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The Ballroom
by Anna HopeFrom the internationally acclaimed author of Wake comes a haunting story of love, insanity, and revolution set at the brink of the Great War.Yorkshire, England, 1911: After a moment of defiance at the factory where she has worked since she was a child, Ella Fay finds herself an unwilling patient at the Sharston Asylum. Ella knows she is not mad, but she might have to learn to play the game before she can make a true bid for freedom. John Mulligan is a chronic patient, frozen with grief since the death of his child, but when Ella runs towards him one morning in an attempt to escape the place where he has found refuge, everything changes. It is in the ornate ballroom at the centre of the asylum, where the male and female patients are allowed to gather every Friday evening to dance, that Ella and John begin a tentative, secret correspondence that will have shattering consequences, as love and the possibility of redemption are set against one ambitious doctor's eagerness to make his mark in the burgeoning field of eugenics, at all costs. Set over the heatwave summer of 1911, at a time when England was at the point of revolt, The Ballroom is a tale of unlikely love and dangerous obsession, of madness and sanity, and of who gets to decide which is which.
The Ballroom: A Novel
by Anna HopeA searing novel of forbidden love on the Yorkshire moors--"a British version of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (The Times U.K.)--from the author of the critically acclaimed debut Wake England, 1911. At Sharston Asylum, men and women are separated by thick walls and barred windows. But on Friday nights, they are allowed to mingle in the asylum's magnificent ballroom. From its balconies and vaulted ceilings to its stained glass, the ballroom is a sanctuary. Onstage, the orchestra plays Strauss and Debussy while the patients twirl across the gleaming dance floor. Amid this heady ambience, John Mulligan and Ella Fay first meet. John is a sure-footed dancer with a clouded, secretive face; Ella is as skittish as a colt, with her knobby knees and flushed cheeks. Despite their grim circumstances, the unlikely pair strikes up a tenuous courtship. During the week, he writes letters smuggled to her in secret, unaware that Ella cannot read. She enlists a friend to read them aloud and gains resolve from the force of John's words, each sentence a stirring incantation. And, of course, there's always the promise of the ballroom. Then one of them receives an unexpected opportunity to leave Sharston for good. As Anna Hope's powerful, bittersweet novel unfolds, John and Ella face an agonizing dilemma: whether to cling to familiar comforts or to confront a new world--living apart, yet forever changed. Praise for The Ballroom"Part historical novel and part romance, The Ballroom paints an incredibly rich portrait of the mentally stable forced to live in an asylum. [Anna] Hope transports readers inside the asylum, to feel the thick humidity of the stale summer air of the day room, and the gritty and brutal reality inside those walls."--Booklist "A compelling cast of emotionally resonant characters, as well as a bittersweet climax, render Hope's second novel a powerful, memorable experience."--Publishers Weekly "A beautifully wrought novel, a tender, heartbreaking and insightful exploration of the longings that survive in the most inhospitable environments."--Sunday Express "The Ballroom has all the intensity and lyricism of [Anna] Hope's debut, Wake. At its heart is a tender and absorbing love story."--Daily Mail "Compelling and masterful . . . Anna Hope has proven once again that she is a luminary in historical fiction. . . . She delivers profound, poignant narratives that stir the emotions."--Yorkshire Post "As with Hope's highly acclaimed debut novel, Wake, the writing is elegant and insightful; she writes beautifully about human emotion, landscape and weather."--The Observer "A brilliantly moving meditation on what it means to be 'insane' in a cruel world . . . All the characters are vividly and sensitively drawn. . . . Deeply moving."--The Irish TimesFrom the Hardcover edition.
