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Caravan to Xanadu: A Novel of Marco Polo
by Edison Marshall[from inside flaps] "In the Thirteenth Century, Mediterranean Europe Was in a passionate ferment--restlessly reaching out for new lands, new achievements, new exploits. And Marco Polo, the Venetian, was its brightest symbol of adventure. EDISON MARSHALL--in recreating this astonishing figure--has worked from life, choosing a real person to be his hero, scrupulously following the known facts of his career. But to the flat and clouded portrait left behind by history, he has given full-blooded, full-dimensioned life. The story reads as though Marco Polo had left another journal in response to the urgent query: "Did you sometimes laugh? Did you never weep? Did no fires kindle your liver when you gazed upon the beautiful maidens of the Kashmir?" Here is an intimate record of the hardships that beset him, the deadly hatred that pursued him, the passionate devotion that brought him triumphant to the palace of the Khan. From the father who scorned and denied Marco Polo, to the unbelievably lovely slave girl who shared the tumult of his heart, Edison Marshall has filled this exciting romance with utterly real human beings. And such is the magic of his pen, that one is indeed transported to those reckless, lavish days, to share the personal adventures of Marco Polo and his caravan as they journey perilously to the fabulous lands of Kublai Khan. Without question, Caravan to Xanadu is Edison Marshall's finest novel, a stirring tale by a master storyteller. BOOK CLUB EDITION"
Exploration Fawcett: Journey to the Lost City of Z
by Percy FawcettThis is the true story of the real Colonel Fawcett and his mysterious disappearance in the Amazon jungle, which is now considered one of the greatest mysteries of the twentieth century. The mystic and legendary British explorer Colonel Percy Harrison Fawcett, whose life was the inspiration for the bestselling book The Lost City of Z and an upcoming movie starring Brad Pitt, disappeared in the unknown and unexplored territory of Brazil's Mato Grosso in 1925. For ten years he had wandered the forests and death-filled rivers in search of a fabled lost city. Finally, convinced that he had discovered the location, he set out for the last time with two companions, one of whom was his eldest son, to destination "Z," never to be heard from again. This thrilling and mysterious account of Fawcett's ten years of travels in deadly jungles and forests in search of a secret city was compiled by his younger son from manuscripts, letters, and logbooks. What happened to him after remains a mystery.
Red Dust
by Ma JianIn 1983, at the age of thirty, dissident artist Ma Jian finds himself divorced by his wife, separated from his daughter, betrayed by his girlfriend, facing arrest for "Spiritual Pollution," and severely disillusioned with the confines of life in Beijing. So with little more than a change of clothes and two bars of soap, Ma takes off to immerse himself in the remotest parts of China. His journey would last three years and take him through smog-choked cities and mountain villages, from scenes of barbarity to havens of tranquility. Remarkably written and subtly moving, the result is an insight into the teeming contradictions of China that only a man who was both insider and outsider in his own country could have written. From the Trade Paperback edition.
Reflections on a Marine Venus: A Companion to the Landscape of Rhodes (Altaïr Viajes Ser.)
by Lawrence DurrellAfter World War II, an Englishman seeks peace on an ancient Greek island in this &“remarkable&” travel memoir (The New York Times). Islomania is a disease not yet classified by Western science, but to those afflicted its symptoms are all too recognizable. Men like Lawrence Durrell are struck by a powerful need to live on the ancient islands of the Mediterranean, where the clear blue Aegean is always within reach. After four tortuous wartime years in Egypt, Durrell finds a post on the island of Rhodes, where the British are attempting to return Greece to the sleepy peace it enjoyed in the &’30s. From his first morning, when a dip in the frigid sea jolts him awake for what feels like the first time in years, Durrell breathes in the fullest joys of island life, meeting villagers, eating exotic food, and throwing back endless bottles of ouzo, as though the war had never happened at all. The charms of his stay there still resonate today, for the pleasures of Greece are older than history itself.
Seven Years in Tibet
by Heinrich HarrerHeinrich Harrer, already a famous mountaineer and Olympic ski champion, was caught by the outbreak of World War II while climbing the Himalyas. Being an Austrian, he was interned in India. On his third attempt, he succeeded in escaping from the internment camp and fled into Tibet. After a series of experiences in a country never crossed before by a Westerner, Harrer reached the Forbidden City of Lhasa. He stayed there for seven years, learned the language and acquired a greater understanding of Tibet and the Tibetans. He became friend and tutor to the young Dalai Lama and finally accompanied him into India when he was put to flight by the Red Chinese invasion. This film tie-in edition includes an epilogue from the author describing his return to Tibet in the 1990s.
