Magic, to a sailor, is harnessing the wind
- getting something for nothing
- the surprise of a gust, the boon of a side-wind

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From Lucy Wadham, the bestselling author of The Secret Life of France, Heads & Straights is an autobiographical tale of bohemians, punk, the King`s Road in the 1970s & family
- part of a series of twelve books tied to the twelve lines of the London Underground, as Tfl celebrates 150 years of the Tube with Penguin. It is also available in a boxset. ”A rich, vital family saga, & a feat of narrative compression”. (The Times). ” Authors include the masterly John Lanchester, the children of Kids Company, comic John O` Farrell & social geographer Danny Dorling. Ranging from the polemical to the fantastical, the personal to the societal, they offer something for every taste. All experience the city as a cultural phenomenon & notice its nature & its people. Read individually they`re delightful small reads, pulled together they offer a particular portrait of a global city”. (Evening Standard). ” Exquisitely diverse”. (The Times). ” Eclectic & broad-minded.. .beautifully designed”. (Tom Cox, Observer). ”A fascinating collection with a wide range of styles & themes. The design qualities are excellent, as you might expect from Penguin with a consistent look & feel while allowing distinctive covers for each book. This is a very pleasing set of books”. (A Common Reader blog). ” The contrasts & transitions between books are as stirring as the books themselves.. .A multidimensional literary jigsaw”. (Londonist). ”A series of short, sharp, city-based vignettes
- some personal, some political & some pictorial.. .each inimitable author finds that our city is complicated but ultimately connected, full of wit, & just the right amount of grit”. (Fabric Magazine). ”A collection of beautiful books”. (Grazia). [ Praise for Lucy Wadham]: ” Penetrating insight & dry observation”. (Independent). ” Beautifully clever & intellectually challenging”. (Good Housekeeping). ” Effortless wit & keen intelligence”. (New Statesman). Lucy Wadham was born in London & has lived in France for the past twenty years. She is the author of Lost, shortlisted for the Macallan Gold Dagger for Fiction. Her most recent book is The Secret Life of France.

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Big, generous-hearted Benny & the elfin Eve Malone have been best friends growing up in sleepy Knockglen. Their one thought is to get to Dublin, to university & to freedom... On their first day at University College, Dublin, the inseparable pair are thrown together with fellow students Nan Mahon, beautiful but selfish, & handsome Jack Foley. But trouble is brewing for Benny & Eve`s new circle of friends, & before long, they find passion, tragedy
- & the independence they yearned for.
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Concentrating on the eighty most important sites in Britain & Irel&, this illustrated guide to stone circles & landscape temples is the first work on the subject to combine stunning photography with scientific survey. Stone circles are one of the enticements & fascinations of prehistory. The emptiness & mystery of these sites & their weathered stones have captivated, perplexed, & attracted visitors from all over the world.

Max Milligan's images convey the serene beauty & unique aura of these sites, & range from descriptive & informative views to strikingly abstract & inspiring compositions. The text by Aubrey Burl, the acknowledged authority on the subject, offers detailed historical accounts & descriptions of the sites, & recounts the powerful myths & legends that have surrounded them & persist to this day.

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As a young girl, Beryl Markham was brought to Kenya from Britain by parents dreaming of a new life. For her mother, the dream quickly turned sour, & she returned home; Beryl was brought up by her father, who switched between indulgence & heavy-handed authority, allowing her first to run wild on their farm, then incarcerating her in the classroom. The scourge of governesses & serial absconder from boarding school, by the age of sixteen Beryl had been catapulted into a disastrous marriage
- but it was in facing up to this reality that she took charge of her own destiny. Scandalizing high society with her errant behaviour, she left her husband & became the first woman ever to hold a professional racehorse trainer`s licence. After falling in with the notoriously hedonistic & gin-soaked Happy Valley set, Beryl soon became embroiled in a complex love triangle with the writer Karen Blixen & big game-hunter Denys Finch Hatton (immortalized in Blixen`s memoir Out of Africa). It was this unhappy affair which set tragedy in motion, while awakening Beryl to her truest self, & to her fate: to fly.
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In her new collection, Katherine Gallagher draws on a rich inheritance from her different worlds: Australia, Britain
- particularly
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A boxer-turned-hitman faces an impossible mission to kill his brother; an old lady sets up a gang of her own teenage vigilantes after being mugged herself; a village boy faces the gruesome end of his beloved pet piglet; a retired geography teacher dreams of places he`s never been; a clown on the make talks an impoverished lion tamer into selling his lion to gangsters; &, a fading beauty is courted by a suitor with suspiciously scaly hands
- Drawing on the monsters & myths of Balkan folklore, the brutal reality of the Communist regime, & the dazzling magic of Enev`s own imagination, these stories have an almost hypnotic & surreal quality. Absurd, both painfully funny & deeply sad, Circus Bulgaria, reaches straight into the cracked heart of the Eastern Europe.
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The Nova Rico 25cm Circus Illuminated Children`s Globe features different animals from around the world. The animals are highlighted on the globe in their natural habitats for easy reference. It`s a great tool for teaching kids about geography as well as the environment. Shows main political boundaries & world`s physical features. All wording on the globe is in English. Genuine wooden base. ...

Micah`s beloved grandfather is gravely sick, but all is not lost. Years ago, his grandfather visited a mysterious circus where he was promised a miracle by a man who could bend light. But who is this stranger, will he keep his promise, & does the magical Circus Mirandus really exist? ...

A detailed topographic map of Cirencester & Swindon from the Ordnance Survey Explorer series, covering Fairford & Cricklade (showing part of the Thames Path). Edition A2; Publication date March 2009 About this series: These highly detailed maps show all the administrative boundaries, settlements as small as isolated farms, the road network down to unfenced roads & country tracks, & field boundaries (hedges & drystone walls) which make navigation across the countryside much easier. Steep gradients on roads are indicated. Various landmarks, e.g. powerlines, archaeological sites, windmills, churches & lighthouses are shown & additional graphics indicate natural terrain features such as cliffs, scree, mud & vegetation variations. The contour interval is 5 metres in the lower parts of the country & 10 metres in the uplands, & spot heights are marked. Each map covers an area of 30 x 20km (i.e. approx. 19 x 12 miles), with some double-sided maps covering more, as indicated in the individual descriptions. The maps are fully GPS compatible, with the National Grid shown at 1km intervals & latitude & longitude indicated by margin ticks at 1'. The Explorer series has replaced the earlier, green-cover Pathfinder maps. The Explorer series is now complete & covers all of Engl&, Wales & Scotl&. Some sheets for popular areas like the National Parks are still branded as Outdoor Leisure (OL) maps, but are now included in this series as the cartography is the same as that in the Explorer Maps. The Explorer maps offer a substantial improvement on the Pathfinder series, with greater use of colour, larger area per map, & stronger emphasis on information for ramblers & tourists. This series is ideal for walking & other outdoor pursuits & each map shows a large amount of information for ramblers & tourists. Public rights of way are shown (except in Scotland), together with other routes with public access: National Trails & Recreational Paths, permitted paths & bridleways, & selected cycle routes. Open access land created under the Countryside & Rights of Way Act 2000 is marked. Tourist information

Includes:: caravan & campsites, Park & Ride locations, recreation/leisure/sport centres, museums, historic buildings, English Heritage & National Trust sites, rural pubs, etc. The map legend is in English only, except for the tourist information content which is also in French & German.

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