Search results for ""pantheon""

Now back in print and timed for its 50th anniversary—the landmark book Origins of Marvel Comics by Stan Lee! Originally published in 1974, Origins of Marvel Comics features the first appearance of characters who have dominated the pantheon of Marvel’s modern storytelling mythology—Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, Thor, and Doctor Strange—along with a second Silver Age tale featuring these special heroes, all hand-picked and introduced by the one and only Stan Lee, and serving as an essential showcase for writers and artists such as Stan himself, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, John Romita, and Marie Severin. Whether viewed as a historical artifact that launched an industry of presenting Marvel Comics to a broad audience of fans or a collection of the best in Silver Age comics by many of the greatest creators to ever put pencil to paper, Origins of Marvel Comics highlights both the lasting greatness of these iconic characters

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Lord Ganesha is the elephant-headed deity of the Hindu pantheon, called upon for assistance with the beginning of new projects and helping to remove obstacles that might show up in your path. This deluxe illustrated journal features Ganesha-inspired musings from bestselling author and spiritual teacher, Angela Hartfield, as well as quotes from renowned Hindu scriptures to help you to express your inner-most thoughts, count your multitude of blessings and work on clearing any creative or emotional blocks that hold you back from fulfilling your true potential.Ekaterina Golovanova''s vibrant Ganesha artworks are interspersed throughout, offering a powerful way to connect with this spiritual guide''s jovial and uplifting energy. As you explore your journaling practice and nurture your connection with Lord Ganesha, may your love of self deepen and your confidence grow ever greater.It features cream-coloured premium quality wood-free paper, with a combination of lined and unlined pages so yo

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'What we ought to do, as writers, is seize freedom now, immediately, by recognizing that we already have it.'Cynthia Ozick, one of 'the greatest living American writers', has, over a lifetime of observation, produced some of the sharpest and most influential works of criticism in contemporary Anglo-American writing. Described as the 'Emily Dickinson of the Bronx' and 'one of the most accomplished and graceful literary stylists of her time', her acclaimed works span topics from Henry James to Helen Keller, and from Christian Heroism to lovesickness. The essays selected here come from the six volumes Ozick published in the USA over the last thirty-three years. Collected by David Miller, Ozick's friend and agent, they represent the diversity, curiosity, originality, and crackling wit of her works. A volume to treasure, to re-read and to relish, this is Cynthia Ozick, 'the Athena of America's literary pantheon', at her very best.

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Neil Gaiman, long inspired by ancient mythology in creating the fantastical realms of his fiction, presents a bravura rendition of the Norse gods and their world from their origin though their upheaval in Ragnarok. In Norse Mythology, Gaiman stays true to the myths in envisioning the major Norse pantheon: Odin, the highest of the high, wise, daring, and cunning; Thor, Odin’s son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods; and Loki—son of a giant—blood brother to Odin and a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator. Gaiman fashions these primeval stories into a novelistic arc that begins with the genesis of the legendary nine worlds and delves into the exploits of deities, dwarfs, and giants. Through Gaiman’s deft and witty prose, these gods emerge with their fiercely competitive natures, their susceptibility to being duped and to duping others, and their tendency to let passion ignite their actions, making these long-ago myths breathe pungent life again.

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A comprehensive account of music in Florence from the late Middle Ages until the end of the Medici dynasty in the mid-eighteenth century. Florence is justly celebrated as one of the world’s most important cities. It enjoys mythic status and occupies an enviable place in the historical imagination. But its musico-historical importance is not as well understood as it should be. If Florence was the city of Dante, Michelangelo, and Galileo, it was also the birthplace of the madrigal, opera, and the piano. Music in Golden-Age Florence, 1250–1750 recounts Florence’s principal contributions to music and the history of how music was heard and cultivated in the city, from civic and religious institutions to private patronage and the academies. This book is an invaluable complement to studies of the art, literature, and political thought of the late-medieval and early-modern eras and the quasi-legendary figures in the Florentine cultural pantheon.

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Le thème de la création du monde, c’est-à-dire des cieux, de la terre et de l’humanité, est d’une importance capitale pour bien saisir l’argumentaire et la rhétorique mis en place par le Deutéro-Isaïe (Is 40–55). Pour ce prophète, il s’agit de convaincre les exilés judéens que leur Dieu était bel et bien à l’œuvre et qu’il était donc responsable de la chute de Babylone (539 av. J.-C.) et de leur libération. L’enjeu était immense: qui, de YHWH ou de Marduk, chef du panthéon babylonien, avait appelé, guidé et aidé le roi perse Cyrus dans sa conquête de Babylone? Cette étude, inspirée des approches postcoloniales, analyse de manière approfondie les textes isaïens où le thème de la création du monde est abordé, et démontre qu’ils mettent en place un contre-discours prenant le contrepied de la version officielle de la conquête de Babylone, le Cylindre de Cyrus – jusque dans ses arguments.

