The Burial at Thebes – Seamus Heaney translation

Commissioned to mark the centenary of the Abbey Theatre in Dublin in 2004, “The Burial at Thebes” is Seamus Heaney’s verse translation of Sophocles’ great tragedy, “Antigone” – whose eponymous heroine is one of the most sharply individualized and compelling figures in western drama.

Doctor Faustus the A text – John O’Connor ed.

Weary of academic study, an eminent scholar turns to magic and makes a deal with the Devil.  Mephistopheles will serve him and give him whatever he wants, but after twenty-four years Faustus must keep his side of the bargain.

The Faber Book of Beasts – Paul Muldoon ed.

The Faber Book of Beasts is a collection of many of the best poems in English about the creatures who share our planet. The animal kingdom has prompted some of the liveliest and most enjoyable writing by poets, from Homer to our contemporaries. Among the creatures gathered here, tame or wild; common or exotic, are mammals, reptiles, birds, insects, and others perhaps more fanciful than real. A zoologist’s delight.

A world of difference – Lynda Prescott (ed.)

This anthology brings together an international selection of short stories by distinguished modern writers from five continents (America, Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe). The fifteen stories collected here were all written in English within the last fifty years. Each has something to say about cultural encounters, often arising from experiences of migration or uprooting.

Bhaji on the Beach – Gurinder Chadha

A day trip to Blackpool to see the lights, a harmless break from the routine for a mini-bus full of women from the Asian’s Women’s Centre. It all seems innocent enough but as the mini-bus trundles along to a Punjabi rendition of Cliff Richard’s “Summer Holiday” problems quickly become apparent. Ginder is fleeing her violent husband with her 5 year old son…

Our blog contributor and current OU student Leanne Goodall wrote a review from personal experience on the course which can be viewed here.  

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