The internationally bestselling novel by the author of A Kiss Before Dying, The Boys from Brazil, and Rosemary's Baby With an Introduction by Peter Straub For Joanna, her husband, Walter, and their children, the move to beautiful Stepford seems almost too good to be true. It is. For behind the town's idyllic facade lies a terrible secret -- a secret so shattering that no one who encounters it will ever be the same. At once a masterpiece of psychological suspense and a savage commentary on a media-driven society that values the pursuit of youth and beauty at all costs, The Stepford Wives is a novel so frightening in its final implications that the title itself has earned a place in the American lexicon.

Ira Levin's dark suburban tale remains as compelling--and frighteningly relevant--as ever. Psychological suspense mixes with elements of science fiction to create an extraordinary thriller tinted with Levin's sly, satirical wit. Few novels have enshrined themselves in the collective consciousness to the degree The Stepford Wives has. Levin's biting critique has been spun off into countless film and television adaptations, from 1975's original Katharine Ross filming to 2004's Nicole Kidman offering--and its influence can be felt in later works from The Handmaid's Tale to Get Out. Its title alone has become part of our common lexicon. Joanna Eberhart is a creative, self-possessed wife and mother, newly arrived in seemingly idyllic Stepford, Connecticut. But as she and her family begin settling in, she's jarred by the unaccountable sameness of the local wives: all flawlessly attractive, with perfectly maintained homes--and little seeming interest in anything else. As curiosity turns to concern, Joanna finds herself unraveling a web of malice that threatens her very existence. Prepare to be captivated, unnerved, and utterly engrossed by Ira Levin's dark and unforgettable modern classic, The Stepford Wives.

Return to the dark and haunting world of Rosemary’s Baby in Ira Levin’s beguiling sequel, Son of Rosemary. Levin’s Rosemary’s Baby, one of the best-selling books of all time, is the iconic classic that ushered in the era of modern horror. This shocking and darkly comic sequel is set well after the harrowing events of the first book, and is just as compelling and suspenseful. It is now 1999, and Rosemary Woodhouse awakens from a decades-long coma to find herself in a drastically changed world. She soon discovers her son is already thirty-three years old, an a charismatic spiritual leader worshipped the world over, preaching a message of tolerance and peace. But is “Andy” the savior the troubled world so desperately needs, or is he his father’s son—the Antichrist? Master of suspense Ira Levin’s sardonic and thought-provoking exploration of good and evil, Son of Rosemary, finds Rosemary and her child reunited in a battle of wills that could determine not just the course of the new millennium—but the very fate of humankind.

National Book Critics Circle Award Winner. “With dazzling clarity, [Chocano’s] commentary exposes the subliminal sexism on our pages and screens.”—O, The Oprah Magazine As a kid in the 1970s and 80s, Carina Chocano was confused by the mixed messages all around her that told her who she could be—and who she couldn’t. She grappled with sexed up sidekicks, princesses waiting to be saved, and morally infallible angels who seemed to have no opinions of their own. It wasn’t until she spent five years as a movie critic, and was laid off just after her daughter was born, however, that she really came to understand how the stories the culture tells us about what it means to be a girl limit our lives and shape our destinies. In You Play the Girl, Chocano blends formative personal stories with insightful and emotionally powerful analysis. Moving from Bugs Bunny to Playboy Bunnies, from Flashdance to Frozen, from the progressive ’70s through the backlash ’80s, the glib ’90s, and the pornified aughts—and at stops in between—she explains how growing up in the shadow of “the girl” taught her to think about herself and the world and what it means to raise a daughter in the face of these contorted reflections. In the tradition of Roxane Gay, Rebecca Solnit, and Susan Sontag, Chocano brilliantly shows that our identities are more fluid than we think, and certainly more complex than anything we see on any kind of screen. “If Hollywood’s treatment of women leaves you wanting, you’ll find good, heady company in You Play the Girl.”—Elle

First book in a heart-warming and humorous cozy mystery series, with over 10,000 five-star reviews, about troubled relationships, questionable choices, art theft, an occasional murder,and other dodgy dealings in a not-so-retiring retirement community.

This compact guide covers a wide variety of terms commonly used in academic discussions of poetry, fiction, drama, rhetoric, and literary theory. Definitions are kept concise; examples are abundant. The coverage ranges from traditional topics through to recent scholarship, and the straightforward entries aim to enable students to learn new terms with confidence. The pocket glossary brings together entries from a variety of Broadview publications—including The Broadview Anthology of British Literature and The Broadview Anthology of Short Fiction—and adds a number of new entries.

The life and times of the Smart Wife--feminized digital assistants who are friendly and sometimes flirty, occasionally glitchy but perpetually available. Meet the Smart Wife--at your service, an eclectic collection of feminized AI, robotic, and smart devices. This digital assistant is friendly and sometimes flirty, docile and efficient, occasionally glitchy but perpetually available. She might go by Siri, or Alexa, or inhabit Google Home. She can keep us company, order groceries, vacuum the floor, turn out the lights. A Japanese digital voice assistant--a virtual anime hologram named Hikari Azuma--sends her "master" helpful messages during the day; an American sexbot named Roxxxy takes on other kinds of household chores. In The Smart Wife, Yolande Strengers and Jenny Kennedy examine the emergence of digital devices that carry out "wifework"--domestic responsibilities that have traditionally fallen to (human) wives. They show that the principal prototype for these virtual helpers--designed in male-dominated industries--is the 1950s housewife: white, middle class, heteronormative, and nurturing, with a spick-and-span home. It's time, they say, to give the Smart Wife a reboot. What's wrong with preferring domestic assistants with feminine personalities? We like our assistants to conform to gender stereotypes--so what? For one thing, Strengers and Kennedy remind us, the design of gendered devices re-inscribes those outdated and unfounded stereotypes. Advanced technology is taking us backwards on gender equity. Strengers and Kennedy offer a Smart Wife "manifesta," proposing a rebooted Smart Wife that would promote a revaluing of femininity in society in all her glorious diversity.