As a child, Lucy Mangan was reading all the time, using books to navigate the challenges and complexities of this world and many others. As an adult, she uses her new relationship with literature to seize upon the most important (how) do books prepare us for life?Bookish picks up where Bookworm left at the cusp of teenage, when everything – including the way we read – undergoes a not-so-subtle transformation. Here, Mangan vividly recounts her metamorphosis from bookworm to bookish adult, from the way GCSE curricula can impact our relationship with literature to the growing pains of swapping the pleasures of re-reading for those of book-hoarding. Revisiting the specific stories that ferried her through navigating various important stages of life – first love, first job, marriage, motherhood, and grief – Bookish maps the author’s coming-of-age in books and life lessons and sheds valuable light on how a love for reading can be nurtured intergenerationally.

One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them. In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell into the hands of Bilbo Baggins, as told in The Hobbit. In a sleepy village in the Shire, young Frodo Baggins finds himself faced with an immense task, as his elderly cousin Bilbo entrusts the Ring to his care. Frodo must leave his home and make a perilous journey across Middle-earth to the Cracks of Doom, there to destroy the Ring and foil the Dark Lord in his evil purpose.

Pink is my favorite color. I used to say my favorite color was black to be cool, but it is pink—all shades of pink. If I have an accessory, it is probably pink. I read Vogue, and I’m not doing it ironically, though it might seem that way. I once live-tweeted the September issue. In these funny and insightful essays, Roxane Gay takes us through the journey of her evolution as a woman of color while also taking readers on a ride through culture of the last few years and commenting on the state of feminism today. The portrait that emerges is not only one of an incredibly insightful woman continually growing to understand herself and our society, but also one of our culture. Bad Feminist is a sharp, funny, and spot-on look at the ways in which the culture we consume becomes who we are, and an inspiring call-to-arms of all the ways we still need to do better. Feel me, see me, hear me, reach me -- Peculiar benefits -- Typical first year professor -- To scratch, claw or grope clumsily or frantically -- How to be friends with another woman -- Girls, girls, girls -- I once was Miss America -- Garish, glorious spectacles -- Not here to make friends -- How we all lose -- Reaching for catharsis : getting fat right (or wrong) and Diana Spechler's Skinny -- The smooth surfaces of idyll -- The careless language of sexual violence -- What we hunger for -- The illusion of safety/the safety of illusion -- The spectacle of broken men -- A tale of three coming out stories -- Beyond the measure of men -- Some jokes are funnier than others -- Dear young ladies who love Chris Brown -- So much they would let him beat them -- Blurred lines, indeed -- The trouble with Prince Charming, or, He who trespassed against us -- The solace of preparing fried foods and other quaint remembrances from 1960s Mississippi : thoughts on The help -- Surviving Django -- Beyond the struggle narrative -- The morality of Tyler Perry -- The last day of a young black man -- When less is more -- The politics of respectability -- When Twitter does what journalism cannot -- The alienable rights of women -- Holding out for a hero -- A tale of two profiles -- The racism we all carry -- Tragedy, call, compassion, response -- Bad feminist : take one -- Bad feminist : take two

The Silmarillion is an account of the Elder Days, of the First Age of Tolkien’s world. It is the ancient drama to which the characters in The Lord of the Rings look back, and in whose events some of them such as Elrond and Galadriel took part. The tales of The Silmarillion are set in an age when Morgoth, the first Dark Lord, dwelt in Middle-Earth, and the High Elves made war upon him for the recovery of the Silmarils, the jewels containing the pure light of Valinor.

Begin your journey into Middle-earth. The inspiration for the upcoming original series on Prime Video, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. The Two Towers is the second part of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic adventure The Lord of the Rings. One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them. Frodo and his Companions of the Ring have been beset by danger during their quest to prevent the Ruling Ring from falling into the hands of the Dark Lord by destroying it in the Cracks of Doom. They have lost the wizard, Gandalf, in a battle in the Mines of Moria. And Boromir, seduced by the power of the Ring, tried to seize it by force. While Frodo and Sam made their escape, the rest of the company was attacked by Orcs. Now they continue the journey alone down the great River Anduin—alone, that is, save for the mysterious creeping figure that follows wherever they go.

Begin your journey into Middle-earth. The inspiration for the upcoming original series on Prime Video, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. The Return of the King is the third part of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic adventure The Lord of the Rings. One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them. The Dark Lord has risen, and as he unleashes hordes of Orcs to conquer all Middle-earth, Frodo and Sam struggle deep into his realm in Mordor. To defeat Sauron, the One Ring must be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom. But the way is impossibly hard, and Frodo is weakening. The Ring corrupts all who bear it and Frodo’s time is running out. Will Sam and Frodo succeed, or will the Dark Lord rule Middle-earth once more?

