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Looptail: How One Company Changed the World by Reinventing Business
by Bruce TipLooptail is Bruce Poon Tip's extraordinary first-person account of his entrepreneurial instincts to start and develop G Adventures, the highly successful international travel adventure company - and along the way he reveals his unusual management secrets that not only keep his employees fully engaged and energized but also keep his customers extremely happy.His unique appraoch has worked in marvellous ways. Poon Tip has created an entirely new and refreshing approach to management. For example, there is no CEO at G Adventures - instead, every employee is a CEO, empowered to make instantaneous decisions to help clients on the spot. But while there's no CEO, there is a company Mayor, who take the pulse of corporate morale. There's no HR department - but there is a Talent Agency and company Culture Club.It hasn't always been easy to try to balance his desire for a socially responsible company along with the desire to generate profits. But thanks to Poon Tip's vision, G Adventures has floruished and has done its best to maintain its looptail approach. In short, it's been an extraordinary ride, and in many ways G Adventures is at the vanguard of what modern-day companies are beginning to look like.
Loose Diamonds
by Amy Ephron"I've never bought loose diamonds but the idea of them appeals to me, sparkling stones that I imagine come wrapped in a velvet cloth . . . " With her wonderful sense of humor, marvelously candid voice, and astonishing perception, Amy Ephron weaves together the most insightful, profound, and just plain funny stories of her life to form a tapestry of a woman's experiences from childhood through young adulthood, marriage, divorce (and remarriage), and everything in between. Writing with great honesty and exacting prose, Ephron gives us an evocative, engaging, and often piercing look at modern life. Along the way, we meet colorful and unforgettable characters such as the Birdman, who invited Ephron when she was a young girl into his Spanish-style home that he'd magically turned into an exotic aviary. And there's Honey, the Cristal-loving Southern beauty, who struggles in her affairs with men and who orders "champagne by the case." Ephron also recounts the afternoon she spent with the infamous Squeaky Fromme, and describes what happened after one of the mothers at her son's school rear-ended her car. Did it have anything to do with Ephron's soon-to-be ex-husband? And through it all is Ephron's mother, whose perspectives on everything-from shoes to egg cups-pervade this book, and whose alcoholism was a constant challenge, forcing Ephron out on her own at an early age. Finally, Ephron professes her lifelong love affair with Saks Fifth Avenue in New York City, a touchstone and a companion in a world that always moves too fast and is sometimes upside down. It is an ode to a simpler time of elegance and style, and an incisive look at today's times. Throughout Loose Diamonds, Amy Ephron celebrates these memories and her friendships, as well as her romances and marriages, and the things that make life livable (such as her Filofax, which she would be lost without). She writes unflinchingly about the fragility and tenuousness of life, how fortune can turn on a dime and circumstances aren't always in our control. She explores the enduring effects of parental wisdom, the complications and rewards that marriage can bring, and the intricate ups and downs of friendships-all with a quick wit and a delicate eye.
Loose Girl: A Memoir of Promiscuity
by Kerry CohenFor everyone who was that girl.For everyone who knew that girl.For everyone who wondered who that girl was. Kerry Cohen is eleven years old when she recognizes the power of her body in the leer of a grown man. Her parents are recently divorced and it doesn't take long before their lassitude and Kerry's desire to stand out--to be memorable in some way--combine to lead her down a path she knows she shouldn't take. Kerry wanted attention. She wanted love. But not really understanding what love was, not really knowing how to get it, she reached for sex instead. Loose Girl is Kerry Cohen's captivating memoir about her descent into promiscuity and how she gradually found her way toward real intimacy. The story of addiction--not just to sex, but to male attention--Loose Girl is also the story of a young girl who came to believe that boys and men could give her life meaning. It didn't matter who he was. It was their movement that mattered, their being together. And for a while, that was enough. From the early rush of exploration to the day she learned to quiet the desperation and allow herself to love and be loved, Kerry's story is never less than riveting. In rich and immediate detail, Loose Girl re-creates what it feels like to be in that desperate moment, when a girl tries to control a boy by handing over her body, when the touch of that boy seems to offer proof of something, but ultimately delivers little more than emptiness. Kerry Cohen's journey from that hopeless place to her current confident and fulfilled existence is a cautionary tale and a revelation for girls young and old. The unforgettable memoir of one young woman who desperately wanted to matter, Loose Girl will speak to countless others with its compassion, understanding, and love.
