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The girl with nine wigs: a memoir
By Sophie Van der Stap. 2015
Sophie is twenty-one when she is diagnosed with a rare, aggressive form of cancer. A striking, fun-loving student, her world…
is reduced overnight to the sterile confines of a hospital. But within these walls Sophie discovers a whole new world of white coats, gossiping nurses, and sexy doctors; of shared rooms, hair loss, and eyebrow pencils. As wigs become a crucial part of Sophie's new life, she reclaims a sense of self-expression. Each of Sophie's nine wigs makes her feel stronger and gives her a distinct personality, and that is why each has its own name: Stella, Sue, Daisy, Blondie, Platina, Uma, Pam, Lydia, and Bebé. There's a bit of Sophie in all of them, and they reveal as much as they hide. Sophie is determined to be much more than a cancer patient. 2015.The great hill stations of Asia
By Barbara Crossette. 1998
In 1997 this New York Times journalist traveled across Asia, visiting the classic hill towns built by several colonial powers.…
She recalls her journeys to these remote locations, discusses their history, and describes how each has evolved since being inherited by an independent nation. 1998.The Franz Boas enigma: Inuit, Arctic, and sciences
By Ludger Müller-Wille. 2014
Addressing the enigma of how Franz Boas came to be the central founder of anthropology and a driving force in…
the acceptance of science as part of societal life in North America, this exploration breaks through the linguistic and cultural barriers that have prevented scholars from grasping the importance of Boas’ personal background and academic activities as a German Jew. Müller-Wille argues that to fully appreciate Boas’ complete scientific and literary opus and deep emotional and intellectual attachment to the upbringing that shaped his life, it is crucial to become familiar with his publications on Inuit and the Arctic as related to environmental, geographical, and ethnological questions. 2014.The follow: a true story
By Linda Spalding. 1998
The author recounts her expedition into the forests of Borneo in search of a reclusive primatologist, who has devoted her…
life to protecting orphaned orangutans. Describes the beauty of the island, the local society, and the despoilment of natural resources through poaching, deforestation, and misguided ecotourism. 1998.The doctor will not see you now
By Jane Poulson. 2002
Autobiography of Dr. Jane Poulson, the first blind person in Canada to become a practising doctor. Poulson suffered from diabetes…
and because of the disease, lost her sight and then experienced severe heart problems. Nonetheless she was an extremely accomplished doctor, published widely in leading medical journals, and showed great courage and endurance to all who knew her. She wrote this book during the last two years of her life. 2002.The fate of Rome: climate, disease, and the end of an empire (ITK audio)
By Kyle Harper. 2017
The Fate of Rome is the first book to examine the catastrophic role that climate change and infectious diseases played…
in the collapse of Rome's power -- a story of nature's triumph over human ambition. Interweaving a grand historical narrative with cutting-edge climate science and genetic discoveries, Kyle Harper traces how the fate of Rome was decided not just by emperors, soldiers, and barbarians but also by volcanic eruptions, solar cycles, climate instability, and devastating viruses and bacteria. He takes readers from Rome's pinnacle in the second century, when the empire seemed an invincible superpower, to its unraveling by the seventh century, when Rome was politically fragmented and materially depleted. Harper describes how the Romans were resilient in the face of enormous environmental stress, until the besieged empire could no longer withstand the combined challenges of a "little ice age" and recurrent outbreaks of bubonic plague. A poignant reflection on humanity's intimate relationship with the environment, The Fate of Rome provides a sweeping account of how one of history's greatest civilizations encountered, endured, yet ultimately succumbed to the cumulative burden of nature's violence. 2017.The far-off hills
By Rita Anton. 1979
Following her husband's death in 1976, Anton spent several years in India as a volunteer Jesuit Lay Missionary. Having travelled…
extensively in India, she presents a realistic look at this nation in transition. 1979.The end of elsewhere: travels among the tourists
By Taras Grescoe. 2003
Taras Grescoe plunges into the ruts where the tourists are thickest, starting at the tip of Spain's Land's End and…
finishing, nine months later, on the soldier-patrolled beaches of China's End of the Earth. Along the way, he crosses the entire Eurasian landmass, experiencing all sorts of travel such as all-inclusive resorts, pilgrimages, and bus tours. Some descriptions of sex and violence, some strong language. 2003.The end of the river: dams, drought and déjà vu on the Rio São Francisco
By Brian J Harvey. 2008
A biologist searches for a solution that will save many fish species from life-threatening dams. His adventures take him from…
a fisheries patrol boat on the Fraser River to the great Tsukiji fish market in Japan, with stops in the Philippines, Thailand, and assorted South American countries. Portrays fishermen, fish farmers, and even fish cops in a new light, as well as scientists, shysters, and some very drunk, hairy Brazilian men in thongs. Some strong language, some descriptions of sex, and some descriptions of violence. c2008.The fabulous flying machines of Alberto Santos-Dumont
