検索キーワード： ユーモア・風刺文学・フィクション

It is 2003 – ten years since Spud Milton’s class of 93 matriculated and the boys went their separate ways. Despite their seemingly unbreakable bond, the Crazy Eight have not kept in touch. Or at least, not as far as Spud knows. When he receives an invitation from the school to attend the ten-year reunion weekend, Spud is determined to avoid the event at all costs, but he hasn’t reckoned with the bombardment of intrusive messages and threatening phone calls from his former dorm mates.

Londoner Bill, gave up his beloved Stepney home in order to move to Cheshire. He’s renting the spare room in his son Trevor’s new marital home to help with the mortgage. Local dentist Trevor, is still trying to figure out ‘the nature of wives’ as he embarks upon his new life as a married man with his dad in tow. His wife, Katherine is dismayed at her father-in-law’s uncouth manners which threaten to lower the tone of her pretentious aspirations.

For Damir, time is money. He bikes around the city collecting food orders, rushing through the cycle lanes next to Uber drivers and grocery vans – and all the other people delivering your every desire. He arrives with your sushi rolls and fries and disappears into the night – Ping! Onto the next drop. He is invisible; one player in the boardgame of the city. But one summer’s evening, a chance encounter changes all the rules. Damir arrives on Decca’s doorstep with a bag of spilled edamame beans, in a postcode that could be another universe, and there’s an immediate connection.

Kash owes a lot of money. His restaurant, specialising in exotic meats and catering to New York’s elite, was doing well. Then business dried up, and now Boris the loan shark wants his investment back. But Kash has a plan. There’s a rumour of a dinner club, hosted in turns by billionaires. Lots of ego, and lots of money. If Kash can get the gig, it would pay off Boris and then some. He will need to offer something new, something that five of the richest men on the planet will have never tasted before. Something entirely unprecedented …

Fille d'une vendeuse et d'un catcheur professionnel à la retraite, Margo a toujours su qu'elle devrait se débrouiller seule. En revanche, elle n'avait pas prévu d'avoir une liaison avec son professeur de lettres, encore moins de tomber enceinte. Contre l'avis de ses proches, Margo décide de garder l'enfant. À vingt ans, la voilà donc seule avec un nouveau-né, sans emploi et à deux doigts d'être expulsée de chez elle. Elle a besoin d'argent, et vite.

An international bestseller with over half a million copies sold between Japan and South Korea, The Convenience Store by The Sea tells the delightfully quirky and heartfelt stories of the store’s customers and employees, offering us all a unique recipe for a good, fulfilling life.

"El Diablo Desinteresado" es un cuento breve de Amado Nervo que combina elementos de sátira y fantasía. En la historia, el Diablo decide hacer el bien sin esperar nada a cambio, desafiando su propia naturaleza y sorprendiendo a quienes lo rodean. Este giro irónico y humorístico pone en evidencia la hipocresía humana y cuestiona la noción del bien y el mal. El cuento refleja el estilo característico de Nervo, con un lenguaje fluido y una intención filosófica que invita a la reflexión sobre la moral y el comportamiento humano.

Heinz Strunk lädt uns wieder ein in eine Welt, in der es viel zu staunen und zu lachen gibt, obwohl sie im Großen und Ganzen voller Schmerz und Schauer ist. Berichtet wird von ganz schön merkwürdigen Krankheiten, beunruhigenden Vorgängen im Nachbarhaus der Vorortsiedlung, es werden abgrundtief elende Familiengeschichten und Paartragödien erzählt.

Alexis Spencer will use any inspirational quote to rationalize her failures and shortcomings. Her closest friends are a distant memory, and her college debt is still as high as the day she left. But that’s all fine and dandy, because “whatever will be, will be.” However, when Alexis loses her job and her relationship on the same day, there’s no quote strong enough to get her through that. In typical fashion, she blames the world for her problems, including her younger self, who should have tried harder.

Von Berlin nach Spreeweide: Eingeladen von Stefan und Ariane besucht Renate Bergmann das verschlafene Örtchen in der brandenburgischen Provinz. Aber wo Renate ist, ist selten Ruhe! Kaum angekommen, gerät sie mit Bürgermeister Brummer aneinander. Überteuerte Friedhofsgebühren, schmuddelige Parkbänke, beschmierte Busfahrpläne: Das würde mit einer Renate Bergmann in Amt und Würden gleich ganz anders aussehen! 82 Jahre hin oder her, der Adenauer, die Amis und die Online-Omi powern in diesem Alter erst richtig los. Und ehe man sich's versieht, hängt Renates Wahlplakat an jeder Dorflaterne.

