Search results for ""Author Bird David"

'David Esterly's handsome book on Gibbons has been republished by the V&A with sumptuous pictures' Laura Freeman, The Times, 14th August 2021 Reissued to mark 300 years since the death of Grinling Gibbons (1648-1721), this study views the work of the greatest of decorative woodcarvers from the perspective of a fellow carver, the late David Esterly. Grinling Gibbons is famous for giving wood "the loose and airy lightness of flowers." His flamboyant cascades of lifelike blossoms, fruits, foliage, birds and fish dominate English interiors of the late seventeenth century. They are among the glories of Windsor Castle, Hampton Court Palace, and St. Paul's Cathedral, as well as Badminton, Burghley, Petworth, and other great country houses. A contemporary of Christopher Wren and of the diarists Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn, Gibbons was part of the colourful world of Restoration England. His discovery by Evelyn in a tumble-down cottage near the River Thames was followed by a presentation to King Charles II, who rejected his early sculptural work. Gibbons responded by inventing his spectacular style of decorative carving. He was then rediscovered, reintroduced to the king, and launched into a triumphant career. After setting Gibbons in historical context, David Esterly's ground-breaking approach allows us to understand the process by which these exuberant carvings were created and how their forms reflect the organization of Gibbon's workshop. Esterly, a professional woodcarver who restored some of Gibbons' most important carvings, shares his unique knowledge of the layering process by which Gibbons built up such masterpieces as the Cosimo panel or the elaborate overmantels at Hampton Court Palace. Specially commissioned photographs show these carvings in a disassembled state, revealing the secrets of their construction. Esterly also discusses Gibbons' formidable carving techniques, and his tools, workshop practice, materials, and finishing are described in detail. This generously illustrated volume will have a special appeal for carvers as well as for those interested in seventeenth-century interiors and the decorative arts.

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A fascinating exploration into a little-known universe, one that exists right under our noses — if we knew where to look! This is a book about the weird and wonderful insects, worms, parasites, microbes, birds, and bees without whom life as we know it would not be possible. What if we got rid of all parasites? Why should we be worried about the Insect Apocalypse? How are spiders inspiring our latest technology? Which photograph spurred a global green movement? Documentary filmmaker Hoe Yeen Nie and historian/artist David Liew lead inquisitive young minds on a fun, fact-filled journey to meet Nature’s engineers, gardeners and recyclers. By learning about their role in the ecosystem, we begin to understand that life on our shared planet depends on the survival and health of these little big heroes. Are you ready to see our Earth with fresh eyes? The Change Makers series of books will build in children a strong sense of inquiry — to arm them with knowledge in S.T.E.A.M (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) to tackle this brave new world of unknowns.

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'Britain's ten million acres of private gardens add up to a vital haven for wildlife. Chock-a-block with ideas for encouraging wildlife into your plot, this pocket-sized book tells you how to make your off-street parking wildlife-friendly, why you should welcome wasps into the garden and whether you should let ladybirds overwinter in your home. One for budding David Attenboroughs.' - Mail on SundayForeword written by Isabella Tree of the Knepp Wildland Project.RHS How Can I Help Hedgehogs? offers more than 100 ideas for you to help wildlife thrive in your garden. Packed with simple, low-cost ideas that will make a huge difference to the natural world, the book suggests ways to help birds, bees, butterflies, beetles and many other declining species.Hopeful, informative and entertaining, with plenty of 'I-never-knew-that' mini-features, this is a book you and your family need, and one that you'll all enjoy, too. Includes topics such as how to increase the biodiversity of your plot and how to improve your soil without using chemicals.Includes...- Can I make my garden bat-friendly?- Do green roofs work?- Why should I love my weeds?- Should I keep honey bees?- Which flowers are friendliest for moths?- Where's best for a bird box?- Is garden lighting disruptive?...and many more.

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Jurassic Park meets The Sixth Extinction in Rise of the Necrofauna, a provocative look at de-extinction from acclaimed documentarist and science writer Britt Wray.A captivating whirlwind tour through the birth and early life of the scientific idea known as "de-extinction."-Beth Shapiro, author of How to Clone a Mammoth: The Science of De-ExtinctionWhat happens when you try to recreate a woolly mammoth-fascinating science, or conservation catastrophe?In Rise of the Necrofauna, Wray takes us deep into the minds and labs of some of the world's most progressive thinkers to find out. She introduces us to renowned futurists like Stewart Brand and scientists like George Church, who are harnessing the powers of CRISPR gene editing in the hopes of "reviving" extinct passenger pigeons, woolly mammoths, and heath hens. She speaks with Nikita Zimov, who together with his eclectic father Sergey, is creating Siberia's Pleistocene Park-a daring attempt to rebuild the mammoth's ancient ecosystem in order to save earth from climate disaster. Through interviews with these and other thought leaders, Wray reveals the many incredible opportunities for research and conservation made possible by this emerging new field.But we also hear from more cautionary voices, like those of researcher and award-winning author Beth Shapiro (How to Clone a Woolly Mammoth) and environmental philosopher Thomas van Dooren. Writing with passion and perspective, Wray delves into the larger questions that come with this incredible new science, reminding us that de-extinction could bring just as many dangers as it does possibilities. What happens, for example, when we bring an "unextinct" creature back into the wild? How can we care for these strange animals and ensure their comfort and safety-not to mention our own? And what does de-extinction mean for those species that are currently endangered? Is it really ethical to bring back an extinct passenger pigeon, for example, when countless other birds today will face the same fate?By unpacking the many biological, technological, ethical, environmental, and legal questions raised by this fascinating new field, Wray offers a captivating look at the best and worst of resurrection science.Published in partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.

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This quick reference handbook covers the diagnosis and treatment of eye disease in a range of exotic companion animal species, including rabbits, rodents, reptiles, birds, amphibians and fish. It clarifies when extrapolation from cat or dog eyes is appropriate, or when new information is needed to ensure that diagnoses and treatments are appropriate for the particular species. Writing in an accessible and down to earth style, the author brings a wealth of personal experience to this specialised subject area. The book contains many ophthalmic photographs of both anatomy in normal eyes and pathology in abnormal cases. It also includes a separate chapter on the common ophthalmic features of exotic pets, discussing what can be learnt from cross-species comparison and another chapter giving a brief history of comparative ophthalmology. Ophthalmology of Exotic Pets is an invaluable aid for veterinary practitioners and students with an interest in exotic pet species, as well as for veterinary ophthalmologists. KEY FEATURES Covers lagomorphs, rodents, reptiles, birds, amphibians and fish Offers clear guidance for species-specific treatment Facilitates extrapolations from the cat or dog to the exotic eye Written in a concise quick reference format Highly illustrated with colour photographs

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Interactions between people and animals are attracting overdue attention in diverse fields of scholarship, yet insects still creep within the shadows of more charismatic birds, fish, and mammals. Insect Histories of East Asia centers on bugs and creepy crawlies and the taxonomies in which they were embedded in China, Japan, and Korea to present a history of human and animal cocreation of habitats in ways that were both deliberate and unwitting. Using sources spanning from the earliest written records into the twentieth century, the contributors draw on a wide range of disciplines to explore the dynamic interaction between the notional insects that infested authors' imaginations and the six-legged creatures buzzing, hopping, and crawling around them.