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Now back in print and timed for its 50th anniversary—the landmark book Origins of Marvel Comics by Stan Lee! A deluxe, collector’s edition of the original Origins of Marvel Comics including a new cover, essays, and more. Originally published in 1974, Origins of Marvel Comics features the first appearance of characters who have dominated the pantheon of Marvel’s modern storytelling mythology—Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, Thor, and Doctor Strange—along with a second Silver Age tale featuring these special heroes, all hand-picked and introduced by the one and only Stan Lee, and serving as an essential showcase for writers and artists such as Stan himself, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, John Romita, and Marie Severin. Whether viewed as a historical artifact that launched an industry of presenting Marvel Comics to a broad audience of fans or a collection of the best in Silver Age comics by many of the greatest creator

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In early 1969, New York City and all it represented was in disarray: politically, criminally, and athletically. But while Simon and Garfunkel lamented the absence of a sports icon like Joe DiMaggio, a modern Lancelot rode forth to lead the New York Mets to heights above and beyond all sports glory. This book tells the complete, unvarnished story of the great Tom Seaver, that rarest of all American heroes, the New York Sports Icon. In a city that produces not mere mortals but sports gods, Seaver represented the last of a breed. His deeds, his times, his town—it was part of a vanishing era, an era of innocence. In 1969, six years after John F. Kennedy’s assassination, Seaver and the Mets were the last gasp of idealism before free agency, Watergate, and cynicism. Here is the story of “Tom Terrific” of the “Amazin’ Mets,” a man worthy of a place alongside DiMaggio, Ruth, Mantle, and Namath in the pantheon of New York idols.

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As a master of realism, Jerome Witkin illustrates in his art the moral plight of everyday lives. His most complex and critically acclaimed works-intense, often disturbing scenes of the Holocaust-have earned him a growing international audience. This second edition of Life Lessons incorporates material from the past decade, including ten of his most important and provocative paintings. It brings the viewer in intimate contact with the dense interior landscapes of both people and places. Often regarded as belonging to an artistic pantheon including the work of Lucien Freud, Manet, Ingres, Goya, and Courbet, Witkin's paintings range from moody urban landscapes and penetrating portraits to intimate figure studies and vivid, psychologically charged tableaux, frequently referencing seminal moments in history. Witkin's newer work includes an enormous six-panel exploration of Dachau's 1945 liberation (Entering Darkness, 2001)his culmination of a twenty-year series on the Holocaust, regarded by critics as among the most compelling of paintings made on the subject.

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I saw a tramp last night the way the old dog walked with dotted, tired fur down nobody's alley being nobody's dog ...past the empty vodka bottles past the peanut butter jars, with wires full of electricity and the birds asleep somewhere, down the alley he went - nobody's dog moving through it all, brave as any army. In the literary pantheon, Charles Bukowski remains a counterculture icon, a writer and poet of sublime talent who, as Leonard Cohen aptly remarked, brought everybody down to earth, even the angels. A hard-drinking wild man of literature, a stubborn outsider to the poetry world, he has struck a chord with generations of readers, writing raw, tough poetry about booze, work, and women that speaks to his fans as being real and, like the work of the Beats, even dangerous. "The Continual Condition" demonstrates once again this uncompromising commentator's fierce ability to capture the heartbreaking pain and dark beauty of our world.

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A heady, rapturous novel of love and self-discovery in the south of France written by famed publisher Helen Wolff, based on her early life with Kurt WolffIn a giddy rush, a young woman and her older lover escape the rising fascism of 1930s Berlin for a summer vacation on the Côte d'Azur. As they drive along stunning bays and linger over sumptuous meals, they are enchanted by each other. But their harmony soon falters, and the woman decides she must leave in search of a cottage of her own near Saint-Tropez. There, amid the vineyards and lemon trees, she will forge startling new connections and pass an unforgettable summer of independence and freedom.Background for Love is an autobiographical novel by the great publisher Helen Wolff, who together with her husband, Kurt Wolff, set up Pantheon Books in America after fleeing Nazi Germany. In the fascinating companion essay, historian Marion Detjen, the author's great-niece, delves into the basis of the novel i

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Tom's new anthology contains a wide pantheon of supernatural beings, from the dangerous Blue Men of the Minth and the jealous mermaid of Caithness to the gentle selkie folk who live between two worlds in stories harvested from the coastlines, lochs and islands of his native lead.' - Coast magazine Book of the MonthScotland has over 11,600 miles of coastline, so it's no surprise that the sea and shore have been inspiring folk tales for millennia.In Scottish Folk Tales of Coast and Sea, Orkney storyteller Tom Muir weaves tales from this lore-steeped shoreline, finding selkie folk, pirates and even the devil in the liminal space between land and sea. Learn how death was captured in a nut, how a mermaid wreaked her revenge and how whirlpools were created. Discover a land beneath the waves, the mysterious island of Tir-nan-Og and a chorus of demon cats but beware the most grotesque monster of them all, the hideous Nuckela

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The hit holiday fantasy series from beloved and award-winning duo Grant Morrison and Dan Mora comes in a new format, as the perfect prelude to Christmas!Klaus must help an absentee dad-turned-snowman make amends before melting away for good. And probably before he''s defeated by a pantheon of Norse Gods and their minions. All in a day''s work for Santa Claus. And then see Klaus in the role of father himself, as he takes in Joe Christmas as an infant and guides him through all of life''s wild adventures in a holiday calendar-inspired comic, presented in a special widescreen format. The smash-hit from superstars Grant Morrison (Doom Patrol, Superman and The Authority) and Dan Mora (Batman, Once & Future) returns with this special collection of holiday-themed stories. Collects Klaus and the Crying Snowman #1 and Klaus and the Life & Times of Joe Christmas #1.

