Автор: Charles River Editors Название: The Forbidden City: The History of the Chinese Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Beijing ISBN: 1985352648 ISBN-13(EAN): 9781985352643 Издательство: Неизвестно Цена: 12810.00 T Наличие на складе: Есть у поставщика Поставка под заказ. Описание: *Includes pictures *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading Located in the center of Beijing, the Forbidden City served as the palace for the emperor of China from 1420 to 1912 CE, a period encompassing the Ming and Qing dynasties. It was home to the celestial leaders of China, men that possessed the Mandate of Heaven. A total of 24 emperors lived and ruled from the vast and magnificent complex for almost 500 years, until the last Chinese dynasty was overthrown in 1912 with the abdication of Emperor Xuantong, more commonly known as Puyi. Known also as the Forbidden Palace, or amongst contemporary Chinese as the "Former Palace," the complex was first given its name in 1576. The Forbidden City was the home of many thousands of governmental staff, female servants and concubines, eunuchs, soldiers, and kitchen staff, and where their entire lives were built. Nonetheless, entrance to it from the outside was forbidden to all but the emperor, his court, and his relations. Without the permission of the emperor, access to or from the heart of the empire was impossible, but what was once inaccessible is now one of the most visited institutions in the world. Today, the Forbidden City is a UNESCO World Heritage site, operated as the largest museum in the world and located in the heart of the capital of the world's most populous country. The Forbidden City: The History of the Chinese Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Beijing examines the history of the palace. Along with pictures of important people, places, and events, you will learn about the Forbidden City like never before.
Автор: Taylor Charles, Editors of Kingfisher Название: The Kingfisher Science Encyclopedia ISBN: 0753473844 ISBN-13(EAN): 9780753473849 Издательство: Holtzbrink(MPS)/MPS Цена: 21450.00 T Наличие на складе: Невозможна поставка. Описание:
Science is vital for every inhabitant of today's world, and being scientifically informed and literate is a crucial part of any child's education. Science can seem daunting -- especially as scientific knowledge advances so quickly -- and this volume is the perfect purchase for any family. It will bear repeated use by all the family from 10+ through the teenage years.
Fully updated for this new 4th edition with the very latest facts and data; clear text and more than 1000 photos and illustrations will inform and amaze.
Автор: Charles River Editors Название: American Legends: The Life of Gary Cooper ISBN: 1495453154 ISBN-13(EAN): 9781495453151 Издательство: Неизвестно Цена: 8320.00 T Наличие на складе: Есть у поставщика Поставка под заказ.
Автор: Charles River Editors Название: Country Music Icons: The Lives and Careers of Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, and Dolly Parton ISBN: 1542468051 ISBN-13(EAN): 9781542468053 Издательство: Неизвестно Цена: 17440.00 T Наличие на складе: Есть у поставщика Поставка под заказ. Описание: *Includes pictures *Includes the music stars' quotes about their lives and work *Includes a bibliography for further reading In the early 20th century, Westerns were one of the most popular genres in Hollywood, and one of the young stars at the forefront was Gene Autry, a Texan whose life story made him a natural to be the country's most famous "singing cowboy". Autry would become a symbol of masculinity and morality on screen during the 1930s, but it was effortless for someone who had already grown up riding horses to school. Autry came of age at a time when the "singing cowboy" was at the apex of his popularity, and like his most famous successor, Roy Rogers, Autry actually got his start in show business as a singer. Even today, Autry might be best known for being a pioneer of country music and the author of Christmas hits "Here Comes Santa Claus", "Frosty the Snowman", and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". Autry would produce hundreds of recordings during his life, helping ensure the popularity of the country music genre and earning inductions into several related halls of fame. Roy Rogers came from an Ohio farm, but regardless of his background, Rogers certainly looked the part of the quintessential cowboy, along with his wife Dale Evans and his horse Trigger. His versatile singing and acting abilities made him successful both on radio and on the screen. Rogers came of age at a time when the "singing cowboy" was at the apex of his popularity, and that was favorable because he actually got his start in show business as a singer. In the early '30s, he bounced around several groups as a country music singer before earning national attention as a member of the Sons of the Pioneers, who were signed to Decca and had a couple of hits. As a result, when he first appeared in movies in 1935, it was usually in bit roles that required singing, but when Gene Autry threatened to quit acting in 1938, Rogers was viewed as a suitable replacement for lead roles. As it turned out, he became the premiere "singing cowboy" in Autry's stead, and from 1939-1954, he was one of the Top 10 Western