Loose Girl: A Memoir of Promiscuity
by Kerry CohenThis captivating and deeply emotional memoir pulls back the curtain on the complex relationship women have between their bodies, love, and the way the two work together. Kerry Cohen is eleven years old when she recognizes the power of her body in the leer of a grown man. Her parents are recently divorced and it doesn't take long before their lassitude and Kerry's desire to stand out—to be memorable in some way—combine to lead her down a path she knows she shouldn't take. Kerry wanted attention. She wanted love. But not really understanding what love was, not really knowing how to get it, she reached for sex instead.Loose Girl is Kerry Cohen's captivating memoir about her descent into promiscuity and how she gradually found her way toward real intimacy. The story of addiction—not just to sex, but to male attention—Loose Girl is also the story of a young girl who came to believe that boys and men could give her life meaning. It didn't matter who he was. It was their movement that mattered, their being together. And for a while, that was enough.From the early rush of exploration to the day she learned to quiet the desperation and allow herself to love and be loved, Kerry's story is never less than riveting. In rich and immediate detail, Loose Girl re-creates what it feels like to be in that desperate moment, when a girl tries to control a boy by handing over her body, when the touch of that boy seems to offer proof of something, but ultimately delivers little more than emptiness.Kerry Cohen's journey from that hopeless place to her current confident and fulfilled existence is a cautionary tale and a revelation for girls young and old. The unforgettable memoir of one young woman who desperately wanted to matter, Loose Girl will speak to countless others with its compassion, understanding, and love.
Loose Head: Confessions of an (un)professional rugby player
by Joe MarlerSHORTLISTED FOR THE TELEGRAPH RUGBY BOOK OF THE YEARThe truth about being a rugby player from the horsey's mouth.This book is not just about how a psychiatrist called Humphrey helped me get back on my horse and clippity-clop all the way to the World Cup semi-final in Japan. It's the story of how a fat kid who had to live up to the nickname Psycho grew up to play and party for over a decade with rugby's greatest pros and live weird and wonderful moments both in and out of the scrum. That's why I'm letting you read my diary on my weirdest days. You never know what you're going to get with me. From being locked in a police cell to singing Adele on Jonathan Ross (I'll let you decide which is worse), being kissed by a murderer on the number 51 bus to drug tests where clipboard-wielding men hover inches away from my naked genitalia, melting opponents in rucks, winning tackles, and generally losing blood, sweat and ears in the name of the great sport of rugby. This is how (not) to be a rugby player.
Loose Women: Our Life Lessons Revealed
by ITV Ventures Limited*For 20 years the Loose Women panellists have been entertaining the nation with their forthright opinions on the vagaries of modern life. For the first time, they have come together to share intimate thoughts, fears, memories and anecdotes that are both thought-provoking and entertaining in equal measure.Loose Women: Let Loose! takes on the essential subjects of Love, Sex, Self-Esteem, Friendships, Family, Body Image and Wellness. Whether it is parenting advice from Nadia ('It's important to have a support network when you're a new parent'); Gloria's experience with bereavement ('Losing a child changes you, you can't be the same person'); Coleen's feelings about love ('I do believe there is "the one" - for now'); or Janet's take on mental health ('It doesn't need to be triggered by splitting up or a death, it could be happening in small ways'), there are stories that have never been shared before alongside the show's best bits, making Loose Women: Let Loose! a hilarious and honest guide to handling life's ups and downs as a 21st-century woman.
Loose Women: Our Life Lessons Revealed
by ITV Ventures LimitedFor 20 years the Loose Women panellists have been entertaining the nation with their forthright opinions on the vagaries of modern life. For the first time, they have come together to share intimate thoughts, fears, memories and anecdotes that are both thought-provoking and entertaining in equal measure.Loose Women: Let Loose! takes on the essential subjects of Love, Sex, Self-Esteem, Friendships, Family, Body Image and Wellness. Whether it is parenting advice from Nadia ('It's important to have a support network when you're a new parent'); Gloria's experience with bereavement ('Losing a child changes you, you can't be the same person'); Coleen's feelings about love ('I do believe there is "the one" - for now'); or Janet's take on mental health ('It doesn't need to be triggered by splitting up or a death, it could be happening in small ways'), there are stories that have never been shared before alongside the show's best bits, making Loose Women: Let Loose! a hilarious and honest guide to handling life's ups and downs as a 21st-century woman.
