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Before Sexuality: The Construction of Erotic Experience in the Ancient Greek World (PDF)
by Froma I. Zeitlin John J. Winkler David M. HalperinA dream in which a man has sex with his mother may promise him political or commercial success--according to dream interpreters of late antiquity, who, unlike modern Western analysts, would not necessarily have drawn conclusions from the dream about the dreamer's sexual psychology. Evidence of such shifts in perspective is leading scholars to reconsider in a variety of creative ways the history of sexuality. In these fifteen original essays, eminent cultural historians and classicists not only discuss sex, but demonstrate how norms, practices, and even the very definitions of what counts as sexual activity have varied significantly over time. Ancient Greece offers abundant evidence for a radically different set of sexual standards and behaviors from ours. Sex in ancient Hellenic culture assumed a variety of social and political meanings, whereas the modern development of a sex-centered model of personality now leads us to view sex as the key to understanding the individual. Drawing on both the Anglo-American tradition of cultural anthropology and the French tradition of les sciences humaines, these essays explore the iconography, politics, ethics, poetry, and medical practices that made sex in ancient Greece not a paradise of liberation but an exotic locale hardly recognizable to visitors from the modern world. In addition to the editors, the contributors to this volume are Peter Brown, Anne Carson, Franoise Frontisi-Ducroux, Maud W. Gleason, Ann Ellis Hanson, Franois Lissarrague, Nicole Loraux, Maurice Olender, S.R.F. Price, James Redfield, Giulia Sissa, and Jean-Pierre Vernant.
Before She Dies (Center Point Platinum Romance (large Print) Ser.)
by Mary BurtonMary Burton's Before She Dies is a masterpiece of suspense and psychological thrills. He Is Their Judge . . . In death, they are purified. Holding his victims under water, he washes away their sins as they struggle for their last breath. Then he stakes their bodies to the ground, exposing them for what they really are. Witches, sent to tempt and to corrupt . . . Jury . . . No one knows about defence attorney Charlotte Wellington's murdered sister, or about her childhood spent with the carnival that's just arrived in town. For Charlotte, what's past is past. But others don't agree. And as a madman's body count rises, she and Detective Daniel Rokov are drawn into a mission that's become terrifyingly personal . . . And ExecutionerAt last, she is within his reach. All his victims deserve their fate, but her guilt is greatest. And with every scream, he will make her see what it means to suffer and repent . . .Before She Dies will keep you guessing until the very end and leave you longing for more. Heroine Charlotte Wellington, who appeared in Senseless and Merciless, gets her own amazing story to tell and a hero at her side, Detective Daniel Rokov, who is willing to go toe-to-toe with the irascible Charlotte. Mary Burton's slick, pacy serial killer thriller Before She Dies is guaranteed to send a chill down your spine - a perfect read for fans of Tess Gerritsen, Kathy Reichs, and Karin Slaughter. Praise for Mary Burton:'A twisted tale . . . I couldn't put it down!' Lisa Jackson 'Stieg Larsson fans will find a lot to like in Burton's taut, well-paced novel' Publishers Weekly Mary Burton is the critically acclaimed author of I'm Watching You, Dead Ringer, Dying Scream, Merciless and Senseless - all set in Virginia, USA, where Mary lives with her family.
