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Mad Frank's Britain
by Frank Fraser James MortonMad Frankie Fraser has become a household name, known to millions as one of London's most notorious gangsters. In Mad Frank's London - his fourth book - Frank continues the shocking stories of his life of crime.Frankie Fraser recalls the good and the bad times, brings the criminals of his acquaintance to life, and guides us through the darker streets of London - as only a born Londoner, and true gangster could.
Mad Frank's Underworld History of Britain
by Frank Fraser James MortonSites of gruesome murders, stories of killings, frauds, jewel thefts and treachery are all part of Mad Frankie Fraser's grand tour of Britain's criminal underworld. As one of the most notorious gangsters of the 20th Century, he is perfectly placed to give us the lowdown on crimes from up and down the country, plus his take on crimes he was personally involved in and cases as yet unsolved. Written with crime author James Morton, this is the definitive guide to Britain's many lives of crime.
Mad Frank's Diary: The Confessions of Britain’s Most Notorious Villain
by Frankie Fraser James Morton‘They say I’ve killed 40 people and who am I to disagree? I’ve always liked even numbers.’Branded the dentist for using pliers to extract the teeth of those who owed money to his boss Charlie Richardson, Frankie Fraser was labelled the most dangerous man in Britain by two Home Secretaries. He is famous for his crimes, many of which have entered gangster folklore. In these diaries, however, originally published when he was 78, Mad Frank delved into areas he had never chosen, or dared, to talk about before. His day-by-day entries record unsolved murders, shoot-outs, crooked coppers, bribery, extortion, wrongful convictions, and even sex in prison. And by contrast, he also opens up with personal memories of growing up in poverty, in London's East End, and the reality of having to steal food to feed the family.Frankie Frasier died in 2014, and this rare True Crime classic is first-hand history at its most compelling.
Mavis the Bravest
by Lu FraserThis is a laugh out loud story about a bonnet wearing, would-rather-be-knitting chicken who embarks on a high stakes chase to save her friend, Sandra the sheep.Mavis is not like her adventurous friend Marge. Mavis is a chicken who finds EVERYTHING scary (night-time and daytime and anything hairy!). So when the slumbering peace of their cozy barn is disturbed by someone trying to steal their friend Sandra the sheep, will Mavis be able to find her bright spark of braveness and save Sandra?With a tractor, a lasso, and a lot of hen-durance, Mavis might just have what it takes to be the hero the barn needs.
The Chameleon Poet: A Life of George Barker
by Robert FraserThe poet George Barker was convinced that his biography could never be written. 'I've stirred the facts around too much,' he told Robert Fraser. 'It simply can't be done.' Eliot wrote of his 'genius'. Yeats thought him the most interesting poet of his generation. Dylan Thomas envied his power over women. War trapped him in Japan. In America he conducted one of the most celebrated love affairs of the century. He fathered fifteen children in several countries, three during one battle-torn summer. By the 1950s he was the toast of Soho. Barker was Catholic and bohemian, frank and elusive, tender and boisterous. In Eliot's phrase, he was 'a most peculiar fellow.' Robert Fraser's biography offers both a portrait of a talented, tormented and irresistibly entertaining man, and a broad cultural landscape. Around the central figure cluster painters like Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, Johnny Minton and the 'Roberts' Colquhoun and MacBryde; writers such as Dylan Thomas, Walter de la Mare and Elizabeth Smart, whose By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept hymns their liaison; the lugubrious humorist Jeffrey Bernard. After closing time at the Colony Room, Minton declared, they had to sweep up the jokes.
