A very readable overview of Tolkien & his work, incorporating a brief biography, an examination of the books & a look at the process of filming his work, including The Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings saga. It explores how Tolkien's background as a medievalist & linguist informed the languages of Middle-earth, the influence of his Catholicism & Tolkien's legacy in fantasy. A timely book to coincide with the first of Peter Jackson's two keenly awaited Hobbit films. ...

The guns, the gadgets, the girls, the villains... Ian Fleming described his fictional hero as ?a pillow fantasy of an adolescent mind?. Bond was the embodiment of suave, hedonistic wish-fulfilment in grey, post-war austerity Britain, but he has since captured the imaginations of future generations in every part of the world. The Bond films are Hollywoods all-time highest grossing franchise. The books sold over forty million copies during Flemings lifetime & are all still in print. This encyclopaedic guide casts fascinating new light on Bond & his creator. ...

George Lucas was a rebel, refusing to make films in the style of the dying studio system, relentlessly pushing the technology of the day & almost alone in understanding the potential of merchandising, but he was a rebel who built an empire. From the staggering unexpected success of the original Star Wars in 1977, when cinema attendances exceeded 20 million for the first time since 1963, through The Empire Strikes Back & Return of the Jedi, then the ?dark times? ? the 16 years leading to the blockbusting prequel trilogy ? this is the fascinating story of how it all happened. Life-long Star Wars fan & movie journalist Brian J. Robb edited the official Star Wars magazine for a decade & visited the sets of Attack of the Clones & Revenge of the Sith in Australia (observing director George Lucas at work), as well as the famous Skywalker Ranch. He has interviewed many of the stars & crew of all six Star Wars movies. ...

Here are the stories of the ten most popular equations of all time as voted for by readers of Physics World, including
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Details: The book leads the reader through these vibrant stories, from the origins of the gods through to the homecomings
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Who was Robin Hood? Throughout history the figures of the hooded man of Sherwood forest & his band of outlaws have transfixed readers & viewers; but where does the myth come from? The story appeared out of the legend of the Green man but found its location during the reign of Richard II, the Lionheart, who was away from England fighting in the crusades. In his absence, his brother John lay waste to the country. But does this tell the full story? Was Robin a bandit prince ahead of a troop of brigands? Who was the Sherrif & was he in fact the legitimate law in the land fighting vigilantes? ...

As Holmes is being reintroduced to a new audience through Film & TV, Cawthorne introduces readers to Holmes. He gives a full biography of Holmes & Conan Doyle whilst also surveying the world he lived in, Victorian crime & the real characters behind Dr Watson & Inspector Lestrade. ...

Starting AD 400 (around the time of their invasion of England) & running through to the 1100s (the ' Aftermath'), historian Geoffrey Hindley shows the Anglo-Saxons as formative in the history not only of England but also of Europe.

The society inspired by the warrior world of the Old English poem Beowulf saw England become the world's first nation state & Europe's first country to conduct affairs in its own language, & Bede & Boniface of Wessex establish the dating convention we still use today. Including all the latest research, this is a fascinating assessment of a vital historical period.

This paperback book has 448 pages & measures 19.6 x 13.4 x 3cm



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Why did the medieval Church bless William of Normandy's invasion of Christian England in 1066 & authorize cultural genocide in Provence? How could a Christian army sack Christian Constantinople in 1204? This title unravels the story of the Christian military expeditions that have perturbed European history. ...

Religion, politics & fear: how England was transformed by the Tudors. The English Reformation was a unique turning point in English history. Derek Wilson retells the story of how the Tudor monarchs transformed English religion & why it still matters today. Recent scholarly research has undermined the traditional view of the Reformation as an event that occurred solely amongst the elite. Wilson now shows that, although the transformation was political & had a huge impact on English identity, on England's relationships with its European neighbours & on the foundations of its empire, it was essentially a revolution from the ground up. By 1600, in just eighty years, England had become a radically different nation in which family, work & politics, as well as religion, were dramatically altered. Praise for Derek Wilson: ' Stimulating & authoritative.' John Guy. ' Masterly. [ Wilson] has a deep understanding of... characters, reaching out across the centuries.' Sunday Times. ...