Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture


Marita Sturken - 2001
    It looks at painting, photography, film, television, and new media across the realms of art, advertising, news, science, and law. Authors Marita Sturken and Lisa Cartwright present the diverse ranges of approaches to visual analysis that have emerged in the last few decades, and lead the reader through the key theories of visual culture in an accessible and highly readable approach. Including over 180 images, this truly interdisciplinary and beautifully designed book aims to be a comprehensive introduction for anyone interested in images, and the key text for courses across a range of disciplines including media and film studies, art history, photography, and communication.

Biblical Manhood: Masculinity, Leadership and Decision Making


Stuart W. Scott - 2009
    This book addresses three important areas of a man's life and is valuable for married and single men.

Hard Core: Power, Pleasure, and the "Frenzy of the Visible"


Linda Williams - 1989
    For the 1999 edition, Williams has written a new preface and a new epilogue, "On/scenities," illustrated with 25 photographs. She has also added a supplementary bibliography.

From Mouse to Mermaid: The Politics of Film, Gender, and Culture


Elizabeth Bell - 1995
    Addressing children's classics as well as the Disney affiliates' more recent attempts to capture adult audiences, the contributors respond to the Disney film legacy from feminist, marxist, poststructuralist, and cultural studies perspectives. The volume contemplates Disney's duality as an American icon and as an industry of cultural production, created in and through fifty years of filmmaking. The contributors treat a range of topics at issue in contemporary cultural studies: the performance of gender, race, and class; the engendered images of science, nature, technology, family, and business. The compilation of voices in From Mouse to Mermaid creates a persuasive cultural critique of Disney's ideology.The contributors are Bryan Attebery, Elizabeth Bell, Claudia Card, Chris Cuomo, Ramona Fernandez, Henry A. Giroux, Robert Haas, Lynda Haas, Susan Jeffords, N. Soyini Madison, Susan Miller, Patrick Murphy, David Payne, Greg Rode, Laura Sells, and Jack Zipes.

Cinderella's Sisters: A Revisionist History of Footbinding


Dorothy Ko - 2005
    The practice originated in the dance culture of China's medieval court and spread to gentry families, brothels, maid's quarters, and peasant households. Conventional views of footbinding as patriarchal oppression often neglect its complex history and the incentives of the women involved. This revisionist history, elegantly written and meticulously researched, presents a fascinating new picture of the practice from its beginnings in the tenth century to its demise in the twentieth century. Neither condemning nor defending foot-binding, Dorothy Ko debunks many myths and misconceptions about its origins, development, and eventual end, exploring in the process the entanglements of male power and female desires during the practice's thousand-year history.Cinderella's Sisters argues that rather than stemming from sexual perversion, men's desire for bound feet was connected to larger concerns such as cultural nostalgia, regional rivalries, and claims of male privilege. Nor were women hapless victims, the author contends. Ko describes how women—those who could afford it—bound their own and their daughters' feet to signal their high status and self-respect. Femininity, like the binding of feet, was associated with bodily labor and domestic work, and properly bound feet and beautifully made shoes both required exquisite skills and technical knowledge passed from generation to generation. Throughout her narrative, Ko deftly wields methods of social history, literary criticism, material culture studies, and the history of the body and fashion to illustrate how a practice that began as embodied lyricism—as a way to live as the poets imagined—ended up being an exercise in excess and folly.

Notorious: The Life of Ingrid Bergman


Donald Spoto - 1997
    Mary's, Spellbound, Notorious, Anastasia, Hedda Gabler" and" A Woman Called Golda." Whether acting the role of saint or sinner, Bergman found in her characters the extremes of her own devoted and passionate nature. This riveting biography takes readers from her blighted childhood in Sweden to her time in Nazi Germany; from the golden age of Hollywood to her status as an international star on the stages and screens of Europe and America; from the time she was branded "an apostle of degradation" to the twilight of her life, when she endured a tragic final illness with grace and courage.The supporting cast in her life story is a veritable International Who's Who, and includes, among many others, David O. Selznick, Alfred Hitchcock, Roberto Rossellini, Spencer Tracy, Gary Cooper, Howard Hughes, Cary Grant, Bing Crosby, John Gielgud, Yul Brynner and Robert Capa."Notorious: The Life of Ingrid Bergman" is the epic biography of a great actress who not only altered the shape of international celebrity but also significantly changed the world's ideas about what a woman could be.'The life of acting legend and legendary beauty Ingrid Bergman is given major treatment in this detailed and elegantly written volume by veteran film biographer Spoto." "--Publishers Weekly"

