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The Romanovs: The Terrible Fate Of Russia's Last Tsar And His Family (Great Lives)
by Robert K. MassieThe compelling quest to solve a great mystery of the twentieth century: the ultimate fate of Russia's last tsar and his family.In July 1991, nine skeletons were exhumed from a shallow grave near Ekaterinburg, Siberia, a few miles from the infamous cellar where the last tsar and his family had been murdered seventy-three years before. Were these the bones of the Romanovs? If so, why were the bones of the two younger Romanovs missing? Was Anna Anderson, celebrated in newspapers, books, and film, really Grand Duchess Anastasia?This book unearths the truth. Pulitzer Prize winner Robert K. Massie presents a colourful panorama of contemporary characters, illuminating the major scientific dispute between Russian experts and a team of Americans, whose findings – along with those of DNA scientists from Russia, America, and the UK – all contributed to solving one of history's most intriguing mysteries.
Lifescapes: A Biographer’s Search for the Soul
by Ann WroeThe acclaimed biographer and obituarist for The Economist reflects on a career spent pursuing life and capturing it on the page.It is soul that I go looking for. Or, to put it another way, real life.'She's a genius, I believe' HILARY MANTEL'A masterful celebration' JOHN BANVILLE'A rare and beautiful book' KAPKA KASSABOVA'What is life?' asked the poet Shelley, and could not come up with an answer. Scientists, too, for all their understanding of how life manifests, thrives and evolves, have still not plumbed that fundamental question. Yet biographers and obituarists continue to corral lives in a few columns, or a few hundred pages, aware all the time how fleeting and elusive their subject is.In this dazzlingly original blend of memoir, biography, observation and poetry, Ann Wroe reflects on the art and impossibility of capturing life on the page. Through her experiences and those of others, through people she has known, studied or merely glimpsed in windows, she movingly explores what makes a life and how that life lingers after.Animated by Wroe's rare imagination, eye for the telling detail, and the wit, beauty and clarity of her writing, Lifescapes is a luminous, deeply personal answer to Shelley's question.
Red Devils: The Trailblazers of the Parachute Regiment in World War Two: An Authorized History
by Mark Urban'Gripping and authoritative' Andy McNab'Superb accounts of the battles and a deep understanding of personalities' Patrick Bishop, The TelegraphA GRIPPING, AUTHORISED HISTORY OF THE DARING 'RED DEVILS' TOLD THROUGH THE FATES OF SIX HEROES . . . In Britain they were known as The Parachute Regiment, but their German enemies christened them The Red Devils. Circus performers, solicitors, gravediggers, family men. . . they were ordinary people who became wartime heroes.Showing what it took to succeed in this new regiment, Urban vividly brings to life six men and their experiences across D-Day, Arnhem and WW2 - from the recently-widowed Geoffrey Pine-Coffin, who had to leave his young son to head to the front, to Mike Lewis, whose photographs became iconic images of war.Using deep archival research, British and German sources, and new material from the men's families, Red Devils paints a true and moving picture of the heart of war.PUBLISHED ON THE 80TH ANNIVERSARY OF THEIR FIRST CAMPAIGN: OPERATION TORCH IN NORTH AFRICA
Churchill: An Extraordinary Life
by Sarah Gristwood Margaret Gaskin National Trust BooksA short illustrated life of one of Britain's most revered people of all time, covering all periods of his life but always returning to his literal and spiritual home, Chartwell.
