The Orchid Thief

The Orchid Thief PDF Author: Susan Orlean
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0307795292
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK A modern classic of personal journalism, The Orchid Thief is Susan Orlean’s wickedly funny, elegant, and captivating tale of an amazing obsession. Determined to clone an endangered flower—the rare ghost orchid Polyrrhiza lindenii—a deeply eccentric and oddly attractive man named John Laroche leads Orlean on an unforgettable tour of America’s strange flower-selling subculture, through Florida’s swamps and beyond, along with the Seminoles who help him and the forces of justice who fight him. In the end, Orlean—and the reader—will have more respect for underdog determination and a powerful new definition of passion. In this new edition, coming fifteen years after its initial publication and twenty years after she first met the “orchid thief,” Orlean revisits this unforgettable world, and the route by which it was brought to the screen in the film Adaptation, in a new retrospective essay. Look for special features inside. Join the Random House Reader’s Circle for author chats and more. Praise for The Orchid Thief “Stylishly written, whimsical yet sophisticated, quirkily detailed and full of empathy . . . The Orchid Thief shows [Orlean’s] gifts in full bloom.”—The New York Times Book Review “Fascinating . . . an engrossing journey [full] of theft, hatred, greed, jealousy, madness, and backstabbing.”—Los Angeles Times “Orlean’s snapshot-vivid, pitch-perfect prose . . . is fast becoming one of our national treasures.”—The Washington Post Book World “Orlean’s gifts [are] her ear for the self-skewing dialogue, her eye for the incongruous, convincing detail, and her Didion-like deftness in description.”—Boston Sunday Globe “A swashbuckling piece of reporting that celebrates some virtues that made America great.”—The Wall Street Journal

The Orchid Thief

The Orchid Thief PDF Author: Susan Orlean
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0307795292
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 320

Get Book

Book Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK A modern classic of personal journalism, The Orchid Thief is Susan Orlean’s wickedly funny, elegant, and captivating tale of an amazing obsession. Determined to clone an endangered flower—the rare ghost orchid Polyrrhiza lindenii—a deeply eccentric and oddly attractive man named John Laroche leads Orlean on an unforgettable tour of America’s strange flower-selling subculture, through Florida’s swamps and beyond, along with the Seminoles who help him and the forces of justice who fight him. In the end, Orlean—and the reader—will have more respect for underdog determination and a powerful new definition of passion. In this new edition, coming fifteen years after its initial publication and twenty years after she first met the “orchid thief,” Orlean revisits this unforgettable world, and the route by which it was brought to the screen in the film Adaptation, in a new retrospective essay. Look for special features inside. Join the Random House Reader’s Circle for author chats and more. Praise for The Orchid Thief “Stylishly written, whimsical yet sophisticated, quirkily detailed and full of empathy . . . The Orchid Thief shows [Orlean’s] gifts in full bloom.”—The New York Times Book Review “Fascinating . . . an engrossing journey [full] of theft, hatred, greed, jealousy, madness, and backstabbing.”—Los Angeles Times “Orlean’s snapshot-vivid, pitch-perfect prose . . . is fast becoming one of our national treasures.”—The Washington Post Book World “Orlean’s gifts [are] her ear for the self-skewing dialogue, her eye for the incongruous, convincing detail, and her Didion-like deftness in description.”—Boston Sunday Globe “A swashbuckling piece of reporting that celebrates some virtues that made America great.”—The Wall Street Journal

The Orchid House

The Orchid House PDF Author: Lucinda Riley
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1451655800
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 468

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Book Description
Note to readers: In the UK, this book is published under the title Hothouse Flower. From beloved New York Times bestselling author Lucinda Riley, a “sweeping, poignant saga that will enthrall fans of The House at Riverton, Rebecca, and Downton Abbey” (Shelf Awareness). Spanning from the 1930s to the present day, from the Wharton Park estate in England to Thailand, this sweeping novel tells the tale of a concert pianist and the aristocratic Crawford family, whose shocking secrets are revealed, leading to devastating consequences. As a child, concert pianist Julia Forrester spent many idyllic hours in the hothouse of Wharton Park, the grand estate reminiscent of Downton Abbey where her grandfather tended exotic orchids. Years later, while struggling with overwhelming grief over the death of her husband and young child, she returns to this tranquil place. There she reunites with Kit Crawford, heir to the estate and her possible salvation. When they discover an old diary, Julia seeks out her grandmother to learn the truth behind a love affair that almost destroyed the estate. Their search takes them back to the 1940s when Harry, a former heir to Wharton Park, married his young society bride, Olivia, on the eve of World War II. When the two lovers are cruelly separated, the impact will be felt for generations to come. This atmospheric story alternates between the magical world of Wharton Park and Thailand during World War II. Filled with twists and turns, passions and lies, and ultimately redemption, The Orchid House is a beautiful, romantic, and poignant novel.

