The Best of Me

WITH FEATURETTES FROM NICHOLAS SPARKS AND THE MOVIE CAST, DELETED SCENES, MUSIC VIDEO, AND MORE! IN THEATERS OCTOBER 17, 2014! Starring Michelle Monaghan, James Marsden, Luke Bracey, and Liana Liberator "Everyone wanted to believe that endless love was possible. She'd believed in it once, too, back when she was eighteen." In the spring of 1984, high school students Amanda Collier and Dawson Cole fell deeply, irrevocably in love. Though they were from opposite sides of the tracks, their love for one another seemed to defy the realities of life in the small town of Oriental, North Carolina. But as the summer of their senior year came to a close, unforeseen events would tear the young couple apart, setting them on radically divergent paths. Now, twenty-five years later, Amanda and Dawson are summoned back to Oriental for the funeral of Tuck Hostetler, the mentor who once gave shelter to their high school romance. Neither has lived the life they imagined . . . and neither can forget the passionate first love that forever changed their lives. As Amanda and Dawson carry out the instructions Tuck left behind for them, they realize that everything they thought they knew -- about Tuck, about themselves, and about the dreams they held dear -- was not as it seemed. Forced to confront painful memories, the two former lovers will discover undeniable truths about the choices they have made. And in the course of a single, searing weekend, they will ask of the living, and the dead: Can love truly rewrite the past?

What could be a more tempting Christmas gift than a compendium of David Sedaris's best stories, selected by the author himself? From a spectacular career spanning almost three decades, these stories have become modern classics and are now for the first time collected in one volume. For more than twenty-five years, David Sedaris has been carving out a unique literary space, virtually creating his own genre. A Sedaris story may seem confessional, but is also highly attuned to the world outside. It opens our eyes to what is at absurd and moving about our daily existence. And it is almost impossible to read without laughing. Now, for the first time collected in one volume, the author brings us his funniest and most memorable work. In these stories, Sedaris shops for rare taxidermy, hitchhikes with a lady quadriplegic, and spits a lozenge into a fellow traveler's lap. He drowns a mouse in a bucket, struggles to say 'give it to me' in five languages and hand-feeds a carnivorous bird. But if all you expect to find in Sedaris's work is the deft and sharply observed comedy for which he became renowned, you may be surprised to discover that his words bring more warmth than mockery, more fellow-feeling than derision. Nowhere is this clearer than in his writing about his loved ones. In these pages, Sedaris explores falling in love and staying together, recognizing his own aging not in the mirror but in the faces of his siblings, losing one parent and coming to terms - at long last - with the other. Taken together, the stories in The Best of Me reveal the wonder and delight Sedaris takes in the surprises life brings him. No experience, he sees, is quite as he expected - it's often harder, more fraught and certainly weirder - but sometimes it is also much richer and more wonderful. Full of joy, generosity, and the incisive humor that has led David Sedaris to be called 'the funniest man alive' (Time Out New York), The Best of Me spans a career spent watching and learning and laughing - quite often at himself - and invites readers deep into the world of one of the most brilliant and original writers of our time.

"Sharon Sala is a consummate storyteller. Her skills shine in her Blessings, Georgia series. If you can stop reading then you're a better woman than me."—DEBBIE MACOMBER, #1 New York Times bestselling author Take a trip to Blessings, Georgia, where bestselling author Sharon Sala welcomes you with a touching small-town romance: An orphaned little girl who desperately needs a new home A couple ready to welcome her with open arms Friendly neighbors who are always there for each other A Southern small town where great things happen to good people Ruby Butterman and her husband, Peanut, cannot have children, but they're given a second chance at a family when eight-year-old orphan Carlie is left in their care. It's a challenge for Carlie to adapt to a new town, a new school, and a new family, and when she gets bullied at school, Ruby and Peanut discover how to step up as parents, and how to make a forever family for their beloved little girl. No summer reading list is complete without a deep, hopeful, and uplifting romance by Sharon Sala! "Sharon Sala's Blessings, Georgia series is filled with unforgettable charm and delight!"—ROBYN CARR, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Fifteen children from a school in North Carolina offer short passages in prose and verse that explain why they prefer their eyes, feet, hands, and other body parts, with accompanying photographs of that particular area.

