The Light Beyond' is based on more than a thousand case studies of adults & children who clinically reached the point of death & survived as well as amazing new research. It shows the many striking similarities shared by all near-death experiences (NDEs) & uncovers secrets & opens the doors to a powerful message of love from the frontier between life & death. Raymond Moody's research throws new light on the following topics: --how recent findings in medicine psychiatry & sociology bring us closer to unravelling mankind's greatest mystery: what happens to us after we die? --Startling newly confirmed phenomena such as: the experience of meeting one's loved ones in the afterlife & the ability to 'tap into' knowledge of any sort --What the moving near-death experiences of children can teach us --Why NDE's inspire permanent change greater appreciation of life more concern for others increased belief in an afterlife & decreased fear of death --Why doctors want more research into near-death experiences-and much more. Based on Dr Moody's groundbreaking studies ' The Light Beyond' offers both answers & peace of mind to anyone who has ever wondered about death & beyond. ...

Although only formed in December 1992 The Light Dragoons look back to a history that began in the days of the first Jacobite rebellion. In 1922 a reduction in the Armys strength saw the amalgamation of four regiments of Hussars into the 13th/18th Hussars & the 15th/19th Hussars. Now they too have been amalgamated with a name that reverts to the titles of the four original regiments in the eighteenth century. Allan Mallinson the novelist & a former commanding officer of the 13th/18th Hussars not only follows with admirable clarity & dexterity the fortunes of The Light Dragoons predecessors in this new edition but describes the activities of the new regiment up to the minute. It is a crowded canvas which reflects much of the last two hundred & seventy years of British history. No campaign of significance has been fought in that time without the participation of one or more of the Regiments. Three for instance fought in the Peninsula one in the Crimea & three in South Africa. In the twentieth century they gained fresh honours in both World Wars & since 1945 have been fully involved in Britains withdrawal from Empire the Cold War United Nations peacekeeping & Iraq & Afghanistan. The new Postscript gives the reader a fine account of what wars in Bosnia & Iraq have involved for the Regiment & the men who serve in it & this updated history is a superb snapshot of life in war & peace for a British armoured reconnaissance regiment. Light Dragoons takes its place among the classics of this genre such as Sir Arthur Bryants Jackets of Green & Rudyard Kiplings account of the Irish Guards in the Great War. ...

What shall we do?' said Twoflower. ' Panic?' said Rincewind hopefully. He always held that panic was the best means of survival. When the very fabric of time & space are about to be put through the wringer
- in this instance by the imminent arrival of a very large & determinedly oncoming meteorite
- circumstances require a very particular type of hero. Sadly what the situation does not need is a singularly inept wizard still recovering from the trauma of falling off the edge of the world. Equally it does not need one well-meaning tourist & his luggage which has a mind of its own. Which is a shame because that's all there is...

...

' What shall we do?' said Twoflower. ' Panic?' said Rincewind hopefully. He always held that panic was the best means of survival. As it moves towards a seemingly inevitable collision with a malevolent red star the Discworld could do with a hero. What it doesn't need is a singularly inept & cowardly wizard still recovering from the trauma of falling off the edge of the world or a well-meaning tourist & his luggage which has a mind (and legs) of its own. Which is a shame because that's all there is... ...

An introduction to the use of light for students & visual artists this is the first book to look at the way light can be used to create realistic & fantastical effects in a wide range of visual media. Light for Visual Artists" is a valuable resource for animators digital illustrators painters or artists working in any medium. The first part of the book discusses the fundamental properties of natural & artificial light shadows the interaction of light on different types of surfaces reflections as well as transparency translucency & the effects of light on colour. In part two the author concentrates on people & the environment looking in detail at how to observe the effects of light to create realistic images. In part three the author looks at the creative use of light in composition & design for creating moods or setting a scene. Clearly written by a practising illustrator this book is a must-have for both students & practising artists." ...

I promised that I would one day write a book & tell the world about the home for unmarried mothers. I have at last kept my promise. In Ireland 1951 the young June Goulding took up a position as midwife in a home for unmarried mothers run by the Sacred Heart nuns. What she witnessed there was to haunt her for the next fifty years. It was a place of secrets lies & cruelty. A place where women picked grass by hand & tarred roads whilst heavily pregnant. Where they were denied any contact with the outside world; denied basic medical treatment & abused for their sins; where after the birth they were forced into hard labour in the convent for three years. But worst of all was that the young women were expected to raise their babies during these three years so that they could then be sold
- given up for adoption in exchange for a donation to the nuns. Shocked by the nuns inhumane treatment of the frightened young women June risked her job to bring some light into their dark lives. Junes memoir tells the story of twelve womens experiences in this home & of the hardships they endured but also the kindness she offered them & the hope she was able to bring.
...

Light Lifting" is a suite of darkly urban unflinching elegies. The seven stories each encompass a keenly observed immersive world rooted firmly in the real life of work & family. They are elemental stories of work & its bonds of tragedy & tragedy barely averted but also of beauty & love & moments of pure transcendence." ...

It is December in Belfast Christmas is approaching & three sets of people are about to make their way to Amsterdam. Alan a university art teacher goes on a pilgrimage to the city of his youth with troubled teenage son Jack; middle-aged couple Marion & Richard take a break from running their garden centre to celebrate Marions birthday; & Karen a single mother struggling to make ends meet joins her daughters hen party. As these people brush against each other in the squares museums & parks of Amsterdam their lives are transfigured as they encounter the complexities of love in a city that challenges what has gone before. ...

Konowa Swift Dragon was once commander of the Iron Elves the legendary Elven regiment of the human army of the Calahrian Empire. Now recalled from exile & disgrace he is second-in-command of the reconstituted regiment -- a motley band of misfits who are elves in name alone. Konowa's destiny is to stand against the looming threat of the Shadow Monarch whose destructive ambitions have called down an alien power from the stars & riven the land with all manner of ancient evils. The same Shadow Monarch whose tainted mark he bears... His quest leads Konowa deep into the desert wastes: the burning lands to which the original Iron Elves were banished. There he & his current companions must face trials beyond their imagining to learn how to defeat the Shadow Monarch for all time. ...

Deserves to be inhaled greedily in a single sitting Independent on Sunday On a cold but dazzling November morning George prepares to visit Sarah a prisoner & the woman he loves. As he goes about the business of the day he relives the catastrophic events of exactly two years ago that have both bound them together & kept them apart. Told in Georges plain words but growing deeper with each revelation The Light of Day is a hauntingly tense yet tender story about discovering the hidden forces inside all of us & the power of such discovery to change everything. A masterful combination of character & atmosphere Observer Splendid superb. An intense meditation. A writer of immense gifts Washington Post A profoundly artful beautifully weighted resonant & humane literary novel Daily Telegraph ...