March is the month of our "world famous in Christchurch" book sale. - Friday 11 March, 9:00am - 7:00pm
- Saturday 12 March, 9:00am - 4:00pm
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| Conquerors: How Portugal forged the first global empire by Roger CrowleyAcclaimed author Roger Crowley paints a vivid portrait of 15th-century Portugal's bid to dominate the globe. Though Portugal in that period was an obscure and impoverished country, it boasted excellent maritime skills and was willing to use brutal violence to build an empire during the Age of Exploration. Enduring unspeakable shipboard conditions and led by ruthless men (such as Vasco da Gama), the Portuguese built forts, assembled large, well-armed fleets, and conquered half the world. (The other half was assigned to Spain by mutual agreement.) History aficionados, especially those interested in that era, will find this richly detailed chronicle enthralling. |
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| The war on alcohol: Prohibition and the rise of the American state by Lisa McGirrWhile Prohibition is usually seen as a fleeting era of glamorous speakeasies and machine gun-toting gangsters, historian Lisa McGirr argues that it produced significant long-term effects on American social structures. The War on Alcohol provides historical context for the anti-alcohol movement but emphasises innovations in law enforcement methods, a shift to incarceration of criminals instead of rehabilitation, and the rise of the religious right wing, as well as a major realignment of political parties leading to the New Deal. This engaging account offers a thought-provoking study for both general readers and scholars. |
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Nanjing 1937: Battle for a doomed city
by Peter Harmsen
The infamous Rape of Nanjing looms like a dark shadow over the history of Asia in the 20th century, and is among the most widely recognised chapters of World War II in China. By contrast, the story of the month-long campaign before this notorious massacre has never been told in its entirety. Nanjing 1937 by Peter Harmsen fills this gap.
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| The rift: A new Africa breaks free by Alex PerryExperienced foreign correspondent Alex Perry draws on a decade of interviews with ordinary Africans, government leaders, warlords, drug smugglers, and entrepreneurs. Beginning with his investigation into a 2011 famine in Somalia, he analyses the external causes of Africa's problems, concluding that Islamists, foreign aid workers, and dictators are primarily to blame. He also highlights hopeful examples of African projects that are succeeding without foreign intervention. For other thought-provoking discussions of African development issues, try Dambisa Moyo's Dead Aid, which critiques foreign assistance.. |
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100 documents that changed the world: From the Magna Carta to WikiLeaks
by Scott Christianson
100 Documents That Changed the World brings together the most important written agreements, declarations and statements in history. The documents included here have changed the course of history by rewriting laws, granting freedoms and laying out constitutions. But as well as official charters and presidential proclamations, there are also the hand-written documents that have gone on to shape the way we think, the scrawled notes that mark breakthroughs in the worlds of science and technology, and the annotated manuscripts that have become literary landmarks.
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| Stoned: Jewelry, obsession, and how desire shapes the world by Aja RadenViewing the history of human desire for the rare and beautiful through eight stories about jewels, Aja Raden, a scientist, historian, and jeweller, offers fascinating tales of wars begun and crowns lost, as well as accounts of scientific advances. She places these historic events in the context of greed and envy; gem chemistry and geology; and the relationship between social expectations and intrinsic value. Using humor and vividly recounted anecdotes, Stoned offers a captivating narrative of how shiny objects have influenced history. |
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Black wind, white snow: The rise of Russia's new nationalism
by Charles Clover
A fascinating study of the root motivations behind the political activities and philosophies of Putin's government in Russia. In this important, thought-provoking work, journalist Charles Clover, former Moscow bureau chief for the Financial Times, attempts to shed light on the sometimes perplexing political actions and ambitions of Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Clover suggests that a nearly century-old ideology known as Eurasianism has taken hold in the region following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, with Putin a strong proponent. Originally formulated as a counter to Communism, Eurasianism posits a Russian national identity based not on politics but on geography and ethnicity, and it portends a stark and troubling future reality for Eastern Europe. Clover's eye-opening study explores the roots of Eurasianism, its growth, and its relationship to recent events, including the annexation of Crimea and the dramatic rise in Russia of anti-Western paranoia and imperialist sentiments.
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Vargic's miscellany of curious maps: Mapping the modern world
by Martin Vargic
The artist presents sixty-four maps which focus on different aspects of contemporary life in the modern world, including such examples as the map of stereotypes, the map of the Internet, the map of disasters, the map of music, and the map of common foods.
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An outsider inside No 10: Protecting the Prime Ministers, 1974-79
by John Warwicker
Former Special Branch officer John Warwicker gives the inside story of the six years he spent in charge of security at 10 Downing Street, tracking one of the most turbulent periods in modern British politics. From 1974-79, when the threat of the Cold War and the IRA was ever present, the 'targets' who Warwicker protected daily, both at home and overseas, were Prime Ministers Wilson, Callaghan and Thatcher. More than thirty years on since Warwicker left his post, his insightful memoir, based not only on personal memories and experience, but often also from contemporaneous notes, includes a fascinating and frank insight into the day-to-day operations at Downing Street and Chequers and the eccentric cast of characters within. Despite the constant threat of terrorism that was prevalent at the time, there is a touch of Yes, Prime Minister that runs through the narrative, which adds a surprisingly amusing element to this revelatory book.
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Red roses: Blanche of Gaunt to Margaret Beaufort
by Amy Licence
The Wars of the Roses were not just fought by men on the battlefield. Behind the scenes, there were daughters, wives, mistresses, mothers and queens whose lives and influences helped shape the most dramatic of English conflicts. This book traces the story of women on the Lancastrian side, from the children borne by Blanche, wife of John of Gaunt, through the turbulent fifteenth century to the advent of Margaret Beaufort's son in 1509 and the establishment of the Tudor dynasty. From the secret liaisons of Katherine Swynford and Catherine of Valois to the love lives of Mary de Bohun and Jacquetta of Luxembourg, to the queenship of Joan of Navarre and Margaret of Anjou, this book explores their experiences as women. What bound them to their cause? What real influence did they wield? Faced with the dangers of treason and capture, defamation and childbirth, read how these extraordinary women survived in extraordinary times.
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Who is Charlie?: Xenophobia and the new middle class
by Emmanuel Todd
In the wake of the attack on the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris on 7 January 2015, millions took to the streets to demonstrate their revulsion, expressing a desire to reaffirm the ideals of the French Republic: liberte, egalite, fraternite. But who were the millions of demonstrators who were suddenly united under the single cry of Je suis Charlie? In this probing new book, Emmanuel Todd investigates the cartography and sociology of the three to four million who marched in Paris and across France and draws some unsettling conclusions. For while they claimed to support liberal, republican values, the real middle classes who marched on that day of indignant protest also had a quite different programme in mind, one that was far removed from their proclaimed ideal. Their deep values were in fact more reminiscent of the most depressing aspects of France's national history: conservatism, selfishness, domination and inequality.
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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