Search results for ""author air"
Georgetown University Press Cheap Threats: Why the United States Struggles to Coerce Weak States
Why do weak states resist threats of force from the United States, especially when history shows that this superpower carries out its ultimatums? Cheap Threats upends conventional notions of power politics and challenges assumptions about the use of compellent military threats in international politics. Drawing on an original dataset of US compellence from 1945 to 2007 and four in-depth case studies -- the Cuban Missile Crisis, the 2011 confrontation with Libya, and the 1991 and 2003 showdowns with Iraq -- Dianne Pfundstein Chamberlain finds that US compellent threats often fail because threatening and using force became comparatively "cheap" for the United States after the Cold War. Becoming the world's only superpower and adopting a new light-footprint model of war, which relied heavily on airpower and now drones, have reduced the political, economic, and human costs that US policymakers face when they go to war. Paradoxically, this lower-cost model of war has cheapened US threats and fails to signal to opponents that the United States is resolved to bear the high costs of a protracted conflict. The result: small states gamble, often unwisely, that the United States will move on to a new target before achieving its goals. Cheap Threats resets the bar for scholars and planners grappling with questions of state resolve, hegemonic stability, effective coercion, and other issues pertinent in this new era of US warfighting and diplomacy.
£48.00
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Red Army at War: Rare Photographs from Wartime Archives
What was life in the Red Army like for the ordinary soldier during the Great Patriotic War, the fight between the Soviet Union and Germany on the Eastern Front? How far is the common perception of Red Army heroism and sacrifice borne out by historical reality? And what was the daily experience of the individual soldier caught up in this immense and ruthless conflict? The 160 contemporary photographs from the Russian archives that have been selected for this book give a striking insight into all sides of wartime service for the Soviet soldier. The whole range of military experience is portrayed here, from recruitment and the rigours of training to transport, marching and the ordeal of combat. Artem Drabkin is the creator of the website I Remember which is devoted to recording the oral history of the soldiers and airmen who fought on the Eastern Front. His archive of memoirs and eyewitness accounts is a valuable source for researchers who are studying the Soviet side of the fighting, and it is a fascinating record of the experience of warfare. Among the many publications derived from his work are Tank Rider, Red Road From Stalingrad, T-34 in Action, Red Partisan, Escape From Auschwitz, Barbarossa and the Retreat to Moscow: Recollections of Soviet Fighter Pilots on the Eastern Front, Bomber Pilot on the Eastern Front and Guns Against the Reich.
£19.01
John Wiley and Sons Ltd Children's Respiratory Nursing
Children's Respiratory Nursing is a comprehensive, patient-centred text providing up-to-date information about the contemporary management of children with respiratory conditions. It looks at acute and chronic respiratory conditions in both primary and secondary health care sectors and explores the subject from a child- and family-focused perspective. Children’s Respiratory Nursing is divided into four user-friendly sections: The first section provides a general background for children’s respiratory nursing Section two explores the various investigations that aid diagnosis and treatment, such as assessment of defects in airflow and lung volume, oxygen therapy, and long term ventilation Section three looks at respiratory infection and provides an overview of the common infections in children with reference to national and local guidelines The final section considers the practical issues that impact on children’s nurses - the transition from children to adult services, legal and ethical issues and the professional communication skills needed for dealing with children and their families This practical text is essential reading for all children’s nurses who have a special interest in respiratory conditions and would like to develop a greater level of understanding of the management required. Special Features Examples of good practice provided throughout Includes evidence-based case studies Explores care in both hospital and community settings A strong practical approach throughout
£47.95
Kogan Page Ltd Personalization at Work: How HR Can Use Job Crafting to Drive Performance, Engagement and Wellbeing
SHORTLISTED: Business Book Awards 2021 - HR & Management Category The potential benefits of personalization on a workforce are huge. We curate music and online streaming content to suit our own tastes and we place more value on lottery numbers we have chosen ourselves, rather than a random selection from a lucky dip. When job roles are also personalized, employees are more interested, engaged and motivated at work. The responsibility for enabling this personalization lies with HR and people professionals and a key approach to doing this is via job crafting. Personalization at Work is a practical guide explaining what job crafting is, why it's important, what the benefits are and more broadly how a personalized approach can be brought to all aspects of HR including recruitment, learning and development, performance management, diversity and inclusion and reward. Full of practical advice and case studies from companies who have already seen the benefits of a personalized approach including Virgin Money, Widerøe airlines, Logitech, Google and Connect Health, Personalization at Work is essential reading for all HR professionals wanting to improve staff engagement, retention, productivity and the overall people experience. With expert guidance on how to encourage job crafting and a personalized approach to work for employees through everything from job titles, role descriptions and benefits packages through to working patterns, flexibility and work environment, this is a book that HR and people professionals can't afford to be without.
£95.00
Kogan Page Ltd Personalization at Work: How HR Can Use Job Crafting to Drive Performance, Engagement and Wellbeing
SHORTLISTED: Business Book Awards 2021 - HR & Management Category The potential benefits of personalization on a workforce are huge. We curate music and online streaming content to suit our own tastes and we place more value on lottery numbers we have chosen ourselves, rather than a random selection from a lucky dip. When job roles are also personalized, employees are more interested, engaged and motivated at work. The responsibility for enabling this personalization lies with HR and people professionals and a key approach to doing this is via job crafting. Personalization at Work is a practical guide explaining what job crafting is, why it's important, what the benefits are and more broadly how a personalized approach can be brought to all aspects of HR including recruitment, learning and development, performance management, diversity and inclusion and reward. Full of practical advice and case studies from companies who have already seen the benefits of a personalized approach including Virgin Money, Widerøe airlines, Logitech, Google and Connect Health, Personalization at Work is essential reading for all HR professionals wanting to improve staff engagement, retention, productivity and the overall people experience. With expert guidance on how to encourage job crafting and a personalized approach to work for employees through everything from job titles, role descriptions and benefits packages through to working patterns, flexibility and work environment, this is a book that HR and people professionals can't afford to be without.
£32.99
HarperCollins Focus Night Train to Nashville: The Greatest Untold Story of Music City
Set against the backdrop of Jim Crow, Night Train to Nashville takes readers behind the curtain of one of music's greatest untold stories during the era of segregation and Civil Rights.In another time and place, E. Gab Blackman and William Sousa "Sou" Bridgeforth might have been as close as brothers, but in 1950s Nashville they remained separated by the color of their skin. Gab, a visionary yet opportunistic radio executive, saw something no one else did: a vast and untapped market with the R&B scene exploding in Black clubs across the city. He defied his industry, culture, government, and even his own family to broadcast Black music to a national audience.Sou, the popular kingpin of Black Nashville and a grandson of slaves, led this movement into the second half of the twentieth century as his New Era Club on the Black side of town exploded in the aftermath of this new radio airplay. As the popularity of Black R&B grew, integrated parties and underground concerts spread throughout the city, and this new scene faced a dangerous inflection point: Could a segregated society ever find true unity?Taking place during one of the most tumultuous times in US history, Night Train to Nashville explores how one city, divided into two completely different and unequal communities, demonstrated the power of music to change the world.
£18.00
Columbia University Press Extraterritorial: A Political Geography of Contemporary Fiction
The future of fiction is neither global nor national. Instead, Matthew Hart argues, it is trending extraterritorial. Extraterritorial spaces fall outside of national borders but enhance state power. They cut across geography and history but do not point the way to a borderless new world. They range from the United Nations headquarters and international waters to CIA black sites and the departure zones at international airports. The political geography of the present, Hart shows, has come to resemble a patchwork of such spaces.Hart reveals extraterritoriality’s centrality to twenty-first-century art and fiction. He shows how extraterritorial fictions expose the way states construct “global” space in their own interests. Extraterritorial novels teach us not to mistake cracks or gradations in political geography for a crisis of the state. Hart demonstrates how the unstable character of many twenty-first-century aesthetic forms can be traced to the increasingly extraterritorial nature of contemporary political geography. Discussing writers such as Margaret Atwood, J. G. Ballard, Amitav Ghosh, Chang-rae Lee, Hilary Mantel, and China Miéville, as well as artists like Hito Steyerl and Mark Wallinger, Hart combines lively critical readings of contemporary novels with historical and theoretical discussions about sovereignty, globalization, cosmopolitanism, and postcolonialism. Extraterritorial presents a new theory of literature that explains what happens when dreams of an open, connected world confront the reality of mobile, elastic, and tenacious borders.
