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Fire From the Sky: Surviving the Kamikaze Threat
by Robert C. StemBy late 1944 the war in the Pacific had turned decisively against the Japanese, and overwhelming Allied forces began to close in on the home islands. At this point Japan unveiled a terrifying new tactic: the suicide attack, or Kamikaze, named after the Divine Wind which had once before, in medieval times, saved Japan from invasion. Intentionally crashing bomb-laden aircraft into Allied warships, these piloted guided missiles at first seemed unstoppable, calling into question the naval strategy on which the whole war effort was based.This book looks at the origins of the campaign, at its strategic goals, the organization of the Japanese special attack forces, and the culture that made suicide not just acceptable, but honourable. Inevitably, much mythology has grown up around the subject, and the book attempts to sort the wheat from the chaff. One story that does stand up is the reported massive stock-piling of kamikaze aircraft for use against any Allied invasion of the home islands, if the atomic bombs had not forced Japans surrender.However, its principal focus is on the experience of those in the Allied fleets on the receiving end of this peculiarly alien and unnerving weapon how they learnt to endure and eventually counter a threat whose potential was over-estimated, by both sides. In this respect, it has a very modern resonance.
Fire Hazards: Socio-economic and Regional Issues
by Jesús Rodrigo-Comino Luca SalvatiThe open access book aims to show the readers novel, relevant and reproducible power of synergistic collaborations between European research groups and stakeholders with the objective to synthesize the existing knowledge and expertise about fire management and hazard and defining a concerted research agenda that promotes an integrated approach to create fire-resilient landscapes, taking into account biological, biochemical and physical, but also socio-economic, historical, geographical, sociological, perception and policy constraints. This is an urgent societal need due to the expected further intensification and geographical spreading of wildfire regimes under Global Change. Fire has been part of the Earth's System for the last 400 million years, and humans are the sole species that controls and manages fire. We have used fire for over a million years, both, as hunter-gatherers managing the landscape with fire and as farmers using fire as a low-cost, efficient and ecological tool for clearing and maintaining the productivity of the land. Fire has been highlighted as the most influential element in the development of human societies. The increase in prolonged dry and hot periods observed in many regions of the world is exacerbating the risk of fire. The causes of increased fire risk are not only linked to climate change but are also a consequence of economic and social changes and political decisions. Over the past few decades, many countries’ rural areas have seen significant depopulation and a reduction in land management as residents moved to cities or even other countries in search of work. The resulting rural depopulation has led to revegetation of the abandoned agricultural land, which favors fire spread. The enhanced risk of fires is moving beyond the capacity of even the best-funded wildland firefighting teams and therefore calls for the development of new approaches to fire management that are key nowadays at different scales. Instead of focusing primarily on increasing firefighting capabilities, a more effective approach is needed that focuses on long-term fire prevention through vegetation management by reducing fuel load or managing fuel type and fuel continuity at a landscape level. FIRElinks (COST Action CA18135) is developing the EU-spanning network of scientists and practitioners involved in forest fire research and land management with backgrounds such as fire dynamics, fire risk management, fire effects on vegetation, fauna, soil and water and socio-economic, historical, geographical, political perception and land management approaches. Among the different Working Groups, number 5 is aimed to connect communities from different scientific and geographic backgrounds, allowing the discussion of different experiences and the emergence of new approaches to fire research, human management, regional issues and socio-economic aspects.
Fire in the Hole!: The Untold Story of My Traumatic Life and Explosive Success
by Bob ParsonsIn Fire in the Hole!, Bob Parsons, founder of GoDaddy, shares his story of extraordinary success as a self-made serial entrepreneur.Born in the tough town of East Baltimore to parents who were inveterate gamblers, billionaire philanthropist Bob Parsons' early years were marked by hardship and financial struggle. While he vowed his own children would never lack for anything, never did he imagine the wealth he would one day amass as the founder of Parsons Technology, GoDaddy, PXG Golf, and YAM Worldwide. In his literary debut, Fire in the Hole!, this extraordinary entrepreneur recounts the exploits of his youth, his hellish days at the mercy of Catholic school nuns, his harrowing tour of combat duty in Vietnam as a US Marine, his pioneering contributions to the software and internet industries, and his latest ventures in power sports, golf, real estate, and marketing. Along the way, we witness his remarkable resilience as he copes with his mother&’s mental illness and his father&’s struggles, battles PTSD resulting from both his childhood and war traumas, and mounts a quest to find new and effective treatments for himself and others who suffer from this affliction. He strongly supports veterans organizations, and believing in the concept of paying it forward, has awarded grants to more than ninety-six charities and organizations worldwide through the Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation. Perhaps the only thing that has come easy to Parsons is his gift for storytelling. His reflections are at turns heartbreaking, heartwarming, hilarious, and inspiring. If ever there were a story about a self-made man whose wealth can be measured as much by the contents of his heart as by the contents of his bank account, this is it. More than anything, Fire in the Hole! is a "can't put down," damn good read!
