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  The American Midwest in Film and...

  Adam R. Ochonicky

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  A critical overview of the evolution, contestation, and fragmentation of the Midwest’s symbolic (and often contradictory) meanings in American culture. 
   
  How do works from film and literature—Sister Carrie, Native Son, Meet Me in St. Louis, Halloween, and A History of Violence, for example—imagine, reify, and reproduce Midwestern identity? And what are the repercussions of such regional narratives and images circulating in American culture? In The American Midwest in Film and Literature: Nostalgia, Violence, and Regionalism, Adam R. Ochonicky provides a critical overview of the evolution, contestation, and fragmentation of the Midwest’s symbolic and often contradictory meanings. 
   
  Using the frontier writings of Frederick Jackson Turner as a starting point, this book establishes a succession of Midwestern filmic and literary texts stretching from the late-19th century through the beginning of the 21st century and argues that the manifold properties of nostalgia have continually transformed popular understandings and ideological uses of the Midwest’s place-identity. Ochonicky identifies three primary modes of nostalgia at play across a set of textual objects: the projection of nostalgia onto physical landscapes and into the cultural sphere (nostalgic spatiality); nostalgia as a cultural force that regulates behaviors, identities, and appearances (nostalgic violence); and the progressive potential of nostalgia to generate an acknowledgment and possible rectification of ways in which the flawed past negatively affects the present (nostalgic atonement). While developing these new conceptions of nostalgia, Ochonicky reveals how an under-examined area of regional study has received critical attention throughout the histories of American film and literature, as well as in related materials and discourses. From the closing of the Western frontier to the polarized political and cultural climate of the 21st century, this book demonstrates how film and literature have been and continue to be vital forums for illuminating the complex interplay of regionalism and nostalgia. 
   
  “Ochonicky presents an important reading of how nostalgia shapes the Midwest in the American imagination as a place of identity and violence. Past and present slip in this compelling and well-researched approach to the workings of contemporary culture.” —Vera Dika, author of Recycled Culture in Contemporary Art and Film: The Use of Nostalgia 
   
  “By centering the concept of region, Adam Ochonicky provides an insightful and refreshing reading of American popular culture. In texts ranging from Richard Wright’s Native Son to John Carpenter’s Halloween, Ochonicky demonstrates the complex terrain of the Midwest in our cultural imaginary and the diverse memories and meanings we project upon it.” —Kendall R. Phillips, author of A Place of Darkness: The Rhetoric of Horror in Early American Cinema, Syracuse University

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  The Horror of It All - One...

  Adam Rockoff

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  Horror films have simultaneously captivated and terrified audiences for generations, racking up billions of dollars at the box office and infusing our nightmares with unrelenting zombies, chain saw-wielding madmen, and myriad incarnations of ghosts, ghouls, and the devil himself. Despite evolving modes of storytelling and the fluctuating popularity of other genres, horror endures. The Horror of It All is a memoir from the front lines of the industry that dissects (and occasionally defends) the hugely popular phenomenon of scary movies.Author Adam Rockoff traces the highs and lows of the horror genre through the lens of his own obsessive fandom, born in the aisles of his local video store and nurtured with a steady diet of cable trash. From Siskel and Ebert's crusade against slasher films to horror's renaissance in the wake of Scream, Rockoff mines the rich history of the genre, braiding critical analysis with his own firsthand experiences. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

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  All I Ever Wanted - A Rock 'n'...

  Kathy Valentine

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  “Recounts in vivid detail the gloriously debauched path of the Go-Gos through early rock success . . . and the darkness that such freedom can breed.” —Los Angeles Times  Runner-up, Carr P. Collins Award for Best Book of Non-Fiction   At twenty-one, Kathy Valentine was at the Whisky in Los Angeles when she met a guitarist from a fledgling band called the Go-Go’s and the band needed a bassist. The Go-Go’s became the first multi-platinum-selling, all-female band to play instruments themselves, write their own songs, and have a number one album. Their debut, Beauty and the Beat, spent six weeks at the top of the Billboard 200 and featured the hit songs “We Got the Beat” and “Our Lips Are Sealed.” The record’s success brought the pressures of a relentless workload and schedule culminating in a wild, hazy, substance-fueled tour that took the band from the club circuit to arenas, where fans, promoters, and crew were more than ready to keep the party going.  All I Ever Wanted traces the path that took Valentine from her childhood in Texas—where she all but raised herself—to the height of rock n’ roll stardom, devastation after the collapse of the band that had come to define her, and the quest to regain her sense of self after its end. Valentine also speaks candidly about the lasting effects of parental betrayal, abortion, rape, and her struggles with drugs and alcohol—and the music that saved her every step of the way.  “An epic tour of honest storytelling. All I Ever Wanted is a raw look at the highs and lows of being high and low. Long live the Go-Gos!” —Amy Poehler

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  Bagpipe Tunes And Their Stories...

