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Arabian Nights: A Selection
by Richard BurtonProbably one of the original 'story within a story' books, Arabian nights is a selection of stories told by a young girl on her wedding night to a prince who has sworn to kill any girl who marries him. Her clever stories serve as 'cliff-hangers' and keep him from murdering her night after night. This collection is where classic fairy tales such as Aladdin and Ali Baba and the Forty Theives come from as well as well-known moral tales and metaphors.The use of djiins, magic and an evocation of Oriental splendour makes Arabian Nights dazzle. A 'must read' book and the perfect counter point to western fairy tales such as Hans Christian Anderson and the Brothers Grimm.
Meetings with Remarkable Men (Penguin Modern Classics)
by G. I. GurdjieffThe exhilarating, life-affirming call to spiritual arms from world-renowned spiritual teacher G. I. Gurdjieff'Gurdjieff's voice is heard as a call.He calls because he suffers from the inner chaos in which we live.He calls to us to open our eyes.He asks us why we are here, what we wish for, what forces we obey. He asks us, above all, if we understand what we are . . .'Part adventure narrative, part travelogue, part spiritual guide, Meetings with Remarkable Men is suffused with Gurdjieff's unique perspective on life. With vivacity and charm, he organizes his account around portraits of the remarkable men and women who accompanied him through remote parts of the Near East and Central Asia, and who aided his search for hidden knowledge. Among them are Gurdjieff's own father (a traditional bard), a Russian prince dedicated to the search for Truth, a Christian missionary who entered a World Brotherhood deep in Asia, and a woman who escaped slavery to become a trusted member of Gurdjieff's group of fellow seekers.Meetings with Remarkable Men conveys a haunting sense of what it means to live fully - with conscience, with purpose and with heart.
The Misty Harbour: Inspector Maigret #16 (Inspector Maigret #16)
by Georges Simenon Linda CoverdaleA new translation of Georges Simenon's gripping tale of lost identity. Book sixteen in the new Penguin Maigret series.A man picked up for wandering in obvious distress among the cars and buses on the Grands Boulevards. Questioned in French, he remains mute . . . A madman? In Maigret's office, he is searched. His suit is new, his underwear is new, his shoes are new. All identifying labels have been removed. No identification papers. No wallet. Five crisp thousand-franc bills have been slipped into one of his pockets.A distressed man is found wandering the streets of Paris, with no memory of who he is or how he got there. The answers lead Maigret to a small harbour town, whose quiet citizens conceal a poisonous malice.Penguin is publishing the entire series of Maigret novels in new translations. This novel has been published in a previous translation as Death of a Harbour Master.'Compelling, remorseless, brilliant' John Gray'One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century . . . Simenon was unequalled at making us look inside, though the ability was masked by his brilliance at absorbing us obsessively in his stories' Guardian 'A supreme writer . . . unforgettable vividness' Independent
The Bhagavad Gita
by Simon BrodbeckThe Bhagavad Gita is an early epic poem that recounts the conversation between Arjuna the warrior and his charioteer Krishna, the manifestation of God. In the moments before a great battle, the dialogue sets out the important lessons Arjuna must learn to change the outcome of the war he is to fight, and culminates in Krishna revealing to the warrior his true cosmic form, counselling him to search for the universal perfection of life. Ranging from instructions on yoga postures to dense moral discussion, the Gita is one of the most important Hindu texts, as well as serving as a practical guide to living well.Translated by Laurie L. Patton
The Penguin Guide to the 1000 Finest Classical Recordings: The Must-Have CDs and DVDs
by Edward Greenfield Ivan March Paul Czajkowski Robert LaytonINDEPENDENT BOOKS OF THE YEARThis completely new edition of the Penguin Guide reviews the 1000 best classical albums issued and reissued over the past five decades, many of which dominate the catalogue because of their sheer excellence, irrespective of recording dates. More comprehensive than ever before, it indicates key recordings on CD, DVD and enhanced SACD, including those in surround sound. If you want the finest available version of any major classical album you will find it listed and assessed in these pages. Ranging from long-established albums to the newest releases, the latest edition represents the cream of the international repertoire and has all the information you need to select the finest classical music available.
