The Roman emperor Caligula famously called off an invasion of Britain & instead ordered his legions into the surf to attack the god of the sea. Cees Nooteboom is more civil. As autumn falls each year he writes Poseidon a letter requesting permission to return to his home in Minorca the following spring. Of course, it would be discourteous if the letters were no more than a series of demands. So Cees seeks the wisdom of the trident-wielding deity, & takes the opportunity to keep him up to speed on his own musings. At once playful & poignant, beautiful & bizarre, this masterpiece uses the minutiae of everyday life to illuminate the broadest questions of human existence, all couched in the glittering prose of one of Europe`s outstanding stylists. ...

A charming, funny, poignant collection of twenty-three letters from Marcel Proust to his upstairs neighbour 102 Boulevard Haussmann, an elegant address in Paris`s eighth arrondissement. Upstairs lives Madame Williams, with her second husband & her harp. Downstairs lives Marcel Proust, trying to write In Search of Lost Time, but all too often distracted by the noise from upstairs. Written by Proust to Madame Williams between the years 1909 & 1919, this precious discovery of letters reveals the comings & goings of a Paris building, as seen through Proust`s eyes. You`ll read of the effort required to live peacefully with annoying neighbours; of the sadness of losing friends in the war; of concerts & music & writing; &, above all, of a growing, touching friendship between two lonely souls.` If you have suffered from noisy neighbours, you will sympathize with Marcel Proust` Times Literary Supplement`A haunting portrait of a friendship between two people who lived within earshot of one another, separated only by a few inches of plaster & floorboard, but who scarcely ever met` New Statesman ...

This book was awarded Guardian Books of the Year 2014. No marriage of a major twentieth-century writer lasted longer than Vladimir Nabokov`s. Vera Slonim shared his delight at the enchantment of life`s trifles & literature`s treasures, & he rated her as having the best & quickest sense of humour of any woman he had met. From their meeting in 1921, Vladimir`s letters to his beloved Vera form a narrative arc that tells a forty-six year-long love story, & they are memorable in their entirety. Almost always playful, romantic, & pithy, the letters tell us much about the man & the writer; we see that Vladimir observed everything, from animals, faces, speech, & landscapes with genuine fascination. ...

GUARDIAN BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2014. No marriage of a major twentieth-century writer lasted longer than Vladimir Nabokov`s. Vera Slonim shared his delight at the enchantment of life`s trifles & literature`s treasures, & he rated her as having the best & quickest sense of humour of any woman he had met. From their meeting in 1921, Vladimir`s letters to his beloved Vera form a narrative arc that tells a forty-six year-long love story, & they are memorable in their entirety. Almost always playful, romantic, & pithy, the letters tell us much about the man & the writer; we see that Vladimir observed everything, from animals, faces, speech, & landscapes with genuine fascination. ...

A comprehensive survey of one of the most creative areas of public art, large-scale typographic installations, this book features thirty-seven works from all over the world, from the USA to Europe to Asia, in all manner of materials. Organized by designer, it

Includes:: projects by artists & designers with large international followings, such as Joan Brossa, Maya Lin, Lawrence Weiner, Pentagram, Why Not Associattes & Paula Scher. Photographs, maps & diagrams are used to explore each project in detail, & an introduction highlights the cultural importance & common themes of the works featured. Interviews with key designers provide a personal insight into why they chose words over images to transmit their message, how the locations for their work are chosen, how they selected the material & the typeface, & how they think their work connects with its particular landscape or setting. Endmatter

Includes:: detailed information on the typefaces used & their designers.



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One hot night last spring, after waiting fruitlessly for a call from my then lover, with whom I had quarrelled the same afternoon, & finding one of my black moods on me, I flung out of my lonely room on the ninth floor (unlucky number) in a hotel in lower Fifth Avenue & rushed into the streets of the Village, feeling bad. Letty Fox is hunting for a husb&. Her picaresque adventures are brilliantly described in this imaginative portrayal of a woman who might have been independent, but chose otherwise. ...