Party Animals: A Hollywood Tale of Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n' Roll Starring the Fabulous Allan Carr


Robert Hofler - 2010
    Hosting outrageous soirees with names like the Mick Jagger/Cycle Sluts Party and masterminding such lavishly themed opening nights as the Tommy/New York City subway premiere, it was Carr, an obese, caftan-wearing producer--the ultimate outsider--who first brought movie stars and rock stars, gays and straights, Old and New Hollywood together. From the stunning success of Grease and La Cage aux Folles to the spectacular failure of the Village People's Can't Stop the Music, as a producer Carr's was a rollercoaster of a career punctuated by major hits and phenomenal flops--none more disastrous than the Academy Awards show he produced featuring a tone-deaf Rob Lowe serenading Snow White, a fiasco that made Carr an outcast, and is still widely considered to be the worst Oscars ever. Tracing Carr's excess-laden rise and tragic fall--and sparing no one along the way--Party Animals provides a sizzling, candid, behind-the-scenes look at Hollywood's most infamous period.

The Carter Girls: (Re-release Part Two)


Desiree M. Granger - 2015
    Concludes the end of this series.

The Rape of Nanking


James Yin - 1996
    The Rape of Nanking, or Nanking Massacre, in which at least 369,366 people were slaughtered and 80,000 women were raped by Japanese invasion troops, has become little more than a historical footnote in the West. The horror began on the morning of December 13, 1937, when the Japanese Imperial Army captured Nanking (Nanjing), which was then China's capital. Soldiers went through the streets indiscriminately killing Chinese men, women, and children without apparent provocation or excuse until in places the streets and alleys were littered with the bodies of their victims. Thousands of women were raped by Japanese soldiers; death was frequently the penalty for the slightest resistance by a victim or members of her family. Even large numbers of young girls and old women were raped throughout the city, and many cases of abnormal and sadistic behavior in connection with these rapes were reported. Many women were killed after the act and their bodies mutilated. For the next six weeks, while horrific rape continued, wholesale murder of male civilians was conducted with the apparent sanction of the Japanese high command. Hundreds of thousands of civilians and disarmed ex-soldiers were arrayed in formation, their hands bound behind their backs, and marched outside the city wall where, in groups, they were beheaded, or buried alive, or bayoneted, or raked with machine-gun fire, or doused with gasoline and burned. This book, using more than 400 historical photographs, many of which were taken by Japanese soldiers themselves, is published to commemorate the sixtieth anniversary of the Rape of Nanking, to remind the world of the forgotten holocaust of WWII, and to honor history and answer any attempt to deny or change it.

The Lyrics To His Song


Krystal Armstead - 2016
    Audrey Gibson was just three-days shy of turning twenty-two years old when her boyfriend, Sean, comes in from out of town after being on tour for months with superstar Antwan Jared. Audrey resented the music industry, which drove a wedge between her and Sean, a boy she’d been in love with all of her life. A hard-day’s work as a manager at Foot Locker leads to Audrey finally meeting Antwan Jared face-to-face. The rebellious, handsome superstar offers Audrey the chance of a lifetime—to compete for a songwriter position that had just opened at Instinctive Entertainment. After finding out that Sean may be cheating on her with her sister, she decides to confront the two and takes Antwan up on his offer, showing off her skills as not only a writer but a singer at a club. From the moment Antwan met Audrey, he knew she was someone that he wanted to have around. Her intentions were to piss Sean off; Antwan’s intentions were to win her over, despite the fact that she had a man. The performance changes Audrey’s life forever, forcing not only Audrey but everyone else in her life to confront their past.

Dream and Drake 2: A Cartel Love Story


Princess Diamond - 2017
    Dream leaves the precinct with a heavy heart. Drake tries to give her some space, but she has no intentions of taking a break from him. She wants to reconcile things that night so that they can be happy in the morning. After another altercation with Channa, Drake’s wife, Dream realizes that her relationship with Drake is not the fairytale life that she thinks it is. Winning Drake back will not be as easy as she thought. Channa will not allow Dream to step into the picture and steal Drake away without a fight. Channa will kill for him. Not only is Channa a beautiful bombshell, she is Drake’s trap queen too. There is nothing that Channa won’t do for her man, as long as he chooses her. She can be vindictive, secretive, and scandalous if need be. The beef in the streets is brewing. Before Drake knows it, he is in a world of chaos. His businesses are under attack and his family is under fire. Bullets are being hailed everywhere. For the first time in Drake’s life, he fails. Now, he doesn’t know if he should tell The Cartel or not. Breeze has no idea that Bey is kidnapped. He thinks that she is still angry with him. After Dream is hurt badly, Breeze tries to look for Bey, but his pride and hot-headed way of thinking won’t allow him to search too long. He’s convinced that she’s moved on and he’s determined to do the same. Will Dream and Drake end up together like they planned? Will Breeze find Bey? Or will the chaos surrounding their love prevent them from blossoming?

