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Athelstan: The Making of England (Penguin Monarchs)
by Tom HollandThe formation of England occurred against the odds: an island divided into rival kingdoms, under savage assault from Viking hordes. But, after King Alfred ensured the survival of Wessex and his son Edward expanded it, his grandson Athelstan inherited the rule of both Mercia and Wessex, conquered Northumbria and was hailed as Rex totius Britanniae: 'King of the whole of Britain'.Tom Holland recounts this extraordinary story with relish and drama, transporting us back to a time of omens, raven harbingers and blood-red battlefields. As well as giving form to the figure of Athelstan - devout, shrewd, all too aware of the precarious nature of his power, especially in the north - he introduces the great figures of the age, including Alfred and his daughter Aethelflaed, 'Lady of the Mercians', who brought Athelstan up at the Mercian court. Making sense of the family rivalries and fractious conflicts of the Anglo-Saxon rulers, Holland shows us how a royal dynasty rescued their kingdom from near-oblivion and fashioned a nation that endures to this day.
A Beacon for the Blind: Being a Life of Henry Fawcett
by Winifred HoltA biography of Henry Fawcett. The story of his life as it is to be told in this book will give ample illustrations of his fortitude and his perseverance.
Diarios de entreguerras 1918-1939
by Thomas MannLos diarios escritos por Thomas Mann en el periodo de entreguerras acerca de su cotidianidad, su proceso creador y el tiempo convulso que le tocó vivir. Los Diarios de Thomas Mann permiten entrever mundos hoy desaparecidos: el buen hacer de un artista metódico con rutinas y placeres plenamente burgueses; la agitada escena intelectual de principios del siglo XX en Europa, en la que Mann ocupaba un lugar central y en la que reconocía el protagonismo de sus contemporáneos Gide, Kafka, Joyce o Proust; o el laboratorio de un novelista incansable, que trabajaba por acumulación hasta producir obras sólidas como monumentos. Por todo ello, estos Diarios son un libro imprescindible para entender cómo fue este escritor moderno. Pero en lo personal se trasluce también lo político, y aquí aparece un duro testimonio del exilio al que Mann partió con su familia a los sesenta años, en 1933, poco después de la ascensión de Hitler al poder. Ante la caída de su patria en la barbarie, el gran escritor nacional no pudo ni quiso desconectar del sufrimiento de Alemania. No es de sorprender, pues, que en estas páginas dejara reflexiones sobre la historia que se han convertido a su vez en contundentes documentos históricos. La crítica ha dicho:«En sus diarios se entrecruzaba a veces Einstein con divos de Hollywood, con profesores de Princeton o de Harvard abriéndose paso en medio de los obstáculos que encontraba a la hora de escalar otras cimas literarias. Escribir siempre con grandeza al borde del acantilado, entre la belleza y el cieno, entre la estética y la putrefacción era la cumbre que más le atraía.»Manuel Vincent, El País «Los diarios acogen la cotidianeidad del escritor [...] Las páginas del diario de mayor interés sociopolítico son [...] páginas del exilio, inflamadas por la rabia, la tristeza y no exentas de cierta melancolía por la Alemania perdida.»Blas Matamoro
Lee: A Biography
by Douglas Southall FreemanDouglas Southall Freeman's Pulitzer Prize-winning biography of Robert E. Lee was greeted with critical acclaim when it was first published in 1935. Stephen Vincent Benét said "There is a monument--and a fine one--to Robert E. Lee at Lexington. But this one, I think, will last as long." This reissue of Richard Harwell's abridgment fulfills Benét's prophecy, chronicling all the major aspects and highlights of the general's military career, from his stunning accomplishments in the Mexican War to the humbling surrender at Appomattox. More than just a military leader, Lee embodied all the conflicts of his time. The son of a Revolutionary War hero and related by marriage to George Washington, he was the product of young America's elite. When Abraham Lincoln offered him command of the United States Army, however, he choose to lead the confederate ranks, convinced that his first loyalty lay with his native Virginia. Although a member of the planter class, he felt that slavery was "a moral and political evil." Aloof and somber, he nevertheless continually inspired his men by his deep concern for their personal welfare. Freeman's achievement is the full portrait of a great American--a distinguished, scholarly, yet eminently readable classic that has linked Freeman to Lee as irrevocably as Boswell to Dr. Johnson.
