Best Selling Books by Michael Allen

Contemporary U.S. Cinema is a forceful exploration of the tumultuous changes that have dominated the shifting landscape of American film-making over the past three decades. From the explosive release of Easy Rider to the excesses of Heaven''s Gate and the comic book figures of Spider-Man, its aim is to examine the economic, social and cultural contexts of mainstream and independent American films. The book divides into nine provocative chapters with material on: the most significant individual film-makers, such as Scorsese, Coppola and Lucas, as well as independent film-makers like Jarmusch and Anders the careers of leading actors of the last thirty years, such as Jack Nicholson, Robert Redford and Julia Roberts, whilst exploring the powerful position of the film star in the modern American film-making process the economics of Contemporary U.S. Cinema with particular reference to the tortuous journey from production, distribution and exhibition of Waterworld and Titanic the artistic influence of foreign film-makers, such as François Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard, and explores Hollywood''s increasing dominance and reliance on the global market genres, sequels and the recent developments in computer-based technologies, using examples from The Godfather I - III, The Matrix, the Star Wars saga and remakes from Shaft to Ocean''s Eleven The book is illustrated with stills throughout and includes a bibliography and annotated further reading list.

In the seven and a half years before his collapse into madness, Nietzsche completed Thus Spoke Zarathustra, the best-selling and most widely read philosophical work of all time, as well as six additional works that are today considered required reading for Western intellectuals. Together, these works mark the final period of Nietzsche’s thought, when he developed a new, more profound, and more systematic teaching rooted in the idea of the eternal recurrence, which he considered his deepest thought. Cutting against the grain of most current Nietzsche scholarship, Michael Allen Gillespie presents the thought of the late Nietzsche as Nietzsche himself intended, drawing not only on his published works but on the plans for the works he was unable to complete, which can be found throughout his notes and correspondence. Gillespie argues that the idea of the eternal recurrence transformed Nietzsche’s thinking from 1881 to 1889. It provided both the basis for his rejection of traditional metaphysics and the grounding for the new logic, ontology, theology, and anthropology he intended to create with the aim of a fundamental transformation of European civilization, a “revaluation of all values.” Nietzsche first broached the idea of the eternal recurrence in Thus Spoke Zarathustra, but its failure to gain attention or public acceptance led him to present the idea again through a series of works intended to culminate in a never-completed magnum opus. Nietzsche believed this idea would enable the redemption of humanity. At the same time, he recognized its terrifying, apocalyptic consequences, since it would also produce wars of unprecedented ferocity and destruction. Through his careful analysis, Gillespie reveals a more radical and more dangerous Nietzsche than the humanistic or democratic Nietzsche we commonly think of today, but also a Nietzsche who was deeply at odds with the Nietzsche imagined to be the forefather of Fascism. Gillespie’s essays examine Nietzsche’s final teaching—its components and its political, philosophical, and theological significance. The book concludes with a critical examination and a reflection on its meaning for us today.

It is now known that over 90 percent of all plants have established integrative plant-fungal processes in their root systems, and it may well turn out to be the case that virtually all plants have mycorrhizae. In this work, many of the best researchers in the field review the current status of research in plant-fungal communications, mycorrhizal organisms, applications, and biotechnology. The focus is a hierarchical one. This volume is comprehensive and covers both ectomycorrhizae and vesicular-arbuscular (VA) mycorrhizae, addressing concepts that are related to all the different groups. Mycorrhizal Functioning will be of interest to professionals and graduate students in microbiology, ecology, mycology, plant pathology, plant science, and soil science. Those working in the agricultural biotechnology industry will also benefit from the book''s applications perspective.

In this study, historian Michael Allen examines the image of the rodeo cowboy and the role this image has played in popular culture over in the 20th century. He sees rodeo as a significant American folk festival and the rodeo cowboy as the surviving avatar of a nearly vanished authentic figure - the ""real cowboy"", who embodies the skills and values of traditional western rural culture. Allen''s provocative analysis explores the evolution of the myth of the rodeo man and its subsequent institutionalization and acculturation into the media of popular culture. He discovers that America''s fascination with the rodeo cowboy reflects feelings far deeper and more complex than a taste for exciting entertainment. This popular culture hero survives in our national imagination as a kind of living, contemporary ancestor, linking a largely urban population with its rural past and recalling the values and spirit of a time and region that most Americans perceive as somehow purer, freer and more noble. Allen''s discussion of the archetypal figure of the rodeo cowboy aims to change perceptions of rodeo, but it will also help the reader to understand how the ancient tension between frontier and civilization continues to play a role in national imagination of the USA.

