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Battersea Girl: Tracing a London Life (Soundings Ser.)
by Martin KnightA couple of years ago, Martin Knight began a quest to delve into his family history. He had a head start on many amateur genealogists, as 30 years earlier he had produced a school project on the very subject. The project was based on the papers and oral history of his then elderly grandmother, Ellen Tregent. Martin dusted this off and began to assemble the chain of events that shaped his grandmother's life. He even made contact with several living relatives who had known Ellen or some of the people and events she described.Ellen Tregent was born in 1888 and died in 1988 - her lifetime encompassing an unprecedented century of social change and world upheaval. She was born into a poor working-class family in Battersea, London. Her grandfather had arrived from Ireland 40 years earlier to escape almost certain death as potato famine ravaged his country. In Battersea Girl, Martin Knight charts Ellen's long and eventful life and the lives of her siblings. They encounter abject poverty, disease, suicide, murder, war and inevitably death, but, equally, the spirit of stoical people who were determined to make the most of their lives shines through in this enchanting book.
The Town Below the Ground: Edinburgh's Legendary Undgerground City
by Jan-Andrew HendersonBelow Scotland's capital, hidden for almost two centuries, is a metropolis whose very existence was all but forgotten. For almost 250 years, Edinburgh was surrounded by a giant defensive wall. Unable to expand the city's boundaries, the burgeoning population built over every inch of square space. And when there was no more room, they began to dig down . . . Trapped in lives of poverty and crime, these subterranean dwellers existed in darkness and misery, ignored by the chroniclers of their time. It is only in the last few years that the shocking truth has begun to emerge about the sinister underground city.
Wise Women: Wit and Wisdom from Some of the World’s Most Extraordinary Women
by Carole McKenzie'A woman is like a teabag - only when in hot water do you realise how strong she is' - Nancy ReaganWomen are never at a loss to express themselves, and smart women will have something to say for every occasion.Wise Women is a hilarious, ribald and revealing collection of observations and inspirational quotations reflecting the wit and intelligence of women across the ages. Those quoted range from Dorothy Parker to Joan Rivers, Mae West to Joan Collins, Queen Victoria to Princess Diana, Joanna Lumley to Pamela Stephenson, Beyoncé to Adele, and Cheryl Cole to Lady Gaga.The famous and infamous of theatre, film, politics, philosophy and literature are featured, waxing lyrical on numerous topics from affairs, ageing, men and motherhood to sex, work and what women want!
Talking Dirty
by Carole McKenzie‘Women should be obscene and not heard’ – John Lennon‘The only unnatural act is that which you cannot perform' – Alfred Kinsey‘Fat people are brilliant in bed: if I’m sitting on top of you, who’s going to argue?' – Jo Brand‘What most women want is not a man who ties you to the bed but one who unstacks the dishes while you watch The Great British Bake Off’ – Harriet HarmanThroughout the centuries, talk of sex has proved irresistible, producing wide-ranging responses, contradictory remarks, denouncements and appraisals; something seen as harmless by one is often condemned as damnable by another.Whatever your sexual preferences, Talking Dirty is a hugely entertaining treasury of wit on this endlessly entertaining and controversial topic.
Terrible Old Games You've Probably Never Heard Of
by Stuart AshenTerrible Old Games You've Probably Never Heard Of is a full-colour illustrated compendium of the most painfully bad games, based on Ashens' YouTube series of the same name.Everyone's heard of E.T. for the Atari 2600 and Superman for the Nintendo 64, but these are almost nothing next to the abject incompetence of Count Duckula 2 on the Amstrad CPC. There are people who seriously believe that Shaq Fu is the worst fighting game ever made, having never experienced Dangerous Streets on the Amiga. This book will blow their very soul apart. (Not a guarantee.)Terrible Old Games You've Probably Never Heard Of is meticulously researched and written, with the dry humour you'd expect from a man who has somehow made a living by sticking rubbish on a sofa and talking about it. Each entry is accompanied by a series of full-colour images from the games.