Fire in the Morning (Banner Books)
by Elizabeth SpencerAdmirers of Elizabeth Spencer’s writing will welcome back into print her first novel, and her new readers will discover the sources of her notable talent in this book. Published in 1948 to extraordinary attention from such eminent writers as Robert Penn Warren, Eudora Welty, and Katherine Anne Porter, this father-and-son story revolves around an old southern theme of family grievances and vendettas. Fire in the Morning recounts the conflict between two families extending over two generations up to the 1930s. The arrival of an innocent stranger flares old arguments and ignites new passions. In Spencer's compelling tale of the half-forgotten violence, the well-deep understanding of father and son, Kinloch Armstrong, the young hero, confronts mysteries of the past. His wife, a newcomer to the area and its legacies, makes friends with a family of traditional rivals. After she is involved in a nighttime wreck and the death of a local man, the past gradually comes to light, and the two families once again become caught up in revelations, hatreds, and conflicts. Spencer faithfully renders the setting—a small, dusty Mississippi town—and the surrounding countryside as it was in the early twentieth century.
The Fire Of Joy: Roughly 80 Poems To Get By Heart And Say Aloud
by Clive JamesClive James read, learned and recited poetry aloud for most of his life. In this book, completed before just before his death, he offers a selection of his favourite poems and a personal commentary on each. In the last months of his life, his vision impaired by surgery and unable to read, Clive James explored the treasure-house of his mind: the poems he knew best, so good that he didn’t just remember them, he found them impossible to forget. The Fire of Joy is the record of this final journey of recollection and celebration. Enthralled by poetry all his life, James knew hundreds of poems by heart. In offering this selection of his favourites, a succession of poems from the sixteenth century to the present, his aim is to inspire you to discover and to learn, and perhaps even to speak poetry aloud. In his highly personal anthology, James offers a commentary on each of the eighty or so poems: sometimes a historical or critical note on the poem or its author, sometimes a technical point about the poem’s construction from someone who was himself a poet, sometimes a personal anecdote about the role the poem played in his own life. Whether you’re familiar with a poem or not ― whether you’re familiar with poetry in general or not ― these chatty, unpretentious, often tender mini-essays convey the joy of James’s enthusiasm and the benefit of his knowledge. His urgent wish was to share with a new generation what he himself had loved. This is a book to be read cover to cover or dipped into: either way it generously opens up a world for our delight.
Fire on the Horizon: The Untold Story of the Gulf Oil Disaster
by John Konrad Tom Shroder"A phenomenal feat of journalism. . . . I tore through it like a novel but with the queasy knowledge that the whole damn thing is true." —Sebastian Junger, author of The Perfect Storm and WarBlending exclusive first-person interviews and penetrating investigative reporting, oil rig captain John Konrad and veteran Washington Post writer Tom Shroder give the definitive, white-knuckled account of the Deepwater Horizon explosion—as well as a riveting insider’s view of the byzantine culture of offshore drilling that made the disaster inevitable. As the world continues to cope with the oil spill’s grim aftermath—with environmental and economic consequences all the more dire in a region still rebuilding from Hurricane Katrina—Konrad and Schroder’s real-time account of the disaster shows us just where things went wrong, and points the way to a safer future for us all.
Fire Safety Management Handbook
by Daniel E. Della-GiustinaA must-have guide for current and future safety professionals, the third edition of this practical handbook presents the key elements of an effective fire safety management program; explains the types and functions of fire control equipment; discusses the identification and control of hazardous materials; identifies safety organizations and available resources for fire service programs; describes commonly installed fire detection systems and their maintenance and inspection; and includes learning objectives, case studies, updated codes and standards, and information about emergency response and school fire safety planning.
