"The fundamental inanity of existence has already pierced my heart, and I know now that only cakes have any savor." In a tiny room under the Parisian rooftops, a precocious student concocts a rather unusual plan for a simple task: suicide. A dizzying array of desserts--pastries, chocolates, cookies, custards and more--are the instruments of her demise. A Sweet Death is the macabre and humorous record of a young woman's eccentric progression. A rumination on life, literature, philosophy, fashion, love, and--most importantly--food. By turns sumptuous, horrific and hopeful, Claude Tardat's novel is an original and compelling exploration of what it means to be alive.

There is an epidemic sweeping the country. It kills more people than any other disease or any war. Obesity and diabetes are changing the way we look and how our bodies function. We are poisoning our cells so that they cannot communicate with each other effectively. The statistics are well known, and they are only getting worse. So what is really going on? It boils down to something called "insulin resistance." Your body has between 50-100 trillion cells in it. These cells respond to insulin in a variety of ways that are necessary for a healthy, functioning body. When insulin resistance develops, the normal amounts of insulin are not enough. Why does this happen? The membrane, or outer skin, of each cell in our body-no matter what type of cell-are TOILing, that is, the cell membranes are: T-toxic, O-oxidized, I-inflamed, and L-less optimal mitochondrial function The cause of this is an addiction to sugar and processed food. Licking Sweet Death is an indispensible guide to regaining your health and licking your addiction to foods that are poisoning your body for good. Author Hugo Rodier, M.D., is an adjunct professor at the University of Utah College of Health. As a medical doctor, he was inspired to write Licking Sweet Death by his many patients in need of relief from chronic diseases. Several other books, non-fiction and fiction, are in the works. Publisher's website: http: //www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/LickingSweetDeath.html Author's website: www.hugorodier.com

“Then I felt his body leaning over mine and his fingers holding my nostrils shut. I could not breathe. My teeth were clenched. His fingers remained sealing my nose, when suddenly my mouth and jaw opened up and I gasped for air. Startled, he released his grip on my nose and left the room, leaving me paralyzed, naked, and curled up on the floor.” A few years ago, Ana Christina was left for dead. Despite the horrific circumstances, it was a blessing in disguise - the Lord delivered her from the hands of her perpetrator. “Ana Christina shares in such a vulnerable way that she takes her readers on a journey. Her incredible path leaves one with the realization that the human soul is unconquerable. Her honest, open way of revealing herself literally gives her readers the permission and courage to get real with themselves, experiencing a journey of self discovery, self disclosure and eventually the uncovering of self immortality.” - Jeffery Olsen, Author of KNOWING and WHERE ARE YOU?

Shug Akins is a lonely, overweight thirteen-year-old boy. His mother, Glenda, is the one person who loves him -- she calls him Sweet Mister and attempts to boost his confidence and give him hope for his future. Shuggie's purported father, Red, is a brutal man with a short fuse who mocks and despises the boy. Into this small-town Ozarks mix comes Jimmy Vin Pearce, with his shiny green T-bird and his smart city clothes. When he and Glenda begin a torrid affair, a series of violent events is inevitably set in motion. The outcome will break your heart. "This is Daniel Woodrell's third book set in the Ozarks and, like the other two, Give Us a Kiss and Tomato Red, it peels back the layers from lives already made bare by poverty and petty crime."-Otto Penzler, Penzler Pick, 2001

From the award-winning, internationally acclaimed screenwriter of Amores perros, 21 Grams, and Babel, A Sweet Scent of Death is Guillermo Arriaga's tale of deception, passion, and violence fused together by the tragic killing of a young girl in a small Mexican village. Early one morning in a deserted field, Ramón Castaños is confronted with the dead body of Adela, a lovely young girl, whom he had only admired from afar. Within an hour, rumor of the death of Ramón Castaños's girlfriend has spread to every corner of Loma Grande. This powder-trail of gossip ignites further violence when the villagers, thirsty for revenge, cast about for answers and hit upon the nomadic José Echeverri-Berriozábal, known as "the Gypsy." Honor then demands that Ramón must now live out his imaginary past in a brutal reality and prove his manhood by avenging Adela's cruel fate. Guillermo Arriaga is the author of The Night Buffalo and The Guillotine Squad. He has worked in television, radio, and film. Arriaga is the award-winning screenwriter of Amores perros, 21 Grams, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, and Babel.

In 1956, J. R. R. Tolkien famously stated that the real theme of The Lord of the Rings was "Death and Immortality." The deaths that underscore so much of the subject matter of Tolkien's masterpiece have a great deal to teach us. From the heroic to the humble, Tolkien draws on medieval concepts of death and dying to explore the glory and sorrow of human mortality. Three great themes of death link medieval Northern European culture, The Lord of the Rings, and contemporary culture: the way in which we die, the need to remember the dead, and above all the lingering apprehension of what happens after death. Like our medieval ancestors, we still talk about what it means to die as a hero, a traitor, or a coward; we still make decisions about ways to honor and remember the departed; and we continue to seek to appease and contain the dead. These themes suggest a latent resonance between medieval and modern cultures and raise an issue not generally discussed in contemporary Western society: our deeply rooted belief that how one dies in some way matters. While Tolkien, as a medieval scholar, naturally draws much of his inspiration from the literature, folklore, and legends of the Middle Ages, the popularity of his work affirms that modern audiences continue to find these tropes relevant and useful. From ideas of "good" and "bad" deaths to proper commemoration and disposal of the dead, and even to ghost stories, real people find comfort in the ideas about death and dying that Tolkien explores. "The Sweet and the Bitter": Death and Dying in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings examines the ways in which Tolkien's masterwork makes visible the connections between medieval and modern conceptions of dying and analyzes how contemporary readers use The Lord of the Rings as a tool for dealing with death.