A First for Us in a New Book Ready for Pre-Order

Posted on May 1, 2015 by Jessica Knauss

Açedrex has a few non-fiction works available, but nothing like this. And that’s the whole idea. There are too many diet books out there to count. This one is different.

Rook’s Page proudly presents Skinny Zen by Jan Holmes Frost. It features a positive, meditative approach to weight loss with a simple scoring system for meal plans and little gems of useful advice, all with a unique sense of humor. You won’t dread turning the pages of this encouraging essay.

“When walking, walk. When eating, eat.” ~Zen proverb

Think happy, think skinny, think Skinny Zen. Slow down, focus, take a deep, mindful breath, and learn strategies for your body’s particular needs.

Everyday diet books set a negative vibe when it comes to weight loss management. They even set negative goals for you! Skinny Zen shows you how to accentuate the positive and become in tune with your true weight loss regime. Frost’s wry wit will have you forgetting the D-word (diet) as you check out the numerous website links and learn new habits. Namaste.

Skinny Zen releases on May 10. Get a new attitude just in time for those summer clothes. It’s available for Kindle preorder now. Get it on release day automatically! Other formats and a softcover edition coming soon!

New Amazing Book Available for Bargain Preorder

Posted on April 9, 2015 by Jessica Knauss

Açedrex is proud to present a new book of short stories!

A teacher controls her students with an edible microchip. A reporter turns into a rhinoceros. A couple’s efforts to eat local go frighteningly awry. If you’re looking to be surprised, puzzled, or just plain entertained, pick up this omnibus. There’s something for everyone!

More than twenty years in the making, Unpredictable Worlds contains all of Jessica Knauss’s published and prize-winning short fiction as of March 2015 and a few of her best stories never before seen in print or ebook. Zany plots and outrageous characters will stretch your belief and tug at your heart.

WARNING: These stories contain exaggeration, elision, and disregard for “the real world.” Some even exhibit a tone of blatant optimism. However, they respect human speech patterns, admire good grammar, and hold proper punctuation in the highest regard.

Unpredictable Worlds will release for Kindle on May 15, but you can preorder it now at the special reduced price of only 99 cents. Save 66% off the post-release price and get this unique book delivered to your device on release day so you can start enjoying it before anyone else!

A New Edition of the Beloved Laughing Princess Complete with Full-Color Pictures

Posted on November 29, 2014 by Jessica Knauss

A new edition of Seymour Hamilton’s The Laughing Princess has come to Açedrex. It’s in a special wide softcover format because it is our first fully illustrated book! Shirley MacKenzie, who created the cover of the first edition, has created a full-page, full-color illustration for each of the twelve stories as well as a new cover and endpiece. There are also line drawings of the littlest dragon that demonstrate the way he grows in power and size with each story he tells.

This is a handsome volume readers would love to have on their bookshelves!

Find it today: CreateSpace | Amazon | request it at your library!

Ebooks (View in landscape for best results): Kindle | Kindle Canada | Kindle UK | Nook | Kobo

The non-illustrated edition is still available at very economical prices: Softcover | Softcover at BN | your favorite independent

The Best Short Stories, Our Three-Volume Series, Now Complete in all formats

Posted on October 12, 2014 by Jessica Knauss

The Rook’s Page imprint of Açedrex Publishing is proud to announce that our first multi-volume series is now complete in all formats. Fifty of the greatest shorter narratives ever written in three attractive volumes!

Have you read the 50 best short stories of all time?

Rook’s Page Publishing is here to make it easy to meet that goal! This three-volume set in ebook and softcover formats commemorates the hundredth anniversary of a critical moment in the history of literature.

In 1914, the New York Times asked the most highly regarded authors of the day to name the best short story in the English language. Many of their responses have maintained consistent fame through time. Others have become hidden gems. All are essential literary experiences that will make you love to read again.

These masterpieces are collected here for the first time, masterfully copyedited and with an introduction by Martin Hill Ortiz, PhD.

Volume I includes:
An Introduction to the Times survey and the stories
A Lodging for the Night—A Story of Francis Villon by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Outcasts of Poker Flat by Bret Harte
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
The Man Who Would Be King by Rudyard Kipling
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
The Pavilion on the Links by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Maltese Cat by Rudyard Kipling
The Murders in the Rue Morgue by Edgar Allan Poe
The Purloined Letter by Edgar Allan Poe
Will o’ the Mill by Robert Louis Stevenson
Wolfert Webber; or, Golden Dreams by Washington Irving
The Ring of Thoth by Arthur Conan Doyle
The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County by Mark Twain
The Door in the Wall by H. G. Wells
Gifts of Oblivion by Dorothy Canfield

Volume I is available on ebook:

On Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, India, and Japan

In the USA, the UK, and Europe for Nook

Worldwide at Kobo

and in softcover (more than 500 pages!) at Amazon | CreateSpace | Barnes and Noble | your favorite indie bookstore | request it at your library!