Fire Season: Field Notes from a Wilderness Lookout
by Philip Connors“Fire Season both evokes and honors the great hermit celebrants of nature, from Dillard to Kerouac to Thoreau—and I loved it.”—J.R. Moehringer, author of The Tender Bar“[Connors’s] adventures in radical solitude make for profoundly absorbing, restorative reading.”—Walter Kirn, author of Up in the AirPhillip Connors is a major new voice in American nonfiction, and his remarkable debut, Fire Season, is destined to become a modern classic. An absorbing chronicle of the days and nights of one of the last fire lookouts in the American West, Fire Season is a marvel of a book, as rugged and soulful as Matthew Crawford’s bestselling Shop Class as Soulcraft, and it immediately places Connors in the august company of Edward Abbey, Annie Dillard, Aldo Leopold, Barry Lopez, and others in the respected fraternity of hard-boiled nature writers.
Firefight: The Century-Long Battle to Integrate New York's Bravest
by Ginger Adams OtisIn 1919, when Wesley Williams became a New York City firefighter, he stepped into a world that was 100% white and predominantly Irish. As far as this city knew, black men in the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) tended horses.Nearly a century later, many things in the FDNY had changed—but not the scarcity of blacks. New York had about 300 black firefighters—roughly 3 percent of the 11,000 New York firefighters in a city of two million African Americans. That made the FDNY a true aberration compared to all the other uniformed departments, like the NYPD. Decades earlier, women and blacks had sued over its hiring practices and won. But the FDNY never took permanent steps to eradicate the inequities, which led to a courtroom show-down between New York City's billionaire Mayor, Mike Bloomberg, and a determined group of black activist firefighters. It was not until 2014 that the city settled the $98 million lawsuit.At the center of this book are stories of courage—about firefighters risking their lives in the line of duty but also risking their livelihood by battling an unjust system. Among them: FDNY Captain Paul Washington, a second generation black firefighter, who spent his multi-decade career fighting to get minorities on the job. He faced an insular culture made up of relatives who never saw their own inclusion as favoritism.Based on author Ginger Adams Otis' years of on the ground reporting, Firefight is an exciting blend of the high-octane energy of firefighting and critical Civil Rights history.
The Firefly Summer
by Morgan MatsonThree starred reviews! &“Heartfelt and hilarious, witty and wise, with indelible characters and laugh-out-loud humor. A fantastic read for any season of the year.&” —Stuart Gibbs, New York Times bestselling author In New York Times bestselling author Morgan Matson&’s middle grade debut &“brimming with heart, summer nostalgia, and a bit of mystery&” (Julie Murphy, #1 New York Times bestselling author), a young girl gets to know her mom&’s side of the family and hunts for hidden treasure over the course of one chaotic summer.For as long as Ryanna Stuart can remember, her summers have been spent with her father and his new wife. Just the three of them, structured, planned, and quiet. But this summer is different. This summer, she&’s received a letter from her grandparents—grandparents neither she nor her dad have spoken to since her mom&’s death—inviting her to stay with them at an old summer camp in the Poconos. Ryanna accepts. She wants to learn about her mom. She wants to uncover the mystery of why her father hasn&’t spoken to her grandparents all these years. She&’s even looking forward to a quiet summer by the lake. But what she finds are relatives…so many relatives! Aunts and uncles and cousins upon cousins—a motley, rambunctious crew of kids and eccentric, unconventional adults. People who have memories of her mom from when she was Ryanna&’s age, clues to her past like a treasure map. Ryanna even finds an actual, real-life treasure map! Over the course of one unforgettable summer—filled with s&’mores and swimming, adventure and fun, and even a decades-old mystery to solve—Ryanna discovers a whole new side of herself and that, sometimes, the last place you expected to be is the place where you really belong.
Fires in the Dark: Healing the Unquiet Mind
by Kay Redfield JamisonA NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • The acclaimed author of An Unquiet Mind considers the age-old quest for relief from psychological pain and the role of the exceptional healer in the journey back to health.&“To treat, even to cure, is not always to heal.&” In this expansive cultural history of the treatment and healing of mental suffering, Kay Jamison writes about psychotherapy, what makes a great healer, and the role of imagination and memory in regenerating the mind. From the trauma of the battlefields of the twentieth century, to those who are grieving, depressed, or with otherwise unquiet minds, to her own experience with bipolar illness, Jamison demonstrates how remarkable psychotherapy and other treatments can be when done well.She argues that not only patients but doctors must be healed. She draws on the example of W.H.R. Rivers, the renowned psychiatrist who treated poet Siegfried Sassoon and other World War I soldiers, and discusses the long history of physical treatments for mental illness, as well as the ancient and modern importance of religion, ritual, and myth in healing the mind. She looks at the vital role of artists and writers, as well as exemplary figures, such as Paul Robeson, who have helped to heal us as a people.Fires in the Dark is a beautiful meditation on the quest and adventure of healing the mind, on the power of accompaniment, and the necessity for knowledge.
