D'autres livres qui pourraient vous intéresser

• 

  Travels with Bertha - Two Years...

  Paul Martini

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  The Queensland drug dealer-turned-miner who had blown off all his fingers in repeated work accidents; the Adelaide Aborigine whose Irish uncle, in revenge for Captain Cook, claimed the territory of Britain for Australia from the top of Big Ben; the ex-alcoholic in Tasmania relieved that his bi-polar condition could be traced back to his direct ancestor, King George III; the dying man in the Kimberleys who had witnessed a haunting aboriginal dance gathering in 1925.... Paul Martin arrived in Sydney on a one-year working holiday visa with a backpack and a hefty bank loan. Over the next two and a half years, he shared four flats in Sydney and travelled 30,000kms through both territories and all five states of Australia. In Bertha, his trusty 1978 Ford Falcon station wagon, he picked up over a dozen nationalities and encountered many funny and intriguing individuals along the way. Travels with Bertha is for anyone whose friends, loved ones, or who themselves have travelled to Australia, and for those interested in the dark history, the colourful characters or the startling beauty of this most fascinating of continents.

  Voir livre

• 

  Caral-Supe Civilization - The...

  Rolf Hedger

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  The Caral-Supe civilization, considered the first known civilization in the Americas, emerged around 5,000 years ago in the arid coastal region of present-day Peru. Often referred to as the "mother civilization" of the Andes, Caral-Supe predates other significant Andean cultures such as the Inca by millennia. Its capital city, Caral, located in the Supe Valley, is regarded as one of the oldest urban centers in the world. The discovery of this civilization has drastically reshaped our understanding of early American societies, highlighting the complexity and sophistication of pre-Columbian cultures in the Americas. 
  The story of Caral-Supe began with its discovery in the early 1990s, when archaeologist Ruth Shady and her team identified the ancient city of Caral, which had been largely overlooked until then. The site’s impressive architectural features and its well-planned urban layout revealed that the civilization had a deep understanding of engineering, agriculture, and social organization. Caral-Supe flourished for more than a thousand years, from roughly 3000 BCE to 1800 BCE, and was a major center of culture, trade, and religion in the region. 
  Geographically, the Caral-Supe civilization developed in the Supe Valley, a narrow strip of land located between the Pacific Ocean and the Andes Mountains. This region, although dry and arid, was strategically positioned to foster trade and communication with other cultures. The valley provided fertile land for agriculture, supported by sophisticated irrigation systems, which allowed the Caral-Supe civilization to thrive in such an inhospitable environment. This innovative agricultural system was a key factor in their ability to sustain large urban populations and build monumental structures.

  Voir livre

• 

  A Moment of War - A Memoir

  Laurie Lee

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  A memoir of the Spanish Civil War with “the plainness of Orwell but the metaphorical soaring of a poem . . . An extraordinary book” (The New York Times Book Review).In December 1937 I crossed the Pyrenees from France—two days on foot through the snow. I don’t know why I chose December; it was just one of a number of idiocies I committed at the time. Such was Laurie Lee’s entry into the Spanish Civil War. Six months after the Nationalist uprising forced him to leave the country he had grown to love, he returned to offer his life for the Republican cause. It seemed as simple as knocking on a farmhouse door in the middle of the night and declaring himself ready to fight. It would not be the last time he was almost executed for being a spy. In that bitter winter in a divided Spain, Lee’s youthful idealism came face to face with the reality of war. The International Brigade he sought to join was not a gallant fighting force, but a collection of misfits without proper leadership or purpose. Boredom and bad food and false alarms were as much a part of the experience of war as actual battle. And when the decisive moment finally came—the moment of him or the enemy—it left Lee feeling the very opposite of heroic. The final volume in Laurie Lee’s acclaimed autobiographical trilogy—preceded by Cider with Rosie and As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning—is a clear-eyed and vital snapshot of a young man, and a proud nation, at a historic crossroads.