It's an inconvenient time for Sinter Blackwell to realize he's bisexual. He's a 25-year-old American actor working in London, living far away from his disapproving parents in the Pacific Northwest, and enjoying a flirtation with his director Fiona. But he can't deny that his favorite parts of each day are the messages from his gay best friend Andy in Seattle—whom Sinter once kissed when they were 15.Finally he decides to return to America to visit Andy and discover what's between them, if anything. He isn't seeking love, and definitely doesn't want drama. But both love and drama seem determined to find him. Family complications soon force him into the most consequential decisions of his life, threatening all his most important relationships: with Andy, Fiona, his parents, and everyone else who's counting on him. Choosing the right role to play has never been harder.

"Each chapter of this enrapturing novel is elegantly brief and charged with barely contained emotion." --New York Times Book Review A gripping debut set in modern-day Tokyo and inspired by a true crime, for readers of Everything I Never Told You and The Perfect Nanny, What's Left of Me Is Yours charts a young woman's search for the truth about her mother's life--and her murder. In Japan, a covert industry has grown up around the wakaresaseya (literally "breaker-upper"), a person hired by one spouse to seduce the other in order to gain the advantage in divorce proceedings. When Satō hires Kaitarō, a wakaresaseya agent, to have an affair with his wife, Rina, both assume it will be an easy case. But Satō has never truly understood Rina or her desires and Kaitarō's job is to do exactly that--until he does it too well. While Rina remains ignorant of the circumstances that brought them together, she and Kaitarō fall in a desperate, singular love, setting in motion a series of violent acts that will forever haunt her daughter's life. In an engrossing dual narrative inspired by a true crime, Stephanie Scott exquisitely renders the affair and its intricate repercussions. As Rina's daughter, Sumiko, fills in the gaps of her mother's story and her own memory, Scott probes the thorny psychological and moral grounds of the actions we take in the name of love, asking where we draw the line between passion and possession.

“Genius… It is miraculous to read these pieces… You must read The Best of Me.” —Andrew Sean Greer, New York Times Book Review A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice A CNN and Christian Science Monitor Best Book of the Month For more than twenty-five years, David Sedaris has been carving out a unique literary space, virtually creating his own genre. A Sedaris story may seem confessional, but is also highly attuned to the world outside. It opens our eyes to what is at absurd and moving about our daily existence. And it is almost impossible to read without laughing. Now, for the first time collected in one volume, the author brings us his funniest and most memorable work. In these stories, Sedaris shops for rare taxidermy, hitchhikes with a lady quadriplegic, and spits a lozenge into a fellow traveler’s lap. He drowns a mouse in a bucket, struggles to say “give it to me” in five languages, and hand-feeds a carnivorous bird. But if all you expect to find in Sedaris’s work is the deft and sharply observed comedy for which he became renowned, you may be surprised to discover that his words bring more warmth than mockery, more fellow-feeling than derision. Nowhere is this clearer than in his writing about his loved ones. In these pages, Sedaris explores falling in love and staying together, recognizing his own aging not in the mirror but in the faces of his siblings, losing one parent and coming to terms—at long last—with the other. Taken together, the stories in TheBest of Me reveal the wonder and delight Sedaris takes in the surprises life brings him. No experience, he sees, is quite as he expected—it’s often harder, more fraught, and certainly weirder—but sometimes it is also much richer and more wonderful. Full of joy, generosity, and the incisive humor that has led David Sedaris to be called “the funniest man alive” (Time Out New York), The Best of Me spans a career spent watching and learning and laughing—quite often at himself—and invites readers deep into the world of one of the most brilliant and original writers of our time.

Lucy Donovan has always subscribed to the finer things in life. That is, until a fateful trip to the Bahamas and an even more fateful encounter with the sexy, cynical Chris Maddox. His take on the world leaves her speechless. So does his gorgeous body. Lucy knows he brings out the best in her, but can she give everything up for him? For them? Chris Maddox is totally amazed by the incredible woman who keeps surprising him at every turn. Lucy is unlike anyone he's ever met, and she's the only one who's ever really gotten to him. He's not just taken with her beauty and sophistication—it's the woman inside that's captivated him. Chris knows she brings out the best in him, but can he ask her for all and let them risk having nothing instead?