The Orchid Review

The Orchid Review PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Orchids
Languages : en
Pages : 450

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Book Description


The Orchid Whisperer

The Orchid Whisperer PDF Author: Bruce Rogers
Publisher: Chronicle Books
ISBN: 145211370X
Category : Gardening
Languages : en
Pages : 147

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Book Description
An extensive, easy-to-read guide to growing healthy orchids again and again, perfect for beginners, as well as experts looking for new tricks. Orchids are more popular than ever but can be intimidating in their exotic beauty. In this start-to-finish guide, acclaimed orchid expert Bruce Rogers demystifies the growing process so you can watch your plants thrive and bloom year after year. The Orchid Whisperer outlines: · How to buy orchids: What to look for, how to get the most for your money, and what questions to ask for · Essentials for orchid care: Watering, fertilizing, repotting, and common myths · Popular easy-to-grow orchid types and what to know about them · Creative decorating ideas: Choosing containers, displaying orchids, and how to create centerpieces and garlands · And much more Packed with expert advice and helpful tips and featuring more than one hundred beautiful color photographs of breathtaking plants, The Orchid Whisperer is a must-have for orchid lovers of every stripe. Praise for The Orchid Whisperer “In layman’s language, Rogers shares his recommendations for plant selection, repotting, watering, and fertilizing most of the tropicals you will find at local markets. Sections such as “Orchid True and False” and “Location, Location, Location” share practical advice with a splash of humor.” —Marin Independent Journal “An eminently intelligent and attractive book for beginning orchid growers. Rogers’ language is engaging and humorous, and strikes the right balance between being easy to read and needing a science degree to understand. . . . The Orchid Whisperer is one to put on the holiday list for novice orchidists.” —Orchids

The Orchid and the Dandelion

The Orchid and the Dandelion PDF Author: W. Thomas Boyce MD
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 1101946571
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 304

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Book Description
"Based on groundbreaking research that has the power to change the lives of countless children--and the adults who love them." --Susan Cain, author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts. A book that offers hope and a pathway to success for parents, teachers, psychologists, and child development experts coping with difficult children. In Tom Boyce's extraordinary new book, he explores the "dandelion" child (hardy, resilient, healthy), able to survive and flourish under most circumstances, and the "orchid" child (sensitive, susceptible, fragile), who, given the right support, can thrive as much as, if not more than, other children. Boyce writes of his pathfinding research as a developmental pediatrician working with troubled children in child-development research for almost four decades, and explores his major discovery that reveals how genetic make-up and environment shape behavior. He writes that certain variant genes can increase a person's susceptibility to depression, anxiety, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and antisocial, sociopathic, or violent behaviors. But rather than seeing this "risk" gene as a liability, Boyce, through his daring research, has recast the way we think of human frailty, and has shown that while these "bad" genes can create problems, they can also, in the right setting and the right environment, result in producing children who not only do better than before but far exceed their peers. Orchid children, Boyce makes clear, are not failed dandelions; they are a different category of child, with special sensitivities and strengths, and need to be nurtured and taught in special ways. And in The Orchid and the Dandelion, Boyce shows us how to understand these children for their unique sensibilities, their considerable challenges, their remarkable gifts.

The Orchid Affair

The Orchid Affair PDF Author: Lauren Willig
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101495456
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 435

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Book Description
Veteran governess Laura Grey joins the Selwick Spy School expecting to find elaborate disguises and thrilling adventures in service to the spy known as the Pink Carnation. She hardly expects her first assignment to be serving as governess for the children of André Jaouen, right-hand man to Bonaparte's minister of police. At first the job is as lively as Latin, but Laura begins to notice Jaouen's increasingly strange behavior. As Laura edges closer to her employer, she is surprised to learn that she has much in common with him. And Jaouen finds he's hired more than he's bargained for...

