Author: Ann Patchett
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0063092808
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
The beloved New York Times bestselling author reflects on home, family, friendships and writing in this deeply personal collection of essays. "The elegance of Patchett’s prose is seductive and inviting: with Patchett as a guide, readers will really get to grips with the power of struggles, failures, and triumphs alike." —Publisher's Weekly “Any story that starts will also end.” As a writer, Ann Patchett knows what the outcome of her fiction will be. Life, however, often takes turns we do not see coming. Patchett ponders this truth in these wise essays that afford a fresh and intimate look into her mind and heart. At the center of These Precious Days is the title essay, a surprising and moving meditation on an unexpected friendship that explores “what it means to be seen, to find someone with whom you can be your best and most complete self.” When Patchett chose an early galley of actor and producer Tom Hanks’ short story collection to read one night before bed, she had no idea that this single choice would be life changing. It would introduce her to a remarkable woman—Tom’s brilliant assistant Sooki—with whom she would form a profound bond that held monumental consequences for them both. A literary alchemist, Patchett plumbs the depths of her experiences to create gold: engaging and moving pieces that are both self-portrait and landscape, each vibrant with emotion and rich in insight. Turning her writer’s eye on her own experiences, she transforms the private into the universal, providing us all a way to look at our own worlds anew, and reminds how fleeting and enigmatic life can be. From the enchantments of Kate DiCamillo’s children’s books (author of The Beatryce Prophecy) to youthful memories of Paris; the cherished life gifts given by her three fathers to the unexpected influence of Charles Schultz’s Snoopy; the expansive vision of Eudora Welty to the importance of knitting, Patchett connects life and art as she illuminates what matters most. Infused with the author’s grace, wit, and warmth, the pieces in These Precious Days resonate deep in the soul, leaving an indelible mark—and demonstrate why Ann Patchett is one of the most celebrated writers of our time.
These Precious Days
Author: Ann Patchett
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0063092808
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
The beloved New York Times bestselling author reflects on home, family, friendships and writing in this deeply personal collection of essays. "The elegance of Patchett’s prose is seductive and inviting: with Patchett as a guide, readers will really get to grips with the power of struggles, failures, and triumphs alike." —Publisher's Weekly “Any story that starts will also end.” As a writer, Ann Patchett knows what the outcome of her fiction will be. Life, however, often takes turns we do not see coming. Patchett ponders this truth in these wise essays that afford a fresh and intimate look into her mind and heart. At the center of These Precious Days is the title essay, a surprising and moving meditation on an unexpected friendship that explores “what it means to be seen, to find someone with whom you can be your best and most complete self.” When Patchett chose an early galley of actor and producer Tom Hanks’ short story collection to read one night before bed, she had no idea that this single choice would be life changing. It would introduce her to a remarkable woman—Tom’s brilliant assistant Sooki—with whom she would form a profound bond that held monumental consequences for them both. A literary alchemist, Patchett plumbs the depths of her experiences to create gold: engaging and moving pieces that are both self-portrait and landscape, each vibrant with emotion and rich in insight. Turning her writer’s eye on her own experiences, she transforms the private into the universal, providing us all a way to look at our own worlds anew, and reminds how fleeting and enigmatic life can be. From the enchantments of Kate DiCamillo’s children’s books (author of The Beatryce Prophecy) to youthful memories of Paris; the cherished life gifts given by her three fathers to the unexpected influence of Charles Schultz’s Snoopy; the expansive vision of Eudora Welty to the importance of knitting, Patchett connects life and art as she illuminates what matters most. Infused with the author’s grace, wit, and warmth, the pieces in These Precious Days resonate deep in the soul, leaving an indelible mark—and demonstrate why Ann Patchett is one of the most celebrated writers of our time.
