A cobra who can foretell the future unites an orphan boy with a princess. A boy who yearns to fly has his wish granted in a most astonishing way. A crocodile helps save a drowning village. Five magical tales of India and enchantment, illustrated with vivid watercolors by artist Laurie McLaughlin Ward.

This lively collection of short stories, some set in India and some in contemporary America, explores love, loss, and the muddle between the two. In the title story, a student falls in love with his mysterious neighbor, who would be perfect... if she weren't dead. In "Rage," an actor discovers a wrenching truth about the boy he has killed in anger. And in "Break-up," a husband draws the wrong conclusion from his wife's emotional withdrawal.

Rashida, an Indian Muslim woman with a questing spirit, falls in love with an author whose work she admires, though she's never laid eyes on him. She refuses other suitors, to the horror of her large, loving family. After years of political turmoil have convulsed India, with the author's fate unknown, he suddenly appears at her door. Rashida marries him at last, and sees him for the first time on their wedding night. His ugliness, slovenly habits, vanity--and finally, treachery--throw her emotions and her family's life into chaos. She begins a scandalous affair with a handsome teacher, defying her culture and destroying her family's honor. Rashida's story unfolds against a sweeping panorama of Indian history and culture, and a vivid, sensuous portrait of a changing India.

When a Mafia princess is found dead in her dorm, her roommate Sabby, the daughter of Pakistani immigrants, is arrested for murder. Both girls were rivals for the love of the same handsome classmate. And why is Sabby so fascinated with poisons? As the action moves from Pakistan to Sicily to Hollywood, international vendettas, double-crosses, and surprises abound, involving everyone from academics to Mafia molls to the President of the United States.

Two small-town girls, lifelong friends, make it to the the top in Washington, DC in very different ways. Gentle, conscientious Minnie finds love, while scheming, ambitious Maxie's relentless pursuit of wealth and influence attracts two powerful men: a grasping Senator, no stranger to dirty tricks, and the handsome, vapid President. A satirical look at politics, power, and sex in the nation's capital.

Mayu - A brilliant woman. A troubled past. Can she trust a man not to let her down again? Mayu, a divorced single mother, is juggling not only a career, but a defiant teenage son, a house full of dog hair, and those extra pounds that refuse to budge. Her trust has been shattered by an abusive alcoholic father and a chronically unfaithful ex-husband. Will this new man in her life break the cycle? One woman struggles to find love in a messy world.

This carefully crafted ebook: “CHRISTMAS ESSENTIALS - The Greatest Novels, Tales & Poems for The Holiday Season: 180+ Titles in One Volume (Illustrated)” is formatted for your eReader with a functional and detailed table of contents: A Letter from Santa Claus (Mark Twain) A Christmas Inspiration (Lucy Maud Montgomery) The Gift of the Magi (O. Henry) The First Christmas Of New England (Harriet Beecher Stowe) The Holy Night (Selma Lagerlöf) Christmas At Sea (Robert Louis Stevenson) The Little City of Hope (F. Marion Crawford) Christmas in the Olden Time (Walter Scott) Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (L. Frank Baum) The Twelve Days of Christmas Silent Night Ring Out, Wild Bells (Alfred Lord Tennyson) Christmas with Grandma Elsie (Martha Finley) Little Lord Fauntleroy (Frances Hodgson Burnett) Anne of Green Gables (Lucy Maud Montgomery) Little Women (Louisa May Alcott) The Christmas Angel (Abbie Farwell Brown) Black Beauty (Anna Sewell) Christmas In India (Rudyard Kipling) The Christmas Child (Hesba Stretton) Granny's Wonderful Chair (Frances Browne) The Romance of a Christmas Card (Kate Douglas Wiggin) Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame) The Birds' Christmas Carol (Kate Douglas Wiggin) The Wonderful Life - Story of the life and death of our Lord (Hesba Stretton) A Merry Christmas & Other Christmas Stories (Louisa May Alcott) Little Gretchen and the Wooden Shoe (Elizabeth Harrison) Where Love Is, God Is (Leo Tolstoy) Peter Pan and Wendy (J. M. Barrie) The Wonderful Wizard of OZ (L. Frank Baum) The Christmas Angel (Abbie Farwell Brown) The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Beatrix Potter) Toinette and the Elves (Susan Coolidge) The Heavenly Christmas Tree (Fyodor Dostoevsky) At the Back of the North Wind (George MacDonald) Christmas at Thompson Hall (Anthony Trollope) Thurlow's Christmas Story (John Kendrick Bangs) Christmas Every Day (William Dean Howells) The Lost Word (Henry van Dyke) The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (E. T. A. Hoffmann) The Little Match Girl ...

‘Take up one idea. . . Make that one idea your life. . . This is the way to success’ Single-minded and multifaceted, the master of many subjects and devoted disciple of Shri Ramakrishna, Swami Vivekananda was a global citizen far ahead of his times. At once a yogi and worldly-wise, this early ambassador of India introduced the western world to Indian civilization, while he encouraged Indians to discard divisive rituals and social hierarchies to build a united, equal, modern nation. A dedicated but free-thinking student, a reformer, teacher and writer, he was an eloquent orator whose speeches – especially at the World Parliament of Religions in Chicago – put Indian spirituality and philosophy on the map, and ignited hearts and minds everywhere. His way was both of meditation and action, leading from the front while humbly serving the poor. He put his faith in young people and exhorted them to work towards regenerating India. It is not surprising then that National Youth Day in India is celebrated on the birthday of Swami Vivekananda, a leading light then, and an inspiration now and forever. This book brings together Swami Vivekananda’s stellar work and words, and highlights the main tenets of his life. From his regretfully short but exceptional life, you too can learn to be a little bit like Swami Vivekananda.

Eight Tibetan opera narratives express Buddhist concepts in myths and stories for the enjoyment and edification of readers of all ages. Timeless Buddhist ideas come to life in the myths and stories in Tales from the Tibetan Operas. Poetically vibrant, these eight classic lhamo stories have continued to delight and edify Tibetan audiences of all backgrounds, from village children to learned scholar-monks and Dalai Lamas. Western readers can now also get a glimpse into ancient Indian and Tibetan history and mythology through these cultural touchstones. The operas revolve around the drives of the human condition: the desire for power, the irresistible seduction of attraction, thoughts of revenge, attachment to family, the fear of separation and pain, the wish to be free from oppression. On visual display are the human and nonhuman characters of history and folklore — kings, queens, conniving ministers, ordinary folk, yogis, monks, and powerful beings from other realms such as gods and nagas — engaged in plotting, kidnapping, fighting and death, journeys to faraway lands, separation, and reconciliation, often with a quest for seemingly impossible treasure. The suspenseful tales have many dramatic plot twists, but they all end in happiness, where the good achieve their goals and the bad receive their just desserts. The operas thus bring to the people the fundamental ethical laws of behavior and teachings of natural justice based on Buddhist doctrine. The book features more than fifty gorgeous photos of the operas being performed in Tibet and India.