Humanities Books

I used this book with my four year old grandson who wanted to make puppets. For those who are not artists this is a perfect book. We had a wonderful time making about seven of the various puppets and then putting on our own show. We will probably do this again another time as it is easy and inexpensive.

This was definitely worth my money! The puppets are ADORABLE! I use them in so many ways. For example, after reading Harry the Dirty Dog, my students and I made the dog puppet. Students could make dirty Harry or clean Harry. We used the print-outs as templates; we traced them onto different colors of construction paper and felt. So many creative ideas!

My students are the best reviewers and they just love making the puppets. The instructions are simple and easy to follow. I highly recommend this book.

My campus bookstore is charging twice what this book costs on Amazon! TWICE!

Go AMAZON!

Well-written book with few or no mistakes. Highly recommended by professor and will complete entire text as classwork. Great combination of biology and psychology together in chapters.

I received my book in ample time to start my course. The book was in excellent condition and the CD was in tact. Past orders from other companies; that required my using a CD, was either damaged or cracked into little pieces. My merchandise was in perfect order.

Wow! This is a great book so far. I'm taking this in an 8 week summer session, so it's a lot of information to acquire. Highly recommend getting the study guide, there are useful lists, chapter summaries and practise quizzes. Just took my first exam online last night, and it was really HARD! Follow all the great links, use all the features and take notes like mad!

This is a very welcome counterbalance to the many voices that stress differences among cultures at the cost of losing sight of what we humans share. With extensive use of anthropological studies, Brown alerts the reader to those almost innumerable and too easily taken-for-granted elements of humanity. We all smile when happy, mourn the loss of a child, negotiate a place in a social setting with specific traditional roles. We all eat, experience hunger, learn which foods are acceptable, connect eating with social occasions, use food-related activities as basic metaphors for aspects of life. (The annotated bibliography is especially good for its lists of shared human factors.) Those who stress differences among people now usually do so to promote tolerance of "the other." But a good basis for tolerance is to recognize the common humanness within all the differences. This book does that well. It is good but highly readable anthropology.

This is a comprehensive survey of the anthropological study of human universals, human nature, culture vs. biology, etc. It's also a critique of the field of anthropology, and one given from a refreshing outside-looking-in perspective. Brown deals with several influential cases (such as Margaret Mead's study of Samoan adolescence) and shows where they erred. He discusses the processes of defining and demonstrating universals, takes us on a grand tour of the history of universals in anthropology, presents the basic gamut of how universals have been and can be explained. In the final chapters he lays out his position and leaves cultural relativism thoroughly refuted. Cultural relativists, he demonstrates, have relied on universals even in their attempts to show cultural relativity. Among even the most dissimilar human languages, for example, the similarities (grammar, syntax, rhythm, content, etc.) still far outweigh the differences. Anthropologists have historically focused on the differences while remaining blind to the (often more fundamental and important) similarities. I'm a little leery of some of the traits Brown ends up calling universal; he does acknowledge the "working" nature of such a list. But what precisely shall be found to be universal is less important than simply the shift to an orientation that would seek to understand human nature in such terms. This is what Brown proposes. He understands the place of anthropology in the social sciences, the field's potential, where and how that potential has gone unrealized, and how anthropologists will need to alter their approach if they're to be fruitful in the future. I haven't even scraped the surface here; the book is a gold mine of interdisciplinary connections and it brims with insights. More than anything, it's a sensible, biologically-informed, (dare I say) reality-based account of human nature. The tone is that of a genuine pursuit of truth, as opposed to the trend among some social scientists to search high and low for anything that supports established theory. This book is packed, and in many ways it only aims to lay the framework of a better approach to the subject.

