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Don Giovanni Captured: Performance, Media, Myth (Opera Lab: Explorations In History, Technology, And Performance Ser.)
by Richard Will“Don Giovanni” Captured considers the life of a single opera, engaging with the entire history of its recorded performance. Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni has long inspired myths about eros and masculinity. Over time, its performance history has revealed a growing trend toward critique—an increasing effort on the part of performers and directors to highlight the violence and predatoriness of the libertine central character, alongside the suffering and resilience of his female victims. In “Don Giovanni” Captured, Richard Will sets out to analyze more than a century’s worth of recorded performances of the opera, tracing the ways it has changed from one performance to another and from one generation to the next. Will consults audio recordings, starting with wax cylinders and 78s, as well as video recordings, including DVDs, films, and streaming videos. As Will argues, recordings and other media shape our experience of opera as much as live performance does. Seen as a historical record, opera recordings are also a potent reminder of the refusal of works such as Don Giovanni to sit still. By choosing a work with such a rich and complex tradition of interpretation, Will helps us see Don Giovanni as a standard-bearer for evolving ideas about desire and power, both on and off the stage.
Spider Webs: Behavior, Function, and Evolution
by William EberhardIn this lavishly illustrated, first-ever book on how spider webs are built, function, and evolved, William Eberhard provides a comprehensive overview of spider functional morphology and behavior related to web building, and of the surprising physical agility and mental abilities of orb weavers. For instance, one spider spins more than three precisely spaced, morphologically complex spiral attachments per second for up to fifteen minutes at a time. Spiders even adjust the mechanical properties of their famously strong silken lines to different parts of their webs and different environments, and make dramatic modifications in orb designs to adapt to available spaces. This extensive adaptive flexibility, involving decisions influenced by up to sixteen different cues, is unexpected in such small, supposedly simple animals. As Eberhard reveals, the extraordinary diversity of webs includes ingenious solutions to gain access to prey in esoteric habitats, from blazing hot and shifting sand dunes (to capture ants) to the surfaces of tropical lakes (to capture water striders). Some webs are nets that are cast onto prey, while others form baskets into which the spider flicks prey. Some aerial webs are tramways used by spiders searching for chemical cues from their prey below, while others feature landing sites for flying insects and spiders where the spider then stalks its prey. In some webs, long trip lines are delicately sustained just above the ground by tiny rigid silk poles. Stemming from the author’s more than five decades observing spider webs, this book will be the definitive reference for years to come.
Shakespeare Only
by Jeffrey KnappThree decades of controversy in Shakespeare studies can be summed up in a single question: Was Shakespeare one of a kind? On one side of the debate are the Shakespeare lovers, the bardolatrists, who insist on Shakespeare’s timeless preeminence as an author. On the other side are the theater historians who view modern claims of Shakespeare’s uniqueness as a distortion of his real professional life. In Shakespeare Only, Knapp draws on an extraordinary array of historical evidence to reconstruct Shakespeare’s authorial identity as Shakespeare and his contemporaries actually understood it. He argues that Shakespeare tried to adapt his own singular talent and ambition to the collaborative enterprise of drama by imagining himself as uniquely embodying the diverse, fractious energies of the popular theater. Rewriting our current histories of authorship as well as Renaissance drama, Shakespeare Only recaptures a sense of the creative force that mass entertainment exerted on Shakespeare and that Shakespeare exerted on mass entertainment.
Foundations of Inquiry: Linking Paradigms and Methodologies in Social Research
by Guoping Zhao Lucy E. BaileyWhen researchers adopt a methodology, they bring to their research the theoretical assumptions infused within that methodology, and the paradigm that shapes that methodology describes their view of social life. This book is about paradigms and how they connect to methodologies. The authors explore a rich body of paradigms and how they support different methodologies and connect to designing and carrying out research. The book includes clear explanations of complex material, a thorough development of established paradigms and discussion of contemporary ones such as general interpretivism, critical race theory, and Indigenous orientations. The book′s pedagogy includes examples of published research, discussion of the issues related to each paradigm and the connections between them, and review questions and prompts to help deepen understanding.
