Most Popular Books by Ben Winters

From award-winning, New York Times bestselling novelist Ben H. Winters comes a mind-bending novel set in a world governed by absolute truth, where lies are as dangerous as murder. In a strange alternate society that values law and truth above all else, Laszlo Ratesic is a nineteen-year veteran of the Speculative Service. He lives in the Golden State, a nation standing where California once did, a place where like-minded Americans retreated after the erosion of truth and the spread of lies made public life and governance impossible. In the Golden State, knowingly contradicting the truth is the greatest crime -- and stopping those crimes is Laz''s job. In its service, he is one of the few individuals permitted to harbor untruths, to "speculate" on what might have happened. But the Golden State is less of a paradise than its name might suggest. To monitor, verify, and enforce the truth requires a veritable panopticon of surveillance and recording. And when those in control of the facts twist them for nefarious means, the Speculators are the only ones with the power to fight back.

This book examines the relationship between narrative film and reality, as seen through the lens of on-screen classical concert performance. By investigating these scenes, wherein the performance of music is foregrounded in the narrative, Winters uncovers how concert performance reflexively articulates music''s importance to the ontology of film. The book asserts that narrative film of a variety of aesthetic approaches and traditions is no mere copy of everyday reality, but constitutes its own filmic reality, and that the music heard in a film''s underscore plays an important role in distinguishing film reality from the everyday. As a result, concert scenes are examined as sites for provocative interactions between these two realities, in which real-world musicians appear in fictional narratives, and an audience’s suspension of disbelief is problematised. In blurring the musical experiences of onscreen observers and participants, these concert scenes also allegorize music’s role in creating a shared subjectivity between film audience and character, and prompt Winters to propose a radically new vision of music’s role in narrative cinema wherein musical underscore becomes part of a shared audio-visual space that may be just as accessible to the characters as the music they encounter in scenes of concert performance.

Korngold in America offers new ways of listening to the film scores and post-Hollywood concert works of Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897--1957), a Viennese-raised Austro-Hungarian composer who left Europe for Hollywood in the mid-1930s to write for Warner Bros. It reassesses Korngold''s place in twentieth-century music historiography and dismantles many of the myths that have obscured a proper understanding of his work. Drawing on previously unpublished archival materials, Korngold in America reveals Korngold''s commercial and artistic relationships with studio processes and staff, highlights aspects of his compositional practice, and traces the way in which he adapted his skills as a musical dramatist and experienced opera composer to the demands of film. The book presents a more complete picture of Korngold''s artistry than has hitherto been possible, showing both the important role played by his music in the Hollywood films of which it is a part and the importance in turn of Hollywood films for his compositional identity. In so doing, it challenges assumptions about the relationship between Korngold''s film scores and his works for the concert hall and opera house in ways that draw attention to the significance of Hollywood for histories of twentieth-century music.

Among the many fine examples of film scores by Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897-1957), the score for The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) stands out the most. Winner of the Academy Award(tm) for best dramatic score in 1938, it is seen by many as the archetypal accompaniment to a Warner Brothers swashbuckler, and it established Korngold as one of the leading exponents of film score composition at a formative point in its history. In Erich Wolfgang Korngold''s The Adventures of Robin Hood: A Film Score Guide, author Ben Winters uses manuscript and archival research to challenge preconceived notions about the score''s composer and its authorship. In the first two chapters, Winters examines Korngold''s career on its own and in relation to the film, including his background in composing concert music and opera, his film scoring techniques, and his engagement with the Hollywood studio system. Chapter three focuses on the Robin Hood film while placing Korngold''s music in a larger framework. It examines the film''s treatment of the Robin Hood legend, its historical and critical contexts, and its place within the swashbuckler genre and the studio''s anti-fascist agenda. While looking closely at the composer''s work on this score, chapter four shows sources Korngold used, the music''s production process, and the changes the score had undergone. The book concludes with a thematic analysis and reading of the score, identifying the various musical ''voices'' that the listener weaves together as he or she experiences the film. This detailed consideration of Korngold''s masterpiece will be continually turned to by film and music scholars alike.

How to stop a runaway cable car, stay warm in the summer, park on a hill, eat sushi, escape from Alcatraz, and tell if you''ve gone too "green."

Fake your way through a presentation, slip out of the room unnoticed, stay awake through agenda overload, and video conference from the beach.

The ultimate survival guide for dealing with all things feline, from hairballs and litter box malfunctions to catnip overdoses, apathy, and bossiness.

This comprehensive guide isn''t about quick fixes or extreme diets — it''s about sustainable, long-lasting results. Whether you''re just starting your weight loss journey or have tried everything, these proven strategies will guide you step-by-step toward your goals. Each chapter tackles essential aspects of weight loss, from understanding your body''s needs to creating healthy habits that stick. You''ll uncover the power of mindful eating, the importance of a balanced diet, the role of physical activity, and how sleep and stress management contribute to your success. Packed with actionable tips and real-world advice, this book empowers you to take control of your health. Some of things you will discover include: · How to consistently measure your weight so as to make it easy to do day-to-day comparisons · How to keep track of your weight, and really know if you are gaining or losing · How to set yourself weight loss goals, and adjust them as you go · How to make healthy lifestyle choices that you will stick with rather than abandon after a short time · The most reliable way to incorporate regular exercise into your daily routine · How to choose sporting activities that will keep you motivated · How setting ambitious goals can help you achieve more than you might have ever thought possible · How to shop for healthy foods, and how to really read labels Our Weight Loss Recipes are specially designed to fill you up with the essential nutrients, solve unnecessary cravings and satisfy your hunger. In addition, if you follow these recipes strictly, you should burn unwanted fats and balance calorie intake at any given time. This is a start to your weight loss journey. And if you are ready, enjoy the recipes below or tweak them healthily as you desire.

"Questa serie crime, strana e bellissima, e sfacciatamente apocalittica, è una delle mie preferite in assoluto." - John Green

«Ben Winters fa fare alla narrativa crime un passo avanti, con il suo disperato detective che indaga mentre un asteroide si avvicina a gran velocità alla Terra.» Wired «Prima di Ben Winters, solo Stephen King è riuscito a risucchiarmi talmente tanto in un romanzo da lasciarmi andare a letto solo quando, esausto, ho girato l''ultima pagina.» Mystery Scene Magazine

"È impossibile non amare Hank e il suo bisogno di fare la cosa giusta. La premessa di questa seria è fortissima, e riesce a dare una straordinaria limpidezza alle azioni di personaggi che diventano davvero se stessi di fronte alla realtà della fine del mondo." Library Journal

In his 1985 book The Idea of Music: Schoenberg and Others, Peter Franklin set out a challenge for musicology: namely, how best to talk and write about the music of modern European culture that fell outside of the modernist mainstream typified by Schoenberg, Berg, and Webern? Thirty years on, this collected volume of essays by Franklin''s students and colleagues returns to that challenge and the vibrant intellectual field that has since developed. Moving freely between insights into opera, Volksoper, film, festival, and choral movement, and from the very earliest years of the twentieth century up to the 1980s, its authors listen with a ''critical ear'' they site these musical phenomena within a wider web of modern cultural practices - a perspective, in turn, that enables them to exercise a disciplinary self-awareness after Franklin''s manner.