By Victoria Griffith. 2012
The Etruscans
By Michael Grant. 1980
Author reviews the latest scholarly thinking about the Bronze Age origins and subsequent development of civilization in Etruria. A major…
section of the book deals with the geographical and cultural history of the major Etruscan city-states and their territories at the height of their power. 1980.The devil and the disappearing sea: a true story about the Aral Sea catastrophe
By Robert W Ferguson. 2003
The Aral Sea, once the fourth-largest inland body of water, has lost over half its surface area and 80 percent…
of its volume since 1960, due to poorly planned irrigation systems. In January 2000, Canadian Rob Ferguson went to Uzbekistan to work on an environmental project to save the Aral Sea. After a year of dealing with corrupt officials, not only had the project gone nowhere, but Ferguson was under suspicion of murder. Some strong language. 2003.The cookie cure: a mother/daughter memoir of cookies and cancer
By Susan Stachler, Laura Stachler. 2018
When twenty-two-year-old Susan Stachler was diagnosed with cancer, her mother, Laura, was struck by déjà vu. The same illness that…
took her sister's life was threatening to take her daughter's too. Heartbroken but steadfast, Laura pledged to help Susan through the worst of her treatments. When they discovered that Laura's homemade ginger cookies soothed the side effects of Susan's chemotherapy, the mother-daughter duo soon found themselves opening the business "Susansnaps" and sharing their gourmet gingersnaps with the world. 2018.The cryotron files: the untold story of Dudley Buck, Cold War computer scientist and microchip pioneer
By Iain Dey, Douglas Buck. 2018
The riveting true story of Dudley Buck - American scientist, government agent, and Cold War hero - whose pioneering work…
with computer chips placed him firmly in the sights of the KGB. Douglas Buck was never satisfied with the explanation of his father's death and has spent over twenty years investigating. Armed with this research, journalist Iain Dey tells his story. 2018.The elk hunt
By Alan Edward Nourse. 1986
At age 52, the author was stricken by a massive heart attack while hunting elk. He reveals his torturous recovery…
and the strains his illness placed on himself and his family. 1986.The holy blood and the holy grail
By Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, Henry Lincoln. 1982
Three BBC filmmakers offer a controversial and unorthodox view of the life of Christ, based on cryptic documents discovered by…
a French priest in 1891. The authors infer that Jesus married Mary Magdalen and fathered children whose descendents became European royalty, and that the bloodline of Jesus, in the Merovingian dynasty of France, continues to the present. Bestseller 1982.The history of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire: Volume 3
By Edward Gibbon. 2008
A major literary achievement of the 18th century published in six volumes. Volume I was published in 1776; Volumes II…
and III were published in 1781; volumes IV, V, VI in 1788-89. The books cover the period of the Roman Empire after Marcus Aurelius, from just before 180 to 1453 and beyond, concluding in 1590. They take as their material the behaviour and decisions that led to the decay and eventual fall of the Roman Empire in the East and West, offering an explanation for why the Roman Empire fell. Volume 3 contains chapters 27 to 38. 2008.The history of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire: volume the first (1776) and volume the second (1781)
By Edward Gibbon, David Womersley. 2005
Edward Gibbon's six-volume History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (1776-88) is among the great narratives in…
European literature. Its subject is the fate of one of the world's greatest civilizations over thirteen centuries - its rulers, wars and society, and the events that led to its disastrous collapse. Here, in volumes one and two, Gibbon charts the vast extent and constitution of the Empire from the reign of Augustus to 395 A.D. And in a controversial critique, he examines the early Church, with accounts of the first Christian and last pagan emperors, Constantine and Julian. 2005. If you request this book on CD it will be on 2 or more CDs. You must play the first CD to the end before playing the next CD.The heretic in Darwin's court: the life of Alfred Russel Wallace
By Ross A Slotten. 2004
Physician traces the life of nineteenth-century British naturalist and explorer Alfred Wallace (1823-1913), a colleague of Charles Darwin. Examines Wallace's…
lower-class background, self-education, and socialist views. Discusses his acceptance of spiritualism, environmentalism, and other ideologies scientists typically avoided. Also covers his research travels into dangerous tropical jungles. 2004.The heart of the world: a journey to Tibet's lost paradise
By Ian Baker. 2004
Recounts an extraordinary journey into one of the most inaccessible places on earth, and a pilgrimage to the heart of…
Tibetan Buddhism. Tibetan prophecies proclaim that the greatest of beyul, or mystical sanctuaries, lies at the eastern edge of the Himalayas, veiled by a colossal waterfall in the forbidding Tsangpo gorge. After years of investigation, world-class climber and Buddhist scholar Ian Baker and his National Geographic-sponsored team made worldwide news by finding a magnificent 108-foot-high waterfall-the legendary grail of both Western explorers and Tibetan pilgrims. 2004.