Never lose the thrill of trying something for the first time. Fifty years ago, Sir Richard Branson started his first business. In his new autobiography, Finding My Virginity, the Virgin Founder shares his personal, intimate thoughts on five decades as the world`s ultimate entrepreneur. Following on from where bestselling Losing My Virginity left off at the dawn of the new millennium, Finding My Virginity reveals how Branson created 12 different billion dollar businesses & hundreds more companies across dozens of sectors, whilst breaking world records on l&, sea & air. It takes us behind the scenes as Sir Richard Branson creates the world`s first commercial spaceline, Virgin Galactic, & handles the biggest crisis he has ever faced. Join Sir Richard as he juggles working life with raising his children Holly & Sam, building a marriage with his wife Joan & creating a unique company culture. Discover how he created a new life on Necker Isl&, while continuing to grow the Virgin brand into all corners of the world. Get the real story behind adventures & run-ins with everyone from Bill Gates & Kate Moss to Nelson Mandela & Barack Obama. This is the true account of how the Virgin Founder reinvented himself & his brand for the 21st century, while continuing to push boundaries, break rules & reach for the stars in more ways than one. This is the story of the man behind the beard, the business, the bravado & the br&. Find out how the ultimate entrepreneur did it for the first time
- all over again.
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` The boat appeared when I didn`t expect or, frankly, need her. My bucket list was empty. Life was full... But sailing towards me was a boat that would stir the waters, waking decades of loss, revealing history untold, & restoring a legacy that was lost in the wind. For her & for me, I had to wade into that water. I had to go, to search, to find.` This is a love story
- about a woman & a boat. Having fallen hopelessly in love with a 1930s Danish spidsgatter, a beautifully constructed 25 ft wooden double-ender, Kaci embarks on an international search to unravel the mystery of the boat`s past, & discovers the many lives Pax touched since she first hit the water in 1936. Kaci Cronkhite`s seven year search for Pax`s history is an elegant little gem, taking the reader aboard not only for sublime, wind-filled sails but also to eavesdrop the conversations & relationships that are built as she learns more about Pax`s past, whilst hugely enjoying her present. Finding Pax is a story of discovery & reconnection like no other. The writing is poetic, spare, & full of wisdom: ` In sailing, in weather, in life & death, answers are not endings & questions are not to be feared. The unknowns keep us moving forward.` Kaci originally published the story of her & Pax in a limited number of bespoke editions, but they proved so popular, reaching readers she never expected to reach, & provoking unexpected questions from those who wanted to find out more, that she revised & expanded the book for this new international edition.
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Following the partitioning of Poland by Germany & the Soviet Union in 1939, Matthew Kelly`s great grandmother & her two daughters were deported to the East. Thus began an extraordinary ordeal that took them, & many thousands like them, on a journey stretching from Siberia to Pakistan, & beyond. Their male relatives endured a parallel journey; arrested, exiled, & held as prisoners of war. Countless numbers were summarily executed by the Red Army. They saw the steppe, they were put to work in labour camps, they built sections of the trans-Siberian railway, they cleared forests, they toiled on collective farms. They knew hunger, exhaustion, disease & death. Persecuted by the Soviet Union, Poland was to become its unexpected ally following the German invasion in 1941. A new Polish army, ` The Anders Army` was assembled in Palestine. For a brief moment, in Kazakhstan, families were reunited, before being evacuated; to India, to Britain, to Mexico & East Africa; & from there, across the world. The experiences of these Poles had consequences far reaching & enduring, both to Pol&, to Polish identity, & to the families that survived; reverberating through generations. These incredible stories remain largely untold. In ” Finding Poland” Matthew Kelly embarks on a journey through his ancestor`s footsteps, travelling through places they lived, & landscapes they survived, to provide an account of these extraordinary people & their unique history. Part memoir, history & travel book, it is also a profound meditation on the experience of displacement & exile, of the impact of such seismic disruption, & the deep legacies such trauma bequeaths. ...

The Tibetans have the Book of the Dead. This is Ann Treneman`s Book of the ` Dead Interesting`. The award-winning Times writer, best known for her incisive parliamentary sketches, has branched out
- to graveyards. In this whirlwind tour of the 100 most fascinating graves in Britain, you`ll meet the real War Horse, Byron & his dog Boatswain, Florence Nightingale & her pet baby owl Athena, prime ministers, queens & kings, highwaymen, scientists, mistresses, the real James Bond &, of course, M. Then there are the writers, painters, poets, rakes & rogues, victims, the meek & the mild & the just plain mad. Ranging from the humorous to the poignant, each short & sweet stop along the way provides an intriguing insight into the British way of death. Part travelogue, part biography & part social history, Finding the Plot is essential reading for everyone who isn`t dead yet.
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The heart of the book presents detailed information on specific parks, trails, riverbanks, marshes, & other natural areas where wildflowers thrive. Detailed maps of the locations & directions show readers how to get to each site. A final section lists some 450 wildflower species found in the region, noting each flower`s blooming period, its preferred habitat, the locations where it can be found, & whether it is common, uncommon, or rare. ...

