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From ancient Pharaohs to 21st Century water wars, papyrus is a unique plant that is now the fastest growing plant species on earth. It produces its own “soil”—a peaty, matrix that floats on water—and inspired the fluted columns of the ancient Greeks. In ancient Egypt, the papyrus bounty from the Nile delta provided not just paper for record keeping—instrumental to the development of civilization—but food, fuel and boats. Disastrous weather in the 6th Century caused famines and plagues that almost to wipe out civilization in the west, but it was papyrus to the rescue. Today, it is not just a curious relic of our ancient past, but a rescuing force for modern ecological and societal...
How the invention of paper, a material prized by both scholars and kings, allowed information and ideas to shape humanity for 4000 years, from the Nile to the West. 'A wonderful, enlightening book.' (Alexander McCall Smith).
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It is 1897, during the last few years of Victoria's reign at the height of the Empire, a period marred by unrest in Africa, and the Kenya Colony is an exciting world of hate, passion, loyalty and violence. Stories abound about the wild nature of the railroad line--shaky wooden trestle bridges over enormous chasms, man-eating lions pulling railway workers out of carriages at night--and back home the British Parliament is upset that construction of what the Africans call the Iron Snake will never return the enormous investment. The tabloid term, 'Lunatic Express,' seemed to fit. Join the brave, spirited Alice McConnell, the Honorable Geoffrey Brian Scofield Stanford, and a host of other fascinating, passionate characters as they witness Africa's first steps into the modern era, and in the process, the transformation of their own lives.
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