New Releases by Anne Phillips

OPRAH''S #1 MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2026 • A luminous memoir in essays from the Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist, who reflects on her origins and the mysteries of memory. "Small Town Girls is a brilliant, wide-ranging book, nostalgic and tough-minded at the same time. Like Willa Cather and Stephen Crane, Jayne Anne Phillips writes prose that reads like plainspoken poetry, full of startling and vivid images that bring a vanished world back to life before our eyes." —Tom Perrotta, author of The Leftovers “The painful thing about adolescence is that everything seems absolute, and the painful thing about adulthood is that nothing does.” Jayne Anne Phillips grew up in the small town of Buckhannon, West Virginia. The distinctly American landscape of Appalachia—dense with forests and small churches, rich in history and misunderstandings—has been the great setting for her fiction, even as she and her boundless imagination have traveled to other times and places. In these pieces, and in her singular first-person voice, at once intimate and wide-ranging, Phillips brings us into her childhood and family, most movingly her mother. She re-creates the place she calls home, its foundational truths and the densely woven ties between the women of the town. She traces her journeys across the country and her discovery of writing and reading as tools for both survival and revelation, offering insights into the fellow writers and touchstones that moved and influenced her. From the local beauty salon to the legendary Hatfield–McCoy feud, from Jean Shrimpton and Barbara Stanwyck to Stephen Crane and Breece D''J Pancake, Phillips ponders her relationship with inspiration, spirituality, culture, and the troubled annals of the last American centuries. Tender, inviting, sparkling with wisdom and open-heartedness, Small Town Girls is part coming-of-age story, part social history, Jayne Anne Phillips’s most personal, most accessible book yet—a love letter to the place and the people who have shaped her perceptions and her writing.

1874, au lendemain de la guerre de Sécession. Sur les routes de Virginie-Occidentale se croisent civils et soldats, renégats et vagabonds, affranchis et fugitifs. ConaLee, 12 ans, l’adulte de sa famille depuis aussi longtemps qu’elle s’en souvienne, entreprend un voyage avec sa mère, qui n’a pas prononcé un mot depuis des mois, et l’homme qu’on lui a dit d’appeler « papa ». Ce vétéran sudiste, qui s’est imposé dans leur monde, les dépose à l’entrée de l’asile d’aliénés de Trans-Allegheny. Là, loin de leurs proches, se faisant passer pour une dame et sa bonne, mère et fille empruntent le long chemin de la guérison. Une fois de plus, Jayne Anne Phillips tisse un récit envoûtant où la mémoire collective, les secrets familiaux et les fracas de l’Histoire se conjuguent. Dans une prose d’une beauté âpre, elle s’attache à dépeindre avec empathie les victimes, les blessés dans leur chair et leur âme. Et fait revivre une galerie de personnages mémorables: Dearbhla, la guérisseuse irlandaise qui sait lire dans les pierres, O’Shea, le veilleur de nuit amnésique ou encore Mrs Hexum, la cuisinière au grand coeur. Autant de sentinelles qui tentent à leur échelle de protéger un monde qui se délite et de réparer les vivants.

A story about a girl with a unique superpower who helps her animal friends and the natural world.

PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD IN FICTION • A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • From one of our most accomplished novelists, a mesmerizing story about a mother and daughter seeking refuge in the chaotic aftermath of the Civil War—and a brilliant portrait of family endurance against all odds "A tour de force." —Tayari Jones, author of An American Marriage In 1874, in the wake of the War, erasure, trauma, and namelessness haunt civilians and veterans, renegades and wanderers, freedmen and runaways. Twelve-year-old ConaLee, the adult in her family for as long as she can remember, finds herself on a buckboard journey with her mother, Eliza, who hasn’t spoken in more than a year. They arrive at the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in West Virginia, delivered to the hospital’s entrance by a war veteran who has forced himself into their world. There, far from family, a beloved neighbor, and the mountain home they knew, they try to reclaim their lives. The omnipresent vagaries of war and race rise to the surface as we learn their story: their flight to the highest mountain ridges of western Virginia; the disappearance of ConaLee’s father, who left for the War and never returned. Meanwhile, in the asylum, they begin to find a new path. ConaLee pretends to be her mother’s maid; Eliza responds slowly to treatment. They get swept up in the life of the facility—the mysterious man they call the Night Watch; the orphan child called Weed; the fearsome woman who runs the kitchen; the remarkable doctor at the head of the institution. Epic, enthralling, and meticulously crafted, Night Watch is a stunning chronicle of surviving war and its aftermath.