Before She Disappeared: the gripping must-read crime thriller from the Sunday Times bestselling author
by Lisa GardnerYour Next Obsession . . . A gripping thriller featuring an ordinary woman who will stop at nothing to find the missing people that the rest of the world has forgotten.* Sunday Times bestselling novel ** Multi-million copy bestselling author ** TV series optioned! Hilary Swank to star and co-produce *'Original, chilling and so gripping I had to remind myself to take a breath' Clare Mackintosh'I just read Before She Disappeared in a day and a half. It was that gripping.' Shair Lapena'A first-class crime novel by a master of the thriller genre' David Baldacci'Sharply-written, tension-filled yarn full of twists readers are unlikely to see coming.' Daily Mail'This time [Lisa] truly hits it out of the park. ' Tess Gerritsen___________Frankie Elkin is an average middle-aged woman with more regrets than belongings who spends her life doing what no one else will: searching for missing people the world has stopped looking for. When the police have given up, when the public no longer remembers, when the media has never paid attention, Frankie starts looking.A new case brings Frankie to Mattapan, a Boston neighborhood with a rough reputation. She is searching for Angelique Badeau, a Haitian teenager who vanished from her high school months earlier.Resistance from the Boston PD and the victim's wary family tells Frankie she's on her own. And she soon learns she's asking questions someone doesn't want answered.But Frankie will stop at nothing to discover the truth, even if it means the next person to go missing will be her ...___________Readers love Before She Disappeared . . .***** 'I'm shaken, slowly crying, barely gathering right words to tell how I wholeheartedly loved this book and how deeply affected me with its resonating, realistic, deeply layered character portraits!'***** 'I have always loved Lisa Gardner's books and her new Frankie Elkin series is just as intriguing and exciting as all the others I have read.'***** 'This is yet another wonderful mystery/suspense novel from Lisa Gardner.'***** 'An outstanding thriller.'***** 'Loved it! It was an absolute page turner for me, I flew through it in one day.'___________'A rocket-fuel-propelled thriller that will leave you breathless' Gregg Hurwitz'Tense and immersive' Booklist'A crackling mystery, gritty atmosphere and an unforgettable heroine.' Riley Sager'There's only one thing to ask for by the time the book ends: please, please, a sequel and a series!' New York Journal of Books'A sharply written, tension-filled yarn full of twists readers are unlikely to see coming' Associated Press
Before She Finds Me: A Novel
by Heather ChavezTwo unlikely mothers race to uncover the truth behind a horrific attack—even after it becomes clear that the truth will destroy one of their families—in this shocking thriller that is "both timely and emotional" (Julie Clark, New York Times bestselling author). "Slick, smart, layered, and full of surprises." —Lisa Unger "An exciting thriller perfect for fans of Mr. and Mrs. Smith and Pieces of Her." —Buzzfeed "Wholly addictive." —May Cobb "Chavez is at the top of her game." —Jeneva Rose "Fresh and surprising." —BookPage (starred review) Named a "Summer Must-Read" by CrimeReads • Book Riot • BuzzFeed • Fresh Fiction • BookBub • Wealth of Geeks • Daily Times • Ground News • SheReads • Mercury News • East Bay Times • Boston Herald • The Orange County Register Julia Bennett has worked hard to create a stable life for her daughter, Cora, in Southern California. So when Cora leaves for college, the worst thing Julia expects on move-in day is an argument with her ex-husband and his new wife. But a sudden attack leaves the campus stunned—and only Julia&’s quick actions save Cora&’s life. Shaken in the aftermath, and haunted by a dark secret, Julia starts to wonder: What if the attack wasn&’t as random as everyone believes? Newly pregnant Ren Petrovic has an unusual career—she&’s a trained assassin, operating under a strict moral code. Ren wasn&’t on campus that day, but she knows who was: her husband, Nolan. What she doesn&’t know is why Nolan has broken their rules by not telling her about the job in advance. The more Ren looks into the attack, the more she begins to question: Who really hired Nolan? And why did one woman in the crowd respond so differently from all the rest? Julia and Ren each want answers, but their searches quickly pit them against each other. One woman is a hired killer, but the other is a determined survivor. And both mothers will defend their families to the bitter end.
Before She Knew Him: A Novel
by Peter SwansonA Sunday Times and Observer Thriller of the Month, from the bestselling author of The Kind Worth Killing and All the Beautiful Lies'They had a secret, the two of them, and there was no better way to start a friendship than with a secret.'When Hen and Lloyd move into their new house in West Dartford, Mass., they're relieved to meet, at their first block party, the only other seemingly-childless couple in their neighborhood, Matthew and Mira Dolamore. Turns out they live in the Dutch Colonial immediately next door. When they're invited over for dinner, however, things take a sinister turn when Hen thinks she sees something suspicious in Matthew's study. Could this charming, mild-mannered College Professor really be hiding a dark secret, one that only Hen, whose been battling her own problems with depression and medication, could know about? Lloyd certainly doesn't seem to believe her, and so, forced together, Hen and Matthew start to form an unlikely bond. But who, if anyone, is really in danger?From its deeply unsettling opening, Peter Swanson, the master of contemporary domestic thrillers, fashions a novel as brilliant, dark, coruscating and surprising as Patricia Highsmith and Ira Levin at their very best.
Before She Met Me
by Julian BarnesWinner of the Man Booker Prize for Fiction 2011Graham Hendrick, an historian, has left his wife Barbara for the vivacious Ann, and is more than pleased with his new life. Until, that is, the day he discovers Ann's celluloid past as a mediocre film actress. Soon Graham is pouncing on old clues, examining her books for inscriptions from past lovers, frequenting cinemas and poring over the bad movies she appeared in. It's not that he blames Anne for having a past before they met, but history has always mattered to him...