“Breakneck pace and solid atmosphere are the hallmarks here.” —AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION When a local schoolteacher disappears from rural West Wheeling, acting sheriff Homer Deters investigates. Before long he''s got three more missing persons, two unidentified bodies, a car theft, a twenty-three-vehicle pile-up in the center of town, a missing tiger, and a squad of agitated ATF agents to deal with. With no help from the Feds, Homer turns to his buddy, Rye Willis, and West Wheeling''s eccentric postmistress, Nina Ross, to locate the missing, identify the bodies, and bring a murderer to justice. Packed with regional charm and Deters’ wit, Death in West Wheeling shows how wild one case can get.

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This reader from Karl Barth''s multi-volume Church Dogmatics offers an introduction to the whole work, key readings in reasonable portions with introductions and provides helpful hints at secondary material. An ideal textbook for all beginners studying the work of one of the most important theologians of the last century.

With “terse prose,” this “fascinating” entry in the award-winning series pits psychiatrist Jack Caleb and cop John Thinnes against a serial arsonist (Library Journal). While jogging through Chicago’s Lincoln Park at dawn, Dr. Jack Caleb comes upon a scene of horror—a mob in white robes about to set a police car on fire with the officer inside. Caleb’s training as a medic in the Vietnam War kicks in and he rushes to rescue the man. One cop is saved, but later his female partner is found in another location, stoned to death. Homicide detective John Thinnes has a cop killer on his hands. But these two attacks are only the beginning in a series of arson fires and murders over the course of a long, hot, deadly summer. Evidence points toward cultists in the Church of Divine Conflagration—but then some of them also fall victim to the pyromaniac. When a physician friend of Caleb is implicated, the psychiatrist works with Thinnes to set a trap for the killer—but it’s one they might not escape unscorched themselves . . .

Sheriff Homer Deters returns in the “delightful” sequel to Death in West Wheeling from the award-winning author of the Caleb and Thinnes mysteries (Publishers Weekly). When Sheriff Homer Deters’ proposal to his sweetheart is interrupted by the report of a body in a ditch, he discovers the corpse is skeletal and half the town has trampled through the scene. Before the investigation gains traction, someone turns a truckload of actual mustangs loose in the Truck Stop parking lot. And when the truck driver is subsequently murdered, Homer has a real whodunit on his hands. Complaints about rats and transients, jackasses of the two and four-legged variety, and a series of hijackings interrupt both investigations. While Homer tries to sort things out, a local farmer is murdered and dumped in another ditch. With help from the State Police and plenty of assistance from his sweetheart, deputy, and adopted son, the West Wheeling Sheriff manages to survive an Indian uprising, West Wheeling’s Oktoberfest, and Sadie Hawkins Day. He just has to solve the murders while he’s at it. Praise for Death in West Wheeling “Dymmoch pushes into Joan Hess territory with this rollicking tale of murder, moonshine and madcap law enforcement . . . Dymmoch handles this farcical crime wave with down-home warmth and humor.”—Kirkus Reviews “Homer keeps his cool, handily solving murders and disappearances. Breakneck pace and solid atmosphere are the hallmarks here.”—Booklist

An Illustrated Guide to the Rules of Civil Procedure, Third Edition is a next-generation civil procedure litigation supplemental text designed for a one or two-semester course. Using a hypothetical, yet realistic age-discrimination lawsuit, students are introduced to procedural rules and repeatedly assessed with question requiring practical application of the rules to the hypothetical case. With new co-author Jason R. Bent, the third edition is updated to include the 2015 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and an exploration of class action requirements following Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, along with an expanded discussion of appellate standards of review. Features: Incorporates 2015 amendments to the Federal Rules governing preservation and production of eletronically stored information, with citations to 2016 authorities applying the new Rules Discussion of the proportionaltiy standard for discovery introduced by 2015 amendments New exploration of class action requirements, including application of the holding in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes Expanded discussion of appellate standards of review. Reflects abrogation of Rule 84 and forms.

