"The Joy of Playing, the Joy of Thinking is a masterclass for music lovers. In interviews originally conducted and published in French, Rosen's friend Catherine Temerson asks carefully crafted questions to elicit his insights on the evolution of music-not to mention painting, theater, science, and modernism. Rosen touches on the usefulness of aesthetic reflection, the pleasure of overcoming stage fright, and the drama of conquering a technically difficult passage. He tells vivid stories on composers from Chopin and Wagner to Stravinsky and Elliott Carter. In Temerson's questions and Rosen's responses arise conundrums both practical and metaphysical. Is it possible to understand a work without analyzing it? Does music exist if it isn't played? Rosen takes readers to the heart of the musical matter. 'Music is a way of instructing the soul, making it more sensitive,' he says, 'but it is useful only insofar as it is pleasurable. This pleasure is manifest to anyone who experiences music as an inexorable need of body and mind.'"--

Features 18 songs from the fabulous live millennium New Year's concert event by the incomparable Ms. Streisand, plus her thoughts and reminiscences, and great full-color photos. Includes: Alfie * At the Same Time * Auld Lang Syne * Cry Me a River * Evergreen * Happy Days Are Here Again * I've Dreamed of You * Lover, Come Back to Me * Miss Marmelstein * On a Clear Day * People * Putting It Together * Send in the Clowns * Simple Pleasures * A Sleepin' Bee * Something Wonderful/Being Alive * The Way We Were.

Cast in the style of a vaudeville Wild West Show, this highly theatrical play explores the theme of Americas mistreatment of the indigenious tribes was a celebrated hit on Broadway starring Stacy Keach. The hero is Buffalo Bill, whose life is defined and destroyed by an unfulfilled vision. Like all tragic heroes he has a fatal character flaw: he knows and loves the Native Americans, but craves money and fame. He helps destroy the buffalo herds, reducing the Native Americans to starvation. Ultimately, ambition leads him to even greater cruelty, destroying both the tribes and himself.

A series of autobiographical prose poems and interviews that explore Garfunkel's inner thoughts, musicial career, travels, and loves

Maurois ends the enormous, sprawling life of Balzac with the question, ""But who would wish to be Balzac?"" A man's query perhaps. A woman might write to him admiringly, at first anonymously, as so many did then. What Maurois evokes here so strongly is the writer and the lover and the always hungry dreamer of fame, greatness and happiness. Balzac's feats were prodigious. Hounded by creditors throughout his life, he bought antiques and jewelled walking sticks, and indulged in one ruinous financial deal after another. He worked for months at a frenzied pace. With a passion for unity, he tried to make a comprehensive world from his many works-- ""La Comedie Humaine."" He was lover to many women but he loved only two-Madame de Berny, his mistress in youth and twenty years his senior, and Madame Hanska, whom he married just before his death. Most of the time the narrative is just shy of the many quotations. Maurois is a little like the wise ""friend of the family"" who tells the story with all the intimate speculations, small reproaches and loving (sometimes sentimental) praise one might expect. Names, places and figures abound, and while many of these particulars are only scantily examined, one doesn't mind. Such a French abundance of ""givens"" is in keeping with the rush and energy of Balzac's life. There are good but simple summaries of Balzac's thought but for the most part this close biography draws one headlong into a fantastic life. KIRKUS REVIEW

"Richard Hell may best be known as a punk icon, a founding member of seminal bands Television, the Heartbreakers, and The Voidoids, but for decades he's been a prominent voice in American letters. Through his novels Go Now and Godlike, and his critically acclaimed autobiography, I Dreamed I Was a Very Clean Tramp, Hell has proven himself as a talented and insightful writer across many genres, in many forms. But one might argue that Richard's true genius lies in shorter form as a writer on culture. "Love comes in spurts," Hell once sang, and that could well describe the intensity of his penetrating and wickedly droll criticism. Massive Pissed Love is a collection of Hell's ruminations on art, literature, and music, among other things, that's like a candy box of reading treats, a bag of shiny marbles, a cabinet of mementos and uncanny fetishes. However one thinks of it, it's a joy to read from start to finish and a deeply necessary addition to the oeuvre of one of the sharpest minds and sensibilities at work today"--

