A million copy best-selling exploration of the animal kingdom, featuring facts and beautiful photos of over 2,000 wild animals from all habitats on planet Earth. Animal: The Definitive Visual Guide brings together the expertise of over 70 natural history specialists and the beautiful images of wildlife photographers from around the globe to illustrate, describe, and explain the incredible range of creatures in the animal kingdom. This fully up-to-date edition covers fascinating animals from across the globe including the newly discovered Skywalker Hoolock Gibbon, Jumping Spider, and Piglet Squid. From the smallest invertebrates to the mighty blue whale, Animal is a truly unrivalled look at life on planet Earth. Previous edition ISBN 9781405362337 ,

Best-selling Tolkien expert Brian Sibley (The Lord of theRings: The Making of the Movie Trilogy and The Lord of the RingsOfficial Movie Guide) presents a slipcased collection of fourfull-color, large-format maps of Tolkien's imaginary realmillustrated by John Howe, a conceptual designer for the blockbusterfilms directed by Peter Jackson. The set includes a hardcover bookdescribing in detail the importance and evolution of geographywithin Tolkien's epic fiction and four color maps presented withminimal folds, including two (Beleriand and Numenor) never beforepublished in this country.

The Appalachian Trail trail stretches from Georgia to Maine andcovers some of the most breathtaking terrain in America–majesticmountains, silent forests, sparking lakes. If you’re going to takea hike, it’s probably the place to go. And Bill Bryson is surelythe most entertaing guide you’ll find. He introduces us to thehistory and ecology of the trail and to some of the other hardy (orjust foolhardy) folks he meets along the way–and a couple of bears.Already a classic, A Walk in the Woods will make you longfor the great outdoors (or at least a comfortable chair to sit andread in).

In 1912, six months after Robert Falcon Scott and four of hismen came to grief in Antarctica, a thirty-two-year-old Russiannavigator named Valerian Albanov embarked on an expedition thatwould prove even more disastrous. In search of new Arctic huntinggrounds, Albanov's ship, the Saint Anna, was frozen fast in thepack ice of the treacherous Kara Sea-a misfortune grievouslycompounded by an incompetent commander, the absence of crucialnautical charts, insufficient fuel, and inadequate provisions thatleft the crew weak and debilitated by scurvy. For nearly a year and a half, the twenty-five men and onewoman aboard the Saint Anna endured terrible hardships and dangeras the icebound ship drifted helplessly north. Convinced that theSaint Anna would never free herself from the ice, Albanov andthirteen crewmen left the ship in January 1914, hauling makeshiftsledges and kayaks behind them across the frozen sea, hoping toreach the distant coast of Franz Josef Land. With only a shockinglyinaccurate map to g

From Fouad Ajami, an acclaimed author and chronicler of Arabpolitics, comes a compelling account of how a generation of Arabintellectuals tried to introduce cultural renewals in theirhomelands through the forces of modernity and secularism.Ultimately, they came to face disappointment, exile, and, onoccasion, death. Brilliantly weaving together the strands of atumultuous century in Arab political thought, history, and poetry,Ajami takes us from the ruins of Beirut's once glitteringmetropolis to the land of Egypt, where struggle rages between amodernist impulse and an Islamist insurgency, from Nasser'span-Arab nationalist ambitions to the emergence of an uneasy PaxAmericana in Arab lands, from the triumphalism of the Gulf War tothe continuing anguished debate over the Israeli-Palestinian peaceaccords. For anyone who seeks to understand the Middle East, here isan insider's unflinching analysis of the collision betweenintellectual life and political realities in the Arab worldtoday.

In the entire universe, there seems to be one constant that most everyone shares: the notion of beauty. This fact is not scientific, it is not logical, and the value of this knowledge is hard to assess. But the certainty is absolute as every one of us looks into a meadow of waving flowers, gazes at the surf and the sea, or looks deep into the night sky at the stars and beyond. God's Art explores the grace, the texture and the colors of this beautiful universe, and asks a lot of questions along the way: Why isn't the universe gray instead of such a rich incredible range of colors; Why is there so much variety in all things from snowflakes to galaxies; Why are we blessed with an appreciation for all this wonder if it does not contribute to our survival? Questions are more fun than answers, and a well-phrased quandary will keep us occupied longer than a stark fact. This is a beautifully illustrated book of questions.

