Search results for ""epic""

A stunning feminist reimagining of the life of Joan of Arc - perfect for fans of Cecily, Ariadne and Matrix'It is as if the author has crept inside a statue and breathed a soul into it, re-creating Joan of Arc as a woman for our time' Hilary Mantel, twice Booker Prize-winning author of The Mirror & the Light'A glorious, sweeping novel . . . Richly imagined, poignant and inspiring' Jennifer Saint, author of Ariadne'Chen earns the comparison [to Mantel] thanks to her vivid, visceral and boldly immediate storytelling . . . a hypnotic heroine for our time' Telegraph'Chen's Joan roars off the page. If you liked Ariadne, then this has to be your next read' Red Magazine'Brilliant . . . Chen [presents] Joan as a beguiling, fully human mix of wariness and confidence, and fiercely protective of those she loves' Guardian'Chen's brilliantly imagined novel breathes new life into this famous tale. Her Joan is a riotous tomboy, a hot-headed adolescent and a decidedly unsaintly soldier - and is all the more inspiring for it. A triumph of historical fiction' Mail on Sunday*Times Best Historical Novels of July 2022 Pick**The Week Best Novels of 2022 Pick****Girl. Warrior. Heretic. Saint?France is mired in a losing war against England. Its people are starving. Its king is in hiding. Yet out of the chaos, an unlikely heroine emerges.Reckless, steel-willed and brilliant, Joan has survived a childhood steeped in both joy and violence to claim an extraordinary - and fragile - position at the head of the French army. The battlefield and the royal court are full of dangers and Joan finds herself under suspicion from all sides - as well as under threat from her own ambition.With unforgettably vivid characters and propulsive storytelling, Joan is a thrilling epic, a triumph of historical fiction, and a feminist celebration of one remarkable - and remarkably real - woman who left an indelible mark on history.PRAISE FOR JOAN'Measured, austere, profoundly physical. I loved it' Jo Baker, author of Longbourn'Pacy but lyrical, which takes great skill . . . Joan possesses a mystical, spiritual quality that gleams within the dirt and brutality of war, while her kindness and compassion shine through. I loved the writing, the imagery, the feeling of authenticity: this novel will stay with me for a long time' Elizabeth Chadwick, bestselling author'This masterly and intense portrait creates a convincing three-dimensional character from the young peasant woman gifted with visions who, in her short life, followed her destiny to fight for the disputed French crown, even at the cost of her life. A highly immersive read' Anne O'Brien, bestselling author of The Royal Game'In Katherine J. Chen's capable hands, Joan becomes fully flesh and achingly real' Lisa Wingate, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Lost Friends 'An epic novel with the mythic power of a fairytale' Christina Baker Kline, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Orphan Train and The Exiles'When you look up the term 'historical fiction' in the dictionary it should say, simply, Read Katherine J. Chen' Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author of The Kaiser's Web 'A wholly original novel that inspires one's mind and awakens one's soul. With Joan, Katherine J. Chen has created nothing short of a masterpiece' Alyson Richman, USA Today and internationally bestselling author of The Lost Wife 'Beautifully written and confidently told, this is a story of how feminine strength and will can change the world' Megan Chance, bestselling author of A Splendid Ruin'This Joan is of the earth - scrappy and strong, resilient and curious. An ambitious, thrilling novel' Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author of The Magnolia Palace 'Katherine J. Chen has stunningly summoned another time and place' M.J. Rose, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Tiara 'Visceral and piercing - I was blown away' Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author of The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post 'Every era has a need to recast the French maiden warrior in a manner that renews her relevance. In Chen's transporting prose, you will meet a towering new Joan of Arc, one of amazing physical strength, kindness, loyalty, and endurance' Sena Jeter Naslund, author of Ahab's Wife, Four Spirits, and Abundance

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The Last Prophet is novel based on the extraordinary life of the prophet Muhammed, one-time shepherd and outcast revolutionary. This desert master’s discipline and principles would later become the basis for Islam, which today claims two billion followers.Death comes easily in the seventh-century Arabian desert—from hunger and thirst to the relentless sun to war and raiding tribes who take by force the scarce resources needed to survive. In this harsh land, the powerful city of Mecca is a beacon, famous for its well, which provides abundant life-giving water, and its great temple, where pilgrims come to worship the totems of hundreds of gods. It is here that the prophet Muhammed is born. An orphan raised by his uncle, Muhammed is disparaged by society. He has traveled throughout Arabia, soaking in an array of knowledge and religious views. He is a man of wisdom and faith who is troubled by the world around him. When God speaks to him, he sets out to preach what he has been told. Though every tribe has their own deity, he speaks of just one God. He shuns arrogance and the pursuit of luxury over truth and seeks to abolish slavery. In this patriarchal culture, he insists smothering infant girls in the sand is murder, a custom to be abolished. As the prophet starts to develop a following, the leaders of the city recognize the threat his radical views have to their lifestyle—one of wealth built in part upon the backs of slaves. The nobles try to turn the people and even his own family against Muhammed. They ban him and his tribe, and they torture and kill those who follow him. But no matter what they do to him, his influence continues to grow. The two sides eventually call upon allies throughout Arabia, rallying warriors for an epic battle that will forever change the course of history.

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This is the previously untold story of one of the most ferocious and prolonged air/naval battles in history: the battle at the radar picket stations during the American assault on Okinawa in spring 1945. It weaves together the experiences of the ships and their crews, Navy, Army, and Marine Corps pilots, and Japanese kamikazes in an account which provides the complete story of this infamous battle. The US fleet and its accompanying airpower that took station off Okinawa was of gigantic proportions, such that the Japanese could only rely on suicide attacks to inflict critical damage. While losses in the main fleet have been well covered in the literature, less well known has been the terrific battle waged on the picket line, the fleet’s outer defence against the swarms of Japanese marauders. Of the 206 ships that served on radar picket duty, twenty-nine percent were sunk or damaged by Japanese air attacks, making theirs the most hazardous naval surface duty in World War II. The great losses were due in large part to the relentless nature of the kamikaze attacks, but also to the improper use of support gunboats, failure to establish land-based radar at the earliest possible time, the assignment of ships ill-equipped for picket duty, and, as the battle went on, crew fatigue. The intricate nature of the US air cover is also described in full. Toward the end of the battle, the radar picket ships became the prime kamikaze target as Japanese pilots despaired of getting through the “big blue blanket” of American fighter planes to reach larger prey at Okinawa. About the AuthorRobin L. Rielly, the author of seven previous books, has written an engrossing narrative of air/naval combat. Combining firsthand action with astute tactical and strategic analysis, he has gone far toward completing our understanding of one of World War II’s epic campaigns.

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Winner of THE GENERAL WALLACE M. GREENE, JR. AWARD for outstanding nonfictionIn May 1943 a self-described “really young, green, ignorant lieutenant” assumed command of a new Marine Corps company. His even younger enlisted Marines were learning to use an untested weapon, the M4A2 “Sherman” medium tank. His sole combat veteran was the company bugler, who had salvaged his dress cap and battered horn from a sinking aircraft carrier. Just six months later the company would be thrown into one of the ghastliest battles of World War II.On 20 November 1943 the Second Marine Division launched the first amphibious assault of the Pacific War, directly into the teeth of powerful Japanese defenses on Tarawa. In that blood-soaked invasion, a single company of Sherman tanks, of which only two survived, played a pivotal role in turning the tide from looming disaster to legendary victory. In this unique study Oscar Gilbert and Romain Cansiere use official documents, memoirs, interviews with veterans, as well as personal and aerial photographs to follow Charlie Company from its formation, and trace the movement, action—and loss—of individual tanks in this horrific four-day struggle.The authors have used official documents and interviews with veterans to follow the company from training through the brutal 76-hour struggle for Tarawa. Survivor accounts and air photo analysis document the movements –and destruction – of the company’s individual tanks. It is a story of escapes from drowning tanks, and even more harrowing escapes from tanks knocked out behind Japanese lines. It is a story of men doing whatever needed to be done, from burying the dead to hand-carrying heavy cannon ammunition forward under fire. It is the story of how the two surviving tanks and their crews expanded a perilously thin beachhead, and cleared the way for critical reinforcements to come ashore. But most of all it is a story of how a few unsung Marines helped turn near disaster into epic victory.

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In 1729, Marc-Antoine Lamerenx, a minor French nobleman, set sail for Saint-Domingue. Twenty years later, peasant Jean Mouscardy also made the long and difficult journey to Saint-Domingue. Although the men were not related and had little in common, they hailed from the same Pyrenean town, La Bastide Clairence. In the New World, they both settled in Saint-Martin-du-Dondon, where they made their fortunes growing coffee. After the Haitian slave revolt uprooted them, some of their descendants stayed in Haiti and took part in building the new nation. Others took refuge in France, started businesses in New Orleans, or transferred their slaves and their Haitian experience to new coffee plantations in Cuba. Wealth and Disaster follows the emigrant Lamerenx and Mouscardy families over three generations and various locations across the Caribbean. Pierre Force traces their white and mixed-race descendants from the early-eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth centuries and over decades of comings and goings between their French ancestral town and Saint-Domingue, Cuba, and New Orleans. A chance encounter in a French archive led Force to uncover an epic saga, a fascinating and character-driven story of pirates, revolution, staggering riches, financial ruination, natural disaster, harsh imprisonment, and the rise and fall of the plantation economy. By observing the circulation of a few individuals between the Pyrenees and the Caribbean, Force is able to show how these two worlds became interconnected. Arguing that who emigrated and how depended on one's position in the Pyrenean house-based system, Force also reveals how capital accumulation in Saint-Domingue relied on Pyrenean networks and how, in turn, wealth acquired in America changed the rules of the game back home. An exciting and accessible history, Wealth and Disaster offers riveting insight into the matrimonial strategies and inheritance customs of French rural society and the resulting choices to emigrate or to stay.