Riding West
by Emma WildesTo win the woman of his dreams, Parker takes matters into his own hands. And finds out the West is wilder than he ever imagined! Just take her. The advice seems radical, but Parker West is desperate. Try as he might, he cannot convince Celia Evans to marry him in the usual way, even after five years of courtship. Kidnapping her is drastic and rash, but he figures he has little left to lose. Even though Celia is furious at being summarily tied up and carried off to the mountains, she finds she likes the sparks that fly when the normally cool Parker shows his more assertive side. At his secluded cabin, she finds out exactly what it means to be a woman, and that what she fought against all along is true: Under his normally reserved exterior, Parker is the lover of her dreams. And when riled, he can give a girl a very wild, intensely pleasurable ride. But there&’s a range war simmering, and the threat on the horizon takes the form of one very vindictive, crooked rancher. He wants Celia all to himself—and will stop at nothing to get her…
Again, For Love
by LA DragoniA life must be lost. Who will make the ultimate sacrifice? Lawson lives a simple life: a job at a brewery, and his basketball and hockey leagues. Even his eccentric lifelong friend and roommate—who is intent on discovering time travel—doesn&’t complicate things. Then Jory appears. Lawson feels an immediate attraction to her, yet their attempts at dating end with him thinking it just isn&’t meant to be. But Jory refuses to give up. When one date ends tragically, Lawson turns to his best friend and the experimental time travel program he&’s invented. But, no matter what he does, each time the reset ends with a loss. It&’s clear…a life must be lost, and Lawson is prepared to give his for Jory. But he isn&’t the only one playing with time. Will he spare Jory by forfeiting his own life? Or will someone else make the ultimate sacrifice?
The Argument Hangover: Empowering Couples to Fight Smarter and Overcome Communication Pitfalls
by Aaron Freeman Jocelyn FreemanLearn how you and your partner can fight smarter, communicate like pros, and handle any challenge as a team! You know that feeling right after an argument you&’ve had with your partner? You feel kind of sick to your stomach, your head is buzzing, and you're zoned out. You regret what you said or how you said it, and you're hurt by their actions as well. Almost like a food or alcohol hangover, right? Aaron and Jocelyn Freeman, your new favorite relationship mentors, call this "the argument hangover." In this relatable, no b.s. book for couples, the Freemans explain what an argument hangover is, what causes it, and how to clearly communicate your needs to feel understood, without having to change each other. This modern guide includes step-by-step tools and exercises you can implement right away, so you can handle the challenges that so many couples face today. Topics include: Why conflict doesn&’t have to be something you avoidHow to keep arguments from escalatingHow to resolve those nagging two or three disagreements that keep coming up Embrace conflict and grow from it with the right communication skills―and say goodbye to argument hangovers once and for all.
The Aquarian Shaman: Walking the Spiral Path of Transformation
by Linda Star Wolf• Shares shamanic practices, rituals, ceremonies, and wisdom to help you reintroduce magic into everyday life and awaken the Aquarian Shaman within• Explains major components of shamanic practice, including totem animals, spirit teachers, personal altars, medicine wheels, the power of song and dance, and the use of sacred objects and sacred circles• Explores the shamanic realm of imagination and techniques to access it, including Shamanic Breathwork and spirit journeyingAre you hearing a persistent inner calling to wake up and remember who you really are? Are you ready to be reborn into shamanic consciousness and awaken as an elemental being, fully connected to life and nature?Presenting a guidebook to walking the spiral path of transformation, shamanic teacher Linda Star Wolf shares ancient shamanic practices, rituals, ceremonies, and wisdom to help you reintroduce magic and enchantment into everyday life, create your own &“shamanic medicine chest,&” and awaken the Aquarian Shaman within.Describing how to recover the magical sensibility and innate awareness that most of us leave behind in childhood, Star Wolf shares essential shamanic techniques, including the Shamanic Healing Initiatory Process and Shamanic Breathwork. She discusses the power of the imagination, showing how imagination is actually a liminal realm rooted in the cellular records of our body through which we can journey to other worlds and connect with our ancestors.This Aquarian guidebook will help you not only awaken to shamanic consciousness but also cultivate more love, inner awareness, and personal power as you walk the spiral path of transformation.
Twins for the Texan (Billionaires and Babies)
by Charlene SandsTwins...and another baby on the way for this cowboy from USA TODAY bestselling author Charlene Sands! After Wyatt Brandt rescues Brooke McKay en route to a Texas wedding, they spend one hot night together before going their separate ways. Now Brooke's back with news she isn't sure the wealthy rancher is ready to hear-especially when she discovers he's already a father...of twins! Being a single dad is a full-time job Wyatt can't do alone. He doesn't expect the ideal nanny to be the beauty who briefly shared his bed. But he accepts her help gladly-not knowing her little secret will change his family forever...
