The whole of human history is here from the earliest settlement of the world to the beginning of the new millennium in one sumptuously illustrated & easy to use volume. The essential events of world history are easy to find because each subject is given its own double page spread. Substantial coverage of each subject is given in the lively narrative text from a top author of history books for children backed by a team of expert consultants. This is a new edition with a new cover design & updated text. ...

By far the largest & most up-to-date single-volume English-Chinese & Chinese-English dictionary available & endorsed by academics worldwide the Oxford Chinese Dictionary has been designed both for English speakers learning Mandarin Chinese & Mandarin Chinese speakers learning English. It has been produced using the latest lexicographic methods & the unique dictionary resources of Oxford University Press in Oxford & Foreign Language Teaching & Research Press in Beijing together with an international body of expert advisors. The Oxford Chinese Dictionary contains over 300 000 words & phrases & 370 000 translations including the latest vocabulary from computing business the media & the arts & tens of thousands of example phrases illustrating key points of construction & usage. There are over 300 cultural notes giving essential information about many aspects of life & culture in the Chinese- & English-speaking worlds. The dictionary is based throughout on corpus research for both English & Chinese providing up-to-date evidence on real language. The English is based on the Oxford English Corpus & the Chinese draws on the LIVAC corpus from the City University of Hong Kong. Extensive supplementary material

Includes:: sample letters & emails guides to telephoning & text messaging in both Chinese & English chronologies of Chinese history & culture & features on particularly difficult aspects of the Chinese language such as kinship terms & measure words. There are also over 50 pages of lexical & usage notes which contain helpful extra information about Chinese & English. The organization & layout have been designed for maximum clarity & accessibility. All Chinese headwords & compounds are shown with Pinyin transcriptions so that the learner of Chinese can pronounce each one correctly. Chinese headwords are given in Simplified Chinese characters but Traditional Chinese character versions are also given in brackets after the headwords when they differ from the Simplified form. All the English headwords are also shown with phonetics so that the learner of English can pronounce each one correctly. The Chinese-English section of the dictionary is organised alphabetically by Pinyin & there is also a radical index which means that you can look up a character without knowing its Pinyin form. 12 months' access to Oxford's online dictionary service
- Oxford Language Dictionaries Online*
- is included with this book. The site is regularly updated with the latest new words & meanings from Oxford's language research programme the Oxford Languages Tracker. You can also hear audio pronunciations & improve your language skills with online cultural notes guides to writing & much more. This ground-breaking dictionary is an indispensable reference for any serious student of Chinese & English as well as academics professionals & translators. * Chinese language only. Based on the Pocket Oxford Chinese Dictionary.



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This is the reissued Oxford Chinese Mini Dictionary
- now in an attractive new format. This small dictionary offers the most accurate
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This is the reissued Oxford Colour French Dictionary Plus. This dictionary is an effective & practical reference tool for any student adult learners or travellers. It is especially user-friendly with a colourful design that makes it easy to find the word you are looking for quickly. It also has usage notes giving you help with tricky & frequently occurring words verb lists & grammar notes. The up-to-date centre section helps you build your vocabulary. The main focus of this section is to help you build your vocabulary. We have identified the French words you most need to know & they are laid out clearly for you here; you will also find them marked with a handy key symbol in the A-Z text of the dictionary. Also included are word games so that you can practise your dictionary skills & learn vocabulary while having fun. The centre section also contains a calendar of holidays & festivals & an updated A-Z guide to French life & culture
- ideal for the traveller & for those learning about life in French-speaking countries. 6 months' access to Oxford's premium online dictionary service
- Oxford Language Dictionaries Online
- is included with this book so you can find accurate translations & extra resources wherever you are. The site is regularly updated with the latest new words & meanings from Oxford's language research programme the Oxford Languages Tracker. You can also hear audio pronunciations of each word & can improve your language skills with online cultural notes guides to writing & much more.


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This is the reissue of the Oxford Colour Spanish Dictionary Plus.
- now in an attractive new format. This dictionary is an effective
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The third edition of The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature is the complete & authoritative reference guide to the classical world & its literary heritage. It not only presents the reader with all the essential facts about the authors tales & characters from ancient myth & literature but it also places these details in the wider contexts of the history & society of the Greek & Roman worlds. With an extensive web of cross-references & a useful chronological table & location maps (all of which have been brought fully up to date) this volume traces the development of literary forms & the classical allusions which have become embedded in our Western culture. Extensively revised & updated since the second edition was published in 1989 the Companion acknowledges changes in the focus of scholarship over the last twenty years through the incorporation of a far larger number of thematic entries such as medicine friendship science freedom (concept of) & sexuality. These topical entries provide an excellent starting point to the exploration of their subjects in classical literature; after all for many aspects of classical society the literature we have inherited is the primary (and sometimes the only) source material. Additions & changes have been made taking into account the advice of teachers & lecturers in Classics ensuring that current educational needs are catered for. In addition to newly covered topics the Companion still plays to its traditional strengths with extensive biographies of classical literary figures from Aeschylus to Zeno; entries on a multitude of literary styles from biography & rhetoric to lyric poetry & epic encompassing everything in between; & character entries & plot summaries for the major figures & myths in the classical canon. It is the ideal guide for students in Classics & for all who are passionate about the vast & varied literary tradition bequeathed to us from the classical world. ...

