Daedalus Books

In this latest installment in the internationally best-selling, universally beloved series, there is considerable excitement at The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. A cobra has been found in Precious Ramotswe's office. Then a nurse from a local medical clinic reveals that faulty blood-pressure readings are being recorded there. And Botswana has a new advice columnist, Aunty Emang, whose advice is rather curt for Mma Ramotswe's taste. All this means a lot of work for our heroine and her inestimable assistant, Grace Makutsi, and they are, of course, up to the challenge. But there's trouble brewing in Mma Makutsi's own life. When Phuti Radiphuti misses their customary dinner date, she begins to wonder if he is having second thoughts about their engagement. And while Mma Makutsi may be able to buy that fashionably narrow (and uncomfortable) pair of blue shoes, it may not buy her the happiness that Mma Ramotswe promises her she'll find in the simpler things — in contentment with the world and enough tea to smooth over the occasional bumps in the road.

Darkness falls...Despair abounds...Evil reigns...Eragon and his dragon, Saphira, have just saved the rebel state from destruction by the mighty forces of King Galbatorix, cruel ruler of the Empire. Now Eragon must travel to Ellesmera, land of the elves, for further training in magic and swordsmanship, the vital skills of the Dragon Rider. It is the journey of a lifetime, filled with awe-inspiring new places and people, each day a fresh adventure. But chaos and betrayal plague him at every turn, and Eragon isn't sure whom he can trust. Meanwhile, his cousin Roran must fight a new battle back home in Carvahall — one that puts Eragon in even graver danger. Will the king's dark hand strangle all resistance? Eragon may not escape with even his life...This book includes an exclusive extract from book three in the series!

A stunningly witty exploration of the American landscape — not to mention a brilliant comic's mind — this diary is chock-full of everything you ever wanted to know about Eric Idle, Monty Python, America, and sleeping on a bus. In these pages, the sixth-nicest Python is cheeky, touching, and funny when recounting the riotous tales of his beginnings, his affectionate reminiscences of his fellow Pythons, traveling the world, and taking us backstage at the smash Broadway hit Spamalot, Fascinating, moving, at times even amusing, this book will dramatically improve your sex life, will make you feel intelligent and charming within the first several pages, and after a few chapters, will permanently eliminate all your personal or health problems. So come experience eighty days, 15,750 miles, and forty-nine cities as you never have before!

The Unseen University sits in the centre of Discworld's greatest city, Ankh-Morpork. Some would say it is the very heart of the city. Ancient and magical, it is the home to the greatest library in the multiverse and the oldest building on the Discworld, the soaring Tower of Art. Enjoy the challenge of making all seven buildings and seeing the complete Unseen University literally unfold before your eyes. It is created in perfect detail by renowned illustrator and modelmaker, Alan Batley, from the original sculpture of the University by Discworld Artist Bernard Pearson. This title includes a foreword by Terry Pratchett. Simple tools, patience, and a good pot of glue are all that is required to create this masterpiece. With comprehensive and easy-to-follow instructions throughout, this title is suitable for all from 10 up, including the adult serious model maker.

Ansul was once a peaceful town filled with libraries, schools, and temples. But that was long ago, and the conquerors of this coastal city consider reading and writing to be acts punishable by death. And they believe the Oracle House, where the last few undestroyed books are hidden, is seething with demons. But to seventeen-year-old Memer, the house is a refuge, a place of family and learning, ritual and memory — the only place where she feels truly safe. Then an Uplands poet named Orrec and his wife, Gry, arrive, and everything in Memer's life begins to change. Will she and the people of Ansul at last be brave enough to rebel against their oppressors? A haunting and gripping coming-of-age story set against a backdrop of violence, intolerance, and magic, Voices is a novel that readers will not soon forget.

1940: The Spanish Civil War is over, and Madrid lies ruined, its people starving, while the Germans continue their relentless march through Europe. Britain now stands alone while General Franco considers whether to abandon neutrality and enter the war. Into this uncertain world comes Harry Brett: a traumatised veteran of Dunkirk turned reluctant spy for the British Secret Service. Sent to gain the confidence of old schoolfriend Sandy Forsyth, now a shady Madrid businessman, Harry finds himself involved in a dangerous game — and surrounded by memories. Meanwhile Sandy's girlfriend, ex-Red Cross nurse Barbara Clare, is engaged on a secret mission of her own — to find her former lover Bernie Piper, a passionate Communist in the International Brigades, who vanished on the bloody battlefields of the Jarama. In a vivid and haunting depiction of wartime Spain, Winter in Madrid is an intimate and compelling tale which offers a remarkable sense of history unfolding, and the profound impact of impossible choices. 'Sansom adroitly draws the disparate strands of his ambitious saga together. His non-pareil evocations of time and place anchor his characters with satisfying precision' — Independent.