Loosely Based On A Made-Up Story: A Non-Memoir
by James BluntThis book is inspired by true events but is not a biography.The truth is My Truth is not The Truth, and that's as honest as I can be. It's partially true, rather than painfully true, and I have possibly been economical with the truth, Your Honour.Basically, I made this sh*t up . . .While James Blunt's crimes against music are well-documented, he also has some stories that are not. In Loosely Based On A Made-Up Story, James reveals his most riotous anecdotes to date for your amusement - and his parents' horror - in this highly anticipated non-memoir.From his questionable Norfolk roots, eccentric family, boarding school antics, misjudged military service, rise to music stardom and tour escapades, James delves into his (surprisingly) fascinating life to date. What do you do when your mother writes irate emails to the future prime minister defending your honour? What does it take to run a male escort agency? And why exactly should you refrain from crowd-surfing? Find out here, folks . . .Were the stories in this book grossly exaggerated in an attempt to impress? Maybe. But one thing is for certain: you won't want to miss it.
López Rega: El peronismo y la Triple A
by Marcelo LarraquyVida de José López Rega, un anónimo policía retirado al servicio del matrimonio de Juan Domingo Perón e Isabel Martínez, que terminó influyendo en el destino de la Argentina en los años setenta, con la gestación de la organización paraestatal Triple A durante el tercer gobierno peronista. Más de dos mil muertos, en crímenes todavía impunes, fueron el antecedente del terrorismo de Estado de la dictadura militar que usurpó el poder en 1976. Este libro puede leerse como la clásica biografía de un personaje oscuro, menor, al que los acontecimientos históricos le dieron dimensión política. José López Rega empieza a gravitar en la vida de los argentinos en 1966, cuando ingresa al servicio doméstico del matrimonio de Juan Perón e Isabel Martínez; por eso, a la vez, es una historia íntima de Perón. En esta notable investigación, Marcelo Larraquy profundiza además en las circunstancias que originaron la violencia durante el tercer gobierno peronista (1973-1976), de la cual la Triple A comandada por "el Brujo" fue brazo ejecutor, y que fue el preludio de la feroz represión desplegada por la dictadura. Este intenso trabajo de reelaboración actualiza una obra necesaria para comprender no sólo qué se discute hoy sobre los años setenta, sino también la naturaleza de las disputas en el interior del aparato justicialista.
Lopsided
by Meredith Norton'As far as I'm concerned, Lance Armstrong and I are close to exact opposites, both physically and mentally . . . If surviving this particularly deadly form of breast cancer required any of the Lance-like traits, such as a willingness to physically exert myself, I was as good as dead. 'When well-meaning family and friends found out about her diagnosis, they often came armed with copies of Lance Armstrong's cancer survival book. Meredith reacted by penning a sharp, irreverent and laugh-out-loud funny memoir. More than just an account of her harrowing and, at times, hilarious treatments during her illness, Lopsided offers up entertaining memories of an offbeat life. A fiesty and irreverent memoir about life and death, family and friends, and everything in between.
