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Books published by publisher Peacock / Penguin Books

  • Things Fall Apart

    Chinua Achebe

    Paperback (Penguin Books, Sept. 1, 1994)
    “A true classic of world literature . . . A masterpiece that has inspired generations of writers in Nigeria, across Africa, and around the world.” —Barack Obama Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American ReadThings Fall Apart is the first of three novels in Chinua Achebe's critically acclaimed African Trilogy. It is a classic narrative about Africa's cataclysmic encounter with Europe as it establishes a colonial presence on the continent. Told through the fictional experiences of Okonkwo, a wealthy and fearless Igbo warrior of Umuofia in the late 1800s, Things Fall Apart explores one man's futile resistance to the devaluing of his Igbo traditions by British political andreligious forces and his despair as his community capitulates to the powerful new order. With more than 20 million copies sold and translated into fifty-seven languages, Things Fall Apart provides one of the most illuminating and permanent monuments to African experience. Achebe does not only capture life in a pre-colonial African village, he conveys the tragedy of the loss of that world while broadening our understanding of our contemporary realities.
  • The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God

    Timothy Keller, Kathy Keller

    Paperback (Penguin Books, Nov. 5, 2013)
    “Incredibly rich with wisdom and insight that will leave the reader, whether single or married, feeling uplifted.” —The Washington TimesBased on the acclaimed sermon series by New York Times bestselling author Timothy Keller, this book shows everyone—Christians, skeptics, singles, longtime married couples, and those about to be engaged—the vision of what marriage should be according to the Bible.Modern culture would have you believe that everyone has a soul mate; that romance is the most important part of a successful marriage; that your spouse is there to help you realize your potential; that marriage does not mean forever, but merely for now; and that starting over after a divorce is the best solution to seemingly intractable marriage issues. But these modern-day assumptions are wrong. Timothy Keller, with insights from Kathy, his wife of thirty-seven years, shows marriage to be a glorious relationship that is also misunderstood and mysterious. The Meaning of Marriage offers instruction on how to have a successful marriage, and is essential reading for anyone who wants to know God and love more deeply in this life.
  • We Were the Lucky Ones: A Novel

    Georgia Hunter

    eBook (Penguin Books, Feb. 14, 2017)
    NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERInspired by the incredible true story of one Jewish family separated at the start of World War II, determined to survive—and to reunite—We Were the Lucky Ones is a tribute to the triumph of hope and love against all odds. “Love in the face of global adversity? It couldn't be more timely.” —Glamour It is the spring of 1939 and three generations of the Kurc family are doing their best to live normal lives, even as the shadow of war grows closer. The talk around the family Seder table is of new babies and budding romance, not of the increasing hardships threatening Jews in their hometown of Radom, Poland. But soon the horrors overtaking Europe will become inescapable and the Kurcs will be flung to the far corners of the world, each desperately trying to navigate his or her own path to safety. As one sibling is forced into exile, another attempts to flee the continent, while others struggle to escape certain death, either by working grueling hours on empty stomachs in the factories of the ghetto or by hiding as gentiles in plain sight. Driven by an unwavering will to survive and by the fear that they may never see one another again, the Kurcs must rely on hope, ingenuity, and inner strength to persevere. An extraordinary, propulsive novel, We Were the Lucky Ones demonstrates how in the face of the twentieth century’s darkest moment, the human spirit can endure and even thrive.
  • Wreck This Journal: Now in Color

    Keri Smith

    Paperback (Penguin Books, June 6, 2017)
    “Not gonna lie, this is probably the coolest journal you’ll ever see. . . . Wreck This Journal is here to inspire you.” —BuzzfeedA spectacular coloring and painting edition of the incredible journal that started it all, in celebration of the tenth anniversary of the 10-million-copy international bestsellerPerhaps you're a seasoned Wreck-er, having made your way through one or more copies of Wreck This Journal. Or maybe you're new to the phenomenon (little do you know, this experience might just change your life). Whatever the case, you've found the perfect book to destroy...Welcome to an all new-edition of Wreck This Journal, now in spectacular full color! Inside, you'll find prompts for painting, shredding, transforming, and unleashing your creativity. With a mix of new, altered, and favorite prompts, Wreck This Journal: Now in Color invites you to wreck with color: mixing colors to make mud, letting chance dictate your color choice, weaving with brightly colored strips of paper, and more. What colors will you use to you wreck your journal? “A conceptual artist and author luring kids into questioning the world and appreciating every smell, texture and mystery in it.” —TIME Magazine “Keri Smith may well be the self-help guru this DIY generation deserves.” —The Believer
  • Lost Ocean: An Inky Adventure and Coloring Book for Adults