Cecil Beaton called him the best photographer in Britain; Lord Snowden declared him a genius. It is no exaggeration to say that Angus McBean revolutionized portraiture in the 1930s, or that he immortalized the likes of Audrey Hepburn, Marlene Dietrich, and Elizabeth Taylor. Blending wit, drama, and fantasy with the consummate skill of a master photographer, McBean was the most prominent theater photographer of his generation and, along with Beaton, the last of the British avant-garde studio photographers.

Purcell and Elmslie: Prairie Progressives explores the work of two important members of the organic architecture movement, and celebrates their tremendously important contributions to American architecture and the Prairie School. Wishing to return to simplicity and honesty, Purcell and Elmslie created homes and buildings that were consistent with a democratic society-simple forms, the natural use of textural materials and decoration, and buildings that accommodated the nature of a site. As did Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, Purcell and Elmslie held the conviction that a building does not end with its simple structure, but reaches its final and logical culmination in the clothing-color, situation and natural environment, together with its decoration of glass, terra-cotta, and other textural materials. The firm of Purcell and Elmslie was tremendously successful in the sense that their small open-planned free-flowing houses could be shared by a great number of Americans of moderate means. Projects discussed in this book can be found throughout the Midwest, including Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa, North Dakota, Illinois, Wisconsin, and more. The time has come to recognize the work of these progressive architects of the Midwest. Purcell and Elmslie: Prairie Progressives includes: Comprehensive biographies of George Grant Elmslie and William Gray Purcell, The Work of the Firm, The Domestic and Non-Domestic, Work of Purcell, Feick and Elmslie, Work after the Firm Broke Up, The Late Work of Purcell and Elmslie, A Catalog of Major Projects.

Written from the unique perspective of an architect and sailboat designer — who is also an ardent sailor — this handsome volume documents the most important boats and boating events in the legendary history of the sailing yacht. Sailing Yachts tells the story of the concepts and creativity that lie behind the birth of the finest sailing yachts. The events and anecdotes that have marked the history of sailing are described in the vivid narrative, from casual competitions for royal yachts on London's River Thames in 1600 to the high-tech challenges of the 21st century. Detailed information on crewing and racing these magnificent boats is included as well. Meticulous sketches and diagrams, historical documents, and design plans reveal the techniques of the world's top boat designers. Hundreds of photographs in glorious full color convey the warmth of the sun beating on the deck as the boat cuts through the water, and the excitement of the world's most celebrated races, including the 2005 America's Cup and Louis Vuitton Cup. Anyone who has ever sailed a boat will thrill to the crisp flap of the sail and the splash of the waves evoked by the photographs in this book.

The fierce loyalty and self-sacrificing attitude of the Samurai have made them both a legend and a cult. Yet, although their military prowess and skills in the martial arts have been studied exhaustively, an understanding of their belief system still eludes many. This original and exciting work examines the spiritual world of the samurai, from their attachment to Japan's mainstream religions of Shinto and Buddhism, to their involvement in Confucianism, Christianity and Folk Religion. Samurai expert, Stephen Turnbull, examines important topics such as Zen and the martial arts, modern militarism, the cult of the sword, revenge and suicide, hara kiri and the kamikaze pilots — the suicide bombers of their day. He also looks at the fascinating issue of Japanese religious terrorism, as well as the growing cult status of the Samurai both in Japan and in the West.

A collection of over 200 rare and previously unpublished photographs revealing the many aspects of Winston Churchill's life: military leader, politician, author and artist. This book documents key events in Churchill's public life, as well as more intimate private moments. It is a thought-provoking, visual portrait of one of the most important figures in 20th century history.

In 1943, Robert Oppenheimer, the brilliant, charismatic head of the Manhattan Project, recruited scientists to live as virtual prisoners of the U.S. government at Los Alamos, a barren mesa thirty-five miles outside Santa Fe, New Mexico. Thousands of men, women, and children spent the war years sequestered in this top-secret military facility. They lied to friends and family about where they were going and what they were doing and then disappeared into the desert. The women came despite the Army's initial objections, as Oppenheimer insisted that would be the only way to recruit the world-class physicists, and keep them reasonably sane and content during the years it would take to create this revolutionary new weapon. Conant shows how the stringent security, lack of privacy, spartan living conditions, and loneliness of the isolated mountain hideaway drove some residents to the brink of despair. Yet, only a handful gave up and left. Through the eyes of a young Santa Fe widow who was one of Oppenheimer's first recruits, we see how, for all his flaws, he developed into an inspiring leader and motivated all those involved in the Los Alamos project to make a supreme effort and achieve the unthinkable.

