Hosseini

The Fifth Reaction
$29.95
What are the choices that a modern, educated woman living in Iran has? This film observes five women teachers who share their deeply personal experiences of being a wife, mother and a professional in a modern Iranian society. All of them have graduated from universities and make their living in "respectable" professions such as teaching or law. However, teaching does not bring in enough money and law attracts only female clients who have very little to spend for the professional assistance they need.

We learn about a young widow with two young boys. Her husband dies in a car accident which puts her in difficult situation with her in-laws. Remaining in a house will seem inappropriate since there are two adult unmarried brother in laws living under the same roof. Allowing her to live on her own is impossible since she does not earn enough money. The only way she can remain in the family is if she marries one of her husband's brothers which she refuses.

In order not to loose her children her friends make a plan to help her escape Iran with her children and move overseas. Before long, their plan turns into a game of chess where young woman's father-in-law chases her across countyside in order to stop her at all cost.

I was perplexed by this film. Clash between tradition and deep seeded yearning for independence is difficult to comprehend. It is a deeply moral story about fight for traces of humanity between different generations. I loved the strength of women and their sheer determiantion to help each other.

HOSSEINI 'S Beer and Ale Cascading Pub Wall Clock
$24.95
9" Black Plastic Wall Clock. Brand new in box. Precision quartz movement operates on one AA battery (not included). This is not a lighted clock.

A Thousand Splendid Suns
$16.00
Hosseini does it again with this often dark tale that ultimately leaves you exhausted with emotion. I usually do not read books for the second time unless there is about a decade between readings, but I found this one at the library for 50 cents and could not hold back.

Hosseini's characters come alive with such color and emotion that you find yourself so engaged that you have a hard time putting the book down.

The main character, Mariam, follows a life of increasing pain but finds a way to embrace the love that falls into her lap. With an honest heart she finds love and understanding in the children of her husbands new and younger wife.

Through the toughest wartime nightmares you could imagine you find that even when things are tough love and family are what life is all about. If you do not have love then you have nothing. This fact was displayed clearly when Mariam eagerly gives all for her younger "sister" (co-wife).

I learned a lot about life by reading this book and also thought about what makes one happy. Sometimes I may see or think of people that are poor or living in a war torn place, but when all is said and done, the one I might pitty is the one in the mirror. Life is truly what we make it and many "Americans" who chase the dollar and electronic/chemical distractions are the ones who have it all backwards or the ones who really need the pity.

This story may change your life; give it a try.

From The Kitchen Archives - New Music New York 1979
$18.99
Founded in 1971 by video artists Woody and Steina Vasulka, The Kitchen is internationally known as a leading center for video, music, dance, performance, new media and literature. The first institution to focus exclusively on cutting-edge, multidisciplinary works, it has been a powerful force in shaping the cultural landscape of this country. Over the last thirty years The Kitchen has documented every one of its performances with video and/or audiotape. However, in recent years much of this documentation, primarily recorded on what are now obsolete formats, began deteriorating. In 1999, under the leadership of Executive Director Elise Bernhardt, and with the dedication of The Kitchen9s Board of Directors and the help of numerous donors, The Kitchen began an initiative to catalog and re-master its extensive collection of 3600 videotapes. In the fall of 2001, an additional trove of audio recordings from the 1970s was discovered. While these tapes promised rare and exciting music by such artists as John Cage, Philip Glass, Laurie Anderson, and David Tudor (in the first box alone!), none of this material could be accessed without proper cleaning and re-formatting and the funds and facilities to do so. A recent collaborative partnership with The Looking Glass Studios and Philip Glass9 label, Orange Mountain Music, has allowed for the restoration of a number of audio reels. This work has been done with the goal of producing a series of CDs, From The Kitchen Archives, with New Music, New York 1979 as the first release. This 2-disc set offers re-mastered recordings from the landmark New Music, New York: A Festival of Composers and their Music, held at the Kitchen9s 484 Broome Street space in SoHo from June 8-16, 1979. The festival, which set a standard for new and contemporary music, paved the way for New Music America, the annual event that emerged the following year in Minneapolis and ran in various cities until 1990. Now 25 years later, these recordings are an invaluable time-capsule, a privileged view/listen into a historic event, initially heard by only a few hundred people. Beyond their historic value they offer brilliant and exciting music by composers now considered masters of the genre, as well as remarkable performances by figures nearly forgotten. While many recordings from the festival could be restored, several gaps remain: concerts that were either not recorded or whose tapes vanished into the ether of the last 25 years. That said, we feel extremely fortunate to be able to release New Music, New York 1979 as our first CD in a series that promises to make available more lost treasures from The Kitchen Archives, uncovering the origins of new music today.