Product Description
A weekend at the Bliss family’s country home goes haywire when the guests and hosts play romantic musical chairs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Hay Fever
A delightful story as relevant today as it was when Noel Coward first wrote it and had it performed in London.
CLM

"Do you think they know they are mad?"
Written when Coward was only twenty-four, and produced shortly after, in 1925, Hay Fever is a broad, manic farce which takes place in the country house of a self-absorbed, artistic family. The Blisses, each of whom is creative and spontaneous, ignore the stultifying conventions of society--Judith, an extravagant stage actress, who pursues her own whims whenever it pleases her; her husband David, an author, who enjoys his own spotlight and camp-followers; and their adult children, Simon and Sorel.When Sorel announces that she has invited a weekend guest and would like to be able to use "the Japanese room," she quickly discovers that each of the other family members has also invited a guest for "the Japanese room."

In the course of the weekend, all the guests--conventional people attracted by the exciting lives these non-conformists have created for themselves--find themselves at the mercy of their more confident and assertive hosts.Guests who arrive thinking themselves in love with one person find themselves unexpectedly engaged to marry someone else.No one listens to them, no one recognizes them as individuals, and no one cares about their dashed expectations.As the Bliss family controls the activity during the weekend, the farce borders on absurdity.Outrageous scenes and emotional confrontations, part of their "normal" lives, prove too much for their guests.

The fast-paced interaction one sees on stage constitutes the only "plot," and there are no background stories to add complexity.What you see is obvious--what Coward has intended you to see. Far less subtle than some of his later work and lacking the cynicism and clever repartee for which Coward later became known, the play nevertheless incorporates many of Coward's trademark themes--the sense of entitlement by artists (some of which, he hints, is because they really are superior), their flamboyant behavior, the casual attitudes toward marriage and sex, their egotism and insensitivity to "ordinary" people, along with their sense of fun as they pursue their own pleasure.

These themes are all set into sharp relief by the behavior and attitudes of the guests, who gain no audience sympathy for their predicaments because they are decidedly dull.Though some believe that this is one of Coward's best plays, others will prefer the clever repartee, wit, and irony of the later plays, which tend to have a more intimate focus and smaller cast of characters.n Mary Whipple

Noel Coward's First Great Comic Success
Noel Coward (1899-1973) is best recalled for his sparkling yet acid-etched comedies, and the 1925 HAY FEVER is among the best, easily ranking alongside such titles as BLITHE SPIRIT, DESIGN FOR LIVING, and PRIVATE LIVES.Among his earlier successes, Coward received inspiration for the play when he visited the home of the great American actress Laurelette Taylor--and found both her and her family shockingly eccentric in an unexpectedly theatrical way.

Unlike most other Coward scripts, HAY FEVER relies less on plot and Coward's talent for sharp wit than it does upon character.Judith, directly based on Laurelette Taylor, is the lynchpin of the piece: recently retired from the stage, she is an intensely theatrical woman who enjoys dramatizing her life.She has invited a much younger man to be a weekend guest, never dreaming that her husband David, son Simon, and daughter Sorrel have each invited a guest as well.

The four guests soon discover that the maid is down with a toothache, there aren't enough rooms, and there is scarcely enough food to go around.To make matters worse, Judith plays every scene that presents itself.It is a habit in which she is not alone; her novelist husband and their two children are every bit as adept at theatrical hysteria as she, and before the weekend concludes the guests are treated to astonshing exhibitions that alternately annoy, confuse, and frighten them out of their wits.

Plays are written to be performed, not read, and HAY FEVER is a good example of the difficulties that can arise when a non-theatre person tries to visualize how it would be on the stage.On the page, it reads as clever and amusing, but only mildly so; on the stage, however, it is easily one of the most hilarious comedies of the 20th Century.Recommended for those who have the imagination required!

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Hay Fever
I was not aware that this was a live stage play.It was hard to follow on the audio tape. This was not really a 'story' being told. You really had to visualize who the characters were and what they were doing. This is not good for an audio book content.
I am an avid audio book listener.

