Little Scratch

In the formally innovative tradition of Grief Is the Thing with Feathers and Ducks, Newburyport comes a dazzlingly original, shot-in-the-arm of a debut that reveals a young woman's every thought over the course of one deceptively ordinary day. She wakes up, goes to work. Watches the clock and checks her phone. But underneath this monotony there's something else going on: something under her skin. Relayed in interweaving columns that chart the feedback loop of memory, the senses, and modern distractions with wit and precision, our narrator becomes increasingly anxious as the day moves on: Is she overusing the heart emoji? Isn't drinking eight glasses of water a day supposed to fix everything? Why is the etiquette of the women's bathroom so fraught? How does she define rape? And why can't she stop scratching? Fiercely moving and slyly profound, little scratch is a defiantly playful look at how our minds function in--and survive--the darkest moments.

"This is a teeth-chattering, eyes bulging, shuddering-and-shaking, chills-at-the-back-of-your-neck ghost story. I loved it!"—R.L. Stine, author of the Goosebumps series For fans of Small Spaces and the Goosebumps series by R.L Stine comes a chilling ghost story based on real Chicago history about a malevolent spirit, an unlucky girl, and a haunting mystery that will tie the two together. Claire has absolutely no interest in the paranormal. She's a scientist, which is why she can't think of anything worse than having to help out her dad on one of his ghost-themed Chicago bus tours. She thinks she's made it through when she sees a boy with a sad face and dark eyes at the back of the bus. There's something off about his presence, especially because when she checks at the end of the tour...he's gone. Claire tries to brush it off, she must be imagining things, letting her dad's ghost stories get the best of her. But then the scratching starts. Voices whisper to her in the dark. The number 396 appears everywhere she turns. And the boy with the dark eyes starts following her. Claire is being haunted. The boy from the bus wants something...and Claire needs to find out what before it's too late. Pick up Scritch Scratch if you are looking for: A book for middle school students, 5th grade to 9th grade A story with a strong female protagonist that explores bravery, friendship, and family Mystery books for kids 9-12 Chilling ghost stories and ghost books for kids (perfect for Halloween!) Historical mysteries and Chicago history books for kids

A collection of essays from today’s most acclaimed authors—from Cheryl Strayed to Roxane Gay to Jennifer Weiner, Alexander Chee, Nick Hornby, and Jonathan Franzen—on the realities of making a living in the writing world. In the literary world, the debate around writing and commerce often begs us to take sides: either writers should be paid for everything they do or writers should just pay their dues and count themselves lucky to be published. You should never quit your day job, but your ultimate goal should be to quit your day job. It’s an endless, confusing, and often controversial conversation that, despite our bare-it-all culture, still remains taboo. In Scratch, Manjula Martin has gathered interviews and essays from established and rising authors to confront the age-old question: how do creative people make money? As contributors including Jonathan Franzen, Cheryl Strayed, Roxane Gay, Nick Hornby, Susan Orlean, Alexander Chee, Daniel Jose Older, Jennifer Weiner, and Yiyun Li candidly and emotionally discuss money, MFA programs, teaching fellowships, finally getting published, and what success really means to them, Scratch honestly addresses the tensions between writing and money, work and life, literature and commerce. The result is an entertaining and inspiring book that helps readers and writers understand what it’s really like to make art in a world that runs on money—and why it matters. Essential reading for aspiring and experienced writers, and for anyone interested in the future of literature, Scratch is the perfect bookshelf companion to On Writing, Never Can Say Goodbye, and MFA vs. NYC.

