The Golden Compass at the Library

Have you seen the film "The Golden Compass"? It is based on book one of the Philip Pullman "His Dark Materials" trilogy. Book two is called "The Subtle Knife" and book three "The Amber Spyglass". The library has all three along with two books which discuss Pullman's theology: "Killing the Imposter God" by Donna Freitas, and "Shedding Light on His Dark Materials" by Kurt Brunner. I'll say 3 things about the book/movie connection. The movie moves very quickly, so having read the book is a big plus. The movie also follows the plot of the book very closely so readers should not be disappointed (until the end, that is). The movie ends before the book does, so if you see the film and want to read the next two books, you really should start at the beginning with "The Golden Compass". And if you are worried about the religious perspective of the movie, I'll tell you that the minister's kids who saw the movie with me thought the bad guys were from the government, not from a religious group. But if you want the words of real reviewers, look in some of our current periodical literature for reviews and essays. The reference desk can help you at x7904.

Foreign Films in the Library

What's on this Wednesday??? Only the oldest among us remember when there were no videos to rent and seeing a foreign film meant going to an art house theater. Companies like Janus Films saw that these movies were distributed in the United States, and Janus is now celebrating 50 years of film with a set called "Essential Art House". The set includes a huge companion book and 50 films on DVD including classics by Eisenstein, Antonioni, Camus, Lean, Ozu, Truffaut, Renoir, Hitchcock, Kurosawa, Bergman and Fellini. A keyword search in the library catalog for Janus Films will bring you a long list of what is on the shelf, any one of which might be perfect for viewing on a snowy weekend afternoon. If you want to keep a video over the holiday break, please ask for an extended loan period when you check it out.

Reference Books on Religion

With Christmas, Hanukkah and Id al-Adha upon us, it seems like a good time to mention the many interesting reference books on religion that the library has recently acquired . From large encyclopedic sets to Bible quotations, atlases and etiquette, there are a wide range of sources available on many aspects of Christianity and other religions.

The following books have been added to the print reference collection at Van Wylen.

• The Encyclopedia of Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity.
• MasterPlots II. Christian Literature.
  
• Mainline Christians and U.S. Public Policy: a reference handbook.
• Encyclopedia of Modern Christian Politics.
• The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: encyclopedia of global warfare and civilization.
• Where God and Science Meet: how brain and evolutionary studies alter our understanding of religion.
• How to be a Perfect Stranger: the essential religious etiquette handbook.

The Encyclopaedia Judaica, Second Edition, is available in print but is also fully searchable online. This long-awaited revision of the premier reference source on Jewish life, culture, and history has been revised and expanded from 16 to 22 volumes. The editors have retained the important articles on Jewish scholarship and added many entries on contemporary Jewish life and culture., including more information on women and gender issues.

Credo Reference, our latest online reference library, includes access to twelve sources in religion including:

• Atlas of the Bible, Andromeda.
• Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth.
• Book of Bible Quotations.
• Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend.
  
• Dictionary of Jewish Lore and Legend.
  
• Macmillan Dictionary of the Bible.
• The Holy Bible, King James Version.
  
• The Qur'an.
• Who's Who in Christianity.
• Who's Who in Classical Mythology.
• Who's Who in the New Testament.
• Who's Who in the Old Testament.