Books with author Anina Bennett

A Publishers Weekly Top-10 Travel Book: A couple embarks on an auto race, and whether it’s the antique car or the marriage, something’s bound to break down… Dina Bennett nicknamed her restored 1940 Cadillac LaSalle “Roxanne.” In the Peking to Paris Motor Challenge, it was known as Car 84, one of 125 classic cars competing in a breathtaking antique auto race. And so Dina embarked from China’s Great Wall with, at the very least, enthusiasm and a roomy front seat. It doesn’t matter that she’s the least likely navigator on any continent, or that she’s a daydreamer prone to carsickness, or that inside she’s riddled with self-doubt. Because behind the wheel is Bernard, her mechanically inclined, thrill-seeking perfectionist of a husband. Besides, the race is only eight thousand miles. What could possibly go wrong? As Dina and Bernard nurse Roxanne across the Gobi, Siberia, and the Baltic states and south to Paris, Dina wrestles with nuts and bolts, dodges rock-throwing Mongolians, endures a sandstorm facial, and locks horns with Russians seemingly left over from Stalin’s Intourist era. Yet never once does Dina abandon the absurd hope that she can turn herself into a person of courage and patience. Funny, self-deprecating, and marred by only a few acts of great fortitude, Peking to Paris is first and foremost a voyage of renewal. It’s for every woman who’s ever doubted herself, and for any man who wanted to join her on that road to re-discovery, albeit off the beaten tourist path. All in all “a fun ride, worth the trip” (Kirkus Reviews).

Join the ultimate treasure hunt today...The Reward: A magical artifact with the power to change worlds. Those weary of magic & monsters need not apply...My name is Jack Wilde and up until recently, I had the perfect life. This all came crashing down around me in epic proportions when I discovered an antique compass. It turns out, the compass has a mind of its own and decided that moment was a good time to return home, taking me along with it. Now I am in an insane new world called Feira, where magic and monsters are very real. I shouldn’t have been able to get here in the first place and my only hope of getting home is to find the most powerful artifact in this world, the Sana Artifact. The only clue is the riddle written on the back of the dumb compass that brought me here. To make matters worse, the ruler of northern Feria , King Sephtis, has discovered the compasses existence and dispatched his bloody left hand, Lord Wrath, to acquire it by any means necessary. At least I have a few new friends to help keep me out of trouble.Dove is a mysterious Healer, with the ability to heal any ailment or injury. Her vast knowledge of spell work and the Old Language is worth her weight in gold, but I can’t shake the feeling she is hiding something is. Then there is Soren, a vengeful sailor with a magical ship and crew. He is an Omni, a class of magic specializing crafting objects imbued with magical abilities. Soren is searching for something and there is no limit to how far he will go.This is the ultimate treasure hunt and we each have our own need for the Sana Artifact, but one thing is for certain. . . I will do whatever it takes to get home. I just hope to remain the same person in the process.Spinderlocke is a fantasy adventure about friendship, love and loss. If you are fans of the magical systems and friendship of Harry Potter, the vivid worlds of Kristen Cashore’s Graceling Realm series, the high stakes of the Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha series, or the epic journey of the Hobbit, you may enjoy reading this fantasy adventure tale.

In this thrilling journey from “Peking to Paris,” a woman tries to save her car, her marriage, and her confidence from breaking down.In May 2007, leaving China’s Great Wall is Car 84, one of 125 antique autos racing in the Peking to Paris Motor Challenge. The 1940 LaSalle is guided by Dina Bennett, the world’s least likely navigator: a daydreamer prone to carsickness and riddled with self-doubt. She’s married to the driver, a thrill-seeking perfectionist who is half-human, half-racecar. What could go wrong?Funny, self-deprecating, and marred by only a few acts of great fortitude, Peking to Paris is first and foremost a voyage of renewal. As Dina and her husband, Bernard, nurse their car across the Gobi, Siberia, and the Baltic states and south to Paris, she wrestles with nuts and bolts, along with the absurd hope that she can turn herself into a person of courage and patience.Writing for every woman who’s ever doubted herself and any man who’s wondered what the woman traveling with him is thinking, Dina brings you with her as she ducks rock-throwing Mongolians and locks horns with Russians left over from the Intourist era, endures a sandstorm facial, and is reduced to tears of joy over a bottle of red nail polish. It’s a rollicking ride, one that shifts the line between possible and impossible, and gives new meaning to the phrase “off the beaten tourist path.”

In May 2007, leaving China’s Great Wall is Car 84, one of 128 antique autos racing in the Peking to Paris Motor Challenge. It’s guided by one Dina Bennett, the world’s least likely navigator: a daydreamer prone to carsickness, riddled with self-doubt, and married to a thrill-seeking perfectionist who is half-human, half-racecar. What could possibly go wrong?Funny, self-deprecating, and marred by only a few acts of great fortitude, Peking to Paris is first and foremost a voyage of transformation. The reader is swept on a wild, emotional ride, with romance and adversity, torment and triumph. Starting in Beijing, Dina and her husband, Bernard, limp across the Gobi, Siberia, Baltic States, and south to Paris in a 1940 Cadillac LaSalle, while Dina nurses the absurd hope that she can turn herself into a person of courage and patience.Writing for every woman who’s ever doubted herself and any man who’s wondered what the woman traveling with him is thinking, Dina brings the reader with her as she deftly sidesteps rock-throwing Mongolians and locks horns with Russians left over from the Interpol era—not to mention getting a sandstorm facial and racing rabbits on a curvy country road. Come along for the ride with a dashboard diva!

