Title search results
Showing 1 - 20 of 20041 items
Ninjutsu The Art of Invisibility
By Donn F. Draeger. 1989
Ninja-the very word inspires awe and terror in equal measure. Master of espionage and assassination, stealth and concealment, the ninja's…
ability to move swiftly and silently gave rise to popular legends of amazing exploits, invincibility and supernatural powers.In Ninjutsu: The Art of Invisibility, Donn Draeger draws back the veil of mystery shrouding the arcane practices of feudal Japan's shadow warriors. Stripping away myth and exaggeration, Draeger reveals the secret tactics, exotic weapons, tricks and disguises that earned the ninja a reputation as history's most feared secret agents.Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family
By Condoleezza Rice. 2010
Condoleezza Rice has excelled as a diplomat, political scientist, and concert pianist. Her achievements run the gamut from helping to…
oversee the collapse of communism in Europe and the decline of the Soviet Union, to working to protect the country in the aftermath of 9-11, to becoming only the second woman - and the first black woman ever -- to serve as Secretary of State. But until she was 25 she never learned to swim. Not because she wouldn't have loved to, but because when she was a little girl in Birmingham, Alabama, Commissioner of Public Safety Bull Connor decided he'd rather shut down the city's pools than give black citizens access. Throughout the 1950's, Birmingham's black middle class largely succeeded in insulating their children from the most corrosive effects of racism, providing multiple support systems to ensure the next generation would live better than the last. But by 1963, when Rice was applying herself to her fourth grader's lessons, the situation had grown intolerable. Birmingham was an environment where blacks were expected to keep their head down and do what they were told -- or face violent consequences. That spring two bombs exploded in Rice's neighborhood amid a series of chilling Klu Klux Klan attacks. Months later, four young girls lost their lives in a particularly vicious bombing. So how was Rice able to achieve what she ultimately did? Her father, John, a minister and educator, instilled a love of sports and politics. Her mother, a teacher, developed Condoleezza's passion for piano and exposed her to the fine arts. From both, Rice learned the value of faith in the face of hardship and the importance of giving back to the community. Her parents' fierce unwillingness to set limits propelled her to the venerable halls of Stanford University, where she quickly rose through the ranks to become the university's second-in-command. An expert in Soviet and Eastern European Affairs, she played a leading role in U.S. policy as the Iron Curtain fell and the Soviet Union disintegrated. Less than a decade later, at the apex of the hotly contested 2000 presidential election, she received the exciting news - just shortly before her father's death - that she would go on to the White House as the first female National Security Advisor. As comfortable describing lighthearted family moments as she is recalling the poignancy of her mother's cancer battle and the heady challenge of going toe-to-toe with Soviet leaders, Rice holds nothing back in this remarkably candid telling. This is the story of Condoleezza Rice that has never been told, not that of an ultra-accomplished world leader, but of a little girl - and a young woman -- trying to find her place in a sometimes hostile world and of two exceptional parents, and an extended family and community, that made all the difference.From the Hardcover edition.Fireboat: The Heroic Adventures of the John J. Harvey
By Maira Kalman. 2002
The Snicker candy bar appeared and Babe Ruth hit his 611th home run P …
P That was also the year the John J Harvey fireboat was first launched It had levers buttons buckets brass trim and five engines and it fought fires on the piers But by 1995 the city had little use for a fireboat and it sold the Harvey to group of people who restored and used it for fun P P Then came 9 11 something so huge and horrible happened that the whole world shook The Harvey was called back into service Firefighters attached their hoses to the boat and fought fires for four days and nights P P Kalman does some extraordinary things in this beautiful picture book She takes the fireboat s history and puts it within the context of a city that has endured framing the enormity of 9 11 so young readers and even small children can begin to grasp what happened At the same time she makes the event part of life s continuum of loss and enduranceThe Complete Martial Arts Training Manual
By Ashley Martin. 2010
The Complete Martial Arts Training Manual is for beginners who want to explore options in terms of disciplines and veteran…
martial artists looking to expand their knowledge into other martial arts arenas.Author Ashley P. Martin provides a catalog of the various martial arts being taught worldwide and where each one is focused. He then covers the basics of hand-to-hand techniques within each of those disciplines, from strikes to ground fighting. Finally, he offers information on the overall health and well-being of the martial artist, including important nutritional information and stretching techniques. The Complete Martial Arts Training Manual provides a solid foundation for beginners and is a key supplement to the veteran martial artist's library.Criminal Sociology
By Enrico Ferri.