£22.50
Vintage Publishing Dawn of the New Everything: A Journey Through Virtual Reality
Named a Best Book of the Year by the Economist, Wall Street Journal & Vox‘The father of virtual reality’ (Sunday Times) explains why virtual reality presents the ultimate test for humanity.‘Essential reading, not just for VR-watchers but for anyone interested in how society came to be how it is, and what it might yet become’ EconomistWelcome to a mind-expanding, life-enhancing, world-changing adventure.Virtual reality has long been one of the dominant clichés of science fiction. Now virtual reality is a reality: from the startling beauty of lifelike video games to the place where war veterans overcome PTSD, surgeries are trialled, and aircraft and cities are designed. VR is, in fact now, the most effective device ever invented for researching what a human being actually is – and how we think and feel. More than thirty years ago, legendary computer scientist, visionary and artist Jaron Lanier pioneered its invention. Here he blends scientific investigation, philosophical thought experiment and his memoir of a life lived at the centre of digital innovation to explain what VR really is: the science of comprehensive illusion; the extension of the intimate magic of earliest childhood into adulthood; a hint of what life would be like without any limits. We are standing on the threshold of an entirely new realm of human creativity, expression, communication and experience, and as we use VR to test our relationship with reality, it may test us in return.‘Vivid and absolutely extraordinary’ Evening Standard
£10.99
Dundurn Group Ltd The Devil to Pay: An Inspector Green Mystery
Impetuous, exasperating Ottawa Police Inspector Michael Green returns and unwittingly puts his daughter, a rookie patrol officer, in the line of fire.“For those who like a solid classic mystery with added character, Inspector Green is perfect.” —Globe and MailSidelined to administrative duties, Inspector Michael Green misses the thrill of the chase. So when his daughter Hannah, now a rookie patrol officer, responds to a 911 call about a domestic disturbance in a wealthy suburban neighbourhood, he is intrigued. Both husband and wife deny a problem and, despite Hannah’s doubts, no further police action is taken, but Green encourages her to dig deeper on her own. When the husband disappears and his car is found at the airport, the police conclude he is simply fleeing an unhappy home, a floundering law practice, and a mountain of debt. Until a body is discovered.While Green’s old friend Brian Sullivan investigates the victim’s work and family, Hannah is haunted by fear that her actions precipitated the murder. On her own time, she begins to dig into questions that linger at the periphery of the case. What has happened to the family dog, which disappeared the same night as the husband? And who is the odd, solitary young Ph.D. student who was researching ducks near the murder site? Her relentless search for answers leads her into the countryside, straight into the path of danger. And another body.
£13.99
Simon & Schuster Ltd Half Broke Horses
Readers fell in love with Jeannette Walls' unforgettable family in The Glass Castle. Now discover how it all began for the Walls family... 'I never knew a girl to have such gumption,' [Mom would] say. 'But I'm not too sure that's a good thing.' Meet Lily Casey Smith: horse-trainer, airplane pilot, flapper, mother and teacher. Born in 1901 in the rolling grassland of West Texas, Lily grows up with a passion for horses and an indomitable spirit. At age 15 she leaves home, riding 500 miles across the American West on her beloved pony Patch, her pearl-handled six-shooter by her side. Her goal: a teaching post in a frontier-town school. Lily will handle everything life throws at her - flash-floods, tornadoes, the Great Depression, a swindling husband, love and heartbreak - with courage, determination and a smile as wide as the Texas skies.*~*~* 'With convincing, unprettified narration, Walls weaves her own ancestor into this collective rough-and-tumble heritage... [Walls is] the third generation of a line of indomitable women whose paths she has inscribed on the permanent record, enriching the common legend of our American past' New York Times 'A commendable chronicle of an admirably tough woman on America's western frontier' Washington Post 'Has immense power and readibility... What it does with aplomb is to track the birth of a nation: the conjuring of modern America from a scorched, dusty wasteland' The Times
£9.99
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Longest Day: The D-Day Story, June 6th, 1944
This is the story of D-Day, told through the voices of over 1,000 survivors. 6 June, 1944. 156,000 troops from 12 different countries, 11,000 aircraft, 7,000 naval vessels, 24 hours. D-Day - the beginning of the Allied invasion of Hitler's formidable 'Fortress Europe' - was the largest amphibious invasion in history. There has never been a battle like it, before or since. But beyond the statistics and over sixty years on, what is it about the events of D-Day that remain so compelling? The courage of the men who fought and died on the beaches of France? The sheer boldness of the invasion plan? Or the fact that this, Rommel's 'longest day', heralded the beginning of the end of World War II? One of the defining battles of the war, D-Day is scored into the imagination as the moment when the darkness of the Third Reich began to be swept away. This story is told through the voices of over 1,000 survivors - from high-ranking Allied and German officers, to the paratroopers who landed in Normandy before dawn, the infantry who struggled ashore and the German troops who defended the coast. Cornelius Ryan captures the horror and the glory of D-Day, relating in emotive and compelling detail the years of inspired tactical planning that led up to the invasion, its epic implementation and every stroke of luck and individual act of heroism that would later define the battle.
£15.29
Ryland, Peters & Small Ltd Small Spaces, Big Appeal: The Luxury of Less in Under 1,200 Square Feet
Filled with space-saving storage and decorative details, these unique homes under 1,200 square feet prove that bigger is not always better. In recent years, many have turned our backs on the trend for oversized houses and embraced small-space living. Cosy, compact dwellings have so much to offer; they bring families closer together and make it easier than ever to express personal style. In Small Spaces, Big Appeal, Fifi O'Neill captures the zeitgeist by showcasing homes across a spectrum of styles and locations, and stories of contented homeowners who have created unique, imaginative spaces. Living in a small home doesn’t preclude having an elegant aesthetic. In fact, it allows you to focus on the elements you truly appreciate and the spaces you will use the most. Whether classically furnished or boasting a happy informality, the little gems featured in this book are more infused with a spirit than put together according to a set of rules. Rooms are airy yet intimate, with nooks and alcoves that offer daydreaming spots and built-in storage in spite of their modest footprints. Whatever your preferred look – nostalgic, romantic, modern, country, coastal, urban, minimalist or maximalist – living small has big advantages. It encourage us to live more simply and, best of all, to create spaces with style, grace and versatility that rival homes of many times their size.
£22.50
Quarto Publishing Group USA Inc BMW Motorcycles: 100 Years
BMW Motorcycles: 100 Years celebrates the legendary machines built by Germany’s leading motorcycle manufacturer. BMW’s long history of evolving technology is highlighted in this detailed story beginning with side-valve machines in the 1920s and early overhead-valve performance bikes, then moving to the postwar R-series Airhead and modern Oilhead twins, followed by four-cylinder and six-cylinder K-series touring bikes, the latest parallel twins, and inline-four cylinder sport bikes. From the first R32 that launched BMW’s motorcycle dynasty, to the latest S1000RR superbike and R18 mega-cruiser, BMW Motorcycles captures a century of motorcycling excellence in a combination of historic and contemporary photos sourced from BMW’s archive. The stories behind all the classic and modern BMWs are here: 1920s and 1930s BMWs like the R5 that defined performance in the prewar era The military R12 that supported the Wehrmacht as it battled its way across Europe in World War II The 1960s R69S that offered an excellent platform for both touring and sporting riding The R90S café racer and the R100RS, the latter arguably the world’s first dedicated sports tourer The astounding K1 “flying brick” The GS (Gelände Sport) series that launched the adventure-bike revolution Today’s R18, R nine T, and the world-class S100RR superbike This is a once-in-100-years story captured in a beautiful book sure to be enjoyed by any BMW Fan.
£40.50
Pan Macmillan Escaping Hitler: Heroic True Stories of Great Escapes in Nazi Europe
‘I was on a train, and a German soldier began shouting at me and poking me in the ribs with his machine gun. I just thought that was it, the game was up . . .’Downed airman Bob Frost faced danger at every turn as he was smuggled out of France and over the Pyrenees. Prisoner of war Len Harley went on the run in Italy, surviving months in hiding and then a hazardous climb over the Abruzzo mountains with German troops hot on his heels. These are just some of the stories told in heart-stopping detail as Monty Halls takes us along the freedom trails out of occupied Europe, from the immense French escape lines to lesser-known routes in Italy and Slovenia. Escaping Hitler features spies and traitors, extraordinary heroism from those who ran the escape routes and offered shelter to escapees, and great feats of endurance. The SAS in Operation Galia fought for forty days behind enemy lines in Italy and then, exhausted and pursued by the enemy, exfiltrated across the Apennine mountains. And in Slovenia Australian POW Ralph Churches and British Les Laws orchestrated the largest successful Allied escape of the entire war.Mixing new research, interviews with survivors and his own experience of walking the trails, Monty brings the past to life in this dramatic and gripping slice of military history.