NIV, Believe: Living the Story of the Bible to Become Like Jesus
by Randy FrazeeIt&’s one thing to know the story of the Bible. It&’s another thing to live it.Grounded in carefully selected Scripture, Believe, NIV is a unique spiritual growth experience that takes you on a journey to think, act, and be more like Jesus. Pastor Randy Frazee walks you through the ten key beliefs of the Christian faith, the ten key Practices of a Jesus-follower, and the ten key Virtues that characterize someone who is becoming more like Jesus. Every believer needs to ask these three questions: What do I believe? What should I do? Who am I becoming?What you believe in your heart will define who you become. God wants you to become like Jesus - it is the most truthful and powerful way to live - and the journey to becoming like Jesus begins by thinking like Jesus. When you study the life of Jesus you will notice a distinct pattern: Jesus faithfully lived in a purposeful way. Jesus compared the Christian life to a vine. He is the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in the vine of Christ, over time you will produce amazing and scrumptious fruit at the end of your branches for all to see and taste. You become like Jesus.Each chapter uses short topical passages from the New International Version (NIV) to help you live the story of the Bible. As you journey through this Bible, whether in a group or on your own, one simple truth will become undeniably clear: what you believe drives everything.Features:Includes selections from the accurate, readable, and clear New International Version (NIV)
Hyper-chondriac: One Man's Quest to Hurry Up and Calm Down
by Brian FrazerDoes your blood pressure surge if the car in front of you turns without signaling? Do your neck veins pulsate when a cashier takes too long to ring you up? Does relaxing seem like it'll have to wait until you're dead? Then your name could very well be Brian Frazer. On paper, Frazer is the world's healthiest guy. He eats right, exercises regularly, gets plenty of sleep, has never smoked and has missed only one day of flossing in the last five years. But inside he's a swirling vortex of angst, capable of contracting a new malady every month. Once Frazer realized that all his ills were tied to stress, he went on a quixotic quest for calm, venturing into everything from Tai Chi, serotonin blockers and Kabbalah to an unfortunate incident involving pineapple-chicken curry at a Craniosacral therapy session. Never has the road to wellville taken so many unforeseen turns. Achingly funny, uncomfortably true and always entertaining, Hyperchondriac is just the medicine for anyone who wants to take it down a notch.
The Golden Bough (Penguin Modern Classics)
by Sir James FrazerSir James George Frazer (1854-1941) caught the popular imagination with his vast and enterprising comparative study of the beliefs and institutions of mankind, which in its third edition numbered 12 volumes. Reissued here is Frazer's own single-volume abridgement of 1922.
The Secret Life of Barack Hussein Obama
by Mondo FrazierWHO IS BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA? 2008, the left wing and the Corporate Mainstream Media (CMM) fell head over heels in love with a cool, charming, and attractive smooth talker. His social security number (one of several, incidentally) identified him as Barack Hussein Obama. Over the next four years, he would repeatedly lie to, cheat on, and deceive his liberal lovers as they closed their eyes and ears to the truth, refusing to recognize the shameless, deviously calculated, and treacherous propaganda seeping from the White House. GOD HELP AMERICA, IT’S TIME FOR A SEPARATION. In The Secret Life of Barack Hussein Obama, uncompromising journalist and political commentator Mondo Frazier raises unsettling questions about the man elected to the highest position in this country. Frazier takes what he calls The Obama Narrative™, the crowd-pleasing myths perpetrated by Team Obama and the CMM to market and sell their Messianic savior, and fearlessly rips it to shreds. He explores the many mysteries of Obama’s past, including his ever-shifting religious affiliations and political leanings, the facts of his mother’s background, and Obama’s suspiciously “missing” laundry list of records and licenses—including college, marriage, medical, and