National Geographic Readers: Dolphins

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• Condition: New
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Based on the heartwarming 3-D movie premiering September 16, 2011!

When a dolphin named Winter loses her tail in a crab trap, it’s up to a young boy named Sawyer and the staff at Clearwater Marine Aquarium to help her survive against the odds. Sawyer is quiet at first, but his special connection with Winter soon brings him out of his shell. One day, after visiting his cousin at an army hospital, Sawyer gets an idea to have a doctor there make Winter a prosthetic tail.This proposal inspires the staff at the aquarium and fills Sawyer with the hope that Winter may one day swim again.

With 8-page full color insert!

A touching story from the #1 New York Times bestselling authors of ! Owen & Mzee, now in paperback!

When Winter, an Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, was three months old, she was rescued from a crab trap off the east coast of Florida, her tail seriously damaged. She was rushed to Clearwater Marine Aquarium, where she was cared for by a special team around the clock. Winter survived, though eventually her tail fell off, which made it difficult for her to swim like a normal dolphin and caused serious damage to her spine. Then something amazing happened. A team of experts from a renowned company that makes prosthetics for humans heard about Winter and decided to help. Now Winter is using a prosthetic tail with great command.

Pearl The Pink Dolphin is the story of a dolphin born pink into a World of gray. The tale follows Pearl as she discovers that the obvious difference between her and her schoolmates can cause her some trouble. Pearl quickly looks to change her true beautiful self to 'fit-in' and stop the teasing, only to learn that the! real friends she made want the 'old' Pearl back! In the end, ! Pearl de monstrates that by being yourself, being proud of it, and by keeping a positive and friendly attitude, it truly doesn't stink to be pink!Pearl The Pink Dolphin is the story of a dolphin born pink into a World of gray. The tale follows Pearl as she discovers that the obvious difference between her and her schoolmates can cause her some trouble. Pearl quickly looks to change her true beautiful self to 'fit-in' and stop the teasing, only to learn that the real friends she made want the 'old' Pearl back! In the end, Pearl demonstrates that by being yourself, being proud of it, and by keeping a positive and friendly attitude, it truly doesn't stink to be pink!Onboard a vessel that would make Jacques Cousteau green with envy, the Cat and Co. take to the high seas in search of whales, dolphins, and porpoisesâ€"those aquatic mammals known as cetaceans. While learning how cetaceans stay warm without hair, have teeth or baleen, swim in troops, spyhop, spin, breach, and see via ecoloca! tion, kids are introduced to almost 20 different speciesâ€"including sperm, right, humpback, and blue whales; Gulf, spectacled, and finless porpoise; and boto, common, hourglass, and bottlenose dolphins. A shipshape selection for summer reading!

“The Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library shows young readers that books can be entertaining and educational at the same time. This is a wonderful series!” â€"Barbara Kiefer, Ph.D., Charlotte S. Huck Professor of Children’s Literature, Ohio State UniversityEighty feet below the ocean's surface, Wayne Grover hears a clicking sound. Soon he sees three dolphins--two adults and a baby--swimming toward him. A large fishing hook is embedded in the baby's back, and suddenly Wayne realizes that, in their own way, the dolphins are asking for his help.Helpful humans rescue two young dolphins and take them to a science center for rehabilitation.This story is centered on a young dolphin named Kiwa that has to find her own in a troub! led sea filled with dangers and challenges.
Having lost h! er mothe r to fishermen, she takes the challenge to go find her and finds herself along the way.This story is centered on a young dolphin named Kiwa that has to find her own in a troubled sea filled with dangers and challenges.
Having lost her mother to fishermen, she takes the challenge to go find her and finds herself along the way.

In this fast-paced story full of adventure and romance, Cinderella is more than just a servant girl waiting for her princeâ€"she's a tough, fearless girl who is capable of taking charge of a dangerous situation. Seeking to escape the clutches of her evil stepmother, Cinderella perfects her ninja skills and magic talents in secret, waiting for the day when she can break free and live happily ever after. In a special twist, readers have the opportunity to make key decisions for Cinderella and decide where she goes nextâ€"but no matter the choice; the result is a story unlike any fairy tale you've ever read!

