The perfect gift for music lovers, The Mixtape of My Life is a guided journal that offers prompts and questions to get everyone recalling the pivotal songs that have shaped our lives. No matter which musical generation you belong to, or whether your musical tastes range from doo-wop to Daft Punk, The Mixtape of My Life can be an instant conversation starter among friends and family--and a great way to rediscover the special tunes that played during key moments of your life. Everyone has those songs that take them back--to their first love, their favorite concert, or a memorable Saturday morning cartoon. The Mixtape of My Life provides more than 200 questions and prompts to help readers chronicle their lives through music and explore their personal soundtrack. Evoking memories, stories, and long-forgotten mix tapes, this guided journal includes questions like "What was the first record you owned?" and "What song did you later realize was smutty?" and provides room to draw a favorite album cover or create the perfect road trip playlist. With dozens of quirky illustrations throughout, The Mixtape of My Life can be a great tool for your next dinner party, or simply something any music lover can enjoy for themselves.

Ernest Hemingway casts a long shadow in literature--reaching beyond his status as a giant of 20th-century fiction and a Nobel Prize winner--extending even into comic books. Appearing variously with Superman, Mickey Mouse, Captain Marvel, and Cerebus, he has even battled fascists alongside Wolverine in Spain and teamed up with Shade to battle adversaries in the Area of Madness. Robert K. Elder's research into Hemingway's comic presence demonstrates the truly international reach of Hemingway as a pop culture icon. In more than 120 appearances across multiple languages, Hemingway is often portrayed as the hypermasculine legend: bearded, boozed up, and ready to throw a punch. But just as often, comic book writers see past the bravado to the sensitive artist looking for validation. Hemingway's role in these comics ranges from the divine to the ridiculous, as his image is recorded, distorted, lampooned, and whittled down to its essential parts. As Elder notes, comic book creators and Hemingway share a natural kinship. The comic book page demands an economy of words, much like Hemingway's less-is-more "iceberg theory," only in graphic form. In addition, he turned out to be the perfect avatar for comic book artists wanting to tell history-rich stories, as he experienced beautiful places during the most chaotic times: Paris in the 1920s, Spain during the Spanish Civil War, Cuba on the brink of revolution, France during World War I and during World War II just after the Allies landed in Normandy. Hemingway in Comics provides a unique lens for considering one of our most influential authors. Not only for the dedicated Hemingway fan, this book will appeal to all those with an appreciation for comics, pop culture, and the absurd.

The movie that inspired filmmakers to direct is like the atomic bomb that went off before their eyes. "The Film That Changed My Life" captures that epiphany. It explores 30 directors' love of a film they saw at a particularly formative moment, how it influenced their own works, and how it made them think differently. "Rebel Without a Cause" inspired John Woo to comb his hair and talk like James Dean. For Richard Linklater, "something was simmering in me, but "Raging Bull" brought it to a boil." "Apocalypse Now" inspired Danny Boyle to make larger-than-life films. A single line from "The Wizard of Oz"--"Who could ever have thought a good little girl like you could destroy all my beautiful wickedness?"--had a direct impact on John Waters. "That line inspired my life," Waters says. "I sometimes say it to myself before I go to sleep, like a prayer." In this volume, directors as diverse as John Woo, Peter Bogdanovich, Michel Gondry, and Kevin Smith examine classic movies that inspired them to tell stories. Here are 30 inspired and inspiring discussions of classic films that shaped the careers of today's directors and, in turn, cinema history.

Did Ernest Hemingway kill 122 Nazis during World War II? Did he box heavyweight champion Gene Tunney? Did he grow his hair long and want to be called Catherine? Is it true that he threatened to fire anyone who drained his pool after Ava Gardner skinny-dipped in it? Mythbusting Hemingway will feature answers to these longstanding questions and more. It's fitting treatment for an author who won both the Pulitzer and Nobel prizes, survived back-to back plane crashes, and played the cello. He really was "The Most Interesting Man in the World," who once shot himself in the leg with a machine gun (while hunting sharks), got into a brawl with Orson Welles, and survived a domineering mother who dressed him up as the girl twin of his older sister until he was five. In this book, Hemingway myths--both true and debunked--will be informed by detective work the authors did for the Paris Review, Chicago Tribune, and Huffington Post--although 95 percent of the book is based on new discoveries. In addition, an original essay, never before published in a book, is included from Frances Elizabeth Coates, Hemingway's high-school classmate, after whom a character was modeled his sexually charged 1923 story "Up in Michigan."

Celebrate the season with the King of Rock 'n Roll! This 3-1/2" mini bobblehead of Elvis Presley will get you in the Christmas spirit--just push a button and he sings the refrain from three classic carols from his bestselling Christmas album. Kit also includes a mini book with quotes, trivia, and full-color images of Elvis.

Do you know what makes your partner tick? What makes them laugh uncontrollably? What their secret likes and dislikes are? The things that make them the happiest -- or the most scared? This fill-in journal--designed for two--features a mix of irreverent and serious questions that promote open communication and bonding, all with the fun of getting to know your partner better (even if you think you know everything about them already!) A little bit The Book of Questions, with a modern nod to the classic Newlywed Game, the book will be designed so that couples can answer the same questions, then share and compare. The perfect gift for newlyweds or longtime couples on their anniversary, Read Your Partner Like a Book is a fun, cheeky guide to your partner's mind--and could be the way to mutual happiness and understanding!

Director John Woo (b. 1946) reinvented the modern action movie and helped open the door for Asian filmmakers to the Western world. His hyper-violent, highly choreographed style made him a box office powerhouse, a respected auteur, and a revered figure among fellow directors.

First discovered by Western audiences through his Hong Kong films "The Killer" and "Hard Boiled," Woo introduced the world to a new brand of psychologically frenzied action film. After coming to the United States in the early 1990s, Woo produced a trilogy of hard-charging action films--"Broken Arrow," "Face/Off," and "Mission: Impossible II"--that were both popular and critically acclaimed. But Woo's signature bullet ballets, his kinetic, blood-spattered action sequences, represent a dichotomy in the director's philosophy. "John Woo: Interviews" reveals a peace-loving, devoutly religious man at odds with his reputation as the master of cinematic violence.

Unprecedented access to the director helped editor Robert K. Elder create in "John Woo: Interviews" the first authoritative English-language chronicle of Woo's career.

Robert K. Elder writes about film, the arts, travel, and music for the "Chicago Tribune." His work has appeared in the "New York Times," "Premiere," the "Los Angeles Times," the "Boston Globe," "Gear," the "Oregonian," and many other publications. A member of the Chicago Film Critics Association, Elder teaches film at the Facets Film School in Chicago.

In this book, 35 directors champion their favourite overlooked or critically savaged gems. Among these guilty pleasures, almost-masterpieces, and undeniable classics in need of revival are unsung noirs (Murder by Contract), famous flops (Can't Stop the Music , Joe Versus the Volcano), art films (L'ange), theatrical adaptations (The Iceman Cometh), B-movies (Killer Klowns from Outer Space), and even a few Oscar-winners (Some Came Running). In these conversations, the filmmakers defend their choices. These films, they argue, deserve a larger audience and for their place in movie history to be reconsidered. But the conversations' tangents, diversions, and side trips provide as much insight into the directors' own approach to moviemaking as into the film they're discussing. The filmmakers are the perfect hosts, often setting the tone, managing expectations, and giving advice about how you should watch each movie. They are often brutally honest about a film's shortcomings or the reasons why it was lost in the first place. This is not only a guide to some badly overlooked movies but a bold attempt to rewrite film history.