Other books that might interest you

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  Quantum Criminals - Ramblers...

  Joan LeMay, Alex Pappademas

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  Steely Dan's songs are exercises in fictional world-building. No one else in the classic-rock canon has conjured a more vivid cast of rogues and heroes, creeps and schmucks, lovers and dreamers and cold-blooded operators—or imbued their characters with so much humanity. 
   
   
   
  Pulling from history, lived experience, pulp fiction, the lore of the counterculture, and their own darkly comic imaginations, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker summoned protagonists who seemed like fully formed people with complicated pasts, scars they don't talk about, delusions and desires and memories they can't shake. Every name is a locked-room mystery, beguiling listeners and earning the band an exceptionally passionate and growing cult fandom. 
   
   
   
  Quantum Criminals presents the world of Steely Dan as it has never been seen, much less heard. Artist Joan LeMay has crafted lively, color-saturated images of her favorite characters from the Daniverse to accompany writer Alex Pappademas's explorations of the famous and obscure songs that inspired each painting, in short essays full of cultural context, wild speculation, inspired dot-connecting, and the occasional conspiracy theory. All of it is refracted through the perspectives of the characters, making for a musical companion unlike any other. Quantum Criminals is a singular celebration of Steely Dan's musical cosmos.

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  Good Morning Olive - Haunted...

  Robert Viagas

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  Hamlet calls death "that undiscovered country from whose bourn no traveler returns." 
   
   
   
  But he's wrong. Some do return. 
   
   
   
  Each night after the applause dies, the curtain falls, the audience vanishes, the cleaners dust, and the lights are killed, great theatres become dark and silent places. But not always quite empty. 
   
   
   
  That's when the theatre ghosts make their entrance and strut and fret their hour upon the shadowed boards, illuminated only by the ghost light, the solitary lamp that is required to burn through the night on every Broadway stage. 
   
   
   
  Many of Broadway's busiest theatres continue to be just as busily haunted by spirits, some with well-known names and histories. 
   
   
   
  Good Morning, Olive (named for one of the most beautiful and temperamental of Broadway's ghosts) is about the ghosts that haunt theatres in New York and around the world. 
   
   
   
  Broadway is the playground of stars, so it's probably not surprising to learn that even its ghosts are stars. Meet some of Broadway's best known—and most active—celebrity ghosts. Don't worry: like Casper, they tend to be friendly. For the most part.

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  Nightfly - The Life of Steely...

  Peter Jones

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  Donald Fagen will forever be associated with Steely Dan, the band he formed with Walter Becker and four other musicians in 1972. 
   
   
   
  The smooth, radio-friendly veneer of the duo's songs made Steely Dan internationally popular and famous in the 1970s, but the polish glossed over the underlying layers of anger, disappointment, sleaze, and often downright weirdness lurking just beneath the surface. The elliptical lyrics were—and continue to be—an endless source of fascination. What kind of person was capable of writing such songs? 
   
   
   
  Fagen has always kept his true self hidden behind walls of irony, confounding most journalistic enquiries with a mixture of obscurity and sarcasm. Nightfly cracks open the door to reveal the life behind the lyrics and traces Fagen's story from early family life in suburban New Jersey, to his first encounter with Walter Becker at Bard College, their long struggle for recognition as songwriters, and the formation of Steely Dan. The band's break-up in 1981, reformation in 1993, and Fagen's parallel solo career are covered in detail.

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  A History of the Undead -...

  Charlotte Booth

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  A history of Western culture’s fascination with undead creatures in film and television. 
   
  Are you a fan of the undead? Watch lots of mummy, zombie and vampire movies and TV shows? Have you ever wondered if they could be “real?” 
   
  This book, A History of the Undead, unravels the truth behind these popular reanimated corpses. 
   
  Starting with the common representations in Western media through the decades, we go back in time to find the origins of the myths. Using a combination of folklore, religion and archaeological studies we find out the reality behind the walking dead. You may be surprised at what you find . . .

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  Mystics of the Empire - Magic...

  Davis Truman

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  In Mystics of the Empire, this groundbreaking study delves into the often-overlooked relationship between Roman emperors and magic, offering a fresh perspective on how sorcery and power intersected in the ancient world. While the lives and reigns of emperors have long captivated scholars, the fascinating role of magic in their rule remains a largely unexplored area of historical inquiry. This book examines how emperors were depicted as patrons of magical practices and as victims and persecutors of sorcery, revealing the complex political, social, and religious ramifications of magic in the Roman Empire. 
  From the mystical associations of the early emperors to the later, more controversial reigns of figures like Elagabalus, Mystics of the Empire analyzes the twofold nature of magic’s role — whether it was used as a tool for imperial authority or as a threat to Roman stability. The book explores how emperors employed magicians for their own purposes and how their engagement with magic could be a source of political intrigue and downfall. Drawing on ancient sources and case studies, the narrative illuminates how these magical associations shaped the representation of emperors while also addressing the motivations behind these portrayals. 
  By offering a detailed examination of the magical context from the establishment of the Principate to the end of the Severan dynasty, Mystics of the Empire reveals the intricate interplay between the mystical and the political in ancient Rome. This work challenges traditional understandings of Roman governance, providing readers with a deeper appreciation of how magic was used as a tool of power, control, and subversion in one of history’s most enduring empires.

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  Pumpkins All Around

  Kim Mitzo Thompson, Karen Mitzo...

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  “Pumpkins All Around” is a delightful story/song combination for children as they listen and follow along word-for-word in this adorably illustrated eBook. Fun music will entertain pre-readers as these rhymes reinforce early literacy skills needed for school success. This fall season, kids and parents alike will enjoy reading and singing along to “Pumpkins All Around” as they listen to this and follow” over and over again!

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