'It is possible for man to snatch the world from the darkness of absurdity'How should we think and act in the world? These writings on the human condition by one of the twentieth century's great philosophers explore the absurdity of our notions of good and evil, and show instead how we make our own destiny simply by being. One of twenty new books in the bestselling Penguin Great Ideas series. This new selection showcases a diverse list of thinkers who have helped shape our world today, from anarchists to stoics, feminists to prophets, satirists to Zen Buddhists.

'Across the language barrier Dawood captures the thunder and poetry of the original' The Times The Koran is universally accepted by Muslims to be the infallible Word of God as first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by the Angel Gabriel nearly fourteen hundred years ago. Its 114 chapters, or surahs, recount the narratives central to Muslim belief, and together they form one of the world's most influential prophetic works and a literary masterpiece in its own right. But, above all, the Koran provides the rules of conduct that remain fundamental to the Muslim faith prayer, fasting, almsgiving, pilgrimage to Mecca and absolute faith in God and His apostle. Also available from The Koran with Parallel Text 9780141393841

Clarice Lispector’s Complete Stories, 85 in all, are an epiphany, among the important books of this—or any—year The recent publication by New Directions of five Lispector novels revealed to legions of new readers her darkness and dazzle. Now, for the first time in English, are all the stories that made her a Brazilian from teenagers coming into awareness of their sexual and artistic powers to humdrum housewives whose lives are shattered by unexpected epiphanies to old people who don’t know what to do with themselves. Clarice’s stories take us through their lives—and ours. From one of the greatest modern writers, these stories, gathered from the nine collections published during her lifetime, follow an unbroken time line of success as a writer, from her adolescence to her death bed. 

Ian Kerner offers a radical new philosophy for pleasuring women in She Comes First—an essential guidebook to oral sex from the author of Be Honest—You’re Not That Into Him Either. The New York Times praises Kerner’s “cool sense of humor and an obsessive desire to inform,” as he “encourages men through an act that many find mystifying.” An indispensable aid to a healthier, more fulfilling sex life for her and him, She Comes First offers techniques and philosophy that have already earned raves from the likes of bestselling author and Loveline co-host Dr. Drew Pinsky as well as Playgirl magazine, which cheers, “Hallelujah!”.

"From the #1 New York Times bestselling author, a year's worth of daily wisdom and guidance, distilled from the lessons of his six previous books and from never-before-published work Robert Greene, the bestselling author, philosopher, and life guide for millions of people, applies the wisdom of centuries to his mission of revealing the secret truths about the essential forces shaping our lives. His readers look to him to answer their most elemental "I want to become more powerful, stronger, more in control, the best at what I do. What's the secret to it?" The Pick up The Daily Laws every single day. A beautifully designed volume that is perfect for bedside reading or gifting, The Daily Laws draws from Greene's body of work to offer a page of refined and concise wisdom for each day of the year, in an easy-to-digest lesson that will only take a few minutes to absorb. Each day will feature a Daily Law as well--a prescription or prompt for the reader to follow. Each month will center around a major power, seduction, war, strategy, human nature, politics, productivity, mastery, psychology, leadership, adversity, or emotion. And each entry will be tagged to its source, so that readers who want to study the topic in more depth know where to look. "Daily study," Leo Tolstoy wrote in 1884, is "necessary for all people." More than just an entry point for new fans, this book will be a Rosetta stone for understanding and internalizing the many lessons that fill Greene's books, and will reward a lifetime of reading and re-reading"--

The world-famous masterpiece by Nobel laureate Thomas Mann -- here in a new translation by Michael Henry Heim. Published on the eve of World War I, a decade after Buddenbrooks had established Thomas Mann as a literary celebrity, Death in Venice tells the story of Gustav von Aschenbach, a successful but aging writer who follows his wanderlust to Venice in search of spiritual fulfillment that instead leads to his erotic doom. In the decaying city, besieged by an unnamed epidemic, he becomes obsessed with an exquisite Polish boy, Tadzio. "It is a story of the voluptuousness of doom," Mann wrote. "But the problem I had especially in mind was that of the artist's dignity."