Penguin Group

n the summer of 1914 Europe exploded into a frenzy of mass violence. The war that followed had global repercussions, destroying four empires and costing millions of lives. Even the victorious countries were scarred for a generation, and we still today remain within the conflict's shadow. In this major new analysis, published some ninety years after the First World War began, David Stevenson re-examines the causes, course and impact of this 'war to end war', placing it in the context of its era and exposing its underlying dynamics. His book provides a wide-ranging international history, drawing on insights from the latest research. It offers compelling answers to the key questions about how this terrible struggle unfolded: questions that remain disturbingly relevant for our own time.

Includes both Nikolay Gogol's short fiction and famous drama. The stories gathered here range from comic to tragic and describe the isolated lives of low-ranking clerks, lunatics and swindlers. They include Diary of a Madman, Nevsky Prospect, and The Overcoat.

The ten stories collected in this volume demonstrate Tolstoy's artistic prowess displayed over five decades experimenting with prose styles and drawing on his own experiences with humour, realism and compassion. Inspired by his experiences in the army, The Two Hussars contrasts a dashing father and his mean-spirited son.

If Joe could remember what he had thrown into the mixing-bowl, he knew that his hamburger could revive his friend Mr Borthwick's ailing business and drive other fast-food store off the high street. A great opening announcing the perfect hamburger is arranged — but will Joe find the ingredients.

From the reign of the Tsars in the early 19th century to the collapse of the Soviet Union and beyond, the short story has long occupied a central place in Russian culture. Included are pieces from many of the acknowledged masters of Russian literature — including Pushkin, Turgenev, Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, and Solzhenitsyn — alongside tales by long-suppressed figures such as the subversive Kryzhanowsky and the surrealist Shalamov. Whether written in reaction to the cruelty of the bourgeoisie, the bureaucracy of communism or the torture of the prison camps, they offer a wonderfully wide-ranging and exciting representation of one of the most vital and enduring forms of Russian literature.

The Rough Guide to Sci-Fi Movies is a comprehensive guide to the 'final frontier' of film. It explores our fascination with space exploration, time travel, fantastical worlds and alternative futures. This guide explains how everything from the philosophy of Plato to classic Victorian tales and cult comic books have helped to create one of cinema's most engaging genres. Discover the classics from Mexico, Russia and Japan, not forgetting the Anime science fiction tradition, along with everything else you need to know from Metropolis to Star Wars, via Blade Runner, 2001 and Alien. The Rough Guide to Sci-Fi Movies is your essential guide to a galaxy of film unbounded by time or space.

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there's a deadly turf war going on between vampires and their slayers. There exists a secret band of brothers like no other-six vampire warriors, defenders of their race. Yet none of them relishes killing more than Wrath, the leader of The Black Dagger Brotherhood. The only purebred vampire left on earth, Wrath has a score to settle with the slayers who murdered his parents centuries ago. But, when one of his most trusted fighters is killed-leaving his half-breed daughter unaware of his existence or her fate-Wrath must usher her into the world of the undead-a world of sensuality beyond her wildest dreams.

The queen of paranormal romance («USA Today») returns to the world of the GhostWalkers, in this follow-up to «Predatory Game.» As bodies pile up, a violent new cross-country game is blamed on the GhostWalkers. To clear their name, they infiltrate the dangerous sport. To survive it, they must ignore the rules.

Gator Fontenot of the Special Forces paranormal squad must reel in the elusive Iris Flame Johnson, a victim of the same horrific experiments that warped Gator — and a red-haired weapon of unimaginable destructive powers bent on revenge in the sultry bayous of New Orleans. But can two people haunted by violent betrayals trust the passion that soon ignites between them? Or is one of them just playing another seductive and deadly night game?

Now freelancing from south Florida, Dr. Kay Scarpetta returns to Richmond, Virginia, the city that turned its back on her five years ago. Investigating the death of a young girl, she must follow the twisting leads and track the strange details to reveal the sad truth that may be more than even she can bear.

Urging you to put a Purple Cow into everything you build, and everything you do, to create something truly noticeable, this book is a manifesto for anyone who wants to help create products and services that are worth marketing in the first place.

