In Sculpting in Time, Tarkovsky sets down his thoughts and his memories, revealing for the first time the original inspirations for his extraordinary films--Ivan's Childhood, Andrey Rublyov, Solaris, The Mirror, Stalker, Nostalgia, and The Sacrifice. He discusses their history and his methods of work, he explores the many problems of visual creativity, and he sets forth the deeply autobiographical content of part of his oeuvre--most fascinatingly in The Mirror and Nostalgia. The closing chapter on The Sacrifice, dictated in the last weeks of Tarkovsky's life, makes the book essential reading for those who already know or who are just discovering his magnificent work.

First of all, many thanks to the contributors of this volume who provided us in their essays with rich empirical evidence and illuminating analyses of various aspects of Yugoslav tourism development between the 1950s and 1980s. It was a pleasure to collaborate during our workshop at the University of Graz, as well as in the process of revising the essays and transforming them into final versions. Igor Duda and Dragan Popović were much appreciated members of the research project Tourism and Leisure Culture in Socialist Yugoslavia,” which formed the framework for this joint book endeavor. The project (P18153-G04; April 2005 to August 2008) was made possible by the generous support of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF). We would also like to express our gratitude to the project’s host institution, the Centre for Southeast European History at the University of Graz, headed by Karl Kaser. We are indebted to Sunniva Greve who worked with patience to proofread several of the contributions, and thanks also go to Sabine Krammer who helped with formatting the final manuscript. Research for this book was supported by numerous interviews and the comments of collaborators and friends. In Croatia, we especially thank Hrvoje Budak for his persistence in collecting interviews and gaining access to occasionally skeptical institutions. Many thanks also to Vinko and Marijeta Stagličić in Biograd na Moru, and Dr. Miroslav Jelić in Zagreb who contributed key documents and biographical accounts. In both Serbia and Montenegro, Lidija Popović and Ivana Dobrivojević energetically assisted our research, while Spomenka Krajčević provided steady encouragement and vital insights. The collection as a whole also benefited greatly from the thoughtful comments of Wendy Bracewell and Ulf Brunnbauer.

I am very grateful to the Centers for Near Eastern Studies and European and Euroasian Studies of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and their directors Leonard Binder and Ivan T. Berend, respectively. The funding provided by the two centers madeit possible for me to lead a seminar at UCLA on Muslim/Middle Eastern diasporas in Europe and North America during the spring of 2004. My regular presence at UCLA has enabled me to spend the necessary time in the library system there and to improve many of the entries in this dictionary. I am also grateful to the Department of Religious Studies, San Diego State University (SDSU); its chair Linda Holler; and faculty and staff members for providing me with their ongoing support and a friendly academic atmosphere. Many colleagues and friends have contributed to making this book possible. I am most grateful for the articles, books, citations, support, and advice provided during the past several years by Jere Bacharach, Irene A. Bierman, Anwar Dabbour, Dany Doueiri, Jonathan Friedlander, Alice and Jerry Gess, Iskandar Mansour, Isma‘il Poonawala, Georges Sabagh, Yona Sabar, Fouad Sleem, Irving Alan Sparks, and Hossein Ziai. Many other unnamed individuals have provided me with access to their library collections and rich insights. Special thanks are also due to Heidi Rutz, Hussam Timani, and Nabil Zeitoun; whenever these three invaluable friends came across an article or a book that could be of use for this dictionary or for my work on the Druzes in general, they enthusiastically informed me of their find. David Hirsch of the Charles Young Research Library at UCLA was most helpful in promptly providing the requested citations and alerting me to what and where additional material could be located. Appreciation is also due to J. Chase Langford of the UCLA Department of Geography for producing the maps. The dedicated assistance in data entry and other research tasks of Anika Farber during the summer of 2003 is most appreciated. I would also like to thank Elisa Quinn Hedrick for her diligent attention to detail in entering the changes made on the first draft, for editing the subsequent revisions, and for her overall patience and assistance in handling research tasks and text inconsistencies. Her dedication and interest in the different aspects of this project have indeed contributed greatly to its completion. Jon Woronoff, the editor of the Historical Dictionaries of People and Cultures series, is most appreciated for his thoughtful suggestions and insightful recommendations. Without his superb patience and professionalism, this book would have not been possible. Finally, it goes without saying, however, that I remain responsible for all shortcomings in this work. I am also responsible for excluding potentially important entries that lacked or that were still awaiting verification at the time the manuscript was completed.

They Came Before Columbus reveals a compelling, dramatic, and superbly detailed documentation of the presence and legacy of Africans in ancient America. Examining navigation and shipbuilding; cultural analogies between Native Americans and Africans; the transportation of plants, animals, and textiles between the continents; and the diaries, journals, and oral accounts of the explorers themselves, Ivan Van Sertima builds a pyramid of evidence to support his claim of an African presence in the New World centuries before Columbus. Combining impressive scholarship with a novelist’s gift for storytelling, Van Sertima re-creates some of the most powerful scenes of human history: the launching of the great ships of Mali in 1310 (two hundred master boats and two hundred supply boats), the sea expedition of the Mandingo king in 1311, and many others. In They Came Before Columbus, we see clearly the unmistakable face and handprint of black Africans in pre-Columbian America, and their overwhelming impact on the civilizations they encountered.