Ballroom!: Obsession and Passion inside the World of Competitive Dance
by Sharon SavoyDreams are made and broken every year in the dazzling Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool, England. Fierce competition, brutal politics, and stunning artistry are all on the program at the world's most prestigious competition, known to ballroom dance enthusiasts simply as "Blackpool."Sharon Savoy's lifelong love affair with dance manifested itself early on. At the tender age of 16 she left home to train under George Balanchine at the School of American Ballet in New York. An accomplished ballerina, her desire to dance more expressively and with a partner led her on the path that culminated on the competition ballroom circuit. There, her passion and artistry led her to become a four-time champion in exhibition style. But, as with all obsessions, her success came with a cost.In this spellbinding book, Savoy offers a backstage pass to a world where rhinestones and high heels accompany explosive athleticism and staggering talent. With emotionally absorbing and energy-packed prose, she provides an insider's close-up view of all the players who compose this glamorous world that is part dance, part sport, and part art.
Ballroom: A Novel
by Alice Sherman SimpsonTold in interconnecting stories, Ballroom is a beautifully crafted debut novel—reminiscent of the works of Elizabeth Strout and Jennifer Haigh—about a group of strangers united by a desire to escape their complicated lives, if only for a few hours each week, in a faded New York City dance hall.Time has eroded the glamour of the Ballroom, but at the end of the 1990s, a small crowd of loyal patrons still makes its way past the floor-to-ceiling columns which frame the once grand hall each Sunday evening. Sweeping across the worn parquet floor under a peeling indigo ceiling, these men and women succumb to the magic of the music, looking for love and connection, eager to erase the drab reality of their complicated lives.Nearly forty and still single, Sarah Dreyfus is desperate for love and sure she’ll find it with debonair Gabriel Katz, a dazzling peacock who dances to distract himself from his crumbling marriage. Tired of the bachelor life, Joseph believes that his yearning for a wife and family will be fulfilled—if only he can get Sarah to notice him. Besotted with beautiful young Maria Rodriguez, elderly dance instructor Harry Korn knows they can find happiness together. Maria, one of the Ballroom’s stars, has a dream of her own, a passion her broken-hearted father refuses to accept or understand.As the rhythms of the Ballroom ebb and flow through these characters’ hearts, their fates come together in touching, unexpected ways.
The Ballroom Blitz
by Anton Du BekeThe stunning new Buckingham novel from Sunday Times bestselling author Anton Du Beke.September 1940. As the skies split apart and bombs rain down on London, it's all the staff at the famed Buckingham Hotel can do to keep their guests in the luxury they're accustomed to, and evoke the magic of the Grand ballroom for them each night. Home on leave and still reeling from the tragic events at Dunkirk, the dashing Raymond de Guise struggles to define his role in this new world, and to do his duty both to his country, and his beloved wife Nancy- who needs him now more than ever. With profiteers skulking the London streets, and devious rivals plotting the Buckingham's downfall, the hotel staff must all hold onto what matters most- and decide where their loyalties truly lie. As the bombing intensifies and Christmas fast approaches, somehow the show must go on...
The Ballroom Blitz
by Anton Du BekeThe stunning new Buckingham novel from Sunday Times bestselling author Anton Du Beke.September 1940. As the skies split apart and bombs rain down on London, it's all the staff at the famed Buckingham Hotel can do to keep their guests in the luxury they're accustomed to, and evoke the magic of the Grand ballroom for them each night. Home on leave and still reeling from the tragic events at Dunkirk, the dashing Raymond de Guise struggles to define his role in this new world, and to do his duty both to his country, and his beloved wife Nancy- who needs him now more than ever. With profiteers skulking the London streets, and devious rivals plotting the Buckingham's downfall, the hotel staff must all hold onto what matters most- and decide where their loyalties truly lie. As the bombing intensifies and Christmas fast approaches, somehow the show must go on...
