In this elegant & insightful book, Dutch sociologist Benjo Maso identifies the truth behind the legends of cycle racing, & the Tour de France in particular, as he effortlessly weaves this compelling history of the sport together with tall tales rooted in truth. For a century professional cycle racing has been shaped by a complex relationship between three groups: the newspapers & television which organised the races & reported them; industry which sponsored the teams of riders; & the riders themselves. They ...

The Swedes, in the Xenophobe guide series; consisting of a range of pocket-sized guides which take a humorous & irreverent approach to a wide range of world cultures. Each guide explores the characteristics of a country’s people in a series of dedicated sections, encompassing nationalism & identity, behaviour, manners, character, obsessions, beliefs & values, leisure & pleasure, culture, custom & tradition, business, systems, health & hygiene, crime & punishment, government & bureaucracy, conversation & gestures & language. Written in a wholly irreverent style, Xenophobes guides attempt to forewarn readers of the main stereotypes & foibles that are associated with individual nationalities. ...

Swedish country houses are among Europe`s best-kept secrets. Little known to the outside world & rarely illustrated, they survive in surprisingly large numbers, often with their original furniture & decoration. This book is the first to tell their story. The twenty examples examined in detail range in type from royal palace to farmhouse, & in date from 15th-century Torpa to 19th-century Stjernsund. They all reflect the talents of many important architects & designers who together forged a distinctive national style. ...

This is the number one bestseller in France & Italy, from Francoise Heritier, The Sweetness of Life is a beautiful & poetic list of the everyday reasons that make life worth living. If you assume an average life expectancy of 85 years, & deduct the hours we spend daily on sleeping, shopping, eating, working, tending to our relationships & on everything else that is obligatory, then how much time is left for the average person to enjoy those activities that are the sweetness of life? For Francoise Heritier, it is those activities, those moments that make up pure sensuality, the actual experience of humanity. These are the moments we all cherish: wild laughter, coffee in the sun, the bliss of fresh autumn evenings, running in warm rain, long conversations at twilight, kisses on the back of the neck, the moment when all nature falls silent, those times when you know that someone likes you, is looking at you & listening to you, cooking a complicated dish, feeling agile & sprightly, getting back together with friends you haven`t seen in ages, watching a craftsman at work, listening to other people.” There`s still so much else that I forget”, says Heritier, & she goes on to list, with heart-warming & heart-breaking specificity, all that we so easily miss if we do not attend to the lightness & grace in the simple fact of existence, life`s sweetness. What about you, what would you miss if all this had to disappear from your life forever? ”A series of perceptions, sensations, eddies, & happiness of writing that gives a real intensity to the existence.. .a true wonder”. (Laure Adler). Francoise Heritier, an anthropologist, is Emeritus Professor at the College de France & the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales. She is the author of such highly successful works as Masculin/feminin & De la violence, translated into more than ten languages. Le Sel de la Vie (translated into English as The Sweetness of Life) is a French bestseller. ...

Centuries have passed since the time of the The 1001 Arabian Nights, but those classic tales, with their romance, passion, & vibrancy, continue to inspire & ignite imaginations. Within Scheherazade `s brilliant stories for her husb&, King Shahryar, we learn of the vibrant life of Baghdad, Damascus, & Cairo in the 9th century as well as of certain key persons & how they functioned in society. Food sweets, specifically plays an important part in The 1001 Arabian Nights; it is currency, temptation, sustenance. Delicious sweets are the link between that historical work & this modern one. The Sweets of Araby offers us exotic treats & the translated tales they come from. Sisters Leila Salloum Elias & Muna Salloum worked with the ancient Arabic text of The 1001 Arabian Nights to find recipes & translate their stories, literally bringing back to life evocative stories with recipes transformed to suit modern kitchens & tastes. Beautifully illustrated with original paintings by Linda Dalal Sawaya, this delectable treasure belongs in every 21st-century kitchen. ...

GUILT. ATONEMENT. REVENGE. On a remote Swedish isl&, a little girl, Klara, grows up without a father. Now, twenty years later, she discovers a secret: a secret that powerful men will kill to keep hidden. On the other side of the world, an old spy hides from his past. He used to be the best agent in the field. These days the only thing he lives for is swimming in the local pool. Then, on Christmas eve, Klara is thrown into a terrifying chase across Europe. Only the Swimmer can save her. But time is running out... ...

Young, gay, William Beckwith spends his time, & his trust fund, idly cruising London for erotic encounters. When he saves the life of an elderly man in a public convenience an unlikely job opportunity presents itself
- the man, Lord Nantwich, is seeking a biographer. Will agrees to take a look at Nantwich`s diaries. But in the story he unravels, a tragedy of twentieth-century gay repression, lurk bitter truths about Will`s own privileged existence.
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In the town of Fenchester, seven resourceful children are yearning to be famous. One day, they come across a disused chapel, & an idea is formed. With a lick of paint & the addition of a beautiful curtain (which, however much they try, won`t ”swish” as stage curtains ought), the chapel becomes a theatre
- & The Blue Door Theatre Company is formed. The children go from strength to strength, writing, directing & acting in their own plays. But their schooldays are numbered, & their parents want them to pack it in & train for sensible jobs. It seems that The Blue Door Theatre Company will have to go the way of all childhood dreams. But with a bit of luck, & the help of some influential friends, perhaps this is not the end, but only the beginning of their adventures in show business... Written in 1941 when the author was just 14, The Swish of the Curtain is a classic of children`s literature, & has inspired generations of children to go on stage.
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The Swiss, in the Xenophobe guide series; consisting of a range of pocket-sized guides which take a humorous & irreverent approach to a wide range of world cultures. Each guide explores the characteristics of a country’s people in a series of dedicated sections, encompassing nationalism & identity, behaviour, manners, character, obsessions, beliefs & values, leisure & pleasure, culture, custom & tradition, business, systems, health & hygiene, crime & punishment, government & bureaucracy, conversation & gestures & language. Written in a wholly irreverent style, Xenophobes guides attempt to forewarn readers of the main stereotypes & foibles that are associated with individual nationalities. ...

This guidebook presents the stunning Alpine Pass Route, now fully waymarked as Via Alpina 1. The 360km trail traverses Switzerland ...