A book of new paintings and works by Shani Rhys James, one of Britain’s leading and most distinctive artists, this collection reveals how her latest work has developed a lighter palette to deal with new subjects of flowers and colorful, patterned wallpaper backgrounds. These themes of domesticity are not anodyne however, but informed by Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s 1892 short story about the plight of women in the home, “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Rhys James’ paintings continue her exploration of the position of women in society, and in particular how women can be imprisoned by consumerism and the domestic environment. The more than 50 images in the book include photographs of a new development in Rhys James’s work: automata based on the motifs of past paintings. The paintings are accompanied by a foreword by the artist and critic William Packer, a perceptive interview of Rhys James by Francesca Rhydderch, in which the artist discusses her background and her interest in the position of women, and an essay by Edward Lucie-Smith that explores her paintings in an art history context.

Through the Flower was my first book (I've since published nine others). I was inspired to write it by the writer and diarist, Anais Nin, who was a mentor to me in the early seventies. My hope was that it would aid young women artists in their development and that reading about my struggles might help them avoid some of the pitfalls that were so painful to me. I also hoped to spare them the anguish of "reinventing the wheel", which my studies in women's history had taught me was done again and again by women, specifically because we have not had access to our foremothers' experience and achievements-one consequence of the fact that we still learn both history and art history from a male-centered bias with insufficient inclusion of women's achievements. I must admit that when I re-read Through the Flower, I winced at some of the unabashed honesty; at the same time, I am glad that my youthful self had the courage to speak so directly about my life and work. I doubt that I could recapture the candor that allowed this book to reflect such unabashed confidence that the world would accept revelations so lacking in self-consciousness. And yet, it is precisely this lack that helps give the book its flavor, the flavor of the seventies, when so many of us believed that we could change the world for the better, a goal that has been-as one of my friends put it-"mugged by reality". And yet, better an overly idealistic hope that the world could be reshaped for the better than a cynical acceptance of the status quo. At least we tried-and I'm still trying. Perhaps I'm just too old now to change. Judy Chicago 2005

For most of us, dreams of family harmony and cooperation often give way to the reality of squabbling and fighting between siblings. In Keep the Siblings, Lose the Rivalry, Dr. Todd Cartmell explodes the myth that parents must sit passively by while sibling conflict runs rampant. Based on solid biblical principles and sibling research, Cartmell provides a ten-step plan that will help you enrich your family soil, plant the seeds of sibling relational skills, and provide an environment that will encourage respectful sibling relationships. Cartmell includes fifteen "ready-to-use" Family Time Discussion Guides and creates powerful object lessons using common household objects such as stinky socks, post-it notes, tennis balls, and tasty treats. With role-plays, Scripture references, and interactive discussion questions, each Family Time Discussion Guide will bring you closer together as a family and improve your children's skills at handling sibling conflict in a respectful way. Practical, down-to-earth, and leavened with Cartmell's dry humor, Keep the Siblings, Lose the Rivalry will equip you to handle the most difficult sibling challenges.