The Ballroom Blitz
by Anton Du BekeThe stunning new Buckingham novel from Sunday Times bestselling author Anton Du Beke, featuring an audio exclusive introduction from the author.September 1940. As the skies split apart and bombs rain down on London, it's all the staff at the famed Buckingham Hotel can do to keep their guests in the luxury they're accustomed to, and evoke the magic of the Grand ballroom for them each night. Home on leave and still reeling from the tragic events at Dunkirk, the dashing Raymond de Guise struggles to define his role in this new world, and to do his duty both to his country, and his beloved wife Nancy- who needs him now more than ever. With profiteers skulking the London streets, and devious rivals plotting the Buckingham's downfall, the hotel staff must all hold onto what matters most- and decide where their loyalties truly lie. As the bombing intensifies and Christmas fast approaches, somehow the show must go on...
Ballroom, Boogie, Shimmy Sham, Shake: A Social and Popular Dance Reader
by Julie MalnigThis dynamic collection documents the rich and varied history of social dance and the multiple styles it has generated, while drawing on some of the most current forms of critical and theoretical inquiry. The essays cover different historical periods and styles; encompass regional influences from North and South America, Britain, Europe, and Africa; and emphasize a variety of methodological approaches, including ethnography, anthropology, gender studies, and critical race theory. While social dance is defined primarily as dance performed by the public in ballrooms, clubs, dance halls, and other meeting spots, contributors also examine social dance’s symbiotic relationship with popular, theatrical stage dance forms. Contributors are Elizabeth Aldrich, Barbara Cohen-Stratyner, Yvonne Daniel, Sherril Dodds, Lisa Doolittle, David F. García, Nadine George-Graves, Jurretta Jordan Heckscher, Constance Valis Hill, Karen W. Hubbard, Tim Lawrence, Julie Malnig, Carol Martin, Juliet McMains, Terry Monaghan, Halifu Osumare, Sally R. Sommer, May Gwin Waggoner, Tim Wall, and Christina Zanfagna.
The Ballroom Class
by Lucy DillonFor the millions addicted to Strictly Come Dancing - a debut tapping into the world's latest craze.When three couples join a new ballroom class, they're all looking for some magic in their lives.Lauren and Chris are getting married, and Lauren's dreaming of a fairytale wedding with a first dance to make Cinderella proud. Not wanting to be shown up on the dancefloor, her parents Bridget and Frank have come along too. They normally never put a foot wrong, but Bridget's got a secret that could trip them up unexpectedly. Meanwhile Katie and Ross are looking for a quick-fix solution to their failing marriage even though neither is quite sure who's leading who anymore.As friendships form over the foxtrot, the rumba rocks relationships, and the tango leads to true love, all the students in the Ballroom Class are about to face the music and dance...
The Ballroom Class
by Lucy DillonFor the millions addicted to Strictly Come Dancing - a debut tapping into the world's latest craze.When three couples join a new ballroom class, they're all looking for some magic in their lives.Lauren and Chris are getting married, and Lauren's dreaming of a fairytale wedding with a first dance to make Cinderella proud. Not wanting to be shown up on the dancefloor, her parents Bridget and Frank have come along too. They normally never put a foot wrong, but Bridget's got a secret that could trip them up unexpectedly. Meanwhile Katie and Ross are looking for a quick-fix solution to their failing marriage even though neither is quite sure who's leading who anymore.As friendships form over the foxtrot, the rumba rocks relationships, and the tango leads to true love, all the students in the Ballroom Class are about to face the music and dance...(P)2016 Hodder & Stoughton
Ballroom Dancing (Performing Arts Ser.)
by Alex MooreNow in its tenth edition, this classic and comprehensive handbook has been revised to bring it up to date in keeping with changes on the dance floor and in the rules of dance competitions. The Quickstep, Waltz, Foxtrot, and Tango are all illustrated and described in great detail.
Ballroom Dancing
by Alex MooreNow in its eleventh edition, this classic and comprehensive handbook has been revised to bring it up to date with changes on the dance floor and in the rules of dance competitions. The Quickstep, Waltz, Foxtrot, and Tango are all illustrated and described in great detail, as well as the versions of most dances approved for championships. Diagrams demonstrate every step from both the Leader’s and Follower’s perspectives, and a collection of photographs new to this edition celebrate the diverse range of dancers involved with ballroom. This is the go-to book for dancers, competition judges, teachers, and anyone who needs to be at the forefront of today’s ballroom technique, from amateur practice to international championships.
