Publisher: Krill Press
Albert Paine was a late 19th and early 20th century American author who remains best known today for collaborating with Mark Twain on a number of books.
"Shanti is a heroine that the reader will not easily forget. The story that is told here is worth not only knowing but also remembering." – Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu, author, filmmaker and academic Vividly set against the backdrop of 19th century India and the British-owned sugarcane plantations of Natal, written with great tenderness and lyricism, Children of Sugarcane paints an intimate and wrenching picture of indenture told from a woman's perspective. Shanti, a bright teenager stifled by life in rural India and facing an arranged marriage, dreams that South Africa is an opportunity to start afresh. The Colony of Natal is where Shanti believes she can escape the poverty, caste, and troubling fate of young girls in her village. Months later, after a harrowing sea voyage, she arrives in Natal only to discover the profound hardship and slave labour that await her. Spanning four decades and two continents, Children of Sugarcane demonstrates the lifegiving power of love, heartache, and the indestructible bonds between family and friends. These bonds prompt heroism and sacrifice, the final act of which leads to Shanti's redemption.Show book
Short stories have always been a sort of instant access into an author’s brain, their soul and heart. A few pages can lift our lives into locations, people and experiences with a sweep of landscape, narration, feelings and emotions that is difficult to achieve elsewhere. In this series we try to offer up tried and trusted ‘Top Tens’ across many different themes and authors. But any anthology will immediately throw up the questions – Why that story? Why that author? The theme itself will form the boundaries for our stories which range from well-known classics, newly told, to stories that modern times have overlooked but perfectly exemplify the theme. Throughout the volume our authors whether of instant recognition or new to you are all leviathans of literature. Some you may disagree with but they will get you thinking; about our choices and about those you would have made. If this volume takes you on a path to discover more of these miniature masterpieces then we have all gained something. The Victorian era ceases but England strides on. Confident, bestriding the globe as policeman and enforcer of her Imperial ways. In literature her authors create majestic works that beguile an ever growing audience that now covers the world. 01 - The 20th Century - The English - An Introduction 02 - The Matador of the Five Towns by Arnold Bennett 03 - Kew Gardens by Virginia Woolf 04 - The Rocking Horse Winner by D H Lawrence 05 - Count Magnus by M R James 06 - Gabriel-Ernest by Saki 07 - The Kit Bag by Algernon Blackwood 08 - The Salvation of a Forsythe - Part 1 by John Galsworthy 09 - The Salvation of a Forsythe - Part 2 by John Galsworthy 10 - August Heat by W F Harvey 11 - The Diary of a God by Barry Pain 12 - The Voice in the Night by William Hope HodgsonShow book
As World War II sweeps over Europe, nine-year-old Danielle Loesseps escapes from Latvia under the protection of the Dutch consul. Her Jewish mother, the consul's secretary, is tragically left behind at the end of a momentous year which sees a heroic scheme to save refugees from the Nazis, the blossoming of a secret love, and an unhappy woman's revenge. The consul's young daughter Berta Vandercam also grows up in the shadow of war. She strives to understand why her father never speaks about their time in Riga. Memories of the Riga consulate and questions about what happened there haunt the survivors as they remake their lives in the postwar world.Show book
Heartbreaking and uplifting, the story of the workhouse orphan, Eliza, will touch your heart… Eliza was left as a small baby at the workhouse in Whitechapel, wrapped in her mother’s shawl, which is all she has of the mother she never knew. At eleven years-old, she has survived sickness, near starvation and harsh beatings. Master Simpkins and his cruel daughter rule the workhouse with a rod of iron, but when Romany boy, Joe, arrives at the workhouse, his spirit and courage give Eliza hope that another life is waiting for her outside. When she is sold into service, Eliza is relieved to be out of the workhouse and hopes her fortunes are changing for the better, but cruelty and unkindness are everywhere and her salvation could become her ruin… This best-selling historical fiction novel will transport you to the Victorian era, where you'll experience Eliza's trials and triumphs. Her story is a poignant reminder of the power of hope and courage in the face of adversity. For fans of Lizzie Page (An Orphan's Song), Rosie Clarke (Dangerous Times on Dressmakers' Alley), Anna Jacobs (An Independent Woman), Rosie Goodwin (Yesterday's Shadows), and Mary Wood (The Guernsey Girls Find Peace).Show book
A fictionalized portrait of Golden Age–Hollywood’s original blonde bombshell, the ambitious star who battled real-life drama as she lit up the screen. It’s the Roaring Twenties and seventeen-year-old Harlean Carpenter McGrew has run off to Beverly Hills. She’s chasing a dream—to escape her small, Midwestern life and see her name in lights. In California, Harlean has everything a girl could want—a rich husband, glamorous parties, socialite friends—except an outlet for her talent. But everything changes when a dare pushes her to embrace her true ambition—to be an actress on the silver screen. With her timeless beauty and striking shade of platinum-blond hair, Harlean becomes Jean Harlow. And as she’s thrust into the limelight, Jean learns that this new world of opportunity comes with its own set of burdens. Torn between her family and her passion to perform, Jean is forced to confront the difficult truth—that fame comes at a price, if only she’s willing to pay it . . . Amid a glittering cast of ingenues and Hollywood titans—Clara Bow, Clark Gable, Laurel and Hardy, Howard Hughes—Platinum Doll introduces us to the star who would shine brighter than them all. Praise for Platinum Doll “A fascinating, page-turning, behind-the-scenes look at what it took to be a celebrity in early Hollywood.” —Lynn Cullen, bestselling author of Mrs. Poe and Twain’s End “[Girard] brings Harlow to life.” —The Globe and Mail “An engrossing look at a Hollywood icon. I couldn’t put it down.” —Karleen Koen, New York Times–bestselling author of Through a Glass Darkly “Jean’s is a moving story of love and hard choices, and she leaps off these pages shining as bright as her signature platinum hair.” —Marci Jefferson, author of Girl on the Golden Coin and Enchantress of Paris “Will entrance readers as Harlow entranced the world.” —Heather Webb, author of Rodin’s Lover “A gem of a book.” —The Historical Novel SocietyShow book
The secret desires of the March sisters. “Discover Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women from a new perspective in this exciting remake of a beloved classic.” —Foreword Reviews Jo, Meg, Beth, and Amy are coming of age, and stirring temptations await them around every corner. The handsome young neighbor, attentive doctor and mysterious foreigner introduce the little women to the passion-filled world of the feminine arts. Will these steamy encounters fulfill their deepest yearnings? Have they found true love or been blinded by lust? This scintillating twist on Little Women infuses the original text with sexy new scenes that will surprise, arouse and delight. In this reprise, your favorite characters are a little older and a lot more adventurous, ready to plumb the depths of their previously constrained courtships. Jo with Laurie, Meg with John, Marmee with the old gentleman; all these couplings and more will thrill both well-versed and new fans of Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel.Show book
