Caterina Pellegrini is a young Venetian musicologist hired by two competing cousins to find the truthful heir to an alleged treasure concealed by a once-famous, but now almost forgotten, baroque composer. Sworn to secrecy, Caterina can solve the mystery only by searching through the papers contained in the composer`s two chests that have not been opened for centuries. As she delves into all quarters of his life, from professional to personal, she is drawn into one of the most scandalous affairs of the baroque era. When her research takes her in unexpected directions, she begins to wonder what dark secrets these chests hold & just whom can she trust? ...

This is from the bestselling author of the Brunetti crime series comes. The Jewels of Paradise, a gripping tale of intrigue, music, history & greed & Donna Leon`s first st&-alone novel. Caterina Pellegrini is a young Venetian musicologist hired to find the rightful heir to an alleged treasure concealed by a once-famous, but now almost forgotten, baroque composer. Sworn to secrecy, Caterina can solve the mystery only by searching through the papers contained in two chests that have not been opened for centuries. As she delves into all quarters of his life, she is drawn into one of the most scandalous affairs of the baroque era. What dark secrets do these chests hold, & just whom can she trust? ...

The Joke, Milan Kundera`s first novel, gained him a huge following in his own country & launched his worldwide literary reputation. In his foreword Kundera explains why this completely revised translation is the definitive edition of his work. ` It is impossible to do justice here to the subtleties, comedy & wisdom of this very beautiful novel. The author of The Joke is clearly one of the best to be found anywhere.` Salman Rushdie, Observer ...

Ahoy there shipmates! Climb aboard with a new fiction series from Jonny Duddle featuring the crew from The Pirates Next Door. Join Jim Lad & Matilda as they sail the seven seas (and the coast of Dull-on-Sea) in search of adventure & pirate loot. Every full moon, a mysterious ship is seen off the coast of Dull-on-Sea. Then, the day after, gold & jewellery are missing from the homes, shops & museums of the town. Matilda needs the Jolley-Rogers` help to investigate. Can Matilda & Jim Lad retrieve the stolen booty from the mysterious ship before the moon fades? Or will they end up stuck on board with ghostly pirates until the next full moon? ...

Celebrate the twentieth anniversary Allan Ahlberg`s award-winning, seasonal children`s picture book ” The Jolly Christmas Postman!” Children can take each colourful gift out of its envelope & discover for themselves what well-known fairy-tale characters are sending to one another for Christmas! It`s Christmas Eve & the Jolly Postman is delivering greetings to various fairy-tale characters
- there`s a card for Baby Bear, a game appropriately called ` Beware` for Red Riding Hood from Mr Wolf, a get-well jigsaw for hospitalised Humpty Dumpty & three more surprise envelopes. Allan Ahlberg has published over 100 children`s books & with his late wife Janet, created many award-winning children`s picture books, including ” It Was a Dark & Stormy Night”, ” Funnybones”, ” Each Peach Pear Plum” & ” Peepo!” ” The Jolly Christmas Postman” is the seasonal sequel of, the Kate Greenaway Medal winning, ” The Jolly Postman” which has sold over five million copies worldwide & remains one of the most innovative & interactive children`s books available.
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In the spirit of A Series of Unfortunate Events, the Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters stars Jaundice & Kale Bl&-two sisters who avoid excitement at any cost. Instead, they eat tasteless oatmeal, rarely venture into bright sunlight, & read only Dr. Snoote`s Dictionary, because storybooks are just too thrilling. Together, they await the return of their parents, who left for an errand years ago & have never come back. One day, a knock on the door leads to the Bland sisters` kidnapping by an all-female band of pirates-but this is only the beginning of their escapades. Filled with Roald Dahl-esque humour, hilarious high jinks, & swashbuckling, The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters: The Jolly Regina will appeal to middle-grade readers looking for an anything-but-bland adventure. ...

The Solovetski Islands are a remote, lonely archipelago in the south of Russia`s White Sea. Isolated & unknown, they represent Russia in miniature. The Polish journalist Mariusz Wilk, whose surname translates as ` Wolf`, retreated to these glaciated wastelands for several years to observe Russia & contemplate its nature, history, people & events in an attempt to touch the essence of the country. What resulted are a sequence of strong, haunting vignettes that explore the quintessence of soulful, village-orientated Russia, which exists outside of historical events & chronology. Once a craddle of the Orthodox faith & home to a fifteenth century monastry, the islands became a dumping ground for political prisoners, an experimental Gulag & a military test site. Much of the landscape is desolate & the islands languish in a state of decay & delapidation. Many of the 1000 or so inhabitants are unemployed, undernourished & alcoholic, trapped here by circumstances & poverty. However, Wilk discovers a bleak type of beauty on the islands & his descriptions of the smells, tastes & colours present throughout the landscape enrich the text. This unusual book opens up a very diferent Russia. Infused with empathy for the place & its people, this is an emotionally powerful account of life in an area that has largely dropped off most Western observers mental maps of the world. Stanfords Book of the Month September 2003 ...

Cook led three famous expeditions to the Pacific Ocean between 1768 & 1779. In voyages that ranged from the Antarctic circle to the Arctic Sea, Cook charted Australia & the whole coast of New Zeal&, & brought back detailed descriptions of the natural history of the Pacific. Accounts based on Cook`s journals were issued at the time, but it was not until this century that the original journals were published in Beaglehole`s definitive edition. ” The Journals” tells the story of these voyages as Cook wanted it to be told, radiating the ambition, courage & skill which enabled him to carry out an unrivalled series of expeditions in dangerous waters. ...

The 34cm (14) Journey globe offers nearly 5, 000 place names, featuring the National Geographic dual map
- political cartography
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What is it like to leave everything behind & travel many miles to somewhere unfamiliar & strange? A mother & her two children set out on such a journey; one filled with fear of the unknown, but also great hope. Based on her own interactions with people forced to seek a new home, & told from the perspective of a young child, Francesca Sanna has created a beautiful & sensitive book that is full of significance for our time. ...