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Before Hacks and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, there was the comedienne who started it allFirst Lady of Laughs tells the story of Jean Carroll, the first Jewish woman to become a star in the field we now call stand-up comedy. Though rarely mentioned among the pantheon of early stand-up comics such as Henny Youngman and Lenny Bruce, Jean Carroll rivaled or even outshone the male counterparts of her heyday, playing more major theaters than any other comedian of her period. In addition to releasing a hit comedy album, Girl in a Hot Steam Bath, and briefly starring in her own sitcom on ABC, she also made twenty-nine appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show. Carroll made enduring changes to the genre of stand-up comedy, carving space for women and modeling a new form of Jewish femininity with her glamorous, acculturated, but still recognizably Jewish persona. She innovated a newly conversational, intimate style of stand-up, which is now recog

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The stunning conclusion to the Ouroboros series, a contemporary fantasy duology in which a teen, Gem, finds out they're a reincarnated god from another world. That day at the First Church of Gracie changed everything for Gem Echols, and not just because Marian and Poppy betrayed them. Forced to use the Ouroboros knife on Zephyr, who had kidnapped their parents, Gem now has the power of the God of Air.While for any other god things might work out okay, the Magicianwhose role within the pantheon is to keep the balancehaving the power of another god has thrown everything into chaos. The Goddess of Death can now reanimate corpses; the God of Art's powers are now corrupted and twisted, giving life to his macabre creations; and, while the God of Land has always been able to communicate with creatures of the Earth, now everyone can hear their cries.As Gem, Rory, and Enzo search for a way to restore the balance without sacrificing themselves, new horrors make

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A mortally wounded magistrate faces his deadliest trial inside an ancient abbey where the monks are going mad and the gods themselves may be to blame!Estevar Borros, one of the legendary sword-fighting magistrates known as the Greatcoats and the king''s personal investigator of the supernatural, is no stranger to tales of ghosts and demons. When the fractious monks of the abbey rumoured to be the birthplace of the gods begin warring over claims of a new pantheon arising, the frantic abbot summons him to settle the dispute.But Estevar has his own problems: a near-fatal sword wound from his last judicial duel, a sworn knight who claims he has proof the monks are consorting with demons, a diabolical inquisitor with no love for the Greatcoats, and a mysterious young woman claiming to be Estevar''s ally but who may well be his deadliest enemy.Armed only with his famed investigative talents, his faltering skill with a blade and Imperious, his ornery mule, Es

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'What Fauber does well is humanize these four residents of the pantheon of science... The story is seldom less than fascinating. A readable, enjoyable contribution to the history of science.' - KirkusAn intimate examination of a scientific family - that of Nicolaus Copernicus, Tycho Brahe, Johannes Kepler and Galileo Galilei. Fauber juxtaposes their scientific work with insight into their personal lives and political considerations, which shaped their pursuit of knowledge. Uniquely, he shows how their intergenerational collaboration made the scientific revolution possible. These brave scientists called each other 'brothers', 'fathers' and 'sons', and laid the foundations of modern science through familial co-work. And though the sixteenth century was far from an open society for women, there were female pioneers in this 'family' as well, including Brahe's sister Sophie, Kepler's mother, and Galileo's daughter. Filled with rich characters and sweeping historical scope, this book reveals how the strong connections between these pillars of intellectual history moved science forward.

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A provocative history of race, empire and myth, told through the stories of men who have been worshipped as gods - from Columbus to Prince Philip. Spanning the globe and five centuries, Accidental Gods introduces us to a new pantheon: of man-gods, deified politicians and imperialists, militants, mystics and explorers. From the conquistadors setting foot in the New World to Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, elevated by a National Geographic article from emperor to messiah for the Rastafari faith, to the unlikely officers hailed as gods during the British Raj, this endlessly curious and revelatory account chronicles an impulse towards deification that persists even in a secular age, as show of defiance or assertion of power. In her bravura final part, Subin traces the colonial desire for divinity through to the creation of 'race' and the white power movement today, and argues that it is time we rid ourselves of the white gods among us.

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Peter Ebsworth is a poet in love with the stage. In Krapp's Last Tape, he treads the line between the audience and the performer, an act of voyeurism and ventriloquism that results in tense snippets of verse only relieved by a tongue in cheek humour that is evident throughout. In his persona poems, he embodies a pantheon of pop culture gods and goddesses such as Marlon Brando, Sticky Vicky, the veteran Benidorm erotic entertainer, and Tony Soprano; in other poems he turns the gaze around to observe them as audience. Selected from literary output ranging over 30 years the tone swings from bullish to reflective, aptly mirroring the gamut of emotions that performers embody on stage. Krapp's Last Tape remains, however, firmly rooted in side stage drama - Ebsworth's interest in Pythagoras is focused on his role as a soldier rather than mathematician, and his girl has a lobster tattoo in place of the dragon of myth.

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Poems of Rome ranges across the centuries and contains the work of poets from many cultures and times, from ancient Rome to contemporary America. Designed to lend itself to those visiting the city - whether in person or imagination - the book is divided into sections by place. Its pages lead the reader from the Roman Forum to the Colosseum, from the Vatican to the Villa Sciarra, from the Pantheon to the Palatine Hill, all seen through the eyes of poets who have been dazzled by these glorious sites for centuries. The poets range from Horace, Ovid, Virgil and Martial through Du Bellay and Rilke to Pasolini and Pavese, with a strong cast of 19th-century travellers - Byron, Keats, Wordsworth, Clough, Browning, Swinburne, Hardy, Wilde, Longfellow - and a varied selection of modern poets including Elizabeth Jennings, Cecil Day Lewis, Joseph Brodsky, Jorie Graham, James Wright and Rosanna Warren. A collection as dazzling as the great city itself.