£8.99
Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd The Moral Capital of Leaders: Why Virtue Matters
Solidly grounded on Aristotelian anthropology, moral capital develops a set of principles, practices and metrics useful to business leaders and managers, while eliminating the ambiguity of social capital and allowing for the integration of business ethics initiatives into a robust corporate culture.Sison studies a wide range of recent management cases from the viewpoint of moral capital: the sorry state of US airport screeners before 9-11, the Ford Explorer rollovers and Firestone tire failures, the battle for the 'HP way' between Carly Fiorina and the heirs of the founding families, the dynamics of Microsoft's serial monopolistic behavior, the pitfalls of Enron's senior executives, the sincerity of Howard Lutnick's commitment to Cantor Fitzgerald families, how Andersen's loss of reputation proved mortal and a fresh look at Jack Welch's purported achievements during his tenure at GE.He explains the relationship between different structural and operational levels in the human being (actions, habits, character and lifestyle) and in the firm (products, protocols, corporate culture and corporate history). These levels are later associated with different institutions of moral capital (basic currency, interests, investment bonds, estates or legacies). Strategies for measuring, developing and managing moral capital on both a personal and an organizational plane are also discussed.This engaging and provocative study is a must-read for professors, students, and practitioners of business ethics, general management, human resource management and economic theory.
£90.00
Wildy, Simmonds and Hill Publishing Case Handling: An illustrated View from the Bench
‘Experience of all sorts at the Bar and on the Bench has led to the thought that a few timely words could avoid a lot of grief as well as perhaps bringing a smile or two from the pictures.’ At the Bar Nick Chambers did a great variety of cases ranging from the miners' respiratory claims to the Kuwait Airways litigation. On the Bench his job was to manage and try cases as the Mercantile Judge for Wales and Chester and then for Wales as well as sitting in London in the Commercial Court and other jurisdictions. He was a member of the Civil Procedure Rule Committee at the time of the introduction of the Woolf reforms. He now practices as an arbitrator and mediator from Brick Court Chambers. The Chambers family's involvement with watercolours goes back to 1779 with an ancestor's sketches during the Siege of Gibraltar. Since then each generation has made its own contribution including scenes from Mumbai in the V&A and the first illustrations of the rules of rugby football done at the school in 1845. Illustrations and texts from Nick's book Missed Moments in Legal History hang in the Rolls Building. The pictures in Case Handling pay a further happy tribute to his past. This book, with its pithy advice and attractive illustrations, makes taking the serious medicine of case handling a pleasure both for the recently qualified and anyone else with an interest in making dispute resolution work.
£11.86
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Freeing Mussolini: Dismantling the Skorzeny Myth in the Gran Sasso Raid
The operation to free Mussolini, who was being held prisoner in a high mountain hotel on the summit of Gran Sasso, Italy in September 1943, is without a doubt one of the most spectacular operations not only of the Second World War, but in all military history. German paratroopers, the Wehrmacht's elite, were responsible for organising the rescue in record time, and executing a daring and perfectly synchronised operation between land and airborne detachments. Surprise and speed were the Fallschirmjager's main weapons, surprising the Italian garrison guarding il Duce. For political reasons Otto Skorzeny, the clever SS officer, also participated in the operation, leading a dozen of his commandos. Propaganda and his connections with Himmler made him into the false hero of the mission, over-emphasising his role in the whole search and rescue operation. Based on the testimony of several protagonists in this incredible operation, as well as analysing major documents (letters, reports by General Kurt Student etc.) and the abundant literature available on the subject, this book dismantles the 'Skorzeny Myth' and reveals the truth of what really happened in a mission that even Churchill called 'one of great daring'.
£25.55
ISTE Ltd and John Wiley & Sons Inc Machining Composites Materials
In recent years, the application of composite materials has increased in various areas of science and technology due to their special properties, namely for use in the aircraft, automotive, defence, aerospace and other advanced industries. Machining composite materials is quite a complex task owing to its heterogenity, and to the fact that reinforcements are extremely abrasive. In modern engineering, high demands are placed on components made of composites in relation to their dimensional precision as well as their surface quality. Due to these potential applications, there is a great need to understand the questions associated with machining composite materials. This book aims to provide the fundamentals and the recent advances in the machining of composite materials (polymers, metals and ceramics) for modern manufacturing engineering. The three parts of the book cover the machining of polymeric, metal and ceramic matrix composites. This book can be used as a text book for the final year of an undergraduate engineering course or for those studying machining/composites at the postgraduate level. It can also serve as a useful work of reference for academics, manufacturing and materials researchers, manufacturing and mechanical engineers, and professionals in composite technology and related industries.
£138.95
Fonthill Media Ltd The RAF in Cold War Germany
In May 1945 with the war in Europe at an end, Britain had to play her part in the occupation of the defeated Germany. The near-bankrupt country was hard-pressed to maintain such a military presence on the continent and still manage our other out commitments across the Mediterranean, Middle and Far East. As the immediate post-war years came to pass, Britain and other western powers found themselves reviewing their relationship with the key victor in the east: the USSR. A defining moment came in 1948 when the Soviet Union attempted to starve the people of West Berlin to the point of being relinquished to their fate by the Western allies. Following a sterling and stubborn effort to keep the city supplied with the minimum materials and food the Soviet exercise ended in 1949. But the parameters were now set, the Iron Curtain had descended across the continent, and the RAF were to maintain a constant vigil with nuclear-armed aircraft on station ready to respond to Soviet aggression for the next four decades while politicians tried desperately to preserve the peace.
£27.00
Schiffer Publishing Ltd Queen of the Skies: The Lockheed Constellation
A revolutionary commercial propeller transport, the Lockheed Constellation burst on the aviation scene in the early 1940s. Unheralded for the most part, due to wartime secrecy, it finally entered commercial service in 1946, and promptly set new standards for speed, range, reliability, and passenger comfort. The Connie, as it was affectionately known, pioneered new flight paths in many parts of the globe. Connies ultimately flew commercially for more than thirty years, and underwent countless modifications and upgrades during that time. They continued to be utilized by the military as well; in fact, Connies were involved in a number of endeavors that remain shrouded in secrecy to this day. This, then, is the story of a remarkable and distinctive airplane. It is also the story of the people who made the Constellation great, including aviation legends like Howard Hughes and Clarence "Kelly" Johnson. Most importantly, however, it is a story that sheds light on the dynamics of technology, politics, and society in the years 1940 to 1980. This revised edition contains an additional chapter on Constellations that are still flying today, as well as an additional appendix of the Constellation's operations manual.
£36.89
University Press of Kansas Victory at Mortain: Stopping Hitler's Panzer Counteroffensive
A powerful German counterattack in Normandy in August 1944 might have been one of the Wehrmacht's great shining moments in the Second World War. The odds were certainly in their favour. Determined to drive the Allies back to the English Channel, elements of four combat-hardened panzer divisions faced off against a single American infantry division near the town of Mortain. Instead, the Americans held their ground, enabling the Allied armies to secure the invasion and ultimately liberate France.In a vivid recreation of this pivotal battle—less celebrated than the encounter at the Falaise Pocket but just as decisive—Mark Reardon tells how the 30th Infantry Division held off the German panzer juggernaut, which was designed to drive a wedge between Allied forces. In recounting this showdown, he offers a new perspective on the German defeat in Normandy and a convincing counterpoint to the conventional view of most military analysts that Germany lost the war as a result of Allied materiel superiority or Hitler's strategic meddling.Through vigorous prose laced with compelling anecdotes, Reardon reconstructs the battle from both sides of the firing line to explain why it evolved and ended as it did. He reveals how professional rivalries and lack of accurate battlefield information hampered the efforts of German generals to execute a successful counteroffensive. He also tells how the U.S. Army profited from the bitter lessons of hedgerow fighting to gain superiority in ground manoeuvre, fire support, and the use of airpower, logistics, communications, and reconnaissance in the face of more experienced and better armed opponents.Reardon's riveting tale reveals that Americans GIs could fight as well as their more vaunted opponent, which gave the U.S. Army the confidence it needed to take the war into the enemy's homeland. Equally important, their victory prevented the Germans from retaking strategic points that would have kept the war bottled up in Normandy.Drawing not only on exhaustive research in Anglo-American and German archives but also on first hand accounts by more than two hundred American soldiers, Reardon's detailed reconstruction fills an important gap in the history of World War II combat that has existed for more than half a century.
