The Adventures of Jerry Muskrat

The Adventures of Jerry Muskrat

Thornton W. Burgess

Children's Books / Outdoors & Nature

CHAPTER I: Jerry Muskrat Has A Fright What was it Mother Muskrat had said about Farmer Brown\'s boy and his traps? Jerry Muskrat sat on the edge of the Big Rock and kicked his heels while he tried to remember. The fact is, Jerry had not half heeded. He had been thinking of other things. Besides, it seemed to him that Mother Muskrat was altogether foolish about a great many things. "Pooh!" said Jerry, throwing out his chest, "I guess I can take care of myself without being tied to my mother\'s apron strings! What if Farmer Brown\'s boy is setting traps around the Smiling Pool? I guess he can\'t fool your Uncle Jerry. He isn\'t so smart as he thinks he is; I can fool him any day." Jerry chuckled. He was thinking of how he had once fooled Farmer Brown\'s boy into thinking a big trout was on his hook. Slowly Jerry slid into the Smiling Pool and swam over towards his favorite log. Peter Rabbit stuck his head over the edge of the bank. "Hi, Jerry," he shouted, "last night I saw Farmer Brown\'s boy coming over this way with a lot of traps. Better watch out!" "Go chase yourself, Peter Rabbit. I guess I can look out for myself," replied Jerry, just a little crossly. Peter made a wry face and started for the sweet clover patch. Hardly was he out of sight when Billy Mink and Bobby Coon came down the Laughing Brook together. They seemed very much excited. When they saw Jerry Muskrat, they beckoned for him to come over where they were, and when he got there, they both talked at once, and it was all about Farmer Brown\'s boy and his traps. "You\'d better watch out, Jerry," warned Billy Mink, who is a great traveler and has had wide experience. "Oh, I guess I\'m able to take care of myself," said Jerry airily, and once more started for his favorite log. And what do you suppose he was thinking about as he swam along? He was wishing that he knew what a trap looked like, for despite his boasting he didn\'t even know what he was to look out for. As he drew near his favorite log, something tickled his nose. He stopped swimming to sniff and sniff. My, how good it did smell! And it seemed to come right straight from the old log. Jerry began to swim as fast as he could. In a few minutes he scrambled out on the old log. Then Jerry rubbed his eyes three times to be sure that he saw aright. There were luscious pieces of carrot lying right in front of him. Now there is nothing that Jerry Muskrat likes better than carrot. So he didn\'t stop to wonder how it got there. He just reached out for the nearest piece and ate it. Then he reached for the next piece and ate it. Then he did a funny little dance just for joy. When he was quite out of breath, he sat down to rest. Snap! Something had Jerry Muskrat by the tail! Jerry squealed with fright and pain. Oh, how it did hurt! He twisted and turned, but he was held fast and could not see what had him. Then he pulled and pulled, until it seemed as if his tail would pull off. But it didn\'t. So he kept pulling, and pretty soon the thing let go so suddenly that Jerry tumbled head first into the water....
Read online
  • 661
Ronicky Doone

Ronicky Doone

Max Brand

Literature & Fiction

Ronicky Doone is a hero of the west, respected by the law-abiding citizen and hated by bushwhacking bandits. Bill Gregg is a man in love, not about to be deflected from meeting his lady love for the first time, and willing to stand up to the living legend to reach her. This initial meeting leads to a friendship between the two and they travel east to New York City on the trail of the girl. When they find the girl, Caroline Smith, and she refuses to leave, Ronicky must discover the secret that holds her. They encounter the sinister John Mark and the beautiful Ruth Tolliver and are exposed to the horrors and vices of big city life as they attempt to rescue Caroline and find their way back to the mountain-desert of the west.
Read online
  • 660
Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual

Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual

Mark Dvoretsky

Mark Dvoretsky

The Fourth Edition of a Modern Classic When you are serious about improving your endgame skills, it is time for Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual. Perhaps the best known and most respected instructor of world class chessplayers, Mark Dvoretsky has produced a comprehensive work on the endgame that will reward players of all strengths. For those ready to immerse themselves in endgame theory, there may be no better manual available today. But, even if you do not play at master level, the book has been designed to help your endgame too. Basic theories and "must-know" concepts are highlighted in blue. You may skip the more complex analysis, focus on the text in blue, and still improve your endgame technique. When it appeared in 2003, the first edition of Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual was immediately recognized by novice and master alike as one of the best books ever published on the endgame. The enlarged and revised Fourth Edition is better than ever! "I am sure that those who study this work...
Read online
  • 660
The Preacher: A Novel

The Preacher: A Novel

Camilla Lackberg

Camilla Lackberg

In the sequel to The Ice Princess, a series of sadistic murders spanning two generations remains unsolved—and time is running out for the next victim.In the fishing community of Fjallbacka, life is remote, peaceful, and for some, tragically short. Foul play was always suspected in the disappearance twenty years ago of two young campers, but their bodies were never found. But now, a young boy out playing has confirmed the grim truth. Their remains are discovered alongside those of a fresh victim, sending the tiny town into shock. Local detective Patrik Hedstrom, expecting a baby with his girlfriend Erica, can only imagine what it is like to lose a child. When a second young girl goes missing, Hedstrom’s attention focuses on the Hults, a feuding clan of misfits, religious fanatics and criminals. The suspect list is long but time is short—which of this family’s dark secrets will provide the vital clue? Praise for The Ice Princess: “The hottest crime genre of the moment is Nordic noir and Swedish writer Camilla Läckberg (who shares Stieg Larsson’s translator) is one of the reasons. As with all Scandinavian murder mysteries, it’s darker, bleaker, and the plot far more sinister than similar American fare. Larsson fans who give Läckberg’s novel a chance to seduce them will be rewarded."—USA Today “At the start of Läckberg’s haunting U.S. debut, biographer Erica Falck feels compelled to write a novel about why her beautiful friend Alex would kill herself. Läckberg skillfully details how horrific secrets are never completely buried and how silence can kill the soul."—Publishers Weekly, starred review “Camilla Läckberg has written seven blockbuster novels in her native Swedish but, until now, no one has published any of them in the United States. Now Pegasus Books has stepped forward.”—The New York Times “Heart-stopping—a masterclass in Scandinavian crime fiction."—Val McDermidReview“Läckberg weaves a solid thriller that will gratify fans of Liza Marklund, Stieg Larsson, and the team of Anders Roslund and Borge Hellstrom. This fast-paced tale ensures Läckberg’s place on the A-list of Scandinavian crime writers.” (Booklist )“Läckberg’s many-layered story features plot twists and turns galore.... Patrik and Erica continue to evolve, leading readers to become increasingly involved in their lives. Stieg Larsson fans seeking more Nordic crime fiction may want to try Sweden’s top-selling crime writer. Läckberg is also highly recommended for readers who like mysteries set in foreign countries.” (Library Journal )“Swedish bestseller Läckberg's worthy second thriller set in the coastal town of Fjällbacka (after The Ice Princess) opens with a grim discovery-the naked fresh corpse of Tanja Schmidt, a German tourist, on top of the skeletal remains of two young women, later identified as Mona Thernblad and Siv Lantin.... The troubled Hults, from conniving founder (known as the Preacher) to philandering spouses, show a Ross Macdonaldesque love of twisted family relationships, while Läckberg's colorful, diverse police force, staffed with the competent, the incompetent, and the merely distracted, recalls the humanist touch of Dutch author Janwillem van de Wetering.” (Publishers Weekly ) About the AuthorCamilla Läckberg's novels have all become #1 bestsellers in Sweden. Her thriller The Ice Princess, winner of the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière for Best International Crime Novel, has been published in over twenty-five countries. She lives in Stockholm.
Read online
  • 658
Mardi: and A Voyage Thither, Vol. I

