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In the Shadow of Vesuvius: Life, Letters And Natural History In The Shadows Of Vesuvius
by Daisy DunnAsh spewed into the sky. All eyes were on Vesuvius. Pliny the Elder sailed towards the phenomenon. A teenage Pliny the Younger waited. His uncle did not come back.
In the Wake of Mercedes Gleitze: Open Water Swimming Pioneer
by Doloranda PemberIn 1927, Mercedes Gleitze became the first British woman to swim the English Channel, transforming her from a humble working-class typist into one of the most iconic sportswomen of her age. Fiercely independent and with no financial backing, Mercedes was at the forefront in the struggle to break through the existing prejudices against women taking part in sport. Over a ten-year period and a large number of pioneering, record-setting swims around the world, she achieved celebrity status, helped make Rolex famous, and was regularly in the spotlight of the worldwide press. While pursuing her dream she led by example, showing that women deserved recognition for their sporting achievements – though she herself was very modest about her success, barely talking about it even to her own children. Here, Mercedes’ daughter documents the remarkable story of her early life and subsequent swimming career, using Mercedes’ personal records and pictures, recollections from acquaintances and newspaper articles of the time.
In A Time Of Monsters: Travels Through a Middle East in Revolt
by Emma SkyReturning to the UK in September 2010 after serving in Iraq as the political adviser to the top American general, Emma Sky felt no sense of homecoming. She soon found herself back in the Middle East travelling through a region in revolt. In A Time of Monsters bears witness to the demands of young people for dignity and justice during the Arab Spring; the inability of sclerotic regimes to reform; the descent of Syria into civil war; the rise of the Islamic State; and the flight of refugees to Europe. With deep empathy for its people and an extensive understanding of the Middle East, Sky makes a complex region more comprehensible. A great storyteller and observational writer, Sky also reveals the ties that bind the Middle East to the West and how blowback from our interventions in the region contributed to the British vote to leave the European Union and to the election of Donald Trump as president of the United States.
In Your Loving is Your Knowing: Elizabeth Templeton - Prophet of Our Times
by Peter Matheson Alastair HulbertAn anthology of 33 talks, articles, lectures and sermons by one of the most outstanding theologians of her generation. Elizabeth Templeton’s accessible and passionate writing is both refreshing and thought-provoking, exploring ideas that concern us all - life, freedom, forgiveness, death, love, evil, culture and belonging, amongst many others.All the pieces dive with apparent effortlessness to the heart of the issues, combining brilliant original scholarship with a warm sensitivity to the difficulties of many people in decoding theology, relating it to their own life and thought.
Incandescent: We Need to Talk About Light
by Anna LevinLight is changing, dramatically. Our world is getting brighter – you can see it from space. But is brighter always better?Artificial light is voracious and spreading. Vanquishing precious darkness across the planet, when we are supposed to be using less energy. The quality of light has altered as well. Technology and legislation have crushed warm incandescent lighting in favour of harsher, often glaring alternatives. Light is fundamental – it really matters. It interacts with life in profound yet subtle ways: it tells plants which way to grow, birds where to fly and coral when to spawn. It tells each and every one of us when to sleep, wake, eat. We mess with the eternal rhythm of dawn-day-dusk-night at our peril. But mess with it we have, and we still don’t truly understand the consequences.InIncandescent, journalist Anna Levin reveals her own fraught relationship with changes in lighting, and she explores its real impact on nature, our built environment, health and psychological well-being. We need to talk about light, urgently. And ask the critical question: just how bright is our future?
The Incredible yet True Adventures of Alexander von Humboldt: The Greatest Inventor-Naturalist-Scientist-Explorer Who Ever Lived
by Volker MehnertAn immersive and beautifully illustrated narrative biography about the German explorer and early scientist Alexander von Humboldt, whose journeys throughout the world yielded countless discoveries and earned him the admiration of Charles Darwin (and many others). For kids ages 8-12.
Initiated: Memoir of a Witch
by Amanda Yates GarciaAn initiation signals a beginning: a door opens and you step through. Some traditions dictate that a witch be initiated through a formal ceremony complete with rose wands, red candles, and sacred chants. But even though Amanda Yates Garcia's mother initiated her into the goddess-worshipping practice of witchcraft when she was thirteen years old, Amanda's true life as a witch only began when she underwent a series of spontaneous initiations of her own.Descending into the underworlds of poverty, sex work and misogyny, Initiated describes Amanda's journey to return to her body, harness her natural power, and finally reclaim her witchcraft to create the magical world she envisioned. Hailed by crows, seduced by malicious spirits and haunted by ancestors broken beneath the wheels of patriarchy, Amanda adventured across the globe. On the way, she survived abuse, resisted societal expectations and struggled to create intimacy - all while grappling with the question: is it possible to live a life of beauty and integrity in a world that feels like it's dying?Peppered with mythology, tales of the goddesses and magical women throughout history, Initiated stands squarely at the intersection of witchcraft and feminism. Amanda shows that practising magic is about more than spells and potions; magic is nothing less than claiming power for oneself and taking back our planet in the name of Love. Initiated is both memoir and manifesto, calling the magical people of the world to take up their wands, be brave, and create the enchanted world they long to live in.