Re-living Britain in the 1940s
by Robin WichardThe 1940s remains an iconic period in world history and retains a fascination for so many. Re-enacting the 40s is becoming increasingly popular but there is little available information explaining how to start in the hobby. This book is the first to offer enthusiasts of the 40s a way to advance their interest whether it be military or civilian. Each chapter deals with a different aspect of re-enacting from civilian roles (including children) to military roles with many different potential impressions explored for each area. Each chapter is lavishly illustrated with many previously unseen color photographs of contemporary re-enactors and events. There are further chapters introducing those people who portray wartime political and military leaders as well as those who bring back to life some of the most iconic musicians and performers of the period. For those choosing to enter the hobby through ownership of a civilian or military vehicle, that is also covered with many examples of some of the most well-known vehicles. Each chapter offers a brief contextual history with detailed notes on where to obtain uniform and equipment, some of the best groups to join as well as links to related sites and recommendations for wider reading. No book can cover every single possible role but this offers an excellent starting point for further research and involvement while stressing the need to always remain respectful of those we seek to commemorate.
The Danger of Romance: Truth, Fantasy, and Arthurian Fictions
by Karen SullivanThe curious paradox of romance is that, throughout its history, this genre has been dismissed as trivial and unintellectual, yet people have never ceased to flock to it with enthusiasm and even fervor. In contemporary contexts, we devour popular romance and fantasy novels like The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Game of Thrones, reference them in conversations, and create online communities to expound, passionately and intelligently, upon their characters and worlds. But romance is “unrealistic,” critics say, doing readers a disservice by not accurately representing human experiences. It is considered by some to be a distraction from real literature, a distraction from real life, and little more. Yet is it possible that romance is expressing a truth—and a truth unrecognized by realist genres? The Arthurian literature of the Middle Ages, Karen Sullivan argues, consistently ventriloquizes in its pages the criticisms that were being made of romance at the time, and implicitly defends itself against those criticisms. The Danger of Romance shows that the conviction that ordinary reality is the only reality is itself an assumption, and one that can blind those who hold it to the extraordinary phenomena that exist around them. It demonstrates that that which is rare, ephemeral, and inexplicable is no less real than that which is commonplace, long-lasting, and easily accounted for. If romance continues to appeal to audiences today, whether in its Arthurian prototype or in its more recent incarnations, it is because it confirms the perception—or even the hope—of a beauty and truth in the world that realist genres deny.
One More Summer
by Liz FlahertyGrace has taken care of her widowed father her entire adult life and the ornery old goat has finally died. She has no job, no skills and very little money, and has heard her father's prediction that no decent man would ever want her so often she accepts it as fact.But she does have a big old house on Lawyers Row in Peacock, Tennessee. She opens a rooming house and quickly gathers a motley crew of tenants: Promise, Grace's best friend since kindergarten, who's fighting cancer; Maxie, an aging soap opera actress who hasn't lost her flair for the dramatic; Jonah, a sweet, gullible old man with a crush on Maxie.And Dillon, Grace's brother's best friend, who stood her up on the night of her senior prom and has regretted it ever since. Dillon rents Grace's guest house for the summer and hopes to make up for lost time and past hurts-but first, he'll have to convince Grace that she's worth loving...88,000 words
Heart of the Wolf Bundle: Secret of the Wolf\Wolf in Waiting\Shadow of the Wolf
by Rebecca Flanders"Within a few lost souls, the heart of the wolf beats fierce and wild. Feel them, fear them, tame them. "In Rebecca Flanders tantalizing "Heart of the Wolf" series, werewolves live amongst us. They interact with humans, deal with them, sometimes kill them...and sometimes fall in love with them. Torn between beast and man, between loyalty to the pack and human desire, they must wage a war within themselves to come to terms with their conflicted nature. Enter the intriguing, mysterious world of werewolves in this thrilling bundle, which includes "Secret of the Wolf, Wolf in Waiting" and "Shadow of the Wolf."