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Seventeen-year-old Anouk envies the human world, where people known as Pretties lavish themselves in fast cars, high fashion, and have the freedom to fall in love. But Anouk can never have those things, because she is not really human. Enchanted from animal to human girl and forbidden to venture beyond her familiar Parisian prison, Anouk is a Beastie: destined for a life surrounded by dust bunnies and cinders serving Mada Vittora, the evil witch who spelled her into existence. That is, until one day she finds her mistress murdered in a pool of blood - and Anouk is accused of the crime. Now, the world she always dreamed of is rife with danger. Pursued through Paris by the underground magical society known as the Haute, Anouk and her fellow Beasties only have three days to find the real killer before the spell keeping them human fades away. If they fail, they will lose the only lives they've ever known... but if they succeed, they could be more powerful than anyone ever bargained for. From New York Times bestselling author Megan Shepherd, Grim Lovelies is the glittering first book in a new, epic YA fantasy series. Prepare to be spellbound by the world of Grim Lovelies, where secrets have been long buried, friends can become enemies, and everything - especially humanity - comes at a price. AGES: 14 and up AUTHOR: Megan Shepherd is the acclaimed author of The Madman's Daughter trilogy, The Cage trilogy and the middle grade novel, The Secret Horses of Briar Hill. SELLING POINTS: . Megan Shepherd is the New York Times bestselling author of the Madman's Daughter and The Cage series, as well as her three-starred middle grade novel, The Secret Horses of Briar Hill. . Set in the glittering streets of Paris, Grim Lovelies takes the stories of childhood fairy tales to dark and dazzling lengths, where four enchanted creatures must risk love, magic, and betrayal to stay human before the clock strikes twelve.

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Butterfly McQueen will always be remembered for her first screen role—as Scarlett O'Hara's hysterical servant girl, Prissy, in Gone With the Wind (1939)—and for her most famous line in the Civil War epic: "I don't know nuthin' 'bout birthin' babies!" Though many criticized her for playing an offensive caricature of black womanhood, film scholar Donald Bogle claims her performance is "a unique combination of the comic and the pathetic." Tired of playing what she called "stupid maids," however, Butterfly turned her back on Hollywood in the 1940s and spent the next fifty years in obscurity. On several occasions she tried to revive her theatrical career, but her identification with Prissy made it difficult for her to be taken seriously by producers and casting agents. Mostly she supported herself by taking menial jobs. In the 1970s she was active in social work projects in Harlem, and was awarded a degree by the City College of New York. In 1989, as one of the last surviving members of the cast of Gone With the Wind, Butterfly happily participated in the film's 50th anniversary celebrations. At the time of the celebrations she said: "Now I am happy I did Gone With the Wind. I wasn't when I was 28, but it's part of black history. You have no idea how hard it is for black actors, but things change, things blossom in time." In Butterfly McQueen Remembered, author Stephen Bourne, who corresponded with Butterfly for many years, draws upon two decades of research to document her life and career. From her memorable role in one of Hollywood's greatest films to her last big screen appearance opposite Harrison Ford in The Mosquito Coast, the details of McQueen's life are captured in this intimate portrait. Bourne chronicles the ups and downs of this talented and generous woman's life, both in front of the camera and far from its glaring spotlight.

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A virtuosic epic applauded by Stanley Crouch as “an adventurous masterwork that provides our literature with a signal moment,” back in print in a definitive new edition “I have an awful memory for faces, but an excellent one for voices,” muses Joubert Jones, the aspiring playwright at the center of Divine Days. A kaleidoscopic whorl of characters, language, music, and Black experience, this saga follows Jones for one week in 1966 as he pursues the lore and legends of fictional Forest County, a place resembling Chicago’s South Side. Joubert is a veteran, recently returned to the city, who works for his aunt Eloise’s newspaper and pours drinks at her Night Light Lounge. He wants to write a play about Sugar-Groove, a drifter, “eternal wunderkind,” and local folk hero who seems to have passed away. Sugar-Groove’s disappearance recalls the subject of one of Joubert’s earlier writing attempts—W. A. D. Ford, a protean, diabolical preacher who led a religious sect known as “Divine Days.” Joubert takes notes as he learns about both tricksters, trying to understand their significance.Divine Days introduces readers to a score of indelible characters: Imani, Joubert’s girlfriend, an artist and social worker searching for her lost siblings and struggling to reconcile middle-class life with her values and Black identity; Eloise, who raised Joubert and whose influence is at odds with his writerly ambitions; (Oscar) Williemain, a local barber, storyteller, and founder of the Royal Rites and Righteous Ramblings Club; and the Night Light’s many patrons. With a structure inspired by James Joyce and jazz, Leon Forrest folds references to African American literature and cinema, Shakespeare, the Bible, and classical mythology into a heady quest that embraces life in all its tumult and adventure. This edition brings Forrest’s masterpiece back into print, incorporating hundreds of editorial changes that the author had requested (but were never made) when the book was picked up by W. W. Norton after a disastrous warehouse fire destroyed most of the inventory from the original printing of the book by Another Chicago Press.

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Learn all about life in the desert with this nature-themed installment of DK Books’ new educational fiction series for children aged 7 to 9 years old.Meet the Secret Explorers - a band of brainiac kids from all around the world, here to take young readers on a series of fact-filled fictional adventures! Each with their own specialty, from outer space to dinosaurs, these young globetrotters will teach kids that learning can be fun, encouraging them to become experts in something they love. In this story, Leah the biology explorer and Connor the marine expert set off into the Mexican desert. There, they have to rescue a pack of wolf cubs while avoiding dust storms! The gripping narrative is filled with scientific facts as the explorers navigate the desert and come across different species and habitats.This epic adventure is packed with: - Fun facts and beautiful illustrations of the desert.- Informative diagrams to make science and nature seem simple.- A summary of all the scientific discoveries made throughout the story.- Quizzes, mission notes, and a glossary of definitions making it the perfect classroom read.Let’s explore! The Secret Explorers and the Desert Disappearance by SJ King is the perfect gift for children who are interested in all things nature, with information about plants and animals that will stretch the wildest of imaginations. Never miss a mission! A total of 12 different books, The Secret Explorer series is both educational and imaginative, combining exciting stories with real-life facts.Embark on a space mission adventure in The Secret Explorers and the Comet Collision. Travel back in time to save a dinosaur egg from destruction in The Secret Explorers and the Jurassic Rescue. Take part in a volcano rescue in The Secret Explorers and the Smoking Volcano. Then travel to the arctic for a rescue mission in Secret Explorers and the Missing Scientist.Whatever your preferred topic, there’s a mission waiting for you!

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Whether you’re a vintage car spotter or an armchair petrolhead, strap yourself in for an unforgettable ride through motoring history.This sumptuously designed visual guide is packed with everything you could ever want to know about cars through the ages, from the earliest “horseless carriage” to the modern supercar and Formula 1.Inside the pages of this visually stunning car encyclopedia, you’ll discover an iconic celebration of automotive design and motoring history. • Trace the history of the car decade-by-decade in stunning visual detail • In-depth profiles highlight the most important cars of each period along with their specifications and special features • Includes beautifully photographed “virtual tours” that showcase particularly celebrated cars such as the Ferrari F40 and the Rolls Royce Silver Ghost • Tells the story of the people and companies that created sports cars like Porsche and Lamborghini Take a trip through decades of automotive historySee the fastest, biggest, most luxurious, most innovative, and downright sexiest motorized vehicles come to life in the most spectacular way! Packed with stunning photography and featuring more than 2000 cars, Car shows you how the finest cars from every corner of the globe have evolved over the last 130 years.Lavishly illustrated feature spreads reveal the stories behind the car world’s most famous marques and models, the geniuses who designed them, and the companies and factories who built them. It’s the ultimate gift for men or anyone interested in cars, motoring, and motor racing.This new edition has been updated to include hybrid and electric cars, as well as the cars of today and tomorrow.Want to learn more about machines?There’s more to discover in this epic series from DK Books! Take an action-packed flight through the history of air travel in Aircraft. Stay on the right track and step off at the most important and incredible rail routes from all over the world in Train.

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“Chickie takes us thousands of miles on a hilarious quest laced with sorrow, but never dull. You will laugh and cry, but you will not be sorry that you read this rollicking story.”—Malachy McCourtSoon to be a major motion picture written and directed by Peter Farrelly, who won two Academy Awards for Green Book—a wildly entertaining, feel-good memoir of an Irish-American New Yorker and former U.S. marine who embarked on a courageous, hare-brained scheme to deliver beer to his pals serving Vietnam in the late 1960s.One night in 1967, twenty-six-year-old John Donohue—known as Chick—was out with friends, drinking in a New York City bar. The friends gathered there had lost loved ones in Vietnam. Now, they watched as anti-war protesters turned on the troops themselves. One neighborhood patriot came up with an inspired—some would call it insane—idea. Someone should sneak into Vietnam, track down their buddies there, give them messages of support from back home, and share a few laughs over a can of beer. It would be the Greatest Beer Run Ever. But who’d be crazy enough to do it? One man was up for the challenge—a U. S. Marine Corps veteran turned merchant mariner who wasn’t about to desert his buddies on the front lines when they needed him. Chick volunteered. A day later, he was on a cargo ship headed to Vietnam, armed with Irish luck and a backpack full of alcohol. Landing in Qui Nho’n, Chick set off on an adventure that would change his life forever—an odyssey that took him through a series of hilarious escapades and harrowing close calls, including the Tet Offensive. But none of that mattered if he could bring some cheer to his pals and show them how much the folks back home appreciated them.This is the story of that epic beer run, told in Chick’s own words and those of the men he visited in Vietnam.

