For many, gunpowder is associated with Guy Fawkes & the attempt to blow up parliament on 5 November 1605. Fewer people know that the formula for gunpowder was in fact discovered more than 1, 000 years ago
- in China
- & by accident.

Known as 'fire-drug', its origin was the alchemists' search for immortality, 'the elixir of life', & it was initially a medicine, not an explosive. It is a myth that the Chinese used gunpowder only for fireworks; in fact, within a few hundred years of the discovery, the Chinese military was equipped with every type of weapon that ever used gunpowder
- bombs, incendiaries, rockets, mines, guns & cannons.

This fascinating book tells the story of the huge impact of gunpowder on every state & empire in the world. For 400 years the Chinese kept it to themselves, until a Mongol soldier leaked the secret to the Islamic world, where gunpowder played a crucial role in the rise of the great empires of the Ottomans & the Mughals: the spectacular capture of Constantinople in 1453 was accomplished through new siege tactics, while India was conquered with muskets & artillery mounted on 700 carts held together with ox harnesses.

Even more important was the impact of gunpowder on Europe where, driven by the demands of almost constant warfare, new weapons created new states. Equally, gunpowder helped Europeans destroy the Aztec & Inca empires & then go on to dominate the rest of the world.

Its extraordinary history ended during the nineteenth century when even more destructive high explosives took over. Gunpowder is packed with unexpected & interesting facts, & reveals its exciting, devastating & important story with global sweep & storytelling power.










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For decades, British bands like The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, The Who, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, The Clash, Wham! & even the Spice Girls have dominated the music industry & made countless millions for themselves, their record companies & their managers.

For behind each of those bands was a guiding h&, a Svengali, protecting, promoting, persuading & occasionally punishing on the band

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This book answers the most obvious, the most important, yet the most difficult question about human history: why history unfolded so differently on different continents. Geography & biography, not race, moulded the contrasting fates of Europeans, Asians, Native Americans, sub-Saharan Africans, & aboriginal Australians. An ambitious synthesis of history, biology, ecology & linguistics, Guns, Germs & Steel is one of the most important & humane works of popular science. ...

Hound Dog

Thanks to the mircaulous Guru Guru Bone, Ponta the Labrador retriever can turn into a human girl
- & she has


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Dog Days

Ponta the Labrador retriever is no ordinary dog. With the magic Guru Guru Bone, she can turn at will into a human

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Thanks to the invention of the Guru Guru Bone, Ponta can now change from puppy to teenage girl at will. But human customs are hard to master, & she keeps finding herself in strange & awkward situations. Will Ponta have to spend Christmas in the dog pound? Will she ever attract her one true love, cute high school boy Mirai? She ...

Ponta is a Labrador retriever puppy, the Koizumi family's pet. But when Grandpa Koizumi, an amateur inventor, creates the Guru Guru Bone, Ponta discovers she can use it to turn into a human girl! Ponta quickly meets & falls in love with Mirai Iwaki. & when he realises that she's actually a dog, Mirai learns to overcome it. Talk about an odd couple.

In ways of the heart, it is certainly not an easy road for them. Plus Mirai's ex-girlfriend wants him back
- by any means necessary. When Mirai & Ponta go to the beach together, the trip turns disastrous. Can Ponta make the romance work, or will she give up her life as a human forever?


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Ponta is a tail-wagging puppy, the beloved pet of the Koizumi family. Then Grandpa Koizumi invents the Guru Guru Bone, which gives Ponta the power to transform into a human girl. Ponta is immediately drawn to handsome Mirai Iwaki, & even after he discovers that she's really a dog, the two fall head over heels (paws?) in love.

When Mirai's ex-girlfriend stands between Ponta & Mirai, the budding relationship sours. Ponta realises that she can never really be Mirai's true girlfriend, so she runs away. & when the lovers try to reunite, tragedy strikes. Will out-of-body experiences, old flames, & spring fever keep Ponta & Mirai apart?

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