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David McNeill, a pioneer in the ongoing study of the relationship between gesture and language, here argues that gestures are active participants in both speaking and thinking. He posits that gestures are key ingredients in an "imagery-language dialectic" that fuels speech and thought. The smallest unit of this dialectic is the growth point, a snapshot of an utterance at its beginning psychological stage. In "Gesture and Thought", the central growth point comes from a Tweety Bird cartoon. Over the course of twenty-five years, the McNeill Lab showed this cartoon to numerous subjects who spoke a variety of languages, and a fascinating pattern emerged. The shape and timing of gestures depends not only on what speakers see but on what they take to be distinctive; this, in turn, depends on the context. Those who remembered the same context saw the same distinctions and used similar gestures; those who forgot the context understood something different and changed gestures or used none at all. Thus, the gesture becomes part of the growth point - the building block of language and thought. "Gesture and Thought" is an ambitious project in the ongoing study of how we communicate and how language is connected to thought.

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The launch of a full-color chapter book series featuring best friends Kondo and Kezumi who find a map that leads to the wonders of the unknown, for fans of Ivy & Bean and Mercy Watson -- in paperback.Kondo is big. Kezumi is little. They lived on an island with fruit trees and berry bushes and flitter-birds and fluffle-bunnies. When a surprise bottle washes ashore, they discover a map with a mysterious message: WE ARE NOT ALONE. Kezumi wants to follow the map and explore the world. Kondo wants to stay home and pick fruit from the fruit tree and berries from the berry bushes. But once Kezumi builds the perfect boat, the best friends set sail together to see...well, they don't know!So begin the adventures of Kondo and Kezumi, where islands of cheese and giant mountains await. Rising stars David Goodner and Andrea Tsurumi team up for this illustrated chapter book series filled with charming quirks and unexpected discoveries. Get ready to set foot on uncharted territory with classic themes of friendship, community, and exploration.

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The beginning of the author's adventure with a camera - filming wildlife across the world for the BBC Natural History Unit and other major TV companies - began in 1978 when he joined the RSPB's film unit. Untangling the Knot gives an in-depth look into what is involved in capturing the sequences needed for a natural history film, using comprehensive diaries and over 200 photographs. Mike describes the stresses of international flying with 20 cases of film equipment, sometimes alone, to distant corners of the world. The hardships of living and working for weeks in remote regions, avoiding tropical diseases, the onslaught of forest insects, long hours of waiting from dawn to dusk, and of frustration and disappointment when the elements or circumstances conspired against him. There are times of great elation too, when animal behaviour never seen before is captured on film. Working with top biologists and highly-experienced pilots was an essential partnership in understanding the subject to be filmed, often in remote regions where the challenge was reaching the subject in rainforest canopies, on remote islands or in featureless arctic tundra. In a career spanning 35 years, several of the programmes in which he was involved have won major awards. He describes filming Attenborough in Paradise in New Guinea with Sir David Attenborough as a career highlight, where he filmed behaviour of Birds of Paradise that had never been seen before. His last programme, Jewelled Messengers was the fulfilment of an ambition to make the ultimate film on hummingbirds with producer Paul Reddish, using the latest high-speed, high-definition cameras, and which was shot mainly in Brazil and Ecuador. The story concludes when he realizes his dream of visiting the Ross Sea region of the Antarctic. Mike considers himself lucky to have worked in so many spectacular regions of the world and this book enables readers to travel with him and share his incredible experiences.

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Being on the migrational flyway for ducks and geese, the upper Chesapeake Bay has long been a center for waterfowl hunting. Where there is hunting, there are, of course, decoys. The area around Havre de Grace, Maryland has produced some of the most prolific decoy makers in America. Usually born of the necessity of the hunt, their decoys have become highly collectable. In Upper Chesapeake Bay Decoys and Their Makers, David and Joan Hagan share their talent for photography with the reader. They illustrate the art of the decoy makers in this area with beautiful images of the birds they have formed. Usually their decoys are accompanied by the portraits of the artists and recollections and reflections on their art and experiences. Over eighty decoy makers are represented in Upper Chesapeake Bay Decoys and Their Makers. Many of them are still alive and active in their work. The decoys illustrated range from early decoys, faded and worn smooth with use, to recent decoys which go directly from the artist to the collector without ever touching the water. All of them show the skill of the artist and evoke the appreciation that has made the decoy a central theme in American folk art.

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Inanimation is the third book by author David Wills to analyze the technology of the human. In Prosthesis, Wills traced our human attachment to external objects back to a necessity within the body itself. In Dorsality, he explored how technology is understood to function behind or before the human. Inanimation proceeds by taking literally the idea of inanimate or inorganic forms of life. Starting from a seemingly naïve question about what it means to say texts “live on” or have a “life of their own,” Inanimation develops a new theory of the inanimate.Inanimation offers a fresh account of what life is and the ethical and political consequences that follow from this conception. Inspired by Walter Benjamin’s observation that “the idea of life and afterlife in works of art should be regarded with an entirely unmetaphorical objectivity,” the book challenges the coherence and limitations of “what lives,” arguing that there is no clear opposition between a live animate and dead inanimate. Wills identifies three major forms of inorganic life: autobiography, translation, and resonance. Informed by Jacques Derrida and Gilles Deleuze, he explores these forms through wide-ranging case studies. He brings his panoptic vision to bear on thinkers (Descartes, Freud, Derrida, Benjamin, Carl Schmitt, Jean-Luc Nancy, Roland Barthes), writers and poets (Hélène Cixous, Paul Celan, William Carlos Williams, Ernst Jünger, James Joyce, Georges Bataille), and visual artists (Jean-François Millet, Jean-Luc Godard, Paul Klee). With panache and gusto, Wills discovers life-forms well beyond textual remainders and translations, in such disparate “places” as the act of thinking, the death drive, poetic blank space, recorded bird songs, the technology of warfare, and the heart stopped by love.

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In 1894, a lighthouse keeper named David Lyall arrived on Stephens Island off New Zealand with a cat named Tibbles. In just over a year, the Stephens Island Wren, a rare bird endemic to the island, was rendered extinct. Mounting scientific evidence confirms what many conservationists have suspected for some time--that in the United States alone, free-ranging cats are killing birds and other animals by the billions. Equally alarming are the little-known but potentially devastating public health consequences of rabies and parasitic Toxoplasma passing from cats to humans at rising rates. Cat Wars tells the story of the threats free-ranging cats pose to biodiversity and public health throughout the world, and sheds new light on the controversies surrounding the management of the explosion of these cat populations. This compelling book traces the historical and cultural ties between humans and cats from early domestication to the current boom in pet ownership, along the way accessibly explaining the science of extinction, population modeling, and feline diseases. It charts the developments that have led to our present impasse--from Stan Temple's breakthrough studies on cat predation in Wisconsin to cat-eradication programs underway in Australia today. It describes how a small but vocal minority of cat advocates has campaigned successfully for no action in much the same way that special interest groups have stymied attempts to curtail smoking and climate change. Cat Wars paints a revealing picture of a complex global problem--and proposes solutions that foresee a time when wildlife and humans are no longer vulnerable to the impacts of free-ranging cats.