The War Of The Worlds
by H. G. Wells Patrick Parrinder Brian W. Aldiss Andy SawyerThe first modern tale of alien invasion, H. G. Wells's The War of the Worlds remains one of the most influential science fiction novels ever published. The night after a shooting star is seen streaking through the sky from Mars, a cylinder is discovered on Horsell Common in London. At first, na#65533;ve locals approach the cylinder armed just with a white flag - only to be quickly killed by an all-destroying heat-ray, as terrifying tentacled invaders emerge. Soon the whole of human civilisation is under threat, as powerful Martians build gigantic killing machines, destroy all in their path with black gas and burning rays, and feast on the warm blood of trapped, still-living human prey. The forces of the Earth, however, may prove harder to beat than they at first appear. The War of the Worlds has been the subject of countless adaptations, including an Orson Welles radio drama which caused mass panic when it was broadcast, with listeners confusing it for a news broadcast heralding alien invasion; a musical version by Jeff Way≠ and, most recently, Steven Spielberg's 2005 film version, starring Tom Cruise. This Penguin Classics edition includes a full biographical essay on Wells, a further reading list and detailed notes. The introduction, by Brian Aldiss, considers the novel's view of religion and society. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
The Regiment: The Real Story of the SAS
by Michael AsherOn 4 May 1980, seven terrorists holding twenty-one people captive in the Iranian Embassy in London’s Prince’s Gate, executed their first hostage. They threatened to kill another hostage every thirty minutes until their demands were met. Minutes later, armed men in black overalls and balaclavas shimmied down the roof on ropes and burst in through windows and doors. In seconds all but one of the terrorists had been shot dead, the other captured.For most people, this was their first acquaintance with a unit that was soon to become the ideal of modern military excellence – the Special Air Service regiment. Few realized that the SAS had been in existence for almost forty years, playing a discreet, if not secret, role almost everywhere Britain had fought since World War II, and had been the prototype of all modern special forces units throughout the world.In The Regiment, Michael Asher – a former soldier in 23 SAS Regiment – examines the evolution of the special forces idea and investigates the real story behind the greatest military legend of the late twentieth century.
The Strange Adventures of Mr Andrew Hawthorn & Other Stories
by John BuchanIn 'The Strange Adventures of Mr Andrew Hawthorn' and the other stories in this collection, peculiar worlds of temptation, adventure or iniquity are perilously close at hand. Mr Hawthorn himself steps outside to allow his porridge to cool and disappears for five years and more, a Glasgow grocer is shipwrecked and ultimately worshipped as a god, a young mathematician discovers an entirely new aspect of reality and becomes terrified by what he finds there, and an ageing sinner clings grimly, weakly to a hard-won life of decency: John Buchan in each demonstrating his abilities as a gripping writer of short stories.In his introduction, Giles Foden explores Buchan's innate sense of the fascination held by sudden jeopardy and vanished comfort, and the themes of the will and fate in his work.
Silks (Francis Thriller #42)
by Dick Francis Felix Francis"Julian Trent, you have been found guilty by this court of perpetrating a violent and unprovoked attack on an innocent family including a charge of attempted murder. You have shown little or no remorse for your actions and I consider you a danger to society."When defence barrister Geoffrey Mason hears the judge's verdict, he quietly hopes that a long and arduous custodial sentence will be handed down to his arrogant young client. That Julian Trent only receives eight years seems all too lenient. Little does Mason expect that he'll be looking Trent in the eyes again much sooner than he'd ever imagined. Setting aside his barrister's wig, Mason heads to Sandown to don his racing silks. An amateur jockey, his true passion is to be found in the saddle on a Thoroughbred, pounding the turf in the heat of a steeplechase. But when a fellow rider is brutally murdered - a pitchfork driven through his chest - Mason's racing life soon becomes all too close to his working life. The prime suspect is one of their brethren, champion jockey Steve Mitchell; the evidence is overwhelming.Mason is reluctant to heed Mitchell's pleas for legal advice - but soon he finds himself at the centre of a sinister web of threat and intimidation. Mason is left fighting a battle of right and wrong, and more immediately, a battle of life and death... his own.
