This book presents a comprehensive overview of global courtship and marriage customs, from ancient history to contemporary society, demonstrating the vast differences as well as the similarities across all of human culture. This second edition of Marriage Customs of the World examines historical context, social significance, and current trends and controversies of matrimony in the Western world as well as other cultures. Apart from detailing the ceremonies from specific countries, the book identifies specific elements of the wedding event and discusses them in a comparative manner, showcasing the similarities across cultures. The new content in this work includes additional information on courtship and how future spouses are found in other cultures; marriage in art, cinema, theater, and poetry; wedding bands; forced marriages and shotgun weddings; New Year's weddings; legislation regarding marriage; and engagement practices. Entries carried over from the first edition have been revised and updated as well. With its broad scope and consideration of contemporary issues alongside historical information, this work will be ideal for high school and undergraduate students; scholars of anthropology, social studies, and history; and general readers.

'In Iraq, a wedding is not a wedding unless shots get fired. It's like in England where a wedding is not a wedding unless someone pukes or tries to fuck one of the bridesmaids. That's the way it goes.' From cosmopolitan London to the chaos of war-ravaged Baghdad, this is the comic tale of three friends, torn between two worlds, and a wedding that goes horribly wrong. Baghdad Wedding premiered at the Soho Theatre in June 2007 and was the winner of the George Devine, Meyer-Whitworth (2008) and Pearson (2009) awards.

It’s January 28th 2011 and Egypt stands on the brink. For Layla and Hisham, a young couple living in downtown Cairo, a dictatorial and corrupt government is only one of their problems. As the world shifts, cataclysmically, around them, some long hidden secrets threaten to emerge and tear them apart. Based on extensive interviews in Cairo with revolutionaries and soldiers, journalists and cab drivers, this new drama depicts both a revolution in progress and the society from which it sprang.

The ultimate gift book for the bride, her mother, bridesmaids, friends, and the occasional groom. Fascinating facts include the world's longest wedding ceremony, shortest ceremony, and most-watched ceremony (on television). Also included is vital information on diamond engagement rings, gift guidelines for each anniversary, the significance of rice, the meaning of flowers used in bouquets, and the story behind traditions and sayings like "something old, something new." The book will be equally popular as a gift and curiosity for the nearly wed or as a resource for those hard-to-find facts that provide the background on much of the traditional wedding lore. A complete index provides access by topic.

The British Romantic Poets and Their Arabic-Islamic Sources examines masterpieces of English Romantic poetry and shows the Arabic and Islamic sources that inspired Coleridge, Wordsworth, Blake, Shelley, Keats, and Byron when composing their poems in the eighteenth, or early nineteenth century. Critics have documented Greek and Roman sources but turned a blind eye to nonwestern materials at a time when the romantic poets were reading them. The book shows how the Arabic-Islamic sources had helped the British Romantic Poets not only in finding their own voices, but also their themes, metaphors, symbols, characters and images. The British Romantic Poets and Their Arabic-Islamic Sources is of interest to scholars in English and comparative literature, literary studies, philosophy, religion, government, history, cultural, and Middle Eastern studies and the general public.

This is an essential guide for anyone interested in the best new British stage plays to emerge in the new millennium. For students of theatre studies and theatre-goers Rewriting the Nation: British Theatre Today is a perfect companion to Britain's burgeoning theatre writing scene. It explores the context from which new plays have emerged and charts the way that playwrights have responded to the key concerns of the decade and helped shape our sense of who we are. In recent years British theatre has seen a renaissance in playwriting accompanied by a proliferation of writing awards and new writing groups. The book provides an in-depth exploration of the industry and of the key plays and playwrights. It opens by defining what is meant by 'new writing' and providing a study of the leading theatres, such as the Royal Court, the Traverse, the Bush, the Hampstead and the National theatres, together with the London fringe and the work of touring companies. In the second part, Sierz provides a fascinating survey of the main issues that have characterised new plays in the first decade of the new century, such as foreign policy and war overseas, economic boom and bust, divided communities and questions of identity and race. It considers too how playwrights have re-examined domestic issues of family, of love, of growing up, and the fantasies and nightmares of the mind. Against the backdrop of economic, political and social change under New Labour, Sierz shows how British theatre responded to these changes and in doing so has been and remains deeply involved in the project of rewriting the nation.