This is a very welcome counterbalance to the many voices that stress differences among cultures at the cost of losing sight of what we humans share. With extensive use of anthropological studies, Brown alerts the reader to those almost innumerable and too easily taken-for-granted elements of humanity. We all smile when happy, mourn the loss of a child, negotiate a place in a social setting with specific traditional roles. We all eat, experience hunger, learn which foods are acceptable, connect eating with social occasions, use food-related activities as basic metaphors for aspects of life. (The annotated bibliography is especially good for its lists of shared human factors.) Those who stress differences among people now usually do so to promote tolerance of "the other." But a good basis for tolerance is to recognize the common humanness within all the differences. This book does that well. It is also highly readable anthropology.

Experienced teacher and museum director Kathleen Walsh-Piper presents Image To Word: Art And Creative Writing, an educational resource that focuses upon how to use great works of art, including painting, sculpture, decoration, and more, to enhance creative writing skills. From exploring basic skills of writing (point of view, stream of consciousness, description, monologue, poetry, etc.) to expounding upon the limits of the imagination, Image To Word combines sample cases with stimulating exercises, and is a welcome self-teaching resource as well as a fine addition to creative writing educator's reference shelves.

Museum educators have long used writing activities as a way to learn about art. The ancient Greeks even coined a name for the relationship between looking and writing: "ekphrasis." According to the Grove Dictionary of Art, teachers of rhetoric in ancient Greece coined this term to denote "a vivid description intended to bring the subject before the mind's eye of the listener."

In Image to Word: Art and Creative Writing, Kathleen Walsh-Piper explores creative writing as a means of formal critical analysis of art. At the same time, art becomes a source of inspiration for poems, plays and prose pieces, and the writing process a key to self-discovery.

Different chapters focus on a variety of projects of varying complexity. By examining of such formal elements as color, shape and texture, decoding narratives, and connecting to personal experience, Walsh-Piper concentrates on such core writing issues as vocabulary, sequence, and point of view.

Walsh-Piper says, "Writing about works of art breaks down barriers to looking by asking viewers to pay attention to what they see and how they react. From looking at art it is but a short step to looking at our neighborhoods, examining the persuasions of advertisers, the ideology of politicians, evaluating the impact of changes in the environment.

This is an ideal book for teachers of language arts, visual arts, and social studies as well as parents home-schooling their children. Each chapter outlines a series of activities on which teachers can model their own approaches. Examples of poems and prose pieces produced in Walsh-Piper's workshops demonstrate the effectiveness of her process.

Museum educators have long used writing activities as a way to learn about art. The ancient Greeks even coined a name for the relationship between looking and writing: "ekphrasis." According to the Grove Dictionary of Art, teachers of rhetoric in ancient Greece coined this term to denote "a vivid description intended to bring the subject before the mind's eye of the listener."

In Image to Word: Art and Creative Writing, Kathleen Walsh-Piper explores creative writing as a means of formal critical analysis of art. At the same time, art becomes a source of inspiration for poems, plays and prose pieces, and the writing process a key to self-discovery.

Different chapters focus on a variety of projects of varying complexity. By examining of such formal elements as color, shape and texture, decoding narratives, and connecting to personal experience, Walsh-Piper concentrates on such core writing issues as vocabulary, sequence, and point of view.

Walsh-Piper says, "Writing about works of art breaks down barriers to looking by asking viewers to pay attention to what they see and how they react. From looking at art it is but a short step to looking at our neighborhoods, examining the persuasions of advertisers, the ideology of politicians, evaluating the impact of changes in the environment.

This is an ideal book for teachers of language arts, visual arts, and social studies as well as parents home-schooling their children. Each chapter outlines a series of activities on which teachers can model their own approaches. Examples of poems and prose pieces produced in Walsh-Piper's workshops demonstrate the effectiveness of her process.

This is a wonderful, quick read that brings alive a time gone by with fascinating stories and facts that still have something to teach us today. Other reviewers have done a great job of describing the content, so I won't repeat it here. But if you want to learn more about why and how and what it was like to immigrate to this country as a part of the great wave of immigration that brought the Italians and others, read this book. Because it's geared to kids it doesn't get bogged down with arcane detail, but the kids it aims at are old enough that the language holds an adult's interest too. And if you have a kid who's studying this period in history, or if you want them to have some idea of how his or her own family came to this country, give them this book. The pictures and stories will draw them in.

