Life on a tea plantation in 1930s Ceylon obeys none of the tyrannical clocks that rule the world outside; time there is measured by the seasons of twining growth, by the rainwater dripping off bright blossoms. This must be earth's version of paradise. It's also the only world Chandi knows. Son of the housekeeper, he enjoys a privileged, in-between life. Best friends with Rose-Lizzie, the English planter's daughter, he shares her schooling, her freedom, and the secret hiding places the misted hills yield only to them. Their friendship is innocent in its purpose and perfect in its understanding, yet troubling to those--servants and masters alike--who know what can happen when social taboos are violated. Rose-Lizzie's father, John, is trapped in a marriage whose aridity mocks the lushness that surrounds him. He finds his eyes turning more and more often toward Premawathi, Chandi's lovely young mother, as she serenely goes about her duties in the great house. The ferocious strictures forbidding love between the ruling class and the natives keep them apart, but this only makes the electricity between them spark higher. When they finally let convention slip away, their love rends the delicate fabric of plantation life that had seemed so impervious to change. And now the war, which has been convulsing all of Europe, reaches even this remote outpost of the British Empire, bringing to a boil the unrest simmering below the colony's placid surface. Adult sins and sorrows have encroached on the children's Eden, and Chandi and Rose-Lizzie must do what they can to save it. The Flower Boy captures the magic that haunts the intense attachments of childhood and the bittersweet dangers of forbidden desire. At once a tender love story and a poignant evocation of an empire's last days, The Flower Boy will transport you.

The Flower Boy: A Novel

Literature & Fiction

ROBERTS, KAREN

United States

Random House]

An accomplished debut, The Flower Boyis the tragically romantic story of people from two cultures, one ruling the other, and the human passions that defy and nearly overcome social taboos. In the colonial society of 1930s Ceylon, the separation between servant and master is clearly drawn. Young Chandi, however, knows that the baby born to his mother’s mistress will be his friend. And, indeed, their friendship blossoms in the lush gardens of the tea plantation on which they live. Many, English and Ceylonese, are troubled by the friendship, but the English planter is charmed by the children’s bond, and ultimately by Chandi’s mother, Premawathi. But the world encroaches on their Eden. Beautifully observed, compellingly plotted, The Flower Boy is a compassionate novel of a lost world and those who struggled to hold on to it.

Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Stories From the Riverbank is a collection of published newspaper columns and personal writings that offer glimpses of the cultural, personal, and natural history of northern Michigan through the eyes of a lifelong resident. Clifford R. Roberts of Onaway shares stories and observations infused with local color and history from the Depression era to the present.Born and raised in sight of Onaway's grain elevator, Roberts shares personal and family stories of growing up in a small town whose claim to fame in the early 1900s was "Onaway Steers the World" by making wooden steering wheels for cars. Fishing and boating on Michigan's lakes, rivers, and streams figure largely in these tales, as do stories of hunting, school, and family life.Roberts' keen observations of nature-especially wildlife and birds-from his vantage point living on the banks of the Black River and Black Lake comprise the major portion of these writings. As a columnist for his hometown's paper The Onaway Outlook for more than twenty years, he shares the best of his writings from columns entitled From the Riverbank, From the Lakeshore, and On the Road.

Stories From The Riverbank: And Other Tales From Onaway

Biographies & Memoirs

Historical

iUniverse

Flower Boy

Contemporary

Penguin books.India

The Flower Boy

Weidenfeld & Nicolson History

Opportunities to discover new purpose in our later years are abundant when we learn to meet challenges as gateways to growth. During a life crisis in her seventies, author Karen Roberts discovered that voices of encouragement were difficult to find among the popular paradigms of aging as decline, withdrawal, and disengagement. To begin to understand our restlessness-a yearning for deeper awareness and connection in our later years, the Blossoming book opens with a provocative discussion of aging that examines the frameworks of gender, culture, and human development. By reframing a life crisis in one's later years as a catalyst for insight and transformation, we can approach old age as a time of profound personal and interpersonal growth. Women, in particular, embark on this passage into elderhood with unique life experiences to guide them.The journey begins once we identify that we have arrived at a pivotal crossroads. The Blossoming of Women invites you to embark on later life explorations with confidence and enjoy the process of self-discovery. Engaging questions follow each chapter to assist you on the path to a rewarding new life stage motivated by personal purpose. The Blossoming of Women includes interviews with eight women who confronted daunting challenges, yet their perseverance and inner faith led them to pursue incredible late-life passions. Their stories, told with intimacy and grace, will open you to new possibilities. You will be encouraged to follow the lessons for living beyond loss and growing from crisis and transformation to a deeper self.

The Blossoming of Women: A Workbook on Growing from Older to Elder

Self-Help

Jaffe, Dana

Motivational

Gaia & Friends, Inc

Passions and Patience: Fostering Earth's Future Through Unlikely Partnerships

A collection of stories and photos about alliances, strange alliances, for the sake of the planet. Life on earth in the open spaces of land are fought for in winning ways- individuals are negotiators as well as originators. Passion and patience celebrates the courageous path taken.

Passions And Patience: Fostering Earth's Future Through Unlikely Partnerships

Science & Math

Nature & Ecology

Gaoa & Friends Inc

Biological Sciences

Have you ever had someone you don't really know help to grow, challenge, and form you? Has a stranger come along, completely unlooked for, pointing you to the King and His coming Kingdom? This book is about how God has used one such individual to encourage one family.

Unlikely Mentor

Arts & Photography

Schamberger, Andrea

Schamberger, Nicholas

Music

lulu.com

Phoenix House

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Books by ROBERTS, KAREN