Stanley Spencer's Great War Diary, 1915–1918
by Stanley SpencerStanley Spencer enlisted with the Royal Fusiliers as a private in 1915 and was commissioned in 1917 and thereafter served with the West Yorkshire Regiment until demobilised in 1919. He saw almost continuous active service from 1915 to the end of the War.
The Harbour: A city's heart, a country's soul
by Scott Bevan‘The finest harbour deserves the finest book … A colourful, fascinating and enduring account of the greatest waterway in the hemisphere.’ SIMON WINCHESTER ‘Sydney Harbour. I know what it looks like. I know what it feels like. Now with this wonderful book, I know its story. This book is a joy to read. And essential for anyone who loves Sydney Harbour ... and who doesn't?’ KEN DONE In the bestselling tradition of Peter Ackroyd's The Thames, a celebration of one of the world’s great waterways Everyone knows Sydney Harbour. At least, we think we do. Everyone can see the harbour, whether we have ever been to Sydney or not. By as little as a word or two, the harbour floats into our mind’s eye. The Bridge. The Opera House. Fireworks on New Year’s Eve. When we see those images, we feel a sense of belonging. No matter who we are or where we’re from, we see the harbour and we feel good. In this beautiful, authoritative and meditative journey, Scott Bevan takes us from cove to cove, by kayak, yacht and barge to gather the harbour’s stories, past and present, from boat builders, ship captains and fishermen to artists, divers, historians and environmentalists, from signs of ancient life to the submarine invasion by the Japanese. This is the ultimate story of Sydney Harbour – a city’s heart and a country's soul.
The Miracle Worker: A Play
by William GibsonNO ONE COULD REACH HER Twelve-year-old Helen Keller lived in a prison of silence and darkness. Born deaf, blind, and mute, with no way to express herself or comprehend those around her, she flew into primal rages against anyone who tried to help her, fighting tooth and nail with a strength born of furious, unknowing desperation. Then Annie Sullivan came. Half-blind herself, but possessing an almost fanatical determination, she would begin a frightening and incredibly moving struggle to tame the wild girl no one could reach, and bring Helen into the world at last....
Mr Selfridge
by Lindy WoodheadIn 1909, the largest department store in London's West End, designed and built from scratch, opened in Oxford Street in a glorious burst of publicity. The mastermind behind the façade was American retail genius Harry Gordon Selfridge: maverick businessman, risk-taker, dandy and one of the greatest showmen the retail world has ever known. His talents were to create the seduction of shopping, and as his success and fame grew, so did his glittering lifestyle: mansions, yachts, gambling, racehorses - and mistresses. From the glamour of Edwardian England, through the turmoil of the Great War and the heady excesses of the 1920s and beyond, Selfridges Department Store was 'a theatre with the curtain going up at 9 o'clock each morning'. Mr Selfridge reveals the captivating story of the rise and fall of the man who revolutionised the way we shop. The third series of Mr Selfridge will air on ITV in January 2015. 'Lively and entertaining' Sunday Telegraph'Will change your view of shopping forever' Vogue'Harry Selfridge revolutionised the way we shop . . . fascinating' Daily Mail
With the Tanks, 1916–1918: Memoirs of a British Tank Commander in the Great War (Eyewitnesses from The Great War)
by W.H.L. WatsonWilliam Watson was a young Oxford post-graduate at the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. Along with several friends from Oxford he enlisted in the army expecting the war to last six weeks. Watson began his service in the Great War as a British Army motorcycle despatch rider. He saw active service during the key battles of 1914 and early 1915. Watson was then commissioned and became a tank commander and saw active service with the tanks most notably at Cambrai in 1917. This well written and evocative memoir was originally published under the tile 'A Company Of Tanks' it constitutes a wonderful primary source and is an invaluable addition to the library of anyone with an interest in the evolution of the tank as a decisive weapon on the battlefield. Highly detailed, but nonetheless accessible this superb new illustrated edition, edited by Emmy AwardTM winning historian Bob Carruthers is greatly recommended for serious enthusiasts and casual readers alike.