Hay Fever
I was not aware that this was a live stage play.It was hard to follow on the audio tape. This was not really a 'story' being told. You really had to visualize who the characters were and what they were doing. This is not good for an audio book content.
I am an avid audio book listener. ... Read more

Product Description
Who would have thought that a £1 million prize hidden inside a toilet roll would be devastating the world's forests? Anonymous Bosch, the toilet roll tycoon, has murdered a top scientist and stolen anti-gravity technology in his bid to escape the dying earth. ... Read more

Product Description
Beetlejuice is a 1988 American comedy horror fantasy filmdirected by Tim Burton, produced by The Geffen Film Companyand distributed by Warner Bros. The plot revolves around arecently dead young couple who become ghosts haunting theirformer home, a quaint and quiet house on a hill overlookingthe fictional town of Winter Rivers located in Connecticut.When a family of metropolitan yuppies from New York Citymove into the house, the ghosts seek the help of anobnoxious, devious and mischievous "bio-exorcist" namedBetelgeuse from the underworld in order to scare the newliving inhabitants away permanently. Beetlejuice stars AlecBaldwin, Geena Davis, Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara,Jeffrey Jones, Sylvia Sidney and Michael Keaton as thetitular Betelgeuse (the film's title being a phoneticspelling of the character's name). After the success of Pee- wee's Big Adventure, Burton was sent several scripts andbecame disheartened by their lack of imagination andoriginality. When he was sent Michael McDowell's originalscript for Beetlejuice, Burton agreed to direct, althoughLarry Wilson and Warren Skaaren were hired to rewrite it. ... Read more

Product Description
This third edition of Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones’s engrossing history of the Central Intelligence Agency includes a new prologue that discusses the history of the CIA since the end of the Cold War, focusing in particular on the intelligence dimensions of the terrorist attacks on 9/11. ... Read more

Product Description
Drawing fantasy characters is the hottest trends in drawing for people of all ages but especially for the target demographic, 12-17 year olds.

Written by Finlay Cowan, bestselling author of Drawing and Painting Fantasy Worlds (D&C, 2006).

Explores the 100 key characters behind modern fantasy art with mythological background and practical instruction on rendering the character.

This dynamic, colorful pocketbook is packed with everything the fantasy artist and enthusiast needs to know about 100 of the key character archetypes that influence modern fantasy art. Each spread explores one character through a completed color artwork, thumbnail construction sketches, and tips and inspiration for further design and development. Additional information for each character offers a vibrant profile of its genealogy, as well as details on further study. Compact format, extensive content and detailed information produce a highly desirable and practical package. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

OK
This book is more "comic book" than I like, but I decided to keep it anyway. ... Read more

Product Description
At times life can be challenging and in the mist of it all we need to hear a word from God. These daily devotionals are provided for you so that you will constantly have a word of encouragement to know that no matter what you are faced with in life that there is always hope and that God is there to help give you strength to go on. ... Read more

Product Description
This glorious 12in x 12in, 14-month full-color calendar on glossy stock features art byIdyl creator, Jeffrey Jones; Tarzan illustrator, Roy G. Krenkel;John Carter of Mars painter, J. Allen St. John;Weird Science legend, Wally Wood;Sci-Fi illustrator, Alex Schomburg;Conan artist, John Buscema;The Shadow illustrator, Steranko;Hollywood monster painter, Basil Gogos;Red Sonja artist, Frank Brunner;Catwoman illustrator, Paul Gulacy;Spider-Man creator, Steve Ditko;Heavy Metal artist, Arthur Suydam; and Space Cowboy creator, J. David Spurlock ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A dark & chilling fantasy
Margaret St. Clair is a science-fiction/fantasy writer whose fine body of work is sadly neglected today, and is urgently in need of rediscovery. And this short, subtle, shadow-haunted novel is one of her finest works.

A quarter of a century before Goth culture came into vogue, this compelling urban fantasy took readers on a frightening journey into a very dark & malicious Faerie indeed, one that could be reached merely by going behind the walls of just the right (or wrong) basement, where lank-haired, emaciated elves feed on hallucinogenic fungus & prey upon one another as viciously as they prey upon any hapless humans who fall into their hands. Written & published during the first resurgence of fantasy in the late 1960s, before the genre became glutted with identical mass-market "sagas" & "epics" with no genuine magic to them, this tale has lingered with me like a fading but unforgettable nightmare for decades now.

Fans of Neil Gaiman & Charles DeLint (among others) should do themselves a favor & track down a copy of this disturbing gem, which deserves reprinting today. You won't be disappointed, I assure you. Highly recommended! ... Read more

Product Description
In Believing as Ourselves, the author, an American Muslim of 16 years, brings to the forefront the indispensable importance of personal authenticity to the maintenance of faith. The author asserts that all too often "non-native" Muslims, in their well meaning zeal, throw away the very parts of their identity that, not only led them to Islam in the first place, but ultimately make them who they are- - in so doing creating the impossibility of a true and vibrant connection with God. Not simply an exposé on the difficulties to be found within the Islamic community, Believing as Ourselves, is packed with advice for those who find themselves struggling to reconcile the gap between the sometimes, bitter, reality of actual life within the faith, and the Islamic ideal they so cherish. In the words of Dr. Jeffrey Lang, author of the books, Struggling to Surrender, and Even Angels Ask, She (the author) reaches out to them with practical, hard earned wisdom and carefully thought out advice on how they can overcome the many distractions and hardships, and reclaim that "initial determination, internal strength, and sense of authentic faith that was once theirs." -And they so deserve.

