Garry, it's Alan. Look, I'm calling because I just felt the need to tell someone that I'm forty-four years old, and about an hour ago, for the first time in my life, I put suntan lotion on my ass. I'll explain later. Bye. In Clothing Optional, Alan Zweibel offers a collection of laugh-out-loud personal narratives, essays, short fiction, dialogues, and even a few whimsical drawings. Zweibel first made a name for himself as one of the original writers for Saturday Night Live, but his career's humble beginnings included creating one-liners for Catskill comedians at seven dollars a pop. That experience is only one of the hysterically inspired anecdotes (Comic Dialogue) in this quirky compilation. Zweibel confesses his first love, as a young Hebrew school student, for Abraham's wife, Sarah (At this point, Sarah's husband had been dead for more than three thousand years-so, really, who would I be hurting?); recounts the time he was sent to a nudist resort to write an article (The fact that I brought luggage is, in itself, worthy of some discussion); offers a touching tribute to Saturday Night Live writer and mentor Herb Sargent (Herb was New York. But an older, more romantic New York that took place in black and white like the kind of TV I grew up on and wanted to be a part of someday); and imagines a scenario in which Sergeant Joe Friday, the stiff, monotoned character from Dragnet, is inexplicably partnered with Snoop Dogg (Damn, Friday. You gotta learn to chill. Take some free time and kick it with your boys) Every piece is punctuated with the same wit and insight that have come to define Zweibel's humor. Unhinged and hilarious, Clothing Optional is an unguidedtour through the uniquely peculiar life and mind of a man who The New York Times said has earned a place in the pantheon of American pop culture.

Product Description The day after Ray Bond receives a secret gift of $30,000 in cash from his uncle, the uncle is found dead--an apparent suicide--and Ray begins to receive anonymous threats From School Library Journal Grade 6-12 In this taut, suspenseful crime novel, Ray Bond's Uncle Ed gives the 18 year old a birthday legacy of $30,000, then commits suicide. Uncle Ed, like Ray's absent father, is a gambler who has become involved with the crime world. Ray is pursued by a ruthless killer, who demands the money supposedly to pay off his uncle's gambling debt. Ray does not reveal the situation to his girl friend, Laurie; his mother; or the police, and he refuses to turn over the money. Yet Ray begins to change his mind when a woman confidante of Uncle Ed's is murdered and the killer threatens Laurie's life. Ray reluctantly decides to meet the killer and give him the money, but the happy ending comes quickly and perhaps too neatly when Treasury men capture the killer and return the inheritance to Ray. The plot unfolds almost exclusively in short sentence dialogue, making the story particularly appealing to slower readers. Attention to only the most important details; well-drawn characters, especially Ray; and an exciting plot create a compelling mystery about a courageous teen caught in life-threatening circumstances. Phyllis Graves, Creekwood Middle School, Kingwood, Tex. Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. Review "Taut, suspenseful ... Well-drawn characters, especially Ray, and an exciting plot create a fine mystery." School Library Journal From the Inside Flap Ray accepts his uncle's generosity, never suspecting he'll become trapped in a web of terror.... Ray Bond's Uncle Ed had always been a shadowy figure, with little interest in his nephew. On Ray's eighteenth birthday, Ed gives him thirty thousand dollars in cash. He makes Ray swear he'll never tell where he got it. The next day Uncle Ed leaps from the twelfth floor of his midtown hotel. Stunned, Ray keeps his promise and withholds his secret from his grieving mother and Laurie, his girlfriend. Keeping his word is harder when he hears from Uncle Ed's girlfriend, Alice Cobb. She tells him about Ed's gambling debts and her conviction that his uncle didn't jump, but was pushed from the window. Ray also hears from Albert Dawson, the sadistic thug who may be responsible for Ed's death. He tells Ray that Ed owed him money. Furthermore, he knows where that money is. Ray senses Dawson is not the kind of guy to cross, not if you value your life....

Andy's not your average resident of exclusive Foxmeadow -- whenever he sits down to draw something, it turns out to be a dragon. And he wants to be a detective when he grows up -- not just an ordinary, everyday police detective, but a tough, cool, famous detective like the ones he reads about in mystery novels. Everyone knows a famous detective needs a sidekick, but Mrs. Edie Yakots, a lonely new bride who's just moved into Foxmeadow, isn't exactly what Andy had in mind -- he sometimes has a hard time just figuring out what's she's talking about. But she's the only volunteer for the job, and before he knows it, she's led him right into the middle of his first real crime -- in an inner-city neighborhood a short drive, and light years away, from Foxmeadow.

Includes Malamud's novel, The People , which was left unfinished at the time of his death in 1986, with the text presented as the author left it, as well as fourteen previously uncollected stories. Set in the nineteenth century, The People has as its hero a Jewish peddler who is adopted as chief by an Indian tribe in the Pacific Northwest.