A trip inside a magic bubble is the adventure this grandmother and her grandson experience. Nana takes her young grandson, Aiden, on a magical flight in a magic bubble she creates. Together, they glide through clouds, over hills and lakes. This bubble takes them to a mystical land, called Land of the Yoos. When they arrive, they are greeted by playful, mischievous, and colorful beings called Gotyoos and Getyoos. What happens next with these little creatures is what this story reveals about a special time between a grandmother and her curious grandson.

The novel opens with Carl Foster, a recently qualified doctor, coming to London to try and make his fortune. He meets a famous tenor, Signor Alresca, who suffers a dreadful injury backstage and Foster tends to him. He thus meets the lead soprano, Rosetta Rosa, and falls hopelessly in love with her. Alresca takes Foster under his wing and they travel to Alresca's home in Bruges. It is clear to Foster that Alresca has some strange obsession. Foster also notices a stranger who seems to be dogging his footsteps. Things take an even more sinister turn when Alresca inexplicably dies. . . Enoch Arnold Bennett was born in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent on the 27th May 1867. His infancy was spent in genteel poverty, which gave way to prosperity as his father succeeded as a solicitor. From this provincial background he became a novelist. His enduring fame is as a Chronicler of the Potteries towns, the setting and inspiration of some of his most famous and enduring literary work and the place where he grew up. Bennett did not pursue a career as a writer until after leaving his father's practice and moving to London in 1889 when he won a literary competition conducted by the magazine "Tit Bits". Encouraged to take up journalism full-time, he became assistant editor of "Woman" in 1894. Just over four years later his first novel, "A Man from the North", was published to critical acclaim. This was followed in 1902 by "Anna of the Five Towns", the first of a succession of stories which detailed life in the Potteries and displayed his unique vision of life in its towns. Between the end of 1903 and 1911 Bennett lived mainly in Paris. In Paris he met Marguerite Soulié whom he married in 1907. During his eight years in Paris he continued to enjoy critical success with the publication of many novels including "The Old Wives' Tale" (1908). After a visit to America in 1911, where he was acclaimed as no other visiting writer had been since Dickens, he returned to England where the "Old Wives' Tale" was reappraised and hailed to be a masterpiece. In 1921 he separated from Marguerite. The following year he fell in love with the actress Dorothy Cheston. They lived together until his death. She changed her last name to Bennett, although they were never legally married. They had one child, Virginia, born in 1926. In 1931 he became ill during a trip to France, returned to London, and died of typhoid fever. His ashes are buried in Burslem cemetery. Their daughter, Virginia Eldin, who eventually went to live in France, became President of the Arnold Bennett Society. Although Arnold Bennett never returned to the Potteries to live, he never forgot the debt which he owed to his birthplace for giving him a unique setting for so many of his novels, a setting which he enhanced with his penetrating description of people and places. (Bennett made up names for his Five Towns, but these names left nobody in doubt about the true identity of the towns. His Turnhill is really Tunstall, Bursley is Burslem, Hanbridge is Hanley, Knype is Stoke, and Longshaw is Longton.) It is perhaps unfortunate that Bennett felt that "The Five Towns" sounded better than "The Six Towns", and thus relegated the sixth town of the Potteries, the town of Fenton, almost to oblivion. As a chronicler of The Potteries he assured a permanent place in English literature for the district. His penultimate novel, The Imperial Palace, was set in the Savoy Hotel. To mark the book's importance as a great literary work, the hotel created the Omelette Arnold Bennett, which has remained on its menu ever since.

Learn to use your most precious commodity―time―to truly live.Arnold Bennett’s classic book, How to Live on 24 Hours a Day, has been changing the way people use and consider their time since it was first published in 1910. In the intervening century surprisingly little has changed―we still struggle to make use of our time and are often plagued by the persistent worry that we are not making the most of our lives. Bennett encourages readers to stop merely following the rote patterns of their lives and leverage their free hours by viewing time as a commodity like money―each of us is allotted exactly 24 hours every day to spend as we see fit. What we make of our lives will ultimately be a result of what we make of that time. Bennett’s prescription is simple, but revolutionary: consider the time outside your work day as an entirely separate day, sixteen hours (give or take) during which you are free to do anything you like to grow and improve yourself and your happiness. Building on that premise, he helps readers begin to take control of their time―starting with just 90 minutes three times a week―and use it to truly live. Bennett’s writing is realistic and his advice transcends the years since it was first written. How to Live on 24 Hours a Day is an honest and refreshing perspective on how we can seize control of our time and spend it in the wisest way possible.

My name is Jack Wilde and up until recently, I had the perfect life. This all came crashing down around me in epic proportions when I discovered an antique compass. It turns out, the compass has a mind of its own and decided that moment was a good time to return home, taking me along with it. Now I am in an insane new world called Feira, where magic and monsters are very real. I shouldn’t have been able to get here in the first place and my only hope of getting home is to find the most powerful artifact in this world, the Sana Artifact. The only clue is the riddle written on the back of the dumb compass that brought me here. To make matters worse, the ruler of northern Feria, King Sephtis, has discovered the compasses existence and dispatched his bloody left hand, Lord Wrath, to acquire it by any means necessary. At least I have a few new friends to help keep me out of trouble.Dove is a mysterious Healer, with the ability to heal any ailment or injury. Her vast knowledge of spell work and the Old Language is worth her weight in gold, but I can’t shake the feeling she is hiding something is. Then there is Soren, a vengeful sailor with a magical ship and crew. He is an Omni, a class of magic specializing crafting objects imbued with magical abilities. Soren is searching for something and there is no limit to how far he will go.This is the ultimate treasure hunt and we each have our own need for the Sana Artifact, but one thing is for certain. . . I will do whatever it takes to get home. I just hope to remain the same person in the process.