"All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players ..." But how do we take our place in the drama and understand our ever-changing roles? From Shakespeare's infant, "mewling and puking in the nurse's arms" through to the "second childishness and mere oblivion" of old age, Braham Murray draws on over half a century of experience in the theatre, to reflect, through the prism of the world's greatest drama and its most insightful philosophers, on what it is to be human. Curious and compassionate in equal measure, he takes a contemporary voyage through the Seven Ages of Man, isolating what gives each one its unique character, mining each for enlightenment, inspiration and hope. And in the end of this eventful history, he does find hope - if, like the great dramatists he cites - we acknowledge the choices we have, both for ourselves and for mankind; and we acknowledge, as the theatre has always done, that what binds us together is a shared humanity greater than the powers that seek to drive us apart.

A selection of posts from the author's blog, Shalom Rav.

Francis Bret Harte (1836-1902) was a prolific American author and poet, best remembered for his accounts of pioneering life in California. The spirit of Dickens breathes through the poems and stories of Bret Harte just as the spirit of Bret Harte breathes through the poems and stories of Kipling.

Children as Equals explores the subject of children's rights. The twelve chapters are written by authors whose disciplines include history, law, philosophy, psychology, and sociology. The book explores such questions as: What is a child? How did the movement for the rights of the child originate, and what is its relation to the human rights movement? What do we mean by rights? To which rights are children entitled? Should their rights vary with age and competency? What about the rights of parents? The complete text of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), to which nearly all the chapters refer, is reproduced in an Appendix. Several chapters examine the implications of two of the Convention's fundamental principles: 'the best interests of the child' and 'the evolving capacities of the child.' Four chapters focus on the legal status of children in the United States, especially in connection with custody and abuse. The book aims to introduce the subject of children's rights to a general educated audience, and provides a thoughtful resource for academics, legal professionals, counseling practitioners, policymakers, lawmakers, and parents.

Original book of photographs and text by the noted director/writer/producer Brian Levant presenting his extraordinary collection of animated feature and comic toys including hundreds of iconic characters represented in figures banks games lunchboxes puppets comics windups vehicles and items at the bottom of cereal boxes. This comprehensive and one-of-a-kind collection and book/work itself is presented in varied chapters. There are chapters here that include the author's Flintstones collection others created while he produced features with Steven Spielberg or those acquired while producing classic TV shows like Mork & Mindy. And this is just a small sampling of what is in this exhaustive book where the sum total has been acquired over the past 50 years. This is a book distinctive in its content in both words and the hundreds of original photographs created exclusively for it. The authors acclaim and success as a producer of popular culture film and television features allows presentation here of a distinctly individual and personal yet universally interesting book for collectors and the general public alike which has no comparison and could not be replicated even in a minor form by anyone else other than this author.

Who are you? What defines you? What makes you, you? In the past an individual's identity was more predictable than it is today. Life's big questions were basically settled before you were born: where you'd live, what you'd do, the type of person you'd marry, your basic beliefs, and so on. Today personal identity is a do-it-yourself project. Constructing a stable and satisfying sense of self is hard amidst relationship breakdowns, the pace of modern life, the rise of social media, multiple careers, social mobility, and so on. Ours is a day of identity angst. Known by God is built on the observation that humans are inherently social beings; we know who we are in relation to others and by being known by them. If one of the universal desires of the self is to be known by others, being known by God as his children meets our deepest and lifelong need for recognition and gives us a secure identity. Rosner argues that rather than knowing ourselves, being known by God is the key to personal identity. He explores three biblical angles on the question of personal identity: being made in the image of God, being known by God and being in Christ. The notion of sonship is at the center - God gives us our identity as a parent who knows his child. Being known by him as his child gives our fleeting lives significance, provokes in us needed humility, supplies cheering comfort when things go wrong, and offers clear moral direction for living.

"This volume offers a biblical theology of Paul's letter to the Romans and will complement commentaries on Romans by offering a readable, comprehensive, and up-to-date treatment of the major themes of Paul's most profound epistle. The book traces the themes across the letter, paying due attention to Old Testament connections and expounding Paul's thought on key dimensions of teh gospel and the gospel's implications for Christian conduct"--

This work rewrites the history of documentary film to take account of technological change. Winston explores the role of such figures as Grierson, Flaherty and Dziga Vertov, and examines both the principles and practice of the major movements in documentary, such as cinema verite. He offers a revised definition of the essential difference between fiction and documentary, and identifies the ethical base of any film practice which attempts to capture truth.

The 1980s saw constant reports of an information revolution. This book, first published in 1986, challenges this view. It argues that the information revolution is an illusion, a rhetorical gambit, an expression of profound historical ignorance, and a movement dedicated to purveying misunderstanding and disseminating disinformation. In this historically based attack on the information revolution, Professor Winston takes a had look at the four central information technologies - telephones, television, computers and satellites. He describes how these technologies were created and diffused, showing that instead of revolution we just have 'business as usual'. He formulates a 'law' of the suppression of radical potential - a law which states that new telecommunication technologies are introduced into society only insofar as their disruptive potential is contained. Despite the so-called information revolution, the major institutions of society remain unchanged, and most of us remain in total ignorance of the history of technology.

Examines how the Satanic Verses affair came about and links it to subsequent incidents such as the murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh and the Danish cartoons controversy

The Uncertain Search for Environmental Quality [hardcover] Ackerman, Bruce A. [Oct 01, 1974]

On t.p.: Or how the Clean Air Act became a multibillion-dollar bail-out for high-sulfur coal producers and what should be done about it.

The characters in these stories are not prone to philosophical musings, inchoate longings, or gender identity issues.Whether they be a tomb-painter in ancient Egypt or an astronaut returned from a long voyage, a waiter in a Three-Star restaurant or a soldier in the trenches of World War I, they each know exactly what they want, and they are hell-bent to get it. In their struggles they display the same vanity, perfidy, mendacity and saintly aspirations found somewhere among all peoples, in all cultures and in all ages.

January 15 - February 14, 2009 Marlborough Chelsea