Rachel Joyce Knihy

Velmi zvláštní román, který se jen částečně odehrává v hospici. Hlavní hrdinka, smrtelně nemocná, zavolá své dávné platonické lásce. A muž se, celkem bez jasného důvodu a poněkud nepochopitelně, vydá pěšky přes půl Anglie, aby dávnou známou ještě viděl. Svébytná beletrie z hospice o věrné lásce, která se nakonec naplní úplně jinak, než jak se tomu běžně rozumí. Pozadí příběhu dokresluje hospic: řeholní sestry a ostatní jeho obyvatelé, jejich besedy, přátelské mudrování i jejich odcházení. Kniha se zalíbí těm, kteří mají rádi neprvoplánové příběhy o lásce a tajemství.

Harold Fry se vydává na pouť dlouhou šest set mil s jediným cílem: jeho dávná přítelkyně, umírající na rakovinu, bude díky tomu žít. Příběh o nenápadném muži, který jde, aby zachránil druhého (ale během své cesty zachrání sám sebe), je podán s nesmírnou přesvědčivostí, humorem i smutkem. Vypráví o tajemství, zvláštních setkáních, náhodách, jež nás od základu změní. O statečnosti a zradě, lásce a věrnosti, a jednom páru velmi pozoruhodných bot.

Frank si pronajme krámek v zapadlé anglické uličce a začne v něm prodávat to, co je mu nejbližší – desky s hudbou. Nahrávky všech žánrů, délek i kvality zaplní prázdný obchod. Pro každého, kdo vejde dovnitř, vybere Frank tu pravou desku. Nezáleží na vkusu, náladě nebo věku, každému vybere to, co právě potřebuje. Žádná magie. Stačí jen naslouchat. Život poklidně plyne na vlně hudby a každodenního života spolu s ostatními obyvateli této uličky. Ale ačkoliv má Frank dar empatie a citu pro to, co potřebují ostatní, on sám zůstává starým mládencem. Jednoho dne omdlí před obchodem dívka. Frank a jeho přátelé se jí ujmou, ale jakmile se jí udělá lépe, zmizí. Všichni se ptají: "Kdo je ta dívka:" "Proč má zelený plášť?" "Je to doktorka?" "A co ten její německý přízvuk?" Ale Frank neslyší... zamiloval se. Dívka se vrací a pomalu mezi nimi vzniká...láska? Má šanci na úspěch?

It is 1950. In a devastating moment of clarity, Margery Benson abandons her dead-end job and advertises for an assistant to accompany her on an expedition. She is going to travel to the other side of the world to search for a beetle that may or may not exist. Enid Pretty, in her unlikely pink travel suit, is not the companion Margery had in mind. And yet together they will be drawn into an adventure that will exceed every expectation. They will risk everything, break all the rules, and at the top of a red mountain, discover their best selves. This is a story that is less about what can be found than the belief it might be found; it is an intoxicating adventure story but it is also about what it means to be a woman and a tender exploration of a friendship that defies all boundaries.

Ten years ago, Harold Fry set off on his epic journey on foot to save a friend. But the story doesn't end there. Now his wife, Maureen, has her own pilgrimage to make. Maureen Fry has settled into the quiet life she now shares with her husband Harold after his iconic walk across England. Now, ten years later, an unexpected message from the North disturbs her equilibrium again, and this time it is Maureen's turn to make her own journey. But Maureen is not like Harold. She struggles to bond with strangers, and the landscape she crosses has changed radically. She has little sense of what she'll find at the end of the road. All she knows is that she must get there. Maureen Fry and the Angel of the North is a deeply felt, lyrical novel, full of warmth and kindness. Short, exquisite, powerful- it is about love, loss, and how we come to terms with the past in order to understand ourselves and our lives a little better.

Summer, 1972 : In the claustrophobic heat, eleven-year-old Byron and his friend begin 'Operation Perfect', a hapless mission to rescue Byron's mother from impending crisis. Winter, present day : As frost creeps across the moor, Jim cleans tables in the local café, a solitary figure struggling with OCD. His job is a relief from the rituals that govern his nights. Little would seem to connect them except that two seconds can change everything. And if your world can be shattered in an instant, can time also put it right?

Seven stories to span the Christmas holidays: A Faraway Smell of Lemon: The School Term has ended. It is almost Christmas but Binny, out last-minute shopping couldn't feel less like wishing glad tidings to all men. Ducking out of the rain she finds herself in the sort of shop she would never normally visit. The Marriage Manual: Christmas Eve. Two parents endeavour to construct their son's Christmas present from a DIY kit and in the process find themselves deconstructing their marriage. Christmas at the Airport: A glitch in the system, travellers stranded and all sorts of lives colliding in the face of a sudden birth... The Boxing Day Ball: Maureen has never been out with the local girls before. Who knew that a disco in the Village Hall could be life-changing? A Snow Garden: Two little boys, dumped with their divorced father for his share of the Christmas holidays and none of them with a clue how to enjoy it. I'll Be Home for Christmas The most famous boy in the world comes home hoping to escape the madness with a normal family Christmas. Trees: As if Christmas wasn't wearing enough, now his elderly parent is asking for a hole in the ground ... Father and son break old habits and plant a tree to mark the start of the new year. Six stories as funny, joyous, poignant and memorable as Christmas should be.

As read on Radio 4, seven linked stories set in the Christmas holidays - all as funny, joyous, poignant and memorable as Christmas should be: A Faraway Smell of Lemon: The School Term has ended. It is almost Christmas but Binny, out last-minute shopping couldn't feel less like wishing glad tidings to all men. Ducking out of the rain she finds herself in the sort of shop she would never normally visit. The Marriage Manual: Christmas Eve. Two parents endeavour to construct their son's Christmas present from a DIY kit and in the process find themselves deconstructing their marriage. Christmas at the Airport: A glitch in the system, travellers stranded and all sorts of lives colliding in the face of a sudden birth... The Boxing Day Ball: Maureen has never been out with the local girls before. Who knew that a disco in the Village Hall could be life-changing? A Snow Garden: Two little boys, dumped with their divorced father for his share of the Christmas holidays and none of them with a clue how to enjoy it. I'll Be Home for Christmas The most famous boy in the world comes home hoping to escape the madness with a normal family Christmas. Trees: As if Christmas wasn't wearing enough, now his elderly parent is asking for a hole in the ground ... Father and son break old habits and plant a tree to mark the start of the new year.

Summer, 1972: In the claustrophobic heat, eleven-year-old Byron and his friend begin ‘Operation Perfect’, a hapless mission to rescue Byron’s mother from impending crisis. Winter, present day: As frost creeps across the moor, Jim cleans tables in the local café, a solitary figure struggling with OCD. His job is a relief from the rituals that…

Set against the picturesque backdrop of the Italian lakes, this tense family drama explores complex relationships and emotional turmoil. Written by a Booker-Prize longlisted author, the narrative promises to resonate with fans of Ann Patchett and Maggie O'Farrell, delivering a compelling story filled with intricate character dynamics and profound themes.