A Knight of Spain: A Tale of Don Juan of Austria
by Marjorie BowenFrom the author of God and the Wedding Dress: An engaging historical novel of romance and intrigue based on the life of Don Juan of Austria. On a midsummer day, storm clouds form over Alcalà as three young princes decide who will earn the attentions of the beautiful Doña Aña Santofimia . . . While Don Carlos, the prince of Spain, wins the chance, it is the king’s illegitimate brother—Don Juan—who later wins the lady’s heart. But ambition, religious wars, and the machinations of the royal family divide the young lovers. Don Juan must take his own fate in hand to protect those he loves, and Spain itself, amid the deep divisions that threaten to destroy it all . . . Praise for Marjorie Bowen “Miss Bowen’s work is of the exceptional class.” —The Scotsman on Mary Queen of Scots
La Follette's Autobiography
by Robert M. La FolletteWritten in lucid, vigorous prose, "La Follette""'s Autobiography" is the famous Wisconsin senator's own account of his political life and philosophy. Both memoir and a history of the Progressive cause in the United States, it charts La Follette's formative years in politics, his attempts to abolish entrenched, ruthless state and corporate influences, and his embattled efforts to advance Progressive policies as Wisconsin governor and U. S. senator. With a new foreword by Matthew Rothschild, editor of "The Progressive"--the magazine that La Follette himself founded--the "Autobiography" remains a powerful reminder of the legacies of Progressivism and reform and the enduring voice of the man who fought for them.
Maria Czaplicka: Gender, Shamanism, Race (Critical Studies in the History of Anthropology)
by Grazyna KubicaThis biography of the Polish British anthropologist Maria Czaplicka (1884–1921) is also a cultural study of the dynamics of the anthropological collective presented from a researcher-centric perspective. Czaplicka, together with Bronisław Malinowski, studied anthropology in London and later at Oxford, then she headed the Yenisei Expedition to Siberia (1914–15) and was the first female lecturer of anthropology at Oxford. She was an engaged feminist and an expert on political issues in Northern Asia and Eastern Europe. But this remarkable woman&’s career was cut short by suicide. Like many women anthropologists of the time, Czaplicka journeyed through various academic institutions, and her legacy has been dispersed and her field materials lost. Grażyna Kubica covers the major events in Czaplicka&’s life and provides contextual knowledge about the intellectual formation in which Czaplicka grew up, including the Warsaw radical intelligentsia and the contemporary anthropology of which she became a part. Kubica also presents a critical analysis of Czaplicka&’s scientific and literary works, related to the issues of gender, shamanism, and race. Kubica shows how Czaplicka&’s sense of agency and subjectivity enriched and shaped the practice of anthropology and sheds light on how scientific knowledge arises and is produced.
The Presidents Club: Inside the World's Most Exclusive Fraternity
by Nancy Gibbs Michael DuffyThe Presidents Club, established at Dwight Eisenhower's inauguration by Harry Truman and Herbert Hoover, is a complicated place: its members are bound forever by the experience of the Oval Office and yet are eternal rivals for history's favor. Among their secrets: How Jack Kennedy tried to blame Ike for the Bay of Pigs. How Ike quietly helped Reagan win his first race in 1966. How Richard Nixon conspired with Lyndon Johnson to get elected and then betrayed him. How Jerry Ford and Jimmy Carter turned a deep enmity into an alliance. The unspoken pact between a father and son named Bush. And the roots of the rivalry between Clinton and Barack Obama. Time magazine editors and presidential historians Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy offer a new and revealing lens on the American presidency, exploring the club as a hidden instrument of power that has changed the course of history.
