES; GOLDENEYE; ICEBREAKER; LICENCE RENEWED; LICENCE TO KILL; THE MAN FROM BARBAROSSA; NEVER SEND FLOWERS; NO DEALS, MR BOND; NOBODY LIVES FOREVER; ROLE OF HONOUR; SCORPIUS; SEAFIRE; WIN, LOSE OR DIE.

While visiting their grandmother on a mysterious island, siblings Gage and Sandra are thrust into a dangerous adventure. Armed with only an ancient map, a book, and their wits, they must race against the clock to decipher the island's mysteries and save a loved one before it's too late. But the key to unlocking the secrets of Kinson Island lies with an old sea captain who harbors his enigmatic past. As they delve deeper into the island's labyrinth of riddles and puzzles, Gage and Sandra so...

This classic and much lauded retelling of Beowulf follows the monster Grendel as he learns about humans and fights the war at the center of the Anglo Saxon classic epic."An extraordinary achievement."—New York TimesThe first and most terrifying monster in English literature, from the great early epic Beowulf, tells his own side of the story in this frequently banned book. This is the novel William Gass called "one...

The suburbs - where curtains twitch, barbeques smoke and lawns are mowed. Appearance is everything. How far will people go to protect their image? Go into debt, extend their credit or stretch the truth a little? How about concealing a crime?All Charlie needed was a cleaner for his bungalow. A chance meeting would appear to have solved his problem. However one can never tell what may happen behind the double glazing?

A Vintage Shorts selection.In this chapter from his classic instructive handbook, The Art of Fiction, John Gardner illustrates the principles and techniques of good writing. Poor diction, confusing clauses, undue sentimentality and mannerism—these are pitfalls that plague experienced writers as well as those new to the craft. Exemplified with detailed excerpts from classic works of literature, Gardner explores how to achieve vivid, sensuous prose and how to avoid clumsy wr...

The story of Gilgamesh, an ancient epic poem written on clay tablets in a cuneiform alphabet, is as fascinating and moving as it is crucial to our ability to fathom the time and the place in which it was written. Gardner's version restores the poetry of the text and the lyricism that is lost in the earlier, almost scientific renderings. The principal theme of the poem is a familiar one: man's persistent and hopeless quest for immortality. It tells of the heroic exploits of an ancient ruler...

In 1943, The United Kingdom is alive with men and women making ready for the greatest invasion in history: preparing to assault Hitler's Fortress Europe. The skies are full of training aircraft, their engines merging with the throb of the RAF and USAAF bombers heading on round-the-clock missions against Germany.With fresh bloodshed on the horizon, the coming Christmas preparations seem even more poignant. But with just ten days to go, the seasonal mood is shattered in the quiet mark...

From the days of the American Revolution until now, manufacturing has been the backbone of the American economy. It is what made our country a great power, and it is the traditional path to the middle class. But in recent decades, manufacturing has come under fire. US politicians and economists have pushed damaging free-trade policies on an uncomprehending public, while adversarial countries such as China have taken advantage of that foolishness. Manufacturing is the goose that lays our go...

England, June 1944.Exactly one week after the D-Day landings came the vengeance weapons. It was the beginning of a period which, to the war-weary inhabitants of southern England, was psychologically much worse than the days of the Blitz. With Allied forces gaining a foothold after the Normandy landings, Hitler unleashes his most vicious weapon of war yet---the V-1 flying bomb.One of these new weapons lands on a Camberwell convent, killing three nuns. Suzie Mountford and her b...

The classic tale of adventure, romance, and chivalry, translated by a master of storytellingThe adventures and challenges of Sir Gawain, King Arthur’s nephew and a knight at the Round Table, including his duel with the mysterious Green Knight, are among the oldest and best known of Arthurian stories. Here the distinguished author and poet John Gardner has captured the humor, elegance, and richness of the original Middle English in flowing modern verse translations ...

This instalment in the Nineteenth-Century Literature in Transition series concerns a decade that was as technologically transitional as it was eventful on a global scale. It collects work from a group of internationally renowned scholars across disciplinary boundaries in order to engage with the wide array of cultural developments that defined the 1830s. Often overlooked as a boundary between the Romantic and Victorian periods, this decade was, the book proposes, the central pivot of the n...