Loquillo: La biografía oficial
by Felipe CabrerizoLa biografía oficial y definitiva de Loquillo, basada en materiales de archivo y entrevistas inéditas a su protagonista. Figura polémica y esquiva, Loquillo alcanzó el éxito en compañía de Intocables y Trogloditas pero, incómodo ante un personaje que había dejado de ser el suyo, no dudó en abandonarlo. Fue el inicio de una larga travesía en la que muchas veces estuvo cerca de perder el pie y de la que solo consiguió salir tras reinventarse como artista en solitario. Casi medio siglo después de su debut en un cabaret de las Ramblas, el Loco afronta una de las etapas más plenas de su carrera convertido en un referente para la cultura español y rehuyendo cualquier asomo de conformismo. Un recorrido largo y sinuoso analizado minuciosamente en este volumen, primera biografía del cantante. Escrita con gran ritmo por el reconocido periodista musical Felipe Cabrerizo, que ha entrevistado al protagonista y su círculo, la historia acaba capturando no solo una figura, sino toda una época de nuestra cultura. Sobre la biografía y el biografiado:«Loquillo nunca está dónde se le busca. Es Batman en la baticueva, Dino con los amigos, un tipo listo en los negocios y una estrella en el escenario, en el cancionero y en el imaginario de este país. Y Cabrerizo ha tenido la osadía de tomarle las hechuras con pasión y rigor a nuestro roquero de guardia, superviviente de todas las batallas».Carlos Zanón «El Loco es un tipo excéntrico que no hace concesiones. Desenfunda las palabras y las dispara con una lucidez que a veces da hasta miedo. Es un personaje de western. Se lo puede permitir. Porque él no es un cantante. Es un artista. Una estrella del Rock and Roll con cicatrices, historias que contar y un enorme talento para hacerlo a su manera. Un grande dentro y fuera del escenario, capaz de todo: incluso de romperse con un verso».Marta Robles «El Loco es un animal salvaje en peligro de extinción. Este libro es lo más cerca que va a estar de reproducirse encima de un escenario».Manuel Jabois «De Loquillo conocemos su épica. Sus hombros firmes, su mandíbula apretada. Sus frases de epitafio. Pero en este libro se adentra en terra incognita. Desvela el espíritu aún intacto del hijo único que leía a Dickens después de meterse en peleas de barrio. Del adolescente que sigue contando emocionado, como el que lanza una canasta perfecta, su paseo en un Bentley con Johnny Hallyday por los Campos Eliseos. Loquillo es todos esos. Valiente, leal, arrogante y libre. Loquillo es el gran romántico, en el sentido más alemán y menos manido del término».Silvia Grijalba «Loquillo es un Jack London de la aventura musical, un caballero andante del rock, un paladín del honor y de la amistad».Luis Alberto de Cuenca
Lorado Taft: The Chicago Years
by Robert G. La France Henry Adams Allen Stuart WellerSculptor Lorado Taft helped build Chicago's worldwide reputation as the epicenter of the City Beautiful Movement. In this new biography, art historian Allen Stuart Weller picks up where his earlier book Lorado in Paris left off, drawing on the sculptor's papers to generate a fascinating account of the most productive and influential years of Taft's long career. Returning to Chicago from France, Taft established a bustling studio and began a twenty-one-year career as an instructor at the Art Institute, succeeded by three decades as head of the Midway Studios at the University of Chicago. This triumphant era included: ephemeral sculpture for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition; a prolific turn-of-the-century period marked by the gold-medal-winning The Solitude of the Soul; the 1913 Fountain of the Great Lakes; the 1929 Alma Mater at the University of Illinois; and large-scale projects such as his ambitious program for Chicago's Midway with the monumental Fountain of Time. In addition, the book charts Taft's mentoring of women artists, including the so-called White Rabbits at the World's Fair, many of whom went on to achieve artistic success. Lavishly illustrated with color images of Taft's most celebrated works, Lorado Taft: The Chicago Years completes the first major study of a great American artist.
Lord Acton for Our Time (People for Our Time)
by Christopher LazarskiLord Acton for Our Time illuminates the thought of the English historian, politician, and writer who gave us the famous maxim: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." Extracting lessons for our current age, Christopher Lazarski focuses on liberty—how Acton understood it, what he thought was its foundation and necessary ingredients, and the history of its development in Western Civilization. Acton is known as a historian, or even the historian, of liberty and as an ardent liberal, but there is confusion as to how he understood liberty and what kind of liberalism he professed. Lord Acton for Our Time provides an introduction that presents essentials about Acton's life and recovers his theory of liberalism. Lazarski analyzes Acton's type of liberalism, probing whether it can offer a solution to the crisis of liberal democracy in our own era. For Acton, liberty is the freedom to do what we ought to do, both as individuals and as citizens, and his writings contain valuable lessons for today.
