Play Studies

Football has always been sold as a game of brute force—linemen colliding, quarterbacks scrambling, receivers leaping. That’s the highlight-reel version, but it’s incomplete. The truth, learned the hard way through decades of teaching and coaching at every level from high school fields to college sidelines, is that football is a thinking man’s sport disguised as a street fight. Strategy, not talent alone, decides games. And that’s what this book delivers: the playbook for understanding the chess match inside the chaos. What this book is (and isn’t): it’s not another glossy ...

"As a former Sunday School Teacher and a Bible Study participant, I really appreciate this book! I think every Christian or even questioning Christian would really enjoy this book and and give you ideas of your own. Read this book; you won’t regret it!" -- Lila J. Who Are the “Rest of Us”? The “rest of us” don’t usually read Bible study books. We might not attend church every Sunday, but we try to live with quiet integrity and faith. We may know the words to old hymns but aren’t that much into singing them. We’re not especially drawn to organized religion—we’re more ...

Here is the multi award-winning SmartPass study guide, with and without commentary options. This is a full-cast, unabridged performance with comprehensive commentary and analysis to allow any student to fully understand and appreciate the play. Meet literature's greatest villain in this tragedy, fuelled by jealous rage. Journey into the twisted mind of Iago, who freely admits, "I am not what I am", and truly get under the skin of this wondrous play.

Few television shows revolutionized comedy as profoundly or have had such an enormous and continued impact on our culture as In Living Color. Inspired by Richard Pryor, Carol Burnett, and Eddie Murphy, Keenen Ivory Wayans created a television series unlike any that had come before it. In Living Color shaped American culture in ways both seen and unseen. Now, Homey Don't Play That! reveals the complete, captivating story of how In Living Color overcame enormous odds to become a major, zeitgeist-seizing hit.

In this classic evaluation of play that has become a “must-listen” for those in game design, Dutch philosopher Johan Huizinga defines play as the central activity in flourishing societies. Like civilization, play requires structure and participants willing to create within limits. Starting with Plato, Huizinga traces the contribution of Homo Ludens, or “man the player” through medieval times, the Renaissance, and into our modern civilization.

According to the Leisure Studies Department at the University of Iowa, true leisure is “that place in which we realize our humanity.” If that’s true, argues Brigid Schulte, then we're doing dangerously little realizing of our humanity. In Overwhelmed, Schulte, a staff writer for The Washington Post, asks: Are our brains, our partners, our culture, and our bosses making it impossible for us to experience anything but “contaminated time”?

Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places reunites spirituality and theology in a cultural context where these two vital facets of Christian faith have been rent asunder. Lamenting the vacuous, often pagan nature of contemporary American spirituality, Eugene Peterson here firmly grounds spirituality once more in Trinitarian theology and offers a clear, practical statement of what it means to actually live out the Christian life.

On the face of it, women's sport is on the rise, garnering more attention and grassroots involvement than ever before. However, the truth is that in many respects progress is stalling, or even falling back. Sharron Davies is no stranger to battling the routine sexism the sporting world. She missed out on Olympic Gold because of blatant doping among East German athletes in the 1980s, and has never received justice. Now, biological males are being allowed to compete directly against women under the guise of trans 'self-ID', a development that could destroy the integrity of female sport.

In a world awash with voices claiming divine endorsement, many are led astray, lost in a sea of misinformation and doubt. The world is in turmoil and it's easy to feel lost. Countless believers are ensnared in a web of confusion—unsure about how to engage, vote, and pray in these tumultuous times. How does God see your nation? What is He truly saying? And importantly, are you ready to listen?

As a kid in the 1970s and 80s, Carina Chocano was confused by the mixed messages all around her; messages that told her who she could be - and who she couldn’t. Dutifully absorbing all the conflicting information the culture has to offer on how to be a woman, Chocano grappled with sexed up sidekicks, princesses waiting to be saved, and morally infallible angels who seemed to have no opinions of their own. She learned that "the girl" is not a person, but a man's idea of what a woman should be - she’s whatever the hero needs her to be in order to become himself.