Inspired by a true story, Dol! phin Tale is about courage, ingenuity, and never giving up. Sawyer (Nathan Gamble) is a young boy who's struggling with school and doesn't have many friends other than his cousin Kyle (Austin Stowell). When Kyle, a star swimmer, joins the army to earn money for college and is called to active duty, it looks like Sawyer is destined to spend his summer alone tinkering in the garage and attending summer school. Sawyer stumbles upon a dolphin that's been severely injured, becomes fascinated by dolphins, and is suddenly intellectually engaged like never before. In spite of his shyness, he forms a friendship with marine rescue doctor Clay (Harry Connick Jr.) and his daughter Hazel (Cozi Zuehlsdorff) and, more importantly, a special and very powerful bond with the rescued dolphin, who's dubbed Winter. As the newly formed team struggles to save Winter's life and ensure her continued safety, financial concerns, an accident that leaves Kyle crippled for life, and a hurricane all! seem to join forces against them. In the end, it is Sawyer's ! determin ation, coupled with a little bit of luck and a lot of ingenuity from an army doctor (Morgan Freeman) who specializes in prosthetics, that helps make each member of the team, including Kyle and Winter, whole again. The talented cast does a great job of creating completely believable characters, but Gamble, Zuehlsdorff, Connick, Freeman, Stowell, and of course Winter, who plays herself, all deserve special mention. While the story of an injured animal rescued and rehabilitated has certainly been told before, this film is emotionally powerful and will absolutely captivate children and adults alike. (Ages 5 and older) --Tami HoriuchiEveryone loves the smile on a dolphin’s face. Though smart enough to become theme park tricksters, dolphins are first and foremost wild mammals. Melissa Stewart’s lively text outlines our responsibility to conserve their natural environment. This high-interest book also offers an interactive experience to boost awareness of these adorable ! creatures.

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Volver

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• Format: DVD
• AC-3; Closed-captioned; Color; Dolby; DVD; Subtitled; Widescreen; NTSC

Writer/director Pedro Almod??var's dark, sexy Hitchcock homage is his best work since his Oscar-winning "All About My Mother", and deepened by a sun-dappled sadness. Handsome, enigmatic ?Ångel (Gael Garc??a Bernal) arrives at the Spanish movie offices of director Enrique Goded (Fele Martinez) and happily proclaims that he's actually Enrique's long-lost school chum Ignacio--an announcement that is both less than convincing and more than it seems. A novice actor, ?Ångel pitches a semi-autobiographical screenplay in which he's determined to star, a revenge-laden reflection of the doomed love he and Enrique shared as boys before a pedophile priest cruelly intervened. The script, and the lost days it recalls, carefully unfurls into a series of brooding movies-within-movies and memo! ries-inside-memories, which allow the sensual, multiple-role-playing Bernal to give the performance of his young career--among other things, he makes a stunningly convincing drag queen--and Almod??var the opportunity to movingly suggest that people will pay any price to ensure that their stories are told. "--Steve Wiecking"Writer/director Pedro Almodóvar's dark, sexy Hitchcock homage is his best work since his Oscar-winning All About My Mother, and deepened by a sun-dappled sadness. Handsome, enigmatic Ángel (Gael García Bernal) arrives at the Spanish movie offices of director Enrique Goded (Fele Martinez) and happily proclaims that he's actually Enrique's long-lost school chum Ignacio--an announcement that is both less than convincing and more than it seems. A novice actor, Ángel pitches a semi-autobiographical screenplay in which he's determined to star, a revenge-laden reflection of the doomed love he and Enrique shared as boys before a pedophile priest cruell! y intervened. The script, and the lost days it recalls, carefu! lly unfu rls into a series of brooding movies-within-movies and memories-inside-memories, which allow the sensual, multiple-role-playing Bernal to give the performance of his young career--among other things, he makes a stunningly convincing drag queen--and Almodóvar the opportunity to movingly suggest that people will pay any price to ensure that their stories are told. --Steve WieckingWriter/director Pedro Almodóvar's dark, sexy Hitchcock homage is his best work since his Oscar-winning All About My Mother, and deepened by a sun-dappled sadness. Handsome, enigmatic Ángel (Gael García Bernal) arrives at the Spanish movie offices of director Enrique Goded (Fele Martinez) and happily proclaims that he's actually Enrique's long-lost school chum Ignacio--an announcement that is both less than convincing and more than it seems. A novice actor, Ángel pitches a semi-autobiographical screenplay in which he's determined to star, a revenge-laden reflection of the doomed love! he and Enrique shared as boys before a pedophile priest cruelly intervened. The script, and the lost days it recalls, carefully unfurls into a series of brooding movies-within-movies and memories-inside-memories, which allow the sensual, multiple-role-playing Bernal to give the performance of his young career--among other things, he makes a stunningly convincing drag queen--and Almodóvar the opportunity to movingly suggest that people will pay any price to ensure that their stories are told. --Steve WieckingWriter/director Pedro Almodóvar's dark, sexy Hitchcock homage is his best work since his Oscar-winning All About My Mother, and deepened by a sun-dappled sadness. Handsome, enigmatic Ángel (Gael García Bernal) arrives at the Spanish movie offices of director Enrique Goded (Fele Martinez) and happily proclaims that he's actually Enrique's long-lost school chum Ignacio--an announcement that is both less than convincing and more than it seems. A novice ac! tor, Ángel pitches a semi-autobiographical screenplay in whic! h he's d etermined to star, a revenge-laden reflection of the doomed love he and Enrique shared as boys before a pedophile priest cruelly intervened. The script, and the lost days it recalls, carefully unfurls into a series of brooding movies-within-movies and memories-inside-memories, which allow the sensual, multiple-role-playing Bernal to give the performance of his young career--among other things, he makes a stunningly convincing drag queen--and Almodóvar the opportunity to movingly suggest that people will pay any price to ensure that their stories are told. --Steve WieckingWomen on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown Pedro Almodovar broke into the art-house mainstream with this wild, manic comedy about a gaggle of women and their various problems with men, be they married lovers, cheating husbands, fiancés, or terrorists. Almodovar's long-time leading lady, Carmen Maura, stars as an actress (famed for her laundry detergent commercial as the mother of a slo! ppy serial killer) who's just been dumped by her married lover. In the midst of trying to track him down for a face-to-face confrontation, she crosses paths with her lover's son (Antonio Banderas), his unbalanced wife (Julieta Serrano), and his new girlfriend (Kiti Manver). Adding more fuel to the fire is the hapless friend (Maria Barranco) who got involved with a Shiite terrorist and is now being hunted by the police. Almodovar, a master of farcical screwball comedy, manages to keep all these balls in the air in dizzy, hilarious style without once losing his momentum. Chock full of the director's over-the-top stylization, in terms of both story and sets, the film is a hilarious yet heartfelt marriage of kitsch and drama, verging on parody but never going entirely over the top. Maura is absolutely breathtaking as the unhinged lover, dispensing wise advice to others while trying to keep a semblance of sanity, and the supporting cast is quintessential Almodovar, including a b! rief but memorable turn by Banderas in what could have been a ! bland, g o-nowhere role. Nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar in 1989. --Mark Englehart

