About a bar Literature

I'm trying to remember a book I once heard about with a wizard who's a bartender. I think it's urban fantasy.

weird sci-fi book about the "it's all a simulation" theory Literature

it was about these two or three kids who were gonna perform a magic act for a talent show in their town, but when they do it, they black out. after they wake up, they find everyone is gone. everyone is found doing a multitude of strange things, like throwing out all their furniture, and having weird robotic "tentacles or tubes" sprout from parts of their bodies. only a select few others aren't being affected, and the other citizens don't seem to notice the kids.

it was revealed that the whole world is a simulation, and they recently updated humanity while the kids were out, but they didn't update. this has happened throughout history, leaving others unable to communicate or even be perceived by the other people that did update. the entities running the sim offer the kids a way to update if they so wish to rejoin their other friends and family, or stay as is and live in the world as if they don't exist anymore.

Some children's book Literature

So in elementary school, there was this library book about these colorful and cat-like creatures (i think they were called emots or something but when I try to Google search can't find anything) and they each represent sort of an emoji or different personality something like that, and then there is this hovering robot character that has a face shaped like theirs. anyone know this

Man Loses Immortality While Rest of World Becomes Immortal Literature

I had this on my Kindle, but I cannot find it. I do not recall it being a short story, but it might have been. I read this only about three or four years ago, but it was probably older than that. If I remember correctly, it involved a dystopian atmosphere, but I could be entirely wrong with that. Unfortunately, I do not remember much about the book, but all I remember is a man grows up, but cannot die, I cannot remember why. However, he gave up his immortality, so the rest of the world could be immortal, or something of that extent. The last part of the book had his daughter visiting the hospital to see him and he died happily. I think his name was Ralph, but as I said, it was a few years ago, probably quite hazy on the details. I think "time" was somewhere in the title, or had to do with the plot. I know this is not much to go on, but can anyone please help? Any help would truly be appreciated, thank you. I know some of my queries have been difficult to answer lately, but please, I want to know the title of this story.

Edited: I know I have been ignored much by other users here for being "impatient" with my queries, but I come here for help and I know judging from some of the replies others receive, posters are at their best helpful here. The queries might be perhaps more bumps than guesses or direct answers, but sometimes from what I notice anyway the queries are answered, or at least in an effort to be. I cannot make anyone answer, but I would appreciate any answer, even if it is merely a guess. I deserve help here too, and again, if I did not think well of this site, I would not post here. My queries might also be vague, but I think I provide more useful information than not. Look, for any past behavior, I truly apologize, but I know at least some of you are least quite knowledgeable with the queries. Just had to put this out there, and yes, I am still looking for the title.

YA book series with black and gold cover, about a trial/tournament? Literature

i remember seeing this book back in 2015/2016. the book was a gold foil hardcover with black and white text. i don't remember the description but the book seemed to be about a tournament or contest of some kind and there was a central number, i think it was 13? the book also had a sequel with a red foil hardcover and silver text. this is all i remember unfortunately.

STILL UNSOLVED Man jumps, son ceases to exist, short horror/sci fi story from a collection Literature

This is all I know:

1. Someone here said that they remember reading something like this. They cannot remember basically anything, except that the cover had a monochrome appearance, largely white with some design in the middle in darker color, covered about a quarter to a third of the cover, and was centered.

2. Someone on Yahoo answers said that Joe Hill (author of Dark Carousel) writes these type of stories.

3. I read this on a horror collection I downloaded in 2015-2017, it was fairly new then. I have tried searching on my Kindle and found nothing.

4. This occurs in the story. A man jumps off a building or balcony (quite possibly suicide), I think a father. The mother and son (how old he was I am not entirely sure) were watching news. Suddenly, the son's body slowly disappears, first I think his legs, then his arms, as this happens, his mother screams, "Eli (I think that was his name), look down at yourself ..." He was ceasing to exist. I cannot remember the ending, but knowing how these stories turn out, I think it was not a happy one.

5. I thought it was the collection, "the Seer of Possibilities - And Other Disturbing Tales" by Thomas O or "Choose Your Doom: Collected Short Stories - Picking Stories for the Apocalypse." Apocalypse seems quite familiar for some reason. Something is telling me that this is from one of the Twisted Endings books by author Timothy D Mclendon, but unfortunately, though I downloaded the entire volumes from Amazon, they were returned, for some reason, they are currently unavailable. I will check E-bay.