  Voir livre

• 

  Pardon My French - How a Grumpy...

  Allen Johnson

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  To make a friend is a joy. To make a friend in another country is a wonderment—a small miracle. Pardon My French follows an American author who has embraced a daunting mission: not to be a spectator in France but an enthusiastic participant—fully engaged, fully alive. 
   
  In France, Johnson is like an alien from another planet. Everything is strange to him. His goal is to speak French without going to prison, drive without being squashed like a bug, dance the tango without losing his marriage, and belt out a tune with a world-class jazz combo without being booed off the stage. 
   
  Repeatedly, the author fearlessly steps into harm’s way. He joins a summer acting troop and witnesses the French version of sexual liberation. He pits his rather staid and conventional driving skills against the French speed demons of Languedoc. He tries to be cool in a painting class while sputtering nervously in front of the nude model with the long legs and silky voice. 
   
  And then, after it all—after the splendor of Christmas on the Mediterranean, the bicycle tours along the French canals, the mountain treks amply supplied with French bread, cheese, and wine—the miracle happens. The often self-deprecating and bungling American meets and falls in love with a beautiful mistress: La belle France. And when he does, an entire village adopts him into a new family—one with a gracious heart and a beautiful French accent.

  Voir livre

• 

  Searching for George Gordon...

  Tom Huntington

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  A historian chronicles the life of the Union Civil War general while recounting his own unusual journey during his investigation into the past. Who was George Gordon Meade? He should be remembered as one of the Civil War’s most important generals. Instead, history has pushed him aside. The hot-tempered Meade received command of the Union’s dysfunctional Army of the Potomac only three days before he defeated Robert E. Lee’s Confederates at Gettysburg. After that, Meade watched his reputation decline, thanks in part to the escape of Lee’s army, hostility from politicians and the press, the machinations of Gen. Daniel Sickles, and the rise of Ulysses S. Grant. “I suppose after a while,” Meade once grumbled, “it will be discovered I was not at Gettysburg at all.”  The Rodney Dangerfield of Civil War generals, Meade gets no respect—and author Tom Huntington wanted to find out why. In Searching for George Gordon Meade, he tells the story of the general’s life and his participation in the Civil War’s great engagements, from George McClellan’s Richmond Campaign to Appomattox. Huntington also provides accounts of his own investigations of Meade’s legacy. Along the way he hikes across battlefields, recites the names of fallen soldiers at a candlelit ceremony at Gettysburg, drinks a champagne toast at Meade’s grave on New Year’s Eve, and visits a severed leg, a buried arm, and a horse’s head. The result is a quirky and compelling mash-up of history, biography, travel, and journalism that casts new light on an overlooked figure from the past. Praise for Searching for George Gordon Meade“Unique and irresistible.” —Harold Holzer, chairman of Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation“Huntington’s wry, boisterous biography-within-a-travel journal . . . strives to remake the reputation of Meade and offers a compelling new way to approach biography.” —John G. Shelby, Meade: The Price of Command, 1863–1865 “It’s the rare reader who will not enjoy accompanying Huntington on his search for Meade.” —America’s Civil War "A refreshingly readable and well-researched book. . . . Searching for George Gordon Meade should be required reading for all those interested in Civil War history.” —Civil War News

  Voir livre

• 

  Hauntings of the Hudson River...

  Vincent T. Dacquino

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

  The true stories behind three terrifying local legends—photos included.   This book delves into three enigmatic folk legends of New York’s Hudson River Valley: the stories of Sybil Ludington, Chief Daniel Nimham, and George Denny. Each was the central figure in a dramatic series of events; each became enshrined in local lore for their actions; each has had their true story obscured; and each may have left behind a spiritual residue.   Follow Vincent Dacquino as he interviews local experts, explores areas where hauntings may have occurred—such as Carmel’s legendary Smalley’s Inn—and digs deep into historical archives to open new windows into the lives, and possible afterlives, of these three mysterious characters.

  Voir livre