Volume II includes:
Introduction
Markheim by Robert Louis Stevenson
Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Luck of Roaring Camp by Bret Harte
The Brushwood Boy by Rudyard Kipling
Doctor Marigold by Charles Dickens
Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving
An Unfinished Story by O. Henry
The Claws of the Tiger by Gouverneur Morris IV
The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe
Providence and the Guitar by Robert Louis Stevenson
Bread Upon the Waters by Rudyard Kipling
Marjorie Daw by Thomas Bailey Aldrich
Love in a Mist by A. Neil Lyons
His Wife by Stephen French Whitman
Rebecca and Rowena by William Makepeace Thackeray
Master and Man by Leo Tolstoy
The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant
The Piece of String by Guy de Maupassant
Cinderella by the Brothers Grimm
The Story of Ruth Anonymous
“What is the Best Short Story?” The original article as presented in the New York Times

Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Japan, and India

Nook in the USA, the UK, and Europe

Kobo worldwide

and in softcover (almost 500 pages!) at Amazon | CreateSpace | Barnes and Noble | your favorite indie bookstore | request it at your library!

Volume III includes:
Introduction
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
The Haunted and the Haunters; Or, the House and the Brain by Edward Bulwer-Lytton
A Municipal Report by O. Henry
The Man Without a Country by Edward Everett Hale
The Merry Men by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Gold Bug by Edgar Allan Poe
The Cricket on the Hearth, A Fairy Tale of Home by Charles Dickens
The Story of Richard Doubledick by Charles Dickens
The Belled Buzzard by Irvin S. Cobb
An Incident by Sarah Barnwell Elliott
A Journey by Edith Wharton
Beyond the Pale by Rudyard Kipling
Without Benefit of Clergy by Rudyard Kipling
The Stolen Story by Jesse Lynch Williams
The Dead by James Joyce
Biographies of the Selectors and the Selected Authors

Volume III is available:

On Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, India, and Japan

For Nook for the USA, UK, and Europe.

And on Kobo worldwide.

and in softcover (well over 500 pages!) at Amazon | CreateSpace | Barnes and Noble | your favorite indie bookstore | request it at your library!

Nueva Publicación: Herencia de Clorinda Matto de Turner

Posted on October 9, 2014 by Jessica Knauss

Con placer incomparable, podemos ya anunciar que hemos conseguido el sueño de llevar al público lector moderno todas tres “novelas peruanas” de la incomparable Clorinda Matto de Turner. Terminamos la colección con la novela más urbana y más orientada hacia las mujeres: Herencia.

La última novela de la siempre controversial Clorinda Matto de Turner toma lugar en la Lima del siglo XIX. Retrata a seis mujeres que tienen que tomar sus decisiones limitadas a base de las apariencias bonitas que a lo mejor ocultan fealdad. En su tiempo fue considerada pornográfica por describir los sentimientos más íntimos de sus personajes femeninos.

Es una representación de las clases altas y bajas y un razonamiento sobre el grado en que un entorno sano y una buena educación aumentan la probabilidad de que un joven se convierta en un adulto bueno. Más compleja y sutil que Aves sin nido e Índole, Herencia presenta la vida urbana en una serie de observaciones agudas. Es una especie de secuela, porque ofrece además el final de la historia de Margarita, el amor de Manuel, empezada en Aves sin nido. No querrás perder la oportunidad de ver cómo Margarita recibe su Herencia.

Por ser la primera persona que expuso el maltrato de los indígenas del Perú, Clorinda Matto de Turner fue censurada por la Iglesia Católica, se quemó en efigie, y forzosamente emigró a la Argentina. Como Aves sin nido, Herencia critica abiertamente la sociedad de su tiempo a la misma vez que es una novela encantadora. No ha dejado de ser importantísima y relevante.

Presentada en edición electrónica corregida por primera vez, hemos preservado algunas de las inconsistencias ortográficas particulares del Perú del siglo XIX y corregido los simplemente molestos.

La portada es muy especial porque utiliza una fotografía auténtica del Perú del siglo XIX que muestra claramente la moda vigente de que las mujeres taparan la cara al salir a la calle.