Van Gogh: La vida
by Steven Naifeh Gregory White SmithPor fin, el retrato completo del incomparable maestro. Vida, muerte y genialidad de la mano de dos ganadores del premio Pulitzer Van Gogh trabajó como marchante de arte con escaso éxito, intentó convertirse en predicador, hizo incursiones como ilustrador de revistas y, por último, tuvo una carrera de pintor tan brillante como corta. Cuando murió en Francia a los 37 años sus cuadros se amontonaban, sin que casi nadie los mirase, en los armarios, desvanes y habitaciones de sus parientes, amigos y acreedores. Sin embargo, en su breve y tempestuosa vida, Vincent van Gogh había cambiado el curso del arte occidental para siempre. Trabajando con la plena colaboración del Museo Van Gogh de Ámsterdam, Steven Naifeh y Gregory White Smith, ganadores del Premio Pulitzer por su biografía de Jackson Pollock, han tenido acceso a materiales inéditos, incluyendo correspondencia familiar hasta ahora desconocida, para recrear, con increíble viveza y una sorprendente precisión psicológica, la extraordinaria vida del pintor. Los autores arrojan nueva luz sobre muchos de los aspectos inexplorados de la existencia de Van Gogh: su permanente lucha para encontrar su lugar en el mundo, su intensa relación con su hermano Theo, su errática y tumultuosa vida sentimental y sus ataques de depresión y problemas mentales. Ofrecen además un convincente e inesperado relato sobre las circunstancias de su muerte que da un vuelco a las teorías manejadas hasta ahora. Esta monumental biografía es, sin duda, el retrato definitivo de uno de los grandes genios de la historia del arte. La crítica ha dicho...«Para esta generación, el retrato definitivo del pintor. El logro más importante de Naifeh y Smith es haber logrado un ajuste de cuentas con la -locura- ocasional de Van Gogh que no pierde de vista la lucidez y la inteligencia -la profunda cordura- de su arte.»Time «Una biografía que se lee como una novela, llena de suspense y detalles íntimos.»The Washington Post «En su magistral nueva biografía Steven Naifeh y Gregory White Smith ofrecen una visita guiada por el mundo personal y la obra de este pintor holandés, iluminando la evolución de su arte a la vez que elaboran una teoría sobre su muerte destinada a crear controversia.»The New York Times «Cautivador... Los autores reconstruyen vívidamente las historias entrelazadas de su vida y su arte, retratándolo como una "víctima de su propio corazón fanático". Su excelente libro tiene el potencial no sólo de revitalizar el interés popular por Van Gogh, sino de presentar a uno de los espíritus más valiosos de la historia del arte a toda una nueva generación.»The Wall Street Journal «Una nueva teoría sobre la muerte de Vincent van Gogh puede acabar reescribiendo la historia del arte... Después de leer cientos de documentos, de libros traducidos para ellos por el museo Van Gogh y de recorrer la correspondencia del artista, la obra dibuja a un hombre más complejo de lo mostrado hasta la fecha.»El País
The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ
by LeviThe Philosophic and Practical Basis of the Religion of the Aquarian Age of the World and of the Church Universal, Transcribed from the Book of God's Remembrances, Known as the Akashic Records, by Levi, with Introduction by Eva S. Dowling. CONTENTS: Birth and Early Life of Mary, Mother of Jesus--Birth and Infancy of John the Harbinger, and of Jesus--Education of Mary and Elizabeth in Zoan--Childhood and Early Education of John the Harbinger--Childhood and Early Education of Jesus--Life and Works of Jesus in India--Life and Works of Jesus in Tibet and Western India--Life and Works of Jesus in Persia--Life and Works of Jesus in Assyria--Life and Works of Jesus in Greece--Life and Works of Jesus in Egypt--The Council of the Seven Sages of the World--The Ministry of John the Harbinger--The Christine Ministry of Jesus--The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus--The Trial and Execution of Jesus--The Resurrection of Jesus--Materialization of the Spiritual Body of Jesus--Establishment of the Christine Church.
Being Prime Minister
by J.D.M. StewartBehind the politics, discover the lives of Canada's leaders. “What a life it is to be prime minister!” — John Diefenbaker Canada has had twenty-three prime ministers, all with views and policies that have differed as widely as the ages in which they lived. But what were they like as people? Being Prime Minister takes you behind the scenes to tell the story of Canada’s leaders and the job they do as it has never been told before. From John A. Macdonald to Justin Trudeau, readers get a glimpse of the prime ministers as they travelled, dealt with invasions of privacy, met with celebrities, and managed the stress of the nation’s top job. Humorous and hard working, vain and vulnerable, Canada leaders are revealed as they truly were.