Ballroom Dancing
by Alex MooreNow in its eleventh edition, this classic and comprehensive handbook has been revised to bring it up to date with changes on the dance floor and in the rules of dance competitions.The Quickstep, Waltz, Foxtrot, and Tango are all illustrated and described in great detail, as well as the versions of most dances approved for championships. Diagrams demonstrate every step from both the Leader’s and Follower’s perspectives, and a collection of photographs new to this edition celebrate the diverse range of dancers involved with ballroom.This is the go-to book for dancers, competition judges, teachers, and anyone who needs to be at the forefront of today’s ballroom technique, from amateur practice to international championships.
The Ballroom Murder
by Leigh StrawIn August 1925, Audrey Jacob shot dead her former fiancé, Cyril Gidley, in full view of hundreds of guests at a charity ball in Perth's Government House. When she was arrested, she still held the gun in her hand. It was a open and shut case of wilful murder – that is until Jacob assigned prosecutor Arthur Haynes to her defence. His ability to play the press and the jury for sympathy would lead to a sensational result. Not only did Jacob escape the gallows, she was found not guilty of Gidley's murder. Straw, the author of a number of books about notable Australian female criminals, tells a story that is rich with first-hand newspaper accounts from the day.
Ballroom of the Skies
by John D. MacdonaldBallroom of the Skies, a classic science fiction novel from John D. MacDonald, the beloved author of Cape Fear and the Travis McGee series, is now available as an eBook. Have you ever stopped to wonder why the world is eternally torn by war? Why men of goodwill, seeking only peace, are driven relentlessly to further disaster? In a future society, where India rules the globe and everyone chases the mighty rupee, the First Atomic War has just ended. Already the Second is clearly building. People shrug. War is man's nature, they think. And that's what newspaper reporter Dake Lorin thinks, too . . . until he becomes aware of the aliens living among us and discovers their sinister purpose--as well as the strange and monstrous explanation for humankind's seemingly limitless capacity for violence and destruction. Features a new Introduction by Dean Koontz Praise for John D. MacDonald "The great entertainer of our age, and a mesmerizing storyteller."--Stephen King "My favorite novelist of all time."--Dean Koontz "To diggers a thousand years from now, the works of John D. MacDonald would be a treasure on the order of the tomb of Tutankhamen."--Kurt Vonnegut "A master storyteller, a masterful suspense writer . . . John D. MacDonald is a shining example for all of us in the field. Talk about the best."--Mary Higgins Clark
The Ballroom on Magnolia Street
by Sharon OwensFree-spirited Shirley has a mad crush on a boy named Declan Greenwood, while thoroughly modern Kate likes plenty of variety in her wardrobe (and her love life) and is determined to get married before her younger sister. She'll take anyone who'll have her, even if it has to be that greasythough not entirely unattractive mechanic who has been hanging around lately. The crowd at Hogan's is always lively, but that doesn't mean all problems have been left at the door. Johnny's grandparents are afraid that he'll retire and shut the ballroom down. Johnny yearns for Marion, his old love, while Marion starts to worry that her long-held secret will finally be revealed.
A Ballroom Temptation
by Kimberly BellUnexpected allies find themselves falling for each other in the new Countess Scandals novel from the author of A Convenient Engagement and A Dangerous Damsel. Arriving for the season in London, the always-proper Jane Bailey hopes to pass unseen and unheard—and return home unwed. She has already suffered enough at the hands of the ton, not to mention her cruel ex-fiance, Geoffrey Pembroke. Adam Clairborne has similar plans. Though his father called him home from the Carolinas to find a wife, he wants nothing more than to return to his life of freedom in the Americas. When Adam saves Jane from an unsavory encounter with Pembroke, the two become allies in navigating the mire of the social season. But as a mutually beneficial alliance turns to genuine affection, it becomes clear that their plans may be foiled by their own hearts.