Lynn Jones is a writer and mother of two. She lives in a modest home under the shadow of a grove of giant cedar trees in suburban Washington state. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (20)

Beautiful, Engaging...and Troubling
Believing as Ourselves is undoubtedly, in its essence and purpose, a necessary book.It takes the reader through the author's personal and spiritual storms as an American Muslim convert, storms so many of us have had to weather in the ever present battle of the self...and in the battle of acceptance and belonging.The issues she addresses are compelling and relevant--the initial euphoria upon accepting Islam; the necessity of purifying your intentions; the inevitable drop in faith based on personal and community failings.Her reflections on the prejudice against "Western" Muslims and converts are especially inspirational and helpful.

The most powerful and engaging aspect of this book is the author's honest, thoughtful reflections on the lessons she has learned from her own life and experience.If I were to rate the book on these sections alone, I would give the book a solid five stars.

However, the book slowly but definitely strays from its original personal and helpful reflections to one in which she abandons some of the beautiful and remarkable lessons espoused in the book's beginning, the most pertinent of which is the focus on the self and submission to God, despite personal tendencies to follow one's rationale, inclinations, and desires.

In one instance, she tells of the profound lesson she learned in the reason Muslim women wear hijab: to obey God alone.Yet, later she deviates from the principle of focusing purely on obeying God when she makes a personal list of "so called" forbidden "pleasures" that are not "really" forbidden in Islam.Although most of them truly aren't forbidden, she fails to acknowledge Quranic and hadith proof against some of the things she has personally decided are indeed allowed and "innocent".(Ironically, her personal decision in what is allowed in Islam is remarkable evidence of her making the same mistake she accuses people of who say something isn't allowed!).Most serious, she does not exhibit humility or the possibility of err when she speaks of religious matters.

Whether or not the Quran and hadith proof are strongest for or against any particular item on her list is not as relevant as the message she is sending to the reader:refer to Qur'an and hadith proof when it fits the opinion you follow, and disregard Qur'an and hadith proof when it goes against the opinion you follow.Worse still: when it's not your opinion or practice, you can declare it "unfounded" in Islam.This is an amazing contradiction given her previous balanced and even spiritually guided words prior to this.

Earlier in the book she says it is evidence of glaring insecurity to be unable to accept that others have conflicting beliefs and opinions than you; yet she herself is unable to "agree to disagree", or to follow the Islamic injunction to remain silent when one does not have knowledge on the topic.It would have been sufficient to encourage the reader to avoid taking advice or guidance from anyone without first thoroughly questioning, researching, and praying on it.The key is to avoid trusting or following blindly---not to agree with the author's own personal conclusions about matters that are between the person and God alone (a conviction she holds for herself but strangely divorces when she gives religious advice on halaal and haraam to others). The author not only gives herself authority that belongs to the religion alone, but she goes on to rationalize and even implicitly mock the opinions that go against hers, even scorning Muslim scholars (even as they are certainly mistaken at times).

In keeping with her approach to her list on "innocent pleasures", she dedicates an entire chapter to the Arabic language for the purpose of sharing her personal opinions on non-Arabs praying in Arabic and learning the language of the Qur'an for religious purposes---clearly not an issue of personal opinion.She writes this section for the purpose of disregarding the importance of learning Arabic or praying in the language; this section alone was terrifying in the religious and spiritual implications that go far beyond what she discussed.Naturally, because she doesn't have knowledge or authority in this area, she cannot comprehened the harm of her words, just as a person not grounded in health sciences is unable to grasp the harms of their "simple" suggestion to remove the heart because a disease lies within it.

In the beginning, I loved the book in its purpose, beauty, and insight.However, I became troubled as her purpose drifted from thoughtful sharing to the assumption of Islamic scholarship and disregard for Islamic scholarship other than her own and that with which she agreed.

I do not recommend this book to someone not well-grounded in Islamic basics.However, it can prove a treasure to a knowledgeable, well-read Muslim who can instinctively disregard her crossing of Islamic boundaries by sharing personal opinion in cases where she should have taken the wisdom of God's words:

"Yet there are among men those who dispute about Allah, without knowledge and without guidance..." (22:8).