6. I asked this (of course here), Reedit, Booksleuth, Yahoo Answers, Do You Remember.co.uk, three horror forums, and I sent this in to my local library. The librarian who was probably the most helpful of anyone, asked this approximately to 500 librarians and not one knew.

Now, I know this is very vague, but I know this must seem familiar to at least someone here, I know tons read horror, and searching several of the queries, people here are quite helpful and have made tons of guesses, and half even led to correct answers, and the queries are even vague. Now, only TWO people have helped, and I wish more would, the majority of the responses are bumps. This is discouraging and I do not know who else to ask. I will find this out by myself if I have to, but as I said, I know several of you read horror, and this must ring bells for someone here. PLEASE HELP.

Two teenagers and piggy bank Literature

In eighth grade, my class read a book about two teenagers who befriended a man after they prank call him. The man has a room in his house full of piggy banks, I think. The teenagers throw a party at his home and that results in the man having a heart attack.

Book With Record Player Needle on Jeans Literature

I'm trying to remember the title of a book I borrowed from one of my second cousins forever ago... It was about a kid who, if I'm remembering correctly, learned about how records play sounds because of the grooves in them (or something) and tries running a record player needle on his jeans, only to discover that someone recorded a plea for help in his jeans. I really don't remember how he went to save people or whatever, but I do remember a moment where he was in a jam and managed to find a solution by running the needle over his fingerprint.

chapter book about kid's dental work picking up alien invasion Literature

When I was a kid in the 90s, there was a book in the library about a kid who got braces or fillings picking up radio transmissions and having plenty of fun with that until his friend suggests that he try biting a chain link fence and overhears an alien invasion force. I remember he could turn it on and off and maybe change frequencies when he "put his tongue on his tooth".

Chapter book about kids finding piece of alien tech that does everything Literature

When I was in elementary school in the 90s there was a chapter book they read to us about a couple of boys finding a kind of Swiss Army alien tech that through mysterious means would do just about anything and could improve the performance of anything someone who didn't understand how it worked could wire it into. I have a strong memory of it being titled "The Gizmo", but the only book that comes up by that name, by Paul Jennings, doesn't look like what we read and I can't get enough info to confirm.

Sci Fi Middle Grade Book Literature

I've asked this before months ago, but I forgot it bc ADHD loves obstructing my life.

The book, the first in a trilogy, is about a boy, probably an orphan, who really likes comics, much to the chagrin of his guardians at the orphanage. I don't remember a lot of what happens in between but I remember that this boy gets taken to a futuristic city full of a Hodge podge of races clearly based on comic book tropes (aliens, vikings, robots etc).

The cover is reddish or brown, and on it there's the silhouette of the boy who's looking up at a gigantic statue in the city.

If anyone could help I'd be very thankful!

Short story where middle schoolers give an alien a thermos Literature

There's a short story that features an alien who comes to Earth in search of a legendary device that can keep cold things cold and hot things hot. He is given a thermos by a group of middle school-aged children. While it is rather odd that a star-faring civilization could arise without this knowledge, if memory serves it was portrayed as a rite of passage of sorts for the alien's people. I have vague recollections of reading this back in middle / junior high school, so it had to be first published before 2003 at the latest.

Pendulum story Literature

I remember reading a short story long ago, not sure if anyone has read it. What I remember is that there was a kid in bed with no sound other than the ticking of the pendulum on his clock. I don't remember why, but for whatever reason he opened the clock and grabbed the pendulum, stopping it. However, it ends up stopping time completely.

That's all I remember.

Looking for short story in a collection book Literature

I’m looking for a story about an overly angry man, his house after years of abuse from the man attacks him back while he’s in the bathroom. Think there's a razor involved.

Thanks.

sci fi horror anthology for kids? Literature

I remember getting this book through a Schoolastic book order. I remember a few of the shorts:

• The first short one had this kid whose mom invented an immortality drug and he took it despite being told not to and got I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream'd between layers of building construction. But he was also a really unlikable protagonist because he feels super entitled to anything he wants and had his butler decapitate an immortal monkey to see for himself if it worked (I think he also did something awful to his dog??)