Herencia se puede comprar por muy poco en: Kindle US | Kindle España | Kindle México | Nook | Kobo

Nueva publicación: Índole de Clorinda Matto de Turner

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Jessica Knauss

Vista la alta calidad de Aves sin nido además de las ideas sensatas de su autora, hace tiempo que queremos llevar las otras dos “novelas peruanas” de Clorinda Matto de Turner al público lector en formato digital. Ya por fin el sueño empieza a hacerse realidad: tenemos el placer de presentar Índole, la segunda novela, que se publicó originalmente dos años después de Aves sin nido.

Don Antonio y doña Eulalia se quieren profundamente. Son el modelo de la pareja feliz. Tanta felicidad atrae enemigos: para Antonio, puede ser la bancarrota si no sacrifica su integridad y para Eulalia, puede ser el cura del pueblo, que la desea a cualquier precio.

Conoces Aves sin nido de esta misma autora: este libro es su complemento. Trata algunos de los mismos temas desde la perspectiva de la gente de buena “índole,” con la misma sensibilidad y la misma agudeza de observación. Leer este libro es volver sobre los pasos de los peruanos de hace 150 años.

Por ser la primera persona que expuso el maltrato de los indígenas del Perú, Clorinda Matto de Turner fue censurada por la Iglesia Católica, se quemó en efigie, y forzosamente emigró a la Argentina. Como Aves sin nido, Índole critica abiertamente a los funcionarios, las autoridades judiciales, y el clero de su tiempo a la misma vez que es una novela encantadora. No ha dejado de ser importantísima y relevante.

Presentada en edición electrónica corregida por primera vez, hemos preservado algunas de las inconsistencias ortográficas particulares del Perú del siglo XIX y corregido los simplemente molestos.

Se puede comprar y gozar ya.

Kindle | Kindle España | Kindle México | Nook | Kobo

The 50 Best Short Stories of All Time, The Final Volume

Posted on August 11, 2014 by Jessica Knauss

At last, Volume III of this unique series of the very best literature the English language has to offer has arrived! You can finally read and enjoy all 50 of the stories chosen by the best authors of 1914 for a very low price. These stories stand the test of time.

Have you read the 50 best short stories of all time?

In 1914, a critical moment in literature, the New York Times asked the most highly regarded authors of the day to name the best short story in the English language. Many of their responses have maintained consistent fame through time. Others have become hidden gems. All are essential literary experiences that will make you love to read again.

These masterpieces are collected here for the first time, masterfully copyedited and with an introduction by Martin Hill Ortiz, PhD.

This volume includes:

Introduction

The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

The Haunted and the Haunters; Or, the House and the Brain by Edward Bulwer-Lytton

A Municipal Report by O. Henry

The Man Without a Country by Edward Everett Hale

The Merry Men by Robert Louis Stevenson

The Gold Bug by Edgar Allan Poe

The Cricket on the Hearth, A Fairy Tale of Home by Charles Dickens

The Story of Richard Doubledick by Charles Dickens

The Belled Buzzard by Irvin S. Cobb

An Incident by Sarah Barnwell Elliott

A Journey by Edith Wharton

Beyond the Pale by Rudyard Kipling

Without Benefit of Clergy by Rudyard Kipling

The Stolen Story by Jesse Lynch Williams

The Dead by James Joyce

Biographies of the Selectors and the Selected Authors

The final volume of this exceptional series is now available in ebook:

On Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, India, and Japan

For Nook for the USA, UK, and Europe.

And on Kobo worldwide.

Check back for soft cover editions soon!

Some of the stories you’ll find in Volumes I and II, already available:
The Outcasts of Poker Flat by Bret Harte
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
The Man Who Would Be King by Rudyard Kipling
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
The Ring of Thoth by Arthur Conan Doyle
The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County by Mark Twain
The Door in the Wall by H. G. Wells
Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving
The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe
The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant

The Best Short Stories Chosen in 1914 by the most prominent authors of the day, Volume I, is available in ebook at the following outlets:

On Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, India, and Japan

In the USA, the UK, and Europe for Nook

Worldwide at Kobo

The Best Short Stories Chosen in 1914 by the most prominent authors of the day, Volume II is available in ebook at these outlets:

Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Japan, and India

Nook in the USA, the UK, and Europe

Kobo worldwide

The Second Volume of the 50 Best Short Stories of All Time

Posted on August 6, 2014 by Jessica Knauss

Have you read the 50 best short stories of all time? The elves at Rook’s Page have been very busy trying to help you reach that goal! If you thought Volume I was good, take a look at Volume II, the most international installment of this amazing series.

