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"A totally absorbing book...imaginative and erudite, full of startling juxtapositions and flashes of real perception."—Jonathan D. Spence John E. Wills's masterful history ushers us into the worlds of 1688, from the suicidal exaltation of Russian Old Believers to the ravishing voice of the haiku poet Basho. Witness the splendor of the Chinese imperial court as the Kangxi emperor publicly mourns the death of his grandmother and shrewdly consolidates his power. Join the great caravans of Muslims on their annual pilgrimage from Damascus and Cairo to Mecca. Walk the pungent streets of Amsterdam and enter the Rasp House, where vagrants, beggars, and petty criminals labored to produce powdered brazilwood for the dyeworks. Through these stories and many others, Wills paints a detailed picture of how the global connections of power, money, and belief were beginning to lend the world its modern form. "A vivid picture of life in 1688...filled with terrifying violence, frightening diseases...comfortingly familiar human kindnesses...and the intellectual achievements of Leibniz, Locke, and Newton."—Publishers Weekly
The original records on file in Isle of Wight County and abstracted in this work are: Wills and Administrations Book A (1641-1650); Will and Deed Books 1 and 2 (1658-1659, 1666-1719); Will Books 3-11 (1726-1800); Deed Book I (1691-1695); Administrations and Probates (1666-1701); and The Great Book (1719-1729). In addition to the names of the testators and legatees, the entries provide the names of executors, securities, and witnesses and frequently include assignments of property.
“An ideal ‘first book’ on Beethoven” from one of the world’s most eminent classical music aficionados (Booklist). Beethoven scholar and classical radio host John Suchet has had a lifelong, ardent interest in the man and his music. Here, in his first full-length biography, Suchet illuminates the composer’s difficult childhood, his struggle to maintain friendships and romances, his ungovernable temper, his obsessive efforts to control his nephew’s life, and the excruciating decline of his hearing. This absorbing narrative provides a comprehensive account of a momentous life, as it takes the reader on a journey from the composer’s birth in Bonn to his death in Vienna. Chroniclin...
The 20th anniversary edition of the fantasy classic, with an introduction by V E Schwab Over 4 million copies sold 'One of the greatest fantasy writers of her generation' New York Times 'The book I wish I'd written' R F Kuang 'Susanna Clarke writes with an intelligence and beauty that seems at times miraculous' Katherine Rundell 'A modern masterpiece' Spectator 1806. England is beleaguered by the long war, and centuries have passed since magicians faded from view. But one remains: the reclusive Mr Norrell. Proceeding to London, he raises a woman from the dead and summons an army of ghostly ships to terrify the French. Yet the cautious Norrell is challenged by the emergence of another magician. Young, handsome and daring, Jonathan Strange is his very antithesis. So begins a dangerous battle between these two great men – which overwhelms that between England and France. And soon their own secret dabblings with the dark arts are going to cause more trouble than they can imagine... 'Like Hilary Mantel, Clarke has made the very notion of genre seem quaint' Guardian
Through biographies of China's most colorful and famous personalities, John Wills displays the five-thousand-year sweep of Chinese history from the legendary sage emperors to the tragedy of Tiananmen Square. This unique introduction to Chinese history and culture uses more than twenty exemplary lives--biographies of China's most colorful and famous personalities--including those of statesmen, philosophers, poets, and rulers, to provide the focus for accounts of key historical trends and periods. What emerges is a provocative rendering of China's moral landscape, featuring characters who have resonated in the historical imagination as examples of villainy, heroism, wisdom, spiritual vision, p...
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The Windownesian series features the adventures of the university student Jonathan Wills with his friends Meander, Athena, Zedekiah, as well as his roommates Alex the AI and Bobby the Alien. Each chapter centres around one topic, recording our characters experiencing it, and discussing it. “I still love my motherland and the sensible people living in it. But there’re dark histories I’m ashamed of and selfish people I avoid.” This is Chapter 10 centring national identity which foregrounds the conflicts Jonathan faces when interacting with people of his bloodline. “I’d rather be an incomplete human than a somewhat robot”, the attitude of Jonathan on prosthetics. Chapter 11 is whe...
Margaret Thatcher was prime minister from 1979 to 1990, during which time her Conservative administration transformed the political landscape of Britain. Science Policy under Thatcher is the first book to examine systematically the interplay of science and government under her leadership. Thatcher was a working scientist before she became a professional politician, and she maintained a close watch on science matters as prime minister. Scientific knowledge and advice were important to many urgent issues of the 1980s, from late Cold War questions of defence to emerging environmental problems such as acid rain and climate change. Drawing on newly released primary sources, Jon Agar explores h...