Book Description
Bestselling author Susan Vreeland returns with a vivid exploration of one of the most beloved Renoir paintings in the world
Instantly recognizable, Auguste Renoir's masterpiece depicts a gathering of his real friends enjoying a summer Sunday on a café terrace along the Seine near Paris. A wealthy painter, an art collector, an Italian journalist, a war hero, a celebrated actress, and Renoir's future wife, among others, share this moment of la vie moderne, a time when social constraints were loosening and Paris was healing after the Franco-Prussian War. Parisians were bursting with a desire for pleasure and a yearning to create something extraordinary out of life. Renoir shared these urges and took on this most challenging project at a time of personal crises in art and love, all the while facing issues of loyalty and the diverging styles that were tearing apart the Impressionist group. Narrated by Renoir and seven of the models and using settings in Paris and on the Seine, Vreeland illuminates the gusto, hedonism, and art of the era. With a gorgeous palette of vibrant, captivating characters, she paints their lives, loves, losses, and triumphs in a brilliant portrait of her own.
Customer Reviews:
A vivid, enlightening story........2007-09-03
Susan Vreeland's LUNCHEON OF THE BOATING PARTY receives Karen White's fine actress skills - she's worked extensively in film stage, TV and in commercials - which lend a gripping and smooth narrative style to this exploration of Renoir's masterpiece of the title's name. From issues of loyalty to changes in the art world, the story evolves from the viewpoint of Renoir and seven of the models in the painting, and reveals the social fabric of his times in a vivid, enlightening story.
What a bargain! Paris, Painters and a wonderful story. .......2007-08-30
I have a tendency to read plot heavy books, so this character study was a definite change of pace for me. I thought this historical novel gave a fascinating look into the world of the painters, especially Auguste Renoir, and then adding to the book's richness is the historical background of Paris in the 1880's. With Susan Vreeland's (I'm guessing) tremendous amount of research I was able to get a picture of life; the people, culture, the artist community in their creation of a painting, and the wonderful surroundings during that time period. But historical facts and descriptions alone does not make a wonderful story. What Ms. Vreeland did was to create central characters through which we see and feel their varied emotions during this historical period. I felt for them and I found myself becoming a very real part of their struggles over the course of this book. I won't spoil it for you if you haven't read the story by adding more detail. Overall, I thought that this was terrific story and certainly a remarkable effort on the part of the author to create such a rewarding read. Highly recommend this book.
" 'A man always does his best work out of love, madame.' ".......2007-08-15
In the summer of 1880 Pierre-Auguste Renoir painted the famed "Le dejeuner des canotiers." This evocative scene of fourteen people around the remains of the midday meal at La Maison Fournaise, and against a backdrop of boats on the Seine, depicts the bohemian milieu that inspired Renoir's art.
Susan Vreeland's radiant LUNCHEON OF THE BOATING PARTY is a wonderful imagining of the process of creating that Renoir masterpiece. She puts these words into one person's mouth when the painting --finished except for a few highlights -- is first viewed by the picture's models and the public: "Marvelous, the stories you hint at in the interactions." The novel's Renoir replies, "There is no story. It's only a moment." Actually, both are true. Renoir gathered friends and models to pose them in a scene. But these people related in various ways to one another. Some were friends of long standing. Others were introduced during the consecutive weeks they gathered on the Maison balcony on Sundays. Thusly, the composition evolved and the dynamics and "multinamics" of the boating party did also. For instance, trouble with one female model, who did not want to be painted in profile, led to her dismissal and the addition of a young woman who would one day be Mrs. Renoir, although not until years after the completion of this painting.
Vreeland finely, vividly renders details of 1880 in France: ten years after Napoleon III declared war on Prussia and was defeated, Paris is still healing the human sufferings from the Prussian Siege it endured and the subsequent Commune revolt which killed thousands. But the deprivation, the starvation isn't with Parisians any longer. Consider these delectable morsels one character finds in a shop: "She surveyed shelves of syrups, chutneys of exotic fruits, spices, foie gras, tins of macaroons and madeleines, olives from Provence, honey from Languedoc, fruit compotes from Gascogne, mustard from Dijon, caviar from the Aquitaine, a wall of sausages from Auvergne." And besides food and spirits, they enjoy music, plays, regattas on the river, and colors on canvas, of course. The arts (including culinary) are burgeoning.
Renoir served in the war, and remembers his artist friend, Frederic Bazille, who died. But Renoir isn't a man who chooses to dwell on the tragedy of life. His works are a celebration of love. He says in the book that he has to feel love for the women -- and in fact everything -- he paints. In fact, he makes love to them, in a sense, when he brushes them onto his canvases. He blushes up cheeks, he doesn't paint blemishes, he idealizes. In LUNCHEON OF THE BOATING PARTY, Renoir is a man in love with painting and so he must love his subjects in paint and in life.
Certainly Renoir, thirty-nine years old that summer, had a string of loves, some of whom appear in the painting. But he, struggling financially, doesn't have a current lover. He is getting some pointed nudges about settling down but isn't quite ready yet. He tells Aline Charigot, one of the models, " 'Sometimes I don't know who I am as a painter.' " And he has plans to travel to " ' see the Titians in Venice, the Raphaels in Rome, and to discover the sources of Delacroix's colors in Algeria.' " Still, he feels Aline embodies a kind of integration of his previous loves and believes she would give him a peaceful home life if they were to marry. However, Aline is also only half his age, and Renoir understands she still has growing up to do.