All About My Mother After her son is killed in an accident, Manuela (Cecilia Roth) leaves Madrid for her old haunts in Barcelona. She reconnects with an old friend, a pre-op transsexual prostitute named La Agrado (Antonia San Juan), who introduces her to Rosa (Penélope Cruz), a young nun who turns out to be pregnant. Meanwhile, Manuela becomes a personal assistant for Huma Rojo (Marisa Paredes), an actress currently playing Blanche DuBois in a production of A Streetcar Named Desire. All About M! y Mother traces the delicate web of friendship and loss that binds these women together. The movie is dedicated to the actresses of the world, so it's not surprising that all the performances are superb. Roth in particular anchors All About My Mother with compassion and generosity. But fans of writer-director Pedro Almodóvar needn't fret--as always, Almodóvar's work undermines conventional notions of sexual identity and embraces all human possibilities with bright colors and melodramatic plotting. However, All About My Mother approaches its twists and turns with a broader emotional scope than most of Almodóvar's work; even the more extravagant aspects of the story are presented quietly, to allow the sadness of life to be as present as the irrepressible vitality of the characters. Almodóvar embraces pettiness, jealousy, and grief as much as kindness, courage, and outrageousness, and the movie is the richer for it. ----Bret Fetzer

!

Talk to Her
Writer-director Pedro Almodóvar makes another masterpiece with Talk to Her, his first film since the wonderful All About My Mother. Marco (Dario Grandinetti) is in love with Lydia (Rosario Flores), a female bullfighter who is gored by a bull and sent into a coma. In the hospital, Marco crosses paths with Benigno (Javier Camara), a male nurse who looks after another coma patient, a young dancer named Alicia (Leonor Watling). From Benigno's gentle attentiveness to Alicia, Marco learns to take care of Lydia... but from there, the story goes in directions that deftly manage to be sad, hopeful, funny, and creepy, sometimes at the same time. The rich human empathy! of Almodóvar's recent films is passionate, heartbreaking, intoxicating--there aren't enough adjectives to praise this remarkable filmmaker, who is at the height of his powers. Talk to Her is superb, with outstanding performances from all involved. --Bret Fetzer