Why equality cannot be conditional on a shared human “nature” but has to be for all For centuries, ringing declarations about all men being created equal appealed to a shared human nature as the reason to consider ourselves equals. But appeals to natural equality invited gradations of natural difference, and the ambiguity at the heart of “nature” enabled generations to write of people as equal by nature while barely noticing the exclusion of those marked as inferior by their gender, race, or class. Despite what we commonly tell ourselves, these exclusions and gradations continue today. In Unconditional Equals, political philosopher Anne Phillips challenges attempts to justify equality by reference to a shared human nature, arguing that justification turns into conditions and ends up as exclusion. Rejecting the logic of justification, she calls instead for a genuinely unconditional equality. Drawing on political, feminist, and postcolonial theory, Unconditional Equals argues that we should understand equality not as something grounded in shared characteristics but as something people enact when they refuse to be considered inferiors. At a time when the supposedly shared belief in human equality is so patently not shared, the book makes a powerful case for seeing equality as a commitment we make to ourselves and others, and a claim we make on others when they deny us our status as equals.

Democracy is the central political issue of our age, yet debates over its nature and goals rarely engage with feminist concerns. Now that women have the right to vote, they are thought to present no special problems of their own. But despite the seemingly gender-neutral categories of individual or citizen, democratic theory and practice continues to privilege the male. This book reconsiders dominant strands in democratic thinking - focusing on liberal democracy, participatory democracy, and twentieth century versions of civic republicanism - and approaches these from a feminist perspective. Anne Phillips explores the under-representation of women in politics, the crucial relationship between public and private spheres, and the lessons of the contemporary women''s movement as an experience in participatory democracy.

Journey''s End is the fifth volume in a set of three linked trilogies:The Transition TrilogyBegins with Melanie''s first day of hormone therapy, continuing through sex reassignment surgery, her development of the Dramatica Theory of Narrative Structure with her creative partner, adjustment to life as a woman, and finally coming to terms with her own identity.The Transformation TrilogyBegins with Melanie coping with her life-partner''s decision to undergo radial feminizing facial surgery what will permanently and completely alter her external identity, and continues with Melanie''s efforts to destroy her own identity in order to rebuild and with her decision to also undergo facial surgery and concludes with her effort to come to terms with the stranger in the mirror.The Transcendence TrilogyBegins with Melanie''s work on narrative counterterrorism with the CIA and the NSA and continues through her complete financial collapse, a rebirth of relationships with her family, rebuilding of her finances and embarking on a new life adventure, all intertwined with her assessment of how her life''s work on narrative psychology has affected, guided, and ultimately brought meaning to her journey, from developing the Dramatica theory in volume one, to leaving narrative science to the next generation in volume nine.

From the Introduction:"Before the final version of "Dramatica - a New Theory of Story" there was an earlier draft that contained unfinished concepts and additional theory that was ultimately deemed "too complex". As a result, this material was never fully developed, was cut from the final version of the book, and has never seen the light of day -- until now! Recently, a copy of this early draft surfaced in the theory archives. The following are excerpts from this "lost" text."Included in this edition - 24 new archetypal characters beyond Dramatica''s "official" 8 archetypes, an exploration of the character justification process, exploring the chemistry of characters, plus alternate explanations of the Story Mind concept, origins of the Story Mind, Objective and Subjective Characters and more!

