In the essays collected here William Langewiesche considers how flying has altered not only how we move about the earth, but also how we view our world & our place in it. With vivid descriptions of the aesthetics & excitement of flight, Langewiesche also writes of the risks that go with this beauty: the perils of air traffic control, & the dangers of nervous passengers & bad weather. Full of spare & elegant prose, Aloft is a fascinating journey into the new, profound dimension that flight has added to the human experience. ...

The trip of a lifetime
- that`s what it was supposed to be, paid for with money Gran left thirteen-year old Sam in her will,
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What would it feel like to be out there alone in that empty vastness? Just before midnight on 24 November 2011, Felicity is left completely alone on the coast of Antarctica. The isolation is instant & devastating. Only three people in the world have crossed Antarctica alone. The first two were men & both Norwegian. At the age of 34, British woman Felicity Aston became the third. Unlike her predecessors, she didn`t use kites or parasails to assist her. Within days, frozen into her facemask & reflecting on what had drawn her to such a place, she was battling desperate weather as she towed her heavy sledges. Every morning she wakes believing she cannot face another day as the expedition becomes a race against time to reach the coast before the last flight out. This gripping & inspirational account of personal endurance shows what you can achieve when you grit your teeth & decide just to get through today in one piece. ...

Hans Fallada’s “ Alone in Berlin” is the latest from the author of “ Little Man, What Now?” & “ The Drinker”, again set against the backdrop of the Second World War. It begins in Berlin, 1940, & the city is filled with fear. At the house on 55 Jablonski Strasse, its various occupants try to live under Nazi rule in their different ways: the bullying Hitler loyalists the Persickes, the retired judge Fromm & the unassuming couple Otto & Anna Quangel. Then the Quangels receive the news that their beloved son has been killed fighting in France. Shocked out of their quiet existence, they begin a silent campaign of defiance, & a deadly game of cat & mouse develops between the Quangels & the ambitious Gestapo inspector Escherich. When petty criminals Kluge & Borkhausen also become involved, deception, betrayal & murder ensue, tightening the noose around the Quangels` necks… ...

” The terrifying experience of being alone in the woods is rendered through the eyes of a young Indian boy... A familiar story arc conveyed through traditional art captivates with its freshness & originality.” Starred Review, ” Kirkus Reviews”
” To be read aloud... Evolving slowly from darkness into light, the color scheme matches Musa`s transition from terror into peace.”
- ” Fore Word Reviews”
One day Musa sets off from his village to collect firewood. It is the first time he has ventured out alone. Suddenly he hears a loud noise & becomes very afraid. Was the sound a wild boar? A whole herd of wild boars? Or something even worse?
What happens to Musa & how he learns to deal with his fear is explored in this powerful yet sensitive visual story of the psychology of fear. Typography, book design, contemporary tribal artwork, & narrative combine in this new children`s title from Tara Books. Artwork by the talented Bhajju Shyam, the celebrated Gond folk artist from India, whose previous books include ” The Night Life of Trees” & ” That`s How I See Things.”
US Grade Level Equivalent: 1, US Guided Reading Level: I




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Alone on the Ice by David Roberts is the account of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition in 1911 – 1913 & Douglas Mawson’s incredible effort for survival, after falling into a crevasse & making his way back to camp in a desperate solo 30 days trek. Mawson was a lecturer in mineralogy & petrology at the University of Adelaide & served under Shackleton in 1907-1909. In leading the AAE multi research expedition, consisting of weeks of marching & months spent in the hostile territory, he aimed to map Antarctica, a largely unknown land at the time. Extracts from the personal diaries of the crew members reveal the men’s commitment to the mission, despite enduring extreme cold & hunger, in such an isolated place. Their stories are enriched by parallels drawn from Scott, Shackleton & Amundsen experience along the same uncharted regions & illustrated with photographs by Frank Hurley, the official photographer in the team. David Roberts meticulous & extensive research does justice to Douglas Mawson’s & his expedition shining light onto an almost forgotten story & personalities of the age of exploration. Alone in the Ice is an incredible, but true gripping story of adventure, tragedy & most of all of human endurance. ...

