It's 1996, Bill Clinton has just been re-elected and in Houston a mayoral election is looming. As usual the campaign focuses on Pleasantville - the African-American neighbourhood of the city that has swung almost every race since it was founded to house a growing black middle class in 1949.Axel Hathorne, former chief of police and the son of Pleasantville's founding father Sam Hathorne, was the clear favourite, all set to become Houston's first black mayor. But his lead is slipping thanks to a late entrant into the race - Sandy Wolcott, a defence attorney riding high on the success of a high-profile murder trial.And then, just as the competition intensifies, a girl goes missing, apparently while canvassing for Axel. And when her body is found, Axel's nephew is charged with her murder.Sam is determined that Jay Porter defends his grandson. And even though Jay is tired of wading through other people's problems, he suddenly finds himself trying his first murder case, a trial that threatens to blow the entire community wide open, and reveal the lengths that those with power are willing to go to hold onto it.

The history of scenic Pleasantville is a rich patriotic fabric woven with the arrival of the first tenant farmers and laborers during Dutch Manor rule. During the Revolutionary War, local militias were critical in the capture of British spy Maj. John Andre. The construction of the railroad in 1846 opened new markets for farmers and attracted many New York City professionals wanting an idyllic countryside family setting. It also initiated the tradition of the daily commuter. In 1908, the wealthy Manville family moved to the village, and the 1928 wedding of their daughter to the Count Folke Bernadotte of Sweden was a major international social event. That same year, Dewitt Wallace and his wife, Lila, moved to Pleasantville to launch Reader's Digest. Within 20 years, the Little Magazine would grow to 30 editions in 14 languages with a global circulation of 28 million every month. Throughout the years, the one thread that appears in this remarkable village from start to finish is a kind tradition of charity.

Hired by a wealthy, predominantly white K-12 school district, Kimberly Brazwell was the district's first diversity practitioner. As a school administrator, she was charged to engage the district's students, faculty, staff, and surrounding community in wellness and shaping a more inclusive culture. Kim was charged to deepen the color of a community. However, no one knew exactly what hue it should be. Kim boldly advocates for social justice in a once "redlined" community that, for the first time, grudgingly examines and openly discusses its history of race and class bias. As a biracial woman who unapologetically identifies with her black culture and poverty roots, Kim's task proves to be one of the most troublesome personal and professional challenges of her life. What begins as a welcoming invitation into the next chapter of her career putrefies into implicit, bias-triggered workplace bullying. Rather than engage and enlighten those around her, Kim experiences the anguish of an activist fighting against racism and the hidden culture of power and control in suburban America. However, Kim's fight and uphill struggle is in isolation. In the end, Kim must re-examine her personal identity as a young, female, biracial activist who is meant to reshape a culture. Browning Pleasantville is about a predominantly white institution's reaction to the "browning" of its attitudes, interests, and motives toward the diverse groups of people within its care-including its newly hired administrator who must decide whether to remain an activist or become a "token" within an unchanged community.

Desde un punto de vista cuantitativo, los estudios culturales ocupan sin duda un espacio menor. Sin embargo, los tres artículos aquí presentados dan cuenta de la variedad de perspectivas posibles dentro de este apartado. No solo abarcan estos estudios diferentes géneros literarios, sino que recorren diferentes épocas históricas, desde el renacimiento hasta nuestros días. Así, destaca la recepción de la obra de Shakespeare adaptada a los principios estéticos del siglo XVIII español, la aparición de un problema tan actual como la violencia doméstica en el teatro y el cine de mediados del siglo XX o la vinculación de posicionamientos contraculturales de la generación Beat en la música de Bod Dylan. Todos estos estudios exploran, pues, la relación entre las prácticas culturales, la vida diaria y los contextos históricos en los que se producen. Como suele ser habitual, gran parte de las contribuciones presentadas en este volumen se centran en el estudio del aprendizaje del inglés como segunda lengua, una de las principales preocupaciones del sistema educativo español en estos momentos, tanto en la etapa preuniversitaria como universitaria. Es lógico, por tanto, que estos jóvenes investigadores muestren interés por un asunto que atañe a un elevado número de estudiantes en la sociedad actual. Los estudios van desde el análisis de libros de texto utilizados en la enseñanza del inglés, para comprobar si estos textos adoptan correctamente las cuatro destrezas básicas (listening, speaking, speaking, writing) al aprendizaje de la lengua desde el punto de vista de una aproximación comunicativa, hasta la relación de la prosodia y la utilización de audífonos por parte de personas sordas o la percepción que tienen los estudiantes de la pronunciación del inglés. Como se ve, problemas muy cercanos a la realidad pedagógica. Las contribuciones literarias se centran exclusivamente en autores del siglo XX (incluida una adaptación al Londres actual de una obra de Shakespeare), pero recorren todos los géneros literarios, así como el cine. En general, estos estudios se fijan en obras concretas y las analizan desde perspectivas culturales, sociológicas o psicológicas. Podemos encontrar autores consagrados, como Theodore Roethke y Ted Hughes o escritoras más localistas, como la canadiense Jeannette Armstrong, y sobresalen miradas postmodernistas, tanto en el ámbito de la novela como del cine. En definitiva, se trata de una selección de artículos altamente prometedora, que supone un claro desafío al futuro de los Estudios Ingleses. Por todo ello, hay que felicitar a todos los participantes y, sobre todo, a los editores de este volumen, que han demostrado una enorme capacidad de trabajo y entusiasmo.

