Pagan Spain



Pagan Spain Description - A master chronicler of the African-American experience, Richard Wright brilliantly expanded his literary horizons with Pagan Spain, originally published in 1957. The Spain he visited in the mid-twentieth century was not the romantic locale of song and story, but a place of tragic beauty and dangerous contradictions. The portrait he offers is a blistering, powerful, yet scrupulously honest depiction of a land and people in turmoil, caught in the strangling dual grip of cruel dictatorship and what Wright saw as an undercurrent of primitive faith. An amalgam of expert travel reportage, dramatic monologue, and arresting sociological critique, Pagan Spain serves as a pointed and still-relevant commentary on the grave human dangers of oppression and governmental corruption.


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She-Wolves: The Women Who Ruled England Before Elizabeth



She-Wolves: The Women Who Ruled England Before Elizabeth Description - “Helen Castor has an exhilarating narrative gift. . . . Readers will love this book, finding it wholly absorbing and rewarding.” —Hilary Mantel, Booker Prize-winning author of Wolf Hall In the tradition of Antonia Fraser, David Starkey, and Alison Weir, prize-winning historian Helen Castor delivers a compelling, eye-opening examination of women and power in England, witnessed through the lives of six women who exercised power against all odds—and one who never got the chance. Exploring the narratives of the Empress Matilda, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Isabella of France, Margaret of Anjou, and other “she-wolves,” as well as that of the Nine Days' Queen, Lady Jane Grey, Castor invokes a magisterial discussion of how much—and how little—has changed through the centuries. 


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The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World



The Lion in the Living Room: How House Cats Tamed Us and Took Over the World Description - “By turns funny and disturbing, The Lion in the Living Room is full of surprises. Like all the best nonfiction, it will make you think twice about the world around you.” —Elizabeth Kolbert, bestselling author of The Sixth Extinction

“Dig deep into the history, biology, and science of house cats in this charming, highly informative read that explains how cats came to rule.” B&N Reads

“Eminently readable and gently funny, Tucker’s blend of pop science and social commentary will appeal to cat lovers as well as a broad general audience with an interest in natural history.” —Library Journal (starred review)

A lively adventure through history, natural science, and pop culture in search of how cats conquered the world, the Internet, and our hearts.

House cats rule back alleys, deserted Antarctic islands, and our bedrooms. Clearly, they own the Internet, where a viral cat video can easily be viewed upwards of ten million times. But how did cats accomplish global domination? Unlike dogs, they offer humans no practical benefit. The truth is they are sadly incompetent rat-catchers and pose a threat to many ecosystems. Yet, we love them still.

To better understand these furry strangers in our midst, Abby Tucker travels to meet the breeders, activists, and scientists who’ve dedicated their lives to cats. She visits the labs where people sort through feline bones unearthed from the first human settlements, treks through the Floridian wilderness in search of house cats on the loose, and hangs out with Lil Bub, one of the world’s biggest feline celebrities.

Witty, intelligent, and always curious, Tucker shows how these tiny creatures have used their relationship with humans to become one of the most powerful animals on the planet. The appropriate reaction to a cuddly kitten, it seems, might not be aww but awe.


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Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine (Kindle Single)



Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine (Kindle Single) Description - How did thousands of premature infants come to be exhibited at America’s most popular amusement park?

In Miracle at Coney Island: How a Sideshow Doctor Saved Thousands of Babies and Transformed American Medicine, Claire Prentice uncovers the incredible true story of Martin Couney, the “incubator doctor.”

Couney ran his incubator facility for premature babies at Coney Island from 1903 to 1943 and set up similar exhibits at World’s Fairs and amusement parks across America, and in London, Paris, Mexico and Brazil.

Couney’s techniques were advanced for the time and his facility was expensive to run. But he didn’t charge the parents of the preemies a penny; instead the public paid to see them. He claimed to have a survival rate of 85 percent. By contrast, most mainstream doctors in the early part of the 20th century regarded premature babies as “weaklings” and did little or nothing to save them.

Prentice's meticulous research unravels the mystery of Couney’s origins, and reveals that the “incubator doctor” was not all that he seemed. She brings one of the most extraordinary stories in American medicine to life through interviews with Couney’s former “incubator babies.”

