Gordon Jephtas (1943–92) was born into an impoverished, coloured, single-parent family in South Africa. He began piano lessons after being intrigued by the harmonium player at the local church. In his teens he worked as an accompanist with the amateur coloured opera group “Eoan” in Cape Town, then moved to Europe to further his studies. His first big break came in 1972 when the Zurich Opera House appointed him to assist the conductor Nello Santi. Jephtas thereafter established an international reputation as a vocal coach of Italian opera, and Switzerland provided him with a liberal environment where he was free to express his sexuality. Both there and later in the USA, Jephtas worked with the biggest names in the opera world, from Renata Tebaldi to Plácido Domingo, Montserrat Caballé and Luciano Pavarotti. He always longed to be accepted back in South Africa, but his attempts to return culminated each time in disaster because talent and experience meant little in a land where “whiteness” trumped everything. An official offer to be made an “honorary white” merely intensified his inner turmoil. Back in the USA, Jephtas’s professional success was tempered by private misfortune. He died in New York in 1992.

This book examines the life and career of Gordon Jephtas through the letters that he wrote home to May Abrahamse, a coloured singer with whom he had worked since his teens. They reveal in unique detail the life and achievements of a remarkable musician, but also the psychological damage wrought upon him by apartheid. Jephtas provides a fascinating case study of a gifted South African abroad, struggling with issues of race and sexuality at the height of the AIDS epidemic.

The St. Louis Cardinals, despite winning more World Series than any Major League franchise except for the New York Yankees, have seen their share of dry spells when they were shut out of the postseason. Like the American economy, the Cardinals have seen their fortunes cycle through prolonged ups and downs, with booms in 1885-1888, 1926-1946, 1964-1968, 1982-1987 and 1996-2011, and busts in 1889-1925, 1947-1963, 1969-1981 and 1988-1995. Drawing on years of research, this book chronicles the Cardinals' periods of success and failure and explains the reasons behind them.

Delilah's is a simple story, about a military wife and mother, who through life's twists and turns, is forced to join the 1970's work force. With no marketable skills, she finds herself in beauty school, then employed in the most popular salon in town, Shear Delights. The stories of her family, however, are anything but simple.

It's 1989 - Kassie Stewart is young, beautiful, and wealthy - living the easy life in the tropics. While fishing alone at the end of her favorite pier, Kassie's cherished penknife slips from her hand into deep water. Diving in to retrieve it, she suddenly finds herself in a struggle for her life. Unbeknownst to Kassie the jade and gold penknife contains within it an encrypted code that the killer is after - a code that threatens the very existence of the world as we know it. ...So begins a riveting tale of greed, lust, and murder with a spell-binding plot that rips forward at lightning speed. Stunning imagery vividly depicts both the beauty and the innocence of the tropics with writing as soothing as the trade wind breezes. Talented new author, Jon David Hawke, brings us Jaded Palms - an exciting adventure novel that runs as deep and swift as the Gulf Stream waters. - A story that is at once terrifying and unexpectedly heart-warming - An exploration of human frailties that challenges our moral compass - You will laugh, cry, and shudder as you are transported by these pages - Introducing two of the strongest and most captivating female characters in modern fiction - A fragile planet teeters on a nuclear precipice - Adventure surges from the depths of the Caribbean seas to the peaks of the Bavarian Alps - Revengeful protagonists threaten the free world - A diabolical quest beyond all human imaginings - Rich textures of island life infused with tropical atmosphere

Alex Cassidy, a fifteen-year-old, must adjust to life at a Chicago boarding school (St. Andrew's School for Boys) while his parents fly around the world as travel-tour directors. To his horror Alex soon discovers that too many boys turn up dead or missing at the century old school--too often. With the aid of his roommate, Ziggy, they attempt to solve mysteries of the prestigious school. Do crypts under the Cathedral contain more than ancient bones? Will Alex survive his junior year?

Cody's mother dies before she can answer the fifteen-year-old's question: ?Who is my father?? Homeless, Cody is first aided by a kindly landlady, later abruptly forced into a sadistic foster home. He flees in desperate search for his real father, but is caught and put into a juvenile facility, from which he narrowly escapes. Free again, he hitchhikes across country, running into people who help, but hindered by others. Jobless and penniless, he learns to survive on the brutal streets. Cody discovers shocking facts about his mother, and as he continues his search, discovers truths about himself before he finds a solution.