Aline isn't the only woman in Renoir's romantic thoughts in 1880. There is also Alphonsine Fournaise, war widow and the daughter of the proprietors of La Maison Fournaise. Renoir honors her as a singular light, rather than a culmination of his previous loves. LUNCHEON OF THE BOATING PARTY is told from the perspectives of Renoir and a number of the models. After Renoir, the reader visits Alphonsine's thoughts most, and that's as it should be since her likeness is arguably the heart of the boating party painting, and her character is likewise the heart of this book. Alphonsine is a true gift for the reader, for Vreeland interprets her as a woman of luminous inner beauty, a woman who loves unselfishly and without condition. She does everything she can to help Renoir with this great experimental undertaking. She encourages him when he has setbacks, she helps Aline feel comfortable when the latter joins the group, she even offers to let Renoir scrub her out of the painting so there won't be thirteen figures (untenable because it recalls the Last Supper, and there is a superstition that one person modeling for such a painting would die...like Judas). Alphonsine also, after some hesitation, tells Renoir her own secret about the war, wanting him to know her without reservation. This sensitive, generous woman definitely loves Renoir, but can their deep connection lead to a life together?
Vreeland writes marvelously! She coaxes to life so many big and little dramas of the boating party, and she does it with a confidence that truly adores and celebrates both Renoir's "Le dejeuner des canotiers" and the unknown mysteries of the real people immortalized in it. Like Renoir, Vreeland, it seems, does her best work out of love.
Don't miss LUNCHEON OF THE BOATING PARTY.
Un Chef-d'oeuvre!.......2007-08-13
Although the beginning of the book was somewhat slow for me, it picked up momentum as I became familiar with the characters. The more I read, the more intrigued I became, not only with the painting but also with Renoir's model friends - Alphonsine, Gustave, Ellen, Angele, and finally Aline. As the author described the progress of the painting, I continually referenced the cover of the book to see what and who were where. In particular, I was curious to find out about the young girl holding the dog. I ended up reading the last half in 2 days. The book is beautifully written and provides an uncannily realistic picture of what life must have been like during the Impressionist era. Already a fan of art and particularly Impressionism, I found myself truly infatuated with Renoir and wishing I could have met him. (4 1/2 stars)
Bringing a fabulous painting to life.......2007-08-09
A large print of Luncheon of the Boating Party is framed in my family room. It is one of my, if not my absolute, favourite painting of all time. Lively and engaging after all these many years. The book creates characters that leap off the painting, making you care about them. Especially the painter. I found myself referring to the painting many times while reading the story. It sparked in me a desire to know more about the painter and his subjects in a biographical way. My only complaint was that a knowledge of the French language would be very helpful to grasping the full flavor of the book. As I am not bi-lingual, the fullness of the story was a bit lost on me.
Book Description
The Black Panther Party for Self Defense, formed in the aftermath of the assassination of Malcolm X in 1965, remains one of the most controversial movements of the 20th-century. Founded by the charismatic Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale, the party sounded a defiant cry for an end to the institutionalized subjugation of African Americans. The Black Panther newspaper was founded to articulate the party's message and artist Emory Douglas became the paper's art director and later the party's Minister of Culture. Douglas's artistic talents and experience proved a powerful combination: his striking collages of photographs and his own drawings combined to create some of the era's most iconic images, like that of Newton with his signature beret and large gun set against a background of a blood-red star, which could be found blanketing neighborhoods during the 12 years the paper existed. This landmark book brings together a remarkable lineup of party insiders who detail the crafting of the party's visual identity.
Customer Reviews:
VERNACULAR SPECTACULAR!!!!!!!!!.......2007-05-31
Sometimes when images from newspapers or TV are taken out of context they can fall flat out of meaning or context. Not so for the revolutionary work of Emory Douglas. Douglas who was the Minister of Culture for the Black Panther Party from 1968-1980 and it's weekly newspaper artist amassed more works for the paper in a short period than most artists in a lifetime. But quantity is not the focus here but quality, growth and diversity. Emory Douglas is a prolific artist; his one page pieces included in the Black Panther newspaper were captivating and profoundly moved individuals all over the world no matter what language they spoke. His work has influenced every generation of artists/writers/activists who found their way into his work. It is interesting to note that while Emory's finished work was incredibly elaborate looking his tools of choice were simple pen, marker, tape and paper. His palette always represented and reflected the working class.
Black Panther: The Revolutionary Art of Emory Douglas focuses on many of Emory's best works and includes forward and texts from former Panther Chairman Bobby Seale, Kathleen Cleaver, Amiri Baraka (still NJ Poet-Lauriat in my book)and Danny Glover among a few.
A definite must for anyone and everyone!!!!!!!
Black Panther Art.......2007-05-23
This is a must-have for the Black Panther memorabilia collector, the African American art collector or any great art book lover's collection! A beautiful and unique book. The pages are printed on a paper that really makes it look like the original Black Panther papers. I love this book.
