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      • Trusted Partner

        To Love Life

        by Alawiya Sobh

        The novel revolves around the heroine Basma, who suffers from a neurological disease. The sedative medications prescribed by her doctor have affected her memory and so she has become confused. She tries to restore her memory and her body, which has been plagued by painful spasms – something difficult for someone like her, a dancer and choreographer.   The novel unfolds inconsistently, telling the story of Basma from childhood on, experiences with her first boyfriend, Ahmad, and her sickness after following the tragic departure of him and her father during the Lebanese civil war. In addition to Basma’s story, we read about the lives of the people she knew and liked throughout her life, including her friend, Anisa, and her emotionally and financially tight husband, and how writing changed her life and helped her fight her disability. We also read about Amina, who is emotionally hungry, and Nizar who investigated different politics and beliefs, ending up insane. In addition to other characters with stories that run in parallel with the main character, Basma, whose life centres on her relationship with her lover and husband, Youssef. A creative painter, his shifts towards fundamentalism lead her to separate from him as she is passionate about life, love and dancing.   The novel accurately describes the similarities between her sick body and that of Arab cities collapsed due to the sectarian wars that took place after the so-called ‘Arab Spring’. The heroine documents her sickness to a virtual friend, describing what made her sick and how she resists her illness with will and determination. Her narrative expresses her rejection of religious, sectarian and terrorist extremism of all sects and religions, especially those that diverged from the true Islamic religion and its compassionate teachings.   In this novel we find poignant human details and a graceful narration full of expressions that make the reader anxious to know more about the destinies of all its characters. Between the memory of a past saturated with loss and love, and a crueler present witnessed in collapsing cities, Basma clings to her body that keeps on betraying her.   Who said that our lives and our bodies are different from the stories of our cities? Who among us knows if our most recent dance was the farewell dance, or a new beginning?

      • Trusted Partner
        Children's & YA
        2017

        Dance of the Wild

        by Richa Jha and Ruchi Mhasane

        Little Shilu loves to dance around naked. She wants to be like the animals; like Pirate, her cat. When her grandmother Nannu says she can’t because she is now a big girl, Shilu gets down to understanding why she can’t. Peppered with Nannu’s loving chiding, intimate grandma-granddaughter bonding over conversations, and a heart-to-heart between the mother and this little inquisitive daughter, this book is a reflection of the wild and free nature of childhood.  Rhuchi Mhasane’s soft evocative illustrations rendered in pencil with watercolour, and put together digitally, create a dreamlike charm. Richa Jha’s gentle, affectionate and lyrical text takes the reader into the mind of the little girl who can’t wait to get the answers to her ‘Why can’t I?’

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        Humanities & Social Sciences
        January 2026

        Dancing through the dissonance

        by Lesley Pruitt, Erica Rose Jeffrey

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        The Arts
        May 2024

        Adaptation and resilience in the performing arts

        The pandemic and beyond

        by Pascale Aebischer, Rachael Nicholas

        This book offers insights into some of the digital innovations, structural adaptations and analogue solutions that enabled live performance in the UK to survive through the COVID-19 pandemic. It provides evidence of values-led policies and practices that have improved the wellbeing of the creative workforce and have increased access to live performance. Through sections that address digital innovations, workforce resilience and programming live performances outdoors and in community settings, this book provides practical insights into the challenges live performance faced during the pandemic. It shows how, in order to survive, individuals and companies within the sector drew on the creativity and resourcefulness of its workforce, and on new and existing networks. In these accounts, the pandemic functioned as catalyst for technological innovations, stock-taking regarding exploitative industry structures, and a re-valuing of the role of live performance for community-building.

      • Trusted Partner
        Fiction

        El baile de la abuela muerta (Dead grandma's dance)

        by Elina Malamud

        A hundred years of history from two branches of a Jewish family, set against the backdrop of Tsarist Russia, from the early 19th century to their migration to Argentina in the early 20th century. It's not just the tradition of the Jews from Eastern Europe, but a vivid portrayal of the characters that inhabited this complex and diverse society of declining nobility, gypsies, and Bolsheviks. Clandestine loves, uprisings, and persecutions are described with nostalgic detail, alongside an unexpected display of Hasidic humor and magic.

