They say Black Dows killed more men than winter & clawed his way to the throne of the North up a hill of skulls. The King of the Union ever a jealous neighbour is not about to stand smiling by while he claws his way any higher. The orders have been given & the armies are toiling through the northern mud. Thousands of men are converging on a forgotten ring of stones on a worthless hill in an unimportant valley & theyve brought a lot of sharpened metal with them. Bremer dan Gorst disgraced master swordsman has sworn to reclaim his stolen honour on the battlefield. Obsessed with redemption & addicted to violence hes far past caring how much blood gets spilled in the attempt. Even if its his own. Prince Calder isnt interested in honour & still less in getting himself killed. All he wants is power & hell tell any lie use any trick & betray any friend to get it. Just as long as he doesnt have to fight for it himself. Curnden Craw the last honest man in the North has gained nothing from a life of warfare but swollen knees & frayed nerves. He hardly even cares who wins any more he just wants to do the right thing. But can he even tell what that is with the world burning down around him? Over three bloody days of battle the fate of the North will be decided. But with both sides riddled by intrigues follies feuds & petty jealousies it is unlikely to be the noblest hearts or even the strongest arms that prevail. Three men. One battle. No Heroes. ...

When Francis Cassavant returns to his home town his face horribly disfigured during World War II he is tormented by memories of the conflict. People believe him to be a teenage war hero not realising that his act of 'heroism' was in fact a suicide attempt. Back home Francis has a mission -- to get revenge on the youth leader he idolised but betrayed him. & he's prepared to do whatever it takes. What are the themes? Heroism conflict struggle against evil guilt forgiveness loneliness loyalty. Teaching points This short novel with its gripping plot & engaging themes is accessible to a wide range of abilities. Provides excellent opportunities for exploring structure & narrative viewpoint. ...

In 2010 with the full support of the MOD John Jeffcock poet & a former soldier in the Coldstream Guards invited contributions for a book of modern war poems. He was overwhelmed by the response: contributions came from serving soldiers veterans & their families
- wives sisters & daughters (one just 11 years old). The writers have one thing in common: these are people whose lives have been changed by war & the poems speak to readers with direct emotional appeal. While over half of the contributions relate to Afghanistan there are also poems inspired by the Second World War The Falklands & Northern Irel&. This is also the first time that poems have been gathered from all ranks & all organizations
- from the Parachute Regiment to the Special Air Service from the Gordon Highlanders to the Royal Marines. As the poetry of Brooke Owen & Sassoon spoke to those who endured the First World War here are poems that speak of war in our time
- the theatres of war might change but the emotional resonance remains the same.


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Heroes is the story of an extraordinary generation of young men mostly British who came of age in the Second World War. These young men
- & women
- found themselves facing life-threatening danger & the kind of responsibility few would be prepared to shoulder today. Whether fighting in the jungles of Burma or on the D-Day beaches as submariners pilots spies or prisoners of war young soldiers in WWII displayed astonishing courage & resilience united by honour & bound by the fellowship of their comrades. Those who made it home are now a passing generation & for many this is the last chance for them to tell their stories
- men like football legend Tom Finney who saw action in southern Italy; or James Bond set-designer Ken Adam a German Jew who flew as a fighter pilot for the RAF; or identical twins Tom & Dee Bowles who landed together on Easy Red beach on D-Day. Many of these young men never returned home & those who did faced insurmountable challenges assimiliating back into civilian life. Heroes is a moving & uplifting tribute to an remarkable generation.


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In 101 World Heroes bestselling historian Simon Sebag Montefiore presents his personal selection of the 100 most heroic figures from the pages of world history. Emperors & queens soldiers & statesmen religious leaders & philosophers rub shoulders with composers & poets scientists & explorers artists & storytellers from three millennia. All are united not just by what they did in their own lifetimes but also by the enduring legacy they have bequeathed to the sum of human experience & achievement. The book is illustrated throughout with maps diagrams paintings & photographs & an appendix celebrates a further 100 individual deeds of heroism with a special claim to immortality. The heroes include: Ramses the Great Leonardo da Vinci Albert Einstein King Solomon Elizabeth I of England Winston Churchill The Buddha Tokugawa Ieyasu M. K. Gandhi Aristotle William Shakespeare F.D. Roosevelt Alexander the Great Thomas Jefferson David Ben Gurion Hannibal Voltaire George Orwell Jesus Napoleon Bonaparte Elvis Presley Marcus Aurelius Horatio Nelson J. F. Kennedy Mohammed Duke of Wellington John Paul II Charlemagne Abraham Lincoln Nelson Mandela Leo Tolstoy Charles Darwin ...