A Story of Violent Faith A multilayered, bone-chilling narrative of messianic delusion, savage violence, polygamy, and unyielding faith. This is vintage Krakauer, an utterly compelling work of nonfiction that illuminates an otherwise confounding realm of human behavior. Jon Krakauer’s literary reputation rests on insightful chronicles of lives conducted at the outer limits. In Under The Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith, he shifts his focus from extremes of physical adventure to extremes of religious belief within our own borders. At the core of his book is an appalling double murder committed by two Mormon Fundamentalist brothers, Ron and Dan Lafferty, who insist they received a revelation from God commanding them to kill their blameless victims. Beginning with a meticulously researched account of this "divinely inspired" crime, Krakauer constructs a multilayered, bone-chilling narrative of messianic delusion, savage violence, polygamy, and unyielding faith. Along the way, he uncovers a shadowy offshoot of America’s fastest-growing religion, and raises provocative questions about the nature of religious belief. Krakauer takes readers inside isolated communities in the American West, Canada, and Mexico, where some forty-thousand Mormon Fundamentalists believe the mainstream Mormon Church went unforgivably astray when it renounced polygamy. Defying both civil authorities and the Mormon establishment in Salt Lake City, the leaders of these outlaw sects are zealots who answer only to God. Marrying prodigiously and with virtual impunity (the leader of the largest fundamentalist church took seventy-five "plural wives," several of whom were wed to him when they were fourteen or fifteen and he was in his eighties), fundamentalist prophets exercise absolute control over the lives of their followers, and preach that any day now the world will be swept clean in a hurricane of fire, sparing only their most obedient adherents. Weaving the story of the Lafferty brothers and their fanatical brethren with a clear-eyed look at Mormonism’s violent past, Krakauer examines the underbelly of the most successful homegrown faith in the United States, and finds a distinctly American brand of religious extremism. The result is vintage Krakauer, an utterly compelling work of nonfiction that illuminates an otherwise confounding realm of human behavior.

In the first book of this series, Stephen King introduces readers to one of his most enigmatic heroes, Roland of Gilead, The Last Gunslinger. He is a haunting figure, a loner on a spellbinding journey into good and evil. In his desolate world, which frighteningly mirrors our own, Roland pursues The Man in Black, encounters an alluring woman named Alice, and begins a friendship with the Kid from Earth called Jake. Both grippingly realistic and eerily dreamlike, The Gunslinger leaves readers eagerly awaiting the next chapter.

20 Outlandish Real-Life Tales to Chill Your Bones and Scramble Your Brain!'So addictive, it should be illegal!'Bizarre True Crime Volume 14 is a meticulously curated anthology of real-life stories so strange, so shocking, and so utterly outlandish, they will shatter your perception of reality. Prepare for a rollercoaster of pure, unfiltered horrific absurdity that will leave you gasping, confused, and checking your locks!A glimpse into the Fridge Full Of Horrors: A reclusive son vanishes after his elderly parents are found dismembered and stored in their own fridge, leaving behind one of Houston’s most chilling and unsolved mysteries.The Denver Ghost House Slaying: In 1941 Denver, a retired railroad worker was bludgeoned to death in his locked home, sparking a nine-month mystery of a supposed haunting. The terrifying truth was far the killer had never left!Kiss, Puppy, Kill: A bizarre disappearance leaving only a puppy and a lipstick kiss remained a cold case for over twenty years, solved only when the killer, the victim’s friend, was convicted for an entirely separate and brutal triple murder.The Dead Spy in the Gym Bag: In a London safe house, a spy’s body was found in a padlocked gym bag. Was it a sex game gone wrong, as the whispers suggested? Or was he silenced by the dark arts of the secret services? Two official verdicts. One impossible truth.The Murder of Babykins and Darling Wonder Heart: When a cheating minister and his choir singer mistress were found artfully murdered beneath a crab apple tree, their torn love letters scattered around them, it ignited the Jazz Age's most notorious unsolved crime.The West Mesa Bone Collector Murders: In the New Mexico desert, a dog’s discovery of a single bone led to the largest crime scene in Albuquerque’s history, uncovering the cases of eleven missing women, one serial killer, and a mystery the sands may have already buried.Dr. Chaos: A self-styled anarchistic supervillain built a secret lair beneath Chicago, hoarding cyanide, and the literal keys to the city, while recruiting disciples for the ‘Realm of Ch@os’ group.The Girl Who Was Taken by Bigfoot: In the vast, silent wilderness of California’s Sierra Nevada, a 16-year-old girl vanished during a hunt for a mythical beast. The only witness was the man who took her there, and his story was one no one could believe, or forget.The Butcher of Blind Creek: A trusted police officer sworn to protect the public. A secret ledger of torture, sadism, and murder. For years, serial killer Gerard Schaefer hid in plain sight, his badge a key that unlocked a world of unimaginable horror.The Canal Killer and the Zombie Hunter: A killer who terrorised the canals of Phoenix in the 1990s was caught two decades later, hiding his monstrous past behind a bizarre costumed character called the Zombie Hunter.+ more unbelievable Shadows & Aliens Over TodmordenThe Devil's CipherThe Phantom Barber of PascagoulaThe Signal on Vintém HillA Voice In The DarkThe Turquin UltimatumThe Fitbit MurderThe Acid Bath MurdererThe Spaceman of Vancouver IslandThe Walrus in the CoffinAs always, Bizarre 14 is packed with dozens of photographs and a bitesize extras section at the end of the book.

