The award-nominated author of Swimming Home presents a collection of stories that explores human connections, perceptions and loyalty through such tales as "Shining a Light," "Stardust Nation" and "Cave Girl." 30,000 first printing.

€ 20,50

Published to coincide with the Man Booker Prize-shortlisted Black Vodka, a personal account of the writing process draws on gender politics, philosophy and literary theory while recounting the author's struggles to balance womanhood, motherhood and her writing career. 25,000 first printing.

€ 17,90

È un pigro pomeriggio d'estate sulle colline che fanno da cornice alla Costa Azzurra. Quando Nina lascia correre lo sguardo sul rigoglioso giardino della villa in cui sta passando le vacanze, qualcosa attira la sua attenzione. C'è una donna nella piscina. Sospesa nell'acqua, la carnagione bianchissima in contrasto con una fiammata di riccioli rossi. Sembra priva di sensi. Nina ha solo quattordici anni. E spaventata e aspetta l'intervento dei genitori, ma non ce n'è bisogno: pochi istanti dopo Kitty Finch esce dalla piscina e si accomoda mollemente su una sdraio. E ciò che a prima vista sembra solo un banale imprevisto ben presto diventa un incontro sconvolgente, in grado di sovvertire il destino degli ospiti della villa. Con il passare dei giorni la presenza sempre più ingombrante di Kitty si rivela tutt'altro che casuale. Chiusa in una busta di carta, la donna custodisce una poesia che vorrebbe far leggere a Joe, il padre di Nina. Joe è un famoso poeta, e Kitty una sua devota ammiratrice. Ma Joe non riesce ad aprire quella busta. È come se lì dentro si nascondesse l'ombra di un passato che per tutta una vita ha cercato di scrollarsi di dosso. Intanto la magnetica attrazione tra Kitty e Joe li trascina in un gorgo che tutto annulla: i traumi della storia, quelli dell'amore, il matrimonio, la letteratura. Dal crollo inesorabile dei vincoli familiari si salva soltanto Nina, non più fragile adolescente ma donna consapevole, capace di dire di sì alla vita giorno dopo giorno.

€ 13,90

As medical and scientific breakthroughs lead physicians to a deeper understanding of human health, personal knowledge of the different body systems, their functions, and the myriad issues confronting them is becoming increasingly important. The Facts On File Encyclopedia of Health and Medicine is a comprehensive, four-volume reference that is perfect for a wide audience from students to health professionals to lay readers looking for reliable, accurate, and accessible health information. Under the direction of a medical advisory review panel, this authoritative work features contributions from a diverse group of medical professionals including psychologists, dermatologists, pulmonary and critical care specialists, gynecologists, cardiologists, ophthalmologists, gastroenterologists, and many others. The wide range of topics spans from infancy to old age, and the coverage is sensitive to differences between genders and ethnic groups. Body systems are covered in individual sections in Volume 1 through Volume 3, with general health information in Volume 4. Each section is organized A to Z and provides an overview, discussing history, research, and breakthroughs.

All four volumes are extensively cross-referenced (both within the volume and with the other volumes). Each volume includes an index, and the index in Volume 4 includes entries for all four volumes. Volume 4 also includes several appendixes and lists of helpful resources.

Coverage includes:

• Volume 1: Ear, Nose, Mouth, and Throat; Eyes; Nervous System; Musculoskeletal System; Integumentary System: Skin, Hair, and Nails; and Pain Management
  
• Volume 2: Cardiovascular System; Blood; Pulmonary System; Immune System and Allergies; Infectious Diseases; and Cancer
  
• Volume 3: Gastrointestinal System; Endocrine System; Urinary System; Reproductive Systems (female and male); and Psychiatric Disorders and Psychologic Conditions
  
• Volume 4: Preventive Medicine; Alternative and Complementary Approaches; Genetics and Molecular Medicine; Drugs; Nutrition and Diet; Fitness: Exercise and Health; Human Relations; Surgery; Lifestyle Variables: Smoking and Obesity; Substance Abuse; and Emergency and First Aid
  
• Appendixes: Vital Signs; Advance Directives; Glossary of Medical Terms; Abbreviations and Symbols; Medical Specialties and Allied Health Fields; Concise Notable Biographies; Modern Medicine Timeline; Resources; and others.

Medical Advisory Review Panel includes:

• Alexa Fleckenstein, M.D., is board certified in Internal Medicine and currently practices integrative medicine at Whole Health New England in Arlington, MA.
• Gary R. McClain, Ph.D., is a psychologist, counselor, and consultant in New York City, with 25 years of experience as a mental health professional and in the business world. The focus of his practice is healthcare and wellness.
• Maureen Ann Mooney, M.D., is a clinical, surgical, and cosmetic dermatologist currently in private practice in Puyallup, WA. Dr. Mooney is trained to perform Mohs Micrographic Surgery.
• Margaret J. Neff, M.D., M.Sc., is assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care at the University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA.
• Maureen Pelletier, M.D., C.C.N., F.A.C.O.G., is a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist and clinical nutritionist who is also licensed as a medical acupuncturist. Dr. Pelletier is in private practice in Cincinnati, OH.
• Otelio S. Randall, M.D., is Director of the Preventive Cardiology/Hypertension Program at Howard University in Washington, DC, and serves as Program Director of Howard s General Clinical Research Center.
• Susan D. Reed, M.D., M.P.H., is associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and adjunct associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology at the University of Washington School of Medicine.
• Jerry Richard Shields, M.D., is an ophthalmologist in private practice in Bothell, WA.
• Christina M. Surawicz, M.D., is Section Chief of Gastroenterology at the Harborview Medical Center and Professor of Medicine/Assistant Dean for Faculty Development at the University of Washington School of Medicine.
• Denise L. Wych, R.N., CM-C, is a cardiac nurse case manager at Palmetto Health-Richland Heart Hospital in Columbia, SC.

From the author of Billy and Girl, this collection of stories explores the emptiness at the center of the characters' lives and their attempts to fill this lack. In "Cave Girl" Cass goes through a sex change, not to become a man, but rather to become "less of a real girl and more of a pretend woman." Her surgery transforms her into a woman desired by all men -- including her brother. "Conversations with Famous Artists I Have Known" relates an afternoon discussion between two women, one who chose motherhood and a routine life at the expense of her creativity, the other a world famous, self-centered artist. In these stories about friendship, motherhood, and the search for enduring love, rules about decency and kindness are broken and repaired as men and women attempt to achieve an elusive sense of fulfillment.

An obsessive and revealing self-portrait of a remarkable woman humiliated by the circumstances of her birth and by her physical appearance. La Batarde relates Violette Leduc's long search for her own identity through a series of agonizing and passionate love affairs with both men and women. When first published, La Batarde was compared to the work of Jean Genet for the frank depiction of sexual escapades and immoral behavior. A confession that contains portraits of several famous French authors, this book is more than just a scintillating memoir - like that of Henry Miller or Charles Bukowski, Leduc's brilliant writing style and attention to language transform this autobiography into a work of art.

Darkly comic and more than a little disturbing, Billy and Girl introduces a version of childhood trauma that is completely original and utterly unnerving. Abandoned years ago by their parents, Billy and Girl live alone somewhere in England. Girl looks for their mother by going door-to-door and addressing every woman who answers as "Mom," and Billy fantasizes about a future in which he will be famous - preferably in the United States - as a movie star, a psychiatrist, a doctor to blondes with breast enlargements, or the author of Billy England's Book of Pain. The siblings support and torture each other, forgetting what they need to forget, inventing worlds they hope will be better, but managing to prolong nightmares as they create alternate personalities in order to survive and conquer and punish.