A new departure in science is a simple phenomenon of nature, determined in its origin and progress, like all such…
phenomena, by conditions of time and place. Attention must be drawn to these conditions at the outset, for it is only by accurately defining them that the scientific conscience of the student of sociology is developed and confirmed. The experimental philosophy of the latter half of our century, combined with human biology and psychology, and with the natural study of human society, had already produced an intellectual atmosphere decidedly favourable to a practical inquiry into the criminal manifestations of individual and social life. To these general conditions must be added the plain and everyday contrast between the metaphysical perfection of criminal law and the progressive increase of crime, as well as the contrast between legal theories of crime and the study of the mental characteristics of a large number of criminals.Captain Amarinder Singh: An Authorized Biography
By Khushwant Singh. 2017
An authentic definitive and no-holds-barred narrative packed with fascinating incidents and anecdotes …
that brings alive the life and times of one of the most prominent multifaceted and striking individuals a former royal in the sphere of Punjab politics Beginning with a historical background of how the Patiala kingdom came to be established and ruled over the centuries the author moves on to describe the early years of Amarinder Singh a scion of that kingdom He then portrays the Indo Pak war zone of 1965 where the protagonist earned his spurs and finally focuses on the combative arenas of Punjab politics where numerous electoral and other battles have been and continue to be fought This informative work unravels the subterfuges of politicians and others including religious leaders in trying to ensure their dominance The pages reveal behind-the-scenes intrigues plots and counter-plots even as Punjab was in the vice-like grip of terrorism in the late twentieth century Operation Bluestar June 1984 and its consequences have been objectively recorded Besides tracing the career graph of Amarinder Singh who reached his pinnacle when he became the chief minister of Punjab in February 2002 the author provides useful insights into crucial events that have made an immense impact on that state and the neighbouring areas over the past few decades The text also throws light on Amarinder Singh s five-year tenure as chief minister marked by both positive and negative aspects and on the following period when Parkash Singh Badal regained that post The contents are rounded off with an update on the Punjab scenario up to February 2017 which saw Amarinder Singh come back with a thumping victory Here s a saga that records history in the making in PunjabThe Political Rhetoric and Oratory of Margaret Thatcher
By Peter Dorey, Andrew S. Crines, Timothy Heppell. 2016
This book examines the political oratory, rhetoric and persona of Margaret Thatcher as a means of understanding her justifications for…
'Thatcherism'. The main arenas for consideration are set piece speeches to conference, media engagements, and Parliamentary orations. Thatcher's rhetorical style is analysed through the lens of the Aristotelian modes of persuasion (ethos, pathos, logos). Furthermore, the classical methods of oratorical engagement (deliberative, epidictic, judicial) are employed to consider her style of delivery. The authors place her styles of communication into their respective political contexts over a series of noteworthy issues, such as industrial relations, foreign policy, economic reform, and party management. By doing so, this distinctive book shines new light on Thatcher and her political career.Freddie Mercury: The Biography
By Laura Jackson. 2011
This fascinating biography of Freddie Mercury which received outstanding acclaim from Queen and rock fans worldwide, has now been updated…
for reissue to coincide with the release of the film about his life. Laura Jackson addresses topics including:* The reality behind Queen's flamboyant front man and lead singer* Mercury the star of mystery - amusing, loyal and generous, yet revealing a dark side to his personality* His frequent use of cocaine and how it heightened his tendency to excess - both on and off stage* The women in his life - his bizarrely enduring relationships with his first love, Mary Austin, and his long-time confidante, Barbara Valentin, who speaks for the first time in this bookThe book also includes new and intimate stories by those who knew him well, such as Tim Rice, Richard Branson, Cliff Richard, Bruce Dickinson, Mike Moran, Wayne Eagling, Zandra Rhodes and Susannah York.When Marian Sang: The True Recital of Marian Anderson, The Voice of a Century