The Flower of My Secret
Pedro Alomodóvar made this misfired, rambling comedy about a romance novelist (Marisa Paredes) whose crumbling marriage has left her depressed and unable to work. At a low point, she writes a scathing indictment of her own books (which are penned under another name), with no one realizing critic and auth! or are one and the same. Almodóvar ( Law of Desire) ha! s the st art of a great idea here, and for once, he's direct about his sympathy for a character. But nothing else about The Flower of My Secret is so clear. Despite its unusual allegiance to the straightforward "women's films" of the 1950s, this movie blows it by becoming needlessly complicated over extraneous junk, forcing one to grope in the dark for Almodóvar's point. -- Tom Keogh

Bad Education
Writer/director Pedro Almodóvar's dark, sexy Hitchcock homage is his best work since his Oscar-winning All About My Mother, and deepened by a sun-dappled sadness. Handsome, enigmatic ! Ángel (Gael García Bernal) arrives at the Spanish movie offices of director Enrique Goded (Fele Martinez) and happily proclaims that he's actually Enrique's long-lost school chum Ignacio--an announcement that is both less than convincing and more than it seems. A novice actor, Ángel pitches a semi-autobiographical screenplay in which he's determined to star, a revenge-laden reflection of the doomed love he and Enrique shared as boys before a pedophile priest cruelly intervened. The script, and the lost days it recalls, carefully unfurls into a series of brooding movies-within-movies and memories-inside-memories, which allow the sensual, multiple-role-playing Bernal to give the performance of his young career--among other things, he makes a stunningly convincing drag queen--and Almodóvar the opportunity to movingly suggest that people will pay any price to ensure that their stories are told. -- Steve Wiecking

Mo! re Still s from Pedro Almodovar Classics Collection(click for larger image)

More Pedro Almodovar at Amazon.com

Songs of Almodóvar CD

Volver

The Films of Pedro Almodóvar

A single mother in Madrid sees her only son die on his 17th birthday as he runs to seek an actress's autograph. She goes to Barcelona to find the lad's father, a transvestite named Lola who does not know he has a child. First she finds her friend, Agrado, also a transvestite; through him she meets Rosa, a young nun bound for El Salvador, and by happenstance becomes the personal assistant of Huma Rojo, the actress her son admired. She helps Huma manage Nina, the co-star and Huma's lover, and she becomes Rosa's caretaker during a dicey pregnancy. With echoes of Lorca, All About ! Eve, and A Streetcar Named Desire, the mothers (and! fathers and actors) live out grief, love, and friendship.After her son is killed in an accident, Manuela (Cecilia Roth) leaves Madrid for her old haunts in Barcelona. She reconnects with an old friend, a pre-op transsexual prostitute named La Agrado (Antonia San Juan), who introduces her to Rosa (Penélope Cruz), a young nun who turns out to be pregnant. Meanwhile, Manuela becomes a personal assistant for Huma Rojo (Marisa Paredes), an actress currently playing Blanche DuBois in a production of A Streetcar Named Desire. All About My Mother traces the delicate web of friendship and loss that binds these women together. The movie is dedicated to the actresses of the world, so it's not surprising that all the performances are superb. Roth in particular anchors All About My Mother with compassion and generosity. But fans of writer-director Pedro Almodóvar needn't fret--as always, Almodóvar's work undermines conventional notions of sexual identity and embraces a! ll human possibilities with bright colors and melodramatic plotting. However, All About My Mother approaches its twists and turns with a broader emotional scope than most of Almodóvar's work; even the more extravagant aspects of the story are presented quietly, to allow the sadness of life to be as present as the irrepressible vitality of the characters. Almodóvar embraces pettiness, jealousy, and grief as much as kindness, courage, and outrageousness, and the movie is the richer for it. --Bret FetzerWriter/director Pedro Almodóvar's dark, sexy Hitchcock homage is his best work since his Oscar-winning All About My Mother, and deepened by a sun-dappled sadness. Handsome, enigmatic Ángel (Gael García Bernal) arrives at the Spanish movie offices of director Enrique Goded (Fele Martinez) and happily proclaims that he's actually Enrique's long-lost school chum Ignacio--an announcement that is both less than convincing and more than it seems. A novice ac! tor, Ángel pitches a semi-autobiographical screenplay in whic! h he's d etermined to star, a revenge-laden reflection of the doomed love he and Enrique shared as boys before a pedophile priest cruelly intervened. The script, and the lost days it recalls, carefully unfurls into a series of brooding movies-within-movies and memories-inside-memories, which allow the sensual, multiple-role-playing Bernal to give the performance of his young career--among other things, he makes a stunningly convincing drag queen--and Almodóvar the opportunity to movingly suggest that people will pay any price to ensure that their stories are told. --Steve WieckingInformed by a vintage Hollywood production sheen and flashback-fueled, identity-questioning melodramatics worthy of Hitchcock, Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar's sexually-charged film was quickly hailed as a mature masterpiece. The film's classic Hollywood conceits are deep-rooted, and Iberian composer Alberto Iglesias reinforces the film's often retro mood via a brooding, classically oriented score! with an ear towards history. It may briefly excerpt Rossini's "Kyrie" to haunting effect, but the touchstone here is the Bernard Herrmann of Hitchcock's prime, with an emphasis on their epochal Vertigo and especially the tense, dark strings of Psycho (which "Escena Familiar" and "Cine Olimpo" echo with haunting grace). But while Iglesias capably evokes the color and spirit of those iconic touchstones, he crucially does it without sacrificing his own identity. Evocations of Spanish culture come mostly via vintage performances of "Quiza, Quiza, Quiza," "Cuoro Matta" and others, but on the expansive "Puerta Finale" the composer skillfully interweaves his Herrmann influences with touches of mournful jazz, flamenco and "Kyrie"'s choral echoes, creating a compelling, oft chilling post-modern new whole. -- Jerry McCulleyVOLVER - DVD MovieSpanish for "Coming Back," Volver is a return to the all-female format of All About My Mother. Unlike Pedro A! lmodóvar's previous two pictures, the story revolves around a! group o f women in Madrid and his native La Mancha. (The cast received a collective best actress award at Cannes.) Raimunda (a zaftig Penélope Cruz) is the engine powering this heartfelt, yet humorous vehicle. When husband Paco (Antonio de la Torre) is murdered, Raimunda makes like Mildred Pierce to deflect attention away from daughter Paula (Yohana Cobo). After telling everyone the lout has left, she struggles to conceal his body. The other women in her life all have secrets of their own. Her sister, Sole (Lola Dueñas), for instance, has taken in their mother, Irene (a sprightly Carmen Maura). Since Irene perished in a fire, is this person a ghost or simply a woman who looks like her? Then there's their childhood friend, Agustina (Blanca Portillo), who is desperate to find out why her mother disappeared after the blaze. Was she responsible? Almodóvar deftly blends the ghost story with the murder mystery in his tribute to the Italian neo-realist films of the 1950s. The resilient ! Raimunda is a throwback to the earthy heroines of Sophia Loren and Anna Magnani. The latter appears in Luchino Visconti's Bellissima, which shows up on Sole's television one night (thus confirming the link). If Almodóvar’s 16th feature lacks the emotional punch of the more audacious Talk to Her, it's less heavy-handed than Bad Education and Cruz is a revelation. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

