Download or read book Celebrating the Best of Urdu Poetry written by Khushwant Singh and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2011-11-10 with total page 214 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Maangey Allah se bas itni dua hai Rashid Main jo Urdu mein vaseeyat likhoon beta parh ley All Rashid asks of Allah is just one small gift: If I write my will in Urdu, may my son be able to read it. Urdu, one of the most widely used languages in the subcontinent, is, sadly, dying a slow death in the land where it was born and where it flourished. This definitive collection spans over 200 years of Urdu poetry, celebrating well-known and relatively unknown poets alike. It is essential reading for all who love Urdu verse and for all looking for the ideal introduction.
Download or read book Ghazals written by Mir Taqi Mir and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2022-02-15 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The finest ghazals of Mir Taqi Mir, the most accomplished of Urdu poets. The prolific Mir Taqi Mir (1723–1810), widely regarded as the most accomplished poet in Urdu, composed his ghazals—a poetic form of rhyming couplets—in a distinctive Indian style arising from the Persian ghazal tradition. Here, the lover and beloved live in a world of extremes: the outsider is the hero, prosperity is poverty, and death would be preferable to the indifference of the beloved. Ghazals offers a comprehensive collection of Mir’s finest work, translated by a renowned expert on Urdu poetry.
Download or read book The Four Great Urdu Poets Mir Nazir Ghalib and Iqbal written by Mir and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2016-02-04 with total page 600 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: THE FOUR GREAT URDU POETS Mir, Nazir, Ghalib & Iqbal Selected Poems Translation & Introduction Paul Smith Mir (1723 - 1810) was the leading Urdu poet of the eighteenth century and one of the pioneers of Urdu. He was one of the principal poets of the Delhi school of the Urdu ghazal. Like many Urdu poets Mir's literary reputation is from his ghazals. After moving to Lucknow his daughter died, then his son and wife. Mir practiced the Malamati or 'Blameworthy' aspect of Sufism. He was a prolific poet, his complete works consisting of 6 Divans comprising all kinds of poetic forms: ghazals, masnavis, qit'as, ruba'is, etc. Nazir (1735-1830) is an Indian poet known as the 'Father of Nazm', who wrote mainly Urdu ghazals and nazms. The canvas of Nazir's nazms is so vast that it encompasses all aspects of human behavior. Many of his poems are spiritual and he is seen as a true Sufi. Ghalib (1797-1869}, was born in the city of Agra of parents with Turkish aristocratic ancestry. His great fame came to him posthumously. Although he wrote ghazals, qit'as and ruba'is in Persian he is more famous for those written in Urdu. Iqbal (1873-1938) was born in Sialkot, Punjab. He graduated with a master's degree in philosophy. Nietzsche and Bergson influenced him and he became critical of Western civilization that he regarded as decadent. He turned to Islam and Sufism for inspiration. In his final years he returned to Urdu as his medium with ghazals inspired by his on-and-off Sufism. Here is a large collection of his ruba'is, ghazals, nazms, qit'as, masnavis & qasida. All poems in this collection are in the correct rhyme-structure and meaning. Introduction on all the lives of the Poets, Selected Bibliographies. Large Format Paperback 7" x 10" 599 pages. COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFIZ'S 'DIVAN'."It is not a joke... the English version of ALL the ghazals of Hafiz is a great feat... I am astonished. " Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran."Superb translations. 99% Hafiz 1% Paul Smith." Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator from English into Persian, knower of Hafiz's Divan off by heart. Paul Smith is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets of the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages... including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Omar Khayyam, Rudaki, Yunus Emre, Mahsati, Lalla Ded, Bulleh Shah, Shah Latif, Makhfi and many others, as well as his own poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, children's books and a dozen screenplays. amazon.com/author/smithpa
Download or read book Beloved Delhi written by Saif Mahmood and published by . This book was released on 2018-09-10 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'A riveting resurrection of the city of poets, the city of history, Saif Mahmood's learned and evocative book takes us to the heart of Delhi's romance with Urdu verse and aesthetics.'--Namita Gokhale Urdu poetry rules the cultural and emotional landscape of India--especially northern India and much of the Deccan--and of Pakistan. And it was in the great, ancient city of Delhi that Urdu grew to become one of the world's most beautiful languages. Through the 18th and 19th centuries, while the Mughal Empire was in decline, Delhi became the capital of a parallel kingdom--the kingdom of Urdu poetry--producing some of the greatest, most popular poets of all time. They wrote about the pleasure and pain of love, about the splendour of God and the villainy of preachers, about the seductions of wine, and about Delhi, their beloved home. This treasure of a book documents the life and work of the finest classical Urdu poets: Sauda, Dard, Mir, Ghalib, Momin, Zafar, Zauq and Daagh. Through their biographies and poetry--including their best-known ghazals--it also paints a compelling portrait of Mughal Delhi. This is a book for anyone who has ever been touched by Urdu or Delhi, by poetry or romance.