Humphry Clinker: With A Memoir Of The Author, Volume 1 - Primary Source Edition (World Classics Series)
by Tobias Smollett Angus Ross Jeremy Lewis Shaun ReganMatthew Bramble, a gout-ridden misanthrope, travels Britain with his nephew, niece, spinster sister and man-servant, the trusty Humphry Clinker. In poor health, Bramble sees the world as one of degeneracy and raucous overcrowding, and will not hesitate to let his companions know his feelings on the matter. Peopled with pimps, drunkards, decadents and con-men, Humphrey Clinker displays Smollett’s ferociously pessimistic view of mankind, and his belief that the luxury of eighteenth-century England existence was the enemy of sense and sobriety. Presented in the form of letters from six very different characters, and full of joyful puns and double entendres, Humphrey Clinker is now recognised as a boisterous and observant masterpiece of English satire.Jeremy Lewis’s introduction examines why Smollett has become an unjustly neglected figure of English literature, and how the time in which he lived became a crucible for his work. This new edition contains notes, a chronology and suggested reading.
Pericles: With The Story Of The Prince Of Tyre... .
by William Shakespeare Eugene GiddensPericles, Prince of Tyre, must solve a riddle in order to marry the daughter of the King of Antioch, or be put to death. But when the answer reveals a horrific secret, the young man faces his greatest dilemma. Danger and adventure follow as Pericles flees the city to find his fortune elsewhere, in a romantic drama of families lost and reunited, evil punished and virtue rewarded.
A Life Decoded: My Genome: My Life
by J. Craig VenterCraig Venter is no ordinary scientist, and no ordinary man. He is the first human being ever to read their own DNA – and see the key to life itself. Yet in doing so, he rocked the establishment and became embroiled in one of the biggest controversies of our age.This is the story of his incredible life: from teenage rebel and Vietnam medic, to daredevil sailor and maverick researcher, whose race to unravel the sequence of the human genome made him both hero and pariah. Incorporating his own genetic make-up into his story, this is an electrifying portrait of a man who pushed back the boundaries of the possible.
Dangerous Liaisons: A Play In Three Acts (Wordsworth Classics Ser.)
by Choderlos De Laclos Helen ConstantinePublished in 1782, just years before the French Revolution, Les Liaisons Dangereuses is a disturbing and ultimately damning portrayal of a decadent society. At its centre are two aristocrats, former lovers, who embark on a sophisticated game of seduction and manipulation to bring amusement to their jaded existences. While the Marquise de Merteuil challenges the Vicomte de Valmont to seduce an innocent convent girl, the Vicomte is also occupied with the conquest of a virtuous married woman. But as their intrigues become more duplicitous and they find their human pawns responding in ways they could not have predicted, the consequences prove to be more serious, and deadly, than Merteuil and Valmont could have guessed.
Lawless World: Making and Breaking Global Rules
by Philippe SandsInternational lawyer Philippe Sands has a unique insider's view of the elites who govern our lives. His sensational revelations in Lawless World changed the political agenda overnight, forcing Tony Blair to publish damning mterial that he'd tried to hide.Now, in this updated edition with a shocking new chapter, you can get the full story of how the US and UK governments are riding roughshod over international agreements on human rights, war, torture and the environment - the very laws they put in place. Here sands looks at why global rules matter for all of us. And he powerfully makes the case for preserving them ... before justice becomes history.
Juggling Elephants: Be the Ringmaster of Your Work and Life
by Jones Loflin Todd MusigWritten for anyone struggling with 'getting it all done', Juggling Elephants is a parable about one man's experience with the circus. While watching the performance, Mark chooses to become the 'ringmaster' of his own life and applies his insights to the different parts of his personal and professional life, with remarkable results. If, like Mark, you want to be more productive and less stressed then stop juggling elephants and discover how to:Take action based on purpose Focus your time and energy to achieve personal and professional success Engage the energy of others to accomplish goals and work as a team.With this book you will see how to engage in the right task at the right time for the right purpose. It is your guidebook for creating the performance of your lifetime.
