David Stevens is a retired professor and attorney, an active writer, and a pretty good bridge player. He likes to travel when he can, and he tries to read at least a little fiction every day. He has been trying to fill in the gaps of the undergraduate math major he abandoned when seduced by the Dark Side (a theatre major) in about 1966. Most politics drives him nuts these days. He writes about whatever bubbles to the top on any given day. His books include scholarship on Elizabethan theatre history, literary criticism of modern fantasy, a directing textbook, instructional books for beginning and advancing bridge players, and a legal memoir in which he discusses his most fascinating cases as a trial attorney. His occasional blog entries are available at http://davidstevensblog.blogspot.com/, and he has FaceBook and Twitter public accounts. If you read and enjoy any of his books, he wants to hear from you!
Beyond Horatio's Philosophy: The Fantasy of Peter S. Beagle is an examination of America's greatest living writer of fantasy fiction. The work consists of a brief introduction and nine chapters covering the novels and shorter fiction. Stevens concludes that Beagle is a master of his form with an irrepressible sense of humor.
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The Art and Craft of Play Directing is a textbook for the first university course in directing, by a highly experienced director and teacher of directing. Stevens focuses on developing a theory of art and continues with chapters covering playscript interpretation, staging the play, working with actors, and theatrical style.
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J.R.R. Tolkien: The Art of the Myth-Maker is an examination of Tolkien's fantasy in the light of his academic scholarship. Currently out of print, a revised and expanded second edition is forthcoming, featuring a new chapter considering the nine Tolkien films, both animated and live action.
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Elizabethan Theatre History: An Annotated Bibliography of Scholar-ship, 1664-1979 is exactly what the title implies. This acclaimed 1982 reference guide is available again in a corrected reprint so that scholars in the field and libraries that could not obtain the first edition can now supplement their collections.
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Subtitled A Complete System for Bridge Beginners and Advancing Players, Wait-A-Minute Bridge teaches the basics and more advanced techniques of the play of the hand, bidding, and defense. Stevens uses the device of stopping the action from time to time by having an imaginary reader say, "Wait a minute!" He then discusses a point in more detail so the reader can understand the reasoning behind the rule. Leavened with a healthy dose of humor, Wait-A-Minute Bridge is the perfect book for bridge beginners and intermediate players. Have fun; play bridge!
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In this sequel to Wait-A-Minute Bridge, national tournament winner David Stevens teaches techniques of duplicate bridge for the advancing player. He includes such topics as advanced bidding systems (Two-Over-One; Precision); the squeeze play; the strip and endplay; the Principle of Restricted Choice; and several techniques and conventions for better slam bidding, play, and defense. Stevens retains the popular device of having an anonymous reader interrupt the narrative from time to time by crying, "Wait a minute!" He then explains a point in more detail, with the goal of a more complete understanding of the topic. This book is aimed at advancing bridge players who have been having some success and want to play against better competition. This book will help them succeed at the next level, and enjoy the process. Full of robust humor and many examples, Wait-A-Minute Bridge, II, is sure to be as popular as its predecessor. Have more fun; play better bridge!
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