Teach Yourself Cycling: The classic guide to life on two wheels (Teach Yourself)
by Rc ShawFirst published in 1953, Teach Yourself Cycling is a beautiful, lovingly reproduced window into a distant age, where understanding the good manners of the road and enjoying the innocence of the family picnic dominated life on two wheels.Yet few vehicles have changed as little as the bicycle in the 65 years since this book first published. For all that they have become immeasurably lighter and better adapted to a range of terrains, the basic mechanics remain the same - and a deeply recognisable spirit of joy runs through this book, even though the author, Reginald Shaw, feels he needs to reassure his readers that cycling can be "a pleasurable activity as well as a mode of transport".This book is perfect for fans of cycling interested in how the art and practice of riding a bike has changed. From a stout defence of 'the good manners of the road' to a surge of enthusiasm when mapping out the itinerary of a good cycling holiday, this book is warm, interesting and enlightening.Since 1938, millions of people have learned to do the things they love with Teach Yourself. Welcome to the how-to guides that changed the modern world.
Teach Yourself Cycling: The classic guide to life on two wheels
by Reg ShawFirst published in 1953, Teach Yourself Cycling is a beautiful, lovingly reproduced window into a distant age, where understanding the good manners of the road and enjoying the innocence of the family picnic dominated life on two wheels.Yet few vehicles have changed as little as the bicycle in the 65 years since this book first published. For all that they have become immeasurably lighter and better adapted to a range of terrains, the basic mechanics remain the same - and a deeply recognisable spirit of joy runs through this book, even though the author, Reginald Shaw, feels he needs to reassure his readers that cycling can be "a pleasurable activity as well as a mode of transport".This book is perfect for fans of cycling interested in how the art and practice of riding a bike has changed. From a stout defence of 'the good manners of the road' to a surge of enthusiasm when mapping out the itinerary of a good cycling holiday, this book is warm, interesting and enlightening.Since 1938, millions of people have learned to do the things they love with Teach Yourself. Welcome to the how-to guides that changed the modern world.
Betsy and the Great World
by Maud Hart LovelaceIt's the trip of a lifetime. Betsey Ray, 21 years old, is heading off for a solo tour of Europe. From the moment she casts off, her journey is filled with adventure--whether she's waltzing at the captain's ball, bartering for beads in Madeira, or sipping coffee at a bohemian cafe in Munich. It's rich fodder for a budding young writer, and Betsy's determined to make the most of the experience. If only she could stop thinking about her ex-sweetheart, Joe Willard. Then a handsome, romantic Italian goes overboard for Betsy, and she has a big decision to make. Marco Regali is passionate, fascinating, and cultured. Could it be that Betsy's heart belongs in Europe instead of Minnesota? Betsy's childhood dream is finally coming true--she's off to Europe just like she and Tacy planned so long ago. Despite her travels and many adventures, Betsy's heart won't let her forget Joe Willard, her high school sweetheart.
The Bonanza Trail: Ghost Trails and Mining Camps of the West
by Muriel Sibell WolleThis classic account of Old West mining camps and gold-hunting prospectors is &“a successful digging of a rich historical vein . . . phenomenal&” (The New York Times). This colorful blend of history, reference, and travelogue brings to life the frenzied search for precious metals in nineteenth-century America through a tour of mining camps and former boomtowns, many now abandoned. It reveals the unbelievable privations men endured in the high Sierra and the Rockies and in crossing the desert wastes of Arizona, Utah and Nevada; the mines first discovered in New Mexico by Coronado and his men four centuries ago; and the first great rush that hit California in 1849. She follows the miners who poured in successive waves into the golden gulches of Oregon, Washington and Idaho, climbed to the deeper mines high in the mountains of Montana, Wyoming and Colorado, and dared at last to penetrate the hostile Black Hills of South Dakota. In personally following the trails of the pioneering prospectors, Wolle stumbles upon mute evidence of past bloodshed, lust, and struggle, and recreates the excitement of the period. A gifted artist, she also includes maps and &“more than a hundred poignant sketches conveying the loneliness, melancholy and crumbling dryness of ghost cities which throbbed once with the hopes of many people&” (The New York Times).&“The fascinating and definitive book on the ghost and near-ghost towns of the Old West.&” —Lucius Beebe, The Territorial Enterprise&“Good popular history and [a] useful reference work.&” —Library Journal
The Bruce Beckons
by W. Sherwood FoxFirst published in 1952, The Bruce Beckons was immediately acclaimed as a delightful guide to a uniquely beautiful and fascinating part of Ontario. Separating Georgian Bay from Lake Huron, the Bruce Peninsula's remarkable natural history and richly varied wildlife today continue to draw thousands of visitors every year. W. Sherwood Fox, a distinguished scholar who was for twenty years president of the University of Western Ontario, knew and loved the Bruce?s history and its folklore throughout his life. During his retirement he served several years as honorary president of the Federation of Ontario Naturalists.
