A Loo With A View. According to statistics we can spend three years of our lives in the toilet, more often than not, staring at the back of a door. But it doesn’t have to be this way! Luke Barclay has compiled a collection of the most spectacular, intriguing & thought provoking loos with views in the world. It’s possible to sit in the open air enjoying sweeping vistas of the world’s beautiful mountains, stand at a urinal & see an entire city laid out beneath you, bird-watch, train spot & even watch international sport from the loo. Each toilet & its view is shown & described by humorous yet informative snippets of accompanying text. ...

For eight centuries the City of London has hosted one of the world`s greatest public parades, as the newly elected Lord Mayor embarks on a procession through the heart of the City to the edge of Westminster, culminating in an oath of allegiance to the representatives of the Crown. This ancient tradition has become one of the most eagerly anticipated events in the London calendar, combining pageantry with carnivaleseque levity in a distinctly English blend of grandeur & irreverence. This book brings together a host of experts to provide a portrait of the Show across all periods & from a variety of different perspectives. The landmark locations such as the Guildhall & St Paul`s, the regiments & livery companies with a proud history of participation in the Show, the Lord Mayor himself (more recently, herself) & his coach, barge, robes & banquet
- all are here, as well as some of the fascinating ways in which the Show has been represented, from the paintings of Canaletto & the cartoons of George Cruikshank to the films of Alfred Hitchcock. This collectionof essays, beautifully illustrated with archive & newly commissioned photography, presents an engagingly kaleidoscopic vision of one of the nation`s best-loved annual events.
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Once described as `a tale of adventure & betrayal on the long bloody road to Culloden Moor`, A Lost Lady of Old Years is set in Scotland during the Rebellion of `45. Young Edinburgh-born Francis Birkenshaw cares nothing for the Jacobite cause until an encounter with the beautiful wife of Bonnie Prince Charlie`s secretary, Mrs Margaret Murray, leads to a dangerous involvement with her husb&, John Murray of Broughton, an infamous turncoat. A dark & compelling portrayal of the Jacobite Rebellion. ...

Every year Tortoise sleeps through winter. He assumes he isn`t missing much. However, his friends are determined to prove otherwise! Will Tortoise go to sleep or will his friends convince him to stay awake & experience the frosty fun of the season? Best-selling author Katy Hudson`s charming picture book will convince even the biggest grouch that winter can be magical if you have friends by your side. ...

Frida Kahlo transformed the emotional & physical pain of her life into art. Her paintings make visible the invisible, interior experiences of many women. They speak of loss, loneliness, her struggle to have children, her lovers, a bus accident that shattered her body & spirit. But they are also full of passion & warmth, each canvas a defiant celebration of what it is to be human. A Love Letter from a Stray Moon reimagines the exceptional life & uncompromising art of Frida Kahlo, & does so allegorically, using Kahlo as a cipher for the experiences of the women
- including the author
- who identify with her. Much more than the portrait of an artist, this is a vision that resonates with grief, rebellion & transcendence. It is the story of many different women channelled through the journey of one.

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The Austro-Hungarian army that marched east & south to confront the Russians & Serbs in the opening campaigns of World War I had a glorious past but a pitiful present. Speaking a mystifying array of languages & lugging outdated weapons, the Austrian troops were hopelessly unprepared for the industrialized warfare that would shortly consume Europe. As prizewinning historian Geoffrey Wawro explains in A Mad Catastrophe, the doomed Austrian conscripts were an unfortunate microcosm of the Austro-Hungarian Empire itself--both equally ripe for destruction. After the assassination of the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand in June 1914, Germany goaded the Empire into a war with Russia & Serbia. With the Germans massing their forces in the west to engage the French & the British, everything--the course of the war & the fate of empires & alliances from Constantinople to London--hinged on the Habsburgs` ability to crush Serbia & keep the Russians at bay. However, Austria-Hungary had been rotting from within for years, hollowed out by repression, cynicism, & corruption at the highest levels. Commanded by a dying emperor, Franz Joseph I, & a querulous celebrity general, Conrad von Hotzendorf, the Austro-Hungarians managed to bungle everything: their ultimatum to the Serbs, their declarations of war, their mobilization, & the pivotal battles in Galicia & Serbia. By the end of 1914, the Habsburg army lay in ruins & the outcome of the war seemed all but decided. Drawing on deep archival research, Wawro charts the decline of the Empire before the war & reconstructs the great battles in the east & the Balkans in thrilling & tragic detail. A Mad Catastrophe is a riveting account of a neglected face of World War I, revealing how a once-mighty empire collapsed in the trenches of Serbia & the Eastern Front, changing the course of European history. ...

A Mad World My Masters is arguably John Simpson`s most popular volume of autobiographical writing. There are only a handful of places left on this earth where you can`t buy a Mc Donald`s hamburger or stay in a Holiday Inn
- & John Simpson has been to them all. This hugely successful volume of writing is a celebration of some of the world`s wilder places. His extraordinary experiences include stories about a television camera that killed people, about how Colonel Gadhaffi farted his way through an interview & how he
- Simpson
- mooned the Queen. From small heroes to big villains, John Simpson is a master of storytelling, carrying within him a sense of wonder & adventure. Having been at the epicentre of many of the world`s flashpoints for over 30 years, Simpson has a journalistic eye for detail & nuance & never holds back from telling you the things you want to know. He is a pro at bringing people & places to life, poking fun where appropriate & never taking the moral high ground for the sake of political correctness.


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Three seasonal stories set in Paris at Christmas, from the celebrated creator of Inspector Maigret. It is Christmas in Paris, but beneath the sparkling lights & glittering decorations lie sinister deeds & dark secrets... This collection brings together three of Simenon`s most enjoyable Christmas tales, newly translated, featuring Inspector Maigret & other characters from the Maigret novels. In `A Maigret Christmas`, the Inspector receives two unexpected visitors on Christmas Day, who lead him on the trail of a mysterious intruder dressed in red & white. In ` Seven Small Crosses in a Notebook`, the sound of alarms over Paris send the police on a cat & mouse chase across the city. & ` The Little Restaurant in Les Ternes (A Christmas Story for Grown-Ups)` tells of a cynical woman who is moved to an unexpected act of festive charity in a nightclub
- one that surprises even her...
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At first sight, Ove is almost certainly the grumpiest man you will ever meet. He thinks himself surrounded by idiots
- neighbours
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A New York Times bestseller In a remarkable career, Edward O. Thorp rose up from nothing to become a professor at MIT, invented card counting & the world`s first wearable computer, beat the casinos of Las Vegas at blackjack & roulette, then became a bestselling author & a hedge fund heavyweight, ushering in a revolution on Wall Street. Now he shares his incredible life story for the first time, revealing how he made his fortune & giving advice to the next generation of investors. An intellectual thrill ride, replete with practical wisdom, A Man for All Markets is a scarcely imaginable tale of ludicrous success. ...