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This is the remarkable story of one endearing dog's search for his purpose over the course of several lives. More than just another charming dog story, A Dog's Purpose touches on the universal quest for an answer to life's most basic question: Why are we here? Surprised to find himself reborn as a rambunctious golden-haired puppy after a tragically short life as a stray mutt, Bailey's search for his new life's meaning leads him into the loving arms of eight-year-old Ethan. During their countless adventures, Bailey joyously discovers how to be a good dog. But this life as a family pet is not the end of Bailey's journey. Reborn as a puppy yet again, Bailey wonders - will he ever find his purpose? Heartwarming, insightful, and often laugh-out-loud funny, A Dog's Purpose is not only the emotional and hilarious story of a dog's many lives, but also a dog's-eye commentary on human relationships and the unbreakable bonds between man and man's best friend. This moving and beautifully crafted story teaches us that love never dies, and that every creature on earth is born with a purpose.

This is a masterly work from one of our greatest writers. On an autumn day in 2006, on the Isle of Wight, Jack Luxton, former Devon farmer and now the proprietor of a seaside caravan park, receives the news that his soldier brother Tom, not seen for years, has been killed in Iraq. For Jack and his wife Ellie this will have a potentially catastrophic impact. For Jack in particular it means a crucial journey - to receive his brother's remains, but also into his own most secret, troubling memories and into the land of his and Ellie's past. "Wish You Were Here" is both a gripping account of things that touch and test our human core and a resonant novel about a changing England. Rich with Graham Swift's love of the local, full of humour and tenderness in the face of tragedy, it is also, inescapably, about a wider, afflicted world. Moving towards an almost unbearably tense climax, it allows us to feel the stuff of headlines - the return of a dead soldier from a foreign war - as heart-wrenching personal truth.

Switched is the first novel in Amanda Hocking's bestselling trilogy, Trylle.Wendy Everly knew she was different the day her mother tried to kill her and accused her of having been switched at birth. Although certain she's not the monster her mother claimed she is, she does feel that she doesn't quite fit in.She's bored and frustrated by her small-town life - and then there's the secret she can't tell anyone. Her mysterious ability - she can influence people's decisions, without knowing how, or why . . .When the intense and darkly handsome newcomer Finn suddenly turns up at her bedroom window one night, her world is turned upside down. He holds the key to her past, the answers to her strange powers and is the doorway to a place she never imagined could exist: Forening, the home of the Trylle.Finally everything makes sense. Among the Trylle she is not just different, but special. But what marks her out as chosen for greatness in this world also places her in grave danger. With everything around her changing, Finn is the only person she can trust. But dark forces are conspiring - not only to separate them, but to see the downfall of everything that Wendy cares about.The fate of Forening rests in Wendy's hands, and the decisions she and Finn make could change all their lives forever . . .

A story of hopeless love, desperate grief and the power of guilt: Monsieur Pain is a hallucinatory masterwork by the great Roberto Bolano. César Vallejo, renowned Peruvian poet, lies dying in hospital. His wife pins her hopes on the mesmerist Pierre Pain. Set in 1938 Paris, Monsieur Pain merges the best of Borges with Edgar Allen Poe, making a gripping noir conspiracy as rich as it is strange.

This is the true story of a 24-hour period on Everest, when members of three separate expeditions were caught in a storm and faced a battle against hurricane-force winds, exposure, and the effects of altitude, which ended the worst single-season death toll in the peak's history. In March 1996, Outside magazine sent veteran journalist and seasoned climber Jon Krakauer on an expedition led by celebrated Everest guide Rob Hall. Despite the expertise of Hall and the other leaders, by the end of summit day eight people were dead. Krakauer's book is at once the story of the ill-fated adventure and an analysis of the factors leading up to its tragic end. Written within months of the events it chronicles, Into Thin Air clearly evokes the majestic Everest landscape. As the journey up the mountain progresses, Krakauer puts it in context by recalling the triumphs and perils of other Everest trips throughout history. The author's own anguish over what happened on the mountain is palpable as he leads readers to ponder timeless questions.

We now know that the desire to become attached to a partner is a natural human drive - not a weak attribute of clingy females, as some would argue! And according to the new science of attachment, every person behaves in relationships in one of three distinct ways: Anxious people are often preoccupied with their relationships and tend to worry about their partner's ability to love them back. Avoidant people equate intimacy with a loss of independence and constantly try to minimise closeness. Secure people feel comfortable with intimacy and are usually warm and loving. Dr. Amir Levine and Rachel Heller help you understand the three attachment styles, identify your own and recognise the styles of others so that you can find compatible partners or improve your existing relationship. Packed with fascinating psychology and case studies from successful - and unsuccessful - couples you can discover how to avoid the Anxious-Avoidant trap, why Secures can partner any type and how to love the Secure way. "Attached" is your road map to the perfect match and lasting love.

Set in an era of turbulent social changes, A Place Called Freedom is a magnificent novel from the undisputed master of suspense and drama, Ken Follett. In a brutal world, charismatic rebel miner Mack McAsh - a slave by birth - is a man with the courage to stand up for what is right, and the strength to stick by his beliefs. Independent, rebellious Lizzie Hallim, meanwhile, is engaged to Jay Jamisson, the ruthless landlord's son and heir to an exploitative business empire. Born into separate worlds, Mack and Lizzie are thrown together when Mack becomes an enemy of the state and is forced to flee his homeland. Lizzie aids his escape, and it is not long before passions rage in the old world as well as the new . . .

