First performed in 1905 and published in 1907, "Major Barbara" is a dramatic play by the famed Irish playwright and activist George Bernard Shaw. The story centers around its title character who, as an officer in the Salvation Army, becomes disenchanted by the increasing social problems that she sees and the willingness of her organization to accept money from armament manufacturers. Barbara is disillusioned about the good work the Salvation Army...

The life of a man born at the moment of India's independence becomes inextricably linked to that of his nation and is a whirlwind of disasters and triumphs that mirror modern India's course. The author of The Satanic Verses creates a fascinating family saga about the birth and maturity of a land and its people--a brilliant incarnation of the human comedy. "Rushdie has achieved a magnificent and unique work of fiction".--The Philadelphia Inquirer....

Maisie Dobbs is back and this time she has been hired to find a wealthy grocery magnate's daughter who has fled from home. What seems a simple case at first becomes complicated when Maisie learns of the recent violent deaths of three of the heiress's old friends. Is there a connection between her mysterious disappearance and the murders? Who would kill such charming young women? As Maisie investigates, she discovers that the answers to all her questions...

Beloved author Elizabeth Gilbert returns to fiction with a unique love story set in the New York City theater world during the 1940s. Told from the perspective of an older woman as she looks back on her youth with both pleasure and regret (but mostly pleasure), City of Girls explores themes of female sexuality and promiscuity, as well as the idiosyncrasies of true love. In 1940, nineteen-year-old Vivian Morris has just been kicked out of Vassar College,...

Film adaptation of Madeleine L'Engle's novel follows daughter of a well-to-do family in 1948 Manhattan. Fifteen-year-old Camilla Dickinson, leads a sheltered life in New York City until her parents' marriage begins to fall apart. When Camilla meets her best friend's rebellious brother Frank she finds a way to escape her troubles. As her relationship with Frank deepens, Camilla discovers a world outside of her own and begins to understand a little...

A young woman, with her eight-year-old daughter, returns to the family estate, only to have to deal with deadly family secrets.

Joe has a lot of reasons to be happy. About a billion of them, in fact. You see, Joe's rich. Really, really rich. Joe's got his own bowling alley, his own cinema, even his own butler who is also an orangutan. He's the wealthiest twelve-year-old in the land. But Joe isn't happy. Why not? Because he's got a billion pounds! and not a single friend. But then someone comes along, someone who likes Joe for Joe, not for his money. The problem is, Joe's about...

At the age of ten, Fanny Price leaves the poverty of her Portsmouth home to be brought up among the family of her wealthy uncle, Sir Thomas Bertram, in the chilly grandeur of Mansfield Park. She gradually falls in love with her cousin Edmund, but when the dazzling and sophisticated Crawfords arrive, and amateur theatricals unleash rivalry and sexual jealousy, Fanny has to fight to retain her independence. This new edition places Mansfield Park in...

Journalist and hedonist Jack Parlabane ("different day ... same hangover") investigates the murder of a young, well-to-do citizen of Edinburgh. Crooked cops, guns-for-hire and cheating spouses complicate matters as does Jack's growing affection for the dead man's wife.

When Jeremiah Birnbaum becomes obsessed with the banjo, his best friend, Luella, convinces him to learn how to play despite his parent forbidding him from it.