Literary Criticism Books

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On the sixtieth anniversary of the 1942 roundup of Jews by the French police in the Vel d'Hiv section of Paris, American journalist Julia Jarmond is asked to write an article on this dark episode during World War II and embarks on an investigation that leads her to long-hidden family secrets and to the ordeal of Sarah, a young girl caught up in the raid. Reprint. 75,000 first printing.

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Your one-stop guide to writing and selling books for children <p>Get the tools you need to: <ul> <li>Develop story ideas that work</li> <li>Strengthen your writing skills</li> <li>Improve your work habits</li> <li>Write for different age groups</li> <li>Look at your work critically</li> <li>Submit proposals and manuscripts</li> <li>Find the right publisher for your work</li> <li>Understand and negotiate contracts</li> <li>Work with agents and editors</li> <li>Join the writing community</li> </ul> <p>Do you dream of becoming the next J. K. Rowling? Are you excited about writing for children but have no idea how to begin or where to send your material? Now, respected children's writer Barbara Seuling gives you the essential steps to getting published in the competitive, exciting world of children's literature. <p>From finding story ideas and creating character sketches to plotting, writing dialogue, editing, and revising your work, you'll learn how to complete a manuscript and prepare it for submission. Whether you want to write picture or chapter books, fiction or nonfiction, poetry or plays, Seuling helps you master the different genres and capture a child's interest and imagination, from the early years to young adult. Her fully revised guide also covers the major developments in book publishing, including vital information about using the Internet to research the market and contact publishers. Seuling even discusses recent successes such as the Harry Potter series, as well as the growth of Amazon.com. <p>Complete with updated lists of writing organizations, marketing information, and recommended reading, this is the only guide you need to start writing, get published, and touch the lives of children.

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Having spent six decades creating a series of alternate lives designed to bring her fame and fortune while hiding the truth about her tragic past, reclusive and enigmatic Vida Winter finds herself torn by young Margaret Lea's simple request for the truth about her own birth. A first novel. Reprint.

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The acclaimed annual short fiction series--this year featuring guest editor and grandmaster of the macabre Stephen King--showcases the work of such notable authors as Richard Russo, John Barth, Alice Munro, T. C. Boyle, Mary Gordon, Ann Beattie, Jim Shepard, William Gay, Louis Auchincloss, Kate Walbert, and other notables, from a variety of acclaimed sources. Simultaneous.

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A single volume omnibus edition featuring Angelou's celebrated autobiographies contains I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Gather Together in My Name, Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry Like Christmas, The Heart of a Woman, All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes, and A Song Flung Up to Heaven.

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Joseph Boskin changes the way we think about the ordinary joke and its connection to historical forces. Claiming that humor in America is a primary cultural weapon, Boskin surveys and analyzes the multitude of joke cycles that have swept the country during the last fifty years. Dumb Blonde jokes. Elephant jokes. Jewish-American Princess jokes. Lightbulb jokes. Rebellious Laughter brings together everyday language, social interaction, and cultural warfare to form a brilliant social history. In this important survey, readers will find humor from sources as diverse as the U.S. itself: jokes from whites, blacks, women, and Hispanics; conservatives and liberals; public workers and university students; the powerless and power brokers. With wit and insight Boskin notes how humor is a cultural tool that can be both a divisive and a coalescing force behind social change and conflict. He argues that jokes provide a cultural barometer of concerns and anxieties, frequently appearing in our day-to-day language long before these issues become grist for stand-up comics. Laughter, he states, is transformative, the means by which Americans grapple with incongruities that all too often can undercut lofty expectations and ideals.

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From apple cars and bugdozers to yellow taxicabs and zippermobiles, follow all kinds of vehicles through the alphabet with Richard Scarry's colorful characters. Full-color illustrations.

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"Intelligent and informative. Two aspects are especially valuable. [Felsenstein] makes more extensive use than previous writers of ephemeral literature--tracts, periodicals, chapbooks, sermons, and so forth; and he analyses pictorial evidence, which in practice means satirical prints, with as much care as the written word."-John Gross, Times Literary SupplementIn Anti-Semitic Stereotypes, Felsenstein focuses on English cultural attitudes toward Jews during what is known as the "longer" eighteenth century, from roughly 1660 through 1830. He describes the persistence through the period of certain negative biases that, in many cases, can be traced back at least to the late Middle Ages. Felsenstein finds evidence of these biases in a wide range of primary sources-chapbooks, ephemeral pamphlets, tracts, jest books, prints, folklore, proverbial expressions, and so on, as well as in the products of higher culture. With the advent of the nineteenth century, however, he sees a gradual development of more liberal attitudes in English society, "inchmeal evidence of the loosening hold upon the collective imagination of medieval beliefs concerning the Jews.""Felsenstein's book shows just how widespread and persistent . . . stereotyping was and makes available for further analysis a considerable amount of new information, especially pictorial evidence, which he analyzes brilliantly."-James Shapiro, Shakespeare Quarterly"Felsenstein's enormously absorbing, fluent yet provocative study ultimately questions the defeat of the image of Jewish 'Otherness' . . . If the traditional Whig version of history would point towards the triumph of a cosy English tolerance, Felsenstein's study provides powerful support to those scholars of minorities in Britain who would point to the persistence of prejudice."-Mark Levene, Notes and Queries"A luminous and scholarly survey of a familiar subject from a fresh perspective."-Michael Shinagel, The Age of Johnson"An excellent example of intelligent, learned, and informative cultural history."-Vincent Carretta, Albion

