Elizabeth Long – författare

Book clubs are everywhere these days. And women talk about the clubs they belong to with surprising emotion: "You will never know what a difference it made in my life". But why are the clubs so important to them? Which women join book clubs and why? And what do the women discuss when they meet? To answer questions like these, Elizabeth Long spent years observing and participating in women's book clubs in the Houston area and interviewing members from dozens of different discussion groups. Far from being an isolated activity, she finds that for club members reading is an active and social pursuit, a crucial way for them to reflect creatively on the meaning of their lives and their place in the social order. Similar to their 19th-century predecessors, whom Long also considers, women today find in reading groups the inspiration, support and self-confidence to reimagine themselves both individually and collectively. Tracing how this process works, Long takes us on a guided tour of the book clubs themselves, from how they are formed and organized to how members choose which books to read.Through vivid examples, she shows how women use literature to achieve personal insight and empowerment. She then turns her attention to the emergence of book clubs that are run through chain bookstores, television shows and the Internet, and considers the importance of such clubs for women as a broader cultural forum. Far from just an excuse to get together once a month, book clubs are here revealed to be a vital arena for self-formation, one that has as much currency now as it did a century ago.

Book clubs are everywhere these days. And women talk about the clubs they belong to with surprising emotion: "You will never know what a difference it made in my life". But why are the clubs so important to them? Which women join book clubs and why? And what do the women discuss when they meet? To answer questions like these, Elizabeth Long spent years observing and participating in women's book clubs in the Houston area and interviewing members from dozens of different discussion groups. Far from being an isolated activity, she finds that for club members reading is an active and social pursuit, a crucial way for them to reflect creatively on the meaning of their lives and their place in the social order. Similar to their 19th-century predecessors, whom Long also considers, women today find in reading groups the inspiration, support and self-confidence to reimagine themselves both individually and collectively. Tracing how this process works, Long takes us on a guided tour of the book clubs themselves, from how they are formed and organized to how members choose which books to read.Through vivid examples, she shows how women use literature to achieve personal insight and empowerment. She then turns her attention to the emergence of book clubs that are run through chain bookstores, television shows and the Internet, and considers the importance of such clubs for women as a broader cultural forum. Far from just an excuse to get together once a month, book clubs are here revealed to be a vital arena for self-formation, one that has as much currency now as it did a century ago.

This title, originally published in 1985, examines conceptions of success and the good life expressed in bestselling novels – ranging from historical sagas and spy thrillers to more serious works by Updike, Bellows, Steinbeck and Mailer – published from 1945 to 1975. Using these popular books as cultural evidence, Elizabeth Long argues that the meaning of the American dream has changed dramatically, but in a more complex fashion than has been recognised by that country’s most prominent social critics. Her study presents a challenge to prevailing social-scientific views of contemporary American culture, and represents, both in theory and method, an important contribution to the study of culture and social criticism.

This title, originally published in 1985, examines conceptions of success and the good life expressed in bestselling novels – ranging from historical sagas and spy thrillers to more serious works by Updike, Bellows, Steinbeck and Mailer – published from 1945 to 1975. Using these popular books as cultural evidence, Elizabeth Long argues that the meaning of the American dream has changed dramatically, but in a more complex fashion than has been recognised by that country’s most prominent social critics. Her study presents a challenge to prevailing social-scientific views of contemporary American culture, and represents, both in theory and method, an important contribution to the study of culture and social criticism.

The Prissy Sissy Tea Party Series of childrens books is centered around tea parties. The setting is a small town in the South. Sissys parents own a private school, LEcole Par Excellence and a bed and breakfast inn known as Magnolia Manor.The main character is Sissy, an eight year old, who is the product of a southern mother who believes strongly in maintaining the social graces, customs, and traditions of the past and a retired father who was a military officer, but is now headmaster of their private school. Sissy blends her mothers influence with her own travel experiences and exposure to various cultures made possible because of her fathers military assignments. She then tells her story in her own Prissy Sissy way.Her 4 best friends are Lauren, Zack, Alex, and Zeus, her Doberman Pinscher. There are several exchange students attending the school who will appear as special guests when a tea party focuses on their homeland.These books teach readers manners, tea etiquette, and the social graces.I am aware that todays world is one giant global society. Writing about other countries and studying their history and culture lend a cosmopolitan flavor to these books.Different tea customs are explored and put into practice at the tea table.Artistic and musical personalities are also an integral part of this series.Each book has a particular theme incorporating the aforementioned elements.Areas of interest:Vocabulary buildingMannersTea etiquetteHistoryCultural arts/music & artOther cultures and customsHumanitiesThese books would appeal to ages 4-10.