Great-Uncle Harry: A Tale of War and Empire
by Michael Palin'An important historical record and a well-paced story in its own right, Great-Uncle Harry is also much more than that: a tremendous act of love.' Guardian___________________________________From the time, many years ago, when Michael Palin first heard that his grandfather had a brother, Harry, he was determined to find out more about him.The quest that followed involved hundreds of hours of painstaking detective work. Michael dug out every bit of family gossip and correspondence he could. He studied every relevant official document. He tracked down what remained of his great-uncle Harry's diaries and letters, and pored over photographs of First World War battle scenes to see whether Harry appeared in any of them. He walked the route Harry took on that fatal, final day of his life amid the mud of northern France. And as he did so, a life that had previously existed in the shadows was revealed to him.Great-Uncle Harry is an utterly compelling account of an ordinary man who led an extraordinary life. A blend of biography, history, travelogue and personal memoir this is Michael Palin at his very finest.___________________________________________PRAISE FOR EREBUS:'Beyond terrific. I didn't want it to end.' BILL BRYSON'Magisterial . . . Palin brings energy, wit and humanity to a story that has never ceased to tantalise people.' THE TIMES'Everybody's talking about it . . . A brilliant book.' CHRIS EVANS'I absolutely loved it: I had to read it at one sitting.' LORRAINE KELLY
Queens of the Age of Chivalry (England's Medieval Queens #3)
by Alison WeirThe third volume of Alison Weir’s magisterial history of the queens of medieval England.‘Weir’s history books are as gripping as novels’ The TimesMedieval queens were seen as mere dynastic trophies – yet, as Alison Weir shows in this group biography, many of the Plantagenet queens of the High Middle Ages dramatically broke away from the restrictions imposed on their sex.Using personal letters and fascinating sources, Weir evokes the lives of these five extraordinary women: Marguerite of France, Isabella of France, Philippa of Hainault, Anne of Bohemia and Isabella of Valois. At the same time, she recreates a truly astonishing period of history – the turbulent, brutal Age of Chivalry.‘Places the reader in the midst of…complex, gripping events, telling the stories of five royal wives who lived through them’ BBC History‘Weir is an excellent storyteller’ Spectator
How to Steal a City: The Battle for Nelson Mandela Bay, an Inside Account
by Crispian Olver'In March 2015, I was tasked by Pravin Gordhan, the minister responsible for local government, to root out corruption in the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality in the Eastern Cape. Over the following eighteen months, I led the investigations and orchestrated the crackdown as the "hatchet man" for the metro’s new Mayor, Danny Jordaan. This is my account of kickbacks, rigged contracts and a political party at war with itself.'How to Steal a City is the gripping insider account of this intervention, which lays bare how Nelson Mandela Bay metro was bled dry by criminal syndicates, and how factional politics within the ruling party abetted that corruption.As a former senior state official and local government 'fixer', Crispian Olver was no stranger to dodgy politicians and broken organisations. Yet what he found in Nelson Mandela Bay went far beyond rigged contracts, blatant conflicts of interest and garden-variety kickbacks. The city's administration had evolved into a sophisticated web of front companies, criminal syndicates and compromised local politicians and officials. The metro was effectively controlled by a criminal network closely allied to a dominant local ANC faction. What Olver found was complete state capture – a microcosm of what has taken place in national government.Olver and his team initiated a clean-up of the administration, clearing out corrupt officials and rebuilding public trust. Then came the ANC's doomed campaign for the August 2016 local government elections. Having lost its way in factional battles and corruption, the divided party went down to a humiliating defeat in its traditional heartland.Olver paid a high price for his work in Nelson Mandela Bay. Intense political pressure and even threats to his personal safety took a toll on his mental and physical health. When his political support was withdrawn, he had to flee the city as the forces stacked against him took their revenge. This is his story.
In Pursuit of Fulfilment: Principle Passion Resolve
by Nemir KirdarThis is the life story of one of the most successful business leaders of our time.The formative influence upon Investcorp founder Nemir Kirdar was his father, who was mayor of Kirkuk and who instilled a public-service ethic in all of his sons. The book describes the events that drove Kirdar away from a life in politics in Iraq to the safety of the United States where he worked to establish himself in international investment banking. The first event was the assassination of King Faisal II. The second was his arrest after returning to Iraq to start his own business. By the time he flees from Iraq to Lebanon, Kirdar has married and has one daughter. In the beginning it is hard work, a long day in a training programme and then nights attending Fordham University to get his MBA. He works for a consortium of US banks and then moves on to Chase where he asks for his own department with a specialisation in financial projects in the Middle East. Kirdar is given rein to establish this project and an office in Abu Dhabi. Soon he finds the people he most wants to work with him, an international team, and then with some help from the Arab Monetary Fund he founds his company which is to be an investment company for the entire Gulf region. First he must 'explore the appetite of future investors'. He describes with great tact the difficulties of dealing with ultra-wealthy investors, and the period of the 1980s during which the company turned impressive profits in venture capital schemes through the wobbly dotcom craze to the present. He wanted Investcorp to be 'a bridge linking the Middle East and the West' and he has emphatically succeeded in this aim. IN PURSUIT OF FULFILMENT is a personal testimony from one of the world's most successful businessmen, the memoir of a vision - the story of what happens when an ideal encounters real life.
Another Day of Life (Forsyte chronicles)
by Ryszard Kapuscinski William Brand'This is a very personal book, about being alone and lost'. In 1975 Kapuscinski's employers sent him to Angola to cover the civil war that had broken out after independence. For months he watched as Luanda and then the rest of the country collapsed into a civil war that was in the author's words 'sloppy, dogged and cruel'. In his account, Kapuscinski demonstrates an extraordinary capacity to describe and to explain the individual meaning of grand political abstractions.
