Eitanli/goodreads huggingface dataset:
Hillbilly Tales from the Smoky Mountains - And Other Homespun Remedies, Proverbs, and Poetry
by Patricia H. Graham
Genres: Poetry, Fiction
Average rating on Goodreads: 3.84

Hillbilly Tales from the Smoky Mountains includes several short stories based on the folklore of the Appalachian Mountains. Before the time of cell-phones, computers and television, family members would gather on the front porch and offer up stories through simple oral traditions. These stories were to provide simple forms of entertainment to their children. With each generation, the stories become more elaborate and creative. These yarns became known as Appalachian folklore. Mountain people have always led a difficult life; but how they dealt with their struggles is a unique perspective on Appalachian people.Also, in this book you will find a small section on mountain medicinal treatments and hillbilly proverbs, which were carried over from mother to daughter down the family line. Knowledge of apothecary, or also known as mountain medicine, was necessary to treat family members who became ill while the local doctor was away visiting two towns over. Most importantly, no decent self-respecting mountain folk would ever go unprepared without offering up advice to help their fellow neighbor. Wise sayings or hillbilly proverbs go hand-in-hand with mountain medicine and is given to anyone who might need guidance in their daily life.The second part of the book includes a special story written by one of the original descendants of the Crowe Family, Ms. Verna Humphrey. This short piece of fiction centers around a light romance based right after the end of the Civil War. The setting takes place in Green Cove and it presents a time of struggle and death while a young girl, Charlotte, struggles to regain her birthright during these trying times. When a young lawyer enters upon the scene, Charlotte's interpretation of birthright takes on a whole new meaning. Now she must make some hard decisions that will alter the course of her life.
The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes
by Neil Gaiman
Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Graphic Novels Comics, Comic Book
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.25


Librarian Note: If you're looking for the Audible adaptation of the first three volumes it is here.
New York Times best-selling author Neil Gaiman's transcendent series SANDMAN is often hailed as the definitive Vertigo title and one of the finest achievements in graphic storytelling. Gaiman created an unforgettable tale of the forces that exist beyond life and death by weaving ancient mythology, folklore and fairy tales with his own distinct narrative vision.In PRELUDES & NOCTURNES, an occultist attempting to capture Death to bargain for eternal life traps her younger brother Dream instead. After his 70 year imprisonment and eventual escape, Dream, also known as Morpheus, goes on a quest for his lost objects of power. On his arduous journey, Morpheus encounters Lucifer, John Constantine, and an all-powerful madman.This book also includes the story "The Sound of Her Wings," which introduces us to the pragmatic and perky goth girl Death.Includes issues 1-8 of the original series.
Slaves of New York
by Tama Janowitz
Genres: Fiction, Short Stories, New York, Contemporary, Literature, American, Novels
Average rating on Goodreads: 3.49

A coterie of artists, prostitutes, saints, and seers are all aspiring towards fame and hoping for love and acceptance. Instead they find high rents, faithless partners, and dead-end careers. Offbeat, funny and bitingly satirical, "Slaves of New York" sheds an incomparable light on the city's denizens and social mores.
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test
by Tom Wolfe
Genres: Nonfiction, History, Classics, Biography, Journalism, Memoir, Literature
Average rating on Goodreads: 3.92

Tom Wolfe's much-discussed kaleidoscopic non-fiction novel chronicles the tale of novelist Ken Kesey and his band of Merry Pranksters. In the 1960s, Kesey led a group of psychedelic sympathizers around the country in a painted bus, presiding over LSD-induced "acid tests" all along the way. Long considered one of the greatest books about the history of the hippies, Wolfe's ability to research like a reporter and simultaneously evoke the hallucinogenic indulgence of the era ensures that this book, written in 1967, will live long in the counter-culture canon of American literature.
The Earthsea Trilogy (Earthsea Cycle, #1-3)
by Ursula K. Le Guin
Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult, Classics, Science Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Epic Fantasy
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.28