Book burning. Jewel stealing. Vampire hunting. Not exactly what I expected from a day's work as a detective, but at least things are no longer dull at the agency. Although I'm not sure how much longer the doors to that agency will be open, since the due date for getting my detective license just went whizzing by faster than a fairy on pixie dust. But, after making good use of my groveling skills, HQ has given me an extension to solve a case and complete my application. Which would be great if the only clients I have weren't dead clients, missing clients, and persnickety clients.

For fans of Paul Murray’s The Bee Sting and Jenny Jackson’s Pineapple Street, an irresistibly funny and incisive novel about a wealthy family that is confident in its good intentions—until the discovery that their patriarch has secretly given all their money to charity ruins their lives.

Arthur Candlewick spends three days in a disused mineshaft with only his son’s drug stash, a book on the concept of ‘effective altruism’ and a bottle of medium-priced Bordeaux for company. When he emerges, he has made the life-changing decision to become a good man. Deciding to sell the family timber business and give away his wealth to charity, Arthur’s family become convinced that he has lost his mind. His university-bound daughter, Evangeline, wants to change the world but perhaps not at the cost of her own privileged life.

Jada Williams is good at judging people by their looks. From across the mall, she can tell not only someone’s inseam and pants size, but exactly what style they need to transform their life. Too bad she’s no longer using this superpower as a wardrobe designer to Hollywood stars, but for minimum wage plus commission at the Glendale mall. When Jada is fired yet again, she is forced to outrun the newly instated Debt Police who are out for blood. But Jada, like any great antihero, is not going to wait for the cops to come kick her around.

Every month at St. Pete’s Tavern in rugged western Montana, a meeting is convened by the Basic Bigfoot Society’s members—both of them. Jute and Vergil are lifelong friends, bound by an affinity for the elusive North American Wood Ape. Their monthly meetings and annual expeditions are a tradition that keep their friendship alive when so much else about their small town has fallen away. But things are about to get exciting for the Basic Bigfoot Society.

In Alison Bechdel’s hilariously skewering and gloriously cast new comic novel confection, a cartoonist named Alison Bechdel, running a pygmy goat sanctuary in Vermont, is existentially irked by a climate-challenged world and a citizenry on the brink of civil war. She wonders: Can she pull humanity out of its death spiral by writing a scathingly self-critical memoir about her own greed and privilege?

Der Eigenbrötler Nicol liebt nichts mehr als die malerische kleine Bucht samt Cottage und Bootshaus, die er auf der Hebriden-Insel Gigha gepachtet hat. Ausgerechnet dort will nun der beliebte schottische Schauspieler und Regisseur Jim McKechnie seinen neuen Film drehen. Als McKechnie Nicol androht, seine Kontakte spielen zu lassen, um Nicol von seinem geliebten Fleckchen Erde zu vertreiben, kommt es zu einem wüsten Streit zwischen den beiden Männern. Am nächsten Morgen spült das Meer Nicol eine Überraschung vor die Haustür: eine männliche Leiche im Kilt. McKechnie?

„Fabelhafte Fabeln" ist eine kurzweilige Sammlung von scharfsinnigen Geschichten über jene Tiere, denen die Weltliteratur für gewöhnlich wenig Beachtung schenkt.

Au départ, entre Caleb et Aya, ce n'est qu'une histoire d'amitié. Vraiment ? Tout est tracé d'avance pour Aya N'Bagra. La jeune femme se laisse dicter ses choix autant dans sa vie personnelle que professionnelle et ne trouve pas grand-chose à redire à la situation. Sauf quand il s'agit de son mariage, là, ça coince. Son angoisse monte et toute sa vie est remise en question en une fraction de seconde. L'amour, est-ce vraiment ça ? Caleb Jones, lui, laisse une place de choix aux sentiments dans sa vie : selon lui, rien n'est plus beau qu'une famille soudée ou un couple heureux.

Renate Bergmann haut ab: Raus aus Berlin, rein in die vermeintliche Ruhe ins brandenburgische Spreeweide. Dort, wo Stefan, Ariane und die Kinder wohnen und der Alterswohnsitz auf Renate wartet. Kaum angekommen, gerät sie mit Bürgermeister Brummer aneinander. »Kandidieren Sie doch selbst!« muss man ihr nicht zweimal sagen. 82 Jahre hin oder her: Der Adenauer und Renate powern in diesem Alter erst richtig los. Deshalb hängt schon bald Renates Wahlplakat an jeder Dorflaterne. Ohne Raute zwar, aber mit schickem Blazer. Das Auge wählt schließlich mit!