As a bold & gifted child Branwell Brontes promise seemed boundless to the three adoring sisters over whom his rule was complete. But as an adult the precocious flame of genius distorted & burned low. With neither the strength nor the resources to counter rejection unable to sell his paintings or publish his books Branwell became a spectre in the Bronte story in pathetic contrast with the astonishing achievements of his sisters. Daphne du Maurier concentrates all her biographers skill on the shadowy figure of Branwell Bronte & no reader could fail to be intensely moved by Branwells final retreat into laudanum alcohol
- & death
...

Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) is one of the most important & innovative figures of the European Middle Ages. Writing his Comedy (the epithet Divine was added by later admirers) in exile from his native Florence he aimed to address a world gone astray both morally & politically. At the same time he sought to push back the restrictive rules which traditionally governed writing in the Italian vernacular to produce a radically new & all-encompassing work. The Comedy tells the story of the journey of a character who is at one & the same time both Dante himself & Everyman. In the Inferno Dantes protagonist
- & his reader
- is presented with a graphic vision of the dreadful consequences of sin & encounters an all-too-human array of noble grotesque beguiling ridiculous & horrific characters.

...

Inferno" is the first part of Dantes epic poem " The Divine Comedy" revealing the eternal punishment reserved for such sins as greed self-deception political double-dealing & treachery. This " Penguin Classics" edition is translated & edited with an introduction & notes by Robin Kirkpatrick. Describing Dantes descent into Hell midway through his life with Virgil as a guide " Inferno" depicts a cruel underworld in which desperate figures are condemned to eternal damnation for committing one or more of seven deadly sins. As he descends through nine concentric circles of increasingly agonising torture Dante encounters doomed souls including the pagan Aeneas the liar Odysseus the suicide Cleopatra & his own political enemies damned for their deceit. Led by leering demons the poet must ultimately journey with Virgil to the deepest level of all. Portraying a huge diversity of characters culminating in a horrific vision of Satan the " Inferno" broke new ground in the vigour of its language & storytelling. It has had a particular influence on Modernist writers & their successors throughout the world. Printed in English with facing pages in Dantes Italian this edition offers commentaries & notes on each canto by Robert Kirkpatrick. Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) scion of a Florentine family mastered in the art of lyric poetry at an early age. His first major work is " La Vita Nuova" (1292) an exercise in sonnet form constructed as a tribute to Beatrice Portinari the great love of his life. It is believed that " The Divine Comedy"
- comprised of three canticles " Inferno" " Purgatorio" & " Paradiso"
- was written between 1308 & 1320. If you enjoyed the " Inferno" you might like Giovanni Boccaccios " Decameron" also available in " Penguin Classics". Kirkpatrick brings to this English Dante both his perfect knowledge of the Italian & an extraordinarily good ear in his own language Professor Piero Boitani University of Rome"

...

Dan Browns new novel Inferno features renowned Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon & is set in the heart of Europe where Langdon is drawn into a harrowing world centred around one of historys most enduring & mysterious literary masterpieces. As Dan Brown comments: Although I studied Dantes Inferno as a student it wasnt until recently while researching in Florence that I came to appreciate the enduring influence of Dantes work on the modern world. With this new novel I am excited to take readers on a journey deep into this mysterious realm.a landscape of codes symbols & more than a few secret passageways." Click here for an EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW of Inferno" ...

The world has fallen in love with Nick Gautier & the Dark-Hunters. Now Nick's saga continues in the next eagerly anticipated volume.. . Turning sixteen isn't what Nick Gautier thought it would be. While other boys his age are worried about prom dates & applying for college Nick is neck deep in enemies out to stop him from living another day. No longer sure if he can trust anyone his only ally seems to be the one person he's been told will ultimately kill him. Those out to get him have summoned an ancient force so powerful even the gods fear it. As Nick learns to command & control the elements the one he must master in order to combat his latest foe is the one most likely to destroy him. If he is to survive this latest round he will ultimately have to sacrifice a part of himself. ...

