The Return of the King


Book Description

Fantasy fiction. The first ever illustrated paperback of part three of Tolkien's epic masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings, featuring 15 colour paintings by Alan Lee.




Die Wise


Book Description

Die Wise does not offer seven steps for coping with death. It does not suggest ways to make dying easier. It pours no honey to make the medicine go down. Instead, with lyrical prose, deep wisdom, and stories from his two decades of working with dying people and their families, Stephen Jenkinson places death at the center of the page and asks us to behold it in all its painful beauty. Die Wise teaches the skills of dying, skills that have to be learned in the course of living deeply and well. Die Wise is for those who will fail to live forever. Dying well, Jenkinson writes, is a right and responsibility of everyone. It is not a lifestyle option. It is a moral, political, and spiritual obligation each person owes their ancestors and their heirs. Die Wise dreams such a dream, and plots such an uprising. How we die, how we care for dying people, and how we carry our dead: this work makes our capacity for a village-mindedness, or breaks it. Table of Contents The Ordeal of a Managed Death Stealing Meaning from Dying The Tyrant Hope The Quality of Life Yes, But Not Like This The Work So Who Are the Dying to You? Dying Facing Home What Dying Asks of Us All Kids Ah, My Friend the Enemy




Playing War


Book Description

Explores the culture that made military shooter video games popular, and key in understanding the War on Terror No video game genre has been more popular or more lucrative in recent years than the “military shooter.” Franchises such as Call of Duty, Battlefield, and those bearing Tom Clancy’s name turn over billions of dollars annually by promising to immerse players in historic and near-future battles, converting the reality of contemporary conflicts into playable, experiences. In the aftermath of 9/11, these games transformed a national crisis into fantastic and profitable adventures, where seemingly powerless spectators became solutions to these virtual Wars on Terror. Playing War provides a cultural framework for understanding the popularity of military-themed video games and their significance in the ongoing War on Terror. Matthew Payne examines post-9/11 shooter-style game design as well as gaming strategies to expose how these practices perpetuate and challenge reigning political beliefs about America’s military prowess and combat policies. Far from offering simplistic escapist pleasures, these post-9/11 shooters draw on a range of nationalist mythologies, positioning the player as the virtual hero at every level. Through close readings of key games, analyses of marketing materials, and participant observations of the war gaming community, Playing War examines an industry mobilizing anxieties about terrorism and invasion to craft immersive titles that transform international strife into interactive fun.




Search for the Red Wizard


Book Description

Book trailer: Search for the Red Wizard at: http://youtu.be/uK7hyOPo-zA or under title Search for the Red Wizard "Romance, Adventure, and Danger provide the reader with a delightful romp as teh Space Darlings encounter Fun, Fear and Perilous situations. When tghe Best Laid Plans go astray the Space Darlings are in the thick of the action"---Alva Underwood, autor of Star Trek Reader's Reference to the novels. Troubles start for Major Lori and Captain Gladriel when the Heroines in the hit video series 'The Space Darlings' look like them. The Galactic Council orders them to go undercover as entertainers to search for missing reports in the far reaches of the galaxy.




They Both Die at the End


Book Description

Adam Silvera reminds us that there’s no life without death and no love without loss in this devastating yet uplifting story about two people whose lives change over the course of one unforgettable day. #1 New York Times bestseller * 4 starred reviews * A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year * A Kirkus Best Book of the Year * A Booklist Editors' Choice * A Bustle Best YA Novel * A Paste Magazine Best YA Book * A Book Riot Best Queer Book * A Buzzfeed Best YA Book of the Year * A BookPage Best YA Book of the Year On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day. In the tradition of Before I Fall and If I Stay, They Both Die at the End is a tour de force from acclaimed author Adam Silvera, whose debut, More Happy Than Not, the New York Times called “profound.” Plus don't miss The First to Die at the End: #1 New York Times bestselling author Adam Silvera returns to the universe of international phenomenon They Both Die at the End in this prequel. New star-crossed lovers are put to the test on the first day of Death-Cast’s fateful calls.