    Johanna Basford

    Paperback (Penguin Books, Oct. 27, 2015)
    From the creator of the worldwide bestsellers Secret Garden and Enchanted Forest, a beautiful new coloring book that takes you on a magical journey beneath the waves. With this coloring book for adults, Johanna Basford invites color-inners of all ages to discover an enchanting underwater world hidden in the depths of the sea. Through intricate pen and ink illustrations to complete, color, and embellish, readers will meet shoals of exotic fish, curious octopuses, and delicately penned seahorses. Visit coral reefs and barnacle-studded shipwrecks, discover intricate shells and pirate treasure. Secret Garden and Enchanted Forest fans and newcomers alike will welcome this creative journey into an inky new world. For Lost Ocean, Johanna picked a crisp ivory paper that accentuates and complements your chosen color palette. The smooth, untextured pages allow for beautiful blending or gradient techniques with colored pencils or are perfect for pens, allowing the nib to glide evenly over the surface without feathering. Filled with stunningly detailed illustrations, Lost Ocean is a blissful and relaxing at-home activity for people of all ages.
  • Bringing Up BĂ©bĂ©: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting

    Pamela Druckerman

    Paperback (Penguin Books, Sept. 30, 2014)
    The runaway New York Times bestseller that shows American parents the secrets behind France's amazingly well-behaved children, from the author of There Are No Grown-ups. When American journalist Pamela Druckerman had a baby in Paris, she didn't aspire to become a "French parent." But she noticed that French children slept through the night by two or three months old. They ate braised leeks. They played by themselves while their parents sipped coffee. And yet French kids were still boisterous, curious, and creative. Why? How? With a notebook stashed in her diaper bag, Druckerman set out to investigate—and wound up sparking a national debate on parenting. Researched over three years and written in her warm, funny voice, Bringing Up BĂ©bĂ© is deeply wise, charmingly told, and destined to become a classic resource for American parents.
  • The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics

    Daniel James Brown

    Paperback (Penguin Books, March 15, 2014)
    The #1 New York Times–bestselling story about American Olympic triumph in Nazi Germany and now the inspiration for the PBS documentary “The Boys of ‘36'.”For readers of Unbroken, out of the depths of the Depression comes an irresistible story about beating the odds and finding hope in the most desperate of times—the improbable, intimate account of how nine working-class boys from the American West showed the world at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin what true grit really meant. It was an unlikely quest from the start. With a team composed of the sons of loggers, shipyard workers, and farmers, the University of Washington’s eight-oar crew team was never expected to defeat the elite teams of the East Coast and Great Britain, yet they did, going on to shock the world by defeating the German team rowing for Adolf Hitler. The emotional heart of the tale lies with Joe Rantz, a teenager without family or prospects, who rows not only to regain his shattered self-regard but also to find a real place for himself in the world. Drawing on the boys’ own journals and vivid memories of a once-in-a-lifetime shared dream, Brown has created an unforgettable portrait of an era, a celebration of a remarkable achievement, and a chronicle of one extraordinary young man’s personal quest.
  • Alexander Hamilton