In "One Basket" by Edna Ferber, readers are treated to a collection of short stories that provide a delightful glimpse into the lives of various characters. Through Ferber's skillful storytelling, these tales explore the intricacies of human relationships, dreams, and the intricacies of daily existence. The book's narrative diversity spans from the bustling streets of New York City to the quiet rural settings, making each story a unique experience. Themes of love, ambition, and personal growth are woven throughout, painting a vivid picture of American life in the early 20th century. Edna Ferber's masterful prose captures the essence of the human spirit, offering a rich and emotional reading experience for all.

Minor wear on spine.

The second volume of Adler's New York stories in which all the heartache, joy, pain and anguish of the big apple zeitgeist comes to life. These unforgettable stories will make you laugh and cry as a remarkable parade of characters pursue their busy lives in the greatest city on earth. Acclaimed author Warren Adler focuses his laser eye on New York City in these 21 vividly rendered short stories revealing New York as the heartbeat of America, where creativity resides in every nook and cranny, and energy pulsates through its pavements and infuses its denizens, inveterate New Yorkers. In a continuation of "New York Echoes 1", Adler's themes in "New York Echoes 2" deal primarily with intimate human relationships-the mysterious nature of love and attraction, the fragile bonds between husbands and wives, and parents and children; the divide between generations; the obsessive pursuit of the creative artist and the emotional toll it exacts. In these stories, past memories collide with present realities and chance encounters have unexpected consequences. All of the hallmarks of Adler's fiction are at play in "New York Echoes 2", and delivered through these powerful stories that reflect a special understanding of the human condition as seen through the eyes of one of America's most prolific authors. Above all, these radiant tales are a celebration of the short story and of an author's return to his much-loved, dearly missed native city.

Twenty-two short stories that will lift your spirits or break your heart, written to celebrate the author's return to New York City after 40 years away from it. Acclaimed author Warren Adler focuses his laser eye on New York City in these 22 deftly crafted and compelling short stories. New York, the frenetic, tough-minded, generous-hearted city, magnet for people's hopes and aspirations, is as vividly and lovingly portrayed here as any of the characters. As in his celebrated novels, Adler's themes in "New York Echoes 1" deal primarily with intimate human relationships-the mysterious nature of love and attraction, the fragile bonds between husbands and wives, and parents and children; the divide between generations; the obsessive pursuit of the creative artist and the emotional toll it exacts. In these stories, past memories collide with present realities; with first love comes first betrayal; chance encounters have unexpected consequences; and the devastating impact of 9/11 refuses to fade, wreaking havoc years after the tragedy. All of the hallmarks of Warren Adler's fiction are everywhere in evidence in "New York Echoes", in powerful stories that reflect a special understanding of the human condition as seen through the eyes of one of America's most prolific authors. Above all, these radiant tales are a celebration of the short story and of an author's return to his much-loved, dearly missed native city.

FIRST EDITION The world's most distinguished author of the literature of the fantastic presents his most extraordinary stories of worlds lost and dreams fulfilled... In his illustrious forty-five year career as a novelist and author of short fiction, Robert Silverberg has belonged in the company of the best writers of the 20th century. His writing has been compared to Conrad, Huxley, and Orwell. In this definitive collection Silverberg presents the novellas that have won him multiple Hugo and Nebula Award nominations, including his Nebula Award winning achievement, "Sailing To Byzantium." Here are the virtuoso performances of the third phase of Silverberg's astounding the Nebula Award nominee "Homefaring"; the Hugo Award nominee "The Secret Sharer"; "Thomas The Proclaimer" and "We Are For The Dark." If you are a lover of Silverberg's work or are simply looking for a place to begin a relationship with the literature of science fiction and fantasy, this is the place to start.

"No mortal can write this well." - Harlan Ellison "Kersh has a strange, perverted sense of genius. And how he can write." - Virginia Kirkus "Gerald Kersh had a wild imagination matched by a vivid, near-hallucinatory style. Many of his concepts are so original that they blur the distinction between fantasy, science fiction, mystery, and horror, but the cumulative impact of his short stories is horrific in the extreme." - Penguin Encyclopedia of Horror and the Supernatural An expedition in South America uncovers a terrifying race of men without bones who literally suck the life out of their prey. A man in 20th century London makes a horrifying discovery about a monster found off the coast of Brighton in 1745. A sea captain goes ashore on a deserted island and finds what seem to be the bones of a previously unknown species of monster, only to learn that the bones tell a much more tragic tale than he could ever have imagined. A war correspondent, none other than Kersh himself, is sailing to America when he meets a strange man who claims to be 438 years old. These are the plots of just a few of the weird tales you will find in this book. Gerald Kersh (1911-1968) was a brilliant and inventive writer acclaimed in his time for his gritty novels of London life and his often bizarre short fiction, but he has unfortunately become neglected since his death. This volume includes an introduction by award-winning science fiction author Harlan Ellison, who also selected the eleven stories that appear in this collection and which represent the very best of Kersh's short fiction. Includes: "The Queen of Pig Island," "Frozen Beauty," "The Brighton Monster," "Men Without Bones," "Busto Is a Ghost, Too Mean to Give Us a Fright ," "The Ape and the Mystery," "The King Who Collected Clocks," "Bone for Debunkers," "A Lucky Day for the Boar," "Voices in the Dust of Annan," "Whatever Happened to Corporal Cuckoo?"