By Pam Muñoz Ryan. 2002
An introduction to the life of Marian Anderson, extraordinary singer and the first African American to perform with the Metropolitan…
Opera, whose life and career encouraged social change. Winner of the Sibert HonorBit of a Blur: The Autobiography
By Alex James. 2007
I was the Fool-king of Soho and the number-one slag in the Groucho Club, the second drunkest member of the…
world's drunkest band. This was no disaster, though. It was a dream coming true.'For Alex James, music had always been a door to a more eventful life. But as bass player of Blur - one of the most successful British bands of all time - his journey was more exciting and extreme than he could ever have predicted. In Bit of a Blur he chronicles his journey from a slug-infested flat in Camberwell to a world of screaming fans and private jets - and his eventual search to find meaning and happiness (and, perhaps most importantly, the perfect cheese), in an increasingly surreal world.You'll Win Nothing With Kids: Fathers, Sons and Football
By Jim White. 2007
On Sunday mornings Jim White has the following choice: visit the supermarket, buy trellising at B'n'Q, or stand on the…
sidelines of a muddy municipal football pitch, his trouser cuffs wetter than a weekend in Llandudno, shoulder-to-shoulder with a motley crew of mums, dads, step-parents and same-sex life partners all screaming at their beleaguered offspring. You'll find Jim in the same place every week, failing to organise a bunch of lads into something resembling a team while on the far side of the park his opposite number, a wannabe Mourinho in brashly monogrammed tracksuit, struts the sidelines, shouting - always shouting. This is the hilarious story of Jim White's time as manager of his son's football team: the highs, the lows, and the dog turd in the centre circle. At this level, winning spirit is not so much about passion, pride and belief as praying that your star centre forward has remembered his boots. Most importantly, it's about the enduring relationship between fathers, sons and football. This is the story no one who has ever watched his or her child play sport will want to miss.Manchester United: The Complete Story of the World's Greatest Football Club
By Jim White. 2009
Manchester United:The Biography will do for the football team what Peter Ackroyd did for London in his huge biog of…
the same name. The book follows the club?s extraordinary journey from its birth in the railway works of Newton Heath to its current statusTheodore Roosevelt
By Theodore Roosevelt.
The firsthand account of the life of adventurer, scholar, war hero, and twenty-sixth president of the United States Theodore Roosevelt.There…
must be the keenest sense of duty, and with it must go the joy of living. Here, in his own words, Theodore Roosevelt recounts his remarkable journey from a childhood plagued with illnesses to the US presidency and beyond. With candor and vivid detail, this personal account describes a life guided by a restless intelligence, a love for adventure, and an unflagging duty to his country. Roosevelt sheds light on his wide array of roles, from New York police commissioner, where he waged a battle against corruption, to cattle rancher in the Dakotas to assistant secretary of the US Navy under William McKinley to leader of the legendary Rough Riders at the outbreak of the Spanish–American War, when he led the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry to victory in the Battle of San Juan Hill. These extraordinary accomplishments earned Roosevelt national fame and set the stage for his ascent to the White House. As twenty-sixth president of the United States, he ushered in the Progressive Era with his domestic policies, such as the Square Deal, and trust-busting of monopolies, such as Standard Oil. He was a war hero, scholar, statesman, adventurer, and Nobel Peace Prize winner. Theodore Roosevelt: An Autobiography provides unique insight into the truly remarkable life of one of America’s most beloved presidents. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.Urban Legend - Sir Dove-Myer Robinson: Sir Dove-myer Robinson
By John Edgar. 2012
Every Aucklander of a certain age knows that we should have listened to Mayor Robbie back in the 1970s' -…
