Kirjahaku

The Algarve is the source of inspiration for this exciting new collection of short stories, memoirs and poetry. Seventeen contemporary writers both recollect and recreate the lives of people along the Algarve coast from Tavira to Sagres and up into the mountains. They take us on a journey back in time to the Moors, through the Revolution of April 1974, and into the twenty-first century. Some mourn the vanishing years of the simple pastoral life, impoverished though it was, some celebrate it. Others on short visits have been enchanted or amused by an event with one of its inhabitants and, somehow, when they left, a bit of their heart has stayed behind. All of them are united by their fondness of Portugal and its serene and laid-back southern province.

In 1984, Johnny East, a dancer, is invited to West Berlin by mad Alice, an English girl living a bohemian life in the city at the heart of the Cold War. Alice is besotted with Johnny but on a trip to the East one day, Johnny meets and falls in love with a Russian tightrope walker in East Berlin. They begin an affair that leaves a trail of East-West transits, both legal and illegal, including one of the most daring crossings of the Berlin Wall. Twenty years on Johnny is the director of an aerial company and with an exciting new performance returns to Berlin, a new vibrant city, to face the ghosts of the past, the present, and Alice. The Last Dance over the Berlin Wall is a story of young love, decadence and tragedy in the walled-in city of West Berlin.

Ein englisches Paar voller Hoffnung auf einen neuen Anfang in der Sonne, ein deutscher Hippie mit seinem singenden Hund, ein verliebter Londoner Borsenmakler, ein Showgirl im Casino, ein Drogendealer, eine alte Witwe in den Bergen oder der Sohn eines Fischers. Zwolf lose miteinander verbundene Geschichten mit Charakteren unterschiedlichster Lebenshintergrunde. Hauptpersonen der einen Geschichte begegnen uns als Nebenfiguren in einer anderen und geben dem Buch seinen besonderen Charme. Es reflektiert sowohl die Grautone des Alltags als auch die schillernden Farben des leichten Lebens Zwischen Himmel und Meer, so wie sich die Algarve im Jahre 2007 prasentierte, als ein kleines Madchen spurlos verschwand.

Um jovem casal ingles em busca de uma vida facil ao sol, um hippie alemao com um cao cantor, um prospector imobiliario britanico, um empregado de mesa portugues, uma bailarina de casino, um traficante de droga, uma viuva na serra e o filho de um pescador, fazem parte do elenco de personagens memoraveis que habitam estas historias interligadas. Personagens com menor relevo numas historias tornam-se protagonistas noutras, neste manto colorido da vida no Algarve. As historias sao passadas no verao de 2007, na altura em que desapareceu uma menina.

A tale of love, hate and murder, set in 1979 in England when kids sang about bricks in wall and hated Mondays. For 14 year old Tricia Blake, a dream-come-true horse for a year offers a fragile escape from the gritty reality of a shattered life. But, in Tricia's world, dreams don't last. The bad guy always wins. Until, one day, he goes way too far...'Pony club teen scene meets hardcore urban novel. Tricia Blake does a wicked thing. But who can blame her? A compelling story of revenge.' Carrie Worrall

The world is suffering from a severe drought. After no rain anywhere on earth for more than six months, the forests and oil fields are burning. The nations blame each other for global warming, some call it Freak Weather Syndrome, others God's revenge. In the UK, the Conservative, David Geayton is made Minister of Drought while his daughter, Lucy, tries to survive the increasing horrors of the Philippines. In Moscow, Liudmila is part of an environmental organisation that is planning a 'Save the Planet' conference and Charlotte Brand is reporting the corruption of the governors in San Francisco and the Government of America. No one knows they are suffering the effects of a divine unrequited love until a long forgotten pantheon of gods are made to come to earth to hold an election. But who, if anyone, will believe them? A Divine War is a humorous and irreverent tale - with serious consequences.

This concise and practical writing fiction workbook, loosely based on an online course in prose fiction written for Continuing Education at the University of East Anglia, can serve as both a coursebook and a workbook. As well as many exercises and tips for beginning writers, the book leads you on a journey through writing. At the end of which, you will, hopefully, have written a short story - and much much more. 'This workbook provided me with all the necessary tools to start, shape and finish my first short story. User-friendly, practical and stimulating it is a vital asset for those who are starting to write.' Evangelia Avloniti