Old Puglia: A Portrait of South Eastern Italy

Catalog:Armchair Travel Booksw
Puglia is the heel of Italy that stretches down from the spur of the Italian boot. Littered across this region of mesmerizing landscapes and picturesque cities are Romanesque cathedrals, Gothic castles, a wealth of Baroque architecture, and rupestrian churches with Byzantine frescoes. Though always popular with Italians, Puglia has been neglected by tourists, who for many years favored Tuscany and Umbria. The region is now, however, hastily emerging from their shadow. All of a sudden, there are radio and television features; travel supplements lavish praise on its beaches and cuisine; supermarkets stock Puglian wine, olive oil, and pasta; and yet, despite all this attention, almost nothing has been written in English on Puglia since the days of Norman Douglas and the Sitwells.

This is not a holiday history or a canter through Puglia's past, but a thoughtful look—often through the eyes of previous travelers, for Puglia's landscape has changed remarkably little over the years—at a region inextricably intertwined with its past. We are introduced to its heroes, meet its people, and visit its shrines; we sample its food and savor its beauty.

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Tags: Old Puglia, Armchair Travel book

The Hard Way

The Hard Way: Stories of Danger, Survival, and the Soul of Adventure [Paperback]
Author:Mark Jenkins
Catalog:Adventure book
Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Adult/High School-A collection of nearly two dozen stories, many drawn from Jenkins's column for Outside magazine. The author whisks readers away to places where geography, weather, and the occasional political boundary pose daunting challenges for adventurers who actively seek to test their limits in extreme conditions. Whether the example is crossing a crevasse-ridden glacier in Wyoming, mountain climbing in Tibet, or hiking in a remote Ethiopian nature preserve hoping to spot endangered species, the point is the exultation of pitting oneself against the perils of natural landscapes, mastering the challenge through physical ruggedness and mental tenacity, and emerging alive. Each focused, brisk chapter wraps up cleanly with a neat sentence of observation that often reveals a darker outcome to the episode than the narrative implies. Most of the entries are based on the author's firsthand experiences, decorated with colorful descriptions of like-minded souls with whom he has partnered on various expeditions. A few tales, such as the profile of mountaineer George Mallory, smoothly complement, but do not keep to, this pattern. A cameo of Jenkins introducing his daughters at ages three and six to rock climbing in order to develop their confidence and sense of self-reliance brings an added dimension to the collection. Although Jenkins says that preparedness, conditioning, and avoiding ego-based lapses of judgment are essential to a venture's safe outcome, be aware that the spirited energy that infuses his anecdotes nevertheless leans toward celebration of reckless acts.

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Along the River that Flows Uphill

Along the River that Flows Uphill: From the Orinoco to the Amazon (Armchair Traveller) [Hardcover]
Author:Richard Starks
Author:Murcutt Miriam
Catalog:Armchair Travel Book

Product Description
Along The River that Flows Uphill weaves the story of an Amazon journey with science, math and reason to explore the risks that are inherent in adventure travel.

In 2005, Geographical - the official magazine of the Royal Geographical Society in London - commissioned authors Richard Starks and Miriam Murcutt to write an article about a strange river in Venezuela called the Casiquiare. This river - once the source of great controversy until it was explored by Alexander von Humboldt - is like no other, since it joins two, otherwise-separate river systems, the Orinoco and the Amazon, by apparently flowing up and over the watershed that divides them. Rivers are not meant to do that.

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Tags: Along the River that Flows Uphill, Armchair Travel Book

A Portrait of the Gulf Stream

A Portrait of the Gulf Stream: In Praise of Currents (Armchair Traveller) [Paperback]
Author:Erik Orsenna
Catalog:Armchair Travel
Product Description
Concerned about the possible demise of the Gulf Stream, Érik Orsenna read, investigated, interviewed experts, and traveled from the violent swirls off the coast of Florida to the maelstroms of Norway to better understand this most important of ocean currents. Part homage, part investigation, A Portrait of the Gulf Stream allows readers to join him on a voyage of discovery. From writing about the sea as varied as that of Socrates and Hemingway to scientific theory both ancient and modern, we discover the secrets of this most powerful and mysterious current.

