Vikram Seth`s novel is, at its core, a love story: the tale of Lata
- & her mother`s
- attempts to find her a suitable husb&,

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Take a mini-break & join Sydney-born food & travel writer, blogger & intrepid gourmet, Tori Haschka on her globetrotting adventures in food. Do you often while away the time imagining yourself eating sardines with Campari, peach & fennel as the sun sets over Piazza San Marco in Venice? Do you dream of skiing through picture-perfect Swiss Alps so that you can reward yourself with a steaming apple fritter at the end of it? If you long to take a holiday in the comfort of your kitchen, let Tori be your guide
- no passport required. She shares her memories & anecdotes from her travels with unique charm & humour, & recreates recipes to allow you to taste food redolent of beaches, chalets, dappled terraces, souks, tapas bars & tavernas from the four corners of the globe.
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This fourth novel in Tariq Ali`s ” Islam Quintet” is set in medieval Palermo, a Muslim city rivaling Baghdad & Cordoba in size & splendor. The year is 1153. The Normans are ruling Siqqiliya, but Arab culture & language dominate the island & the court. Sultan Rujari (King Roger) surrounds himself with Muslim intellectuals, several concubines, & an administration presided over by gifted eunuchs. The bishops, expecting to be at the pinnacle of power, are angered by the decadence of the court. In this captivating novel, Tariq Ali charts the life & loves of the medieval cartographer Muhammed al-Idrisi. Torn between his close friendship with the sultan & his friends who are leaving the island or plotting a resistance to Norman rule, Idrisi finds temporary solace in the harem; but, confronted by the common people of Noto & Catania, his conscience is troubled. ...

The only travel writing book on Gascony, ”A Summer in Gascony” is a charming & humorous tale of an extraordinary summer spent in this relatively unknown part of south-western France, the home of D Artagnan, Cyrano de Bergerac, gutsy red wine, fine sweet wine Armagnac & sunflowers. It is a tale of two love affairs: an idyllic summer romance & a lifelong love affair with Gascony with its village festivals, dusty roads & sun-baked wine country. Stretching from Toulouse in the east to the Atlantic coast in the west, from the river Garonne in the north to the Pyrenees in the south, Gascony is a golden land of rolling hills & wide horizons, swathed with vineyards, sunflowers, maize & pastures. It has a distinct identity which sets it apart from the rest of France & old affinities with England: the Gascons fought alongside the English in the Middle Ages & the Napoleonic Wars against their common foe the French. In the tiny hamlet of Peguilhan, Martin Calder is introduced to the Gascon way of life: working in the fields, shepherding & slaughtering sheep, feeding the cattle, harvesting the wheat, watering the crops. He discovers a unique people, fiercely proud of their independent heritage. Full of colourful characters: the charismatic & convivial Jacques-Henri, the hardworking farmer whose family take Martin into their home & hearts; the yoga-practising Germans; &, Pattes, the mischievous stray dog; Madame Parle-Beaucoup, the town gossip & Monsieur Fustignac, whose pride in his Gascon heritage is unforgettable. But the real star of the book is Gascony itself, with its strong spirit of independence & the simple pleasures it provides. Written by a true Francophile who has come to know the people & understands their way of life, ”A Summer in Gascony” evokes the spirit, sights, smells & sounds of this still relatively unknown & unspoiled other South of France. ...

In 1864 the poet, essayist, & novelist Alexander Smith spent six weeks exploring the island of Skye, resulting in a book that is widely regarded as his masterpiece. Perceptive & insightful, this new edition provides Smith's detailed accounts of the islanders at work & play, their customs, folklore, & the incidental details of everyday living. Vivid & magnificent descriptions of island culture shape this classic memoir of 19th-century Skye. ...

Rico has been banished to society has neither a roof over his head nor a steady income on which to depend. When a friend & fellow clochard dies of exposure after a night spent in the Paris metro, Rico decides to flee the northern cold for his beloved south, for Marseilles & the Mediterranean. From the celebrated author of the Marseilles trilogy, this is both an affecting on-the-road novel & a tender exploration of love heal & to destroy. ...

In the middle of Kigali is a swimming pool at the Hotel des Mille-Collines. It is a magnet for a privileged group of residents, a place where middle-class Rwandans drink with melancholy expatriates & prostitutes. But beyond the walls of the hotel exists a chaotic society in which millions live in poverty, surrounded by violence & disease. In this troubled world, Valcourt, a Canadian journalist, falls for Gentille, a beautiful Hutu waitress.A Sunday at the Pool in Kigali is a poignant love story, a stirring hymn to humanity & a modern classic of spellbinding power, confronting the nightmare that ravaged Rwanda in the 1990s. ...

John Stow first published his ” Survey of London” in 1598 during the reign of Elizabeth I. His detailed description of the city & its suburbs was an immediate success when it first appeared & has remained a popular classic of English history ever since. ...

Life in the wild teaches us invaluable lessons. Extreme situations force us to seize opportunities, face up to dangers & rely on our instincts. But living a purpose-driven, impactful life can be an even greater challenge... In A Survival Guide for Life, Bear Grylls shares the hard-earned lessons he's learned from some of the harshest environments on earth. How do you keep going when all the odds are stacked against you? How can you inspire a team to follow you in spite of obvious danger? What are the most important skills to learn if you really want to achieve your maximum potential? Bear's instantly inspiring tales from his adventures in all four corners of the globe include his personal life lessons you will never forget. We're all capable of living life more boldly & of having more fun along the way. Here's to your own great adventure! ...

Life in the wild teaches us invaluable lessons. Extreme situations force us to seize opportunities, face up to dangers & rely on our instincts. But living a purpose-driven, impactful life can be an even greater challenge... In ”A Survival Guide for Life”, Bear Grylls shares the hard-earned lessons he`s learned from some of the harshest environments on earth. How do you keep going when all the odds are stacked against you? How can you inspire a team to follow you in spite of obvious danger? What are the most important skills to learn if you really want to achieve your maximum potential? Bear`s instantly inspiring tales from his adventures in all four corners of the globe include his personal life lessons you will never forget. We`re all capable of living life more boldly & of having more fun along the way. Here`s to your own great adventure! ...