Hill`s account of his time in the African state of Eritrea is a welcome addition to the literature available on contemporary Africa. The author recounts a remarkable historical legacy, from Eritrea`s creation through to the hostilities of the twentieth century. A former Italian colony & under Ethiopian control since 1950, armed conflict between Ethiopia & Eritrea ignited in 1961 & war ensued for the next thirty years. Independence was finally declared in 1993. Hill introduces us to the people he met & the land he explored. Ardently protective of their independence, the struggle to re-build on both a personal & national level is all too apparent, as is the awareness that with freedom comes new challenges. This is a personal & engaging travelogue, providing a unique insight into a nation that I for one had known very little of. Reviewed by Paul Harniess, European Books buyer, Stanfords Covent Garden Shortlisted for the 2003 Thomas Cook Travel Book Award. ...

At the age of eleven, Helena Frith Powell`s mother gave her a letter after school. It was from her real father her mother told her, not the abusive & moody man Helena had always assumed was the one. This new father was glamorous, an Italian film maker, & he would like her to meet his family on a grand tour of Italy. The moving discovery of Italy & the many relatives Helena never knew she had is wittily described in Ciao Bella, the memoir of her trip through Italy with her father. In a new twist, her father receives a prestigious literary prize in 2008 at the age of 80 & is reunited with her mother after 25 years
- will it last?
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The Ciao, Italia 2013 Wall Calendar from Universe Publishing, offers 12 vintage travel posters from the Library of Congress. These 20th century graphic prints capture the glamour of Italian destinations for the European & American tourists during the Golden Age of Travel. The calendar displays names of days & months both in English & Italian, offers room for writing notes each day, & a monthly planner of previous & subsequent month. ...

CIBI (`a little one`) is a book on home-style Japanese cooking inspired by the eponymous Melbourne cafe & design space created by Meg & Zenta Tanaka. It contains more than 80 seasonally relevant recipes across vegetables, fish & seafood, meat, grains & noodles, & sweets, plus small features on elements of Japanese cooking & food culture, accompanied by beautiful photography & illustrations. The recipes, many designed for sharing, strongly reflect Meg & Zenta`s ethos
- a fresh approach to simplicity using quality produce. CIBI incorporates elements of Japanese design culture & glimpses of their young family`s worlds in Collingwood, Tokyo, & Meg`s birthplace, Okayama, alongside snapshots (in words & pictures) of the CIBI-feel: an enjoyment of food, community & sharing.
...

Over 40 delightful recipes for Venetian bar bites, cocktails & spritzes that will transport you to the stone streets that line the interconnected canals of la Serenissima. Arguably the most seductive city in the world, Venice exudes magic & mystery, history & tradition, so it comes as no surprise that a city which delights at every turn should have a few little-known treasures to discover, too. Not least the custom of enjoying cicchetti (pronounced `chee-keh-tee`). Discover the charms of a small but bustling bacaro, where traditionally a glass of wine, known as an `ombra`, is served together with a selection of small plates or `cicchetti`. There are over 40 recipes starting with Verdura (vegetables) including Rosemary Roasted Chickpeas, Venetian Cheese with Cipolline in Agrodolce & Fig & Blue Cheese Pizzette; or try simple Pesce (fish) plates of Mixed Fried Fish, Soft Shell Crab with Lemon & Caper Mayonnaise, Red Mullet in Saor & Scallops with Borlotti Beans. Also featured are Carne (meat) recipes for Artichokes with Taleggio Cheese & Prosciutto, Calves` Liver with Onions & Potato, Speck & Smoked Ricotta Crocchette. Finish up a selection of Crostini & Tramezzini (breads) as well as Bevande (drinks) to do as the Venetians do. Venetians love to linger a while with friends, chatting over these wonderful morsels & a glass of wine, a Spritz or Campari Soda, but cicchetti make perfect food for entertaining at home, too. Whether for pre-dinner nibbles, or a full blown party, bring a little taste of Italy to your kitchen at home. ...