Ann Walker: The Life and Death of Gentleman Jack's Wife
by Rebecca BatleyLesbian. Lover. Lunatic. These are just some of the words usually used to describe Ann Walker, the oft overlooked wife of Anne Lister, better known by some as Gentleman Jack. Ann was one half of England’s first same-sex marriage and yet the rainbow plaque that marks their historic union on the wall of the Holy Trinity Church, York, features Ann’s name in a font only half the size of her wife’s. Her story has been long forgotten. Born into wealth and privilege Ann was one of the most eligible heiresses in 19th century Yorkshire and the question on everyone’s lips in 1830’s Halifax was why a respectable young heiress, with property, fortune and connection risked everything, even her freedom, to become entangled with the notorious Gentleman Jack? The answer to this question reveals a woman of immense courage, faith, and determination, but her voice has remained silent...until now. Within the depths of Ann’s diary - discovered by Diane Halford in 2020 - the answers to some of the above questions can be found, as can insight into Ann as an independent woman. The life of Ann is worthy of its own narrative and it is time for Ann to step out of the shadow of Gentleman Jack and tell her own story.
The Widow and the Warrior: Wounded Warriors of the Crimean War Book Three (Wounded Warriors of the Crimean War #3)
by Sarah WinnA Crimean War widow, Ellen Coyler, learns her five-year-old son&’s wealthy grandfather is attempting to prove her an unfit mother, so he can get custody of the child. To prevent this, she agrees to a marriage-in-name-only with her husband&’s former commanding officer, Gerald Osborne. He promises to keep the marriage unconsummated until the threat from the grandfather goes away, and then get an annulment. As she lives in Gerald&’s home and sees how he struggles to overcome the handicap of having a missing right arm, while he tries to build a business as a horse trainer, befriends her son, and shows her every consideration, she begins to wonder if she wants an annulment. But Gerald shows no interest in consummating their marriage, until he injures himself in a riding accident and Ellen nurses him in the privacy of his bedroom. Are his growing feelings just passion, or something deeper?
Hero
by Rhonda ByrneFROM ZERO TO HERO . . . YOUR SECRET MAP TO A RICH LIFEWhat is your true calling and why aren't you already living it? Imagine if there was a map that showed you step by step how to get from where you are now to your true calling and the life you were born to live - the most brilliant, rich, fulfilling, and dazzling life you could ever dream of. You are holding in your hands such a map. HERO is the map for your life. By following the journeys of twelve of the most successful people on the planet today, you'll learn how to use your inner powers to overcome obstacles and to make impossible dreams come true. You'll be inspired to find your own calling and start taking the steps toward making the life of your dreams an everyday reality. Be the hero you are meant to be.
Know Your Dog's True Nature: Understanding Canine Personality through the Five Elements
by Elizabeth Anne Johnson• Looks at each dog element archetype individually, exploring their personality strengths and weaknesses, emotional defaults, how they react under stress, what makes them happy, and their potential physical ailments and conditions• Offers holistic practices to help support each elemental dog type at any stage of life, including diagrams of acupressure points that can help• Includes element archetype quizzes to determine your dog&’s type as well as your ownDO YOU EVER WONDER why your canine friend behaves the way they do? With sensitivity and skill, master animal healer Elizabeth Anne Johnson takes you into the body, mind, and heart of the dog—sharing intimate stories of working dogs who are changing the world, rescue dogs who change us, old dogs offering profound wisdom, and humans making the world a better place.Introducing the five element archetypes of the Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water Dog, Know Your Dog&’s True Nature illuminates practical ways to gain insigh into the unique personalities of your animal companion. As you explore the similarities and dynamics between dog and human, you&’ll come to appreciate the mutually supportive structures and richness in your relationships, an understanding that helps to create a peaceful and happy home environment for all. In this guide you will find:• five element archetype quizzes for both dogs and humans• a fresh perspective on a dog&’s elemental stressors, behaviors, wants, and needs• easy acupressure techniques for balancing each element• a unique lens on old dogs and rescue dogs• supportive lifestyle measures and life lessons from the other end of the leashElizabeth&’s stories and adventures from a lifetime of animal healing and many dog partners will tickle your heart, mind, and empathy, and create a safe and sacred container for your own trek with your beloved companion.
The Devil's Triangle: A Brit In The Fbi (A Brit in the FBI #4)
by Catherine Coulter J.T. EllisonThe New York Times bestselling Brit in the FBI series returns with a highly anticipated thriller, featuring special agents Nicholas Drummond and Michaela Caine in their new roles as heads of the Covert Eyes team—but will their first case be their last when the Fox, the enigmatic and dangerous thief, reappears?“He who controls the weather, will control the world. He who controls time, will never be around.” —Thomas Frey FBI Special Agents Nicholas Drummond and Michaela Caine are the government’s Covert Eyes—leading a top-notch handpicked team of agents to tackle crimes and criminals both international and deadly. But their first case threatens their fledgling team when the Fox calls from Venice asking for help. Kitsune has stolen an incredible artifact from the Topkapi Museum in Istanbul, and now the client wants her dead. She has a warning for Nick and Mike: she’s overheard talk that a devastating Gobi desert sandstorm that’s killed thousands in Beijing isn’t a natural phenomenon, rather is produced by man. The Covert Eyes team heads to Venice, Italy, to find out the truth. From New York to Venice and from Rome to the Bermuda Triangle, Nicholas and Mike and their team are in a race against time, and nature herself, to stop an obsessed family from devastating Washington, DC.