The Prissy Sissy Tea Party Series of childrens books is centered around tea parties. The setting is a small town in the South. Sissys parents own a private school, LEcole Par Excellence, and a bed-and-breakfast inn, known as Magnolia Manor.The main character is Sissy, an eight-year-old who is the product of a Southern mother who believes strongly in maintaining the social graces, customs, and traditions of the past and a retired father who was a military officer but is now headmaster of their private school. Sissy blends her mothers influence with her own travel experiences and exposure to various cultures made possible because of her fathers military assignments. She then tells her story in her own prissy Sissy way.Her four best friends are Lauren, Zack, Alex, and Zeus, her Doberman pinscher. There are several exchange students attending the school who will appear as special guests when a tea party focuses on their homeland.These books teach readers manners, tea etiquette, and the social graces.I am aware that todays world is one giant, global society. Writing about other countries and studying their history and culture lend a cosmopolitan flavor to these books.Different tea customs are explored and put into practice at the tea table.Artistic and musical personalities are also an integral part of this series.Each book has a particular theme incorporating the aforementioned elements.Areas of interest:Vocabulary buildingMannersTea etiquetteHistoryCultural arts / music and artOther cultures and customsHumanitiesThese books would appeal to ages four to ten.

The Prissy Sissy Tea Party series of childrens books is centered on tea parties. The setting is a small town in the South. Sissys parents own a private school, LEcole Par Excellence, and a bed-and-breakfast inn known as Magnolia Manor.The main character is Sissy, an eight-year-old who is the product of a Southern mother who believes strongly in maintaining the social graces, customs, and traditions of the past and a retired father who was a military officer but is now headmaster of their private school. Sissy blends her mothers influence with her own travel experiences and exposure to various cultures made possible because of her fathers military assignments. She then tells her story in her own Prissy Sissy way.Her four best friends are Lauren, Zack, Alex, and Zeus, her Doberman Pinscher. There are several exchange students attending the school who will appear as special guests when a tea party focuses on their homeland.These books teach readers manners, tea etiquette, and social graces.I am aware that todays world is one giant global society. Writing about other countries and studying their history and culture lend a cosmopolitan flavor to these books.Different tea customs are explored and put into practice at the tea table. Artistic and musical personalities are also an integral part of this series.Each book has a particular theme incorporating the aforementioned elements.Areas of interest:Vocabulary buildingMannersTea etiquetteHistoryCultural arts, music and artOther cultures and customsHumanitiesThese books will appeal to children aged four to ten.

The Prissy Sissy Tea Party series of childrens books is centered on tea parties. The setting is a small town in the South. Sissys parents own a private school, LEcole Par Excellence, and a bed-and-breakfast inn known as Magnolia Manor.The main character is Sissy, an eight-year-old who is the product of a Southern mother, who believes strongly in maintaining the social graces, customs, and traditions of the past, and a retired father who was a military officer but is now headmaster of their private school. Sissy blends her mothers influence with her own travel experiences and exposure to various cultures made possible because of her fathers military assignments. She then tells her story in her own Prissy Sissy way.Her four best friends are Lauren, Zack, Alex, and Zeus, her Doberman pinscher. There are several exchange students attending the school who will appear as special guests when a tea party focuses on their homeland.These books teach readers manners, tea etiquette, and social graces.I am aware that todays world is one giant global society. Writing about other countries and studying their history and culture lend a cosmopolitan flavor to these books.Different tea customs are explored and put into practice at the tea table. Artistic and musical personalities are also an integral part of this series.Each book has a particular theme incorporating the aforementioned elements.Areas of interest in the book include the following:Vocabulary buildingMannersTea etiquetteHistoryCultural arts, music, and artOther cultures and customsHumanitiesThese books will appeal to children aged four to ten.

This exciting collection of new essays suggests ways that cultural analysis can become more socially grounded, while also challenging sociology to learn from analytic perspectives developed outside the discipline.

This exciting collection of new essays suggests ways that cultural analysis can become more socially grounded, while also challenging sociology to learn from analytic perspectives developed outside the discipline.