Download or read book A World of Prose written by Hazel Simmons-McDonald and published by Hodder Education. This book was released on 2017-08-14 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Inspire students to enjoy literature while helping them to prepare effectively for the CSEC® examination; ensure coverage of all prescribed poems for the revised CSEC® English A and English B syllabuses with an anthology that has been compiled with the approval of the Caribbean Examinations Council by Editors who have served as CSEC® English panel members. - Stimulate an interest in and enjoyment of literature with a wide range of themes and subjects, a balance of well-known texts from the past and more recent works, as well as stories from the Caribbean and the rest of the world. - Support understanding with notes on each text and questions to provoke discussion, and a useful checklist to help with literary analysis. - Consolidate learning with practical guidance on how to tackle examination questions including examples of model answers for reference.
Download or read book Anthems of Resistance A Celebration of Progressive Urdu Poetry written by Ali Husain Mir and published by Roli Books Private Limited. This book was released on 2006-01-01 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Let a thousand verses bloom. Anthems of Resistance is about the iconoclastic tradition of poetry nurtured by Ali Sardar Jafri, Faiz Ahmad Faiz, Javed Akhtar, Fehmida Riyaz and all those who have been part of the progressive writers' movement in the Indian subcontinent. It documents the rise of the Progressive Writers' Association, its period of ascendancy, its crucial role in the struggle for independence, and its unflagging spirit of resistance against injustice. In the process, the book highlights various aspects of the PWA's aesthetics and politics such as its internationalist ethos, its romance with modernity, its engagement with feminism, its relationship to Hindi cinema and film lyrics, and the vision of a radically new world which its members articulated with passion. Part history, part literary analysis, part poetic translation, and part unabashed celebration of the PWA era, this book is truly a unique resource. This is a lucidly written account of a glorious chapter in the history of Indian literature. The powerful verses of the PWA poets are wonderfully translated and, along with the highly accessible transliteration, offer the general reader a rare opportunity to appreciate the writings that helped shape a nation. Anthems of Resistance is truly an inspiring and pleasurable read." - Professor Mushirul Hasan, Vice Chancellor, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi "Such a gift from the Brothers Mir! Lyrical and thoughtful, this introduction to the vast swathe of progressive Urdu poetry belongs on all our shelves, and in all our hearts. It is a companion worthy of the poetry itself. A singular achievement." - Professor Vijay Prashad, Director of International Studies, Trinity College, Connecticut, US "Like the many poets they celebrate, the authors write with passion and conviction ... Their book makes for a joyous and exhilarating read." -Professor C.M. Naim, Professor Emeritus, University of Chicago
Download or read book Odes of Khusro written by Khalid Hameed Shaida and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2013-06-03 with total page 453 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Urdu translaion in verse of the selected Persian odes of Amir Khusro. Khusro was born in India in 1252 AD and died 73 years later. His maternal grandfather was the prime minister of India and throughout his life Khusro remained the favorite of kings and princes. Afluent and jovial, Khusro was a poet-musician of magical qualities. He was the inventer of Urdu language which is now spoken by hundred of million of people today. He invented many famous ragas and musical instruments. He wrote poetry in both his new language, Urdu, as well as in Persian in which he wrote thousands of odes. Khusro´s interpretation of Love´s musings is frevolous, fanciful and lovely proving that love and poetry walk hand in hand - always have and always will. In this book Khalid Hameed Shaida has presented 444 of Khusro Persian odes in Urdu.
