Friendship Loss

Freakishly smart. That’s the unwelcome box Ru Evans is put into for life. After all, she taught herself Euclidean geometry at age seven, has an eidetic memory, and is about to enter college at thirteen years old. Boarding at a house near campus 150 miles from home, Ru meets seventeen-year-old Gabriel, an outsider himself who, like Ru, has trouble making friends—until they form a fast sibling-like bond. Finding a relatable someone in the world to talk to is a first for both of them.

When Abraham Verghese, a physician whose marriage is unraveling, relocates to El Paso, Texas, he hopes to make a fresh start as a staff member at the county hospital. There he meets David Smith, a medical student recovering from drug addiction, and the two men begin a tennis ritual that allows them to shed their inhibitions and find security in the sport they love and with each other. This friendship between doctor and intern grows increasingly rich and complex, more intimate than two men usually allow.

An illuminating, intricately woven memoir about friendships, loss, and language—a stunning affirmation of the conversations that shape and sustain us, even in the presence of death.

What Remains begins with loss and returns to loss. A small plane plunges into the ocean, carrying John Kennedy, Anthony's cousin, and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, Carole's closest friend. Three weeks later Anthony dies of cancer. The summer of the plane crash, the four friends were meant to be cherishing Anthony's last days. Instead, Carole and Anthony mourned John and Carolyn, even as Carole planned her husband's memorial.

Home, for Noah York, is Oakland, New Hampshire, the sleepy little town where Noah's mother, Virginia, had a psychotic breakdown and Noah got beaten to a pulp as a teenager. Then there were the good times—and Noah's not sure which ones are more painful to recall. Now thirty-seven and eking out a living as an artist in Providence, Rhode Island, Noah looks much the same—and swears just as colorfully—as he did in high school.

The ship was built for one thing: to carry the delegations of two warring nations into neutral waters, where the heads of state would sign a peace treaty and end the war that has been raging for a generation. When it goes down, a pair of survivors—Cora, daughter of a Duran newspaper reporter, and Vivienne, lady’s maid to an Ariminthian princess—wash up on a remote island. At first, it seems like they have nothing in common—not even whether or not they want to be rescued. But the arrival of a pirate ship brings them to the realization that they do have a shared purpose: peace.

Emily Main had it all: a high-powered career with a leading technology giant and a handsome fiancé bounding up the corporate ladder. Their island wedding and honeymoon were idyllic, until a tragic accident causes her retinas to detach. Her well-ordered life is shattered as all treatments are unsuccessful and she slips into blindness. How will those around her cope with her tragedy? Can she rebuild her life in this most unwelcome new normal? Meanwhile, a black Lab puppy named Garth fulfills his destiny to become that most esteemed of all creatures: a guide dog.

Zara has always felt a little ordinary next to her spirited best friend Ivy. Even her dreams seem mundane: a boyfriend, marriage, children. Besides, who would pick her when they could choose Ivy? So when Zara meets Henry and there's an instant spark, she can't believe her luck. A wealthy CEO who wants to settle down? He's perfect...until Ivy insists he's too good to be true.

When Robert Ryder loses his best friends all in one cruel twist of fate, including the love of his life, it seems almost too good to be true when he finds a book of shadows with a spell to resurrect the dead. When the spell works, the returned want more than just a second chance at life. Their emotions and needs are intensified, the strongest being their desire for revenge. And why are there shadows moving within their eyes? Are they still his friends? Or did something come back in their place? And there are other things seeking to cross over, entities becoming stronger with every use of ...

Treasured is the eighteenth novella in the ongoing story of the Andersen family. Livia Andersen was a woman who held her family together with a quiet smile and an iron will. It’s been months since her death and her children and grandchildren she leaves behind continue to grapple with the shifting changes in their lives now that she’s gone. For some of them it is about far more than adjusting to her absence in their lives. Trisha Andersen doesn’t do anything without careful deliberation. She can’t remember the last time she made plans involving a man that had her questioning her own ...

