Search results for ""epitaph""

The Penguin Modern Classics edition of Ryszard Kapuscinski's The Emperor is translated by William R. Brand and Katarzyna Mroczkowska-Brand, with an introduction by Neal Ascherton.After the deposition of Haile Selassie in 1974, which ended the ancient rule of the Abyssinian monarchy, Ryszard Kapuscinski travelled to Ethiopia and sought out surviving courtiers to tell their stories. Here, their eloquent and ironic voices depict the lavish, corrupt world they had known - from the rituals, hierarchies and intrigues at court to the vagaries of a ruler who maintained absolute power over his impoverished people. They describe his inexorable downfall as the Ethiopian military approach, strange omens appear in the sky and courtiers vanish, until only the Emperor and his valet remain in the deserted palace, awaiting their fate. Dramatic and mesmerising, The Emperor is one of the great works of reportage and a haunting epitaph on the last moments of a dying regime.Ryszard Kapuscinski (1932-2007) was born in Pinsk, now in Belarus. Kapuscinski was the pre-eminent writer among Polish reporters. His best-known book is a reportage-novel of the decline of Haile Selassie's anachronistic regime in Ethiopia - The Emperor, which has been translated into many languages. Shah of Shahs, about the last Shah of Iran, and Imperium, about the last days of the Soviet Union, have enjoyed similar success. If you enjoyed The Emperor, you might like Norman Mailer's The Fight, also available in Penguin Modern Classics.'Stunning ... a magical eloquence'John Updike, New Yorker'[The Emperor] transcends reportage, becoming a nightmare of power ... An unforgettable, fiercely comic, and finally compassionate book'Salman Rushdie'Kapuscinski trascends the limitations of journalism and writes with the narrative power of a Conrad or Kipling or Orwell'Blake Morrison

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Cambridge is one of the most famous universities in the world and its library is one of only five copyright libraries in the UK. At the start of the twentieth century it was a privileged life for some, but many in Cambridge knew that war was becoming truly inevitable. What the proverbial 'gown' feared communicated itself to the surrounding 'town'. Terrible rumours were rife, that the Germans would burn the university library and raise King's College chapel to the ground, before firing shells along the tranquil 'Backs' of the River Cam until the weeping willows were just blackened stumps. Frightened but determined, age-old 'town and gown' rivalries were put aside as the city united against the common enemy. This book tells Cambridge's fascinating story in the grim years of the Great War. Thousands of university students, graduates and lecturers alike enlisted, along with the patriotic townsfolk. The First Eastern General Military Hospital was subsequently established in Trinity College and treated more than 80,000 casualties from the Western Front.Though the university had been the longtime hub of life and employment in the town, many people suffered great losses and were parted from loved ones, decimating traditional breadwinners and livelihoods, from the rationing of food, drink and fuel, to hundreds of restrictions imposed by DORA. As a result, feelings ran high and eventually led to riots beneath the raiding zeppelins and ever-present threat of death. The poet, Rupert Brooke, a graduate of King's College, died on his way to the Dardanelles in 1915, but his most famous poem The Soldier became a preemptive memorial and the epitaph of millions. If I should die Think only this of me That there's some corner of a foreign field That is forever England.

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Not many ships’ cats have even one memorial statue, let alone six. But Trim does, including one outside Euston Station in London, proudly unveiled by Prince William on the bicentenary of Matthew Flinders’s death – 19 July 2014. Trim was the ship’s cat who accompanied Matthew Flinders on his voyages to circumnavigate and map the coastline of Australia from 1801 to 1803. He lived quite the adventurous life. As a small kitten he fell overboard while at sea but managed to swim back to the vessel and climb back on board by scaling a rope. This cemented his position as Flinders’s beloved companion, and together they survived a voyage around the world, the circumnavigation of Australia and a shipwreck. When Flinders was imprisoned by the French in Mauritius in 1803 Trim shared his captivity until one day he mysteriously disappeared – which heartbreakingly Flinders attributed to his being stolen and eaten by a hungry slave. Trim, The Cartographer’s Cat is an ode to this much-loved ship’s cat, which will warm the heart of any cat lover. The first part of the book reproduces Flinders’ own whimsical tribute to Trim, written while in captivity in the early 1800s, with added ‘friendly footnotes’ to provide some background to Flinders’s numerous literary allusions and nautical terms. Next the book discusses where Flinders was when he wrote his tribute and why, and what his letters and journals from that time tell us about his ‘sporting, affectionate and useful companion’. Finally, we learn what Trim’s views on all of this might have been, in a fun and fanciful observation on his premature epitaph. Accompanying all of this are beautiful maps, historical artworks, quirky original illustrations by Ad Long and excerpts from Flinders’ original script, showing his beautiful handwriting. This book will make a unique and treasured gift for Flinders fans, Trim fans and cat lovers around the world.

