John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester (1647-1680), has long been notorious as one of the most entertaining, extravagant and scandalous members of Charles II's court. He was also the most brilliant, witty and insightful satirist and lyric poet of his time, limited only by his early death caused by venereal disease and alcoholism. Passion for Living provides a full discussion of his life and writings, set in the context of his Times - the licentious court of Charles II and his mistresses, the Dutch warsand the so-called Popish Plot - together with close readings and analyses of his love lyrics, bawdy songs and shrewd satires, related to the life of his contemporaries, such as Thomas Hobbes, Samuel Butler and John Dryden. This informative and readable study will be of interest to both the general reader and the student.

This book takes seriously our increased life span along with its challenges to live fully, to grow, to develop unexplored parts of ourselves, to find creative ways of being vitally involved in our own inner and outer lives. With an emphasis on anecdotes drawn from famous as well as not-so-famous people, Passion for Life weaves inspiration with motivation for uncovering and freeing ongoing individual growth. Since each decade presents new awakenings, Brennan and Brewi demonstrate how life's greatest accomplishments and achievements can come in the second half of life.

"What makes a home exceptional, with an unforgettable sense of personality and passion? The answer [is revealed in this collection] of 30 ... European houses, from France and Italy to Switzerland and Sweden"--Amazon.com.

Our lives are precious. Never more so than for 19-year-old Alexander Stobbs who has been a cystic fibrosis sufferer from birth. For him, each day could be his last. But as he says in the BAFTA-nominated documentary - A Boy Called Alex - 'you can't do stuff if you're afraid'.A truly inspiring story of a young musician determined to live his dreams, Alex takes us on his journey to survive a daily round of drugs and treatments as he also prepares for his yearning ambition to conduct Bach's three-hour-long St Matthew Passion. Everything we take for granted is a struggle for Alex - eating, sleeping, even breathing. His determination to live life to the full, constantly striving for perfection in his musical performance, is set against the exhausting every day rigours of medication and treatment simply to keep him alive. Yet he has already achieved some extraordinary goals. An Eton scholar, he has now won a further music scholarship to King's College, Cambridge. Introduced here by his mother Suzanne, Alex's account of living with no certainty about his future is a spur to all of us to make every day count.

The co-host of TV's 700 Club tells her story, a tale of sex, drugs, thrill-seeking, and other sinful pursuits that made her life empty and unbearable--until she and her husband found God.

A national bestselling author examines one of the mind's most exalted states—one that is crucially important to learning, risk-taking, social cohesiveness, and survival itself. “[Jamison is] that rare writer who can offer a kind of unified field theory of science and art.” —The Washington Post Book World With the same grace and breadth of learning she brought to her studies of the mind’s pathologies, Kay Redfield Jamison examines one of its most exalted states: exuberance. This “abounding, ebullient, effervescent emotion” manifests itself everywhere from child’s play to scientific breakthrough. Exuberance: The Passion for Life introduces us to such notably irrepressible types as Teddy Roosevelt, John Muir, and Richard Feynman, as well as Peter Pan, dancing porcupines, and Charles Schulz’s Snoopy. It explores whether exuberance can be inherited, parses its neurochemical grammar, and documents the methods people have used to stimulate it. The resulting book is an irresistible fusion of science and soul.

In this perennial bestseller, Nancy Anderson shows readers how following their passion and finding that special niche in whatever realm they are truly passionate about is the most effective and rewarding approach to business and career success.