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In late 1997, world order has been destabilized by recession and extreme nationalism. France and Germany unite to form the "European Confederation." EurCon's attempt to place Eastern Europe under its control meets with resistance, particularly from Poland, and soon the U.S. and Britain are pulled into the struggle. The war and its build-up are reported by various observers: the senior CIA field man in Moscow, the private advisor to the U.S. president, a French intelligence agent, a Hungarian police commander, a Russian intelligence man, a CIA economist and officers of the American, German and Polish armed forces. The nonstop action includes massive air, naval and land battles with first-line equipment. “The techno-thriller has a new ace, and his name is Larry Bond.” —Tom Clancy “A superb storyteller. Bond seems to know everything about warfare, from the grunt in a foxhole to the fighter pilots far above the earth.” —New York Times Book Review “Bond clearly knows what he’s doing. Submarine warfare, dogfights in the air, and combat in the trenches are handled with authority and accuracy.” —San Francisco Chronicle “Techno-thriller fans rejoice! Larry Bond is good – very, very good. I started sweating on the first page.” —Stephen Coonts “Bond’s storytelling is superb.” —Cleveland Plain Dealer “Bond displays a firm grasp of how the national security bureaucracy in Washington goes into action and how the military deploys. —Navy Times “Bond does a good Job of conveying the strange exhilaration of combat.” —Newsday “Bond sets a new standard for the techno-thriller.” —Orlando Sentinel
A sweeping history of southeastern Europe from antiquity to the present that reveals it to be a vibrant crossroads of trade, ideas, and religions. We often think of the Balkans as a region beset by turmoil and backwardness, but from late antiquity to the present it has been a dynamic meeting place of cultures and religions. Combining deep insight with narrative flair, The Great Cauldron invites us to reconsider the history of this intriguing, diverse region as essential to the story of global Europe. Marie-Janine Calic reveals the many ways in which southeastern Europe’s position at the crossroads of East and West shaped continental and global developments. The nascent merchant capitalism of the Mediterranean world helped the Balkan knights fight the Ottomans in the fifteenth century. The deep pull of nationalism led a young Serbian bookworm to spark the conflagration of World War I. The late twentieth century saw political Islam spread like wildfire in a region where Christians and Muslims had long lived side by side. Along with vivid snapshots of revealing moments in time, including Krujë in 1450 and Sarajevo in 1984, Calic introduces fascinating figures rarely found in standard European histories. We meet the Greek merchant and poet Rhigas Velestinlis, whose revolutionary pamphlet called for a general uprising against Ottoman tyranny in 1797. And the Croatian bishop Ivan Dominik Stratiko, who argued passionately for equality of the sexes and whose success with women astonished even his friend Casanova. Calic’s ambitious reappraisal expands and deepens our understanding of the ever-changing mixture of peoples, faiths, and civilizations in this much-neglected nexus of empire.
The peaceful land of Prydain is under threat. The evil Lord of Annuvin is using the dark magic of the Black Cauldron to create a terrifying army of deathless warriors. The Cauldron must be destroyed, and Taran joins Prince Gwydion and his faithful knights, Ellidyr and Adaon, in this perilous quest. Taran is desperate to wear his first sword and prove his worth amongst such noble men. But their adventure will demand great sacrifices, as each warrior fulfils his destiny in totally unexpected ways. The second book in Lloyd Alexander's classic fantasy epic The Chronicles of Prydain. "Lloyd Alexander is the true High King of fantasy." - Garth Nix A Newbery Honour Book 1966
After all the trouble with her car, Meg, a witch, Owl, and Mog, Meg's cat, decide to take Meg's broom to the picnic instead.
The war in the South Pacific in its entirety has remained remarkably neglected by historians. This is the first comprehensive narrative history covering all land, sea and air operations in the theater to the end of World War II. While Guadalcanal is familiar to most Americans and the Kokoda Trail is well known to Australians, the war in the South Pacific includes many now forgotten operations that deserve to be well remembered. Also, significantly, the official Australian history of World War II correctly observed that Australia’s part in the Pacific war is barely mentioned in American histories. This volume finally brings the major Australian contribution to the fore, recognizing too the valuable part played by New Zealand forces in the Solomons campaign. The dramatis personae could hardly be improved upon, including brilliant and imperious General Douglas MacArthur, audacious and profane Admiral William “Bull” Halsey, and bibulous and indelicate Australian General Thomas Blamey. No less interesting are many others that will be mostly new to readers, many from the Japanese side, including indomitable generals Noboru Sasaki and Hatazo Adachi. As for the fighting men, many of their stories are captured in accounts of the actions for which they were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, Victoria Cross, and other decorations for valor. Three chapters are of special interest. Based on the author’s archival research, Chapter 10 tells through confidential correspondence the remarkable story of the death of the top Marine general in the Pacific and its cover-up sanctioned by Halsey. Chapter 23 concerns the first African-American ground troops in combat and tells how the performance of one company on Bougainville resulted in a reversal of that policy. Chapter 26 involves Blamey’s questionable decision to eradicate the isolated Japanese forces, forcing his Australian militia to risk their lives knowing their sacrifices could make no difference in the outcome of the war.
