Pegged as the loser in a small-town family that doesn't have much going for it in the first place, Ruth grows up (unlovely & unloved) in the shadow of her mean & brilliant brother, Matt, trying to hold her own in a world of poverty & hard edges. The little happiness she finds is in reading the books on tape for old, blind Miss Finch & in the letters she receives from her adored Aunt Sid. Matt's genius for mathematics is his escape from Honey Creek, but Ruth, with no ticket out, cleaves instead to her tough & bitter mother, May, who continues to trickle out the last of her love to Matt even as he leaves them without a backward glance. Eventually Ruth meets & falls for Ruby, the sweet but slightly deranged man she marries & supports. Ruth spots stains at Trim 'N Tidy Dry Cleaners, bowls at the Town Lanes, & tries in vain to keep the peace between May, whose lashing criticisms blow through the cramped house with gale force, & Ruby, who spends his days getting stoned & watching reruns of Bewitched on TV. The arrival of Justy, Ruth & Ruby's newborn son, temporarily suspends everyone in mutual joy, but soon the baby becomes the object of their most heated contention. When the precarious household erupts in violence, Ruth is the only one who can piece their story together
- & she gets at the truth in a manner at once ferocious, hilarious, & heartbreaking.

In this powerful, incandescent novel, Jane Hamilton has worked a small miracle: She has given voice to a young woman you have passed on the street a thousand times. Perhaps you have never noticed her, but the next time you see her, you will know who she is. Passionate in her commitment to life, Ruth is a stunning testament to the human capacity for mercy, compassion & love. The Book of Ruth is Hamilton's magnificent début.


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In a compelling novel that takes the reader on a strange journey from Indochina to Paris, the Vietnamese cook for Gertrude Stein & Alice B. Toklas reveals his own fascinating story-Paris, 1934. Binh has accompanied his employers to the station for their departure to America. His own destination is unclear: will he go with his ' Mesdames', stay in France, or return to his native Vietnam? Binh fled his homeland in disgrace, leaving behind his malevolent charlatan of a father & his self-sacrificing mother. For five years, he has been the personal cook at the famous apartment on the rue de Fleurs. Binh is a lost soul, an exile & an alien, a man of musings, memories & possibly lies- Tastes, oceans, sweat, tears
- The Book of Salt is a an inspired novel about food & exile, love & betrayal.
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In a snowbound village in the German mountains, a young woman discovers an extraordinary secret. Before she can reveal it, she disappears. All that survives is a picture of a mysterious medieval playing card that has perplexed scholars for centuries.

Nick Ash does research for the FBI in New York. Six months ago his girlfriend Gillian walked out & broke his heart. Now he

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In a snowbound village in the German mountains, a young woman discovers an extraordinary secret. Before she can reveal it, she disappears. All that survives is a picture of a mysterious medieval playing card that has perplexed scholars for centuries.

Nick Ash does research for the FBI in New York. Six months ago his girlfriend Gillian walked out & broke his heart. Now he

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Crafted with all the skills that have made his previous books bestsellers, The Book of Secrets will be essential reading ...

The summer stretches ahead of you & you want to make the most of it but don't know where to begin. The Summer Handbook comes ...

Frederick Case is a 42-year-old New Zealand film-maker failing in London. He's separated from his wife, Sophie Carlisle, an actress who has run off with super-stud actor Matt Chalmers, her co-star in the smash hit movie Shag City
- the first mainstream film ever to depict an erect penis being sucked. To make matters worse Sophie is pregnant. When Frederick is invited to fly out to the film world's party of the year on the remote Pacific island of Makulalanana, knowing that Sophie & Matt will be there, he hires ' Miss Melissa', a hooker, to play the part of his gorgeous new girlfriend. On meeting Sophie again, Frederick is convinced that the baby must be his. He pays Melissa to seduce Matt-
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