Book Description
Want to throw an A-list party without spending heaps of time and money? In Style Parties: The Complete Guide to Easy, Elegant Entertaining is the one-stop guide to making every event stylish and personal, and it proves once and for all that entertaining at home can be easy, fabulous, and fun. Organized in three sections, the book includes: The basics of party preparation, including what to serve and how to create the perfect atmosphere. Complete party guides for every occasion, from dinner parties for 8 to cocktail parties for 30. A listing of the countrys top resources for food, drink, and dcor, from artisanal cheeses and exotic chocolates to flowers and flatwear. The book begins with the Basics section, which arms readers with the essentials of party planning. In thorough yet accessible detail, this section provides tips on how to plan a menu, stock a bar, set a table, serve cocktails, and feed a crowd, efficiently and with finesse. Also covered are tips on invitations, decorations, and music, which set the tone for a special occasion. The heart of the book is twenty of the most popular party guides published in In Style magazine over the last five years. Playful themes, fresh and simple recipes, sexy drinks, elegant dcor, handy timetables, and a non-stuffy approach make it easy to stay on top of all the little details. Readers can follow the guides closely, mix up elements from different guides to suit their unique vision, or simply use them as inspiration. The festivities, dreamed up by top celebrity party planners on both coasts, include: Dinner Parties: Everything from a simple Saturday night supper to a Tuscan feast and a Mexican fiesta. Holiday Parties: Thanksgiving, holiday cocktails, and a New Years Eve celebration. Theme Parties: Halloween cocktails; viewing parties to enjoy at-home entertainment, from the Oscars and the Super Bowl to favorite television programs; game night; and girls night in. Showers: Bridal and baby showers. Summer Parties: Outdoor cocktails, backyard barbeque, and luau. Birthday Parties: Dinner at home, cocktails, surprise parties, theme parties, restaurant dinners, and milestone birthdays. With its elegant illustrations and vibrant images of celebrity-studded events, colorful drinks, luscious foods, and sophisticated dcor, In Style Parties puts the fun of parties first. This beautifully designed, all-purpose, indispensable guide shows readers how to think like a movie star while organizing like a caterer. The reward is in enjoying your own party as much as your guests. And In Style Parties makes that a reality.
Customer Reviews:
Sure-Fire.......2007-07-18
This great recipe book does it all for you--gives you the recipes built for 10 or more, which is invaluable; the timetable for planning the meal starting, sometimes, as far back as three weeks; helps you with decor, color scheme, and centerpieces; and pulls it all together for you.
Parties are organized by seasons (several summer outdoor parties along with comfortable autumn dinners); holidays (includes traditional halloween and Thanksgiving but also a contemporary Christmas and New YEars party) and Themes (Oscar party, game night).
I have had great success with just about everything I've pulled from this book in terms of recipes. They are road-tested and inventive, so that even the Backyard Luau (not the most original theme) has twists on the main dishes and appetizers that are creative enough for the most seasoned Hawaiian diner.
My particular favorite was the Girlfriend's Birthday Party which I threw for my mother-in-law's most recent birthday; the pink peonies, rose-scented votives, and be-ribboned chair backs were simple but together made a beautiful backdrop for the light and delicious fare. The flavorful spinach-bacon-herb salad was such a hit I now make it every time I get the chance and always to rave reviews.
Highly Recommended
A Variety of Party Ideas!!!.......2007-01-09
I read Instyle Magazine, and always would look in the Party/Host section. How great to have a book dedicated to them. Detailed great ideas, colorful pictures for inspiration. I always lend it to any friend that is getting ready to host a party or just for fun.
Great book.......2006-11-09
I found this book to be very informative and inspiring. I found the 16 parties to be the best part; I could've done without the 'basics' in the beginning. Also, since I like decorating the most, I thought that they could've focused more on the room or table decor rather than a closeup of a vegetable or drink, for example. But overall a really helpful book!
Loaded with help for your parties!.......2006-02-20
This book is loaded with help and ideas, and will save even the most clueless host/hostess. You get tips for setting up your bar, decorations, and invitations. You get information about wines and beers. But the best part are the individual party ideas. There are cocktail parties and dinner parties. Holiday parties and unique theme parties. Each party comes with a schedule for planning ahead, so you don't have to do any mad scrambling around the day of the party. Each party comes with a unique "signature drink", so you can cut costs by just offering a signature drink, wine, and beer. There are recipies for each party and shortcut ideas if you don't have time or don't want to cook. There are also music ideas and decor ideas, in good detail, to really help you. No other entertaining book I've ever seen includes help with so many aspects of your party so well. And unlike most entertaining books, there's a resource section so you know where you can actually find the items featured in the parties (food, decor, etc.), so you don't see something you love but can't copy. (There is one problem, however, I've found some of their resources only sell wholesale and won't sell to you unless you have a reseller ID, which is really disappointing. They should have only included retail resources anyone can use.) Everyone who either entertains or likes to daydream about it should have this book - the ideas are unique and fabulous. I bought this book because I needed an idea for our wedding rehearsal dinner. Within 20 minutes of looking through the book I had a brilliant idea (there is no "rehearsal dinner", but I found a perfect theme party to use). I have many party and entertaining books, and this one is definitely my favorite. I love it.
