Winter 1919. Two months after the Armistice that ended the Great War & life in Londons East End is slowly returning to normal. But for 25-year-old Birdie Connor the battle is only just beginning. Frank Birdies older brother has been sent to prison for deserting his army post whilst fighting in Belgium & the shame heaped on the Connor family by their neighbours is unrelenting. Wilfred Birdies widowed father has disowned Frank & vows that he will never set eyes on his son again but Birdie cannot believe that her brother is guilty So when Frank escapes from prison & comes to find Birdie in secret she promises to help him & is determined to prove his innocence. But little does she realise that she is exposing herself to danger as Frank gets himself deeper & deeper into trouble with the so-called friends he met in prison. Helped by the Connors lodger the handsome Harry Chambers will Birdie be able to find the proof that Frank needs in time to reconcile him to their frail father before it is too late? & can she build a future to keep herself & her younger brother Patrick safe? ...

The last survivor of the end days of Hitlers bunker tells his story publicly for the first time. Von Loringhoven was aide-de-camp to Hitlers last two chiefs of staff Guderian & Krebs & the link between the armies at the fronts & Hitler in his Berlin bunker. For the last nine months of the Third Reich he was present at the daily military briefings between Hitler & Marshals Keital & Goring General Jodl & Admiral Donitz along with Goebbels Bormann Ribbentrop Himmler & Fegelein. Von Lorninghoven was witness to the ever-growing gap between the reality of reports outside the bunker & Hitlers misunderstanding of the calamity that was encircling the regime. As the Third Reich spiralled downwards he watched & recorded Hitlers catastrophic strategic mistakes & the paralysis in which he held his generals. Hitlers reason was twisted by his need for vengeance after the assissination attempt; he was searching for an impossible theatrical victory from an empire in total ruin. The final week of the regime saw Loringhoven living wholly in the bunker watching the deteriorating relations among the inmates military & civilian as the atmosphere poisoned to an inevitable end. When radio-telephone communications finally broke down on 29 April he escaped the bunker
- amazingly with Hitlers blessing
- crossed the Russian lines & was picked up & taken prisoner by the Americans. He was released in January 1948.

...

Precious Ramotswe that cheerful Botswanan private investigator of 'traditional build' is now married to Mr J.L.B. Matekoni of Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors. The Agency is busy but Mma Ramotswe cannot ignore the plea which is made by a woman who comes to her with a tale of particular misfortune. Unfortunately her attempts to help are interrupted by a close encounter between her tiny white van & a bicycle & by a spectacular disagreement between her assistant Mma Makutsi & one of the apprentices at the garage. This apprentice has found a fancy girlfriend who drives a Mercedes-Benz. How can he be rescued from his folly? & as for Mma Makutsi she has found a dancing class & a man who may not be able to dance very well but who admires her greatly. & all of this happens against a background of quiet sessions of bush tea & of a land that stretches out forever under mile upon mile of empty sky... ...

From the cave walls at Lascaux to the last painting by Van Gogh from the works of Shakespeare to those of Mark Twain there is clear evidence that crows & ravens influence human culture. Yet this influence is not unidirectional say the authors of this fascinating book: people profoundly influence crow culture ecology & evolution as well. John Marzluff & Tony Angell examine the often surprising ways that crows & humans interact. The authors contend that those interactions reflect a process of cultural coevolution. They offer a challenging new view of the human-crow dynamic a view that may change our thinking not only about crows but also about ourselves. Featuring more than 100 original drawings the book takes a close look at the influences people have had on the lives of crows throughout history & at the significant ways crows have altered human lives. In the Company of Crows & Ravens" illuminates the entwined histories of crows & people & concludes with an intriguing discussion of the crow-human relationship & how our attitudes toward crows may affect our cultural trajectory." ...

Donnerville librarian Jane Kerry receives an envelope containing a 50-dollar bill & a note instructing her to look homeward angel" & signed "MOG (Master of Games)." So begins The Game--pushing Jane into crazy immoral & criminal actions. When she tries to quit MOG has other ideas." ...

Here is a lively retelling of the traditional rhyme packed with surprises. Lift-up flaps on each spread reveal spooky creatures peeping through windows & out of cupboards & the story reaches a climax on the last spread as a great white ghost pops out! In the dark dark wood There was a dark dark house HOO-HOO-HOO! HAA-HAA-HAA! A truly interactive book that children will return to time & again. ...

When Rose Browns husband is killed at Dunkirk in 1940 she feels as though shes lost a part of herself. Rose cant imagine the future without Ray but shes certain he would have wanted her to start again. She decides to volunteer as a postwoman in West London & when she courageously rescues a young boy from a bombed-out house & takes him home she finds a new sense of purpose. Traumatised from losing his mother in the ruins seven-year-old Alfie is also rebellious & withdrawn. However he touches the hearts of Roses family & with kindness patience & love they eventually win his trust. But then a handsome stranger Johnny Beech turns up on the doorstep looking for his son & everything changes... ...

An amusing & erudite account of Harry Bucknalls 183-day journey through the Greek islands from Venice in the West to Istanbul in the East In the summer of 2006 Harry Bucknall traveled from Venice to Istanbul--a journey across the Aegean of more than 5 500 miles that included the glories of Mount Athos 36 islands & every island chain in the Greek Archipelago. It also involved 57 sea passages on 35 ferries four landing craft three hydrofoils a fishing caique a sea plane 11 buses two trains an open-top Land Rover & a duck egg blue 1961 Morris Oxford. Recounted with humor pathos & at times drama this is not only a journey through the Greek islands but also a journey through Greek history mythology custom & folklore--a Greek island companion loaded with adventure mishap & laughter offering a contemporary image of Aegean life today. ...

Hunting a sadistic killer who targets young prostitutes Detective Dave Robicheaux has no mind to be sidetracked into persuading ex-schoolmate mobster Julie Baby Feet Balboni to leave town. & it turns out that Balboni is the money behind a Civil War movie thats bringing in good business. But then the film crew stumble on a skeleton out in the bayou & the links between a thirty-year-old lynching a Civil War general Balboni & the serial killer lead Dave into treacherous waters with only a handful of unexpected allies to help him protect his own. ...

Darrell & her friends grow together as they share their school days. There are new students to induct sporting matches to be won tempers to control & tricks to play on teachers. This work presents stories about life at boarding school as readers follow the girls' lives through 6 years at Malory Towers. ...