stars in Hollywood, and a Top 10 movie star overall during some of those years. Hank Williams is considered by many to be the first American superstar of the genre and the "father" of modern country music. In the post-World War II era, at a time when country music was an insulated and regionalized cottage industry, Williams almost personally oversaw its transition into a national mania that would be later taken up by such figures as Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley, even as the musicians remained loyal to the genre's older, rural roots. But Williams remained distinctly and unapologetically Southern, thereby avoiding adoption by the larger pop world even as his remarkable sense of phrasing and authentic texts fascinated pop artists across the country. Johnny Cash, "The Man in Black", is among the most recognized and iconic vocal artists in the history of blues, country and gospel singing. During the second half of the 20th century, he produced a prolific and rarely-equaled career in the country genre as a singer, songwriter and guitarist, despite numerous struggles with alcohol and drug addiction. His trademark bass-baritone voice is instantly identifiable to listeners today, and his "parlando" style (combining an unaffected singing tone with a speech-like rhythm and pacing) has been taken up by the generation following his death in the early 21st century. While many celebrities have desperately tried to get as far away as possible from their impoverished upbringings, Dolly Parton constructed her star persona around the image of Appalachian country music culture. In many ways, Parton was raised in a quintessential Appalachian family, and while she has been resolute in expressing her affection for this background, it is impossible to deny that her upbringing posed obstacles that were difficult to overcome and related to societal and industrial
Автор: Charles River Editors Название: The Great Escapes of World War II: The History of the Most Legendary Escape Attempts by Prisoners of War ISBN: 1977697127 ISBN-13(EAN): 9781977697127 Издательство: Неизвестно Цена: 12810.00 T Наличие на складе: Есть у поставщика Поставка под заказ. Описание: *Includes pictures *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading War has always led to prisoners. In ancient times, many were turned into slaves by the victorious armies, while in medieval Europe, they were often returned to their families in return for a ransom, leading to fortune or poverty depending upon which side one was on. By the Napoleonic era, as armies grew in size and professionalism, many were kept in camps for the duration of the fighting, their captors not wanting to restore their enemies' manPOWser while the fate of nations hung in the balance. In the first half of the 20th century, war was fought on a global and industrial scale. Millions of men were flung into the grinder of World War I and World War II, leading to commensurately huge numbers of prisoners of war (POWs). Camps were built to hold thousands of captives, with their own barracks blocks, parade grounds, and even farms. Some of these captives were used for forced labor, especially by the Axis regimes in World War II, while others were left to entertain themselves as they waited for the war to end. Throughout the war, many of these men did not sit idle. Many spent their time preparing elaborate escape plans in the hopes of returning to their home nations and back to the fight. Following World War I, several books were published giving romantic accounts of successful escapes. Inspired by them, World War II brought about a number of great POWs escapes, celebrated ever since in books and films. At the same time, the escapees of the Second World War did not act alone. Networks of brave volunteers worked to see captives or potential captives make their way to freedom, and secretive organizations were established in the heart of government with the aim of encouraging and assisting escape attempts. Most successful escapes were made by Allied troops in Europe, including soldiers left behind after the fall of France and airmen shot down in bombing raids, but escapes happened across the world, from Canadian trains to German castles, and from the mountains of Italy to the wilds of Australia. Axis as well as Allied troops made their bids for freedom, keeping both sides on their toes. Everybody was looking to make the next great escape. The Second World War was full of escape stories, some bold, some tragic, and most filled with courage and ingenuity. There were moments of foolishness, like the story of an Italian on the run in Australia who was caught ordering red wine with a heavy accent. But there were also incredible feats, such as the covert construction of a glider in a Colditz loft. On all sides, people sought to return to the war or to help others to do so. Their stories were not only part of the overall struggle, they added a very human dimension to a war with a scope so large that it still defies imagination. The Great Escapes of World War II: The History of the Most Legendary Escape Attempts by Prisoners of War chronicles some of the most daring escapes carried out during the war. Along with pictures depicting important people, places, and events, you will learn about the great escapes of World War II like never before.