A must have.......2005-12-01
Perfect. Everything I was looking for and plenty moore. Very helpful and easy to follow. Thanks InStyle
Book Description
Judy Chicago's masterpiece The Dinner Party is a monumental work of art conceived as a symbolic history of women in Western civilization. Strategically countering the traditional erasure of women's achievements, this epic installation honours 1038 iconic, mythical, archetypal and historical women. This, the most definitive book to be published on Chicago's masterwork, reveals more fully than ever before the art and the artist's expanded research into the rich history embodied in the installation. In lively contextualizing sections, Chicago discusses the creative genesis of The Dinner Party, the technical processes involved, and the work's early - often hostile - reception by the art world, and its subsequent preservation and permanent exhibition.
A magnificently produced book and the ultimate source on an iconic work that is taught in art history and women's studies courses around the world
Profusely illustrated throughout with documentary images and new photography that displays the work in detail
Publication coincides with the release of Gail Levin's major biography, Becoming Judy Chicago, followed by the opening in March 2007 of the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Brooklyn Museum, New York, permanent home of The Dinner Party
Customer Reviews:
THE DINNER PARTY.......2007-06-12
THIS IS A COMPREHENSIVE AND BEAUTIFULLY PRESENTED VOLUME ABOUT A COMPLEX AND HIGHLY ORIGINAL WORK OF ART.
An excellent, illustrated guide to the art of Judy Chicago........2007-05-19
The Dinner Party: From Creation to Reservation offers up an excellent, illustrated guide to the art of Judy Chicago. All other books documenting her DINNER PARTY are all out of print, but even when they were available, none offered such an extensive, full-color treatment as does THE DINNER PARTY: FROM CREATION TO RESERVATION. Documentary photos follow its creation and an essay by Judy Chicago surveys the history of women, the collaborative effort involved, and the history of the work's exhibition. Perfect for college-level art libraries; especially those with some works on Judy Chicago already in their holdings.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Book Description
Surf movies have always attracted a certain kind of audience: passionate, committed, and, quite often, stoned. The posters that advertised these low-budget movies began as colorful notices stapled onto beachside telephone poles in the early fifties. They were full of promises "See the biggest wave EVER!!," "California pointbreak perfection!!" and surfers pounded in, wanting to see the best surfers on the tastiest waves. A splash hit when it debuted in 1966, The Endless Summer, with its ultra dayglo view of beach life, proved that surf movies had made it big time. Four decades later, surf expert Matt Warshaw brings to wave riders everywhere this singular collection of more than 140 amazing and rare posters, covering everything from the bubbly optimism of Gidget to the psychedelic inventiveness of Pacific Vibrations. Including worn ticket stubs, photos of old-time premieres, and a side-splitting history of the surf movie in all its shaggy glory, Surf Movie Tonite! brilliantly illustrates the intersection of beach and film culture.
Customer Reviews:
Could be cool, BUT..........2005-12-13
Matt Warshaw has already staked his claim as being one of the top surf writers. Having edited SURFER Magazine, written THE book on Mavericks (the monster big wave spot in Northern California we saw in Riding Giants) and then penning The Encyclopedia of Surfing, a 770 page door stop of a book that packs in more information about the sport/activity/lifestyle than anyone needs to know, Warshaw has more than demonstrated his chops as a researcher, writer and editor.
Now Chronicle Books has released Surf Movie Tonite!: Surf Movie Poster Art, 1957-2004, a nice looking 143 page book of surf movie posters reproduced in full color and big enough to actually see and appreciate those ephemeral graphic gems.
In the past, surf movies tended to be made by surfers for surfers, or by Hollywood Studios, looking to catch a fad. The surfer made enthusiast films were produced and screened in the tradition of pre-television travelogues, and their period piece posters reflected that amateur effort with their lack of sophistication and abundance of stoke. The surf community by and large didn't care for the Hollywood product. Warshaw quotes his own remarks critical of Hollywood from a 1998 SURFER'S JOURNAL article, but oddly enough this book seems to be more impressed by the slick fiction pics and dismissive of the less refined contributions. But these insights are mere value judgments, largely a matter of taste, mine and Warshaw's. and as the book's author, he's certainly entitled to his bias.
The real question is: where are the artists' credits? Warshaw writes about the film makers, the music and the stars, and he does mentions artists Rick Griffin and John Van Hammersveldt in his introduction. But for the almost all of this catalog of posters, the writer and/or editors choose not to credit the designers and artists whose works are herein displayed. This omission can not be dismissed as a simple oversight; Surf Movie Tonite! isn't a book about surf movies, its a book of surf movie posters! In some examples, the poster artist signed his work, but usually this was not the case. However, the surfing community isn't that large, and the missing information is pretty easily obtainable by any diligent researcher. By leaving the images uncredited and the designers overlooked, Warshaw and Chronicle Books ignore the significant contributions to the films advertised, to surf culture in general, and to their own book itself, of surfer artists like John Seversen, Bill Ogden, Jim Evans, and Terry Lamb, as well as artists unknown to me and the above mentioned Van Hammersveldt and Griffin, whose works are all reproduced without clear credit.