Innocent: The True Story Of Siblings Struggling To Survive
by Cathy GlassInnocent is the shocking true story of little Molly and Kit, siblings, aged 3 years and 18 months, who are brought into care as an emergency after suffering non-accidental injuries.
Innocent: The True Story Of Siblings Struggling To Survive
by Cathy GlassInnocent can either be read as a full-length eBook or in 3 serialised eBook-only parts. This is PART 1 of 3 Innocent is the shocking true story of little Molly and Kit, siblings, aged 3 years and 18 months, who are brought into care as an emergency after suffering non-accidental injuries.
Innocent: The True Story Of Siblings Struggling To Survive
by Cathy GlassInnocent can either be read as a full-length eBook or in 3 serialised eBook-only parts. This is PART 2 of 3 Innocent is the shocking true story of little Molly and Kit, siblings, aged 3 years and 18 months, who are brought into care as an emergency after suffering non-accidental injuries.
Innocent: The True Story Of Sibliings Struggling To Survive
by Cathy GlassInnocent can either be read as a full-length eBook or in 3 serialised eBook-only parts. This is PART 3 of 3 Innocent is the shocking true story of little Molly and Kit, siblings, aged 3 years and 18 months, who are brought into care as an emergency after suffering non-accidental injuries.
Insane Mode: How Elon Musk’s Tesla Sparked an Electric Revolution to End the Age of Oil
by Hamish McKenzieFrom a journalist and former writer for Tesla comes the astounding story of the most revolutionary car company since Ford, revealing how, under Elon Musk's 'insane mode' leadership, it is bringing an end to the era of gasoline powered transportation. Hamish McKenzie explores how an unlikely West Coast start up, with an audacious dream to create a new, successful US car company - the first since Chrysler in 1925 - went up against not only the might of the government-backed Detroit companies, but also the massive power of Big Oil and its benefactors, the infamous Koch brothers. Insane Mode is a story of ingenuity and revolution - of how a new world of transportation could change people's lives globally.
Inside Out: A Memoir
by Demi MooreA NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Famed American actress Demi Moore at last tells her own story in a surprisingly intimate and emotionally charged memoir.
Inside Out: A Memoir
by Demi MooreA NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Famed American actress Demi Moore at last tells her own story in a surprisingly intimate and emotionally charged memoir.
Inside Trump’s White House: The Authorized Story
by Doug WeadAfter dozens of books and articles by anonymous sources, here, finally, is a history of the Trump White House, with the President and his staff talking openly and on the record. In President Trump, Doug Wead offers a sweeping, eloquent history of President Donald J. Trump’s first years in the White House, covering everything from election night to the biggest political obstacles of his presidency.The book will include never-before-reported stories and scoops, including how President Trump turned around the American economy, how he “never complains and never explains”, and insight into how his actions sometimes lead to misunderstandings with the media and the public.President Trump features exclusive interviews with the Trump family about the Mueller Report, and narrates their reactions when the report was finally released. Wead successfully gained interviews with the President in the Oval Office, chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, Jared and Ivanka Kushner, Donald Trump Jr, Eric and Lara Trump, and White House insiders for this illuminating history.
An Instrument Of Peace: The Full-circled Life Of Ambassador Guillermo Belt Ramírez
by Daniel I. Pedreira James C. Ambassador CasonThis book presents a meticulously-researched biography on Guillermo Belt Ramìrez, one of Cuba's most important diplomats of the 20th century. As Ambassador, Belt represented his homeland in the United States and the Soviet Union as the Cold War turned wartime allies into enemies. He also represented a generation of diplomats who, after bearing witness to the horrors of war, had the resolve to join to create the United Nations and regional organizations such as the Organization of American States. Belt's success in the diplomatic and political spheres were met with the pain and hardship of exile. Thanks to his faith, the love of his family, and an unwavering sense of patriotism, Belt persevered, maintaining his passion for Cuba's democratic values and ideals until his passing. In doing so, he became a respected and sought after voice for Cuban exiles in Washington's diplomatic and government circles. This book explores several key questions: Who was Guillermo Belt and what role did he play in Cuban politics and diplomacy? What was Cuba's role in world affairs during and after World War II? How does Cuba's diplomatic history help explain current U.S.-Cuban relations within a broader political and historical context as reflected by Ambassador Belt's life?