many, many more. He lays out the facts regarding Obama’s shady associations with such negligible headliners as the controversial Reverend Jeremiah Wright, ACORN, and former domestic terrorist Bill Ayers—and Obama’s actual relationships with those who stumbled into his creepy inner circle. He sheds light on Obama’s personal “Hate List,” and the man’s dark deceptions, broken promises, and the hypocrisies of his current administration. Frazier also reveals four years of Obama’s outrageous, egregious, sometimes hilarious, and always very telling public gaffes that the CMM conveniently and deliberately chose to ignore. SO, WHO IS BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA? Anyone with guts who tries to answer that question truthfully risks being routinely disparaged and condemned by the CMM as a Nazi, a racist, or a crazy conspiracy theorist. Mondo Frazier courageously turns a blind eye to those foolish generalizations to provide scrupulously researched, eye-opening answers in The Secret Life of Barack Hussein Obama. Frankly, they will astonish readers. And they serve as warnings of Obama’s insidious and sinister ambitions, ones that should be faced now so as to move America away from the “Barackalypse” and toward a future that is safer, genuinely righteous, and one-hundred-percent Obama-free. WELCOME TO BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA’S AMERICA Trillion-dollar-plus deficits every year; Social Security out of money years before the “experts” predicted; millions of houses lost in an automated robo-foreclosure system; billions for cronies who traffic in make-believe jobs “saved or created;” real jobs that disappeared, some never to return; food and energy prices on the rise; the IRS empowered to ensure that every American has approved health insurance; crackdowns on Internet freedoms; a war against contrary thought; billions of dollars to help Brazilian and Chinese energy companies while the extraction and production of American-based energy is stifled—and the list goes on. Every speech delivered by Barack Obama is still his “greatest speech ever!” in the reports of a drooling Corporate Mainstream Media (CMM). An ever-skeptical public hasn’t been convinced and are tuning out the constant drone of the CMM noise machine. Life is lived not in the pages or sets of the CMM, but out in the real-world America that has resulted from the policies and rhetoric of Barack Obama and his administration. The Barackalypse is already upon us.
Five Bad Deeds: One by one they will destroy you . . .
by Caz Frear&‘Frear has a good ear for darkly comic touches, which combines with her pacey plot for an engrossing read&’ Daily Mail FROM THE INTERNATIONALLY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SWEET LITTLE LIES COMES A DARK AND TWISTY THRILLER ABOUT SECRETS, LIES AND REVENGE. ONE WOMAN'S SECRETTWO SIDES TO EVERY STORYTHREE DEADLY BETRAYALSFOUR POTENTIAL SUSPECTSFIVE BAD DEEDS &‘A big high five for Caz Frear&’s Five Bad Deeds - a page-gripping, nail-gnawing good read&’ Cara Hunter 'A deliciously dark story of how one woman&’s life of seemingly domestic bliss can unravel faster than she ever thought possible. I predict it will be one of the big hits of 2024 - I loved it' Nikki Smith 'Deliciously waspish, twisty, and relatable' Claire McGowanEllen Walsh has done something very, very bad. If only she knew what it was . . . Teacher, mother, wife, and all-around good citizen Ellen is juggling non-stop commitments, from raising a teen and two toddlers to job-hunting, to finally renovating her dream home, the Meadowhouse. Amidst the chaos, an ominous note arrives in the mail declaring:SOONER OR LATER EVERYONE SITS DOWN TO A BANQUET OF CONSEQUENCES. Why would someone send her this note? Ellen has no clue. She's no angel - a white lie here and there, an occasional sharp tongue - but nothing to incur the wrath of an anonymous enemy. Everyone around Ellen - her husband, her teenage daughter, her sister, her best friend, her neighbours - can guess why, though. They all know from bitter experience that while Ellen&’s intentions are always good, this ultimately counts for very little when you&’ve (unintentionally?) blown up someone&’s life. Could the five bad deeds that come to haunt Ellen explain why things have gone so horribly wrong?As she races to discover who&’s set on destroying