Dementia is experienced in different forms, in different ways and is coped with differently by different people, but with nearly 10 million new cases every year, it is something many people face. It’s tough on those with the disease, but it is also incredibly hard for the loved ones around them. Karen Martin’s story about her friend Kathleen, however, is overwhelmingly one of love and persistence.

Iris Chang, the best-selling author of The Rape of Nanking and a tireless human-rights activist, symbolized strength to many in the literary and social-justice worlds. Her fearless reputation made it all the more shocking when she committed suicide in 2004 at age 36. Long-time friend Paula Kamen reveals for the first time the private Iris behind the bold, international celebrity. She offers a tribute to the lost heroine while attempting to explain Iris' tragic psychological decline.

I’ll be here to save you from the darkness because we’re forever family. Growing up has never been easy, and it can be especially hard for friendships. Cheyenne and Vanessa have always been in each other’s lives, but that doesn’t mean they’ve always seen eye to eye. Both of them are at the crossroads in their lives and in their friendship. Will Cheyenne be able to find himself after his divorce? Can Vanessa find a way to feel fulfilled with her life? Are Cheyenne and Vanessa built as friends, or are they too different to find common ground? Missed Calls is a novel of friendship, ...

Brenden McCarthy feels like he’s lost everything. His fiancée. His independence. And his passion for life. All due to one mountain-climbing misstep that cost him his sight. But he’s about to gain the last thing he ever expected: a big-hearted black Labrador named Nelson who’s given one last shot at being a Seeing Eye dog. Both are beyond hope and resigned to live alone. And both are about to experience a bond of friendship that develops when they least expect it.

Ten-year-old Comfort Snowberger has attended 247 funerals. But that's not surprising, considering that her family runs the town funeral home. And even though Great-uncle Edisto keeled over with a heart attack and Great-great-aunt Florentine dropped dead, just like that, six months later, Comfort knows how to deal with loss, or so she thinks.

Relentless is the fifteenth novella in the ongoing story of the Andersen family. Livia Andersen was a woman who held her family together with a quiet smile and an iron will. It’s been months since her death and her children and grandchildren she leaves behind continue to grapple with the shifting changes in their lives now that she’s gone. Some look back at what else has been lost to them. Chris Andersen is looking forward with anticipation to the future spread that's out in front of him…one that he didn’t expect. But he is also looking behind him at what was lost and never ...

Max Ride and her best friends have always had one another's backs-no matter what. Living on the edge as fugitives, they never had a choice. But now they're up against a deadly force that's racing across the globe, and just when they need him the most, Fang is gone. He's creating his own gang that will replace everyone—including Max. Max is heartbroken over losing Fang, her soul mate. Her closest friend. But with Dylan ready and willing to fight by her side, and she can no longer deny that his incredible intensity draws her in.

That feeling - like no one can really see who you are, like no one really gets it, that's loneliness. The truth is everyone feels lonely. It is a universal emotion, one we all experience at one point or another, but we have also been made to feel ashamed, oppressed and stigmatised about experiencing it. This book will help you reduce your shame around loneliness, to help you manage it, and to foster a sense of belonging. It will help you identify how loneliness may show up in your own life, understand how it impacts you, and help you discover some actionable steps you can take.

Griefland. It's a place no one wants to visit - a place without borders where language is inadequate and pain is constant. It's a place where every morning, one awakens to the stark reality that a loved one will never be seen, heard - or embraced - again. This is a place that Armen Bacon and Nancy Miller know all too well, for both of them, when they met, had lost a child to drug addiction. Both of them had also enjoyed a comfortable, middle-class life - until it was rocked by the sudden death of a son Alex, and a daughter, Rachel.

Jake Kyle needed to get away and never more so than now. The political quagmire that he’s help to bring to a boil is about to land on his doorstep. It was time to Retreat to Woodhaven. Under normal circumstances he’d be more than happy to take his critics on face to face and had done just that more than once over the years. And more than once he had been the one to walk away smiling. But this time in the midst of everything he’s embroiled in, he has other far more important things to take care of. People who need him in ways they never had before. Family who counted on him though ...