Can't Leave It Alone


Nicole Jackson - 2015
    Ryan is no exception to the rule. Her man Desmond and her brother Bryan are hustling hard together, while she enjoys the fruits of their labor. The flashy clothes, cars, and jewelry that most young people only dreamed about was a reality for her. But everything has a price. One fateful night changes their lives forever, giving Ryan a wake-up call like no other.In Ryan’s eyes, Desmond just can’t seem to leave the game alone, but she’s done. Deciding that the fast life wasn’t for her, she walks away from it all, including the love of her life. Situations force them to move on, but the heart wants what the heart wants. Will love bring her back to her man? Or will the allure of the game prove too strong for Desmond, creating a permanent wedge between him and Ryan?Can’t Leave it Alone is a novel about love in its simplest form. If you let it go, and it’s true…it will always come back to you. The question is: what kind of problems it will bring when it returns.

Some Odd Hour


Mycah Edwards - 2019
    I was in Rosewind. He was him. I was me. There was no way it could ever work.” - E’Bay Sharpe E’Bay Sharpe had grown accustomed to her simple life. She went to work. She went home. That was it. Though she desired to experience more, she couldn’t get out of her head long enough to follow through. Until she did... Kanobi ‘Noble’ Harris was the singer that had nothing, then he had it all. A mandatory vacation to a bed and breakfast opens his heart for him to reconnect with more than just his music... if he can leave his past exactly where it is. In the past. He’s a Grammy nominated artist who has lost his spark. She’s the soul behind a locally loved vocalist. Embedded in the notes of a guitar lies a solution for them both, as long as they can get over their differences long enough to create magic during some odd hour.

This Industry Ain't Meant For Hood Love


Heiress - 2017
    Yes, the artist may sing about it but do they really want love when they can rather have money, power and fame?Peso is the rudest most disrespectful trap artist you will ever encounter. Rapping about his drugs, money and women who he could careless for, is his specialty. That four-letter word meant nothing to him. It was just an excuse to distracted to him when he was all about his music. That was until one drunken and high night changed his life forever. For the better or worse? We have yet to find out.Ginger is your everyday girl next day with a bright smile and an even brighter personality. All she dreamed about was getting out he Hood and finding out what she wanted to do with her life career wise. She wasn't into boys and she never was the in your face type. After one encounter with Peso, she will soon find out why he will soon be her root to why she hates men. Or is that hate often mistake for love?PlayBoi is exactly what his stage name is. A playboy. He hops from women to women every night not looking for any strings to be attached. As a sexy R&B singer with talent, money who God has blessed down below, he is every woman's dream. He's a gentleman who's gentle and nice but his player ways overshadow his positive attributes. When his career is on the rocks due to his ongoing playboy image, he is forced to make a change. A change that may make him happy or lead him down a path of heartbreak for the first time.Raven is the sexy singer with a feisty attitude that everyone seems to be attracted to. She's new in the music business but she adjusts to the life very well. Out the gate she was named the new Rihanna without the accent. She had a secret that she kept due to her instant fame but soon it will get out. As she makes a deal with her label of a gimmick that will get her more fans, she sacrifices her relationship in the process. Will it be the start of something new or will her celebrity status soon come to an end?Four individuals battle with money, fame, love and drugs. The four most common downfalls in this music industry. Can they withstand the false blogs, thirsty thots, crazy fans and the rise of their career?

Hamlet on the Holodeck: The Future of Narrative in Cyberspace


Janet H. Murray - 1997
    In this comprehensive and readable book--already a classic statement of the aesthetics of digital media, acclaimed by practitioners and theorists alike--Janet Murray shows how the computer is reshaping the stories we live by. Murray discusses the unique properties and pleasures of digital environments and connects them with the traditional satisfactions of narrative. She analyzes the dramatic satisfaction of participatory stories and considers what would be necessary to move interactive fiction from the formats of childish games and confusing labyrinths into a mature and compelling art form. Through a blend of imagination and techno-wizardry, Murray provides both readers and writers with a guide to the storytelling of the future.