The Italian Americans is an informative and entertaining exploration of Italian immigrants in the United States and their descendants. Though it's targeted at junior-high students, the book is written in a clear, concise style that will interest adult readers as well.

Petrini examines the reasons why so many Italians left their native land between 1880 and 1920 to start a new life in the United States. She describes their living conditions in their new home, the sometimes arduous jobs that Italian American men, women, and children worked at in order to build their new lives, and the discrimination and exploitation many had to cope with.

The author documents some surprising facts: Did you know that a presidential order curtailed the civil liberties of Italian Americans during World War II, because of an unfounded fear that they might be spies for their native Italy? Thousands were actually incarcerated in camps by the U.S. government. And the biggest mass lynching ever documented in the United States took place in 1891, when an angry mob executed 19 innocent Sicilian-born residents of New Orleans. I didn't know about these injustices; Petrini's book describes these and other instances of discrimination against the new immigrants and their children.

Other chapters describe the Italian Americans' successful efforts to integrate into and contribute to their new society while preserving their own culture in "Little Italy" neighborhoods around the country. The book also discusses more recent contributions by the descendants of the immigrants in business, literature, science, and the arts.

Petrini makes it all come to life with plenty of first-hand accounts and interviews with immigrants and their children, and many wonderful old photographs highlight the text.

As a third-generation Italian American, I can say that this book made me feel prouder of my heritage than I was before -- and more informed about it, as well!

Since September 11, an undercurrent of anti-immigration feeling has targeted new Americans, in particular Arab-Americans. It's as if most of us have forgotten that we wouldn't be here ourselves if our parents, grandparents or greats hadn't emigrated to the United States. So it seemed particularly timely to me when I came across The Italian-Americans, part of a series on Immigrants in America, aimed at children as young as my grandsons (ages 9 and 10) but mainly geared for junior-high level. Until I read the book, I'd been ignorant of the fact -- as are most people -- that it wasn't only Japanese-Americans who were persecuted during WWII. Italian-Americans were also the objects of prejudice and discrimination.

The book doesn't start with WWII though, but goes back to the 19th century to explore the political and economic struggles that resulted in the establishment of Italy as a modern, independent country. It was most interesting to me in its depiction of the hard life of the peasant and manual laborer that drove so many to uproot themselves and make the arduous trip to start new lives in America. This depiction is a compassionate one, in which the author weaves individual stories and interviews into her more general historical account, and further embellishes these accounts with rare vintage photographs of immigrant families. How different my grandsons' lives are from those of the young boys their age who had to spend their days underground as "go-fers" for their fathers and older brothers as they labored in the mines.

The author also tells of the contributions made by Italian Americans that have enriched our national fabric -- not just such well known contributions as pizza, pasta and Frank Sinatra, but the accomplishments of individuals like Gugliemo Marconi, inventor of the radio, Olympic gymnast Mary Lou Retton, TV actress and film director Penny Marshall, and Vincent Palumbo, the late master carver at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC.

For all these reasons, I think the book would make a good supplement to the average history textbook, and it seemed to me that the depth of information might be useful to students well above the age range indicated by the publisher.

I'm not Italian myself, but much of this volume reminded me of stories told by my own immigrant grandfather. And it's a reminder of how much we owe to immigrants of every country. If the rest of the series is up to Petrini's effort, it should be most worthwhile reading.

The book arrived in a timely fashion and fit the description very well.

This book was a great book. The examples helped me understand communication theory and after I read the examples and the TIPS, I saw the relationship between theory and practice. Good job and a great price!

this book is very helpful in giving the main points of many important communication theories. i really understood how theory and practice relate after reading the tips and the examples. it is well priced too.

This is a fantastic book with great ideas for teaching poetry. Jodi has a wonderful way of showing us what it is like in her a classroom. I wish I had a teacher like her when I was 5!