£24.95
Edition Axel Menges Steidle + Partner, KPMG-Gebaude, Munchen: Opus 48
Text in German. Munich is lucky. A city that is at the top of the popularity scale needs nothing more than attractive building land. There has been a great deal more of this in recent years since industry and commerce have moved off to the periphery, barracks have been closed, the goods station and the airport have been relocated and the exhibition centre has gone to the empty site in Riem that was freed up. This meant that the Theresienhohe became an urban development area as well. Trade-exhibition halls were still being built around the historic parkland, established as an exhibition park around the turn of the century, in the 1980s. In 1997, an architectural competition was looking for ideas for an "inner-city, dense mixture of use for culture, as a central, for housing and commerce". The prize-winning suggestion by Steidle + Partner became the basis for further planning. The convincing feature was the instinctive sureness with which the practice imposed scale and urban character of the surrounded quarters on to the former exhibition-centre site. The development proposal, which could be interpreted in many ways but proposed an easily remembered line, is continued in the architecture, with its sets of buildings staggered against each other. The first buildings to be completed included the KPMG head office, which emerged from a workshop procedure: the ground plan for the complex uses a meander pattern, completed at one corner by a high-rise residential building -- which means that the quarter principle of reversible residential and office use is demonstrated within a single block. A central entrance courtyard provides access to the office block, but there is access from the outside elsewhere as well, should the function ever be changed. The building rises to seven storeys, and is pleasingly disturbing because of the lively colours on its facade of glazed ceramic panels. The even staccato of the narrow windows forms a contrast with this. Both together give the architecture the appeal of a mysterious musical instrument -- certainly intended for very young, rhythmic music.
£21.60
University of Hertfordshire Press Bricks of Victorian London: A social and economic history
Many of London’s Victorian buildings are built of coarse-textured yellow bricks. These are ‘London stocks’, produced in very large quantities all through the nineteenth century and notable for their ability to withstand the airborne pollutants of the Victorian city. Whether visible or, as is sometimes the case, hidden behind stonework or underground, they form a major part of the fabric of the capital. Until now, little has been written about how and where they were made and the people who made them. Peter Hounsell has written a detailed history of the industry which supplied these bricks to the London market, offering a fresh perspective on the social and economic history of the city. In it he reveals the workings of a complex network of finance and labour. From landowners who saw an opportunity to profit from the clay on their land, to entrepreneurs who sought to build a business as brick manufacturers, to those who actually made the bricks, the book considers the process in detail, placing it in the context of the supply-and-demand factors that affected the numbers of bricks produced and the costs involved in equipping and running a brickworks. Transport from the brickfields to the market was crucial and Dr Hounsell conducts a full survey of the different routes by which bricks were delivered to building sites - by road, by Thames barge or canal boat, and in the second half of the century by the new railways. The companies that made the bricks employed many thousands of men, women and children and their working lives, homes and culture are looked at here, as well as the journey towards better working conditions and wages. The decline of the handmade yellow stock was eventually brought about by the arrival of the machine-made Fletton brick that competed directly with it on price. Brickmaking in the vicinity of London finally disappeared after the Second World War. Although its demise has left little evidence in the landscape, this industry influenced the development of many parts of London and the home counties, and this book provides a valuable record of it in its heyday.
£35.00
Dorling Kindersley Ltd An Anthology of Our Extraordinary Earth
Explore the beauty and majesty of planet Earth in this compendium, with more than 100 incredible stories and images.The world is so much more complex than young minds can fathom, from molten-hot rock and smouldering volcanoes to icy glaciers and bubbling springs. This book about the Earth for kids aged 7+ unlocks all the mysteries of our living, breathing planet.An Anthology of Our Extraordinary Earth looks at our constantly changing planet, with striking images and scientific ideas that are easy for children to understand. Starting at the centre of the Earth, the book examines each layer in forensic detail: from Earth's metallic core, drilling through Earth's tough crust until emerging out onto the planet's surface, with its lush green rainforests, sparkling oceans, and snow-capped mountains, before sailing up into Earth's airy atmosphere.This detailed planet earth book for kids offers: - More than 100 stories about planet Earth, from snowflakes to cave pearls, each one accompanied by a photograph and delightful illustration.- Creative photography that presents planet Earth in surprising and remarkable ways, capturing nature in action or showing intriguing features up close.- Beautiful gold foil, gilded edges, and a ribbon for keeping your place.- In-depth feature pages that examine each layer of Earth.This striking book won't fail to excite budding geologists, geographers, environmentalists, and all-round planet Earth enthusiasts everywhere.With foil on the cover, gilded edges, and a ribbon for keeping your place, this earth book makes an attractive gift for any child who is fascinated by our planet. With engaging information and absorbing images, this anthology is great for children to explore by themselves or for bedtime stories.More in the SeriesAn Anthology of Our Extraordinary Earth is part of DK's beautiful and informative Anthology series. Complete the series and nurture your child's curiosity as they explore the natural world with The Wonders of Nature, let them walk with the dinosaurs who ruled the earth before them in Dinosaurs and other Prehistoric Life, or dive into the deep with An Anthology of Aquatic Life.
£20.00
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Wingate's Men: The Chindit Operations: Special Forces in Burma
Possibly the most famous fighting formations of the Burma campaign during the Second World War were the Long Range Penetration Groups, more commonly known as the Chindits. Colonel Orde Wingate was given permission to attempt long-range operations deep within Japanese-held territory with the aim of sowing alarm and confusion amongst the enemy and disrupting Japanese plans for the invasion of India. For this, Wingate was given the Indian 77th Infantry Brigade. In February 1943 this force crossed into Burma on its first Chindit operation, codenamed Loincloth. The Chindits took the Japanese by surprise, putting one of the main railway lines out of order, but the Japanese responded quickly, interdicting supply drops to the Chindits who soon began to suffer severely from exhaustion and shortages of water and food. With three brigades chasing them, the Chindits headed back to India, being forced to break up into small groups to avoid capture. By the time the 77th Brigade crossed the border, it had lost a third of its strength. Despite the heavy losses, Wingate had shown that British troops could operate successfully against the Japanese in inhospitable terrain. Promoted to acting major general Wingate was granted permission to undertake another Chindit operation, but this time on a far greater scale. In Operation Thursday Wingate aimed to fly a force of 10,000 men, 1,000 mules, equipment and supplies into clearings in the heart of Burma behind enemy lines. The operation proved a considerable success, the Chindits causing mayhem amongst the Japanese forces. Wingate, though, did not live to see the end of Operation Thursday, as he was killed when the aircraft in which he was being transported to one of the Chindit bases crashed into the jungle. In this wonderful collection of photographs, drawn in large part from one man's photograph albums, we see the harsh conditions in which the Chindits had to operate, and the terrible physical state of many of the men who survived the jungles, the dry plains, and the ferocious Japanese enemy.