Before She Was Found (Hq Fiction Ebook Ser.)
by Heather Gudenkauf‘Eerily page-turning and wonderfully twisty.’ Kimberly McCreight, New York Times bestselling author One of them knows what happened that night…
Before Silent Spring: Pesticides and Public Health in Pre-DDT America (PDF)
by James C. WhortonModern consumers are well aware that the food they eat is tainted by pesticidal residues; they are less aware that their great-grandparents faced the same hazard. James C. Whorton's history of this public health menace emphasizes that insecticides have been contaminating produce since the introduction of chemical pesticides in the 1860s.The book examines the period before the publication of Rachel Carson's famous Silent Spring, tracing the origins of the residue problem and exploring the complicated network of interest groups that formed around the issue. The author shows how economic necessities, technological limitations, and pressures on regulatory agencies have brought us to "our present dilemma of seemingly having to poison our food in order to protect it." In Part I, the agricultural and medical literature of the past century is used to analyze the emergence by 1920 of a public health danger of serious proportions. Part II draws heavily on the unpublished records of the Food and Drug Administration to document how the ineffective handling of this danger established precedents for present pesticide abuses.Originally published in 1975.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.
Before Sound: Re-Composing Material, Time, and Bodies in Music (Musik und Klangkultur #64)
by Tiziano MancaIn Before Sound, composer Tiziano Manca investigates the premises for and consequences of a major change in his compositional practice: this change emphasizes the temporality of sound and, more recently, the relationship between sounding body and musician. It calls into question the traditional conception of composition and its relation to sound material. Accordingly, Manca examines the theoretical and aesthetic reasons for this shift by interweaving aesthetic reflection on his work with historical research on the notion of musical material and the theory of sound production.
Before Stonewall: Activists for Gay and Lesbian Rights in Historical Context
by Vern L BulloughExplore the early history of the gay rights movement!In the words of editor Vern L. Bullough: “Although there was no single leader in the gay and lesbian community who achieved the fame and reputation of Martin Luther King, there were a large number of activists who put their careers and reputations on the line. It was a motley crew of radicals and reformers, drawn together by the cause in spite of personality and philosophical differences. Their stories are told in the following pages.”Before Stonewall: Activists for Gay and Lesbian Rights in Historical Context illuminates the lives of the courageous individuals involved in the early struggle for gay and lesbian civil rights in the United States. Authored by those who knew them (often activists themselves), the concise biographies in this volume examine the lives of pre-1969 barrier breakers like Harry Hay, Henry Gerber, Alfred Kinsey, Del Martin, Phyllis Lyon, Jim Kepner, Jack Nichols, Christine Jorgensen, Jose Sarria, Barbara Grier, Frank Kameny, and 40 more. To anyone with an interest in the history of the gay/lesbian rights movements in the United States, these names will be familiar, but did you know that in addition to their groundbreaking activism: Prescott Townsend was a Boston Brahman Dorr Legg was a Log Cabin Republican Harry Hay was at one time a member of the Communist party Jim Kepner was a boy preacher Troy Perry was removed from the ministry of his church for homosexuality--and then founded the gay-friendly Metropolitan Community Church Reed Erickson--a transsexual millionaire who gave millions to the cause--kept a pet leopard called Henry Barbara Gittings set up a kissing booth at the American Library Association convention and urged attendees to kiss a gay or lesbian!Before Stonewall is a perfect ancillary text for any gay/lesbian studies course, but more to the point, no one interested in these heroic figures and the movements they ignited should be without this book, which received an honorable mention in the 2004 Stonewall Book Awards.