Now That I have Your Attention: 7 Lessons in Leading a Life Bigger Than They Expect
by Nicolas HamiltonNicolas Hamilton has been exceeding expectations since day one.Born with a form of cerebral palsy, Nicolas was told that he would never walk and would need a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Today he not only walks everywhere but he is the first disabled athlete to ever compete at the top level of British motorsport, The British Touring Car Championship, where he lines up on the grid alongside some of the world's best drivers.Now That I Have Your Attention follows Nicolas's remarkable journey and shares the valuable, tough, and often surprising lessons learned throughout his life.Nicolas's journey has at times been hostile and has forced him to navigate periods of anger and resentment, but by building his mental strength and pushing himself beyond the physical limits of what anyone had ever expected of him, Nicolas has changed his life - and believes you can too.With each of these 7 Lessons, Nicolas's message is simple and universal: with self-discipline and self-compassion you can defy the limitations imposed upon you.
Marlon Brando in Private - 'I love this book' Jane Fonda
by George Englund'Riveting' Kirk Douglas From his first Oscar, Marlon Brando built an impenetrable fortress around his private life: unauthorised releases—or snapshots of him, even by friends—were forbidden. George Englund was Brando's closest friend for almost fifty years and the last person to visit him before his death. Based on deeply personal stories from the death of their sons to Jackie Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe, he draws Brando's life as only they knew it. A young actor emerges who was beautiful in every way; driven by his instinctive talent to break new ground, athletic, muscular, seductive, intelligent and generous. And, from early on, seeds of self-destruction began to grow.
Love and Fury: A Memoir
by Margie OrfordLove and Fury traces a woman's fierce love and righteous rage, unravelling entanglements that are at once tender and traumatic. Renowned South African crime writer Margie Orford offers candid revelations, both political and personal, which have shaped her life and influenced her writing. Surviving marriage, divorce, depression, personal loss and sexual assault, Orford recounts memories of what she has experienced as a woman, a wife, a mother – and particularly as a writer. Love and Fury demonstrates the enduring, debilitating effects of hurt and harm, but at the same time it exemplifies the power of love, self-belief and self-reflection, ultimately offering a message of hope. This book is for every person who has experienced passion and wrath – and who looks beyond this to the light. 'This book kept me alive.'
Queerbook
by Malcolm MackenzieQueerness is everywhere and it always has been. But queer stories, culture and communities have been often hidden . . .
23 Years in The Irish Guards
by Philip Anthony McDonnellHaving signed on the dotted line to be an Irish guardsman not fully understanding all that Queen and country, and other territories stuff, that after six weeks on my own help only by others, I slept beside in the gutter since leaving Ireland to see the world. Finding no work, food and shelter I was on my knees and making this last day as a homeless orphan in Liverpool to ask at the port about working my passage home to Dublin when I saw a window display asking for men to join the Irish guards that foxed my mind as to who or what Irish guards are. It was recruiter Sgt George Smylie Liverpool office kind offer of a cup of tea and biscuit and warm manner that close the deal making my dream to see the world happen.
3 Shades of Blue: Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans & The Lost Empire of Cool
by James Kaplan1959 saw Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, and the other members of Miles’s sextet come together to record the seminal jazz album of all time Kind of Blue. 3 Shades of Blue is a magnificent, blended biography on the meandering paths which led Miles, Coltrane and Evans to the mountaintop of 1959 and the aftermath. It’s a book about music, business, race, addiction and the cities that gave jazz its home; from New York and LA to Philadelphia, Chicago and Kansas City. Kaplan meditates on creativity and the great forebears of this golden age who would take the music down strange new paths. Above all, this is a book about three very different men – their struggles, their choices, their tragedies, their greatness. The tapestry of their lives is, in Kaplan’s hands, an American Odyssey, with no direction home.
Across Mountains, Land and Sea: One Boy’s Extraordinary Journey
by Arman AzadiArman is just a boy when he is forced to leave his home and embark on the most extraordinary journey. Separated from family and friends, he travels across mountains, land and sea to find refuge. After encountering bandits, war and wolves, and surviving a hazardous boat crossing, he arrives at Dover, clinging to the underside of a lorry. Little did he know, his journey had just begun.Unable to speak English, Arman battles loneliness, despair and the reawakening of his traumas in this new strange place. Memories of his family haunt him. The dark clouds almost consume him. And still he persists, step-by-step.What follows is a struggle for self-understanding, and the great strength it takes to overcome the trauma we carry. Running through is the long journey to find peace, and how education is the most powerful tool to seeing one's life through new eyes.This is the unforgettable, heartfelt and transformative story, from a child who deserved to live in safety, not flee in fear. Arman's is a powerful new voice you won't forget and Across Mountains, Land and Sea the perfect book for fans of I Am Malala, Educated and Butterfly.