Exploring the spirituality and faith of girls on the verge of adolescence, this book presents fresh insights into children''s spirituality and their transition to adulthood. Phillips has listened to girls'' voices speaking in depth on the themes of self, God, church, and world, and reflected on their experiences and understandings in the light of current psychological, philosophical and sociological thinking, all placed into dialogue with a feminist approach to contemporary theology and bible. Phillips offers ''wombing'' as a metaphor for their transition to young adulthood, and suggests strategies faith communities might adopt to companion girls more effectively through the fragility of puberty. This book will appeal to all those exploring areas of youth ministry, pastoral care, Christian education, nurture and childhood studies, psychology and theology.

Traduit de l''anglais (États-Unis) par Marc Amfreville. En 1931, à Park Ridge (Illinois), un certain Cornelius O. Pierson assassina une jeune veuve, Asta Eicher, et ses trois enfants. En enquêtant sur leur disparition, la police découvrit que Pierson n''était autre que Harry Powers, un serial killer qui recrutait ses victimes par le biais d''annonces matrimoniales. Cette affaire qui bouleversa l''Amérique inspira à Charles Laughton son admirable film, La Nuit du chasseur. Tous les vivants est le " roman vrai " de cette histoire. Jayne Anne Phillips reconstitue avec minutie le déroulement de la tragédie, la traque du meurtrier et son arrestation. Mais c''est d''abord son extraordinaire imagination romanesque qui frappe à la lecture de ce livre. La voix de la petite Annabel, assassinée par Powers, se mêle à celle des vivants, qu''ils soient réels ou inventés de toutes pièces, comme Emily Thornhill, la journaliste qui mène les investigations. Porté par un souffle puissant, Tous les vivants explore un territoire où se mêlent le réel et le surnaturel, l''innocence et la perversité, la beauté et l''horreur. C''est aussi une radiographie de l''Amérique profonde des années 30, de ses peurs et de ses espoirs, au lendemain de la " Grande Dépression " qui l''a dévastée.

Året är 1931. Trebarnsmodern Asta Eicher är ensam och i penganöd efter att hennes make plötsligt gått bort. Via en kontaktannons börjar hon brevväxla med en charmig man vid namn Cornelius Pierson. Han uppvaktar henne och lovar till slut att gifta sig med henne, att sörja för henne och barnen. Asta bestämmer sig för att åka till honom i det lilla samhället Quiet Dell. Barnen ska komma efter. Några veckor senare hittas hela familjen Eicher död, mördad och nedgrävd under Piersons garage. Medan samhället skuldbelägger Asta för hennes bristande omdöme, blir den unga journalisten Emily djupt engagerad i familjens öde, särskilt den yngsta dottern Annabels – en flicka med brådmogen fantasi och sinne för det magiska. Hon bevakar rättegången och beslutar sig för att själv utreda vad som hänt. Mördaren, vars riktiga namn är Harry Powers, är en gåta. Vad driver honom och hur har han lyckats byta identitet så många gånger? Historien om Quiet Dell är en skönlitterär skildring av ett fall som på sin tid var mycket uppmärksammat. Det är ett laddat drama, där Phillips ger liv åt de människor som berördes och drabbades.

A Lost Memory. . . After journalist Wanda Gray''s plane crashes in Kenya, searchers find no survivors, and she is believed dead. But Wanda is very much alive, injured and slowly recovering on an African ranch. She remembers nothing of her former life--not her accountant husband Steven or even her own name. A New Love. . . Soon, in the lush, exotic African countryside, Wanda is discovering a new world. . .and a lover who will change everything: tall, lithe, ranch owner Ahmed. Day by day their desire is blossoming into a gloriously passionate romance: elemental as earth, sensual as the hot wind, and insatiable as the lions that stalk the night. A Truth About To Explode But Wanda''s happiness can last only as long as Ahmed doesn''t know she is married and her past remains a secret. Every moment draws them closer to the next unexpected twist of fate--one that will draw Wanda into a maelstrom of emotions--and a heartbreaking choice. . .