Labour Party MP Phil Twyford. But who was he? And why is he still relevant today? From a working class Jewish boy in Sheffield to long serving Mayor of Auckland (1959-1980), Sir Dove-Myer Robinson's life followed an unusual path. A slight, bespectacled man whose tiny stature was offset by a booming voice and massive ego, he was a natural political campaigner. Associated with a host of local and national causes, he became Auckland's most recognisable spokesperson. He joined political causes and challenged convention. He fought for our current waste water treatment process, against French nuclear testing, and an integrated Auckland transport system and city. Though his political career was outstanding and memorable, his personal life was a hot bed of gossip. Four wives, one 20 years his junior, and a very public divorce during one of his terms meant he was never far from the headlines. In this book we look at both his personal life and his outstanding political career, which affected not only the future of Auckland, but the future of New Zealand.Asha Bhosle: A Musical Biography
By Raju Bharatan. 2016
The definitive saga at once riveting and revelatory studded with rare nuggets of information and…
fascinating anecdotes that sparkingly brings out the life and times of an internationally acclaimed incredibly versatile singer Asha Bhosle a Guinness world record holder plus recipient of the Padma Vibhushan and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award has held one and all spellbound for six decades now Her voice both fluid and flexible has infused neo life into a variety of genres from the melancholy melody to the rollicking rock- n -roll from the soulful creation to the vibrant disco from the romantic rhapsody to the rambunctious folk song from the dainty ghazal to the boisterous qawwali and from the pathos-filled rendition to the naughty-naugthy seductive number The author on the strength of his vast and varied exposure and experience turns the focus on enthralling behind-the-scenes happenings that shaped the advance of this artiste with a remarkable range and a noteworthy body of work The world has no time for losers has remained Asha s performing credo This volume captures Asha Bhosle in her numberless shades It is about how in her silken rivalry with elder sister Lata Mangeshkar she moved with panache from O P Nayyar to S D Burman to R D Burman It is about how she served a galaxy of composers about how in the end she reached the pinnacle all by herself Against odds that would have driven any other woman into quitting No quitter ever Asha Bhosle as the supernova supreme just went on to underline the adage No power like woman power No more can you stay away from this marvel of a musical biography than you can stay away from the matchless musicality of Asha Bhosle If she is one of a kind so is this musical masterpiece capturing all the resonances and nuances going with her piquant persona Here is a long-awaited career study shedding light on the twists and turns marking the starry-eyed world of Hindustani film musicMaster Laster: What They Don't Tell You about Sachin Tendulkar
By Sumit Chakraberty. 2014
Master Laster takes you beyond Sachin Tendulkar s career aggregates and passionate assertions …
There are almost as many books about Sachin Tendulkar as there are centuries by him But just as there is only one Tendulkar century that came in a winning run chase in the last innings of a Test match rare are the books that look at his personal records through the prism of how much they mattered to the team In fact there are none because the easiest thing to do is to produce adulatory tomes for his doting fans But there are an equal number of cricket fans out there who want to know something more than gushing accolades and who don t shy away from asking difficult questions The book covers 1 a quarter of a century of Indian cricket bringing back to life many a game played during Tendulkar s time 2 it indulges fans in one of the enduring joys of cricket discussing a point threadbare from multiple angles 3 how many of his centuries made a difference to the team 4 what is his track record under pressure None of the books on Tendulkar has engaged fans in these debates There is the odd question raised here or a critical comment made there in memoirs by former cricketers but not a single book that sifts through the mountain of Tendulkar records to see what value can be attached to them from a team s point of view An exercise like that can be quite revealing even startling and certainly a lot of fun for cricket lovers It sets the Tendulkar debate against specific data taking it beyond career aggregates and passionate assertions Master Laster covers the variables in the game and its infinite possibilities It also deals with why this game is so fascinates so many of usThe Manager: The Absurd Ascent of the Most Important Man in Football
By Barney Ronay. 2010
Ever since the dawn of the professional era, the beautiful game's most intriguing individual has been inching his way from…