My Groupon Adventure
by Max DickinsIn 2013, comedian Max Dickins wasn't sure of very much in life, but he did know one thing for certain: his life was excruciatingly and mind-numbingly boring. He was heartbroken and desperate to shake things up. That's when he found Groupon.What started as a gateway to some new experiences snowballed into a limitless Narnia of discounted possibility. His insatiable desire to try out new experiences was accompanied by only one rule: he wasn't allowed to turn anything down. Over the course of 18 months, Max did a new Groupon deal every week, charting his experiences along the way: he changed his name, became a Lord, moonlighted as a beekeeper, trekked with alpacas, underwent a colonic irrigation and ultrasound scan, and even convinced Groupon to sell a date with him on their site. They sold 1,000.From a deep rut, he emerged a better man, resuscitated by the oxygen of new experience. My Groupon Adventure is a hilarious and uplifting account of these experiences and what can happen when you inject a healthy dose of spontaneity into your life. It's a book about opening yourself – and sometimes parts of your body – up to new experiences, and ultimately choosing the life you want for yourself.
The Almanac: A Seasonal Guide to 2018
by Lia LeendertzThe Almanac revives the tradition of the rural almanac, connecting you with the months and seasons via moon-gazing, foraging, feast days, seasonal eating, meteor-spotting and gardening. Award-winning gardener and food writer Lia Leendertz shares the tools and inspiration you need to celebrate, mark and appreciate each moment of the year.
The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century
by Steven PinkerBad writing can't be blamed on the Internet, or on 'the kids today'. Good writing has always been hard: a performance requiring pretense, empathy, and a drive for coherence. In The Sense of Style, cognitive scientist and linguist Steven Pinker uses the latest scientific insights to bring us a style and usage guide for the 21st century. What do skilful writers know about the link between syntax and ideas? How can we overcome the Curse of Knowledge, the difficulty in imagining what it's like not to know something we do? And can we distinguish the myths and superstitions from rules that enhance clarity and grace? As Pinker shows, everyone can improve their mastery of writing and their appreciation of the art (yes, 'their').
A History of the World in Twelve Maps
by Jerry BrottonJerry Brotton is the presenter of the acclaimed BBC4 series 'Maps: Power, Plunder and Possession'. Here he tells the story of our world through maps.Throughout history, maps have been fundamental in shaping our view of the world, and our place in it. But far from being purely scientific objects, world maps are unavoidably ideological and subjective, intimately bound up with the systems of power and authority of particular times and places. Mapmakers do not simply represent the world, they construct it out of the ideas of their age.In this scintillating book, Jerry Brotton examines the significance of 12 maps - from the mystical representations of ancient history to the satellite-derived imagery of today. He vividly recreates the environments and circumstances in which each of the maps was made, showing how each conveys a highly individual view of the world - whether the Jerusalem-centred Christian perspective of the 14th century Hereford Mappa Mundi or the Peters projection of the 1970s which aimed to give due weight to 'the third world'.Although the way we map our surroundings is once more changing dramatically, Brotton argues that maps today are no more definitive or objective than they have ever been - but that they continue to make arguments and propositions about the world, and to recreate, shape and mediate our view of it. Readers of this book will never look at a map in quite the same way again.
Shady Characters: Ampersands, Interrobangs and other Typographical Curiosities
by Keith HoustonKeith Houston's entertaining book, inspired by his popular blog shadycharacters.co.uk, tells the unexpected stories of some unusual, and familiar, typographical marks and reveals a fascinating history of writing.Every character we write or type is a link to the past, and in today's printed, electronic and scrawled writing their history stares right back at us. This book charts the lives of some of the most intriguing examples, like how the pilcrow went from its noble origins in ancient Greece to near obsolescence, only to be revived again in word processing software. Each character reflects the bust and boom endured by punctuation with each new technological innovation and together they form a rich history of written communication.Keith Houston is the founder of ShadyCharacters.co.uk, where he writes about the unusual stories behind some well-known - and some rather more outlandish - marks of punctuation.
