Bradshaw Books

From preface: New Westminster Dictionary of Liturgy and Worship by Paul Bradshaw (Westminster John Knox Press) Although this dictionary is very obviously closely related to the Dictionary of Liturgy and Worship edited by J. G. Davies (SCM Press, London 1972, 2nd ed. 1986), it is not merely a further edition of that work, but rather its successor. While the vast majority of the headings used in that earlier volume have been adopted here, some have been deleted, new ones added, and other subjects rearranged. For example, `experimental forms of worship' has been eliminated because it now seems an outdated category, and for a similar reason `feminist liturgical movement' subsumed within the wider category of `women and worship'; while entries referring to more recent developments, like `praise and worship movement', have been inserted. The broad entry on `liturgies' has been replaced by two separate entries, on `eucharist' and on `word, services of the'. In some cases entries have been placed under new headings that would be more commonly used today. Thus, for instance, `year, liturgical' has been substituted for `calendar'; `daily prayer' for `canonical hours'; `eucharistic prayer' for `anaphora'; `inculturation' for `indigenization'; and so on.
All entries have been entirely rewritten, and in nearly every case by a new contributor. Contributors have been chosen on the basis of their expertise in the particular subject, in some instances from within the particular worship tradition under discussion, in others from outside, since both views shed valuable and complementary light. All the entries, except the shortest, have been broken up into numbered sections with sub-headings for ease of use and provided with bibliographical resources for further study. Where appropriate, the literature listed has been divided into selected texts and studies, with works containing a more extensive bibliography indicated by the symbol (bib.). It is the editor's earnest hope that with these changes and improvements the volume will serve as a comprehensive guide to the subject for future years as well as Davies' work has done for the last thirty years.

Great: one of the very best family histories I have ever seen; full of illustrations and obviously the product of many years of in-depth research having to do with the thousands of people named. His work on the early Drakes, Hunts, Hines, Martins and Coles is exceptional.

This is a great book that will have you feeling alot of emotions while reading. I really enjoyed it and believe it is a must-read, especially if you are looking to seek some guidance for life's experiences.

What a refreshing and beautiful book. The writing flows and the information is exciting and new. A great coffee-table book packed with fascinating insights. Looking forward to Gizowska's next book!

If you have not read this book, you are not well enough informed on the subject(s), even if you are a seminary grad and/or Pastor. This book is a complete treatment of the histories and comparison's of Passover and Easter. If you are a spiritual leader in any position, absorbing this book will provide the only way for you to be confident you are leading your "flock" with an accurate, non-biased approach, especially during the Passover/Easter season every year.

Brevity. Beauty. Unabashed faith. Joyce Bradshaw shares her external world and her inner vision with poems in the lovely haiku form. If you're in a hurry, you need this book. These are little gifts of life to meditate on as you go about your day. Learn to see the world in a new light. I keep this book at my bedside, to read a poem at a time. Cutting-edge, ancient, prophetic, relevant. A wonderful treasure.

plays and playwrights 2008 is martin denton's ninth anthology of the year's best offerings of new york indie theatre (what used to be called "off-off broadway"). as in the previous volumes, this year¡¦s plays are rich, bold, funny, scary, profane, profound. interestingly, many are about ghosts, which says something very intriguing indeed about the zeitgeist.

to highlight a few of the 10 plays in this year¡¦s anthology:

Þ the moving and powerful fall forward (daniel reitz), which was originally staged at the john street methodist church, just across the street from the site of the world trade center. this short, sad, simple, and resonant play is about the choices we make -- and why we must make them.
Þ the very funny and very odd ...and we all wore leather pants (robert attenweiler), which features this telling observation: ¡§I am recently turned a serious religious man. Not in the way where I¡¦m good to people or nothin¡¦...¡¨ ¡V it¡¦s a mad wild ride, told in a distinct voice unlike any i¡¦ve ever read.
Þ the sober and honest in our name (elena hartwell), which puts the lie once and for all to those who imply that we do not support the troops when we wish them home. three monologues by three very different women from three very different perspectives on the common theme of war.
Þ the chilling the telling trilogy (crystal skillman), which sends delicious shivers up the spine as the mournful dead call across the great divide.
Þ two very different takes on growing up, antarctica (carolyn raship) ¡V where high schoolers magda and winnie leave the confines of mrs. margolis¡¦s trigonometry 2 for the south pole, meeting penguins, cupid, and adulthood on the way there and back; and linnea (john regis) ¡V where a dreamy writer emerges from a feverish dostoyevsky vision sadder but infinitely wiser.

there¡¦s also the sad and surprising marvelous shrine (leslie bramm), another riff on war and youth; cleansed (thomas bradshaw), a shocking tale of a biracial girl who joins a white supremacists¡¦ group; universal robots (mac rogers), a breathtaking reworking of karel capek¡¦s RUR; and the spare, taut what happened when (daniel talbott), featuring a most poetic presentation of a terrifying story.

and to top it all off, there is an appendix that lists every new american play that was produced in new york in the 2006/07 season; this not only includes title, author, and production information but also a brief description -- quite a wonderful reference tool.

martin denton's books give new and extended life to otherwise all too easily lost treasures. they are a must for anyone who loves theatre.