The time of this novel is a despoiled one; rather, it is a hole that has been as tremendous as a mountain in utter darkness. It ́s setting is everywhere in the world but my homeland. It ́s main theme is all about the truth, wheras a shameful painful harsh truth in our country must remain as secret as a scandal. Thus, I have nothing to do here but to reveal this truth as well as to uncover it after I let it pass by my senses and develop into a novel that has been like a woman reiterating the following expression: "These are you, and this is your life!" Yet here I am, presenting my first work of fiction to you after more than one hundred and twenty attempts to write short stories. I would call them attempts, because I have not broken free from my fear of our Arab critics judgments yet. Hopefully it will be as good as you have expected, and hopefully this work of fiction of mine will have a strong indelible effect. In the end, succes only comes from Allah, glory be to him, who has created thougt to be published, and not to be prohibited or repressed.

Philip Ridley's latest play for Soho Theatre brings his unique blend of story-telling mixed with an apocalyptic vision of a society at conflict with itself to the stage. 'Look - they're fading. Those liars. Dissolving . . . It's the end of their world . . . The birth of a new one . . . Our one . . . Our world.' It's Mother's Day and mother is dead. Now her two sons gather in her home to argue about the truth of their childhood. But a storm is approaching . . . with a violent new truth all of its own. This programme playtext is published to tie in with the premiere at Soho Theatre, London, on 15 May 2008. Praise for Leaves of Glass: 'Like a shard of glass plunged straight to the heart . . . superb.' Guardian

As throngs of humanity pack Rome's St. Peter's Square, all await the news from the Sistine Chapel as to who will be the next Pope. But no one is more anxious than Iraqi American Sami Yusuf, for he and one of the papal candidates share a well-kept secret. When it is finally announced that Cardinal Paul Rogan has been elected Pope, Sami knows the one thing about Father Rogan that no one in the crowd does-he is a humble shepherd who molests his unsuspecting sheep. Many years earlier, while Sami was a Jesuit school student in Baghdad, he was molested by Father Rogan. Deathly afraid of revealing the abuse for fear of losing his family's honor, Sami eventually emigrated to the United States and joined the Air Force. Meanwhile, Father Rogan slowly moved up in the Catholic Hierarchy-while quietly ruining one young boy's life after another. Now amid sectarian mayhem and the occupation of Iraq, Sami must visit his ailing dad in Baghdad. But first he must fulfill his most important life's mission-to cleanse the honor that Father Rogan stripped from his family. In this compelling tale that spans three continents, a vendetta drives an Iraqi American pilot into international dram that culminates with unexpected ramifications that change everything forever.

Shortlisted as one of The Stage's top 10 training books of 2012 The No Rules Handbook for Writers is a timely, creative and refreshing antidote to prescriptive guides for writers. It will inspire playwrights, screenwriters and novelists; offer fresh insights toteachers, editors, dramaturgs, directors and producers. Lisa Goldman takes 40 established conventions of creative writing. She explores why these rules persist, how to master them, bend or break them and why the most important rules to overturn are your own. The book weaves together industry experiences, psychological observations and inspirational tips. With practical advice from 40 rule-breaking writers: Hassan Abdulrazzak, Oladipo Agboluaje, Ronan Bennett, Sita Bramachari, Trevor Byrne, Anthony Cartwright, Matthew Greenhalgh, Tanika Gupta, Neil Hunter, M.J. Hyland, Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti, Dennis Kelly, Bryony Lavery, Chris Paling, Stacy Makishi, Neel Mukherjee, Hattie Naylor, Anthony Neilson, Kim Noble, Tom Palmer, Lucy Prebble, Philip Ridley, Paul Sirett, Edmund White, Roy Williams. The No Rules Handbook for Writers will be a valuable read for anyone curious about the craft, context and process of writing.