From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Night Watch, a spectacularly riveting novel based on a real-life crime by a con man who preyed on widows: “a brilliant fusion of fact and fiction” (Stephen King). In Chicago in 1931, Asta Eicher, a lonely mother of three, is desperate for money after the sudden death of her husband. She begins to receive seductive letters from a chivalrous, elegant man named Harry Powers, who promises to cherish and protect her, ultimately to marry her and to care for her and her children. Weeks later, Asta and her three children are dead. Emily Thornhill, one of the few women journalists in the Chicago press, wants to understand what happened to this beautiful family, particularly to the youngest child, Annabel, an enchanting girl with a precocious imagination and sense of magic. Determined, Emily travels to West Virginia to cover the murder trial and to investigate the story herself, accompanied by a charming and unconventional photographer equally drawn to the case. These heroic characters, driven by secrets of their own, will stop at nothing to ensure Powers is convicted. A tragedy, a love story, and a tour de force of obsession, Jayne Anne Phillips’s Quiet Dell “hauntingly imagines the victims’ hopes, dreams, and terror” (O, The Oprah Magazine). It is a mesmerizing and deeply moving novel from one of America’s most celebrated writers.

Kate - whose care for her terminally ill mother coincides with the birth of her first child in the early months of a young marriage - must, in a single year, come to terms with radiant beginnings and profound loss. Kate''s everyday world is enveloped by the gradual vanishing of her mother. And as the woman who has been her best friend and mentor disappears, we see Kate deal with timeless, perhaps unanswerable, questions of love and death.

About the book: If you are looking for a method to get your novel written, this book will take you step by step from concept to completion. Simply follow the instructions and by the time you are finished, you will have written your book. At the end of the process, you''ll have a fully developed story filled with memorable characters, a riveting plot, powerful theme, and a new spin on your genre. Each step asks you to consider or perform just one task that moves your novel a step closer toward being a finished book. In this way, no step is ever confusing or too complex and yet your story is ever growing and evolving as you go. About the author: Melanie Anne Phillips is the creator of StoryWeaver Step By Step Story Development software, co-creator of the Dramatica Theory of Story Structure and the Dramatica software, and owner of Storymind.com, a resource web site for writers. In her quarter century as a teacher of creative writing, she has authored numerous books, videos, audio programs and software tools for all aspects of story structure, storytelling and inspiration.

Baldwin Hills Housewives lives in a up-scale community in the County of Los Angeles, California. It is a story of five women that supports each other personally and professionally without hesitation. Shonna Dupree practices Family Law. She takes on clients and fights to win as she is struggling through her own divorce. Her husband Ron Dupree divorces her for someone he has fallen in love with, a man. Robin Flanigan is a successful Real Estate Agent with a background that only one housewife knows about. She gets a phone call from Child Services; her cousin died and left her eight year old daughter for her to take in. Robin knows nothing about raising children. The father is believed to be dead, until one evening a stranger rings her doorbell. Sky Landers and her husband Monte has a wonderful marriage. Monte owns his own Construction Company. The job is completed and he drives home from Las Vegas, and arrives in LA, only blocks away from his home. He stops at a florist to buy roses for Sky and is caught up in a dangerous robbery. Karla St. James and her husband Martin are happily married. Karla is a bestselling novelist; Martin has his own publishing company. They are financially secured, but Karla has one secret, she shoplifts in different malls. Candace Brown and her husband Kenneth are a close, religious family, the pillar of the community. The ladies respect Candace for her wisdom and encouragement. Although the housewives have different views about life, they will be friends forever.

The idea that respect for cultural diversity conflicts with gender equality is now a staple of both public and academic debate. Yet discussion of these tensions is marred by exaggerated talk of cultural difference, leading to ethnic reductionism, cultural stereotyping, and a hierarchy of traditional and modern. In this volume, Anne Phillips firmly rejects the notion that ‘culture’ might justify the oppression of women, but also queries the stereotypical binaries that have represented people from ethnocultural minorities as peculiarly resistant to gender equality. The questions addressed include the relationship between universalism and cultural relativism, how to distinguish valid generalisation from either gender or cultural essentialism, and how to recognise women as agents rather than captives of culture. The discussions are illuminated by reference to legal cases and policy interventions, with a particular focus on forced marriage and cultural defence.