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Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal

• ISBN13: 9780380813810
• Condition: New
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John Charles Ryle (May 10, 1816 - June 10, 1900) was an evangelical Anglican clergyman and first Bishop of Liverpool. He was renowned for his powerful preaching and extensive tracts.John Charles Ryle (May 10, 1816 - June 10, 1900) was an evangelical Anglican clergyman and first Bishop of Liverpool. He was renowned for his powerful preaching and extensive tracts.The Gospel According to Isaiah 53 presents the redemptive work of the Messiah to the Jewish community, exploring issues of atonement and redemption in light of Isaiah chapter 53. It is clear that Jesus fulfills the specifications of the suffering servant of Isaiah 53.Stearns, the CEO of World! Vision, says Christians have a huge hole in their lives, an emptiness that comes from ignoring the plight of the poor. He details his own quest to fill this hole by leaving Lenox Inc., where he was CEO, to run a not-for-profit that helps feed, clothe, and educate children worldwide. Unlike many evangelical Christians, Stearns believes poverty is explained by something more than choices, and lifting cultures from the systemic causes of poverty requires a multi-pronged approach. This accessible book will make it into the hands of evangelical Christians who may not pick up one of the many ABA books on issues of hunger, access to clean water, malaria and AIDS. Readers of Rick Warren, Jim Wallis and N.T. Wright will find Stearns synthesizing thoughts from them as well as from economists and missionaries.This is a passionate and motivating magnum opus from the leader of one of the most recognized aid organizations in the world. The book is a surprisingly no-holds-barred propheti! c voice in the wilderness crying out to rich Americans, "Repen! t and he lp your world neighbors."(Mar. 10) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Many believers feel stunted in their Christian growth. We beat ourselves up over our failures and, in the process, pull away from God because we subconsciously believe He tallies our defects and hangs His head in disappointment. In this newly repackaged edition—now with full appendix, study questions, and the author’s own epilogue, Â"Ragamuffin Ten Years Later,” Brennan Manning reminds us that nothing could be further from the truth. The Father beckons us to Himself with a Â"furious love” that burns brightly and constantly. Only when we truly embrace God’s grace can we bask in the joy of a gospel that enfolds the most needy of His flock—the Â"ragamuffins.”