• And then there was one where a girl found a phone to the future in her dad's work office(science lab?) and starts talking to this girl who lives in the future. She asks the girl from the future when and how she'll die, and the girl from the future looks up her death records, and tells her she and her whole family died in a plane crash at a specific time on the night on the day they're planning to travel for Thanksgiving. She manages to convince her parents to drive instead of fly, and she thinks she's in the clear, but actually they just crossed time zones, and a plane makes an emergency landing on the highway, running over their car.

• This teenage girl is babysitting a boy at the park, but is doing her homework and only halfway paying attention to her surroundings. At first there's only one other kid (I think in a red shirt and blue pants? Different clothes than the boy she's babysitting) there, but as time goes on the number of kids in red shirts and blue pants keeps increasing. And she sometimes sees one coming out of the tube slide but never actually sees one climb up the back. And she eventually realizes that they're all the same kid, but they swarm her and throw her down the tube slide. The support pillar holding up the middle of the tube slide is actually a pipe, and she falls down it into this mass that's creating the kids by budding, and it starts to digest her. It ends with her thinking something ironic about recycling soda cans.

Anyone remember this?

Kids Space Book Series Literature

I remember this book series I got as a kid. It was a nonfiction series, and each book was about space. Each book also came with a kit that had to do with the topic. I remember one book was about the sun and the moon, and had beads that reacted to UV light. Another book was about the possibility of aliens, and had little toys you could use to make your own alien. Another book I believe was about spacecraft

Other toys included an inflatable ball in the shape of the earth and a pump you could use to make marshmallows expand.

It may have been in different issues. The latest the series could have came out was mid-2000's

YA (Mystery?) Timeline Swap Novel Literature

It's a novel about a boy and a girl in two similar timelines, but with one key difference. I can't remember exactly what it was, but I'm pretty sure it involved a train accident and the death of a family member. At some point, for whatever reason, they switch, and they have to figure out what's going on. I'm pretty sure the following details are important to the story, but there's a possibility that I could be mixing it up with something else: The property that they live on is very important - there is a graveyard nearby that contains a name that is important to the story, and (I think?) there was a murder in the past in the house. I think it takes place during the wintertime. The details are a bit fuzzy, but that's what I remember. Thank you!

YA sci-fi book Literature

The book takes place in a sci-fi-ish dystopia where half the planet is controlled by dinosaurs (or dinosaur-like creatures).

The protagonist is a young person (I think they were a girl, late teenage years) who lives in a poor place where a deadly disease is spreading.

They join a competition with some vaguely 'hunger games'-like elements to go on an expedition to the place where the dinosaurs are in control. This competition involves both diving and climbing a cliff.

They end up succeeding and end up being challenged to collect something (dinosaur eggs?) on this expedition, and end up meeting someone from a previous expedition.

I remember something ending up being a trick in the ending? There was some big plot twist? It might have been the first of a series?

I read this book in around 2018-2019 and it was from the school library. I remember the cover of the book looking slightly odd somehow?

Reoccurring Life book Literature

I'm looking for a book that I really liked but was only able to read the first few pages before giving it back to the library Basically, the premise was pretty simple-this guy keeps living his life over and over. I only read up to 3 lifetimes-he lives his first one normally, the second one I think he's a bit spooked and kills himself (I don't remember the second iteration too well) . The third one, he tries to live normally for a bit before deciding to confide in his wife or someone like that. He gets put into a psychiatric ward, and because it was round about 60s-70s at the time I think, is treated terribly and dies of a pill overdose. That's all I read up to. Please tell me if you know what book this is! I've been looking for like, 3 years now.

Some kind of short story I read in school. Literature

It was in a digest-size magazine. Other issues had Tell-Tale Heart, and a story bout the Beatles. But this story was about a woman who invented an immortality serum, only for it to be stolen by her teenage son, who (after taking it) fell into a pothole, which was then filled with concrete, leading to an "and I must scream" ending.

Short sci-fi stories (solved 2 out of 3) Literature

As a kid with no internet in the 2000s, I was a frequent library visitor. I especially liked sci-fi anthologies, some of them probably relatively old. Some stories I remember to this day and they bug me to no end.