The burgeoning "theological interpretation of Scripture" movement has gained much notoriety, but it has yet to demonstrate consistently that dogmatic reflection both aids and flows from exegesis of biblical texts. This volume includes essays on critical passages related to a number of key doctrinal loci (e.g. Genesis 1, Exodus 3, Proverbs 8, John 1). It also intentionally offers examples of theological commentary on various genres of Scripture (on biblical narrative, poetry, wisdom, gospels, and epistles), showing how the whole Bible can be read theologically for the church. The volume includes essays by notable scholars conversing with the canon, the creed, and our contemporary culture: including Kevin Vanhoozer, Michael Horton, Henri Blocher, R. W. L. Moberly, and D. A. Carson.

''Textbook on Criminal Law'' has been revised to incorporate all significant case law and statutory material since the last edition. Bringing clarity to this subject the author clearly states the general principles of criminal law and the current state of the law, guiding students through areas of complexity.

Psychiatrist Jack Caleb and Chicago cop John Thinnes return in this “well-crafted procedural . . . intriguingly presented . . . spiked by psychological insight” (Booklist). After a woman is brutally raped in the posh Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago and a second rape victim is murdered, the hunt for a serial rapist/killer becomes a “heater” case, front-burnered due to the scrutiny of publicity. The pressure is on Det. John Thinnes and his new partner, a strong-willed feminist cop named Don Franchi. Psychiatrist Jack Caleb is acting as a police consultant to construct a psychological profile of the rapist, and Thinnes asks his friend to step in and mediate the friction between him and his partner. If they’re going to solve an increasingly complicated and disturbing case that matches the MO of earlier, similar crimes in another Illinois city, they need to find a way to work together . . .

The Christ''s Faith coheres with orthodox Christology and Reformation soteriology, and needs to be affirmed to properly confirm the true humanity of the incarnate Son. Without addressing the interpretation of the Pauline phrase pistis christou, this study offers a theological rationale for an exegetical possibility and enriches a dogmatic account of the humanity of the Christ. The coherence of the Christ''s faith is shown in two ways. First, the objection of Thomas Aquinas is refuted by demonstrating that faith is fitting for the incarnate Son. Second, a theological ontology is offered which affirms divine perfection and transcendence in qualitative fashion, undergirding a Chalcedonian and Reformed Christology. Thus, the humanity of the Christ may be construed as a fallen human nature assumed by the person of the Word and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. The dogmatic location of The Christ''s Faith is sketched by suggesting its (potential) function within three influential theological systems: Thomas Aquinas, federal theology, and Karl Barth. Furthermore, the soteriological role of the doctrine is demonstrated by showing the theological necessity of faith for valid obedience before God.

Orchestra Music - All Levels

How do we see God’s Love for us? What it means for God to be Infi nite How does Faith develop? Windows of Faith How do we Know God? Science and Faith What is Our Own Heaven or Hell? What is God’s Heaven? Religion’s Future Going Home

"The judge will order you to talk and offer to put you in the witness protection program. You said you won''t consider that. Why on earth?" "I have a life, Mr. Norman." "Well, if this man they want to wiretap really is connected, you won''t for long." "It''s not fair!" "But it''s the law." "What if I just refused to talk?" "The judge will jail you for contempt until you testify. And I doubt the mob would trust you to accept an indefinite stay in County. Even in solitary you wouldn''t be safe." "Then I have no choice?" Most of us are lucky that some simple action---one that we''ve performed a hundred times---doesn''t suddenly plunge our entire life into a private hell. But undeserved or not, unheralded or not, that''s what happens to Joanne Lessing, a freelance photographer and the divorced mother of a teenage son. On a fine fall morning, sent to record the aftermath of Halloween in a town park, Joanne turns from the geese she is photographing to see a luxurious foreign car come speeding down the road at the park''s edge. The driver, noticing Joanne aiming her camera and seeming to panic, veers and smacks into a Volkswagen parked at the curb. His car scrapes the curb and leaves. Good citizen Joanne reports the accident and turns over her photos of the offending car to the police. Not until she sees a story in that evening''s local paper does she have an answer to what has puzzled her all day: Why did the police immediately send a man to interview her and pick up her photos for a relatively minor accident in which no one was injured? The news story tells her that one of her neighbors had been murdered, a man who had once been the head of the local mob and has been living quietly in the FBI''s witness protection program. A flock of FBI agents arrive to work with the local police. The agents know who did the killing; they''ve been living with the effort to catch and convict the gang members. Among the single-minded "Feebies" is Agent Paul Minorini. He is the only one who seems to give some thought to the danger Joanne is in if the gangsters learn it was she who caught their car with her camera---and possibly caught some or all of its occupants as well. Minorini''s worry about Joanne''s safety puts him at odds with his partner, and his attraction to the besieged woman makes it almost impossible for him to perform his job. Meanwhile, spunky Joanne, trapped between the mob and the tunnel-vision agents, has some ideas of her own about how to handle her endangered life...if only she can make those ideas work.

