Category Archives: Travel Guides
Asterix in Switzerland
Gaul was divided into three parts. No, four parts – for one small village of indomitable Gauls still held out against the Roman invaders. BOOK 16 Quaestor Vexatius Sinusitus turns up in Gaul to investigate the creative accountancy of Governor Varius Flavus. When the quaestor is poisoned, he turns to Getafix the druid and the
Asterix in Corsica
Gaul was divided into three parts. No, four parts – for one small village of indomitable Gauls still held out against the Roman invaders. BOOK 20 Asterix and Obelix meet a Corsican chieftain who has been taken prisoner and accompany their new friend Boneywasawarriorwayayix back to Corsica to help him foil the evil designs of
The Secret History of Oxford
The Secret History of Oxford offers the reader an off-the-beaten-track tour of the city`s landmarks and streets. Filled with hundreds of facts and anecdotes, it reveals the amusing, unlikely and downright wonderful stories hidden beneath the surface. Some, such as the fact that the founder of Oxford was eaten by wolves, will be known; many
Our Land at War: Britain`s First World War Sites
The First World War was a human catastrophe but it also saw a dynamic development of new weapons and a new kind of war; between the lions and the donkeys came the managers – and the workers – who transformed a nation into a war machine in 48 months. This book takes you on a
Kohima 1944
Kohima was the turning point in the Japanese invasion of India, witnessing the end of their attempt to overthrow the British Raj. It was a bitter battle fought in three stages, spanning three months and ending with the siege of Imphal. Losses on both sides were heavy, with the Japanese suffering their greatest land defeat
My Italian Adventures: An English Girl at War 1943-47
Wartime Italy is a place of sunshine and shadows. A country torn apart by the turbulent dictatorship of Mussolini and the horrors of Nazi occupation, struggling to repair itself during the Allied liberation. Yet, it is also the land of spaghetti and spumante, the shores of Lake Garda and the Dolomite mountains, and into this
Most Secret: The Hidden History of Orford Ness
Orford Ness was, for most of the twentieth century, a military research station so secret that nobody knew what went on there, and so remote that even now most people have never heard of it. Yet the contribution of its scientists, service and civilian, to the winning of the First World War, the Second World
Hemingway Adventure
Michael Palin’s Hemingway Adventure is a blend of homage, adventure and travel writing, as Palin follows in the footsteps of Nobel Prize-winning author Ernest Hemingway in an attempt to unravel some of the myths surrounding the life of the American writer and journalist.Palin travels from the forests of north Michigan to the battlefields of Italy
Jane Austen: pocket GIANTS
There`s something about Jane…Jane Austen lived only just into her forties, never married, never had children, lived all her life in the south of England and rarely strayed far from the genteel and orthodox social circle into which she was born. She completed only six novels, and achieved little fame in her lifetime. Yet 200
Asterix and the Black Gold
The druid Getafix is running short of rock oil ` an essential ingredient in the magic potion, which gives the Gaulish villagers superhuman strength to fight Julius Caesar`s Roman legions. But the Phoenician merchant Ekonomikrisis has forgotten the druid`s order, and Asterix and Obelix set off to prospect for black gold in the Middle Eastern
Five Minute History, Great Battles of the First World War
How did the First World War start? Who were the main players? Where did the fighting begin? And why were there so many casualties? If the 100-year anniversary of this war to end all wars has left you feeling a little under-informed, Five Minute History is the perfect way to read up on this major
The Little Book of Scotland
The Little Book of Scotland is a funny, fast-paced, fact-packed compendium of the sort of frivolous, fantastic or simply strange information which no-one will want to be without. Discover the most unusual crimes and punishments, eccentric inhabitants, famous sons and daughters and literally hundreds of other wacky facts. There is a mix of factual chapters
Bad Companions
This book features the cases of six London women, each very different in temperament, age and status, who resorted to murder. Their reasons were varied: in the case of the surly maid Kate Webster, sheer temper seems the likely cause; avarice seemed to spur Catherine Wilson to murder an estimated seven times; desperation to pay
London`s Markets: From Smithfield to Portobello Road
London is a city of markets: markets in meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, money, insurance, shipping and, occasionally, in stolen goods. As both a major port and the nation`s capital, it was almost inevitable that commerce became the bedrock on which the city has risen to be one of the world`s greatest modern marketplaces. Many of
Duchess of Northumberland`s Little Book of Jams, Jellies and Preserves
Elizabeth was the first Duchess of Northumberland and established the domestic rules of this dynasty that has ruled for over 700 years. Controlling a household of great power and prestige, she laid down the guidelines in her `Household Book` that created a framework from which to run Alnwick Castle and that, to this day, contains
Working the London Underground: From 1863 to 2013
Used extensively and somewhat taken for granted by millions of commuters and tourists every day, the London Underground has long been a part of our national heritage and way of life. It was the first underground railway in the world, and is now central to lives of millions of Londoners. Here Ben Pedroche explores the
Fortress Britain: All the Invasions and Incursions Since 1066
As Stuart Laycock`s book All the Countries We`ve Ever Invaded: and the Few We Never got Round to shows, the British have not been backward in coming forward when it comes to aggressive visits abroad. But it hasn`t all been one way. In 1193 for example, the Danes teamed up with the most persistent offenders,
London`s Big Day: The Coronation 60 Years On
June 2013 sees the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Queen`s Coronation, only the second time in British history a monarch has reached this remarkable milestone. As the event was famously the first of its kind to be televised images from the ceremony inside Westminster Abbey are instantly recognisable and have become iconic. Far
Underground to Everywhere: London`s Underground Railway in the Life of the Capital
London`s Underground is one of the best-known and most distinctive aspects of the city. Since Victorian times, this remarkable feat of engineering has made an extraordinary contribution to the economy of the capital and played a vital role in the daily life of generations of Londoners. Stephen Halliday`s informative, entertaining, wide-ranging history of the Underground
Haunted West End
The West End of London has long been popular with theatre-goers and tourists to the capital, but this historic area is also home to a multitude of terrifying ghosts. From the theatre where a female spectre cradles a severed head in her lap and the haunted house where two people have died of fright, to
