Caught up in the tide of travel & exploration, Alexia drifts further away from the life she left behind in New York City. Hoping to find a thriving local bath scene, she dips into hamams, banyas, saunas, & onsen, finding both disappointment & bliss. This work is an account of one woman's determination to follow her passion. ...

In the hierarchy of the Christian Church, a cathedral is the seat of a bishopric. They are important centers of religious activity, as well as the venue of social functions & celebrations. This book documents 100 of the world's most interesting cathedrals. ...

Demonstrates the range of topics & approaches in contemporary discussions of Willa Cather's work, suitable for the informed reader or the specialized student. This title, featuring 14 essays, examines Cather's Catholic Progressivism, her literary relations with William Faulkner, & her place in the multicultural canon of American literature. ...

An English-language book on controversial female director Catherine Breillat, whose films include " Romance", A ma soeur! (Fat Girl), Anatomy of Hell & most recently, The Last Mistress. It explores the director's complex relation to religion & to feminism, & examines the differences between Breillat's films & patriarchal pornography. ...

Compilation of seven of Catherine Cookson's most popular novels in feature-length TV adaptations. In ' The Cinder Path', after an unhappy childhood on his father's farm, Charlie Mac Fell (Lloyd Owen) marries the beautiful Victoria Chapman (Catherine Zeta-Jones). Happiness still eludes him, however, as his wife indulges in a series of adulterous affairs. Fighting at the front in the First World War, Charlie discovers a new strength within himself, winning the respect of his men. But when he returns home Charlie finds himself falling in love with his wife's younger sister. In ' The Man Who Cried', Abel Mason (Ciaran Hinds) is a man wracked with guilt, who leaves his wife for a married woman after a series of adulterous betrayals. When tragedy strikes, Abel builds a new life & finds new love, but can his son Dick keep his father's secret? In ' The Round Tower', seventeen-year-old Vanessa Ratcliffe (Emilia Fox) rebels against her wealthy middle-class parents by embarking on an affair with Angus Cotton (Ben Miles), a worker at her father's Newcastle engineering works. When Vanessa becomes pregnant, the repercussions rock her family. In ' The Tide of Life', a young girl blossoms quickly into womanhood through tough & tender relationships with three different men. In ' Colour Blind', Bridget Mc Queen (Niamh Cusack) causes familial uproar when she returns home with a black husband (Tony Armatrading). Their problems intensify with the birth of their mixed-race child, Rose Angela, who, in turn, struggles to make her way in the world against overwhelming odds. However, a chance encounter with a stranger changes the course of her life forever. In 'A Dinner of Herbs', in 19th century Northumberl&, Roddy Greenbank's (Jonathan Kerrigan) father meets a violent end shortly after he arrives to live with him. Roddy is taken in by his father's close friend Kate Makepeace (Billie Whitelaw), & forges strong bonds with locals Hal (Tom Goodman-Hill) & Mary Ellen (Melanie Clark Pullen). However, as they get older, the friendship between the trio comes under increasing pressure, as Roddy's artistic ambitions & Hal's vengeful nature lead to conflict between the pair. Finally, in ' The Gambling Man', Rory Connor (Robson Green) feels trapped by the slums of South Shields & decides to gamble his way out of poverty. ...

Compilation of seven of Catherine Cookson's most popular novels in feature-length TV adaptations. In ' The Girl', Hannah Boyle (Siobhan Flynn), much loved by her father Matthew Thornton (Malcolm Stoddard) is hated by his wife Anne (Jill Baker). When tragedy befalls the Thornton household, Anne exacts her revenge on Hannah who has grown into a beautiful woman by making her marry the local butcher. In ' The Fifteen Streets', in turn-of-the-century Newcastle, dockworker John O' Brien (Owen Teale) falls for Mary Llewellyn (Clare Holman), a shipbuilder's daughter. Their differences in class threaten to break up their relationship, but true love eventually conquers all. In ' Rag Nymph', young Millie Forester (Perdita Weeks) is sent to stay in a convent after her mother dies in a Newcastle brothel & the attentions of the brothel-owner are turned on the girl. However, the lively ten-year-old soon falls foul of the nuns' bigotry & she returns to the care of ' Raggie Aggie' (Val Mc Lane). As a grown-up (Honeysuckle Weeks) & beautiful woman she is exposed to the corrupting influences of the Newcastle streets at the turn of the century & is abducted to the same brothel in which her mother died. ' The Wingless Bird' is set during the First World War & tells the story of 22-year-old Agnes Conway (Claire Skinner), who seems destined to look after her father's sweet shop while her more attractive younger sister garners attention from the local men. However, when her sister becomes pregnant by a working class boy, Agnes discovers skeletons in her father's cupboard. She is swept off her feet when Charles Farrier (Edwards Atterton) proposes to her (against the wishes of his wealthy family), only to fall for his brother Reginald (Julian Wadham) when he returns from the war. ' The Dwelling Place' is set in rural Northumberland during the 1830s. It is the story of Cissie Brodie's struggle to keep her family intact when the sudden death of her parents causes them to be evicted from their cottage. Local carpenter Matthew (Ray Stevenson) helps Cissie (Tracy Whitwell) look after her five brothers, & eventually falls in love with her, but Cissie becomes pregnant after being raped by a local aristocrat. In ' The Glass Virgin', ten-year-old Annabella (Emily Mortimer) lives a life of luxury with her womanising father & the woman she assumes is her mother. When a maid is sacked for calling Annabella a 'little bastard', the secret starts to seep out; she is the daughter of a local prostitute. When Annabella is 17 the truth is finally revealed by her father & she flees the home in search of a new life with her father's young groom, Manuel (Brendan Coyle), as her lover & companion. In ' Tilly Trotter', industrial Tyneside in 1838 is the home of Tilly Trotter (Carli Norris), whose family has fallen into poverty. Tilly does her best to care for her bedridden grandfather, & is visited every month by local farmer Simon Brentwood. This arouses the jealousy & suspicion of the locals, who brand her a witch. Thinking that Brentwood is having an affair with Tilly, the villainous Hal Mc Grath (Shaun Mechen) decides to have her for himself. Whilst Tilly endures great hardships that life throws at her
- working in the coal mines while pining with unrequited love
- she ultimately triumphs over her adversities. Finally, Mike Nevill narrates a documentary about Catherine Cookson entitled ' The Storyteller'. Born into poverty in 1906, Catherine's rags-to-riches story reflected those of the many characters she went on to create; she turned to writing at the insistence of her doctor after a period of depression, & went on to become one of England's best-selling writers.

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