For decades women have been playing competitive sports thanks in large part to the protective cover of Title IX. Since passage of that law, the number of women participating in sports and the level of competition in high school, college, and professionally, has risen dramatically. In Fair Play, award-winning journalist Katie Barnes traces the evolution of women’s sports as a pastime and a political arena, where equality and fairness have been fought over for generations.

Written as a novel, the whole play is penned with character insights into what each person is thinking before and after they speak. All of the original text is included but updated for a modern understanding. Rather than place the play in its original setting this novel is set in a time unknown and written after the Gender Wars and probably after Religious Consolidation in a steampunk era without electricity. Whether you read this novel for study or merely for enjoyment then the ideal would be that you complete it with an overwhelming desire to then read the original play in its original ...

Embark on a captivating journey through the works of William Shakespeare with "Shakespeare in Brief." This indispensable companion offers a fresh and accessible approach to exploring the timeless plays that have captured the hearts and minds of audiences for centuries. This edition has been updated with enhanced accuracy and corrected errors. Key Features: 1. Succinct Synopses: Each play is distilled into a clear and concise synopsis, allowing you to grasp the core elements of the story quickly. 2. Character Connections: Uncover the intricate web of relationships between Shakespeare's ...

The multi award-winning SmartPass study guide with and without commentary options. This is a full-cast, unabridged performance with comprehensive commentary and analysis for any student to fully understand and appreciate the play. Universally accepted as Shakespeare's finest play, we peel back the layers of Hamlet to discover how and why it deserves such a place of honour in world literature.

Here is the multi award-winning SmartPass study guide with and without commentary options. This is a full-cast, unabridged performance, with comprehensive commentary and analysis, enabling students to fully understand and appreciate the play. Judge for yourself whether Lear is "a man more sinned against than sinning" in this moral tale that pits wisdom and age against ambition and youth. Experience and examine the power of Shakespeare's most cruel and violent tragedy.

Combined for great value! The multi-award-winning SmartPass study guide with and without commentary options. Full-cast, unabridged performance with comprehensive commentary and analysis for any student to fully understand and appreciate the play.

"And nothing is, but what is not." Macbeth may be mystified by the Weird Sisters' words but this intense performance with incisive commentary cuts to the heart of Shakespeare's complex psychological tragedy.

Whether you're a student, a Shakespeare enthusiast, or simply curious about the timeless works of the Bard, Shakespeare Compactly offers clear and concise summaries of all of William Shakespeare's plays. This comprehensive guide condenses the rich plots, complex characters, and thought-provoking themes of each play into easy-to-read formats, making it accessible for readers of all backgrounds. Inside this book you will find: A brief yet thorough summary of each Shakespearean play. Detailed act-by-act and scene-by-scene breakdowns. Key character lists to help you understand relationships and...

Acclaimed author Marita Golden is a respected voice in both fiction and nonfiction. She is also the founder and CEO of theHurston/Wright Foundation, whose mission is to develop, nurture and sustain the world community of writers of African descent. In this thoughtful and personal work, Golden tackles the dangerous notion that it is preferable for African-Americans to have lighter instead of darker complexions.

In Stupid Black Men, he takes on the mindset of those people who always capture the most media attention—as well as masses of public money—people who say that racism is the root of all problems and who end up hurting precisely those they claim to be helping.

Nathan the Wise, a play published by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing in 1779, is a fervent plea for religious tolerance. It was first performed in 1783 at the Döbbelinsches Theatre in Berlin. The narrative is set in Jerusalem during the Third Crusade and describes how the wise Jewish merchant Nathan, the enlightened sultan Saladin, and a Templar Knight bridge the differences between Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. Its major themes are friendship, tolerance, the relativism of God, a rejection of miracles and a need for communication.