The Lord Cornbury Scandal
by Patricia U. BonomiFor more than two centuries, Edward Hyde, Viscount Cornbury--royal governor of New York and New Jersey from 1702 to 1708--has been a despised figure, whose alleged transgressions ranged from raiding the public treasury to scandalizing his subjects by parading through the streets of New York City dressed as a woman.Now, Patricia Bonomi offers a challenging reassessment of Cornbury. She explores his life and experiences to illuminate such topics as imperial political culture; gossip, Grub Street, and the climate of slander; early modern sexual culture; and constitutional perceptions in an era of reform. In a tour de force of scholarly detective work, Bonomi also reappraises the most "conclusive" piece of evidence used to indict Cornbury--a celebrated portrait, said to represent the governor in female dress, that hangs today in the New-York Historical Society. Stripping away the many layers of "the Cornbury myth," this innovative work brings to life a fascinating man and reveals the conflicting emotions and loyalties that shaped the politics of the First British Empire."A tour de force of historical detection.--Tim Hilchey, New York Times Book Review"Bonomi's book is more than an exoneration of Cornbury. It is a case study of what she aptly calls the politics of reputation."--Edmund S. Morgan, New York Review of Books"A fascinating, authoritative glimpse into the seamy underside of imperial politics in the late Stuart era.--Timothy D. Hall, Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography"An intriguing detective story that....casts light upon the operation of political power in the past and the nature of history writing in the present.--Alan Taylor, New RepublicFor more than two centuries, Edward Hyde, Viscount Cornbury--royal governor of New York and New Jersey from 1702 to 1708--has been a despised figure whose alleged transgressions ranged from looting the colonial treasury to public cross dressing in New York City. Stripping away the many layers of "the Cornbury myth," Patricia Bonomi offers a challenging reassessment of this fascinating figure and of the rough and tumble political culture of the First British Empire--with its muckraking press, salacious gossip, and conflicting imperial loyalties. -->
Lord Esher: A Political Biography
by Peter FraserAlthough wielding huge influence in late Victorian and Edwardian political life, Reginald Baliol Brett (1852 – 1930), the second Lord Esher was, an enigma to his contemporaries and still remains a puzzle to historians. At the heart of British and Imperial political affairs for several decades, Esher sat in both Houses of Parliament, was a high ranking civil servant, friend and confidential advisor to three Sovereigns and four Prime Ministers (of differing political hues) and yet refused high office offered by both Liberals and Conservatives. Yet his behind-the-scenes influence through his range of friends in high places gave him unmatched, some thought undemocratic, power. Despite his lack of military service he was instrumental through his work on the Committee for Imperial Defence (CID) and its Secretarial for the wholesale reorganisation of the Armed Forces. It could be said that Esher, with his grasp of power without responsibility, was a unique phenomenon in British history. The Author, while compiling this fascinating study, drew on Cabinet and CID files, the Royal Archives and the papers of the Esher, Balfour, Asquith and Lloyd George estates. The result is a brilliant readable yet scholarly addition to British political bibliography.
Lord Fear
by Lucas MannLucas Mann was only thirteen years old when his brother Josh--charismatic and ambitious, funny and sadistic, violent and vulnerable--died of a heroin overdose. Although his brief life is ultimately unknowable, Josh is both a presence and an absence in the author's life that will not remain unclaimed. As Josh's story is told in kaleidoscopic shards of memories assembled from interviews with his friends and family, as well as from the raw material of his journals, a revealing, startling portrait unfolds. At the same time, Mann pulls back to examine his own complicated feelings and motives for recovering memories of his brother's life, searching for a balance between the tension of inevitability and the what ifs that beg to be asked. Through his investigation, Mann also comes to redefine his own place in a family whose narrative is bisected by the tragic loss. Unstinting in its honesty, captivating in its form, and profound in its conclusions, Lord Fear more than confirms the promise of Mann's earlier book, Class A; with it, he is poised to enter the ranks of the best young writers of his generation.From the Hardcover edition.