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0063092808
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
The beloved New York Times bestselling author reflects on home, family, friendships and writing in this deeply personal collection of essays. "The elegance of Patchett’s prose is seductive and inviting: with Patchett as a guide, readers will really get to grips with the power of struggles, failures, and triumphs alike." —Publisher's Weekly “Any story that starts will also end.” As a writer, Ann Patchett knows what the outcome of her fiction will be. Life, however, often takes turns we do not see coming. Patchett ponders this truth in these wise essays that afford a fresh and intimate look into her mind and heart. At the center of These Precious Days is the title essay, a surprising and moving meditation on an unexpected friendship that explores “what it means to be seen, to find someone with whom you can be your best and most complete self.” When Patchett chose an early galley of actor and producer Tom Hanks’ short story collection to read one night before bed, she had no idea that this single choice would be life changing. It would introduce her to a remarkable woman—Tom’s brilliant assistant Sooki—with whom she would form a profound bond that held monumental consequences for them both. A literary alchemist, Patchett plumbs the depths of her experiences to create gold: engaging and moving pieces that are both self-portrait and landscape, each vibrant with emotion and rich in insight. Turning her writer’s eye on her own experiences, she transforms the private into the universal, providing us all a way to look at our own worlds anew, and reminds how fleeting and enigmatic life can be. From the enchantments of Kate DiCamillo’s children’s books (author of The Beatryce Prophecy) to youthful memories of Paris; the cherished life gifts given by her three fathers to the unexpected influence of Charles Schultz’s Snoopy; the expansive vision of Eudora Welty to the importance of knitting, Patchett connects life and art as she illuminates what matters most. Infused with the author’s grace, wit, and warmth, the pieces in These Precious Days resonate deep in the soul, leaving an indelible mark—and demonstrate why Ann Patchett is one of the most celebrated writers of our time.
More Terrible Than Death
Author: Robin Kirk
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 0786740590
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 336
Book Description
More Terrible Than Death is a gripping work that maps the dramatic new relationship between the United States and Colombia in human terms, using portraits of the Colombians and Americans involved, the author's experiences in Colombia as a writer and human rights investigator and an insider's analysis of the political realities that shape the expanding war on drugs and the growing U.S. military presence there. Looking at the war from the ground up, interviewing and profiling human rights activists, guerrillas, and paramilitaries to explain how it has changed their lives, Robin Kirk gives depth and meaning to the headlines that leave unexplained the intimate dimension of the U.S./Colombian relationship.
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 0786740590
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 336
Book Description
More Terrible Than Death is a gripping work that maps the dramatic new relationship between the United States and Colombia in human terms, using portraits of the Colombians and Americans involved, the author's experiences in Colombia as a writer and human rights investigator and an insider's analysis of the political realities that shape the expanding war on drugs and the growing U.S. military presence there. Looking at the war from the ground up, interviewing and profiling human rights activists, guerrillas, and paramilitaries to explain how it has changed their lives, Robin Kirk gives depth and meaning to the headlines that leave unexplained the intimate dimension of the U.S./Colombian relationship.
Beautiful Criminals
Author: Eric Tipton
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1501136518
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 272
Book Description
"When Amanda Cooper gets out of jail, she's determined to never go back. Two years behind bars meant leaving her teenage daughter, Taylor, with Amanda's wild and riotous mother, but now that she's back, it's the three of them against the world. All Amanda wants is to secure her dream life: predictable, boring, and bordered by a white picket fence. But someone is trying to pull her back into the game. Is Amanda's new life within reach, or will her final gamble mean losing everything?"--Dust jacket flap.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1501136518
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 272
Book Description
"When Amanda Cooper gets out of jail, she's determined to never go back. Two years behind bars meant leaving her teenage daughter, Taylor, with Amanda's wild and riotous mother, but now that she's back, it's the three of them against the world. All Amanda wants is to secure her dream life: predictable, boring, and bordered by a white picket fence. But someone is trying to pull her back into the game. Is Amanda's new life within reach, or will her final gamble mean losing everything?"--Dust jacket flap.