These masterpieces are collected here for the first time, masterfully copyedited and with an introduction by Martin Hill Ortiz, PhD.

This volume includes:
Introduction
Markheim by Robert Louis Stevenson
Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Luck of Roaring Camp by Bret Harte
The Brushwood Boy by Rudyard Kipling
Doctor Marigold by Charles Dickens
Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving
An Unfinished Story by O. Henry
The Claws of the Tiger by Gouverneur Morris IV
The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe
Providence and the Guitar by Robert Louis Stevenson
Bread Upon the Waters by Rudyard Kipling
Marjorie Daw by Thomas Bailey Aldrich
Love in a Mist by A. Neil Lyons
His Wife by Stephen French Whitman
Rebecca and Rowena by William Makepeace Thackeray
Master and Man by Leo Tolstoy
The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant
The Piece of String by Guy de Maupassant
Cinderella by the Brothers Grimm
The Story of Ruth Anonymous
“What is the Best Short Story?” The original article as presented in The New York Times

Some of the stories you’ll find in Volumes I (now available) and III (coming soon):
The Outcasts of Poker Flat by Bret Harte
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
The Man Who Would Be King by Rudyard Kipling
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
The Murders in the Rue Morgue by Edgar Allan Poe
The Ring of Thoth by Arthur Conan Doyle
The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County by Mark Twain
The Door in the Wall by H. G. Wells
Gifts of Oblivion by Dorothy Canfield
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
A Journey by Edith Wharton
Beyond the Pale by Rudyard Kipling

The Best Short Stories Chosen in 1914 by the most prominent authors of the day, Volume II is now ready for the public at these outlets:

Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Japan, and India

Nook in the USA, the UK, and Europe

Kobo worldwide

The Best Short Stories Chosen in 1914 by the most prominent authors of the day, Volume I, is also available in ebook at the following outlets (check back soon for the soft cover edition!):

On Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, India, and Japan

In the USA, the UK, and Europe for Nook

Worldwide at Kobo

The 50 Best Short Stories of All Time, New from Rook’s Page

Posted on July 30, 2014 by Jessica Knauss

Have you read the 50 best short stories of all time?

Rook’s Page Publishing is here to make it easy to meet that goal! Our first release is Volume I in a three-volume set that commemorates the hundredth anniversary of a critical moment in the history of literature.

These masterpieces are collected here for the first time, masterfully copyedited and with an introduction by Martin Hill Ortiz, PhD.

This volume includes:
An Introduction to the Times survey and the stories
“A Lodging for the Night—A Story of Francis Villon” by Robert Louis Stevenson
“The Outcasts of Poker Flat” by Bret Harte
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
The Man Who Would Be King by Rudyard Kipling
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
“The Pavilion on the Links” by Robert Louis Stevenson
“The Maltese Cat” by Rudyard Kipling
“The Murders in the Rue Morgue” by Edgar Allan Poe
“The Purloined Letter” by Edgar Allan Poe
“Will o’ the Mill” by Robert Louis Stevenson
“Wolfert Webber; or, Golden Dreams” by Washington Irving
“The Ring of Thoth” by Arthur Conan Doyle
“The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” by Mark Twain
“The Door in the Wall” by H. G. Wells
“Gifts of Oblivion” by Dorothy Canfield

Some of the stories you’ll find in Volumes II and III, coming soon:
“Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson
“Rip Van Winkle” by Washington Irving
“The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe
“The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
“A Journey” by Edith Wharton
“Beyond the Pale” by Rudyard Kipling

Don’t miss them!

The Best Short Stories Chosen in 1914 by the most prominent authors of the day, Volume I, is available in ebook at the following outlets (check back soon for the soft cover edition!)

On Kindle in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, India, and Japan

In the USA, the UK, and Europe for Nook

Worldwide at Kobo

New Imprint Coming Soon

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Jessica Knauss

Açedrex Publishing is proud to announce the biggest news since our founding:

Rook’s Page is a joint venture with a trusted colleague. We’ll be publishing exciting books in English. Coming soon, a three-volume series aptly titled The Best Short Stories.

Açedrex Publishing is also taking on a new edition of the perennial favorite, The Laughing Princess by Seymour Hamilton. This time, full-color illustrations and line drawings by the immensely talented Shirley MacKenzie will be found throughout. See some of Shirley’s work here and check back for updates!