'It made me laugh so hard that I woke up my wife and had to give up reading the book in bed. If Bill Bryson had collaborated with W. G. Sebald to write a book about Germany, they might have wound up with something like this' Sunday Times Germania is a very personal guide to the Germany that Simon Winder loves. Equally passionate about the region's history, folklore, cuisine, architecture and landscape, Winder describes Germany's past afresh -- and in doing so sees a country much like our own: Protestant, aggressive and committed to eating some very strange food. This accessible, enthusiastic and startlingly vivid account is a brilliant introduction to the hidden wonders of Germany. 'A splendid offering' Financial Times 'His excitement is beguiling and infectious ...There are many pleasures to be savoured in Germania, gems that make Winder's clever, rambunctious work a book to treasure' Literary Review 'Beautifully written and insightful' Irish Times

I need a war ...' Nicolas Creel, a super-rich arms dealer, decides that the best way to boost his business is to start a new cold war - and he won't let anything or anyone get in his way. As international tensions rise and the superpowers line up against each other, the lives of three very different people will never be the same again. As intelligence agent Shaw, academic Anna Fischer and ambitious journalist Katie James are all drawn into Creel's games, can anything stop the world from spiralling out of control? This terrifying global thriller delivers all the twists and turns, emotional drama, unforgettable characters and can't-put-it-down pacing that Baldacci fans expect - and still goes beyond anything he's written before.

For fans of the smash hit film Michael, this is the definitive account of Michael Jackson's life. Acclaimed biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli first met Michael when they were both teenagers and interviewed the singer and his family many times, giving him unique insights. So much has been written about the life and career of Michael Jackson that it has become almost impossible to disentangle the man from the myth. J. Randy Taraborrelli cuts through the tabloid rumours and innuendo, the conflicting stories and lurid accusations, to reveal the real man. From his drilling as a child star with the Jackson 5 through the blooming of his talent, from his ever-changing personal appearance to his marriages, from his addictions to his love for his children, we see what motivated one of the greatest performers of all time. Objective and revealing, this book combines impeccable research, brilliant story-telling and a clear-sighted understanding of the forces that shaped Michael's life and his death.

Charlotte is an only child, reared by a brutal father who cannot forgive her for not being the son he desires. Loved by most that she meets, Charlotte has a gift for friendship, and it is her work as a Sunday School teacher that gives her hope

'Head and shoulders above almost all other new books about China, this unflinching and yearningly compassionate portrait of the lives and loves of ordinary Chinese workers is quite unforgettable' - Simon Winchester. Every year in China millions of migrant workers leave their rural towns to find jobs in the cities. These people are the driving forces behind China's economic boom: they work very hard and for little money to make the trainers, ornaments, designer handbags and toys which we buy. Through the lives of two young women, Chang vividly portrays a world where you can lose your boyfriend and your friends with the loss of a cell phone; where lying about your age, your education, and your work experience is often a requisite for getting ahead; and, where a few computer or English lessons can catapult you into a completely different social class. This is a powerful and humane portrait of the forces which are shaping China. 'Astonishing ...Heartbreaking ...As one tool in trying to understand today's China, this is a most valuable, if troubling read' - "Irish Times". 'Engrossing ...An exceptionally vivid and compassionate depiction of the day-to-day dramas, and the fears and aspirations, of the real people who are powering China's economic boom' - "Scotsman". 'Chang's elegant book is evidence that the best trips home often require a circuitous approach' - Nell Freudenberger, "Financial Times"

In 1960s Santa Teresa, California, a child is kidnapped and never returned . . . When the case is reopened after twenty years, a man - Michael Sutton - contacts private detective Kinsey Millhone for help. He claims to have recalled a strange and disturbing memory which just might provide the key to the mystery. He may have stumbled across the kidnappers burying Mary Claire Fitzhugh s body . . . But Michael s account is indistinct he was only six years old at the time of the kidnapping, and even members of his family try to discredit his evidence. But Kinsey is certain there is something vital within Michael s recollections. And even when what is eventually unearthed isn t what anyone expected, she can t quite let go of the case. As Kinsey gradually brings to light the stories of the protagonists involved in the tragedy, from Country Club parents to their free-living, hippy children, the truth finally begins to emerge. And while stepping back into the past, Kinsey discovers more about her own history too . . .

The Day of the Dead El Dia de los Muertos when Mexico celebrates its lost loved ones. But for disgraced newspaper reporter, Nick Vargas, and attorney, Beth Crawford, it is not an occasion to celebrate. Nick, now a true crime writer, is determined to find the truth behind the slaughter of nuns in a deserted house in the desert and Beth is desperate to find her younger sister, Jen, who disappeared without trace when they were on holiday in Mexico. Their quest for the truth leads them to a small town in Mexico where a mysterious and malevolent cult are known to perform sinister and deadly rituals. Danger lurks as Beth and Nick know they are being watched, and that their enemy is waiting for the right moment to strike ...

John Grady Cole is the last bewildered survivor of long generations of Texas ranchers. Finding himself cut off from the only life he has ever wanted, he sets out for Mexico with his friend Lacey Rawlins. Befriending a third boy on the way, they find a country beyond their imagining: barren and beautiful, rugged yet cruelly civilized; a place where dreams are paid for in blood. All the Pretty Horses is an acknowledged masterpiece from Pulitzer Prize winning author Cormac McCarthy, and a grand love story: a novel about childhood passing, along with innocence and a vanished American age. Steeped in the wisdom that comes only from loss, it is a magnificent parable of responsibility, revenge and survival.

A story of drama and intrigue set on the sinister side of the international racing circuit. Tor Kelsey, an undercover agent for the Jockey Club's Security Service trails Julius Apollo Filmer, a blackmailer and murderer, onto a luxury train carrying several racehorse owners across Canada.