Unnamed Forces

In 1936 Germany and Japan sign a treaty with two oil companies: The two countries divide among each other the oil exploitation in Siberia. The diplomatic courier carrying the German version of the treaty from Tokyo to Berlin disappears while crossing the Soviet Union traveling on the Trans-Siberian Railroad. Nearly seventy years later Jack Boulder, a Canadian living in the Swiss city of Basel, is asked by the German Foreign Office to trace the original copy of the treaty. What is so important about an agreement that is outdated? Why does a German government office offer so much money for this task if they know exactly whom to ask for its whereabouts? Soon Boulder realizes that certain parts of the puzzle are not foreign to him. Driven by curiosity he follows the trails he discovers through Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, the United States and Russia; and others follow him. The circle closes in Siberia. Who gets the Russian oil? Who finances the pipelines? Who bags the profits? A novel set in 2002 with a gripping story against both a colorful historical and contemporary political background. The plot is full of period detail, rapid, humorous, and full of suspense; a mixture of intrigue and romance. At the same time it traces the attempts of the central character to come to terms with the entanglement of politics, bureaucracy, and business. The book introduces protagonist Jack Boulder and presents his friends Laszlo Nagy, a former art forger, Annabel Conti, who is working for a Swiss bank, and Dr. Schall, who runs a small German secret service.

Legacies of Departed African Writers analyzes and celebrates the resounding contributions of ten deceased African female writers of contemporary African literature and feminist scholarship, examining the ideologies, thematic concerns, and stylistic devices which constitute the fabrics of the legacies left by these iconic pacesetters.

Jennifer Wilson spent the last seventeen years raising her younger sister Kelsey, after a boating accident killed their parents. It hasn't always been easy - especially with her sister's best friend, Riley Blake, always hanging around. Riley hasn't had an easy life either. Growing up with an alcoholic father, abandoned by her mother when she was ten, Riley has learned to cope with being on her own. Her friendship with Kelsey is the only thing steadfast in her life, and she cherishes it.When tragedy and secrets emerge, Jennifer and Riley must learn to lean on each other. The growing attraction between them only complicates matters. When events conspire to keep them apart, will they trust the unknown forces that keep pushing them together, or hide from their feelings forever?

From the award-winning author The New York Times Book Review called “a national treasure,” a fascinating, wholly original book about Pat Nixon that is also “a fully realized account of fiction, fiction writing, and the fiction writer” (The Boston Globe). The rare First Lady who did not write a book, Pat Nixon remains one of the most mysterious and enigmatic public figures in recent history. Ann Beattie, like many of her generation, dismissed Richard Nixon’s wife. Decades later, she wonders what it must have been like to be married to such a spectacularly ambitious and catastrophically self-destructive man. Beattie uses the elusive persona of Mrs. Nixon to examine how writers create characters, how they use detail, and what drives their storytelling. Like Stephen King’s On Writing, this fascinating and intimate account offers readers a rare glimpse into the imagination of a writer. A startlingly compelling and revelatory work, Mrs. Nixon is an insightful and humorous examination of the First Couple who occupied the White House as the baby boomers came of age.

The History of the Armenian priest Łewond is an important source for the history of early Islamic rule and the only contemporary chronicle of second/eighth-century caliphal rule in Armenia. This volume presents a diplomatic edition and new English translation of Łewond's text, which describes events that took place during the century and a half following the Prophet Muḥammad's death in AH 11/632 CE. The authors address Łewond's account as a work of caliphal history, written in Armenian, from within the Caliphate. As such, this book provides a critical reading of the Caliphate from one of its most significant provinces. Reading notes clarify many aspects of the period covered to make the text understandable to students and specialists alike. Extensive commentary elucidates Łewond's narrative objectives and situates his History in a broader Near Eastern historiographical context by bringing the text into new conversations with a constellation of Arabic, Greek, and Syriac works that cover the same period. The book thus stresses the multiplicity of voices operating in the Caliphate in this pivotal period of Near Eastern history.