her life, Ellen receives more anonymous messages, each one more threatening than the last . . . and each hitting closer and closer to home and everything she cherishes.Praise for Five Bad Deeds: &‘Brilliant . . . so clever and the characters felt real. Whip smart and perfectly executed&’ C J Tudor 'A dark, addictive, suburban nightmare. Five Bad Deeds is an edge of your seat, up all night delight' Chris Whitaker 'Caz Frear is on fire! Five Bad Deeds is an absolute scorcher with a moral message about the effect of our actions on others at its dark and thrilling heart' Victoria Selman 'Five Bad Deeds is ferociously entertaining, spiky, bitchy, funny - and absolutely messed with my head in the most fun way. Bravo, Frear!' Catherine Ryan Howard 'Few crime authors are able to bring characters to life in the way Frear does, and it's a testament to her skill that we are rooting for Ellen as her world unravels while thrilling at her discomfort' Fiona Cummins 'Layered characters, gut-punching twists and beautifully written. This is addictive reading from Caz' Jo Spain 'An utterly compelling, superbly characterised, constantly fascinating mystery. I read with my eyes inches from the pages as each new reveal unfolded, and the final reveal was superb' Gytha Lodge &‘This book is genius. Funny, authentic, keeps you guessing and gasping as you can&’t trust ANYONE. Bravo Caz Frear&’ Jo Callaghan 'It is glorious. Every line is a pithy zinger and every character so well drawn. I'm normally a fast reader, but I'm taking my time to savour every word, it's that good' Michelle Davies &‘Had me holding my breath for the last fifty pages. Frear is a master at suspense, building it to breaking point. I didn't want to fini
An Introduction to Applied Behavioral Neuroscience: Biological Psychology in Everyday Life
by Laura A. FrebergAn Introduction to Applied Behavioral Neuroscience explores the connection between neuroscience and multiple domains, including psychological disorders, forensics, education, consumer behavior, economics, leadership, health, and robotics and artificial intelligence. The book ensures students have a solid foundation in the history of behavioral neuroscience; its applicability to other facets of science and policy, and a good understanding of major methodologies and their limitations to aiding critical thinking skills. Written in a student-friendly style, it provides a highly accessible introduction to the major structural and functional features of the human nervous system. It then discusses applications across a variety of areas in society, including how behavioral neuroscience is used by the legal system, in educational practice, advertising, economics, leadership, the development of and recovery from health challenges, and in robotics. Each of the application-specific chapters present the problems that neuroscience is being asked to address, the methods being used, and the challenges and successes experienced by scholars and practitioners in each domain. It is a must-read for all advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students in biological psychology, neuroscience, and clinical psychology who want to know what neuroscience can really do to address real-world problems.
The Damnation of Theron Ware: Or, Illumination (Belt Revivals)
by Harold FredericFirst published in 1896, this unsung masterpiece of American literature details the rise and fall of a Methodist minister in upstate New York. Part of Belt's Revivals series and with a new introduction by Ruth Graham. Th
Peter Rabbit: Based on the Major New Movie
by Frederick WarneThe mischievous, adventurous Peter Rabbit is hopping into cinemas for the first time ever on 16th March. This is the chapter book based on the major new movie. Peter Rabbit is always breaking into Old Mr McGregor's garden and stealing his vegetables. And it's always getting him into trouble! But everything is about to change . . . Will Peter finally be able to take control of the vegetable patch, or will someone stand in his way? Peter Rabbit™ is a live action / CGI animated adventure comedy, starring James Corden (the voice of Peter Rabbit), Domhnall Gleeson (Mr. McGregor) and Rose Byrne (McGregor's animal loving neighbour, Bea).Also look out for the Peter Rabbit Sticker Activity book. Perfect for keeping younger Peter Rabbit fans busy for hours!
