Other books that might interest you

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  The Poetry of Rainer Maria Rilke...

  Rainer Maria Rilke

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  René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke was born into a troubled marriage on the 4th December 1875 in Prague, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.  His mother, having previously lost a baby girl, would dress the young boy up in girl’s clothing.   
  Later his father dispatched him to a military academy at age 10 but after a miserable 5 years the young Rilke left due to illness and instead entered first Prague and then Munich and finally Berlin university to study art history, philosophy and literature. 
  His initial forays into literature was in poetry.  His intense, mystical and lyrical style was much admired and over time inspired many in succeeding generations.    
  His short prose collection ‘Stories of God’, written in an impassioned burst over several nights was published in 1900 and offers a beguiling view of much of Rilke’s influences and outlook.  
  The following year he married the pioneering sculptor and artist Clara Westhoff.  The union produced one child, a daughter Ruth.   
  He lived in Paris for most of the Century’s first decade where he mixed with many great minds of the time.  Although he continued to write he also worked as a secretary to the sculptor, Rodin.   
  It was only after they settled in Switzerland in 1919 that his writing output was in full flow.  Here he wrote profusely in both German and French, which included much on his previous travels, his left-wing sympathies, his religious and existential thoughts, all part of a unique and consummate style. 
  From 1923 on, Rilke increasingly struggled with his health which was now in constant decline and often spent time rehabilitating at a sanatorium.   
  Rainer Maria Rilke died of leukaemia on the 29th December 1926 in Montreux, Switzerland.  He was 51.

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  Gothic Poetry

  Rachel Lawson

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  Gothic Poetry by poet and short story writer Rachel LawsonLost In The Shadows Of The Past 
  I am lost and forgotten as a living being, 
  Lost in the grim dark shadows of death, 
  I live in legend and as a vague memory of life, 
  I am as I was but am nothing but dust and bone, 
  A mere curiosity of a life lived, a requiem. 
  Lost in the shadows of the past, forgotten to time

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  Voices of The New Belarus -...

  Andrei Kureichik

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  Dive into the heart-wrenching world of Voices of New Belarus, a searing documentary drama by renowned Belarusian playwright-in-exile Andrei Kureichik. This powerful work captures the harrowing events of the 2020 Belarusian revolution through the deeply personal accounts of 16 political prisoners. Each monologue reveals a distinct story, a unique truth, and together they create an unflinching mosaic of resistance, sacrifice, and hope.First presented at Yale University and the Oslo Freedom Forum—the world’s foremost human rights festival—these testimonies come to life through the voices of the Yale School of Drama’s finest actors and prominent intellectuals: historian Timothy Snyder, intellectual history professor Marci Shore, fascism scholar Jason Stanley, and the visionary theatre director Jura Kordonsky. They embody the words of Belarusian heroes, including imprisoned Nobel laureate Ales Bialiatsky, revolutionary icon Maria Kolesnikova, and many others—politicians, journalists, priests, and ordinary citizens—who stood up against the brutal regime of dictator Alexander Lukashenko.This audiobook is not just a performance—it’s a testament to truth that refuses to be silenced. Half of the proceeds will directly support funds aiding political prisoners and their families, making each listen a contribution to justice. Prepare for an emotional journey that will challenge your understanding of freedom—and leave your soul forever changed.

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  Shakespeare’s Greatest Comedies...

  William Shakespeare

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  Laughter, happiness, romance, and just a bit of deception and intrigue – these are what make up Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies. Though Shakespeare is probably most well known for the dramatic tragedies that have defined the genre for centuries, his comedies are just as well beloved and performed in theaters across the globe.Shakespearean comedies are defined by their humorous writing, their satire, the often-tangled romances, disguises and deceptions, and a thoughtful “fool” who is often the bearer of the smartest lines in the plays. Most of the time, there is also at least one (or two, or three, or four) weddings that tie the entire plot together in a neat package just in the nick of time. These conventions are iconic in the genre, and are what gave Shakespeare’s comedies their place in the literary canon.This collection of the best of Shakespeare’s comedies includes:A Midsummer’s Night’s DreamThe Merchant of VeniceMuch Ado About NothingAs You Like ItTwelfth NightThe Tempest

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  The Crown Jewels (NHB Modern Plays)

  Simon Nye

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  It's 1671, and the charismatic and unpredictable Colonel Blood is planning the greatest heist of all time: stealing – in plain sight – the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London.
  With an audacious plan and a gang of misfits by his side, can he possibly pull it off? And is King Charles II in any mood to have his crown jewels handled?
  Based on the scarcely believable true story, Simon Nye's play The Crown Jewels is a riotous and uproarious royal affair. It opened at the Garrick Theatre in London's West End in 2023 before touring, and was directed by Sean Foley with a star-studded cast including Al Murray, Mel Giedroyc, Carrie Hope Fletcher, Aidan McArdle, Neil Morrissey, Joe Thomas and Tanvi Virmani.
  It will appeal to any amateur theatre company – monarchists and republicans alike – who want to get their hands on a royally funny caper to perform.

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  The Carrying - Poems

  Ada Limón

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  WINNER OF THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD 
  FINALIST FOR THE PEN/JEAN STEIN BOOK AWARD 
  From U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón comes The Carrying—her most powerful collection yet. 
  Vulnerable, tender, acute, these are serious poems, brave poems, exploring with honesty the ambiguous moment between the rapture of youth and the grace of acceptance. A daughter tends to aging parents. A woman struggles with infertility—“What if, instead of carrying / a child, I am supposed to carry grief?”—and a body seized by pain and vertigo as well as ecstasy. A nation convulses: “Every song of this country / has an unsung third stanza, something brutal.” And still Limón shows us, as ever, the persistence of hunger, love, and joy, the dizzying fullness of our too-short lives. “Fine then, / I’ll take it,” she writes. “I’ll take it all.” 
  In Bright Dead Things, Limón showed us a heart “giant with power, heavy with blood”—“the huge beating genius machine / that thinks, no, it knows, / it’s going to come in first.” In her follow-up collection, that heart is on full display—even as The Carrying continues further and deeper into the bloodstream, following the hard-won truth of what it means to live in an imperfect world.

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