A seminal work of European literature that has inspired writers from Chaucer to Shakespeare, the ” Penguin Classics” edition of Giovanni Boccaccio`s ” The Decameron” is translated with an introduction by G.H. Mc William. In the summer of 1348, as the ” Black Death” ravages their city, ten young Florentines take refuge in the countryside. Taken from the Greek, meaning `ten-day event`, Boccaccio`s Decameron sees his characters amuse themselves by each telling a story a day, for the ten days of their confinement
- a hundred stories of love & adventure, life & death, & surprising twists of fate. Less preoccupied with abstract concepts of morality or religion than earthly values, the tales range from the bawdy Peronella, hiding her lover in a tub, to Ser Cepperallo, who, despite his unholy effrontery, becomes a Saint. The result is a towering monument of European literature & a masterpiece of imaginative narrative. This is the second edition of G.H. Mc William`s acclaimed translation of the ” Decameron”. In his introduction Mc William illuminates the worlds of Boccaccio & of his storytellers, showing Boccaccio as a master of vivid & exciting prose fiction. Boccaccio (1313-75) was an Italian writer of both verse & prose. He wrote ” The Decameron” over a period of ten years, & is also the author of ” Teseide & Filostrato”. If you enjoyed ” The Decameron”, you might like Dante`s ” Inferno”, also available in ” Penguin Classics”. ” Mc William`s finest work, his translation of Boccaccio`s ” Decameron” remains one of the most successful & lauded books in the series”. (” The Times”).
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The dramatic climax of ” The Sea of Fertility” tetraology takes place in the late 1960s. Honda, now an aged & wealthy man, discovers & adopts a sixteen-year-old orphan, Toru, as his heir, identifying him with the tragic protagonists of the three previous novels, each of whom died at the age of twenty. Honda raises & educates the boy, yet watches him, waiting. ...

Most of us face the same questions every day: What do I want? & how can I get it? How can I live more happily & work more efficiently? A worldwide bestseller, The Decision Book distils into a single volume the fifty best decision-making models used on MBA courses & elsewhere that will help you tackle these important questions. From the well known (the Eisenhower matrix for time management) to the less familiar but equally useful (the Swiss Cheese model). It will even show you how to remember everything you will have learned by the end of it. Stylish & compact, this little black book is a powerful asset. Whether you need to plot a presentation, assess someone`s business idea or get to know yourself better, this unique guide will help you simplify any problem & take steps towards the right decision. ...

Most of us face the same questions every day: What do I want? & how can I get it? How can I live more happily & work more efficiently? This updated edition of the international bestseller distils into a single volume the fifty best decision-making models used on MBA courses, & elsewhere, that will help you tackle these important questions
- from the well known (the Eisenhower matrix for time management) to the less familiar but equally useful (the Swiss Cheese model). It will even show you how to remember everything you will have learned by the end of it. Stylish & compact, this little black book is a powerful asset. Whether you need to plot a presentation, assess someone`s business idea or get to know yourself better, this unique guide will help you simplify any problem & take steps towards the right decision.
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No empire has been larger or more diverse than the British Empire. At its apogee in the 1930s, 42 million Britons governed 500 million foreign subjects. Britannia ruled the waves & a quarter of the earth`s surface was painted red on the map. Yet no empire (except the Russian) disappeared more swiftly. Within a generation this mighty structure collapsed, often amid bloodshed, leaving behind a scatter of sea-girt dependencies & a ghost of an empire, the Commonwealth, overshadowed by Imperial America. It left a contested legacy: at best a sporting spirit, a legal code & a near-universal language; at worst, failed states & internecine strife. Full of vivid particulars, brief lives, telling anecdotes, comic episodes, symbolic moments & illustrative vignettes, The Decline & Fall of the British Empire is popular history at its scholarly best. ...

A small boy pushes his little boat out to sea to begin a fantastic adventure travelling all around the world. More than 60 remarkable ocean creatures (including clownfish, flying fish, anchovies & whales) swim, dive & glide through the pages of this sea journey in an informative introduction to ocean creatures. ...