Brennan Manning wrote The Ragamuffin Gospel "for the bedraggled, beat-up, and burnt-out," the marginalized folks to whom Jesus ministered: the children, the i! ll, the tax collectors, the women. In other words, the ragamuffins. Manning understands better than most that behind our facades of order and self-assurance are inadequacies that can find healing only in Jesus. While the powerful and religious elite challenged him, Jesus embraced and healed and fed the needs of the ragamuffins. Jesus delivered love, healing, and, most of all, grace.

Grace is defined as "the freely given and unmerited favor and love of God." But, as Manning points out, we have "twisted the gospel of grace into religious bondage and distorted the image of God into an eternal, small-minded bookkeeper." In reality, God offers us grace immeasurable. Brennan Manning gently encourages us to embrace that grace in the face of our greatest needs. And Manning certainly knows whereof he speaks, having taken a journey from priesthood and academic achievement through a collapse into alcoholism. Manning came face to face with his need, finally abandoni! ng himself to grace. And he invites us now to join him in a l! ife of g race.

Manning is without doubt one of the most eloquent writers on the subject of grace because he openly shares his own pain and struggle to help readers deal with failure and inadequacy. And he sweetly challenges them to do the same. --Patricia KleinContemporary evangelicals have built a 'salvation culture' but not a 'gospel culture.' Evangelicals have reduced the gospel to the message of personal salvation. This book makes a plea for us to recover the old gospel as that which is still new and still fresh. The book stands on four arguments: that the gospel is defined by the apostles in 1 Corinthians 15 as the completion of the Story of Israel in the saving Story of Jesus; that the gospel is found in the Four Gospels; that the gospel was preached by Jesus; and that the sermons in the Book of Acts are the best example of gospeling in the New Testament. The King Jesus Gospel ends with practical suggestions about evangelism and about building a gospel culture.!

The birth of Jesus has been well chronicled, as have his glorious teachings, acts, and divine sacrifice after his thirtieth birthday. But no one knows about the early life of the Son of God, the missing years -- except Biff, the Messiah's best bud, who has been resurrected to tell the story in the divinely hilarious yet heartfelt work "reminiscent of Vonnegut and Douglas Adams" (Philadelphia Inquirer).

Verily, the story Biff has to tell is a miraculous one, filled with remarkable journeys, magic, healings, kung fu, corpse reanimations, demons, and hot babes. Even the considerable wiles and devotion of the Savior's pal may not be enough to divert Joshua from his tragic destiny. But there's no one who loves Josh more -- except maybe "Maggie," Mary of Magdala -- and Biff isn't about to let his extraordinary pal suffer and ascend without a fight.

While the Bible may be the word of God, transcribed by divinely inspired men, it does not provide a full (or even! partial) account of the life of Jesus Christ. Lucky for us th! at Chris topher Moore presents a funny, lighthearted satire of the life of Christ--from his childhood days up to his crucifixion--in Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal. This clever novel is surely blasphemy to some, but to others it's a coming-of-age story of the highest order.

Joshua (a.k.a. Jesus) knows he is unique and quite alone in his calling, but what exactly does his Father want of him? Taking liberties with ancient history, Moore works up an adventure tale as Biff and Joshua seek out the three wise men so that Joshua can better understand what he is supposed to do as Messiah. Biff, a capable sinner, tags along and gives Joshua ample opportunities to know the failings and weaknesses of being truly human. With a wit similar to Douglas Adams, Moore pulls no punches: a young Biff has the hots for Joshua's mom, Mary, which doesn't amuse Josh much: "Don't let anyone ever tell you that the Prince of Peace never struck anyone." And the origin of ! the Easter Bunny is explained as a drunken Jesus gushes his affection for bunnies, declaring, "Henceforth and from now on, I decree that whenever something bad happens to me, there shall be bunnies around."