Warshaw finishes his Introduction with the flippant line, "Get Jim Jarmusch to direct, work up a good-looking poster, and it'll make the next edition of this book." Gee, Matt, ya think? With the kind of effort they put into this volume, Chronicle Books and Mr. Warshaw don't deserve another edition.
Average customer rating:
- Courtesy of Teens Read Too
- 4 stars
- Princess Not Fun?! By Ariel Anand
- Princess Not Fun?!
- GRANDMERE TO THE RESCURE
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The Princess Diaries, Volume VII: Party Princess (Princess Diaries)
Meg Cabot
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ASIN: 0060724552
Release Date: 2006-12-26 |
Book Description
Princess just want to have fun . . . And Mia does too, despite the fact that the student government over which she presides is suddenly broke. But Grandmère's got a wacky scheme to raise the money, catapult Mia to theatrical fame, and link her romantically with an eligible teen bachelor who's not her boyfriend. No wonder Michael seems to think she's a psycho, or worse: not much fun. Is it possible that Mia, soon-to-be star of the stage, president of the student body, and future ruler of Genovia, doesn't know how to party?
Download Description
"
Princess just want to have fun
This spring, Mia's determined to have a good time, despite the fact that the student government over which she presides is suddenly broke. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it) Grandmère has an elaborate scheme to simultaneously raise money, catapult Mia to theatrical fame, and link her romantically with an eligible teen bachelor, not her boyfriend. It's no wonder that Michael, the love of her life, seems to think she's a psycho, or worse: not much fun.
Is it possible that Mia, soon-to-be star of the stage, president of the student body, and future ruler of Genovia, doesn't know how to party?
"
Customer Reviews:
Courtesy of Teens Read Too.......2007-06-09
Princess Mia is back in this seventh installment of the popular PRINCESS DIARIES series, and, as usual, she's facing more problems than she knows what to do with. She's recently been elected student body president, which shouldn't really be that difficult a job since she's been in training to rule her own county someday, but it turns out that the student government is broke.
As if that weren't enough, Lilly starts a new literary magazine, calls it Fat Louie's Pink Butthole, and wants to publish Mia's story about "The Guy Who Hates It When They Put Corn in the Chili," a story that Mia would rather the entire student body not read.
Luckily (or not so luckily, depending on how you look at it), there's Grandmere to the rescue, and she's got a plan to help Mia's financial situation, social situation, and romantic situation all at once (not that Mia was aware she had a romantic "situation" in the first place). Unfortunately, Mia's romantic issues become all too clear when Michael decides to throw a party, and Mia starts freaking out because she's not a "party girl."
Fans of the previous PRINCESS DIARIES books won't want to miss this and will definitely enjoy reading along as Mia shares her crazy high school experiences through her journal. Meg Cabot's writing is light and breezy as always, and perfect for a lazy afternoon.
Reviewed by: Andie Z.
4 stars.......2007-03-23
It may be some time before Princess Mia rules Genovia, but she is already getting a taste of governing as the President of the student body of her school. It is not going well. With three months left until the commencement, Mia is faced with bankruptcy and being unable to pay for the ceremony to be held at Lincoln Center. She does not want to resort to selling candles to make up the deficit, but that is a more appealing idea than having the valevictorian cause her bodily harm, if she can get past Lars, Mia's bodyguard. However, Grandmere has an idea. Unfortunately, when Grandmere or the princess' best friend, Lily, has an idea, Mia knows life is about to get "interesting," in the worst sense of the word. She's already dealing with a mountain of potential fall-out from Lilly's idea of creating a school-based literary journal whose sales will go toward meeting the budget. Now, Grandmere has the bright idea to put on a show. Her delivery of the suggesting somehow lacks the perkiness of Judy Garland telling Mickey Rooney that is what they ought to do. Now that the Queen Mother has spoken, so shall it be done. Being beaten senseless by an irate senior might be a better fate!
**** Mia's trials and tribulations continue to charm and amuse readers of all ages. Her angst has a ring of truth, even in the most ridiculous situations. Subtle in-jokes enhance the humor. If you need a laugh, or just to be reassured that things will get better, pick up a Princess story. ****
Princess Not Fun?! By Ariel Anand.......2007-03-23
Princess Mia has a BIG problem. She is a fifteen-year-old girl living in a loft with her mom, stepdad, and baby brother in New York. She has triangular shaped short hair, a flat chest and a horrible social status. She is commonly called "freak". She goes to Albert Einstein High School and she's the student council president. She's heir to the throne of a small country called Genovia. Most people would think that being a princess is great. You'd get whatever you wanted. But that's so not true. Mia HATES being a princess. But the real problem is, she is completely broke. Or at least the student government of AEHS is broke. But her job as student council president is to keep track over everything. Unfortunately, the treasurer didn't really do a good job of saving money. So now, Mia is stuck trying to raise $5,728 for the Senior's Commencement Ceremony in June. Amber Cheeseman was going to kill her for losing all the money. Amber was the senior valedictorian and she was a black belt in karate. She was going to destroy Mia. So Mia has to star in her evil grandmother's musical or else her grandmother would tell Amber about the money problem. All the money raised from the musical would go towards the student council fund. And of course, Mia gets the lead. Could her life be any more difficult? Oh yeah, her boyfriend asked her to go to a COLLEGE party. Mia has never truly been to a college party before. She has no idea what to do. She tries to convince herself that she's a party girl but inside, she knows she isn't. She goes to seek advice on how to party like Paris Hilton. She tries hard to cheer herself up by making snacks for the party and dressing great. But when she does go to the party, she makes a complete fool out of herself. She has a beer and is completely ashamed of what happens. Mia thinks that her boyfriend, Michael, won't like for what she's done. Michael doesn't talk to Mia for days. But that's only because Michael's parents are splitting up and Michael is going through a bad time. But in the end, Michael forgives Mia for humiliating him and her, too. He explains to her what was wrong with his family and she really understands. Also, the student government makes enough money to fund the Senior's Commencement Ceremony and Amber doesn't know anything. Mia's grandmother gives her the check for $5,728. Even her grandmother says that Mia did an amazing job performing onstage. Mia is very pleased and happy. The musical turns out to be a hit! Her grandmother got off her case and Mia is finally free from it all. Now she doesn't have to worry about anything... for only a little while, though.