Jim Morrison, Secret Teacher of the Occult: A Journey to the Other Side
by Paul Wyld• Reveals Jim Morrison as a shamanic initiate and esoteric teacher who used his role as a rock singer to promote the adventure of the spirit and express the power of inner experience• Examines Morrison&’s deep occult and artistic influences, including Kurt Seligmann&’s The Mirror of Magic, Colin Wilson&’s The Outsider, and the works of Jack Kerouac• Draws on Morrison&’s lyrics and poems, his intimate writings, and the recollections of friends like photographer Paul Ferrara and Doors keyboard player Ray ManzarekThe groundbreaking 1960s band The Doors, named for Aldous Huxley&’s The Doors of Perception, achieved incredible acclaim and influence, ultimately serving as a key group in the development of psychedelic and progressive rock. At the center of it all was front man Jim Morrison, who died in 1971 at age 27. Yet, as author Paul Wyld reveals, despite Morrison&’s reputation as a lewd, drunken performer, he was a full-fledged mystical, shamanic figure, a secret teacher of the occult who was not merely central to the development of rock music, but also to the growth of the Western esoteric tradition as a whole.Wyld looks at the mystical works that inspired Morrison, including Kurt Seligmann&’s The Mirror of Magic, Colin Wilson&’s The Outsider, and the writings of Nietzsche and Jack Kerouac. Drawing on Morrison&’s lyrics and poems, his intimate writings, and the recollections of friends like photographer Paul Ferrara and Doors keyboard player Ray Manzarek, the author makes the case that Morrison was not simply a superficial dabbler in the occult but an actual secret teacher transmitting knowledge through the golden thread stretching back to Egypt and Thoth-Hermes.Explaining how Morrison sought to use his role as a rock singer to express the power of inner experience, Wyld shows how praxis was at the heart of Morrison&’s approach, revealed in his journey through the arduous ordeals of shamanic initiation. He was a shaman, mystic, and sage—and an essential part of a great spiritual awakening to which he gave himself over fully.
Transmembrane Dynamics of Lipids (Wiley Series in Protein and Peptide Science #9)
by Andreas HerrmannThe first and only book devoted entirely to MEMBRANE LIPID ASYMMETRY AND ITS BIOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS Transmembrane Dynamics of Lipids is comprised of contributions from expert authors from leading research groups that present up-to-date quantitative data on the formation, stability, and biological consequences of the asymmetrical organization of lipids in cell membranes. Incorporating an impressive amount of new, previously uncollected data, the book examines transmembrane asymmetry and movement of lipids in biological membranes, and methods for the measurement of transmembrane lipid motion, emphasizing the role of lipid flippases and discusses biological functions associated with lipid asymmetry. In addition, it draws attention to important new discoveries in the field, such as the correlation between malfunction of lipid flippases and human diseases such as thrombosis and cancer. The book also addresses the manifold methods that are used to measure the rate of transmembrane movement of lipids in biological and model systems. The only guide to new discoveries regarding lipids in cell membranes, Transmembrane Dynamics of Lipids is designed to appeal to biophysicists, biochemists, and cellular and molecular biologists working in the growing field of membrane research.
Worst Cases: Terror and Catastrophe in the Popular Imagination
by Lee ClarkeAl Qaeda detonates a nuclear weapon in Times Square during rush hour, wiping out half of Manhattan and killing 500,000 people. A virulent strain of bird flu jumps to humans in Thailand, sweeps across Asia, and claims more than fifty million lives. A single freight car of chlorine derails on the outskirts of Los Angeles, spilling its contents and killing seven million. An asteroid ten kilometers wide slams into the Atlantic Ocean, unleashing a tsunami that renders life on the planet as we know it extinct. We consider the few who live in fear of such scenarios to be alarmist or even paranoid. But Worst Cases shows that such individuals—like Cassandra foreseeing the fall of Troy—are more reasonable and prescient than you might think. In this book, Lee Clarke surveys the full range of possible catastrophes that animate and dominate the popular imagination, from toxic spills and terrorism to plane crashes and pandemics. Along the way, he explores how the ubiquity of worst cases in everyday life has rendered them ordinary and mundane. Fear and dread, Clarke argues, have actually become too rare: only when the public has more substantial information and more credible warnings will it take worst cases as seriously as it should. A timely and necessary look into how we think about the unthinkable, Worst Cases will be must reading for anyone attuned to our current climate of threat and fear.