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New York Times bestseller! Now a Netflix series!“Packs plenty of information into a high-flying adventure.” —School Library Journal“Adventure, humor, and smart, likable characters make for a winning chapter book.” —Kirkus ReviewsFrom the #1 New York Times bestselling team Andrea Beaty and David Roberts who created Ada Twist, Scientist and Iggy Peck, Architect comes a spirited story full of adventure, friendship, and science! Ada Twist is the Queen of Questions. Like, why does hot coffee smell stronger than cold? What kind of birds live in her backyard? And, especially, why does her brother Arthur get so cranky when she borrows his stuff for experiments? But Ada’s questions really come in handy when her friend Rosie Revere needs help. Rosie’s Uncle Ned has gotten carried away in his famous helium p

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From trilobites near the Idaho border and primitive horses on the Columbia Plateau to giant bird tracks near Bellingham and curious bear-like beasts on the Olympic Peninsula, fossils across Washington State are filled with clues of past life on Earth. With abundant and well-exposed rock layers, the state has fossils dating from Ice Age mammals only 12,000 years old back to marine invertebrates more than 500 million years old. In Spirit Whales and Sloth Tales, renowned paleontologist Elizabeth A. Nesbitt teams up with popular science writer David B. Williams to offer a fascinating, richly illustrated tour through more than a half billion years of natural history. Following an introduction to key concepts, twenty-four profiles—each featuring a unique plant, animal, or environment—tell the incredible stories of individual fossils, many of which are on display in Washington museums. The spectacular paleontology of Washington is brought to life with details of the fossils' discovery and extraction, their place in geological time, and the insights they provide into contemporary issues like climate change and species extinction.

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Whatever your opinion of 'Intelligent Design,' you'll find Stove's criticism of what he calls 'Darwinism' difficult to stop reading. Stove's blistering attack on Richard Dawkins' 'selfish genes' and 'memes' is unparalleled and unrelenting. A discussion of spiders who mimic bird droppings is alone worth the price of the book. Darwinian Fairytales should be read and pondered by anyone interested in sociobiology, the origin of altruism, and the awesome process of evolution. --Martin Gardner, author of Did Adam and Eve Have Navels?: Debunking Pseudoscience

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A lavishly illustrated celebration of each of the world’s sixty-eight currently recognized eagle species in all their magnificence and beguiling diversity Eagles hold a unique allure among birds for their combination of power, grace, and predatory prowess. Captivating the human imagination, these raptors have symbolized pride, freedom, and independence of spirit since humankind’s earliest times. This book, unlike any previous volume, encompasses each of the world’s sixty-eight currently recognized eagle species, from the huge Steller’s Sea-eagle that soars above Japan’s winter ice floes to the diminutive Little Eagle that hunts over the Australian outback. Mike Unwin’s vivid and authoritative descriptions combined with stunning photographs taken or curated by David Tipling deliver a fascinating and awe-inspiring volume. Featuring chapters organized by habitat, the book investigates the lifestyle and unique adaptations of each eagle species, as well as the significance of eagles in world cultures and the threats they face from humans. A gorgeous appreciation of eagles, this book will dazzle both eye and imagination.

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Kondo is big. Kezumi is little. They used to live on an island with fruit trees and berry bushes and flitter-birds and fluffle-bunnies. Since the surprise bottle washed ashore with a map containing the mysterious message: WE ARE NOT ALONE, Kondo and Kezumi have been traveling the seas, making new friends, and discovering more about themselves and their place in the world.But now it's time for Kondo and Kezumi to head home. Except there's still time to see Tiny Island, make a pit stop at Dairy Isle, or even Donut island. And when Kondo and Kezumi arrive on their familiar shore, they are greeted with another boat anchored in their waters. Who could it be? Will Kondo and Kezumi be ready for a new guest on their island or is home finally changed for good?David Goodner and Andrea Tsurumi team up for this illustrated chapter book series filled with charming quirks and unexpected discoveries. Packed with vibrant full-color art and paired with poignant text, this chapter book is ideal for emerging readers searching for adventure, friendship, and fun.

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For two decades "New Poetries" has been a proving-ground for new poets in English from around the world. Here readers first encountered, in generous selections, work by, among others, Caroline Bird, Stephen Burt, Sophie Hannah, Emma Jones, Nicole Krauss, Patrick McGuinness, Kei Miller, David Morley, Sinead Morrissey, Togara Muzanenhamo, Matthew Welton and Jane Yeh. Published from Manchester, the anthologies overlook national borders, instead providing vistas across a worldscape. This fifth "New Poetries" anthology presents twenty-two new writers, organised in such a way as to highlight their variety, the 'irreducible plural' of poetry today. It includes work by poets ranging from their early twenties to their late sixties, and harking from Canada, England, Iran, New Zealand, the Philippines, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, the United States and Wales. Their forms and themes are wonderfully various. What they have in common is intelligence, curiosity and a willingness to take risks. This book's surprises remain fresh, the writers promise major things.

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With over 1.5 million posts on Instagram tagged with #drone, a revolution in photography is taking place over our heads. At the forefront of this revolution are the innovators who have instantly elevated drone photography to the level of art, pioneering their own distinctive bird's-eye view on genres ranging from landscape and architecture to nature and sports. Masters of Drone Photography orbits the world of 16 leading lights, each with a creative vision of how, where, and why drones should be used to create stunning photography. Through probing Q&A style interviews, beautifully reproduced images, captions telling the story of each picture, and detailed technical information, the reader is given an insight into the photographers' working practices, from their career paths and inspirations, to the equipment and techniques they employ to create their breathtaking and visionary works. The book includes work by the following photographers: JP and Mike Andrews, Francesco Cattuto, Amos Chapple, Tugo Cheng, Stacy Garlington, Tobias Hägg, David Hopley, Karim Iliya, Fergus Kennedy, Petra Leary, Andy Leclerc, Florian Ledoux, Bachir Mouzarkel, Kara Murphy and Sean Stalteri.