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Tags: A Portrait of the Gulf Stream, Armchair Traveller

Adventures among Ants

Adventures among Ants: A Global Safari with a Cast of Trillions [Hardcover]
Author: Mark W. Moffett
Catalog:Adventure books

Product Description
Intrepid international explorer, biologist, and photographer Mark W. Moffett, "the Indiana Jones of entomology," takes us around the globe on a strange and colorful journey in search of the hidden world of ants. In tales from Nigeria, Indonesia, the Amazon, Australia, California, and elsewhere, Moffett recounts his entomological exploits and provides fascinating details on how ants live and how they dominate their ecosystems through strikingly human behaviors, yet at a different scale and a faster tempo. Moffett's spectacular close-up photographs shrink us down to size, so that we can observe ants in familiar roles; warriors, builders, big-game hunters, and slave owners. We find them creating marketplaces and assembly lines and dealing with issues we think of as uniquely human--including hygiene, recycling, and warfare. Adventures among Ants introduces some of the world's most awe-inspiring species and offers a startling new perspective on the limits of our own perception.

* Ants are world-class road builders, handling complex traffic problems on thoroughfares that dwarf our highway systems
* Ants take slaves from conquered armies and create societies dependent on their labor
* Ants with the largest societies often deploy complex military tactics
* Some ants have evolved from hunter-gatherers into farmers, domesticating other animals and growing specific crops for food

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Tags: A Global Safari with a Cast of Trillions, adventure books, Adventures among Ants, Mark W. Moffett

A Winter in Arabia :by Freya Stark

A Winter in Arabia: A Journey through Yemen (The Freya Stark Collection) [PaperBack]
Author:Freya Stark
Catalog:Armchair Travel Books
Product Description
In 1934 Freya Stark made her first journey to the Hadhramaut in what is now Yemen—the first woman to do so alone. Even though that journey ended in disappointment, sickness, and a forced rescue, Stark, undeterred, returned to Yemen two years later. Starting in Mukalla and skirting the fringes of the legendary and unexplored Empty Quarter, she spent the winter searching for Shabwa—ancient capital of the Hadhramaut and a holy grail for generations of explorers. From within Stark’s beautifully-crafted and deeply knowledgeable narrative emerges a rare portrait of the customs and cultures of the tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. A Winter in Arabia is one of the most important pieces of literature on the region and a book that placed Freya Stark in the pantheon of great writers and explorers of the Arab World.

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Tags: A Journey through Yemen, A Winter in Arabia, Armchair Travel Books, Freya Stark

Shambhala: The Road Less Travelled in Western Tibet

Shambhala: The Road Less Travelled in Western Tibet [Paperback]
Author:Laurence J. Brahm
Editorial Reviews
In Shambhala, Laurence travels to Lhasa, where he obtains an ancient Buddhist scripture entitled Shambhala Sutra, stolen from Tashilumbo Monastery.

By following Shambhala Sutra as a road map, Laurence goes on the road to look for the kingdom of Shambhala as described in the sutra. As he travels deeper into the harsh regions of Tibet, he finds that Shambhala Sutra has led him on a journey to discover the kingdom of Shambhala within his heart.

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River at the Centre of the World

The River at the Centre of the World [Paperback]
Editorial Reviews
Mighty Yangtze, China in two separate wheat grown between northern and southern rice; Nearly 500 million people live and work according to the Bank. In books like this written Simon won Winchester and his companion Lily dare travel upstream all the way from Shanghai vibrant international to Tibet deep and deep into areas not accessible almost and recesses Hidden History of China before you travel 3,900 miles, they will provide. Former magnificent Three Gorges ... through the forest pastures, hilly landscapes of industrial waste and covered the iceberg in the background sketches Winchester describes hosted find strange and vivid reality of the current violence was Chhina may be no more account of the greatest river in earth .