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Baldwin's life and legacy as remembered by a pantheon of artists and writers: from Jamaica Kincaid and Barry Jenkins to Richard Avedon and Alice NeelWhen author James Baldwin died in 1987, he left behind an extraordinary body of work: novels, poems, film scripts and, perhaps most indelibly, essays. A friend and supporter of Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Medgar Evers, Baldwin was a critical voice in the civil rights movement. After reaching acclaim in his early career as a writer, he struggled to retain the author's I, while taking on the we of the people.Edited by Pulitzer Prizewinning author Hilton Als and growing out of his landmark exhibition at David Zwirner in 2019, God Made My Face brings together an impressive assembly of contributors, ranging from Baldwin biographer David Leeming to novelist Jamaica Kincaid and Moonlight director Barry Jenkins, to create a memorial mosaic: one that not only mirrors Baldwin's various tones but

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Sutnar's brilliant structural systems for clarifying otherwise dense industrial data placed him in the pantheon of Modernist pioneers and made him one of the visionaries of what is today called "information design." Visual Design in Action is a snapshot of Sutnar's American period (1939-1976), and includes graphics for Carr's Department Store, advertisements for the Vera Neumann Company, identity for Addo-X, and other stunningly contemporary works. He is best known for his total design concept for the Sweets Catalog Service and lesser known for introducing the parenthesis as a way to typographically distinguish the area code from the rest of a phone number. Visual Design in Action is a testament to the historical relevance of Modernism and the philosophical resonance of Sutnar's focus on the functional beauty of total clarity. This reprint of Visual Design in Action (originally published in limited quantities in 1961) is as spot-on about the power of design and "design thinking" as it ever was.

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A provocative history of race, empire and myth, told through the stories of men who have been worshipped as gods - from Columbus to Prince Philip Spanning the globe and five centuries, Accidental Gods introduces us to a new pantheon: of man-gods, deified politicians and imperialists, militants, mystics and explorers. From the conquistadors setting foot in the New World to Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, elevated by a National Geographic article from emperor to messiah for the Rastafari faith, to the unlikely officers hailed as gods during the British Raj, this endlessly curious and revelatory account chronicles an impulse towards deification that persists even in a secular age, as show of defiance or assertion of power. In her bravura final part, Subin traces the colonial desire for divinity through to the creation of 'race' and the white power movement today, and argues that it is time we rid ourselves of the white gods among us.

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'Gloriously dark, deliciously twisty' CLARE MACKINTOSH ONE FAMILY, TWO HOLIDAYS, ONE DEVASTATING SECRETTo new nanny Amanda, the Temple family seem to have it all: the former actress; the famous professor; their three successful grown-up children. But like any family, beneath the smiles and hugs there lurks far darker emotions.Sixteen years earlier, little Niamh Temple died while they were on holiday in Portugal. Now, as Amanda joins the family for a reunion at their seaside villa, she begins to suspect one of them might be hiding something terrible...And suspicion is a dangerous thing.From Chris Brookmyre, winner of the Theakstons and McIllvanney awards for Black Widow, comes a standalone psychological thriller full of twists, lies and betrayal.PRAISE FOR CHRIS BROOKMYRE'Guaranteed to keep you guessing'Ian Rankin'Extremely sophisticated crime'Sunday Times'Exceptionally good'Guardian'In the pantheon of great crime writers'Elly Griffiths'Scales new heights of invention'Times Literary Supplement'Brookmyre writes beautifully . . . I was hooked'Literary Review

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All roads lead to Rome, the eternal city, the centre of Christendom, the lodestone of the pilgrim and the artist, the seat of the only Empire that has ever succeeded in uniting the European landmass. No literate traveller can escape its fascination, and many get drawn back year after year. Despite the triumphant remains of the forum, Imperial arch, public baths, gilded basilica and palace, it is only the bright flame of passion-filled poetry that can bring it to life. Glyn Pursglove has woven a delicate tapestry of ancient, medieval and modern poetry, from Virgil to Pasolini. It is a truly Olympian cast enough to fill the Pantheon, whose voices magically echo the city and its lessons to us. Who can equal the sensuality, power and crude honesty of Martial and Catullus. An extraordinary treat to read these masters of hungry sexuality, not banished amongst the ancient histories and the classics, but brought hungrily to life beside their poet peers.

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Legendary writer Jonathan Hickman and superstar artist Valerio Schiti dramatically tear down the established celestial hierarchy of the Marvel Universe, and build it back up with fantastic new purpose! At the core of the Marvel Universe there exists a pantheon of omnipotent forces that shape the very building blocks of reality! Many of these strange beings have been around since the earliest days of Marvel Comics, but befitting their roles in the cosmos, their motives and natures have been beyond reach and comprehension... until now! These cosmic entities have faithful servants that walk among us as members of two opposing factions: the powerful mystics of THE-POWERS-THAT-BE and the brilliant scientific minds of THE-NATURAL-ORDER-OF-THINGS. For eons, they''ve clashed and schemed with all of reality hanging in the balance until they formed a fragile pact - all part of a complex system that keeps the universe in balance. But that system is more fragile than anyone would care to admit, an

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Few American entertainers have had the explosive impact, wide-ranging appeal, and continuing popularity of country music superstar Hank Williams. Such Williams standards as "Your Cheatin' Heart," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," "Jambalaya," and "I Saw the Light" have entered the pantheon of great American song while Williams's very name remains synonymous with the genre he helped define. Sing a Sad Songs tells the story of Hank Williams's rise from impoverished Alabama roots, his coming of age during and after World War II, his meteoric climb to national acclaim and star status on the Grand Ole Opry, his star-crossed marriages and recurring health problems, the chronic bouts with alcoholism and the alienation it caused in those he loved and sang for, and finally his tragic death at twenty-nine and subsequent emergence as a folk hero.In addition, the book includes an essential discography compiled by Bob Pinson of the Country Music Foundation.

