Showing results for "LIFE" in Literature & Fiction

The corridor of the Fine Arts Building was deserted, save for two figures at the far end, two men approaching slowly. Rose was about to go into the classroom, where she'd left her purse, when she saw a sign on the door - a crude sign in pencil, on a ragged sheet of paper. "Collapse of Western Civilization - Dr. Norbert Beilstein," it said. "Visitors welcome."

Desperate to escape their high-pressure life in Los Angeles, the Finch family moves to rural Oregon. But it doesn’t take long to learn that “small town” is not code for “stress-free.” As the new owners of Applegate's one and only general store, the Finches find that the simple life’s anything but simple when your little store is the town's only grocery store, gas station, hardware store, fire station, and occasional dentist’s office.

“A funny, heartfelt story about found family and seeing the silver lining in life. Fans of A Man Called Ove and Remarkably Bright Creatures will especially enjoy this new novel.”—Library Journal A zany case of mistaken identity allows a lonely old man one last chance to be part of a family...

For anyone who ever wondered what Marcel Proust had in mind when he wrote the one-and-a-quarter-million words of In Search of Lost Time (while bedridden no less), Alain de Botton has the answer. For, in this stylish, erudite and frequently hilarious book, de Botton dips deeply into Proust’s life and work - his fiction, letter, and conversations – and distils from them that rare self-help manual: one that is actually helpful.

Take David Sedaris’ self-deprecation and deep sense of the absurd and toss in a pinch Erma Bombeck’s happy skewering of domestic life: there you have M. A. C. Farrant. In this witty, affecting collection of personal essays, Farranthas a gift for making those observations that would be harrowing, if they weren’t so funny, and here tackles the absurdities of family life from both sides of the generational divide: as a young girl growing up in a dysfunctional family in the 1960s, and as a mother herself to three troublesome teenagers.

Set in 1930s London, Winifred Watson’s Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day recounts twenty-four hours in the life of a governess who turns up for a very unexpected first day at work. Watson’s comedic, light-hearted novel is read by Academy Award-winning actress Frances McDormand, who plays Miss...

When out-of-shape IT technician Roen wakes up and starts hearing voices in his head, he naturally assumes he’s losing it. He isn’t. As of last night, he has a passenger in his brain - an ancient alien life-form called Tao, whose race crash-landed on Earth before the first fish crawled out of the oceans. Over the millennia his people have trained human heroes to be great leaders, to advance our species at a rate far beyond what it would have achieved on its own. Split into two opposing factions - the peace-loving, but under-represented Prophus, and the savage, powerful Genjix - the aliens have been in a state of civil war for centuries.

In this poignant and funny novel, a man who is defined by his limitations sets out to fight a murder charge—and discovers unexpected truths about himself, his family, and the world at large.

Meet Surbiton’s most famous residents: Tom, Barbara, Margo and Jerry. It is Tom Good's 40th birthday, and he feels thoroughly unfulfilled. If only he can discover what 'It' is, and if he can, will his wife Barbara agree to do 'It' with him? The subsequent and sudden transformation of the Goods’ home into a smallholding causes consternation for Margo and Jerry next door, and they decide it’s their duty to interfere. So begins The Good Life, the much loved classic sitcom starring Richard Briers, Felicity Kendal, Paul Eddington and Penelope Keith.

An Indian American family is turned upside down when the parents split up thirty-six years into their arranged marriage​ in this “heartwarming journey of self-discovery” (Southern Living). “Touching . . . both funny and moving—a family drama the entire family can enjoy...

Als Schweinehundi bei Familie Bauer-Mati einzieht, sind alle begeistert: Der süße sprechende Hund mit dem treuherzigen Blick entspannt sie total. Seine Argumente fürs Blaumachen sind aber auch zu überzeugend – Kita, Schule, Job einfach mal sein lassen, Lieferservice statt kochen: Endlich tun alle, worauf sie Lust haben! Sogar Mamas berüchtigte LISTE, auf der alle Aufgaben für jedes Familienmitglied stehen, gerät völlig in Vergessenheit.

Matt, Daniel and Paul were childhood friends. Now in their 30s, they've lost touch and have only one thing in common: their mothers. Little do they know that, having spent a cardless Mother's Day discussing how their emotionally dysfunctional offspring should be settling down, Carol, Gillian and Helen have decided to pay their wayward sons a visit. On the same day, they turn up on their sons' doorsteps, uninvited and unannounced. Their plan is to reestablish the mother-son bond by moving in for one week. Just a week. Surely that's not a lot to ask....

“Darkly funny, surprisingly tender . . . witheringly dead-on.” — Los Angeles Times Named one of the year’s best novels by: Time Salon.com Los Angeles Times NPR/Fresh Air New West Kansas City Star St. Louis Post-Dispatch A comic and heartfelt novel from the #1 New...

Don't miss this brand-new laugh-out-loud novel about friendship, relationship woes, and finding your self-worth, perfect for fans of Kristen Bailey and Sophie Ranald! 'I adored this book!! I couldn't put it down' Reader review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 'Brilliantly funny' Reader review...

Myrna, Leonie, and Chrissy meet every Thursday to sample fine cheeses, to reminisce about their former lives as professors, and lately, to muse about murder. Decades ago, a vicious cabal of male poets contrived—quite publicly and successfully—to undermine the writing career, confidence, and health of their dear friend Fern. Now, after Fern has taken a turn for the worse, her three old friends decide that it’s finally time to strike back—in secret, of course, since Fern is far too gentle to approve of a vendetta.

She's out to prove that there's no such thing as choosing happiness. Full of heart, humor, and tenderness, The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley is a story of found family with a slow-burn, kisses-only romance. Perfect for fans of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and The Rosie Project. Isadora...

Rebecca Riley has always been a bit of a pushover. When her glamorous boss, Vanessa, asks her to jump, she doesn’t just ask how high...she asks if her boss would like her to grab a coffee on the way back down! So whilst overseeing the renovation of Vanessa’s beautiful countryside home, the last thing Rebecca ever expected was to be mistaken for her boss – or that she would even consider going along with it! Far away from the bustling city and her boss’s demanding ways, could she pretend to be Vanessa and swap lives, just for a little while?

It's back to a new school term for the kids. Their mums - Gemma and Becky - are breathing a huge sigh of relief and reaching for the gin bottle. Except for the fact that Becky appears to be accidentally a little bit pregnant.... But that's not the first shock for the parents in the playground. Over the summer, part of their beloved Redcoats Primary has burned down. The school needs to raise thousands of pounds to stay open - and Gemma and Becky have been forced on to the fund-raising committee (just to add to the millions of messages from their online parent groups).

Jonathan e Barbara Rose hanno all'apparenza un matrimonio perfetto: una villa di lusso piena di oggetti di antiquariato, due carriere invidiabili, figli deliziosi e una Ferrari fiammante in garage. Una vita da sogno, insomma, finché Jonathan non viene colpito da un improvviso malore e la facciata sfavillante del loro rapporto comincia a sgretolarsi. Dopo diciotto anni insieme, Barbara capisce di non amare più suo marito e decide di chiedere il divorzio. Jonathan non si oppone, ma nessuno dei due è disposto a lasciare la casa, simbolo del loro successo e, adesso, della loro rovina.

There aren't enough hours in the day for Jo Randall, overworked, sleep-deprived newspaper reporter, newly single mum, and logistical genius (when it comes to Barbie-themed birthday parties, anyway). Between wrangling her two young daughters, dodging her smug ex-husband and his new girlfriend, and trying to remember where she last saw her car keys, Jo’s barely got time to breathe — she's not just breaking news, she's at breaking point.