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Be Like the Fox: Machiavelli's Lifelong Quest for Freedom
by Erica BennerGUARDIAN BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2017LONGLISTED FOR THE HISTORICAL WRITERS' ASSOCIATION NON-FICTION CROWN 2017'A ripping read ... fascinating, charming, enjoyably unorthodox' Daily TelegraphWas Niccolò Machiavelli really the cynical schemer of legend - or was he a profound ethical thinker, who tried to save the democratic freedom of Renaissance Florence as it was threatened by ruthless dynasties? This revelatory biography shows us a man of fox-like dissimulation: a master of disguise in dangerous times. 'A gripping portrait of a brilliant political thinker, who understood the dangers of authoritarianism and looked for ways to curb them' The New Yorker'Compelling ... this unconventional biography questions whether the philosopher deserves his reputation as an advocate for tyranny' Julian Baggini, Financial Times
A Life Like Other People's
by Alan BennettAlan Bennett's A Life Like Other People's is a poignant family memoir offering a portrait of his parents' marriage and recalling his Leeds childhood, Christmases with Grandma Peel, and the lives, loves and deaths of his unforgettable aunties Kathleen and Myra. Bennett's powerful account of his mother's descent into depression and later dementia comes hand in hand with the uncovering of a long-held tragic secret. A heartrending and at times irresistibly funny work of autobiography by one of the best-loved English writers alive today.
Untold Stories: Collected Untold Stories (Bbc Radio Collection)
by Alan BennettAlan Bennett's first collection of prose since Writing Home takes in all his major writings over the last ten years. The title piece is a poignant family memoir with an account of the marriage of his parents, the lives and deaths of his aunts and the uncovering of a long-held family secret. Bennett, as always, is both amusing and poignant, whether he's discussing his modest childhood or his work with the likes of Maggie Smith, Thora Hird and John Gielgud. Also included are his much celebrated diaries for the years 1996 to 2004. At times heartrending and at others extremely funny,Untold Stories is a matchless and unforgettable anthology. Since the success of Beyond the Fringe in the 1960s Alan Bennett has delighted audiences worldwide with his gentle humour and wry observations about life. His many works include Forty Years On, The Lady in the Van, Talking Heads, A Question of Attribution and The Madness of King George. The History Boys opened to great acclaim at the National in 2004, and is winner of the Evening Standard Award, the South Bank Award and the Critics' Circle Award for Best New Play.'Perhaps the best loved of English writers alive today.' Sunday TelegraphUntold Stories is published jointly with Profile Books.
Writing Home
by Alan BennettAlready a bestseller, this is a wonderfully entertaining collection of Alan Bennett's prose writings. Writing Home brings together diaries, reminiscences and reviews to give us a unique and unforgettable portrait of one of England's leading playwrights. As a memoir it covers the production of his very first play, Forty Years On, which starred John Gieldgud. His television series 'Talking Heads' has become a modern-day classic; as part of the 1960s revue 'Beyond the Fringe' Bennett helped to kick-start the English satire revolution, and has since remained one of our leading dramatists, most recently with The History Boys at the National Theatre. At the heart of the book is The Lady in The Van, since adapted into a radio play featuring Dame Maggie Smith. It is the true account of Miss Mary Shepherd, a homeless tramp who took up residence in Bennett's garden and stayed for fifteen years. This new edition also includes Bennett's introduction to his Oscar-nominated screenplay for The Madness of King George and his more recent diaries.
Cromwell at War: The Lord General and his Military Revolution
by Martyn BennettOliver Cromwell was arguably the most significant political figure in the early modern history of the British Isles. Yet he was also a military leader, with significant battlefield victories to his credit. Martyn Bennett here provides the first military biography of Cromwell in the context of the seventeenth century Military Revolution. After commanding a small troop in 1643 and, without prior military experience, Cromwell rose to lead the cavalry regiments of the Eastern Association Army and the New Model Army to final victory at Worcester in 1651 and sealed the victory of the Parliamentary forces in Ireland and Scotland, becoming Lord General in 1650. Martyn Bennett analyses Cromwell's military talents and generalship, in addition to his well-attested powerful and even brutal discipline and religious fervour. He examines the controversial Irish campaigns as well as modern accusations of genocide. In providing new perspectives on Cromwell's military career, Bennett adds to our understanding of England's only non-royal head of state.