As long ago as forever and as far away as Selidor, there lived the dragonlord and Archmage, Sparrowhawk, the greatest of the great wizards - he who, when still a youth, met with the evil shadow-beast; he who later brought back the Ring of Erreth-Akbe from the Tombs of Atuan; and he who, as an old man, rode the mighty dragon Kalessin back from the land of the dead. And then, the legends say, Sparrowhawk entered his boat, Lookfar, turned his back on land, and without wind or sail or oar moved westward over the sea and out of sight.Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan, The Farthest Shore - Ursula Le Guin's brilliant and magical trilogy.Cover Illustration: Jonathan Field
A Long Way Down
by Nick Hornby
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Humor, British Literature, Novels, Adult, Adult Fiction
Average rating on Goodreads: 3.43

In his eagerly awaited fourth novel, New York Times-bestselling author Nick Hornby mines the hearts and psyches of four lost souls who connect just when they've reached the end of the line. Meet Martin, JJ, Jess, and Maureen. Four people who come together on New Year's Eve: a former TV talk show host, a musician, a teenage girl, and a mother. Three are British, one is American. They encounter one another on the roof of Topper's House, a London destination famous as the last stop for those ready to end their lives. In four distinct and riveting first-person voices, Nick Hornby tells a story of four individuals confronting the limits of choice, circumstance, and their own mortality. This is a tale of connections made and missed, punishing regrets, and the grace of second chances. Intense, hilarious, provocative, and moving, A Long Way Down is a novel about suicide that is, surprisingly, full of life. What's your jumping-off point? MaureenWhy is it the biggest sin of all? All your life you're told that you'll be going to this marvelous place when you pass on. And the one thing you can do to get you there a bit quicker is something that stops you getting there at all. Oh, I can see that it's a kind of queue-jumping. But if someone jumps the queue at the post office, people tut. Or sometimes they say "Excuse me, I was here first." They don't say "You will be consumed by hellfire for all eternity." That would be a bit strong. MartinI'd spent the previous couple of months looking up suicides on the Internet, just out of curiosity. And nearly every single time, the coroner says the same thing: "He took his own life while the balance of his mind was disturbed." And then you read the story about the poor bastard: His wife was sleeping with his best friend, he'd lost his job, his daughter had been killed in a road accident some months before . . . Hello, Mr. Coroner? I'm sorry, but there's no disturbed mental balance here, my friend. I'd say he got it just right. JessI was at a party downstairs. It was a shit party, full of all these ancient crusties sitting on the floor drinking cider and smoking huge spliffs and listening to weirdo space-out reggae. At midnight, one of them clapped sarcastically, and a couple of others laughed, and that was it-Happy New Year to you, too. You could have turned up to that party as the happiest person in London, and you'd still have wanted to jump off the roof by five past twelve. And I wasn't the happiest person in London anyway. Obviously. JJNew Year's Eve was a night for sentimental losers. It was my own stupid fault. Of course there'd be a low-rent crowd up there. I should have picked a classier date-like March 28, when Virginia Woolf took her walk into the river, or November 25 (Nick Drake). If anybody had been on the roof on either of those nights, the chances are they would have been like-minded souls, rather than hopeless f*ck-ups who had somehow persuaded themselves that the end of a calendar year is in any way significant.
The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead
by Max Brooks
Genres: Horror, Zombies, Fiction, Humor, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Post Apocalyptic
Average rating on Goodreads: 3.85

The Zombie Survival Guide is your key to survival against the hordes of undead who may be stalking you right now. Fully illustrated and exhaustively comprehensive, this book covers everything you need to know, including how to understand zombie physiology and behavior, the most effective defense tactics and weaponry, ways to outfit your home for a long siege, and how to survive and adapt in any territory or terrain.Top 10 Lessons for Surviving a Zombie Attack 1. Organize before they rise! 2. They feel no fear, why should you?3. Use your head: cut off theirs.4. Blades don’t need reloading.5. Ideal protection = tight clothes, short hair.6. Get up the staircase, then destroy it. 7. Get out of the car, get onto the bike.8. Keep moving, keep low, keep quiet, keep alert!9. No place is safe, only safer. 10. The zombie may be gone, but the threat lives on. Don’t be carefree and foolish with your most precious asset—life. This book is your key to survival against the hordes of undead who may be stalking you right now without your even knowing it. The Zombie Survival Guide offers complete protection through trusted, proven tips for safeguarding yourself and your loved ones against the living dead. It is a book that can save your life.
Words are our Sorcery
by Karl Wiggins
Genres: Writing, Poetry, New Age, Cooking
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.53

