Gertrude could be a good read for those who appreciate complex relationships and the power of art. Through the intertwined lives of Kuhn, Gertrude, and Heinrich, Herman Hesse explores the depths of human emotions and the consequences of ill-fated love. The allure of this book lies in its ability to transport readers into the world of music, where passion and heartbreak come together in a symphony of emotions. Prepare to be captivated by the mesmerizing melodies and the lingering impact they have on the characters' lives.

This is the highly anticipated second novel by Angie Thomas, the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning The Hate U Give.Sixteen-year-old Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Or at least win her first battle. As the daughter of an underground hip hop legend who died right before he hit big, Bri’s got massive shoes to fill.But it’s hard to get your come up when you’re labeled a hoodlum at school, and your fridge at home is empty after your mom loses her job. So Bri pours her anger and frustration into her first song, which goes viral…for all the wrong reasons.Bri soon finds herself at the center of a controversy, portrayed by the media as more menace than MC. But with an eviction notice staring her family down, Bri doesn’t just want to make it—she has to. Even if it means becoming the very thing the public has made her out to be.  Insightful, unflinching, and full of heart, On the Come Up is an ode to hip hop from one of the most influential literary voices of a generation. It is the story of fighting for your dreams, even as the odds are stacked against you; and about how, especially for young black people, freedom of speech isn’t always free.

Over half a million copies sold!From the author of the highly acclaimed heavy metal memoir, Fargo Rock City , comes another hilarious and discerning take on massively popular culture—set in Chuck Klosterman’s den and your own—covering everything from the effect of John Cusack flicks to the crucial role of breakfast cereal to the awesome power of the Dixie Chicks.Countless writers and artists have spoken for a generation, but no one has done it quite like Chuck Klosterman. With an exhaustive knowledge of popular culture and an almost effortless ability to spin brilliant prose out of unlikely subject matter, Klosterman attacks the entire spectrum of postmodern America: reality TV, Internet porn, Pamela Anderson, literary Jesus freaks, and the real difference between apples and oranges (of which there is none). And don’t even get him started on his love life and the whole Harry-Met-Sally situation.Whether deconstructing Saved by the Bell episodes or the artistic legacy of Billy Joel, the symbolic importance of The Empire Strikes Back or the Celtics/Lakers rivalry, Chuck will make you think, he’ll make you laugh, and he’ll drive you insane—usually all at once. Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs is ostensibly about art, entertainment, infotainment, sports, politics, and kittens, but—really—it’s about us. All of us. As Klosterman realizes late at night, in the moment before he falls asleep, “In and of itself, nothing really matters. What matters is that nothing is ever ‘in and of itself.’” Read to believe.

Recommendation: The Grumpy Guide to Life is a hilarious read for those who appreciate a dry, sarcastic sense of humor. Grumpy Cat's demotivational guide will have readers laughing out loud while giving them a refreshing perspective on life. With new photos of Grumpy Cat's famous frown and uninspiring observations, this book is a perfect gift for the cynical realists in your life.

What Charles Rosen's celebrated book The Classical Style did for music of the Classical period, this new, much-awaited volume brilliantly does for the Romantic era. An exhilarating exploration of the musical language, forms, and styles of the Romantic period, it captures the spirit that enlivened a generation of composers and musicians, and in doing so it conveys the very sense of Romantic music. In readings uniquely informed by his performing experience, Rosen offers consistently acute and thoroughly engaging analyses of works by Schubert, Schumann, Mendelssohn, Bellini, Liszt, and Berlioz, and he presents a new view of Chopin as a master of polyphony and large-scale form. He adeptly integrates his observations on the music with reflections on the art, literature, drama, and philosophy of the time, and thus shows us the major figures of Romantic music within their intellectual and cultural context.Rosen covers a remarkably broad range of music history and considers the importance to nineteenth-century music of other cultural the art of landscape, a changed approach to the sacred, the literary fragment as a Romantic art form. He sheds new light on the musical sensibilities of each composer, studies the important genres from nocturnes and songs to symphonies and operas, explains musical principles such as the relation between a musical idea and its realization in sound and the interplay between music and text, and traces the origins of musical ideas prevalent in the Romantic period. Rich with striking descriptions and telling analogies, Rosen's overview of Romantic music is an accomplishment without parallel in the literature, a consummate performance by a master pianist and music historian.

night music by moyes, jojo

From YouTube's Head of Culture and Trends, a rousing and illuminating behind-the-scenes exploration of internet video's massive impact on our world.Whether your favorite YouTube video is a cat on a Roomba, “Gangnam Style,” the “Bed Intruder” song, an ASAPscience explainer, Rebecca Black's “Friday,” or the “Evolution of Dance,” Kevin Allocca's Videocracy reveals how these beloved videos and famous trends--and many more--came to be and why they mean more than you might think.YouTube is the biggest pool of cultural data since the beginning of recorded communication, with four hundred hours of video uploaded every minute. (It would take you more than sixty-five years just to watch to watch the vlogs, music videos, tutorials, and other content posted in a single day!) This activity reflects who we are, in all our glory and ignominy. As Allocca says, if aliens wanted to understand our planet, he'd give them Google. If they wanted to understand us, he'd give them YouTube.In Videocracy, Allocca lays bare what YouTube videos say about our society and how our actions online--watching, sharing, commenting on, and remixing the people and clips that captivate us--are changing the face of entertainment, advertising, politics, and more. Via YouTube, we are fueling social movements, enforcing human rights, and redefining art--a lot more than you'd expect from a bunch of viral clips.