Checkpoint Zipolite
Author: Belén Fernández
Publisher: OR Books
ISBN: 9781682193068
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 142
Book Description
"When I first committed to three full months in El Salvador, the feeling that I was signing up for the equivalent of marriage and reproduction was assuaged only by the awareness that, come March 2020, I'd be dashing around Mexico before flying to Istanbul and resuming freneticism in that hemisphere. Little did I know that the scribbled itinerary would never come to fruition, and that I'd only get as far as the coastal village of Zipolite in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, where March 13-25 would turn into March 13 until further notice." Since leaving her American homeland in 2003 Belén Fernández had been an inveterate traveler. Ceaselessly wandering the world, the only constant in her itinerary was a conviction never to return to the country of her childhood. Then the COVID-19 lockdown happened and Fernandez found herself stranded in a small village on the Pacific coast of Mexico. This charming, wryly humorous account of nine months stuck in one place nevertheless roams freely: over reflections on previous excursions to the wilder regions of North Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe; over her new-found friendship with Javier, the mezcal-drinking, chain-smoking near-septuagenarian she encounters in his plastic chair on Mexico's only clothing-optional beach; over her protracted struggle to obtain a life-saving supply of yerba mate; and over, literally, the rope of a COVID-19 checkpoint, set up directly outside her front door and manned by armed guards who require her to don a mask every time she returns home.
Publisher: OR Books
ISBN: 9781682193068
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 142
Book Description
"When I first committed to three full months in El Salvador, the feeling that I was signing up for the equivalent of marriage and reproduction was assuaged only by the awareness that, come March 2020, I'd be dashing around Mexico before flying to Istanbul and resuming freneticism in that hemisphere. Little did I know that the scribbled itinerary would never come to fruition, and that I'd only get as far as the coastal village of Zipolite in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, where March 13-25 would turn into March 13 until further notice." Since leaving her American homeland in 2003 Belén Fernández had been an inveterate traveler. Ceaselessly wandering the world, the only constant in her itinerary was a conviction never to return to the country of her childhood. Then the COVID-19 lockdown happened and Fernandez found herself stranded in a small village on the Pacific coast of Mexico. This charming, wryly humorous account of nine months stuck in one place nevertheless roams freely: over reflections on previous excursions to the wilder regions of North Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe; over her new-found friendship with Javier, the mezcal-drinking, chain-smoking near-septuagenarian she encounters in his plastic chair on Mexico's only clothing-optional beach; over her protracted struggle to obtain a life-saving supply of yerba mate; and over, literally, the rope of a COVID-19 checkpoint, set up directly outside her front door and manned by armed guards who require her to don a mask every time she returns home.
The Dutch House
Author: Ann Patchett
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062963694
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
Pulitzer Prize Finalist | New York Times Bestseller | A Read with Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick | A New York Times Book Review Notable Book | TIME Magazine's 100 Must-Read Books of the Year Named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR, The Washington Post; O: The Oprah Magazine, Real Simple, Good Housekeeping, Vogue, Refinery29, and Buzzfeed From Ann Patchett, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Commonwealth, comes a powerful, richly moving story that explores the indelible bond between two siblings, the house of their childhood, and a past that will not let them go. The Dutch House is the story of a paradise lost, a tour de force that digs deeply into questions of inheritance, love and forgiveness, of how we want to see ourselves and of who we really are. At the end of the Second World War, Cyril Conroy combines luck and a single canny investment to begin an enormous real estate empire, propelling his family from poverty to enormous wealth. His first order of business is to buy the Dutch House, a lavish estate in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. Meant as a surprise for his wife, the house sets in motion the undoing of everyone he loves. The story is told by Cyril’s son Danny, as he and his older sister, the brilliantly acerbic and self-assured Maeve, are exiled from the house where they grew up by their stepmother. The two wealthy siblings are thrown back into the poverty their parents had escaped from and find that all they have to count on is one another. It is this unshakeable bond between them that both saves their lives and thwarts their futures. Set over the course of five decades, The Dutch House is a dark fairy tale about two smart people who cannot overcome their past. Despite every outward sign of success, Danny and Maeve are only truly comfortable when they’re together. Throughout their lives they return to the well-worn story of what they’ve lost with humor and rage. But when at last they’re forced to confront the people who left them behind, the relationship between an indulged brother and his ever-protective sister is finally tested.