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Learn to recognize, diagnose, and manage a wide range of common ocular conditions with Slatter's Fundamentals of Veterinary Ophthalmology, 6th Edition. This thoroughly updated text provides the latest, most practical information on structure and function of the eye, the ophthalmic examination and diagnostic techniques, medical and surgical management of ocular disease, and management of ocular emergencies. Enhanced and logically organized coverage includes dogs, cats, horses, livestock, birds, and exotic pets. In addition, over 1,000 color photos and illustrations accurately depict ocular conditions encountered in practice and demonstrate diagnostic and surgical techniques. Edited by three of the most revered authorities in the field of veterinary ophthalmology, this reference is an essential aid to successful veterinary practice and education. Clinical Tips boxes such as "The Controversy Remains", "Did You Know?", "Look Again", and "Note" offer helpful practice advice and facts. UPDATED Additional species added to the exotics chapter include birds, small mammals, and others. A team of internationally respected veterinary ophthalmologists provide comprehensive, clinical expertise in all areas needed to evaluate, diagnose, manage, and monitor a patient with ophthalmic disease. Practical, clinically focused coverage provides a one-stop diagnostic guide to ophthalmic disease in small and large animals including dogs, cats, horses, livestock (cows, sheep, goats), birds, and exotic pets. Chapters on equine, livestock, and exotic pet ophthalmology written by specialists in these fields for the most clinically relevant coverage. NEW! Chapter on ophthalmic surgical techniques describes instrument and suture choice, patient positioning, surgical preparation, and general techniques. NEW! Additional drawings depict ophthalmic surgeries. NEW! In-depth equine and livestock ophthalmology content NEW! Suggested reading lists included at the end of each chapter.

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An awe-inspiring exploration of the sounds of the living Earth, and the joys and threats of human music, language and noise. 'A symphony, filled with the music of life . . . fascinating, heartbreaking, and beautifully written.'ELIZABETH KOLBERT, author of The Sixth Extinction'Sounds Wild and Broken affirms Haskell as a laureate for the earth, his finely tuned scientific observations made more potent by his deep love for the wild he hopes to save.'NEW YORK TIMES'Wonderful . . . a reminder that the narrow aural spectrum on which most of us operate, and the ways in which human life is led, blocks out the planet's great, orchestral richness.'GUARDIANWe live on a planet alive with song, music, and speech. David George Haskell explores how these wonders came to be. In rainforests shimmering with insect sounds and swamps pulsing with frog calls we learn about evolution's creative powers. From birds in the Rocky Mountains and on the streets of Paris, we discover how animals learn their songs and adapt to new environments. Below the waves, we hear our kinship to beings as different as snapping shrimp, toadfish, and whales. In the startlingly divergent sonic vibes of the animals of different continents, we experience the legacies of plate tectonics, the deep history of animals and their movements around the world, and the quirks of aesthetic evolution.Starting with the origins of animal song and traversing the whole arc of Earth's history, Haskell illuminates and celebrates the emergence of the varied sounds of our world. In mammoth ivory flutes from Paleolithic caves, violins in modern concert halls, and electronic music in earbuds, we learn that human music and language belong within this story of ecology and evolution. Yet we are also destroyers, now silencing or smothering many of the sounds of the living Earth. Haskell takes us to threatened forests, noise-filled oceans, and loud city streets to show that sonic crises are not mere losses of sensory ornament. Sound is a generative force, and so the erasure of sonic diversity makes the world less creative, less beautiful. Sounds Wild and Broken is an invitation to listen, wonder, act.'Absolutely fascinating.' MARIELLA FROSTRUP, TIMES RADIO'Enlightening and sobering.' JINI REDDY, METRO

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A major new book on the archaeology of Rome. The chapters, by an impressive list of contributors, are written to be as up-to-date and useful as possible, detailing lots of new research. There are new maps for the topography and monuments of Rome, a huge research bibliography containing 1,700 titles and the volume is richly illustrated. Essential for all Roman scholars and students. Contents: Preface: a bird's eye view ( Peter Wiseman ); Introduction ( Jon Coulston and Hazel Dodge ); Early and Archaic Rome ( Christopher Smith ); The city of Rome in the Middle Republic ( Tim Cornell ); The moral museum: Augustus and the image of Rome ( Susan Walker ); Armed and belted men: the soldiery in Imperial Rome ( Jon Coulston ); The construction industry in Imperial Rome ( Janet Delaine and G Aldrete ); The feeding of Imperial Rome: the mechanics of the food supply system ( David Mattingly ); `Greater than the pyramids': the water supply of ancient Rome ( Hazel Dodge ); Entertaining Rome ( Kathleen Coleman ); Living and dying in the city of Rome: houses and tombs ( John Patterson ); Religions of Rome ( Simon Price ); Rome in the Late Empire ( Neil Christie ); Archaeology and innovation ( Hugh Petter ); Appendix: Sources for the study of ancient Rome ( Jon Coulston and Hazel Dodge ).

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It was early Cold War days when 17-year-old David Eagles applied to the Fleet Air Arm hoping to be a fighter pilot for his national service. He little imagined the career that would follow. After flying training with the US Navy and Australian Fleet Air Arm, he settled into Fleet Air Arm fighter pilot life. He progressed through Naval Test Pilot duties – where he was forced to eject from a Buccaneer during catapult launch trials – before joining British Aerospace and playing a major part in the cockpit design and flight-testing of the RAF’s first fly-by-wire and swing-wing aircraft, the Panavia Tornado. His other experiences include ditching a Firefly into the sea and the near loss of the first British Tornado prototype after a bird strike. Finally, after 6,000 flying hours in sixty different types of aircraft, Eagles finished his career by making the first flight of the EAP, the technology demonstrator for the new Eurofighter Typhoon. Vividly illustrated with photographs, documents and plans, this is a fascinating memoir of naval-flying and test-flying some of the world’s most iconic fighters.

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Cedric Morris (1889–1982) and Arthur Lett-Haines (known as Lett) (1894–1978) were an extraordinary couple who were at the centre of the Modern British art scene and were hugely influential across the spheres of gardening and cookery as well as art. After studying in Paris in the 1920s, they moved to London, where they gave fabulous parties attended by the cream of creative London. Morris became a sought-after painter of flowers, birds and landscapes, while Lett was hailed as Britain’s first Surrealist. Together they founded the East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing at Benton End in Suffolk, attended by Lucian Freud and Maggi Hambling, where the atmosphere was described as “robust and coarse, exquisite and sensitive all at once, also faintly dangerous”. Lett ran the school and was a superb cook who swapped recipes with Elizabeth David. Cedric Morris became an award-winning plantsman and poppy and iris breeder. He was an acknowledged influence on many gardeners, including Beth Chatto. This biography, revised and updated in this paperback edition, is a fascinating portrait of a unique couple who were hugely influential across the spheres of gardening and cookery as well as art.

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"Neptune's Ark" illuminates the dramatic saga of evolution spanning 500 million years of marine life along the magnificent Pacific coast of western North America. In an engaging narrative that artfully blends elements of science, history, folklore, and personal observation, renowned naturalist David Rains Wallace reveals a marvelous diversity of creatures, not only modern ones, but those from the far prehistoric past.Mysterious forms have abounded - from giant sea cows, oyster bears, and flightless toothed birds to the orcas, elephant seals, and sea otters of modern times. Wallace tells a story about evolution, as well as a tale of the storms, scurvy, and shipwrecks that plagued the coast's explorers, naturalists, and scientists, many of whom led turbulent or tragic lives, with themes reflected in the wonder and danger of the coast itself. "Neptune's Ark" is full of vivid characters - from explorers like Sir Francis Drake and Captain James Cook, to pioneer naturalists, including Georg Steller and Charles Scammon, to early paleontologists Othniel Marsh and Edward Cope, and to recent scientists and ecological visionaries.

