The Most Beautiful Thing

A beautiful and touching true story about a refugee family and a girl whose grandmother helps her find beauty in a most unexpected way

REGIONAL BESTSELLER Now a documentary narrated by Common, produced by Grant Hill, Dwyane Wade, and 9th Wonder, from filmmaker Mary Mazzio The moving true story of a group of young men growing up on Chicago's West side who form the first all-Black high school rowing team in the nation, and in doing so not only transform a sport, but their lives. Growing up on Chicago’s Westside in the 90’s, Arshay Cooper knows the harder side of life. The street corners are full of gangs, the hallways of his apartment complex are haunted by drug addicts he calls “zombies” with strung out arms, clutching at him as he passes by. His mother is a recovering addict, and his three siblings all sleep in a one room apartment, a small infantry against the war zone on the street below. Arshay keeps to himself, preferring to write poetry about the girl he has a crush on, and spends his school days in the home-ec kitchen dreaming of becoming a chef. And then one day as he’s walking out of school he notices a boat in the school lunchroom, and a poster that reads “Join the Crew Team”. Having no idea what the sport of crew is, Arshay decides to take a chance. This decision to join is one that will forever change his life, and those of his fellow teammates. As Arshay and his teammates begin to come together to learn how to row--many never having been in water before--the sport takes them from the mean streets of Chicago, to the hallowed halls of the Ivy League. But Arshay and his teammates face adversity at every turn, from racism, gang violence, and a sport that has never seen anyone like them before. A Most Beautiful Thing is the inspiring true story about the most unlikely band of brothers that form a family, and forever change a sport and their lives for the better.

On January's coldest day of the year in a small community in the Northwest Territories, a stranger to horses searches among family and friends for answers to an important question. It's forty below in the little town of Fort Smith in the Northwest Territories of Canada -- so cold that the ravens refuse to fly and author Richard Van Camp can't go outside. He belongs to the Dogrib tribe, whose people traditionally haven't used horses. To help pass the time, he decides to pose the question, "What's the most beautiful thing you know about horses?" to family members, friends, and artist George Littlechild, who is Plains Cree and knows a lot about horses. The answers range from zany to profound: Horses can run sideways; they have secrets; they can always find their way home. In this delightful new book, Littlechild's fanciful paintings perfectly capture Van Camp's gentle world-view. Together, they inspire readers to see the world in entirely new ways.

Lisa Gungor thought she knew her own story: small-town girl meets boy in college and they blissfully walk down the aisle into happily ever after. Their Christian faith was their lens and foundation for everything—their marriage, their music, their dreams for the future. But as their dreams began to come true, she began to wonder if her religion was really representative of the ‘good news’ she had been taught. She never expected the questions to lead as far as they did when her husband told her he no longer believed in God. The death of a friend, the unraveling of relationships and career, the loss of a worldview, and the birth of a baby girl with two heart defects all led Lisa to a tumultuous place; one of depression and despair. And it was there that her perspective on everything changed. The Most Beautiful Thing I’ve Seen tells the story of what can happen when you dare to let go of what you think to be true; to shift the kaleidoscope and see new colors and dimension by way of broken pieces. Lisa’s eloquent, soul-stirring memoir brings you to a music stage before thousands of fans and a front porch where two people whisper words that scare them to the core. It is the story of how doubt can spark the beginning of deeper faith; how a baby born with a broken heart can bring love and healing to the hearts of many, and ultimately, how the hardest experience in life often ends up saving us.

How can he make sense of the world when he can't even make sense of himself? Joe is not like other boys. At 14 he is obsessed with birds and the weather - but to this sensitive and gentle young man, other people are a mystery. When Joe is sent away to stay with his quirky artist aunt in Holland, only his relationships with his aunt and his new friend, Emmie, help him as he struggles to makes sense of the world. Fifteen years later, Joe is a man - but still at odds with other people, and a virgin. Returning to Amsterdam, the place where he was closest to happiness, Joe witnesses a tragedy and discovers a secret that throws his life into turmoil - but this may ultimately lead him to find the one thing he has always craved... The Most Beautiful Thing is a coming-of-age tale with a twist that will appeal to fans of Ann Enright and Penelope Lively. Tender and insightful, it will make you see the world with new eyes. "Robyn is the real thing. A gifted writer who understands the complexities of the human soul." Jacqui Lofthouse "A thoughtful and moving writer who has a great sense of human emotion." Michael Kimball

"Angular, smart, and fearless, Arisa White's newest collection takes its titles from words used internationally as hate speech against gays and lesbians, reworking, re-envisioning, and re- embodying language as a conduit for art, love, and understanding." --

Sonia Faleiro was a reporter in search of a story when she met Leela, a beautiful and charismatic bar dancer with a story to tell. Leela introduced Sonia to the underworld of Bombay's dance bars: a world of glamorous women, of fierce love, sex and violence, of customers and gangsters, of police, prostitutes and pimps. When an ambitious political politician cashed in on a tide of false morality and had Bombay's dance bars wiped out, Leela's proud independence faced its greatest test. In a city where almost everyone is certain that someone, somewhere, is worse off than them, she fights to survive, and to win. Beautiful Thing is a vivid and intimate portrait of one reporter's journey into the dark, pulsating and ultimately damaged soul of Bombay.

Teenage boys Ste and Jamie are neighbours on a South London estate. Jamie is more knowledgeable about The Sound of Music than football, while classmate Ste never misses a sports day. Both are being bullied, Jamie at school and Ste at home by his violent father and brother. One night, when things get too much, Ste seeks refuge in Jamie's flat and, sharing a bed, the boys strike up a new relationship. Together they come to terms with their sexuality and explore their feelings alongside their Mama Cass loving, rebellious friend Leah and with the much-needed emotional support of Jamie's lioness mother, Sandra. Thirty years on from its initial publication, Jonathan Harvey's iconic, coming-out and coming-of-age story set in the nineties still resonates with ideas on community, friendship, rites of passage and what it is to be sixteen and in love. This edition is published to coincide with the revival at London's Stratford East theatre, in September, 2023.