When the Germans came to Atlantic County in 1855, they imagined a community with an urban center surrounded by a farm district. This would be a great industrial and agricultural community, served by direct railroad and maritime connections to Philadelphia and New York City. In 1858, the urban center these pioneers envisioned became Egg Harbor City. Eleven miles toward the coast is Pleasantville. Originally home to fishing and whaling settlers, it officially became a municipality in 1888. Its proximity to the increasingly popular Atlantic City helped Pleasantville to grow and prosper. Egg Harbor City and Pleasantville showcases the rich history of these two communities through a unique collection of historical images.

Nasty Nellie’s Journey to Pleasantville is a story about a witch that does not like being or seeing anyone else happy. Correction, Nellie can’t stand being happy or seeing anyone else happy. That is how she acquired the name Nasty Nellie. Nellie spent her days creating batches of cold prickles and as soon as the sun would set, she would hop on her broom, along with her devilish sidekick Domino, and proceed to drop her cold prickles on unexpected towns and the people that lived there. Life was going according to plan... that is according to Nellie’s plan. Until one unforgettable morning, which would ultimately turn nasty Nellie’s miserable world topsy-turvy. Go along on this adventure with Nellie as she travels to a town called Pleasantville. It is in this friendly and kind town that she meets two young boys and a fairy that just might change Nellies nasty disposition forever. This is a tale about good and evil... or in this particular story about cold prickles and warm fuzzies.

WINNER OF THE HARPER LEE PRIZE FOR LEGAL FICTION Wall Street Journal BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR LONGLISTED FOR THE BAILEY’S WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION From Attica Locke, a writer and producer of FOX’s Empire, this sophisticated thriller sees lawyer Jay Porter—hero of her bestseller Black Water Rising—return to fight one last case, only to become embroiled in a dangerous game of shadowy politics and a witness to how far those in power are willing to go to win. Fifteen years after his career-defining case against Cole Oil, Jay Porter is broke and tired. That victory might have won the environmental lawyer fame, but thanks to a string of appeals, he hasn't seen a dime. His latest case—representing Pleasantville in the wake of a chemical fire—is dragging on, shaking his confidence and raising doubts about him within this upwardly mobile black community on Houston's north side. Though Jay still believes in doing what's right, he is done fighting other people's battles. Once he has his piece of the settlement, the single father is going to devote himself to what matters most—his children. His plans are abruptly derailed when a female campaign volunteer vanishes on the night of Houston's mayoral election, throwing an already contentious campaign into chaos. The accused is none other than the nephew and campaign manager of one of the leading candidates—a scion of a prominent Houston family headed by the formidable Sam Hathorne. Despite all the signs suggesting that his client is guilty—and his own misgivings—Jay can't refuse when a man as wealthy and connected as Sam asks him to head up the defense. Not if he wants that new life with his kids. But he has to win. Plunging into a shadowy world of ambitious enemies and treacherous allies armed with money, lies, and secrets, Jay reluctantly takes on his first murder trial—a case that will put him and his client, and an entire political process, on trial.

Shortlisted for the Orange Prize, nominated for an Edgar Award, an NAACP Image Award and a Los Angeles Times Book Prize On a dark night, out on the Houston bayou to celebrate his wife's birthday, Jay Porter hears a scream. Saving a distressed woman from drowning, he opens a Pandora's Box. Not the lawyer he set out to be, Jay long ago made peace with his radical youth, tucked away his darkest sins and resolved to make a fresh start. His impulsive act out on the bayou is heroic, but it puts Jay in danger, ensnaring him in a murder investigation that could cost him is practice, his family and even his life. Before he can untangle the mystery that stretches to the highest reaches of corporate power, he must confront the demons of his past. A provocative thriller with an exhilarating climax, Black Water Rising marks the arrival of an electrifying new talent.