The Greatest Works

MAKE A SOUND INVESTMENT IN CLASSICAL MUSIC Who are the ten most important classical composers? Who in the world was Palestrina? Why did Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring" cause a riot? Which five of each important composer's works should you buy? What is a concerto and how does it differ from a sonata? Maybe you don't know the answers to these questions; author Phil Goulding certainly didn't. When Goulding first tried to learn about classical music, he found himself buried in an avalanche of technical terms and complicated jargon--so he decided to write the book he couldn't find. The result is a complete classical music education in one volume. Comprehensive, discriminating, and delightfully irreverent, Classical Music provides such essential information as: * Rankings of the top 50 composers (Bach is #1. Borodin is #50) * A detailed and anecdotal look at each composer's life and work * The five primary works of each composer and specific recommended CDs for each. * Further great works of each composer--if you really like him * Concise explanations of musical terminology, forms, and periods * A guide to the parts and history of the symphony orchestra "This book uses every conceivable gimmick to immerse readers in the richness of classical music: lists, rankings, sidebars devoted to lively anecdotes, and catchy leads." --The Washington Post "One terrific music appreciation book...The information is surprisingly detailed but concisely presented. Goulding's writing style is breezy yet mature....[He] has raised music appreciation from a racket to a service." --The Arizona Daily Star

A former director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York chooses the 111 works of art--culled from the entire history of Western civilization--that have influenced him most, reproduced in full-color and complemented by his interpretations. Tour.

This meticulously edited collection of "The Greatest Works of George Orwell" is formatted for your eReader with a functional and detailed table of contents: Burmese Days A Clergyman's Daughter Keep the Aspidistra Flying Coming Up for Air Animal Farm 1984 Down and Out in Paris and London The Road to Wigan Pier Homage to Catalonia

Why was Thomas Hardy's first novel never published? What happened to the manuscript of the long promised 'magnum opus' that Truman Capote never delivered? Why did Heinrich Böll abandon his Paradise Lost? These and many other intriguing mysteries are uncovered in this comprehensive guide to literature's lost and unfinished masterpieces. From a creative crisis to a dissatisfied editor, and from a bizarre twist of fate to an untimely death, behind each unpublished book lies a unique and compelling story. One of the giants of modern literature, Ernest Hemingway, saw three years of work, including a novel and several short stories, vanish when his wife's suitcase was stolen in the Gare de Lyon in Paris. Evelyn Waugh, on the other hand, burned the manuscript of his first novel and attempted to drown himself after a friend gave it a bad review. Covering an eclectic range of international authors, both living and dead, The Greatest Books You'll Never Read unearths an alternative literary history that is fascinating and heartbreaking in equal measure. Each ill-fated book, from Karl Marx's comic novel Scorpion and Felix to Stephenie Meyer's Twilight spin-off Midnight Sun, is examined in an in-depth essay, with selected entries featuring manuscript extracts. Specially commissioned covers by acclaimed designers illustrate each entry, bringing to life these lost literary wonders. At once entertaining and enlightening, The Greatest Books You'll Never Read will be loved by bookworms everywhere. Erica Jarnes worked as an editor at Bloomsbury for eight years before becoming Literature Programmer at the South Bank Centre. She is involved in organizing Port Eliot Festival, a prestigious literary gathering that attracts authors from around the globe, and is passionate about promoting translated fiction. She lives in London.

National Bestseller and Winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction Oscar Feldman, the renowned figurative painter, has passed away. As his obituary notes, Oscar is survived by his wife, Abigail, their son, Ethan, and his sister, the well-known abstract painter Maxine Feldman. What the obituary does not note, however, is that Oscar is also survived by his longtime mistress, Teddy St. Cloud, and their daughters. As two biographers interview the women in an attempt to set the record straight, the open secret of his affair reaches a boiling point and a devastating skeleton threatens to come to light. From the acclaimed author of The Epicure's Lament, a scintillating novel of secrets, love, and legacy in the New York art world. "Mischievous...funny, astute...As unexpectedly generous as it is entertaining.... Christensen is a witty observer of the art universe." —The New York Times

Welcome to the fascinating story of how we got the world's greatest book--the Bible. It is a captivating story that includes a little bit of everything: adventure and violence, mystery and bravery, history and romance, and dumb luck or divine intervention--depending on your point of view. How in the world did we get this book that some people swear by--and other people swear at? You don't have to be a skeptic to have a grocery list of questions about the making of the Bible, one of the world's most loved and loathed books: What's so great about the Bible? Why are there different versions of the Bible? How has this controversial book remained relevant through the ages? Who wrote these books and when? As scribes made copies of copies, didn't they make mistakes that caused the ancient writings to be changed and corrupted? How was it decided which writings would be included in the Bible? What are the Dead Sea Scrolls, and why are archeological finds like these a big deal? Devoted people dedicated their lives throughout time, putting this unique book into the hands of people worldwide. Let this book deepen your engagement with God's Word as you retrace the passion and intrigue behind the origin of the Bible.

Discover an American masterpiece. This unassuming story about the life of a quiet English professor has earned the admiration of readers all over the globe. William Stoner is born at the end of the nineteenth century into a dirt-poor Missouri farming family. Sent to the state university to study agronomy, he instead falls in love with English literature and embraces a scholar’s life, so different from the hardscrabble existence he has known. And yet as the years pass, Stoner encounters a succession of disappointments: marriage into a “proper” family estranges him from his parents; his career is stymied; his wife and daughter turn coldly away from him; a transforming experience of new love ends under threat of scandal. Driven ever deeper within himself, Stoner rediscovers the stoic silence of his forebears and confronts an essential solitude. John Williams’s luminous and deeply moving novel is a work of quiet perfection. William Stoner emerges from it not only as an archetypal American, but as an unlikely existential hero, standing, like a figure in a painting by Edward Hopper, in stark relief against an unforgiving world.