The Passionate Years

“Will make many readers smile with recognition.”—The New Yorker “Readaholics, meet your new best friend.”—People “This book is bliss.”—The Boston Globe Sometimes subtle, sometimes striking, the interplay between our lives and our books is the subject of this unique memoir by well-known publishing correspondent and self-described “readaholic” Sara Nelson. The project began as an experiment with a simple plan—fifty-two weeks, fifty-two books—that fell apart in the first week. It was then that Sara realized the books chose her as much as she chose them, and the rewards and frustrations they brought were nothing she could plan for. From Solzhenitsyn to Laura Zigman, Catherine M. to Captain Underpants, the result is a personal chronicle of insight, wit, and enough infectious enthusiasm to make a passionate reader out of anybody.

"Few living persons have served the Metropolitan Museum of Art-indeed, the entire world of art and art museums-longer, or with more distinction, than Roy Neuberger. A man of taste, passion, persistence, and generosity, he has shared much of his great private collection with the public, and for generations has supported activities that bring people to museums, and motivate them to return again and again. Now, this giant of a man has recorded eighty years of his life-and the result is entertaining, illuminating, and, like the tireless gentleman himself, inspiring." -Philippe de Montebello, Director, The Metropolitan Museum of Art Equal to his passion for investing is Roy Neuberger's love for art-which he has collected and encouraged for eight decades. In The Passionate Collector: Eighty Years in the World of Art, you'll follow this fascinating financial figure and great patron of the arts from the streets of 1920s Paris to the museums of New York as he develops the eye of a connoisseur and begins to collect great contemporary art. Vivid detail puts you in the center of the action as Neuberger collects the brilliant artists of his time-Milton Avery, Jackson Pollock, Ben Shahn, Edward Hopper; works with legendary art dealers Paul Rosenberg, Betty Parsons, Sidney Janis, and Leo Castelli; and befriends avid collectors, including the incomparable Duncan Phillips. You'll follow Neuberger as he strives to further the cause of contemporary American artists by exhibiting, lending, and donating from his growing collection, and becoming an activist for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney. You'll also see how the Neuberger Museum of Art was created at the urging of Governor Nelson Rockefeller, and how it continues to fascinate art enthusiasts today. Part personal memoir, part history of art, The Passionate Collector offers a unique view of twentieth-century American art from a man who has lived it.

Success in today's IT environment requires you to view your career as a business endeavor. In this book, you'll learn how to become an entrepreneur, driving your career in the direction of your choosing. You'll learn how to build your software development career step by step, following the same path that you would follow if you were building, marketing, and selling a product. After all, your skills themselves are a product. The choices you make about which technologies to focus on and which business domains to master have at least as much impact on your success as your technical knowledge itself--don't let those choices be accidental. We'll walk through all aspects of the decision-making process, so you can ensure that you're investing your time and energy in the right areas. You'll develop a structured plan for keeping your mind engaged and your skills fresh. You'll learn how to assess your skills in terms of where they fit on the value chain, driving you away from commodity skills and toward those that are in high demand. Through a mix of high-level, thought-provoking essays and tactical "Act on It" sections, you will come away with concrete plans you can put into action immediately. You'll also get a chance to read the perspectives of several highly successful members of our industry from a variety of career paths. As with any product or service, if nobody knows what you're selling, nobody will buy. We'll walk through the often-neglected world of marketing, and you'll create a plan to market yourself both inside your company and to the industry in general. Above all, you'll see how you can set the direction of your career, leading to a more fulfilling and remarkable professional life.

The Passionate Year is a short novel by James Hilton. A story detailing a young schoolmaster's rise and fall in his profession, and the rise and fall of his marriage. Excerpt: "At a quarter to seven he sank into the wicker armchair in his room and gazed pensively at the red tissue-paper in the fire-grate. He had just a few minutes with nothing particular to do in them before going downstairs to dinner at the Head's. He was ready dressed and groomed for the occasion, polished up to that pitch of healthy cleanliness and sartorial efficiency which the undergraduate of not many weeks before had been wont to present at University functions of the more fashionable sort. He looked extraordinarily young, almost boyish, in his smartly cut lounge suit and patent shoes; he thought so himself as he looked in the mirror—he speculated a little humorously whether the head-prefect would look older or younger than he did."

Read this classic romance by USA Today bestselling author Carole Mortimer, now available for the first time in e-book! A forbidden attraction… No woman can resist the powerful attraction of Piers Sinclair. Sophisticated, experienced and dangerously exciting, his very presence unsettles Leigh Stanton. Especially since he happens to be her boyfriend’s father! There might be a big age difference, but Leigh can’t help falling for his charismatic charms. Leigh knows she should try to avoid Piers—their chemistry might be sizzling, but they mustn’t succumb to the temptation of the forbidden… Yet with a matchmaker at play, forgetting Piers is no longer a possibility! Originally published in 1978

In An Extravagant Hunger, time slows and is relished, and the turning points and casual strolls of M.F.K. Fisher's life are unwrapped and savored. From the Berengaria that washed her across the sea to France in 1929, to Le Paquis, the Swiss estate that later provided a backdrop for some of the most idyllic and fleeting moments of her life, the stories of Fisher's love for food and her love for family and men are meticulously researched and exquisitely captured in this book. Exploring Fisher's lonely and formative time in Europe with her first husband; her subsequent divorce and re–marriage to her creative sparkplug, Dillwyn Parrish, and his tragic suicide; and the child she carried from an unnamed father, the story of M.F.K. Fisher's life becomes as vibrant and passionate as her prolific words on wine and cuisine. Letters and journal entries piece together a dramatic life, but An Extravagant Hunger steps further, bridging the gaps between personal notes and her public persona, filling in the silences by offering an engaging and unprecedented depth of intuitive commentary. With a passion of her own, Anne Zimmerman is the careful witness, lingering beside M.F.K. Fisher through her most dramatic and productive years.

The author who unforgettably captured the experience of starting a new life in Tuscany returns to immerse herself - and her readers - in the sights, aromas and treasures of twelve new special places.A YEAR IN THE WORLD is vintage Frances Mayes - a celeb