The ‘country house poem’ was born in the seventeenth century as a fruitful way of flattering potential patrons. But the genre’s popularity faded – ironically, just as ‘country house society’ was emerging. It was only when the power and influence of the landed classes had all but ebbed away that poets returned to the theme, attracted perhaps by the buildings’ irresistible dereliction, but equally by their often very personal histories. This is the first complete anthology of modern country house poems, and it shows just how far (as Simon Jenkins points out in his Foreword) poems can ‘penetrate the souls of buildings’. Over 160 distinguished poets representing a diversity of class, race, gender, and generation offer fascinating perspectives on stately exteriors and interiors, gardens both wild and cultivated, crumbling ruins and the extraordinary secrets they hide. There are voices of all kinds, whether it’s Edith Sitwell recreating her childhood, W. B. Yeats and Wendy Cope pondering Lissadell, or Simon Armitage’s labourer confronting the Lady who’s ‘got the lot’. We hear from noble landowners and loyal (or rebellious) servants, and from many an inquisitive day-tripper. The book’s dominant note is elegiac, yet comedy, satire, even strains of Gothic can be heard among these potent reflections. Hollow Palaces reminds us how poets can often be the most perceptive of guides to radical changes in society. The book is illustrated by Rosie Greening.

As a genre of poetry, the country house poem was born in the seventeenth century. As English country house society itself grew in prominence, the poem of commemoration diminished in popularity; not until the Edwardian era, when the country house as an institution began to wane, was there a renewed interest in country house poetry. As the power and influence of landed society dwindled, the country house began to haunt the English literary imagination, and our poets found in its dereliction a frequent subject and theme. This is the first book to gather modern and contemporary country house poems into one collection. Poets representing a diversity of class, race, gender, and generation offer a wide variety of perspectives: stately exteriors and interiors, crumbling ruins, gardens both wild and cultivated, and the voices of noble owners, servants, and curious visitors. The dominant note sounded is perhaps unsurprisingly elegiac, yet comic, satiric, and gothic tones appear frequently as well. The common thread is that, in response to the rapid sociological changes of the twentieth century, poets reflect on the country house as an architecturally, politically, socially, and economically potent symbol and institution, both in its heyday and in its eclipse.

The house is perhaps the most recognizable emblem of the American ideals of self-making: prosperity, stability, domesticity, and upward mobility. Yet over the years from 1945-2021, the American house becomes more famous for the betrayal of those hopes than for their fulfilment: first, through the segregation of cities and public housing; then through the expansion of private credit that lays the ground for the subprime mortgage crisis of the early twenty-first century. Walt Hunter argues that, as access to housing expands to include a greater share of the US population, the house emerges as a central metaphor for the poetic imagination. From the kitchenette of Gwendolyn Brooks to the duplex of Jericho Brown, and from the suburban imagination of Adrienne Rich to the epic constructions of James Merrill, the American house poem represents the changing abilities of US poets to imagine new forms of life while also building on the past. In The American House Poem, 1945-2021, Hunter focuses on poets who register the unevenly distributed pressures of successive housing crises by rewriting older poetic forms. Writing about the materials, tools, and plans for making a house, these poets express the tensions between making their lives into art and freeing their lives from inherited constraints and conditions.

Over 150 tales from the Talmud, the Zohar, Jewish folktales, and Hasidic lore.

This volume represents the final definitive report on the archaeological work carried out at Spynie Palace between 1986 and 1994.

With the strongest villain system, he has the ability to see through all camouflage. Even his force is invincible. Who else can be his opponent in this world? When he was playing online games happily on a thunderstorm night, a thunder hit him, then his soul traveled through time and space to a strange world where strong are respected. As an ordinary earth person, he didn't have the slightest force, which caused him fretful. What meaning does he have in this world without force? As he cursed, a voice suddenly came to his mind: "Congratulations, the strongest villain system has been activated!" It turned out that this is what sets him apart! With this system, although fake people who are disguised as tightly as possible, he can recognize them at a glance; those who approach him with bad purpose, he can defeat them immediately. In this world, no one will ever be his opponent! ☆About the Author☆ Hei Pao Lao Zu, an outstanding online novelist. He has authored many novels, each of which is an excellent product in the minds of readers. His novels have received high ratings on Chinese literature websites.