This is a guide to the ultimate dining experience in restaurants throughout Great Britain & a comprehensive guide to the very best restaurants in Britain, rated & reviewed by professional AA inspectors. The restaurant quality ranges from 3 to 5 rosettes & each entry provides an in-depth review of the food, the style & the atmosphere. Using the finest ingredients with flair & originality, all of the restaurants included offer the ultimate dining experience. Illustrated with stunning food photography, Fine Dining is the perfect guide to finding that special restaurant with perfectly balanced menus, fine wine & service to match. ...

For gardeners & beginners alike, this is the perfect guide & reference for adding appeal & dazzle to any garden. Planting or improving beds & borders is a simple, low-cost way to enhance a home`s landscape. A collection of the most popular design ideas, planting solutions & quick front & backyard fixes that the editors of ” Fine Gardening” have to offer. ” Fine Gardening Beds & Borders” offers easy planting solutions for creating gardens that add colour & texture, help zone a property & offer maximum impact for minimum investment of time & money. Whether the goal is as ambitious as a front yard makeover or as simple as a little spruce-up in one area, ” Beds & Borders” is packed with eye-catching garden designs, advice on choosing the best plants & strategies for keeping plants healthy & lush all season long. ...

` Fine Just The Way It Is` marks Annie Proulx`s return to the Wyoming of ` Brokeback Mountain` & the familiar cast of hardy, unsentimental prairie folk. The stories are cast over centuries, & capture the voices & lives of the settlers this sagebrushed & weatherworn country has known, from the native Indian tribes to the modern day ranch owners & politicians, & their cowboy forebears. In `A Family Man`, an old man nearing the end of his life unburdens himself of the weighty family secrets that were his father`s unwelcome legacy. ` Them Old Cowboy Songs` follows Archie & Rosie, a young pioneer couple, & their hardships in their attempt to homestead in the exposed wintry expanses of the prairie, & ` Testimony of the Donkey` finds a young international couple, Marc & Caitlin, struggling with much more modern concerns, & confronting uncertainty as their relationship comes to its end. These are stories of desperation & hard times, often marked by an inescapable sadness, set in a landscape both brutal & magnificent. Enlivened by folk tales, flights of fancy, & details of ranch & rural work, they juxtapose Wyoming`s traditional character & attitudes -- confrontation of tough problems, prejudice, persistence in the face of difficulty -- with the more benign values of the new west. These are bold, elegant & memorable pieces, & once more confirm Annie Proulx as one of the most talented, unique short story writers in the language. ...

Winner of the International Wine Book of the Year award at the prestigious Louise Roederer Wine Writers Awards 2010. As arguably the most glamorous wine in the world, Champagne's popularity has soared over the past decade. A mainstay of weddings, victory parties & New Year's Eve festivities, Champagne is often a witness to our most celebratory moments. It is, however, also a wine boasting greater diversity than we might think. Whilst most people are familiar with fewer than a dozen brands of Champagne, there are in fact over 21, 000 producers, many of whom market their own vintages. Whilst not as widely available as brands such as Moet, Lanson or Cristal, these producers provide some of the finest Champagnes sought after by connoisseurs. This magnificent guide, published in conjunction with Fine Wine magazine, looks at the history of Champagne, contains tips & ideas on how best to appreciate it & has a comprehensive glossary of the top producers. The Finest Wines of Champagne is a must-have for all wine connoisseurs & is an invaluable guide for people looking to explore the world of Champagne. This book is part of Aurum's prestigious Finest Wines series whose books on Wines of Tuscany, Bordeaux & Rioja have received acclaim at the Andre Simon Awards & the Gourmand Wine Book Awards. ...

Tuscany is one of the most aesthetically beautiful of the world's wine regions & is the greatest, most original & ancient producer within Italy. This guide aims to present the wines of Tuscany, as well as the other regions of central Italy, in such a way as to give the reader an understanding of what to expect from them & where they stand in the spectrum of the world's wines. Complete with over 100 colour illustrations, Nicolas Belfrage's book focuses on the major areas such as Chianti Classico & Montalcino, as well as exploring lesser known but equally delicious wines. It covers the wide range of grape varieties used in Tuscany, as well as looking at the individual growers who have helped establish the area's growing reputation. This magnificent guide, published in conjunction with Fine Wine magazine, makes a fabulous gift for all wine connoisseurs & is an invaluable guide for people looking to explore the world of Tuscan wines. This book is part of Aurum's prestigious Finest Wines series whose books on Wines of Champagne, Bordeaux & Rioja have received acclaim at the Louis Roederer Wine Writers Awards, Andre Simon Awards & the Gourmand Wine Book Awards. ...