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Sharing food is one of the purest human acts''Food has always been an integral part of Stanley Tucci's life: from stracciatella soup served in the shadow of the Pantheon, to marinara sauce cooked between rehearsals and costume fittings, to home-made pizza eaten with his children before bedtime.Now, in What I Ate in One Year Tucci records twelve months of eating, in restaurants, kitchens, film sets, press junkets, at home and abroad, with friends, with family, with strangers, and occasionally just by himself.Ranging from the mouth-wateringly memorable, to the comfortingly domestic, to the infuriatingly inedible, the meals memorialized in this diary are a prism through which he reflects on the ways his life, and his family, are constantly evolving. Through food he marks and mourns the passing of time, the loss of loved ones, and prepares himself for what is to come.Whether it's duck à l'orange eaten with fellow actors and cooked by singi

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The story of the Roman Empire’s enormous wine industry told through the remarkable ceramic storage and shipping containers that made it possibleThe average resident of ancient Rome drank two-hundred-and-fifty liters of wine a year, almost a bottle a day, and the total annual volume of wine consumed in the imperial capital would have overflowed the Pantheon. But Rome was too densely developed and populated to produce its own food, let alone wine. How were the Romans able to get so much wine? The key was the dolium—the ancient world’s largest type of ceramic wine and food storage and shipping container, some of which could hold as much as two-thousand liters. In Dolia, classicist and archaeologist Caroline Cheung tells the story of these vessels—from their emergence and evolution to their major impact on trade and their eventual disappearance.Drawing on new archaeological discoveries and unpublished material, Dolia uncovers

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The Doctor, Constance and Flip join forces with 51st century bounty hunter, Calypso Jonze, to hunt down the Somnifax: a weaponised mind-parasite capable of turning its host’s nightmares into physical reality. Chasing it through the time vortex to Providence, Rhode Island in 1937, they arrive too late to stop it from latching onto a local author of weird fiction… Howard Phillips Lovecraft. With time running out before Lovecraft’s monstrous pantheon breaks free and destroys the world, the Doctor must enter Lovecraft’s mind to fight the psychic invader from within. Can he and Flip overcome the eldritch horrors of the Cthulhu Mythos? And will Constance and Calypso survive babysitting the infamously xenophobic Old Gentleman of Providence himself? CAST: Colin Baker (The Doctor), Lisa Greenwood (Flip Jackson), Miranda Raison (Constance Clarke), Robyn Holdaway (Calypso Jonze), Jonathan Andrew Hume (Nyarlathotep/Cthulu), Alan Marriott (Howard Phillips Lovecraft/Randolph Carter), David Menkin (Shoggoth/Wilbur/Armitage). Other parts played by members of the cast.

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Our world is multicultural, multi-religious, multi-philosophical. It ranges from fundamental monotheism to do-it-yourself spirituality to strident atheism. How can Christians authentically and effectively present the message of Jesus the Messiah in such a pluralistic and often relativistic context? When the apostle Paul visited Athens, he found an equally multicultural and multi-religious setting. Religious practices were wide and varied, with the Roman cult of emperor worship being the most prominent. Many also frequented the temples of the traditional Greek pantheon and participated in the secret rituals of the Mystery Religions. In this stimulating and accessible study, Paul Copan and Kenneth Litwak show how Paul's speech to the Athenians in Acts 17 provides a practical model for today. The authors encourage Christians to 'be more biblically informed, culturally astute, and creatively engaged to winsomely challenge the idols of our time and to point contemporary Athenians beyond "an unknown God" to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ'.

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From the iconic, award-winning artist and designer, a graphic memoir of leaving Cuba, becoming American, and fighting for freedom, here and there.'Exhilarating, immensely powerful, gorgeous' PHILIPPE SANDS'Belongs in the pantheon that MAUS built' PRINT MAGAZINE'Shocking, brilliant, soul-shattering . . . this book is so good' CHIP KIDDWhen Fidel Castro opened the Mariel harbour to let Cubans sail for America, Edel Rodriguez and his family took their chance. From the town of El Gabriel to the Mariel port to a rickety shrimping boat bound for Florida, they joined the 1980 boatlift, becoming 'worms', as Castro called the departing Cubans.Years later, Edel Rodriguez has become one of the most prominent political artists of our age, hailed for his iconic work on the cover of Time and on jumbotrons around the world. In stunning visual detail, Worm tells his story - of a boyhood in Cold War Cuba, of a family's courage and displacement and of coming of age as an artist, activist, and American.

