"Brief narratives," or medieval precursors to the modern short story, are compositions couched in the form of a tale of reasonable short length. They began with writings in Latin and, eventually, made their way into the vernacular languages of Europe. They include the fable, the apologue, the exemplum, the saint's life, the miracle, the biography, the adventure tale, the romance, the jest, and the anecdote, among others. In Spain, the oldest extant brief narratives in written form are in v...

In 1489 Johan Hurus printed the first collection of fables in Spain, Lavida del Ysopetconsusfabulas hystoriadas. Illustrated with nearly 200 woodcuts, this work quickly became the most-read book in Spain, beloved of both children and adults. Reprinted many times in the next three centuries and carried to the New World, it brought to Spanish letters a cornucopia of Aesopic fables, oriental apologues, and folktales that were borrowed by such writers as Cervantes, Lope de Vega, and e...

The hundreds of illuminated miniatures found in the Cantigas de Santa Maria, sponsored by King Alfonso X (1252–84), reveal many vistas of daily life in thirteenth century Spain.No other source provides such an encyclopedic view of all classes of medieval European society, from kings and popes to the lowest peasants. Men and women are seen farming, hunting, on pilgrimage, watching bullfights, in gambling dens, making love, tending silkworms, eating, cooking, and writing poe...

The masterpieces of medieval Spanish literature have come to be known and loved by Hispanists, and more recently by others throughout the world. But the brilliant illuminations with which the original manuscripts were illustrated have remained almost totally unknown on the shelves of the great European libraries. To redress this woeful neglect, two noted scholars here present a generous selection from this great visual treasury including many examples never before reproduced.John E...

In a world increasingly dependent on artificial intelligence, “The Age of A.I.: The Threat of Machines” offers an in-depth and critical analysis of how machines are transforming society. This book explores the ethical, moral, and social implications of AI, unraveling the challenges and opportunities it presents for the future of humanity.Through a series of meticulously researched chapters, the author examines everything from the impact of algorithms on decision-making to the potent...

The twelve essays in this fiorilegio of the work of Otis H. Green afford a representative view of the thought and scholarship of one of the world's foremost Hispanists. In each of them is developed some important facet of the intellectual milieu of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, reflecting Otis Green's life-long and wide-ranging quest for evidence that would broaden our understanding of those complex periods and correct the misapprehensions which have gathered about them. Includ...

Don Juan Manuel, nephew of King Alfonso X, The Wise, knew well the appeal of exempla (moralized tales), which he believed should entertain if they were to provide ways and means for solving life's problems. His fourteenth-century book, known as El Conde lucanor, is considered by many to be the purest Spanish prose before the immortal Don Quixote of Cervantes written two centuries later. He found inspiration for his tales in classical and eastern literatures, Spanish histo...

In the long history of European prose fiction, few works have been more influential and more popular than the romance of chivalry Amadis of Gaul. Although its original author is unknown, it was probably written during the early fourteenth century. The first great bestseller of the age of printing, Amadis of Gaul was translated into dozens of languages and spawned sequels and imitators over the centuries. A handsome, valiant, and undefeatable knight, Amadis is perhaps best...

"The Book of Legends" follows a young boy named Spencer who is watching his two younger siblings, as they are all alone in the house. Not willing to go to bed, just yet the two young siblings ask Spencer to tell them stories, but he tells them legends, instead, taking them on an adventure with each one.An exciting new author, John King Keller, shares four amazing, scary and entertaining legends in this book that kids of all ages will enjoy. These legends feature a haunted bridge, c...

Dave and his buddies are on their way home from the war. They look forward to civilian life, but have reservations. How will they be treated? Will they be accepted? Upon landing, they are greeted by protesters who are very antagonistic to them because they are soldiers. Each goes his own way with experiences both good and bad. Their reintegration back into civilian life proves to be anything but easy, each one facing similar obstacles. It proves to be a long process, one that not everyone ...

Tragedy strikes suddenly as a deadly motorcycle crash forever changes the idyllic life of 33-year-old John Keller. This is the testimony of how his family's unquenchable love and unstoppable faith in the promise of God walked John through the miraculous healing of a traumatic brain injury. The prevailing truth - Don't go by what you see, but by what you know God's Word says - carried them through the most challenging years of their lives. John Keller is truly a miracle of biblical proport...

"The Book of Legends" follows a young boy named Spencer who is watching his two younger siblings, as they are all alone in the house. Not willing to go to bed, just yet the two young siblings ask Spencer to tell them stories, but he tells them legends, instead, taking them on an adventure with each one.An exciting new author, John King Keller, shares four amazing, scary and entertaining legends in this book that kids of all ages will enjoy. These legends feature a haunted bridge, c...