Download or read book Jinnealogy written by Anand Vivek Taneja and published by Stanford University Press. This book was released on 2017-11-21 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the ruins of a medieval palace in Delhi, a unique phenomenon occurs: Indians of all castes and creeds meet to socialize and ask the spirits for help. The spirits they entreat are Islamic jinns, and they write out requests as if petitioning the state. At a time when a Hindu right wing government in India is committed to normalizing a view of the past that paints Muslims as oppressors, Anand Vivek Taneja's Jinnealogy provides a fresh vision of religion, identity, and sacrality that runs counter to state-sanctioned history. The ruin, Firoz Shah Kotla, is an unusually democratic religious space, characterized by freewheeling theological conversations, DIY rituals, and the sanctification of animals. Taneja observes the visitors, who come mainly from the Muslim and Dalit neighborhoods of Delhi, and uses their conversations and letters to the jinns as an archive of voices so often silenced. He finds that their veneration of the jinns recalls pre-modern religious traditions in which spiritual experience was inextricably tied to ecological surroundings. In this enchanted space, Taneja encounters a form of popular Islam that is not a relic of bygone days, but a vibrant form of resistance to state repression and post-colonial visions of India.
Download or read book The Taste of Words written by Raza Mir and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2014-06-15 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Have you ever been enchanted by the spoken cadence of an Urdu couplet but wished you could fully understand its nuances? Have you wanted to engage with a ghazal more deeply but were daunted by its mystifying conventions? Are you confused between a qataa and a rubaai, or a musadda and a marsiya? In Urdu Poetry, Raza Mir offers a fresh, quirky and accessible entry point for neophytes seeking to enhance their enjoyment of this vibrant canon—from the poems of legends like Mir Taqi Mir and Mirza Ghalib to the lyrics of contemporary game changers like Javed Akhtar and Gulzar. Raza Mir’s translation not only draws out the zest and pathos of these timeless verses, but also provides pithy insights and colourful trivia that will enable readers to fully embrace this world.
Download or read book THE FIRST TWO URDU SUFI POETS Qutub Shah Wali Deccani written by Wali Deccani and published by . This book was released on 2020-01-03 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: THE FIRST TWO URDU & SUFI POETS Qutub Shah & Wali Deccani SELECTED POEMS & BIOGRAPHIES Translation & Introduction Paul Smith Qutub Shah (1565-1611) was the fifth sultan of the Qutub Shahi dynasty of Golconda in South India. He founded the city of Hyderabad. Qutab Shah was a scholar of Arabic and Persian. He wrote poetry in Urdu and Persian. His poetry has been compiled into a Divan of ghazals, masnavis, qasidas, ruba'is, and qit'as. He had the distinction of being the first Urdu (Rekhta) poet and is credited with introducing a new sensibility into prevailing genres of Persian/Urdu poetry. He was a Sufi poet and a devout Shi'ite Muslim. Wali Deccani was born in 1667 in Aurangabad, India. He loved travelling and his visit to Delhi in 1700 is considered to be of significance for Urdu ghazals. His simple, sensuous and melodious poems in Urdu, awakened the Persian loving poets of Delhi to the beauty and capability of 'Rekhta'. He stimulated the development of the Urdu ghazal in Delhi. His favourite theme was love, mystical (Sufi) and earthly, and his tone was one of cheerful affirmation and acceptance, rather than of melancholy. Wali died in Ahmedabad in 1707. This is the largest translation of both of their poems into English in the correct forms. Large Print (16pt) & Large Format Paperback (8" x 10") 148 pages. Paul Smith (b. 1945) is a poet, author and a translator of many books of Sufi poets from the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Rudaki, Yunus Emre. Lalla Ded, Mahsati and others, and his poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, children's books and screenplays. amazon.com/author/smithpa
Download or read book DAGH DEHLVI Last Great Poet of Mughal Period of Urdu Poetry written by Dagh Dehlvi and published by . This book was released on 2019-12-04 with total page 124 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DAGH DEHLVI 'Last Great Poet of Mughal Period of Urdu Poetry. SELECTED POEMS Translation & Introduction Paul Smith Nawab Mirza Khan Dagh Dehlvi was born in Delhi at Chandni Chowk in 1831. He is considered the last great poet of the Mughal period of Urdu poetry. His takhallus or pen-name of Dagh means 'scar'. His teacher of poetry became Zauq. Ghalib was a relation of his and he could also seek advice from him on his poetry. His fame as a fine poet in Delhi soon came and he was loved for his simple style and his naturalism and the musical nature of his work. Dagh Dehlvi suffered a paralytic stroke and died on the 17th March 1905 at the age of 73. He