American Writers in Europe explores the impartial critical outlook that American writers acquired in different parts of Europe, from 1850 to the present, and used as a lens to view Europe and America. Focusing on some less familiar writers, it reveals intriguing aspects of the lives and works of American writers than those of the customarily anthologized expatriates. Offering a broad range of American experiences in Europe in an extensive span of time, the volume widens the history of the transatlantic cultural and literary dialogue between America and Europe.

"Beautifully written and refreshingly original... makes us see Paris] in a different light." -- "San Francisco Chronicle""Book Review"
Swapping his native San Francisco for the City of Light, travel writer David Downie arrived in Paris in 1986 on a one-way ticket, his head full of romantic notions. Curiosity and the legs of a cross-country runner propelled him daily from an unheated, seventh-floor walk-up garret near the Champs-Elysees to the old Montmartre haunts of the doomed painter Modigliani, the tombs of Pere-Lachaise cemetery, the luxuriant alleys of the Luxembourg Gardens and the aristocratic ile Saint-Louis midstream in the Seine.
Downie wound up living in the chic Marais district, married to the Paris-born American photographer Alison Harris, an equally incurable walker and chronicler. Ten books and a quarter-century later, he still spends several hours every day rambling through Paris, and writing about the city he loves. An irreverent, witty romp featuring thirty-one short prose sketches of people, places and daily life, "Paris, "Paris" Journey into the City of Light" ranges from the glamorous to the least-known corners and characters of the world's favorite city.
Photographs by Alison Harris.
"I loved his collection of essays and anyone who's visited Paris in the past, or plans to visit in the future, will be equally charmed as well." --David Lebovitz, author of" The Sweet Life in Paris"
" A] quirky, personal, independent view of the city, its history and its people"--Mavis Gallant
"Gives fresh poetic insight into the city... a voyage into 'the bends and recesses, the jagged edges, the secret interiors' of Paris]."-- Departures

From the author of the acclaimed bestseller and 1997 National Book Award finalist, Le Divorce, comes a sparkling comedy of manners once again set in the world of Americans in Paris.

Anne-Sophie is a young Frenchwoman engaged to Tim Nolinger, an American journalist hot on the trail of a breaking story: The theft of a valuable illuminated manuscript from a private collection in New York, which may now be in the possession of a reclusive film director living on the outskirts of Paris. As Tim, Anne-Sophie, a pair of American antique dealers, and one amorous member of the local gentry converge on the director's chateau, the director's wife--a former actress--is accused of desecrating a national monument. Add to that a disappearing American; a hunting contretemps; a wrongful arrest; and murder, and you have this sexy, stylish, delight of a novel that celebrates the paradoxes of marriage and morality as they are perceived on both sides of the Atlantic. Filled with the author's pithy insights and hilarious asides, Le Mariage is Diane Johnson at her very best.

Highly acclaimed at its publication in 1913, The Custom of the Country is a cutting commentary on America’s nouveaux riches, their upward-yearning aspirations and their eventual downfalls. Through her heroine, the beautiful and ruthless Undine Spragg, a spoiled heiress who looks to her next materialistic triumph as her latest conquest throws himself at her feet, Edith Wharton presents a startling, satiric vision of social behavior in all its greedy glory. As Undine moves from America’s heartland to Manhattan, and then to Paris, Wharton’s critical eye leaves no social class unscathed.

These essays explore the impartial critical outlook American writers acquired through their experiences in Europe since 1850. Collectively, contributors reveal how the American writer's intuitive sense of freedom, coupled with their feeling of liberation from European influences, led to intellectual independence in the literary works they produced.

Raymond Chandler’s first three novels, published here in one volume, established his reputation as an unsurpassed master of hard-boiled detective fiction. THE BIG SLEEP, Chandler's first novel, introduces Philip Marlowe, a private detective inhabiting the seamy side of Los Angeles in the 1930s, as he takes on a case involving a paralyzed California millionaire, two psychotic daughters, blackmail, and murder. In FAREWELL, MY LOVELY, Marlowe deals with the gambling circuit, a murder he stumbles upon, and three very beautiful but potentially deadly women. In THE HIGH WINDOW, Marlowe searches the California underworld for a priceless gold coin and finds himself deep in the tangled affairs of a dead coin collector.

In all three novels, Chandler’s hard-edged prose, colorful characters, vivid vernacular, and above all his enigmatic loner of a hero, enduringly establish his claim not only to the heights of his chosen genre but to the pantheon of literary art.

Several months after a tragic accident that claimed their son, Lisa and Joe Kendall's marriage has fallen apart. Feeling guilt over the death of their son, Joe has decided that the best thing for Lisa is for him to be out of her life. But, his marriage isn't the only thing suffering, and Joe is forced into a leave of absence from work so he can find closure. Unsure where to spend the forced vacation, Joe decides to go alone on the Alaskan cruise he and Lisa had planned to take with their son. The last person he expects to see once the ship is well away from Seattle is Lisa. Lisa has prayed every day for Joe to reclaim his faith in God and come home so they can grieve together and rebuild the relationship they once shared. In hopes that two weeks alone with Joe will help save their marriage, she boards the ship. Little does she know that Joe has already decided to file for divorce. How will she convince him before the ship docks that they can still have a happy marriage even though their child is gone?