Jodi's book is a fabulous resource for teaching poetry! I've often found that professional books have the "this is the way it MUST be done" - attitude; not so with this book! I truly appreciated the suggestions and activities. I wanted to implement them because Jodi expresses her ideas in a way that says, "this is what I've done and enjoyed, try it and see if it works for you." To my delight I've found that my poetry curriculum has a more distinct common thread and makes a more natural progression due to my incorporation of Jodi's ideas. Thank you!!!
I can't wait to get my hands on her non-fiction unit!

This is a fantastic book with great ideas for teaching poetry. Jodi does a wonderful job of showing us what it is like in her a classroom and how the poetry develops. I wish I had a teacher like her when I was 5!

This book is not just for the novice film-maker. I read it hoping it would teach me the techniques I needed to know in order to produce a script I had completed, but in the end it was the author's motivational message that encouraged me to write and publish my first book Noah's Ark, Discovering the Science of Man's Oldest Mystery that made me want to come back and recommend it to others.

If you want a film school education then buy this book. If you plan on gong to film school then I would buy this book and read it first. The message is simple. Learn this material and then make films. You don't need any additional material. It's all right here. Now put it to use. The motivation and planning information in Just Shoot IT! are priceless. It covers filmmaking from start to finish. The cinematography section is top notch and written in such a simple easy-to-understand manner. There are even filmmaking exercises to hone your skills. It was great reading a book that both motivated and enlightened my aspirations of film making. This is the best book on the market.

If you're aspiring to make a film, then you will enjoy this book. It is a invaluable tool to help you prepare, start and finish your award winning film. And you can tell the world what a big help this book was to you. It's fun, easy to read and understand. It's very practical. Full of secrets to help you cut cost and save money. I recommend you read this book and go make your film with this book in your pocket for a quick reference.

Unquestionably the best book I have ever read, or will read, in my entire life!

Historian Richard Allen Morton has accomplished a rare feat: while many thesis papers written by graduate students have been adapted for publication as books, few have been written with such brevity, conciseness and precision as to educate, entertain and inform readers who are not faculty members sitting on the dissertation committee. Too many dissertations seem to be compiled by writers who think that history is better if served by the pound and the heavier a book is, the better it is! Not so!

Edward F. Dunne has the distinction of being the only man to serve as the Mayor of Chicago and, later in his career, as the Governor of Illinois. To date, Dunne is the only Roman Catholic to have served as Illinois Governor. He was also an active leader in Chicago's Irish community. Dunne served as the first President of the influential Irish Fellowship Club. In his retirement, Dunne compiled a multivolume history of Illinois and its prominent citizens.

Dunne has been identified as a progressive politician and a supporter of Bryan Democracy. Morton documents how the Progressive political movement faltered in Illinois as political spoilsmen and party regulars such as Roger Sullivan (Democratic) and William Lorimer and his protege William Hale Thompson (Republican) ultimately prevailed over the reform minded progressives in their respective parties. This unfortunate trend has continued to the present day.

The Dunne family remained somewhat prominent in Cook County. Dunne's son and grandson followed in Edward F. Dunne's footsteps and served in the local judiciary. I actually met the late Arthur Dunne when he served in Chancery.

I bought this book as part of my research for my master's thesis on Midwestern progressivism. I expected the usual rather dull factual account. Instead I was pleasantly surprised by the comprehensive research, highly readable prose, and the profundity of the interpretation. Moreover, I learned far more about the realities of politics and society during the progressive period than I have from far more celebrated works. This is good history, and like all good history it focuses upon the past and not the personal saws of the writer. A bit pricey, I have never regretted the purchase. If you are looking for dynamic history at its best, check this out!

The laboratory manual is very helpful. It is to be used with the Seventh Edition of Puntos de Partida.

This book was delivered to me very quickly and in very good condition. I am glad I purchased this book. It was a very good experience.

on time delivery. book was in perfect shape!! I would order again from this seller.