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The Unremarkable Wordsworth was first published in 1987. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions.William Wordsworth was attacked by the critics of his time for imposing unremarkable sights and sentiments on his audience. In this book's title essay, an exemplary reading of the Westminster Bridge sonnet, Geoffrey Hartman shows how Wordsworth's "unremarkable phrases" attain their curious vigor. Drawing upon the propositions of semiological analysis—that signs are not signs unless they become perceptible, through the contrast between "marked" and "unmarked"—Hartman, in a deft and sensitive analysis, is able to play these notions of marking and the unremarkable off against each other. Wordsworth, in the end, overcomes both his critics and the science of signs: his quiet sonnet—with its muted or near-absent signs—is itself, as epitaph for an era, a faithful sign of the times.Hartman's capacity to open up a dialogue between contemporary theory and Wordsworth's poetry informs all of these essays, written since the 1964 publication of Wordsworth's Poetry, a book that marked an epoch in the study of that poet and of Romantic poetry in general. In the years since then, the nature of literary study has changed dramatically, and Hartman has been a leader in the turn to theoretical modes of interpretation. The fifteen essays in The Unremarkable Wordsworth draw upon a wide range of contemporary theoretical approaches, from psychoanalysis to structuralism, from deconstruction to phenomenology. Yet, as Donald Marshall points out in his foreword, "Wordsworth remains so much the focus of this book that 'critical method' is strangely transmuted." For Hartman, reading and thinking are inseparable; he has an uncanny power to convey in an intensified form the poet's own consciousness, not under the rubric of "intertextuality" but because he "has ears to hear."Geoffrey H. Hartman is Karl Young Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Yale University. His most recent book is Easy Pieces. Donald G. Marshall is a professor of English at the University of Iowa.

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Winner of the Richard B. Harwell Award, Tennessee History Book Award and the Doughlas Southall Freeman AwardA critical moment in the Civil War, the Battle of Shiloh has been the subject of many books. However, none has told the story of Shiloh as Timothy Smith does in this volume, the first comprehensive history of the two-day battle in April 1862-a battle so fluid and confusing that its true nature has eluded a clear narrative telling until now.Unfolding over April 6th and 7th, the Battle of Shiloh produced the most sprawling and bloody field of combat since the Napoleonic wars, with an outcome that set the Confederacy on the road to defeat. Contrary to previous histories, Smith tells us, the battle was not won or lost on the first day, but rather in the decision-making of the night that followed and in the next day's fighting. Devoting unprecedented attention to the details of that second day, his book shows how the Union's triumph was far less assured, and much harder to achieve, than has been acknowledged. Smith also employs a new organization strategy to clarify the action. By breaking his analysis of both days' fighting into separate phases and sectors, he makes it much easier to grasp what was happening in each combat zone, why it unfolded as it did, and how it related to the broader tactical and operational context of the entire battle.The battlefield's diverse and challenging terrain also comes in for new scrutiny. Through detailed attention to the terrain's major features-most still visible at the Shiloh National Military Park-Smith is able to track their specific and considerable influence on the actions, and their consequences, over those forty-eight hours. The experience of the soldiers finally finds its place here too, as Smith lets us hear, as never before, the voices of the common man, whether combatant or local civilian, caught up in a historic battle for their lives, their land, their honor, and their homes.""We must this day conquer or perish,"" Confederate General Albert Sidney Johnston declared on the morning of April 6, 1862. His words proved prophetic, and might serve as an epitaph for the larger war, as we see fully for the first time in this unparalleled and surely definitive history of the Battle of Shiloh.