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The definitive history of Peter Jackson’s Middle-earth saga, Anything You Can Imagine takes us on a cinematic journey across all six films, featuring brand-new interviews with Peter, his cast & crew. From the early days of daring to dream it could be done, through the highs and lows of making the films, to fan adoration and, finally, Oscar glory. LightsA nine-year-old boy in New Zealand’s Pukerua Bay stays up late and is spellbound by a sixty-year-old vision of a giant ape on an island full of dinosaurs. This is true magic. And the boy knows that he wants to be a magician. CameraFast-forward twenty years and the boy has begun to cast a spell over the film-going audience, conjuring gore-splattered romps with bravura skill that will lead to Academy recognition with an Oscar nomination for Heavenly Creatures. The boy from Pukerua Bay with monsters reflected in his eyes has arrived, and Hollywood comes calling. What would he like to do next? ‘How about a fantasy film, something like The Lord of the Rings…?’ ActionThe greatest work of fantasy in modern literature, and the biggest, with rights ownership so complex it will baffle a wizard. Vast. Complex. Unfilmable. One does not simply walk into Mordor – unless you are Peter Jackson. Anything You Can Imagine tells the full, dramatic story of how Jackson and his trusty fellowship of Kiwi filmmakers dared take on a quest every bit as daunting as Frodo’s, and transformed JRR Tolkien’s epic tale of adventure into cinematic magic, and then did it again with The Hobbit. Enriched with brand-new interviews with Jackson, his fellow filmmakers and many of the films’ stars, Ian Nathan’s mesmerising narrative whisks us to Middle-earth, to gaze over the shoulder of the director as he creates the impossible, the unforgettable, and proves that film-making really is ‘anything you can imagine’.

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'A landmark of the American literary century' Boston Globe Sixty years after the publication of his great modernist masterpiece, Call It Sleep, Henry Roth returned with Mercy of a Rude Stream - a sequence of four internationally-acclaimed epic novels of immigrant life in early-twentieth century New York. The second novel in the internationally acclaimed six-volume sequence which began with MERCY OF A RUDE STREAM. Ira Stigman, now an adolescent in 1920s New York, is on the rack. All his friends seem to be paragons of achievement and sophistication, while his own life bears the taint of an impoverished immigrant background. Work on the trolleycars and selling soda at Yankee Stadium introduces him to an underworld of corruption and petty thieving, and all his choices seem to be the wrong ones. Worst of all, within his own family exists a temptation so dark that it has corroded Ira's very soul. A DIVING ROCK ON THE HUDSON is fearless in its depiction of a young man in the lower depths, yet in its glimpses of redemption it offers hope with the power of literature as a force for comprehension and forgiveness.'The literary comeback of the century' Vanity Fair 'As unquenchably vibrant with life as the immigrants whose existence it commemorates' Sunday Times 'A dynamic and moving event . . . a stirring portrait of a vanished culture . . . a poignant chapter in the life-drama of a unique American writer' Newsweek 'Although it is sixty years since a new novel by Mr Roth last hit the bookshelves, it has been worth the wait' The Economist 'Fresh and touching' Wall Street Journal 'A precision of detail which brings the sounds from the tenements, the heat of the sidewalk steaming off the pages' Sunday Express 'A meticulous evocation of a now-distant episode of the American experience' New York Times Book Review Mercy of a Rude Stream: The Complete Novels includes 1) A Star Shines Over Mt. Morris Park 2) A Diving Rock on the Hudson 3) From Bondage 4) Requiem for Harlem.

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Encounters with a 'multicultural' Britain in the Tudor and Stuart periods written with an eye to debates about immigration and ethnicity in today's Britain. This book recovers the encounter with a "multicultural" Britain by British travellers in the Tudor and Stuart periods. When William Camden, writing in the sixteenth century, set out to write the history of Britannia, he deliberately took to the roads to discover it first-hand, and those diverse cultures guided and informed his journeys. Here, John Cramsie offers original perspectives on Camden's multicultural Britain through the study of British travellersand their narratives. We meet characters such as the Tudor traveller John Leland, who intended to tell the peoples of England and Wales about themselves; chronicle how they came to settle the towns, villages, valleys, and mountaintops they called home; record the marks they left in the landscape; and celebrate the noble histories and cultures they created. Dozens - eventually hundreds - of Britons shared the same passion to meet their island neighbours and relate their experiences. The individuals studied in this book include actual as well as armchair travellers and those who blurred the boundaries between them. Their letters, diaries, journals, and histories range from the epic,poignant, and matter of fact to the exotic, preposterous, and hateful; the sources include actual and imaginative narratives and those which combined both elements. Travellers painted Britain with, in Leland's words, native colours that were rich, vibrant, and, above all, complex. Their remarkable journeys are the story of how Britons over two centuries met, interacted, and attempted (or not) to understand one another. Written with an eye to debates aboutimmigration and ethnicity in today's Britain, the book emphasizes the long history of making and remaking the island's cultural mosaic. The encounter with Britain's native colours has been a burden of history and opportunity formillennia, not simply for our own times. JOHN CRAMSIE is Associate Professor, Department of History, Union College, NY.

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An exploration of the meaning and reception of "modernist" music. The debate over modernist music has continued for almost a century: from Strauss's Elektra and Webern's Symphony Op.21 to John Cage's renegotiation of musical control, the unusual musical practices of the Velvet Underground, and Stanley Kubrick's use of Ligeti's Lux Aeterna in the epic film 2001. The composers discussed in these pages -- including Bartók, Stockhausen, Bernard Herrmann, Steve Reich, and many others -- are modernists inthat they are defined by their individualism, whether covert or overt, and share a basic urge toward redesigning musical discourse. The aim of this volume is to negotiate a varied and open middle ground between polemical extremes of reception. The contributors sketch out the possible significance of a repertory that in past discussions has been deemed either meaningless or beyond describable meaning. With an emphasis on recent aesthetics and contexts-- including film music, sexuality, metaphor, and ideas of a listening grammar -- they trace the meanings that such works and composers have held for listeners of different kinds. None of them takes up the usual mandate of "educated listening" to modernist works: the notion that a person can appreciate "difficult" music if given enough time and schooling. Instead the book defines novel but meaningful avenues of significance for modernist music, avenues beyond those deemed appropriate or acceptable by the academy. While some contributors offer new listening strategies, most interpret the listening premise more loosely: as a metaphor for any manner of personal and immediate connection with music. In addition to a previously untranslated article by Pierre Boulez, the volume contains articles (all but one previously unpublished) by twelve distinctive and prominent composers, music critics, and music theorists from America, Europe, Australia, and South Africa: Arved Ashby, Amy Bauer, William Bolcom, Jonathan Bernard, Judy Lochhead, Fred Maus, Andrew Mead, Greg Sandow, Martin Scherzinger, Jeremy Tambling, Richard Toop, and Lloyd Whitesell. Arved Ashby is Associate Professor of Music at the Ohio State University.

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'A spectacular exploration of the power of technology. Upon finishing the final page I was left breathless and bereft. A feat of creativity, written with great heart, this is science fiction at its best' Saara El-Arifi, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Final Strife"What does it feel like to wake up in the Panopticon? It’s like waking up for the first time ever. It’s like waking up with a third eye." When Moremi connects her brain to the Panopticon, a network which allows you to see inside the minds and dreams of others, she believes that it will save her from depression, loneliness and, eventually, death. That is until she meets Orpheus. Orpheus was brought up in isolation by a Neo-luddite father. He was raised to question everything, including the government who plan to make the connection procedure compulsory. They promise that connecting everyone to the Panopticon will end human suffering and usher in a more perfect world. But when Orpheus and Moremi uncover the dark side of the technology, they find themselves on opposite sides of a radical divide, between those who believe that the Panopticon will save humanity, and those who will stop at nothing to destroy it. More Perfect is The Circle meets Inception in an immersive and futuristic story that explores love, loneliness and the limits of technology’s ability to save a humanity who might not want to be saved. Praise for Temi Oh 'A major new voice. Read Temi Oh today. Everybody will be reading her tomorrow' Stephen Baxter, author of World Engines 'An ambitious 500-page coming-of-age blockbuster . . .Oh is excellent at portraying the aching sense of loss on a one-way trip to the stars' Guardian 'A tightly wound, emotional epic that asks important questions . . . This novel is a brilliant, beautiful debut. Reading it will change your heart' Christian Kiefer, author of Phantoms

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Your Last Breath: 1876 - Christopher leaves his young family behind to work in Norway. He will map the uncharted mountains for the very first time. 1999 - Anna's body freezes after an extreme skiing accident and her heart stops. But doctors gradually warm her until it miraculously starts beating again. 2011 - Freija, a successful business woman, has just lost her father. She travels to scatter his ashes in Norway. 2034 - Nicholas explains a medical breakthrough which saved his life as a baby, whereby the human body can be 'suspended in animation.' Spanning 150 years, Your Last Breath piece fuses movement, live piano score and video unravelling the landscapes of the heart and our own personal geographies. It was a Fringe First Winner in 2011 and will be touring, potentially to Scandinavia, in the Spring. After the Rainfall: Throughout history, the study of ants (myrmecology) has been used as an analogy for human behaviour. This piece uses myrmecology as a prism through which to view the present day. Navigating the arid Egyptian desert, continental Europe, the British Museum and a quiet village green, this piece is a patchwork of multidimensional narratives about the aftermath of the Empire. Curious Directive conjure a world where multimedia, movement and sound unpick Britain's relationship to artefacts, mining and the secret life of ants. An epic, thumping, passionate story asking questions about the relationship between our past, present and into eternity. A collaboration between Curious Directive, Watford Palace Theatre and Escalator East to Edinburgh, and it will play at the Edinburgh Festival (Pleasance Dome, 4-27 August) followed by a run at the Watford Palace Theatre. Olfactory: Over 10,000 different smells drift across our planet in various configurations. Olfactory gives you a choice to craft your identity and to decode the invisible molecules floating through the air. Who do you want to be in the future? This miniature explores our invisible relationship with perfumes and smell.