    Ron Chernow

    Paperback (Penguin Books, March 29, 2005)
    A New York Times Bestseller, and the inspiration for the hit Broadway musical Hamilton!Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ron Chernow presents a landmark biography of Alexander Hamilton, the Founding Father who galvanized, inspired, scandalized, and shaped the newborn nation.In the first full-length biography of Alexander Hamilton in decades, Ron Chernow tells the riveting story of a man who overcame all odds to shape, inspire, and scandalize the newborn America. According to historian Joseph Ellis, Alexander Hamilton is “a robust full-length portrait, in my view the best ever written, of the most brilliant, charismatic and dangerous founder of them all.”Few figures in American history have been more hotly debated or more grossly misunderstood than Alexander Hamilton. Chernow’s biography gives Hamilton his due and sets the record straight, deftly illustrating that the political and economic greatness of today’s America is the result of Hamilton’s countless sacrifices to champion ideas that were often wildly disputed during his time. “To repudiate his legacy,” Chernow writes, “is, in many ways, to repudiate the modern world.” Chernow here recounts Hamilton’s turbulent life: an illegitimate, largely self-taught orphan from the Caribbean, he came out of nowhere to take America by storm, rising to become George Washington’s aide-de-camp in the Continental Army, coauthoring The Federalist Papers, founding the Bank of New York, leading the Federalist Party, and becoming the first Treasury Secretary of the United States.Historians have long told the story of America’s birth as the triumph of Jefferson’s democratic ideals over the aristocratic intentions of Hamilton. Chernow presents an entirely different man, whose legendary ambitions were motivated not merely by self-interest but by passionate patriotism and a stubborn will to build the foundations of American prosperity and power. His is a Hamilton far more human than we’ve encountered before—from his shame about his birth to his fiery aspirations, from his intimate relationships with childhood friends to his titanic feuds with Jefferson, Madison, Adams, Monroe, and Burr, and from his highly public affair with Maria Reynolds to his loving marriage to his loyal wife Eliza. And never before has there been a more vivid account of Hamilton’s famous and mysterious death in a duel with Aaron Burr in July of 1804.Chernow’s biography is not just a portrait of Hamilton, but the story of America’s birth seen through its most central figure. At a critical time to look back to our roots, Alexander Hamilton will remind readers of the purpose of our institutions and our heritage as Americans.“Nobody has captured Hamilton better than Chernow” —The New York Times Book Review Ron Chernow's other biographies include: Grant, Washington, and Titan.
  • A Discovery of Witches: A Novel

    Deborah Harkness

    eBook (Penguin Books, Feb. 8, 2011)
    Book one of the New York Times-bestselling All Souls trilogy—"a wonderfully imaginative grown-up fantasy with all the magic of Harry Potter and Twilight” (People). Now “[a] hot show that’s like Twilight meets Outlander” (Thrillist) airing Sundays on AMC and BBC America, as well as streaming on Sundance Now and Shudder. Deborah Harkness’s sparkling debut, A Discovery of Witches, has brought her into the spotlight and galvanized fans around the world. In this tale of passion and obsession, Diana Bishop, a young scholar and a descendant of witches, discovers a long-lost and enchanted alchemical manuscript, Ashmole 782, deep in Oxford's Bodleian Library. Its reappearance summons a fantastical underworld, which she navigates with her leading man, vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont. Harkness has created a universe to rival those of Anne Rice, Diana Gabaldon, and Elizabeth Kostova, and she adds a scholar's depth to this riveting tale of magic and suspense. The story continues in book two, Shadow of Night, and concludes with The Book of Life.
  • The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism

    Timothy Keller

    Paperback (Penguin Books, Aug. 4, 2009)
    A New York Times bestseller people can believe in—by "a pioneer of the new urban Christians" (Christianity Today) and the "C.S. Lewis for the 21st century" (Newsweek). Timothy Keller, the founding pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, addresses the frequent doubts that skeptics, and even ardent believers, have about religion. Using literature, philosophy, real-life conversations, and potent reasoning, Keller explains how the belief in a Christian God is, in fact, a sound and rational one. To true believers he offers a solid platform on which to stand their ground against the backlash to religion created by the Age of Skepticism. And to skeptics, atheists, and agnostics, he provides a challenging argument for pursuing the reason for God.Look out for Timothy Keller's latest book, The Songs of Jesus.
  • The Fault in Our Stars

    John Green

    Paperback (Penguin Books, April 8, 2014)
    From John Green, the #1 bestselling author of Turtles All the Way Down"The greatest romance story of this decade." —Entertainment Weekly-Millions of copies sold-#1 New York Times Bestseller#1 Wall Street Journal Bestseller#1 USA Today Bestseller#1 International BestsellerTIME Magazine’s #1 Fiction Book of 2012TODAY Book Club pickNow a Major Motion Picture Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten. Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars brilliantly explores the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.
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  • Salt to the Sea

    Ruta Sepetys

    Paperback (Penguin Books, Aug. 1, 2017)
    #1 New York Times bestseller and winner of the Carnegie Medal! "A superlative novel . . . masterfully crafted."--The Wall Street JournalBased on "the forgotten tragedy that was six times deadlier than the Titanic."--TimeWinter 1945. WWII. Four refugees. Four stories.Each one born of a different homeland; each one hunted, and haunted, by tragedy, lies, war. As thousands desperately flock to the coast in the midst of a Soviet advance, four paths converge, vying for passage aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff, a ship that promises safety and freedom. But not all promises can be kept . . .This paperback edition includes book club questions and exclusive interviews with Wilhelm Gustloff survivors and experts.
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