Cromwell at War: The Lord General and his Military Revolution
by Martyn BennettMartyn Bennett here provides the first military biography of Cromwell in the context of the seventeenth century Military Revolution. After commanding a small troop in 1643 and, without prior military experience, Cromwell rose to lead the cavalry regiments of the Eastern Association Army and the New Model Army to final victory at Worcester in 1651 and sealed the victory of the Parliamentary forces in Ireland and Scotland, becoming Lord General in 1650. Martyn Bennett analyses Cromwell's military talents and generalship, in addition to his well-attested powerful and even brutal discipline and religious fervour. He examines the controversial Irish campaigns as well as modern accusations of genocide. In providing new perspectives on Cromwell's military career, Bennett adds to our understanding of England's only non-royal head of state.
Michael Gove: A Man in a Hurry
by Owen BennettMichael Gove is one of the most recognisable faces in British politics – and one of the most divisive. Whether it’s taking on the education ‘blob’, acting as a frontman for the Brexit campaign or orchestrating one of the bloodiest political assassinations in the history of British politics, Gove is a man who makes things happen.But it was almost so different, and his story, from being born into care to standing for the leadership of the Conservative Party, could have come straight from the pages of a Charles Dickens novel.A charming man to his friends, and a cold-blooded zealot to his enemies, Gove provokes a reaction from everyone, be it loyalty, anger, respect or fury. Love him or hate him, it’s impossible to deny Gove’s impact on the UK over the past ten years, and, with Brexit still up in the air, he will continue to play a key role in the future of the country.Political journalist Owen Bennett’s groundbreaking biography takes in original research as well as interviews with current and former Cabinet ministers, ex-colleagues from the BBC and The Times, and numerous other key players in Gove’s life story. Lively and insightful in equal measure, Michael Gove: A Man in a Hurry reveals what turned the adopted son of an Aberdeen fishing family into one of the key political figures of the decade.
Pete: My Story
by Pete BennettW**kers! Cheese! Eeezamanna! Pete Bennett, the 24-year-old Tourette's sufferer who shot to fame as winner of Big Brother 7, stole the nation's heart with his outrageous, loveable nature. Pete's incredible autobiography reveals what the tabloids didn't see. His story will make you cry, have you in stitches, and inspire you with its amazing honesty.
Phil Bennett: The Autobiography
by Phil BennettThe former Wales and Lions rugby captain has travelled the world watching rugby and talking about the game since his retirement in 1978. There is no more authoritative voice in rugby union today and Bennett’s book will tackle a host of issues dominating the sport in the modern era.