The John A. Macdonald Retrospective 2-Book Bundle: Macdonald at 200 / John A. Macdonald
by Patrice Dutil Roger Hall Ged MartinThis special 2-book bundle contains a number of perspectives on a man who was arguably Canada’s most famous political leader, a figure of legendary proportions in the history of Canada’s birth and development. Ged Martin’s biography tells Macdonald’s story. Shocked by Canada’s 1837 rebellions, Macdonald sought to build alliances and avoid future conflicts. Thanks to financial worries and an alcohol problem, he almost quit politics in 1864. The challenge of building Confederation harnessed his skills, and in 1867 he became the country’s first prime minister. He drove the Dominion’s westward expansion, rapidly incorporating the Prairies and British Columbia before a railway contract scandal unseated him in 1873. He conquered his drinking problem and rebuilt the Conservative Party to regain power in 1878. The centrepiece of his protectionist National Policy was the transcontinental railway, but a western uprising in 1885 was followed by the controversial execution of rebel leader Louis Riel. Although dominant nationally, this popular hero had many flaws. Macdonald at 200 presents fifteen fresh interpretations of Canada’s founding prime minister, published for the occasion of the bicentennial of his birth in 1815. Crisply written by recognized scholars and specialists, the collection throws new light on Macdonald’s formative role in shaping government, promoting women’s rights, managing the nascent economy, supervising westward expansion, overseeing relations with Native peoples, and dealing with Fenian terrorism. A special section deals with how Macdonald has (or has not) been remembered by historians as well as the general public. The book concludes with an afterword by prominent Macdonald biographer Richard Gwyn. Macdonald emerges as a man of full dimensions — an historical figure that is surprisingly relevant to our own times. Includes John A. Macdonald Macdonald at 200
Aldo Leopold
by Curt MeineThis biography of Aldo Leopold follows him from his childhood as a precocious naturalist to his profoundly influential role in the development of conservation and modern environmentalism in the United States. This edition includes a new preface by author Curt Meine and an appreciation by acclaimed Kentucky writer and farmer Wendell Berry.
Death Was Their Co-Pilot: Aces of the Skies
by Michael DorflingerIt was in World War I that the skies first became a battlefield, with nations seeking to decide military outcomes off the ground. This volume introduces the fighter pilots of World War I, including the infamous Red Baron Manfred von Richthofen. In addition to this iconic flying ace, the author presents the thrilling biographies of numerous others and recounts their exploits and the tragedies they suffered. Likewise, the book illustrates the Great Wars historical background and documents the increasing sophistication of aviation technology and warfare.
The Maid's Tale: A revealing memoir of life below stairs
by Tom Quinn Rose PlummerPraise for Lives of the Servants: `Reading this fascinating book is likely to unleash almost anyone?s Inner Bolshevik?!' Daily Mail `...a fascinating portrait of the drudgery and servility of a domestic's life.' The Age `...captures the subtleties of the English class system to an extraordinary degree.' Midstate Observer 'If the Brothers Grimm had ended Cinderella where she was being forced to clean the house by her stepsisters, they might have accidentally been writing Rose Plummer's biography. The maid's story makes for harsh, heartbreaking, fascinating reading.? The Daily Telegraph, NZ Born in 1910, Rose Plummer grew up in an East End slum, where she and fought an unending battle with hunger and squalor. At the age of fifteen, Rose started work as a live-in maid, and despite the poverty of her childhood, nothing could have prepared her for the long hours, the backbreaking work and the harshness of a world in which servants were treated as if they were less than human. But however difficult life became, Rose found something to laugh about, and her remarkable spirit and gift for friendship shines through in her memories of a now-vanished world.
Notes & Excerpts on Rice Brothers, Descendants, & Allied Families
by Randall M. RiceWilliam Rice served the equivalent of four tours of duty during the Revolutionary War. First was service in the Culpeper Minute Men Battalion, 1775-1776. The second tour was in the Northern Campaign from Feb. 12, 1776 for two years and he was discharged on February 12, 1778, at Valley Forge. He enlisted a third time for two years and was discharged August 22, 1780, in Richmond, Virginia after serving in the Southern Campaign. And, fourth, he served twice in the Fauquier County Militia for three months or more and was discharged after the Siege of Yorktown in October 1781. This work presents a first time account of approximately 18,000 descendants with over 250,000 related items of data. Many of William's descendants lived in Bedford, Giles, and surrounding counties in Virginia; and Monroe, Summers, Raleigh, and Fayette Counties in West Virginia. This work does not discuss living descendants. The central and dominant quest of this inquiry has always been to find the father of William Rice and Bailey Rice based upon Nathaniel J. Rice's biographical statement that his great-grandfather was killed at Braddock's Defeat on July 9, 1755. During Braddock's Defeat approximately, 456 soldiers and officers of 800, supplemented with new enlistments of the Virginia troops, were massacred, along with 385 wounded, by the French and Indians and left where they fell to this day. As mysterious as it may seem there are no known records, rosters, regimental histories, or muster rolls of the Virginia Regiments or soldiers who participated in Braddock's Defeat, perhaps, to deter the widows from filing claims against a fragile and insolvent government. However, there are known and extant records for the Battle of Great Meadows preceding Braddock's Defeat and other military actions immediately after Braddock's Defeat, but nothing for Braddock's Defeat.
