Anthony Burgess` nightmare vision of a society overrun by nihilistic violence & governed by a menacing totalitarian state, ”A Clockwork Orange”

Includes:: an introduction by Blake Morrison in ” Penguin Modern Classics”. Fifteen-year-old Alex doesn`t just like ultra-violence
- he also enjoys rape, drugs & Beethoven`s ninth. He & his gang of droogs rampage through a dystopian future, hunting for terrible thrills. But when Alex finds himself at the mercy of the state & subject to the ministrations of Dr Brodsky, & the mind-altering treatment of the Ludovico Technique, he discovers that fun is no longer the order of the day. The basis for Stanley Kubrick`s notorious 1971 film, A Clockwork Orange is both a virtuoso performance from an electrifying prose stylist & a serious exploration of the morality of free will. In his introduction, Blake Morrison situates ”A Clockwork Orange” within the context of Anthony Burgess` many other works, explores the author`s unhappiness with the Stanley Kubrick film version, analyses the composition of the Nadsat argot spoken by Alex & his droogs, & examines the influences on Burgess` unique, eternally original style. Anthony Burgess (1917-93) was born in Manchester in 1917. From 1954 to 1960 he was stationed in Malaysia as an education officer
- during this time he started writing The Malayan Trilogy. Diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour in 1959, Burgess became a full-time writer & went on to write a book a year up until his death in 1993. His many works include: ” The Complete Enderby”, ” Tremor of Intent”, ” The Kingdom of the Wicked” & ”A Clockwork Orange”. If you enjoyed ”A Clockwork Orange”, you might like Ken Kesey`s ” One Flew Over the Cuckoo`s Nest”, also available in ” Penguin Modern Classics”. ”I do not know of any other writer who has done as much with language...a very funny book.” (William S. Burroughs).



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Charlie Fairburn, successful screenwriter, ex-husband & absent father, has been given six months to live. He resolves to stake half his fortune on a couple of turns of the roulette wheel &, to his agent`s disgust, to write a novel
- about death. In the casino he meets his muse. Charlie grows as addicted to writing fiction as she is to gambling. His novel is set on a train & involves a group of characters (familiar to readers of St Aubyn`s earlier work) who are locked in a debate about the nature of consciousness. As this train gets stuck at Didcot, & Charlie gets more passionately entangled with the dangerous Angelique, A Clue to the Exit comes to its startling climax. Exquisitely crafted, witty & thoughtful, Edward St Aubyn`s dazzling novel probes the very heart of being. ` Perhaps the most brilliant English novelist of his generation` Alan Hollinghurst
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Set in Amsterdam, the novel introduces Lotte Meerman, a Cold Case detective still recovering from the emotional devastation of her previous investigation. A tip-off leads Lotte to an unresolved ten-year-old murder case in which her father was the lead detective. When she discovers irregularities surrounding the original investigation that make him a suspect, she decides to cover for him. She doesn`t tell her boss about the family connection & jeopardises her career by hiding evidence. Now she has to find the real murderer before her acts are discovered, otherwise her father will go to jail & she will lose her job, the one thing in life she still takes pride in.. . ...

Perfect for fans of John le Carre, a gripping & suspenseful spy novel from `the master of the modern spy thriller` (Mail on Sunday) MI6`s Head of Station in Turkey is killed in a mysterious plane crash. Amelia Levene, chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, wants the incident investigated
- quickly & quietly. The only man she can trust is Thomas Kell, a disgraced spy searching for redemption. Arriving in Istanbul, Kell discovers that MI6 operations in the region have been fatally compromised: a traitor inside Western Intelligence threatens not just the Special Relationship, but the security of the entire Middle East. Kell`s search for the mole takes him from London, to Greece, & into Eastern Europe. But when Kell is betrayed by those closest to him, the stakes become personal. He will do anything to see this operation through
- including putting himself, & others, in the line of fire...

