In 1929, a newly married M.F.K. Fisher said goodbye to a milquetoast American culinary upbringing & sailed with her husband to Dijon, where she tasted real French cooking for the first time. ” The Gastronomical Me” is a chronicle of her passionate embrace of a whole new way of eating, drinking, & celebrating the senses. As she recounts memorable meals shared with an assortment of eccentric & fascinating characters, set against a backdrop of mounting pre-war tensions, we witness the formation not only of her taste but of her character & her prodigious talent. ...

Between 1970 & 1975 Jon Swain, the English journalist portrayed in David Puttnam`s film, ” The Killing Fields”, lived in the lands of the Mekong river. This is his account of those years, & the way in which the tumultuous events affected his perceptions of life & death as Europe never could. He also describes the beauty of the Mekong landscape
- the villages along its banks, surrounded by mangoes, bananas & coconuts, & the exquisite women, the odours of opium, & the region`s other face
- that of violence & corruption.

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The African Association, founded in 1788, was the world� s first geographical society. Its aim was to explore the interior of Africa, a region known only through legend & vague report. What followed included dramatic crossings of the Sahara, the exploration of the Niger & the Nile & the search for the legendary city of gold � Timbuktu. Sattin expertly recalls these arresting stories, passionately animating the characters & incidents from this unique era, to produce an outstanding account of the quest to reveal the mysteries of Africa. ...

Located at the western edge of the Eurasian steppe, Ukraine has long been the meeting place of empires
- Roman to Ottoman, Habsburg
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From award-winning historian Serhii Plokhy, The Gates of Europe is the definitive history of Ukraine that helps us understand the country`s past & the current crisis. At the western edge of the Eurasian steppe, caught between Central Europe, Russia, & the Middle East, Ukraine has long been the meeting place of empires
- Roman to Ottoman, Habsburg to Russian
- that left their imprint on the landscape, the language & the people. The frontier between Islam & Christianity created a class of ferocious warriors known as the Cossacks, while the encounter between the Catholic & Orthodox churches led to a religious tradition that bridges Western & Eastern Christianity. Ukraine has been a home to millions of Jews, serving as the birthplace of Hassidism
- & as one of the killing fields of the Holocaust. In The Gates of Europe, award-winning historian Serhii Plokhy examines the history of Ukraine`s search for its identity, bringing together some of the major figures in Ukrainian history: Prince Yaroslav the Wise of Kyiv, whose daughter Anna became queen of France; the Cossack ruler Ivan Mazepa, who was immortalized in the poems of Byron & Pushkin; Nikita Khrushchev & his protege-turned-nemesis Leonid Brezhnev; & the heroes of the Maidan protests of 2013 & 2014, who embody the current struggle over Ukraine`s future. As Plokhy explains, the recent conflict with Russia is a tragic case of history repeating itself, as Ukraine once again finds itself in the centre of a battle of global proportions. Fascinating & multilayered, The Gates of Europe is the essential guide to understanding not just Ukraine`s past but also its future.


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” Evocative, muscular.”
- Kathleen Jamie. Karen Lloyd takes us on a deeply personal journey around the 60 miles of coastline that
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Barcelona, city of mystery, & Antonio Gaudi, its most famous exponent are the subjects of this gripping new thriller for all lovers of religious conspiracy. As the Grand Master of an ancient religious brotherhood nears death, he chooses to entrust to Antonio Gaudi a sacred object whose existence has been a guarded secret since the early Christian era. The great architect protects the artefact by hiding it where he believes it might never be discovered! A new century, & a new danger. The granddaughter of Gaudi`s apprentice is now charged with finding the holy object. With the help of Miguel, her mathematician boyfriend, Maria unravels the clues Gaudi placed in his work. The prize, she believes, is the whereabouts of a sacred relic. But as mutilated bodies & sinister enemies follow in their wake, both realize that what`s at stake is of far greater importance! & their survivial is the key. ...

From award-winning writer Elif Shafak, the Orange Prize long-listed author of The Forty Rules of Love & The Architect`s Apprentice, The Gaze is a humorous & carnivalesque exploration of what it means to look & be looked at... An obese woman & her lover, a dwarf, are sick of being stared at wherever they go & so decide to reverse roles. The man goes out wearing make-up & the woman draws a moustache on her face. This elegant, unforgettable novel explores our desire to look at others. ” Beautifully evoked.” (The Times). ” Original & compelling.” (TLS). Elif Shafak is the acclaimed author of nine novels including The Bastard of Istanbul, The Forty Rules of Love & Honour, & is the most widely read female writer in Turkey. Her work has been translated into more than forty languages & she contributes to numerous international publications, including the New York Times, Financial Times, Guardian, Independent, Newsweek & Time magazine. She is also a public speaker working with The London Speaker Bureau & is a TED Global speaker. Elif Shafak has previously been longlisted for the Orange Prize, the Baileys Prize & the IMPAC Dublin Award, & shortlisted for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. She is based in London with her two children. ...

The history of the island of Cyprus is, in many ways, an important part of world history. Coveted by a succession of foreign powers, it was repeatedly occupied; the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, crusaders, Venetians, Genoese, Ottomans, & British, & they all left their mark. Aside from the Roman & early-Byzantine ruins of Salamis, the most impressive monuments date from the Frankish & Venetian times: the Abbey of Bellapais, the fortified harbour of Kyrenia, the magnificent cathedrals of Nicosia, & Famagusta
- the setting for Shakespeare`s Othello. In The Geckos of Bellapais we see the cultures & legends, the colours & the light of the Levant, the sediments of the island`s history, including its division after the Turkish invasion of 1974 & the difficulties that followed.
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The history of science is all around us, if you know where to look. With this unique traveler`s guide, you`ll learn about 128 destinations around the world where discoveries in science, mathematics, or technology occurred or is happening now. Travel to Munich to see the world`s largest science museum, watch Foucault`s pendulum swinging in Paris, ponder a descendant of Newton`s apple tree at Trinity College, Cambridge, & more. Each site in ” The Geek Atlas” focuses on discoveries or inventions, &

Includes:: information about the people & the science behind them. Full of interesting photos & illustrations, the book is organized geographically by country (and within the U.S. by state), complete with latitudes & longitudes for GPS devices. Notable destinations include: Bletchley Park in the UK, where the Enigma code was broken; The Horn Antenna in Holmdel, New Jersey, where the Big Bang theory was accidentally confirmed; The Trinity Test site in New Mexico, where the first atomic bomb was exploded; The Alan Turing Memorial in Manchester, England; The National Cryptologic Museum in Fort Meade, Maryland; &, The Joint Genome Institute in Walnut Creek, California You won`t find tedious, third-rate museums, or a tacky plaque stuck to a wall stating that ` Professor X slept here`. Every site in this book has real scientific, mathematical, or technological interest
- places guaranteed to make every geek`s heart pound a little faster. Plan a trip with ” The Geek Atlas” & make your own discoveries along the way.


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