Taming of the Two (Shakespeare in Love)
by Elizabeth HarbisonTAMING OF THE ICE PRINCESS...Tired of her sister's meddling in her love life, Kate Gregory knows their ancient-fashioned father won't bless her sister's wedding plans until she finds someone. And she discovers the perfect candidate when her childhood nemesis returns to save his family's ranch. Pretending to fall for Ben Devere will achieve two goals-1) She'll get revenge for his careless handling of her childhood heart and 2) Her sister will get out of her hair!But what seems like a foolproof plan soon goes deliciously awry. Because 1) The Bad Boy Next Door is nothing like she remembers; 2) His kisses are even more memorable than his pranks and 3) He's got his own agenda for her!
Montana Hearts
by Charlotte CarterSarah Barkley has come to Sweet Grass Valley, Montana, with a mission in mind. Ever since her heart transplant, she's wanted to secretly help the family of the woman whose heart saved her life. And with two motherless children and a sprawling ranch to care for, Kurt Ryder could sure use some support. Falling for the rugged rancher is an unexpected complication. Does Kurt want Sarah for herself-or for her connection to the past? Her heart brought her to Sweet Grass Valley, but only love-and a leap of faith-will make it her home.
The Changes Trilogy: The Devil's Children, Heartsease, and The Weathermonger
by Peter DickinsonThree dystopian novels by an award-winning author that imagine a world where humankind has suddenly and violently rejected modern technology. Something has gone very wrong in England. In a tunnel beneath Wales one man opens a crack in a mysterious stone wall, and all over the island of Britain people react with horror to perfectly normal machines. Abandoning their cars on the roads and destroying their own factories, many flee the cities for the countryside, where they return to farming and an old-fashioned life. When families are split apart and grown-ups forget how they used to live, young people face unexpected challenges. Nicola Gore survives on her own for nineteen days before she&’s taken in by a Sikh family that still remembers how to farm and forge steel by hand. Margaret and Jonathan brave the cold and risk terrible punishment in order to save a man&’s life and lift the fog of fear and hate that&’s smothering their village. And Geoffrey and his little sister, Sally, escape to France only to be sent back to England on a vital mission: to make their way north to Wales, alone, and find the thing under the stones that shattered civilization—the source of the Changes. Prolific author Peter Dickinson was known for &“keeping up a page-turning pace,&” and these adventure-packed novels are some of his most important contributions to science fiction (The Guardian).This ebook features an illustrated personal history of Peter Dickinson including rare images from the author&’s collection.
The Battle of the Reichswald: Rhineland February 1945
by Tim SaundersDuring winter 1944/45 few German officers believed that the Allies would attack the wooded Reichswald Plug on the narrow neck of land between the rivers Rhine and Maas. Consequently, relying on the natural defenses of the forest, the vaunted Siegfried Line had been allowed to peter out. The 84th Infantry Division held field defenses that had been worked on all autumn, but the defenders were thinly spread, and most German soldiers now faced the certainty of defeat. Originally hoping to use the frozen winter ground for a speedy assault, days before Operation VERITABLE began a thaw set in and the Allies faced attacking in the worst possible ground conditions. On the morning of 8 February, after protracted bombardment, delays multiplied as vehicles became bogged in saturated fields and shell holes, and roads broke up under heavy armor. However, just enough assault engineer equipment reached the outer German defenses, where they found the enemy infantry largely stunned by the bombardment. It took all of the first day to break through the mud and defenses into the Reichswald, while to the north, Canadians and Scots struggled across equally sodden open country with the Rhine floods rising fast. Despite the conditions, overnight the Canadians took to the flood waters to seize what were now island villages and the Scots dashed to capture the vital Materborn, which overlooked Kleve. With heavy rain compounding difficulties, mud and flood waters made movement of men and supplies increasingly difficult. Despite this and the arrival of German reinforcements, the Allies fought their way forward, forcing the Reichswald Plug and opening the way into the Rhineland and the final phases of the war.