From one of «Time's» «100 People Who Shape Our World» comes a provocative examination of the American way of empire.

Tommy and his sister Annika have a new neighbor, and her name is Pippi Longstocking. She has crazy red pigtails, no parents to tell her what to do, a horse that lives on her porch, and a flair for the outrageous that seems to lead to one adventure after another!

When Kit and Adam separated after almost fifteen years of marriage, Kit felt like she had lost her lover, her best friend and her identity all in one fell swoop. But now, a year on from the divorce, Kit has found herself again and she loves her life in the idyllic Connecticut town of Highfield. She has the perfect job — working for Robert McClore, the famous novelist — two wonderful children, a good relationship with her ex-husband and time to enjoy yoga with her friends. Then Tracy, Kit's yoga instructor and close friend, introduces her to Steve — attentive, charming, the perfect gentleman — and, for the first time in years, Kit thinks she may have found the right one. But is Steve really as perfect as he seems? And why does it bother Kit when Tracy starts dating Kit's reclusive boss, Robert? What no one knows is that Tracy is hiding a secret — one that threatens to ruin her new-found happiness with Robert and her friendship with Kit. And now Tracy must decide whether to keep her past hidden from them both for ever or whether she should reveal the truth before it's too late...

When penniless businessman Mr. Bedford retreats to the Kent coast to write a play, he meets by chance the brilliant Dr. Cavor, an absent-minded scientist on the brink of developing a material that blocks gravity. Cavor soon succeeds in his experiments, only to tell a stunned Bedford the invention makes possible one of the oldest dreams of humanity: a journey to the moon. With Bedford motivated by money, and Cavor by the desire for knowledge, the two embark on the expedition. But neither are prepared for what they find a world of freezing nights, boiling days and sinister alien life, on which they may be trapped forever.

Private Investigator Kinsey Milhone is back on the job, hired by a privileged parolee's father to keep her out of trouble. It should be an easy assignment-until the parolee's past starts coming back to haunt her.

The New York Times Bestseller. A New York Times Notable Book. From the acclaimed master of mystery and suspense comes a thrilling novel about the illusion of film — and the reality of murder.

When a champion jockey disappears — right before a big race and the birth of his child — Investigator David Cleveland bets on foul play.

What happens to your body after you have died? Fertilizer? Crash Test Dummy? Human Dumpling? Ballistics Practise? Life after death is not as simple as it looks. Mary Roach's Stiff lifts the lid off what happens to our bodies once we have died. Bold, original and with a delightful eye for detail, Roach tells us everything we wanted to know about this new frontier in medical science. Interweaving present-day explorations with a history of past attempts to study what it means to be human Stiff is a deliciously dark investigations for readers of popular science as well as fans of the macabre.

This brilliant collection is full of magic, mayhem and adventure! Find out how the camel got his hump, how Jimmy learned to vanish, and what Horrid Henry got up to on his holiday... It is perfect for seven-year-olds to share or read alone.

Halley and Scarlett have been best friends ever since they met. Halley has always been the quiet one, Scarlett braver and more outgoing. Halley has always turned to Scarlett when things get rough, and Scarlett has always known just what to do. It's the perfect setup. But everything changes at the beginning of their junior year. Scarlett's boyfriend is killed in a motorcycle accident; then Scarlett finds out that she is carrying his baby. For the first time ever, Scarlett really needs Halley. Now Halley has to learn how to be strong for Scarlett. It won't be easy, but Halley knows that she can't let Scarlett down. Because a true friend is a promise you keep forever.

When an eccentric millionaire dies mysteriously, sixteen very unlikely people are gathered together for the reading of the will... and what a will it is!

What happened in the house that Jack built? It all started with the cheese that lay in the house that Jack built. And then came the rat that ate the cheese and the cat who killed the rat. Caldecott Medal? Winning author and illustrator Simms Taback brings his distinctive humor and creativity to the beloved story of Jack and the house that he built.

Is it really possible to invent a machine that does the job of a writer? What is it about the landlady's house that makes it so hard for her guests to leave? Does Sir Basil Turton value most his wife or one of his priceless sculptures? These compelling tales are a perfect introduction to the adult writing of a storytelling genius.