composed four Divans of ghazals (16,000 couplets) and a masnavi and some qasidas and ruba'is. His forte was the ghazal. Usage of common words and phrases and simplicity was distinctive of his style. In its totality, Dagh's poetry is idiomatic and appealing, laden with emotions and good humour. Like his pupils Iqbal, Seemab and Jigar, many of his poems have a strong Sufi influence. This is the only translation of a selection of his many books of ghazals and it has the correct rhyme structure of the originals. Introduction on the Urdu Language, Urdu Poetry, Life & Times & Poetry and on the ghazal. A Selected Bibliography. Large Print (16pt) Large Format ('7 x'10) Edition 122 pages. Paul Smith (b. 1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets from the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Rudaki and others, and poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, children's books & screenplays. amazon.com/authoe/smithpa
Download or read book Firaq Gorakhpuri Selected Poetry written by Firāq Gorakhpūrī and published by Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd. This book was released on 2000 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A Thousand Yearnings written by Marion Molteno and published by . This book was released on 2017-08-05 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For many people, Urdu is indelibly associated with a bygone era: the cultural renaissance of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in the face of colonial oppression, heady mushairas and romantic poetry. For others, it brings to mind the gritty prose of the Progressive Writers portraying the grim social realities of the mid-twentieth century. In this luminous collection of Urdu poetry and prose, Ralph Russell expands our world of Urdu letters to include folk and oral narratives, besides prose and poetry. By situating each form historically, he gives us a refreshing perspective on the diverse literary cultures and histories of India. Besides canonical short stories by the likes of Manto and Premchand, there is Ismat Chughtai's a little-known autobiographical essay about her relationship with her brother, the writer Azim Beg Chughtai. There are creation tales from the Quran, popular stories of Akbar and Birbal, along with the legendary exploits of Sikandar (Alexander the Great). Selections from the sublime poetry of Mir, Ghalib and others are supplemented by astute commentary and roman transcriptions of the original Urdu. Farhatullah Beg's brilliantly imagined account of the 'last Delhi mushaira' captures a moment in time never seen again, with the horrors of 1857 just around the corner. An accessible introduction for unfamiliar readers, and a pleasurable companion for those familiar with Urdu literature, this volume is a treasure trove of stories, poetry and history. Originally published as Hidden in the Lute(1995), this revised edition has been edited by Russell's student and friendfor several years, the novelist Marion Molteno.
Download or read book Poems written by Mīr Taqī Mīr and published by Murty Classical Library of India. This book was released on 2019 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mir Muhammad Taqi Mir is widely regarded as the most accomplished poet in the Urdu language. Selected Ghazals and Other Poems offers a comprehensive collection of ghazals and masnavis. The Urdu text, presented here in the Nastaliq script, accompanies new translations of Mir's poems, some appearing in English for the first time.
Download or read book Khwaja Mir Dard a Great Urdu Sufi Poet written by Khwaja Dard and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2017-01-31 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: KHWAJA MIR DARD A Great Urdu Sufi Poet Selected Poems Translation & Introduction Paul Smith Khwaja Mir Dard (1720-1784) is considered one of the three great poets of the Delhi school of classical Urdu poetry. He is firstly a Sufi poet who saw the physical world as a veil of the Divine Reality and this world a pathway. As a Sufi... he was respected by royalty, nobility and the poor. It was his father Khwaja Mohd Nasir Andlib, a Sufi saint and poet, who was the greatest influence on him. Dard was a great lover of mystical music both vocal and instrumental and he held soirees of music and mastered the art to perfection. At 28 he renounced earthly pleasures for a life of piety and humility. He taught one should happily submit to the will of God. He was able to successfully transmit his mystical philosophy into his poetry and his ghazals can be, like Hafiz's, read in both a mystical and secular way. His Divans of ruba'is, ghazals and other forms are in Urdu and Persian, and he wrote articles on Sufism. The correct rhyme structure has been achieved in all the different forms here translated. Introduction on his Life, Poetry & Times; Forms of Poetry; Sufism in Poetry; Six Urdu Poets (Wali, Sauda, Mir, Nazir, Zafar, Aatish) in Dard's that influenced him or he influenced, with their biographies, bibliographies and good selections of their Sufi poems. Selected Bibliography. Large Format Paperback 7"x10" 210 pages COMMENTS ON PAUL SMITH'S TRANSLATION OF HAFIZ'S 'DIVAN'. "It is not a joke... the English version of ALL the ghazals of Hafiz is a great feat and of paramount importance. I am astonished." Dr. Mir Mohammad Taghavi (Dr. of Literature) Tehran. "Superb translations. 99% Hafiz 1% Paul Smith." Ali Akbar Shapurzman, translator into Persian and knower of Hafiz's Divan off by heart. Paul Smith (b. 1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets from the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Rudaki, Lalla Ded, Mahsati and others, and his own poetry, fiction, biographies, plays, children's books and screenplays. www.newhumanitybooks.com