Ballroom to Bride and Groom (Mills & Boon Largeprint Romance Ser. #Vol. 2589)
by Kate HardyTV presenter Polly Anna Adams has spent a lifetime living up to her name. Suddenly single, Polly hides behind her cheery facade and enters a celebrity dance competition. Her partner? None other than gorgeous but wary professional dancer Liam Flynn.Liam has learned the hard way to keep his heart on lockdown, but Polly's joie de vivre puts a spring back in his polished step. As the competition heats up, so does their unstoppable attraction. If only they could convince themselves their hot tango passion is just for the cameras....
Balls: The Life of Eddie Trascher, Gentleman Gangster
by Scott M. Deitche Ken SanzThe true story of the man who scammed the mob and informed the FBI for over two decades. Eddie Trascher had balls. Born in the bayou of Louisiana, Eddie learned about gambling at the side of his stepfather. Starting his career in 1950s Vegas, he moved to pre-Castro Cuba and became adept at running a casino and stealing from the mobsters who owned it. He was a regular fixture at Rat Pack–era Vegas—stealing chips from the craps table, running gambling out of his bar, and hanging around with a wild assortment of gangsters, conmen, thieves, and celebrities.By the time he moved to Clearwater, Florida, after a stint running a Los Angeles hotel for the Chicago Outfit, Eddie was the biggest bookmaker in the state. But the FBI made him an offer he couldn’t refuse: “Help us get the Mafia and we’ll let you keep bookmaking.” For the next twenty years, Eddie became the Bureau and later the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s eyes and ears as they investigated organized crime in Florida. From the famous Donnie Brasco case to the new guard of the Tampa Mafia, Eddie was in the middle of it all. Eventually, he gave up the booking to become a professor, teaching law enforcement everything there was to know about bookmaking and running the scams. Balls is the story of the quintessential gangster, a man who didn’t make money for anyone but himself. Instead of working for the Mafia bosses, Eddie stole from right under their noses. And he lived to tell the story.
Balls: A Novel
by Nanci KincaidBALLS is the story of a college football coach, his rise, his fall, and his fallback position. You could say BALLS is the story of a coach's kick-off, his first, second, and third downs . . . and his punt. But BALLS is a coach's story that belongs to the coach's wife. To her, and to his mother, his mother-in-law, his daughter, his assistants' wives, his players' mothers and girlfriends, and even his players' grandmothers. It's the women standing behind this handsome football hero who tell the story behind the headlines of Mac Gibbs, Birmingham University coach Catfish Bomar's star quarterback, who married Dixie Carraway, the beautiful homecoming queen. Set in Alabama, home state of the legendary Paul "Bear" Bryant, BALLS is told by fifteen women and one little girl touched by Mac Gibbs's fall from fame as a college quarterback to infamy as head coach of the Birmingham University Black Bears. It's told in those women's voices, from their seats in the stands. They watch the other women, worry when players are slow to get up off the ground, pray when players are carried off on stretchers. They don't care much for the "science" of the game--or its brutality. They see football as it really is--sexy, dirty, sweaty, painful, empowering, corrupt. The story they tell is often funny and not always pretty, as the view from deep inside rarely is. This is a novel that moves with the force of a fourth down charge, and shimmers with the tears of the women waiting outside the locker-room door when the game is lost. The author, twice a head coach's wife, knows whereof she writes so brilliantly. She also knows a lot about love. And BALLS is, above all, a love story.
Balls: A Novel
by Julian TepperA New York story, a dark comedy, Balls tells of the thirty-year-old Henry Schiller, a songwriter and lounge-player, in love with a woman far younger and more musically gifted than himself, one with her eye on other men and the rise of her own career, whose crisis deepens when he discovers he has testicular cancer.