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The young woman standing on Lottie's step was a stranger. She was clutching the hand of a young boy. 'Help me,' she said to Lottie. 'Please help me.' One Monday morning, the body of a young pregnant woman is found. The same day, a mother and her son visit the house of Detective Lottie Parker, begging for help to find a lost friend. Could this be the same girl? When a second victim is discovered by the same man, with the murder bearing all the same hallmarks as the first, Lottie needs to work fast to discover how else the two were linked. Then two more girls go missing.Detective Lottie Parker is a woman on the edge, haunted by her tragic past and struggling to keep her family together through difficult times. Can she fight her own demons and catch the killer before he claims another victim? The Stolen Girls is a gripping and page-turning thriller that will leave you breathless. Perfect for fans of Karin Slaughter, Tess Gerritsen and Helen Fields.What people are saying about The Stolen Girls:'THE BEST BOOK I'VE READ IN A LONG, LONG TIME! If I could have given it ten stars I would have!' Goodreads Reviewer'A thrilling mystery with great characters and a dark and disturbing plot.' Deja Read'A highly engrossing and very emotive story, tension which will keep you on the edge of your seat and not just chewing but chomping at those finger nails.' Jen Med's Book Reviews'I absolutely, totally and utterly blinking loved reading The Stolen Girls and I can't wait to read more.' Ginger Book Geek'Patricia has written another un-putdownable police procedural which is fast-paced and a page-turner of epic proportions.' Sweet Little Book Blog'This is Patricia Gibney's second novel, following her amazing debut, The Missing Ones. I gave The Missing Ones 5 stars, and I liked this one even better, but alas, Goodreads won't let me give it 6 stars.' Dark Twisty Books

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Volume 2 of 4. Encompassing the whole milieu of early Islamic civilization, this major work of Western orientalism explores the meaning of the life and teaching of the tenth-century mystic and martyr, al-Hallaj. With profound spiritual insight and transcultural sympathy, Massignon, an Islamicist and scholar of religion, penetrates Islamic mysticism in a way that was previously unknown.Massignon traveled throughout the Middle East and western India to gather and authenticate al-Hallaj's surviving writings and the recorded facts. After assembling the extant verses and prose works of al-Hallaj and the accounts of his life and death, Massignon published La Passion d'al-Hallaj in 1922. At his death in 1962, he left behind a greatly expanded version, published as the second French edition (1975). It is edited and translated here from the French and the Arabic sources by Massignon's friend and pupil, Herbert Mason.Volume 1 gives an account of al-Hallaj's life and describes the wo rld in which he lives; volume 2 traces his influence in Islam over the centuries; volume 3 studies Hallajian thought; volume 4 contains a full biography and index. Each volume contains Massignon's copious notes and new translations of original Islamic documents.Herbert Mason is University Professor of Religion and Islamic History at Boston University. He is also apoet and novelist; his version of the Gigamesh epic was a nominee for the National Book Award in 1971.Bollingen Series XCVIII.Originally published in 1972.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

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"In the Greek romances," writes David Konstan, "sighs, tears, and suicide attempts are as characteristic of the male as of the female in distress; ruses, disguises, and outright violence in defense of one's chastity are as much the part of the female as of the male." Exploring how erotic love is represented in ancient amatory literature, Konstan points to the symmetry in the passion of the hero and heroine as a unique feature of the Greek novel: they fall mutually in love, they are of approximately the same age and social class, and their reciprocal attachment ends in marriage. He shows how the plots of the novels are perfectly adapted to expressing this symmetry and how, because of their structure, they differ from classical epic, elegy, comedy, tragedy, and other genres, including modern novels ranging from Sidney to Harlequin romances. Using works like Chaereas and Callirhoe and Daphnis and Chloe, Konstan examines such issues as pederasty, the role of eros in both marital and nonmarital love, and the ancient Greek concept of fidelity. He reveals how the novelistic formula of sexual symmetry reverses the pattern of all other ancient genres, where erotic desire appears one-sided and unequal and is often viewed as either a weakness or an aggressive, conquering power. Konstan's approach draws upon theories concerning the nature of sexuality in the ancient world, reflected in the work of Michel Foucault, David Halperin, and John Winkler. Originally published in 1993. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

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Hailed as "the great nature writer of this generation" (Wall Street Journal), Robert Macfarlane is the celebrated author of books about the intersections of the human and the natural realms. In Underland, he delivers his masterpiece: an epic exploration of the Earth’s underworlds as they exist in myth, literature, memory, and the land itself. In this highly anticipated sequel to his international bestseller The Old Ways, Macfarlane takes us on an extraordinary journey into our relationship with darkness, burial, and what lies beneath the surface of both place and mind. Traveling through “deep time”—the dizzying expanses of geologic time that stretch away from the present—he moves from the birth of the universe to a post-human future, from the prehistoric art of Norwegian sea caves to the blue depths of the Greenland ice cap, from Bronze Age funeral chambers to the catacomb labyrinth below Paris, and from the underground fungal networks through which trees communicate to a deep-sunk “hiding place” where nuclear waste will be stored for 100,000 years to come. Woven through Macfarlane’s own travels are the unforgettable stories of descents into the underland made across history by explorers, artists, cavers, divers, mourners, dreamers, and murderers, all of whom have been drawn for different reasons to seek what Cormac McCarthy calls “the awful darkness within the world.” Global in its geography and written with great lyricism and power, Underland speaks powerfully to our present moment. Taking a deep-time view of our planet, Macfarlane here asks a vital and unsettling question: “Are we being good ancestors to the future Earth?” Underland marks a new turn in Macfarlane’s long-term mapping of the relations of landscape and the human heart. From its remarkable opening pages to its deeply moving conclusion, it is a journey into wonder, loss, fear, and hope. At once ancient and urgent, this is a book that will change the way you see the world.

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In three volumes spanning centuries, Lieutenant Colonel Roman Jarymowycz recounts the story of the Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada, the oldest Highland regiment in the country. He traces its history from the roots, when soldiers, settlers, and militia volunteers rallied to defend the southern borders of their adopted country against invasion from the United States. Drawing on diaries, letters, classified documents, and the regimental archive, Jarymowycz weaves the strands of a complex story into an epic narrative of a resolute collective of officers and men.Since its birth in 1862 as the 5th Battalion, Volunteer Militia Rifles of Canada, thousands of citizens have served in the unit. In addition to securing Canada’s borders, Black Watch soldiers have fought in the South African War, both world wars, and the Korean War. They have bolstered NATO operations and United Nations peacekeeping missions, and they provided aid to the civil power during the 1997 Quebec and Eastern Ontario ice storm disaster and the COVID-19 pandemic. The Montreal-based battalion continues to serve Canada in its traditional role as a reserve infantry unit, and to this day, Black Watch soldiers frequently deploy on dangerous missions abroad. Volume 3 relates the regiment’s post–Second World War story. Canada’s commitments to NATO and the United Nations led to the creation of two regular battalions of the Black Watch, while retaining the reserve battalion in Montreal. From 1953 to 1970, in Korea, Germany, Cyprus, and Canada, the regular battalions served with devotion and courage. The thousands of men who were based at Camp Aldershot, Nova Scotia, and the Regimental Depot in Sussex, New Brunswick, then moved to establish a Regular Force Home Station in the newly constructed Camp Gagetown, NB. These units earned a reputation second to none in efficiency, training, fighting ability, readiness, and strength. This monumental history of Canada’s oldest Highland regiment is at once a record of Scottish heritage, a portrait of Montreal rising as an industrial giant, and an examination of the emergence of a military culture from the Western Front.

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Images of the assassination of John F. Kennedy are burned deeply into the memories of millions who watched the events of November 1963 unfold live on television. Never before had America seen an event of this magnitude as it happened. But what is it we remember? How did the near chaos of the shooting and its aftermath get transformed into a seamless story of epic proportions? In this book, Barbie Zelizer explores the way we learned about and came to make sense of the killing of the president. Covering the Body (the title refers to the charge given journalists to follow a president) is a powerful reassessment of the media's role in shaping our collective memory of the assassination—at the same time as it used the assassination coverage to legitimize its own role as official interpreter of American reality. Of the more than fifty reporters covering Kennedy in Dallas, no one actually saw the assassination. And faced with a monumentally important story that was continuously breaking, most journalists had no time to verify leads or substantiate reports. Rather, they took discrete moments of their stories and turned them into one coherent narrative, blurring what was and was not "professional" about their coverage. Through incisive analyses of the many accounts and investigations in the years since the shooting, Zelizer reveals how journalists used the assassination not just to relay the news but to address the issues they saw as central to the profession and to promote themselves as cultural authorities. Indeed, argues Zelizer, these motivations are still alive and are at the core of the controversy surrounding Oliver Stone's movie, JFK. At its heart, Covering the Body raises serious questions about the role of the media in defining our reality, and shaping our myths and memories. In tracing how journalists attempted to answer questions that still trouble most Americans, Zelizer offers a fascinating analysis of the role of the media as cultural authorities.

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A RADIO FRANCE-CULTURE/TELERAMA BEST WORK OF FICTION BY THE FINALIST FOR THE 2015 MAN BOOKER INTERNATIONAL PRIZE THE WINNER OF THE 2014 NEUSTADT PRIZE AND THE WINNER OF THE 2013 CAMOES PRIZE "Quite unlike anything else I have read from Africa."--Doris Lessing "By meshing the richness of African beliefs ...into the Western framework of the novel, he creates a mysterious and surreal epic."--Henning Mankell Mwanito was eleven when he saw a woman for the first time, and the sight so surprised him he burst into tears. Mwanito has been living in a former big-game park for eight years. The only people he knows are his father, his brother, an uncle, and a servant. He's been told that the rest of the world is dead, that all roads are sad, that they wait for an apology from God. In the place his father calls Jezoosalem, Mwanito has been told that crying and praying are the same thing. Both, it seems, are forbidden. The eighth novel by the internationally bestselling Mia Couto, The Tuner of Silences is the story of Mwanito's struggle to reconstruct a family history that his father is unable to discuss. With the young woman's arrival in Jezoosalem, however, the silence of the past quickly breaks down, and both his father's story and the world are heard once more. The Tuner of Silences has been published to acclaim in more than half a dozen countries. Now in its first English translation, this story of an African boy's quest for the truth endures as a magical, humanizing confrontation between one child and the legacy of war. PRAISE FOR MIA COUTO "On almost every page ...we sense Couto's delight in those places where language slips officialdom's asphyxiating grasp."--The New York Times "Even in translation, his prose is suffused with striking images."--The Washington Post PRAISE FOR DAVID BROOKSHAW "David Brookshaw dexterously renders the novel's often colloquial, pithy Portuguese into lively English. Brookshaw's task is made more exacting by the particular quality of Couto's brilliance."--The New York Times

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This third edition is the first volume of a two-volume set to North Wales: The Mountain Crags. The bouldering scene in North Wales is now more vibrant and energised than it has ever been. Each year exciting new crags are revealed and the development of existing crags is greatly expanded. The rapid pace of development in recent years has meant a corresponding increase in the guidebook page count. There is now too much material to fit it all in one book, so a split into separate volumes has become necessary. The most logical split is between the inland mountain crags of Eryri and the coastal crags of Pen Llyn, Ynys Mon and Llandudno (plus the North East limestone crags). Volume 2: Coastal Crags and North East Limestone will be published later in 2021. Improvements, additions, updates Brilliant new areas, such as Llyn Ogwen, Cwm Craig-las and Castell Cidwm have been added to the roster. Existing areas, such as Creigiau'r Garth, Cwm Dulyn, Fachwen and Clegir have seen extensive new development. Superb new lines have been discovered, often in the least likely of places. There has been much improvement to existing descriptions, approach notes, topos and maps. The crag assessment table makes choosing your crag for the day much easier. Grades and star ratings have been tweaked, broken holds and changes noted. There's an epic graded list and a full index. There is also a new wave of inspiring action shots fleshing out the pages, plus the usual professional design quality you can expect from Ground Up. This is certainly a better, more intensely researched book than the previous ones. Simon Panton is the main author and editor of the book, but crucial support has come from key activists, such as Pete Robins, Martin Crook, George Smith, Owen Hayward, Chris Doyle, Tim Peck, Craig Davies and Andy Godber. There has also been a broader feedback group composed of various members of the North Wales climbing scene.