The First Day of May
by Henrique Coser MoreiraHere is a book to celebrate firsts. That first magical day of spring, when it seems the whole world is bursting with life. That first time bursting out of your house after being cooped up for SO long. Your first time on the swingset. Your first time seeing a butterfly. Your first time exploring the world with someone you love. From Henrique Coser Moreira comes a wordless ode to joy and discovery that will stir readers young and old. P R A I S E ★ "Pure joy." –BookPage (starred) ★ "All the delights of spring are found within the covers in this charming, wordless picture book." –School Library Journal (starred) ★ "Ivan Brunetti by way of Rowboat Watkins, and readers will sense the opportunities waiting just outside their own doors. A joyous adventure, bright and brimming with exuberance." –Booklist (starred) ★ "This wordless book celebrates—with abundant style—the arrival of spring… playful and exceptionally funny… A breath of fresh air, in more ways than one." –Horn Book (starred) "A quirky and buoyant romp through spring." –Kirkus "Wordless panels mix the whimsical and the mundane in depicting a child’s exuberant outdoor exploits on the titular first of May." –Publishers Weekly
First Day, Worst Day (The Very Worst Ever #1)
by Andy NonamusA very unlucky kid navigates the many challenges of the first day of school in the first book in The Very Worst Ever chapter book series![REDACTED] keeps his name and school secret—even hiding his appearance behind stickers. Why? Because his bad luck is super embarrassing! It&’s the first day at a new school, and this fresh new start means absolutely no one knows just how unlucky he is. But after missing his school bus, getting lost looking for his classroom, and getting smacked in the face with a basketball, he quickly realizes he is doomed forever. Luckily, some new friends might just help him make it through the worst first day ever! With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, The Very Worst Ever chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.
First Friends: A Novel
by Marcia WillettCass and Kate meet at school--and are firm friends for the rest of their lives. Both marry naval officers, but Cass's infidelity has far-reaching consequences for her children--and Kate's. Many of the characters in First Friends (published in the UK as Those Who Serve) reappear in later Marcia Willett novels, and we meet their children as well. As always, Marcia Willett's wise understanding of love, loss, marriage, and parenthood is conveyed with honesty, generosity, and compassion.
The First Law of Love (A Shore Leave Cafe Romance #6)
by Abbie Williams"Abbie Williams is an author who excels at the romance genre. Her Shore Leave Cafe Romance series is a showcase for her ability to weave a contemporary tapestry, complete with rich characters, vivid settings and seductive moods."—Dean Mayes, Author of: The Hambledown Dream, Gifts of the Peramangk, The Recipient, The Artisan HeartTish Gordon has always been the most stubborn of her sisters, and has worked tirelessly to earn a law degree from her father's alma mater in Chicago. Although the Shore Leave Cafe will always be in her heart, Tish wants nothing short of a high-profile career in corporate law in the glamorous city where she was born.There is just one minor roadblock - a summer internship as a favor to her future boss. Location: Jalesville, Montana, where a fast-talking company is snapping up acreage and threatening local business. Tish heads west, determined to accomplish the internship and return to Chicago as quickly as possible. But Montana proves to have distractions of its own, catching her quite off guard. Particularly in the form of sexy musician/cowboy Case Spicer, who once told Tish she was the love of his life.As the summer heats to a boiling point, Tish must choose between the life she thinks she wants and the life that just might prove to be what she needs.A story about heartbreak, blame, family, destiny, and the difficulties of returning home, The First Law of Love is the sixth book in A Shore Leave Cafe Romance series.A Shore Leave Cafe Romance series:1. Summer at the Shore Leave Cafe2. Second Chances3. A Notion of Love4. Winter at the White Oaks Lodge5. Wild Flower6. The First Law of Love7. Until Tomorrow8. The Way Back9. Return to YesterdayThe story continues in her most recent novel, A Place to Belong.Also from Abbie Williams, The Dove Saga1. Heart of a Dove2. Soul of a Crow3. Grace of a Hawk
First Light: A Novel (Night's Edge #2)