1 story: The protagonist lands on another planet. There are human-like aliens there who implant some kind of gemstones into their foreheads which gives them telepathy/mind control powers. They do the same to the protagonist. They use those stones to control animals (I remember somebody controlling a bird and looking through its eyes) but turns out there is another species of aliens that can do the same to humans. I think this was actually their planet originally, and the human-like ones are descendants of those who crash-landed there like the protagonist. The other aliens are giants with very long lifespan, but as they grow older, they start turning to stone. Almost all of them are dead now, only one is still alive, but he's mostly stone, so he can't even move. In the end, the protagonist escapes the planet. While he's on a spaceship that's about to destroy the alien, the protagonist telepathically contacts him, half-expecting the alien to try to mind-control him to stop the countdown. But the alien is almost glad because he's been so lonely, he'd rather die than remain the last of his species.

2 story (SOLVED): There is a city that's surrounded by a huge wall and no one knows what's behind it. Eventually, people manage to climb to the top. The wall continues to the horizon and an expedition sets out to see where it ends. They walk for a very long time. As they walk, the sun doesn't set, but it looks like it's dimming and everything is getting darker. Then the sun starts to brighten again and they see the end of the wall. But when they reach it, they see their own city. It's stated that the wall is like a Mobius strip: it doesn't have other side. (But for some reason I thought that the expedition didn't end up in their city, but in some parallel reality version of it.)

3 story (SOLVED): The protagonist gets a job as an assistant for a Houdini-type escape artist stage magician. He falls in love with a woman who is another assistant and in relationship with the magician. Except the magician is a jerkass who treats her badly, and the protagonist wants to get rid of him. There is a big show being planned where the magician is going to get inside a Klein bottle, but getting out of it is supposed to be impossible. The magician knows he can't do it for real, so he is planning to surreptitiously replace the Klein bottle with a replica while on the stage, but when the show starts, the protagonist doesn't switch bottles. The magician realizes this only when he's already half-way inside the bottle. He can't get out and breaking the bottle would kill him, so he is stuck there forever.

A book where the man is being chased inside a building Literature

It's an old book with a black paperback cover. Everyone wants the protagonist dead. Most parts of the book cover the chase between the protagonist and his killer (or killers? I don't remember). I also remember him creating a weapon using kitchen ingredients in one of the chapters.

Kids' book where a boy tells stories to his grandpa (Solved) Literature

The book was pretty short, I read it in less than a hour as a kid. The boy has a lot of brothers, one older and several younger, and his grandfather works in a lighthouse. The lighthouse is mentioned to have one huge step in the stairs. The boy tells his grandpa about bad stuff that's happened to him, but his grandpa always has a worse story, like when the boy ran out of toilet paper and the grandpa was bitten on the head by a shark. But then the boy remembers the time when his older brother tricked him to walking on the road when he was little. He did this because their grandma always gave the bigger candy to the boy who could answer correctly to her question or something? And one time the protagonist answered correctly and the older brother was jealous. The main boy was wearing a bunny costume for some reason when this happened, and the older brother was punished for this by making him wash the younger brothers' diapers

Edit: It's Legend of the Worst Boy in the World

Looking for a kids book about a princess Literature

I’m driving myself crazy trying to remember a book I listened to on cd as a kid

The main character was a princess, I think. She was definitely high class.

She would lecture the male lead every time he said the word stomach. I distinctly remember the line “Don’t say stomach, it’s vulgar”

At one point they end up in a school with some black paths that brainwashed you if you walked on them. I remember one of the evil school’s classroom reading things was a dark version of Mary had a Little Lamb that ended with Mary getting stoned to death for breaking the rules.

Book about an African girl with a red cover Literature

As a kid, I remember reading this novel. It was about a girl who lives in an isolated African village with her grandmother. The grandmother tells the girl stories and teaches her how to forage for food in the forest. Apparently one of the girl's parents left for the city some time before (her mother, I think). A bunch of people also come and make a small lake(?) for the village, allowing them to fish. The grandmother disapproved of the lake for some reason. One day, famine comes upon the village. The lake is overfished, and the surrounding forest scoured dry for food. The grandmother dies of malnutrition after months of giving the majority of her food to the girl.

I don't quite remember why, but the girl sees a white heron standing in the lake and takes it as a sign to go to the city to find her mother. She practices her English in preparation for the trip, wondering at how the words in her native language sound more beautiful and musical when compared to their short and straightforward equivalents of 'flower' and 'dove.'

Does anyone know what book this is?