In the follow-up to Once and Again—hailed by bestselling author Claudia Connor as “a beautiful second-chance love story”—Elisabeth Barrett returns to the Briarwood, an unforgettable place where legacy and longing make dreams come true. Jane Pringle never meant to fall for her boss. After landing a job as a pastry chef at the exclusive Briarwood Golf and Yacht Club in Eastbridge, Connecticut, she just wants to keep her son in a good school district and find some peace and quiet, far away from her manipulative ex-husband. But when Briarwood’s charismatic co-owner takes an interest in her, Jane’s best-laid plans go awry . . . in the sweetest way possible. Rich and handsome, the grandson of one of the most powerful men in New York City, Preston North hasn’t lived quite the charmed life everyone believes. His family taught him everything he needs to know about betrayal—and Press wants no more of it. What he wants is Jane. The gorgeous single mom is selfless and kind, plus she’s got a backbone. To win her trust, Press just needs to shake off his playboy reputation. They’ve each been burned in the past. But now Press and Jane will have to choose between letting their fears get the best of them . . . or breaking free and following their hearts. Praise for The Best of Me “Elisabeth Barrett takes readers on a real—and sexy—emotional journey without ever losing sight of the good in people or the sweetness of family, friends, and community.”—Serena Bell, USA Today bestselling author of the Returning Home series “Humor, flirting, and sizzling sex give Preston and Jane an opportunity to move beyond their pasts.”—Library Journal “As Preston and Jane begin to fall in love, they have genuine reasons to worry about the stability of their relationship, and Barrett gives them both a degree of emotional intelligence and a good set of priorities.”—Publishers Weekly “[A] wonderful author whose characters come to life page by page.”—Fresh Fiction “A heartwarming and romantic story of a single mom not just trying to make it on her own but succeeding . . . a wonderful, emotion-filled path to happily ever after.”—FicCentral “I loved how both characters were portrayed, highlighting the best of them without overlooking their flaws. The romance was wonderful and the challenges they both faced were realistic and expertly woven into their relationship development. I really enjoyed this story and am very much liking the direction of this series.”—The Book Nympho “This book has very developed characters and I loved reading their story.”—Pages of Comfort “[A] rather edgy environment, with lots of high emotions, broken people, and one little boy in the midst of them.”—Books and Spoons Includes an excerpt from another Loveswept title.

"If all the world’s a stage, then are all the men and women really merely players? For Sakuya, it all started out as an innocent game: "Why don’t you pretend to be a girl and approach my brother?" Yuuki said. "That’s a great idea!" responded Sakuya who unbeknownst to him would begin to discover he and Yuuki’s brother shared not only many things in common but mutual feelings for each other. Known as Sakura to Yuuki's brother, Sakuya finds himself caught between a rock and a hard place as his feelings for Yuuki's brother continue to increase. Will Sakuya have the courage to confess his real identity and feelings to Yuuki’s brother and will Yuuki’s brother be able to accept Sakuya for who he really is? Find out in "You Haven’t Seen the Best of Me," a light-hearted rom-com sure to make you smile.

"If all the world’s a stage, then are all the men and women really merely players? For Sakuya, it all started out as an innocent game: “Why don’t you pretend to be a girl and approach my brother?” Yuuki said. “That’s a great idea!” responded Sakuya who unbeknownst to him would begin to discover he and Yuuki’s brother shared not only many things in common but mutual feelings for each other. Known as Sakura to Yuuki's brother, Sakuya finds himself caught between a rock and a hard place as his feelings for Yuuki's brother continue to increase. Will Sakuya have the courage to confess his real identity and feelings to Yuuki’s brother and will Yuuki’s brother be able to accept Sakuya for who he really is? Find out in "You Haven’t Seen the Best of Me," a light-hearted rom-com sure to make you smile.