The Lord God Made Them All (All Creatures Great and Small #4)
by James HerriotBack home in Yorkshire after military duty, James Herriot sees his family and veterinary practice flourish, even as the world around him changes profoundly When World War II ends and James Herriot returns to his wife and new family in the English countryside, he dreams mostly of Sunday roasts and Yorkshire puddings, but new adventure has a way of tracking him down. Soon Herriot finds himself escorting a large number of sheep on a steamer to Russia, puzzling through the trials of fatherhood, and finding creative ways to earn the trust of suspicious neighbors who rely on him for the wellbeing of their beloved animals. Herriot's winning humor and self-deprecating humanity shine through every page, and his remarkable storytelling has captivated readers for generations.
The Lord God Made Them All
by James HerriotThe war is over, the RAF uniform has been handed in and James Herriot goes back where he ought to be - at work in the dales around Darrowby. Much has changed, but the blunt-spoken Yorkshire folk and the host of four-legged patients are still the same. So is their vet, who doesn't yet know that literary success is just around the corner...
Lord High Executioner: The Legendary Mafia Boss Albert Anastasia
by Michael Benson Frank Dimatteo Sr.The bloodsoaked saga of the Murder, Inc. legend who helped create the modern American Mafia—one body at a time—featuring shocking eyewitness accounts... Umberto &“Albert&” Anastasia was born in Italy at the turn of the century. Five decades later, he would be gunned down in a barber shop in New York City. What happened in the years in between—and why every crime family had reason to want him dead—is one of the most brutal and fascinating stories in the history of American organized crime. This in-depth account of the man who became one of the most powerful and homicidal crime bosses of the twentieth century from Mafia insider Frank Dimatteo is the first full-length book to chronicle Anastasia&’s bloody rise from fresh-off-the-boat immigrant to founder of the notorious killer&’s club Murder, Inc.—featuring never-before-told accounts from those who feared him most... They called him &“The One Man Army.&” &“Mad Hatter.&” &“Lord High Executioner.&” Albert Anastasia came to America mean and became a prolific killer. His merciless assassination of Mafia godfather Vincent Mangano is recounted here in chilling first-hand detail. He set the record: the first man in the history of American justice to be charged with four separate murders—and walk free after each one. But in the end, he was the last obstacle in rival Mafia hoodlum Vito Genovese&’s dream of becoming the boss of bosses—and paid the ultimate price . . .
Lord, I Want to Be Whole
by Stormie O'MartianBriefly describes the author's difficult childhood and the choices that led her into a destructive lifestyle that eventually left her empty and alone, then presents seven steps for living the Christian life in obedience to God. Includes a discussion of how to release the past, confess sins before God, seek deliverance from past bondage, and stand strong in freedom from pain. Offers ways to seek emotional, physical, and spiritual wholeness following abuse or trauma.
Lord Kitchener
by G. K. ChestertonHoratio Herbert Kitchener was Irish by birth but English by extraction, being born in County Kerry, the son of an English colonel. The fanciful might see in this first and accidental fact the presence of this simple and practical man amid the more mystical western problems and dreams which were very distant from his mind, an element which clings to all his career and gives it an unconscious poetry. He had many qualities of the epic hero, and especially this -- that he was the last man in the world to be the epic poet. There is something almost provocative to superstition in the way in which he stands at every turn as the symbol of the special trials and the modern transfiguration of England; from this moment when he was born among the peasants of Ireland to the moment when he died upon the sea, seeking at the other end of the world the other great peasant civilisation of Russia. Yet at each of these symbolic moments he is, if not as unconscious as a symbol, then as silent as a symbol; he is speechless and supremely significant, like an ensign or a flag. The superficial picturesqueness of his life, at least, lies very much in this -- that he was like a hero condemned by fate to act an allegory.
Lord Lucan: My Story
by William ColesThe British Lord who became a legendary fugitive tells his story of murder and escape in this fictionalized account of the infamous scandal.On November 7th, 1974, a murder plot goes disastrously wrong. John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan, had intended to do away with his wife. Instead, it is their nanny, Sandra Rivett, who lies dead in the basement of their London home. The following day, Lord Lucan disappeared. And despite a global hunt, he was never seen again.Bingham had once been the most charismatic members of the British peerage. A frequent gambler, he was known as Lucky Lord Lucan—even though his losses often exceeded his winnings. Since his disappearance, he has become a legend of a very different sort. Here, in his own hand, is Lord Lucan&’s confession to his grizzly crimes, and the story of his mysterious life. It is a strange tale of an Old Etonian Earl on the run; of how a man became a murderer; and how a life-long friendship soured into an enduring hate. Here, for the first time, is the full monstrous account of the life of Lord Lucan.