Zero Waste Home: The Ultimate Guide to Simplifying Your Life
by Bea JohnsonZero Waste Home is the ultimate guide to simplified, sustainable living from Bea Johnson, author of the popular blog zerowastehome.comLiving sustainably should not mean forfeiting either comfort or style. In this book Bea Johnson shows, by inspiring example, what green living looks like and offers a practical, step-by-step guide to diminishing our environmental footprints and improving our lives.It all comes down to the 5 Rs: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rot (and only in that order!). Zero Waste Home shows how these key principles can be applied to every area of your house from the kitchen to the kids' room, and it's packed with easy tips for all of us: from refusing freebies to using your plants as air fresheners.More than a manual, this is the inspiring story of how Bea Johnson transformed her family's health, finances, and relationships for the better by reducing their waste to an astonishing one litre per year.Could you do the same?
Decoding the Lost Symbol: Unravelling the Secrets Behind Dan Brown's International Bestseller: The Unauthorised Guide
by Simon CoxWritten in a clear and concise A to Z format, Decoding the Lost Symbol is the essential guide to the thrilling third Dan Brown novel to feature Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon, The Lost Symbol. Decoding the Lost Symbol takes you on a journey of discovery through the world of Dan Brown and Robert Langdon, opening up the real mysteries and historical facts that are the basis of The Lost Symbol. Set over a breathtaking twelve hours, The Lost Symbol creates a world of intrigue and mystery based around the city of Washington DC. You will discover the amazing truth behind the storyline in Decoding the Lost Symbol, the must-have definitive guide to the Dan Brown novel. Simon Cox is the world-renowned expert on the mysteries of Dan Brown, having already authored the international bestseller Cracking the Da Vinci Code, Illuminating Angels & Demons and The Dan Brown Companion. His guides are essential reading for all fans of the Robert Langdon series of novels and are available in more than fifteen languages.
Directing Change,: A Guide to Governance of Project Management (3rd edition)
by APM Governance Specific Interest GroupThe latest edition has been fully updated to include: New codes of governance and lessons of governance success and failures. Feedback from practitioners, including a new section on culture and ethics. Descriptions and checklists for key governance roles and activities. Written by experience change practitioners from APM’s Governance SIG, the guide is designed to help all those with governance roles, from boards of directors and sponsors to project managers and independent reviewers. First published in 2004, Directing Change quickly established a reputation as the go-to reference for the governance of complex change. The third edition continues that tradition, remaining concise, but ‘even more relevant and user-friendly’.
Sponsoring Change,: A Guide to the Governance Aspects of Project Sponsorship (2nd edition)
by APM Governance Specific Interest GroupSponsoring Change 2nd edition provides essential guidance to sponsors of projects, helping users to deliver project outcomes more successfully. Designed to be easily accessible to senior figures in a project-based organisation, Sponsoring Change explains: why every project needs a sponsor; how the board’s support is important for sponsor and project success; the attributes of an effective sponsor that are critical to success; what a sponsor does for the business; what a sponsor does for a project manager; some useful pointers in choosing and selecting a suitable sponsor. Originally released in 2009, the latest edition of Sponsoring Change has been fully updated to reflect the growing importance of effective sponsorship. As with the two previous successful publications from the same stable, Directing Change and Governance of Co-Owned Projects, it is applicable to all types of organisation across all sectors. Giving his endorsement, Network Rail chief executive Mark Carne said, “We believe its use will improve governance, bringing greater reward to organisations.”
Life Concepts from Aristotle to Darwin: On Vegetable Souls
by Lucas John MixThis book traces the history of life-concepts, with a focus on the vegetable souls of Aristotle, investigating how they were interpreted and eventually replaced by evolutionary biology. Philosophers have long struggled with the relationship between physics, physiology, and psychology, asking questions of organization, purpose, and agency. For two millennia, the vegetable soul, nutrition, and reproduction were commonly used to understand basic life and connect it to “higher” animal and vegetable life. Cartesian dualism and mechanism destroyed this bridge and left biology without an organizing principle until Darwin. Modern biology parallels Aristotelian vegetable life-concepts, but remains incompatible with the animal, rational, subjective, and spiritual life-concepts that developed through the centuries. Recent discoveries call for a second look at Aristotle’s ideas – though not their medieval descendants. Life remains an active, chemical process whose cause, identity, and purpose is self-perpetuation.