First loves never last . . . except when they do. When Amy Welsh returns to Goose Bay as a substitute teacher, she has no intention of seeing Quentin Macmillan, the man who once left her waiting in the rain clutching her suitcase and dreaming of becoming his wife. Seventeen years later, his teenage daughter shows up in Amy's class with plans to reunite her widowed father with the woman he has always loved. When the assignment is forgiveness and healing, will this young teacher pass the test?

A timely guide to the entire youth justice process at a point of substantial change. An introduction to the entire Youth Justice System (YJS) An holistic approach covering both the youth court and the wider youth justice process Contains expert descriptions, comment (sometimes critical) and analysis Everything you need to start understanding the modern-day Youth Justice System (YJS) This book is the ideal starting point for anyone wishing to gain or enhance understanding of youth justice in England and Wales. It contains chapters on each of the areas in which youth offenders or those at risk of offending come into contact with the Youth Justice System (YJS). It looks at the roles of the youth court, police, Crown prosecutors, youth offending teams (YOTs), youth offending panels (YOPs), voluntary sector and wider community. It deals with sentencing (including the work of the Sentencing Guidelines Council (SGC)), the responsibilities of the Youth Justice Board (YJB) and a range of ways in which crime prevention and anti-social behaviour (ASB) by young people is dealt with and discouraged. The book takes full account of the considerable changes introduced by the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008. It also looks at the unique welfare-based ethos of youth justice and modern-day 'restorative approaches', showing how youth justice practitioners seek to balance these with the needs of crime prevention and the challenge of protecting victims from (sometimes serious) youth offending. Also contains a Glossary of Words, Phrases, Acronyms and Abbreviations, a Timeline, plus illustrative Charts and Tables. For such a 'simple, speedy, summary' it contains a treasure trove of information. Review 'Well structured and easy to navigate with its diagrams and glossary ... its comprehensive coverage of the recent reforms and inclusion of the newly published sentencing guidelines make it the ideal starting point for the student and practitioner, or for those wanting to refresh their knowledge': Justice Journal Authors Mike Watkins is an experienced trainer of magistrates who has written materials for the Judicial Studies Board, Magistrates' Association and Universities of Birmingham and Cambridge. Diane Johnson is Head of Service for Warwickshire Youth Offending Team (YOT). Chris Stanley is Chair of the East Kent Youth Court Panel and of the Kent Branch of the Magistrates' Association. He is a member of the national Council of that body and its Youth Courts Committee. He is a former head of Policy and Research at Nacro and advises the Prison Reform Trust on matters of youth justice. Edited and with further material by Bryan Gibson.

Raymond Chandler's first three novels, published here in one volume, established his reputation as an unsurpassed master of hard-boiled detective fiction. The Big Sleep, Chandler's first novel, introduces Philip Marlowe, a private detective inhabiting the seamy side of Los Angeles in the 1930s, as he takes on a case involving a paralysed California millionaire, two psychotic daughters, blackmail and murder. In Farewell, My Lovely, Marlowe deals with the gambling circuit, a murder he stumbles upon, and three very beautiful but potentially deadly women. In The High Window, Marlowe searches the California underworld for a priceless gold coin and finds himself deep in the tangled affairs of a dead coin collector. In all three novels, Chandler's hard-edged prose, colourful characters, vivid vernacular, and, above all, his enigmatic loner of a hero, establish his enduring claim to the heights of his chosen genre.

First acclaimed as a story-length memoir, then expanded into a novel, "Sylvia "draws us into the lives of a young couple whose struggle to survive Manhattan in the early 1960s involves them in sexual fantasias, paranoia, drugs, and the extreme intimacy of self-destructive violence.
Reproducing a time and place with extraordinary clarity, Leonard Michaels explores with self-wounding honesty the excruciating particulars of a youthful marriage headed for disaster. Leonard Michaels (1933-2003) was the author of "Going Places," "I Would Have Saved Them If I Could, "and "The Men's Club," among other books. FSG will publish his "Collected Stories "in June to coincide with the reissue of "Sylvia." First acclaimed as a story-length memoir, then expanded into a novel, "Sylvia "draws us into the lives of a young couple whose struggle to survive Manhattan in the early 1960s involves them in sexual fantasias, paranoia, drugs, and the extreme intimacy of self-destructive violence.
Reproducing a time and place with extraordinary clarity, Leonard Michaels explores with self-wounding honesty the excruciating particulars of a youthful marriage headed for disaster. ""Sylvia" is a fictionalized memoir, first published in 1992, about Michaels's first wife Sylvia Bloch, who committed suicide . . . At 129 pages, the reissue of "Sylvia," though billed as a novel, has the power and the rawness of memoir."--Mona Simpson, "The New York Times Book Review"