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This new RSPB-endorsed book is a practical, exciting and comprehensive introduction to watching birds, for children aged 8-12 years. Lavishly illustrated throughout with full-colour photographs and paintings, it begins by discussing general birding - where to go and when, what equipment to take with you, tips on attracting birds to your garden, how to take field notes etc. The second half of the book comprises a field guide to more than a hundred and thirty of the commonest species of Britain and Ireland, using clear illustrations backed up by concise, straightforward text describing key identification points, such as behaviour, voice and habitat. This informative and lively book will greatly enhance children's enjoyment of birdwatching, and will help to engender a lifetime of enthusiasm for birds and birding.

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An awe-inspiring exploration of the sounds of the living Earth, and the joys and threats of human music, language and noise. 'A symphony, filled with the music of life . . . fascinating, heartbreaking, and beautifully written.'ELIZABETH KOLBERT, author of The Sixth Extinction'Sounds Wild and Broken affirms Haskell as a laureate for the earth, his finely tuned scientific observations made more potent by his deep love for the wild he hopes to save.'NEW YORK TIMES'Wonderful . . . a reminder that the narrow aural spectrum on which most of us operate, and the ways in which human life is led, blocks out the planet's great, orchestral richness.'GUARDIANWe live on a planet alive with song, music, and speech. David George Haskell explores how these wonders came to be. In rainforests shimmering with insect sounds and swamps pulsing with frog calls we learn about evolution's creative powers. From birds in the Rocky Mountains and on the streets of Paris, we discover how animals learn their songs and adapt to new environments. Below the waves, we hear our kinship to beings as different as snapping shrimp, toadfish, and whales. In the startlingly divergent sonic vibes of the animals of different continents, we experience the legacies of plate tectonics, the deep history of animals and their movements around the world, and the quirks of aesthetic evolution.Starting with the origins of animal song and traversing the whole arc of Earth's history, Haskell illuminates and celebrates the emergence of the varied sounds of our world. In mammoth ivory flutes from Paleolithic caves, violins in modern concert halls, and electronic music in earbuds, we learn that human music and language belong within this story of ecology and evolution. Yet we are also destroyers, now silencing or smothering many of the sounds of the living Earth. Haskell takes us to threatened forests, noise-filled oceans, and loud city streets to show that sonic crises are not mere losses of sensory ornament. Sound is a generative force, and so the erasure of sonic diversity makes the world less creative, less beautiful.Sounds Wild and Broken is an invitation to listen, wonder, act.'Absolutely fascinating.'MARIELLA FROSTRUP, TIMES RADIO'Enlightening and sobering.'JINI REDDY, METRO

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A celebrated figure in myth, song, and story, the nightingale has captivated the imagination for millennia, its complex song evoking a prism of human emotions,—from melancholy to joy, from the fear of death to the immortality of art. But have you ever listened closely to a nightingale’s song? It’s a strange and unsettling sort of composition—an eclectic assortment of chirps, whirrs, trills, clicks, whistles, twitters, and gurgles. At times it is mellifluous, at others downright guttural. It is a rhythmic assault, always eluding capture. What happens if you decide to join in? As philosopher and musician David Rothenberg shows in this searching and personal new book, the nightingale’s song is so peculiar in part because it reflects our own cacophony back at us. As vocal learners, nightingales acquire their music through the world around them, singing amidst the sounds of humanity in all its contradictions of noise and beauty, hard machinery and soft melody. Rather than try to capture a sound not made for us to understand, Rothenberg seeks these musical creatures out, clarinet in tow, and makes a new sound with them. He takes us to the urban landscape of Berlin—longtime home to nightingale colonies where the birds sing ever louder in order to be heard—and invites us to listen in on their remarkable collaboration as birds and instruments riff off of each other’s sounds. Through dialogue, travel records, sonograms, tours of Berlin’s city parks, and musings on the place animal music occupies in our collective imagination, Rothenberg takes us on a quest for a new sonic alchemy, a music impossible for any one species to make alone. In the tradition of The Hidden Life of Trees and The Invention of Nature, Rothenberg has written a provocative and accessible book to attune us ever closer to the natural environment around us.

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***A Waterstones Best Books of 2022 pick***A New Scientist Book of the YearShortlisted for the Wainwright Prize for Conservation Writing 'Fascinating... There is something wondrous in Milman's revelation of our fragile dependency on insect life as well as its beauty and strangeness.' Guardian'Gripping and especially unnerving.' David Wallace-WellsWhen is the last time you were stung by a wasp? Or were followed by a cloud of midges? Or saw a butterfly? All these normal occurrences are becoming much rarer. A groundswell of research suggests insect numbers are in serious decline all over the world - in some places by over 90%.The Insect Crisis explores this hidden emergency, arguing that its consequences could even rival climate change. We rely on insect pollination for the bulk of our agriculture, they are a prime food source for birds and fish, and they are a key strut holding up life on Earth, especially our own. In a compelling and entertaining investigation spanning the globe, Milman speaks to the scientists and entomologists studying this catastrophe and asks why these extraordinary creatures are disappearing. Part warning, part celebration of the incredible variety of insects, this book highlights why we need to wake up to this impending environmental disaster.

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'Turner's seductive blend of political analysis, social reportage and cultural immersion puts him wonderfully at ease with his readers' David Kynaston 'Reading Alwyn Turner's account of life in the first two decades of the 21st century is a bit like trying to recall a dream from three nights ago ... uncannily familiar, but the details are downright implausible ' Kathryn Hughes, Guardian Weaving politics and popular culture into a mesmerising tapestry, historian Alwyn Turner tells the definitive story of the Blair, Brown and Cameron years. Some details may trigger a laugh of recognition (the spectre of bird flu; the electoral machinations of Robert Kilroy-Silk). Others are so surreal you could be forgiven for blocking them out first time around (did Peter Mandelson really enlist a Candomblé witch doctor to curse Gordon Brown's press secretary?). The deepest patterns, however, only reveal themselves at a certain distance. Through the Iraq War and the 2008 crash, the rebirth of light entertainment and the rise of the 'problematic', Turner shows how the crisis in the soul of a nation played out in its daily dramas and nightly distractions.

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Set in the mythical Cross River, Maryland, The World Doesn’t Require You heralds “a major unique literary talent” (Entertainment Weekly). Established by the leaders of America’s only successful slave revolt in the mid-nineteenth century, the town still evokes the rhythms of its founding. With lyrical prose and singular dialect, Rion Amilcar Scott pens a saga that echoes the fables carried down for generations—like the screecher birds who swoop down for their periodic sacrifice, and the water women who lure men to wet death. Among its residents—wildly spanning decades, perspectives, and species—are David Sherman, a struggling musician who just happens to be God’s last son; Tyrone, a ruthless, yet charismatic Ph.D. candidate, whose dissertation about a childhood game ignites mayhem in the neighboring, once-segregated town of Port Yooga; and Jim, an all-too-obedient robot who obeys his Master. Culminating with an explosive novella, The World Doesn’t Require You is a “leap into a blazing new level of brilliance” (Lauren Groff) that affirms Rion Amilcar Scott as a writer whose storytelling gifts the world very much requires.