The Defence of Plevna, 1877. Written by One Who Took Part in It
by Frederick William Von HerbertIn "The Defence of Plevna, 1877," readers are transported to the heart of one of the most pivotal moments in European history. Set against the backdrop of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, this gripping narrative chronicles the epic struggle for the Bulgarian town of Plevna.As the Russian Empire seeks to expand its influence in the Balkans and challenge Ottoman dominance, the small garrison town of Plevna becomes the focal point of a fierce and relentless battle. Led by the indomitable Ottoman commander, Osman Pasha, the defenders of Plevna are faced with overwhelming odds as they confront the might of the Russian army.Against the backdrop of political intrigue, military strategy, and personal drama, the fate of Plevna hangs in the balance. Will Osman Pasha and his valiant defenders withstand the onslaught of the Russian forces, or will the town fall, signaling a turning point in the course of history?"The Defence of Plevna, 1877" is not just a tale of warfare, but a testament to the human spirit in the face of adversity. It is a story of courage, honor, and the enduring struggle for freedom and independence. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in military history, the Balkans, or the complex dynamics of 19th-century Europe.
I Am Tired of Being a Dandelion
by Zane Frederick&“...and trying to get you to blow me away&”"Both gentle and electrifying. Left me speechless." – Makenzie Campbell, author of 2am Thoughts Like finding a four-leaf clover, breaking a fortune cookie, wishing on a shooting star, or blowing a dandelion, this collection is written from a place of hope. Life presents a multitude of moments we hope work in our favor. One moment has us building a fortress of daydreams and anticipation, and the next it may come crumbling down. Yet, no matter how many times our hopes fall, we seem to be able to rebuild them again and again. i am tired of being a dandelion explores the spectrum of hope in romance and self-love, along with the hope to grow to become the best version of oneself.
Itch: Poems and Prose
by Zane Frederick"If you've ever been in love with longing, this is a must read." — Michaela Angemeer, author of you'll come back to yourself and when he leaves you In his third poetry collection, Itch, Zane Frederick scratches memory. He pokes the bear of his past. Ventures further out into its woods to see what still lurks and what needs to be settled. Itch captures the complexity of revisiting memory and the whirlwind of emotions that emerge from loose ends that have yet to be tied up. He shouts into the void and calls out the skeletons in his closet. He lets anger out like a beast locked away. He is stuck in a limbo between holding on and letting go, finding his way out of the forest that held his most rotted roots. Itch is about forgiving but never forgetting. It&’s about taking the armor off and going home. It challenges the notion that our scars won&’t always sting, but embraces the sting as a reminder of what we&’ve healed from.
Do Yourself a Flavour: 75 Easy Recipes to Feed Yourself, Your Flatmates and Your Freezer
by Fliss FreebornEasy, thrifty, delicious food with a hefty glug of humour.If you're a young(ish) person who wants to expand their kitchen repertoire beyond pesto-pasta and beans on toast, then you're in luck. Do Yourself a Flavour is full of ways to take your cooking to the next level.Brimming with over 75 recipes, plus tips and tricks for turning leftovers into fabulous meals in their own right, you'll be covered for all situations, from those quick fridge-to-face moments, through to making a delicious dinner to feed your plant-based pals and raging carnivores alike.Including dishes such as Puff Pastry Pizza Florentine; Sweet Potato, Spinach & Chickpea Curry; Mushroom, Ale & Lentil Pie, and Sausage, Squatternut Bosch & Red Onion Traybake, you'll find din-spiration that doesn't require a riot of expensive or bizarre ingredients, utilises the culinary skills you already have, and won't ask you to go and buy more equipment for your (probably) shared, cramped kitchen.Fliss Freeborn is Fortnum and Mason's Cookery Writer of the Year 2023
Right-Brained Children in a Left-Brained World: Unlocking the Potential of Your ADD Child
by Jeffrey Freed Laurie ParsonsJeffrey Freed and Laurie Parsons provide an effective method for helping children with Attention Deficit Disorder excel in a classroom setting.In straightforward language, this book explains how to use the innovative "Learning Styles Inventory" to test for a right-brained learning style; help an ADD child master spelling—and build confidence—by committing complicated words to visual memory; tap an ADD kid's amazing speed-reading abilities by stressing sight recognition and scanning rather than phonics; access the child's capacity to solve math problems of increasing, often astonishing complexity—without pen or paper; capitalize on the "writing and weaning" technique to help the child turn mental images into written words; and win over teachers and principals to the right-brained approach the ADD child thrives on. For parents who have longed to help their ADD child quickly and directly, Freed and Parsons's approach is nothing short of revolutionary. This is the first book to offer them reason for hope and a clear strategy for enabling their child to blossom.