Paddling North
by Audrey Sutherland Yoshiko YamamotoIn a tale remarkable for its quiet confidence and acute natural observation, the author of Paddling Hawaii begins with her decision, at age 60, to undertake a solo, summer-long voyage along the southeast coast of Alaska in an inflatable kayak. Paddling North is a compilation of Sutherland's first two (of over 20) such annual trips and her day-by-day travels through the Inside Passage from Ketchikan to Skagway. With illustrations and the author's recipes.
Travels: Collected Writings, 1950-1993
by Paul Bowles"Bowles is at his best when writing about places. He can evoke a place with a few sure strokes."--New York Times"His work is art. At his best, Bowles has no peer."--TimeTravels is a thrilling anthology of the travel writings of Paul Bowles, author of the era-defining post-war novel The Sheltering Sky. The acclaimed essays in Travel--never before collected in a single volume--span more than sixty years and range from Bowles's early days in Paris to his time spent in Ceylon, Thailand, Kenya, and his expatriate life in Morocco. Insightful, exciting, and evocative, featuring original photographs throughout, Travels is a stunning collection of rarely seen shorter works--a showcase of the literary artistry of one of the truly great American writers of the twentieth century.
Walking the Bones of Britain: A 3 Billion Year Journey from the Outer Hebrides to the Thames Estuary
by Christopher Somerville‘Somerville’s infectious enthusiasm and wry humour infuse his journey from the Isle of Lewis to southern England, revealing our rich geological history with vibrant local and natural history’ Observer‘A meticulous exploration of the ground beneath our feet. Glorious’ Katharine Norbury‘A remarkable achievement’ Tom Chesshyre‘His writing is utterly enticing’ Country Walking...............................................................................................................................................The influence Britain’s geology has had on our daily lives is profound. While we may be unaware of it, every aspect of our history has been affected by events that happened ten thousand, a million, or a thousand million years ago.In Walking the Bones of Britain, Christopher Somerville takes a journey of a thousand miles, beginning in the far north, at the three-billion-year-old rocks of the Isle of Lewis, formed when the world was still molten, and travelling south-eastwards to the furthest corner of Essex, where new land is being formed. Crossing bogs, scaling peaks and skirting quarry pits, he unearths the stories bound up in the layers of rock beneath our feet, and examines how they have influenced everything from how we farm to how we build our houses, from the Industrial Revolution to the current climate crisis.Told with characteristic humour and insight, this gripping exploration of the British landscape and its remarkable history cannot fail to change the way you see the world beyond your door.‘Somerville is a walker’s writer’ Nicholas Crane
The Train to Timbuctoo (Little Golden Book)
by Margaret Wise BrownBack in print for a new generation, a rollicking, rhyming train tale from the author of Goodnight Moon!From Kalamazoo to Timbuctoo, from Timbuctoo and back!This beloved story from 1951, about a big train and a little train that have just left Kalamazoo, has captured the imaginations of generations of children. Out of print for decades, it is back to delight little ones and their parents and grandparents again. "Clackety-clack—clackety-clack—pocketa-pocketa-pocketa"—down the track they go! Now a new generation of children will pore over the cheerful illustrations of bridges, tracks, and countryside, while listening to this rollicking tale.
Exploring Wisconsin Trout Streams: The Angler's Guide
by Steve Born Jeff Mayers Andy Morton Bill SonzogniDrawing on years of conservation and angling experience, Steve Born and Jeff Mayers tell you about great fishing opportunities unique to Wisconsin-1,000 miles of spring creeks, the amazing nocturnal Hex hatch, and big salmonids in the Great Lakes tributaries. They profile twenty of Wisconsin's finest streams-from the bucolic Green River in the southwest to the historic and wild Bois Brule in the north. This new edition includes updates throughout, new photos, and a new chapter detailing improvements in
Inspiring Generations
by Anniversary Story CommitteeOn June 30, 1864, amidst the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Grant Act to protect Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias. This act that set aside the first public parkland for future generations was a legacy for our nation and an inspiration to the world. To honor the 150th anniversary of this milestone, a call went out inviting the public to celebrate in prose and poetry the national park they love. The 150 pieces in this book were selected from hundreds of submissions from people who have visited, lived in, or worked in Yosemite National Park. These collected reflections feature, among other things, treks up Half Dome, escapades at The Ahwahnee, revels at the long-gone firefall,and, yes, encounters with those bears; and range from the hilarious to the historical, the enlightening to the uplifting. Inspiring Generations will encourage many journeys to the park filled with family, friends, and the stuff memories are made of.