"If all the world’s a stage, then are all the men and women really merely players? For Sakuya, it all started out as an innocent game: “Why don’t you pretend to be a girl and approach my brother?” Yuuki said. “That’s a great idea!” responded Sakuya who unbeknownst to him would begin to discover he and Yuuki’s brother shared not only many things in common but mutual feelings for each other. Known as Sakura to Yuuki's brother, Sakuya finds himself caught between a rock and a hard place as his feelings for Yuuki's brother continue to increase. Will Sakuya have the courage to confess his real identity and feelings to Yuuki’s brother and will Yuuki’s brother be able to accept Sakuya for who he really is? Find out in "You Haven’t Seen the Best of Me," a light-hearted rom-com sure to make you smile.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER A BEST BOOK OF 2020 CBC – The Best Canadian Nonfiction of 2020 The Globe and Mail’s Globe 100: Our Favourite Books of 2020 Chatelaine’s 10 Best Books of 2020 The Walrus’s Favourite Books of 2020 For readers of Paul Kalanithi's When Breath Becomes Air and Will Schwalbe, the moving, inspiring story of a young husband and father who, when diagnosed with terminal cancer at the age of thirty-three, sets out to build a legacy for his infant son. i can't make you feel what it's like to be a young, dumb, naïve thirty-year-old sitting in the back of a walk-in clinic waiting to be handed what is essentially a death sentence any more than i can show you what it feels like to have a husband or father or child who's dying and knowing there is nothing you can do to stop it. i can only describe to you how i feel today. angry. at peace. scared. grateful. a giant, spiky, flowering heart-shaped bouquet of contradictions. Layton Reid was a globe-trotting, risk-taking, sunshine-addicted bachelor--then came a melanoma diagnosis. Cancer startled him out of his arrested development--he returned home to Halifax to work as a wedding photographer--and remission launched him into a new, passionate life as a husband and father-to-be. When the melanoma returned, now at Stage IV, Layton and his family put all their stock into a punishing alternative therapy, hoping for a cure. This Is Not the End of Me recounts Layton's three-year journey as he tried desperately to stay alive for his young son, Finn, and then found purpose in preparing Finn for a world without him. With incredible intimacy, grit, and empathy, reporter Dakshana Bascaramurty casts an unsentimental eye on who her good friend was: his effervescence, his twisted wit, his anger, his vulnerability. Interweaving Layton's own reflections--his diaries written for Finn, his letters to his wife, Candace, and his public journal--she paints a keenly observed portrait of Layton's remarkable evolution. In detailing the ugly, surprising, and occasionally funny ways in which Layton and his family faced his mortality, the book offers an unflinching look at how a person dies, and how we might build a legacy in our information-saturated age. Powerful and unvarnished, This is Not the End of Me is about someone who didn't get a very happy ending, but learned to squeeze as much life as possible from his final days.

If he had been with me everything would have been different... I wasn't with Finn on that August night. But I should've been. It was raining, of course. And he and Sylvie were arguing as he drove down the slick road. No one ever says what they were arguing about. Other people think it's not important. They do not know there is another story. The story that lurks between the facts. What they do not know—the cause of the argument—is crucial. So let me tell you...

NOVEL LEARNING SERIES(TM) A WALK TO REMEMBER by Nicholas Sparks STUDENT EDITION "When I was seventeen, my life changed forever . . . " So begins Nicholas Sparks's touching tale of Landon Carter, a teenage boy living in the small town of Beaufort, North Carolina in the late 1950s. Landon is a typical teenager who just wants to have a fun senior year before heading off to college. The last thing he anticipated is Jamie Sullivan, the sweet, pious daughter of the town's Baptist minister. But on the evening of Beaufort's annual Christmas pageant, Landon will undergo a change of heart that will forever alter the course of his life. In the months that follow, Landon discovers truths that it takes most people a lifetime to learn-truths about the nature of beauty, the joy of giving, the pain of loss, and, most of all, the transformational power of love. With a NOVEL LEARNING SERIES(TM) Student Guide · Questions about the text after every few chapters check your comprehension · Quizzes throughout help you prepare for standardized tests with SAT- and ACT-style questions using vocabulary and grammar from the book · Sample writing prompts and essays at the end guide you through the elements of an above-average, average, and below-average essay-and explain why!

From the bestselling author of We're All in This Together comes a novel about family, friendship, fame, and the cost of living in the public eye -- because when everyone suddenly knows your name, it's easy to forget who you really are. "The first time they met, Mags saved Ava's life. The second time they met, Ava saved Mags's." Ava Hart is the most reluctant cast member of a reality TV show based on her big city family's (mostly staged) efforts to run a B&B in small-town Nova Scotia. Every family has its problems, but Ava has grown up seeing her family's every up and down broadcast on national television, after the show becomes an unexpected success for reasons that will take a heavy toll on the Harts. Mags Kovach is the charismatic lead singer of a struggling Halifax rock band hoping to be the Next Big Thing. For years she's managed to contain her demons and navigate the uglier aspects of being a woman in the music world, but after a devastating loss, she turns her anger on the only person she can: herself. As their private tragedies continue to set social media and tabloid headlines on fire, their every move subjected to an endless stream of public commentary, it will be their unexpected friendship that will save them. They will push back against the roles they've been forced to play, and take back control of something they thought they'd lost forever -- the right to their own stories.

