Bibi's Rainbow is a delightfully narrated novel centered around a large Iranian immigrant family and their old, wise and faithful nanny, Bibi, a talented cook armed with inexhaustible secret recipes, who is resolutely determined to ease the transition of four generations of her "family" into American society. Using her wits and miraculous recipes as weapons, she ultimately manages to avert a "Clash of Civilizations" in their Beverly Hills neighborhood, winning over the hearts and souls of her extended family and their neighbors during the tumultuous period between 1979-2008. It is a tale of the long, sometimes tragic, often-hilarious, journey to assimilation.

"Film: A Critical Introduction "provides a comprehensive framework for studying films, with an emphasis on writing as a means of exploring film's aesthetic and cultural significance. This text's consistent and comprehensive focus on writing allows students to master film vocabulary and concepts while learning to formulate rich interpretations. Part I introduces readers to the importance of film analysis, offering helpful strategies for discerning the way films produce meaning. Part II examines the fundamental elements of film, including narrative form, mise en scene, cinematography, editing, and sound, and shows how these concepts can be used to interpret films. Part III moves beyond textual analysis to explore film as a cultural institution and introduce students to essential areas of film studies research.

Educators and technology experts share their thoughts on classroom technology and how equity, the digital divide, and other issues need to be addressed to ensure students and teachers are realizing the full potential of different technologies.

The Greatest Meeting This is the saga of the impassioned journeys of two men, their true premonitions of a mystical meeting, and their self-discoveries. Full of compelling adventure, love and betrayal, joy and sadness, their stories have never before been told. This extraordinary true historical novel takes place in Central Asia, and the Middle East; toady's Turkey in the thirteenth century during the tumultuous time of Changiz Khan's conquest. It is an unforgettable detailed narrative account of the lives of an enigmatic giant and legendary mystic figure, Shams-e Tabrizi, and the most renowned religious scholar, Molana Jalaleddin Mohammad-e Rumi. It chronicles the relentless search of a critical and progressive thinker, Shams, to find a true friend, a soul mate, who could give a powerful echo to his voice, to his revolutionary ideas of interpreting religion relevant to our daily earthly existence, of recognizing each human being as the "Supreme Majesty." This remarkable literary work presents the story of Rumi's dream for the ultimate divine illumination, his yearning for somea¬thing greater than himself, his intellectual rebirth, and the volcanic artistic eruption that resulted in the incomparable monumental works of poetry: The Collection of Shams-e Tabrizi and Massnavi; comprised of over seventy thousand verses. For over seven centuries, over seventy thousand of Rumi's ingenious and magnificent poems have profoundly taught us all a greater level of self-awareness, and now this work acquaints us with the life of this man, and the enigmatic person who inspired him. An impressive artistic undertaking, lyrical, intelligent, beautifully crafted, paced, this work is enriched by unforgettable characters. From the early chapters to the heartwarming, triumphant, unpredictable and astonishing conclusion, Majid Amini, the author of Escape From Paradise, proves himself a masterful writer. For those who appreciate Rumi's poems and for those unfamiliar with his work, this book is a must read.

A sheltered Pakistani girl is sent to America by her parents, with unexpected results: “Entertaining, often hilarious . . . Not just another immigrant’s tale.” —Publishers Weekly Feroza Ginwalla, a pampered, protected sixteen-year-old Pakistani girl, is sent to America by her parents, who are alarmed by the fundamentalism overtaking Pakistan—and influencing their daughter. Hoping that a few months with her uncle, an MIT grad student, will soften the girl’s rigid thinking, they get more than they bargained for: Feroza, enthralled by American culture and her new freedom, insists on staying. A bargain is struck, allowing Feroza to attend college with the understanding that she will return home and marry well. As a student in a small western town, Feroza finds her perceptions of America, her homeland, and herself beginning to alter. When she falls in love with a Jewish American, her family is aghast. Feroza realizes just how far she has come—and wonders how much further she can go—in a delightful, remarkably funny coming-of-age novel that offers an acute portrayal of America as seen through the eyes of a perceptive young immigrant. “Humorous and affecting.” —Library Journal “Exceptional.” —Los Angeles Times “Her characters [are] painted so vividly you can almost hear them bickering.” —The New York Times

Sex and Film is a frank, comprehensive analysis of the cinema's love affair with the erotic. Forshaw's lively study moves from the sexual abandon of the 1930s to filmmakers' circumvention of censorship, the demolition of taboos by arthouse directors and pornographic films, and an examination of how explicit imagery invaded modern mainstream cinema.