by Liz Kerin“A Phoebe Bridgers song in book form, I felt and bled, willingly and gratefully.”—CJ Leede, author of Maeve FlyWith Night’s Edge, Liz Kerin took a bite out of vampire lore. The riveting sequel, First Light, is about seizing a brighter future by confronting the shadows of our past.It's been nine months since the catastrophe in Tucson sent Mia fleeing from her home. But she’s not running away from the darkness—she’s running toward it, obsessively pursuing the man who gave her mother a thirst for blood and destroyed their lives.But when Mia finds the monsters she’s been hunting and infiltrates a secret network of fugitives, she discovers she might have been their prey all along. To escape their clutches, she’ll have to reckon with her mother’s harrowing past and confront a painful truth: that they might be more alike than she ever imagined.Also by Liz Kerin:Night’s EdgeAt the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
First Love: Essays on Friendship
by Lilly DancygerA bold, poignant essay collection that treats women&’s friendships as the love stories they truly are, from the critically acclaimed author of Negative Space&“Fiercely felt and finely etched.&”—Leslie Jamison, New York Times bestselling author of The Empathy ExamsLilly Dancyger always thought of her closest friendships as great loves, complex and profound as any romance. When her beloved cousin was murdered just as both girls were entering adulthood, Dancyger&’s devotion to the women in her life took on a new urgency—a desire to hold her friends close while she still could. In First Love, this urgency runs through a striking exploration of the bonds between women, from the intensity of adolescent best friendship and fluid sexuality to mothering and chosen family.Each essay in this incisive collection is grounded in a close female friendship in Dancyger&’s life, reaching outward to dissect cultural assumptions about identity and desire, and the many ways women create space for each other in a world that wants us small. Seamlessly weaving personal experience with literature and pop culture—ranging from fairy tales to true crime, from Anaïs Nin and Sylvia Plath to Heavenly Creatures and the &“sad girls&” of Tumblr—Dancyger&’s essays form a kaleidoscopic story of a life told through friendships, and an expansive interrogation of what it means to love each other.Though friendship will never be enough to keep us safe from the dangers of the world, Dancyger reminds us that love is always worth the risk, and that when tragedy strikes, it&’s our friends who will help us survive. In First Love, these essential bonds get their due.
First Snow
by Bomi ParkLook out. Now look up. From the sky one flake falls, then another. And just like that—it's snowing. In this beautiful book from debut creator Bomi Park, a young girl wakes up to the year's first snowy day. From her initial glimpse out the window to her poignant adventures—rolling a snowman, making snow angels—the girl's quiet quests are ones all young readers will recognize. Simple, muted text and exquisite, evocative art conjure the excitement of a day spent exploring the wonder of snow—and the magic that, sometimes literally, such a day brings. As subtly joyful as a snow day itself, this book will find its home in the hearts of young adventurers everywhere. Plus, this is the fixed format version, which looks almost identical to the print edition.
First & Then
by Emma MillsRecommended in John Green's Book Giving Guide for the Holidays 2015Devon Tennyson wouldn't change a thing. She's happy silently crushing on best friend Cas, and blissfully ignoring the future after high school. But the universe has other plans. It delivers Devon's cousin Foster, an unrepentant social outlier with a surprising talent, and the obnoxiously superior and maddeningly attractive jock, Ezra, right where she doesn't want them--first into her P.E. class and then into every other aspect of her life. With wit, heart, and humor to spare, First & Then is a contemporary novel about falling in love--with the unexpected boy, with a new brother, and with yourself.
The First-Time Manager: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
by Alida Miranda-WolffThe essential resource for new managers who want to foster a safe, inclusive, and productive space for their teams.Being an inclusive manager boils down to finding ways to balance power and love day-to-day. When do we prioritize the needs of an individual employee over that of the whole team? When do we hold firm that what the team needs is more important than what the individual wants? How do we ensure that we uphold one person&’s boundaries without compromising another&’s? How do we live up to the promises we make to ourselves and to each other, all while driving results and hitting our earnings targets?Alida Miranda-Wolff has worked with hundreds of organizations to help them create cultures of belonging and successful DEI initiatives, which means she knows the common pitfalls to avoid and action items required to make DEI work. In this practical guide, she shares both the mindset and actions required for new managers to build inclusive teams. This one-of-a-kind guide will: Help you define your inclusive management style.Provide practical guidance on how to create a healthy culture on your teams through equitable practices.Teach you the basics of inclusive language.Offer guidance on how to give and receive feedback.Help you manage identity-based conflict.