Balls and Stripes: A Lifetime of Sports Adventures
by Richard ShellhornBalls and Stripes is a collection of stories about Alaska's most popular sport, basketball — and more. The title comes from my many experiences playing, coaching, and broadcasting Naismith's game; as well as refereeing the sport and also wearing the stripes of a sergeant in the U.S. Army. Basketball has taken me all over Alaska, with radio gear or whistle in hand. From Barrow to Petersburg, from Dutch Harbor to Tok, it has been a marvelous journey, with countless amusing experiences as well as dramatic moments. Much of the action occurs in my hometown, Cordova. A small fishing town of 2500 located on Prince William Sound, its denizens are passionate about their hoops, and also their rivalry with Valdez, located just 70 miles away. In many ways, sports transcend location. Small town basketball is the same anywhere; yet Alaska, with its vast spaces and dramatic climates, offers unique experiences. In northernmost Barrow, I watched Inupiat cooks shut down a high school cafeteria so they could glimpse the sun for the first time in 67 days; on the way to Dutch Harbor, I heard a pilot announce the reassuring words that he would land the small prop plane “whenever we can”, to load on fuel necessary to complete the flight; in Petersburg, I learned about “julebukking” and Men's Night Out. Refereeing, always a source of potential controversy, has provided its share of highlights. How many officials can claim fame for calling a technical foul on a curtain; or playing the first minutes of a championship game with the wrong size ball? Football and baseball are also included. Guess who brought Oregon State's mascot Benny the Beaver to Cordova's Iceworm Festival; and dodged barbed wire while tracking down a fly ball in Korea? And, like so many others, who can not recall in vivid detail a last second shot that didn't go in? People, places, moments. Sports - drama, tears, and cheers. It's all here.
Balls on the Lawn
by Jeremy Stein Brooks Butler HaysThe serious leisure aficionado knows that it doesn't take much to transform a ho-hum afternoon into a truly memorable one--just a few balls, some mallets, maybe a horseshoe or two. The transformative nature of lawn sports takes center stage in Balls on the Lawn, an ode to classic outdoor activities, from the common (bocce) to the obscure (Kan-Jam). Including the history and complete rules of 10 iconic games, plus appropriate accompanying cocktails (serious leisure requires serious sustenance), Balls on the Lawn will revolutionize Saturday afternoons through the long-held traditions, robust competition, and abundant camaraderie of lawn sports.
Ballwin
by David FiedlerAt the tender age of 21, a settler named John Ball bought 400 acres on Grand Glaize Creek in 1800 and began sowing crops and tending livestock. He had moved with his parents to Missouri as part of a migration of Kentucky settlers led by Daniel Boone and wanted to establish himself as his own man. That purchase and Ball's later platting of 17 city blocks along Manchester Road, the designated route to the state capitol, were the first steps in creating the town we know today as Ballwin. Using archivalphotographs from the Ballwin Historical Commission and other sources, Ballwin traces the history of the area from the first settlers through to the present, focusing on the periodsince the city was incorporated.
Bally Total Fitness (A): The Rise, 1962-2004
by Elizabeth A. Raabe Gabriel Ellsworth John R. WellsFrom a single, modest club in 1962, Bally Total Fitness had grown to become-in management's words-the "largest and only nationwide commercial operator of fitness centers" in the United States in 2004. Bally had faced its share of challenges, but the last couple of years had proven particularly difficult. Competition in its markets had intensified, Bally's stock price had collapsed, the company had restated earnings to the chagrin of shareholders, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had begun to investigate Bally's accounting procedures. Under the direction of Paul Toback, CEO since December 2002, Bally had revisited its unique approach to pricing and selling health-club memberships, boosted the accountability of club managers for profitability, launched new efforts to help club members meet weight-loss goals, altered its marketing message, and begun to strengthen its internal control systems. Toback and his team were committed to increasing the number of Bally members and maximizing revenue per member. Would Toback's efforts restore Bally's battered stock price, stave off companies that were rumored to want to buy the company, and enable Bally to remain a major player in the industry?