Recommendations based on "Dictionary of Literary Biography"

Some of their past the Tudors wanted to remember, other parts they preferred to forget: a new history, a new story, the family behind the myths.The Tudors are a national obsession; they are our most notorious royal family. But, as Leanda de Lisle shows in this gripping new history, beyond the well-worn headlines is a family still more extraordinary than the one we thought we knew.The Tudor canon typically starts with the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, before speeding on to Henry VIII and the Reformation. But this leaves out the family’'s obscure Welsh origins, the ordinary man known as Owen Tudor who would fall (literally) into a Queen’'s lap, and later her bed. It passes by the courage of Margaret Beaufort, the pregnant thirteen-year-old girl who would help found the Tudor dynasty; and the childhood and painful exile of her son, the future Henry VII. It ignores the fact that the Tudors were shaped by their past -- those parts they wished to remember and those they wished to forget.By creating a full family portrait set against the background of this past, Leanda de Lisle enables us to see the Tudors in their own terms, rather than ours; and presents new perspectives and revelations on key figures and events. We see a family dominated by remarkable women doing everything possible to secure its future; understand why the Princes in the Tower disappeared; look again at the bloodiness of Mary’'s reign; at Elizabeth’'s relationships with her cousins; and re-discover the true significance of previously overlooked figures. We see the supreme importance of achieving peace and stability in a violent and uncertain world, and of protecting and securing the bloodline. Tudor tells a family story like no other, and brings it once more to vivid life.

Since its publication in 1908, Anne of Green Gables has been an enduring bestseller and arguably Canada’s most famous novel. This Norton Critical Edition offers an unrivaled selection of contextual and critical material, edited by two leading Montgomery scholars. “Backgrounds” brings together fourteen relevant excerpts from Montgomery’s journals, letters, and juvenilia along with literary selections from, among others, Sir Walter Scott, Byron, Caroline Oliphant, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and Louisa May Alcott. The cultural context of Anne of Green Gables is explored through the writings of Carole Gerson, Kate Wood, and Mary Henley Rubio. “Criticism” is divided into “Early Reviews and Responses” and “Modern Critical Views.” Eight reviews from 1908 to 1942 include Canadian, American, and British assessments. Critical essays are provided by, among others, Northrop Frye, Elizabeth Epperly, T. D. MacLulich, Juliet McMaster, Carol Shields, Margaret Atwood, and Elizabeth Waterston. A Chronology and Selected Bibliography are also included.

HardCover. Pub Date :2013-08-29 Pages: 288 Language:. English A revealing look backstage at the hit TV show Downton Abbey In-depth interviews give an exclusive insight into the actors' experiences on set as well as the celebrated creative team behind the award-winning drama.A lavishly illustrated book full of images from the new series including those stunning 1920s costumes. which will delight the millions of devoted Downton fans. Step inside the props store or the hair and make-up truck and catch a glimpse of the never-before-seen secret backstage world Expertly crafted with inside knowledge and facts. Behind the Scenes at Downton Abbey: The official companion to all four series. will delve into the inspiration behind the details seen on screen. the choice of locations. the music and much more.With a perspective from the director's chair and rare insights into filming. thi...

In the tradition of The Swerve and How to Live, this vivid biography reveals how a Renaissance scholar reshaped the visual world. Giorgio Vasari (1511–1574) was a man of many talents—a sculptor, painter, architect, writer, and scholar—but he is best known for Lives of the Artists, the classic account that singlehandedly invented the genre of artistic biography and established the canon of Italian Renaissance art. Before Vasari’s extraordinary book, art was considered a technical skill rather than an intellectual pursuit, and artists were mere decorators and craftsmen. It was through Vasari’s visionary writings that artists like Raphael, Leonardo, and Michelangelo came to be regarded as great masters of life as well as art, their creative genius celebrated as a divine gift. Their enduring reputations testify to Vasari’s profound yet unspoken influence on western culture. An advisor to kings and pontiffs—and a confidant to Titian, Donatello, and more—Vasari enjoyed an exhilarating career amid the thrilling culture of Renaissance Italy. In The Collector of Lives, Ingrid Rowland and Noah Charney offer a lively and inviting introduction to this pivotal figure in art history, and immerse readers in the world of the Medici of Florence and the popes of Rome. A narrative of intrigue, scandal, and colorful artistic rivalry, this vivid biography shows the great works of western art taking shape under Vasari’s keen eye—and reveals how one Renaissance scholar completely redefined how we look at art.

A comprehensive collection of writings by “the most influential writer of the nineteenth century” (Harold Bloom)Ralph Waldo Emerson’s diverse body of work has done more than perhaps any other thinker to shape and define the American mind. Literary giants including Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Walt Whitman were among Emerson’s admirers and protégés, while his central text, Nature, singlehandedly engendered an entire spiritual and intellectual movement in transcendentalism. This long-awaited update—the first in more than thirty years—presents the core of Emerson’s writings, including Nature and The American Scholar, along with revelatory journal entries, letters, poetry, and a sermon.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

From Back Day by day, almost hour by hour, C.V. Wedgwood describes the hour uneasy years that were to explode into civil war--a devastation that cost King Charles his life and won the rebels their revolution.

An account of the Lindberghs' wartime years, but most significantly the story of a bond between two extraordinary people. Introduction by the Author; Index; photographs. A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book

The correspondence of a Founding Father and his brilliant wifeThe Letters of John and Abigail Adams provides an insightful record of American life before, during, and after the Revolution; the letters also reveal the intellectually and emotionally fulfilling relationship between John and Abigail that lasted fifty-four years and withstood historical upheavals, long periods apart, and personal tragedies. Covering key moments in American history - the Continental Congress, the drafting of the Declaration of Independence, the Revolutionary War, and John Adams's diplomatic missions to Europe - the letters reveal the concerns of a couple living during a period of explosive change, from smallpox and British warships to raising children, paying taxes, the state of women, and the emerging concepts of American democracy.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introdutions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

"There is scarcely one letter by Van Gogh which I, who am certainly no expert, do not find fascinating." --W. H. Auden In addition to his many remarkable paintings and drawings, Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) left behind a fascinating and voluminous body of correspondence. This highly accessible book includes a broad selection of 265 letters, from a total of 820 in existence, that focus on Van Gogh's relentless quest to find his destiny, a search that led him to become an artist; the close bond with his brother Theo; his fraught relationship with his father; his innate yearning for recognition; and his great love of art and literature. The correspondence not only offers detailed insights into Van Gogh's complex inner life, but also re-creates the world in which he lived and the artistic avant-garde that was taking hold in Paris. The letters are accompanied by a general introduction, historic family photographs, and reproductions of 87 actual pages of letters that contain sketches by Van Gogh. Selected from the critically acclaimed 6-volume set of letters published by the Van Gogh Museum in 2009, Ever Yours is the essential book on Van Gogh's letters, which every art and literature lover needs to own.