Category Archives: Travel Guides
Milestone
Erected to inform travellers how far they have come and how far they still have to go, milestones are a relic of a time when life moved more slowly. This book tells the story of milestones and the technology they reflect, as well as road measurement. It uses the great variety of designs and styles
Medieval Castles
Castles were among the most dramatic features of the medieval landscapes of Europe and are still often dominant elements of our surroundings. This book offers an accessible and portable guide to the archaeology and architecture of castles in England and Wales, an area whose castles had some common developments in the medieval period and which
Discovering London`s Guilds and Liveries
The City of London has one of the strongest unbroken traditions of livery companies in the world. Over one hundred companies, some six centuries old, maintain strong, colourful, beneficial, traditional and independent lives, and many of them have beautiful halls. This book traces the history of the guilds and liveries in various countries and shows
Discovering Abbeys & Priories
Abbeys and priories are both types of monastery and the author traces the history of monasteries in Britain from Anglo-Saxon times to the Dissolution under Henry VIII. He describes the different monastic orders, the running of the monasteries and the daily life of the monks and nuns, the layout of monastic buildings, the influence of
Beers and Breweries of Britain
Do you know why Kind William IV appears more frequently on Britain`s pub signs than any other monarch, why the German beer purity laws were introduced, or how a beer can widget works? This book answers these questions and innumerable others about beer and brewing. Much more complex than wine, beer is often a better
Prehistoric Stone Circles
This little book has become a classic. Re-issued yet again with revisions and colour pictures, it provides an excellent introduction to stone circles, including Stonehenge, and shows how we are gradually coming to an understanding of their significance.
Place-Names: A Pocket Guide to Over 1500 Place-names in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales
This book explains the meanings of more than 1500 place-names and discusses the techniques by which this information is obtained. It is not limited to England, but includes names from Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the Isle of Man. In ordinary language, and assuming no special knowledge on the reader`s part, the author briefly discusses a
Follies
This book defines what a folly is and shows that these architectural curiosities are to be found all over Britain. Some are on hilltops or in remote places, while others, almost unnoticed, stand beside the roadside. Many follies were built in the eighteenth century when great landowners, after their Grand Tour of Europe, returned to
Resistance
In the summer of 1940, as the German Occupation tightened its grip on Paris, Agnes Humbert helped to establish one of the first resistance cells. Within a year the group was publishing a news bulletin, helping allied airmen escape and passing military information back to London. Then came the catastrophe of betrayal, followed by arrest
Discovering Timber-Framed Buildings
Half-timbered houses, cottages and barnes are a familiar feature of the landscape, but only rarely do we have an opportunity to see below the surface and understand how they were planned and constructed. Timber-framed buildings catch the imagination of those who work with them because of their beauty, their strength and the quality of the
Discovering London Street Names
Piccadilly, Pall Mall, Old Bailey, Houndsditch and Crutched Friars are some of the unusual London street names that must puzzle those who use them daily as much as they puzzle the tourist. How did they arise, and what do they mean? This book explains these and over seven hundred and fifty other sin London. The
Telephone Boxes
For such a familiar part of the British scene, the telephone box is something of an unknown quantity. What is its story? Why is it the way it is? Who designed it? What came before it? This generously illustrated book answers these questions and more, providing a concise history of one of the most recognizable
Come on shore and we will kill you and eat you all
Come On Shore and We Will Kill And Eat You All is a sensitive and vibrant portrayal of the cultural collision between Westerners and Maoris, from Abel Tasman`s discovery of New Zealand in 1642 to the author`s unlikely romance with a Maori man. An intimate account of two centuries of friction and fascination, this intriguing
Old Letter Boxes
Pillar boxes were first introduced into Britain at the instigation of Anthony Trollope, the novelist, who was also a Post Office surveyor. Although many letter boxes are ordinary, some types, such as those that survive from the 1850s, are understandably rare. This book describes and illustrates some of those from the Channel Islands, where pillar
Ashes of the Amazon
In Ashes of the Amazon, Milton Hatoum takes to heart Flaubert’s injunction to write ‘the moral history of his generation’, with extraordinary results. The book itself was longlisted for the *2010 IMPAC Prize*, and is the story of a long rebellion and the struggle to understand it.Mundo is a rebel ‘“ the embittered offshoot of
Discovering Parish Boundaries
Recorded only by dotted lines on an Ordnance Survey map, sometimes marked by a half-forgotten mossy boundary stones, parish boundaries are a fascinating part of our landscape heritage, often preserving the memory of events which happened centuries ago. Local historians, geographers and archaeologists now believe that many are of great antiquity and that the network
Rebel Land – Among Turkey`s Forgotten People
Rebel Land: Among Turkey’s Forgotten People is an immersion in the beautiful district of Varto – a place left behind by Turkey’s march towards modernity. Varto is, in many ways, medieval in its attachment to race and religious sect, and acclaimed author and journalist Christopher de Bellaigue explores the violent history of conflict, between Turks,
30 Days in Sydney: The Writer and the City
After living abroad for years, novelist Peter Carey returns home to Sydney and attempts to capture its character with the help of his old friends, drawing the reader into a wild and wonderful journey of discovery and rediscovery as bracing as the southerly buster that sometimes batters Sydney`s shores. Famous sights such as Bondi Beach,
Writing in the Dark
Throughout his career, David Grossman has been a voice for peace and reconciliation in the Israeli-Palestinian divide. In this groundbreaking collection of essays on literature and politics, he addresses the conscience of present-day Israel, a country that has lost faith in its leaders and its ideals. Writing in the Dark ends with the speech in
The Goose Girl
“Hale`s writing is beautiful, with a vivid eye for detail” Daily Telegraph Anidora-Kiladra Talianna Isilee, Crown Princess of Kilindree, spent the first years of her life listening to her aunt`s incredible stories, and learning the language of the birds. Little knowing how valuable her aunt`s strange knowledge would prove to be when she grew older.