This volume examines what it means to proceed in the path of wisdom by beginning with fear of God, that is, mindfulness always and everywhere of God''s being and presence. Michael Allen describes the praxis of fearing the Lord, how that posture of contemplative pursuit marks the theological task and defines our theological method; in so doing it takes up the significant topics of divine revelation, theological exegesis, intellectual asceticism, and retrieval/ressourcement from a distinctly doctrinal perspective. In each of these conversations, doing theology in the presence of God functions as a consistent thread. God is not mere object but truly functions as subject in the process of theological growth, though God''s presence and agency fund rather than negate creaturely theological responsibility. The Fear of the Lord: Essays on Theological Method explores some of the most central questions of contemporary theological method – revelation, Scripture, theological interpretation, retrieval, intellectual asceticism, scholastic method – by asking in each and every case what it means to think fundamentally of the perfect and present God involved and active in these spheres.

This book offers appropriate teaching strategies to help teachers seek out and rectify misconceptions in primary science as and when they arise.

In late 2003, inspired by the recommend. of the Pres.¿s New Freedom Comm. on Mental Health, the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law undertook a study of board & care homes for people with psychiatric disabilities. A draft report was produced, then on Nov. 18 & 19, 2004, the Bazelon Center hosted a nat. strategy meeting to discuss the findings. This final report incorp. the discussion & recommend. from the Nov. 2004 meeting. It discusses the impact of short-term quality improvement measures in the use of board & care homes. It also calls for a fresh approach to providing housing for people with psychiatric disabilities -- a recovery-oriented approach that revolves around the principles of consumer self-direction & community integration.

Michael is an editorial photographer for Southern Bride Magazine, and has traveled all over the South, from Florida to New Orleans, and to such destinations as Mexico. His wedding photography style is beautiful and keeps his studio booked year round with weddings. Michael''s commercial photography projects have also attracted a lot of attention, he shoots for major companies photographing such celebrity music stars as Lauren Alaina, Dierks Bentley, and many more. He has recently worked on a major shoot with Conde Naste for GQ magazine as an assistant photographer for Sebastion Kim, the worlds top fashion photographer. One of his recent portrait clients includes Leigh Anne Tuohy from the film "Blind Side". This book goes into detail about shooting high end weddings, photography styles, business management, marketing and the gear needed. A perfect book for new photographers that want to gain insights into the editorial side of wedding photography & what it takes to be a successful photographer.(Revised Edition)

A “skillfully written, wonderfully entertaining, and fascinatingly detailed” time-travel adventure from the author of the Caleb and Thinnes mysteries (Booklist). British detective Ian Carreg never expected his life to unfold like this. A recent widower, the fifty-five-year-old inspector has just learned he’s going to be a grandfather. But duty still calls. He’s been assigned to find and arrest Dr. Jemma Henderson, the daughter of a famous British physicist, for extradition to the United States, where she’s been convicted of murdering her lover. But when he pursues her to the ancient stone monument of Cymry Henge, he is knocked unconscious and awakens in what appears to be Roman Britain in the year sixty AD. Ian is convinced he’s in the middle of some elaborate hoax—until he comes face to face with Celts and Romans and begins to doubt his sanity. When he and Jemma are taken prisoner by the Romans and forced to travel to Londinium, Ian realizes they must work together to foil a plot that could radically alter history . . .