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St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, 2nd

St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, 2nd (Bradt Travel Guides) [Paperback]
Editorial Reviews
A guidebook for true explorers, the south Atlantic islands of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha are isolated and therefore a fascinating destination for travellers who enjoy a completely different vacation. Their remote location has led to a host of endemic plant species and large seabird colonies, meaning the islands appeal to botanists and birdwatchers the world over.
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Napoleon & St Helena: On the Island of Exile

Napoleon & St Helena: On the Island of Exile (Armchair Traveller) [Hardcover]
Editorial Reviews
It is a curious fact, observes Willms, that Napoleon always came to grief on islands. He was forced to flee his native Corsica, failed to conquer Britain, was exiled to a miniature empire on Elba and pitifully ended his days banished to a tiny, rocky speck in the South Atlantic. It is on the last—St. Helena, the world's best-known, little-known island—that Willms, a German journalist and biographer of Napoleon, concentrates, in this absorbing travelogue and history entry in the Armchair Traveller series. The former emperor complained mightily as to his fate, but eventually settled down to a life of constant surveillance, grinding tedium and thoroughly bad food. His loneliness was relieved only by the British taxpayers' hefty subsidy for a 38-person household—who he insisted wear full dress uniforms and observe courtly rituals—and sometimes the games of blind-man's-bluff he played with his guardians' children. Willms traces the aftermath of the emperor's death and the birth of the Napoleonic legend, as well as continuing the story of St. Helena to the present, in a book that will appeal to Napoleonogists and inspire travelers looking for an undiscovered destination. (Sept.)
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The Liquid Continent: Alexandria

The Liquid Continent: Alexandria (Armchair Traveler)
Editorial Reviews
Nicholas Woodsworth is the former Africa correspondent of the Financial Times. He is now a writer, freelance journalist and photographer living in France. He is the author of Seeking Provence (2008). --This text refers to the Paperback edition. More Informaton...

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The Liquid Continent: Venice

The Liquid Continent: Venice (Armchair Traveler)[Hardcover]
Editorial Reviews
Nicholas Woodsworth is the former Africa correspondent of the Financial Times. He is now a writer, freelance journalist and photographer living in France. He is the author of Seeking Provence (2008). --This text refers to the Paperback edition. More Information...

Tags: The Liquid Continent Venice

History Walks for Armchair and Footloose Travelers

Seeing New York: History Walks for Armchair and Footloose Travelers (Critical Perspectives On The P) [Hardcover]
Editorial Reviews
"She really is 'Hope Cooke, the guide to New York.' And though her newest book traces the destinies of immigrants, bankers and writers, it also marks another passage--her own." --New York Times "Cooke's observations, steeped in the social and cultural detail that makes space into place, are poignant and telling." --Metropolis "Useful as it is for the visitor, the book is also a gift to the resident pedestrian." --New York Magazine "As if taking us by the hand and conducting us from street to street, Ms. Cooke evokes the sights and smells and sound of all those earlier New Yorks. In a hundred unexpected places, she unearths clues to the transformation of a grubby fortified trading post into the greatest of cities. The many levels of ancient Troy are far easier to make out than the many levels of contemporary New York; we have reasons to be grateful to Ms. Cooke for opening our eyes to its accumulated wonders. Wherever she leads us, we are happy to follow." --Brendan Gill "Hope Cooke is a witty and encyclopedic walking companion whose knowledge and enjoyment of the City will infect you. After reading her account of the City's social and architectural legacy, you will never see New York in the same way again." --Peg Breen, President, New York Landmarks Conservancy. More Information...

Tags: History Walks for Armchair and Footloose Travelers

My Kind of Town-Chicago

Armchair Reader: My Kind of Town, Chicago [Perfect Paperback]

Editorial Reviews
My Kind of Town, Chicago is a fascinating collection of little-known anecdotes, legends, untold stories, and fascinating facts about the Windy City. From the popular Armchair Reader series, this source of Chicago factual fun will delight and inform the curious of all ages.
Much has been said about the city of Chicago it s a Midwestern metropolis, the third-largest city in the United States, and a hub of commerce and culture rising from the shores of Lake Michigan. Indeed, there s plenty to talk about: the Great Chicago Fire, the World s Fair of 1893, windy politics, stunning architecture, and more. This book is all things Chicago from its history, sports, and politics to its food, neighborhoods and music.
Each topic is covered concisely in a few pages, so you can pick up My Kind of Town, Chicago anytime, anywhere to quench your thirst for Chicago-related knowledge. You ll get a unique taste of the Windy City, past and present, from each interesting tidbit.
My Kind of Town, Chicago includes:
A wide range of Chicago trivia presented in a clear and entertaining format
Information on Chicago stars, legends, and titans of business, including Marshall Field, Oprah Winfrey, Resurrection Mary, and the city s most famous ghost
Fast Facts pages that offer tidbits about Chicago sports, politics, history, and more
You Can Thank Chicago, which details Chicago s wide range of contributions to the world, including Twinkies, Tinkertoys, and the skyscraper Chicago s ludicrous laws, like a $5 penalty against anyone who throws a rock or casts a stone in public Timelines that highlight key points in the city s history More Information...

