Stephanie Beacham is one of the leading actors of her generation. Now in her 60s Stephanie looks back over a career spanning 40 years during which she appeared on stage at some of the most prestigious theatres in the world
- from the National Theatre to Broadway. She also made countless appearances on TV in much-loved series including Tenko" " Connie" " Bad Girls" & " Coronation Street" & starred in Hollywood feature films alongside some of the greatest actors of their time including Marlon Brando Ava Gardner & Sir Anthony Hopkins. But Stephanie is perhaps best known as the smouldering super-bitch Sable Colby in the role she played alongside Charlton Heston in the long-running blockbuster soap of the 1980s " Dynasty". It was a role that would bring the celebrated beauty worldwide fame & awards. Off screen away from the glitz & glamour Stephanie has faced powerful personal challenges. Born with just 40 per cent hearing which led to painful childhood taunts Stephanie reveals how she succeeded in a world where hearing meant everything & goes on to speak about her struggle to balance her acting with bringing up two young children following a painful divorce. Her inner strength & down-to-earth pragmatic & witty approach to life have carried her through these intense personal challenges but coming close to death in her early 30s fired her passion to understand more about spirituality & the nature of our existence. Living for many years in California has enabled her to be a jackdaw gathering spiritual jewels that she has sprinkled throughout this wise & witty book as a resource for anyone who might find them useful."
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Psychiatrist Dr Brian Weiss had been working with Catherine a young patient for eighteen months. Catherine was suffering from recurring nightmares & chronic anxiety attacks. When his traditional methods of therapy failed Dr Weiss turned to hypnosis & was astonished & sceptical when Catherine began recalling past-life traumas which seemed to hold the key to her problems. Dr Weiss's scepticism was eroded when Catherine began to channel messages from 'the space between lives' which contained remarkable revelations about his own life. Acting as a channel for information from highly evolved spirit entities called the Masters Catherine revealed many secrets of life & death. This fascinating case dramatically altered the lives of Catherine & Dr Weiss & provides important information on the mysteries of the mind the continuation of life after death & the influence of our past-life experiences on our present behaviour. ...

In the 22nd Century a group of misfits & mavericks are preparing to leave behind everything they have known. Advanced technology has created a one-way time portal to Earth's Pliocene Era -- six million years ago. Those seeking a better life are drawn to the promise of a simple utopia far from the civilised Galactic Mileu. But no one could have predicted the dangers on the other side. For the group will enter the battleground of two warring alien races exiled from a distant planet. & these races not only have potent mind powers but seek to exploit & enslave humans for their own needs. The travellers are about to discover that their unspoilt paradise is far from Eden. Winner of the Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel. ' Julian May has woven a many-coloured tapestry of exotic adventure' Roger Zelazny 'I was captivated by its glamorous sinister movement through the misty forests of Earth's true past' Fritz Leiber ...

Jung Changs Wild Swans was an extraordinary bestseller throughout the world selling more than 10 million copies & reaching a wider readership than any other book about China. Now she & her husband Jon Halliday have written a groundbreaking biography of Mao Tse-tung. Based on a decade of research & on interviews with many of Maos close circle in China who have never talked before
- & with virtually everyone outside China who had significant dealings with him
- this is the most authoritative life of Mao ever written. It is full of startling revelations exploding the myth of the Long March & showing a completely unknown Mao: he was not driven by idealism or ideology; his intimate & intricate relationship with Stalin went back to the 1920s ultimately bringing him to power; he welcomed Japanese occupation of much of China; & he schemed poisoned & blackmailed to get his way. After Mao conquered China in 1949 his secret goal was to dominate the world. In chasing this dream he caused the deaths of 38 million people in the greatest famine in history. In all well over 70 million Chinese perished under Maos rule
- in peacetime. Combining meticulous history with the story-telling style of Wild Swans this biography makes immediate Maos roller-coaster life as he intrigued & fought every step of the way to force through his unpopular decisions. The reader enters the shadowy chambers of Maos court & eavesdrops on the drama in its hidden recesses. Maos character & the enormity of his behaviour towards his wives mistresses & children are unveiled for the first time. This is an entirely fresh look at Mao in both content & approach. It will astonish historians & the general reader alike.


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Winner of the BBC Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction 2011 Between 1958 & 1962 45 million Chinese people were worked starved or beaten to death. Mao Zedong threw his country into a frenzy with the Great Leap Forward an attempt to catch up with & overtake the Western world in less than fifteen years. It lead to one of the greatest catastrophes the world has ever known. Dikotters extraordinary research within Chinese archives brings together for the first time what happened in the corridors of power with the everyday experiences of ordinary people giving voice to the dead & disenfranchised. This groundbreaking account definitively recasts the history of the Peoples Republic of China. ...

This is the true story of a poor Chinese peasant boy who plucked unsuspectingly at the age of ten from millions of others across the land to be trained as a ballet dancer turned the situation to his advantage to become one of the world's greatest ballet stars. Simply told with charm humour & compassion & at times this is a great drama. His childhood despite the terrible hardships is drawn with love & affection & contrasts starkly with the seven lonely years of gruelling training at the Peking Dance Academy. At the age of l 8 Li performs at the Houston Ballet school in the US which leads to his dramatic defection. This is a condensed edition specially for younger readers & has an Afterword especially for children. ...

My name is Mike & I am a map addict. There its said... Mike Parker presenter of Radio 4 s On the Map celebrates the richness of all things maps in this fantastic critically-acclaimed read. Have you ever got through an entire day without referring to some kind of navigational aide be it checking the A-Z touring the globe on Google Earth planning a walk or navigating a shopping centre? Maps are everywhere & they are according to self proclaimed map-addict Mike Parker the unsung heroes of life. Here he sings their song celebrating everything cartographic. With a mix of wry observation & hard fact the offbeat & the completely pedantic Parker wages a one-man war against the moronic blandishments of the Sat Nav age. He combines cartographic history & trivia with memoir & oblique observation to create a highly readable expose of the world of maps. Only here can you find out which area has officially been named by the OS as the most boring square kilometre in the land & whether Milton Keynes was really built to pagan alignment. Confessing that his own impressive map collection was founded on a virulent teenage shoplifting habit Parker ponders how a good leftie can be so gung-ho about British cartographic imperialism & establishes himself as defender & saviour of British cartography in the internet age. ...

This comprehensive guidebook to navigation with a map & compass but also with advice about using GPS & digital mapping systems aims to help readers make the most of their outdoor experiences by learning how to use the map compass correctly. The techniques described will give readers the freedom to get away from the crowds invent their own routes & discover new areas even where the GPS fails. Chapters cover understanding a map features grid refs contours; planning walks carefully; taking bearings walking with a compass; timing pacing & other techniques; what to do when you get lost & in poor visibility or darkness; navigating abroad & GPS & other digital technology. Packed with useful practical exercises & examples. Written by an experienced navigation trainer. ...

Having made his name with an exhibition of photographs of Michelin roadmaps
- beautiful works that won praise from every corner
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Maps are not just diagrams of the route from A to B
- from the earliest times they have helped us make sense of our world from
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