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It was 1953 when, not long after arriving in New York City, a young artist named Andy Warhol had begun to make his way in the world of commercial illustration. As Arthur Edelman, his former employer, relates in his introductory note, in a hallway of the Empire State Building stood a young man with Jackson Pollock shoes, a rumpled black suit, a portfolio, & a shock of white hair. Over several years, the Edelmans & Warhol worked closely together. Their relationship culminated in a coloring book that could have only come from the mind of Warhol, created especially for clients children for Christmas in 1961, & somewhat of a cause celebre when it was published in 1990. Now back in print, ”A Coloring Book: Drawings by Andy Warhol” will amuse & charm a new audience with its delightfully carefree animal drawings, revealing the whimsical side to his creativity. ...

The saga that has enthralled the millions of readers of The Pillars of the Earth & World Without End now continues with Ken Follett`s magnificent, gripping A Column of Fire. Christmas 1558, & young Ned Willard returns home to Kingsbridge to find his world has changed. The ancient stones of Kingsbridge Cathedral look down on a city torn by religious hatred. Europe is in turmoil as high principles clash bloodily with friendship, loyalty & love, & Ned soon finds himself on the opposite side from the girl he longs to marry, Margery Fitzgerald. Then Elizabeth Tudor becomes queen & all of Europe turns against Engl&. The shrewd, determined young monarch sets up the country`s first secret service to give her early warning of assassination plots, rebellions & invasion plans. Elizabeth knows that alluring, headstrong Mary Queen of Scots lies in wait in Paris. Part of a brutally ambitious French family, Mary has been proclaimed the rightful ruler of Engl&, with her own supporters scheming to get rid of the new queen. Over a turbulent half-century, the love between Ned & Margery seems doomed, as extremism sparks violence from Edinburgh to Geneva. With Elizabeth clinging precariously to her throne & her principles, protected by a small, dedicated group of resourceful spies & courageous secret agents, it becomes clear that the real enemies
- then as now
- are not the rival religions. The true battle pitches those who believe in tolerance & compromise against the tyrants who would impose their ideas on everyone else
- no matter the cost.


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A WORLD IN TURMOIL1558, & Europe is in revolt as religious hatred sweeps the continent. Elizabeth Tudor has ascended to the throne but she is not safe in this dangerous new world. There are many who would see her removed, not least Mary Queens of Scots, who lies in wait in Paris. A NEW ORDERElizabeth determines to set up a new secret service: a group of resourceful spies & courageous agents entrusted to keep her safe & in power. As she searches for those who will make the difference, one man stands out.A MAN WHO WOULD DIE FOR HIS QUEENFor Ned Willard the opportunity to serve his queen is God-sent. He cannot stay in Kingsbridge & watch the love of his life marry another, & as fires burn & extremism begins to spark throughout Europe, Ned makes his choice. He will spend his life protecting his monarch from the tyrants who aim to destroy her or die trying... ...

Millions of readers have been enthralled by the saga that began in The Pillars of the Earth & World Without End, which now continues with Ken Follett`s magnificent, gripping A Column of Fire.A WORLD IN TURMOIL1558, & Europe is in revolt as religious hatred sweeps the continent. Elizabeth Tudor has ascended to the throne but she is not safe in this dangerous new world. There are many who would see her removed, not least Mary Queens of Scots, who lies in wait in Paris.A NEW ORDERElizabeth determines to set up a new secret service: a group of resourceful spies & courageous agents entrusted to keep her safe & in power. As she searches for those who will make the difference, one man stands out.A MAN WHO WOULD DIE FOR HIS QUEENFor Ned Willard the opportunity to serve his queen is God-sent. He cannot stay in Kingsbridge & watch the love of his life marry another, & as fires burn & extremism begins to spark throughout Europe, Ned makes his choice. He will spend his life protecting his monarch from the tyrants who aim to destroy her or die trying... ...

London, July 1946. A woman`s body is found in a disused bomb site off the Holloway Road. She is identified as Lillian Frobisher, ”a respectable wife & mother” who lived with her family nearby. The police assume that Lillian must have been the victim of a sexual assault; but when the autopsy finds no evidence of rape, they turn their attention to her private life
- How did she come to be in the bomb site, a well-known lovers` haunt? Why was her husband seemingly unaware that she`d failed to come home on the night she was killed? In this deeply evocative crime drama, Sian Busby strips away the veneer of stoicism & respectability in post-war Britain to reveal a society riven with disillusionment & loss.
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