One small problem with the narrative is that Biff and Joshua often do not have distinct voices. A larger difficulty is that as the tone becomes more somber with Joshua's life drawing to its inevitable close, the one-liners, though not as numerous, seem forced. True to form, Lamb keeps the story of Joshua light, even after its darkest moments. --Michael Ferch

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Black Christmas (Special Edition)

• The few remaining residents of a Canadian sorority house are celebrating the onset of Christmas vacation when a thirteen year-old girl is found dead in the park. Soon, it is discovered that one of the sorority sisters is missing, which triggers a terrifying chain of murders within the house. Director Bob Clark's (PORKY'S, A CHRISTMAS STORY) tense, effective film is a precursor to the slash

An ill-fated houseful of sorority sisters are stalked by a psychopath during the christmas season. Studio: Koch International Release Date: 12/30/2008 Starring: Olivia Hussey Margot Kidder Run time: 98 minutesYou may never have heard of this neglected 1974 gem, but you've probably seen one of its many imitators. Olivia Hussey and Margot Kidder (also look for Andrea Martin of SCTV fame) star as two residents of a sorority house that is emptying out as Christmas approaches. The atmosphere is jolly ! and carefree, except for an ongoing series of menacing telephone calls, and, oh yes, we've just seen someone climb into the attic with apparent ill intent. Kidder does some scene-stealing as the bad girl, Hussey illustrates one of the downsides to having beautiful long '70s hair, and Keir Dullea does a nice turn as the creepy boyfriend. Director Robert Clark knows that the unseen is far scarier than what can be seen and he ratchets up the tension beautifully, making good use of ominous shadows, and putting in nice touches like replacing the sound of a distraught woman's scream with the piercing ring of yet another ominous phone call. This is a terrific, well-made little movie that is genuinely sleep-with-the-lights-on scary. Don't miss it. --Ali Davis

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Giuliani Time

• Giuliani Time is an examination of Giuliani's rise to power, his policies and his so-called turnaround of New York City. Interviewing journalists, activists, legal experts, and many of the city's poor, Giuliani Time reveals that while the Mayor touted his Broken Windows, Quality of Life, and Zero Tolerance policies, the reality on the streets was police brutality, violations of the First A

One of the most talked-about and controversial theatrical releases of 2006 was more than five years in the making. Giuliani Time investigates the stories behind the "new" New York City that Giuliani laid claim to. From "quality of life" policing to welfare reform, and First Amendmentrelated debacles, the feelings about the Giuliani years largely depended on where you stood. Giuliani Time is the story of the effect this former Reagan administration official and high profile federal prosecutor h! ad on what he called the "Capital of the World." It is a wild ride of political ambition and public amnesia, alternate realities, wars of perception and dramatic, even cataclysmic, events.

Featuring Donald Trump, Ed Koch, William Bratten, David Dinkins, and many others.

DVD Extras Include:

Commentary Track

Deleted Scenes

Extended Interviews

Trailers

Resource Links

And much more.

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Hoodwinked (Widescreen Edition)

• A new spin on an old fable. In this film, Red, Granny, The Big Bad Wolf and the Woodman, all face Detective Flippers as he attempts to determine the 'real' events of the Little Red Riding Hood story. Original songs and witty humor fill this fun and adventurous film. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: CHILDREN Rating: PG Age: 796019791090 UPC: 796019791090 Manufacture

Meet Doogal, an adorable candy-loving mutt on a mission to save the world. In this delightful 3D computer-animated adventure, Doogal must prevent the evil sorcerer Zeebad (Jon Stewart) from freezing the earth forever. Joining Doogal (Daniel Tay) on his quest are pals Dylan (Jimmy Fallon), a guitar-playing rabbit, Ermintrude (Whoopi Goldberg), an opera-singing cow, and Brian (William H. Macy), a bashful snail. Hopping on a magic train (Chevy Chase), they travel over ice-capped mountains, navigate fiery pits of lava, and sail across va! st oceans on the journey of a lifetime. Along the way, they learn that the most powerful weapon of all is their friendship â€" which even Zeebad’s magic cannot destroy.A herd of American celebrities--from Whoopi Goldberg to Kevin Smith--have been corralled to redub Doogal, formerly a CGI cartoon from England called The Magic Roundabout based on a French stop-motion tv show from the 1960s called Le Manege Enchante. The title character is a dustmop with a face--presumably a dog of some sort--whose craving for sweets inadvertently traps his beloved owner Florence in a frozen carousel and unleashes an evil wintry wizard named Zeebad (voiced by Jon Stewart, The Daily Show). Doogal and his ragtag group of friends--singing cow Ermintrude (Goldberg, Sister Act), hopeful snail Brian (William H. Macy, Fargo), slacker rabbit Dylan (Jimmy Fallon, Fever Pitch), and a choo-choo train (Chevy Chase, Fletch)--must find three enchante! d diamonds to stop Zeebad and bring spring back to the world. ! Presumab ly, Doogal's target audience is the very young, yet the dialogue (rewritten for the American market) is crammed with allusions to adult fare like Saturday Night Live and Pulp Fiction. In fact--though it may have seemed differently with the original script--the entire movie comes across as an ungainly patchwork stitched together from scenes fromThe Wizard of Oz, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Matrix, Ice Age, and much more. The effect is not so much funny as inexplicable. Also featuring the voices of Judi Dench (Iris), Ian McKellen (X-Men), and pop star Kylie Minogue. --Bret Fetzer