Advanced Technologies for Cultural Heritage Monitoring and Conservation: The Collection of Chigi Palace in Ariccia, Italy (Digital Innovations in Architecture, Engineering and Construction)
by Sofia Ceccarelli Mauro Missori Roberta FantoniThis book provides the results of an extensive scientific measurements campaign using advanced technologies and innovative non-invasive approaches carried out for the first time in such large numbers inside one of the most important baroque residences in Italy, the Chigi Palace in Ariccia, near Rome (Italy), with the aims of monitoring, characterizing and documenting several kinds of heritage items with different conservative and artistic issues. The analyses involved several research groups from regional universities (Sapienza, Tor Vergata, Roma 3) and research institutions (ENEA, INFN, CNR) and they were performed within the ADAMO project, which was addressed to technologies of analysis, diagnostics and monitoring for the preservation and restoration of Cultural Heritage. The project was proposed by the Centre of Excellence at the Technological District for Cultural Heritage (DTC) financed by the Lazio Region. At the Chigi Palace, important collections of paintings, documents, statues and wall decorations are preserved, dating back from the 16th up to the 18th centuries. The purpose of this book is twofold: it provides an overview of methodologies and technologies currently available in the field of heritage science, through the presentation of their in situ applications for the study of different artworks and materials; furthermore, it shows how the non-invasive analyses and the integration of diagnostic results are useful and sometimes crucial, for the overall understanding of heritage items, their conservation status, and for their correct conservation. This book is addressed at a large audience with both humanistic and scientific backgrounds, focusing the reader's attention on the information gained from multidisciplinary studies, also allowing a curious look at scientific methodologies applied to an art-historical context.
African Women and Intellectual Leadership: Life Stories from Western Kenya (ISSN)
by Maurice Nyamanga Amutabi Emily Achieng’ Akuno Humphrey Jeremiah Ojwang Dannica FleussThis book highlights the pioneering roles of African women as leaders and role models in Kenya, providing examples taken from across education, health, business, and a range of other sectors. Drawing on authentic first-hand accounts and narratives from key women in leadership positions, and those who have lived with them, the book presents the life stories of women leaders over the last fifty years, aiming to preserve their contributions for posterity and to inspire young people with moral, ethical, and progressive role models. The book uses African knowledge production strategies that look at the human being holistically, in the prism of Ubuntu, in order to define leadership in Africa from an African perspective, one that celebrates the role of the mother figure and places women at the centre of African values and societal dynamics. This book will be of interest to researchers and students of African studies, gender studies, and Kenyan education and socio-political history.
African Women and Intellectual Leadership: Life Stories from Western Kenya (ISSN)
This book highlights the pioneering roles of African women as leaders and role models in Kenya, providing examples taken from across education, health, business, and a range of other sectors. Drawing on authentic first-hand accounts and narratives from key women in leadership positions, and those who have lived with them, the book presents the life stories of women leaders over the last fifty years, aiming to preserve their contributions for posterity and to inspire young people with moral, ethical, and progressive role models. The book uses African knowledge production strategies that look at the human being holistically, in the prism of Ubuntu, in order to define leadership in Africa from an African perspective, one that celebrates the role of the mother figure and places women at the centre of African values and societal dynamics. This book will be of interest to researchers and students of African studies, gender studies, and Kenyan education and socio-political history.
Alfred Dreyfus: The Man at the Center of the Affair (Jewish Lives)
by Maurice SamuelsAn insightful new biography of the central figure in the Dreyfus Affair, focused on the man himself and based on newly accessible documents On January 5, 1895, Captain Alfred Dreyfus’s cries of innocence were drowned out by a mob shouting “Death to Judas!” In this book, Maurice Samuels gives readers new insight into Dreyfus himself—the man at the center of the affair. He tells the story of Dreyfus’s early life in Paris, his promising career as a French officer, the false accusation leading to his imprisonment on Devil’s Island, the fight to prove his innocence that divided the French nation, and his life of quiet obscurity after World War I. Samuels’s striking perspective is enriched by a newly available archive of more than three thousand documents and objects donated by the Dreyfus family. Unlike many historians, Samuels argues that Dreyfus was not an “assimilated” Jew. Rather, he epitomized a new model of Jewish identity made possible by the French Revolution, when France became the first European nation to grant Jews full legal equality. This book analyzes Dreyfus’s complex relationship to Judaism and to antisemitism over the course of his life—a story that, as global antisemitism rises, echoes still. It also shows the profound effect of the Dreyfus Affair on the lives of Jews around the world.