Life Concepts from Aristotle to Darwin: On Vegetable Souls
by Lucas John MixThis book traces the history of life-concepts, with a focus on the vegetable souls of Aristotle, investigating how they were interpreted and eventually replaced by evolutionary biology. Philosophers have long struggled with the relationship between physics, physiology, and psychology, asking questions of organization, purpose, and agency. For two millennia, the vegetable soul, nutrition, and reproduction were commonly used to understand basic life and connect it to “higher” animal and vegetable life. Cartesian dualism and mechanism destroyed this bridge and left biology without an organizing principle until Darwin. Modern biology parallels Aristotelian vegetable life-concepts, but remains incompatible with the animal, rational, subjective, and spiritual life-concepts that developed through the centuries. Recent discoveries call for a second look at Aristotle’s ideas – though not their medieval descendants. Life remains an active, chemical process whose cause, identity, and purpose is self-perpetuation.
Shakespeare for Grown-ups: Everything you Need to Know about the Bard
by Beth Coates Elizabeth FoleyNeed to swot up on your Shakespeare? If you’ve always felt a bit embarrassed at your precarious grasp on the plot of Othello, or you haven’t a clue what a petard (as in ‘hoist with his own petard’) actually is, then fear not, because this, at last, is the perfect guide to the Bard.From the authors of the number-one bestselling Homework for Grown-ups, Shakespeare for Grown-ups is the essential book for anyone keen to deepen their knowledge of they plays and sonnets. For parents helping with their children’s homework, casual theatre-goers who want to enhance their enjoyment of the most popular plays and the general reader who feels they should probably know more about Britain’s most splendid scribe, Shakespeare for Grown-ups covers Shakespeare's time; his personal life; his language; his key themes; his less familiar works and characters; his most famous speeches and quotations; phrases and words that have entered general usage, and much more. With lively in-depth chapters on all the major works including Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, The Tempest, Romeo and Juliet, Much Ado About Nothing, Antony and Cleopatra, Richard II, Henry V, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Merchant of Venice and Macbeth, Shakespeare for Grown-ups is the only guide you’ll ever need.
The Reality Of Research With Children And Young People (PDF)
by Vicky Lewis Mary Kellett Sandy Fraser Sharon Ding Chris RobinsonThe Reality of Research with Children and Young People illustrates the process of carrying out research through thirteen `research stories'. Each story includes a piece of published research, accompanied by a commentary from the author of the research explaining: · the origins of the research · how research questions were formed · factors influencing the choice of methodology and data collection techniques · problems that arose and how these were dealt with · personal reflections on the project. The research examples included in this volume have been carefully selected to demonstrate the reality of researching with children from pre-school age to late adolescence. They reflect the different traditions and variety of methods of collecting data, including interview, evaluation, ethnography, experiment, survey, case study, questionnaire, longitudinal, and standardised assessment. The Reality of Research with Children Young People provides valuable insights into the process of research for students and professionals in a range of fields including education, health, welfare, childhood and youth Studies, psychology and sociology. The book was developed to accompany The Open University Course, Research with Children and Young People (EK310).
Contesting Institutional Hegemony in Today’s Business Schools: Doctoral Students Speak Out (Critical Management Studies)
by Ajnesh PrasadConsidering the tangible implications the present focus on research output poses for early career researchers, it is strange that perspectives from this group are rarely, if ever, included in the ongoing debates in the field. This book aims to put these views on record. By bringing together a group of critically-orientated early career researchers from global business schools it investigates a series of timely questions pertaining to the impact that institutional pressures have on junior academics – particularly those who conduct ‘critical’ or non-mainstream research. What is the nature of the institutional pressure that is placed upon doctoral students to publish in certain journals or to conduct positivist research? How do students with a critical orientation resist these pressures – or why do they succumb to them? What are the implications on critical scholars for resisting or acquiescing to these pressures and what does this mean for scholarship more broadly? Taking a narrative approach, this book will be required reading for all doctoral students as well as all those in academia dissatisfied with the current intellectual hegemony in business schools.