Love, Sex, and Your Heart elucidates how emotional life and physical being are one, mutually reflective as two sides of a coin. Emotional life is tied to physical being and physical health is dependent on emotional well-being. Alexander Lowen's insight into these powerful connections offers an innovative approach to cardiovascular health and the treatment of heart disease. Lowen examines the feeling of love as a physiological process in the body. When this process is frustrated, as in the case of heartbreak or isolation, especially during childhood, people suppress their pain by unconsciously rigidifying their chest muscles. This results in a chronic restriction of breathing, movement, and feeling. It is this tension that limits pleasure, and predisposes so many to heart disease. This book features the principles and therapeutic techniques to help people understand their fear of love, release chronic muscular tension, and become more loving. It is essential reading for health professionals and anyone interested in the health of the heart.

The Process Church of the Final Judgment was the apocalyptic shadow side of the flower-powered '60s and perhaps the most notorious cult of modern times. Hundreds of black-cloaked devotees, often wearing a satanic Goat of Mendes and a swastika-like mandala, swept the streets of London, New York, Boston, Chicago, New Orleans, and Toronto, selling magazines and books with titles like Fear and Humanity is the Devil. And within the group's Chapters, members would participate in Midnight Meditations beneath photographs of the Christ-like leader. Celebrities like Marianne Faithful, James Coburn, and Mick Jagger participated in Process publications, and Funkadelic, in its Maggot Brain album, reprinted Process' Fear Issue. Process' Death Issue interviewed the freshly-imprisoned Charles Manson leading to conspiracy hysteria in such books as Ed Sanders' The Family and Maury Terry's The Ultimate Evil. A lawsuit against Sanders' Manson book led to the removal of its Process-themed chapter by Dutton. Love, Sex, Fear, Death is the shocking, surprising, and secretive inside story of the Process Church, which later transformed into Foundation Faith of the Millennium, and most recently as the Utah-based animal sanctuary, Best Friends. Included will be text by Timothy R. Wyllie, a formative member of the Process and Foundation Faith organizations; interviews with other former Processeans; rare reproductions of Process magazines; never-before-seen photographs; and fascinating transcripts from holy books and legal actions. The special limited edition will be hardcover, signed, numbered, and slipcased, and will include a facsimile edition of the notorious Death Issue.

It has become an accepted truth: after World War II, American Jews chose to be silent about the mass murder of millions of their European brothers and sisters at the hands of the Nazis. In a compelling work sure to draw fire from academics and pundits alike, Hasia R. Diner shows this assumption of silence to be categorically false.

Jachin-Boaz is a maker and seller of maps. In his shop are maps that will lead you to whatever it is you most desire: love, inspiration, wealth. But his greatest achievement is a master-map showing the location of everything that has ever been found in the world, which he intends to give to his son, Boaz-Jachin. There is only one thing missing from the map: lions - for there are no more lions left. Or are there? When Jachin-Boaz sets out on a quest to find a lion for his son, Boaz-Jachin will follow in search of his father, and both will discover something wholly unexpected ... Russell Hoban's first novel for adults, The Lion of Boaz-Jachin and Jachin-Boaz (1973) was widely acclaimed by critics and earned comparisons to Tolkien and C.S. Lewis. Both a humorous and light-hearted fantasy and an insightful meditation on the sometimes difficult relationships between fathers and sons, it is a perfect introduction to the work of this brilliant writer. 'A piece of invention as original as any of Tolkien's or C.S. Lewis's.' - New Statesman 'Magic at work ... Funny as well as beautiful.' - Irish Times 'Mr. Hoban is unclassifiable, thank goodness. His narrative is so minutely and compellingly realistic that after a time you cease to notice that he has stood reality on its head.' - Sunday Times 'Of outstanding quality ... unusually vivid imagination ... immensely striking use of words.' - Auberon Waugh, The Spectator