Who She Was: My Search for My Mother's Life
by Samuel G. FreedmanWhen Samuel G. Freedman was nearing fifty, the same age at which his mother died of breast cancer, he realized that he did not know who she was. Of course, he knew that Eleanor had been his mother, a mother he kept at an emotional distance both in life and after death. He had never thought about the entire life she lived before him, a life of her own dreams and disappointments. And now, that ignorance haunted him. So Freedman set out to discover the past, and Who She Was is the story of what he found. It is the story of a young woman's ambitions and yearnings, of the struggles of her impoverished immigrant parents, and of the ravages of the Great Depression, World War II, and the Holocaust. It is also the story of a middle-aged son wracked with regret over the disregard he had shown as a teenage boy for a terminally ill mother, and as an adult incapable for decades of visiting her grave. It is the story of how he healed that wound by asking all the questions he had not asked when his mother was alive. Whom did she love? Who broke her heart? What lifted her spirits? What crushed her hopes? What did she long to become? And did she get to become that woman in her brief time on earth? Who She Was brings a compassionate yet unflinching eye to the American Jewish experience. It recaptures the working-class borough of the Bronx with its tenements and pushcarts, its union halls and storefront synagogues and rooftop-tar beaches. It remembers a time when husbands searched hundreds of miles for steady work and wives sent packages and prayers to their European relatives in the desperate hope they might survive the Nazis. In such a world, Eleanor Hatkin came of age, striving for education, for love, for a way out. Researched as a history, written like a novel, Who She Was stands in the tradition of such classics as Call It Sleep and The Assistant. In bringing to life his mother, Samuel G. Freedman has given all readers a memorable heroine.
Nuclear Deterrence: A Ladybird Expert Book (The Ladybird Expert Series #31)
by Sir Lawrence FreedmanPart of the new Ladybird Expert series, Nuclear Deterrence is an accessible and authoritative introduction to the deterrent tactics employed to prevent war, drawing on the unprecedented power of nuclear weapons. Written by celebrated historian and professor of War Studies Sir Lawrence Freedman, Nuclear Deterrence explores the history behind the world's most lethal weapon. You'll learn about the history of the arms race, the implications of mutual assured destruction, the consequences of nuclear proliferation, and why disarmament proved to be so difficult. Written by the leading lights and most outstanding communicators in their fields, the Ladybird Expert books provide clear, accessible and authoritative introductions to subjects drawn from science, history and culture.For an adult readership, the Ladybird Expert series is produced in the same iconic small hardback format pioneered by the original Ladybirds. Each beautifully illustrated book features the first new illustrations produced in the original Ladybird style for nearly forty years.
Apparitions, Daemons, and Emanations: Poetry and Painting in the Work of Georges Bataille, Pierre Klossowski, and Henri Michaux (SUNY series, Intersections: Philosophy and Critical Theory)
by Charles FreelandThis book presents a new study of the visual arts and poetry in the work of three well-known French writers and artists from the mid-twentieth century—Georges Bataille, Pierre Klossowski, and Henri Michaux. Each was fiercely independent, belonging to no school, academy, or political persuasion. What do they have in common? While the book's three central essays do not initially set out to establish comparisons between these writers, common ground emerges: a shared combat against culture, a shared non-representational artistic practice. Their writing, poetry, and painting offer not a portrayal of things or ideas but rather an emanation or apparition of the unknown and the infinite, one charged with deepening art's relation to life.
