The Road To There

WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE • NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A searing, post-apocalyptic novel about a father and son's fight to survive, this "tale of survival and the miracle of goodness only adds to McCarthy's stature as a living master. It's gripping, frightening and, ultimately, beautiful" (San Francisco Chronicle). • From the bestselling author of The Passenger A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food—and each other. The Road is the profoundly moving story of a journey. It boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, "each the other's world entire," are sustained by love. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation. Look for Cormac McCarthy's latest bestselling novels, The Passenger and Stella Maris.

Winner of the 2004 Norma Fleck Award for Canadian children’s non-fiction Honor Book for the Society of School Librarians International’s Best Book Award – Social Studies, Grades 7-12 Shortlisted for the Children's Literature Roundtable Information Book of the Year 2003 winner of the Mr. Christie’s Book Award Seal Shortlisted for the 2004 Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children’s Non-fiction Included on VOYA’s ninth annual Nonfiction Honor List Selected for inclusion in CCBC Choices 2004: the best-of-the-year list published by the Cooperative Children’s Book center of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Named Notable Book by the International Reading Association’s Children’s Book Award in the intermediate nonfiction category Road maps; sailor’s charts; quilts; songlines; gilded parchment covered with jewel-like colors; computer printouts – to guide us through the strange, vast, beautiful, and mysterious frontiers of the world of maps, Val Ross presents the men and women who made them. Here are some of the unexpected stories of history’s great mapmakers: the fraud artists who deliberately distorted maps for political gain, Captain Cook, the slaves on the run who found their way thanks to specially-pieced quilts, the woman who mapped London’s streets, princes, doctors, and warriors. These are the people who helped us chart our way in the world, under the sea, and on to the stars. With reproductions of some of the most important maps in history, this extraordinary book, packed with information, is as fascinating and suspenseful as a novel.

“A sneakily disturbing, disarmingly profound, casually devastating memoir” of a young writer in NYC—and the fateful turn his life takes on Sept. 11, 2001 (Michael Chabon). In 1998, twenty-four-year-old Bryan Charles came to New York, following the well-trodden path of many before him—pursuing the life of a writer in the storied city far from his Midwestern roots. And like so many of his predecessors, his journey took him into squalid apartments and mind-numbing temp jobs, fleeting romances and dwindling finances, self-doubt and homesickness. He chronicles these experiences with equal parts witty observation and unguarded honesty, reflecting on the life of a solitary soul in a teeming metropolis, struggling to make a living . . . and struggling harder to make it as a writer. His life takes a turn for the better when he lands in a lucrative job that pays the bills, builds his bank account, and buys him a chance to chase his dream—all from the seventieth floor of the World Trade Center. But the next turn his life takes, and which takes the lives of thousands of others, is a destiny-altering nightmare . . . and a call to action that can’t be ignored. “A gripping account told in the muted style of a writer with true authority.” —Publishers Weekly “This is the book I can’t forget . . . insightful, transcendent . . . it knocked me on my ass.” —Library Journal (starred review) “A sneakily disturbing, disarmingly profound, casually devastating memoir, taut and adept, that cracked me up even at its saddest moments, and broke my heart almost without my quite noticing.” —Michael Chabon

Spirited American stories gathered together for the first time From the coasts of Brazil to the borders of Tibet to the very heartland of America, May There Be a Road gathers ten previously uncollected stories that capture the magnificent scope and sense of epic adventure that epitomize Louis L'Amour classic fiction. In these vivid settings L’Amour takes us into the pivotal moments when lives are altered forever, when men and women face a deadly enemy, find a kindred spirit, or confront their own mortality. Among the unforgettable characters we meet here are a hard-living, hard-drinking freighter captain whose penchant for flying may change the course of World War II . . . A lonely frontiersman who unexpectedly finds himself the protector of two orphans . . . A boxer who accepts a gambler’s payoff and then must fight to redeem himself . . . A detective willing to believe an unproven story in order to discover a painful truth hidden in a small town. And in the title story L’Amour weaves the powerful tale of a young Tibetan khan who leads a band of horsemen on a daring escape across treacherous mountain terrain. At stake is the survival of a people and an ancient way of life. Evoking the American spirit of bravery, pride, adventure, and self-reliance as few writers have, this extraordinary volume proves once again that L’Amour has set a standard yet to be matched.

From the glory days of the railroad to today's gridlocked, six-lane highway, Getting There dramatizes America's shift from rail to road transportation, how it has robbed Americans of the choice of travel options enjoyed by Europeans, and why it threatens the nation's economic future. Stephen B. Goddard reveals how government joined automakers and roadbuilders to nearly destroy the rails, and why the 21st century will witness high-tech remedies and a railroad resurgence.

Addiction and adventure. Crime and punishment. Hardship and challenge. Dick Richardson has been to hell and back again, struggling through addiction and recovery and coming out on top. His life as a sailor introduced him to the rougher side of life, but his own bad decisions sucked him into a downward spiral through the pain of drug and alcohol addiction. Poignant and raw, Richardson’s memoir leaves no detail unspoken. Sharing the gritty reality of his struggle for healing acts as both a warning and an encouragement: life is tough. But it doesn’t have to stay that way.

Do you ever feel like everyone around you is succeeding, leaving you behind feeling unhappy and unsatisfied with your life? Ever wonder how some people succeed while others only dream about it? In Finding Your Road to Success, author Patrick Daniel answers your questions and reveals a step-by-step approach to building roadmaps that lead you straight to the top. Patrick demonstrates how anyone can achieve success and shares the secrets to happiness, wealth, and Ultimate success!