£14.99
Hodder & Stoughton Child of the Ruins: a gripping, heart-breaking and unforgettable World War Two historical thriller
'A poignant love story' THE iTwo families divided by war.An entire city on the edge of disaster.'I was blown away not just by the gripping story, which had my heart thumping at times, but the sheer eloquence of writing. It is a story of the strength of the human spirit, and of love which will not be defeated. I know I will be recommending it to everyone' LESLEY PEARSE1948, Berlin. World War II has ended and there is supposed to be peace; but Russian troops have closed all access to the city. Roads, railway lines and waterways are blocked and two million people are trapped, relying on airlifts of food, water and medicine to survive. The sharp eyes of the Russian state police watch everything; no one can be trusted.Anna and Ingrid are both searching for answers - and revenge - in the messy aftermath of war. They understand that survival comes only by knowing what to trade: food; medicine; heirlooms; secrets. Both are living in the shadows of a city where the line between right and wrong has become dangerously blurred. But they cannot give up in the search for a lost child . . . 'An absolute triumph' DINAH JEFFERIES'Vivid, brave and suspenseful' RACHEL HORE'I defy anyone not to read beyond the first killer sentence' JANE CORRY'A harrowing and compelling portrait of Berlin in the aftermath of World War Two, told through the interconnecting stories of two courageous women struggling to survive in the rubble of their war-torn city' FIONA VALPY*** READERS LOVE THIS NOVEL! ***'The plot is exciting and fast paced. Thought-provoking and multi-layered as well as thoroughly entertaining. A perfect read' 'Furnivall masterfully captures the history of a divided Berlin in the aftermath of WW2''This novel draws you in with its incredibly well-researched historical fiction and tenacious female leads''A sweeping historical drama that's powerful and tense, full of espionage, making you feel like you're living in post-war Berlin... Beautifully written''This was such an emotive and immersive read that certainly stayed with me long after finishing the pages ... I literally couldn't put this book down. A brilliant story''Such an emotional, powerful, well-written, totally gripping book. I was blown away'
£18.00
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Chinook Crew 'Chick': Highs and Lows of Forces Life from the Longest Serving Female RAF Chinook Force Crewmember
Liz McConaghy, from a small town in County Down, spent a total of seventeen years flying with the RAF's Chinook Fleet. Aged just 21, she was the youngest aircrew member to deploy to Iraq and was also the only female crewman' on the Chinook wing for four years. In her astounding career Liz McConaghy completed two deployments to Iraq followed by ten deployments to Helmand province in Afghanistan in support of the enduring Operation Herrick campaign. Liz's inspiringly honest story reveals the highs and lows that she witnessed at war, and the cost that came with that both, physically and mentally for those involved. During her deployments, she survived not only a near fatal wire strike onboard her CH47, but numerous enemy fire contacts' defending her crew by returning fire from both the M134 Minigun' and M60 weapons entrusted to her to operate. Her biggest honour of all her duties, however, was serving on the Medical Emergency Response Team, or MERT, flying ambulance as it was more commonly known. This involved recovering wounded soldiers from the battlefield, often under fire, and witnessing them both die and indeed come back to life at her feet in the cabin of her Chinook. Liz saw Camp Bastion grow from a barbed wire fence surrounding an area of tents in the sand to the huge Operating Base it became. She was also on the last 1310 Flight deployment there as the British forces withdrew 10 years later handing it back to the Afghan National Army. Very few Chinook crew members, if any, spanned the length of time deployed as Liz McConaghy did. This is a genuinely unique tale that only Liz could tell, which ends with her battling the memories that haunted her, long after she had left the battlefield. Her own war within took her to the point of suicide once she had left the service. Her survival from both the battles in foreign lands and in her own head led her to begin telling her story, in the hope she can help others win their wars.
£20.00
Gill Through Her Eyes: A new history of Ireland in 21 women
This remarkable book provides an account of the history of Ireland like we’ve never seen before. Told through the prism of the lives of twenty-one extraordinary women, it offers an alternative vision of Irish history, one that puts the spotlight on women whose contributions have been forgotten or overlooked. From the oldest woman in Ireland, whose bones were found beneath the Poulnabrone dolmen, to the modern-day founder of a 3D printing company, this book introduces us to amazing women whose stories were shaped by the centuries in which they lived. “An engrossing selection of capsule biographies of some of those whose work is well worth remembering,” Five stars, Mary Carr, The Irish Mail on Sunday. “A brilliant way of bringing to life the lives of women who would otherwise be forgotten or who might not have been known at all. [Through Her Eyes] covers such an incredible spectrum of women; there are 21 extraordinary stories – and brilliantly told. Patrick Geoghegan, Talking History, Newstalk “This well-researched book looks at Irish history from the Neolithic to the digital era through the lives of 21 women. Standout figures include Lady Sligo, Hester Catherine Browne, who did much to help her tenants during the Great Famine, Letitia and Naomi Overend, who left their Airfield farm to the State, and Jemma Redmond, a biotechnologist who 3D-printed human tissues.” Brian Maye, The Irish Times “I was delighted and learned so much from Through Her Eyes: a history of Ireland in 21 women. It will inform my next trip to Ireland when I will seek out those places associated with many of these remarkable women.” Dr Dymphna Lonergan, Tinteán, Australia “Anyone with an interest in Irish history will be excited to have a new piece added to the puzzle. Through Her Eyes tells the tale of 21 women who helped shape modern Ireland, but whose names and whose accomplishments have been forgotten by most. Sunday Business Post “Clodagh Finn delivers a celebration of womanhood… rare, inspiring women whose message is clear for everyone out there – if you have a dream, seize it, and let the naysayers go hang.” David Lawlor, Irish Daily
£12.59
Little, Brown & Company Going Public: How Silicon Valley Rebels Loosened Wall Street’s Grip on the IPO and Sparked a Revolution
GOING PUBLIC is a character-driven narrative centered on the last five years of unparalleled change in how technology startups sell shares to the public. Initial public offerings, or IPOs, are typically the first time retail investors can own a piece of the New Economy companies promising to rewire economic rules. Selling IPOs is also one of the most profitable businesses for Wall Street investment banks, who have spent the last 40 years protecting their profits. In an era when algorithms and software have made the financial markets more efficient, the pricing of IPOs still relies on human judgment.In 2016, executives at music-streaming service Spotify sought to upend the status quo. Led by a trim and understated CFO, Barry McCarthy, and a shy but brilliant founder, Daniel Ek, they took a wild idea and forged something new. GOING PUBLIC explores how they got comfortable with the risk, and how they lobbied securities watchdogs and exchange staff to rewrite the regulations. Readers will meet executives at disruptive companies like Airbnb, DoorDash, and data miner Palantir, venture capitalists, and even some bankers who seized on Spotify's labor and used it to knock Wall Street bankers off the piles of fees they'd been stacking for so long.GOING PUBLIC weaves in earlier attempts to rethink the IPO process, introducing readers to one of Silicon Valley's earliest bankers, Bill Hambrecht, whose invention for selling shares online was embraced by Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin when they auctioned their shares in 2004. And it examines the recent boom in blank-check companies, those Wall Street insider deals that have suddenly become the hottest way to enter the public markets. GOING PUBLIC tells stories from inside the room, and more.
£25.00
University of Minnesota Press Business Without Boundary: The Story of General Mills
Business Without Boundary was first published in 1954. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions.The firm of General Mills is probably best known to millions of people as the maker of Gold Medal Flour and as the progenitor of that first lady of the kitchen and the airwaves, Betty Crocker. But, although its greatest fame is as a flour miller, the company engages in a host of other activities that attest to the foresight and creative thinking of its executives. In fact, the sky seems to be the only limit as the company extends its sights upward in Operation Skyhook, a United States navy research project for which General Mills makes and launches into the stratosphere giant plastic balloons.James Gray relates not only the history of General Mills since its founding in 1928 but also the background of the major companies that merged to form the larger corporation: the Washburn Crosby Company of Minneapolis, the Sperry Company of San Francisco, the Kell group of Texas and Oklahoma mills, and the Larrowe Milling Company of Detroit.Anyone interested in advertising and promotion will find fascinating the accounts of the early successes in radio advertising, including the first use of singing commercials and the phenomenal rise of Betty Crocker (voted the second best-known woman in America!) The scientific and technical research that is a cornerstone of the modern corporation is described in detail, as is the development of the products control method, a General Mills innovation now widely adopted in industry.For those curious to understand how business expands, for those interested in a close-up of industrial leaders, for anyone who wants to sharpen his view of America at work, this is an important book.