W. E. B. Du Bois, American Prophet
by Edward J. BlumPioneering historian, sociologist, editor, novelist, poet, and organizer, W. E. B. Du Bois was one of the foremost African American intellectuals of the twentieth century. While Du Bois is remembered for his monumental contributions to scholarship and civil rights activism, the spiritual aspects of his work have been misunderstood, even negated. W. E. B. Du Bois, American Prophet, the first religious biography of this leader, illuminates the spirituality that is essential to understanding his efforts and achievements in the political and intellectual world.Often labeled an atheist, Du Bois was in fact deeply and creatively involved with religion. Historian Edward J. Blum reveals how spirituality was central to Du Bois's approach to Marxism, pan-Africanism, and nuclear disarmament, his support for black churches, and his reckoning of the spiritual wage of white supremacy. His writings, teachings, and prayers served as articles of faith for fellow activists of his day, from student book club members to Langston Hughes.A blend of history, sociology, literary criticism, and religious reflection in the model of Du Bois's best work, W. E. B. Du Bois, American Prophet recasts the life of this great visionary and intellectual for a new generation of scholars and activists.Honorable Mention, 2007 Gustavus Myers Center Outstanding Book Awards
A World I Loved: The Story of an Arab Woman
by Wadad Makdisi Cortas"This is my story, the story of an Arab woman. It is the story of a lost world. It begins in 1917, in Lebanon, when I was seven years old." So opens this haunting memoir by Wadad Makdisi Cortas, who eloquently describes her personal experience of the events that have fractured the Middle East over the past century.Through Cortas' eyes we experience life in Lebanon under the oppressive French mandate, and her desire to forge an Arab identity based on religious tolerance. We learn of her dedication to the education of women, and the difficulties that she overcomes to become the principal of a school in Lebanon. And in final, heartbreaking detail, we watch as her world becomes rent by the "Palestine question," Western interference, and civil war.The World I Loved is both an elegy on Lebanon and her people, and the unforgettable story of one woman's journey from hope to sorrow as she bears painful witness to the undoing of her beloved country by sectarian and religious division.
Dee Brown on the Civil War: Grierson's Raid, The Bold Cavaliers, and The Galvanized Yankees
by Dee BrownThree true tales of Civil War combat, as recounted by a #1 New York Times–bestselling author of Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. The acclaimed historian of the American West turns his attention to the country’s bloody civil conflict, chronicling the exploits of extraordinary soldiers who served in unexpected ways at a pivotal moment in the nation’s history. Grierson’s Raid: The definitive work on one of the most astonishing missions of the Civil War’s early days. For two weeks in the spring of 1862, Col. Benjamin Grierson, a former music teacher, led 1,700 Union cavalry troops on a raid from Tennessee to Louisiana. The improbably successful mission diverted Confederate attention from Grant’s crossing of the Mississippi and set the stage for the Siege of Vicksburg. General Sherman called it “the most brilliant expedition of the war.” The Bold Cavaliers: In 1861, Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan and his brother-in-law Basil Duke put together a group of formidable horsemen, and set to violent work. Morgan’s Raiders began in their home state, staging attacks, recruiting new soldiers, and intercepting Union telegraphs. Most were imprisoned after unsuccessful incursions into Ohio and Indiana years later, but some Raiders would escape, regroup, and fight again in different conflicts. “Accurate and frequently exciting” (Kirkus Reviews). The Galvanized Yankees: The little-known and awe-inspiring true story of a group of captured Confederate soldiers who chose to serve in the Union Army rather than endure the grim conditions of prisoner of war camps. “An accurate, interesting, and sometimes thrilling account of an unusual group of men who rendered a valuable service to the nation in a time of great need” (The New York Times Book Review).
Georgiana Molloy: Portrait with Background
by Alexandra HasluckThe story of a remarkable pioneer who discovered in the strange colonial wilderness the splendour and richness of Australia's unique flora. In 1829 Georgiana Molloy moved from the middle-class comfort of the English border country to an isolated wilderness on the opposite side of the world. The young bride and her husband, Captain John Molloy, were among a small party that founded the settlement of Augusta on Western Australia's south-west coast. A pioneer of great courage and capacity, Georgiana was presented with seemingly overwhelming trials and hardships. But she was a woman who was never defeated by circumstance, and never ceased to find enjoyment and satisfaction in her life. One of her enduring legacies is her study and identification of much of the unique local flora. A vivid portrait of an extraordinary woman.