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This magnificent new edition is designed for readers with some acquaintance with Old English who are coming to Beowulf for the first time. Beowulf consists of four parts: an introduction; text and notes; an account of how the editors arrived at their text; and a section devoted to giving the background to the poem. It includes relevant shorter texts and key illustrations. The interpretations of the poem reflect the best scholarly view on each point, often a majority consensus among editors and scholars, rather than original interpretations of the editors. This edition encourages the reader by including minimal notes and emendations. The editors adopt a detached and impersonal presentation, except in a short section where they individually explain their own differing views about the poem. The volume does not attempt to conceal the existence of phonological and metrical problems, or of variant readings, but actively discusses such problems or readings only where these may affect the meaning of the poem. Leslie Webster's important contribution to the edition and a discussion of what Klaeber calls the poem's 'fabulous' and 'historical' elements provide the reader with a comprehensive contextual account.

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A critical study of the ancient Babylonian epic of Gilgamesh describes its composition around 1200 B.C., its loss in 600 B.C. during the destruction of the library of King Ashurbanipal, its rediscovery and deciphering in the nineteenth century, and the fast-paced story itself of a great Middle Eastern hero and his exploits. Reprint. 30,000 first printing.

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Take a tour around the barnyard and find out who's making all those animal sounds.

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Published to coincide with the 150th edition of the first publication of the book, a new edition of the classic text retains all the wisdom and power of the original memoir of an experiment in simplicity conducted on the shores of Massachusetts pond in the 1840s.

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This one-volume anthology surveys the major works of Spanish literature of the millennium! An introduction with historical and literary data as well as information on critical trends puts each section into its historical context. A brief introduction to the author's work precedes each selection.

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In this study Richard Lehan argues that The Great Gatsby is one of the greatest American novels, crafted of rich symbolism and a narrative style that reflects the moral ambiguity of the 1920s period it depicts.

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The original CliffsNotes study guides offer a look into key elements and ideas within classic works of literature. The latest generation of titles in this series also features glossaries and visual elements that complement the familiar format. <p> <i>CliffsNotes on Fahrenheit 451</i> explores a twenty-fourth century world in which books are considered evil because they inspire people to think and to question. <p> Following the story of a 30-year-old fireman who's spent the last decade destroying books for a living, this study guide&#160;features a graphical map to show how the novel's characters relate to one another. In addition, CliffsNotes provides character analyses that take you deeper into the minds and mechanical workings of Ray Bradbury's famous social criticism.&#160; Other features that help you figure out this important work include <ul> <li>Personal background on the author <li>Synopsis of the book and a look at major themes <li>Summaries and commentaries on each part of the book <li>Review section that features multiple-choice questions, quoted passages, and suggested essay topics and practice projects <li><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Resource</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> with books, articles, and Web sites that can help round out your knowledge </ul> <p> Classic literature or modern-day treasure - you'll understand it all with expert information and insight from CliffsNotes study guides.

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Robert Fagles, winner of the PEN/Ralph Manheim Medal for Translation and a 1996 Academy Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters presents us with his universally acclaimed modern verse translation of the world's greatest war story. Rage-Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus' son Achilles, murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaeans countless losses, hurling down to the House of Death so many sturdy souls... Thus begins the stirring story of the Trojan War and the rage of Achilles that has gripped listeners and readers for 2,700 years. This timeless poem still vividly conveys the horror and heroism of men and gods wrestling with towering emotions and battling amidst devastation and destruction, as it moves inexorably to its wrenching, tragic conclusion. Renowned classicist Bernard Knox observes in his superb Introduction that although the violence of the Iliad is grim and relentless, it co-exists with both images of civilized life and a poignant yearning for peace. Combining the skills of a poet and scholar, Robert Fagles brings the energy of contemporary language to this enduring heroic epic. He maintains the drive and metric music of Homer's poetry, and evokes the impact and nuance of the Iliad's mesmerizing repeated phrases in what Peter Levi calls "an astonishing performance."