      • Trusted Partner
        History
        April 2017

        Dancing in the English style

        Consumption, Americanisation, and national identity in Britain, 1918–50

        by Allison Abra. Series edited by Jeffrey Richards

        Dancing in the English style explores the development, experience, and cultural representation of popular dance in Britain from the end of the First World War to the early 1950s. It describes the rise of modern ballroom dancing as Britain's predominant popular style, as well as the opening of hundreds of affordable dancing schools and purpose-built dance halls. It focuses in particular on the relationship between the dance profession and dance hall industry and the consumers who formed the dancing public. Together these groups negotiated the creation of a 'national' dancing style, which constructed, circulated, and commodified ideas about national identity. At the same time, the book emphasizes the global, exploring the impact of international cultural products on national identity construction, the complexities of Americanisation, and Britain's place in a transnational system of production and consumption that forged the dances of the Jazz Age.

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        Humanities & Social Sciences
        March 2024

        Ageing and new intimacies

        Gender, sexuality and temporality in an English salsa scene

        by Sarah Milton

        The 'baby boom' generation, born between the 1940s and the 1960s, is often credited with pioneering new and creative ways of relating, doing intimacy and making families. With this cohort of men and women in Britain now entering mid and later life, they are also said to be revolutionising the experience of ageing. Are the romantic practices of this 'revolutionary cohort' breaking with tradition and allowing new ways of understanding and doing ageing and relating to emerge? Based on ethnographic fieldwork in salsa classes and life history interviews, this book documents the meanings of desire and romance, and 'new' intimacies, among women in mid and later life. Challenging notions of the revolutionary 'baby boomers', it details how these practices, experiences and identities are intersected and informed by age, class, whiteness, and a pervasive concern to remain respectable.

      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        March 2026

        US cultural diplomacy after the Cold War

        Decline, recovery, and fall

        by Jeffrey H. Michaels, Giles Scott-Smith

        In the decades following the USSR's collapse, the US has gone from unrivalled hegemon to a position of relative decline. With America 'triumphant' after 1991, its culture, like its diplomatic, military and economic power, remained unmatched. Such favourable circumstances seemed to undercut the need for cultural diplomacy. Why should the US government sell a product that was already selling so well? After 9/11, however, it was apparent the US image was less popular than previously assumed. To reverse this negative image, cultural diplomacy was revived. Despite being beset by internal and external challenges, US officials supported various cultural initiatives and partnerships to promote the American brand globally. Along the way, cultural diplomacy has made use of new forms of expression to promote American culture and build positive foreign relations. The arrival of the second Trump administration in 2025 has clearly signalled an end to using cultural diplomacy to further causes of empowerment and diversity, making the future uncertain for this field of activity.

      • Trusted Partner
        Humanities & Social Sciences
        November 2016

        Dance and politics

        by Dana Mills

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        September 2013

        The Renaissance and Grand Voyage

        by Zhang Wushen

        This book helps the readers know the european Renaissance, religious reform. geographic discovery and the formation of a national government,USA.

      • Trusted Partner
        January 2003

        Let's Dance

        Das Tanzbuch (mit einem Crashkurs von Birgitta Dehning und Martin Schleifstein)

        by Trautner, Tamara / Zusammen mit Dehning, Birgitta; Zusammen mit Schleifstein, Martin

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        Children's & YA

        Quiz Yourself Smart! Bees and Our Nature

        by Friederun Reichenstetter/ Helen Seeberg/ Hans-Günther Döring

        Where do bees get the wax for their honeycombs from? What does the bee dance mean? Why are bees important for us humans? General knowledge for primary school children! Who will be quiz king? The life of the little honeybee and its environment is full of surprises. Do you know your way around the native animal world? Discover their secrets, research how animals live and what distinguishes them. One quiz question – three possible answers. Plus all sorts of fascinating facts on the reverse page. For one or more players aged 6+.

      • Trusted Partner

        Ismael et Radia aux USA

        Les États Unis

        by Jihane Andaloussi / Fadwa El Alami Moutawakkil / Youssef Al Houcine / Omar Kabbaj

        Ignite your little explorers' passion for reading with a thrilling journey through iconic landmarks and adventures! This book invites young adventurers to explore vibrant scenes from the United States, including Times Square, the Grand Canyon, and Yellowstone. Packed with an adventurous story about Radia and Ismael in the Wild West, as well as stickers, games, and coloring pages, it’s the perfect way to fuel their curiosity and imagination. Buckle up for an unforgettable adventure filled with learning and fun!

      • Trusted Partner
        Teaching, Language & Reference
        February 2023

        Taking place

        by Erin Silver

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