Part memoir, part remedy for the state we`re in, with liberal sprinklings of common sense, Chris Patten`s ” Not Quite the Diplomat” is a frank & funny book from a very outspoken politician. After spending several years in the thick of international events, Chris Patten has seen rather a lot of the world
- & the people who run it. & now he`s free from the bonds of diplomacy, he doesn`t have to be quite so careful about what he says. Here he gives us his forthright views on everything from the Tories` downfall to America`s empire, from whether Blair has any political convictions to why Britain should start liking the French. ” Masterly, elegant, sprightly, wry.. .the best political reading of the year”. (James Naughtie, ” The Times Books of the Year”). ”A garnering of rich personal experience... Frank & vivid.. .without betraying any confidences or relationships of trust (Sir Christopher Meyer, please note)”. (” The Times Literary Supplement Books of the Year”). ” Elegant, warm, witty, stylish & readable... If politics were sane, appointments to ministerial rank anywhere would be conditional on reading, digesting, understanding & acting upon the wisdom of this book”. (” Independent”). ” Patten writes with wit, elegance & passion, showing a candour & courage uncommon among politicians”. (” Sunday Telegraph”). Chris Patten is currently Chairman of the BBC Trust, & Chancellor of Oxford & Newcastle Universities. He is well known for being the last Governor of Hong Kong 1992-1997, about which he wrote in ” East & West” (1998). Both that & his most recent book, ” Not Quite the Diplomat: Home Truths about World Affairs” (2005), were international best-sellers.
...

The book’s full title gives a new reader an idea as to just what to expect from John Simpson; Not Quite World’s End
- A Traveller’s
...

The defining calamity of the post-cold war era`, in Peter Oborne`s words, took place in 2003. The invasion of Iraq led to the collapse of the state system in the Middle East. Iraq is shattered, Syria will never be put back together again, & Lebanon hasn`t functioned as a unified state for a long time. & the great wave of refugees unleashed by this breakdown is threatening what is left of democracy in Turkey & the very existence of the European Union. Oborne provides a forensic examination of the way evidence was doctored & the law manipulated in 2002 & 2003 in order to justify a war for regime change. The government bent facts to fit its determination to join the US invasion, Parliament failed to scrutinise evidence, the intelligence service was perverted, & the media lost its head. This is a masterly account of the making of a disaster, written by a passionate British democrat. ...

“ Not the West Highland Way is part of Cicerone’s of Great Britain & Ireland Cicerone walking guides series on topics & grades covering short walks & day walks, coastal & ridge walks, lowlands & highlands, long distance trails & popular regional routes. This guide offers mountain alternatives to all but one of the West Highland Way’s 9 standard stages, as well as other nearby hill circuits, warm-up backpacking trips & routes into the deep north. 5 one-day hill outings are described, as well as 8 mountain alternatives for a great 14-day expedition; it

Includes:: two 2-day backpack trips for shoulder strengthening & 3 longer routes further afield. Guides are a smaller format & illustrated with OS mapping & colour photography. Very thorough route descriptions are given, with walk profile boxes summarizing essential data such as distance, height gain, grade, walking time, Ordnance Survey mapping references, & accommodation & parking options. Cicerone Press are one of the UK’s most well known & respected publishers of guidebooks for the outdoor enthusiast. Easily distinguished by their convenient pocket size, these books have been a favourite amongst walkers, climbers & cyclists for many years. Their guides for European & international destinations are highly popular amongst English-speaking tourists. The books are of the same high standard as the UK guides, with clear maps, detailed route descriptions & plentiful background information. The range is extensive & often they produce the only available English language guide available for a particular area or long distance route.

...

The lady`s here. The lady with the big bag. She`s knocking on the front door. She`s knocking & knocking. I`m not opening the door. I`m not letting her in. I`m behind the black chair. I`m waiting for her to go away. Tomos lives with his mother, & sometimes her boyfriend. He longs to return to another place, a place he thinks of as home, & the people who lived with him there. & for Cwtch, who he had to leave behind, too. He knows that there are some things he cannot talk about
- except to Cwtch
- & then, just before Christmas, the difficult things come to a head. There are men outside who want to come in, & his mum has said not to answer the door. From behind his chair, Tomos waits, trying to make himself small & quiet. He doesn`t think it`s Santa Claus this time. When the men break in, Tomos`s world is turned on its head & the adults around him must fight to make it right again.

...

Now & again we all lie awake wondering what on earth we`re doing with our lives... don`t we? Claire Flannery has had more than a few sleepless nights lately. Maybe she shouldn`t have walked out of her job with no idea what to do next. Maybe she should think before she speaks -- & maybe then her mother would start returning her calls. Maybe she should be spending more time going to art galleries, or reading up on current affairs, & less time in her pyjamas, entering competitions on the internet. Then again, maybe the perfect solution to life`s problems only arises when you stop looking for it... ` Warmth & wit leaps off the pages... sharp, incisive & laugh-out-loud funny` Observer ...

Notabag is a smart combination of a bag & a backpack. With a single pull on the straps, it transforms itself from a sleek eco-friendly bag to an easy-to-carry backpack. Inside of the bag, there is an attached pocket where you can keep your wallet or your keys. When the bag is not in use, it folds into that pocket & becomes a h&-sized pouch.SPECIFICATIONS:–

Size: 45cm x 65cm– Pouch

Size: 13cm x 15.5cm– Cotton & rip–stop nylon mix– Reusable / Eco-Friendly– Water–resistant– Machine–washable



...

Notabag is a smart combination of a bag & a backpack. With a single pull on the straps, it transforms itself from a sleek eco-friendly bag to an easy-to-carry backpack. Inside of the bag, there is an attached pocket where you can keep your wallet or your keys. When the bag is not in use, it folds into that pocket & becomes a h&-sized pouch.SPECIFICATIONS:–

Size: 45cm x 65cm– Pouch

Size: 13cm x 15.5cm– Cotton & rip–stop nylon mix– Reusable / Eco-Friendly– Water–resistant– Machine–washable



...

Notabag is a smart combination of a bag & a backpack. With a single pull on the straps, it transforms itself from a sleek eco-friendly bag to an easy-to-carry backpack. Inside of the bag, there is an attached pocket where you can keep your wallet or your keys. When the bag is not in use, it folds into that pocket & becomes a h&-sized pouch.SPECIFICATIONS:–

Size: 45cm x 65cm– Pouch

Size: 13cm x 15.5cm– Cotton & rip–stop nylon mix– Reusable / Eco-Friendly– Water–resistant– Machine–washable



...

Notabag is a smart combination of a bag & a backpack. With a single pull on the straps, it transforms itself from a sleek eco-friendly bag to an easy-to-carry backpack. Inside of the bag, there is an attached pocket where you can keep your wallet or your keys. When the bag is not in use, it folds into that pocket & becomes a h&-sized pouch.SPECIFICATIONS:–

Size: 45cm x 65cm– Pouch

Size: 13cm x 15.5cm– Cotton & rip–stop nylon mix– Reusable / Eco-Friendly– Water–resistant– Machine–washable



...