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All About Ohio

All About Ohio (Armchair Reader) [Perfect Paperback]

Editorial Reviews

All About Ohio takes readers on a journey through the culture, sports, people, and landscape that make up the state of Ohio. From the popular Armchair Reader series, this collection of Ohio anecdotes, legends, and secrets is designed to entertain readers of all ages.
Ohio s proximity to Lake Erie, rich soil, and natural resources fueled its growth into an industrial giant. The Buckeye State s industrial might included steel, cars, building materials, and rubber products. Plus, Ohio is the home of eight U.S. presidents and many other distinguished Americans. Readers can discover the many sides of Ohio as they learn about its unique historical events, culture, urban legends, food, and mysteries.
Each topic in All About Ohio spans just a few pages, so you can pick up the book anywhere, anytime to learn interesting trivia about the state. All About Ohio features:
A wide variety of Ohio trivia presented in a concise and entertaining format.
Information on Ohio celebrities, from Annie Oakley to John Glenn to Cy Young.
Ohio s urban legends, detailing stories of the Little Bo Peep Killer, the Hatchet Man, and Crybaby Bridge.
Fast facts pages that give a quick rundown of unusual statistics on Ohio sports, politics, history, and more.
Buckeye State culinary contributions, including Chef Boyardee, the Hungarian hot dog, and the Hanky Panky.
You Can Thank Ohio, paying homage to the automatic dishwasher, the ice cream bar, and other contributions from the state.
Ludicrous Laws on Ohio s books, like the one against selling corn flakes on Sunday in Columbus.
Timelines that clarify important and not so important dates in Ohio history. More Information...

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The Liquid Continent: Travels Through Alexandria, Venice and Istanbul

The Liquid Continent: Travels Through Alexandria, Venice and Istanbul (Armchair Traveller) [Paperback]

Editorial Reviews
Nicholas Woodsworth is the former Africa correspondent of the Financial Times. He is now a writer, freelance journalist and photographer living in France. He is the author of Seeking Provence (2008). More Information

Tags: The Liquid Continent, Travels Through Alexandria

Kick'n' Back in Texas

Kick'n' Back in Texas (Armchair Reader) [Perfect Paperback]

Editorial Reviews
Kick n Back in Texas is an entertaining collection of fascinating trivia, little-known anecdotes, legends, and folk wisdom about the Lone Star State. From the popular Armchair Reader series, this source of Texas historical tidbits will entertain and inform readers of all ages.
Texas is a state of many superlatives: the biggest ranch, the most farmland, the most wool produced, and the largest number of bat species. Because of the state s size, Texas seems to embody all that s good, bad, and especially big about the United States. This book captures the best of the state s strange and special stories, people, and places.
Each Texas topic is covered in a few pages, so you can pick up Kick n Back in Texas anytime, anywhere to enrich your knowledge of all things Texas. Readers will be entertained as they read stories of the state s history, culture, land, homegrown heroes, food, and more.
Highlights of Kick' n Back in Texas include:
Texas trivia presented in a concise and entertaining format.
Fast facts that detail unique historical events, little-known facts about Texas celebrities, sports-related anecdotes, and more. A rundown of what Texans eat and how they talk.
You Can Thank Texas recounts the contributions the state has made to the world, like the car radio, the electric typewriter, and Liquid Paper.
Ludicrous laws in the state, like prohibitions against selling armadillos or allowing camels to roam unattended. Timelines that clarify what happened when throughout Texas. More Information

Tags: Kick'n' Back in Texas, Armchair Travels

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo [Kindle Edition]