Here he is, husband and father, scruffy romantic, a shambolic scholar--a man adrift in the wake of his wife's sudden, accidental death. And there are his two sons who like him struggle in their London apartment to face the unbearable sadness that has engulfed them. The father imagines a future of well-meaning visitors and emptiness, while the boys wander, savage and unsupervised. In this moment of violent despair they are visited by Crow--antagonist, trickster, goad, protector, therapist, and babysitter. This self-described "sentimental bird," at once wild and tender, who "finds humans dull except in grief," threatens to stay with the wounded family until they no longer need him. As weeks turn to months and the pain of loss lessens with the balm of memories, Crow's efforts are rewarded and the little unit of three begins to recover: Dad resumes his book about the poet Ted Hughes; the boys get on with it, grow up. Part novella, part polyphonic fable, part essay on grief, Max Porter's extraordinary debut combines compassion and bravura style to dazzling effect. Full of angular wit and profound truths, Grief Is the Thing with Feathers is a startlingly original and haunting debut by a significant new talent.

A hilarious take on helping others and self awareness from New York Times bestselling author Jory John and comic artist sensation Liz Climo Persnickety Elephant has an itch--a big one--and he can't reach it! While he isn't above asking for a little help, no one is up to the task. Turtle is too lazy, Snail is too slimy, and Alligator... well, Elephant isn't sure he wants his assistance. Does Elephant have to do everything himself? Jory John's signature deadpan humor pairs perfectly with Liz Climo's oh-so-innocent-looking animals to create a slyly ironic read-aloud that will leave kids and parents in stitches.

Before anaesthesia was discovered, what could surgeons offer their patients? Amputation? Setting a broken bone? Operations were rarely carried out – and all were accompanied by unimaginable pain and often resulted in death. Anaesthesia changed surgery forever. Consider what marvels can now be performed on any organ in the body, in the absence of pain and with every expectation of survival. Its discovery altered society, hugely for the better, and yet so little is known or understood about it by most of us. Just a Little Scratch describes some of the who, why, what and how in the development of modern anaesthesia and will answer many of the questions that a patient might wish to ask. How does it work? Will I wake up in the middle of the operation? What does the anaesthetist do during the operation? Is the anaesthetist a doctor? What’s the best anaesthetic? With forty years’ experience of fielding and answering these questions without scaring his patients, Dr David Raitt has written a history of anaesthesia, starting at the beginning and taking us through the evolution of the specialty from black art to science. Learn about its early history, how anaesthetics have changed over the years, and what they are like today. Discover more about what anaesthetists actually do and the equipment and drugs which they use to put you to sleep. Just a Little Scratch will inform and reassure potential patients who may have a forthcoming operation. It will also appeal to medical history enthusiasts.

How would you react if you lost your scratch pad that was returned by a stranger with this entry? Just last week, lying next to me was a dead woman whose throat Id just slashed. I was callously lingering in a pool of her blood. Whores are undeserving; theyre as worthless as my mother was. She too was a whore whod bequeathed me with twelve bad-ass siblings with different baby daddies. I had to vie for every morsel of affection and attention. She eventually abandoned all of us, and I fell into the throes of remorse and depression, all alone in that gloomy castle-like orphanage. All the siblings were separated. And it wasnt until recently that Id come in contact with one of them. Hed found me through the Internet, and Id just arrived in London a week ago to reunite with him. Consequently, it is a stretch for me to share anythingparticularly my heart. I laid there beside this young creature of about twenty-five years my junior, examining the gash in her throat Id so skillfully crafted like a surgeon. Id slashed it slowly and deeply as she yelped for mercy and drew her last breath. The sex was lewd and brutal; Id taken my sweet time. Earlier, I had punched her in her face, disfiguring her gravely. She howled in agony and terror. When she attempted to escape, I snatched her by her amber-streaked tresses as she squirmed and resisted me. An ample tract of weave dislodged from her scalp. Incensed, I tossed her roughly on the bed and proceeded to brutalize her as she begged for mercy that merely fell on my deaf, deranged ears. She was mine, all mine, as I diminished her to an empty shell of herself. I was determined to avenge my mother through my victims tortured soul (Unknown). Scratch Pad, a mini-thriller short story, is a roller-coaster of twists, turns, and surprises.