Marisha Pessl Books

This updated collection features numerous impactful speeches, including Earl Spencer's tribute to Diana, Nikita Khrushchev's 1956 address marking the decline of Stalinist Russia, Patrick Pearse's stirring funeral oration that ignited the Easter Rising, Kevin Rudd's apology to Australia's Indigenous peoples, and Barack Obama's historic election night victory speech. It also showcases powerful orations from Winston Churchill, Martin Luther King's iconic "I have a dream" and "I've seen the promised land," JFK's inspiring words, and Nelson Mandela's passionate speeches—one during his 1964 trial and another upon becoming South Africa's president in 1994. Historic addresses from figures such as Elizabeth I, Charles I, Oliver Cromwell, George Washington, Napoleon Bonaparte, Abraham Lincoln, Emmeline Pankhurst, Mahatma Gandhi, and others are included. This anthology presents over 50 significant speeches that have shaped history, accompanied by brief biographies of each speaker and context regarding the importance of their orations and the outcomes that followed. It offers a compelling narrative of history through the lens of its most powerful speeches.

The bestselling author of Special Topics in Calamity Physics presents a gripping literary thriller. Investigative reporter Scott McGrath, along with two young companions, seeks to uncover the truth behind the death of Ashley Cordova, the daughter of infamous director Stanislas Cordova, and the darkness surrounding his life and films.

Five friends. Only one can survive the NEVERWORLD WAKE. How would you choose?

A high school student embarks on a summer internship that uncovers the dark legacy of a deceased legendary game designer. This YA psychological thriller weaves a complex narrative filled with mystery and suspense, crafted by the New York Times bestselling author of Night Film. As the protagonist navigates this enigmatic world, secrets unravel, leading to unexpected twists and a gripping exploration of ambition and consequence.

I wrote this account one year after I'd found Hannah dead. I thought I'd managed to erase all traces of that night within myself. But I was wrong. Every night when I tried to sleep, I'd close my eyes and see her again, exactly as I found her, hanging from a pine tree by an orange elctrical cord, her neck twisted like a tulip stem, her eyes seeing nothing. Or else that was the problem. They'd seen everything. This mesmerizing debut, uncannily uniting the trials of a postmodern upbringing with a murder mystery, heralds the arrival of a vibrant new voice in literary fiction.