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Inside you'll find:* Coverage of all 63 national parks,from the misty mountains of the east and the redwoods of the west to the glaciers of Alaska and volcanoes of Hawaii, organized by region* Strategic lists and itineraries: Choose from lists of the best parks for hiking, wildlife, families, and scenic drives or make your way down the list of the top ten national parks experiences across the country* The best outdoor adventures in every park, including backpacking, biking, climbing, kayaking, rafting, and more, plus detailed hike descriptions and trail maps marked with distance, duration, effort level, and trailheads* National parks road trips with driving times and advice for linking multiple parks, interesting stops between them, and nearby attractions and state parks* Comprehensive planning resources: With maps and transportation tips, you'll have the tools to explore each park or region individually, or visit multiple for an epic national parks trip* Expert advice from former park guide Becky Lomax on how to avoid crowds, what time of year to visit, and where to stay inside and outside the parks, from campgrounds to hotels* Know before you go: Find essential background on climate, terrain, wildlife, history, and safety precautions, plus practical information on park fees, passes, and reservations, including how to obtain and use a National Parks Pass* Gorgeous, full-color photos throughout, plus a handy keepsake section for your national parks stamps and a detachable fold-out poster map Whether you're trekking to striking vistas, rafting a wild river, or camping under the stars, find your park adventure with Moon USA National Parks.For more in-depth information on a specific park, check out one of Moon's national parks travel guides.About Moon Travel Guides: Moon was founded in 1973 to empower independent, active, and conscious travel. We prioritize local businesses, outdoor recreation, and traveling strategically and sustainably. Moon Travel Guides are written by local, expert authors with great stories to tell-and they can't wait to share their favorite places with you.For more inspiration, follow @moonguides on social media.

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Khemri learns the minute he becomes a Prince that princes need to be hard to kill-for they are always in danger. Their greatest threat? Other Princes. Every Prince wants to become Emperor and the surest way to do so is to kill, dishonor, or sideline any potential competitor. There are rules, but as Khemri discovers, rules can be bent and even broken.There are also mysteries. Khemri is drawn into the hidden workings of the Empire and is dispatched on a secret mission. In the ruins of space battle, he meets a young woman, called Raine, who challenges his view of the Empire, of Princes, and of himself. But Khemri is a Prince, and even if he wanted to leave the Empire behind, there are forces there that have very definite plans for his future.'Space battles! Political intrigue! Engineered warriors! Techno-wizardry! Assassins! Pirates! Rebels! Duels! Secrets, lies, sex and True Love! What more can anybody ask for?' (Kirkus Reviews (starred review))'Nix's fantasy has enough gadgets, escapes, battles, duels, deaths, and near-death experiences to keep die-hard adventure story readers enthralled. Happily, Khemri is also a thoughtful, winsome, and somewhat complex character, and his cheerfully self-deprecating tone and unpredictable choices make this romp entertaining on multiple levels' (Horn Book (starred review))'Nix once again proves his mastery of speculative fiction [as] he manages to tell a tale that is grand in scope with vivid characters and imaginative technology' (School Library Journal (starred review))'Khemri's first person point of view, along with a fast-paced, action- and plot-driven story, is sure to appeal to fans of the Star Wars universe and any number of first-person shooter video games' (ALA Booklist)'Garth Nix's A CONFUSION OF PRINCES is YA FOUNDATION meets DUNE' (Tor.com)'Exuberant and insightful. The rocket-powered pace and epic world-building provide an ideal vehicle for what is, at heart, a sweet paean to what it means to be human" (Kirkus Reviews (starred review))

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"Secrets' is the modern Bowditch, written so clearly that navigation and seamanship will be comprehensible to anyone . . ."--Dave and Jaja Martin,circumnavigators and authors of Into the Light: A Family's Epic Journey"It's a great book. The prose is simple and clear . . ."--John Vigor, author of The Seaworthy Offshore Sailboat"The nautical tips and techniques presented are encyclopedic, yet the clear explanations demystify the topics . . ."--Don Launer, contributing editor for Good Old Boat magazine"It is a fine piece of work and should be read by anyone contemplating coastal cruising or blue water voyages. It definitely deserves a place in the offshore yacht's library . . ."--Ted Brewer, yacht designer, author, and offshore racing and cruising sailorBe a Better SkipperIn the night, wind, rain, fog, big seas, strong currents, or congested waters, when there’s no time for textbook seamanship solutions, what you need are shortcuts and techniques that work quickly and reliably every time.Distilled from the vast accumulated lore of seamanship and navigation, here are the absolute essentials--185 techniques that work without fail in the pilothouse or the exposed cockpit or flying bridge of a shorthanded sail- or powerboat. John Jamieson shows you how to: Set up a clipboard chart table for cockpit use Avoid hazards with danger bearings or a GPS grid highway Estimate current speeds with the 50-90-100 rule Track other boats in poor visibility using radar plots and bearing drift Sail home without a rudder or get your twin-screw boat home on one working engine Dock or anchor under any conditions And much, much more Even in this age of electronic navigation you need to know how to eyeball your boat through any situation. Each of the techniques in this cut-to-the-chase book has shown itself to be absolutely repeatable. It will work this time, the next time,and the time a er that, in conditions fair or foul.

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Rediscovering our forgotten heritage No Entry'; 'Dangerous Site Keep Out; Trespassers Will Be Prosecuted': common sights on walls or perimeter fences around many of the world's abandoned sites. These warnings allude to potential dangers and prove an ineffective deterrent against thieves and vandals. To the urban explorer/photographer these signs simply serve to whet the appetite for the promise of hidden wonders that may lie beyond. For those who ignore the warnings and climb the fences, what awaits is usually worth the risks. Vast industrial spaces that feel more like an alien landscape or poignant residential settings, which are slowly surrendering to the inexorable advance of nature. Places once alive with sound and movement, now silent and still, but no less sensory. Immense and powerful beauty resides in these forgotten places. For some, just getting inside a location to experience this alternative form of sightseeing is enough to satisfy a desire to simply go where one shouldn't. But for some there is a need to capture the essence of a location in words and pictures, giving others a metaphorical leg-up over the fences, to walk them through the remaining ruins. Matt Emmett falls into the latter of these groups, travelling regularly to places in the UK and across Europe. He seeks out vast power stations and their cooling towers, steel works, mines, bunkers, tunnels, schools, engine sheds, hotels, castles and a myriad of other buildings. All have their own stories to tell in a variety of voices and without the distraction, sounds and people who inhabited them, those stories are clear and strong and the character of each location is laid bare. Architectural Digest: "Photographer Matt Emmett has made a name for himself by pushing the boundaries to capture epic imagery of Europe s most forgotten ruins." International Business Times: "Matt Emmett's 'Forgotten Heritage' photography project uncovers the brutal beauty of abandoned buildings and derelict industry."

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Growing up in the Boston suburbs, Tom Werman was deeply affected by pop music from a young age. He long dreamed of a career in music -- first as Elvis, then as the next George Harrison -- but it almost turned out very differently. Dutifully following the path his parents had laid out for him, he obtained an MBA from an Ivy League university and took a plum job in an industry he came to despise. Then, in 1970, a chance letter sent to CBS Records boss Clive Davis led to a new opportunity . . . and a place in rock and roll history. As an A&R man at Epic Records, Werman helped introduce the world to REO Speedwagon, Boston, Ted Nugent, and Cheap Trick; he also discovered KISS, Rush, and Lynyrd Skynyrd, but his record label passed on all of them. Then, as an independent producer, he oversaw landmark albums by Motley Crue (Shout At The Devil), Twisted Sister (Stay Hungry), Lita Ford (Dangerous Curves), Jeff Beck (Live With Jan Hammer), Poison (Open Up And Say ... Ahh!), and many more. All in all, his record-making resume includes twenty-three gold- or platinum-selling albums and cumulative sales of more than fifty-two million copies. After bearing witness to several sea changes in the music industry, Werman retired from producing in 2001 and reinvented himself as an award-winning innkeeper in the Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts. And that might have been that, until an off-the-cuff rebuttal to a disparaging critique of his role in making the Motley Crue album Girls, Girls, Girls on a music website led to a fortnightly column and now this book -- an honest and engaging insider account on how some of the best-loved albums of the 1970s and 80s came to be. A must for anyone interested in the glory days of rock and metal, Turn It Up! offers valuable insights into the recording process, the recording studio, the role of the producer, and the production values that are essential to the creation of a hit record.