See me just as I see you . . . Colin Hancock is giving his second chance his best shot. With a history of violence and bad decisions behind him and the threat of prison dogging his every step, he's determined to walk a straight line. To Colin, that means applying himself single-mindedly toward his teaching degree and avoiding everything that proved destructive in his earlier life. Reminding himself daily of his hard-earned lessons, the last thing he is looking for is a serious relationship. Maria Sanchez, the hardworking daughter of Mexican immigrants, is the picture of conventional success. With a degree from Duke Law School and a job at a prestigious firm in Wilmington, she is a dark-haired beauty with a seemingly flawless professional track record. And yet Maria has a traumatic history of her own, one that compelled her to return to her hometown and left her questioning so much of what she once believed. A chance encounter on a rain-swept road will alter the course of both Colin and Maria's lives, challenging deeply held assumptions about each other and ultimately, themselves. As love unexpectedly takes hold between them, they dare to envision what a future together could possibly look like . . . until menacing reminders of events in Maria's past begin to surface. As a series of threatening incidents wreaks chaos in Maria's life, Maria and Colin will be tested in increasingly terrifying ways. Will demons from their past destroy the tenuous relationship they've begun to build, or will their love protect them, even in the darkest hour? Rich in emotion and fueled with suspense, SEE ME reminds us that love is sometimes forged in the crises that threaten to shatter us . . . and that those who see us for who we truly are may not always be the ones easiest to recognize.

For as long as I can remember, I've been the dark to my sister's light-the awkward loner to her social butterfly. Growing up, she had it all: our parent's unyielding approval, perfect grades, a permanent spot at the popular table, and the attention of the hottest guy ever-Duke Kincaid. After eighteen years of living in her shadow, I couldn't wait to escape-to finally be my own person. Yet here I am, I'm back in my hometown, once again in Valorie's shadow. Only now, it's eternal. I had life all planned out: join the force, marry Valorie Parsons, and start a family of our own. I have the job, but the girl and all my dreams died before my very eyes.At the urging of my friends, I agree to a blind date. Imagine my shock when I arrive and find, Valorie's twin sister, waiting across the table from me. Mallory should be a reminder of all that I've lost, but instead she feels like my redemption . . . like maybe life's giving me a second chance. But, how can I be enough for her when I've already given her sister the best of me?

Caldecott Honor Book Today Show Best Book for the Holidays ALA Notable Book for All Ages ALSC Notable Children's Book NCTE Notable Poetry Book Evanston Public Library's Top 100 Great Book for Kids Nerdy Award Winner for Single Poem Picture Book In this powerful, affirming poem by award-winning author Zetta Elliott, a Black child explores his shifting emotions throughout the year. There is a place inside of me a space deep down inside of me where all my feelings hide. Summertime is filled with joy—skateboarding and playing basketball—until his community is deeply wounded by a police shooting. As fall turns to winter and then spring, fear grows into anger, then pride and peace. In her stunning debut, illustrator Noa Denmon articulates the depth and nuances of a child’s experiences following a police shooting—through grief and protests, healing and community—with washes of color as vibrant as his words. Here is a groundbreaking narrative that can help all readers—children and adults alike—talk about the feelings hiding deep inside each of us.

“Powerfully magnetic. . . . In the lineage of great works by Chinua Achebe and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. . . . A thoroughly contemporary—and deeply moving—portrait of a marriage.” —The New York Times Book Review Ilesa, Nigeria. Ever since they first met and fell in love at university, Yejide and Akin have agreed: polygamy is not for them. But four years into their marriage—after consulting fertility doctors and healers, and trying strange teas and unlikely cures—Yejide is still not pregnant. She assumes she still has time—until her in-laws arrive on her doorstep with a young woman they introduce as Akin’s second wife. Furious, shocked, and livid with jealousy, Yejide knows the only way to save her marriage is to get pregnant. Which, finally, she does—but at a cost far greater than she could have dared to imagine. The unforgettable story of a marriage as seen through the eyes of both husband and wife, Stay With Me asks how much we can sacrifice for the sake of family. A New York Times Notable Book One of the Best Books of the Year: NPR, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Chicago Tribune, BuzzFeed, Entertainment Weekly, The New York Post, Southern Living, The Skimm A 2017 BEA Buzz Panel Selection A Belletrist Book-of-the-Month A Sarah Jessica Parker Book Club Selection Shortlisted for the 2017 Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction Shortlisted for the Wellcome Book Prize and the 9mobile Prize for Literature Longlisted for the International Dylan Thomas Prize