In The Making of Modern Britain Andrew Marr paints a fascinating portrait of life in Britain during the first half of the twentieth century as the country recovered from the grand wreckage of the British Empire Between the death of Queen Victoria & the end of the Second World War the nation was shaken by war & peace The two wars were the worst we had ever known & the episodes of peace among the most turbulent & surprising As the political forum moved from Edwardian smoking rooms to an increasingly democratic Westminster the people of Britain experimented with extreme ideas as they struggled to answer the question How should we live?' Socialism? Fascism? Feminism? Meanwhile fads such as eugenics vegetarianism & nudism were gripping the nation while the popularity of the music hall soared It was also a time that witnessed the birth of the media as we know it today & the beginnings of the welfare state Beyond trenches flappers & Spitfires this is a story of strange cults & economic madness of revolutionaries & heroic inventors sexual experiments & raucous stage heroines From organic food to drugs nightclubs & celebrities to package holidays crooked bankers to sleazy politicians the echoes of today's Britain ring from almost every page ...

The new edition of The Making of Modern South Africa provides a comprehensive current introduction to the key themes & debates concerning the history of this controversial country Engagingly written the author provides a sharp analytical overview of the new South Africa Examines the major issues in South Africa's history from pre-colonial to present including colonial conquest; the establishment of racism segregation & apartheid; resistance movements; & the eventual founding of democracy Contains an additional final chapter that takes the story to the present & considers the challenges & compromises of the first two decades of democracy Updated with material on post-apartheid era & current issues in South Africa The only book that gives direct guidance to bibliographical material & readings on key debates Provides a sharp analytical overview of the new South Africa Extensive references are given to the key writings on each topic & the debates between scholars ...

The BBC's lavish adaptation of Pride & Prejudice' starring Colin Firth was eighteen months in the making & continues to captivate audiences today This indispensable companion to the series is packed with colour photographs interviews & lavish illustrations Follow a typical day's filming including the wholesale transformation of Lacock village into Jane Austen's Meryton Discover how Colin Firth approaches the part of Darcy how actors' costumes & wigs are designed & how Carl Davis recreates the period music & composes an original score Piece together the roles of behind-the-scenes contributors from researchers to fencing masters ...

Just as Star Wars Episode VI Return of the Jedi completed the most successful cinematic trilogy of its generation perhaps of all time this splendid thirtieth-anniversary tribute concludes New York Times bestselling author J W Rinzler's trio of breathtaking books celebrating George Lucas's classic saga Once again the author's unprecedented access to the Lucasfilm Archives has yielded a mother lode of fascinating & often unexpected revelations from behind the scenes of a blockbuster in the making Brimming with previously unpublished photos concept artwork script excerpts storyboards on-set interviews & present-day commentary The Making of Return of the Jedi chronicles 'how George Lucas & his crew of extroverted artists misfits & expert craftspeople roused themselves to great heights for a third time' to create the next unforgettable chapter in one of the most beloved stories in movie history Get up close to the action & feel like a studio insider as George Lucas Oscar-nominated screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan & director Richard Marquand huddle in a script conference to debate the destinies of iconic Star Wars characters The artists & technicians at the ground-breaking Industrial Light & Magic facility surpass their own revolutionary innovations with boundary-pushing new visual effects A crack team of sculptors puppeteers actors & 'monstermakers' brings Jabba the Hutt & his unsavoury cohorts to startling slobbering life Actors & crew race to the finish line at Elstree Studios in a fiery desert & beneath the canopy of a dense redwood forest to provide answers to the questions that audiences had waited three years to find out Is Darth Vader really Luke's father? Who is the mysterious 'other'? & who or what is the Emperorstar Wars luminaries from both sides of the camera including Mark Hamill Harrison Ford Carrie Fisher Anthony Daniels Peter Mayhew David Prowse Alec Guinness director Richard Marquand producer Howard Kazanjian Ralph Mc Quarrie Joe Johnston Dennis Muren Phil Tippett & mastermind George Lucas all weigh in with candid insights on everything from technical crises & character design to the Ewoks & the ultimate challenge of bringing this phenomenal space fantasy to a dramatic close A gloriously illustrated & painstakingly researched tribute to a truly spectacular movie The Making of Return of the Jedi invites you to return to a galaxy far far away ...

George Lucas spent nearly ten years bringing his dream project to life a ground-breaking space fantasy movie It would be a swashbuckling sci-fi saga inspired by vintage Flash Gordon serials classic American westerns & mythological heroes Its original title The Star Wars The rest is history Yet its production is a story as entertaining & exciting as the film itself Now recounted in the words of those who were there it is finally being told for the first time During the years 1975 to 1978 over fifty interviews were conducted with key members of the cast & crew Remarkably these interviews have sat undisturbed in the Lucasfilm Archives for three decades Until now The interviews are fresh candid &
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- more accurate than many other reported accounts George Lucas Mark Hamill Harrison Ford Carrie Fisher Anthony Daniels composer John Williams legendary production designer John Barry & a host of others share their fascinating tales of overcoming obstacles
- storms crises technical limitations high stress & bitter disappointment
- while displaying real ingenuity heroism & creativity Using his unprecedented access to the Lucasfilm Archives & this trove of never-before-published 'lost' interviews photographs production notes factoids & anecdotes J W Rinzler hurtles readers back in time for a definitive look at the making of Star Wars For the first time it's all here The evolution of the now-classic story & characters
- including ' Annikin Starkiller' & a 'huge green-skinned monster with no nose & large gills' named Han Solo Excerpts from George Lucas's numerous ever-morphing script drafts The birth of Industrial Light & Magic the special-effects company that revolutionised Hollywood film-making The studio-hopping & budget battles that nearly derailed the entire project The director's early casting saga The gruelling nearly catastrophic location shoot in Tunisia & the following breakneck dash to Elstree Studios in London Lavishly illustrated with hundreds of images spanning the creation of the film The Making of Star Wars is a piece of cinema history It is the true story of human endeavour & creativity that led to the production of one of the most outstanding & innovative movies of all time




