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Dogen Zenji (1200-1253 C.E.) founded the Soto school of Zen Buddhism in Japan. His teachings are the very embodiment of the paradoxical blend of mystery and clarity that characterizes Zen. Dogen's approach to meditation has become perhaps the most influential Eastern spiritual practice in the Western world. These selections—from the publication Moon in a Dewdrop edited by Kazuaki Tanahashi—were chosen by poet Gary Snyder, a student and practitioner of Zen Buddhism for several decades. Snyder also reads the text for this recording.

New York City is not only The New Yorker magazine's place of origin and its sensibility's lifeblood, it is the heart of American literary culture. Wonderful Town, an anthology of superb short fiction by many of the magazine's most accomplished contributors, celebrates the seventy-five-year...

Brought to you by Penguin. 'Man was born free, and everywhere he is in chains.' These are the famous opening words of a treatise that has stirred vigorous debate ever since its first publication in 1762. Rejecting the view that anyone has a natural right to wield authority over others, Rousseau...

A literary treasure of over one hundred unpublished letters from National Book Award-winning author Flannery O'Connor and her circle of extraordinary friends. Flannery O’Connor is a master of twentieth-century American fiction, joining, since her untimely death in 1964, the likes of Hawthorne...

Frat boys. Dorm Rooms. College jocks. Locker rooms. Nerds. Whether it was reality for you or just fantasy, come with us on an erotic journey through the hallways and dorm rooms, locker rooms and library aisles, with hot young men eager to explore and discover other hot young men. Editor Matthew Cooper has pulled together several of today's hot, gay and bisexual erotic writers to deliver this collection of red-hot stories. In Frat Boys and Dorm Rooms, you'll meet college jocks and frat boys who discover new sides of themselves—together.

Great Britain is an ancient land steeped in history and tradition. Its rolling countryside is dotted with prehistoric burial mounds and stone circles. Brooding castles hold tales of bloodshed and honor. Medieval churches have elaborate stained glass windows and gruesome carvings, reflecting a mixture of hope and darkness.

The modern history of Africa was, until very recently, written on behalf of the indigenous races by the white man, who had forcefully entered the continent during a particularly hubristic and dynamic phase of European history. In 1884, Prince Otto von Bismarck, the German chancellor, brought the plenipotentiaries of all major powers of Europe together to deal with Africa's colonization in such a manner as to avoid provocation of war.

Although all the titles of the Nag Hammadi library are not known, many people have heard about its most famous components: The Gospel of Thomas - at one time it was discussed whether it should be included in the New Testament - and The Gospel of Philip, which tried to revive the debate around the identity of Mary Magdalene: "Why do you love her more than all of us?" asks a disconcerted Peter to Jesus. Finally, the Nag Hammadi texts have led many scholars to reconsider the rigid canons imposed by the early Church, and the readers to find a more intimate religion that turned upside down many postulates of Christian orthodoxy.

Ever-turbulent humanity has reached out to the stars and found itself challenged by several “exosapient” species whose motivations are as unusual as their physical forms. But no world is defined just by the characters who occupy center stage. Lost Signals digs deep into the lives - and struggles - of those beyond the spotlight by bringing together 20 new voices and new stories.

During her lifetime Violet Paget, who wrote as Vernon Lee, was referred to as 'the greatest of modern exponents of the supernatural in fiction', and yet today she remains on the periphery of the genre. This collection of her uniquely weird short stories and dark fantasies proves why she was once considered among the best of the genre, and why she deserves to return to those ranks today.

An American Girl Anthology: Finding Ourselves in the Pleasant Company Universe turns American Girl dolls―and the ever-growing ecosystem surrounding them―inside out. Editors Justine Orlovsky-Schnitzler and KC Hysmith, along with an expansive list of contributors, explore Pleasant Company (American Girl's parent corporation) and the social and cultural impact the dolls and broader American Girl universe continue to have for generations of American consumers through thoughtful and fun essays.

The battle between democracy and tyranny is joined, and the American Revolution has begun over a century ahead of schedule. A cosmic accident has shifted a modern West Virginia town back through time and space to land it and its 20th century technology in Germany in the middle of the Thirty Years War. History must take a new course as American freedom and democracy battle against the squabbling despots of 17th century Europe. 

On 21 June 1941, assigned to Luftwaffe bomber wing Kampfgeschwader 53, the twenty-three-year-old Arnold Döring took off to fly his first mission against the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front. From that day, he kept a diary describing his operations in vivid detail. These diaries, here translated into English for the first time, give a unique perspective on the action on the Eastern Front, from the point of view of a bomber pilot.

Although the Sumerians continue to get second or even third billing compared to the Babylonians and Assyrians, perhaps because they never built an empire as great as the Assyrians or established a city as enduring and great as Babylon, they were the people who provided the template of civilization that all later Mesopotamians built upon. The Sumerians are credited with being the first people to invent writing, libraries, cities, and schools in, and many would argue that they were the first people to create and do those things anywhere in world.

Mention the 18th century Royal Navy and visions come to mind of swashbuckling sailors swinging from rope to rope while a red-faced captain in an even redder coat and a powdered wig shouts order and pitches fits. Such visions naturally fail to do full justice to a group of men who functioned, with little direction and even less support, on the seas for years at a time. Disney may enjoy portraying them sitting down to sumptuous feasts or cavorting with scantily clad native girls, but the opposite was true.

Noam Chomsky is widely regarded as the most influential thinker of our time, but never before has he devoted a major book to one topic: income inequality. Requiem for the American Dream is not an essay collection but an entire work of some 70,000 words, based on four years of interviews with Chomsky by the editors. It is a book that makes Chomsky's breadth and depth accessible and at the same time gives us his most powerful political ideas with unprecedented, breathtaking directness.

Suzy Hope is adrift. She's divorced, living hand-to-mouth and hasn't been on a date in eons. Then, on the morning of her mother's funeral, a letter lands on her doormat. She recognizes the handwriting at once. It's from Johnny, her first love. Enclosed is a CD, a compilation from their time together in the '70s—'90s. Instantly Suzy longs to listen, but the hearse arrives. Now is not the moment for nostalgia. After the wake is over, Suzy is returning teacups to the village hall in pouring rain when BAM! she is knocked down by a car speeding down the country lane.

Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love, returns to the format that made her a cultural force with her raw and intense memoir that explores darker themes. Audible Editor Kat talks with Gilbert about her investigation of grief and addiction in All the Way to the River, including the moving and meditative process of recording her own audiobook.

In the 17th century, the people of London could boast that they had developed some of the most advanced firefighting technology and methods in the world, including the use of primitive fire engines. There were even vendors of such machines who advertised in papers of their machines' abilities to quench great fires.

Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each book comprises all new stories, each one set in a distinct neighborhood or location within the respective city. In Hong Kong Noir, 14 of the city’s finest authors explore the dark heart of the Pearl of the Orient in haunting stories of depravity and despair.