Before Stonewall: Activists for Gay and Lesbian Rights in Historical Context
by Vern L BulloughExplore the early history of the gay rights movement!In the words of editor Vern L. Bullough: “Although there was no single leader in the gay and lesbian community who achieved the fame and reputation of Martin Luther King, there were a large number of activists who put their careers and reputations on the line. It was a motley crew of radicals and reformers, drawn together by the cause in spite of personality and philosophical differences. Their stories are told in the following pages.”Before Stonewall: Activists for Gay and Lesbian Rights in Historical Context illuminates the lives of the courageous individuals involved in the early struggle for gay and lesbian civil rights in the United States. Authored by those who knew them (often activists themselves), the concise biographies in this volume examine the lives of pre-1969 barrier breakers like Harry Hay, Henry Gerber, Alfred Kinsey, Del Martin, Phyllis Lyon, Jim Kepner, Jack Nichols, Christine Jorgensen, Jose Sarria, Barbara Grier, Frank Kameny, and 40 more. To anyone with an interest in the history of the gay/lesbian rights movements in the United States, these names will be familiar, but did you know that in addition to their groundbreaking activism: Prescott Townsend was a Boston Brahman Dorr Legg was a Log Cabin Republican Harry Hay was at one time a member of the Communist party Jim Kepner was a boy preacher Troy Perry was removed from the ministry of his church for homosexuality--and then founded the gay-friendly Metropolitan Community Church Reed Erickson--a transsexual millionaire who gave millions to the cause--kept a pet leopard called Henry Barbara Gittings set up a kissing booth at the American Library Association convention and urged attendees to kiss a gay or lesbian!Before Stonewall is a perfect ancillary text for any gay/lesbian studies course, but more to the point, no one interested in these heroic figures and the movements they ignited should be without this book, which received an honorable mention in the 2004 Stonewall Book Awards.
Before The Storm: An utterly unforgettable tale of love, family and secrets
by Judith LennoxBuried secrets can change a family's life forever... Judith Lennox's Before the Storm is a gripping, multi-generational family drama set in London and Devon, in which the secrets of the past have powerful and emotional repercussions. Perfect for fans of Rachel Hore and Katherine Webb.On an autumn day in 1909, wealthy young Richard Finborough catches sight of twenty-year-old Isabel Zeale at the harbour at Lynmouth in Devon. Her beauty captivates him. Aware of shameful secrets in her past, Isabel has no intention of letting anyone into her life, but Richard's persistence and ardour eventually win him her trust - and her hand in marriage. The decades pass and Isabel and Richard raise a family through the turbulent times of the First World War and the 1920s. As her children reach adulthood, Isabel is convinced her secret is safe - until an old acquaintance emerges from the shadows, turning her world upside down. To protect the happiness of those she loves most, Isabel must find the courage to confront what came before, and live with the consequences... What readers are saying about Before the Storm: 'The characters are both complex and absorbing and the storyline is so compelling that you don't want to stop reading even at two in the morning!''A sweeping, old-fashioned family saga to be savoured, with a host of memorable characters who'll linger in the mind long after the pages are turned, and a story that will transport you back to a bygone era''A very imaginative saga with an unusual twist of mystery'
Before Summer Ends: Wedding Reunion With The Best Man (heirs To An Empire) / Before Summer Ends (Mills And Boon True Love Ser.)
by Susan MalleryA long, hot summer with her secret crush…What could possibly go wrong?
Before Sunrise: Young Love on the Move (Cinema and Youth Cultures)
by María del Azcona Celestino DeleytoThis book offers a fresh analysis of Before Sunrise that reframes its romance within the contexts of transnational culture and cinema. The book highlights the symbolic value of the film’s construction of transnational youth in the building of a trans-European culture. Engaging with the film’s critical history, this book focuses on its specific view of youth and young love. Before Sunrise: Young Love on the Move examines young love within the cultural context of the 1990s in the US and its links with Generation X and the slacker culture. Within a wider scope, it also looks at the history and theory of romantic comedy and its connections with independent cinema. In considering the film a transnational text, this analysis underlines the parallels between a narrative of young love at the end of the 20th century and the construction of a young, or rejuvenated, Europe. Before Sunrise: Young Love on the Move provides an invaluable insight into this beloved film for students and researchers in film studies, transnational cinema and youth culture.
Before Sunrise: Young Love on the Move (Cinema and Youth Cultures)
by María del Azcona Celestino DeleytoThis book offers a fresh analysis of Before Sunrise that reframes its romance within the contexts of transnational culture and cinema. The book highlights the symbolic value of the film’s construction of transnational youth in the building of a trans-European culture. Engaging with the film’s critical history, this book focuses on its specific view of youth and young love. Before Sunrise: Young Love on the Move examines young love within the cultural context of the 1990s in the US and its links with Generation X and the slacker culture. Within a wider scope, it also looks at the history and theory of romantic comedy and its connections with independent cinema. In considering the film a transnational text, this analysis underlines the parallels between a narrative of young love at the end of the 20th century and the construction of a young, or rejuvenated, Europe. Before Sunrise: Young Love on the Move provides an invaluable insight into this beloved film for students and researchers in film studies, transnational cinema and youth culture.