Trance Poetry. You know those ….. drifting kinds of thoughts? When it’s easy to believe that someone else is dreaming you? Well that’s Trance Poetry. The purpose of the poems in this book are to try and show how words alone can lift you up and take you places, how they can enchant and bewitch, creating the illusion that just for a few minutes everything’s alright with the world. When I started to write poetry I searched around for subject matter, and chose colour. Not yellow, red and blue, but Paprika, Jet, Ochre, Huckleberry Blue, Fiesta etc. and went inside trying to see where that ‘colour’ would take me. From this I created a series of poems which I entitled Colour-oetry, and I’ve included these here as well. Only half of this book is poetry, well 56% to be precise. A while ago I took an interest in the parallel lives of the chef and the writer. How the chef creates his magic in the chaotic environment of the kitchen compares well with how the writer creates his hocus-pocus in the peace and quiet of his study. A chef’s wizardry is in his ingredients, whilst a writer’s sorcery is in his words. So I wrote a few chapters on food, following it all over the world at one stage, attempting to paint pictures with my words. But I also focused on the 'writer,' comparing him or her not only to the chef but also to other master tradesmen, even a bricklayer at one stage. Deep down this is the purpose of this book, to discuss the art of the writer and the sorcery in his words. Whether I’ve succeeded or not, only the reader can tell. I’ve finished the book with three chapters on parenting experiences. True stories actually. My goal here is to use the writer’s sorcery to establish emotion and hopefully leave you with a lump in your throat. I hope you enjoy reading this, because I loved writing it!
Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar
by Cheryl Strayed
Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Memoir, Essays, Audiobook, Psychology, Relationships
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.25

Life can be hard: your lover cheats on you; you lose a family member; you can’t pay the bills - and it can be great: you've had the hottest sex of your life; you get that plum job; you muster the courage to write your novel. Sugar - the once-anonymous online columnist at The Rumpus, now revealed as Cheryl Strayed, author of the bestselling memoir Wild - is the person thousands turn to for advice. Tiny Beautiful Things brings the best of Dear Sugar in one place and includes never-before-published columns and a new introduction by Steve Almond.  Rich with humor, insight, compassion - and absolute honesty - this book is a balm for everything life throws our way.
The Leopard
by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa
Genres: Fiction, Classics, Historical Fiction, Italy, Italian Literature, Literature, Novels
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.01

The Leopard is a story of a decadent and dying aristocracy threatened by the forces of revolution and democracy. Set against the political upheavals of Italy in the 1860s, it focuses on Don Fabrizio, a Sicilian prince of immense sensual appetites, wealth, and great personal magnetism. Around this powerful figure swirls a glittering array of characters: a Bourbon king, liberals and pseudo liberals, peasants and millionaires.
A Merciful Secret (Mercy Kilpatrick, #3)
by Kendra Elliot
Genres: Mystery, Romantic Suspense, Thriller, Fiction, Suspense, Romance, Crime
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.35

A pair of ritual murders could expose Mercy Kilpatrick to something terrifying: her own past…Raised off the grid by survivalists, Mercy Kilpatrick believed in no greater safeguard than the backwoods of Oregon. Unforgiven by her father for abandoning the fold for the FBI, Mercy still holds to her past convictions. They’re in her blood. They’re her secrets—as guarded as her private survival retreat hidden away in the foothills.In a cabin near her hideaway, Mercy encounters a young girl whose grandmother is dying from multiple knife wounds. Hundreds of miles away, a body is discovered slashed to death in a similar way. The victims—a city judge and an old woman living in the woods—couldn’t be more different. With the help of police chief Truman Daly, Mercy must find the killer before the body count rises. Mercy knows that the past has an edge on her. So does her family. How can she keep her secrets now…when they’re the only things that can save her?
Call of the Kami
by Teresa Garcia
Genres: Poetry, Mythology, Folklore, Dragons
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.14