From the author of Billy and Girl, this collection of stories explores the emptiness at the center of the characters' lives and their attempts to fill this lack. In "Cave Girl" Cass goes through a sex change, not to become a man, but rather to become "less of a real girl and more of a pretend woman." Her surgery transforms her into a woman desired by all men--including her brother. "Conversations with Famous Artists I Have Known" relates an afternoon discussion between two women, one who chose motherhood and a routine life at the expense of her creativity, the other a world famous, self-centered artist. In these stories about friendship, motherhood, and the search for enduring love, rules about decency and kindness are broken and repaired as men and women attempt to achieve an elusive sense of fulfillment.

For lovers of Steampunk, Dark Fantasy, and Eccentric Contraptions! After the death of Dr. Lambshead, an astonishing cabinet of curiosities was unearthed at his house. Many of these artifacts and wonders related to anecdotes and stories in the doctor's personal journals, or the adventures of his friends. We are now proud to present highlights from the doctor's cabinet, reconstructed not only through visual representations but also through exciting stories of intrigue and adventure. Rumors that Dr. Lambshead never existed are scurrilous and should be ignored!

Hailed as a masterpiece by Jean Genet, Marguerite Duras, and Jean-Paul Sartre, Tropisms is considered one of the defining texts of the nouveau roman movement. Nathalie Sarraute has defined her work as the "movements that are hidden under the commonplace, harmless instances of our everyday lives." Like figures in a grainy photograph, Sarraute's characters are blurred and shadowy, while her narrative never develops beyond a stressed moment. Instead, Sarraute brilliantly finds and elaborates subtle details--when a relationship changes, when we fall slightly deeper into love, or when something innocent tilts to the smallest degree toward suspicion.

A remarkable collection, Robots through the Ages includes stories from some of the best writers of science fiction, both old and new. This anthology, with an introduction by Robert Silverberg, offers a sweeping survey of robots as depicted throughout literature. Since the Iliad--in which we are shown golden statues built by Hephaestus "with minds and wisdoms"--humans have been fascinated by the idea of artificial life. From the Argonautica to the medieval Jewish legend of the Golem and Ambrose Bierce's tale of a chess-playing robot, the idea of what robots are--and who creates them--can be drastically different. This book collects a broad selection of short stories from celebrated authors such as Philip K. Dick, Seanan McGuire, Roger Zelazny, Connie Willis, and many more. Robots through the Ages not only celebrates the history of robots and the genre of science fiction, but the dauntless nature of human ingenuity.

The Wrong Door is the first English-language translation of the complete plays of Italian writer Natalia Ginzburg (1916-1991). Bringing together the eleven plays Ginzburg wrote between 1965 and the months before her death, this volume directs attention to Ginzburg's unique talent as a dramatist. Ginzburg's plays, like her novels and short stories, are incisive, finely tuned studies of family drama, of the breakdown of relations between the sexes, and of the tribulations of Italian domestic life. The plays showcase Ginzburg's fearless social commentary, her stark and darkly comic observations of Italian life, and her prescient analyses of the socio-economic changes that have transformed modern Italy. Along the way, Ginzburg creates memorable female characters in a series of fascinating roles. In this fluent and faithful translation, Wendell Ricketts highlights Ginzburg's scalpel-sharp dialogue and lays bare the existential absurdities that lie at the heart of her plays. Including an introduction by the translator and two essays by Ginzburg on her approach to the theatre, The Wrong Door adds a new dimension to the literary portrait of one of Italy's most significant modernist writers.

"The first title in Aperture's Vision & Justice Series-featuring a collection of award-winning short essays by Maurice Berger that explore the intersections of photography, race, and visual culture. Created and coedited by Drs. Sarah Lewis, Leigh Raiford, and Deborah Willis, the series reexamines and redresses historical narratives of photography, race, and justice"--

Gathers more than fifty stories from each period in the writer's career

Rebecca Rosenblum's Once is a fiercely original and assured debut, a collection of sixteen stories portraying the constricted and confused lives of the rootless twenty-somethings -- students, office techies, waitresses, warehouse labourers, street hustlers -- who inhabit them. These are stories grounded in the all-too-real comedy and tragedy of jobs and friendships and romances, books and buses and bodies.