Anyone that has read NAKED and BARREL FEVER, or heard David Sedaris speaking live or on the radio will tell you that a new collection from him is cause for jubilation. His recent move to Paris from New York inspired these hilarious new pieces, including 'Me Talk Pretty One Day', about his attempts to learn French from a sadistic teacher who declares that 'every day spent with you is like having a caesarean section'. His family is another inspiration. 'You Can't Kill the Rooster' is a portrait of his brother, who talks incessant hip-hop slang to his bewildered father. And no one hones a finer fury in response to such modern annoyances as restaurant meals presented in ludicrous towers of food and cashiers with six-inch fingernails.

A heartbreaking and hilarious memoir by iCarly and Sam & Cat star Jennette McCurdy about her struggles as a former child actor—including eating disorders, addiction, and a complicated relationship with her overbearing mother—and how she retook control of her life. Jennette McCurdy was six years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother’s dream was for her only daughter to become a star, and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. So she went along with what Mom called “calorie restriction,” eating little and weighing herself five times a day. She endured extensive at-home makeovers while Mom chided, “Your eyelashes are invisible, okay? You think Dakota Fanning doesn’t tint hers?” She was even showered by Mom until age sixteen while sharing her diaries, email, and all her income. In I’m Glad My Mom Died , Jennette recounts all this in unflinching detail—just as she chronicles what happens when the dream finally comes true. Cast in a new Nickelodeon series called iCarly , she is thrust into fame. Though Mom is ecstatic, emailing fan club moderators and getting on a first-name basis with the paparazzi (“Hi Gale!”), Jennette is riddled with anxiety, shame, and self-loathing, which manifest into eating disorders, addiction, and a series of unhealthy relationships. These issues only get worse when, soon after taking the lead in the iCarly spinoff Sam & Cat alongside Ariana Grande, her mother dies of cancer. Finally, after discovering therapy and quitting acting, Jennette embarks on recovery and decides for the first time in her life what she really wants. Told with refreshing candor and dark humor, I’m Glad My Mom Died is an inspiring story of resilience, independence, and the joy of shampooing your own hair.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Bad Feminist: a searingly honest memoir of food, weight, self-image, and learning how to feed your hunger while taking care of yourself. “I ate and ate and ate in the hopes that if I made myself big, my body would be safe. I buried the girl I was because she ran into all kinds of trouble. I tried to erase every memory of her, but she is still there, somewhere. . . . I was trapped in my body, one that I barely recognized or understood, but at least I was safe.” In her phenomenally popular essays and long-running Tumblr blog, Roxane Gay has written with intimacy and sensitivity about food and body, using her own emotional and psychological struggles as a means of exploring our shared anxieties over pleasure, consumption, appearance, and health. As a woman who describes her own body as “wildly undisciplined,” Roxane understands the tension between desire and denial, between self-comfort and self-care. In Hunger, she explores her past—including the devastating act of violence that acted as a turning point in her young life—and brings readers along on her journey to understand and ultimately save herself. With the bracing candor, vulnerability, and power that have made her one of the most admired writers of her generation, Roxane explores what it means to learn to take care of yourself: how to feed your hungers for delicious and satisfying food, a smaller and safer body, and a body that can love and be loved—in a time when the bigger you are, the smaller your world becomes.

Maya Angelou’s debut memoir is a modern American classic beloved worldwide. Her life story is told in the documentary film And Still I Rise, as seen on PBS’s American Masters. Here is a book as joyous and painful, as mysterious and memorable, as childhood itself. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings captures the longing of lonely children, the brute insult of bigotry, and the wonder of words that can make the world right. Maya Angelou’s debut memoir is a modern American classic beloved worldwide. Sent by their mother to live with their devout, self-sufficient grandmother in a small Southern town, Maya and her brother, Bailey, endure the ache of abandonment and the prejudice of the local “powhitetrash.” At eight years old and back at her mother’s side in St. Louis, Maya is attacked by a man many times her age—and has to live with the consequences for a lifetime. Years later, in San Francisco, Maya learns that love for herself, the kindness of others, her own strong spirit, and the ideas of great authors (“I met and fell in love with William Shakespeare”) will allow her to be free instead of imprisoned. Poetic and powerful, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings will touch hearts and change minds for as long as people read.

Probationary Constable Peter Grant dreams of being a detective in London’s Metropolitan Police. Too bad his superior plans to assign him to the Case Progression Unit, where the biggest threat he’ll face is a paper cut. But Peter’s prospects change in the aftermath of a puzzling murder, when he gains exclusive information from an eyewitness who happens to be a ghost. Peter’s ability to speak with the lingering dead brings him to the attention of Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale, who investigates crimes involving magic and other manifestations of the uncanny. Now, as a wave of brutal and bizarre murders engulfs the city, Peter is plunged into a world where gods and goddesses mingle with mortals and a long-dead evil is making a comeback on a rising tide of magic.