Cicerone European Cycling Guides (Non UK & Ireland) offer a range of specific titles for scenic, primarily long distance, cycle routes on the continent; ideal for planning a cycle touring holiday or for local, longer distacne bike excursions. Relevant accommodation options & nearby points of interest are given, as is summary visitor information to towns en-route. Guides not only offer in depth route details with essential descriptions, distances & height profiles, they frequently provide information on cycle shops, as well as advice on preparation, kit & transport connections. Legible, overview route maps are shown & recommendations have been provided of the best maps to use in conjunction with the guide, e.g. which IGN maps cover the cycle path routes in France. ...

Cicerone European Walking & Trekking Guides Guides (non UK & Ireland) series is a selection of titles on topics & grades covering specific walking & trekking routes, & more general regional guides which also include some shorter, i.e. three- to five-day, trekking routes. Guides are a smaller format & illustrated with route mapping & colour photography. Very thorough route descriptions are given, with walk profile boxes summarizing essential data such as distance, height gain, grade, walking time & approved map recommendations. Cicerone Press are one of the UK’s most well known & respected publishers of guidebooks for the outdoor enthusiast. Easily distinguished by their convenient pocket size, these books have been a favourite amongst walkers, climbers & cyclists for many years. Their guides for European & international destinations are highly popular amongst English-speaking tourists. The books are of the same high standard as the UK guides, with clear maps, detailed route descriptions & plentiful background information. The range is extensive & often they produce the only available English language guide available for a particular area or long distance route. ...

Great Britain & Ireland Cicerone Cycling Guides offer a range of specific titles for the cyclers across the British Isles, from leisurely family bike rides to long distance tours. Guides not only offer in depth route details with essential description, distances & height profiles, they frequently provide information on cycle shops, cycle hire & useful relevant telephone numbers, as well as advice on preparation, kit & transport connections. Shorter & more localized cycle routes are accompanied by route sketch maps, the long distance cycle guides generally correspond to the Great Britain & Ireland Cicerone Walking Guide format, with Ordnance Survey mapping & title details, as well as summary introduction data boxes. ...

Great Britain & Ireland Cicerone walking guides series is a geographically grouped selection of titles on topics & grades covering short walks & day walks, coastal & ridge walks, lowlands & highlands, long distance trails & popular regional routes. Guides are a smaller format & illustrated with OS mapping & colour photography. Very thorough route descriptions are given, with walk profile boxes summarizing essential data such as distance, height gain, grade, walking time, Ordnance Survey mapping references, & accommodation & parking options. Cicerone Press are one of the UK’s most well known & respected publishers of guidebooks for the outdoor enthusiast. Easily distinguished by their convenient pocket size, these books have been a favourite amongst walkers, climbers & cyclists for many years. Their guides for European & international destinations are highly popular amongst English-speaking tourists. The books are of the same high standard as the UK guides, with clear maps, detailed route descriptions & plentiful background information. The range is extensive & often they produce the only available English language guide available for a particular area or long distance route. ...

Cicerone’s Lakeland Fellranger series is a modern rucksack reference targeted at those wanting to explore England’s Lake District. Each title in the series covers a specific area of the Fells & together the eight guides provide a comprehensive survey of the entire Fells region of the Lake District. Revealing the contemporary pattern of fell approaches, ascents & ridge routes, they give walkers the freedom to explore the well-known peaks as well as the hidden areas of the region.A series of short introductory chapters profile the land of the Fells, with details of the author, a summary of the individual guide, “ Fix the Fells” – dedicated to conservation of the region, Access, Safety & Starting Points. Each of the Fells in the region has a dedicated chapter guiding walkers to the summit & the variety of routes is carefully depicted on extracts from the Harvey map series in addition to fellscape diagrams. The scenic qualities of the landscape are illustrated by colour photographs & detailed summit panoramas that help to underpin the reader’s appreciation of this magical mountain range. ...