Apple Of My Eye

A walking tour of New York from Battery Park to Harlem celebrates the architecture and history, landmarks, people, and pastimes of the Western world's most remarkable city.

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"Any reader who loves good fiction, mysteries, or even romance would enjoy The Apple of My Eye." –Readers' Favorite When Brea Cass, a young mother, is awakened in the night by the news that her loving husband, Paul, has been shot during a robbery, she is stunned. When she finally emerges from the fog of her life, it dawns on her that something is amiss in the way her husband died. As Brea searches for answers, she discovers things she never knew... and things she's not sure she wants to know. Delving into unsolved mysteries brings several questions to the forefront of Brea's thoughts, and she must decide if moving forward can erase the heartache and mistakes.

The thirteenth century brought new urgency to Catholic efforts to convert non-Christians, and no Catholic ruler was more dedicated to this undertaking than King Louis IX of France. His military expeditions against Islam are well documented, but there was also a peaceful side to his encounter with the Muslim world, one that has received little attention until now. This splendid book shines new light on the king’s program to induce Muslims—the “apple of his eye”—to voluntarily convert to Christianity and resettle in France. It recovers a forgotten but important episode in the history of the Crusades while providing a rare window into the fraught experiences of the converts themselves. William Chester Jordan transforms our understanding of medieval Christian-Muslim relations by telling the stories of the Muslims who came to France to live as Christians. Under what circumstances did they willingly convert? How successfully did they assimilate into French society? What forms of resistance did they employ? In examining questions like these, Jordan weaves a richly detailed portrait of a dazzling yet violent age whose lessons still resonate today. Until now, scholars have dismissed historical accounts of the king’s peaceful conversion of Muslims as hagiographical and therefore untrustworthy. Jordan takes these narratives seriously—and uncovers archival evidence to back them up. He brings his findings marvelously to life in this succinct and compelling book, setting them in the context of the Seventh Crusade and the universalizing Catholic impulse to convert the world.

Ronnie Sidney is a perfect child. The illegitimate by-product of a wartime romance, he gives his mother unconditional love when all she has known is loss, rejection and contempt. In her eyes, he is faultless: a glorious ray of sunshine in the grey of her existence. But beneath the golden exterior, a very different nature wages an ever stronger fight for life. For Susan Ramsey, life is easy. Cherished by her parents, she knows nothing of hardship or misery. Until the sudden death of her father - and an introduction to a new and deeply disturbing world. When Susan and Ronnie meet, the attraction is instant. Each recognises the soulmate for whom they have longed. At last Ronnie feels able to remove his mask of perfection. But, like Pandora's Box, what is released can never again be restrained.

Ronnie Sidney is a perfect child. The illegitimate son of a wartime romance, he gives his mother the unconditional love she so craves. In his mother's eyes Ronnie is faultless: a ray of sunshine in her grey life. But as cracks begin to creep into Ronnie's facade of youthful charm, a very different character starts to emerge. For Susan Ramsey, life is easy. Cherished by her parents, she knows nothing of hardship or misery. Until a sudden tragedy thrusts her into a dark and disturbing world. When Susan and Ronnie meet, the attraction is instant. Each recognises in the other a long-awaited soul mate. Finally, Ronnie feels able to remove his mask of perfection - with consequences more dreadful than either could possibly have foreseen . . . With its compelling exploration of psychological power games and emotional violence, Apple of My Eye is the mesmerising third novel from the bestselling author of The Wishing Game and The Puppet Show.

Young Adult Native American NovelApple Starkington turned her back on her Native American heritage the moment she was called a racial slur for someone of white and Indian descent, not that she really even knew how to be an Indian. Too bad the white world doesn't accept her either. And so begins her quirky habits to gain acceptance. Apple's name, chosen by her Indian mother on her deathbed, has a double meaning: treasured apple of my eye, but also the negative connotation-a person who is red, or Indian, on the outside, but white on the inside.After her wealthy father gives her the boot one summer, Apple reluctantly agrees to visit her Native American relatives on the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation in North Dakota for the first time. Apple learns to deal with the culture shock of Indian customs and the Native Michif language, while she tries to deal with a vengeful Indian man who loved her mother in high school but now hates Apple because her mom married a white man.As Apple meets her Indian relatives, she shatters Indian stereotypes and learns what it means to find her place in a world divided by color.