For aspiring cricketer Ed Smith luck was for other people. Like his childhood hero Geoff Boycott the tough flinty Yorkshireman the young Ed knew that the successful cricketer made his own luck by an application of will power elimination of error & the relentless pursuit of excellence. But when a freak accident at the crease at Lords prematurely ended Ed Smiths international cricketing career it changed everything
- & prompted him to look anew at his own life through the prism of luck. Tracing the history of the concepts of luck & fortune destiny & fate from the ancient Greeks to the present day
- in religion in banking in politics
- Ed Smith argues that the question of luck versus skill is as pertinent today as it ever has been. He challenges us to think again about privilege & opportunity to re-examine the question of innate ability & of gifts & talents accidentally conferred at birth. Weaving in his personal stories
- notably the chance meeting of a beautiful stranger who would become his wife on a train he seemed fated to miss
- he puts to us the idea that in life luck cannot be underestimated: without any means of explaining our differing lots in life the world without luck is one in which you deserve every ill that befalls you where envy dominates & averageness is the stifling ideal. Embracing luck leads us to a fresh reappraisal of the nature of success opportunity & fairness. Bankers have promised risk-free investments the self-help industry peddles the idea that everyone can pull themselves up by their own bootstraps & lifes winners are encouraged to claim that they did it all themselves in a meritocracy. The case for luck needs to be made now more than ever.




...

Tracing the history of the concepts of luck & fortune destiny & fate from the Ancient Greeks to the present day
- in religion in
...

When 14-year-old Rebeccas parents die of smallpox she & her brother & sister must leave their smart home in Kent for the more poverty-stricken conditions in Londons East End. After initial trauma they adapt to poorer living conditions & grow to love the area. Five years on aged 19 Rebecca meets Jimmy Jackson born in Bow & now a successful bookmaker. They are attracted but when their relationship grows to love an old flame of Jimmys turns up producing a son he didnt know he had. Young James & Jimmy get on well his old flame decides to take herself off to enjoy her life without them & Rebecca & Jimmys relationship takes off again. ...

Why do some people lead happy successful lives whilst others face repeated failure & sadness? Why do some find their perfect partner whilst others stagger from one broken relationship to the next? What enables some people to have successful careers whilst apparently similar others find themselves trapped with jobs they detest? & can unlucky people do anything to improve their luck
- & lives? Ten years ago Dr. Richard Wiseman decided to search for the elusive luck factor by investigating the actual beliefs & experiences of lucky & unlucky people... Looking at the results Wiseman was able to identify four main factors which explained living a lucky & unlucky life. He was then able to show a group of people that considered themselves unlucky how to think & behave like lucky people. The results were astounding with almost all participants reporting significant life changes: including increased levels of luck self-esteem physical well-being confidence & success.
...

The enchanting sequel to A Countrymans Lot which told the story of Max Hardcastles move to the Yorkshire Dales & the richness of life as an antiques dealer The Luck of a Countryman contains an array of eccentric characters & curious situations which are guaranteed to delight & amuse. Old favourites reappear in new -- & sometimes alarming -- situations. & a myriad of new personalities join in the ups & downs of life in the Dales. Life is not all plain sailing but the Hardcastles join in wholeheartedly with the trials & triumphs that beset the peaceful village of Ramsthwaite. How will they ever shift Thievin Jacks van from the pond? & will the wedding of the year go off smoothly? ...

The bash at the Miller farm was the hottest party Jenny Humphrey had ever attended. Literally. But when Dean Marymount announces that someone is going to be held responsible & expelled for burning down the antique red barn the heat is really on. Tensions are rising rumours are flying & pretty soon everyone is a suspect. But was it Julian Jennys shaggy-haired new crush whose engraved Tiffany lighter was found at the scene of the crime? Or could it have been Callie & Easy who were in the barn together when the blaze began? Tinsley knows shes also in the line of fire for organising the party but luckily shes come up with a crafty way to stay out of trouble: by blaming Jenny. ...

In a memoir hailed for its searing candour & wit Alice Sebold reveals how her life was utterly transformed when as an eighteen-year-old college freshman she was brutally raped & beaten in a park near campus. What propels this chronicle of her recovery is Sebold's indomitable spirit -- as she struggles for understanding (' After telling the hard facts to anyone from lover to friend I have changed in their eyes'); as her dazed family & friends sometimes bungle their efforts to provide comfort & support; & as ultimately she triumphs managing through grit & coincidence to help secure her attacker's arrest & conviction. In a narrative by turns disturbing thrilling & inspiring Alice Sebold illuminates the experience of trauma victims even as she imparts wisdom profoundly hard-won: ' You save yourself or you remain unsaved.' 'A rueful razor-sharp memoir.. . Sebold tells what it's like to go through a particular kind of nightmare in order to tell what it's like -- slowly bumpily triumphantly -- to heal' Sarah Kerr Vogue ...

With the sensual grace of a panther Lucky Santangelo prowled her Las Vegas casino restless ready eager for action. That night began a dazzling odyssey filled with dangerous passion & sun-drenched sex sadistic vengeance & breathless suspense. From the decadent luxury of California to Paris New York & a private Greek island Lucky fought for her father's honour for ruthless triumph for the wild card of a fabulous love. Her rivals; an ice-cold Hollywood wife…a much-married heiress strung out on cocaine…a jaded magnate hooked on power…a crazed hoodlum lusting for murder. But Lucky was a gamb Ier & a lover a woman who ruled her empire & pursued her man with the potent Santangelo strength … her way on her terms whatever the odds. Jackie Collins tops the sensational success of Hollywood Wives & Chances with Lucky so hot it will have to be printed on asbestos."" ...

Paul Nicholls is the former jockey who began training in 1991. Gradually he built up a reputation as one of the most astute & successful trainers in the business with a special knack for getting it right on the big occasions. His depth of resources meant that on a unique occasion at Wincanton in January 2006 he became the first trainer ever to have six winners on a card. But it is for his role as the trainer of horses such as See More Business Kauto Star & Denman all of them Cheltenham Gold Cup winners that he is best known. In this revealing & honest memoir Champion Trainer Nicholls explains how he got to the top of his sport & provides a fascinating insight into his methods & to the horses jockeys & owners that have helped him achieve so much. Packed with insider stories that all race fans will love & a foreword from Sir Alex Ferguson this is without doubt the essential racing book for 2011. ...

Hot guys horses & high school hi-jinks! Ivy & Olivia are super excited
- their aunt on their mother's side has invited them to
...