The curious ironies of retirement. The unspoken pains of false love. The bad side of doing good. In his illuminating collection of short, yet deeply reflective poems, Rashid Osmani makes magnificent use of the Sufi tradition of verse to cast shimmering new light on modern-day emotions with poems of rich insight and powerful resonance that belie the brevity of their words. Word Posse: Sufi-Style Short Poems to Amuse & Entertain is the poet's snapshot of thoughts and feelings about issues most of us face in a modern, connected world. Thought-provoking and frequently light-hearted, this deeply personal, refreshingly original collection explores common life experiences, from romantic disillusionment to political perplexity. Many of the poems are anchored in Sufism, an eclectic interpretation of Islam with emphasis on humanity and tolerance. Osmani, an engineer by profession, was drawn to writing poetry after a near-death experience. His short poems are particularly suitable for today's world of abbreviated attention spans. In this collection, forty of his works are organized into six categories: Light-Hearted; Love - Real and Fake; Human Nature; Political; Heart and Soul; and Philosophical. In the first poem, "Word Posse," from which the collection draws its title, the speaker describes how words are organized similar to a posse, in order to track down elusive thoughts and imprison them in poems. The poem "4th Quarter" takes a more somber tone, as it was inspired by a nursing home visit. "Petrified Pet" is in a lighter vein, as the speaker views his own body as a pet. Explanatory notes are provided for each of the poems as well as enlightening comments posted by other poets. Written in a unique freestyle form, with little emphasis on rhyming, the poems encourage readers to think a little more deeply about the chosen subjects. Anyone searching for greater meaning in their lives will find much to ponder in these soul-stirring works.

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Contains alphabetically arranged entries that explore the origin, evolution, and social history of over three thousand English language words.

Rhis, princess of a small kingdom, is invited along with all the other princesses in her part of the world to the coming of age party of the Crown Prince of Vesarja, which is the central and most important kingdom. When Iardith, the prettiest and most perfect of all the princesses, is abducted, Rhis and her friends go to the rescue. What happens to Rhis and her posse has unexpected results not only for the princesses, but for the princes who chase after them. Everyone learns a lot about friendship and hate, politics and laughter, romantic ballads and sleeping in the dirt with nothing but a sword for company. But most of all they learn about the many meanings of love.

Spanning 25 years of serious writing on hip-hop by noted scholars and mainstream journalists, this comprehensive anthology includes observations and critiques on groundbreaking hip-hop recordings.