The Junior Officers' Reading Club: Killing Time and Fighting Wars
by Patrick HennesseyFor the first time in a generation British soldiers are once again fighting at close quarters, coming under sustained and vicious firepower, losing friends in some of the most violent fighting the modern army has endured. Yet the same soldiers also serve on international peacekeeping missions, or counter insurgency. Sometimes they do all three in the same country. The Junior Officers' Reading Club is the story of how one of these soldiers was made, through the testosterone-heavy breeding ground of Sandhurst, into the war-pockmarked, gritty Balkans, out into the nightmare of Iraq and Afghanistan's Helmand Province, pinned down by the Taliban, living only from moment to moment. Written in spare and lucid prose, it describes with alarming vividness not only the frenetic violence of a soldier's life, but the periods of stifling and (sometimes) comic boredom, living inside an institution in a state of flux, an Army caught between a world that needs it and a society that no longer understands it.
Second Chance
by Jane GreenJane Green, author of the bestsellers The Love Verb and The Beach House, examines love, life, and friendships in her moving and entertaining novel Second Chance.Holly Macintosh is sitting round her kitchen table with her oldest friends - friends she hasn't seen since school - now reunited by an unexpected tragedy and catching up on the past 20 years.On the surface, they are all successful and happy. But scratch a little deeper after that extra glass of wine and it's not quite so straightforward: Paul and Anna are struggling to have a baby, Saffron the actress is still waiting for that really big break that - at 39 - is looking less and less likely, and Olivia, always the wallflower of the group, is newly single and mourning her lost love. And what about Holly Mac? Can she and her husband Marcus get their marriage back on track for the sake of the children? Or has someone just come back into her life who will change everything forever?'A corker of a story' Heat'Witty and wise . . . another winner' Daily Express'Will keep you entertained to the last page' Cosmopolitan
The Count of Monte Cristo: In English Translation
by Alexandre DumasThe epic tale of wrongful imprisonment, adventure and revenge, in its definitive translationThrown in prison for a crime he has not committed, Edmond Dantès is confined to the grim fortress of If. There he learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to use the treasure to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. Dumas' epic tale of suffering and retribution, inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, was a huge popular success when it was first serialized in the 1840s.Translated with an Introduction by ROBIN BUSS
The Wal-Mart Effect: How an Out-of-town Superstore Became a Superpower (Playaway Adult Nonfiction Ser.)
by Charles FishmanCharles Fishman takes us into the heart of the biggest company on earth, ever, to show how the ‘Wal-Mart effect’ shapes lives everywhere, whether for cleaners in America, bicycle-makers in China or salmon farmers in Chile. Now Wal-Mart’s influence is so great it can determine everything from working practices to market forces themselves, Fishman asks: how did a shop manage to do all this? And what will the ultimate cost of low prices be?
No! I Don't Want to Join a Bookclub: Diary Of A Sixtieth Year
by Virginia IronsideToo young to get whisked away by a Stannah Stairlift, or to enjoy the luxury of a walk-in bath (but not so much that she doesn't enjoy comfortable shoes), Marie is all the same getting on in years - and she's thrilled about it. She's a bit preoccupied about whether to give up sex - Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! - but there are compensations, like falling in love with her baby grandson, and maybe falling in love with someone else too? Curmudgeonly, acute, touching and funny, this diary is what happens when grumply old women meet Bridget Jones.