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***A Waterstones Best Books of 2022 pick***A New Scientist Book of the YearShortlisted for the Wainwright Prize for Conservation Writing 'Fascinating... There is something wondrous in Milman's revelation of our fragile dependency on insect life as well as its beauty and strangeness.' Guardian'Gripping and especially unnerving.' David Wallace-WellsWhen is the last time you were stung by a wasp? Or were followed by a cloud of midges? Or saw a butterfly? All these normal occurrences are becoming much rarer. A groundswell of research suggests insect numbers are in serious decline all over the world - in some places by over 90%.The Insect Crisis explores this hidden emergency, arguing that its consequences could even rival climate change. We rely on insect pollination for the bulk of our agriculture, they are a prime food source for birds and fish, and they are a key strut holding up life on Earth, especially our own. In a compelling and entertaining investigation spanning the globe, Milman speaks to the scientists and entomologists studying this catastrophe and asks why these extraordinary creatures are disappearing. Part warning, part celebration of the incredible variety of insects, this book highlights why we need to wake up to this impending environmental disaster.

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A brand new book in the bestselling NAUGHTIEST UNICORN series – the funniest unicorn books EVER! The perfect gift for Halloween – and for readers of 7+ and fans of The Worst Witch and Pamela Butchart. It's the SPOOKIEST time of the year at Unicorn School! Mira and Dave the naughtiest unicorn are looking forward to dressing up for trick-or-treating, pumpkin carving and apple bobbing (well, doughnut bobbing for Dave). But when a strange new teacher arrives at school and the other teachers start to DISAPPEAR, Mira and her friends suspect that something SPOOKY is going on. Can they get to the bottom of what's going on, or are they in for a SERIOUSLY SPOOKY SURPRISE? Pip Bird is a children’s author living in London. When she’s not writing magical stories, she dreams of going to Unicorn School and having her own Unicorn Best Friend Forever. The Naughtiest Unicorn series:The Naughtiest UnicornThe Naughtiest Unicorn at Sports DayThe Naughtiest Unicorn and the School DiscoThe Naughtiest Unicorn at ChristmasThe Naughtiest Unicorn on a School TripThe Naughtiest Unicorn on the BeachThe Naughtiest Unicorn and the Spooky Surprise

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Blow up your inflatable, apply the factor 50 and polish those sunnies… Mira and Dave the naughtiest unicorn are going to the BEACH! Mira can't wait to build a GIANT sandcastle (although Dave is more interested in eating a GIANT GLITTERY ICE-CREAM). But when Mira and her Unicorn School friends go exploring and spot a little narwhal in BIG trouble, the fun day out turns into a super-adventurous rescue mission… it's Dave and Mira to the RESCUE! Pip Bird is a children’s author living in London. When she’s not writing magical stories, she dreams of going to Unicorn School and having her own Unicorn Best Friend Forever. The Naughtiest Unicorn series:The Naughtiest UnicornThe Naughtiest Unicorn at Sports DayThe Naughtiest Unicorn and the School DiscoThe Naughtiest Unicorn at ChristmasThe Naughtiest Unicorn on a School TripThe Naughtiest Unicorn on the BeachThe Naughtiest Unicorn and the Spooky Surprise Perfect for fans of The Worst Witch, Mummy, Fairy and Me by Sophie Kinsella and Pamela Butchart

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Periodic comprehensive overviews of the status of the diverse organisms that make up wildlife are essential to determining trends, threats and future prospects. Just over 25 years ago, leading authorities on different kinds of wildlife came together to prepare an assessment of their status of a wide range of organisms in Great Britain and Ireland in The Changing Flora and Fauna of Britain, also edited by Professor David L. Hawksworth CBE. Now, in The Changing Wildlife of Great Britain and Ireland, he has gathered together some of the original and also new contributors to review changes since that time and look to the future. Contributions range from viruses, diatoms, fungi, lichens, mites and nematodes; through butterflies, dragonflies, flies and slugs; to flowering plants, ferns, mammals, birds and fish. The state of knowledge in different groups is assessed, and the effectiveness of statutory and other measures taken to safeguard wildlife considered.The picture is far from bleak, ameliorating sulphur dioxide levels have benefited sensitive lichens and mosses in a dramatic way, water quality improvement has been beneficial, there have been few certain extinctions and rediscoveries of species thought to have been lost. Biodiversity Action Plans have also benefited targeted species, but habitat restoration and management for some is not always good for others.But there are worrying trends in declining populations, with an increasing number being regarded as threatened or endangered, especially in agricultural areas, and where woodland management has changed, particular threats from introduced species, and concern over the effects of climate change. Some of the smaller organisms remain poorly known, a situation unlikely to change as expertise in many is scant or being lost. This stock-check and look to the future will be a key source book to conservationists, naturalists, and professional biologists for many years to come.

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'Stories that start like delicate webs and finish like unbreakable wire traps' Neil Gaiman Naomi Ishiguro's fresh, magical and delightfully speculative short story collection merges the inventiveness of David Mitchell and the fairy-tale allure of Angela Carter to form its own powerful magic.Witness what happens when a space-obsessed child conjures up a vortex in his mother's airing cupboard in Shearing Season. Watch unexpected possibilities open up in The Flat Roof when a musician makes friends with a flock of birds. Get lost in the world of The Rat Catcher where, finding himself potentially out of his depth when he is summoned to a decaying royal palace, a rat catcher is plunged into a battle for the throne of a ruined kingdom. In this stunning debut collection, the characters yearn for freedom and flight, and find their worlds transformed beyond their wildest imaginings.'Naomi Ishiguro's crystal clear prose delights and intrigues' Sharlene Teo 'Winsomely written and engagingly quirky, these are inventive tales that favour imagination over gritty realism.' The Sunday Times'Ishiguro's imagination is a place where the fantastical lurks in the margins as a possibility, a flavour rather than a genre' The Herald

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Penguin presents a phizz-wizzing treat for the ears with 2 favourite Roald Dahl stories:Billy and the Minpins by Roald Dahl, read by Bill BaileyBilly's mum says he must never go out through the garden gate and explore thedark forest beyond. So, one day, that's exactly what he does! There he meetsthe Minpins, tiny tree-dwelling people whose children are the size ofmatchsticks. They live in fear of the terrible, galloping GRUNCHER. Will itgobble Billy too - or can he find a way to defeat the hungry beast?The Magic Finger by Roald Dahl, read by Kate WinsletEvery Saturday morning the Greg family goes off to shoot animals and birds. But the girl who lives next door hates hunting. Now it's made her so angry she's PUT THE MAGIC FINGER ON THEM ALL. And very strange things have begun to happen . . .Listen to Billy and the Minpins AND The Magic Finger and other Roald Dahl audiobooks read by some very famous voices, including Kate Winslet, David Walliams and Stephen Fry - plus there are added squelchy soundeffects from Pinewood Studios!