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In his inimitable prose, master storyteller Peter Quinn chronicles his odyssey from the Irish Catholic precincts of the Bronx to the arena of big-league politics and corporate hardball. Cross Bronx is Peter Quinn’s one-of-a-kind account of his adventures as ad man, archivist, teacher, Wall Street messenger, court officer, political speechwriter, corporate scribe, and award-winning novelist. Like Pete Hamill, Quinn is a New Yorker through and through. His evolution from a childhood in a now-vanished Bronx, to his exploits in the halls of Albany and swish corporate offices, to then walking away from it all, is evocative and entertaining and enlightening from first page to last. Cross Bronx is bursting with witty, captivating stories. Quinn is best known for his novels (all recently reissued by Fordham University Press under its New York ReLit imprint), most notably his American Book Award–winning novel Banished Children of Eve. Colum McCann has summed up Quinn’s trilogy of historical detective novels as “generous and agile and profound.” Quinn has now seized the time and inspiration afforded by “the strange interlude of the pandemic” to give his up-close-and-personal accounts of working as a speechwriter in political backrooms and corporate boardrooms: “In a moment of upended expectations and fear-prone uncertainty, the tolling of John Donne’s bells becomes perhaps not as faint as it once seemed. Before judgment is pronounced and sentence carried out, I want my chance to speak from the dock. Let no man write my epitaph. In the end, this is the best I could do.” (from the Prologue) From 1979 to 1985 Quinn worked as chief speechwriter for New York Governors Hugh Carey and Mario Cuomo, helping craft Cuomo’s landmark speech at the 1984 Democratic Convention and his address on religion and politics at Notre Dame University. Quinn then joined Time Inc. as chief speechwriter and retired as corporate editorial director for Time Warner at the end of 2007. As eyewitness and participant, he survived elections, mega-mergers, and urban ruin. In Cross Bronx he provides his insider’s view of high-powered politics and high-stakes corporate intrigue. Incapable of writing a dull sentence, the award-winning author grabs our attention and keeps us enthralled from start to finish. Never have his skills as a storyteller been on better display than in this revealing, gripping memoir.

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Is this the right book for me?The current world of work is tough whether you are looking for work or just looking to make better life choices. Things are changing fast and the 'job for life' is a long forgotten myth. This book, perceptively written and full of practical advice, tells you exactly how to become a hot property in the competitive job market. Filled with self-check questions, exercises and case studies it will help you to understand yourself and improve your chance of a fulfilling career. Written to appeal to the broadest spectrum of readers, it will prove invaluable whether you are starting out on your career, returning to work, looking to change direction or coping with redundancy or early retirement. Learn to understand your motivations, grow confident in what you have to offer and go get that job!Get a Better Job includes:Chapter 1: Moving from employment to employabilityUnderstanding how these changes are affecting youUnderstanding the future workWhat is a job?The decline and fall of the jobWhat has happened to make job certainty disappear?Restructuring the workplace in the twenty-first centuryFacing up to the issuesSelf-check questionsCase studiesChapter 2: Getting to know yourself - what you areCharting progressIdentifying those who have influenced youIdentifying what you doMaintaining your employabilityBeing a rounded personRating your confidence in your employabilityCase studiesChapter 3: Getting to know yourself - who you areStarting to feel comfortable with being youLife-mappingIdentifying your needs and desiresHow will you be remembered?My epitaphCase studiesChapter 4: Motivation at workWhat motivates me?Elton Mayo - acknowledging the human elementAbraham Maslow - satisfying inbuilt needsClayton Alderfer - levels of needDouglas McGregor - alternative ways of managing peopleFrederick Herzberg - identifying the sources of motivation and demotivationHow motivating employees can rescue the industryCase studiesChapter 5: Understanding what you have to offerUnderstanding what employers seekDeveloping your transferable skillsIdentifying your transferable skillsBecoming a SWOTDevising your own SWOTDescribing yourselfCase studiesChapter 6: Developing your skillsOffering more than qualifications and experienceCommunicating effectivelyNetworkingHow good are you at team-working?Team-working with colleaguesSeizing opportunities to enhance your skillsMentoringCase studiesChapter 7: Assessing your attitude to lifeRecognizing yourselfIdentifying your personal valuesWhat is your attitude to lifeAre you an optimist or pessimistPersonalityKnowing what suits youMultiple intelligencesEmotional intelligenceChecking the lifeboatCase studiesChapter 8: Where are you going next?Making the most of choicesAccepting support networksManaging timeManaging stressMarketing yourselfMaintaining your employabilitySeize the dayApplying for jobsCase studiesChapter 9: Action planningDevising an action planKeeping yourself in mindPrioritizing activitiesTalking yourself upKeeping on trackEvaluating progressEvaluating by considering key pointsCase studiesPostscript Learn effortlessly with a new easy-to-read page design and added features: Not got much time?One and five-minute introductions to key principles to get you started.Author insightsLots of instant help with common problems and quick tips for success, based on the author's many years of experience.Test yourself Tests in the book and online to keep track of your progress.Extend your knowledgeExtra online articles to give you a richer understanding of job hunting.Things to rememberQuick refreshers to help you remember the key facts.Try thisInnovative exercises illustrate what you've learnt and how to use it.

