Absurdist Fiction

Perfect for fans of Haruki Murakami, Ghost Cities is a profound and highly imaginative novel that cleverly draws on Chinese history to explore the absurdity of modern life and work.

When 34-year-old Ms Shibata gets a new job in Tokyo to escape sexual harassment at her old one, she finds that, as the only woman at her new workplace—a company that manufactures cardboard tubes—she is expected to do all the menial tasks. One day, she announces that she can't clear away her colleagues' dirty cups—because she's pregnant and the smell nauseates her. The only thing is...Ms Shibata is not pregnant.

Life is so unfair, and it sends many things to try Professor Dr Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, in the proud Bavarian city of Regensburg. There is the undeserved rise of his rival (and owner of a one-legged dachshund), Detlev Amadeus Unterholzer; the interminable ramblings of the librarian, Herr Huber; and the condescension of his colleagues with regard to his unmarried state. But when his friend Ophelia Prinzel takes it upon herself to match-make, and duly produces a cheerful heiress with her own Schloss, it appears that the professor's true worth is about to be recognised.

In this bold and brilliant short work of experimental fiction by the author of Grief Is the Thing with Feathers and Lanny, Max Porter inhabits Francis Bacon in his final moments, translating into seven extraordinary written pictures the explosive final workings of the artist's mind. Writing as painting rather than about painting, Porter lets the images he conjures speak for themselves as they take their revenge on the subject who wielded them in life.

Was wäre, wenn du plötzlich eine Banknote im Wert von einer Million Pfund in der Tasche hättest – und sie nicht ausgeben dürftest? Doch statt Reichtum folgt eine schräge Achterbahnfahrt durch Gesellschaft, Gier und den Irrsinn des Anscheins. In bester Twain-Manier entfaltet sich eine humorvolle, clevere und zeitlose Satire, die zeigt, dass Geld nicht immer das ist, was es scheint.

Shelf Death by Mit Namzo Dive into the darkly whimsical world of Shelf Death, a gripping and imaginative eBook that transforms an ordinary supermarket into an epic battleground of sentient groceries. In the fluorescent-lit aisles of Grimley’s Supermarket, where the doors lock and the lights dim, a hidden war rages. Canned goods, fresh produce, frozen foods, and processed snacks—each faction fights for dominance, driven by survival, pride, and the cold gaze of the Algorithm, a profit-obsessed AI that tallies every move. At the heart of this chaos is Tommy the Tomato, a pacifist dreamer ...

The pratfall of the Roman Empire. Toss together one skittish outsider with the swaggering ruler of the known world. Whip in a generous serving of deadly chases, spy rings and desperate disguises. And enjoy the most deranged Caesar salad ever served up. To stay alive, two unexpected companions will need to unite their entirely opposing urges. While facing unthinkable peril. To say nothing of the trash chute, bridal costume and first-ever texting scandal. The mayhem promises astonishing revelations for both of them. About courage, friendship and surprise identities. They first just need to ...

After decades of loyal service, Ma Daode, a corrupt and lecherous party official, has been appointed director of the China Dream Bureau, charged with promoting President Xi Jinping’s China Dream of national rejuvenation. But just as he is about to present his plan for a microchip that will be implanted into the brain of every citizen to replace all painful recollections with a collective dream of national supremacy, his sanity begins to unravel.

Cervantes se adjudica, con mucha razon, el credito de haber sido quien escribio las primeras novelas en lengua espanola en su serie de doce Novelas Ejemplares, llamadas asi, segun el mismo Cervantes en el prologo a ellas, por "no hay ninguna de la que no se pueda sacar un ejemplo provechoso".

È l'anno 2156: da una Parigi sotterranea e da un mondo ghiacciato dalle guerre nucleari, parte un'incredibile corsa spaziale, verso una nuova terra più vivibile. Contro la Proteo Tien, la scassatissima astronave sineuropea, e il suo ancor più scassato equipaggio, scendono in campo due colossali imperi: l'Impero militare samurai, con una miniastronave su cui un generale giapponese guida sessanta topi ammaestrati, e la Calalbakrab, la reggia volante del tiranno amerorusso, il Grande Scorpione.