Beagle's novella, set in the world of 1991's The Innkeeper's Song, is an intimate take on the relatively common fantasy conceit of a powerful band of recluses. Following an encounter with three assassins, the wanderer Soukyan decides it is time to return to the monastery from which he had long ago escaped and take revenge on those who sent the killers. Beagle hints that Soukyan's world stretches far and wide but mostly focuses on a small area where various organizations have institutionalized murder and torture. Thoughtful, well-rounded characters make an intriguing contrast to scenes of bloody brutality. Readers familiar with The Innkeeper's Song will love this tie-in, while newcomers will both enjoy the tight focus and find plenty of incentive to seek out related works that further explore this complex, fully realized setting. --Publisher's Weekly.

In rural nineteenth-century Russia, a tangle of hopeless romances brings chaos to a country estate. Natalya, the wife of the wealthy estate-owner, is in love with her son’s tutor; a neighbor has taken a liking to Natalya’s ward, who has her eyes set elsewhere; and Natalya’s long-time friend Rakitin may crave more from their platonic relationship. A tale of young love, old love, and everything in between, THREE DAYS IN THE COUNTRY is a riveting update on Turgenev’s heartbreaking classic.

Dreams of Innocence is a lushly erotic, deeply intelligent love story that begins when beautiful, celebrated journalist Helena Latimer investigates the mysterious disappearance and possible death of the only man she has ever loved, eminent ecologist Max Bergmann. Her search takes her to Germany, where Max was last seen, and where she discovers a leather-bound, handwritten manuscript dedicated to him. It is titled "Anna's Book", and it leads her back to Europe on the brink of World War I, and to a tale of shining ideals and shattering deeds that will ultimately reveal the truth not only about Max but about Helena as well.

New York is a walker's city. You can walk for hours. The streets slip by. There is so much to look at, so much to take in. I walk a lot. Especially when I am not writing . . . Lily Brett's love affair with New York began as an outsider in her late teens when she was posted on assignment there as a young Australian rock journalist. In her early forties she returned, together with her soul mate and three children, to start a new life, and for the best part of three decades she has called New York home. This witty, candid and moving collection of short pieces celebrates the city that's now part of her heartbeat. A compulsive walker, Brett takes us to her favourite places and introduces us to the characters of the city that has nurtured, perplexed and inspired her. She brings to life the delights of Chinatown, the majesty of Grand Central Station, the lure of spandex and sequins in the Garment District, and the peculiarity of canine couture. And she muses on the miracle of love in the Lodz ghetto, the possibility of loneliness amidst skyscrapers, and the joy and redemption in a child's curiosity. Full of wisdom, humour and grace, Only in New York is a human portrait of a city much loved - and of a woman in step with herself. 'Pithy, entertaining and personal . . . the natural, light quality of Brett's writing is a pleasure akin to a conversation with a friend . . . Brett leavens her observations with dry humour.' Weekend Australian 'New York is a city of character and characters and anyone thinking of visiting should use this as a guide to its flavour - and also as an insight into where to eat.' Herald Sun 'Charm ing . . . Her snippets are short and sharp as they portray the essence of New York.' West Australian 'A charming and unique narrative on the city. Brett achieves a perfect combination of wit and naivety, creating a memoir that acknowledges the existence of good and bad experiences, awkward quirks and love affairs with buildings . . . Brett's words have the ability to transport you to the city from the comfort of your own back yard- you may even find it unnecessary to fly to New York after reading it . Readings

A collection of touching, funny stories by the lesbian author of Girls Will Be Girls takes readers into the heart of love and lust on the romance scene for gay women. Original.

