Since her days in the orphanage, Latha has been a companion & servant to Thara, a more fortunate girl her own age. But since her trip to the hill country when she caught her first glimpse of a rose, Latha has known she was destined for a better life. For now, she must watch silently as Thara receives all the luxuries Latha is denied, consoled only by the rose-scented soap stolen from the bathroom of her master`s house. Years & miles away, Biso, a desperate young mother, flees from her murderous husb&, taking her children with her to the remote hills. As Biso & Latha journey towards their separate fates, struggling to hold on to their independence, each will betray the people they love, changing the course of their lives for ever. ”A Disobedient Girl” is an epic, heartbreaking novel about the linked destinies of two women, set against the backdrop of beautiful, politically turbulent Sri Lanka. ...

A rapturous appreciation of pork crackling, a touching description of hungry London chimney sweeps, a discussion of the strange pleasure of eating pineapple & a meditation on the delights of Christmas feasting are just some of the subjects of these personal, playful writings from early nineteenth-century essayist Charles Lamb. Exploring the joys of food & also our complicated social relationship with it, these essays are by turns sensuous, mischievous, lyrical & self-mocking. Filled with a sense of hunger, they are some of the most fascinating & nuanced works ever written about eating, drinking & appetite. ...

The fourteenth century was a time of fabled crusades & chivalry, glittering cathedrals & grand castles. It was also a time of ferocity & spiritual agony, a world of chaos & the plague. Here, Barbara Tuchman masterfully reveals the two contradictory images of the age, examining the great rhythms of history & the grain & texture of domestic life as it was lived: what childhood was like; what marriage meant; how money, taxes & war dominated the lives of serf, noble & clergy alike. Granting her subjects their loyalties, treacheries & guilty passions, Tuchman recreates the lives of proud cardinals, university scholars, grocers & clerks, saints & mystics, lawyers & mercenaries, &, above all, knights. The result is an astonishing reflection of medieval Europe, a historical tour de force. ...

A Sunday Times top ten bestseller, perfect for fans of THE NIGHT MANAGER, from the winner of the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for Best Thriller of the Year & `the master of the modern spy thriller` (Mail on Sunday). A NEW COLD WAR IS LOOMING Former MI6 officer Thomas Kell thought he was done with spying. Until the Russian agent he blames for the death of his girlfriend is spotted at a Red Sea resort
- in dangerous company. ONE SPY WANTS REVENGE Taking the law into his own hands, Kell embarks on a mission to recruit his rival. Only to find himself in a high-stakes game of cat & mouse in which it becomes increasingly difficult to know who is playing whom. THIS TIME IT`S PERSONAL As the mission reaches boiling point, rumours of a terrorist attack suggest a massacre on Britain soil is imminent. Kell is faced with an impossible choice. Loyalty to MI6
- or to his own conscience?

...

In this, their second adventure together, Bruce Fogle & his faithful dog, Macy, (with a compact motorhome), journey into the little known heart of Europe. Travelling through the Netherlands, northern Germany, Scandinavia, & the Baltics, then down the eastern rim of Poland to Slovakia & Slovenia, Fogle uncovers revelations about his ancestry as well as discovering the real central Europe. With Macy stoically at his side, Bruce Fogle can savour the landscape in a way he couldn`t alone. Macy introduces him to an eclectic mix of rural folk & local animals as well as other travellers. Together Macy & Bruce walk for miles through peaceful woods & empty shores, taking time off from the frenetic bustle of urban life to appreciate the unspoilt beauty of landscapes still frozen in the aspic of time. The perfect travelling companion, ”A Dog Abroad” is an enchanting read. ...

”A Dog in a Hat” is the remarkable story of Joe Parkin. In 1987, Parkin left the comforts of home to become a bike racer in Belgium, the hardest place in the world to be a bike racer. As one of the first American pros in Europe, Parkin was what the Belgians call “a dog with a hat on” — something familiar, yet decidedly out of place. Parkin`s memoir reads like a novel. In plainspoken & fast-paced prose, Parkin describes the true life of the professional bike racer, putting the reader into the whirlwind of this hardest of athletic educations. ”A Dog in a Hat” begins with Parkin`s terrifying first visit to his team doctor, where he is strapped to a table & monitored by humming electrodes as men in white lab coats coldly divine his future as a pro. Parkin`s story is honest. ”A Dog in a Hat” celebrates the glory of bike racing, but Parkin thrillingly tells the hard reality of the life—the drugs, the payoffs, the betrayals by teammates, the battles with team owners for contracts & money, the endless promises that keep you going, & the rider`s sheer physical agony of racing day after day. Despite the pain, despite the suffering, ”A Dog in a Hat” is a beautiful book. It is one American’s story of his love affair with professional cycling, set in the hardest place in the world to be a bike racer. It is a story untold until now, & one that Parkin’s readers will never forget. ...