Bright Side could be a good read for those who enjoy stories about overcoming adversity and finding love and hope in unexpected places. The book is filled with strong characters, especially the protagonist Kate, who captivate the reader with their wit and strength. The author beautifully weaves in the themes of self-discovery, friendship, and tragedy, leaving readers with a profound sense of hope and inspiration. Highly recommended for anyone who needs a little more positivity in their life.

Blood by Allison Moorer is a captivating memoir that delves into the dark past of the author when she witnessed the murder-suicide of her parents. The author, an award-winning musician, beautifully narrates her life story through lyrical storytelling. She discusses how one can overcome shame, trauma, and find a safe haven in life. The memoir is vivid, intimate and life-affirming, written with an unbreakable bond of the two sisters who share their lives. The book's uniqueness lies in its honest and brave portrayal of the tragic incident and how it shaped her life. It's a must-read for anyone who loves memoirs of resilience.

For 6,557 miles, from New York to Mississippi to Seattle, Chuck Klosterman decided to chase rock n roll and death across a continent. 21 days later, after three relationships, an encounter with various cottonmouth snakes, and a night spent snorting cocaine in a graveyard, Klosterman started to order his thoughts on American culture and the meaning of celebrity.

Founding member and guitarist of Joy Division and the lead singer of New Order, Bernard Sumner has been famous over the years for his reticence. Until now… An integral part of the Manchester music scene since the late 1970s, his is the definitive version of the events that created two of the most influential bands of all time. Chapter and Verse includes a vivid and illuminating account of Bernard’s Salford childhood, the early days of Joy Division, the band’s enormous critical and popular success, and the subsequent tragic death of Ian Curtis. Bernard describes the formation of New Order, takes us behind the scenes at the birth of classics such as 'Blue Monday' and gives his first-hand account of the ecstasy and the agony of the Haçienda days.Sometimes moving, often hilarious and occasionally completely out of control, this is a tale populated by some of the most colourful and creative characters in music history, such as Ian Curtis, Tony Wilson, Rob Gretton and Martin Hannett. Others have told parts of the story, in film and book form. Now, for the first time, Bernard Sumner gives you chapter and verse.

All human cultures seem to make music - today and through history. But why they do so, why music can excite deep passions, and how we make sense of musical sound at all are questions that have, until recently, remained profoundly mysterious. Now in The Music Instinct Philip Ball provides the first comprehensive, accessible survey of what is known - and what is still unknown - about how music works its magic, and why, as much as eating and sleeping, it seems indispensable to humanity. Even with what appear to be the simplest of tunes, the brain is performing some astonishing gymnastics: finding patterns and regularities, forming interpretations and expectations that create a sense of aesthetic pleasure. Without requiring any specialist knowledge of music or science, The Music Instinct explores how the latest research in music psychology and brain science is piecing together the puzzle of how our minds understand and respond to music. Ranging from Bach fugues to Javanese gamelan, from nursery rhymes to heavy rock, Philip Ball interweaves philosophy, mathematics, history and neurology to reveal why music moves us in so many ways. The Music Instinct will not only deepen your appreciation of the music you love, but will also guide you into pastures new, opening a window on music that once seemed alien, dull or daunting. And it offers a passionate plea for the importance of music in education and in everyday life, arguing that, whether we know it or not, we can all claim to be musical experts.

Douglas Hofstadter's book is concerned directly with the nature of “maps” or links between formal systems. However, according to Hofstadter, the formal system that underlies all mental activity transcends the system that supports it. If life can grow out of the formal chemical substrate of the cell, if consciousness can emerge out of a formal system of firing neurons, then so too will computers attain human intelligence. Gödel, Escher, Bach is a wonderful exploration of fascinating ideas at the heart of cognitive science: meaning, reduction, recursion, and much more.

From Beatlemania in the early 1960s to the Directioners and Beyhive of today, female music fans have long driven the objects of their affection to the dizzying heights of life-changing fame. But marginalized fan groups are never given appropriate credit. Frequently derided, their worlds and communities are self-contained and rarely investigated by cultural historians and commentators. Yet without these people, in the past, records would have gathered dust on shelves, unsold and forgotten. Now, concerts wouldn't sell out and revenue streams from merchandising would disappear, changing the face of the music industry as we know it. In Fangirls: Scenes From Modern Music Culture, journalist Hannah Ewens is on a mission to give these individuals their rightful due. A dedicated music lover herself, she has spoken to hundreds of fans from the UK to Japan to trace their path through recent pop and rock history. She's found the untold stories behind important events and uncovered the ups, the downs and the lengths fans go to, celebrating the camaraderie and lifelines their fandoms can provide.