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062963694
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 292
Book Description
Pulitzer Prize Finalist | New York Times Bestseller | A Read with Jenna Today Show Book Club Pick | A New York Times Book Review Notable Book | TIME Magazine's 100 Must-Read Books of the Year Named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR, The Washington Post; O: The Oprah Magazine, Real Simple, Good Housekeeping, Vogue, Refinery29, and Buzzfeed From Ann Patchett, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Commonwealth, comes a powerful, richly moving story that explores the indelible bond between two siblings, the house of their childhood, and a past that will not let them go. The Dutch House is the story of a paradise lost, a tour de force that digs deeply into questions of inheritance, love and forgiveness, of how we want to see ourselves and of who we really are. At the end of the Second World War, Cyril Conroy combines luck and a single canny investment to begin an enormous real estate empire, propelling his family from poverty to enormous wealth. His first order of business is to buy the Dutch House, a lavish estate in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. Meant as a surprise for his wife, the house sets in motion the undoing of everyone he loves. The story is told by Cyril’s son Danny, as he and his older sister, the brilliantly acerbic and self-assured Maeve, are exiled from the house where they grew up by their stepmother. The two wealthy siblings are thrown back into the poverty their parents had escaped from and find that all they have to count on is one another. It is this unshakeable bond between them that both saves their lives and thwarts their futures. Set over the course of five decades, The Dutch House is a dark fairy tale about two smart people who cannot overcome their past. Despite every outward sign of success, Danny and Maeve are only truly comfortable when they’re together. Throughout their lives they return to the well-worn story of what they’ve lost with humor and rage. But when at last they’re forced to confront the people who left them behind, the relationship between an indulged brother and his ever-protective sister is finally tested.
The Chairman's Lounge
Author: Joe Aston
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1761429779
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 262
Book Description
From the must-read journalist on how power, money and influence work in this country, the full story of how one of the nation's favorite brands brought itself to ground. Before Covid, both Qantas and its CEO Alan Joyce were flying high, the darlings of customers, staff and investors. After Covid hit, only money mattered – in particular, the company's share price and extraordinary executive bonuses. Illegally redundant workers, unethical flight credits, abysmal customer service, antique aircraft: these became Qantas' new brand. How did things go so badly wrong? Why were customers at the end of the queue? And how did an increasingly autocratic Joyce constantly get his own way, with the Qantas board and with both Liberal and Labor governments, which handed out over billions in subsidies and protected lucrative flight routes from foreign competition? For the first time, The Chairman's Lounge tells the full story of how one company banked the nation's loyalty and then cashed in on it. In his celebrated Rear Window column for the Australian Financial Review , Joe Aston's reporting of the ethical failings of Qantas spurred the early retirement of its CEO and the resignation of its chairman. With fresh interviews and revelations, written in Aston's trademark swashbuckling style , The Chairman's Lounge is the definitive account of how Qantas was brought to the ground and who did it. It is a parable of our times. 'A masterclass in investigative journalism... A scathing, unflinching takedown of greed, delusion and a shameless abuse of power, both jaw-dropping and brilliantly incisive' Adele Ferguson
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1761429779
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 262
Book Description
From the must-read journalist on how power, money and influence work in this country, the full story of how one of the nation's favorite brands brought itself to ground. Before Covid, both Qantas and its CEO Alan Joyce were flying high, the darlings of customers, staff and investors. After Covid hit, only money mattered – in particular, the company's share price and extraordinary executive bonuses. Illegally redundant workers, unethical flight credits, abysmal customer service, antique aircraft: these became Qantas' new brand. How did things go so badly wrong? Why were customers at the end of the queue? And how did an increasingly autocratic Joyce constantly get his own way, with the Qantas board and with both Liberal and Labor governments, which handed out over billions in subsidies and protected lucrative flight routes from foreign competition? For the first time, The Chairman's Lounge tells the full story of how one company banked the nation's loyalty and then cashed in on it. In his celebrated Rear Window column for the Australian Financial Review , Joe Aston's reporting of the ethical failings of Qantas spurred the early retirement of its CEO and the resignation of its chairman. With fresh interviews and revelations, written in Aston's trademark swashbuckling style , The Chairman's Lounge is the definitive account of how Qantas was brought to the ground and who did it. It is a parable of our times. 'A masterclass in investigative journalism... A scathing, unflinching takedown of greed, delusion and a shameless abuse of power, both jaw-dropping and brilliantly incisive' Adele Ferguson