Inspired by Maryanne Grant Traylen`s daily walks with her dog, & by the moments of beauty afforded by living between sea & Down, A Dog on the Downs evokes the North Kent countryside in its different moods, seasons & weathers, combined with a narrative that invokes a sense of the geology & history that has shaped the landscape. Black dog is not only Maryanne`s walking companion but her visual constant, looking elegant, even Gormley-like, against the green of hill or blue of sea. Concentrating on Kent`s North Downs framed at the east, west, north & south by Kingsdown Beach, New Barn, Denton & the sea respectively, the book will enchant readers with the lyrical quality of Maryanne`s writing & photographs as together Maryanne & her dog explore the landscapes right on their doorstep. Vividly bringing this stretch of Downs to life, join Maryanne & her dog as they discover the cliffs at Kingsdown, St. Margaret`s, Dover & Folkestone, as they take a dip into the sea & swing inland to the Downs & cut across the escarpments of Arpinge & Etchinghill towards Wye, losing themselves in glorious valleys & villages ...

To the beginner, the star-filled night sky can seem mysterious & unfathomable. But with this book as a guide the awesome nature of the Cosmos is brought down to Earth. Over the course of twelve chapters Mark Thompson, one of the presenters on BBC One's Stargazing Live & the resident astronomer on ITV's The Alan Titchmarsh Show, will take you on a journey through space, tackling the key concepts of astronomy & unlocking the secrets of the sky. From the origins of our Universe to the ever evolving techniques used to explore deep space, A Down to Earth Guide to the Cosmos traces the journey of galactic discovery that has obsessed mankind for thousands of years. Accompanying the narrative, a series of monthly sky guides focus on the astronomical highlights visible at each given time of year, with handy charts to show you exactly what to look for & how to navigate around the sky at night. As fascinating as it is accessible, A Down to Earth Guide to the Cosmos is a must for anyone who gazes up & wishes they knew more about the final frontier... ...

To the beginner, the star-filled night sky can seem mysterious & unfathomable. But with this book as a guide the awesome nature of the Cosmos is brought down to Earth. Over the course of twelve chapters Mark Thompson, one of the presenters on BBC One`s Stargazing Live & the resident astronomer on ITV`s The Alan Titchmarsh Show, will take you on a journey through space, tackling the key concepts of astronomy & unlocking the secrets of the sky. From the origins of our Universe to the ever evolving techniques used to explore deep space, A Down to Earth Guide to the Cosmos traces the journey of galactic discovery that has obsessed mankind for thousands of years. Accompanying the narrative, a series of monthly sky guides focus on the astronomical highlights visible at each given time of year, with handy charts to show you exactly what to look for & how to navigate around the sky at night. As fascinating as it is accessible, A Down to Earth Guide to the Cosmos is a must for anyone who gazes up & wishes they knew more about the final frontier... ...

To the beginner, the star-filled night sky can seem mysterious & unfathomable. But with this book as a guide the awesome nature of the Cosmos is brought down to Earth. Over the course of twelve chapters Mark Thompson, one of the presenters on BBC One`s Stargazing Live & the resident astronomer on ITV`s The Alan Titchmarsh Show, will take you on a journey through space, tackling the key concepts of astronomy & unlocking the secrets of the sky. From the origins of our Universe to the ever evolving techniques used to explore deep space, A Down to Earth Guide to the Cosmos traces the journey of galactic discovery that has obsessed mankind for thousands of years. Accompanying the narrative, a series of monthly sky guides focus on the astronomical highlights visible at each given time of year, with handy charts to show you exactly what to look for & how to navigate around the sky at night. As fascinating as it is accessible, A Down to Earth Guide to the Cosmos is a must for anyone who gazes up & wishes they knew more about the final frontier... ...