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Audiobooks Narrated by Michael Page
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Among the explorers made famous for revealing hitherto impenetrable cultures—T. E. Lawrence and Wilfred Thesiger in the Middle East, Richard Burton in Africa—Knud Rasmussen stands out not only for his physical bravery but also for the beauty of his writing. Part Danish, part Inuit, Rasmussen made a courageous three-year journey by dog sled from Greenland to Alaska to reveal the common origins of all circumpolar peoples. Lovers of Arctic adventure, exotic cultures, and timeless legend will relish this gripping tale by Stephen R. Bown, known as 'Canada's Simon Winchester.'
'Officially' the Vatican has no espionage service; but does no one carry out intelligence operations on its behalf? During the Second World War and Cold War, Rome was teeming with spies. A band of undercover monsignors and priests hunted for Vatican 'moles,' led clandestine diplomacy, investigated assassinations of priests and other scandals threatening the Church, and conducted high-risk missions behind the Iron Curtain.
Drawing on freshly released archives of foreign services that worked with or against the Holy See, Vatican Spies reveals eighty years of shadow wars and dirty tricks. These include infiltrating Russian-speaking priests into the Soviet Union; secret negotiations between John XXIII and Khrushchev; the future Paul VI's close relationship with the CIA; the Vatican's infiltration by Eastern Bloc intelligence; the battles between the Jesuits and Opus Dei; and the secret bank funds channeled first to fight communism in South America, then to support Solidarity in Poland.
This entertaining book journeys right to the present, uncovering startling machinations under Benedict XVI and, today, Pope Francis.
A major new history of medieval monasticism, from the fourth to the sixteenth century
From the late Roman Empire onwards, monasteries and convents were a common sight throughout Europe. But who were monasteries for? What kind of people founded and maintained them? And how did monasticism change over the thousand years or so of the Middle Ages?
Andrew Jotischky traces the history of monastic life from its origins in the fourth century to the sixteenth. He shows how religious houses sheltered the poor and elderly, cared for the sick, and educated the young. They were centers of intellectual life that owned property and exercised power but also gave rise to new developments in theology, music, and art.
This book brings together the Orthodox and western stories, as well as the experiences of women, to show the full picture of medieval monasticism for the first time. It is a fascinating, wide-ranging account that broadens our understanding of life in holy orders as never before.
This is a very timely study of Russia's development into a global energy power from the Russian Revolution to the present day. Beginning in the late nineteenth century, Russia emerged not only as a key producer but also as one of the world's leading exporters of oil. Russia's transformation into a modern global power was connected to its ability to make use of its vast natural resources and produce energy in increasing quantities. While the development of Russia's energy industry went hand in hand with a profound sociopolitical and economic transformation, the book also tells the story of international cooperation and competition, transnational exchanges, and transborder interdependencies. Through energy exports, Russia shaped global energy flows and connections; at the same time, the growth of international trade impacted the views and decisions of Russian leaders, affecting the fabric of the country's foreign relations and, ultimately, the course of Russian history.
Until the end of the Cold War in 1990, the RAF had several major bases worldwide—largely in those areas where the service had been based during the inter-war years. In Cold War Boys Overseas, contributors recall their time at these foreign destinations. With almost half of RAF personnel serving abroad in the 1960s situated throughout Germany, the book starts its focus there with tales of monitoring the Soviet threat. The stories then advance to the warmer climates of the Near East and Far East where different challenges awaited those serving there. As the period progressed RAF squadrons saw changes to their equipment with Hunters, Javelins and Canberras being replaced by a new generation of combat aircraft such as the Buccaneer, Harrier, Jaguar, Phantom and Vulcan. Innovation of missile defense and the expansion of the role of helicopters were also critical at this time. How this affected the RAF is told by the aircrew and ground crew who served then. The stories that feature in the book reveal just how serving overseas was a different way of life and the chapters illustrate the many facets of the RAF’s capabilities across the globe. They also highlight a lifestyle that no longer exists in today's RAF. Buckle up and allow the Cold War Boys to take you on a thrilling adventure across the globe.
Who was Rome's greatest general, statesman, and nation-builder: Caesar or Pompey?
Few people have had as many words written about them down through the centuries as Julius Caesar—the brilliant general who made Queen Cleopatra of Egypt his mistress. He has captured the imagination of playwrights, historians, soldiers, and emperors.
Little has been written about his ally, son-in-law, and eventual enemy Pompey the Great, who crashed onto the Roman scene as a victorious twenty-three-year-old general and who, at the height of his career, was arguably more famous, more popular, and more successful than Caesar.