The Middle Times


Book Description

Traveling underground through an icy tunnel system into an unknown mysterious realm seeking out the Gavel of Elrahon, our Grenelf family and friends stumble into a land of ice. According to dwarven traveling companion Sir Timlikdam, it be the very lands of the hairy horned monsters from his childhood tales. Following closely behind the Grenelf family and friends in the ice tunnels, a garrison of goblins sent by the Goblin King Nifere pursues them relentlessly. Back within their home lands of the west, Lord Eltr of Lavon murders his ruling brother King Edrain and seizes the throne of the Lavon kingdom for launching an invasion against neighboring Nhora. Unknown to Eltr, the diabolical Nifere wishes also to claim the lands of Nhora. The two evils clash and only one of the evil leaders shall survive, but not by the actions of the other. Within the ice lands, the quest for the Gavel of Elrahon becomes a task of survival as hidden treacheries from the past explode changing the course of destiny. The race to save the westerly lands against something much worse than the wrath of the Lord of Darkness and Shadow emerges unleashing an ultimate evil force from the depths of the underwolde. Hold onto your bows and axes, this action-packed concluding story for the two part epic may only be the beginning.




Unplugged


Book Description

WARNING: This video game may impair your judgment. It may cause sleep deprivation, alienation of friends and family, weight loss or gain, neglect of one's basic needs as well as the needs of loved ones and/or dependents, and decreased performance on the job. The distinction between fantasy and reality may become blurred. Play at your own risk. Not responsible for suicide attempts, whether failed or successful. No such warning was included on the latest and greatest release from the Warcraft series of massive multiplayer on-line role-playing games (MMORPGs)—World of Warcraft (WoW). So when Ryan Van Cleave—a college professor, husband, father, and one of the 11.5 million Warcraft subscribers worldwide—found himself teetering on the edge of the Arlington Memorial Bridge, he had no one to blame but himself. He had neglected his wife and children and had jeopardized his livelihood, all for the rush of living a life of high adventure in a virtual world. Ultimately, Ryan decided to live, but not for the sake of his family or for a newly found love of life: he had to get back home for his evening session of Warcraft. A fabulously written and gripping tale, Unplugged takes us on a journey through Ryan's semi-reclusive life with video games at the center of his experiences. Even when he was sexually molested by a young school teacher at age eleven, it was the promise of a new video game that lured him to her house. As Ryan's life progresses, we witness the evolution of videogames—from simple two-button consoles to today's complicated multi-key technology, brilliantly designed to keep the user actively participating. As is the case with most recovering addicts, Ryan eventually hits rock bottom and shares with the reader his ongoing battle to control his impulses to play, providing prescriptive advice and resources for those caught in the grip of this very real addiction.




The Nightwing's Quest


Book Description

In the dark elven matriarchy of Alvarra, the Nightwing's beautiful daughter, Tiala, must lead a mismatched cadre of champions to save her people from the machinations of her evil brother turned assassin. Can a tormented wizard, a fledgling shape-changer, a novice monk and two bitter enemies help Tiala secure the peace in Alvarra? At what cost?




Tyrannia: Schools of Magic


Book Description

This is the story of three wizards from different regions and backgrounds who are all starting their first year at the famour Sigor Narak University of magic. This school is the only magical institution to allow wizards from different sects to study under the same roof. There is tension and animosity between the various orders but not all are so hostile. The three wizards are all outcast some by choice and some by circumstance, however together they feel like they are finally where they belong. The world of magic erupts as war breaks out between the factions and as the fighting intensifies the three students must realise their potential in order to survive and protect the ones they love. The book is a fantasy book heavily based around the world of magic. It inspired from a very odd dream but also my general love for the fantasy genre.




Game Work


Book Description

Video and computer games in their cultural contexts. As the popularity of computer games has exploded over the past decade, both scholars and game industry professionals have recognized the necessity of treating games less as frivolous entertainment and more as artifacts of culture worthy of political, social, economic, rhetorical, and aesthetic analysis. Ken McAllister notes in his introduction to Game Work that, even though games are essentially impractical, they are nevertheless important mediating agents for the broad exercise of socio-political power. In considering how the languages, images, gestures, and sounds of video games influence those who play them, McAllister highlights the ways in which ideology is coded into games. Computer games, he argues, have transformative effects on the consciousness of players, like poetry, fiction, journalism, and film, but the implications of these transformations are not always clear. Games can work to maintain the status quo or celebrate liberation or tolerate enslavement, and they can conjure feelings of hope or despair, assent or dissent, clarity or confusion. Overall, by making and managing meanings, computer games—and the work they involve and the industry they spring from—are also negotiating power. This book sets out a method for "recollecting" some of the diverse and copious influences on computer games and the industry they have spawned. Specifically written for use in computer game theory classes, advanced media studies, and communications courses, Game Work will also be welcome by computer gamers and designers. Ken S. McAllister is Assistant Professor of Rhetoric, Composition, and the Teaching of English at the University of Arizona and Co-Director of the Learning Games Initiative, a research collective that studies, teaches with, and builds computer games.




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