The search for Shu Lien's fiancé continues, but first Li must face a famous kung fu raider in all-out battle. Also features Jade Fox's first appearance and the return of the Green Destiny sword.

Will there be war with China? This book provides the most complete and accurate assessment of the probability of conflict between the United States and the rising Asian superpower. Equally important, it lays out an in-depth analysis of the possible pathways to peace. Written like a geopolitical detective story, the narrative encourages reader interaction by starting each chapter with an intriguing question that often challenges conventional wisdom. Based on interviews with more than thirty top experts, the author highlights a number of disturbing facts about China's recent military buildup and the shifting balance of power in Asia: the Chinese are deploying game-changing "carrier killer" ballistic missiles; some of America's supposed allies in Europe and Asia are selling highly lethal weapons systems to China in a perverse twist on globalization; and, on the U.S. side, debilitating cutbacks in the military budget send a message to the world that America is not serious about its "pivot to Asia." In the face of these threatening developments, the book stresses the importance of maintaining US military strength and preparedness and strengthening alliances, while warning against a complacent optimism that relies on economic engagement, negotiations, and nuclear deterrence to ensure peace. Accessible to readers from all walks of life, this multidisciplinary work blends geopolitics, economics, history, international relations, military doctrine, and political science to provide a better understanding of one of the most vexing problems facing the world.

Born in Taiwan, Ang Lee is one of cinema's most versatile and daring directors. His ability to cut across cultural, national, and sexual boundaries has given him recognition in all corners of the world, the ability to work with complete artistic freedom whether inside or outside of Hollywood, and two Academy Awards for Best Director. He has won astounding critical acclaim for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), which transformed the status of martial arts films across the globe, Brokeback Mountain (2005), which challenged the reception and presentation of homosexuality in mainstream cinema, and Life of Pi (2012), Lee's first use of groundbreaking 3D technology and his first foray into complex spiritual themes. In this volume, the only full-length study of Lee's work, Whitney Crothers Dilley analyzes all of his career to date: Lee's early Chinese trilogy films (including The Wedding Banquet, 1993, and Eat Drink Man Woman, 1994), period drama (Sense and Sensibility, 1995), martial arts (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 2000), blockbusters (Hulk, 2003), and intimate portraits of wartime psychology, from the Confederate side of the Civil War (Ride with the Devil, 1999) to Japanese-occupied Shanghai (Lust/Caution, 2007). Dilley examines Lee's favored themes such as father/son relationships and intergenerational conflict in The Ice Storm (1997) and Taking Woodstock (2009). By looking at the beginnings of Lee's career, Dilley positions the filmmaker's work within the roots of the Taiwan New Cinema movement, as well as the larger context of world cinema. Using suggestive readings of both gender and identity, this new study not only provides a valuable academic resource but also an enjoyable read that uncovers the enormous appeal of this acclaimed director.

With over twenty percent more material, a must for any lover of distinctive words. This entertaining and informative reference features sophisticated and surprising alternatives to common words together with no-fail guides to usage. Avoiding traditional thesauruses’ mundane synonym choices, Peter E. Meltzer puts each word—whether it’s protrepic, apostrophize, iracund, or emulous—in context by using examples from a broad range of contemporary books, periodicals, and newspapers. His new introduction makes the case for why we should widen our vocabulary and use the one right word. This groundbreaking thesaurus remains a unique venture, one that enriches your writing while helping you find the perfect word.

Ang Lee (b. 1954) has emerged as one of cinema's most versatile, critically acclaimed, and popular directors. Known for his ability to transcend cultural and stylistic boundaries, Lee has built a diverse oeuvre that includes films about culture clashes and globalization ( Eat Drink Man Woman, 1994, and The Wedding Banquet, 1993), a period drama ( Sense and Sensibility, 1995), a martial arts epic ( Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, 2000), a comic book action movie ( Hulk, 2003), and an American western ( Brokeback Mountain, 2005). The Philosophy of Ang Lee draws from both Eastern and Western philosophical traditions to examine the director's works. The first section focuses on Taoist, Confucian, and Buddhist themes in his Chinese-language films, and the second examines Western philosophies in his English-language films; but the volume ultimately explores how Lee negotiates all of these traditions, strategically selecting from each in order to creatively address key issues. With interest in this filmmaker and his work increasing around the release of his 3-D magical adventure The Life of Pi (2012), The Philosophy of Ang Lee serves as a timely investigation of the groundbreaking auteur and the many complex philosophical themes that he explores through the medium of motion pictures.

The hugely acclaimed Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is an epic love story-cum-action drama set against the breathtaking landscapes of ancient China. Illustrated with more than 80 full colour photographs, this lavish companion book includes the entire screenplay, essays and commentaries about the production by director Ang Lee and screenwriter James Schamus, and contributions from cast and crew, as well as scholars David Bordwell and Richard Corliss.

This is the first English-language anthology on the Taiwan New Cinema and its legacy. It is an exciting collection which covers all the major filmmakers from Hou Hsiao Hsien and Edward Yang to Ang Lee and more. Gathering a range of essays that analyze individual films produced since the advent of the Taiwan New Cinema in the early 1980s, it aims to complement Feii Lu’s Taiwan Cinema: Politics, Economics, Aesthetics, translated by Chris Berry (Duke University Press and Hong Kong University Press, forthcoming). Taiwan and its internationally renowned cinema ar " on the edge" in more ways than one. For all of its history the island has been on the edge of larger geopolitical entities, subjected to invasions, migrations, incursions, and pressures. On the other hand, as one of the "Little Tiger" economies of Asia, it has been on the cutting edge of the Asian economic boom and of technological innovation; in recent years it has pioneered democratization of authoritarian regimes in East Asia.