Princess Not Fun?!.......2007-03-23
Princess Mia has a BIG problem. She is a fifteen-year-old girl living in a loft with her mom, stepdad, and baby brother in New York. She has triangular shaped short hair, a flat chest and a horrible social status. She is commonly called "freak". She goes to Albert Einstein High School and she's the student council president. She's heir to the throne of a small country called Genovia. Most people would think that being a princess is great. You'd get whatever you wanted. But that's so not true. Mia HATES being a princess. But the real problem is, she is completely broke. Or at least the student government of AEHS is broke. But her job as student council president is to keep track over everything. Unfortunately, the treasurer didn't really do a good job of saving money. So now, Mia is stuck trying to raise $5,728 for the Senior's Commencement Ceremony in June. Amber Cheeseman was going to kill her for losing all the money. Amber was the senior valedictorian and she was a black belt in karate. She was going to destroy Mia. So Mia has to star in her evil grandmother's musical or else her grandmother would tell Amber about the money problem. All the money raised from the musical would go towards the student council fund. And of course, Mia gets the lead. Could her life be any more difficult? Oh yeah, her boyfriend asked her to go to a COLLEGE party. Mia has never truly been to a college party before. She has no idea what to do. She tries to convince herself that she's a party girl but inside, she knows she isn't. She goes to seek advice on how to party like Paris Hilton. She tries hard to cheer herself up by making snacks for the party and dressing great. But when she does go to the party, she makes a complete fool out of herself. She has a beer and is completely ashamed of what happens. Mia thinks that her boyfriend, Michael, won't like for what she's done. Michael doesn't talk to Mia for days. But that's only because Michael's parents are splitting up and Michael is going through a bad time. But in the end, Michael forgives Mia for humiliating him and her, too. He explains to her what was wrong with his family and she really understands. Also, the student government makes enough money to fund the Senior's Commencement Ceremony and Amber doesn't know anything. Mia's grandmother gives her the check for $5,728. Even her grandmother says that Mia did an amazing job performing onstage. Mia is very pleased and happy. The musical turns out to be a hit! Her grandmother got off her case and Mia is finally free from it all. Now she doesn't have to worry about anything... for only a little while, though.
GRANDMERE TO THE RESCURE.......2007-03-01
Just when you think Mia has done it all in the past six books Meg Cabot can prove you wrong! Mia finds herself in a stressful situation after she realizes she has spent all the money of the student government on High tech Recycling bins, Mia realizes she may end up going door to door to selling candles! THE PRINCESS OF GENOVIA Selling candles! Now that's a pretty picture! Grandmere decided to take it one step ahead and help Mia with her financial problem! Grandmere decided to embrace her creative side and give a chance to students of AHEAS a chance to shine!
To give the story a bit of spice Meg Cabot added another male in Mia's life that could stir some problems between her and Michael.
I have grown up reading this book and I still find it more interesting than the previous. If any fan has felt the books have began to get to repetitive this book will change your judgment, it's a well recommended book to any Meg Cabot fan.
Book Description
For most little girls, using their imagination, playing dress-up and make-believe can bring hours of fun, and no book will bring them more creative enchantment than Fairy Crafts. Author Heidi Boyd has created projects filled with magic and imagination that will delight any little girl ages 7-11.
Filled with 23 fantastic fairy projects, this book is divided into four sections:
*Fairy Playthings-enchanting fairy dolls and accessories
*Dress-up Fairy Costumes-Easy to make whimsical costumes
*Fairy Party-Throw a fabulous party with fairy invitations, decorations, recipes and tableware
*Fairy Gifts-Charming keepsake gifts girls will love
All the projects use simple items found in craft stores and are easy enough that girls will love making and playing with them over and over.
Customer Reviews:
Crafts are for older children.......2007-09-17
This book had a lot of really wonderful ideas, however, most of the crafts are for older children and my party was for 6 year olds and younger. I made the fairy braclets for the girls myself as it was a little time consuming. For kids 8+ this is a wonderful book with some really cute ideas.