Practical Peer-to-Peer Teaching and Learning on the Social Web
Author: Hai-Jew, Shalin
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN: 1799864987
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 497
Book Description
On the Social Web, people share their enthusiasms and expertise on almost every topic, and based on this, learners can find resources created by individuals with varying expertise. Through this trend and the wide availability of video cameras and authoring tools, people are creating DIY resources and sharing their knowledge, skills, and abilities broadly. While these resources are increasing in availability, what has not been explored is the effectiveness of these resources, peer-to-peer teaching and learning, and how well this content prepares learners for professional roles. Practical Peer-to-Peer Teaching and Learning on the Social Web explores the efficacies of online teaching and learning with materials by peers and provides insights into what is made available for teaching and learning by the broad public. It also considers intended and unintended outcomes of open-shared learning online and discusses practical ethics in teaching and learning online. Covering topics such as learner roles and instructional design, it is ideal for teachers, instructional designers and developers, software developers, user interface designers, researchers, academicians, and students.
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN: 1799864987
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 497
Book Description
On the Social Web, people share their enthusiasms and expertise on almost every topic, and based on this, learners can find resources created by individuals with varying expertise. Through this trend and the wide availability of video cameras and authoring tools, people are creating DIY resources and sharing their knowledge, skills, and abilities broadly. While these resources are increasing in availability, what has not been explored is the effectiveness of these resources, peer-to-peer teaching and learning, and how well this content prepares learners for professional roles. Practical Peer-to-Peer Teaching and Learning on the Social Web explores the efficacies of online teaching and learning with materials by peers and provides insights into what is made available for teaching and learning by the broad public. It also considers intended and unintended outcomes of open-shared learning online and discusses practical ethics in teaching and learning online. Covering topics such as learner roles and instructional design, it is ideal for teachers, instructional designers and developers, software developers, user interface designers, researchers, academicians, and students.
By the Book
Author: Amanda Sellet
Publisher: Clarion Books
ISBN: 0358156610
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 389
Book Description
"A teen obsessed with 19th century literature tries to cull advice on life and love from her favorite classic heroines to disastrous results--especially when she falls for the school's resident lothario"--
Publisher: Clarion Books
ISBN: 0358156610
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 389
Book Description
"A teen obsessed with 19th century literature tries to cull advice on life and love from her favorite classic heroines to disastrous results--especially when she falls for the school's resident lothario"--
Math in the Time of Corona
Author: Alice Wonders
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030771660
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 208
Book Description
The title of this book, Math in the Time of Corona, has been drawn from the highly acclaimed novel by Gabriel García Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera. The volume editor, Alice Wonders, holds a fictitious name that represents the mathematics publishing group at Springer Nature. Undeterred by disasters, so many mathematical and scientific discoveries have been made during times of duress or confinement. Unlike most any other subject, mathematics may be researched from anywhere. Covid-19, like Cholera, implementation of vaccinations have been uneven throughout the globe since the beginning of 2021. However, there has been a renewed hope for a return to normalcy though the timing will no doubt vary worldwide. Essays in this volume vary in topic and are written by members of the greater mathematics community, hence the use of “Math” in the book title. They recount or describe significant or noteworthy discoveries, musings, award winnings, eureka moments, challenges, solutions, inspirations, etc. that have resulted from, or have occurred during, an unprecedented global pandemic. Several of the authors have been involved in starting new research and devising new methodologies related to society’s response to the outbreak and its ability to self-organize during a dramatic and complex situation. Some contributions describe how mathematical models and the management of big data have proved to be fundamental tools for the interpretation of epidemic activity and development of coping mechanisms.