Download or read book MOMIN The Great Mughal Urdu Port written by Momin and published by . This book was released on 2019-12-04 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: MOMIN The Great Poet Mughal Urdu Poet SELECTED POEMS Translation & Introduction Paul Smith MOMIN (1801-1852). With Ghalib and Zauq, Momin Khan Momin was one of the three great poets of Delhi and his poetry was loved by the common people. The main theme in his poetry is love, in the physical sense and the human sense... earthly and real. He belonged to a family of doctors and was tall and handsome and was also a physician who was also interested in astrology, playing chess and music. Mir was one of his teachers in the art of poetry. He composed seven long masnavi poems and hundreds of ghazals and ruba'is and also composed elegies on the deaths of his many mistresses. He wrote not only in Urdu, but in Persian and Arabic which he knew perfectly. Momin was essentially a poet of the earthly love which he expressed best in the form of ghazal. In celebrating romantic love in all its manifestations, he drew upon the purity of diction, deeply nuanced phrases, and indirect modes of expression. All these made way, sometimes, for a metaphysical apprehension of the phenomenon of love and the figure of the lover (Sufism). He fell from a roof and was badly injured and using astrology predicated his own death. This is the only translation of ghazals & ruba'is and it has the correct rhyme structure of the originals. Introduction on the Urdu Language, Urdu Poetry, Life & Times & Poetry and on the ghazal. A Selected Bibliography. Large Print (16pt) Large Format ('7 x'10) Edition 120 pages. Paul Smith (b. 1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets from the Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish, Pashtu and other languages including Hafiz, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, and others, and poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, children's books & 12 screenplays. amazon.com/authoe/smithpa
Download or read book The Urdu Sufi Poet Khwaja Haidar Ali Aatish written by Aatish and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2017-09-22 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: THE URDU SUFI POET KHWAJA HAIDAR ALI 'AATISH' Selected Poems Translation & Introduction Paul Smith AATISH (1777-1847). Khwaja Haidar Ali... pen-name Aatish ('fire') was born in Faizabad. His ancestors had been dervishes and religious men. Because of the death of his father during his childhood he did not have any regular instruction in a school. He had a profound, natural ability for creating poetry that eventually gave him access to the court of Nawab Mohammed Taqi Khan Taraqqi, who took him to Lucknow. At Lucknow he sought and was given instruction in writing poetry by Mushafi, then an important poet of the Lucknow school of poetry (a short biography and ghazal by him is included). Later he came under the influence of the controversial Nasik (1776-1838), another great Sufi poet of Lucknow (a short biography and ghazal by him is also included). A contented, self-¬respecting man Aatish led a simple life and never bowed to nobility to gain favours. This freedom of spirit and ascetic-like lack of concern for worldly comforts is reflected in his poetry. His words are simple and carefully chosen. Some critics rank him beside Mir and Ghalib. His ghazals are Sufi in flavour on the traditional themes of human and divine love. He went blind towards the end of his life. His Urdu Divan is composed of ghazals and ruba'is and a qasida. Here is the largest selection translated into English in the correct rhyme-form and meaning. Introduction: Life, Times & Poetry of Aatish; Sufism in Poetry, The Main Forms in Aatish's Poetry, Selected Bibliography. Large Format Paperback 7" x 10" 130 pages. Paul Smith (b.1945) is a poet, author and translator of many books of Sufi poets of Persian, Arabic, Urdu, Turkish and other languages including Hafez, Sadi, Nizami, Rumi, 'Attar, Sana'i, Jahan Khatun, Obeyd Zakani, Mu'in ud-din Chishti, Amir Khusrau, Nesimi, Kabir, Anvari, Ansari, Jami, Khayyam, Hallaj, Rudaki, Yunus Emre, Ghalib, 'Iraqi, Iqbal, Makhfi, Lalla Ded, Abu Nuwas, Ibn al-Farid, Rahman Baba, Nazir, Ghani Kashmiri, Mir, Seemab, Jigar, Huma, Dadu, Mahsati and many others, as well as his own poetry, fiction, plays, biographies, children's books and a dozen screenplays. www.newhumanitybooks.com