This stunning volume was the gift book of the year when it firstpublished, and the images that grace its pages remain iconic. Fromthe famous Afghan girl whose haunting green eyes stare out from thebook’s cover, and her poignant story that captured the world’sinterest, to award-winning photography culled from the Society’svast archives, The Photographs offers readers an inside look atNational Geographic and a sharp-eyed view of the world. The bookshowcases the skill and imagination of such notable Geographicphotographers as David Doubilet, William Albert Allard, Sam Abell,Jim Stanfield, Jodi Cobb, Jim Brandenburg, David Alan Harvey, andmany more. They share their techniques, as well as personal andcolorful anecdotes about individual images and their adventures inthe field—sometimes humorous, sometimes terrifying, always vividlycompelling. Author Leah Bendavid-Val writes about thephotographers’ achievements from technical, journalistic, andartistic perspectives. Five chapters cover core Nationa

ohio was the first midwestern state,carved out of the northwest erritory after the u.s.was born.in some ways ohio is the most quintessentially american state:nt distinctly north,south,east,orwest but a bit of each;notstrictly farm or industri-al,small-town or urban,but equally all of them.ohio has the industriousness and cultural polish of the northern and eastern states ,the south s pro-found respect for tradition,and the restless energy that blazed trails across the western frontier.this might explain why eight ohioans have been elect-ed u.s.president-people from all over the coun-try can see something of the mselves in aleader from ohio. ohio doesn t have one great urban metropolis like chicago or new york;instead it has seven major cities.towns grew up along the rivers,canals,rail linesand roads.thanks to its abundant resources and the fortunes of geography,ohio was destined to become an industrial powerhouse.steel nd rubber might come to mind first,but state industries have ranged from cars to cerami

standing work almost from the moment of publication.Beginningwith a groundbreaking interpretation of the ori-gin and nature ofthe city Lewis Mumford follows the city's developmentfrom Egypt andMesopotamia through Greece Rome and the MiddleAges to the modernworld. Instead of accepting the destiny of the city asthetendencies to metropolitan congestion suburban sprawl andsocialdisintegration, Mumford outlines an order integratingtechnical facilitieswith biological needs and social norms. Ascompelling as it is compre-hensive Mumfords award-winning work "isfar more than the study ofurban culture through the ages. It is arevitalization of civilizations( Kirkus Reviews).

Bill Bryson travels to Kenya in support of CARE International.All royalties and profits go to CARE International. Bryson visits Kenya at the invitation of CARE International, thecharity dedicated to eradicating poverty. Kenya is a land ofcontrasts, with famous game reserves and a vibrant culture. It alsoprovides plenty to worry a traveller like Bill Bryson, fixated ashe is on the dangers posed by snakes, insects and large predators.It is also a country with many serious problems: refugees, AIDS,drought, and grinding poverty. The resultant diary, though short inlength, contains the trademark Bryson stamp of wry observation andcurious insight.

“oklahoma,where the wind comes sweepin down the plain!”who doesn t know the stirring lyrics to the most famous of all state songs?rodgers &hammerstein s musical captures the rambunctious frontier spirit of this state-an even more captivating place in reality. in oklahoma,the american west and the american dream come together-sometimes in one person,like will rogers,the part-cheokeejournalist and vaudevillian who became the nation s best-loved humorist.woody guthrie,our lureate of folk song,also springs from oklahoma soil,as do journalist bill moyers and apache sculptor allan houser,whose work graces the white house lawn.oklahoma helped to create the cowboy icon:on the legendary chisholm trail,in touring wild west shows ,and in the movies ,with actors roy rogers and gene auty.amerca s oil boom began her,and “black gold”built the art deco skylines of tulsa and okla-homa city.hardy survivors of the dust bowl era,oklahomans planned and built the “mother road,”route 66,and afine collection of museu

Every time Bill Bryson walks out the door, memorable travelliterature threatens to break out. His previous excursion along theAppalachian Trail resulted in the sublime national bestseller AWalk in the Woods . In A Sunburned Country is his reporton what he found in an entirely different place: Australia, thecountry that doubles as a continent, and a place with thefriendliest inhabitants, the hottest, driest weather, and the mostpeculiar and lethal wildlife to be found on the planet. The resultis a deliciously funny, fact-filled, and adventurous performance bya writer who combines humor, wonder, and unflaggingcuriousity. Despite the fact that Australia harbors more things that can killyou in extremely nasty ways than anywhere else, including sharks,crocodiles, snakes, even riptides and deserts, Bill Bryson adoresthe place, and he takes his readers on a rollicking ride far beyondthat beaten tourist path. Wherever he goes he finds Australians whoare cheerful, extroverted, and unfailingly obliging,

The only state once recognized by the U.S.gov-ernment as an independent country.Texas is still more a nation than a state in many ways.It's larg-er than several European nations combined,with an amaxingly varied landscape and population. Since the fall of the Alamo,the Lone Star State has been the site of historic collisions:between the Old South and the New West,be-tween the Anglo culture of North America and the Hispanic culture of Latin America,between persistent small-town values and the glittering internationalism of Houston and Dallas.Yet its citizens are all Texans first,united by a storied past of epic battles,rangers and rustlers,cattle barons,wildcatters,and wheeler-dealers. The Texas Myth also embraces legendary sports teams and the fans that cheer them on; a down-home cuisine featuring Tex-Mex,chili,and rancn-style barbecue; and colorful politics across the spectrum,including outspoken liberals like Lyndon Johnson and former governor Ann Richards.Oil and cattle wealth built a legacy of ach