Istanbul: The Imperial City (Blue Guides)
by John FreelyIstanbul's history is a catalogue of change, not least of name, yet it has managed to retain its own unique identity. John Freely captures the flavour of daily life as well as court ceremonial and intrigue. The book also includes a comprehensive gazetteer of all major monuments and museums. An in-depth study of this legendary city through its many different ages from its earliest foundation to the present day - the perfect traveller's companion and guide.
Planning for the Caring City
by Claire Freeman Etienne NelAs the world has become increasingly urbanised and planetary well-being ever more threatened, questions have emerged over just what the priorities should be for how we live in cities. Clearly for many the current ways of planning and managing city environments are not working, given so many of their human and non-human inhabitants struggle on a daily basis to maintain their well-being and survival. Different approaches to city development are crucial if they are to be inclusive places where all can thrive. Ensuring that cities are safe and sustainable and provide a level of care for all their residents places a significant mandate on those who manage cities and on planners in particular. This book examines all the parts of the city where care needs to be incorporated, how we plan, create nurturing environments, include all who live there, build sensitively, support meaningful livelihoods, and enable compassionate governance. With planners in mind this book examines why care is needed in the urban environment, and drawing on real world examples examines how it can be applied in an effective and empowering fashion.
Life Moves Pretty Fast: The Lessons We Learned From Eighties Movies (and Why We Don't Learn Them From Movies Anymore)
by Hadley FreemanFrom Vogue contributor and Guardian columnist Hadley Freeman, a personalized guide to eighties movies that describes why they changed movie-making forever—featuring exclusive interviews with the producers, directors, writers and stars of the best cult classics.For Hadley Freeman, movies of the 1980s have simply got it all. Comedy in Three Men and a Baby, Hannah and Her Sisters, Ghostbusters, and Back to the Future; all a teenager needs to know in Pretty in Pink, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Say Anything, The Breakfast Club, and Mystic Pizza; the ultimate in action from Top Gun, Die Hard, Beverly Hills Cop, and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom; love and sex in 9 1/2 Weeks, Splash, About Last Night, The Big Chill, and Bull Durham; and family fun in The Little Mermaid, ET, Big, Parenthood, and Lean On Me.In Life Moves Pretty Fast, Hadley puts her obsessive movie geekery to good use, detailing the decade’s key players, genres, and tropes. She looks back on a cinematic world in which bankers are invariably evil, where children are always wiser than adults, where science is embraced with an intense enthusiasm, and the future viewed with giddy excitement. And, she considers how the changes between movies then and movies today say so much about society’s changing expectations of women, young people, and art—and explains why Pretty in Pink should be put on school syllabuses immediately.From how John Hughes discovered Molly Ringwald, to how the friendship between Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi influenced the evolution of comedy, and how Eddie Murphy made America believe that race can be transcended, this is a “highly personal, witty love letter to eighties movies, but also an intellectually vigorous, well-researched take on the changing times of the film industry” (The Guardian).
Dictionary of the Undoing
by John FreemanFor John Freeman—literary critic, essayist, editor, poet, “one of the preeminent book people of our time” (Dave Eggers)—it is the rare moment when words are not enough. But in the wake of the election of 2016, words felt useless, even indulgent. Action was the only reasonable response. He took to the streets in protest, and the sense of community and collective conviction felt right. But the assaults continued—on citizens’ rights and long-held compacts, on the core principles of our culture and civilization, and on our language itself. Words seemed to be losing the meanings they once had and Freeman was compelled to return to their defense. The result is his Dictionary of the Undoing.From A to Z, “Agitate” to “Zygote,” Freeman assembled the words that felt most essential, most potent, and began to build a case for their renewed power and authority, each word building on the last. The message that emerged was not to retreat behind books, but to emphatically engage in the public sphere, to redefine what it means to be a literary citizen.With an afterword by Valeria Luiselli, Dictionary of the Undoing is a necessary, resounding cri de coeur in defense of language, meaning, and our ability to imagine, describe, and build a better world.