Dead Run: Twin Cities Book 3 (Twin Cities Thriller #3)
by P. J. TracyDead Run is the third book in P.J. Tracy's bestselling Twin Cities series.It should have been a simple journey - a drive from Minneapolis to Green Bay, Wisconsin. But a couple of unplanned detours lead Grace MacBride, Annie Belinsky and police Deputy Sharon Mueller deep in the northern woods, far from civilization and a mobile phone signal. Then the car breaks down.The nervous search for a landline and a mechanic leads the women to Four Corners, a sleepy crossroads town. And place they soon wish they'd never stumbled on - because something terrible happened in Four Corners...Filled with the same crackling dialogue, pace and rich vivid characters as in previous novels, Dead Run firmly establishes P.J. Tracy as one of the most exciting thriller writers in the world. Fans of Karen Rose should be paying attention. Follow the characters' journeys in the rest of the series: Want to Play?, Live Bait, Snow Blind, Play to Kill and Two Evils. Praise for P.J. Tracy:'A thrilling page-turner with a nail-biting finish' Sunday Telegraph'P.J. Tracy is about to become a household name' Daily MirrorP.J. Tracy is the pseudonynm for the mother-and-daughter writing team of P.J. and Traci Lambrecht. They are the authors of the award-winning and best-selling thrillers Live Bait, Dead Run, Snow Blind, Play to Kill, Two Evils and the Richard and Judy Book Club pick Want to Play?. All six books feature detectives Gino and Magozzi and maverick computer hacker Grace MacBride. P.J. and Traci both live near Minneapolis, Minnesota.www.pjtracy.net
The Testament of Gideon Mack: A Novel
by James RobertsonThe Testament of Gideon Mack is James Robertson's acclaimed novel exploring faith and belief.For Gideon Mack, faithless minister, unfaithful husband and troubled soul, the existence of God, let alone the Devil, is no more credible than that of ghosts or fairies. Until the day he falls into a gorge and is rescued by someone who might just be Satan himself.Mack's testament - a compelling blend of memoir, legend, history, and, quite probably, madness - recounts one man's emotional crisis, disappearance, resurrection and death. It also transports you into an utterly mesmerising exploration of the very nature of belief.'Fascinating, extraordinary, strange, rich' Sunday Telegraph'Overwhelmingly compassionate and thought-provoking. Demands another read' Irvine Welsh, Guardian'Hugely enjoyable, very funny, deeply refreshing . . . its touch of devilry makes it even more of a joy' Herald'Fabulous . . . a work of the highest literary quality' Scotland on Sunday'Astonishingly accomplished, utterly compelling from start to finish . . . could well be the best novel published anywhere this year' Big Issue'James Robertson is a brilliant novelist. It's a long time since I read a novel in which the contemporary notions of faith and belief were so frankly tested' Ali SmithJames Robertson is the author of the novels The Fanatic, Joseph Knight, The Testament of Gideon Mack, And the Land Lay Still and The Professor of Truth. The Testament of Gideon Mack was longlisted for the 2006 Man Booker Prize, picked by Richard and Judy's Book Club, and shortlisted for the Saltire Book of the Year award, and And the Land Lay Still was the winner of the Saltire Book of the Year Award 2010.
The Death of King Arthur: The Immortal Legend (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)
by Peter AckroydAn immortal story of chivalry, treachery and death told anew for our timesThe legend of King Arthur has retained its appeal and popularity through the ages: Mordred's treason, the knightly exploits of Tristan, Lancelot's fatally divided loyalties and his love for Guenevere, the quest for the Holy Grail. Now retold by Peter Ackroyd with his signature clarity, charm and relish for a good story, the result is not only one of the most readable accounts of the knights of the Round Table but also one of the most moving.
Slam
by Nick Hornby'There was this time when everything seemed to have come together. And so obviously it was time to go and screw it all up.'Sam is sixteen and a skater. Just so there are no terrible misunderstandings: skating = skateboarding. There's no ice. Life is ticking along nicely for Sam: his mum's got rid of her rubbish boyfriend, he's thinking about college and he's met someone. Alicia.Then a little accident happens. One with big consequences for someone just finding his way in life. Sam can't run (let alone skate) away from this one. He's a boy facing a man's problems and the question is - has he got what it takes to confront them?
Life Swap
by Jane GreenFrom the outside Vicky Townsley would appear to have it all. Features Director of the hugely successful Poise! magazine, she lives alone in London, is single, solvent, and seriously successful. But she'd give it all up in a heartbeat for marriage, children, and a house in the country. Amber Winslow on the other hand, has exactly what Vicky Townsley wants; a huge stone mansion in Highfield Connecticut, children and a busy charitable commitment for the local Women's League. But Amber isn't happy either. She hasn't found quite the fulfillment she had expected from being a full-time wife and mother, so when she spots a double page spread in Poise! magazine asking married readers to life swap with a glamorous, single journalist in London, she sits down and writes a letter. But she never expects to be picked... Life Swap is the story of what really happens when two women decide to walk in one another's shoes for one month. It's the story of the grass not being as green as you might think, and of discovering that happiness is not always where you expect it to be.