An amusing & erudite account of Harry Bucknall`s 183-day journey through the Greek islands from Venice, in the West, to Istanbul, in the East In the summer of 2006, Harry Bucknall traveled from Venice to Istanbul--a journey across the Aegean of more than 5, 500 miles that included the glories of Mount Athos, 36 islands, & every island chain in the Greek Archipelago. It also involved 57 sea passages on 35 ferries, four landing craft, three hydrofoils, a fishing caique, a sea plane, 11 buses, two trains, an open-top Land Rover, & a duck egg blue 1961 Morris Oxford. Recounted with humor, pathos, & at times drama, this is not only a journey through the Greek islands but also a journey through Greek history, mythology, custom, & folklore--a Greek island companion loaded with adventure, mishap, & laughter offering a contemporary image of Aegean life today. ...

A morose provincial inspector of roads in Aragon settles down to write the fable of the Snow Queen. The Netherlands has now been stretched into a vast country with Northern flatlands & hazardous Alpine ranges in the south. Kai & Lucia are circus illusionists, & when Kai is kidnapped, Lucia must rescue him from the Snow Queen`s palace. In the Dutch Mountains is an elegantly constructed story within a story, laced with the wit that characterises the work of this outstanding European writer. ...

*WINNER OF THE THOMAS COOK/ DAILY TELEGRAPH TRAVEL BOOK 2001*” In The Empire of Genghis Khan” is a superb book, feeling like ...

Based in the modern-day chaos of the Middle East`s political arena, Egyptian journalist Ahdaf Soueif takes a look into the lives of Arab women in this acclaimed novel. It follows Asya, who after growing up among the elite upper class in Egypt marries a westernised & wealthy husb&, later becoming involved with an unrefined Englishman while pursuing her doctorate. This is a love story; a story about growing up; a story about what it`s like to be a woman
- both in the east & the west; a story about the history of the post-imperial Middle East during the last 30 years; & a story about home.
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America is a nation of ardent, knowledgeable birdwatchers. But how did it become so? & what role did the field guide play in our passion for spotting, watching, & describing birds? In the Field, Among the Feathered tells the history of field guides to birds in America from the Victorian era to the present, relating changes in the guides to shifts in science, the craft of field identification, & new technologies for the mass reproduction of images. Drawing on his experience as a passionate birder & on a wealth of archival research, Thomas Dunlap shows how the twin pursuits of recreation & conservation have inspired birders & how field guides have served as the preferred method of informal education about nature for well over a century. The book begins with the first generation of late 19th-century birdwatchers who built the hobby when opera glasses were often the best available optics & bird identification was sketchy at best. As America became increasingly urban, birding became more attractive, & with Roger Tory Peterson`s first field guide in 1934, birding grew in both popularity & accuracy. By the 1960s recreational birders were attaining new levels of expertise, even as the environmental movement made birding`s other pole, conservation, a matter of human health & planetary survival. Dunlap concludes by showing how recreation & conservation have reached a new balance in the last 40 years, as scientists have increasingly turned to amateurs, whose expertise had been honed by the new guides, to gather the data they need to support habitat preservation. Putting nature lovers & citizen-activists at the heart of his work, Thomas Dunlap offers an entertaining history of America`s long-standing love affair with birds, & with the books that have guided & informed their enthusiasm. ...

The Holy Land is unrivalled as a region combining breathtaking beauty with historical & religious significance. Its position as the birthplace of the three major Abrahamic faiths
- Christianity, Judaism, & Islam
- gives it a special place in the hearts of millions. Rarely does a book come along that captures this extraordinary land in a fresh light. ” In the Footsteps of Abraham” does just that, presenting a unique opportunity to experience the Holy Land as it was at the turn of the last century, before the region underwent the radical changes of modernization. These vivid images evoke the Holy Land of centuries ago, as Moses or Jesus might have seen it. The photos were taken before the advent of color photography by the Matson Photo Agency, part of Jerusalem`s American Colony, a community of Christian expatriates. In the 1920s, Ari Speelman, a devout Dutch Christian, commissioned the h&-coloring of 1200 photos on glass plates, a massive undertaking that sometimes involved painting with a single human hair. In this era before mass tourism, he travelled through Holland giving popular lantern slide lectures. His remarkable collection was bequeathed to the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam; the photos in this book were selected from that legacy.

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Thor Heyerdahl is one of the greatest explorers of our day. At the age of 84 he has chosen to take a journey through his memories. This is not a chronological autobiography but rather an epic exploration of the world & the amazing events that Heyerdahl has pioneered, participated in & observed. IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ADAM is an account of life where personal experiences of a dramatic & emotional nature
- secret missions during the war & near-fatal accidents
- are woven together with his views on religious fatih politics & ecology. It is a book that focuses on the author`s own remarkable life, & also brings us back to the dawn of civilization & out into the future. Thor Heyerdahl has spent a long lifetime wandering in the footsteps of mankind. He invites the reader to participate in that journey by sharing generously the details of his private & public life, his accumulated wisdom, & his friendships with a wide range of influential world leaders such as Fidel Castro & Mikhail Gorbachev.

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Michael Wood travels over 30, 000 kilometres on l&, by bus, jeep, train, camel, horse, mule & on foot in a bid to retrace Alexander the Great`s epic journey from Greece to India. On the way he experiences what the Greeks went through for himself & uncovers interesting new insights into Alexander`s achievements. Alexander`s expedition marked a turning point in human history, opening up contact between East & West. Massive destruction & cruelty are weighed against the implications of the historical energies unleashed. Discovering that the legend of Alexander is still alive today, Wood expertly examines the effects & far reaching resonance of the legacy of one of the most visionary leaders in history. ...

George Borrow
- brilliant linguist, expert on gypsy culture & author of ” Wild Wales” (1862)
- remains an enigmatic character

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A Century after Conrad`s Heart of Darkness, Wrong revisits the Congo as the era of Mobutu collapses into absurdity, anarchy & corruption. In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz is a sparkling account of the rise & fall of Mobutu Sese Seko, the charismatic dictator who plundered his country`s wealth & indulged a passion for pink champagne, gold jewellery & chartered Concordes. Being one of wealthiest countries of the African continent in terms of natural riches institutionalized kleptomania rules, the Congo became in Mobutu`s hands the paradigm of all that was wrong in post-colonial Africa. Michela Wrong`s fascinating dissection of the Congo tells us a story of grim comedy amidst the apocalypse & a celebration of the sheer indestructibility of the human spirit. But travelling around the country trying to find the ultimate reason for all the suffering, she finds in the Zairean people the strength of the human spirit untainted.`A brilliant account of Africa`s most extraordinary dictator... This book will become a classic.` The Economist ...