Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Book Description:
Barcelona, 1945—A great world city lies shrouded in secrets after the war, and a boy mourning the loss of his mother finds solace in his love for an extraordinary book called The Shadow of the Wind, by an author named Julian Carax. When the boy searches for Carax’s other books, it begins to dawn on him, to his horror, that someone has been systematically destroying every copy of every book the man has ever written. Soon the boy realizes that The Shadow of the Wind is as dangerous to own as it is impossible to forget, for the mystery of its author’s identity holds the key to an epic story of murder, madness, and doomed love that someone will go to any lengths to keep secret.

Saturday, January 1, 2000

The Straight Dope Tells AllIF KNOWLEDGE WAS POWER, CECIL ADAMS WOULD RULE THE WORLD!
It's true! For the past twenty-five years, in his books and weekly newspaper column, world-history genius Cecil Adams has been patiently explaining to the Teeming Millions how the world works. He answered questions such as how do porcupines mate, what exactly does Barney Rubble do for a living, and where is Einstein's brain? His answers changed your life. Or at least settled a bet with a loved one. But surely, you are thinking, all the salient facts of the universe have been ascertained by now. Ha! Get a load of the mysteries The Master explores in this landmark volume:

¸ If Teflon is such a nonsticky substance, how do they get it to stick to the pan?
¸ Is the Great Cabal implanting microchips in our brains?
¸ Do fluorescent lights cause cataracts?
¸ What do Scotsmen wear under those kilts?
¸ Can some people extinguish street lamps by force of their bodily emanations?
¸ Is the U.S. Government really hiding alien spaceships?

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