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030771660
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 208
Book Description
The title of this book, Math in the Time of Corona, has been drawn from the highly acclaimed novel by Gabriel García Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera. The volume editor, Alice Wonders, holds a fictitious name that represents the mathematics publishing group at Springer Nature. Undeterred by disasters, so many mathematical and scientific discoveries have been made during times of duress or confinement. Unlike most any other subject, mathematics may be researched from anywhere. Covid-19, like Cholera, implementation of vaccinations have been uneven throughout the globe since the beginning of 2021. However, there has been a renewed hope for a return to normalcy though the timing will no doubt vary worldwide. Essays in this volume vary in topic and are written by members of the greater mathematics community, hence the use of “Math” in the book title. They recount or describe significant or noteworthy discoveries, musings, award winnings, eureka moments, challenges, solutions, inspirations, etc. that have resulted from, or have occurred during, an unprecedented global pandemic. Several of the authors have been involved in starting new research and devising new methodologies related to society’s response to the outbreak and its ability to self-organize during a dramatic and complex situation. Some contributions describe how mathematical models and the management of big data have proved to be fundamental tools for the interpretation of epidemic activity and development of coping mechanisms.
The Wilder Life
Author: Wendy McClure
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101486538
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 266
Book Description
For anyone who has ever wanted to step into the world of a favorite book, here is a pioneer pilgrimage, a tribute to Laura Ingalls Wilder, and a hilarious account of butter-churning obsession. Wendy McClure is on a quest to find the world of beloved Little House on the Prairie author Laura Ingalls Wilder-a fantastic realm of fiction, history, and places she's never been to, yet somehow knows by heart. She retraces the pioneer journey of the Ingalls family- looking for the Big Woods among the medium trees in Wisconsin, wading in Plum Creek, and enduring a prairie hailstorm in South Dakota. She immerses herself in all things Little House, and explores the story from fact to fiction, and from the TV shows to the annual summer pageants in Laura's hometowns. Whether she's churning butter in her apartment or sitting in a replica log cabin, McClure is always in pursuit of "the Laura experience." Along the way she comes to understand how Wilder's life and work have shaped our ideas about girlhood and the American West. The Wilder Life is a loving, irreverent, spirited tribute to a series of books that have inspired generations of American women. It is also an incredibly funny first-person account of obsessive reading, and a story about what happens when we reconnect with our childhood touchstones-and find that our old love has only deepened.
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101486538
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 266
Book Description
For anyone who has ever wanted to step into the world of a favorite book, here is a pioneer pilgrimage, a tribute to Laura Ingalls Wilder, and a hilarious account of butter-churning obsession. Wendy McClure is on a quest to find the world of beloved Little House on the Prairie author Laura Ingalls Wilder-a fantastic realm of fiction, history, and places she's never been to, yet somehow knows by heart. She retraces the pioneer journey of the Ingalls family- looking for the Big Woods among the medium trees in Wisconsin, wading in Plum Creek, and enduring a prairie hailstorm in South Dakota. She immerses herself in all things Little House, and explores the story from fact to fiction, and from the TV shows to the annual summer pageants in Laura's hometowns. Whether she's churning butter in her apartment or sitting in a replica log cabin, McClure is always in pursuit of "the Laura experience." Along the way she comes to understand how Wilder's life and work have shaped our ideas about girlhood and the American West. The Wilder Life is a loving, irreverent, spirited tribute to a series of books that have inspired generations of American women. It is also an incredibly funny first-person account of obsessive reading, and a story about what happens when we reconnect with our childhood touchstones-and find that our old love has only deepened.