Called “an enduring literary achievement . . . astonishing” by The New York Times, this highly acclaimed debut novel from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Night Watch introduces the Hampsons, an ordinary, small-town American family profoundly affected by the extraordinary events of history—from the Depression to the Vietnam War. One of The Atlantic’s Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years Here is a stunning chronicle that is revealed in the thoughts, dreams, and memories of each member of the Hampson family. Mitch struggles to earn a living as Jeans becomes the main breadwinner, working to complete college and raise the family. While the couple fight to keep their marriage intact, their daughter Danner and son Billy forge a sibling bond of uncommon strength. When Billy goes off to Vietnam, Danner becomes the sole bond linking her family, whose dissolution mirrors the fractured state of America in the 1960s. Deeply felt and vividly imagined, this lyrical novel is "among the wisest of a generation to grapple with a war that maimed us all" (The Village Voice), by a master of contemporary fiction.

Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) is the specification that all enterprise Java developers need to build multi-tier applications, and also the basis for BEA''s WebLogic Application Server and IBM''s WebSphere Revised to be current with the significant J2EE 1.4 update that will drive substantial developer interest Written by a top-selling team of eleven experts who provide unique and substantial business examples in a vendor-neutral format, making the information applicable to various application servers Covers patterns, J2EE application servers, frameworks, Ant, and continuous availability Includes extensive intermediate and advanced coverage of J2EE APIs Companion Web site provides additional examples and information

Will Bear ever get any sleep?

Multiculturalism without culture -- Between culture and cosmos -- What''s wrong with cultural defence? -- Autonomy, coercion, and constraint -- Exit and voice -- Multiculturalism without groups?

Lark and Termite is a rich, wonderfully alive novel about seventeen year old Lark and her brother, Termite, living in West Virginia in the 1950s. Their mother, Lola, is absent, while their aunt, Nonie, raises them as her own, and Termite¿s father, Corporal Robert Leavitt, is caught up in the early days of the Korean War. Award-winning author Jayne Anne Phillips intertwines family secrets, dreams, and ghosts in a story about the love that unites us all.

Située dans les années 1950, en Virginie-Occidentale et en Corée, Lark et Termite est une histoire du pouvoir de la perte et de l''amour, des mondes parallèles, des répercussions de la guerre, des secrets de famille, des rêves, des fantômes, des liens invisibles, presque magiques, qui nous unissent et nous renforcent. Quatre voix alternent pour dévoiler, au gré de leurs émotions, les secrets de cette histoire familiale. Au centre du récit: Lark, une adolescente radieuse : son jeune frère handicapé, Termite. à la sensibilité hors du commun; et leur tante Nonie, qui les élève avec dévouement. En écho, nous parvient la voix du caporal Leavitt, le père de Termite, piégé dans le chaos des premiers mois de combat de la guerre de Corée. Au fil de leurs pensées surgissent et s''évaporent les mystères familiaux, marqués par l''amour de Lola, la mère des deux enfants, pour le soldat Leavitt.

Long recognized as one of the main branches of political science, political theory has in recent years burgeoned in many different directions. Close textual analysis of historical texts sits alongside more analytical work on the nature and normative grounds of political values. Continental and post-modern influences jostle with ones from economics, history, sociology, and the law. Feminist concerns with embodiment make us look at old problems in new ways, and challenges of new technologies open whole new vistas for political theory. This Handbook provides comprehensive and critical coverage of the lively and contested field of political theory, and will help set the agenda for the field for years to come. Forty-five chapters by distinguished political theorists look at the state of the field, where it has been in the recent past, and where it is likely to go in future. They examine political theory''s edges as well as its core, the globalizing context of the field, and the challenges presented by social, economic, and technological changes.

Blindfolded. Alone. No idea where you are or what will happen next. The only thing you know is that you''ve been kidnapped. And it''s up to you to escape. Are you brave enough?