  Klinger Susy

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  Take a fascinating trip through the world of bagpipe music: a journey in time covering the history of this wonderful instrument. Bagpipe Tunes and Their Stories: Old Times to 1950 features over 350 stories behind the unique bagpipe tunes that were composed before 1950.
  
  Bagpipes are at the centre of a vibrant culture that has grown over many generations and continues to fascinate music lovers throughout the world. This book unearths stories connected with well-known tunes that were played and written before 1950. A tribute to the rich heritage of bagpipe music, it is captivating reading for long-time bagpipe enthusiasts as well as people less familiar with this distinctive instrument.
  
  You’ll become acquainted with a wide range of bagpipe tunes, from the Scottish Highlands to the hills of Ireland and beyond. In addition, you’ll learn about the occasions for which they were composed and interpreted.
  
  Author Susy Klinger, a well-known music expert and bagpipe enthusiast, has put her broad-ranging knowledge and passionate musical interest into this book. She has done many years of research in Scotland and neighbouring countries, conducted numerous interviews with famous pipers and thoroughly studied bagpipe music in order to put together this collection of stories and personal portraits. The book is a treasure chest of musical discoveries, encompassing everything from traditional ballads to lively dance melodies.
  
  The wealth of information on bagpipe tunes is supplemented by carefully selected photos and illustrations that bring the atmosphere and culture of the relevant period to life. Each page is an invitation to delve into the past and become absorbed in stories of times gone by.
  
  Order your copy now and let yourself be inspired by this fascinating survey of music history.

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  Painting Indiana III - Heritage...

  Inc. Indiana Plein Air Painters...

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  “A visual testament to the quiet, past-haunted beauty of the Indiana environment, both natural and man-made.” —Bloom The work of T. C. Steele, William Forsyth, J. Ottis Adams, Otto Stark, and Richard Gruelle, known collectively as the Hoosier Group, established plein air (“in the open air”) painting as a major art form in Indiana. The vitality of this style is represented in Painting Indiana III: Heritage of Place, which includes one hundred juried works by current Indiana plein air artists, along with paintings by the Hoosier Group, all featuring notable Indiana landmarks. This richly illustrated book will delight Hoosiers and art lovers around the world.

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  A Kind of Magic - Making the...

  Jonathan Melville

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  A behind-the-scenes look at the making of the classic 1986 fantasy action-adventure film, featuring insights from the cast and crew. 
   
  The story of an immortal Scottish warrior battling evil down through the centuries, Highlander fused a high-concept idea with the kinetic energy of a pop promo pioneer and Queen’s explosive soundtrack to become a cult classic. 
   
  When two American producers took a chance on a college student’s script, they set in motion a chain of events involving an imploding British film studio, an experimental music video director still finding his filmmaking feet, a former James Bond with a spiralling salary, and the unexpected arrival of low-budget production company, Cannon Films. 
   
  Author Jonathan Melville looks back at the creation of Highlander with the help of more than 60 cast and crew, including stars Christopher Lambert and Clancy Brown, as they talk candidly about the gruelling shoot that took them from the back alleys of London, to the far reaches of the Scottish Highlands, and onto the mean streets of 1980s New York City. 
   
  With insights from Queen’s Brian May and Roger Taylor on the film’s iconic music, exclusive screenwriter commentary on unmade scripts, never-before-seen photos from private collections, and a glimpse into the promotional campaign that never was, if there can be only one book on Highlander then this is it! 
   
  “A Kind of Magic: Making the Original Highlander tracks down an astonishing number of the film's cast and crew to give an unparalleled account of its creation . . . if you’re one of the film’s many fans this is the perfect companion.” —The Courier, Book of the Week, 9/10 
   
  As well as being the story of the Highlander film itself, it’s a fascinating look at the film-making process . . . Jonathan Melville’s A Kind of Magic: Making the Original Highlander is an absolute joy to read and an absolutely essential purchase for any Highlander fan.” —We Are Cult

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