In Christopher Moore's ingenious debut novel, we meet one of the most memorably mismatched pairs in the annals of literature. The good-looking one is one-hundred-year-old ex-seminarian and 'roads' scholar Travis O'Hearn. The green one is Catch, a demon with a nasty habit of eating most of the people he meets. Behind the fake Tudor façade of Pine Cove, California, Catch sees a four-star buffet. Travis, on the other hand, thinks he sees a way of ridding himself of his toothy travelling companion. The winos, neo-pagans, and deadbeat Lotharios of Pine Cove, meanwhile, have other ideas. And none of them is quite prepared when all hell breaks loose.

Jody never asked to become a vampire. But when she wakes up under an alley Dumpster with a badly burned arm, an aching neck, superhuman strength, and a distinctly Nosferatuan thirst, she realises the decision has been made for her. Making the transition from the nine-to-five grind to an eternity of nocturnal prowlings is going to take some doing, however, and that's where C. Thomas Flood fits in. A would-be Kerouac from Incontinence, Indiana, Tommy (to his friends) is biding his time night-clerking and frozen turkey bowling in a San Francisco Safeway. But all that changes when a beautiful, undead redhead walks through the door ... and proceeds to rock Tommy's life - and afterlife - in ways he never imagined possible.

"Great reads for busy people." This is a guide to help busy people find great reads in fiction and non-fiction. Filled with recommendations of popular, entertaining reading, this book covers mystery and suspense, romance, womenas fiction and chick lit, westerns, science fiction, such nonfiction topics as animals, art, biography, memoirs, business, true crime, and more. Plus, each entry includes a summary of the book, its significance, and a critique/observation/comment.

Novelistic Inquiries into the Mind traces the multiple relations between the mind and the contemporary novel. The contributors here examine various types of narrative fiction, ranging from the postmodern novels of J. M. Coetzee and Ian McEwan through the experimental prose of Leslie Scalapino to the popular fiction of James Dashner and Christopher Moore. On the one hand, they investigate novelistic representations of various mind-related issues, including different states of consciousness, Alzheimer’s disease, thought experiments and formation of the self. On the other, by analysing and evaluating in these contexts such narrative devices as unreliable narration, development of conceptual networks or multimodal integration of verbal and non-verbal semiotic resources, they exemplify the multiplicity of techniques whereby the novel can explore the intricacies of mental processes. Taken together, the essays collected here demonstrate the potential of the novel as genre for representing the mind. In its exploration of the problems involved in the linguistic construction of reality, the cognitive function of art and the uncertain status of consciousness, the contemporary novel thus reflects the mind’s urge to understand itself, as well as possible meanings of its own perceptions, creations and projections.

From the manger of Jesus Christ to the 21st century, this encyclopedia explores more than 2,000 years of Christmas past and present through 966 entries packed with a wide variety of historical and pop-culture subjects. Entries detail customs and traditions from around the world as well as classic Christmas movies, TV series/specials and animated cartoons. Arranged alphabetically by entry name, the book includes the historical background of popular sacred and secular songs as well as accounts of beloved literary works with Christmas themes from such noted authors as Charles Dickens, Louisa May Alcott, Hans Christian Andersen, Pearl Buck, Henry Van Dyke and others. All things Christmas are available here in one comprehensive volume.

This is the first book to focus solely on booktalking to adults. Here is an instruction manual and a material sourcebook in one; providing the reader with both step-by-step instructions on how to write a booktalk and 88 samples to use when creating a booktalk program for an adult audience.

Travel writer Stuart Thornton introduces you to the best of Santa Barbara and California's Central Coast, from Santa Barbara's stunning Spanish architecture to Ventura's treasure-filled thrift shops. A longtime resident of the Central Coast, Thornton has plenty of unique trip strategies to offer, as well as helpful tips on the best beaches, cheap eats, campgrounds, and more. Complete with inside information on enjoying the California Avocado Festival, sipping wine at the 16 wine tasting rooms on the Santa Barbara Urban Wine Trail, and catching some rays on Pismo Beach, Moon Santa Barbara & the Central Coast gives travelers the tools they need to create a more personal and memorable experience. This ebook and its features are best experienced on iOS or Android devices and the Kindle Fire.

Fantasy is one of the most visible genres in popular culture - we see the creation of magical and imagined worlds and characters in every type of media, with very strong fan bases in tow. This latest guide in the successful Bloomsbury Must-Read series covers work from a wide range of authors: Tolkien, Philip Pullman, Terry Pratchett, Michael Moorcock, Rudyard Kipling and C.S Lewis to very contemporary writers such as Garth Nix and Steven Erikson. If you want to expand your range of reading or deepen your understanding of this genre, this is the best place to start.

Being undead sucks. Literally. Just ask C. Thomas Flood. Waking up after a fantastic night unlike anything he's ever experienced, he discovers that his girlfriend, Jody, is a vampire. And surprise! Now he's one, too. For some couples, the whole biting-and-blood thing would have been a deal breaker. But Tommy and Jody are in love, and they vow to work through their issues. But word has it that the vampire who initially nibbled on Jody wasn't supposed to be recruiting. Even worse, Tommy's erstwhile turkey-bowling pals are out to get him, at the urging of a blue-dyed Las Vegas call girl named (duh) Blue. And that really sucks.

The town psychiatrist has decided to switch everybody in Pine Cove, California, from their normal antidepressants to placebos, so naturally - well, to be accurate, artificially - business is booming at the local blues bar. Trouble is, those lonely slide-guitar notes have also attracted a colossal sea beast named Steve with, shall we say, a thing for explosive oil tanker trucks. Suddenly, morose Pine Cove turns libidinous and is hit by a mysterious crime wave. A beleaguered constable has to fight off his own gonzo appetites to find out what's wrong and what, if anything, to do about it.