Clowns and Rats Scare Me


Book Description

San Antonians love Cary Clack for the sparkle of wit and wisdom he brings to them in his column in the San Antonio Express-News. But his style and sensibility make his work equally popular far beyond that city. He offers pithy, probing coverage of national issues such as terrorism, racism, and child abuse, but his keen sense of humor often turns to the stuff of everyday life such as the inexplicable power of Krispy Kreme doughnuts and his terror of clowns. The columns collected here sample the best of 13 years' worth of Clack's amusing and thoughtful commentaries, and begin with an enlightening foreword by noted poet Naomi Shihab Nye.




More Finish Lines to Cross


Book Description

Cary Clack has captured the hearts and minds of Texans since the mid-1990s, gaining a national reputation as an incisive and sensitive journalist and developing a significant following as a columnist. Originally from San Antonio, he worked with the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta (writing CNN commentaries for Coretta Scott King) to hone his communication skills and broaden his social sensibilities. Returning to his hometown, he quickly became known as a writer who profiled everyday heroes and captured stories unique to the Texas experience, adding a critical local perspective to national news. His columns are infused with a sense of humility and a keen examination of the humanness in others. Following sixteen years as a journalist, Clack pursued interests in politics, social policy, and service, including work with the mayor of San Antonio, U.S. congressman Joaquin Castro, and others. More Finish Lines to Cross is a collection of Clack’s best short- and long-form columns since his return to the San Antonio Express-News in 2019. It includes more than eighty pieces about the issues of the day, from Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and the war in Ukraine to the impact of COVID, the death of George Floyd, and the mass shooting of schoolchildren in Uvalde, Texas. Along the way we meet the people who influenced Clack, which in turn reminds us to reflect on how we become the people we are and what inspires us to be better members of our communities.




The Year's Best Sports Writing 2021


Book Description

A must-read collection featuring the best in sports journalism Glenn Stout, founding editor of the Best American Sports Writing, has curated an essential anthology showcasing incredible feats and diverse perspectives across the world of sports. Selected from a wide range of newspapers, magazines, and digital publications during the previous year, these stories capture enduring moments while celebrating the craft of writing at its most sublime. This extraordinary collection reveals the fascinating stories behind the sports we love, the competitors who push their boundaries, and the cultures they are ultimately embedded in.




Literary San Antonio


Book Description

San Antonio is often described as the “mother” of Texas cities—the oldest and, for two and a half centuries, the largest city in Texas. To many it is, as novelist Larry McMurtry once famously proclaimed, “the one truly lovely city in the state.” Long recognized as a cultural crossroads between two continents, writers in San Antonio, both native and visiting, have had a significant effect upon the city’s literary and cultural landscape. Novels were being written in the city by the late 1830s. Nineteenth century writers like Frederick Law Olmsted, Sydney Lanier, and O. Henry wrote effusively about San Antonio; Oscar Wilde found here “a thrill of strange pleasure.” Here the Mexican Revolution was called into being, and here were the political and literary origins of the Chicano Movement. Literary San Antonio provides dozens of examples of the interplay and cross-pollination of Anglo and Latino literary forms, ideas, and traditions that led to the creation of a unique borderlands or frontera literature. This city, with its winding, still-sleepy river and its story-shrouded springs; its ancient acequias and missions, now acknowledged as valued “world heritage” sites; its sacred battle grounds and historic military forts and bases; its several unique neighborhoods and barrios that have produced and been celebrated by generations of writers; its rich heritage of heroism and revolutionary passion; its endlessly celebratory ability to revel in its multiracial, multiethnic, multilingual roots and branches . . . this city is a good place to write, to write about, and to wander with a book in hand.




Frankie Sparks and the Class Pet


Book Description

Ivy and Bean meets Aliens in my Pocket in this start to a brand-new chapter book series about Frankie Sparks, a third grader who uses her love for science and math to help her solve problems she comes across in her daily life. The best thing EVER is happening in Frankie Sparks’s third grade class: They are getting a class pet! Their teacher, Miss Cupid, tells them they will vote on their pet, but it has to meet some “parameters.” Their pet must: 1. Fit in aquarium. 2. Cost less than $50. 3. Be easily portable. 4. Be able to be left alone for the weekend. Frankie thinks that a rat—just like the rats in her beloved Aunt Gina’s lab—would be the perfect fit. But her best friend, Maya, doesn’t think a rat would be great at all. They are kind of gross and not as cool as a hermit crab, which is Maya’s top choice. Using her special workshop, can Frankie find a way to convince her teacher and her best friend that Team Rat is the way to go?