The inspiring adventures & deeds of three great heroes spring to vivid life. One of the Victorian ages most brilliant storytellers recounts Perseus quest to slay the Medusa; Jason & the Argonauts search for the Golden Fleece; & Theseus encounter with the deadly Minotaur. 60 illustrations. ...

What dangers do runaway demigods Luke & Thalia face on their way to Camp Half-Blood? Are Percy & Annabeth up to the task of rescuing stolen goods from a fire-breathing giant who doesnt take kindly to intruders? How exactly are Leo Piper & Jason supposed to find a runaway table dodge a band of party-loving Maenads (who just might be a little psychotic) & stave off a massive explosion...all in one hour or less? With his trademark wit & creativity Rick Riordan answers these questions & more in three never-before-seen short stories that provide vital back-story to the Heroes of Olympus & Percy Jackson books. Original art enlightening character interviews & profiles puzzles & a quiz add to the fun in this action-packed collection. ...

In March 2010 twenty-seven Britons who took matters into their own hands to protect Jews from the Nazis during one of the darkest times in human history were formally recognised as Heroes of the Holocaust by the British Government. The silver medal inscribed with the words In the Service of Humanity was created to acknowledge those whose selfless actions preserved life in the face of persecution. Gordon Brown described the medals recipients who risked their lives to save those of Jewish friends or complete strangers as true British heroes & a source of national pride for all of us. They were shining beacons of hope in the midst of terrible evil because they were prepared to take a stand against prejudice hatred & intolerance. Some like Frank Foley a British spy whose cover was working at the British embassy in Berlin took huge risks issuing forged visas to enable around 10 000 Jews to escape Germany before the outbreak of war. Others like the ten British POWs who hid & cared for Hannah Sarah Rigler as she escaped from a death march showed great humanity in the face of horrendous cruelty & suffering. All the recipients of the award were ordinary people acting on no ones authority but their own who found they could not stand idly by in the face of this great evil. Heroes of the Holocaust" collects for the first time the remarkable stories of the recipients of the medal. Written by acclaimed Holocaust historian Lyn Smith it is a moving testament to the bravery of those whose inspiring actions stand out in stark relief at a time of such horror." ...

Collected here for the first time are the remarkable & moving stories of the 27 British recipients of the ' Hero of the Holocaust' award. During one of the darkest times in human history they refused to stand by & do nothing; risking their lives to save Jewish friends or complete strangers. & yet many of their stories have been forgotten. Frank Foley a British spy whose cover was working at the British embassy in Berlin took huge risks issuing forged visas to enable around 10 000 Jews to escape Germany before the outbreak of war. Jane Haining refused to come back to Scotland & leave the Jewish orphans in her care in Hungary. When they were sent to Auschwitz she was transported with them. Louise & Ida Cook were sisters from suburban London. They used their love of opera as a cover to take daring trips to help Jews escape Nazi Germany & Austria right up until the outbreak of war. Ten British POWs hid & cared for young Hannah Sarah Rigler when she escaped from a death march having been forced to leave her mother behind. All those whose stories are collected here were ordinary people acting on no one's authority but their own who found they could not stand idly by in the face of such great evil. Written by acclaimed Holocaust historian Lyn Smith Heroes of the Holocaust" is a moving testament to the bravery of those whose inspiring actions stand out in stark relief at a time of such horror." ...

The riveting true stories of the men of Britain's Special Forces revealing what it's really like being a member of one of the world's most elite military regiments. The SAS has played a vital role in innumerable military operations since World War II. Along the way the daring & bravery of it's men has produced incredible stories of courage & devotion to duty. Heroes of the SAS" is packed with thrilling accounts of the events & men involved in some of the most dramatic incidents in the division's history from covert operations to major campaigns. It shares numerous gripping tales of outstanding bravery & reveals just what it takes to make it as an SAS soldier." ...