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Fabulous tales from the vintage pages of Doctor Who Annual, brought to life by a host of Doctor Who voices.In 'The Sons of the Crab' the First Doctor finds himself a prisoner on a nightmarish world in the Crab Nebula. The Second Doctor is faced with a dilemma posed by the bird-like Arcturans in 'Only A Matter of Time', and in 'War in the Abyss' the Third Doctor goes in search of Jo Grant's missing uncle.The Fourth Doctor and Leela try to help the victims of 'Famine on Planet X', whilst the Fifth Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa find themselves on a 'Night Flight to Nowhere' - courtesy of the Master!In 'Time Wake' the Sixth Doctor and Peri search for the entity behind a dangerous temporal corridor in London.Two short additional features ponder the 'Secrets of the TARDIS' and examine the conundrum that is 'One Doctor - Five Men.'Dan Starkey, Geoffrey Beevers, Anneke Wills, Jon Culshaw, Louise Jameson and Colin Baker are our guides through these weird and wacky stories from Doctor Who Annual.Readings produced by Neil GardnerSound design by David DarlingtonExecutive producer: Michael Stevens(P) 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd © 2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

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Bridge is played around the world - and often regarded as the best of all card games.'Many games provide fun, but Bridge grips you. It exercises your mind. Your mind can rust, you know, but Bridge prevents the rust from forming' Omar SharifIn this book David Bird builds on TEN WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR BRIDGE and presents ten further ways to increase success at the bridge table. In the area of bidding, the Jacoby 2NT convention is described - the most popular way nowadays of showing a strong major-suit raise and investigating slam possibilities. When bidding slams, it is critical to identify the presence or otherwise of the six key cards (the four aces and the king-queen of trumps) Roman Key-card Blackwood allows you to do this. Two important variations (Kickback Blackwood and Exclusion Blackwood) are explained. The Lebensohl convention is covered also, both when partner's INT has been overcalled and when you are responding to a double of a weak-two bid. On defence, the important topic of disrupting declarer's communications is explained. The book will also show how you can become an 'awkward defender', the sort of player that no declarer likes to face. Finally, five important areas of declarer play are addressed: holding up in a suit contract, using the entries provided by the trump suit, how to block the defenders' suit at no-trumps, the various ways to avoid an adverse ruff or overruff and how to overcome a 4-1 trump break.

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Praise for Alex Neptune, Dragon Thief:"I loved it! A rich and exciting story." LD Lapinski, author of The Strangeworlds Travel Agency "A wonderfully pacy adventure full of imagination and jeopardy." Jasbinder Bilan, author of Asha & the Spirit Bird"Hilarious - full of humour, friendship, and mythical adventure." Sarah Driver, author of The Huntress trilogyJoin Alex Neptune, the boy with the power of the ocean in his hands, on his second adventure - perfect for fans of Percy Jackson and Dragon Realm!Alex Neptune is struggling to get to grips with his new oceanic powers...so the last thing he needs is Haven Bay being attacked by pirates in a ship made of rubbish. The marauders are hunting for the missing egg of the elusive water dragon - and Alex is determined to reach it first to stop them stealing its power. Along with friends Zoey and Anil - plus a clumsy seal, a lock-picking hermit crab and some seriously menacing otters - Alex sets out on a treasure hunt to a secret shipwreck where they must face three monstrous challenges.Indiana Jones meets Pirates of the Caribbean in this ultimate treasure-hunting, puzzle-solving ocean adventure!

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In the acclaimed Walden Warming, Richard B Primack uses Henry David Thoreau and Walden, icons of the conservation movement, to track the effects of a warming climate on Concord, Massachusetts' plants and animals. Under the attentive eyes of Primack, the meticulous natural history notes that Thoreau made years ago are transformed from charming observations into scientific data sets. Primack finds that many wildflower species that Thoreau observed - including familiar groups such as irises, asters, and lilies - have declined in abundance or have disappeared from Concord. Primack also describes how warming temperatures have altered other aspects of Thoreau's Concord, from the dates when ice departs from Walden Pond in late winter, to the arrival of birds in the spring, to the populations of fish, salamanders, and butterflies that live in the woodlands, river meadows, and ponds. Climate change, Primack demonstrates, is already here, and it is affecting not just Walden Pond but many other places in Concord and the surrounding region. Although we need to continue pressuring our political leaders to take action, Primack urges us each to heed the advice Thoreau offers in Walden: to "live simply and wisely." In the process, we can each minimize our own contributions to our warming climate.

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Established by the leaders of the country’s only successful slave revolt in the mid-nineteenth century, Cross River still evokes the fierce rhythms of its founding. In lyrical prose and singular dialect, a saga beats forward that echoes the fables carried down for generations—like the screecher birds who swoop down for their periodic sacrifice, and the water women who lure men to wet deaths. Among its residents—wildly spanning decades, perspectives, and species—are David Sherman, a struggling musician who just happens to be God’s last son; Tyrone, a ruthless PhD candidate, whose dissertation about a childhood game ignites mayhem in the neighboring, once-segregated town of Port Yooga; and Jim, an all-too-obedient robot who serves his Master. As the book builds to its finish with Special Topics in Loneliness Studies, a fully-realized novella, two unhinged professors grapple with hugely different ambitions, and the reader comes to appreciate the intricacy of the world Scott has created—one where fantasy and reality are eternally at war. Contemporary and essential, The World Doesn’t Require You is a “leap into a blazing new level of brilliance” (Lauren Groff) that affirms Rion Amilcar Scott as a writer whose storytelling gifts the world very much requires.

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This authoritative edition was originally published in the acclaimed Oxford Authors series under the general editorship of Frank Kermode. It brings together a generous selection of Clare's poetry and prose, including autobiographical writings and letters. John Clare (1793-1864) is now recognized as one of the greatest English Romantic poets, after years of indifference and neglect. Clare was an impoverished agricultural labourer, whose genius was generally not appreciated by his contemporaries, and his later mental instability further contributed to his loss of critical esteem. But the extraordinary range of his poetical gifts has restored him to the company of his contemporaries Byron, Keats, and Shelley, and this fine selection illustrates all aspects of his talent. It contains poems from all stages of his career, including love poetry, and bird and nature poems. Written in his native Northamptonshire, Clare's work provides a fascinating reflection of rural society, often underscored by his own sense of isolation and despair. Clare's writings are here presented with the minimum of editorial interference, and with a new Introduction by the poet and scholar Tom Paulin. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

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Interactions between people and animals are attracting overdue attention in diverse fields of scholarship, yet insects still creep within the shadows of more charismatic birds, fish, and mammals. Insect Histories of East Asia centers on bugs and creepy crawlies and the taxonomies in which they were embedded in China, Japan, and Korea to present a history of human and animal cocreation of habitats in ways that were both deliberate and unwitting. Using sources spanning from the earliest written records into the twentieth century, the contributors draw on a wide range of disciplines to explore the dynamic interaction between the notional insects that infested authors' imaginations and the six-legged creatures buzzing, hopping, and crawling around them.