Cool book........2007-05-13
for all who love fairies or crafts, this is a perfect book. Great ideas, wonderful processes and beautiful products!
Beautiful Book.......2007-02-14
I bought this book, along with Sweet Pea's Garden: Special Things to Make and Do ~ A Flower Fairies Friends Book & How to Host a Flower Fairy Tea Party, to help me with my daughter's fairy birthday party. The crafts are exquisite as well as resonably easy to do. Most items can be easily found around the house or your nearest craft store. I love the crafts in both this and Sweet Pea's Garden. Both books are easy to do although I think Sweet Pea works best for our smaller fairies while this book would be perfect for an upscale girls tea party. I loved the little stories and the illustrations that were woven through the book. The only thing that dissapointed me was that there weren't any recipes. If there had been three or four little recipes that would have rounded out the book perfectly. I fell in love with the little cake in the picture of the table setting at the beginning of chapter three. The crafts included invitations, bookmarks, wings, skirts, fairy dolls with a fairy land playground, jewelry, etc. My favorite crafts were the playground and the blooming tableware. Both were made to decorate my daughters table and they were absolutely beautiful. This made for a magical day. Oh, and there are instructions for a Violet Choker by Heidi Boyd at the DIY website.
Great Birthday Party ideas!.......2005-10-24
We used this little book as the basis for a flower fairy birthday party for a six year old, and it was a huge success, and considerably less expensive than renting Little Gym or another insitutional party place.
We made several decorations and the gorgeous flower fairy wands.
All of the projects would probably require adult assistance for a child under 10, but they are really lovely and worth any effort.
Excellent book of crafts!.......2005-08-18
I bought two copies, one for my 9 yr old daughter and one for her friend. They love it and have had the most fun with these creations. I do recommend a little adult help and guidance with the different crafts.
Average customer rating:
- Must Read on Political Frames
- Fear of psychology
- The Sound of One Hand Clapping
- How to tilt public perceptions
- A book about the shadow, arguing for the importance of the substance
|
Talking Right: How Conservatives Turned Liberalism into a Tax-Raising, Latte-Drinking, Sushi-Eating, Volvo-Driving, New York Times-Reading, Body-Piercing, Hollywood-Loving, Left-Wing Freak Show
Manufacturer: PublicAffairs
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The Way We Talk Now
ASIN: 1586483862 |
Book Description
A captivating and outraged account of "The Great Relabeling" of American language and thought, by the well-known "Fresh Air" commentator and author of Going Nucular
Geoffrey Nunberg breaks new ground with this fierce and funny narrative of how the political right has ushered in a new world order, aided unwittingly by the liberal media.
Democrats are well known for their "lousy bumper stickers," as Joe Klein puts it. As liberals wade through the semantics of "social security lockbox," "single payer," and other wonky locutions, the right has become harder, meaner and better at getting out the message: the estate tax became the more menacing "death tax" and a contentious education initiative was wrapped in the comforting (and memorable) blanket of "No Child Left Behind."
But Nunberg shows that the real story is more subtle than just a bumper sticker war. Conservatives' main goal wasn't to win voters over to their positions on healthcare, education, or the environment. They had a much more dramatic ambition. By changing the meaning of words like "values," "government," "liberal"; "faith," and "freedom," conservatives have shifted the political center of gravity of the language itself to the right. "Whatever our politics," Nunberg observes, "when we talk about politics nowadays, we can't help using language that embodies a conservative world-view."
Customer Reviews:
Must Read on Political Frames.......2007-01-05
This is a must read for anyone in America who cares about politics--which should be everyone! If you thought Lakoff insightful on the differences a frame can make, wait until you read Nunberg. I teach this stuff and know whereof I speak. Talking Right is one of those rare hybrids that's right for the classroom and right as a trade book for the typically older, post-college reader. I've ordered several copies for friends.
Fear of psychology.......2006-11-05
Well done for what it is, but Nunberg exhibits the classic fear of delving below the psychological surface. He seems to believe that the left will lose the common man even worse if it starts thinking psychologically about why it's losing him already. He disses Lakoff's look at policital metaphors and doesn't even bother to dis explanations that are even better, such as those of Alice Miller, Stephen Ducat, and Lloyd deMause. It frustrated me to no end as I read Nunberg advocate a return to the populist rhetoric of Truman and Clinton, hardly big winners. Truman's was a nortoriously narrow win, and Clinton's first election was a gimmie from a thrid-party candidate on the right. Nunberg seems to set his sights on the unlofty goal of 51% of the vote rather than a true strategy that will dismantle the psychological tricks the right plays on the populace like stroking their machismo, their fear, their weath fantasies, their need for scapegoats, etc.
Wake up and smell the psychological coffee, Nunberg. The right has.
The Sound of One Hand Clapping.......2006-11-04
We swim through words like fish swim through water. Metaphors are accepted as reality by many. Legends become gospil truth. This books was an informative and fun view at a very important (not just politically) subject. And now, at last, I know where the word "pinko" came from and what it means.