Bronze Medalist, 2016 Independent Publisher Book Awards in the US Northeast -Best Regional Non-Fiction Category Honorable Mention, 2015 Foreword Reviews INDIEFAB Book of the Year Awards in the Religion Category From 1776 to 1914, an amazing collection of prophets, mediums, sects, cults, utopian communities, and spiritual leaders arose in Upstate New York. Along with the best known of these, such as the Shakers, Mormons, and Spiritualists, this book explores more than forty other spiritual leaders or groups, some of them virtually unknown, but all of them fascinating. The author uncovers common threads that characterize these homegrown spiritualities, including roots in Western esoteric traditions, liberation from the psychological pressures of dogmatic Christianity, a preoccupation with sex, and involvement in the radical reform movements of the day. In addition to maps and photographs of surviving buildings and monuments, the book also features a gazetteer of sites listing 150 locations connected to these groups, which may be used as a helpful travel guide to the region.
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY FINANCIAL TIMES From Robert D. Kaplan, named one of the world’s Top 100 Global Thinkers by Foreign Policy magazine, comes a penetrating look at the volatile region that will dominate the future of geopolitical conflict. Over the last decade, the center of world power has been quietly shifting from Europe to Asia. With oil reserves of several billion barrels, an estimated nine hundred trillion cubic feet of natural gas, and several centuries’ worth of competing territorial claims, the South China Sea in particular is a simmering pot of potential conflict. The underreported military buildup in the area where the Western Pacific meets the Indian Ocean means that it will likely be a hinge point for global war and peace for the foreseeable future. In Asia’s Cauldron, Robert D. Kaplan offers up a vivid snapshot of the nations surrounding the South China Sea, the conflicts brewing in the region at the dawn of the twenty-first century, and their implications for global peace and stability. One of the world’s most perceptive foreign policy experts, Kaplan interprets America’s interests in Asia in the context of an increasingly assertive China. He explains how the region’s unique geography fosters the growth of navies but also impedes aggression. And he draws a striking parallel between China’s quest for hegemony in the South China Sea and the United States’ imperial adventure in the Caribbean more than a century ago. To understand the future of conflict in East Asia, Kaplan argues, one must understand the goals and motivations of its leaders and its people. Part travelogue, part geopolitical primer, Asia’s Cauldron takes us on a journey through the region’s boom cities and ramshackle slums: from Vietnam, where the superfueled capitalism of the erstwhile colonial capital, Saigon, inspires the geostrategic pretensions of the official seat of government in Hanoi, to Malaysia, where a unique mix of authoritarian Islam and Western-style consumerism creates quite possibly the ultimate postmodern society; and from Singapore, whose “benevolent autocracy” helped foster an economic miracle, to the Philippines, where a different brand of authoritarianism under Ferdinand Marcos led not to economic growth but to decades of corruption and crime. At a time when every day’s news seems to contain some new story—large or small—that directly relates to conflicts over the South China Sea, Asia’s Cauldron is an indispensable guide to a corner of the globe that will affect all of our lives for years to come. Praise for Asia’s Cauldron “Asia’s Cauldron is a short book with a powerful thesis, and it stands out for its clarity and good sense. . . . If you are doing business in China, traveling in Southeast Asia or just obsessing about geopolitics, you will want to read it.”—The New York Times Book Review “Kaplan has established himself as one of our most consequential geopolitical thinkers. . . . [Asia’s Cauldron] is part treatise on geopolitics, part travel narrative. Indeed, he writes in the tradition of the great travel writers.”—The Weekly Standard “Kaplan’s fascinating book is a welcome challenge to the pessimists who see only trouble in China’s rise and the hawks who view it as malign.”—The Economist “Muscular, deeply knowledgeable . . . Kaplan is an ultra-realist [who] takes a non-moralistic stance on questions of power and diplomacy.”—Financial Times
"John Smit is the world's most capped Test captain and an icon of South African rugby. Under his leadership the Springboks have won a World Cup, two Tri-Nations titles and a Test series against the British & Irish Lions."--Back cover.