A fun fright-fest for any time of the year There's always something lurking in the spooky-but-fun urban world of these poems. Maybe it's a lost dragon (a wizard's loving pet — please return if found!) or a twelve-toed creature, or perhaps it's a monster celebrating his birthday. Whatever is there, it's sure to delight readers at any time of the year.

How would you like to go whitewater rafting without ever leaving your driveway? Or ride a rollercoaster while you're stuck in traffic? You can do it! Crazy Cars is full of sensible ideas like these (and many more), to suit even the craziest kids. So strap on your seatbelts and enjoy the ride!

In 1917, the world was turned upside down by a popular uprising and then a Bolshevik coup d'etat in Russia. Suddenly, the socialist revolution that many had hoped for and had expected was underway, Capitalism was morally and materially exhausted by war, and history seemed to be on the side of communism at last. But as Michael Occleshaw brilliantly shows in this startling new appraisal of the revolution and civil war in Russia, the Bolsheviks were shrewd and flexible operators. They used an alliance with the Kaiser's Germany to protect their infant regime and to destroy domestic challengers to their government. The British, the French, and the Americans, meanwhile, actively sought ways to cooperate with the new government regardless of their deep ideological differences. Occleshaw has discovered a wealth of new information that deepens and enriches our understanding of this crucial period in world history. In revolutionary Russia, he reveals a teeming underground of espionage, double-dealing, and adventurism. From the secret negotiations between the Bolsheviks and the capitalist powers to Britain's plans for a separate Cossack state, Occleshaw reveals a history darker, more dangerous, and more exciting than anyone could have imagined.

The clean, spare lines, looping oversized noses, and sharp wit of Charles Barsottis business cartoons have been a staple at The New Yorker for more than three decades. Featuring angry, fist-pounding bosses, hapless, undersized underlings, and deadpan secretaries making outrageous utterances, these are among the cleverest and most searing business cartoons out there. People on every step of the corporate ladder, from office temp to CEO, will identify with the hilarious scenarios in Barsottis brilliant sketches.

This landmark, myth-shattering work chronicles the Pentagon, the most powerful institution in America, the people who created it, and the pathologies it has spawned. Carroll proves a controversial thesis: the Pentagon is the biggest, loosest cannon in American history, and no institution has changed this country more.

Arthur (Art) Mumby and his irritating sister Myrtle live with their father, Revd Marmaduke Mumby, in the huge and rambling house, Larklight, travelling through space on a remote orbit far beyond the moon. One ordinary sort of morning they receive a correspondence informing them that a gentleman is on his way to visit, a Mr Webster. Visitors to Larklight are rare if not unique, and a frenzy of preparation ensues. But it is the wrong sort of preparation, as they discover when their guest arrives, and a Dreadful and Terrifying (and marvellous) adventure begins. It takes them to the furthest reaches of known space, where they must battle the evil First Ones in a desperate attempt to save each other — and the universe. Recounted through the eyes of Art himself, «Larklight» will be sumptuously designed and illustrated throughout.

The magical surrealism of the famous opera «The Love for Three Oranges» is vividly depicted in this pictorial adaptation, designed to create an awareness of classical music among young children. Combining humor, sorrow, fantasy, and a bit of the grotesque, this fanciful story tells the tale of a prince whose melancholy can only be cured by a hearty laugh. In order to break through his gloom, the king plans a splendid feast and orders the court jester, Truffaldino, to appear and cheer up his son. When the prince finally lets out a guffaw, he incurs the wrath of Fata Morgana, a malicious witch who curses him with an undeniable passion for three oranges — oranges that he must chase to the ends of the earth.