Caesar Versus Pompey tells the parallel life stories of Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great, as their lives and loves became intertwined and interdependent, as they grew from rivals to partners, then from joint rulers to warring foes. One strove to preserve the Roman Republic, the other destroyed it.
Human life, and how we came to be, is one of the greatest scientific and philosophical questions of our time. This compact and accessible book presents a modern view of human evolution. Written by a leading authority, it lucidly and engagingly explains not only the evolutionary process, but the technologies currently used to unravel the evolutionary past and emergence of Homo sapiens. By separating the history of palaeoanthropology from current interpretation of the human fossil record, it lays numerous misconceptions to rest, and demonstrates that human evolution has been far from the linear struggle from primitiveness to perfection that we've been led to believe. It also presents a coherent scenario for how Homo sapiens contrived to cross a formidable cognitive barrier to become an extraordinary and unprecedented thinking creature. Understanding Human Evolution is for anyone interested in the complex and tangled story of how we came to be.
English Vocabulary: The Basics offers a clear, non-jargonistic introduction to English vocabulary, the way linguists classify and explain it, and the place of vocabulary in our overall picture of the language, and in society. Introducing a range of terminology for discussing vocabulary, the listener is provided with a coherent, structured description of what we know about words and their meanings.
Key features of this book include:
● Analysis of historical roots of present-day words
● Coverage of the differences between speech and writing and between formality and informality
● Understanding of the social implications of choices that readers make to use standard or non-standard (e.g., regional/dialect) vocabulary
● A focus on British English with reference to a wide range of varieties of English that include North American English, Irish English, Indian English, Malaysian English, Nigerian English, and Caribbean English
This book is an engaging and thought-provoking listen for anyone with an interest in English vocabulary.
A vivid history of the relationship between Britain and China, from 1600 to the present
The relationship between Britain and China has shaped the modern world. Chinese art, philosophy, and science have had a profound effect upon British culture, while the long history of British exploitation is still bitterly remembered in China today. But how has their interaction changed over time?
From the early days of the East India Company through the violence of the Opium Wars to present-day disputes over Hong Kong, Kerry Brown charts this turbulent and intriguing relationship in full. Britain has always sought to dominate China economically and politically, while China's ideas and exports—from tea and Chinoiserie to porcelain and silk—have continued to fascinate in the west. But by the later twentieth century, the balance of power began to shift in China's favor, with global consequences. Brown shows how these interactions changed the world order—and argues that an understanding of Britain's relationship with China is now more vital than ever.
'A detailed dramatic narrative . . . Vivid.' —Times (London) Literary Supplement. How the Allies kept the population of West Berlin alive in the face of a Russian blockade.
In the summer of1948, the Russians occupied all of Eastern Europe. Behind Russian lines, the Allied-controlled part of the great city of Berlin stood as the lone Western outpost in a sea of Communist occupation. Then the Soviets closed all Allied traffic through their zone, sealing off the food and supply routes on which the city relied.
A vast air armada streamed from Western airfields to supply the hard-pressed Berliners with food and necessities. For over a year the Americans led a gigantic—and successful—effort to keep an entire city alive in the face of Soviet hostility.
With strong insight into the characters of Ernest Bevin, General Clay, Dean Acheson, and Robert Schumann, and now with a foreword by former British minister to Berlin Sir Michael Burton, this a story of individual heroism and high brinkmanship politics, of daily life under appalling circumstances, and great achievements against all odds.
Following the end of the First World War, Poland was wedged uncomfortably between the two dominant nations of Germany and the Soviet Union. Poland was obliged to plot and negotiate to try and prevent them from realizing their ambitions to eviscerate the country.
As well as bitter ethnic battles between Germany and Poland for the political control of Upper Silesia, there were also the burning ambitions of Weimar Germany, and later Nazi Germany, to reclaim lands incorporated into the new state of Poland at Versailles.
Despite America's initial support, the US thereafter showed little interest in Poland's predicament. While France was a traditional friend to the Polish peoples, its political influence over eastern European affairs weakened.
The emergence of Hitler and the Nazis in Germany did little to bring the countries together. This drove them further apart as the Führer ramped up his rhetorical assault on the perceived injustices of Versailles.
London and Paris found themselves in the disagreeable position of seeing no option but to throw their whole weight behind the integrity of the Polish state if they were ever going to make any sort of stand against Nazi aggression.