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‘It means so much to me to release this book during the 50th anniversary of ELO, and four years on from our Wembley Or Bust concert. It was an unforgettable night and I’m excited to relive it with all of you again inside these pages.’ – Jeff Lynne In his first official book, Jeff Lynne reveals the meticulous planning leading up to the epic Wembley or Bust concert, and shares the stories behind a career-spanning catalogue of songs. In an exclusive new text, Lynne reflects on his formative years growing up and his eventual success with ELO hits such as ‘Mr. Blue Sky’, ‘Evil Woman’ and ‘Livin’ Thing’. From his memories of producing The Beatles’ last single, ‘Free as a Bird’, to his anecdotes from inside one of the greatest supergroups, the Traveling Wilburys, Lynne also discusses his fascinating career outside of ELO. His narration guides the reader through hundreds of exclusive photographs taken specially for the making of this book. From backstage to front of house, Wembley or Bust is Jeff Lynne’s account of a once-in-a-lifetime concert, and its significance within the greater story of his career as one of the most popular recording artists, songwriters and producers of all-time. ‘When I wrote and recorded these songs originally, I never would have expected the fantastic audience response all these years later; it’s amazing.’ – Jeff Lynne The music of Jeff Lynne is beloved by fans all over the world and has been for three generations. Now, after a hiatus of nearly thirty years, the multi-award-winning songwriter, producer and founder of ELO has made a triumphant return to touring. Since 2014, he has played across Europe and North America, the high point for Lynne being his dramatic homecoming for a crowd of 60,000 fans at Wembley. On 24th June 2017, London’s historic stadium was transformed into one of the greatest rock’n’roll spectacles of all time, as Lynne performed his group’s most extensive set list to date against a dazzling backdrop of pyrotechnics, lasers and a giant ELO spaceship.

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Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Blast off! Having survived some of the scariest destinations on Earth in The Daredevil's Guide to Dangerous Places, Eddie and Junko are off on another epic adventure - this time to outer space. Join our intergalactic explorers as they travel across our Solar System and beyond. Find out what it's like to live on the Moon, visit the International Space Station and fly through Saturn's rings, before you head deeper into space to escape black holes and watch stars explode. You'll encounter many dangers on your journey, but your custom high-tech suit and gadget-packed spaceship will protect you - even against extreme temperatures and asteroids! With real-life photos, out-there illustrations, incredible facts and mind-blowing space stats, The Daredevil's Guide to Outer Space is an awe-inspiring introduction to the Universe. After blast-off you can: Dock at the International Space Station and space walk Land on the Moon and explore its surface Visit the Sun and other planets in our Solar System Meet a Mars rover and Voyager 1 - the furthest human-made object from Earth Explore Mars' giant mountain and Jupiter's moons Get the lowdown on newborn stars, black holes and supernovas Explore the Milky Way and the Asteroid Belt And much more! Also available: The Daredevil's Guide to Dangerous Places About Lonely Planet Kids: Lonely Planet Kids - an imprint of the world's leading travel authority Lonely Planet - published its first book in 2011. Over the past 45 years, Lonely Planet has grown a dedicated global community of travellers, many of whom are now sharing a passion for exploration with their children. Lonely Planet Kids educates and encourages young readers at home and in school to learn about the world with engaging books on culture, sociology, geography, nature, history, space and more. We want to inspire the next generation of global citizens and help kids and their parents to approach life in a way that makes every day an adventure. Come explore!

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This exciting volume of Big Nate adventures includes all of the comics from Revenge of the Cream Puffs and What's a Little Noogie Between Friends?Two books in one! This bind-up features two books from the bestselling Big Nate series.Big Nate: Revenge of the Cream Puffs: Here come the Cream Puffs! Nate and his baseball team, saddled with the most embarrassing moniker in Little League history, want to show the world they’re not just a bunch of cupcakes. But it won’t be easy. Their opponents mock them. The local sports section misprints Nate’s name—THREE TIMES. And now, on the day of the big game, illness and injuries have the team facing a crushing defeat . . . unless the unlikeliest Cream Puff of all can come in from the bullpen and save the day. With a softhearted pitcher who channels his inner panda, a vengeful girlfriend who swings for the fences, and a healthy dose of Nate Wright mojo, the Cream Puffs just might have what it takes to stage an epic comeback. So grab a glove, smear on some eyeblack, and get in the game. You don’t want to miss a single moment of Revenge of the Cream Puffs!Big Nate: What's a Little Noogie Between Friends? Nate Wright’s a winner—in his own mind, anyway. So when things go wrong, he’s at a loss to explain why. How does his soccer team manage to lose to a school with a sixty-game winless streak? What’s he doing at the movies on a Friday night . . . with GINA? And why, oh why is one of his classmates (hint: she’s Nate’s dream girl) suddenly moving 3,000 miles away? It’s all enough to make a sixth-grade superstar feel . . . well, not so super. But you can’t keep a good man down, and Nate’s still got pals like Teddy, Francis, and Chad to cheer him up. Sure, their methods aren’t always warm and fuzzy, but Nate doesn’t mind. After all, what’s a little noogie between friends?

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‘Fascinating and immersive… I love a novel that deals with the many ways in which people keep their secrets’ DIANA GABALDON A sweeping love story set against the Jacobite revolution from much-loved, million copy bestselling author Susanna KearsleyAutumn, 1707. Old enemies from the Highlands to the Borders are protesting the new Union with England. As the French prepare an invasion to bring the exiled Jacobite king back to Scotland to reclaim his throne, the streets of Edinburgh are filled with discontent. To calm the situation, Queen Anne’s commissioners are settling the losses and wages owed to those Scots involved in the disastrous Darien expedition eight years earlier. When Lily, widow of a Darien sailor, comes forward to collect his wages, her claim is challenged. One of the men assigned to her case has only days to decide if she’s honest. Are his own feelings making him blind to the truth? Or could he be a pawn in an even more treacherous game? A story of intrigue, adventure, endurance, romance…and the courage to hope. ‘A hugely engrossing book and a complete world created’ IAN RANKIN ‘The Vanished Days is an absolute tour de force of historical storytelling, tender and dramatic, gripping and authentic. Kearsley manages effortlessly to balance the epic sweep of the drama with telling moments of gentle characterization, all delivered in pitch-perfect style. I thoroughly enjoyed it: a perfect escape in these dark days’ JANE JOHNSON, author of The Salt Road and The Tenth Gift ‘An engrossing and deeply romantic novel of Scotland’s Jacobite rebellion’ RACHEL HORE ‘This novel tells of a tender love story set amid the Jacobite rebellion. For readers unfamiliar with the twists and turns of this period of Scottish history, author Kearsley provides a helpful map, along with rich details of the protagonists. Courage in this era lies not in acts of heroic daring, but in steadfast pursuit of truth and justice. Perfect for fans of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander’ WOMAN & HOME

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The Wes Anderson Collection: Isle of Dogs is the only book to take readers behind the scenes of the beloved auteur’s newest stop-motion animated film. ?Through the course of several in-depth interviews with film critic Lauren Wilford, writer and director Wes Anderson shares the story behind Isle of Dogs’s conception and production, and Anderson and his collaborators reveal entertaining anecdotes about the making of the film, their sources of inspiration, the ins and outs of stop-motion animation, and many other insights into their moviemaking process. Previously unpublished behind-the-scenes photographs, concept artwork, and hand-written notes and storyboards accompany the text. The book also features an introduction by critics and collaborators Taylor Ramos and Tony Zhou, and a foreword by critic Matt Zoller Seitz. The fourth volume of the New York Times bestselling Wes Anderson Collection, Isle of Dogs stays true to the series with its rich design and colorful illustrations, capturing Anderson’s signature aesthetic vision and bringing the series's definitive study of Anderson's filmography up to date. Isle of Dogs tells the story of Atari Kobayashi, 12-year-old ward to corrupt Mayor Kobayashi. When, by Executive Decree, all the canine pets of Megasaki City are exiled to a vast garbage-dump called Trash Island, Atari sets off alone in a miniature Junior-Turbo Prop and flies across the river in search of his bodyguard-dog, Spots. There, with the assistance of a pack of newly-found mongrel friends, he begins an epic journey that will decide the fate and future of the entire Prefecture. The film features the voices of Bryan Cranston, Koyu Rankin, Edward Norton, Bob Balaban, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Kunichi Nomura, Akira Takayama, Greta Gerwig, Frances McDormand, F. Murray Abraham, Tilda Swinton, Akira Ito, Yoko Ono, Mari Natsuko, Harvey Keitel, Courtney B. Vance, Ken Watanabe, Scarlett Johnasson, Fisher Stevens, Nijiro Murakami, and Liev Schreiber.

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Rediscover one of the twentieth century's greatest romances in Lawrence Durrell's seductive tale of four tangled lovers in wartime Egypt that is 'stunning' (André Aciman) and 'wonderful' (Elif Shafak)'A masterpiece.' Guardian'A formidable, glittering achievement.' TLS'One of the great works of English fiction.' Times 'Dazzlingly exuberant ... Superb.' Observer'Brave and brazen ... Lush and grandiose.' Independent 'Legendary ... Casts a spell ... Reader, watch out!' Guardian'Lushly beautiful ... One of the most important works of our time.' NYTBR Alexandria, Egypt. Trams, palm trees and watermelon stalls lie honey-bathed in sunlight; in darkened bedrooms, sweaty lovers unfurl. But in a world trembling on the brink of the Second World War, passion and death are inextricable. When Darley, a penniless schoolteacher, begins an affair with Justine - a married Egyptian woman of unparalleled glamour - their partners, Melissa and Nessim, are sucked into a whirlpool of jealousy and violence. One of the twentieth-century's greatest romances, Lawrence Durrell's scandalous 'investigation of modern love' set the world alight in 1957. Rich in political and sexual intrigue, his epic masterpiece burns just as brightly today. Introduced by Jan Morris, this oomnibus edition collects all four novels together in all their glory.What Readers Are Saying - Justine (Book 1):'Sometimes you discover a new author and know you're going to be friends for life ... One of the most beautiful books I've ever read.''I absolutely adored this book ... I felt sucked into it with an amazing force by the beauty of the words ... The backdrop of 1930s Egypt's literary circles and bohemian relationships is mesmerising ... Breathtaking.''Shimmering and dreamlike ... One of the most beautifully written books I've read ... All of life is here; can't wait for the next one.''Lush, brutal, beautiful ... Durrell captured a place and time that will never exist again.''What makes this novel truly spectacular is the language, the episodic jumps in time, the lush lyricism, and how Durrell so deftly manages to tie this all into both the city of Alexandria and the themes of passion, love, and jealousy. '

