These are two fantastic brand new additions to the Beginners" series each of which is designed to provide an informative introduction to non-fiction subjects for young readers. They give terrific reading practice for children who prefer fact to fiction. They are developed in conjunction with reading expert from Roehampton University to help young readers grow in confidence." ...

In this lively expedition into the origins evolution & workings of our planet John Gribbin does what he does best: gathers 4.5 billion years of geological history & shares the best bits. Taking an astronomers perspective Gribbin follows Earths development from its beginnings in cosmic gas & dust to the explosion of human life after the last ice age combining stories of scientific discovery with gripping accounts of geological activity
- earthquakes volcanoes & climate change. Along the journey we consider Lord Kelvins time-scale for the life of the sun; the meteorologist who first championed the idea of continental drift; & an intriguing proposal that Earth has expanded substantially in recent millennia. Told in Gribbins dynamic & beloved voice this is the perfect introduction to geology & an essential guidebook for anyone wanting to better appreciate the wonders of our shared home.
...

Delve deep into the mysteries of Earths geography to reveal the hidden secrets of life on our planet. This title

Includes::

...

This stunning 16-month calendar highlights 13 of the finest golf courses from around the world. Perfect for active & armchair ...

This is the story of a single pebble. It is just a normal pebble as you might pick up on holiday
- on a beach in Wales say. Its
...

The world economy is now approaching the final death rattle of the greatest Ponzi scheme in history: a scheme in which politicians stood by as the financial industry & sovereign governments created a vast overhang of debt a mountain of low-quality assets
- & laid the foundations for an economic disaster which will dwarf any other in history. There are four possible outcomes for our future: * economic growth (unlikely) * stagnation (probable) * inflation (bad) * default (disastrous) Which of the four it will be depends on choices that are being made right now not always wisely by politicians technocrats & bankers. Planet Ponzi is a provocative assessment of the state of todays global economy. Mitch Feierstein reveals the true debts of Britain the US government & the eurozone
- the full picture not the figures the politicians would have us believe. In Planet Ponzi Feierstein explains clearly the background to the worlds worst financial crisis for seventy years predicts the next steps in this infinitely dangerous game & offers practical advice on measures which you personally can take to protect yourself & your family.

...

As the global economy struggles to avoid meltdown so the greatest Ponzi scheme in history approaches its final death rattle. Politicians have stood by & watched the financial industry create a massive overhang of debt a mountain of low quality assets
- & ultimately an economic disaster which has dwarfed all others. The Eurozone crisis & the LIBOR manipulaton scandal are just two symptoms of a much broader problem: one of vastly excessive debt regulatory failure a culture of deceit on Wall Street & the City of London & governments that have promised their citizens far more than they can deliver. In Planet Ponzi" Mitch Feierstein tells you what's happened what will happen next & how to protect yourself & your family."
...

In the span of a single lifetime a momentous transformation in human consciousness has quietly taken hold: We are beginning to think of our home not as the Earth but as the Solar System. Thanks to the photographic output of a small squadron of interplanetary spacecraft a picture of the visual splendor & variety of the Solar System is emerging. Each of these spacecraft is following the traditions blazed by the great Earthbound explorers but when its destination comes into view we can no longer call that dramatic moment landfall." Hence " Planetfall" (the moment of visual contact with the planets). Michael Bensons masterful book Beyond: Visions of the Interplanetary Probes gave us a magnificent view of the Solar System culled from millions of photographs taken by unmanned spacecraft up to the end of the twentieth century. Since then probes built with more powerful cameras & greater maneuverability have looked deeper into the turbulent clouds & wheeling satellites of Jupiter; roamed the boulder-strewn red deserts of Mars; studied Saturns immaculate rings; & chronicled vast upheavals erupting from the Sun itself. & of course theyve shown us the surface of the ravishing Earth from space as well a blue-white orb with a disturbingly thin atmosphere as it plunges deeper into ecological crisis. These new images are the subject of Bensons Planetfall a truly revelatory photographic book that uses its large page size to reproduce the greatest achievements in contemporary planetary photography as they have never been seen before." ...

In the last 40 years the planets have been revealed in their full glory unmasked by a fleet of satellites & interplanetary probes. & the closer we look the more astonishing they are: Mars deserts were once home to rivers & oceans; on Jupiter wind speeds reach 10 000 kph (6 000 mph) & storms rage for centuries; Saturn is surrounded by a swarm of 34 moons; & diamonds are believed to rain from Neptunes blue skies. Moving out from the Sun every planet & moon is visited in a journey that takes us a full light year into space out to the fringes of the solar system where the Sun is no longer the brightest star in the sky. With 200 spectacular images The Planets follows the tracks of robotic rovers over Mars plunges through Titans atmosphere on the back of the Hugyens probe smashes into a comet with Deep Impact & voyages to the edge of our solar system to discover the frozen planets that lurk beyond the orbit of Pluto. ...

Kids can discover how our planet fits into the solar system & be blown away by the big facts & stats of space. Welcome to a tour of the major planets moons dwarf planets asteroids comets & other rocks & gas that orbit the sun. The latest NASA & European Space Station images many unique to this book are combined with up-to-the-minute information from space experts. & theres lots to do! You can track Venus at night create alien life & interact with the brave men & women of the International Space Station. ...