"Poetry is the foundation of E.J. Pratt's eminence in Canadian literary history, yet there exists a significant body of his work which has not been widely available until now. Pratt was a prolific writer of prose and an important commentator on the literature and life of his day." "Pratt had a varied career as a theological student, psychology scholar, and professor of English. As editor of Canadian Poetry he fostered poets like Earle Birney and Dorothy Livesay, and the editorials he wrote while at the helm of the magazine are important documents of Canadian literary history. His prose records both his dislike of modernism's 'obscurantist excesses' and his sympathy with its anti-romanticism. In his writing he was equally impatient with naive optimism and unrelieved pessimism, seeking a mean when he argued that 'messages of hope and faith need to be run through the bulletins of realism.'" "In Pursuits Amateur and Academic Susan Gingell has gathered together stories, essays, editorials, reviews, prefaces, introductions, and lectures, some of them previously unpublished. This volume not only enhances our understanding of Pratt's poetry, but gives us considerable insight into both the rich dimensions of Pratt's life outside poetry and the cultural and intellectual life of his times."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

"This project is the first comprehensive study of a phenomenon that not only dominated the American arts of the 1870s and 1880s, but also helped set the course of such later developments in the United States as the Arts and Crafts movement, the indigenous interpretation of Art Nouveau, and even the rise of modernism. In fact, the early history of the Metropolitan--its founding, its sponsorship of a school of industrial design, and its display of decorative works--is inextricably tied to the Aesthetic movement and its educational goals. "In Pursuit of Beauty: Americans and the Aesthetic Movement" comprised some 175 objects including furniture, metalwork, stained glass, ceramics, textiles, wallpaper, painting, and sculpture. Some of these had rarely been displayed; others, although familiar, were being shown in new and even startling contexts. The exhibition and catalogue are arranged thematically to illustrate both the major styles of a visually rich movement and the ideas that generated its diversity"--From publisher's description.

A growing number of literary historians and critics now recognize the contemporary long poem as a distinctively Canadian genre. This collection of essays leads the reader to a deeper understanding of Canadian literary cultures in terms of their local intimacies and idiosyncrasies as well as in their national contexts.

Britt Reints found her happiness through a near-divorce experience, lots of therapy, and ten months spent traveling around America in an RV with her husband and two kids. She approaches the topic of happiness with honesty, humor, and humility and brings in the experts when necessary. An Amateur s Guide to the Pursuit of Happiness is a collection of road-tested maps - guidelines built from the personal experiences of other amateurs - that you can use to personalize your own happiness journey. This book will help you take charge of your own happiness, navigate the unhappy obstacles, and go confidently in the direction of whatever makes you happy.

This book takes the reader on an enchanting journey into the lives of fourteen genius scientists who lived during the enlightenment period to the mid-twentieth century. They suffered ethnic, gender, sexual prejudices, cultural and religious taboos, poverty, and epidemics. Most lived a very short life. And yet, their intuition and perseverance prevailed, and their pioneering discoveries changed the world. Their tragic lives faded away over time. However, the fruits of their work, including computer and nuclear technologies, space science, artificial intelligence, and genetic engineering, have shaped our lives. When we look back, their inspirational life stories appear more fictional than real. Each story takes the reader into varying times, places, customs, and environments. The book should interest not only a science nerd but also an armchair reader who loves fiction.