Claire Prentice is an award-winning journalist and the author of The Lost Tribe of Coney Island: Headhunters, Luna Park, and the Man Who Pulled Off the Spectacle of the Century. She has contributed to the BBC, the Washington Post, the Times of London, The Guardian, the Smithsonian magazine, the Huffington Post, NPR, Marie Claire, and the Sydney Morning Herald.



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Waterloo: The History of Four Days, Three Armies, and Three Battles



Waterloo: The History of Four Days, Three Armies, and Three Battles Description - #1 Bestseller in the U.K.From the New York Times bestselling author and master of martial fiction comes the definitive, illustrated history of one of the greatest battles ever fought—a riveting nonfiction chronicle published to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Napoleon’s last stand.On June 18, 1815 the armies of France, Britain and Prussia descended upon a quiet valley south of Brussels. In the previous three days, the French army had beaten the Prussians at Ligny and fought the British to a standstill at Quatre-Bras. The Allies were in retreat. The little village north of where they turned to fight the French army was called Waterloo. The blood-soaked battle to which it gave its name would become a landmark in European history.In his first work of nonfiction, Bernard Cornwell combines his storytelling skills with a meticulously researched history to give a riveting chronicle of every dramatic moment, from Napoleon’s daring escape from Elba to the smoke and gore of the three battlefields and their aftermath. Through quotes from the letters and diaries of Emperor Napoleon, the Duke of Wellington, and the ordinary officers and soldiers, he brings to life how it actually felt to fight those famous battles—as well as the moments of amazing bravery on both sides that left the actual outcome hanging in the balance until the bitter end.Published to coincide with the battle’s bicentennial in 2015, Waterloo is a tense and gripping story of heroism and tragedy—and of the final battle that determined the fate of nineteenth-century Europe.


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A People's History of the United States



A People's History of the United States Description - With a new introduction by Anthony Arnove, this updated edition of the classic national bestseller reviews the book’s thirty-five year history and demonstrates once again why it is a significant contribution to a complete and balanced understanding of American history.Since its original landmark publication in 1980, A People's History of the United States has been chronicling American history from the bottom up, throwing out the official version of history taught in schools—with its emphasis on great men in high places—to focus on the street, the home, and the, workplace.Known for its lively, clear prose as well as its scholarly research, A People's History of the United States is the only volume to tell America's story from the point of view of—and in the words of—America's women, factory workers, African-Americans, Native Americans, the working poor, and immigrant laborers. As historian Howard Zinn shows, many of our country's greatest battles—the fights for a fair wage, an eight-hour workday, child-labor laws, health and safety standards, universal suffrage, women's rights, racial equality—were carried out at the grassroots level, against bloody resistance.Covering Christopher Columbus's arrival through President Clinton's first term, A People's History of the United States, which was nominated for the American Book Award in 1981, features insightful analysis of the most important events in our history. 


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The Rothschilds



The Rothschilds Description - Perhaps no other name in history can so truly encapsulate the phrase “rags to riches” as Rothschild does.

In the late eighteenth century, it was a gentle, astute Jew born in a Frankfurt ghetto, Mayer Amschel Rothschild, whose interest in old coins and canny investments would set the family on the path to becoming one of the most powerful dynasties of Europe.

Ennobled by the Austrian Emperor, soon the Rothschild name would become a household name.

Kings and princes, generals and businessmen, whether their move was political or economic, in a time of war or a time of peace, the controlling force behind them would be the Rothschild family.

Dazzlingly rich, the energetic, brilliant and downright extraordinary members of the Rothschild family were the force responsible for innovations in banking throughout the nineteenth century.

Times have changed and dynasties crumbled, but this marvellously rich history tells how the Rothschilds always endure.

Praise for Virgina Cowles



‘The history of the Rothschilds is every bit as rich and remarkable as their wealth.’ – The Times

‘Splendidly readable.’ - The Sunday Times

’One of the most delightful books I have read. Miss Cowles has given us a tour-de-force, well researched, comprehensive, frank … [it] abounds in amazing stories of extraordinary personalities.’ – Books and Bookmen

Virginia Cowles (1912-83) was a renowned American journalist and biographer of historical figures, including Winston Churchill and David Stirling, a founding member of the SAS. Initially covering fashion and society, Cowles made the transition to war correspondent, covering first the Spanish Civil War and then the Second World War, reporting from all over Europe: her service in this was recognised by the British with an OBE in 1947.


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