The popular recording star recounts her modest beginnings, her rise to fame with Ike Turner, the heartaches of disappointment that led her to strike out on her own, and her sweep of the Grammy Awards in 1985

Bennie is an aging former punk rocker and record executive. Sasha is the passionate, troubled young woman he employs. Here Jennifer Egan brilliantly reveals their pasts, along with the inner lives of a host of other characters whose paths intersect with theirs. With music pulsing on every page, A Visit from the Goon Squad is a startling, exhilarating novel of self-destruction and redemption.

Ryder, a renowned pianist, arrives in a Central European city he cannot identify for a concert he cannot remember agreeing to give. But then as he traverses a landscape by turns eerie and comical – and always strangely malleable, as a dream might be - he comes steadily to realise he is facing the most crucial performance of his life.Ishiguro's extraordinary and original study of a man whose life has accelerated beyond his control was met on publication by consternation, vilification – and the highest praise.

This text offers a comprehensive explanation of how humans experience music and unravels the mystery of our perennial love affair with it. It reveals the role of music in human evolution, shows how our musical preferences begin to form even before we are born and explains why music can offer such an emotional experience.

Recommendation: This memoir by Pete Townshend takes readers on a revealing journey through the history of the iconic band, The Who. With raw honesty and intelligence, Townshend shares his personal stories, giving readers a glimpse into the world of rock 'n' roll rebellion. If you're a music enthusiast or a fan of The Who, this book is a must-read, allowing you to understand the origins and essence of one of the greatest rock bands of the twentieth century.

This book would be a good read for someone who wants to explore the rich tapestry of immigrant experiences in the United States through the lens of a single musical instrument. Accordion Crimes takes readers on a captivating journey through time and across different states, painting a vivid picture of the lives, dreams, and struggles of various immigrant communities. The author weaves together stories with such mastery that it feels like you're hearing an entire symphony of voices all connected by a single accordion. Get ready for an immersive and emotionally resonant reading experience.

"The Stars in Our Eyes" is a great read for anyone who has ever been captivated by celebrity culture. Klam provides an insightful analysis of why we are drawn to celebrities, the consequences of fame, and the impact of social media on the celebrity landscape. Her writing is humorous and engaging, making this book a fun and informative exploration of the power of celebrity in modern society.

"Mix Tape" is a beautiful novel about the power of music to connect people, even across time and distance. It tells the story of Alison and Daniel, who are reunited through a series of mixtapes that transport them back to their youth and the first love they never quite forgot. This nostalgic and romantic tale is perfect for anyone who has ever wondered about the road not taken in life or the one that got away.

The powerful and bestselling memoir of a young Jewish pianist who survived the war in Warsaw against all odds. Made into a Bafta and Oscar-winning film.

Worn dust jacket has a short tears to the edges, page edges tanned. Orders received by 3pm Sent from the UK that weekday.

Alongside Greil Marcus, Nick Kent, and Lester Bangs, Ian Penman is one of the most important cultural critics of his generation. Long the star writer for Britain's NEW MUSICAL EXPRESS, Penman achieved something few music writers even dream of--he changed the way the subject was written about. VITAL SIGNS is the first collection of his writing.

From the land of the rising sun, strangely practical and utterly eccentric inventions for a life of ease―and hilarity. In Japan, Kenji Kawakami is famous for his tireless promotion of Chindogu: the art of the unuseless idea. Kawakami has developed an entire philosophy around these bizarre and logic-defying gadgets and gizmos, which must work but are actually entirely impractical. Created in the spirit of anarchy, unuseless inventions are not allowed to be patented or sold. Fans of the unuseless will love this completely absorbing collection of 200 Chindogu, including: These hilarious inventions have taken Japan by storm. Every one of the 200 items in The Big Bento Box of Unuseless Japanese Inventions has actually been manufactured to the highest standards, fully tested by pioneering members of the Japanese public, and documented in their unuselessness with photographs. 442 color photographs

This book is perfect for intermediate pianists who want to improve their technique, and prepare for the Grade 4 ABRSM Piano exam. The book contains all the scales and broken chords required for the exam, and provides suggested fingerings, making it easy for the user to follow along. The book also includes a helpful introduction which provides advice on preparing for the exam, making it an essential resource for anyone wanting to improve their piano skills.

This book is a must-read for opera enthusiasts looking to delve into the history of opera's staging techniques. From Renaissance to Puccini's time, it covers diverse national schools and periods, providing a rich understanding of operatic productions. The essays by esteemed scholars provide an in-depth examination of representative productions, making it an invaluable resource for students and researchers.

Music of the HeartTaiyou is a high-school musician with dreams of stardom, but when his bandmates quit in order to focus on school, it feels like Taiyou’s dreams are slipping away. In an act of desperation, Taiyou strong-arms his sullen classmate Hikari into forming a band with him. The two boys are total opposites, but together they might just be able to create something amazing.

Recommended for music history buffs and fans. Provides insightful look at the underground and subversive music scene, featuring legendary bands like Black Flag, Sonic Youth and Husker Du.