Mardi: and A Voyage Thither, Vol. I

Herman Melville

Fiction / Poetry / Short Stories

Herman Melville was a well-known American novelist in his day, with best-sellers like Typee, but by the time he died in 1891, he had fallen into obscurity. Although his first few books were popular, they too began to collect dust and be forgotten in the country.Then came the Melville Revival in the early 20th century, which breathed life into his legacy and brought his work back to the forefront. Of course, the book that benefited the most from that revival is now considered one of the greatest American novels ever written: Moby Dick.
Read online
  • 658
Public Enemies

Public Enemies

Bryan Burrough

Business & Investing / Nonfiction

In Public Enemies, bestselling author Bryan Burrough strips away the thick layer of myths put out by J. Edgar Hoovers FBI to tell the full storyfor the first timeof the most spectacular crime wave in American history, the two-year battle between the young Hoover and the assortment of criminals who became national icons: John Dillinger, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie and Clyde, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, and the Barkers. In an epic feat of storytelling and drawing on a remarkable amount of newly available material on all the major figures involved, Burrough reveals a web of interconnections within the vast American underworld and demonstrates how Hoovers G-men overcame their early fumbles to secure the FBIs rise to power.
Read online
  • 657
Five Point Someone

Five Point Someone

Chetan Bhagat

Fiction

Five Point Someone is a story about three friends in IIT who are unable to cope. The book starts with a disclaimer, “This is not a book to teach you how to get into IIT or even how to live in college. In fact, it describes how screwed up things can get if you don’t think straight.” Three hostelmates – Alok, Hari and Ryan get off to a bad start in IIT – they screw up the first class quiz. And while they try to make amends, things only get worse. It takes them a while to realize: If you try and screw with the IIT system, it comes back to double screw you. Before they know it, they are at the lowest echelons of IIT society. They have a five-point-something GPA out of ten, ranking near the end of their class. This GPA is a tattoo that will remain with them, and come in the way of anything else that matters – their friendship, their future, their love life. While the world expects IITians to conquer the world, these guys are struggling to survive. Will they make it? Do under performers have a right to live? Can they show that they are not just a five-point-somebody but a five-point-someone?
Read online
  • 656
The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason

The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason

Sam Harris

Philosophy / Science / Religion & Spirituality

This important and timely book delivers a startling analysis of the clash of faith and reason in today's world. Harris offers a vivid historical tour of mankind's willingness to suspend reason in favor of religious beliefs, even when those beliefs are used to justify harmful behavior and sometimes heinous crimes. He asserts that in the shadow of weapons of mass destruction, we can no longer tolerate views that pit one true god against another. Most controversially, he argues that we cannot afford moderate lip service to religion—an accommodation that only blinds us to the real perils of fundamentalism. While warning against the encroachment of organized religion into world politics, Harris also draws on new evidence from neuroscience and insights from philosophy to explore spirituality as a biological, brain-based need. He calls on us to invoke that need in taking a secular humanistic approach to solving the problems of this world.
Read online
  • 656
The Lemon Table

The Lemon Table

Julian Barnes

Literature & Fiction

In his widely acclaimed new collection of stories, Julian Barnes addresses what is perhaps the most poignant aspect of the human condition: growing old. The characters in The Lemon Table are facing the ends of their lives–some with bitter regret, others with resignation, and others still with defiant rage. Their circumstances are just as varied as their responses. In 19th-century Sweden, three brief conversations provide the basis for a lifetime of longing. In today’s England, a retired army major heads into the city for his regimental dinner–and his annual appointment with a professional lady named Babs. Somewhere nearby, a devoted wife calms (or perhaps torments) her ailing husband by reading him recipes. In stories brimming with life and our desire to hang on to it one way or another, Barnes proves himself by turns wise, funny, clever, and profound–a writer of astonishing powers of empathy and invention. From the Trade Paperback edition.
Read online
  • 655
183