Murder isn't unusual in LA. But when feminist Rabbi Myrna Wahl is found dead after appearing on a controversial radio talk show, together with a radical nun and female minister, radio host Rabbi Daniel Winter finds himself the prime suspect. He'll only survive if he can develop the secular talent for detection - all the harder since he seems to be falling in love with the lady cop assigned to the case!

"This groundbreaking collection brings together 28 stunning stories by literary talents never before assembled in a single volume. With contributions from both established and bright new voices in lesbian fiction, 'Women on Women' ranges from the subtlety and restraint of Willa Cather's 'Tommy, the Unsentimental' to Sapphire's daring and highly erotic 'Eat' and Valerie Miner's suspenseful 'Trespassing.' Some of the stories are universal in theme - the joy and excitement of new romance, the ageless problems of family life, and the pain of lost love and of death. And many are written by or about members of racial, ethnic, and other minorities within the gay community. These are stories that offer stirring, eloquent, often passionate insights into the lesbian experience in a long-overdue collection that represents the best of lesbian short fiction from past to present"--Amazon.com

"Phoning Home is a collection of entertaining and thought-provoking essays featuring the author's quirky family, his Jewish heritage, and his New York City upbringing. Jacob M. Appel's recollections and insights, informed and filtered by his advanced degrees in medicine, law, and ethics, not only inspire nostalgic feelings but also offer insight into contemporary medical and ethical issues. At times sardonic and at others self-deprecating, Appel lays bare the most private aspects of his emotional life. "We'd just visited my grandaunt in Miami Beach, the last time we would ever see her. I had my two travel companions, Fat and Thin, securely buckled into the backseat of my mother's foul-tempered Dodge Dart," writes Appel of his family vacation with his two favorite rubber cat toys. Shortly thereafter Fat and Thin were lost forever--beginning, when Appel was just six years old, what he calls his "private apocalypse." Both erudite and full-hearted, Appel recounts storylines ranging from a bout of unrequited love gone awry to the poignant romance of his grandparents. We learn of the crank phone calls he made to his own family, the conspicuous absence of Jell-O at his grandaunt's house, and family secrets long believed buried. The stories capture the author's distinctive voice--a blend of a physician's compassion and an ethicist's constant questioning. "--

Benny Cooperman's favourite lunch counter and diner have closed down and the fittings have been sold to Americans. The nation mourns the accidental death of its greatest artist, cellist Dermot Keogh. It's April and there's already a heat wave. Things are just not the way they used to be. Alas, not just the plots and settings have changed in Howard Engel's 10th Benny Cooperman mystery. While Canada's favourite fictional detective is still his smart-alecky but unsophisticated self ("Dim Sum may be unknown in Grantham, Mr. Cooperman, but we in Toronto have had it for nearly forty years"), his talents seem washed out, if not washed up, in this nasty little mystery set in the high-tech, high-pressure world of a Toronto TV station far up the road from his native Grantham. All the stock figures are the former high school love goddess who calls at the detective's office wondering if she's in the path of a killer, the small-town lawyer, the slobbish cops, the heavies in dark glasses. What's missing are the gritty small-town ambience and naked class antagonisms that drive best hard-boiled detective fiction, including Engel's early novels. Burdened with the bland homogeneity of the contemporary city and with convoluted literary references, the tale becomes progressively less gripping. In fact Cooperman hasn't been himself since 1990's Dead and Buried , when his creator first fell for the suits and the happy ending. The warning of his first sentence--"I should have seen the writing on the wall"--should have been a message to readers as well. --Robyn Gillam

Heartbreak Hospital is one of the most popular TV soap operas, an endless saga of life and death, love and hatred: to many of its fans, the characters seem much more real than the actors who play them. The character everyone loves to hate is Andrea Harmon, the soap's classic Bitch, played by Sunday Tyler--a ruthless, demanding, manipulative actress who has alienated everyone connected with the show. The only person who has seen Sunday's softer side is Bill Troy of the New York Police Department Movie/TV Unit, who is inevitably drawn into the case when Sunday is murdered, and no one has a satisfactory alibi.