Ariana's family roots are firmly planted in Persian soil. She inherited her love of food & cooking from her grandparents
- who
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A sweltering week in late August. Where better to enjoy the last days of summer than on the beautiful Bay of Naples? But even as Rome's richest citizens relax in their villas around Pompeii & Herculaneum there are ominous warnings that something is going wrong. Wells & springs are failing a man has disappeared & now the greatest aqueduct in the world
- the mighty Aqua Augusta
- has suddenly ceased to flow. Through the eyes of four characters
- a young engineer an adolescent girl a corrupt millionaire & an elderly scientist
- Robert Harris brilliantly recreates a luxurious world on the brink of destruction.



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Its August AD 78 & Claudia is at the Forum in Pompeii. Its a day of strange encounters & even odder portents. When the ground shakes Claudia is convinced it is a bad omen. What does it all mean? & why is she so disturbed by Vesuvius the great volcano that looms over the city. ...

A sweltering week in late August. Where better to enjoy the last days of summer than on the beautiful Bay of Naples? All along the coast the Roman Empire's richest citizens are relaxing in their luxurious villas. The world's largest navy lies peacefully at anchor in Misenum. The tourists are spending their money in the seaside resorts of Baiae Herculaneum & Pompeii. Only one man is worried. The engineer Marcus Attilius Primus has just taken charge of the Aqua Augusta the enormous aqueduct which brings fresh water to a quarter of a million people in nine towns around the Bay. Springs are failing for the first time in generations. His predecessor has disappeared. & now there is a crisis on the Augusta's sixty-mile main line
- somewhere to the north of Pompeii on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius. Attilius
- decent practical incorruptible
- promises Pliny the famous scholar who commands the navy that he can repair the aqueduct before the reservoir runs dry. But as he heads out towards Vesuvius he is about to discover there are forces which even the world's only superpower can't control. Pompeii recreates in spellbinding detail one of the most famous natural disasters of all time. & by focusing on the characters of an engineer & a scientist it offers an entirely original perspective on the Roman world.


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' This marvellous book won the Wolfson History Prize & is a model of subtle but accessible writing about the past' Judith Rice Guardian ' Classicist Mary Beard has had a great time rooting about that ghostly place & she has brought it quite splendidly back to life' Nicholas Bagnall Sunday Telegraph ' To the vast field of Pompeiana she brings the human touch
- this absorbing inquisitive & affectionate account of Pompeii is a model of its kind. Beard has caught the quick of what was & in our lives today remains the same' Ross Leckie The Times ' Very readable & excellently researched
- Beard's clear-sighted & accessible style makes this a compelling look into history' Alexander Larman Observer ' If you want to know what really happened in the last days of the petrified city Beard's meticulous reconstruction will fill you in scraping away many of your preconceptions as it goes while her evocative writing will transport you back' Guardian (Best Holiday Books)

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Ponds & water features have been popular in gardens for thousands of years. This book is aimed at anyone who is thinking of building a pond anyone who has bought some of the materials but doesnt know how to start or anyone who has a pond & needs to know how to keep it at its best. The book starts with the basics of assessing the garden checking the site planning & preparation tools & materials & electrical wiring & safety. With the basics established the authors introduce the many different types of pond & how they can be created maintained & enhanced. From split-level ponds to wildlife ponds plant & fish & adding sculptures bird houses stones & bridges each subject is presented in a clear way with box features lists & questions & answers. The final chapter looks at water features
- a rock pool or stream for a large garden or a small wall mask or trough for a tiny backyard.
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* The books of Alice A. Bailey written in cooperation with a Tibetan teacher between 1919-1949 constitute a continuation of the Ageless Wisdom--a body of esoteric teaching handed down from ancient times in a form which is always suitable to each period. Intended to precede & condition the coming era the Alice A. Bailey writings offer an unparalleled spiritual approach to such subjects as the teaching on Shamballa & the Path of spiritual evolution; the spiritual Hierarchy; the new discipleship & training in meditation as a form of service; the teaching on the seven rays & the new psychology of the soul; the teaching on esoteric astrology; & the new world religion which emphasizes the common thread of truth linking all the major world faiths. ...

Here's the paradox: your body becomes steadily more troublesome just at that point when the world which you are soon to leave becomes sweeter more poignant more beautiful more desirable... The ponds of Hampstead Heath are small oases; fragments of wild nature nestled in the heart of north-west London. For the best part of his life Al Alvarez
- poet critic novelist rock-climber & poker player
- has swum in them almost daily. An athlete in his youth Alvarez now in his eighties chronicles what it is to grow old with humour & fierce honesty
- from his relentlessly nagging ankle which makes daily life a struggle to infuriating bureaucratic battles with the council to keep his disabled person's Blue Badge the devastating effects of a stroke & the salvation he finds in the three Ss
- Swimming Sex & Sleep. As Alvarez swims in the ponds he considers how it feels when you begin to miss that person you used to be
- to miss yourself. Swimming is his own private form of protest against the onslaught of time; proof to others & himself that he's not yet beaten. By turns funny poetic & indignant Pondlife is a meditation on love the importance of life's small pleasures & above all a lesson in not going gently in to that good night.




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One of Usborne's most enduring & well-known series has been given an exciting new look. Each guide has been completely updated & has a striking new cover. It makes perfect companions for enthusiasts keen to discover the many fascinating aspects of the natural world with full-colour illustrations of around 100-200 different species per title that have been reproduced from the original artwork using the latest technology. It provides ideal field guides for both children & adults & incredible value for your money. ...

Dirty Bertie
- the boy with nose-pickingly disgusting habits
- is back for another helping of comic chaos! Join Bertie as he

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