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Written by one of the leading scholars of Japanese religion, Protectors and Predators is the second installment of a multivolume project that promises to be a milestone in our understanding of the mythico-ritual system of esoteric Buddhism—specifically the nature and roles of deities in the religious world of medieval Japan and beyond. Bernard Faure introduces readers to medieval Japanese religiosity and shows the centrality of the gods in religious discourse and ritual. Throughout he engages theoretical insights drawn from structuralism, post-structuralism, and Actor-Network Theory to retrieve the “implicit pantheon” (as opposed to the “explicit orthodox pantheon”) of esoteric Japanese Buddhism (Mikky?). His work is particularly significant given its focus on the deities’ multiple and shifting representations, overlappings, and modes of actions rather than on individual characters and functions.In Protectors and Predators Faure argues that the “wild” gods of Japan were at the center of the medieval religious landscape and came together in complex webs of association not divisible into the categories of “Buddhist,” “indigenous,” or “Shinto.” Furthermore, among the most important medieval gods, certain ones had roots in Hinduism, others in Daoism and Yin-Yang thought. He displays vast knowledge of his subject and presents his research—much of it in largely unstudied material—with theoretical sophistication. His arguments and analyses assume the centrality of the iconographic record as a complement to the textual record, and so he has brought together a rich and rare collection of more than 170 color and black-and-white images. This emphasis on iconography and the ways in which it complements, supplements, or deconstructs textual orthodoxy is critical to a fuller comprehension of a set of medieval Japanese beliefs and practices and offers a corrective to the traditional division of the field into religious studies, which typically ignores the images, and art history, which oftentimes overlooks their ritual and religious meaning.Protectors and Predators and its companion volumes should persuade readers that the gods constituted a central part of medieval Japanese religion and that the latter cannot be reduced to a simplistic confrontation, parallelism, or complementarity between some monolithic teachings known as “Buddhism” and “Shinto.” Once these reductionist labels and categories are discarded, a new and fascinating religious landscape begins to unfold.

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The definitive biography of country legend Merle Haggard by the New York Times bestselling biographer of Clint Eastwood, Cary Grant, The Eagles, and more.Merle Haggard was one of the most important country music musicians who ever lived. His astonishing musical career stretched across the second half of the 20th Century and into the first two decades of the next, during which he released an extraordinary 63 albums, 38 that made it on to Billboard's Country Top Ten, 13 that went to #1, and 37 #1 hit singles. With his ample songbook, unique singing voice and brilliant phrasing that illuminated his uncompromising commitment to individual freedom, cut with the monkey of personal despair on his back and a chip the size of Monument Valley on his shoulder, Merle's music and his extraordinary charisma helped change the look, the sound, and the fury of American music.The Hag tells, without compromise, the extraordinary life of Merle Haggard, augmented by deep secondary research, sharp detail and ample anecdotal material that biographer Marc Eliot is known for, and enriched and deepened by over 100 new and far-ranging interviews. It explores the uniquely American life of an angry rebellious boy from the wrong side of the tracks bound for a life of crime and a permanent home in a penitentiary, who found redemption through the music of "the common man."Merle Haggard's story is a great American saga of a man who lifted himself out of poverty, oppression, loss and wanderlust, to catapult himself into the pantheon of American artists admired around the world. Eliot has interviewed more than 100 people who knew Haggard, worked with him, were influenced by him, loved him or hated him. The book celebrates the accomplishments and explore the singer's infamous dark side: the self-created turmoil that expressed itself through drugs, women, booze, and betrayal. The Hag offers a richly anecdotal narrative that will elevate the life and work of Merle Haggard to where both properly belong, in the pantheon of American music and letters.The Hag is the definitive account of this unique American original, and will speak to readers of country music and rock biographies alike.

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Living the Dream tells the history behind the establishment of Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the battle over King's legacy that continued through the decades that followed. Creating the first national holiday to honor an African American was a formidable achievement and an act of resistance against conservative and segregationist opposition. Congressional efforts to commemorate King began shortly after his assassination. The ensuing political battles slowed the progress of granting him a namesake holiday and crucially defined how his legacy would be received. Though Coretta Scott King's mission to honor her husband's commitment to nonviolence was upheld, conservative politicians sought to use the holiday to advance a whitewashed, nationalistic, and even reactionary vision of King's life and thought. This book reveals the lengths that activists had to go to elevate an African American man to the pantheon of national heroes, how conservatives took advantage of the commemoration to bend the arc of King's legacy toward something he never would have expected, and how grassroots causes, unions, and antiwar demonstrators continued to try to claim this sanctified day as their own.

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Explore the world’s most incredible buildings, from the magnificent architecture of the ancient world to green buildings of the present day.Discover the beautiful details, principal elements, and decorative features of every architectural style, from the Great Pyramid of Giza, Machu Picchu, and the Colosseum to the Sydney Opera House, the Gherkin, and Burj Khalifa. Architecture offers a truly worldwide look at historical and contemporary buildings, with breathtaking photography and intriguing cross-sections to enhance your view. See how and why certain features were common in specific time periods and how these amazing buildings have stood the test of time.Unique specially-commissioned CGI artworks throughout the book showcase more than 10 specific buildings, including The Pantheon and the United States Capitol, giving you an pristine view of their features. Clear annotations of each artwork, along with exquisite photography of specific details, make sure that you don’t miss a thing.Presented in a special slipcase, this stunning guide makes the perfect purchase for anyone who is fascinated by our world’s most wondrous buildings.

