Foreign Language Books

For the last century, the tastes and preferences of readers of fiction have been reflected in the American and British bestseller lists, and this Very Short Introduction takes an engaging look through the lists to reveal what we have been reading - and why. - ;'I rejoice', said Doctor Johnson, 'to concur with the Common Reader.' For the last century, the tastes and preferences of the common reader have been reflected in the American and British bestseller lists, and this Very Short Introduction takes an engaging look through the lists to reveal what we have been reading - and why. John Sutherland shows that bestseller lists monitor one of the strongest pulses in modern literature and are therefore worthy of serious study. Along the way, he lifts the lid on the bestseller industry, examines what makes a book into a bestseller, and asks what separates bestsellers from canonical fiction. Exploring the relationship between bestsellers and the fashions, ideologies, and cultural concerns of the day, the book includes short case-studies and lively summaries of bestsellers through the years: from In His Steps - now almost totally forgotten, but the biggest all-time bestseller between 1895 and 1945, to Gone with the Wind and The Andromeda Strain , and The Da Vinci Code . - ;His amiable trawl through the history of popular books is frequently entertaining - Scott Pack, The Times;breezily entertaining - Kevin Power, Irish Times (Dublin);Sutherland effectively challenges the assumption that a book's commercial success somehow invalidates either its author's integrity or the critical acumen of its readers. Instead we are offered a plausible vision of the blockbuster or the bodice-ripper as narrative in its purest form. - Jonathan Keates, TLS more...

Price: $8.95

“Soul of the age!” Ben Jonson eulogized Shakespeare, and in the next breath, “He was not of an age but for all time.” That he was both “of the age” and “for all time” is, this book suggests, the key to Shakespeare’s comic genius. In this engaging introduction to the First Folio comedies, Paul A. Olson gives a persuasive and thoroughly engrossing account of the playwright’s comic transcendence, showing how Shakespeare, by taking on the great themes of his time, elevated comedy from a mere mid-level literary form to its own form of greatness—on par with epic and tragedy. more...

Price: $45.00

An investigation into the mysterious and secret life of Daniel Defoe, the father of the English novel, whose books "Robinson Crusoe", "Moll Flanders" and "Roxana" have sold in vast numbers throughout the world for nearly three centuries. more...

Price: $19.99

Leading Hebrew language scholars outline various views on the phenomenon of variation in biblical Hebrew and its significance for biblical studies. An important question that is addressed is whether “late biblical Hebrew” is a distinct chronological phase within the history of biblical Hebrew. Articles explore both chronological and non-chronological interpretations of the differences between “early biblical Hebrew” and “late biblical Hebrew”. These discussions have an important contribution to make to the wider field of biblical studies, not only to the history of the Hebrew language. more...

Price: $170.00

Analyzes how the urban disadvantaged in the city of New Delhi learn English. This book discusses the pedagogy, texts and contexts in which biliteracy occurs and links English language teaching and learning in India with the social processes of globalization. more...

Price: $44.95