The Last Chapter


Book Description

The Last Chapter is a contemporary, post-apocalyptic romantic tale. Written in a lighthearted narrative it follows the preparations of the two main characters, not only for their future survival, but also in their desperate hunt for other survivors who may, or may not, prove as deadly as the plague they had survived.




Big Book of Random Crap Book One (With ISBN)


Book Description

SAM BACKHOUSE'S BIG BOOK OF RANDOM CRAP Book One (2nd edition with added ISBN Number which I accidentally forgot to add on first edition. Another alteration is the spine font is different than the original). This book contains every little book of Random Crap (books 1-7) created from June or July 2012 to November 2013 all in one monster of a book. The book contains comic strips, short stories, poems, doodles, childhood drawings, fake adverts, crowd scenes, crap jokes, crap puzzles, experimental comic strip pages and lots more... This book would make an ideal present for anyone who loves comics and British humour. The main characters I draw include L'il Shrimp, Gobby the boy who never stops talking, Peter the Pissed off Parent, Longface (the boy with the stretchy body), Mister Mad, Rude Dog, Pissed off Snowman, Eric Rose and his big nose, Professor Amazing, Supermarketman, Me (occasionally!) and lots of one off characters... Unsuitable for children. www.sambackhouse.com




The Deep


Book Description

"A strange plague called the 'Gets is decimating humanity on a global scale. It causes people to forget--small things at first, like where they left their keys, then the not-so-small things like how to drive or the letters of the alphabet. Then their bodies forget how to function involuntarily. There is no cure. But far below the surface of the Pacific Ocean, a universal healer hailed as 'ambrosia' has been discovered. In order to study this phenomenon, a special research lab has been built eight miles under the sea's surface. When the station goes incommunicado, a brave few descend through the lightless fathoms in hopes of unraveling the mysteries lurking at those crushing depths...and perhaps to encounter an evil blacker than anything one could possibly imagine"--Page [4] of cover.




Fear of Dreams: The Commune


Book Description

This book is the sequel to Fear of Dreams which was based on one of my horrible dreams. I could remember every little detail of the dream. I had awakened, shaking all over, scared out of my mind. The Sequel involves the main character, Rachael, that gets herself into horrible situations. Would she ever be free of her dreams and the frightful positions she puts herself into?




Christmas Secrets by the Sea


Book Description

Christmas by the sea – that sounds romantic, right? Tansy Merriweather is down on her luck. She’s lost her business and her relationship, and instead of a glamorous London apartment, her home is now a campervan on a Dorset beach. And as if things couldn’t get any worse, a scruffy dog called Brian with a taste for sardines has adopted her. When Tansy’s new-found friends at the cafe in the bay help her find a job as a location scout for a new TV show, things start looking up. However, when she finds herself babysitting the show's grouchy star, Davin O'Riordan, she's not sure she wants to stay around. But when Brian forges a touching romance with Davin’s elegant whippet Seelie, Tansy begins to see another side to Davin. As Christmas approaches, secrets emerge and Tansy and Davin discover a bond between them. But how will they cope with the storms headed their way – and can they save the cafe from closing? What readers are saying about the series: “Jane Lovering has that ability to choose exactly the right words and images to make you laugh, with a wonderful touch of the ridiculous, then moving seamlessly to a scene of such poignancy that it catches your breath.” “Excellent characterisation (people and dogs!), well worked plot, great descriptive passages, and of course, Jane’s hilarious signature one-liners.” “It’s a wonderful story, fully of whimsy and gentle humour, a terrific story and wonderful characters, all wrapped up in a very satisfying ending.” “...total sense of place, unforced humour, slow-burning romance. Jane Lovering’s writing is very strong” “It is very difficult to explain just how wonderful this book is. The power of her words and her descriptive prowess to put it bluntly is amazing... the emotional impact it has had on me will be long lasting.” “I enjoyed every word in this novel, once again Jane didn’t disappoint with her unique, inimitable writing. Warm, witty, funny characters with interesting histories, set against a beautifully descriptive narrative of a wintery beach landscape. A lot of laugh-out-loud one-liners, it's a book I have to read again, only slower this time so I can absorb every word.” “What a heart-warming and emotional ride this book was! I loved it! The cast of characters were so enjoyable and realistic.”