Inventing Edward Lear
by Sara LodgeEdward Lear—the father of nonsense—wrote some of the best-loved poems in English. He was also admired as a naturalist, landscape painter, travel writer, and composer. Awkward but funny, absurdly sympathetic, Lear invented himself as a Victorian character. Sara Lodge offers a moving account of one of the era’s most influential creative figures.
Irving Berlin: New York Genius (Jewish Lives)
by James KaplanFrom the prizewinning Jewish Lives series, a fast†‘moving, musically astute portrait of arguably the greatest composer of American popular music Irving Berlin (1888–1989) has been called—by George Gershwin, among others—the greatest songwriter of the golden age of the American popular song. “Berlin has no place in American music,” legendary composer Jerome Kern wrote; “he is American music.” In a career that spanned an astonishing nine decades, Berlin wrote some fifteen hundred tunes, including “Alexander’s Ragtime Band,” “God Bless America,” and “White Christmas.” From ragtime to the rock era, Berlin’s work has endured in the very fiber of American national identity. Exploring the interplay of Berlin’s life with the life of New York City, noted biographer James Kaplan offers a visceral narrative of Berlin as self†‘made man and witty, wily, tough Jewish immigrant. This fast†‘paced, musically opinionated biography uncovers Berlin’s unique brilliance as a composer of music and lyrics. Masterfully written and psychologically penetrating, Kaplan’s book underscores Berlin’s continued relevance in American popular culture.About Jewish Lives: Jewish Lives is a prizewinning series of interpretative biography designed to explore the many facets of Jewish identity. Individual volumes illuminate the imprint of Jewish figures upon literature, religion, philosophy, politics, cultural and economic life, and the arts and sciences. Subjects are paired with authors to elicit lively, deeply informed books that explore the range and depth of the Jewish experience from antiquity to the present. In 2014, the Jewish Book Council named Jewish Lives the winner of its Jewish Book of the Year Award, the first series ever to receive this award.More praise for Jewish Lives: “Excellent.” – New York times “Exemplary.” – Wall St. Journal “Distinguished.” – New Yorker “Superb.” – The Guardian
Is There Still Sex in the City?
by Candace BushnellCandace Bushnell gets personal in her new memoir - an investigation into what happens when a woman of a certain age (ok, let's call it 'middle') finds herself not-so-young, free and single in the city.MILFs, cougars, love, sex, divorce - Candace's brilliantly funny and honest first-person account lays bare the truth behind middle-aged romance. Among other revelations we read her Modern Day Cougar Compendium, including guidance on such important matters as the Unexpected Cub Pounce (sometimes the cub does the pouncing); what to do when your age-appropriate date asks you to pay for his kitchen renovation, and the Pluses and Minuses of Being Older and Wiser.
Is There Still Sex in the City?
by Candace BushnellTwenty years after her sharp, seminal first book Sex and the City reshaped the landscape of pop culture and dating with its fly-on-the-wall look at the mating rituals of the Manhattan elite, the trailblazing Candace Bushnell delivers a new book on the highs and lows of sex and dating after fifty.Set between the Upper East Side of Manhattan and a country enclave known as The Village, Is There Still Sex in the City? gathers Bushnell’s signature short, sharp, satirical commentaries on the love and dating habits of middle-aged men and women as they continue to navigate the ever-modernizing world of relationships. Throughout, Bushnell documents twenty-first century dating phenomena, such as the “Unintended Cub Situation” in which a sensible older woman suddenly becomes the love interest of a much younger man, the “Mona Lisa” Treatment — a vaginal restorative surgery often recommended to middle-aged women — and what it’s really like to go on Tinder dates as a fifty-something divorcée. Bushnell also updates one of her most celebrated stories from Sex and the City, about “Bicycle Boys,” a breed of New York man who is always trying to bring his bike up to women’s apartments. Once an anomaly, Bushnell charts their new ubiquitousness, in addition to where, and how, to do your own man stalking via bicycle (and whether or not it’s worth it).