Already the best-selling English-language guide to the area, universally known as `THE BIBLE`, this is the sixth, completely revised, up-to-date, much expanded edition of the DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO THE D-DAY NORMANDY LANDING BEACHES. Written to the same highly acclaimed formula as all of the other books in this important series of Battlefield Guides (Somme, Ypres, Gallipoli, Market-Garden, Western Front
- North, Western Front
- South). Once again the cold facts are interlaced with anecdotes of bravery, humour, sadness & humanity. This new edition now contains:rnrn All the landing Beaches: JUNO, SWORD, GOLD, OMAHA, UTAH All the Airborne Operations: British & American Two Approach Routes; Six timed & measured Itineraries 21 in-text Itinerary maps, Battle maps & Diagrams Approx 400 recommended sites within the D-Day planned area of advance, rnall with photos, each with Latitude & Longitude references (New for this Edition) Over 400 coloured pictures, 352 pages Memorials / Museums / Batteries / Bunkers / Landing fields Allied & German War Cemeteries Historical background to the landings The Plans & what actually happened Information about Allied & German War Graves Associations Veterans` & other commemorative associations Normandy tourist information: Where to stay / where to eat Cameos about personalities
- VCs / MOHs / Poets / Photographers etc...


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The Delves in 1912 in a fascinating series of reproductions of old Ordnance Survey plans in the Alan Godfrey Editions, ideal for anyone interested in the history of their neighbourhood or family. The map covers a rural, largely agricultural area between Walsall & Wednesbury. It

Includes:: the scattered hamlet of Delves, around Delves Green, with Maw Green in the top left corner. The Rushall Canal runs down the right hand side of the map. Other features include Botany Farm, Delves Green Farm, Delves Farm, Delves Hall, Fullbrook, Maw Green Farm, Gorway Farm, Park Hall & Shustoke Farm. About the Alan Godfrey Editions of the 25” OS Series: Selected towns in Great Britain & Ireland are covered by maps showing the extent of urban development in the last decades of the 19th & early 20th century. The plans have been taken from the Ordnance Survey mapping & reprinted at about 15 inches to one mile (1:4, 340). On the reverse most maps have historical notes & many also include extracts from contemporary directories. Most maps cover about one mile (1.6kms) north/south, one & a half miles (2.4kms) across; adjoining sheets can be combined to provide wider coverage.FOR MORE INFORMATION & A COMPLETE LIST OF ALL AVAILABLE TITLES PLEASE CLICK ON THE SERIES LINK.

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Over the past two decades, the Democratic Republic of Congo has been at the centre of the deadliest series of conflicts since the Second World War, & now hosts the largest United Nations peacekeeping mission in the world. In this compelling book, acclaimed journalist Michael Deibert paints a picture of a nation in flux, inching towards peace but at the same time solidifying into another era of authoritarian rule under its enigmatic president, Joseph Kabila. Featuring a wealth of first-hand interviews & secondary sources, the narrative travels from war-torn villages in the country`s east to the chaotic, pulsing capital of Kinshasa in order to bring us the voices of the Congolese
- from impoverished gold prospectors & market women to government officials
- as it explores the complicated political, ethnic & economic geography of this tattered l&. A must-read for anyone interested in contemporary Africa, The Democratic Republic of Congo: Between, Hope & Despair sheds new light on this sprawling & often misunderstood country that has become iconic both for its great potential & dashed hopes.

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` Twisted, surprising & very very very funny. Did I put too many verys? I don`t think so` Jemaine Clement, Flight of the Conchords, on Two Little Boys Tom Spotswood (a.k.a. William Mc Ginty) is an insurance investigator who has lost his socks, his suitcase, his career, his ex-wife, & most importantly, his son, Frank. He is being followed by Robert Valentine, the mysterious owner of the horse with no sperm; Alastair Shook & his van of teenage guards; & Spud, a demolition man who is using his wrecking ball to bring down the most beautiful movie theatre in town, the Century. To find his son he will have to come to terms with his past
- a past he ran away from. But first he will have to find those socks. The Demolition of the Century appeals to fans of kooky, quirky humour similar to Flight of the Conchords.
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