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Marrying deft social commentary to a rich, earthy comedy, the three comedies collected in Aristophanes' The Frogs and Other Plays offers a unique insight into one of the most turbulent periods in Ancient Greek history. This Penguin Classics edition is translated by David Barrett with revisions, an introduction and notes by Shomit Dutta.The master of ancient Greek comic drama, Aristophanes combined slapstick, humour and cheerful vulgarity with acute political observations. In The Frogs, written during the Peloponnesian War, Dionysus descends to the Underworld to bring back a poet who can help Athens in its darkest hour, and stages a great debate to help him decide between the traditional wisdom of Aeschylus and the brilliant modernity of Euripides. The clash of generations and values is also the object of Aristophanes' satire in Wasps, in which an old-fashioned father and his loose-living son come to blows and end up in court. And in Women at the Thesmophoria, the famous Greek tragedian Euripides, accused of misogyny, persuades a relative to infiltrate an all-women festival to find out whether revenge is being plotted against him.Shomit Dutta's introduction discusses Aristophanes' life, the cultural context of his work and conventions of Greek comedy. This updated version of David Barrett's translation also includes extensive notes and a preface for each play.Aristophanes (c.445-386 BC) was probably born in Athens. Little is known about his life, but there is a portrait of him in Plato's Symposium. He was twice threatened with prosecution for his outspoken attacks on the prominent politician Cleon, but in 405 he was publicly honoured and crowned for promoting Athenian civic unity in The Frogs. Aristophanes had his first comedy produced when he was about twenty-one, and wrote forty plays in all. The eleven surviving plays of Aristophanes are published in the Penguin Classics series as The Birds and Other Plays, Lysistrata and Other Plays, The Wasps and Other Plays and The Frogs and Other Plays.If you enjoyed The Frogs and Other Plays, you might like Aristophanes' Lysistrata and Other Plays, also available in Penguin Classics.

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“Eminently readable, and more shotgun info than you can use in a lifetime.” —David E. Petzal, Deputy Editor, Field & Stream Magazine.Let expert Bob Brister offer you advice, instructions, and solutions to every situation a shotgunner might face. Based on years of tests, meticulous study of data, and a lifetime of experience, his advice will help any shooter make every shot count.A veritable encyclopedia of the shotgun for the modern shooter and outdoorsman, Shotgunning details the selection of guns, loads, and chokes; required leads (translated into “bird lengths” for easier shooting recognition); shot velocity and penetration; the effects of recoil on the shooter; wind and temperature effects on shotshells; and much more. Data analysis puts blithely held truths to the test. Myths are debunked, and Brister’s conclusions are supported with hundreds of photographs, lending Shotgunning an authority that many recent, worthwhile books on the subject cannot claim. Chapters include: Shotgun Etiquette The Pump-Action Gun Why a Two-Barreled Gun The Modern Autoloader How to Make Your Gun Fit Recoil and Balance Barrels, Chokies, and Forcing Cones Stock Answers The Fine Art of Waterfowl Shooting Upland Gunning Trap and Skeet And much more! Brister brightly and boldly presents his readers with the science of shotgunning, but he never forgets the art that makes shooting a sport. Shotgunning is an elegant and educational mélange—a unique and invaluable guidebook that any shotgunner must own.Skyhorse Publishing is proud to publish a broad range of books for hunters and firearms enthusiasts. We publish books about shotguns, rifles, handguns, target shooting, gun collecting, self-defense, archery, ammunition, knives, gunsmithing, gun repair, and wilderness survival. We publish books on deer hunting, big game hunting, small game hunting, wing shooting, turkey hunting, deer stands, duck blinds, bowhunting, wing shooting, hunting dogs, and more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

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From zombies in Restoration London, to Hell gatecrashing a funeral, rogue Time Agent Captain John Hart leads the universe the rack and ruin in four new adventures written by David Llewellyn. The Restored, Escape from Nebazz, Peach Blossom Heights and Darker Purposes. NOTE: Torchwood contains adult material and is not suitable for younger listeners. 1. The Restored Captain John is in Restoration England looking for some gauntlets. There’s intrigue in the Tower of London, the dead are walking the streets, and the severed head of Oliver Cromwell has a terrible warning. 2. Escape from Nebazz Captain John is in a wooden space prison that’s under attack by a strange and terrible life form. Also the catering is truly dreadful and Dr Magpie’s latest discovery may have got a little out of hand. 3. Peach Blossom Heights Captains John and Jack find themselves stranded on a world that may be actual paradise – the weather is pleasant, the people are friendly, and the giant stuffed animals only come out at night. There’s only one thing the world is missing. No-one has every explained to any of the population about the birds and the bees. Which is unfortunate. 4. Darker Purposes Captain John arrives at the funeral of one of the galaxy’s richest men. He died without making a will, and his heirs have some very creative ideas about how this can be put to rights involving murder, necromancy and seduction. Sadly, Captain John is only too happy to oblige. CAST: James Marsters (Captain John Hart), John Barrowman (Captain Jack Harkness), Christopher Allen (The Archivist), Ayesha Antoine (Caitlin), Rosie Baker (Ilsa Vargosh), Connor Calland (Grimble), Silas Carson (Sir Thomas Pewsey), Dona Croll (Miss Slaughter), Laura Doddington (Frances, Duchess of Winchester), Kathryn Drysdale (Dr Magpie), Serin Ibrahim (Mohisha Varma), Matthew Jacobs-Morgan (Chester Vamooth), Robbie Jarvis (Trevor), Nicholas Khan (Jillix), Wilf Scolding (King Charles II), David Sibley (Uther Vargosh), Rick Yale (Darius Vargosh). Other parts played by members of the cast. NOTE: Torchwood contains adult material and is not suitable for younger listeners.

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Owen Davey’s popular non-fiction series continues with a lushly illustrated guide to penguins from the Antarctic to tropical climates like beaches, and coastal forests."Stunning illustrations and clear readable text combine to make this large format book about all types of penguins a sure hit with animal-loving patrons."—STARRED REVIEW School Library Journal"Enough penguin facts to keep even David Attenborough busy." —The Tiny Activist Did you know that penguins can hold their breath for over half an hour? Or that they can swim four times faster than an Olympic swimmer? And they don’t just live in icy Antarctica! You can find them on sandy beaches in South Africa and other more tropical locations too.Take a plunge into this fascinating illustrated guide to our feathered friends, the penguins. From the tiny fairy penguin that is no bigger than a ruler, to the emperor penguin that is over a meter tall, find out where they live, what they eat and how we can protect them.Those familar with National Geographic Kids books and the other Owen Davey books in the series including Bonkers About Beetles and Fanatical About Frogs will enjoy our newest fact-filled animal encyclopedia on pop culture's favorite bird, and our favorite winter animal!

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