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WINNER OF THE LAKELAND BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD 2022You dreamed of being a journalist and the dream has come true. You love working for your local paper . . . although not everything is as you imagined.You embarrass yourself with a range of celebrities, from John Hurt to Jordan. Your best story is 'The Man With the Pigeon Tattoo'.A former colleague interviews President Trump. You urinate in the president of the Mothers' Union's garden. Your appearance as a hard-hitting columnist on a BBC talk show does not go well. And being photographed naked is only the second most humiliating thing to happen one infamous afternoon. There are serious stories, such as a mass shooting, a devastating flood, and the search for Madeleine McCann.Meanwhile local papers are dying. Your building is crumbling and your readership is dwindling. Your carefully crafted features are read by fewer people than a story about fancy dress for dogs. Panic as Man Burns Crumpets is the inside story of local newspapers during the past twenty-five years, told in a way that's funny, poignant and revealing.'For those who know about provincial newspapers, this will be a classic and a gem. Those who don't know will envy what they have missed'MELVYN BRAGG'Brisk and entertaining. A very readable love letter to a disappearing world, told with verve and tenderness'STUART MACONIE, author of Pies and Prejudice'Gut-bustingly funny, poignant and packed with astonishing insider information'M. W. CRAVEN, author of the award-winning The Puppet Show'Local journalism has never seemed more exotic than in this part-memoir, part-ode to that disappearing art, which is as funny as it is endearing . . . Told with a tender fondness, the bonkers, baffling but vital world of local press is paraded with the style that it deserves'JONATHAN WHITELAW, Sun'Refreshingly honest, engagingly self-deprecating, tremendously funny and more than a little heartbreaking. By far my favourite read of the year so far'MIKE WARD, TV critic, Daily Express/Daily Star'Local publishers . . . need to hold on to thoughtful, dedicated writers such as Roger Lytollis, or his book will be an epitaph to a centuries-old industry'IAN BURRELL, i paper'Anyone who has ever worked at a local newspaper, or wondered what it is like, should read this book. Equally hilarious and heartbreaking'DOMINIC PONSFORD, media editor at New Statesman Media Group/editor-in-chief at Press Gazette'[Lytollis] writes with clarity, comically self-effacing honesty and surprising poignancy . . . [this is] the story of what it is like to love what you do, and be great at it, and to watch it collapse around you in slow motion'ROBYN VINTER, Guardian'For anyone wondering where their local press went, this is as clear an account of how it was pickpocketed, drained of blood, and left to die as you'll find'ED NEEDHAM, Strong Words magazine'Panic as Man Burns Crumpets gives a powerful, if not to say dismaying, overview of an industry in terminal decline'NAT SEGNIT, Times Literary Supplement'The best book I've read this year, by some margin. Brilliantly written, frequently laugh-out-loud funny, but also reflective, candid, poignant and passionate about the importance of journalism. Superb'CHRIS MASON, BBC political correspondent/presenter of Radio 4's Any Questions'Many books written by journalists have come across my desk over the course of my time as publisher of Hold the Front Page, but I would say without any hesitation that this one is the best. Not only is it the funniest, and the best-written, it is also the most honest in terms of what it reveals about its author, and more importantly about our craft'PAUL LINFORD, Hold the Front Page

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