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Eastern Approaches to Western Film: Asian Aesthetics and Reception in Cinema offers a renewed critical outlook on Western classic film directly from the pantheon of European and American masters, including Alfred Hitchcock, George Lucas, Robert Bresson, Carl Dreyer, Jean-Pierre Melville, John Ford, Leo McCarey, Sam Peckinpah, and Orson Welles. The book contributes an “Eastern Approach” into the critical studies of Western films by reappraising selected films of these masters, matching and comparing their visions, themes, and ideas with the philosophical and paradigmatic principles of the East. It traces Eastern inscriptions and signs embedded within these films as well as their social lifestyle values and other concepts that are also inherently Eastern. As such, the book represents an effort to reformulate established discourses on Western cinema that are overwhelmingly Eurocentric. Although it seeks to inject an alternative perspective, the ultimate aim is to reach a balance of East and West. By focusing on Eastern aesthetic and philosophical influences in Western films, the book suggests that there is a much more thorough integration of East and West than previously thought or imagined.

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As archetypes of human virtue and vice, the gods and heroes of Ancient Greece and Rome have figured prominently in Western culture. In art, they have been portrayed time and time again, especially during the Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassical periods. This volume aims to help museum patrons and art lovers recognize the legendary characters of classical antiquity in art. The characters are each described in entries summarizing their distinctive stories, their special attributes, and the ways in which artists have depicted them. Each entry is illustrated with reproductions of works of art in which the god or hero is pictured, giving readers a chance to examine images of the character and come to understand the work of art better. The guide first surveys the pantheon of the Greco-Roman world, then focuses on characters from the Trojan War and the Odyssey. The next sections describe kings, philosophers, warriors and other historical figures. The work concludes with indexes, including a list of iconographic symbols associated with the subjects, and a bibliography of essential resources.

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The world is configured in ways that seem systematically hospitable to life forms, especially the human race. Is this the outcome of divine planning or simply of the laws of physics? Ancient Greeks and Romans famously disagreed on whether the cosmos was the product of design or accident. In this book, David Sedley examines this question and illuminates new historical perspectives on the pantheon of thinkers who laid the foundations of Western philosophy and science. Versions of what we call the 'creationist' option were widely favored by the major thinkers of classical antiquity, including Plato, whose ideas on the subject prepared the ground for Aristotle's celebrated teleology.But Aristotle aligned himself with the anti-creationist lobby, whose most militant members - the atomists - sought to show how a world just like ours would form inevitably by sheer accident, given only the infinity of space and matter. This stimulating study explores seven major thinkers and philosophical movements enmeshed in the debate: Anaxagoras, Empedocles, Socrates, Plato, the atomists, Aristotle, and the Stoics.

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The first comprehensive intellectual history of alphabet studies. Inventing the Alphabet provides the first account of two-and-a-half millennia of scholarship on the alphabet. Drawing on decades of research, Johanna Drucker dives into sometimes obscure and esoteric references, dispelling myths and identifying a pantheon of little-known scholars who contributed to our modern understandings of the alphabet, one of the most important inventions in human history. Beginning with Biblical tales and accounts from antiquity, Drucker traces the transmission of ancient Greek thinking about the alphabet's origin and debates about how Moses learned to read. The book moves through the centuries, finishing with contemporary concepts of the letters in alpha-numeric code used for global communication systems. Along the way, we learn about magical and angelic alphabets, antique inscriptions on coins and artifacts, and the comparative tables of scripts that continue through the development of modern fields of archaeology and paleography. This is the first book to chronicle the story of the intellectual history through which the alphabet has been "invented" as an object of scholarship.

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Gorgeous Collector's Edition. The Myths of Ancient Egypt are tied intimately to the presence and natural rhythms of the Nile. With their complex and evolving mythology, the Egyptians explained the effects of famine, harvest, floods and death by creating a pantheon of gods that still holds our fascination today. This new book presents classic egyptological works, with a new introduction, and brings the stories of the ancients to life, from the birth of creation by Ra, the sun god, to the murder of Osiris, and the revenge of Horus. We gain glimpses of the underworld and the afterlife, as the rulers of Egypt claimed lineage from the Gods both worshipped and fashioned by the people of Egypt, at a time when humankind had begun to shape the world around it, Flame Tree Collector's Editions present the foundations of speculative fiction, authors, myths and tales without which the imaginative literature of the twentieth century would not exist, bringing the best, most influential and most fascinating works into a striking and collectable library. Each book features a new introduction and a Glossary of Terms.

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The Myths of Ancient Egypt are tied intimately to the presence and natural rhythms of the Nile. With their inventive mythology, the Egyptians explained the effects of famine, harvest, floods and death by creating a pantheon of gods that still holds our fascination today. This new book of classic tales brings the stories of the ancients to life, from the birth of creation by Ra, the sun god, to the murder of Osiris, and the revenge of Horus. We gain glimpses of the underworld and the afterlife, as the rulers of Egypt claimed lineage from the Gods both worshipped and fashioned by the people of Egypt, at a time when humankind had begun to shape the world around it. FLAME TREE 451: From mystery to crime, supernatural to horror and myth, fantasy and science fiction, Flame Tree 451 offers a healthy diet of werewolves and mechanical men, blood-lusty vampires, dastardly villains, mad scientists, secret worlds, lost civilizations and escapist fantasies. Discover a storehouse of tales gathered specifically for the reader of the fantastic.