All My Wild Mothers: Motherhood, loss and an apothecary garden
by Victoria Bennett'Lyrical and beautiful and feels like a haven in a cynical world - exactly the book we all need to read right now' Catherine Simpson, author of One Body: A Retrospective, When I Had A Little Sister and Truestory'A book of passionate resistance to everything in modern life that wants us to stay neat and small and fearful' Tanya Shadrick, author of The Cure For SleepAn intimate weaving of memoir and herbal folklore, All My Wild Mothers is a story of rewilding our wastelands and the transformation that can happen when we do.At seven months pregnant, Victoria Bennett was looking forward to new motherhood and all that was to come. But when the telephone rang, the news she received changed everything. Her eldest sister had died in a canoeing accident.Five years later, struggling with grief, the demands of being a parent-carer for her young son, and the impact of deeper austerity, life feels very different to the future she had imagined. A move to a new social housing estate in rural Cumbria offers Victoria and her family a chance to rebuild their lives. Constructed over an industrial site, at first the barren ground seems an unlikely place to sow the seeds of a new life.She and her son set about transforming the rubble around them into a wild apothecary garden. Daisy, for resilience. Dandelion, for strength against adversity. Red campion, to ward off loneliness. Sow thistle, to lift melancholy. Borage, to bring hope in dark and difficult times.Stone by stone, seed by seed, All My Wild Mothers is the story of how sometimes life grows, not in spite of what is broken, but because of it.'An exciting new voice in nature writing' Cal Flyn, Sunday Times Writer of the Year, and author of Islands of Abandonment and Thicker Than Water
Jacques Derrida: Texto Y Deconstrucción (Religion and Postmodernism #Vol. 44)
by Geoffrey Bennington Jacques DerridaThis extraordinary book offers a clear and compelling biography of Jacques Derrida along with one of Derrida's strangest and most unexpected texts. Geoffrey Bennington's account of Derrida leads the reader through the philosopher's familiar yet widely misunderstood work on language and writing to the less familiar themes of signature, sexual difference, law, and affirmation. In an unusual and unprecedented "dialogue," Derrida responds to Bennington's text by interweaving Bennington's text with surprising and disruptive "periphrases." Truly original, this dual and dueling text opens new dimensions in Derrida's thought and work. "Bennington is a shrewd and well-informed commentator whose book should do something to convince the skeptics . . . that Jacques Derrida's work merits serious attention."—Christopher Norris, New Statesman & Society "Geoffrey Bennington and Jacques Derrida have presented a fascinating example of what might be called post-structuralist autobiography."—Laurie Volpe, French Review "Bennington's account of what Derrida is up to is better in almost all respects—more intelligent, more plausible, more readable, and less pretentious—than any other I have read."—Richard Rorty, Contemporary Literature
British As A Second Language: Travels Among The English
by David BennunDavid Bennun had lived in Africa his whole life. At the age of 18 he came to Britain, the mother country. The country he had read about in Punch magazine or seen in films like Chariots of Fire. He was in for a shock. A very big shock indeed: 'I could not have been less prepared had I spent my life up to that point listening to 30-year-old broadcasts of the Light Programme.'In this timely follow-up to the critically acclaimed Tick Bite Fever, David Bennun shows us our own country through the eyes of an alien. With his brilliantly witty turn of phrase we follow his life as a student, his brushes with Bohemia, his troubles renting and buying property, his discovery of British food and his horrors at entering the world of work. From DIY to architecture, sport to alcohol, transport to music and entertainment, David Bennun brilliantly and with ruthless wit deconstructs all these subjects, many of them so dear to the British heart.
Where Are They Buried?: How Did They Die? Fitting Ends and Final Resting Places of the Famous, Infamous, and Noteworthy
by Tod BenoitThe bestselling guide to the lives, deaths, and final resting places of our most enduring cultural icons, now revised and completely updated for 2019. Where Are They Buried? has directed legions of fervent fans and multitudes of the morbidly curious to the graves, monuments, memorials, and tombstones of the nearly 500 celebrities and antiheroes included in the book. The most complete and well-organized guide on the subject by far, every entry features an entertaining capsule biography full of little-known facts, a detailed description of the death, and step-by-step directions to the grave, including not only the name of the cemetery but the exact location of the gravesite and how to reach it. The book also provides a handy index of grave locations organized by state, province, and country to make planning a grave-hopping road trip easy and efficient.
Where Are They Buried?: How Did They Die? Fitting Ends and Final Resting Places of the Famous, Infamous, and Noteworthy
by Tod BenoitThe bestselling guide to the lives, deaths, and final resting places of our most enduring cultural icons, now revised and completely updated for 2019.Where Are They Buried? has directed legions of fervent fans and multitudes of the morbidly curious to the graves, monuments, memorials, and tombstones of the nearly 500 celebrities and antiheroes included in the book. The most complete and well-organized guide on the subject by far, every entry features an entertaining capsule biography full of little-known facts, a detailed description of the death, and step-by-step directions to the grave, including not only the name of the cemetery but the exact location of the gravesite and how to reach it. The book also provides a handy index of grave locations organized by state, province, and country to make planning a grave-hopping road trip easy and efficient.