Amazon Best of the Month, September 2008: Once you start The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, there's no turning back. This debut thriller--the first in a trilogy from the late Stieg Larsson--is a serious page-turner rivaling the best of Charlie Huston and Michael Connelly. Mikael Blomkvist, a once-respected financial journalist, watches his professional life rapidly crumble around him. Prospects appear bleak until an unexpected (and unsettling) offer to resurrect his name is extended by an old-school titan of Swedish industry. The catch--and there's always a catch--is that Blomkvist must first spend a year researching a mysterious disappearance that has remained unsolved for nearly four decades. With few other options, he accepts and enlists the help of investigator Lisbeth Salander, a misunderstood genius with a cache of authority issues. Little is as it seems in Larsson's novel, but there is at least one constant: you really don't want to mess with the girl with the dragon tattoo. --Dave Callanan More Information...

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The Girl Who Played with Fire

The Girl Who Played with Fire

Amazon Best of the Month, July 2009: The girl with the dragon tattoo is back. Stieg Larsson's seething heroine, Lisbeth Salander, once again finds herself paired with journalist Mikael Blomkvist on the trail of a sinister criminal enterprise. Only this time, Lisbeth must return to the darkness of her own past (more specifically, an event coldly known as "All the Evil") if she is to stay one step ahead--and alive. The Girl Who Played with Fire is a break-out-in-a-cold-sweat thriller that crackles with stunning twists and dismisses any talk of a sophomore slump. Fans of Larsson's prior work will find even more to love here, and readers who do not find their hearts racing within the first five pages may want to confirm they still have a pulse. Expect healthy doses of murder, betrayal, and deceit, as well as enough espresso drinks to fuel downtown Seattle for months. --Dave Callanan More Information

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Kindle Wireless Reading Device

Kindle Wireless Reading Device, Free 3G, 6" Display, White, 3G Works Globally - Latest Generation
On May 6, 2009, Amazon announced the Kindle DX,[37] which retails for $489.[38] It is the first Kindle model with an accelerometer, automatically rotating pages between landscape and portrait orientations if the device is turned on its side, unless automatic rotation is disabled by the user. It is slightly over 1⁄3 inch (about 8.5 mm) thick, has a 4 GB (3.3 GB user-accessible) storage capacity, holding approximately 3500 non-illustrated e-books, a 9.7 inch (24.6 cm) display with 1200 x 824 pixel resolution, and a battery life of up to one week while using wireless or two weeks offline. The DX adds support for PDF files natively, built-in stereo speakers and 1xRTT wireless technology as a fallback option for when EVDO connectivity is not available. Like the Kindle 2, it does not have an SD memory card slot. The model was released on June 10, 2009.[39] More Information...

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The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest [Kindle Edition]

Amazon Best Books of the Month, May 2010 As the finale to Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest is not content to merely match the adrenaline-charged pace that made international bestsellers out of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire. Instead, it roars with an explosive storyline that blows the doors off the series and announces that the very best has been saved for last. A familiar evil lies in wait for Lisbeth Salander, but this time, she must do more than confront the miscreants of her past; she must destroy them. Much to her chagrin, survival requires her to place a great deal of faith in journalist Mikael Blomkvist and trust his judgment when the stakes are highest. To reveal more of the plot would be criminal, as Larsson's mastery of the unexpected is why millions have fallen hard for his work. But rest assured that the odds are again stacked, the challenges personal, and the action fraught with neck-snapping revelations in this snarling conclusion to a thrilling triad. This closing chapter to The Girl's pursuit of justice is guaranteed to leave readers both satisfied and saddened once the final page has been turned. --Dave Callanan More Information

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Adrift: Seventy-six Days Lost at Sea

Adrift: Seventy-six Days Lost at Sea [Paperback]
Author:Steven Callahan
Catalog:Armchair Travel books
Editorial Reviews
Before The Perfect Storm, before In the Heart of the Sea, Steven Callahan"s dramatic tale of survival at sea was on the New York Times bestseller list for more than thirty-six weeks. In some ways the model for the new wave of adventure books, Adrift is an undeniable seafaring classic, a riveting firsthand account by the only man known to have survived more than a month alone at sea, fighting for his life in an inflatable raft after his small sloop capsized only six days out. "Utterly absorbing" (Newsweek), Adrift is a must-have for any adventure library. More Information

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