All the Lonely People: Conversations on Loneliness
by Sam Carr'Empathetic, enlightening, deeply human' - Michael Harris, author of SolitudeAn intimate portrait of loneliness, All the Lonely People sees psychologist Dr Sam Carr collect hours of conversations with people young and old, including single parents, carers, teenagers and the bereaved – all shared over countless cups of tea.In stories of love and loss, of trauma and hope, told from care homes, living rooms, classrooms and kitchens, Carr discovers that while each of their stories is utterly unique, they are all born out of the same desire for human connection.As Carr interweaves these touching and powerful tales with his own personal narrative, he opens a window onto the inner lives of regular people – the forgotten, misplaced or misjudged – who all feel isolated in some way.Sparking a profound conversation about a universal emotion, which may simply be an inevitable part of life in an increasingly disjointed world, he questions what we can do to build stronger human relationships, and to be a part of something bigger than ourselves.
All the Presidents' Gardens: How the White House Grounds Have Grown with America
by Marta McDowellThis New York Times bestseller shares the rich history of the White House grounds, revealing how the story of the garden is also the story of America. The 18-acres surrounding the White House have been an unwitting witness to history—kings and queens have dined there, bills and treaties have been signed, and presidents have landed and retreated. Throughout it all, the grounds have remained not only beautiful, but also a powerful reflection of American trends. In All the Presidents' Gardens bestselling author Marta McDowell tells the untold history of the White House grounds with historical and contemporary photographs, vintage seeds catalogs, and rare glimpses into Presidential pastimes. History buffs will revel in the fascinating tidbits about Lincoln&’s goats, Ike's putting green, Jackie's iconic roses, Amy Carter's tree house, and Trump's controversial renovations. Gardeners will enjoy the information on the plants whose favor has come and gone over the years and the gardeners who have been responsible for it all. As one head gardener put it, &“What&’s great about the job is that our trees, our plants, our shrubs, know nothing about politics.&”
American Mother
by Colum McCann Diane Foley'An extraordinary story of grace, forgiveness and moral courage' Patrick Radden KeefeA 2024 HIGHLIGHT IN THE OBSERVER, GUARDIAN AND IRISH TIMESThe English language has no specific word for the parent that has lost a child. There exist words for orphan, widow and widower, but there is no word that captures and conveys this tragic type of loss. It has been eleven years since Diane Foley's son, the American journalist James Foley, was kidnapped in northern Syria, and nearly ten since that day in August 2014 when she would learn that he had been murdered by ISIS in a public beheading that would ricochet in video around the world. A whole decade. Time rushes past. And yet, for Diane, that moment is unending. In American Mother, legendary author Colum McCann tells Diane's story as she recalls the months of his captivity, the efforts made to bring him home and the days following his death, in which Diane came face to face with one of the men responsible for her son's kidnapping and torture. A testament to the power of radical empathy and moral courage, American Mother takes us inside one woman's extraordinary journey to find connection in a world torn asunder, and to fight for others as a way to keep her son's memory alive.
Anything for My Child: Making Impossible Decisions for Medically Complex Children
by Stephanie NimmoEvery parent wants the same thing: for their child to enjoy a long and fulfilling life. But what happens when things don't go according to plan? What happens when parents have to become advocates for their child's healthcare needs? Who decides what is in a child's 'best interests'?Stephanie Nimmo faced these questions first-hand when her daughter, Daisy, was diagnosed with a life-limiting condition as a baby. Seen through the lens of Stephanie's own experiences, this sensitive book delves into the complex world of medical ethics and paediatric palliative care. From recognising tipping points to the importance of building relationships with palliative care teams well before crisis, this book explores how medical professionals can better support families throughout their child's care.Interviews with clinicians and snapshots from the lives of patients' families provide insight into the realities of life on both sides of the hospital bed. Compassionate explanations of the conflicting pressures in the hospital system foster understanding and help medical professionals and families work together.
Around the World in 80 Years: A Life of Exploration
by Ranulph FiennesHe's climbed Everest not long after a heart bypass operation, he's run seven marathons on seven continents, he's hauled loaded sledges across both polar ice caps and he's circumnavigated the earth...Ran Fiennes truly is the world's greatest explorer, and this book celebrates his 80th birthday by showcasing his greatest achievements in his own words. Featuring interviews and tributes from his friends, colleagues and admirers, Around the World in 80 Years celebrates the incredible life of a legendary explorer.