Small Pleasures

Small Pleasures PDF Author: Clare Chambers
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0063091003
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 403

Get Book

Book Description
In the best tradition of Tessa Hadley, Kazuo Ishiguro, and Ann Patchett—an astonishing, keenly observed period piece about an ordinary British woman in the 1950s whose dutiful life takes a sudden turn into a pitched battle between propriety and unexpected passion. "With wit and dry humor...quietly affecting in unexpected ways. Chambers' language is beautiful, achieving what only the most skilled writers can: big pleasure wrought from small details."--The New York Times LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 1957: Jean Swinney is a feature writer on a local paper in the southeast suburbs of London. Clever but with limited career opportunities and on the brink of forty, Jean lives a dreary existence that includes caring for her demanding widowed mother, who rarely leaves the house. It’s a small life with little joy and no likelihood of escape. That all changes when a young woman, Gretchen Tilbury, contacts the paper to claim that her daughter is the result of a virgin birth. Jean seizes onto the bizarre story and sets out to discover whether Gretchen is a miracle or a fraud. But the more Jean investigates, the more her life becomes strangely (and not unpleasantly) intertwined with that of the Tilburys, including Gretchen’s gentle and thoughtful husband Howard, who mostly believes his wife, and their quirky and charming daughter Margaret, who becomes a sort of surrogate child for Jean. Gretchen, too, becomes a much-needed friend in an otherwise empty social life. Jean cannot bring herself to discard what seems like her one chance at happiness, even as the story that she is researching starts to send dark ripples across all their lives…with unimaginable consequences. Both a mystery and a love story, Small Pleasures is a literary tour-de-force in the style of The Remains of the Day, about conflict between personal fulfillment and duty; a novel that celebrates the beauty and potential for joy in all things plain and unfashionable.

Small Pleasures

Small Pleasures PDF Author: Clare Chambers
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0063091003
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 403

Get Book

Book Description
In the best tradition of Tessa Hadley, Kazuo Ishiguro, and Ann Patchett—an astonishing, keenly observed period piece about an ordinary British woman in the 1950s whose dutiful life takes a sudden turn into a pitched battle between propriety and unexpected passion. "With wit and dry humor...quietly affecting in unexpected ways. Chambers' language is beautiful, achieving what only the most skilled writers can: big pleasure wrought from small details."--The New York Times LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 1957: Jean Swinney is a feature writer on a local paper in the southeast suburbs of London. Clever but with limited career opportunities and on the brink of forty, Jean lives a dreary existence that includes caring for her demanding widowed mother, who rarely leaves the house. It’s a small life with little joy and no likelihood of escape. That all changes when a young woman, Gretchen Tilbury, contacts the paper to claim that her daughter is the result of a virgin birth. Jean seizes onto the bizarre story and sets out to discover whether Gretchen is a miracle or a fraud. But the more Jean investigates, the more her life becomes strangely (and not unpleasantly) intertwined with that of the Tilburys, including Gretchen’s gentle and thoughtful husband Howard, who mostly believes his wife, and their quirky and charming daughter Margaret, who becomes a sort of surrogate child for Jean. Gretchen, too, becomes a much-needed friend in an otherwise empty social life. Jean cannot bring herself to discard what seems like her one chance at happiness, even as the story that she is researching starts to send dark ripples across all their lives…with unimaginable consequences. Both a mystery and a love story, Small Pleasures is a literary tour-de-force in the style of The Remains of the Day, about conflict between personal fulfillment and duty; a novel that celebrates the beauty and potential for joy in all things plain and unfashionable.

The Small Pleasures of Life

The Small Pleasures of Life PDF Author: Philippe Delerm
Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
ISBN: 9781474609678
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 96

Get Book

Book Description
An enchanting celebration of life's small pleasures, this little book captures the French imagination and art of living a good life. Each chapter features a small pleasure that is both uniquely Gallic and universal. From the smell of apples maturing in a cellar to the gentle whir of a bicycle dynamo at dusk to turning the pages of a newspaper over breakfast, to the joy of a snowstorm inside a paperweight . . . Recounted with a lively, innocent curiosity about the little things that make life worthwhile, this is an unforgettable, absorbing read to be savoured at length by everyone looking to create more peace and joy in their lives.

Small Pleasures

Small Pleasures PDF Author: Justine Toms
Publisher: Hampton Roads Publishing
ISBN: 1612830269
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 150

Get Book

Book Description
Small Pleasures is a collection of forty-nine short meditative essays that help readers to turn aside from their chaotic lives for a while to experience grace and possibility in the small, critically important things in life. Author Justine Toms divides the book into five sections, each with essays that draw upon her many connections and her wealth of experiences:A Broad Horizon: How We See Ourselves in the WorldAnimals and Nature as TeacherBe an Activist without Driving Yourself CrazyWith a Little Help from Our Friends--Circles and FriendshipsCelebrations and Rituals With a foreword by author Carole Lee Flinders (co-author of Laurel's Kitchen), Small Pleasures offers many ways for readers to "tune-in" to their daily lives and connect with what is good, meaningful, and beautiful.