One of the most exciting new sagas in epic fantasy, The Demon Cycle became a phenomenon with readers and launched the brilliant career of New York Times bestselling author Peter V. Brett. With the popularity of this groundbreaking tale of demons and destiny growing with each book, now is the time to catch up from the beginning with the first three novels in one convenient eBook bundle: THE WARDED MAN THE DESERT SPEAR THE DAYLIGHT WAR Also includes a preview of the fourth book in The Demon Cycle, The Skull Throne! As darkness falls after sunset, the corelings rise—demons who possess supernatural powers and burn with a consuming hatred of humanity. For hundreds of years the demons have terrorized the night, slowly culling the human herd that shelters behind magical wards—symbols of power whose origins are lost in myth and whose protection is terrifyingly fragile. It was not always this way. Once, men and women battled the corelings on equal terms, but those days are gone. Night by night the demons grow stronger, while human numbers dwindle under their relentless assault. Now, with hope for the future fading, three young survivors of vicious demon attacks will do the unthinkable, stepping beyond the crumbling safety of the wards to risk everything in a desperate quest to regain the secrets of the past. Arlen Bales will pay any price, embrace any sacrifice, for freedom, and his grim journey will take him beyond the bounds of human power. Crippled by the demons that killed his parents, Rojer Inn seeks solace in music, only to discover that his instrument can be a weapon as well as a refuge. Wanting to cure the sick and injured, Leesha Paper overcomes great hardship to become a guardian of old world science, learning that what heals can also harm. Together, they will stand against the night. Praise for The Demon Cycle The Warded Man “There is much to admire in Peter Brett’s writing, and his concept is brilliant. There’s action and suspense all the way.”—Terry Brooks “A gripping adventure—a very promising start to a new series.”—Locus “[A] fast-paced and thoroughly enjoyable dark fantasy.”—The Miami Herald The Desert Spear “Inspired, compelling, and totally addictive: the most significant and cinematic fantasy epic since The Lord of the Rings.”—Paul W. S. Anderson, director of Resident Evil: Afterlife “Peter V. Brett is one of my favorite new authors.”—New York Times bestselling author Patrick Rothfuss “Fans of epic fantasy in the tradition of Robert Jordan and George R. R. Martin will enjoy the arrival of a strong voice in multivolume epic fantasy.”—Library Journal The Daylight War “[Brett] confirms his place among epic fantasy’s pantheon of greats amid the likes of George R. R. Martin, Steven Erikson, and Robert Jordan.”—Fantasy Book Critic “Highly entertaining, fast-paced, and action-packed.”—SF Site “[Brett is] at the top of his game.”—Tor.com

One of the most exciting new sagas in epic fantasy, The Demon Cycle became a phenomenon with readers and launched the brilliant career of New York Times bestselling author Peter V. Brett. With the popularity of this groundbreaking tale of demons and destiny growing with each book, now is the time to catch up from the beginning with the first four novels in one convenient ebook bundle: THE WARDED MAN THE DESERT SPEAR THE DAYLIGHT WAR THE SKULL THRONE As darkness falls after sunset, the corelings rise—demons who possess supernatural powers and burn with a consuming hatred of humanity. For hundreds of years the demons have terrorized the night, slowly culling the human herd that shelters behind magical wards—symbols of power whose origins are lost in myth and whose protection is terrifyingly fragile. It was not always this way. Once, men and women battled the corelings on equal terms, but those days are gone. Night by night the demons grow stronger, while human numbers dwindle under their relentless assault. Now, with hope for the future fading, three young survivors of vicious demon attacks will do the unthinkable, stepping beyond the crumbling safety of the wards to risk everything in a desperate quest to regain the secrets of the past. Arlen Bales will pay any price, embrace any sacrifice, for freedom, and his grim journey will take him beyond the bounds of human power. Crippled by the demons that killed his parents, Rojer Inn seeks solace in music, only to discover that his instrument can be a weapon as well as a refuge. Wanting to cure the sick and injured, Leesha Paper overcomes great hardship to become a guardian of old world science, learning that what heals can also harm. Together, they will stand against the night. Praise for The Demon Cycle “There is much to admire in Peter Brett’s writing, and his concept is brilliant. There’s action and suspense all the way.”—Terry Brooks, on The Warded Man “[A] fast-paced and thoroughly enjoyable dark fantasy.”—The Miami Herald, on The Warded Man “Inspired, compelling, and totally addictive: the most significant and cinematic fantasy epic since The Lord of the Rings.”—Paul W. S. Anderson, director of Resident Evil: Afterlife “Peter V. Brett is one of my favorite new authors.”—New York Times bestselling author Patrick Rothfuss “Fans of epic fantasy in the tradition of Robert Jordan and George R. R. Martin will enjoy the arrival of a strong voice in multivolume epic fantasy.”—Library Journal “[Brett is] at the top of his game.”—Tordotcom, on The Daylight War

One of the most exciting new sagas in epic fantasy, The Demon Cycle became a phenomenon with readers and launched the brilliant career of New York Times bestselling author Peter V. Brett. Now start from the beginning with all five novels in one convenient ebook bundle: THE WARDED MAN THE DESERT SPEAR THE DAYLIGHT WAR THE SKULL THRONE THE CORE As darkness falls after sunset, the corelings rise—demons who possess supernatural powers and burn with a consuming hatred of humanity. For hundreds of years the demons have terrorized the night, slowly culling the human herd that shelters behind magical wards—symbols of power whose origins are lost in myth and whose protection is terrifyingly fragile. It was not always this way. Once, men and women battled the corelings on equal terms, but those days are gone. Night by night the demons grow stronger, while human numbers dwindle under their relentless assault. Now, with hope for the future fading, three young survivors of vicious demon attacks will do the unthinkable, stepping beyond the crumbling safety of the wards to risk everything in a desperate quest to regain the secrets of the past. Arlen Bales will pay any price, embrace any sacrifice, for freedom, and his grim journey will take him beyond the bounds of human power. Crippled by the demons that killed his parents, Rojer Inn seeks solace in music, only to discover that his instrument can be a weapon as well as a refuge. Wanting to cure the sick and injured, Leesha Paper overcomes great hardship to become a guardian of old world science, learning that what heals can also harm. Together, they will stand against the night. “Inspired, compelling, [The Demon Cycle is] the most significant and cinematic fantasy epic since The Lord of the Rings.”—Paul W. S. Anderson, director of Alien vs. Predator