On 17 January 1913, alone & near starvation, Douglas Mawson, leader of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, was hauling a sledge to get back to base camp. The dogs were gone. Then Mawson plunged through a snow bridge, dangling over an abyss by the sledge harness. A line of poetry gave him the will to haul himself back to the surface. Mawson was sometimes reduced to crawling & one night he discovered that the soles of his feet had detached from the flesh beneath. On 8 February, he staggered back to base, his features unrecognisably skeletal. Illustrated by a trove of Frank Hurley`s Antarctic photographs, this thrilling, almost unbelievable account establishes Mawson in his rightful place as one of the greatest polar explorers & expedition leaders. ...

` Riveting... Honnold is neither crazy nor reckless. Alone on the Wall reveals him to be an utterly unique & extremely appealing young man.` Jon Krakauer A twelve-year-old kid in the audience raised his hand & asked, ` Aren`t you afraid you`re gonna die?` Without missing a beat, Alex shot back, ` We`ve all gotta die sometimes. You might as well go big.` Alex Honnold is 28 years old, & perhaps the world`s best `free solo` climber, scaling impossible rock faces without ropes, pitons or support of any kind. There is a purity to Alex`s climbs that is easy to comprehend, but impossible to fathom; in the last forty years, only a handful of climbers have pushed `free soloing` to the razor edge of risk. Half of them are dead. From Yosemite`s famous Half Dome to the frighteningly difficult El Sendero Luminoso in Mexico, Alone on the Wall is structured around Alex`s seven most extraordinary climbing achievements so far. These are tales to make your palms sweat & your feet curl with vertigo. Together, they get to the heart of how
- & why
- Alex does what he does. Exciting, uplifting & truly awe-inspiring, Alone on the Wall is a book about the essential truths of risk & reward, & the ability to maintain a singular focus, even in the face of extreme danger.

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` Riveting... Honnold is neither crazy nor reckless. Alone on the Wall reveals him to be an utterly unique & extremely appealing young man.` Jon Krakauer A twelve-year-old kid in the audience raised his hand & asked, ` Aren`t you afraid you`re gonna die?` Without missing a beat, Alex shot back, ` We`ve all gotta die sometimes. You might as well go big.` Alex Honnold is 28 years old, & perhaps the world`s best `free solo` climber, scaling impossible rock faces without ropes, pitons or & support of any kind. There is a purity to Alex`s climbs that is easy to comprehend, but impossible to fathom; in the last forty years, only a handful of climbers have pushed `free soloing` to the razor edge of risk. Half of them are dead. From Yosemite`s famous Half Dome to the frighteningly difficult El Sendero Luminoso in Mexico, Alone on the Wall is structured around Alex`s seven most extraordinary climbing achievements so far. These are tales to make your palms sweat & your feet curl with vertigo. Together, they get to the heart of how
- & why
- Alex does what he does. Exciting, uplifting & truly awe-inspiring, Alone on the Wall is a book about the essential truths of risk & reward, & the ability to maintain a singular focus, even in the face of extreme danger.

...

` Riveting... Honnold is neither crazy nor reckless. Alone on the Wall reveals him to be an utterly unique & extremely appealing young man.` Jon Krakauer A twelve-year-old kid in the audience raised his hand & asked, ` Aren`t you afraid you`re gonna die?` Without missing a beat, Alex shot back, ` We`ve all gotta die sometimes. You might as well go big.` Alex Honnold is 28 years old, & perhaps the world`s best `free solo` climber, scaling impossible rock faces without ropes, pitons or & support of any kind. There is a purity to Alex`s climbs that is easy to comprehend, but impossible to fathom; in the last forty years, only a handful of climbers have pushed `free soloing` to the razor edge of risk. Half of them are dead. From Yosemite`s famous Half Dome to the frighteningly difficult El Sendero Luminoso in Mexico, Alone on the Wall is structured around Alex`s seven most extraordinary climbing achievements so far. These are tales to make your palms sweat & your feet curl with vertigo. Together, they get to the heart of how
- & why
- Alex does what he does. Exciting, uplifting & truly awe-inspiring, Alone on the Wall is a book about the essential truths of risk & reward, & the ability to maintain a singular focus, even in the face of extreme danger.

...