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From Daniel Silva, the No.1 New York Times bestselling author, comes a modern masterpiece of espionage, love, and betrayal. She was his best-kept secret … In an isolated village in the mountains of Andalusia, a mysterious Frenchwoman begins work on a dangerous memoir. It is the story of a man she once loved in the Beirut of old, and a child taken from her in treason’s name. The woman is the keeper of the Kremlin’s most closely guarded secret. Long ago, the KGB inserted a mole into the heart of the West – a mole who stands on the doorstep of ultimate power. Only one man can unravel the conspiracy: Gabriel Allon, the legendary art restorer and assassin who serves as the chief of Israel’s vaunted secret intelligence service. Gabriel has battled the dark forces of the new Russia before, at great personal cost. Now he and the Russians will engage in a final epic showdown, with the fate of the postwar global order hanging in the balance. Praise for Daniel Silva: ‘A tense, thrilling adventure’ Huffington Post ‘It is Silva’s creative genius that keeps it all moving, as well as his mastery of storytelling that keeps the intense momentum of the plot ever pushing forward’ Huffington Post ‘A fitting final mission for one of fiction’s greatest spies… A dark thriller for difficult times’ Kirkus Review ‘Fascinating, suspenseful, and bated-breath exciting’ Publishers Weekly ‘Silva builds suspense like a symphony conductor… A winner on all fronts’ Booklist ‘A truly talented writer’ Sun ‘Allon is the 21st century Bond – elegantly paced, subtle and well-informed.’ Daily Mail 'Sexily brooding Allon… must be the most famous superspy not played by Daniel Craig' Daily Telegraph ‘Silva builds tension with breathtaking double and triple turns of the plot’ People ‘A world class practitioner of spy fiction’ Washington Post ‘Silva is a master of suspense’ Barbara Taylor Bradford, The Week

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A truly original book in every sense of the word, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows poetically defines emotions that we all feel but don’t have the words to express, until now—from the creator of the popular online project of the same name.Have you ever wondered about the lives of each person you pass on the street, realizing that everyone is the main character in their own story, each living a life as vivid and complex as your own? That feeling has a name: “sonder.” Or maybe you’ve watched a thunderstorm roll in and felt a primal hunger for disaster, hoping it would shake up your life. That’s called “lachesism.” Or you were looking through old photos and felt a pang of nostalgia for a time you’ve never actually experienced. That’s “anemoia.” If you’ve never heard of these terms before, that’s because they didn’t exist until John Koenig began his epic quest to fill the gaps in the language of emotion. Born as a website in 2009, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows has garnered widespread critical acclaim, inspired TED talks, album titles, cocktails, and even tattoos. The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows “creates beautiful new words that we need but do not yet have,” says John Green, bestselling author of The Fault in Our Stars. By turns poignant, funny, and mind-bending, the definitions include whimsical etymologies drawn from languages around the world, interspersed with otherworldly collages and lyrical essays that explore forgotten corners of the human condition—from “astrophe,” the longing to explore beyond the planet Earth, to “zenosyne,” the sense that time keeps getting faster. The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows is for anyone who enjoys a shift in perspective, pondering the ineffable feelings that make up our lives, which have far more in common than we think. With a gorgeous package and beautifully illustrated throughout, this is the perfect gift for creatives, word nerds, and people everywhere.

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X-Men meets The Handmaid's Tale in the third instalment in an epic and romantic YA fantasy trilogy perfect for fans of Netflix's Stranger Things, Sarah J. Maas, Victoria Aveyard's The Red Queen and Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows. With Omega Point destroyed, Juliette doesn't know if the rebels, her friends, or even Adam are alive. But that won't keep her from trying to take down The Reestablishment once and for all. Now she must rely on Warner. The one person she never thought she could trust. The same person who saved her life. He promises to help Juliette master her powers and save their dying world … but that's not all he wants with her. PRAISE FOR THE SHATTER ME SERIES: "Dangerous, sexy, romantic, and intense. I dare you to stop reading." – Kami Garcia, #1 New York Times bestselling co-author of the Beautiful Creatures series "Addictive, intense, and oozing with romance. I'm envious. I couldn't put it down." – Lauren Kate, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Fallen series "Tahereh Mafi's bold, inventive prose crackles with raw emotion. A thrilling, high-stakes saga of self-discovery and forbidden love, the Shatter Me series is a must-read for fans of dystopian young adult literature – or any literature!" -Ransom Riggs, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children "IGNITE ME really does ignite all five of your senses. It blows your mind and makes you hungry for more of its amazing characters. It will completely blow your expectations; Tahereh Mafi truly knows how to deliver!" – Teenreads.com Tahereh Mafi is the New York Times bestselling author of the Shatter Me series which has been published in over 30 languages around the world. She was born in a small city somewhere in Connecticut and currently resides in Santa Monica, California, with her husband, Ransom Riggs, fellow bestselling author of Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children, and their young daughter. She can usually be found overcaffeinated and stuck in a book. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter @TaherehMafi

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'A kind of epic poem, one that moves in circular fashion from passionate denunciation to intense autobiographical reflection ... should be required reading for every MP, peer, councillor, civil servant and commentator. The fury and sense of powerlessness that so many people feel at government policy beam out of every page.' The Guardian'It is not enough to read Harry's record of the struggles and hopes of a generation - we have to re-assert his principles of common ownership and the welfare state. If Harry can do it, we should too!' Ken Loach, Director of I, Daniel Blake'As one of the last remaining survivors of the Great Depression and the Second World War, I will not go gently into that good night. I want to tell you what the world looks like through my eyes, so that you can help change it.' In November 2013, 91-year-old Yorkshireman, RAF veteran and ex-carpet salesman Harry Leslie Smith's Guardian article - 'This year, I will wear a poppy for the last time' - was shared over 80,000 times on Facebook and started a huge debate about the state of society.Now he brings his unique perspective to bear on NHS cutbacks, benefits policy, political corruption, food poverty, the cost of education - and much more. From the deprivation of 1930s Barnsley and the terror of war to the creation of our welfare state, Harry has experienced how a great civilisation can rise from the rubble. But at the end of his life, he fears how easily it is being eroded. Harry's Last Stand is a lyrical, searing modern invective that shows what the past can teach us, and how the future is ours for the taking.'Smith's unwavering will to turn things around makes for inspirational reading.' Big Issue North'[With] sheer emotional power ... Harry Leslie Smith reminds us what society without good public services actually looks and feels like.' New Statesman

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After the Peace of Amiens was broken in 1803, Great Britain found herself at war with an old enemy (France) but also with a new competitor (Napoleon): the latter was the greatest military commander of his times, a man who was able to transform the French Army into the most lethal fighting machine of the early 19th century. The war experiences of 1793-1803 had not been very positive ones for the British Army; the latter was still recovering from the crushing defeats suffered during the American War of Independence and badly needed to be reformed in order to become more efficient and modern. At the turn of the new century, Great Britain was still the greatest colonial power of the world and could count on the most formidable navy of the world; on land, however, her army was too weak to confront the French one on almost equal terms. The British land forces did not have a great leader comparable to Napoleon and were still influenced by tactical models that had been outclassed by the events. During the Napoleonic Wars the British military apparatus did of its best to improve, especially thanks to the guidance of intelligent officers who belonged to a “new generation”. These innovative and capable men reformed the British Army, by improving its standards of service and by creating a new relationship (based on mutual trust) with the men under their command. Wellington was the greatest of these officers and one of the few European generals who had the personal capabilities to contrast Napoleon in an effective way: it was him who “forged” the new British Army, by fighting against the French in the Iberian Peninsula during 1808-1814. After learning from experience, the British soldiers were finally able to face Napoleon on the Belgian fields of Waterloo and thus they wrote the last page of a glorious military epic. Waterloo, however, was just the final result of a long process.

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The incredible story of the radar wars - Britain's most secret battleIn the winter of 1941 an alien-seeming object was captured in a death-defying dash by an RAF reconnaissance pilot flying a lone unarmed Spitfire across the French coast. Balanced upon the cliffs near Le Havre was what appeared to be a giant convex dish, directed across the Channel at the war-torn British coastline.With Britain's cities being pounded by fearsome bombing raids, teams of experts studied the photograph worriedly. Might the dish constitute a highly-secret form of radar - one that had the capacity to tip the balance of the war decisively in the enemy's favour? If so, Nazi Germany would have leapfrogged British technology many-fold.A top-secret mission was devised to steal what had become known as the 'Wurzburg Dish,' after Enigma intercepts of coded German messages. Appropriately christened Operation Biting, this was to be the first-ever Allied raid using airborne forces. Commanded by legendary Major John 'Johnny' Frost, he demanded blind loyalty from his band of piratical raiders. 'A wild crew ... they looked horrible,' he admitted. Each and every rehearsal had proved disastrous; it was a suicide mission in all but name.On the French coast agents of the Special Operations Executive - Churchill's shadowy ministry for ungentlemanly warfare - risked all to map the target's defences. At the eleventh hour, two unwelcome additions joined Frosts's crew. One, was a shadowy German cloaked in mystery; the other a British radar specialist who could not be allowed to fall into enemy hands. Relying on files declassified for the purposes of writing this book, eyewitness testimony,and working with the families of key figures involved, Lewis reveals an untold epic of daring, ruthless rule-breaking and ferocity, coupled with bravery and ingenuity beyond measure. The results of Operation Biting would resonate throughout the war and beyond,changing the course of twentieth-century history.