£45.00
Oxford University Press A History of Wiltshire: Volume XII: Ramsbury Hundred, Selkley Hundred, The Borough of Marlborough
This volume contains the histories of the hundreds of Ramsbury and Selkley and of the borough of Marlborough. The area is mostly on the Marlborough Downs in the north-east quarter of Wiltshire. The Kennet flows east through both hundreds and skirts the town of Marlborough to the south. Its valley and those of its tributaries have provided settlement sites, including those of Avebury, probably an important cult centre in the Neolithic Period, and the Romantown of Cunetio, and determined many lines of communication from earliest times. The area has always been predominantly agricultural. Tracts of rough downland, some the site of warrens from the Middle Ages, are still used for sport. In the 19th and 20th centuries racehorses have been trained on the downs notably at Beckhampton in Avebury and at Manton in Preshute. At Aldbourne Fustians were manufactured and bells were founded. Ramsbury hundred, which comprised Bishopstone in the Cole valley and the large parish of Ramsbury, belonged to the bishops of Ramsbury and contained a pre-Conquest see. It passed to the bishops of Salisbury, the site of whose medieval palace is marked by Ramsbury Manor. Littlecote House, once the home of the Darrells, dates mainly from the 14th and 16th centuries and is open to the public. An airfield was established in Ramsbury during the Second World War. The village is chiefly known as the home of the Ramsbury Building Society formed in 1846. Marlborough was a borough from the 11th century until 1974. It was represented in parliament from 1275 to 1885 and from the 18th century was a pocket borough of theBruces. Its medieval castle was a favourite residence of Henry III and its site is now occupied by Marlborough College. Marlborough has long been important as a market town where main routes converge rather than as a manufacturing centre.
£75.00
Casemate Publishers The U.S. Army Infantryman Vietnam Pocket Manual
Between 1964 and 1975, 2.6 million American personnel served within the borders of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, of whom an estimated 1-1.6 million actually fought in combat. At the tip of the spear were the infantry, the "grunts" who entered an extraordinary tropical combat zone completely alien to the world they had left behind in the United States. In South Vietnam, and occasionally spilling over into neighboring Laos and Cambodia, they fought a relentless counterinsurgency and conventional war against the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and Viet Cong (VC). The terrain was as challenging as the enemy - soaring mountains or jungle-choked valleys; bleached, sandy coastal zones; major urban centers; riverine districts. Their opponents fought them with relentless and terrible ingenuity, on a daily basis with ambushes, booby traps, and mines, then occasionally with full-force offensives on a scale to rival the campaigns of World War II.This pocket manual draws its content not only from essential U.S. military field manuals of the Vietnam era, but also a vast collection of declassified primary documents, including rare after-action reports, intelligence analysis, first-hand accounts, and combat studies. Through these documents the pocket manual provides a deep insight into what it was like for infantry to live, survive, and fight in Vietnam, whether conducting a major airmobile search-and-destroy operation or conducting endless hot and humid small-unit patrols from jungle firebases. The book includes infantry intelligence documents about the NVA and VC threats, plus chapters explaining hard-won lessons about using weaponry, surviving and moving through the jungle, tactical maneuvers, and applications of the ubiquitous helicopter for combat and support.
£14.99
Nova Science Publishers Inc The Fundamentals of Hypersensitivities and Allergies
The book "The Fundamentals of Hypersensitivity and Allergy" comprises of seven chapters and describes the historical perspective, causes and classification of hypersensitivities, which are important in understanding the current issues regarding conditions in which the immune system which normally serves a protective role has a harmful effect. This book describes the original concept of hypersensitivity and allergy and how sensitive individuals respond to different allergens, drugs and other agents, where the body reacts with an exaggerated immune response that ultimately results in tissue damage. The classification of hypersensitive reactions given by Gell and Coombs with the modifications made to the previous classification are described in detail. Different types of hypersensitivities, their process, the contribution of various cells and molecules to normal immune responses and to hypersensitive reactions are discussed separately. The examples for different types of immune responses are described thoroughly to get a proper understanding of the topic. The clinical manifestations of different types of hypersensitivities and their means of prevention, evaluation and management are also depicted in separate chapters with clear insight. Lastly, the airborne allergens responsible for the allergy, different types of aeroallergens, their effects and allergies caused by them are described. The effect of climate change on aeroallergen production, various diagnostic tests for detection of aero-allergy with their prevention and control are discussed in detail separately. The book contains a reasonable number of diagrams, flowcharts and tables. Besides this, various interesting and self-explanatory illustrations are incorporated to make the book useful to the students for whom it is written. The question bank, which includes long answer type, short answer type and multiple choice questions with their answers at the very end of each chapter, is developed to get a full grasp of the topic.
£127.79
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Crew: The Story of a Lancaster Bomber Crew
A moving tribute to the sacrifice and bravery of the fliers of RAF Bomber Command. ****************************** The Crew, based on interviews with Ken Cook, the crew's sole surviving member, recounts the wartime exploits of the members of an Avro Lancaster crew between 1942 and the war's end. Gloucestershire-born bomb aimer Ken Cook, hard-bitten Australian pilot Jim Comans, Navigator Don Bowes, Upper Gunner George Widdis, Tail Gunner 'Jock' Bolland, Flight Engineer Ken Randle and Radio Operator Roy Woollford were seven ordinary young men living in extraordinary times, risking their lives in freedom's cause in the dark skies above Hitler's Reich. From their earliest beginnings – in places as far apart as a Cotswold village and the suburbs of Sydney – through the adventure of training in North America and the dread and danger of the forty-five bombing raids they flew with 97 Squadron, David Price describes the crew's wartime experiences with human sympathy allied to a secure technical understanding of one of the RAF's most iconic aircraft. The drama and anxiety of individual missions – to Kassel, Munich and Augsburg as well as Berlin – is evoked with thrilling immediacy; while the military events and strategic decisions that drove the RAF's area bombing campaign against Nazi Germany are interwoven deftly with the narrative of the crew's operational careers. ****************************** Reviews: 'A sensitive account of the bomber's life... Price has given the bomber offensive a human face. This book [...] has a heart and soul' The Times. 'A fascinating and fast-paced account of the exploits of an Avro Lancaster bomber crew from 97 Squadron RAF' The Herald. 'A remarkable insight into the bravery, determination and skill of British Bomber Command crews during WWII' Waterstones.
£9.99
Casemate Publishers Black Tulip: The Life and Myth of Erich Hartmann, the World’s Top Fighter Ace
Black Tulip is the dramatic story of history's top fighter ace, Luftwaffe pilot Erich Hartmann. It's also the story of how his service under Hitler was simplified and elevated to Western mythology during the Cold War.Over 1,404 wartime missions, Hartmann claimed a staggering 352 airborne kills, and his career contains all the dramas you would expect. There were the frostbitten fighter sweeps over the Eastern Front, drunken forays to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest, a decade of imprisonment in the wretched Soviet POW camps, and further military service during the Cold War that ended with conflict and angst.Just when Hartmann’s second career was faltering, he was adopted by a network of writers and commentators personally invested in his welfare and reputation. These men, mostly Americans, published elaborate, celebratory stories about Hartmann and his elite fraternity of Luftwaffe pilots. With each dogfight tale put into print, Hartmann’s legacy became loftier and more secure, and his complicated service in support of Nazism faded away. A simplified, one-dimensional account of his life - devoid of the harder questions about allegiance and service under Hitler - has gone unchallenged for almost a generation.Black Tulip locates the ambiguous truth about Hartmann and so much of the German Wehrmacht in general: that many of these men were neither full-blown Nazis nor impeccable knights. They were complex, contradictory, and elusive. This book portrays a complex human rather than the heroic caricature we’re used to, and it argues that the tidy, polished hero stories we’ve inherited about men like Hartmann say as much about those who've crafted them as they do about the heroes themselves.
£25.19
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Zeppelin Offensive: A German Perspective in Pictures and Postcards
Fly, Zeppelin! Help us in the war. Fly to England, England shall be destroyed by fire. Zeppelin, fly!' Such was the hymn which the children sang; such the refrain which greeted the aged inventor, Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, wherever he went. Why was there this reaction across Germany? How did a handful of aircraft giving pleasure cruises become a fearsome fleet of rapacious giants encouraged to punish Germany's enemies? What were the images that became part of the public's wartime consciousness? Books on the Zeppelin raids during the First World War have, traditionally, focused on the direct impact of Britain, from the devastating effects on undefended towns and cities, the psychological impact of this first weapon of total war to the technological and strategic advances that eventually defeated the Baby Killers'. Now, drawing on the largest postcard collection of its kind and other period memorabilia, David Marks tells the story of the Zeppelin during the First World War from a viewpoint that has rarely been considered: Germany itself. From its maiden flight in July 1900, the Zeppelin evolved into a symbol of technology and national pride that, once war was declared, was at the forefront of German's propaganda campaign. The Zeppelin links the rampant xenophobia at the outbreak of the conflict against England (it almost never called Britain), France, Russia and their allies to the political doctrines of the day. The postcards that profusely illustrate this book show the wide-ranging types of propaganda from strident Teutonic imagery, myths and legends, biting satire and a surprising amount of humour. This book is a unique contribution to our understanding of the place of the Zeppelin in Germany's culture and society during the First World War.
