William Wharton

A joyous novel of art, love, and one mans unquenchable thirst for life, from one of Americas best loved authors. Sixty-year-old American painter Scumbler (Scum to his friends) makes a living by creating rentable apartments out of the most unlikely Parisian spaces. He spends his days jaunting around the Left Bank in Paris, stopping regularly to paint, and revelling in the art of creation and the remarkable characters he meets along the way: students, prostitutes, and craftsmen, like him. At night he returns to his wife and children. He is an undeniable success. He should be happy. And yet, Scumbler is pestered by the unavoidable symptoms of his age: the grey hair, the aches, the increasing waistline. Scumbler knows he must face up to the fact of his mortality, but he is adamant about doing so in his own inimitable way.

In Tidings, one of Americas best-loved authors paints a vivid scene of an unusual family Christmas. At an old mill in the French countryside, philosophy teacher Will and his wife Loretta await the return of their four adult children for the Christmas holidays. The house is swept, the fire is lit, and the scene is set. Will is determined to make this a Christmas to remember; however, he is unprepared for the personal troubles each family member will bring to the festivities. Unsatisfied desires, affairs, and the shadow of divorce threaten the Yuletide cheer. As they struggle to resolve their issues, the family and their holiday celebrations come alive in a heart-warming evocation of the traditions, magic, and unseen labour for a family Christmas.

A middle-aged man abandons his corporate life to follow his dream to become a painter. On the way, he develops an unlikely but beautiful relationship with an older woman.Jack is a middle-aged American living as a squatter in a Paris attic. He paints in a public square and sells his work to survive. There he meets Mirabelle, a blind, 71-year-old, self-appointed pigeon lady who cares for the birds who flutter about his easel. Between Jack and Mirabelle springs a friendship that deepens into an improbable but impassioned love affair.

A charming memoir from one of Americas best-loved novelists, William Wharton, author of war-time classic Birdy. Before even penning his first novel, William Wharton had left his home in Los Angeles to live with his family in Paris. On a romantic whim, he makes an offer for houseboat that is, in reality, barely more than a broken wooden hulk. To his surprise, the bid is accepted. Thus begins the story of his familys work to return the boat to its former glory and build a home for themselves from scratch.

When a 10-year-old boy befriends a carnival stuntman and his lion cub, he learns the true meaning of family, loyalty, love, and survival. For Dickie Kettleson, growing up during the Depression makes even the most ordinary aspects of life a struggle. His small street and family are his whole world, but hunger and collapse are never far away. Fory-year-old Cap Modig has already experienced his fair share of troubles. A former war hero and champion race driver, Cap now works in a carnival, travelling the open road with his fellow carnie s. Then, one day in October 1938, Cap and Dickies worlds collide, and change forever.

Dans la banlieue de Philadelphie des années 1930, Al et Birdy sont inséparables depuis quils se sont rencontrés sur les bancs de lécole.Al est athlétique, hâbleur, bagarreur.Birdy est fluet, discret,

After being summoned home by the news of his mothers heart attack, John Tremont is forced to confront his own middle age.While Johns mother begins to make an astonishing recovery, his father deteriorates; having long ago handed over the running of his life to his domineering wife, he is unable to cope without her. With the help of his nineteen-year-old son, John assumes the role of carer. Before long, John finds himself caught between his sons feckless impatience to get on with his life and his fathers heartbreaking willingness to let go, as both sons become trapped in the consuming, terrifying and repetitive world of looking after a dying loved-one.Brilliantly capturing the relationship between sons and fathers with humour and poignancy, Dad is a story of the love that binds generations of fathers and sons.

A reissue of this classic World War II novel.Set in the Ardennes Forest on Christmas Eve, 1944, A Midnight Clear is the story of Sergeant Will Knott and five other GIs ordered to establish an observation post in an abandoned chateau close to the German lines. Here they play at being soldiers in what seems to be complete isolation-until the Germans begin leaving signs of their presence.

An extraordinary story of war and friendship from one of Americas most revered authors of the 20th CenturyTwo teenagers form an unlikely friendship in pre-War Philadelphia. Al is obsessed with lifting weights, looking good and chasing girls. Birdy is obsessed with flight.Birdys passion becomes all-encompassing. Birdy wants to fly.A few years later these young men find themselves emotionally and physically scarred by Word War Two. Al is called to an army psychiatric hospital to help the doctors there treat his friend, who he finds squatting on the floor of his cell and acting like a bird.This haunting and brilliant novel has electrified readers the world over. It has truly become a modern classic.In 1984, Birdy was turned into an award-winning movie directed by Alan Parker and starring Nicholas Cage and Matthew Modine

William Wharton turns his microscopic gaze on his own life to narrate and scrutinize the untimely deaths of his daughter and her family. A moving story of one mans rage against death, and spiritual renewal. On August 3rd 1988, field burning caused a 23-car pile-up that claimed the lives of seven people, including William Whartons daughter, Kate, her husband, and their two children. In EVER AFTER, William Wharton searches for meaning in this tragedy, and tries to put a stop to a dangerous agriculture practice. Written from the perspective of both father and daughter, EVER AFTER is inspiring and heart-breaking in equal measures.

A previously unpublished wartime memoir from the acclaimed author of Birdy and A Midnight Clear. One of the most acclaimed American writers of his generation, and author of classic novels such as Birdy, A Midnight Clear and Dad, William Wharton was a very private man. Writing under a pseudonym, he rarely gave interviews, so fans and critics could only guess how much of his work was autobiographical and how much was fiction. Now, for the first time, we are able to read the authors own account of his experiences during the Second World War, events that went on to influence some of his greatest novels. These are the tales that Wharton never wanted to tell his children. It is an unforgettable true story from one of Americas greatest writers.

A welcome reissue of this wartime classic from the author of Birdy. During WW II, a dying American soldier, William Wiley, and his German captor, Wilhelm Klug, are miraculously rescued by a fox endowed with extraordinary powers, Franky Furbo. For William, the experience is indisputably true but when he discovers later that neither his wife nor children believe in Franky, he endures a crisis of faith and searches desperately for the truth. Franky Furbo is a modern fable with a remarkable twist, quite unlike anything Wharton wrote before or since.

The complete works of William Wharton, one of Americas most revered authors, published together for the first time in one ebook collection. Contains: Birdy Dad A Midnight Clear Scumbler Pride Tidings Franky Furbo Last Lovers Ever After Houseboat on Seine Shrapnel

From one of America’s best loved authors comes this collection of WWII novels. Contains four of Wharton’s novels:• Birdy• A Midnight Clear• Franky Furbo• Shrapnel