The world is a fine tapestry, ever worked and ever evolving upon the loom of spirit. The worlds of the visible and invisible mesh, and sometimes the unseen is glimpsed between the red posts of the torii on a walk in the woods, or at home. The Kami ever call for their Miko, and they are both within us all. The flower of a poem opens her petals to the sun, amidst a garden of other poems.The poetry herein is the product of a Western Woman who has been heavily influenced by the East, and particularly by her researches into Shinto spirituality and Japanese folklore. Although the poems and songs speak for themselves, brief explanations of culture have been included, with a list of resources for further reading in the back.Teresa Garcia is a mother of two living at the foot of the sacred Mount Shasta in Northern California. She has written poetry nearly all her life, and draws upon her love of nature and the intricate webs of life for inspiration.Song of the Dragon VesselI walk the earth upon two feet To be a path for earth and sky to meet. A vessel for the crystal light Shining ever with love and might. I guide the other to see The waiting dragons that patient be. I search for those of my race Though separated by time and place. A voice for their Voice I chose to be Until all finally grasp their Eternity.
A Dad After God's Own Heart: Becoming the Father Your Kids Need
by Jim George
Genres: Parenting, Christian
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.23

Dads, Be #1 for Your KidsWhat does it take to become a great dad? The question alone might overwhelm you, but it's really more simple than you might think. It all starts with having a heart for God, and a heart for your kids.In A Dad After God's Own Heart, bestselling author Jim George shares the basics for how to be a good dad with your kids, including...letting your kids know you love and care for themlearning the keys to positive and effective communicationknowing the qualities kids need most in a dadways to encourage your children in their spiritual growthhow to build healthy relationships that will last for a lifetimeAs you commit to learning how to become the dad your kids need, you'll not only draw closer to your children, but you'll find incredible blessings in fatherhood.
The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit
by Michael Finkel
Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Audiobook, Memoir, Nature, Biography Memoir, True Crime
Average rating on Goodreads: 3.89

Many people dream of escaping modern life, but most will never act on it. This is the remarkable true story of a man who lived alone in the woods of Maine for 27 years, making this dream a reality--not out of anger at the world, but simply because he preferred to live on his own.In 1986, a shy and intelligent twenty-year-old named Christopher Knight left his home in Massachusetts, drove to Maine, and disappeared into the forest. He would not have a conversation with another human being until nearly three decades later, when he was arrested for stealing food. Living in a tent even through brutal winters, he had survived by his wits and courage, developing ingenious ways to store edibles and water, and to avoid freezing to death. He broke into nearby cottages for food, clothing, reading material, and other provisions, taking only what he needed but terrifying a community never able to solve the mysterious burglaries. Based on extensive interviews with Knight himself, this is a vividly detailed account of his secluded life--why did he leave? what did he learn?--as well as the challenges he has faced since returning to the world. It is a gripping story of survival that asks fundamental questions about solitude, community, and what makes a good life, and a deeply moving portrait of a man who was determined to live his own way, and succeeded.
The Secret of the Nagas (Shiva Trilogy #2)
by Amish Tripathi
Genres: Fiction, Mythology, Fantasy, Indian Literature, Historical Fiction, India, Amish
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.09