Автор: Charles River Editors Название: Walt Whitman: The Life and Legacy of One of America`s Most Influential Poets ISBN: 1985881292 ISBN-13(EAN): 9781985881297 Издательство: Неизвестно Цена: 8320.00 T Наличие на складе: Есть у поставщика Поставка под заказ. Описание: *Includes pictures *Includes Whitman's quotes and excerpts of poetry *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading "The proof of a poet is that his country absorbs him as affectionately as he has absorbed it." - Walt Whitman Walt Whitman, the great American poet, is also in many ways a great American enigma, for more and less are known about him than other famous men in 19th century American history. On the one hand, he was the product of something of an all-American family, the sort of salt of the earth people he would later describe so vividly in his work. On the other, he was a complete bohemian and profligate, given to vanity in the way he dressed and lived. He started out his career as a school teacher and was later a newspaper man, but he left both those types of work for a job as a government bureaucrat. As a young man, when most of his peers were sowing their wild oats, he was considered by many to be a stick in the mud who neither drank nor chased women. Then, as a middle-aged man, when his peers had settled down into quieter lives, he remained single and seems to have pursued romantic relationships with both men and women. Then, of course, there was his poetry, words that summarized both the best and worst about his nation. His seminal work, Leaves of Grass, began as little more than a pamphlet but grew for decades, as each new edition added more poems. By the time of his death, it had become a large volume still studied today. While he wrote other pieces for publication, Leaves of Grass remained his magnum opus and his baby, nurturing and developing it throughout his life. And yet, through it all, the title remained the same self-deprecating play on words that he had given it when he first self-published the work in 1855. Floyd Stovall, who published a collection of Whitman's works in 1933, explained how Whitman's life and work affected the society around him: "Whitman, like the age that produced him, was both a culmination and a beginning. In him was the flower of romantic idealism in America, which had its roots in the eighteenth-century philosophy of progress, and in him also the seed of scientific realism, which throws its maze of branches about contemporary thought. He bridges the chasm made by the Civil War between the idealism of the past and the materialism of the present and thus becomes the representative of united America...Yet he was never popular. In the passionate conflicts of a changing civilization, the advocate of harmony is liable to be suspected by all factions. So it was with Whitman. The realist distrusted his faith in humanity, and the idealist was shocked because he extolled the animalism of man. On the one hand, he allowed his readers no escape from the imperfections of the world, while on the other he required them to transcend these imperfections. The popular writer, however, must be one who enables his readers to retain their faith in the actual world by obscuring its imperfections in the twilight of sentiment and fancy." Walt Whitman: The Life and Legacy of One of America's Most Influential Poets looks at the life and times of 19th century America's most controversial poet and the impact his famous work had. Along with pictures depicting important people, places, and events, you will learn about Walt Whitman like never before.
Автор: Charles River Editors Название: Real Pirates of the Caribbean: Blackbeard, Sir Francis Drake, Captain Morgan, Black Bart, Calico Jack, Anne Bonny, Mary Read, and Henry Every ISBN: 1984014641 ISBN-13(EAN): 9781984014641 Издательство: Неизвестно Цена: 34650.00 T Наличие на складе: Есть у поставщика Поставка под заказ. Описание: *Examines the lives, legends and legacies of the Caribbean's most famous and successful pirates. *Explains how the myths and legends of pirates like Blackbeard created the instantly recognizable pirate stereotypes today. *Includes pictures depicting the pirates and important people, places, and events in their lives. *Includes contemporary accounts of the pirates written by Captain Charles Johnson. *Includes Bibliographies Over the past decade, few movie franchises have been as successful as Pirates of the Caribbean, starring Johnny Depp as the stereotypical pirate Jack Sparrow, a flamboyant, colorful and cunning pirate of questionable morality. The popularity of the movies and the character Jack Sparrow demonstrate how the people who have lived outside the boundaries of normal societies and refused to play by the rules have long fascinated the world. Nowhere is this more evident than the continuing interest in the pirates of centuries past. As the subjects of books, movies, and even theme park rides, people continue to let their imaginations go when it comes to pirates, with buried treasure, parrots, and walking the plank all ingrained in pop culture's perception of them. While there is no question that the myths and legends surrounding history's most famous pirates are colorful, in some instances their actual lives made for even better stories. Before the Golden Age of Piracy, men like Sir Francis Drake straddled the line between pirate and privateer, and Drake was knighted for fighting the Spanish. While Captain Morgan's ruthless piracy has actually been overlooked due to his association with the spiced rum company using his name, he was a remarkably successful pirate, and one of history's best documented pirates. The Golden Age of Piracy generally refers to the era when history's most famous pirates roamed the seas of the West Indies from 1670-1720, and it is no coincidence that the beginning of it was marked by the rise of Henry Every. In his day Every was the "King of Pirates," and in addition to popularizing the famous skull and crossbones logo that would become the most famous pirate flag, Every conducted what is considered the most profitable pirate raid in history, leading to what is considered the first worldwide manhunt in history when the English put a large bounty on his head. It would be an understatement to say that pop culture's perception of piracy and pirates has been primarily influenced by Captain Edward Teach, known to the world as Blackbeard. Blackbeard is remembered today based more on myths than reality. People continue to let their imaginations go when it comes to Blackbeard, picturing a pirate who captured more booty than any other pirate, hid buried treasure, and lit his hair on fire before battle. People have long claimed that his ghost still haunts the Atlantic Ocean, and his contemporaries were so scared of him that they claimed to have seen his headless body swim around his pirate boat three times. Fittingly, some of history's most famous pirates sailed together. Black Bart Roberts is considered the most successful pirate in history, managing to capture about 500 ships before meeting his fate, but he learned the tricks of the trade from Howell Davis, whose cunning and courage led to some of the most spectacular acts of piracy in history. Then there are history's two most famous female pirates, Anne Bonny and Mary Read, who actually sailed together on Calico Jack's pirate ship. Together the three became history's most famous pirate crew and had one of the most colorful years of the Golden Age of Piracy before being captured. Real Pirates of the Caribbean looks at all of these notorious pirates, examining their careers and analyzing their legacies. Along with pictures, contemporary accounts, bibliographies, and a Table of Contents, you will learn about these famous pirates like never before.