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How much do we really know about the place we call 'home'? In this sweeping timely book Nicholas Crane tells the story of Britain The British landscape has been continuously occupied by humans for 12000 years from the end of the Ice Age till the twenty-first century It has been transformed from a European peninsula of glacier & tundra to an island of glittering cities & exquisite countryside In this geographical journey through time we discover the ancient relationship between people & place & the deep-rooted tensions between town & countryside The twin drivers of landscape change
- climate & population
- have arguably wielded as much influence on our habitat as monarchs & politics From tsunamis & farming to Roman debacles & industrial cataclysms from henge to high-rise & hamlet to metropolis this is a book about change & adaptation As Britain lurches from an exploitative past towards a more sustainable future this is the story of our age

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Ensure your pupils are thoroughly prepared for the new-style Common Entrance History examinations with this revised edition of a best-selling ISEB-endorsed textbook 216 pages Rees Rosemary ...

The garden design firm of SMI Landscape Architecture is known for its estate masterplanning its public gardens & streetscapes & its thoughtful private gardens for clients across the United States & in the Bahamas The firm's philosophy incorporates a 'botanical garden' approach with exotic planting & elements of classical European design to create beautiful usable spaces & it is also known for its preservation & restoration of old landscapes As Jorge Sanchez puts it in the Prologue ' Most of us tend to look at garden books for their pictures In this one I would like to show you why; why the pictures came about It is all part of why we came about Gardens do not just happen They are creations' This book examines three of the firm's recent private gardens in great detail two in Florida (' South') & one in Scarsdale New York (' North') Practical information about the design approach & details of the planting are combined with Sanchez's account of the process behind each garden his relationship with the client & the reasons for his decisions Through the narrative
- often personal always descriptive always detailed
- a picture builds up of his approach to each set of circumstances The first project is in Miami a family garden with a surprisingly un-tropical design for its southern location Describing each area of the garden in detail Sanchez explains that the clients wanted it to feel like a northern landscape & how that requirement influenced his choice of plants He puts forward his belief in the importance of the relationship between house & garden saying ' Our responsibility as landscape gardeners is to complement the architecture to give the buildings a sense of place & grounding' The second project in Scarsdale New York came about in an oblique way Sanchez was called in to propose suggestions for landscaping a large site that was to be subdivided & sold He suggested to the owners that they instead develop it for themselves & the idea took hold He explains that having already worked for these clients he was familiar with their taste & requirements but had to consider afresh the new site & the building that was already present His priority was to make the plot look as though it had always been that way keeping its naturalness while adapting it for the use of the family The final garden in the book is the most dramatically sited on a high cliff in Palm Beach Florida Sanchez delighted in taking advantage of the spectacular views throughout the plot Influenced by the work of the renowned twentieth-century landscape designer Beatrix Farrand he created an upper & a lower garden separated by fountain staircases that break up the change in level & provide the cooling splash of water He even describes how the swimming pool was at first destined to be a tennis court but that the idea of a place for grandchildren to play won out As Sanchez puts it 'I have a feeling this is a property they will be using more & more' Throughout the book Sanchez gives a strong sense of participation
- with the climate with the local flora with the clients & with other designers whether sculptors architects or interior designers To be part of such collaborative efforts is hugely satisfying for him as well as producing the best possible result for each set of clients This stunning book will appeal to garden lovers everywhere as well as to design aficionados seeking a deeper understanding of the creative process behind making a garden It will also appeal to garden designers & horticultural students


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Tanizaki's masterpiece is the story of four sisters & the declining fortunes of a traditional Japanese family It is a loving & nostalgic recreation of the sumptuous intricate upper-class life of Osaka immediately before World War Two With surgical precision Tanizaki lays bare the sinews of pride & brings a vanished era to vibrant life ...

The Mala of God is a unique spiritual gift an expression of the surrendered heart filled with prayer devotion & gratitude yet imbued with the unsparing wisdom & power of non-dual self-inquiry With profound simplicity Advaita zen master Mooji unveils the intimate mystical ways of the praying heart & provides insight for those yearning to discover their true nature Many of us seek inner peace & happiness lasting self-realization & awakening or a felt blissful oneness beyond the mere concept of unity In our search for truth & enlightenment we may find ourselves drawn deeply into sincere introspection or with a deep affinity for prayer as a means of self-discovery & communion with the Supreme Using language familiar to many spiritual traditions including Christianity & Sufism this book bridges the seeming divide between devotion & non-dual self-inquiry This beautiful collection can be read start to finish or opened to any page for insight into the moment
- perfect for both the spiritual seeker with an interest in non-duality or one who is drawn to devotion & the power of prayer Including over 100 powerful prayers & blessings complemented by Mooji's drawings & handwritten sayings throughout The Mala of God provides wisdom & inspiration that sets your heart free
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