Today, He is a God. 4000 years ago, He was just a man. The hunt is on. The sinister Naga warrior has killed his friend Brahaspati and now stalks his wife Sati. Shiva, the Tibetan immigrant who is the prophesied destroyer of evil, will not rest till he finds his demonic adversary. His vengeance and the path to evil will lead him to the door of the Nagas, the serpent people. Of that he is certain. The evidence of the malevolent rise of evil is everywhere. A kingdom is dying as it is held to ransom for a miracle drug. A crown prince is murdered. The Vasudevs Shivas philosopher guides betray his unquestioning faith as they take the aid of the dark side. Even the perfect empire, Meluha is riddled with a terrible secret in Maika, the city of births. Unknown to Shiva, a master puppeteer is playing a grand game. In a journey that will take him across the length and breadth of ancient India, Shiva searches for the truth in a land of deadly mysteries only to find that nothing is what it seems. Fierce battles will be fought. Surprising alliances will be forged. Unbelievable secrets will be revealed in this second book of the Shiva Trilogy, the sequel to the #1 national bestseller, The Immortals of Meluha.
Defending Jacob
by William Landay
Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Audiobook
Average rating on Goodreads: 3.99

Award-winning author William Landay has written the consummate novel of an embattled family in crisis - a suspenseful, character-driven mystery that is also a spellbinding tale of guilt, betrayal, and the terrifying speed at which our lives can spin out of control.Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney in his suburban Massachusetts county for more than twenty years. He is respected in his community, tenacious in the courtroom, and happy at home with his wife, Laurie, and son, Jacob. But when a shocking crime shatters their New England town, Andy is blindsided by what happens next: His fourteen-year-old son is charged with the murder of a fellow student.
Redwall (Redwall, #1)
by Brian Jacques
Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens, Animals, Middle Grade, Adventure
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.13

A quest to recover a legendary lost weapon by bumbling young apprentice monk, mouse Matthias. Redwall Abbey, tranquil home to a community of peace-loving mice, is threatened by Cluny the Scourge savage bilge rat warlord and his battle-hardened horde. But the Redwall mice and their loyal woodland friends combine their courage and strength.
Into the Wild (Warriors, #1)
by Erin Hunter
Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Animals, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Childrens, Adventure
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.31

For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by their warrior ancestors. But the ThunderClan cats are in grave danger, and the sinister ShadowClan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying—and some deaths are more mysterious than others. In the midst of this turmoil appears an ordinary house cat named Rusty . . . who may turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all.
The Gene: An Intimate History
by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Genres: Science, Nonfiction, History, Biology, Medicine, Genetics, Health
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.35

Spanning the globe and several centuries, The Gene is the story of the quest to decipher the master-code that makes and defines humans, that governs our form and function.The story of the gene begins in an obscure Augustinian abbey in Moravia in 1856 where a monk stumbles on the idea of a ‘unit of heredity’. It intersects with Darwin’s theory of evolution, and collides with the horrors of Nazi eugenics in the 1940s. The gene transforms post-war biology. It reorganizes our understanding of sexuality, temperament, choice and free will. This is a story driven by human ingenuity and obsessive minds – from Charles Darwin and Gregor Mendel to Francis Crick, James Watson and Rosalind Franklin, and the thousands of scientists still working to understand the code of codes.This is an epic, moving history of a scientific idea coming to life, by the author of The Emperor of All Maladies. But woven through The Gene, like a red line, is also an intimate history – the story of Mukherjee’s own family and its recurring pattern of mental illness, reminding us that genetics is vitally relevant to everyday lives. These concerns reverberate even more urgently today as we learn to “read” and “write” the human genome – unleashing the potential to change the fates and identities of our children.Majestic in its ambition, and unflinching in its honesty, The Gene gives us a definitive account of the fundamental unit of heredity – and a vision of both humanity’s past and future.
Mind Hunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit
by John E. Douglas
Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime, Psychology, Audiobook, History, Biography
Average rating on Goodreads: 4.08

He has hunted some of the most notorious and sadistic criminals of our time: The Trailside Killer in San Francisco, the Atlanta Child murderer. He has confronted, interviewed and researched dozens of serial killers and assassins, including Charles Manson, Richard Speck, John Wayne Gacy, and James Earl Ray - for a landmark study to understand their motives. To get inside their minds. He is Special Agent John Douglas, the model for law enforcement legend Jack Crawford in Thomas Harris's thrillers Red Dragon and The Silence of the Lambs, and the man who ushered in a new age in behavorial science and criminal profiling. Recently retired after twenty-five years of service, John Douglas can finally tell his unique and compelling story.