£14.99
Casemate Publishers The Last Hot Battle of the Cold War: South Africa vs. Cuba in the Angolan Civil War
As the Soviet Union teetered on the edge of collapse during the late 1980s, and America prepared to claim its victory, a bloody war still raged in Southern Africa, where forces from both sides vied for control of Angola. The result was the largest battle on the dark continent since Al Alamein. The socialist government of Angola and its army, FAPLA, had only to wipe out a massive resistance group, UNITA, secretly supplied by the U.S, in order to claim full sovereignty over the country. A giant FAPLA offensive so threatened to succeed in overcoming UNITA that apartheid-era South Africa stepped in to protect its own interests. The white army crossing the border prompted the Angolan government to call on their own foreign reinforcements—the army of Communist Cuba. Thus began the epic battle of Cuito Cuanavale, largely unknown in the U.S., but which raged for three months in the entirely odd match-up of South African Boers vs. Castro’s armed forces, which for the first time in the Cold War proved what it could achieve. The South Africans were no slouches at warfare themselves, but had suffered under a boycott of weapons since 1977. The Cubans and Angolan troops had the latest Soviet weapons, easily delivered. But UNITA had its secret U.S. supply line and the South Africans knew how to fight. Meantime the Cubans overcame their logistic difficulties with an impressive airlift of troops over the Atlantic, while the Boers simply needed to drive next door.
£32.00
The University of North Carolina Press Country Capitalism: How Corporations from the American South Remade Our Economy and the Planet
The rural roads that led to our planet-changing global economy ran through the American South. That region's impact on the interconnected histories of business and ecological change is narrated here by acclaimed scholar Bart Elmore, who uses the histories of five southern firms—Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines, Walmart, FedEx, and Bank of America—to investigate the environmental impact of our have-it-now, fly-by-night, buy-on-credit economy. Drawing on exclusive interviews with company executives, corporate archives, and other records, Elmore explores the historical, economic, and ecological conditions that gave rise to these five trailblazing corporations. He then considers what each has become: an essential presence in the daily workings of the global economy and an unmistakable contributor to the reshaping of the world's ecosystems. Even as businesses invest in sustainability initiatives and respond to new calls for corporate responsibility, Elmore shows the limits of their efforts to "green" their operations and offers insights on how governments and activists can push corporations to do better. At the root, Elmore reveals a fundamental challenge: Our lives are built around businesses that connect far-flung rural places to urban centers and global destinations. This "country capitalism" that proved successful in the US South has made it possible to satisfy our demands at the click of a button, but each click comes with hidden environmental costs. This book is a must-read for anyone who hopes to create an ecologically sustainable future economy.
£25.20
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Lessons in Imperial Rule: Instructions for British Infantrymen on the Indian Frontier
During the first half of the twentieth century, the mountainous North West Frontier represented one of the British Empire's most strategically important borders. For thousands of inexperienced British and Indian troops facing a local resistance the methods and lessons of their predecessors were vital for their survival. General Sir Andrew Skeen's unofficial but authoritative textbook was written with these junior officers in mind. His work provided them with pragmatic and practical information on hill warfare in an accessible fashion. Skeen's understanding of frontier fighting remains as valuable to modern troops fighting local insurgents today as it was to successive generations of Imperial soldiers who faced tribal uprisings. His work became an unofficial textbook and was widely read in Britain and India. Despite the later introduction of armoured cars, light tanks and aircraft, it retains much of its value and it was recently reissued to the Pakistan army. Britains return to Afghanistan in 2001 alongside Coalition forces, and the Pakistan Army fighting in Waziristan, conjures inescapable parallels with earlier conflicts, and the Third Afghan war in particular. Remarkably many of the ideas and principles Skeen identified still hold true. Now as then, the arena of fighting was tough and unforgiving. The Afghans and Pashtuns have proved themselves incredibly resourceful, skilled and resolute, demanding the very best expertise, tactics and dedication from the Coalition troops. This book offers an evocative insight into the period and serves as a timely reminder of Britains historic association with the North West Frontier and Afghanistan.
£18.58
Springer Nature Switzerland AG Springer Handbook of Atmospheric Measurements
This practical handbook provides a clearly structured, concise and comprehensive account of the huge variety of atmospheric and related measurements relevant to meteorologists and for the purpose of weather forecasting and climate research, but also to the practitioner in the wider field of environmental physics and ecology. The Springer Handbook of Atmospheric Measurements is divided into six parts: The first part offers instructive descriptions of the basics of atmospheric measurements and the multitude of their influencing factors, fundamentals of quality control and standardization, as well as equations and tables of atmospheric, water, and soil quantities. The subsequent parts present classical in-situ measurements as well as remote sensing techniques from both ground-based as well as airborn or satellite-based methods. The next part focusses on complex measurements and methods that integrate different techniques to establish more holistic data. Brief discussions of measurements in soils and water, at plants, in urban and rural environments and for renewable energies demonstrate the potential of such applications. The final part provides an overview of atmospheric and ecological networks. Written by distinguished experts from academia and industry, each of the 64 chapters provides in-depth discussions of the available devices with their specifications, aspects of quality control, maintenance as well as their potential for the future. A large number of thoroughly compiled tables of physical quantities, sensors and system characteristics make this handbook a unique, universal and useful reference for the practitioner and absolutely essential for researchers, students, and technicians.
£279.99
Kogan Page Ltd Learning Ecosystems: Creating Innovative, Lean and Tech-driven Learning Strategies
SHORTLISTED: Business Book Awards 2023 - International Business Book Building and sustaining an organization which is nimble, adaptable, resilient and future proof is both complex and urgent. Only those with flexible and innovative Learnscapes will succeed. Learning Ecosystems explains how organizations evolve into LearnScapes where learning techniques are aligned with continuous interaction with the ecosystem they are part of. It explains how to upskill and reskill a workforce continuously in an increasingly collaborative and tech-enabled world. Full of practical guidance and strategic advice, this book covers how to take a lifelong approach to learning in the organization and the core competencies needed for this. It explains what to do when building a value and data-driven learning strategy and discusses the symbiosis of people and technology. This book explores lean learning, data analytics, learning technologies including artificial intelligence (AI) and the ethics of using these technologies. There is also crucial guidance on how to take a human-centric approach to innovation. Learning Ecosystems demonstrates the value of continuous improvement and offers techniques for a variety of situations including problem analyses, experimentation and algorithmic business thinking. Most importantly, it provides guidance on how to build a learning culture and a learning ecosystem throughout the company. Supported by case studies from companies including Etihad Airways, ING, ESF and FEDEX, this is essential reading from a leading learning innovator who has helped global organizations to rethink their learning strategies to achieve sustained business growth.
£95.00
Hachette Australia Operation Hurricane: The story of Britain's first atomic test in Australia and the legacy that remains
'I remember seeing a flash, I turned around and heard a roar like a train approaching in a tunnel. Then a tremendous crack like a whiplash passed directly overhead. I saw a mushroom cloud ... There was black and white smoke, orange and red flames ascending through the centre of the mushroom.' RAN Able Seaman Vince Douglas, participant in Operation HurricaneAt 8.00 a.m. on Friday 3 October 1952, Britain's first atomic bomb was detonated in the hold of a surplus frigate, HMS Plym, moored in the Montebello Islands, 50 miles off the North West Coast of Western Australia. The blast vaporised the Plym, produced a mushroom cloud 2 miles high, and covered the islands and parts of the Australian mainland with fallout. The test, codenamed Operation Hurricane, was the culmination of years of top-secret planning in London and Canberra and months of clandestine preparations at the site. One of the largest peacetime military operations in Australian history, its success shifted the balance of power in the Cold War and briefly rejuvenated the fading British Empire.Painstakingly pieced together from declassified government documents and first-person accounts by surviving participants, Operation Hurricane tells the story of Britain's first nuclear test from the point of view of the men on the ground: soldiers, sailors, airmen and civilians. It delves into the historical context of the Cold War and examines the controversial legacy of the atomic tests, including the impact of fallout on servicemen, Aboriginal peoples and the environment, and Australia's relationship with the United Kingdom.