"Let them bear, on the Day of Judgment, their own burdens in full, and also (something) of the burdens of those without knowledge, whom they misled" (16:25).

A Gentle, Intelligent Voice
I read this book to better understand the Muslim women in my life, but it resonated highly with my experience in my own Christian tradition .The author is comforting, challenging, wise, funny, and highly engaging.Through self-deprecating humor and a gentle acknowledgement of the dichotomies of her (and any) spiritual tradition, she invites the reader into loving dialogue.

Lynn Jones is an asset to the writing world, and I hope she is appreciated as an asset to the Muslim community as well. We need compassionate, articulate, authentic voices like hers.I'd like to read more of her work.

Natural, readable, gripping, Clear message.
I bought this book as I believe I am about to convert to Islam and decided I should buy and read works similar to this to find out about other's experiences.

The message throughout this book is to be at peace with yourself before you can be at peace with God. Put it another way convert, embrace Islam wholeheartedly, love your religion but don't forget who you were before ... hence the title 'Believing as Ourselves'. I suggest that this book may also be useful for those born Muslim but struggling with their identity or faith for any reason.

Although this book quite clearly represents the experiences of a female convert to Islam, any male open minded enough to reflect on the issues the author raises will find value in this book.

L. Lynn Jones writes in a very natural, readable style but nevertheless her book is very well argued. She is clearly immensely well read and this is borne out in the many quotations she uses to support her message. Quotes come from a huge variety of sources, largely non-Islamic. Refreshingly for a book of this type, she in no way relies heavily on verses from the Qur'an. Yes, it does include verses from the Qur'an but at the rate of only one or two quotes for each chapter of her book.

I would definitely recommend this book, it is useful and encouraging for the points that it makes and a gripping read as the story of the author's life develops throughout the book.

Breathtaking.
Replete with breathtaking prose and Qur'anic and literary allusions, this work cuts to the heart of the American Muslim experience, particularly for converts. Jones motivates us to ask how, as American Muslims, we can create an authentic community of faith when we so willingly abdicate our cultural and linguistic identities. How can we develop an authentic relationship with God even as we strive to eliminate the self?While I agree with her on most every issue, I find that in cases where I am in disagreement (for instance, on hijab) I still marvel at her honesty.She is logical and eloquent, well-read and unwavering in her scholarly standards. And she is kind. I have bought a copy of her book for each of my dearest friends and sisters, including a Christian friend of mine, because I truly believe that anyone, and particularly any woman, on a quest for truth and faith can only benefit from her gentle and meditative prose. For anyone tired of pompous polemics, _Believing as Ourselves_ is a treat and a comfort.I travel constantly with my husband on business, and _Believing as Ourselves_ is one of very few books in my mobile library.

Inspirational
As an American Muslim lady... I loved this book!It is truly the next level of self help books that all muslim women need to read.Lynn Jones speaks to us from a refreshingly honest view and learning about her conflicts within herself as well as with the community was like a breath of fresh air as I read things that I could relate to.For non-muslims and men, I am not sure that they will connect to it as well... but it would be an interesting read for them perhaps. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Jeffrey M. Jones has a style all his own...
I got this after I got JP Morgan Saves The Nation (co-written by Jones and Jonathan Larson, who wrote the book music and lyrics for the musical Rent), and the style reminds me so much of JP Morgan.Jones has this fabulous way of slyly showing human nature through loveable, hateable and crazy characters.There's also someone ANYBODY can relate to.It's almost like a cross between F. Scott Fitzgerald and Stephen Sondheim, if you can imagine that.If not, pick up this :) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great ERB paintings
This calendar contains some of the best art work ever done based upon characters of Edgar Rice Burroughs.Jones' paintings have a monumental, mythic style that is very suitable to his themes. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, published by Thomson Gale on October 1, 2006. The length of the article is 5514 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Successful treatment of hand and foot psoriasis with efalizumab therapy.
Author: Scott Fretzin
Publication: Journal of Drugs in Dermatology (Magazine/Journal)
Date: October 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 5Issue: 9Page: 838(9)

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Top Producer, published by Farm Journal Media on September 1, 2003. The length of the article is 853 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: What's wrong with NAFTA? Here's the Mexican point of view.(Trade)(North American Free Trade Agreement)
Author: Jeffrey Jones
Publication: Top Producer (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 1, 2003
Publisher: Farm Journal Media
Page: 10

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more