It Shouldn't Be This Hard to Serve Your Country: Our Broken Government and the Plight of Veterans
by David ShulkinThe former VA secretary describes his fight to save veteran health care from partisan politics and how his efforts were ultimately derailed by a small group of unelected officials appointed by the Trump White House.Known in health care circles for his ability to turn around ailing hospitals, Dr. David Shulkin was originally brought into government by President Obama to save the beleaguered Department of Veterans Affairs. When President Trump appointed him as secretary of the VA, Shulkin was as shocked as anyone.Yet this surprise was trivial compared to what Shulkin encountered as secretary: a team of political appointees devoted to stopping anyone -- including the secretary himself -- who stood in the way of privatizing the agency and implementing their political agenda. In this uninhibited memoir, Shulkin opens up about why the government has long struggled to provide good medical care to military veterans and the plan he had to solve these problems. This is a book about the commitment we make to the men and women who risk their lives fighting for our country, how the VA was finally beginning to live up to it, and why the new administration may now be taking us in the wrong direction.
It Shouldn't Be This Hard to Serve Your Country: Our Broken Government and the Plight of Veterans
by David ShulkinThe former VA secretary describes his fight to save veteran health care from partisan politics and how his efforts were ultimately derailed by a small group of unelected officials appointed by the Trump White House.Known in health care circles for his ability to turn around ailing hospitals, Dr. David Shulkin was originally brought into government by President Obama to save the beleaguered Department of Veterans Affairs. When President Trump appointed him as secretary of the VA, Shulkin was as shocked as anyone.Yet this surprise was trivial compared to what Shulkin encountered as secretary: a team of political appointees devoted to stopping anyone -- including the secretary himself -- who stood in the way of privatizing the agency and implementing their political agenda. In this uninhibited memoir, Shulkin opens up about why the government has long struggled to provide good medical care to military veterans and the plan he had to solve these problems. This is a book about the commitment we make to the men and women who risk their lives fighting for our country, how the VA was finally beginning to live up to it, and why the new administration may now be taking us in the wrong direction.
It's Trevor Noah: Stories From A South African Childhood (adapted For Young Readers)
by Trevor NoahThe host of The Daily Show, Trevor Noah, tells the story of growing up mixed race in South Africa under and after apartheid in this young readers' adaptation of his bestselling adult memoir Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood.BORN A CRIME IS SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING OSCAR-WINNER LUPITA NYONG'O!Trevor Noah, host ofThe Daily Show, shares his remarkable story of growing up in South Africa, with a black South African mother and a white European father at a time when it was against the law for a mixed-race child like him to exist. But he did exist -- and from the beginning, the often-misbehaved Trevor used his keen smarts and humour to navigate a harsh life under a racist government. This compelling memoir blends drama, comedy and tragedy to depict the day-to-day trials that turned a boy into a young man. In a country where racism barred blacks from social, educational, and economic opportunity, Trevor surmounted staggering obstacles and created a promising future for himself, thanks to his mom's unwavering love and indomitable will.It's Trevor Noah: Born a Crime not only provides a fascinating and honest perspective on South Africa's racial history, but it will also astound and inspire young readers looking to improve their own lives.
Jacob's Ladder: The Unauthorised Biography of Jacob Rees-Mogg
by Michael AshcroftJacob Rees-Mogg is one of the most prominent and controversial figures in contemporary British politics. He is a man who divides opinion in his own party, in Parliament and across the country.An arch-Brexiteer with significant business interests and a large personal fortune, he has long been a vocal critic of the European Union and of Prime Minister Theresa May’s attempts to negotiate a Brexit deal. As chairman of the powerful anti-EU organisation the European Research Group, he has also been a thorn in the side of those seeking to dilute Brexit.While many people mock him for his impeccable manners and traditional attitudes – he has been dubbed ‘the Honourable Member for the eighteenth century’ – an equally great number applaud him for his apparent conviction politics. Undoubtedly, Rees-Mogg stands out among the current crop of MPs and his growing influence cannot be ignored.In this wide-ranging unauthorised biography of the Conservative Member of Parliament for North East Somerset, Michael Ashcroft, bestselling author of Call Me Dave: The Unauthorised Biography of David Cameron, turns his attention to one of the most intriguing politicians of our time.
James Baldwin: Living in Fire (Revolutionary Lives)
by Bill V. MullenIn the first major biography of Baldwin in more than a decade, Bill V. Mullen celebrates the personal and political life of the great African-American writer who changed the face of Western politics and culture.As a lifelong anti-imperialist, black queer advocate, and feminist, Baldwin (1924-1987) was a passionate chronicler of the rise of the Civil Rights Movement, the U.S. war against Vietnam, Palestinian liberation struggle, and the rise of LGBTQ rights.Mullen explores how Baldwin's life and work channel the long history of African-American freedom struggles, and explains how Baldwin both predicted and has become a symbol of the global Black Lives Matter movement.