Shop Girl

One of our country's most acclaimed and beloved entertainers, Steve Martin has written a novella that is unexpectedly perceptive about relationships and life. Martin is profoundly wise when it comes to the inner workings of the human heart. Mirabelle is the "shopgirl" of the title, a young woman, beautiful in a wallflowerish kind of way, who works behind the glove counter at Neiman Marcus "selling things that nobody buys anymore . . ." Slightly lost, slightly off-kilter, very shy, Mirabelle charms because of all that she is not: not glamorous, not aggressive, not self-aggrandizing. Still there is something about her that is irresistible. Mirabelle captures the attention of Ray Porter, a wealthy businessman almost twice her age. As they tentatively embark on a relationship, they both struggle to decipher the language of love--with consequences that are both comic and heartbreaking. Filled with the kind of witty, discerning observations that have brought Steve Martin critical success, Shopgirl is a work of disarming tenderness.

The Butcher Shop Girl begins with Carmen's unique coming-of-age as she's ripped from her extended family after her Catholic parents' divorce. Learning to conquer unusual places in the name of survival, Carmen spends her childhood working in her mother's slaughterhouse in prairie Alberta, tearing through flesh and getting up to trouble. To escape a violent home, she bounces from house to house, working on the family farm, and eventually in the oil patch. At eighteen, Carmen's competitive craving for money and independence leads her to a career as an exotic dancer. Starting out in seedy small-town dives, she quickly earns her place in high-end clubs throughout North America, becoming an elite world-travelling entertainer. Carmen lives the high life and makes big money. She parties with the Hells Angels and falls in love with a sexy U.S. drug enforcement agent-effortlessly walking the line of two extreme worlds. But when run-ins with premium organized crime land her in Bolivia, she realizes she's gone too far, and the only thing that can free her is to ask her estranged family for help. The Butcher Shop Girl is a compelling memoir of resilience and persistence that captures the vivacious spirit of a small-town girl determined to succeed by any means necessary....

* THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER * Young Mary Newton, born into a large Irish family in a small Watford semi, was always getting into trouble. When she wasnâe(tm)t choking back fits of giggles at Holy Communion or eating Chappie dog food for a bet, she was accidentally setting fire to the local school. Mary was a trouble magnet. And, unlike her brothers, somehow she always got caughtâe¦ Britain in the 1970s was a world where R White's lemonade was drunk in secret, curry came in a cardboard box marked Vesta and Beanz meant Heinz. In Maryâe(tm)s family, money was scarce. Clothes were hand-me-downs, holidays a church day out to Hastings and meals were variations on the potato. But these were also good times which revolved around the force of nature that was Theresa, Maryâe(tm)s mum. When tragedy unexpectedly blows this world apart, a new chapter in Maryâe(tm)s life opens up. She takes to the camp and glamour of Harrods window dressing like a duck to water, and Mary, Queen of Shops is bornâe¦

When best friends Aggie and Fiona drift apart in fifth grade, Aggie grows to understand that fading friendships are normal, and she makes a new friend who shares more of her interests.

The English-language debut of one of Japan’s most talented contemporary writers, selling over 650,000 copies there, Convenience Store Woman is the heartwarming and surprising story of thirty-six-year-old Tokyo resident Keiko Furukura. Keiko has never fit in, neither in her family, nor in school, but when at the age of eighteen she begins working at the Hiiromachi branch of “Smile Mart,” she finds peace and purpose in her life. In the store, unlike anywhere else, she understands the rules of social interaction—many are laid out line by line in the store’s manual—and she does her best to copy the dress, mannerisms, and speech of her colleagues, playing the part of a “normal” person excellently, more or less. Managers come and go, but Keiko stays at the store for eighteen years. It’s almost hard to tell where the store ends and she begins. Keiko is very happy, but the people close to her, from her family to her coworkers, increasingly pressure her to find a husband, and to start a proper career, prompting her to take desperate action... A brilliant depiction of an unusual psyche and a world hidden from view, Convenience Store Woman is an ironic and sharp-eyed look at contemporary work culture and the pressures to conform, as well as a charming and completely fresh portrait of an unforgettable heroine.

In The Set-Apart Woman, women of all ages will be encouraged to stay grounded in Jesus amid the many distractions and temptations of their daily lives. Biblical truths will help readers understand what it means to live the consecrated life, set apart for God's purposes. Readers will apply these truths to practical areas of struggle that women face on a daily basis, such as sinful attitudes and patterns and other hindrances to our souls.

The First book in the Coffee Shop Series! Bethany: This coffee shop is going to kill me. Sure, it's my dad's dream. If he hadn't died eight months ago, I wouldn't be here, a college drop out, trying not to drown in debt. Nor would I be staring into the muddy eyes of a viking-sized man that's telling me everything I'm doing wrong-as if he knows so much about business in a small mountain town. Except he does. And when the biggest, most unexpected surprise of all falls in my lap, I'll have no choice but to ask for his help. Time for some power lipstick. Maverick: This girl is drowning. She might have eyes like glacier pools and hair so black it's glossy, but that doesn't mean she knows how to run a coffee shop. She's drowning in more than debt, interest, and credit card payments. She'll never make it. But I kind of want her to. Because underneath that bright lipstick and those sun dresses is a woman that I have an uncomfortable feeling is about to rock. my. world. This is a clean, contemporary romance with sizzle and spice-but no sex scenes. Guaranteed bantering and happily ever after.

DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "Winnie Childs, the Shop Girl" by C. N. Williamson, A. M. Williamson. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.