Chevalier transports readers to a bygone time and place in this richly imagined portrait of the young woman who inspired one of Vermeer's most celebrated paintings. "Girl with a Pearl Earring" is the story of 16-year-old Griet, whose life is transformed by her brief encounter with genius, even as she herself is immortalized in canvas and oil. An Independent Bestseller Winner of the 2000 Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Award! Tracy Chevalier...

The steady tick of an aged Regulator wall clock and the squeak of an overhead fan turning slowly are soft but insistent, counting down the night, while the high desert thrums like a half-remembered Victrola song. The sounds are below the consciousness of Winchell Dear, an old-time gambler, a Texas poker player on the southern circuit, as he waits for something . . . something vague that his life of chance tells him is evil and moving his way. He has...

At 14, Grace Reeves leaves home to work for her mother's former employers at Riverton House. She is the same age as Hannah, the headstrong middle child who visits her uncle, Lord Ashbury, at Riverton House with her siblings Emmeline and David. Fascinated, Grace observes their comings and goings and, as an invisible maid, is privy to the secrets she will spend a lifetime pretending to forget. But when a filmmaker working on a movie about the family...

The novel begins on the eve of Paula's forty-eighth birthday. She hasn't had a drink for four months and five days. Having outlived an abusive husband and father, Paula and her four children are now struggling to live their adult lives, with two of the kids balancing their own addictions. Paula rebuilds her life slowly. As she goes about her daily routine working as a cleaning woman, and cooking for her two children at home, she re-establishes connections...

A tender story of the power of faith over Fear and the tie that truly binds.

In a remarkable pairing, two renowned social critics offer a groundbreaking anthology that examines the unexplored consequences of globalization on the lives of women worldwide. Women are moving around the globe as never before. But for every female executive racking up frequent flier miles, there are multitudes of women whose journeys go unnoticed. Each year, millions leave Mexico, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and other third world countries to...

"When Suburu, Mahoro and company set off to the beach, they get sand kicked in their faces by a giant crab battle robot. The cloud crab has a screw loose and wants to turn the female sunbathers into a topless crowd! Well, Mahoro, ever willing to dive into the thick of danger, tightens up the straps of her bikini and vows to make crabmeat out of this robotic crustacean!"--Cover, p. [4].

"After Ayuga decides to live on Earth as a human, he and a skeptical Slash duke it out. Mahoro jumps in the middle of the brawl and implores everyone to just get along. When things settle down, they can finally get onto bigger and bodaciously better things: breast enhancements, bombshells, and beautiful relationships! Tighten your nuts and bolts--it's going to be a bumpy ride!"P. [4] of cover.