Spanning a period of thirty years, a collection of eighteen short stories includes "Silence of the Llano,' "In search of Epifano," and "Children of the Desert."

Go Southwest, Old Man,, a sort of personal remake of 'Go West, Young Man', the founding episteme of the American nineteenth century, conciliates these two souls (well, not to be pretentious, let's simply say two sides) that have actually always lived in harmony. This is a book generated by a quarter of a century spent wandering around the canyons and deserts of Arizona, Colorado, Utah and, above all New Mexico, with a view to penetrating the by now universal legend of the West, approaching the cultures (English, Hispanic and native American), and mastering the literature. The slant is composite: melding the scholarly with the informative and the travel journal, and the writing is composite too, because the book speaks English and Italian. It talks about cinema (lots of John Ford) and about detective stories, the most popular genre here, about visual arts and Latino folklore, about the legend of the West, the so-called 'Soul of the Southwest', and the kitsch style of Santa Fe. And it talks about (and with) some of the greatest writers that the Southwest has spawned: Rudolfo Anaya, Stanley Crawford, John Nichols and Hillerman. So what we have is a first-hand experience of the Southwest; where the ego is not entrenched within a precise disciplinary role but opens up - and exposes itself - to the thrilling risk of the discovery that can renew it.

St. Joseph of Copertino began having mystical visions at the age of seven, but it was not until he began practicing his faith as a Franciscan priest that he realized the full potential of his mind’s power over his body—he was able to levitate. Throughout his priesthood St. Joseph became famous for frequent levitations that were observed on hundreds of occasions and by thousands of witnesses, including many skeptics. Michael Grosso delves into the biography of the saint to explore the many strange phenomena that surrounded his life and develops potential physical explanations for some of the most astounding manifestations of his religious ecstasy. Grosso draws upon contemporary explorations into cognition, the relationship between the human mind and body, and the scientifically recorded effects of meditation and other transcendent practices to reveal the implications of St. Joseph’s experiences and abilities.

Presents a collection of short stories, from new uses for the swimming pool, to a harrowing tale from the First World War, and more. This book features the ordinary and the bizarre, normal places peopled by characters whose lives are touched by the unusual or unreal, some sad, even a little macabre, and others full of fun and laughter.

At the beginning of the third decade of the 21st century, the Latino minority, the biggest and fastest growing in the United States, is at a crossroads. Is assimilation taking place in comparable ways to previous immigrant groups? Are the links to the countries of origin being redefined in the age of contested globalism? How are Latinos changing America and how is America changing Latinos? The Oxford Handbook of Latino Studies reflects on these questions, offering a sweeping exploration of Latinas and Latinos' complex experiences in the United States. Edited by leading expert Ilan Stavans, the handbook traces the emergence of Latino studies as a vibrant and interdisciplinary field of research starting in the 1980s, assessing the current state of the discipline while suggesting new paths for exploration. With its twenty-three essays and a conversation by established and emerging scholars, the book discusses various aspects of Latino life and history, from literature, popular culture, and music, to religion, philosophy, and language identity. The articles present new interpretations of important themes such as the Chicano Movement, gender and race relations, the changes in demographics, the tension between rural and urban communities, immigration and the US/Mexico border, the legacy of colonialism, and the controversy surrounding Spanglish. The first handbook on Latino Studies, this collection offers a multifaceted and thought-provoking look at how Latinos are redefining the American identity.