In Hans Christian Andersen in American Literary Criticism of the Nineteenth Century, Herbert Rowland argues that the literary criticism accompanying the publication of Hans Christian Andersen’s works in the United States compares favorably in scope, perceptiveness, and chronological coverage with the few other national receptions of Andersen outside of Denmark. Rowland contends that American commentators made it abundantly evident that, in addition to his fairy tales, Andersen wrote several novels, travelogues, and an autobiography which were all of more than common interest. In the process, Rowland shows that American commentators “naturalized” Andersen in the United States by confronting the sensationalism in the journalism and literature of the time with the perceived wholesomeness of Andersen’s writing, deploying his long fiction on both sides of the debate over the nature and relative value of the romance and the novel, and drawing on three of his works to support their positions on slavery, the Civil War, and Reconstruction.

Every church is called to some form of family ministry, but this calling requires far more than adding another program to an already-packed schedule. The most effective family ministries refocus every church process to engage parents in discipling their children and to draw family members together instead of pulling them apart. In this second edition, Jones expands the definition of family ministry, and broadens the book's focus to address urban perspectives and family ministry in diverse settings.

Scholarly engagement with the magazine form has, in the last two decades, produced a substantial amount of valuable research. Authored by leading academic authorities in the study of magazines, the chapters in The Routledge Handbook of Magazine Research not only create an architecture to organize and archive the developing field of magazine research, but also suggest new avenues of future investigation. Each of 33 chapters surveys the last 20 years of scholarship in its subject area, identifying the major research themes, theoretical developments and interpretive breakthroughs. Exploration of the digital challenges and opportunities which currently face the magazine world are woven throughout, offering readers a deeper understanding of the magazine form, as well as of the sociocultural realities it both mirrors and influences. The book includes six sections: -Methodologies and structures presents theories and models for magazine research in an evolving, global context. -Magazine publishing: the people and the work introduces the roles and practices of those involved in the editorial and business sides of magazine publishing. -Magazines as textual communication surveys the field of contemporary magazines across a range of theoretical perspectives, subjects, genre and format questions. -Magazines as visual communication explores cover design, photography, illustrations and interactivity. -Pedagogical and curricular perspectives offers insights on undergraduate and graduate teaching topics in magazine research. -The future of the magazine form speculates on the changing nature of magazine research via its environmental effects, audience, and transforming platforms.

This book is a unique contribution to the study of children's and youth ministry, displaying the rich theological thinking that is developing amongst Australian evangelical scholars. Many of the writers have previously presented at the Youthworks "House" conference, which promotes "theological reflection for best practice in youth and children's ministry in a community of youth and children's ministers." The themes explored in this book are vitally important to pastors seeking to nurture young people as disciples of Jesus. Thirteen evangelical scholars answer questions such as: How can biblical theology shape a young person's view of themselves? What is the biblical definition of church and how does this shape our understanding of intergenerational gatherings, family, and community? How should young Christians interact with the culture around them? And how do biblical teachings on sin, grace, and wisdom provide young people with the resources to live in today's world? You will be challenged to reconsider how theology and exegetical study of the Bible can mold your priorities, principles, and presumptions as you exercise ministry to and with young people.

A Life of Albert Pike, originally published in 1997, is as much a study of antebellum Arkansas as it is a portrait of the former general. A native of Massachusetts, Pike settled in Arkansas Territory in 1832 after wandering the Great Plains of Texas and New Mexico for two years. In Arkansas he became a schoolteacher, newspaperman, lawyer, Whig leader, poet, Freemason, and Confederate general who championed secession and fought against Black suffrage. During his tenure as Sovereign Grand Commander of the Scottish Rite—a position he held for more than thirty years beginning in 1859—Pike popularized the Masonic movement in the American South and Far West. In the wake of the Civil War, Pike left Arkansas, ultimately settling in Washington, D.C., where he lived out his last years in the Mason's House of the Temple. Drawing on original documents, Pike’s copious writings, and interviews with Pike’s descendants, Walter Lee Brown presents a fascinating personal history that also serves as a rich compendium of Arkansas’s antebellum history.

The times are definitely changing. What was once simply referred to as a Nuclear Family in North America has morphed into labels such as Non-Traditional Families, Fragmented Families, Single-Parent Families, Gay-Partner Families, Blended Families, and beyond. "It may not always be pretty, but it is reality, and that's the intersection between biblical ideal and ministry practice," writes editor Michael J. Anthony in A Theology for Family Ministry. With thoroughly researched input from a broad team of family experts, the book advises church and ministry leaders on how to make biblically and philosophically informed choices when reaching out to adults and children within these shifting paradigms. Emphasis is placed on what the Scriptures teach about the composition of the home, followed by discerning and hopefilled strategies for helping all families live out their God-given mandates. "While the family may continue to change into models that bring discomfort and angst to some of us, we rest in the assurance that God has a plan for those who live in any of these new configurations of what we now call family," explains Anthony. Other contributors include Ken Canfield, Michelle D. Anthony, Karen E. Jones, Freddy Cardoza, Michael S. Lawson, Richard Melick Jr., Curt Hamner, Leon Blanchette, Gordon R. Coulter, James W. Thompson, Timothy Paul Jones, Randy Stinson, Kit Rae, and David Keehn.