The poems in this book are artistic expressions of some of the pinnacle moments in my life. Most of them are about a girl I dated in highschool that I mostly wrote while probably on cannabis. A handful of them are about my wife. A few are about some challenging experiences for me. A few were written for family or friends. And a couple were written about a couple different experiences with herbal psychoactive substances.

Here is that conversation about race that needs to transpire. And it goes like this: a black woman grows up in the segregated south and moves to Chicago becoming successful in the corporate world then retires and decides to substitute teach. There she meets a white woman around her age who grew up far north in Minnesota. From one end of the Mississippi River to the other, they have seen so many changes in their lives. They talk about their marriages (6 together) their lives, and the topic of diversity. They like to laugh in their discussionsmaybe cry a little. So here you have it: a book that discusses what race has to do with growing up and developing friendship and love in our society: Growing up Ebony and Ivory.

When D. H. Lawrence wrote his classic study of American literature, he claimed that youth was the “true myth” of America. Beginning from this assertion, Emily A. Murphy traces the ways that youth began to embody national hopes and fears at a time when the United States was transitioning to a new position of world power. In the aftermath of World War II, persistent calls for the nation to “grow up” and move beyond innocence became common, and the child that had long served as a symbol of the nation was suddenly discarded in favor of a rebellious adolescent. This era marked the beginning of a crisis of identity, where literary critics and writers both sought to redefine U.S. national identity in light of the nation’s new global position. The figure of the adolescent is central to an understanding of U.S. national identity, both past and present, and of the cultural forms (e.g., literature) that participate in the ongoing process of representing the diverse experiences of Americans. In tracing the evolution of this youthful figure, Murphy revisits classics of American literature, including J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye and Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, alongside contemporary bestsellers. The influence of the adolescent on some of America’s greatest writers demonstrates the endurance of the myth that Lawrence first identified in 1923 and signals a powerful link between youth and one of the most persistent questions for the nation: What does it mean to be an American?

"Love That Works" draws on history, psychology, and the theology and science of love to offer a proposal on how to be successful in love and romance.

Do you remember your first true love? Are you still with that person today? And if not, do you still cherish those memories and marvel at the lessons you learned about romantic love? But maybe your first love wasn't a romance. Maybe your first love was a beloved family member, a cuddly pet, or a precious toy. Love—romantic, familial, or friendly—connects us all, and in My First True Love, seventy- eight people from five countries and a wide array of backgrounds share stories of their first true love. Some of these stories may bring tears to your eyes, others may make you laugh out loud, and some may remind you of your younger self. From a rural church camp to a big-city skating rink, from modern-day loves to near-century-old loves, these stories are testaments to the lasting power of one’s first true love.

'In my name, they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick and they will recover.'(Gospel of Mark) It's the summer of 1955. Merle, an itinerant preacher, sets out from his home church, Mountain Assembly Church of God with Signs Following, situated in the rolling hills of the Appalachians. But Merle isn't just any preacher, and his message isn't any plain ol' sermon. Reverend Merle James Hensley has experienced the power of Jesus Christ firsthand. Delivered from a poisonous snakebite, Merle requested of the Lord a double portion of Elisha's double portion. And so begins his revival tour, with trials predicted to test his faith and prove his double portion. But in Bloody Harlan County, Kentucky, he faces a trial he never counted on. Merle lands in the county jail, charged with the death of a young man who died in one of his revival services . . . of a snakebite. The author's first novel,They Shall Take up Serpents, is based on his Christian H. Moe Award-winning play,To Handle the Serpent. Experience the drama of Merle's physical and spiritual journey as he faces the trial that will determine his fate. Is this brash preacher responsible for the young man's death? Or are there other forces at work?

Weisser (English, Adelphi U.) writes that her anthology is "for anyone who is interested in understanding the conflicted but powerful female urge to experience the pleasure and endure the pain of romantic love." In particular, she explores the collision of pervasive media images of romance with feminist values of independence and self-assertion. Several dozen historic and contemporary works of criticism, personal essays, and letters, by feminist and anti-feminist thinkers, consider changing images of romantic love and whether romance, fundamentally, weakens or empowers women. Contributors include Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Charlotte Bronte, Karen Horney, Simone de Beauvoir, Rita Mae Brown, bell hooks, Vivian Gornick, and Carolyn Heilbrun. c. Book News Inc.