Where Are They Buried? (2023 Revised and Updated): How Did They Die? Fitting Ends and Final Resting Places of the Famous, Infamous, and Noteworthy
by Tod BenoitThis bestselling guide to the lives, deaths, and final resting places of our most enduring cultural icons has been revised and updated to include celebrities like Betty White, Alex Trebek, and many more.Where Are They Buried? has directed legions of fervent fans and multitudes of the morbidly curious to the graves, monuments, and tombstones of the more than 500 celebrities and antiheroes included in the book. The most comprehensive guide on the subject by far, every entry features an entertaining capsule biography full of little-known facts, a detailed description of the death, and step-by-step directions to the grave, including not only the name of the cemetery but the exact location of the gravesite and how to reach it. The book also provides a handy index of grave locations organized by state, province, and country to make planning a grave-hopping road trip easy and efficient. The 2023 edition adds 8 new entries including Kobe Bryant, Eddie Van Halen, and Regis Philbin.
Ashes to Light: A Holocaust Childhood to a Life in Music
by Nelly Ben-OrBorn into a Jewish family in Lvov, Poland in the early-1930s, Nelly Ben-Or was to experience, at a very young age, the trauma of the Holocaust. This narrative of her life's journey describes the survival of Nelly, her mother and her older sister. With help from family and friends, Nelly and her mother were smuggled out of the Ghetto in Lvov and escaped to Warsaw with false identity papers where they were under constant threat of discovery. Miraculously, they survived being taken on a train to Auschwitz, deported not, in fact, because they were Jews, but as citizens of Warsaw following the Warsaw Uprising against the Nazis. After the end of the war, Nelly's musical talent was free to flourish, at first in Poland and then in the recently-created State of Israel, where Nelly completed her musical studies as a scholarship student at the Music Academy in Jerusalem. Following her move to England she carried out a full concert career and also discovered the Alexander Technique for piano playing, which had a profound influence on her. Today Nelly Ben-Or is internationally regarded as the leading exponent of the application of principles of the Alexander Technique - she teaches in the keyboard department of London's Guildhall School of Music and Drama, runs Alexander Technique masterclasses and regularly gives talks about her Holocaust experience.This unique memoir is testimony to an extraordinary life and illustrates the strength of the human condition when faced with adversity.
Ashes to Light: A Holocaust Childhood to a Life in Music
by Nelly Ben-OrBorn into a Jewish family in Lvov, Poland in the early-1930s, Nelly Ben-Or was to experience, at a very young age, the trauma of the Holocaust. This narrative of her life's journey describes the miraculous survival of Nelly, her mother and her older sister. With help from family and friends, Nelly and her mother were smuggled out of the Ghetto in Lvov and escaped to Warsaw with false identity papers where they were under constant threat of discovery as Jews were sent to concentration camps and murdered. They then survived being taken on a train to Auschwitz, not, in fact, because they were Jews, but as citizens of Warsaw following the Warsaw Uprising against the Nazis. No less miraculous was how her innate musical talent survived and was even occasionally able to reveal itself, during these Holocaust years. After the war, they were reunited with Nelly's sister, who had remained in hiding in Lvov.
No Baggage: A Tale of Love and Wandering
by Clara BensenOne Dress, Three Weeks, Eight Countries-Zero BaggageNewly recovered from a quarter-life meltdown, Clara Bensen decided to test her comeback by signing up for an online dating account. She never expected to meet Jeff, a wildly energetic university professor with a reputation for bucking convention. They barely know each other's last names when they agree to set out on a risky travel experiment spanning eight countries and three weeks. The catch? No hotel reservations, no plans, and best of all, no baggage.Clara's story will resonate with adventurers and homebodies alike-it's at once a romance, a travelogue, and a bright modern take on the age-old questions: How do you find the courage to explore beyond your comfort zone? Can you love someone without the need for labels and commitment? Is it possible to truly leave your baggage behind?