Lord Lyons
by Brian JenkinsThe British ambassador in Washington during the US Civil War and ambassador in Paris before and after the Franco-Prussian war, Lord Lyons (1817-1887) was one of the most important diplomats of the Victorian period. Although frequently featured in histories of the United States and Europe in the second half of the nineteenth century, and in discussions and analyses of British foreign policy, he has remained an ill-defined figure. In Lord Lyons: A Diplomat in an Age of Nationalism and War, Brian Jenkins explains the man and examines his career. Based on a staggering study of primary sources, he presents a convincing portrait of a subject who rarely revealed himself personally. Though he avoided publicity, Lyons came to be regarded as his nation's premier diplomat as his career took him to the heart of the great international issues and crises of his generation. As minister to the United States he played a vital role in preserving Anglo-American peace and was a powerful voice opposing Anglo-French intervention in the Civil War. While ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, he helped to prevent French control of the Suez Canal then under construction. In France, he maintained an amiable and constructive relationship with a bitter nation struggling to reorganize itself and its constitution after the Franco-Prussian War. For many historians Lord Lyons has been difficult to ignore but hard to admire. In rescuing him as a truly important historical figure, Jenkins details for the first time the personal and public strategies Lyons employed through decades of exemplary diplomatic service on both sides of the Atlantic.
Lord Lyons: A Diplomat in an Age of Nationalism and War
by Brian JenkinsThe British ambassador in Washington during the US Civil War and ambassador in Paris before and after the Franco-Prussian war, Lord Lyons (1817-1887) was one of the most important diplomats of the Victorian period. Although frequently featured in histories of the United States and Europe in the second half of the nineteenth century, and in discussions and analyses of British foreign policy, he has remained an ill-defined figure. In Lord Lyons: A Diplomat in an Age of Nationalism and War, Brian Jenkins explains the man and examines his career. Based on a staggering study of primary sources, he presents a convincing portrait of a subject who rarely revealed himself personally. Though he avoided publicity, Lyons came to be regarded as his nation's premier diplomat as his career took him to the heart of the great international issues and crises of his generation. As minister to the United States he played a vital role in preserving Anglo-American peace and was a powerful voice opposing Anglo-French intervention in the Civil War. While ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, he helped to prevent French control of the Suez Canal then under construction. In France, he maintained an amiable and constructive relationship with a bitter nation struggling to reorganize itself and its constitution after the Franco-Prussian War. For many historians Lord Lyons has been difficult to ignore but hard to admire. In rescuing him as a truly important historical figure, Jenkins details for the first time the personal and public strategies Lyons employed through decades of exemplary diplomatic service on both sides of the Atlantic.
Lord Mansfield
by Norman PoserIn the first modern biography of Lord Mansfield (1705-1793), Norman Poser details the turbulent political life of eighteenth-century Britain's most powerful judge, serving as chief justice for an unprecedented thirty-two years. His legal decisions launched England on the path to abolishing slavery and the slave trade, modernized commercial law in ways that helped establish Britain as the world's leading industrial and trading nation, and his vigorous opposition to the American colonists stoked Revolutionary fires. Although his father and brother were Jacobite rebels loyal to the deposed King James II, Mansfield was able to rise through English society to become a member of its ruling aristocracy and a confidential advisor to two kings. Poser sets Mansfield's rulings in historical context while delving into Mansfield's circle, which included poets (Alexander Pope described him as "his country's pride"), artists, actors, clergymen, noblemen and women, and politicians. Still celebrated for his application of common sense and moral values to the formal and complicated English common law system, Mansfield brought a practical and humanistic approach to the law. His decisions continue to influence the legal systems of Canada, Britain, and the United States to an extent unmatched by any judge of the past. An illuminating account of one of the greatest legal minds, Lord Mansfield presents a vibrant look at Britain's Age of Reason through one of its central figures.