The Scent of Scandal

The Scent of Scandal PDF Author: Craig Pittman
Publisher: Florida History and Culture
ISBN: 9780813060569
Category : Gardening
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
2012 Florida Book Awards, Silver Medal for Florida Non-Fiction "FANTASTIC. If I did not know most of the main players I would have thought the author had a vivid and twisted imagination."--Paul Martin Brown, author of Wild Orchids of Florida "A fascinating true story of obsession, greed, and lust for the unobtainable. Reminds me a great deal of The Maltese Falcon. This rare flower is definitely the stuff that dreams are made of."--Ace Atkins, author of Devil's Garden and Infamous "Pittman has captured the extreme competition, unique characters, and general insanity that often typify the orchid world. The Scent of Scandal exemplifies how passion and profit can overrule common sense and the law."--Scott Steward, former associate editor, North American Native Orchid Journal After its Peruvian discovery in 2002, Phragmipedium kovachii became the rarest and most sought-after orchid in the world. Prices soared to $10,000 on the black market. Then one showed up at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, where every year more than 100,000 people visit. They come for the lush landscape on Sarasota Bay and for Selby's vast orchid collection, one of the most magnificent in the world. The collision between Selby's scientists and the smugglers of Phrag. Kovachii, a rare ladyslipper orchid hailed as the most significant and beautiful new species discovered in a century, led to search warrants, a grand jury investigation, and criminal charges. It made headlines around the country, cost the gardens hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations, and led to tremendous internal turmoil. Investigative journalist Craig Pittman unravels this tangled web to shine a spotlight on flaws in the international treaties governing trade in endangered wildlife--which may protect individual plants and animals in shipping but do little to halt the destruction of whole colonies in the wild. The Scent of Scandal unspools like a riveting mystery novel, stranger than anything in Susan Orlean's The Orchid Thief or the film Adaptation. Pittman shows how some people can become so obsessed--with beauty, with profit, with fame--that they will ignore everything, even the law.

The Kew Gardener's Guide to Growing Orchids

The Kew Gardener's Guide to Growing Orchids PDF Author: Philip Seaton
Publisher: White Lion Publishing
ISBN: 0711242801
Category : Gardening
Languages : en
Pages : 147

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Book Description
A combination of botanical beauty and practical advice in Kew Gardener’s Guide to Growing Orchids will inspire beginners and experienced growers to love and grow 60 beautiful orchids and 12 inspirational projects. From growing from seed to harvesting vanilla pods, the projects will bring the wonderful world of orchids to life and produce confident, keen growers wanting to expand their experience of these exotic flora.

The Orchid House

The Orchid House PDF Author: Phyllis Shand Allfrey
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
ISBN: 9780813523323
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 220

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Book Description
First published in 1954, The Orchid House, Phyllis Shand Allfrey's only published novel, is a classic of Caribbean literature. In this markedly autobiographical story of the three daughters of a once-powerful but now impoverished white family, Allfrey interweaves her family's history with the history of her home island of Dominica in the twentieth century. The novel is written in a sensuous style and the story remarkably told through the eyes of Lally, the black nurse of the three sisters. Often praised for the clearsightedness of its analysis of the Dominican historical process, The Orchid House stands at a crucial intersection of West Indian politics. It was during this period that the colonized took over from the colonizer the direction of local governments. Allfrey, a Fabian socialist and founder of Dominica's first political party, articulates in this novel the central tenet of a political philosophy that guided a lifetime of grassroots activism: that profound changes had to take place in the power structures of Caribbean societies to bring social justice to its peoples, and that those who persevered in seeking to revive the past were doomed. Phyllis Shand Allfrey, novelist and poet, was born in Dominica, where her father was Crown Attorney. Her work has often been compared to that of her compatriot and friend, Jean Rhys. The novel has been made into a film for British television. Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert is an associate professor in the Department of Hispanic Studies at Vassar College. She co-edited Green Cane and Juicy Flotsam: Short Stories by Caribbean Women (Rutgers University Press).

The Orchid Throne

The Orchid Throne PDF Author: Jeffe Kennedy
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
ISBN: 1250194326
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
In the Forgotten Empires magic is forbidden, dreams are destiny, and love is the greatest power of all...Perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, the lush romantic fantasy world of the Forgotten Empires series will sweep you away. A PRISONER OF FATE As Queen of the island kingdom of Calanthe, Lia will do anything to keep her people free—and her secrets safe—from the mad tyrant who rules the mainland. Guided by a magic ring of her father’s, Lia plays the political game with the cronies the emperor sends to her island. In her heart, she knows that it’s up to her to save herself from her fate as the emperor’s bride. But in her dreams, she sees a man, one with the power to build a better world—a man whose spirit is as strong, and whose passion is as fierce as her own... A PRINCE AMONG MEN Conrí, former Crown Prince of Oriel, has built an army to overthrow the emperor. But he needs the fabled Abiding Ring to succeed. The ring that Lia holds so dear to her heart. When the two banished rulers meet face to face, neither can deny the flames of rebellion that flicker in their eyes—nor the fires of desire that draw them together. But in this broken world of shattered kingdoms, can they ever really trust each other? Can their fiery alliance defeat the shadows of evil that threaten to engulf their hearts and souls? “A lush... perilous and passionate world.”—New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Estep