the boot room towards the back pages. Along the way he has shared in the preoccupations of the nation - from conflicts and economic crises, to a fascination with fashion and a wholly unhealthy interest in celebrity. This book traces the remarkable journey of the football gaffer, from his humble beginnings as club secretary, to his modern incarnation - the man we all recognise, venting his spleen at the ref, or having a huff at a post-match press conference. THE MANAGER takes the reader beyond the well-worn anecdotes, deeper into the stories of football's top men and the world they inhabit. Barney Ronay asks the important questions about these compelling characters - Where did they come from? Why are they so miserable? Where do they get their suits? Hilarious and absorbing, this book contains enough revelations to provide the most avid fan with a library of fresh tales. You'll never look at the man on the touchline in the same way again.Fields of Courage: The Bravest Chapters in Sport
By Max Davidson. 2012
The history of sport is littered with tales of exemplary courage: sportsmen and women pushing their bodies through the pain…
barrier, or defying career-threatening injuries, in quest of victory. From the goalkeeper who played in a FA Cup Final with a broken neck to the batsman who saved a Test match with his arm in plaster, their heroics have inspired generations of schoolchildren. But courage is as much a moral as a physical attribute. Some of the most inspiring chapters in sport feature men and women of principle who have challenged authority, fought prejudice or simply had the guts to confess to weaknesses that went against the grain of their profession. Ben Hogan, Jackie Robinson, Marcus Trescothick, Billie-Jean King, Eric Lidell . . . Max Davidson's cavalcade of sporting heroism celebrates virtues that transcend winning and losing -- and explains why sport at its best is so inspirational.Climbing the Bookshelves: The Autobiography of Shirley Williams
By Shirley Williams. 2010
The role of women in our society has changed out of all recognition. But it has changed least in the…
House of Commons. I want to describe those changes and the resistances to them through the magnifying glass of my own life, a life that coincides with our turbulent post-war history.'Shirley Williams was born to politics. As well as being influenced by her mother, Vera Brittian, her father George Caitlin, a leading political scientist, encouraged his daughter to have high ambitions for herself - including daring to climb the bookshelves in his library. Elected as MP for Hitchin in 1964, she was a member of the Wilson and Callaghan governments and was also the Secretary of State for Education. As one of the 'Gang of Four' Shirley Williams famously broke away from the Labour Party to found the SDP in 1981 and later supported its merger with the Liberal Party to form the Liberal Democrats. CLIMBING THE BOOKSHELVES is the voice of strong and passionate woman of luminous intelligence.The Other Side of the Mountain
By Salman Khurshid. 2016
An authoritative forthright and thought-provoking narrative that attempts to analyse why the Congress lost the 2014 Lok Sabha elections…
and also focuses on the fluctuating fortunes of the Bharatiya Janata Party and other political parties besides dealing with crucial issues having a bearing on the country s future As a former minister who has held important portfolios in the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance Government Salman Khurshid has witnessed crucial behind-the-scenes developments that have had a profound impact on the destiny of the nation Beginning with the reasons for the rout of the Congress in 2014 including the series of scams that sealed its fate he goes on to point out that the party has the ability to bounce back given the many setbacks that have affected the Narendra Modi Government at the Centre as well as some BJP-ruled states and the Aam Aadmi Party Government in Delhi The author next highlights the role of the media which he feels was largely instrumental in ensuring the Congress s defeat He nevertheless acknowledges that of late the fourth estate has not spared the governments in power at the Centre and in the BJP-ruled states and has exposed the chinks in their armour the growing brazenness of the right-wing forces the Lalit Modi fallout and the Vyapam-related incidents Thereafter Salman Khurshid turns the spotlight on a range of significant and highly relevant topics such as international relations with an emphasis on Pakistan and the USA the Election Commission s role communalism minority affairs especially the problems affecting the Muslims the judiciary and its overreach the Nirbhaya tragedy and corruption and its impact with a cameo on the Anna Hazare movement Here is an insider s perspective that is not only incisive and insightful but also vital for understanding the recent events in the political arena and their far-reaching ramifications