First Working Conference on Artificial Intelligence Development for a Resilient and Sustainable Tomorrow: AI Tomorrow 2023 (Informatik aktuell)
by Christian Zinke-Wehlmann Julia FriedrichKünstliche Intelligenz ist ein Treiber der digitalen Transformation von Unternehmen, welche die gesamte Organisation, einschließlich ihrer Strukturen, Prozesse und Mitarbeitender berührt.Die AI Tomorrow Konferenz möchte die menschzentrierte Perspektive auf KI und ihren nachhaltigen Einsatz, im ökologischen wie auch ökonomischen und sozialen Sinne, stärker ins Zentrum des wissenschaftlichen Diskurses rücken.Dies ist ein Open-Access-Buch.Der Inhalt: Die Autor:innen beleuchten Aspekte der KI-Entwicklung und des Einsatzes. Nach einer Einführung zu Resilienz und Nachhaltigkeit von KI erscheinen die Beiträge entsprechend ihrer Zuordnung zu den Konferenzsessions:(I) Digital transformation of organizations or processes through AI(II) Opportunities of AI for society(III) AI supported knowledge management and learning(IV) Manufacturing and factories of the futureDie Zielgruppe: Wissenschaftler:innen und Interessierte aus dem Bereich der Angewandten Informatik
Fish at the Fair
by Kellie NicholsonAt a bustling country fair, young Scoot and his mom are immersed in a whirlwind of vibrant colors, delightful games, and an array of fascinating animals.Amid the tantalizing scents of fair treats blending with rustic barnyard aromas, they encounter a carnival man boasting bowls filled with shimmering goldfish.All it takes to win a finned friend is a coin tossed into a dish! But will Mom allow Scoot the chance?Whether Scoot goes home with a new pet or just a cherished memory, it&’s bound to be an unforgettable day at the fair!
The Fishing Fleet: Husband-Hunting in the Raj
by Anne de CourcyFrom the author of the critically acclaimed biographies Diana Mosley and The Viceroy's Daughters comes a fascinating, hugely entertaining account of the Victorian women who traveled halfway around the world on the hunt for a husband.By the late nineteenth century, Britain's colonial reign seemed to know no limit—and India was the sparkling jewel in the Imperial crown. Many of Her Majesty's best and brightest young men departed for the Raj to make their careers, and their fortunes, as bureaucrats, soldiers, and businessmen. But in their wake they left behind countless young ladies who, suddenly bereft of eligible bachelors, found themselves facing an uncertain future.With nothing to lose and everything to gain, some of these women decided to follow suit and abandon their native Britain for India's exotic glamor and—with men outnumbering women by roughly four to one in the Raj—the best chance they had at finding a man.Drawing on a wealth of firsthand sources, including unpublished memoirs, letters, photographs, and diaries, Anne de Courcy brings the incredible world of "the Fishing Fleet," as these women were known, to life. In these sparkling pages, she describes the glittering whirlwind of dances, parties, amateur theatricals, picnics, tennis tournaments, cinemas, tiger shoots, and palatial banquets that awaited in the Raj, all geared toward the prospect of romance. Most of the girls were away from home for the first time, and they plunged headlong into the heady dazzle of expatriate social life; marriages were frequent.However, after the honeymoon many women were confronted with a reality that was far from the fairy tale they'd been chasing. With her signature diligence and sensitivity, de Courcy looks beyond the allure of the Raj to tell the real stories of these marriages built on convenience and unwieldy expectations. Wives were whisked away to distant outposts with few other Europeans for company. Transplanted to isolated plantations and remote towns, they endured heat, boredom, discomfort, illness, and motherhood removed from familiar comforts—a far cry from the magical world they were promised upon arrival.Rich with drama and color, The Fishing Fleet is a sumptuous, utterly compelling real-life saga of adventure, romance, and heartbreak in the heyday of the British Empire.
Fishing the Sloe-Black River: Stories
by Colum McCannThe short fiction of Colum McCann documents a dizzying cast of characters in exile, loss, love, and displacement. There is the worn boxing champion who steals clothes from a New Orleans laundromat, the rumored survivor of Hiroshima who emigrates to the tranquil coast of Western Ireland, the Irishwoman who journeys through America in search of silence and solitude. But what is found in these stories, and discovered by these characters, is the astonishing poetry and peace found in the mundane: a memory, a scent on the wind, the grace in the curve of a street. Fishing the Sloe-Black River is a work of pure augury, of the channeling and re-spoken lives of people exposed to the beauty of the everyday.