Turning away from privileged Victorian Britain, Gertrude Bell explored, mapped & excavated the world of the Arabs, winning the trust of Arab sheiks & chieftains along the way. When the First World War erupted & the British needed the loyalty of Arab leaders, Gertrude Bell provided the intelligence for T.E. Lawrence`s military activities. After the war, she played a major role in creating the modern Middle East, & was generally considered the most powerful woman in the British Empire. In this major reassessment of Bell`s life, Janet Wallach reveals a woman whose achievements & independent spirit were especially remarkable for her times, & who brought the same passion & intensity to her explorations as she did to her rich & romantic life. ...

Intricately crafted with timeless tradition, this carefully dyed sisal fiber & sweet grass wall disc is a stunning statement ...

` My favourite book about the wilderness` Cheryl Strayed, author of Wild In this shimmering masterpiece of American nature writing, Edward Abbey ventures alone into the canyonlands of Moab, Utah, to work as a seasonal ranger for the United States National Park Service. Living out of a trailer, Abbey captures in rapt, poetic prose the landscape of the desert; a world of terracotta earth, empty skies, arching rock formations, cliffrose, juniper, pinyon pine & sand sage. His summers become spirit quests, taking him in search of wild horses & Ancient Puebloan petroglyphs, up mountains & across tribal lands, & down the Glen Canyon by river. He experiences both sides of his new home; its incredible beauty & its promise of liberation, but also its isolating, cruel side, at one point discovering a dead tourist at an isolated area of the Grand Canyon. In his own irascible style, Abbey uses his time in the desert to meditate on the tension between nature & civilisation, & outlines a personal philosophy that would come to heavily influence the environmentalist movement. Now published in a special edition to celebrate its 50th Anniversary, this classic seems remarkably prescient, & has lost none of its power. ...

A unique & extraordinary collection, Desert Songs of the Night presents some of the finest poetry & prose by Arab writers, from the Arab East to Andalusia, over the last 1, 500 years. From the mystical imagery of the Qur`an & the colourful stories of The Thousand & One Nights, to the powerful verses of longing of Mahmoud Darwish & Nazik al-Mala`ika, this captivating collection

Includes:: translated excerpts of works by the major authors of the period, as well as by lesser known writers of equal significance. Desert Songs of the Night showcases the vibrant & distinctive literary heritage of the Arabs. Beautifully produced, this is the ideal book for lovers of world literature & for those who seek an acquaintance with gems of Arab thought & expression.

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** The Air Ministry`s emergency survival series makes the perfect gift for those who think they`d survive the world`s most hostile environments
- or at least imagine they could do!** First issued to airmen in 1952, this reprint of The Air Ministry`s Desert Survival pamphlet

Includes:: original & authentic emergency advice to crew operating over desert regions. With original illustrations & text, these survival guides provide an insight to military survival techniques from a by-gone era. Packed with original line drawings & instruction in:- How to find water in a dry stream course- How to make a hat out of seat cushions- What to do in the event of meeting `hostile parties` Focussing on one of the harshest climates on Earth, Desert Survival is one of four reprints of The Air Ministry`s emergency survival pamphlets. Others include: Jungle Survival Sea Survival Arctic Survival


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Desert takes a fresh look at one of the most signi?cant natural aspects of our planet, as both a geographical feature & a cultural entity. It examines & often overturns our common notions about deserts, from the fear of desolation & death of thirst on the one h&, to the attraction of the exotic, adventure & freedom on the other. The book considers the immense geographical diversity of deserts from the Sahara to Antarctica, & describes how plants & animals have adapted to these hostile environments in intriguing & often bizarre ways. Diverse races have also inhabited deserts & evolved unique lifestyles & cultures in response to their environments. Desert also asks why all three of the world`s great monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity & Islam, originated in the deserts of the Middle East, & traces the continuing connections between the minimal materialism of desert existence & the pursuit of a spiritual dimension. Deserts have also long exerted an allure on the West, leading to the impetus for exploration, the fascination with travellers` tales & the fashion for Orientalism in art, architecture & dress. Desert also reviews the signi?cance of desolate landscapes in literature & ?lm & looks at artists` responses to the desert, from seeing it as empty space, devoid of interest or perspective, to devising new visual techniques through which to `see` it. ...

Villages have been abandoned throughout history, & in every part of the British Isles. Some of them are former towns; others were only ever small hamlets. Many still await discovery. This book explains how villages have become deserted
- often the result of disease & shrinking populations
- & describes how the archaeologist recovers & interprets the evidence & shows how everyone can become involved in discovering & recording sites. Some good examples of sites worth visiting are included.

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The extraordinary story of the deserters of the Second World War. What made them run? & what happened after they fled? During the Second World War, the British lost 100, 000 troops to desertion, & the Americans 40, 000. Commonwealth forces from Canada, Australia, New Zeal&, South Africa & Britain`s colonial empire also left the ranks in their thousands. The overwhelming majority of deserters from all armies were front-line infantry troops; without them, the war was harder to win. Many of these men were captured & court martialled, while others were never apprehended. Some remain wanted to this day. Why did these men decide to flee their ranks? In ` Deserter`, veteran reporter & historian Charles Glass follows a group of British & American deserters into the heat of battle & explores what motivated them to take their fateful decision to run away. The result is a highly emotional & engaging study of an under-explored area of World War II history. ...

A poet, a gangster & an agent of the Resistance; ` Deserter` details three astonishing lives shaped by the decision to flee during WWII. During the Second World War, the British lost 100, 000 troops to desertion, & the Americans 50, 000. Commonwealth forces from Canada, Australia, New Zeal&, South Africa & Britain`s colonial empire also left the ranks in their thousands. But, surprisingly, only one WWII deserter was executed for his crime. In ` Deserter`, veteran reporter & historian Charles Glass gives voice to the powerful stories of three soldiers, two Americans & one Brit, who all ran from the conflict to meet with distinctly different fates. He follows each into the heat of battle, exploring the pressures that formed their decisions & the lasting impact of their choices. The result is a highly emotional & engaging study of an under-explored area of World War II history. ...

Early one morning in 1899, in a small town along the coast from Mombasa, Hassanali sets out for the mosque. But he never gets there, for out of the desert stumbles an ashen & exhausted Englishman who collapses at his feet. That man is Martin Pearce
- writer, traveller & something of an Orientalist. After Pearce has recuperated, he visits Hassanali to thank him for his rescue & meets Hassanali`s sister Rehana; he is immediately captivated. In this crumbling town on the edge of civilised life, with the empire on the brink of a new century, a passionate love affair begins that brings two cultures together & which will reverberate through three generations & across continents.
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