Before Sunrise (Mills And Boon M&b Ser.)
by Diana PalmerJeremiah Cortez thought he'd left the past behind him–especially the part of his past concerning Phoebe Keller.
Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Before Midnight: A Philosophical Exploration (Philosophers on Film)
by Hans Maes Katrien SchaubroeckRichard Linklater’s celebrated Before trilogy chronicles the love of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy) who first meet up in Before Sunrise, later reconnect in Before Sunset and finally experience a fall-out in Before Midnight. Not only do these films present storylines and dilemmas that invite philosophical discussion, but philosophical discussion itself is at the very heart of the trilogy. This book, containing specially commissioned chapters by a roster of international contributors, explores the many philosophical themes that feature so vividly in the interactions between Céline and Jesse, including: the nature of love, romanticism and marriage the passage and experience of time the meaning of life the art of conversation the narrative self gender death Including an interview with Julie Delpy in which she discusses her involvement in the films and the importance of studying philosophy, Before Sunrise. Before Sunset. Before Midnight: A Philosophical Exploration is essential reading for anyone interested in philosophy, aesthetics, gender studies, and film studies.
Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Before Midnight: A Philosophical Exploration (Philosophers on Film)
by Hans Maes Katrien SchaubroeckRichard Linklater’s celebrated Before trilogy chronicles the love of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy) who first meet up in Before Sunrise, later reconnect in Before Sunset and finally experience a fall-out in Before Midnight. Not only do these films present storylines and dilemmas that invite philosophical discussion, but philosophical discussion itself is at the very heart of the trilogy. This book, containing specially commissioned chapters by a roster of international contributors, explores the many philosophical themes that feature so vividly in the interactions between Céline and Jesse, including: the nature of love, romanticism and marriage the passage and experience of time the meaning of life the art of conversation the narrative self gender death Including an interview with Julie Delpy in which she discusses her involvement in the films and the importance of studying philosophy, Before Sunrise. Before Sunset. Before Midnight: A Philosophical Exploration is essential reading for anyone interested in philosophy, aesthetics, gender studies, and film studies.
Before the Age of Prejudice: A Muslim Woman’s National Security Work with Three American Presidents - A Memoir
by Shirin Tahir-KheliThis book offers a fascinating insider's perspective from one who happens to be a Muslim woman on U.S. foreign policy making during three Republican presidential administrations. Shirin Tahir-Kheli's life story is a testament to the promise and delivery of the American dream in another era and is a must read for scholars and policy makers.
Before the Age of Prejudice: A Muslim Woman’s National Security Work with Three American Presidents - A Memoir
by Shirin Tahir-KheliThis book offers a fascinating insider's perspective from one who happens to be a Muslim woman on U.S. foreign policy making during three Republican presidential administrations. Shirin Tahir-Kheli's life story is a testament to the promise and delivery of the American dream in another era and is a must read for scholars and policy makers.
Before the Arts Council: Campaigns for state funding of the arts in Britain 1934-44
by Howard WebberThis book explores the hitherto neglected history of the campaign for state funding of the arts. By focusing on the important but forgotten movements for music and drama subsidy before and during WWII, Howard Webber makes an important contribution to the history of arts subsidy.Before the Arts Council rediscovers three forgotten but influential campaigns for state support of the arts in Britain in the 1930s and wartime. Webber's impressive historical excavation challenges existing scholarship, which argues that arts subsidy was the result of the war, and instead re-situates the campaign's origins in the pre-war years. Webber does so by drawing on correspondence from influential figures including Ralph Vaughan Williams, John Maynard Keynes and J.B Priestley, along with extensive use of government papers.Before the Arts Council is a lively, compelling and scrupulously researched account of a subject consistently misunderstood and misrepresented. It changes our understanding of an aspect of British cultural history we thought we knew well. It will appeal to students of twentieth century social and political history and to anyone with a general interest in the arts and in this period.