This book explores a hitherto unexamined possibility of justifiable disobedience opened up by John Rawls’ Law of Peoples. This is the possibility of disobedience justified by appeal to standards of decency that are shared by peoples who do not otherwise share commitments to the same principles of justice, and whose societies are organized according to very different basic social institutions. Justified by appeal to shared decency standards, disobedience by diverse state and non-state actors indeed challenge injustices in the international system of states. The book considers three case studies: disobedience by the undocumented, disobedient challenges to global economic inequities, and the disobedient disclosure of government secrets. It proposes a substantial analytical redefinition of civil disobedience in a global perspective, identifying the creation of global solidarity relations as its goal. Michael Allen breaks new ground in our understanding of global justice. Traditional views, such as those of Rawls, see justice as a matter of recognizing the moral status of all free and equal person as citizens in a state. Allen argues that this fails to see things from the global perspective. From this perspective disobedience is not merely a matter of social cooperation. Rather, it is a matter of self determination that guarantees the invulnerability of different types of persons and peoples to domination. This makes the disobedience by the undocumented justified, based on the idea that all persons are moral equals, so that all sovereign peoples need to reject dominating forms of social organization for all persons, and not just their own citizens. In an age of mass movements of people, Allen gives us a strong reason to change our practices in treating the undocumented. James Bohman, St Louis University, Danforth Chair in the Humanities This monograph is an important contribution to our thinking on civil disobedience and practices of dissent in a globalized world. This is an era where non-violent social movements have had a significant role in challenging the abuse of power in contexts as diverse, yet interrelated as the Arab Spring protests and the Occupy protests. Moreover, while protests such as these speak to a local political horizon, they also have a global footprint, catalyzing a transnational dialogue about global justice, political strategy and cosmopolitan solidarity. Speaking directly to such complexities, Allen makes a compelling case for a global perspective regarding civil disobedience. Anyone interested in how the dynamics of non-violent protest have shaped and reshaped the landscape for democratic engagement in a globalized world will find this book rewarding and insightful. Vasuki Nesiah, New York University

The Knowledge of God turns to consider the knowledge of God revealed in the Word of God, with several essays addressing the doctrine of God, then the person of Christ, and finally the miracle of the church. Michael Allen shows the exegetical shape of historical and dogmatic reasoning as well as the significance of thinking about these topics in their interrelationships with a range of other Christian themes, not least the doctrine of the living and true God. In each of these topics, the theme of the promise and nature of God''s presence (whether in his own life or then in the economy of the incarnation and of the church) proves to be a unifying thread. The gospel is shown to be rooted backward in God''s own life and to have consequence forward for the ongoing life of Christ displayed in his church. This volume explores what it means to learn of and come to know God, who has life in himself and then shares his life with us in the coming of his Son and the ongoing presence amidst his body, the church of Christ.

How would your life be if you had special gifts that with training allowed you to become both immortal and eternal? Would you behave or consider yourself to be a god? Follow Chalon as he writes his journal about his life starting from the beginning from childhood to the end of all creation.

An innovative, highly accessible casebook that features problems, cases connected by narrative text, charts, and graphs, all presented in a manner suited to multiple teaching approaches. Features: Incorporates problems throughout each chapter allowing students to reinforce their understanding of basic doctrine and to explore doctrine in greater depth. Presents information graphically through charts and diagrams to appeal to multiple learning styles and reinforce student comprehension. Includes all relevant statutes, rules, and constitutional provisions. Includes a comprehensive Teachers Manual with the authors suggestions for using chapter materials, the authors views about the text problems, and other supporting materials and references. Presents topics that otherwise overlap with coverage in Civil Procedure (e.g., subject matter jurisdiction) in a manner that leads to more advanced and interesting treatment.

What Howard Zinn does for those who are ashamed of American history in his A People''s History of the United States, BEACON OF LIBERTY does for those who are proud of it. From Christopher Columbus to the fall of Saddam Hussein, this book will go a long way in restoring perspective and clarity to our understanding of America''s amazing story, and the noble, Christian principles our country was founded on.

This landmark study is a detailed textual and thematic analysis of one of Nietzsche''s most important but least understood works. Stanley Rosen argues that in Zarathustra Nietzsche lays the groundwork for philosophical and political revolution, proposing a change in humanity''s condition that would be achieved by eliminating the decadent exisiting race and breeding a new race to take its place. Rosen discusses Nietzsche''s systematically duplicitous rhetoric messages in Zarathustra, and he places the book in the contexts of Greek, Christian, Enlightenment, and postmodernist thought.