Seek & ye shall find. With these words echoing in his head eminent Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon awakes in a hospital bed with no recollection of where he is or how he got there. Nor can he explain the origin of the macabre object that is found hidden in his belongings. A threat to his life will propel him & a young doctor Sienna Brooks into a breakneck chase across the city of Florence. Only Langdons knowledge of hidden passageways & ancient secrets that lie behind its historic facade can save them from the clutches of their unknown pursuers. With only a few lines from Dantes dark & epic masterpiece The Inferno to guide them they must decipher a sequence of codes buried deep within some of the most celebrated artefacts of the Renaissance
- sculptures paintings buildings
- to find the answers to a puzzle which may or may not help them save the world from a terrifying threat. Set against an extraordinary landscape inspired by one of historys most ominous literary classics Inferno is Dan Browns most compelling & thought-provoking novel yet a breathless race-against-time thriller that will grab you from page one & not let you go until you close the book.

...

This highly effective programme for women struggling to become pregnant draws on the proven centuries-old techniques of traditional Chinese medicine to cure infertility. Dr Lewis explains in clear accessible prose how any woman can identify the imbalances in her body
- & how these imbalances can then be treated with a simple plan that entails lifestyle changes diet herbs & acupressure. On its own or in conjunction with traditional Western medical treatments THE INFERTILITY CURE offers women hope
- & what they desire most: a healthy baby. Lewis simplifies many complex concepts such as the theory that there are four vital substances in the body (Yin Yang Qi & Blood) & that theyre likely to be suffering from imbalance caused by energy excess deficiency or stagnation
- Publishers Weekly


...

Ayaan Hirsi Ali is one of today's most admired & controversial political figures. She burst into international headlines following the murder of Theo van Gogh by an Islamist who threatened she would be next. An international bestseller her life story INFIDEL shows the coming of age of this elegant distinguished -- & sometimes reviled -- political superstar & champion of free speech. Ultimately a celebration of triumph over adversity Hirsi Ali's story tells how a bright curious dutiful little girl evolves into a pioneering freedom fighter. As Western governments struggle to balance democratic ideals with religious pressures no other book could be more timely or more significant. ...

This historical study of the infinite covers all its aspects from the mathematical to the mystical. Anyone who has ever pondered the limitlessness of space & time or the endlessness of numbers or the perfection of God will recognise the special fascination of the subject. Beginning with an entertaining account of the main paradoxes of the infinite including those of Zeno A.W. Moore traces the history of the topic from Aristotle to Kant Hegel Cantor & Wittgenstein. Recent technical work is examined in the light of Cantors remarkable discovery that infinity comes in degrees: some infinite sets are much bigger than others. Moore also gives a crisp sketch of Godels celebrated proof his clear presentation enabling the non-mathematical reader to grasp deep mathematical issues. Drawing on these technical results & on the early work of Wittgenstein Moore outlines his own original account of the infinite. He argues that there are fundamental links between the infinite & the ineffable. In a final chapter on human finitude these & other links are traced out & the book concludes with a moving discussion of death & the poignancy of human finitude. ...

In The Infinite Cosmos Joseph Silk takes the reader on a tour of the universe past present & future showing how the very latest observations & theories are unlocking clues about its origin & structure: X-ray radio & high-energy views of space are revealing fossil radiation left over from the big bang & providing us with unprecedented views of the most distant reaches of the universe. Theories from the frontiers of current research seek to explain its structure from the first moments to the present day & we are beginning to understand its extraordinary nature & possible fate. This is a story involving the visible & the invisible; subatomic particles & unusual forces; long ages of darkness & spectacular & violent events. It tells of supernovae dark matter dark energy curved spacetime colliding galaxies & supermassive black holes. Weaving the ideas of poets & writers as well as scientists into the story from Kant & Keats to Einstein & Lemaitre Silk explains our present state of knowledge & how much more there is to understand about our infinite cosmos. ...