Features include:

•MPAA Rating: G
•Format: DVD
So you think you know the story of Little Red Riding Hood. Don’t be too sure. . . . One of your favorite fairy tales is turned upside-down and inside-out in what the L.A. Times called "high-energy, imaginative entertainment." With irreverent ! storytelling, spunk and wit, Hoodwinked delivers a comedy caper for the young, the young at heart and everyone in between. When the police arrive at Granny’s cottage in the woods to answer a domestic disturbance call, it looks like just another open-and-shut case. But Red, Granny, the Big Bad Wolf and the Woodsman are not your usual suspects, as they have their own dark secrets, wily deceptions and conflicting accounts of the crime. Together, they must put aside their differences and find their own original twist on Happily Ever After in this "raucous, genre-busting, animated gem (Entertainment Weekly, The Must List)."Hoodwinked fuses the classic fairy tale of Little Red Riding Hood with the crisscrossing storylines of film noir--pretty ambitious stuff for a computer-animated cartoon. The police cordon off Grandma's cottage and an amphibious version of William Powell named Nicky Flippers (voiced by David Ogden Stiers, M*A*S*H) begins interrog! ating the suspects: A Little Red in bell-bottoms (Anne Hathawa! y, El la Enchanted), a Wolf turned investigative journalist (Patrick Warburton, The Woman Chaser), a snow-boarding Granny (Glenn Close, 101 Dalmatians), and a dimwitted would-be Woodsman (Jim Belushi, Curly Sue), each of whom have very different reasons for ending up in that cottage living room. The visual style of Hoodwinked mixes a clunky, video-game look with an homage to the stop-motion puppetry of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and other Rankin-Bass holiday specials. While sometimes awkward, there are also moments of surreal beauty, such as when a depressed Red wanders through a field of blue and red flowers--and moments of lunatic comedy, such as the Schnitzel song, which is irresistibly bizarre. The Shrek-style pop-culture references grow annoying, but the left-field goofiness of a yodeling goat points toward a far more distinct and delightful comic world. Also featuring the voices of Anthony Anderson (Kangaroo Jack), rap! per Xzibit, and an especially witty turn by Andy Dick (NewsRadio) as a deceptively cute bunny rabbit. --Bret Fetzer

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Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life's Most Important Skill

• ISBN13: 9780316167253
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

A molecular biologist turned Buddhist monk, described by scientists as "the happiest man alive," demonstrates how to develop the inner conditions for true happiness.

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Harvard Beats Yale 29-29

• Harvard Stadium November 23, 1968. With Vietnam raging, Nixon in theWhite House, and issues from civil rights to women's lib dividing thecountry, Harvard and Yale, both teams undefeated for the first time since1909, meet for the annual climax of the Ivy League football season. On theblue-blooded Yale campus, gridiron fever has made local celebrities out of aYale team led by quarterback Brian Dowli

An incredible true story that unfolds like a ripping good yarn... With an uproarious, impossible Hollywood ending (Andrew O Hehir, Salon.com), Harvard Beats Yale 29-29 is filmmaker Kevin Rafferty s (The Atomic Cafe) acclaimed documentary depicting one of the most legendary games in the history of sports. Harvard Stadium November 23, 1968. With Vietnam raging, Nixon in the White House, and issues from civil rights to women's lib dividing the country, Harvard and Yale, both teams undefeated for the fi! rst time since 1909, meet for the annual climax of the Ivy League football season. On the blue-blooded Yale campus, gridiron fever has made local celebrities out of a Yale team led by quarterback Brian Dowling, who hadn t lost a game that he finished since the 7th grade, and who was the role model for Doonesbury s B.D. At civil unrest scarred Harvard, a melting pot team of working class players, antiwar activists, and a decorated Vietnam vet set aside their differences for the Big Game. Together, Yale and Harvard stage an unforgettable football contest that baffled even their own coaches. Using vintage game footage and bracingly honest contemporary interviews with the players from both sides, including Harvard lineman and future Oscar® winner Tommy Lee Jones (No Country for Old Men), Rafferty crafts an alternately suspenseful, hilarious, and poignant portrait of American lives, American sports, and American ideals both tested on the playing field and transformed by turbule! nt times.

Special Features:
- Bonus Interviews (73 m! in.) Add itional interview excerpts not included in the film, the players provide a deeper look at the season, the game, and its aftermath.
- Theatrical Trailer

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