From book's Foreword:

"Over the years there has developed at First Congregational Church of Los Angeles a uniquely moving worship service. The music, prayer, and interpretation of God's word emanating from the magnificent gothic sanctuary have inspired church members and visitors from around the globe.

This volume is offered in response to frequent requests for a selection of prayers and sermons from the service. It contains six sermons by Dr. William B. Bradshaw, Minister of First Church, and a representative collection of prayers by the Reverend Wayne Van Kirk, Staff Minister.

It is hoped that this collection will help readers find the guidance and inspiration so important in our complex world."

The six sermons are titled:
What is a Minister?
Significance of Our Lord's Prayer
Overcoming Worry
How to Cope with Sorrow
Biblical Doctrine of Life After Death, and
God and Uncle Sam

There are several prayers, including prayers for every Sunday of the year.

I previewed Precious and Few before it went to print. I couldn't get enough of the book. Bonnie actually thought I was a little crazy because I was reading it just as fast as she was writing it. In the preview I mentioned that I had a feeling it was going to be a can't put it down, no matter what time of the night it was. Well, I wasn't kidding. I received the book and I started reading the published version. (2nd time reading the same book) how many times can you say you have actually done that? I forgot a lot of things that happened, and here I am at 1:30am, knowing I have to get up for work in 4 1/2 hours, and once again, I can't put the darn thing down. All I can say is Danielle Steele you had better start looking over your shoulder, there's a new author in town, and her name is Bonnie Sue Bradshaw. (I know that is really lame). Awesome writing, even better the second time around. Cheers Bonnie!

Patty Shrensel
Seaford, DE

Is there no era that Mel Bradshaw can't capture with a precision equal only to sensibility? Fresh on the success of his depiction of mid-nineteenth-century Toronto in his Arthur Ellis-nominated first novel, Death in the Age of Steam, Bradshaw mines his hometown in the Twenties and uncovers pure gold in Quarrel with the Foe.
The compelling "curtain-raiser" is set during the Great War and starts off with a bang: "Yeah, I was at the battery that May afternoon when Horny Ingersoll had everything between his legs cut away by a piece of exploding field gun." The realities of trench warfare in France in 1915 outside Ypres, one of the Canadians' finest and bloodiest stands, are depicted with truth and horror.
Flash forward eleven years. The narrator is Paul Shenstone, a former soldier, now a police detective. Accustomed to the slow fare of petty criminals and warring rumrunners, he's pleased to be assigned to investigate the strange murder of a wealthy industrialist, an armament maker turned to peace-time engineering. Digby Watt has been shot dead on the pavement in the financial district, but the killer took his time. Even more mysterious than the lack of shell casings is the fact that the body has been "interfered with." The problem is that Shenstone soon learns that he has connections to the case. He recognizes the reporter who was given a suspicious hot tip about where the body could be found. Years ago, they both witnessed Horny's accident caused by a defective shell, holes in the metal painted over in a carelessness equal to sabotage, and remember the passionate promises to take revenge on suppliers who put profits ahead of their own soldiers. Watt`s company produced that fatal shell. But other suspects emerge. The businessman's frustrated son, eager to take over as CEO. The flapper sister Edith has a few ideas of her own about their German chauffeur and makes a good foil for her more languid but ambitious sister-in-law. At one crucial point, Shenstone himself has his ethics questioned. Suppose he is leading the investigation astray to cover for a friend, or worse yet, himself?
Bradshaw paints a faithful and compelling picture of the era, a master of details. When he mentions a Chaplin movie, a bottle of Aspirin (capital A), or the Ontario Temperance Act, he fills in the background for his exciting plot. Auto buffs will enjoy the amusing little Austin Chummy, a "rackety" four-cylinder runabout Shenstone and Edith use for a trip to the cottage. The underside of a Gray-Dort sedan is examined for tampering, its steering gear described as if the mechanic stood nearby. Old Toronto appears block by block, from the Toronto Police Department crammed into the ground floor of City Hall to the corridors of the Toronto Examiner. Shenstone stands near the "new elevated railway tracks," watching as "the street teemed with billboards, shop signs, streetcar wires, square black Ford motorcars, and a lone traffic cop...in his English-bobby style helmet." As for weapons, the detective favors the Webley Mark IV for his personal weapon, but small-caliber .25 pistols are on the street and even in the occasional beaded reticule. Whether he's describing a lady's period dress or bobbed hair, Bradshaw continues to set his stage with care. Imagining Shenstone bumping over the trolley tracks in his police-model Harley Davidson brings a smile. Even the slang of the period, from "whippersnapper" to "hokum" to "banana oil," adds to the atmosphere.
Shenstone has a likable wit and a calm, self-assuredness that make him a perfect guide. A romantic interest in plucky Edith parallels the main plot but transcends the genre. One can only hope that there's a sequel for this bright new detective, though knowing Mel, he might go time-travelling again and land in the Victorian Age.