Recent years have witnessed an astonishing cultural and legal shift when it comes to homosexuality and same-sex marriage. Many Christians see these changes as a defeat for Christian values, often painting Christian opponents as sell-outs to secular culture. But can there be a genuinely Christian case for same-sex marriage? This book makes that case. While sensitive to scriptural issues, it focuses on a question that cannot be answered by Scripture alone: What does love for our gay and lesbian neighbors demand? This question calls us to pair theological, philosophical, and scriptural reflection with something else: attention to gay and lesbian lives. We must attend to the psychological research and, more importantly, to the stories our gay and lesbian neighbors tell us about themselves and their experience. Love does not permit us to plug our ears with Bible verses. While this book argues that Christian love calls us to make same-sex marriage available, the deeper conclusion is that Christian values prevail when we wrestle with these questions in a spirit of love: love for those with whom we disagree, and love for those most affected by the decisions we reach.

High rates of intermarriage, especially with Whites, have been viewed as an indicator that Asian Americans are successfully "assimilating," signaling acceptance by the White majority and their own desire to become part of the White mainstream. Comparing two types of Asian American intermarriage, interracial and interethnic, Kelly H. Chong disrupts these assumptions by showing that both types of intermarriages, in differing ways, are sites of complex struggles around racial/ethnic identity and cultural formations that reveal the salience of race in the lives of Asian Americans. Drawing upon extensive qualitative data, Chong explores how interracial marriages, far from being an endpoint of assimilation, are a terrain of life-long negotiations over racial and ethnic identities, while interethnic (intra-Asian) unions and family-making illuminate Asian Americans’ ongoing efforts to co-construct and sustain a common racial identity and panethnic culture despite interethnic differences and tensions. Chong also examines the pivotal role race and gender play in shaping both the romantic desires and desirability of Asian Americans, spotlighting the social construction of love and marital choices. Through the lens of intermarriage, Love Across Borders offers critical insights into the often invisible racial struggles of this racially in-between "model minority" group -- particularly its ambivalent negotiations with whiteness and white privilege -- and on the group’s social incorporation process and its implications for the redrawing of color boundaries in the U.S.

Three romantic suspense stories in one collection for the first time by New York Times bestselling author Sharon Sala, Paula Graves, and Carol Ericson. GOING ONCE by Sharon Sala As floodwaters engulf her Louisiana hometown Nola Landry is stranded on high ground, sole witness to the brutal murder of three people. Finally rescued after the storm, no one believes her story—until FBI agents arrive on the scene…one of whom Nola knows very well. Tate Benton has been tracking the Stormchaser serial killer for months, never expecting the trail might lead him home, or to the woman he can’t forget. Long-buried feelings resurface, and the former lovers try to pick up the pieces in the wake of the disaster. Amid the relief effort the killer lingers, determined to silence Nola forever… . MURDER IN THE SMOKIES by Paula Graves When Sutton Calhoun left Bitterwood, Tennessee, he never thought he'd return. But now he's back to investigate an unsolved murder and team up with police detective Ivy Hawkins—the only part of Bitterwood worth remembering. Ivy is well aware of Sutton's reputation, but his smoldering eyes are resurrecting long-buried feelings. Plus, as the body count rises, Sutton is the only one who believes her that a methodical serial killer is living in Bitterwood. Ivy doesn't know which is worse—the desire she feels for a man who's nothing but trouble…or the danger posed by a killer who has them in his sights? THE BRIDGE by Carol Ericson Under the Golden Gate, Elise Duran refused to be a serial killer's next victim. She was the first of the abducted to survive. And Detective Sean Brody was there to make sure a second chance wouldn't be necessary. As the elusive murderer sends them messages, both personal and gruesome, the point becomes clear: no one can escape death. But Sean's presence can't be any stronger as he shadows Elise while on the job—and off it—proving she couldn't have asked for a better protector. Though beneath his cool exterior Sean hides a troublesome secret. One that's absolutely to die for… .