British Campaign Medals of the First World War (Shire Library #636)
by Peter DuckersBritain has issued medals rewarding war service since at least the early nineteenth century, and increasingly through the period of its imperial expansion prior to 1914, but examples of many of the early types are now scarce. However, few families escaped some involvement with "the Great War†? of 1914 18, and many still treasure the medals awarded to their ancestors for wartime service. Today, with a growing interest in British military history and particularly in family history and genealogy, more and more people want to trace their ancestors' past. This book looks in detail at the origin, types and varieties of the British medals awarded for general war service between 1914 and '18, and gives advice on researching the awards and their recipients.
Poole Pottery (Shire Library #631)
by Will FarmerPoole Pottery is a great British institution, and for more than 130 years has been in the very first rank of producers of tiles, mosaic flooring and advertising panels – as well as the pottery that remains its most famous and collectible product. Founded by Jesse Carter in 1873 as 'Carter's Industrial Tile Factory', the company went on to flourish in the hands of Carter's son and, in 1921, joined forces with Henry Stabler and John Adams to add art deco pottery to its list of products. 'Carter Stabler Adams', which would come to be known simply as Poole Pottery, was responsible for two of the most distinctive lines in the industry's history: the Delphis and Aegean designs. In this extensively illustrated book, Will Farmer gives a lovingly detailed account of a unique and distinctively British company.
Discovering Words in the Kitchen (Shire Discovering #302)
by Julian WalkerThroughout history the English language has reflected social changes, trade routes, and waves of fashion. This book examines the histories of the names of foods, ingredients, utensils, drinks, cooking methods, and dishes to show how the vocabulary of English has reflected the ways speakers of the language have interacted with their tastes, their environment and other cultures. Approximately 250 words that have entered English language over the past fifteen hundred years are examined, ranging from Old English adoptions from Latin via French, to U.S. adoptions from Chinese. Changes of spelling and meaning and disagreements about the history of the words are discussed, supported by references within the text to authoritative food historians and dictionary writers from Johnson and Webster to the most recent publications.
Team Talk: Sporting Words and their Origins (Shire General Ser. #2)
by Julian WalkerHave you ever wondered why we talk about a handicap in sport, why boxing is so named, or whether a dumbbell ever rang? It was during the nineteenth century that hitherto local games with relaxed and varying rules were formalized. During this process terminologies developed to refer to these new standardized sports, borrowing, modifying and redefining words from all walks of life in sometimes strange and unexpected ways. Considering such subjects as why sport shares so many words with the fields of hunting and conflict, and how English sports terms have been both adopted from and given to other languages, this book looks at how words have come into the field of sport and how they have developed and changed.
British Railway Tickets (Shire Library)
by Jan DobrzynskiIn 1838 Thomas Edmondson, an employee of the fledgling Newcastle & Carlisle Railway, revolutionised the ticket issuing process in Britain and left an enduring legacy: the Edmondson ticket. Purchased as proof of the contract between passenger and railway company, the ticket was a receipt, travel pass and an ephemeral record of almost every train journey ever taken in the British Isles, reflecting the nostalgia of the railways and a period of history when the movement of millions of people brought together England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The railways printed millions of tickets for every conceivable journey and category of passenger. Most were destroyed after use, but remarkably many survive, in the care of libraries, museums and collectors, and form the basis of a fascinating hobby.
The Devil's Dictionary (Wordsworth Reference Ser.)
by Ambrose BierceA word book, straight up, with a twist The Devil's Dictionary is an American classic. A Yankee Oscar Wilde with a wicked edge to his tongue, gained from seeing the world early and cynically as it really was, Ambrose Bierce, friend and rival of Mark Twain, was one of America's first great writers and journalists. His razor-sharp wit and underlying rage against hypocrisy is perfectly complemented by Ralph Steadman's equally incisive pen and ink illustrations. Adore, v.t. To venerate expectantly. Bride, n. A woman with a great future behind her Corporation, n. An ingenious device for securing individual profit without individual responsibility. Debauchee, n. One who has so earnestly pursued pleasure that he has had the misfortune to overtake it.