£19.99
Simon & Schuster Why Peacocks?: An Unlikely Search for Meaning in the World's Most Magnificent Bird
An acclaimed journalist seeks to understand the mysterious allure of peacocks—and in the process discovers unexpected and valuable life lessons. 2022 Carnegie Medal for Excellence Longlist SelectionWhen Sean Flynn’s neighbor in North Carolina texted “Any chance you guys want a peacock? No kidding!” he stared bewilderedly at his phone. He had never considered whether he wanted a peacock. But as an award-winning magazine writer, this kind of mystery intrigued him. So he, his wife, and their two young sons became the owners of not one but three charming yet fickle birds: Carl, Ethel, and Mr. Pickle. In Why Peacocks?, Flynn chronicles his hilarious and heartwarming first year as a peacock owner, from struggling to build a pen to assisting the local bird doctor in surgery to triumphantly watching a peahen lay her first egg. He also examines the history of peacocks, from their appearance in the Garden of Eden to their befuddling Charles Darwin to their bewitching the likes of Flannery O’Connor and Martha Stewart. And fueled by a reporter’s curiosity, he travels across the globe to learn more about the birds firsthand, with stops including a Scottish castle where peacocks have resided for centuries, a southern California community tormented by a serial killer of peacocks, and a Kansas City airport hotel hosting an annual gathering of true peafowl aficionados. At turns comically absurd and deeply poignant, Why Peacocks? blends lively, insightful memoir and illuminating science journalism to answer the title’s question. More than that, it offers surprising lessons about love, grief, fatherhood, and family.
£13.83
University of Minnesota Press The Deadly Life of Logistics: Mapping Violence in Global Trade
In a world in which global trade is at risk, where warehouses and airports, shipping lanes and seaports try to guard against the likes of Al Qaeda and Somali pirates, and natural disaster can disrupt the flow of goods, even our “stuff” has a political life. The high stakes of logistics are not surprising, Deborah Cowen reveals, if we understand its genesis in war. In The Deadly Life of Logistics, Cowen traces the art and science of logistics over the last sixty years, from the battlefield to the boardroom and back again. Focusing on choke points such as national borders, zones of piracy, blockades, and cities, she tracks contemporary efforts to keep goods circulating and brings to light the collective violence these efforts produce. She investigates how the old military art of logistics played a critical role in the making of the global economic order—not simply the globalization of production, but the invention of the supply chain and the reorganization of national economies into transnational systems. While reshaping the world of production and distribution, logistics is also actively reconfiguring global maps of security and citizenship, a phenomenon Cowen charts through the rise of supply chain security, with its challenge to long-standing notions of state sovereignty and border management. Though the object of corporate and governmental logistical efforts is commodity supply, The Deadly Life of Logistics demonstrates that they are deeply political—and, considered in the context of the long history of logistics, deeply indebted to the practice of war.
£21.99
Vintage Publishing Overland
Welcome to Overland! Where the California sun shines down on synthetic grass and plastic oranges bedeck the trees all year round. Steam billows gently from the chimney tops and the blue tarpaulin lake is open for fishing… Hollywood set-designer George Godfrey has been called on to do his patriotic duty and he doesn’t believe in half-measures. If he is going to hide an American aircraft plant from the threat of Japanese aerial spies he has an almighty job on his hands. He will need an army of props and actors to make the Lockheed factory vanish behind the semblance of a suburban town. Every day, his “Residents” climb through a trapdoor in the factory roof to shift model cars, shop for imaginary groceries and rotate fake sheep in felt-green meadows. Overland is a beacon for the young women labouring below it: Queenie, dreaming of movie stardom while welding sheet metal; Kay, who must seek refuge from the order to intern “All Persons of Japanese Ancestry”. Meanwhile, George’s right-hand Resident, Jimmy, knows that High Command aren’t at all happy with the camouflage project...With George so bewitched by his own illusion, might it risk confusing everybody – not just the enemy?Overland is a book like no other -- to be read in landscape format. Based on true events, it is a novel where characters' dreams and desires come down to earth with more than a bump, confronting the hardships of life during wartime. As surreal and playful as it is affecting and unsettling, no-one other than Graham Rawle could have created it.
£14.99
Vintage Publishing Now We Have Your Attention: The New Politics of the People
'One of the most important and compelling books I've ever read...If you want to understand why we are in this crisis, listen to the voices all too often airbrushed from the political conversation' Owen JonesNow We Have Your Attention makes sense of what is happening in British politics by taking a radically different perspective: the people's.From a warehouse in Manchester to a pub in Essex, from the outskirts of Glasgow to a racecourse in Durham, Jack Shenker uncovers the root causes of our current crisis and the future direction of British politics through the lives of ordinary individuals. Taking us deep into communities hollowed out by austerity and decades of economic disadvantage, among a generation crippled by precarious work and unaffordable housing, he shows where the chaos at Westminster ultimately springs from - and how disillusionment with it is fuelling a passionate engagement with politics of a completely different kind: local, personal, effective and utterly fearless.Joining a 'McStrike' protest on a roundabout in Cambridge and a gathering of the London Renters' Union in the aftermath of Grenfell, meeting hard-right bloggers in Newcastle and climate change protesters in Brighton, Shenker draws on exceptional access to campaign groups, activist movements and grassroots gatherings throughout the country - including unique access to Momentum, who have re-radicalised the Labour party from the outside in - to introduce us to the citizens and leaders of tomorrow: people who are changing things for themselves.Inspiring and terrifying in equal measure, Now We Have Your Attention uncovers a revolutionary transformation in attitudes and behaviour, and a future that will shape us all.
£9.99
Headline Publishing Group Blind Spot: A unputdownable new thriller to keep you reading all night!
'An endlessly ingenious writer of compelling, brilliantly crafted thrillers' Peter JamesNew York Times bestseller Brenda Novak's fourth novel in the Evelyn Talbot series sees the return of psychiatrist Dr Evelyn Talbot. When you're studying America's most terrifying psychopaths, can you ever really be safe? This is SILENCE OF THE LAMBS meets Karen Rose...SOMETIMES THE DARKEST DEEDS HAPPEN IN BROAD DAYLIGHT With her tortured past finally behind her - and her tormentor, Jasper Moore, locked up, where she can study him along with the other psychopaths at Hanover House - psychiatrist Evelyn Talbot is looking to the future. She's about to have a baby and marry her long-time love, Amarok, the only police presence in Hilltop, Alaska. But when she's snatched from her own driveway, she can only guess at who's taken her captive...and why. Struggling to survive in a tiny, airless cell, Evelyn is relying on Amarok to find her. But he won't have much to go on, a point that becomes even more alarming when her captor reveals a clue to the mastermind behind her abduction. Not only does she know him, she knows he has a particularly gruesome method of disabling his victims. So unless she manages to escape, neither she nor her baby will survive...Look for the other gripping novels in the Evelyn Talbot series - Her Darkest Nightmare, Hello Again, Face Off, and the prequel novella, Hanover House, available now.
£9.99
Quarto Publishing Group USA Inc Speed Read F1: The Technology, Rules, History and Concepts Key to the Sport: Volume 1
Get instant access to the history, technology, drivers, rivalries, racing circuits, and business of Formula 1 in this beautifully designed and illustrated essential guide from Motorbooks’ Speed Read series. The world racing championship that now encompasses 20 (and counting) annual races across five continents started in the European racing scene between the first and second world wars. It’s been a long road from the early races held in redundant airfields bounded by old oil drums to today’s extravagant spectacles—a road marked by glory, championships, iteration, technology, and speed. In sections divided by topic, you’ll find the history of the sport, biographies of major drivers and figures who have dominated the sport’s long and storied history, a rundown of the incredible technology that makes its cars so fast, an account of racing accidents and the safety measures they inspired, and more. Each section ends with a glossary of related terms, and informational sidebars provide fun facts, historical tidbits, and mini-bios of key people in Formula 1. Sleek illustrations of the cars, technology, and drivers impart the visual feel of F1 throughout. With Motorbooks’ Speed Read series, become an instant expert in a range of fast-moving subjects, from Formula 1 racing to the Tour de France. Accessible language, compartmentalized sections, fact-filled sidebars, glossaries of key terms, and event timelines deliver quick access to insider knowledge. Their brightly colored covers, modern design, pop art–inspired illustrations, and handy size make them perfect on-the-go reads.
£12.99