Before the Arts Council: Campaigns for state funding of the arts in Britain 1934-44
by Howard WebberThis book explores the hitherto neglected history of the campaign for state funding of the arts. By focusing on the important but forgotten movements for music and drama subsidy before and during WWII, Howard Webber makes an important contribution to the history of arts subsidy.Before the Arts Council rediscovers three forgotten but influential campaigns for state support of the arts in Britain in the 1930s and wartime. Webber's impressive historical excavation challenges existing scholarship, which argues that arts subsidy was the result of the war, and instead re-situates the campaign's origins in the pre-war years. Webber does so by drawing on correspondence from influential figures including Ralph Vaughan Williams, John Maynard Keynes and J.B Priestley, along with extensive use of government papers.Before the Arts Council is a lively, compelling and scrupulously researched account of a subject consistently misunderstood and misrepresented. It changes our understanding of an aspect of British cultural history we thought we knew well. It will appeal to students of twentieth century social and political history and to anyone with a general interest in the arts and in this period.
Before the Backbone: Views on the origin of the vertebrates
by H. GeeWe cannot catechise our stony ichthyolites, as did the necromantic lady of the Arabian Nights did the coloured fishes of the lake which had once been a city, when she touched their dead bodies with her wand, and they straightaway raised their heads and rephed to her queries. We would have many a question to ask them if we could - questions never to be solved. Hugh Miller, The Old Red Sandstone When I started this book in 1991, the subject of vertebrate origins was fusty and unfashionable. Early drafts for this preface read like an extend ed complaint at the lot of traditional morphologists, cast aside by the march of modern molecular biology. But no longer - this book should reach you at a time of renewed inter est in the origin of the vertebrates, our own particular corner of creation. For although the topic has excited interest for well over a century, molec ular biology has only lately achieved the maturity necessary to test its predictions. As a legitimate field of study, it is fashionable again.
Before the Beginning
by Anna MorganSchoolies week: that strange in-between time when teenagers move from school into the adult world. It's a week when anything is possible, and everything can change.Grace is questioning everything she thought about herself, and has opted not to join her clique of judgemental friends for schoolies, instead tagging along with her brother Casper and his friends. Casper, an artist, is trying to create the perfect artwork for his uni application folio. Overachieving, anxiety-ridden Noah is reeling from a catastrophe that might have ruined his ATAR result. And Elsie is just trying to figure out how to hold their friendship group together.On the first night of the trip, they meet Sierra, a mysterious girl with silver-grey hair and a magnetic personality. All of them are drawn to her for different reasons, and she persuades them to abandon the cliched schoolies experience in favour of camping with her on a remote, uninhabited island. On that island, each of them will find answers to their questions. But what does Sierra want from them?An empathetic and suspenseful coming-of-age story from the author of All That Impossible Space.Praise for Before the Beginning:'Soulful and suspenseful; this #LoveOzYA story doesn't take you where you think it will, it leads you where you need to be ... 'Before the Beginning' heralds Anna Morgan as the lovechild of Cath Crowley and Vikki Wakefield for her thoughtful and thrilling storytelling of the highest order.' - Danielle Binks, author of The Year the Maps Changed and Begin, End, Begin'Genuine characters, a clever hint of danger and a deep understanding of graduating high school. I was hooked!' - Emily Gale, author of I Am Out With Lanterns and The Other Side of Summer
Before the Bible: The Liturgical Body and the Formation of Scriptures in early Judaism
by Judith H. NewmanBefore the Bible reveals the landscape of scripture in an era prior to the crystallization of the rabbinic Bible and the canonization of the Christian Bible. Most accounts of the formation of the Hebrew Bible trace the origins of scripture through source critical excavation of the archaeological "tel" of the Bible or the analysis of the scribal hand on manuscripts in text-critical work, but the discoveries in the Dead Sea Scrolls have transformed our understanding of scripture formation. Judith Newman focuses not on the putative origins and closure of the Bible, but on the reasons why scriptures remained open, with pluriform growth in the Hellenistic-Roman period. Drawing on new methods from cognitive neuroscience and the social sciences as well as traditional philological and literary analysis, Before the Bible argues that the key to understanding the formation of scripture is the widespread practice of individual and communal prayer in early Judaism. The figure of the teacher as a learned and pious sage capable of interpreting and embodying the tradition is central to understanding this revelatory phenomenon. The book considers the entwinement of prayer and scriptural formation in five books reflecting the diversity of early Judaism: Ben Sira, Daniel, Jeremiah/Baruch, Second Corinthians, and the Qumran Hodayot (Thanksgiving Hymns). While not a complete taxonomy of scripture formation, the book illuminates performative dynamics that have been largely ignored as well as the generative role of interpretive tradition in accounts of how the Bible came to be.