Sequel to national bestsellers Torch of Freedom and Crown of Slaves, Book Three in the Crown of Slaves, - Honor Harrington universe. Secret agent Anton Zilwicki and Victor Cachat return in this classic tie-in series set in David Weber's Honorverse. TOIL AND TROUBLE IN THE CAULDRON OF GHOSTS The Mesan Alignment: a centuries-old cabal that seeks to impose its vision of a society dominated by genetic rank onto the human race. Now the conspiracy stands exposed by spies Anton Zilwicki and Victor Cachat¾one an agent of Honor Harringtons Star Kingdom of Manticore, the other a Havenite operative. The outing of the Alignment has turned the galaxys political framework topsy-turvy. Old coalitions have disintegrated. New alliances have been born. For starters, the long and hard-fought war between the Republic of Haven and the Star Empire of Manticore is not only over, but these bitter enemies have formed a new pact. Their common foe: the Mesan Alignment itself. But more information is needed to bring the Alignment out of the shadows. Now, defying the odds and relying on genetic wizardry themselves for a disguise, Zilwicki and Cachat return to Mesa¾only to discover that even they have underestimated the Alignments ruthlessness and savagery. Soon they are on the run in Mesas underworld, not only hunted by the Alignment but threatened by the exploding conflict on the planet between Mesas overlords and the brutalized slaves and descendants of slaves who have suffered under their rule for so long. But if Zilwicki and Cachat succeed in rooting out the ancient conspiracy, a great evil may be finally removed from the galaxy¾and on a long-oppressed planet, freedom may finally dawn. At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management). About the Crown of Slave Series: "Fans of Weber's Honor Harrington series ã will be delighted with this offshoot in which he and coauthor Flint develop several situations and characters from other stories. ...This outstanding effort transcends the label 'space opera' and truly is a novel of ideas.Ó¾Publishers Weekly
This collection represents a thoughtful and beautifully illustrated selection of some of the finest Russian fairy and folk tales for people of all ages:_x000D_ Picture Fables for the Little Ones:_x000D_ The Cock and the Bean_x000D_ The Goat and the Ram_x000D_ The Hungry Wolf_x000D_ The Peasant and the Bear_x000D_ The Dog and the Cock_x000D_ King Frost_x000D_ The Bear's Paw_x000D_ The Bear and the Old Man's Daughters_x000D_ The Straw Ox_x000D_ The Fox and the Blackbird_x000D_ Fairy Tales:_x000D_ Snegorotchka _x000D_ Fire Bird_x000D_ Winged Wolf_x000D_ Self-Playing Harp_x000D_ Seven Brothers_x000D_ Ivan_x000D_ Story of the Golden Mountain_x000D_ Robber Nightingale_x000D_ Renowned Hero_x000D_ Mild Man_x000D_ Duck with Golden Eggs_x000D_ Bulat the Brave_x000D_ Tsarevich and Ivashka with White Smock_x000D_ Knight Yaroslav and Princess Anastasia _x000D_ The Golden Mountain _x000D_ Morozko _x000D_ Flying Ship _x000D_ Muzhichek-As-Big-As-Your-Thumb _x000D_ Tsarevich Ivan _x000D_ Tale of Little Fool Ivan_x000D_ Little Feather of Fenist _x000D_ Peasant Demyan _x000D_ Enchanted Ring _x000D_ Brave Labourer _x000D_ Sage Damsel _x000D_ Prophetic Dream _x000D_ Two Out of the Knapsack _x000D_ Marko and Vasily_x000D_ Muscovite Folk Tales:_x000D_ The Fiend_x000D_ The Dead Mother_x000D_ The Dead Witch_x000D_ The Treasure_x000D_ The Cross-Surety_x000D_ The Awful Drunkard_x000D_ The Bad Wife_x000D_ The Golovikha_x000D_ The Three Copecks_x000D_ The Miser_x000D_ The Fool and the Birch-Tree_x000D_ The Mizgir_x000D_ The Smith and the Demon_x000D_ Ivan Popyalof_x000D_ The Norka_x000D_ Marya Morevna_x000D_ Koshchei the Deathless_x000D_ The Water Snake_x000D_ The Water King and Vasilissa the Wise_x000D_ The Baba Yaga_x000D_ Vasilissa the Fair_x000D_ The Witch_x000D_ The Witch and the Sun's Sister_x000D_ Emilian the Fool_x000D_ Witch Girl_x000D_ Headless Princess_x000D_ Soldier's Midnight Watch_x000D_ Warlock_x000D_ Fox-Physician_x000D_ Fiddler in Hell_x000D_ Ride on the Gravestone_x000D_ Two Friends_x000D_ Shroud_x000D_ Coffin-Lid_x000D_ Two Corpses_x000D_ Dog and the Corpse_x000D_ Soldier and the Vampire_x000D_ Elijah the Prophet and Nicholas_x000D_ Priest with the Greedy Eyes_x000D_ Hasty Word.....