Kon-Tiki: Across the Pacific by Raft
by Thor HeyerdahlThis book recounts a groups' travels across the Pacific ocean on a raft
The Traveller's Tree
by Patrick Leigh Fermor Joshua Jelly-SchapiroIn the late 1940s Patrick Leigh Fermor, now widely regarded as one of the twentieth century's greatest travel writers, set out to explore the then relatively little-visited islands of the Caribbean. Rather than a comprehensive political or historical study of the region, The Traveller's Tree, Leigh Fermor's first book, gives us his own vivid, idiosyncratic impressions of Guadeloupe, Martinique, Dominica, Barbados, Trinidad, and Haiti, among other islands. Here we watch Leigh Fermor walk the dusty roads of the countryside and the broad avenues of former colonial capitals, equally at home among the peasant and the elite, the laborer and the artist. He listens to steel drum bands, delights in the Congo dancing that closes out Havana's Carnival, and observes vodou and Rastafarian rites, all with the generous curiosity and easy erudition that readers will recognize from his subsequent classic accounts A Time of Gifts and Between the Woods and the Water.
The Traveller's Tree: A Journey through the Caribbean Islands
by Patrick Leigh FermorIn this, his first book, Patrick Leigh Fermor recounts his tales of a personal odyssey to the lands of the Traveller's Tree - a tall, straight-trunked tree whose sheath-like leaves collect copious amounts of water. He made his way through the long island chain of the West Indies by steamer, aeroplane and sailing ship, noting in his records of the voyage the minute details of daily life, of the natural surroundings and of the idiosyncratic and distinct civilisations he encountered amongst the Caribbean Islands. From the ghostly Ciboneys and the dying Caribs to the religious eccentricities like the Kingston Pocomaniacs and the Poor Whites in the Islands of the Saints, Patrick Leigh Fermor recreates a vivid world, rich and vigorous with life.
A Barbarian in Asia
by Sylvia Beach Henri MichauxA wild journey to the East narrated by a writer who is “without equal in the literature of our time” (Jorge Luis Borges) Henri Michaux (1899–1984), the great French poet and painter, set out as a young man to see the Far East. Traveling from India to the Himalayas, and on to China and Japan, Michaux voices his vivid impressions, cutting opinions, and curious insights: he has no trouble speaking his mind. Part fanciful travelogue and part exploration of culture, A Barbarian in Asia is presented here in its original translation by Sylvia Beach, the famous American-born bookseller in Paris.
Letter to the Americans
by Jean CocteauLike Alexis de Tocqueville a century earlier, Jean Cocteau offers a powerful reminder to Americans of their own potential—and issues In 1949, Jean Cocteau spent twenty days in New York, and began composing on the plane ride home this essay filled with the vivid impressions of his trip. With his unmistakable prose and graceful wit, he compares and contrasts French and American culture: the different values they place on art, literature, liberty, psychology, and dreams. Cocteau sees the incredibly buoyant hopes in America’s promise, while at the same time warning of the many ills that the nation will have to confront—its hypocrisy, sexism, racism, and hegemonic aspirations—in order to realize this potential. Never before translated into English, Letter to the Americans remains as timely and urgent as when it was first published in France over seventy years ago.
In a Land Far from Home: a JM Journey
by Syed Mujtaba AliWITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY TARAN KHAN, author of Shadow CityTRANSLATED FROM BENGALI BY NAZES AFROZAn intrepid traveller and true cosmopolitan, legendary Bengali writer Syed Mujtaba Ali spent a year and a half teaching in Kabul from 1927 to 1929. Curious to explore Afghan society, Mujtaba Ali had access to a cross-section of Kabul's population, and in In a Land Far from Home he chronicles his experiences with a keen eye and a wicked sense of humour.Mujtaba Ali's travels coincided with a critical point in Afghanistan's history: when the reformist King Amanullah tried to steer his country towards modernity by encouraging education for girls and giving them the choice of removing the burqa. Branded a 'kafir', Amanullah was overthrown by the bandit leader Bacha-e-Saqao. With striking parallels to twenty-first century events in the region, In a Land Far From Home is the only first-hand account of this tumultuous period by a non-Afghan.Providing a unique perspective, Mujtaba Ali's fascinating account is brought to life by contact with a colourful cast of characters at all levels of society -- from the garrulous Pathan Dost Muhammed and the gentle Russian giant Bolshov, to his servant, Abdur Rahman and his partner in tennis, the Crown Prince Enayatullah.