Se si fugge di notte da Villa Bacilla sulle ali di una diavolessa sexy, sorvolando Tristala assieme a tre equipaggi che si spostano contemporaneamente, può accadere di visitare gli otto mondi alterei della mappa nootica. Capita così di conoscere la terra primordiale di Ermete Trismegisto, Protoplas; i mari incantati di Capitan Guepière a Posidon; i cinquanta casinò e i locali notturni di Bludus; Mnemonia con i suoi fuochi fatui e l'insidia dell'embambolia; Medium con le sue giornate di Beneficenza Ben-evidente.

The Sven Chronicles: Synergy, Sausages and Spuds Wisdom Nobody Asked For – But Here We Are Are you tired of self-help books that tell you to wake up at 5am, eat chia seeds, and achieve inner peace while riding a a monocycle? Meet Sven. He’s not here to optimise your workflow. He’s here to remind you that it’s okay to accidentally walk into the Gents’, eat cake in your knickers and find meaning in a potato. Inside, you’ll find: - A prophetic potato who speaks in starch-based riddles - A dog named Biscuits who has mastered the ancient art of Doing Nothing With Purpose - Golden ...

Bei abendlicher Heimkehr von der Arbeit räsonniert Blumfeld über sein Leben als Junggeselle, die Vor- und Nachteile des Alleinseins, den Wunsch nach einem Begleiter, wenigstens eines Beobachters seines einsamen Lebens. Vor- und Nachteile eines Hundes: einerseits immer erfreut, ihn zu sehen, andererseits Träger von Schmutz und gegebenenfalls schlimmen Krankheiten. Bei Ankunft in seiner Wohnung findet er tatsächlich zwei Begleiter vor, aber gänzlich andere als gedacht...

It is a time of unrest in the BookWorld. Only the diplomatic skills of ace literary detective Thursday Next can avert a devastating genre war. But a week before the peace talks, Thursday vanishes. Has she simply returned home to the RealWorld or is this something more sinister? All is not yet lost. Living at the quiet end of speculative fiction is the written Thursday Next, eager to prove herself worthy of her illustrious namesake.

Embark on a rollicking Florida escapade through this masterfully crafted, wickedly funny comic novel. Set in 1980s Florida, this coming-of-age adventure follows the journey of a 17-year-old aspiring horror filmmaker captivated by a B-movie scream queen. Stealing away from his family’s Palm Beach mansion, he joins forces with an aging con man and his ambitious girlfriend. Together, they race into the heart of the Everglades, where his dream girl is filming Swamp Fiend 2. However, their plans bog down in a treacherous swamp teeming with competing cons and hustles, and a whole lot of alligators!

Shezlez the Self-Proclaimed is an absurdist story about a poor man's ambition to organise his own political party in an unnamed country characterised by moral apathy, poverty and heartless bureaucracy. Upon his first speech, so rousing as to attract the attention of the Progressive Party, Shezlez finds himself embroiled in a corrupt scheme of deceit and backstabbing in the leadup to the upcoming mayoral elections.

Matt Kim is always tired. He keeps passing out. His cat is dead. His wife and daughter have left him. He’s estranged from his adoptive family. People bump into him on the street as if he isn’t there. He is pretty sure he’s disappearing. His girlfriend, Yumi, is less convinced. But then she runs into someone who looks exactly like her, and her doppelgänger turns out to have dated someone who looks exactly like Matt.

Are you a Law & Order or CSI crime junkie? In these You Solve It mini mysteries, you get to be the lead detective who takes on the case. You will read the case file, collect the evidence and solve the crime. Become an iDetective.

Uncover the terrifying secrets of Sacramento, California, once a symbol of American pride, now morphed into an oppressive urban hellhole ominously known as the Ward. This chilling city-prison, with its unfathomable horrors, is a place where even angels fear to tread. In the grim depths of the Ward, a trio of horrifying factions clash. Avalon Company, fueled by an obsession with fire and destruction; the Breedless, cannibals who echo the ferocity of ancient Vikings; and Talon's Legion, a death-cult reminiscent of the terrifying might of the Roman Empire. Each is embroiled in a brutal battle ...

Morgan Beale is a pop icon - and hates every second of it. He begins adapting the latest best seller, The Chihuahua in the Blue Prada Bag, into a blockbuster movie just before his celebutante wife starts remodeling their Hollywood home, driving Beale to a hotel. Dodging the paparazzi one morning on his way to Starbucks, he spots his writing partner, Luke, who has been dead for over a decade, and who is staring into a mysterious hole in the ground....