The Oxford Companion to English Literature has long been established as the leading reference resource for students teachers scholars & general readers of English literature. It provides unrivalled coverage of all aspects of English literature
- from writers their works & the historical & cultural context in which they wrote to critics literary theory & allusions. For the seventh edition the Companion has been thoroughly revised & updated to meet the needs & concerns of todays students & general readers. Over 1 000 new entries have been added ranging from new writers
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Patrick Marber David Mitchell Arundhati Roy
- to increased coverage of writers & literary movements from around the world. Coverage of American literature has been substantially increased with new entries on writers such as Cormac Mc Carthy & Amy Tan & on movements & publications. Contextual & historical coverage has also been expanded with new entries on European history & culture post-colonial literature as well as writers & literary movements from around the world that have influenced English literature. The Companion has always been a quick & dependable source of reference for students & the new edition confirms its pre-eminent role as the go-to resource of first choice. All entries have been reviewed & details of new works biographies & criticism have been brought right up to date. So also has coverage of the themes approaches & concepts encountered by students today from terms to articles on literary theory & theorists. There is increased coverage of writers from around the world as well as from Ireland Scotland & Wales & of contextual topics including film & television music & art. Cross-referencing has been thoroughly updated with stronger linking from writers to thematic & conceptual entries. Meanwhile coverage of popular genres such as childrens literature science fiction biography reportage crime fiction fantasy or travel literature has been increased substantially with new entries on writers from Philip Pullman to Anne Frank & from Anais Nin to Douglas Adams. The seventh edition of this classic Companion
- now under the editorship of Dinah Birch assisted by a team of 28 distinguished associate editors & over 150 contributors
- ensures that it retains its status as the most authoritative informative & accessible guide to literature available.




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The Oxford Companion to Food by Alan Davidson first published in 1999 became almost overnight an immense success winning prizes & accolades around the world. Its combination of serious food history culinary expertise & entertaining serendipity with each page offering an infinity of perspectives was recognized as unique. The study of food & food history is a new discipline but one that has developed exponentially in the last twenty years. There are now university departments international societies learned journals & a wide-ranging literature exploring the meaning of food in the daily lives of people around the world & seeking to introduce food & the process of nourishment into our understanding of almost every compartment of human life whether politics high culture street life agriculture or life & death issues such as conflict & war. The great quality of this Companion is the way it

Includes:: both an exhaustive catalogue of the foods that nourish humankind
- whether they be fruit from tropical forests mosses scraped from adamantine granite in Siberian wastes or body parts such as eyeballs & testicles
- & a richly allusive commentary on the culture of food whether expressed in literature & cookery books or as dishes peculiar to a country or community. The new edition has not sought to dim the brilliance of Davidson's prose. Rather it has updated to keep ahead of a fast-moving area & has taken the opportunity to alert readers to new avenues in food studies.



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The Oxford Companion to Music is one of the most famous music reference works of all time. This invaluable Companion now reappears in a completely new edition. Over a million words in length it is the biggest most authoritative & most up to date single-volume music reference book available. The new edition draws on both the classic Oxford Companion to Music by Percy Scholes first published in 1938 & the two-volume New Oxford Companion to Music edited by Denis Arnold (1983) but is thoroughly revised & reimagined for the 21st century. Alison Latham has assembled a distinguished team of over 120 international contributors bringing their distinctive voices to an exceptionally broad sweep of musical subjects ranging from composers performers conductors individual works instruments & notation & forms & genres to music scholarship & aesthetics music education broadcasting & publishing all aspects of music theory & performance practice as well as jazz popular music & dance. Entries range from brief definitions to in-depth essays on subjects such as politics religion psychology & computers. This is a comprehensive authoritative & accessible source of information on all aspects of Western music. ...

From films ranging from An American in Paris & Flying Down to Rio to such Broadway landmarks as Oklahoma & West Side Story & television hits such as Cinderella & High School Musical the American musical has thrilled audiences around the world. Now in The Oxford Companion to the American Musical readers have at last an engaging & authoritative reference to this highly popular genre--the only such book to cover stage film & television musicals in one volume. With more than two thousand entries this book offers a wealth of information on musicals performers composers lyricists producers choreographers & much more. There are biographical entries on stars ranging from Fred Astaire & Bing Crosby to Mary Martin & Mae West as well as such contemporary show-stoppers as Nathan Lane Savion Glover & Kristin Chenowith; on composers ranging from Irving Berlin & George Gershwin to Richard Rodgers & Andrew Lloyd Webber; & on choreographers such as Bob Fosse Tommy Tune & Debbie Allen. The plays & films covered range from modern hits such as Mamma Mia! & Moulin Rouge to timeless classics such as Yankee Doodle Dandy & Show Boat. Also many musicals written specifically for television are included & many entries follow a work (such as Babes in Toyland) as it moves across genres from stage to film to television. The Companion also

Includes:: cross references a comprehensive listing of recommended recordings & a useful chronological listing of all the musicals described in the book. Whether you are curious about Singin in the Rain or Spamalot The Wizard of Oz or Grease this well-researched & entertaining resource is the first place to turn for reliable information on virtually every aspect of the American musical. Everything you ever wanted to know about the American musical--at your fingertips. What could be better or more useful?" --Marvin Hamlisch " Kudos to Thomas Hischak for The Oxford Companion to the American Musical. Resources such as these are extremely important not only as historic & academic records but for future generations of artists who need to understand the legacy they have inherited." --Carol Channing"

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