THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER. In her powerful memoir His Bright Light Danielle Steel opened her heart to share the devastating story of the loss of her beloved son. In A Gift of Hope she shows us how she transformed that pain into a campaign of service that enriched her life beyond what she could imagine. For eleven years Danielle Steel took to the streets with a small team to help the homeless of San Francisco. She worked under cover of darkness distributing food clothing bedding tools & toiletries to the city's most vulnerable citizens. She sought no publicity for her efforts & remained anonymous throughout. Now she has chosen to tell her story to bring attention to their plight. In this unflinchingly honest & deeply moving memoir the famously private author speaks out publicly for the first time about her work among the most desperate members of society. She offers achingly acute portraits of the people she met along the way--and issues a heartfelt call for more effective action to aid this vast deprived population. Determined to supply the homeless with the basic necessities to keep them alive she ends up giving them something far more powerful: a voice. By turns candid & inspirational Danielle Steel's A Gift of Hope is a true act of advocacy & love. ...

This book is the only published record of all the quilts together. Although on display for four days in March 2012 they will never be seen again as a collection. Each of the 414 quilts made is pictured in this publication & represents the work of over 10 000 stitchers from the length & breadth of the country. Those taking part are aged between 5 & 90 & encompass all races creeds & abilities. Amongst those who have made quilts are individuals groups of friends patchwork & quilting groups Womens Institute groups Over 60s clubs schools colleges Rainbow Brownie & Guide packs prison h&-craft groups U3A groups & Retirement Home groups. Some quilts have a pictorial theme & are shown in the special section Behind the Scenes". The makers have told here why they wanted to show the place in which they live to the visiting countries. On the pages of " Quilt Snippets" other makers have written what it means to them to have taken part & be involved in the Games in this way. The Quilt Gallery shows the beautifully photographed quilts together with the makers name recipient country & games: Olympics or Paralympics. Quilts will also be given to the Special Olympics & they have their own section at the end of the book." ...

Penang 1939. Sixteen-year-old Philip Hutton is a loner. Half English half Chinese & feeling neither he discovers a sense of belonging in an unexpected friendship with Hayato Endo a Japanese diplomat. Philip shows his new friend around his adored island of Penang & in return Endo trains him in the art & discipline of aikido. But such knowledge comes at a terrible price. The enigmatic Endo is bound by disciplines of his own & when the Japanese invade Malaya threatening to destroy Philip's family & everything he loves he realises that his trusted sensei
- to whom he owes absolute loyalty
- has been harbouring a devastating secret. Philip must risk everything in an attempt to save those he has placed in mortal danger & discover who & what he really is. With masterful & gorgeous narrative replete with exotic & captivating images sounds & aromas
- of rain swept beaches magical mountain temples pungent spice warehouses opulent colonial ballrooms & fetid & forbidding rainforests
- Tan Twan Eng weaves a haunting & unforgettable story of betrayal barbaric cruelty steadfast courage & enduring love.



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This thoroughly revised & updated edition of Gift of Tears

Includes:: new research & examples of recent events

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With illustrations by Terry Willers For the unprepared visitor Irish conversation can be a minefield. Hows the craic ? is not an assumption that you are well versed in the properties of narcotics substances merely an enquiry after your health & general well-being. A seemingly easy question like Youre not from around here are ye? requires a far more detailed reply than No Im not. In order not to be thought rude you should supply details of where you live why you are in Ireland the tiny village now deserted from which your great-great grandfather emigrated in the year dot & to be really accepted your salary figure marital status & daily eating habits! To the uninitiated advice like this might seem extreme but as Tadhg Hayes points out the proper answer will save you from insistent & repeated questioning which in the case of the Irish is motivated by genuine interest & not just downright nosiness. Having safely negotiated the opening gambits plenty of other conversational pitfalls await the visitor. GIFT OF THE GAB covers them all & will see you through any topic from THE WEATHER SPORT DRINK DEATH how to interpret travel directions & statements on a persons financial situation (see THE POOR MOUTH). For Improvers there are useful phrases to add colour to your conversation including the essential feck fecking & its variations. All in all the most essential thing after your umbrella you will need for an enjoyable holiday in Irel&. ...

When his mother Joan was diagnosed with terminal cancer Rory Mac Lean & his wife Katrin took her into their home. For five months as their life fragmented & turned inward they fought both to resist & to accept the inevitable. Each gave vent to their emotions in different ways but all three kept a diary. Heartbreakingly honest & deeply moving Gift of Time" is the story of those days in the words of a son his wife & his mother. Woven together into a poignant meditation on life & death they illuminate the courage & dignity of one woman who confronted what we all must face. Threaded through with wisdom & guilt anger & acceptance the story is punctuated by a family wedding & the hope of new life by bin-bags of old letters & books rediscovered by the end of winter & the first signs of spring. Powerful raw & urgent this slender volume is above all a celebration of life. Capturing every moment of beauty & pain it acknowledges that what survives all of us is love. Praise for Rory Mac Lean's previous titles: " Stalin's Nose": " The most extraordinary debut in travel writing since " In Patagonia". A dark sardonic & brilliant book which grows in stature with every page". (William Dalrymple). "A surreal masterpiece". (Colin Thubron). " The Oatmeal Ark": " One of the most original & innovative travel books for years". (Alexander Frater). "A truly astonishing performance". (Jan Morris). " Such a book as this rather marvellously explains why literature still lives". (John Fowles). " Under the Dragon": "I cannot imagine a better book on the beauty & terror of Burma. Read it. Read it. Read it". (Fergal Keane). " It will make you cry & it will give you hope... It is astonishingly good". (Jeanette Winterson). " Magic Bus": "A disturbing gripping & intensely passionate story". (Esther Freud)." ...

A set of anonymous postcards leads Detective Chief Inspector Hennessey to make a chilling discovery. When four postcards are sent anonymously to an advice centre each with the word murder scribbled in a foreign language & the same precise OS map reference DCI Hennessey & his team visit the sinister location & make a chilling discovery: the body of a professional man who had been reported missing ten years earlier. Who sent the postcards & why so long after the crime? As Hennessey & his team investigate they find themselves drawn into a puzzling & dangerous investigation. ...

This is the first book in the epic Pellinor" series
- four books telling an extraordinary tale of another world. Maerad is
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Theres nothing quite like receiving a handmade gift & your family & friends will love being on the receiving end of these handmade designs. Designer Mags Kandis inspires with this delightful collection of beautiful & colorful little projects for you to knit crochet & felt. From wearable accessories such as hats mittens scarves socks & wraps to home decor including a tea cozy pin cushion needle case & laptop cover these 30+ pieces are sweet lively & add a little joy to every household. Each project features creative embellishments & personal touches including beading buttons needlefelting applique & embroidery. Mags also shares her recipes for easy food gifts & simple sewing projects such as sewn fabric gift bags & sachets to pair with fiber gifts. Directions for making these little add-ons that make a gift personal & extra-special are scattered throughout the book. Gifted will inspire you to grab another ball of yarn & invest a little time & love to create something special for someone special. ...

Dead people dont make great companions something cute athletic Ken finds out the hard way when following an accident on the football field he starts hearing ghostly voices. Its not the kind of gift he would have asked for
- especially when it gets him involved in a love triangle with his dead best friends girlfriend
- but theres nothing he can do about it until an anonymous note invites him to a seance. Completely convinced by the medium he meets Ken tries to tell her about his secret. Only his gifted classmates can save him from revealing the truth
- & finding himself in terrible danger...


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