We Could Almost Eat Outside

We Could Almost Eat Outside PDF Author: Philippe Delerm
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 9780312203641
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 104

Get Book

Book Description
A number-one bestseller in France: A charming medititation on the pleasures of life, from shelling peas to reading on the beach. "A tiny breeze of delirious wisdom which changes everything and nothing...We could almost eat outside." An enchanting valentine to the everyday delights life has to offer, this short book captured the imagination of the French public last year and became a number-one bestseller. Sales are now over 600,000 copies. In each brief chapter the author contemplates the seemingly ordinary experiences that add joy to life, whether it's the first sip of beer, the snowstorm inside a paperweight, reading an Agatha Christie novel, or the smell of apples. At once uniquely French and yet universal, told with a lively, almost childlike curiosity, this charming book reminds us to enjoy and appreciate the small things that make life worthwhile.

The Tiny Book of Tiny Pleasures

The Tiny Book of Tiny Pleasures PDF Author: Irene Smit
Publisher: Workman Publishing Company
ISBN: 1523502142
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 400

Get Book

Book Description
A perfect gift book filled with whimsical, colorful illustrations, short lists, cheerful prompts, recipes, and fun facts, The Tiny Book of Tiny Pleasures is the sweetest reminder imaginable that it’s the little things in life that make us happy. Little things like sharing tea with a friend. An ice cream cone with sprinkles. Finding a forgotten item of clothing in the closet. The smell in the air right after a summer rain. Created by the editors of Flow magazine, The Tiny Book of Tiny Pleasures is a celebration of slowing down and appreciating the simple moments of life—all you have to do is take notice.

Pleasures of Small Motions

Pleasures of Small Motions PDF Author: Ph. D. Fancher
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1493072714
Category : Games & Activities
Languages : en
Pages : 160

Get Book

Book Description
A psychotherapist and pool columnist breaks new ground by applying good science to the mental game of billiards and gives invaluable insight on competitive play.

Dangerous Women

Dangerous Women PDF Author: Hope Adams
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0593099591
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Get Book

Book Description
Named one of 2021’s Most Anticipated Historical Novels by Oprah Magazine ∙ Cosmopolitan ∙ and more! Nearly two hundred condemned women board a transport ship bound for Australia. One of them is a murderer. From debut author Hope Adams comes a thrilling novel based on the 1841 voyage of the convict ship Rajah, about confinement, hope, and the terrible things we do to survive. London, 1841. One hundred eighty Englishwomen file aboard the Rajah, embarking on a three-month voyage to the other side of the world. They're daughters, sisters, mothers—and convicts. Transported for petty crimes. Except one of them has a deadly secret, and will do anything to flee justice. As the Rajah sails farther from land, the women forge a tenuous kinship. Until, in the middle of the cold and unforgiving sea, a young mother is mortally wounded, and the hunt is on for the assailant before he or she strikes again. Each woman called in for question has something to fear: Will she be attacked next? Will she be believed? Because far from land, there is nowhere to flee, and how can you prove innocence when you’ve already been found guilty?

An Apprenticeship or The Book of Pleasures

An Apprenticeship or The Book of Pleasures PDF Author: Clarice Lispector
Publisher: New Directions Publishing
ISBN: 0811230678
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 150

Get Book

Book Description
Now in paperback, a romantic love story by the great Brazilian writer Lóri, a primary school teacher, is isolated and nervous, comfortable with children but unable to connect to adults. When she meets Ulisses, a professor of philosophy, an opportunity opens: a chance to escape the shipwreck of introspection and embrace the love, including the sexual love, of a man. Her attempt, as Sheila Heti writes in her afterword, is not only “to love and to be loved,” but also “to be worthy of life itself.” Published in 1968, An Apprenticeship is Clarice Lispector’s attempt to reinvent herself following the exhausting effort of her metaphysical masterpiece The Passion According to G. H. Here, in this unconventional love story, she explores the ways in which people try to bridge the gaps between them, and the result, unusual in her work, surprised many readers and became a bestseller. Some appreciated its accessibility; others denounced it as sexist or superficial. To both admirers and critics, the olympian Clarice gave a typically elliptical answer: “I humanized myself,” she said. “The book reflects that.”

Small Pleasures

Small Pleasures PDF Author: The School of Life
Publisher: School of Life
ISBN: 9780993538735
Category : Happiness
Languages : en
Pages : 248

Get Book

Book Description
So often, we exhaust ourselves and the planet in a search for very large pleasures - while all around us lies a wealth of small pleasures, which - if only we paid more attention - could daily bring us solace and joy at little cost and effort. But we need some encouragement to focus our gaze. This is a book to guide us to the best of life's small pleasures: everything from the distinctive delight of holding a child's hand to the enjoyment of disagreeing with someone to the joy of the evening sky; an intriguing, evocative mix of small pleasures that will heighten our senses and return us to the world with new-found excitement and enthusiasm.

Private Pleasures

Private Pleasures PDF Author: Bertrice Small
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101210419
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 276

Get Book

Book Description
With her renowned, sizzling sensuality, New York Times bestselling author Bertrice Small reveals the wonderful power of surrendering to our deepest desires… Nora Buckley’s worst nightmare has just come true. After years of being a devoted, dutiful housewife, she’s found out her husband is leaving her for a younger woman. Her only comfort comes from her friends—the women of Ansley Court, who meet every Monday morning for coffee and gossip. Seeing Nora’s desperation, her friends decide it’s time to let her in on a secret. It's a way she can enter a new world of erotic adventure, and unleash passions she never dared to dream of. With a new man in her life--more commanding and sexually knowing than her husband ever was--Nora realizes she can have everything she ever wanted. But abandon can be a dangerous game, and she’ll soon learn the truth of the old saying: be careful what you wish for… “If you loved Fifty Shades of Grey, you will adore Private Pleasures."– Thea Devine, author of His Little Black Book