Introduce your family to the art of Spanish cuisine with this highly engaging cookbook. Not only will it bring you closer together as a family, but it will teach your child a valuable hobby & get them interested in Spanish culture. ”A tavola non si invecchia.” Or, ” At the table with good friends & family you do not become old.” Let`s Cook Spanish, by notable Spanish chef Gabriela Llamas, is a fun, interactive, bilingual cookbook for families that introduces the art & joy of Spanish cooking. It teaches better eating habits & the importance of culture, while providing quality family bonding time. Featuring classic, simple dishes inspired by Spanish cuisine, each recipe is shown in both Spanish & English & accompanied by charming illustrations. With an emphasis on fresh ingredients & hands-on preparation with family activities, dishes include traditional starters, main courses, & desserts. Your child`s creativity will be sparked, as will your deeper connection with them. Da a conocer a tu familia el arte culinario espanol con este atrayente libro de cocina. Os unira como familia y ademas os ensenara un valioso hobby que aumentara vuestro interes por la cultura espanola. Vamos a cocinar espanol, de la profesora de cocina con base en Madrid Gabriela Llamas, es un divertido libro de cocina interactivo para toda la familia que introduce el arte y la alegria de cocinar, con platos clasicos y sencillos inspirados en la cocina espanola. Cada receta aparece en espanol e ingles y esta acompanada de ilustraciones encantadoras. El recetario apuesta por ingredientes frescos y su preparacion artesanal e incluye las tradicionales tapas, platos principales y postres. La creatividad de vuestros hijos despertara y se crearan conexiones mas profundas con ellos asi que todos a la cocina y a jugar a ser chefs. ...

` Few food writers enjoy eating with gusto quite as much as does Tom. Now, with this deeply scrumptious book, he reveals how talented he is at the first bit: the cooking.` Simon Hopkinson Tireless in pursuit of a good dinner, Tom Parker Bowles has eaten some of the best food in the world
- & then recreated his favourite dishes in his own kitchen. Some of the 140 recipes in this book are inspired by food cooked for him by friends & family, some by more formal dinners, some by his travels. But all have been recreated by Tom to make them easy for the home cook to prepare. A chapter on Comfort food is packed with family favourites such as My mum`s roast chicken & fish goujons with pea puree. There are also chapters on Quick fixes, such as stir fries & steaks, & on Slow & low, such as braises & casseroles. The From far-flung shores chapter

Includes:: dishes inspired by Tom`s travels, such as ceviche, or Lime marinated prawns with avocado & there`s a chapter on Cooking for children too. Tom has cooked every recipe in his home kitchen again & again before including it in this notebook. He also explores the basic ingredients that are essential to a good dinner, such as fats & stocks, offering thoughts on how to prepare & cook with them. Everyday staples such as eggs & steak get a close inspection too, with ideas & advice for dishes to prepare with them. Let`s Eat is an irresistible hotchpotch of delicious recipes; a trusty cookbook & a very good read. It is packed with photographs of the dishes. Tom is appearing as a judge on the new primetime ITV show Food Glorious Food, airing 27th February 2013.


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There`s never been a book about food like Let`s Eat France! A book that feels literally larger than life, it is a feast for food lovers & Francophiles, combining the completist virtues of an encyclopedia & the obsessive visual pleasures of infographics with an enthusiast`s unbridled joy. Here are classic recipes, including how to make a pot-au-feu, eight essential composed salads, pate en croute, blanquette de veau, choucroute, & the best ratatouille. Profiles of French food icons like Colette & Curnonsky, Brillat-Savarin & Bocuse, the Troigros dynasty & Victor Hugo. A region-by-region index of each area`s famed cheeses, charcuterie, & recipes. Poster-size guides to the breads of France, the wines of France, the oysters of France-even the frites of France. You`ll meet endive, the belle of the north; discover the croissant timeline; understand the art of tartare; find a chart of wine bottle sizes, from the tiny split to the Nebuchadnezzar (the equivalent of 20 standard bottles); & follow the family tree of French sauces. Adding to the overall delight of the book is the random arrangement of its content (a tutorial on mayonnaise is next to a list of places where Balzac ate), making each page a found treasure. It`s a book you`ll open anywhere-and never want to close. ...

Do you sometimes mix up your `affects` & `effects`? Do you know when to use `less` or `fewer`? & what about punctuation
- would
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