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Discover the second volume of an epic, beautifully illustrated graphic history of humankind, based on Yuval Noah Harari's multi-million copy bestselling phenomenon.When nomadic Homo sapiens settled to live in one place, they started working harder and harder. But why didn't they get a better life in return?In The Pillars of Civilization, Yuval Noah Harari and his companions including Prof. Saraswati and Dr. Fiction travel the length and breadth of human history to investigate how the Agricultural Revolution changed society forever. Discover how wheat took over the world, how war, famine, disease and inequality became a part of the human condition, and why we might only have ourselves to blame.The origins of modern farming are told through Elizabethan tragedy, the changing fortunes of domesticated plants and animals are tracked in the columns of the Daily Business News, and the history of inequality is revealed in a superhero detective story.A radical, witty and colourful retelling of the story of humankind, adapted from Yuval Noah Harari's Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Volume 2 can be read as a standalone or as a follow-up to Volume 1, The Birth of Humankind.Praise for Yuval Noah Harari's Sapiens:'I would recommend Sapiens to anyone who's interested in the history and future of our species.' Bill Gates'Interesting and provocative... It gives you a sense of how briefly we've been on this Earth' Barack Obama'Jaw-dropping from the first word to the last... It may be the best book I've ever read' Chris Evans'Contains a remarkable piece of information on almost every page and reminds us that we should be grateful to be human.' Matt Haig'Sweeps the cobwebs out of your brain... Radiates power and clarity, making the world strange and new' Sunday Times'Provocative and fascinating and opinionated...it makes the familiar seem unfamiliar. It altered how I view our species and our world.' Guardian

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'Equal parts an inspiring account of Reeve's determination and adventurous spirit, as well as a field guide to some of the most remote parts of the world, Step by Step is a vivid and fascinating title. Readers may be surprised to learn of his early life struggles with mental health, owing to his onscreen persona, but this traces his journey to inner peace.' Independent'Incredibly honest... one of the best autobiographies I've ever read.' The Sun - best books of 2019Shortlisted for the 2019 Edward Stanford Travel Memoir of the Year Award 'His story reads like a fast-paced thriller.' Daily Mail'My goodness, it is brilliant. Searingly honest, warm, bursting with humanity. Such brave and inspiring writing.' Kate Humble'[Simon] begins to fill in the gaps in his life story that until recently he has never publicly revealed.' TelegraphPRAISE FOR SIMON REEVE'TV's most interesting globetrotter' Independent'The craziest (or bravest) man on TV' Mail on Sunday'Like all the best travellers, Reeve carries out his investigations with infectious relish, and in the realisation that trying to understand the country you're in is not just fascinating, but also hugely enjoyable' Daily Telegraph'Simon might just be the best tour guide in the world' The Sun* * * * * * * * *In TV adventurer Simon Reeve's bestselling memoir he describes how he has journeyed across epic landscapes, dodged bullets on frontlines, walked through minefields and been detained for spying by the KGB. His travels have taken him across jungles, deserts, mountains and oceans, and to some of the most beautiful, dangerous and remote regions of the world. In this revelatory account of his life Simon gives the full story behind some of his favourite expeditions, and traces his own inspiring personal journey back to leaving school without qualifications, teetering on a bridge, and then overcoming his challenges by climbing to a 'Lost Valley' and changing his life ... step by step.

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'Vivid, graphic and moving' Mail on Sunday Book of the Year'It has a wonderful immediacy and vitality - living history in every sense' Anthony Horowitz'Fantastic' Dan Snow'Compellingly authentic, revelatory and beautifully written. A gripping tour de force' Damien Lewis'Stirring and unsettling in equal measure, this is history writing at its most powerful' Evening StandardAlmost seventy-five years have passed since D-Day, the day of the greatest seaborne invasion in history. The outcome of the Second World War hung in the balance on that chill June morning. If Allied forces succeeded in gaining a foothold in northern France, the road to victory would be open. But if the Allies could be driven back into the sea, the invasion would be stalled for years, perhaps forever.An epic battle that involved 156,000 men, 7,000 ships and 20,000 armoured vehicles, the desperate struggle that unfolded on 6 June 1944 was, above all, a story of individual heroics - of men who were driven to keep fighting until the German defences were smashed and the precarious beachheads secured. Their authentic human story - Allied, German, French - has never fully been told.Giles Milton's bold new history narrates the day's events through the tales of survivors from all sides: the teenage Allied conscript, the crack German defender, the French resistance fighter. From the military architects at Supreme Headquarters to the young schoolboy in the Wehrmacht's bunkers, D-Day: The Soldiers' Story lays bare the absolute terror of those trapped in the frontline of Operation Overlord. It also gives voice to those hitherto unheard - the French butcher's daughter, the Panzer Commander's wife, the chauffeur to the General Staff.This vast canvas of human bravado reveals 'the longest day' as never before - less as a masterpiece of strategic planning than a day on which thousands of scared young men found themselves staring death in the face. It is drawn in its entirety from the raw, unvarnished experiences of those who were there.

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***BEST CRIME BOOKS OF THE YEAR - THE TIMES/SUNDAY TIMES******CRIME BOOK OF THE MONTH - THE TIMES***'Brings the obsessional dread of James Ellroy to 1940s London.' IAN RANKIN'Extraordinary...a career-defining performance.' THE SUNDAY TIMES'This is crime writing of the highest quality' DAILY MAILSOHO, 1935.SERGEANT LEON GEATS' PATCH.A snarling, skull-cracking misanthrope, Geats marshals the grimy rabble according to his own elastic moral code.The narrow alleys are brimming with jazz bars, bookies, blackshirts, ponces and tarts so when a body is found above the Windmill Club, detectives are content to dismiss the case as just another young woman who topped herself early.But Geats - a good man prepared to be a bad one if it keeps the worst of them at bay - knows the dark seams of the city.Working with his former partner, mercenary Flying Squad sergeant Mark Cassar, Geats obsessively dedicates himself to finding a warped killer - a decision that will reverberate for a lifetime and transform both men in ways they could never expect.'Savage, beautiful, mesmeric...a very special book.' CHRIS WHITAKER'A stirringly ambitious novel that pairs the scope of James Ellroy's LA CONFIDENTIAL with the psychological depth of Graham Greene's BRIGHTON ROCK. Extraordinary.' A. J. FINN'A tour de force. A brilliant marriage of tension and rich detail.' HARRIET TYCE'Nolan is set to become Britain's Michael Connelly' DAILY MAIL'An epic, brutal, blockbuster of a crime novel. It's the best film noir you've never seen complete with a love story that might just rip your heart out.' TREVOR WOOD'An enthralling tale that takes you into the seamy heart of Soho's past. Written in Nolan's visceral, muscular prose, it is a joy to read.' LESLEY KARA'A rich, ambitious, masterpiece of a crime novel' OLIVIA KIERNAN'Poetic and tragic...but also vibrant, with a great depth of world and character' JAMES DELARGY

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Don't miss the STUNNING new novel from Sunday Times bestselling author, Harriet Evans - THE BELOVED GIRLS is available to buy now!'Spellbinding' Independent'My top book of 2019' DINAH JEFFRIES'Her best yet' i newspaper'Gripping' Irish Times'Gorgeous' VERONICA HENRY'A poignant story of love and loss' Daily Mail MUST READS 'I can't remember the last time I was so enthralled' Red'Epic, absorbing . . . full of intrigue and emotion' Fabulous'A sweeping novel you won't put down' Katie Fforde Who would choose to destroy what they love the most? Nightingale House, 1919.Liddy Horner discovers her husband, the world-famous artist Sir Edward Horner, burning his best-known painting The Garden of Lost and Found days before his sudden death.Nightingale House was the Horner family's beloved home - a gem of design created to inspire happiness - and it was here Ned painted The Garden of Lost and Found, capturing his children on a perfect day, playing in the rambling Eden he and Liddy made for them.One magical moment. Before it all came tumbling down...When Ned and Liddy's great-granddaughter Juliet is sent the key to Nightingale House, she opens the door onto a forgotten world. The house holds its mysteries close but she is in search of answers. Something shattered this corner of paradise. But what? Lose yourself in this unputdownable tale of the enduring power of family love, told by three generations of extraordinary women. . . Readers love The Garden of Lost and Found'This sweeping tale is by turns painfully sad and heart-lifting, with characters that stay with you' Good Housekeeping 'Evans' storytelling feels both authentic and satisfying. An immersive mystery' Woman & Home'Evans tells a poignant tale of the Horner family and their magical, mysterious country home' Woman'Engrossing and clever and funny and beautifully observed . . . I recommend it wholeheartedly' Clothes in Books blogDiscover THE BELOVED GIRLS: your next unputdownable novel of family secrets, betrayal and one golden summer . . . Out now!

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The novels of Iain M. Banks have forever changed the face of modern science fiction. His Culture books combine breathtaking imagination with exceptional storytelling, and have secured his reputation as one of the most extraordinary and influential writers in the genre.'Banks is a phenomenon' William Gibson The Scavenger species are circling. It is, truly, the End Days for the Gzilt civilisation.An ancient people, organised on military principles and yet almost perversely peaceful, the Gzilt helped set up the Culture ten thousand years earlier. Now they've made the collective decision to follow the well-trodden path of millions of other civilisations: they are going to Sublime, elevating themselves to a new and almost in­finitely more rich and complex existence.But, amid preparations, the Regimental High Command is destroyed. Vyr Cossont, a former soldier for the Gzilt, appears to have been involved, and she is now wanted - dead, not alive. Aided only by an ancient, reconditioned android and a suspicious Culture avatar, Cossont must complete a ­final mission; she must ­find the oldest person in the Culture, a man over nine thousand years old, who might just hold the key to understanding what happened . . .The ­final days of the Gzilt civilisation may prove its most perilous.Praise for the Culture series:'Epic in scope, ambitious in its ideas and absorbing in its execution' Independent on Sunday'Banks has created one of the most enduring and endearing visions of the future' Guardian'Jam-packed with extraordinary invention' Scotsman'Compulsive reading' Sunday Telegraph The Culture series:Consider PhlebasThe Player of GamesUse of WeaponsExcessionInversionsLook to WindwardMatterSurface DetailThe Hydrogen SonataThe State of the ArtOther books by Iain M. Banks:Against a Dark BackgroundFeersum EndjinnThe AlgebraistAlso now available: The Culture: The Drawings - an extraordinary collection of original illustrations faithfully reproduced from sketchbooks Banks kept in the 1970s and 80s, depicting the ships, habitats, geography, weapons and language of Banks' Culture series of novels in incredible detail.

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