No Baggage: A Tale of Love and Wandering
by Clara Bensen"An engaging memoir of travel, love, and finding oneself." -- Kirkus Reviews Newly recovered from a quarter-life meltdown, Clara Bensen decided to test her comeback by signing up for an online dating account. She never expected to meet Jeff, a wildly energetic university professor with a reputation for bucking convention. They barely know each other's last names when they agree to set out on a risky travel experiment spanning eight countries and three weeks. The catch? No hotel reservations, no plans, and best of all, no baggage.No Baggage is at once a romance, a travelogue, and a bright modern take on the age-old questions: How do you find the courage to explore beyond your comfort zone? Can you love someone without the need for labels or commitment? Is it possible to truly leave your baggage behind?
Short Cuts To Happiness: How I found the meaning of life from a barber’s chair
by Tal Ben-ShaharEven a New York Times-bestselling happiness expert can need advice!In his trailblazing Harvard courses, internationally bestselling books, and lectures and videos, positive psychologist Tal Ben-Shahar has shared his essential, scientifically backed tools for finding fulfillment the world over. But even the happiness expert needs a boost from time to time! Tal found his not in a guru or fellow psychologist, but rather in his longtime neighborhood barber, Avi-a man with a gift for making his clients look and feel great with wisdom beyond his years.Tal's visits to Avi soon grew into a friendship deeper than most. Between snips, the two men talked about everything from family and starting a business to the meaning of life and the power of music. Two years of their revelatory barbershop talk have been distilled into these gems of inspiration-perfect to give, receive, and share, even between haircuts.'A charming read to remind you that wisdom about happiness is often right around the corner.' - Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of Give and Take and Originals, and co-author of Option B with Sheryl Sandberg'When a happiness expert like Ben-Shahar turns to someone else for advice, you know the advice has got to be good. Short Cuts to Happiness offers accessible, universal wisdom that puts a life of meaning and fulfilment within reach and sets a very high bar for my next trip to the barber!' - Colin Beavan, author of No Impact Man and How to Be Alive'Who knew that a trip to the barber could offer the secret to a happy life? In Short Cuts to Happiness, Tal Ben-Shahar shows how powerful insights grow from simple words of wisdom and how happiness can be found in surprising places - the smell of lilies, a good laugh, or a casual chat with a barber. In these pages, the pioneer of positive psychology finds a whole new way to help readers understand what it means to live life to its fullest. Like a great haircut, this book will leave you feeling sharper, more energized, and eager to take on the world.' - Alex Palmer, New York Times-bestselling author
The Schoolmaster: A Commentary Upon the Aims and Methods of an Assistant-master in a Public School
by AC BensonThe Schoolmaster was originally published at the turn of the 20th century, when the world was a very different place, and yet Benson's strikingly honest words about his chosen profession are, in the main, still relevant today. Benson was born at Wellington College, educated at Eton and Cambridge and spent his life and career at both. He also had a very successful career outside of education; he was a prolific writer, the editor of Queen Victoria's letters, lyricist and prolific diary writer.
Benson: The Autobiography (Piano-vocal-guitar Ser.)
by George Benson Alan GoldsherOver the course of his fifty-year career, George Benson has performed for hundreds of millions of fans around the world, received ten Grammy Awards, and recorded with some of the most revered musicians of his era. In 2011, he earned a National Endowment of the Arts Jazz Masters Award. And he has finally decided to tell his story.Benson: The Autobiography follows the musician's remarkable rise from the ghettos of Pittsburgh to the stages of Dubai, and everywhere in between. His tales of scuffling on the road with jazz legend Brother Jack McDuff, navigating his way through the recording studio with Miles Davis, and emerging as the first true (and truly successful) jazz/soul crossover artist will enthrall devotees of both music history and pop culture.An open and truthful raconteur, Benson discusses his near-arrest for domestic abuse, the tragic illnesses that afflicted his family, the secret lives of his musical cohorts, and racism's effect on his life and art. His long-awaited book allows readers to meet one of the most beloved, prolific, and bestselling musicians of any era.