The Cruel Way: Switzerland to Afghanistan in a Ford, 1939
by Ella K. MaillartIn 1939 Swiss travel writer and journalist Ella K. Maillart set off on an epic journey from Geneva to Kabul with fellow writer Annemarie Schwarzenbach in a brand new Ford. As the first European women to travel alone on Afghanistan's Northern Road, Maillart and Schwarzenbach had a rare glimpse of life in Iran and Afghanistan at a time when their borders were rarely crossed by Westerners. As the two flash across Europe and the Near East in a streak of élan and daring, Maillart writes of comical mishaps, breathtaking landscapes, vitriolic religious clashes, and the ingenuity with which the women navigated what was often a dangerous journey. In beautiful, clear-eyed prose, The Cruel Way shows Maillart's great ability to explore and experience other cultures in writing both lyrical and deeply empathetic. While the core of the book is the journey itself and their interactions with people oppressed by political conflict and poverty, towards the end of the trip the women's increasingly troubled relationship takes center stage. By then the glamorous, androgynous Schwarzenbach, whose own account of the trip can be found in All the Roads Are Open, is fighting a losing battle with her own drug addiction, and Maillart's frustrated attempts to cure her show the profound depth of their relationship. Complete with thirteen of Maillart's own photographs from the journey, The Cruel Way is a classic of travel writing, and its protagonists are as gripping and fearless as any in literature.
A House in Bali
by Colin McpheeThis is a book about passion, obsession and discovery in an amazing land, but also about the voyage of a highly talented composer and writer. A House in Bali remains one of the most remarkable books ever written about the fabled island of Bali. This classic book tells the story of Balinese culture through a history of Balinese music. First published in 1947, it tells the story of the writer and composer Colin McPhee's (1900–64) obsession with a music once unknown to the West, and of his journey to Bali to experience it firsthand. In 1929, the young Canadian– born musician chanced upon rare gramophone recordings of Balinese gamelan music which were to change his life forever. From that moment, he lived for the day when he could set foot on the island where the clear, metallic music originated. He was able to realize his dreams and spent almost a decade there during the 1930's. Music of Bali and dance, as McPhee discovered to his delight, are second nature to the Balinese, and his subsequent writings and compositions proved seminal in popularizing Balinese gamelan music in the West. InA House in Bali, McPhee unfolds a beguiling picture of a society long established, staggeringly poor in Western terms, but rich beyond belief in spiritual values and joy. The young composer writes about his discoveries of music in Bali and growing understanding of an astonishing culture where the arts are a prime preoccupation, and of the arts, music is supreme. Much has been written on Bali, but this classic work from 1947 remains the only narrative by a Western musician.
A House in Bali
by Colin Mcphee James MurdochThis is a book about passion, obsession and discovery in an amazing land, but also about the voyage of a highly talented composer and writer.A House in Bali remains one of the most remarkable books ever written about the fabled island of Bali. This classic book tells the story of Balinese culture through a history of Balinese music.First published in 1947, it tells the story of the writer and composer Colin McPhee's (1900-64) obsession with a music once unknown to the West, and of his journey to Bali to experience it firsthand. In 1929, the young Canadian- born musician chanced upon rare gramophone recordings of Balinese gamelan music which were to change his life forever. From that moment, he lived for the day when he could set foot on the island where the clear, metallic music originated. He was able to realize his dreams and spent almost a decade there during the 1930's. Music of Bali and dance, as McPhee discovered to his delight, are second nature to the Balinese, and his subsequent writings and compositions proved seminal in popularizing Balinese gamelan music in the West.In A House in Bali, McPhee unfolds a beguiling picture of a society long established, staggeringly poor in Western terms, but rich beyond belief in spiritual values and joy. The young composer writes about his discoveries of music in Bali and growing understanding of an astonishing culture where the arts are a prime preoccupation, and of the arts, music is supreme. Much has been written on Bali, but this classic work from 1947 remains the only narrative by a Western musician.