Baltimore, 1849. The body of Edgar Allan Poe has been buried in an unmarked grave. The public, the press, even Poe's family and friends accept the conclusion that Poe was a second-rate writer who died a drunkard. But none of this deters a young Baltimore lawyer named Quentin Clark, an ardent admirer who risks his own career and reputation in a passionate crusade to salvage Poe's. Clark discovers that Poe's last days are riddled with vital unanswered questions. The police, it seems, may be concealing things. But just when Poe's death seems destined to remain a mystery Quentin realizes he must find the one person who can solve this strange case: the real-life model for Poe's brilliant fictional detective character, C. Auguste Dupin, the hero of ingenious tales of crime and detection. Clark successfully recruits the man he believes to have inspired Poe's Dupin only to be confronted by another claiming to be the true model and a dangerous race between the two master detectives begins, each seeking to prove he is the real 'Dupin' by solving the mystery of Poe's death. In short order, Clark finds himself enmeshed in sinister machinations involving international political agents, a female assassin, the corrupt Baltimore slave trade and the lost secrets of Poe's final hours. With his own future hanging in the balance, he must turn master investigator himself to unchain his now imperiled fate from that of Poe. THE POE SHADOW is a beautifully detailed, ingeniously plotted tale of suspense which opens a thrilling new window on the truth behind Poe's demise, literary history's most persistent enigma.

Guy Fawkes is amongst the most celebrated figures in English history and Bonfire Night is a remarkably long lived and very English tradition. But why every November do we still mark a planned act of treason and terrorism that was defeated 400 years ago? James Sharpe examines the fateful night of 5 November, 1605 and the tangled web of religion and politics which gave rise to the plot. He uncovers how celebration of the event, and of Guy Fawkes, the one gunpowder plotter everyone remembers, has changed over the centuries. Today, although most of the religious connotations have long been ignored, the bonfires remain. The festival created in 1605 by the state and church to commemorate a failed act of Catholic terrorism, now provides an annual raison d'etre for the firework industry and a cause of concern for Britain's cat owners!

One of today's most intrepid writers chronicles a deadly trek through the legendary region that gave birth to the gulag and gave Siberia its outsize reputation for perilous isolation. In a custom-built boat, Jeffrey Tayler travels some 2,400 miles down the Lena River from near Lake Baikal to high above the Arctic Circle, recreating a journey first made by Cossack forces more than three hundred years ago. He is searching for primeval beauty and a respite from the corruption, violence, and self-destructive urges that typify modern Russian culture, but instead he finds the roots of that culture — in Cossack villages unchanged for centuries, in Soviet outposts full of listless drunks, in stark ruins of the gulag, and in grand forests hundreds of miles from the nearest hamlet. That' s how far Tayler is from help when he realizes that his guide, Vadim, a burly Soviet army veteran embittered by his experiences in Afghanistan, detests all humanity, including Tayler. Yet he needs Vadim's superb skills if he is to survive a voyage that quickly turns hellish. They must navigate roiling whitewater in howling storms, but they eschew life jackets because, as Vadim explains, the frigid water would kill them before they could swim to shore. Though Tayler has trekked by camel through the Sahara and canoed down the Congo during the revolt against Mobutu, he has never felt so threatened as he does now.

A bizarre killer nicknamed «The Highwayman» has turned London's blazing-hot summer into a ticking time bomb, but never fear, detectives John May and Arthur Bryant are on the case! « is a new master of the classical detective story.»

Women have participated in war throughout history, but their experience in Russia during the First World War was truly exceptional. Between the war's beginning and the October Revolution of 1917, approximately 6,000 women answered their country's call. These courageous women became media stars throughout Europe and America, but were brushed aside by Soviet chroniclers and until now have been largely neglected by history. Laurie Stoff draws on deep archival research into previously unplumbed material, including many first-person accounts, to examine the roots, motivations, and legacy of these women. She reveals that Russia was the only nation in World War I that systematically employed women in the military, marking the first time that a government run by men had organized women for combat. And although they were originally envisioned as propaganda — promoting patriotism and citizenship to inspire the thousands of males who had been deserting or refusing to fight — Russian women also proved themselves more than capable in combat. Describing the formation, provisioning, and training of the units, Stoff sheds light on their social and educational backgrounds, while recounting a number of amazing individual stories. She tells how Maria Bochkareva, commander of the First Russian Women's Battalion of Death, and her unit met its baptism of fire in combat and how Bochkareva later traveled to the U.S. and met President Wilson. We also meet Maria Bocharnikova, who served with the First Petrograd Women's Battalion that defended the Winter Palace during the Bolshevik Revolution. Stoff also chronicles the exploits of the Second Moscow Women's Battalion of Death, Third Kuban Women's Shock Battalion, and the First Women's Naval Detachment. Stoff's remarkable account rescues from oblivion an important but still little-known aspect of Russia's experience in World War I. It also provides new insights into gender roles during a pivotal period of Russia's development and resonates with the current debates over the role of women in warfare.