Benson: The Autobiography
by George Benson Alan GoldsherOver the course of his fifty-year career, George Benson has performed for hundreds of millions of fans around the world, received ten Grammy Awards, and recorded with some of the most revered musicians of his era. In 2011, he earned a National Endowment of the Arts Jazz Masters Award. And he has finally decided to tell his story.Benson: The Autobiography follows the musician's remarkable rise from the ghettos of Pittsburgh to the stages of Dubai, and everywhere in between. His tales of scuffling on the road with jazz legend Brother Jack McDuff, navigating his way through the recording studio with Miles Davis, and emerging as the first true (and truly successful) jazz/soul crossover artist will enthrall devotees of both music history and pop culture.An open and truthful raconteur, Benson discusses his near-arrest for domestic abuse, the tragic illnesses that afflicted his family, the secret lives of his musical cohorts, and racism's effect on his life and art. His long-awaited book allows readers to meet one of the most beloved, prolific, and bestselling musicians of any era.
Scram!: The Gripping First-hand Account of the Helicopter War in the Falklands
by Harry BensonIn April 1982 Harry Benson was a 21-year-old Royal Navy commando helicopter pilot, fresh out of training and one of the youngest helicopter pilots to serve in the Falklands War. These pilots, nicknamed 'junglies', flew most of the land-based missions in the Falklands in their Sea King and Wessex helicopters. Much of what happened in the war - the politics, task force ships, Sea Harriers, landings, Paras and Marines - is well-known and documented. But almost nothing is known of the young commando helicopter pilots and aircrewmen who made it all happen on land and sea. This is their 'Boys Own' story, told for the very first time. Harry Benson has interviewed forty of his former colleagues for the book creating a tale of skill, initiative, resourcefulness, humour, luck, and adventure. This is a fast-paced, meticulously researched and compelling account written by someone who was there, in the cockpit of a Wessex helicopter. If you liked Apache, Vulcan 607 and Chickenhawk, you'll love Scram! The word "Scram" was used to warn other junglies to go to ground or risk being shot down by their own side as Argentinean jets blasted through 'bomb alley'.
Daniel Coit Gilman and the Birth of the American Research University
by Michael T. BensonOne of the most remarkable education leaders of the late nineteenth century and the creator of the modern American research university finally gets his due.Daniel Coit Gilman, a Yale-trained geographer who first worked as librarian at his alma mater, led a truly remarkable life. He was selected as the third president of the University of California; was elected as the first president of Johns Hopkins University, where he served for twenty-five years; served as one of the original founders of the Association of American Universities; and—at an age when most retired—was hand-picked by Andrew Carnegie to head up his eponymous institution in Washington, DC.In Daniel Coit Gilman and the Birth of the American Research University, Michael T. Benson argues that Gilman's enduring legacy will always be as the father of the modern research university—a uniquely American invention that remains the envy of the entire world. In the past half-century, nothing has been written about Gilman that takes into account his detailed journals, reviews his prodigious correspondence, or considers his broad external board service. This book fills an enormous void in the history of the birth of the "new" American system of higher education, especially as it relates to graduate education. The late 1800s, Benson points out, is one of the most pivotal periods in the development of the American university model; this book reveals that there is no more important figure in shaping that model than Daniel Coit Gilman.Benson focuses on Gilman's time deliberating on, discussing, developing, refining, and eventually implementing the plan that brought the modern research university to life in 1876. He also explains how many university elements that we take for granted—the graduate fellowships, the emphasis on primary investigations and discovery, the funding of the best laboratory and research spaces, the scholarly journals, the university presses, the sprawling health sciences complexes with teaching hospitals—were put in place by Gilman at Johns Hopkins University. Ultimately, the book shows, Gilman and his colleagues forced all institutions to reexamine their own model and to make the requisite changes to adapt, survive, thrive, compete, and contribute.