"Johnson is more droll than Henry James, to whom she's been compared, and she's as witty as a modern-day Voltaire. Vraiment, L'Affaire, c'est irresistible!"-Publishers Weekly Amy Hawkins, a Palo Alto girl who made herself a dot-com fortune, goes to France to get a sheen of sophistication and, perhaps, to have an affair that will ruffle her all-too-steady heart. She starts her quest in a glamorous resort in the French Alps, amid an assortment of aristocrats and ski enthusiasts. But when two of the hotel's guests are swept away by an avalanche, Adrian's children-young, old, legitimate, illegitimate-assemble to protect their interests, feuding under the competing laws of the British, American, and French systems. Amy, already suspect because she is American, steps in to assist, and unintentionally sets in motion a series of events that spotlight ancient national differences, customs, and laws. Filled with love, sex, death, and travel, L'Affaire is National Book Award finalist Diane Johnson at her very best.

A National Book Award finalist, this novel relates the events of four crucial days in the lives of four people sharing a rambling Victorian house, "lying low" and harboring secrets not meant to be shared. Theo Wait, a middle-aged former ballet dancer, and her brother, Anton, have taken in two boarders: beautiful Lynn, who never receives mail or visitors; and energetic and effusive Ouida, a Brazilian student and illegal alien who won't let complicated bureaucratic wrangles and constant fear of deportation taint her vision of America as the land of opportunity.

A faked identity, a search for one of the FBI's most wanted escaped prison convicts, and a Brazilian feast that spins out of control kick the plot into high gear. While each of these characters has been plagued by a sense of impending disaster, the terrible thing they've all been fearing comes from an entirely unexpected direction, shattering all of their lives.

Chloe Fowler is the most unliberated woman she knows:disarmingly delicate and pretty, and not averse to putting either attribute to its best use, married, young, and satisfied with her normal American life as wife and mother. Yet Chloe is about to be liberated from everything she has ever known-in a place where her ordinary notions of reason and reality will run headlong into a wall of intrigue, and where every idea she has about herself will be put to the test.

While visiting Iran with her husband, Chloe is left to travel alone when he is summoned home unexpectedly. Much to her surprise, she finds herself drawn to the life she encounters in Iran; intoxicated by each exotic sight which reminds her how far from home she really is; both comforted and unsettled by the group of foreign and Iranian physicians and their wives who take her in. However, her exhilaration crashes when her rooms are searched, and odd, often frightening events begin to occur, exposing the darker side of this "colonial life." Persian Nights follows Chloe on a voyage through the seductively inexplicable, and has all the qualities one expects from the gifted author of Le Divorce-the quirky, vivid atmosphere; the intelligent, humane voice; the compelling narrative. Once again Diane Johnson delivers an entertaining novel of an appealing woman caught up in a mysterious world of change and intrigue.

A flamboyant and controversial personality of enormous wit and intelligence, Voltaire remains one of the most influential figures of the eighteenth-century Enlightenment. "Candide, " his masterpiece, is a brilliant satire of the theory that our world is "the best of all possible worlds." The book traces the picaresque adventures of the guileless Candide, who is forced into the army, flogged, shipwrecked, betrayed, robbed, separated from his beloved Cunegonde, tortured by the Inquisition, et cetera, all without losing his resilience and will to live and pursue a happy life.
This Modern Library edition, published to celebrate the seventy-fifth anniversary of Random House,
is a facsimile of the first book ever released under the Random House colophon. It includes the timeless illustrations by Rockwell Kent, a twentieth-century artist whose wit and genius serve as a counterpart and compliment to Voltaire's.

"From the Hardcover edition."

Set in Paris, LE DIVORCE is an alluring and elegant comedy of love and divorce French-style. Isabel Walker, a young, not-so-innocent, American abroad, arrives in Paris to find that her sister's French husband ('the frog prince') has just walked out. While Isabel embarks on her own sentimental education - seduced by gourmet food, antiques, existentialism and an older man - her sister's marriage disintergrates into bitter Franco-American wrangles over money, titles and a mysterious painting. With a sharp tongue and an ironic eye for the foibles of the Parisian bourgeoisie, the French art world and American ex-patriots, Isabel is a collector of experience, even those she can't control. Comedy veers suddenly close to tragedy as passionate jealousy, self-interest and artistic intrigue interweave.

In Le Divorce, Diane Johnson delightfully recounts the adventures of two sisters from California who make a modern pilgrimage to the City of Light.

Pregnant and abandoned by her French husband, Roxeanne Walker de Persand turns to her younger sister, Isabel, for support, while the powerful Persand family exerts subtle but firm control over her decision whether or not to divorce. Complicating matters is the disposition of a family heirloom, a painting in Roxy's possession that is suddenly discovered to be worth millions. In the midst of a variety of schemes, the stakes are suddenly raised by a crime of passion, disrupting everyone's motives and plans.

Not since Edith Wharton penned her brilliant portraits of Americans abroad has an American novelist so perfectly captured the possibilities and perils of succumbing to the allure of Paris.