How to tilt public perceptions.......2006-10-22
"Talking Right" by Geoffrey Nunberg is a timely analysis of the lopsided and dysfunctional status of U.S. political discourse. Mr. Nunberg is a linguistics professor who explains how the Republican Party's privileged relationship with the media has helped to define the political narrative, which in turn has effectively tilted public perceptions to the political Right. However, by deconstructing the manner in which the Right's political language has been frequently served up as a smokescreen to obscure its radical neoconservative agenda, the author helps us understand how the political Left can present an alternative discourse that could resonate with the vast majority of Americans. Assiduously researched and cogently argued, this thoughtful, nuanced and highly readable text should interest a wide audience.
Mr. Nunberg presents a brief history of the neoconservative movement to recount how language has been deployed in order to associate particular words and phrases with politically-charged meanings. For example, the phrase 'cultural elite' was introduced by Vice President Dan Quayle in 1992 and succeeded in connecting Hollywood entertainment with sectors of the public who might have felt apprehension about social change. Indeed, Mr. Nunberg points out that since the 1960s the Republican Party has adroitly manufactured and magnified the importance of Pat Buchanan's 'culture war' in a way that has convinced large blocs of the working class to vote against its own material interests. Unfortunately, as liberals are reduced to a snobbish and out-of-touch caricature of the consumer culture imagination, Mr. Nunberg contends that the Democratic Party has failed to articulate a meaningful narrative of its own to inspire the faithful or to define the Party's mission.
Nonetheless, Mr. Nunberg believes that the Democrats can yet prevail if it dares to once again speak truth to power. Mr. Nunberg cites Bill Clinton's highly effective narrative about the powerless versus the powerful during the 1992 campaign as an example of how a message can resonate with an increasingly insecure working class beset with economic grievances. To that end, the author goes on to argue that in the wake of the Bush administration's disastrous policies (including preemptive war, fiscally irresponsible tax breaks and reckless environmental rollbacks), liberals have an excellent opportunity to articulate a new popular narrative of working-class struggle in the pursuit of economic justice and equality.
I highly recommend this important book to everyone, and especially to those interested in media and politics.
A book about the shadow, arguing for the importance of the substance.......2006-10-17
Government, John Dewey famously said, is the shadow cast by big business over society. And political language, Geoffrey Nunberg argues in Talking Right, is the shadow cast by government. Democrats, he points out, seem to think language has a talismanic power, that if only they can find the right catch phrase or slogan, they can pull people over to their side. "Liberal" must become "progressive", "family values" must become "valuing families". There's an intellectual cleverness to such stunts, and as a Berkeley linguist, Nunberg must want to believe in them. But he doesn't. The words, he explains, are just a side-effect of the larger political situation. Dewey explained that attempts to change the shadow will have no effect without a change in the substance, and Nunberg heartily agrees.
It's hard to see how it could be otherwise, but Democrats have suffered from a stubborn literalism in political discourse: thinking they can beat the charge of big government by launching programs cutting down on bureaucratic waste, thinking they can reclaim the issue of values by pointing to their love of tolerance and fairness, thinking they can dodge the charge of latte-sipping by donning a hunting cap and rifle. In reality, the issues go much deeper: big government is an attack on the notion that government can do good, values refers to a feeling of national morals run amok, and the latte-sipping charge is an attempt to distract voters from bigger issues of class. Nunberg even chastises his colleague George Lakoff for assuming that the current packages of political positions have any deeper meanings, rather than just being accidents of history.
Nunberg is an essayist--his commentaries for NPR's Fresh Air are a national treasure--and his style, while eminently readable, doesn't translate well to a long book, where his points get lost in a field of anecdotes. But beneath all the stories about how conservatives eat more brie and liberal used to be a mantle claimed by everyone, Nunberg's point is a familiar one: if the Democrats want to win, they must begin telling full-throated populist stories about how the economic elite are capturing the wealth of our country and how we need government to take it back. The point is no less true for being popular, and it's heartening to find that investigation from yet another perspective yields the same conclusions.
Book Description
Make flowers bloom in your sewing room! Appliquéd blossoms, vines, and hearts take the spotlight in quilts inspired by the garden.
• Choose from a dozen wall- and lap-quilt patterns
• Make any project with fusible, freezer-paper, or needle-turn appliqué--instructions are provided for all
• Projects incorporate easy embellishments, including exquisite hand-embroidered details
Customer Reviews:
Beautiful flowers oriented designs.......2003-10-28
"Garden Party: Appliqué Quilts that Bloom" contains everything you need to know to make absolutely beautiful appliqué quilts. Every aspect of appliqué quilting is covered including quiltmaking basics, equipment, stitching techniques, appliqué techniques, and even the patterns for the quilts in the book. These quilt examples consist mostly of either pastel or bright colorful flowers, hence the title "Garden Party".
"Garden Party: Appliqué Quilts that Bloom" is a highly recommended purchase for anyone interested in quilting and especially so if you are interested in appliqué techniques in quilting or flower based patterns. You will not be disappointed.
Gotta Have It!.......2003-07-24
This is a beautiful book with great-looking projects. I heard someone exclaiming over it at my local quilt shop and I just had to see what they were talking about. I couldn't resist it, either. What I liked was the combination of patchwork and applique both. The quilt designs were innovative, too. I'm anxious to try one of the projects soon.
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