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Combining traditional research on folklore and the Eddas with trancework and meditation techniques, Alice Karlsdottirr was able to rediscover the feminine side of the Norse pantheon and assemble working knowledge of 13 Norse goddesses for both group ritual and personal spirit work. Detailing her trancework journeys to connect with the goddesses, the author reveals the long-lost personalities and powers of each deity. She explores the Norse goddess Frigg the Allmother, wife of Odin, along with the 12 Asynjur, or Aesir goddesses, associated with her, such as Sjofn the peacemaker, Eir the Healer, and Vor the Wisewoman. She shares their appearances in the Eddas and Germanic mythology and explains the meanings of their names, their relationships to each other, and their connections to the roles of women in Old Norse society. She provides detailed instructions for invocations and rituals to call each goddess forth for personal and group spirit work. She also offers a comprehensive guide to ritual tranceworking to allow anyone to directly experience deities and spiritual beings and develop spirit-work relationships with them.

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‘What distinguished Clare is an unspectacular joy and a love for the inexorable one-thing-after-anotherness of the world’ Seamus Heaney John Clare (1793-1864) was a great Romantic poet, with a name to rival that of Blake, Byron, Wordsworth or Shelley – and a life to match. The ‘poet’s poet’, he has a place in the national pantheon and, more tangibly, a plaque in Westminster Abbey’s Poets’ Corner, unveiled in 1989. Here at last is Clare’s full story, from his birth in poverty and employment as an agricultural labourer, via his burgeoning promise as a writer – cultivated under the gaze of rival patrons – and moment of fame, in the company of John Keats, as the toast of literary London, to his final decline into mental illness and the last years of his life, confined in asylums. Clare’s ringing voice – quick-witted, passionate, vulnerable, courageous – emerges through extracts from his letters, journals, autobiographical writings and poems, as Jonathan Bate brings this complex man, his revered work and his ribald world, vividly to life.

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A GUARDIAN AND INDEPENDENT BEST MUSIC BOOK OF THE YEAR ‘At last an expert classicist gets to grips with Bob Dylan’ Mary Beard ‘Thomas’s elegant, charming book offers something for everyone – not just the super-fans’ Independent When the Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded to Bob Dylan, the literary world was up in arms. How could the world’s most prestigious book prize be awarded to a famously cantankerous singer-songwriter in his Seventies, who wouldn’t even deign to make an acceptance speech? In Why Dylan Matters, Harvard Professor Richard F. Thomas answers that question with magisterial erudition. A world expert on Classical poetry, Thomas was initially ridiculed by his colleagues for teaching a course on Bob Dylan alongside his traditional seminars on Homer, Virgil and Ovid. Dylan’s Nobel prize win brought him vindication. This witty, personal volume is a distillation of Thomas’s famous course, and makes a compelling case for moving Dylan out of the rock n’ roll Hall of Fame and into the pantheon of Classical poets. You’ll never think about Bob Dylan in the same way again.

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On the same day that his wife gave birth to twins, Anthony Doerr received the Rome Prize, an award that gave him a year-long stipend and studio in Rome… ‘Four Seasons in Rome’ charts the repercussions of that day, describing Doerr's varied adventures in one of the most enchanting cities in the world, and the first year of parenthood. He reads Pliny, Dante, and Keats – the chroniclers of Rome who came before him – and visits the piazzas, temples, and ancient cisterns they describe. He attends the vigil of a dying Pope John Paul II and takes his twins to the Pantheon in December to wait for snow to fall through the oculus. He and his family are embraced by the butchers, grocers, and bakers of the neighbourhood, whose clamour of stories and idiosyncratic child-rearing advice is as compelling as the city itself. This intimate and revelatory book is a celebration of Rome, a wondrous look at new parenthood and a fascinating account of the alchemy of writers.

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Boasting a mix of homegrown talent and All-Star signings, the 2009 Yankees were composed of the very best. With the previous season's failed playoff bid still as fresh as the paint job on the new Yankee Stadium, a 27th championship flag represented the singular objective of a squad that ultimately carved out a unique spot among the Yankees' pantheon of World Series teams. It was the last title for the "Core Four"—Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, and Andy Pettitte—who would each retire over the course of the next five years. It was the lone title for Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, A.J. Burnett, and Nick Swisher, each of whom saw memorable peaks and valleys during their time in the Bronx. For CC Sabathia and Brett Gardner, it was their first championship, though the veterans were still in pinstripes as the latest generation of Yankees arrived for what they hope will be the next dynasty. Mission 27 is a thoroughly reported chronicle of an unforgettable season, packed with interviews with the full cast of key players, team executives, broadcasters, and more.

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Songs for the Spirits examines the Vietnamese practice of communing with spirits through music and performance. During rituals dedicated to a pantheon of indigenous spirits, musicians perform an elaborate sequence of songs--a "songscape"--for possessed mediums who carry out ritual actions, distribute blessed gifts to disciples, and dance to the music's infectious rhythms. Condemned by French authorities in the colonial period and prohibited by the Vietnamese Communist Party in the late 1950s, mediumship practices have undergone a strong resurgence since the early 1990s, and they are now being drawn upon to promote national identity and cultural heritage through folklorized performances of rituals on the national and international stage.By tracing the historical trajectory of traditional music and religion since the early twentieth century, this groundbreaking study offers an intriguing account of the political transformation and modernization of cultural practices over a period of dramatic and often turbulent transition. An accompanying DVD contains numerous video and music extracts that illustrate the fascinating ways in which music evokes the embodied presence of spirits and their gender and ethnic identities.

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