According to tradition Cervantes first conceived his comic masterpiece in jail - his avowed intent being to debunk the romances of chivalry. From first publication Don Quixote was a best-seller, initially taken as a knockabout account of a mad Spanish gentleman and his cowardly peasant squire, but later reinterpreted as an enlightenment text, a representation of universal human nature, a myth of a tragic hero defending man's nobler aspirations, a study in alienation, a spiritual autobiography, a metaphor for Spain's imperial decline, an experimental novel that shaped later prose fiction, a tragedy and comedy in one, and a demonstration that ambiguity and uncertainty can lie at the centre of great art and that great art can be comic. Smollet's vigorous and lively translation brilliantly catches the feeling and tone of the Spanish original. It is a comic novelist's homage to a comic novelist.

In this "informative and inspiring volume" (Chicago Tribune),Robert Harvey reconstructs in vivid detail the gripping story ofLatin America's independence and those who made it possible.Treated with contempt by their Spanish overlords, given todissipation and grandiose proclamations, these fearless mennonetheless achieved military feats unsurpassed elsewhere inhistory. The aristocratic Simón Bolívar led his guerilla armiesthrough swamp, jungle, and Andean ice to surprise his enemies andliberate most of northern South America. The inarticulate SanMartín joined Bernardo O'Higgins, illegitimate son of a Spanishviceroy, to do the same in the south. These and five others wagedthe war for freedom against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars,the American Revolution, the collapse of the Spanish Empire, andthe revolutionary ferment of the nineteenth century. Despite thesuccess of their revolutions, all seven liberators died in poverty,disgrace, or oblivion. This fascinating and dramatic story takes in a

From clay tablets to CD-ROM, from book thieves to bookburners, bibliophiles, book fools and saints, noted essayistAlberto Manguel follows the quirky and passionate 4,000-year-oldhistory of the written work whose true hero is the reader. Photos line drawings.

The popular primer to Latino life and culture—updatedfor 2008 Latinos represent the fastest-growing ethnic population in theUnited States. In an accessible and entertainingquestion-and-answer format, this completely revised 2008 editionprovides the most current perspective on Latino history in themaking, including: ? New Mexico governor Bill Richardson’s announced candidacy for the2008 presidential election ? Ugly Betty —the hit ABC TV show based on the Latinotelenovela phenomenon ? The number of Latino players in Major League baseball surpassingthe 25 percent mark ? Immigration legislation and the battle over the Mexicanborder ? The state of Castro’s health and what it means for Cuba More than ever, this concise yet comprehensive reference guide isthe ideal introduction to the vast and varied history and cultureof this multifaceted ethnic group.

The Complete Idiots Guide(r) to World War II, SecondEdition , will feature updated and expanded coverage of thefateful D-Day invasion, a critical timeline of major WW II events,and a WW II timeline highlighting the crucial and most importantevents of the war. It will include details about major battles onland, in the air, and on the sea-starting with Hitler's rise topower and his goal of European conquest; to Japan's bombing ofPearl Harbor; to the decisive battles such as D-Day and the Battleof the Midway, which turned they tides of the war toward theAllies.

Rome’s famed historian illuminates the twilight of the oldRoman Republic from 157 to 43 BC in succinct accounts of thegreatest politicians and statesmen of the classical period.

Fully updated fourth edition. The Middle East is perhaps the most tumultuous areaon earth, with ancient battles still being fought. This updatedguide offers an intense look— through the lens of present-dayknowledge—at current events and the everchanging political andsocial landscape, as well as the region’s history. And itaddresses: ?The re-arming of Hezbollah ?Iran’s increased threat of acquiring nuclear weapons ?The odds of Palestinian unity in peace talks ?The evacuation from Gaza

The Chronicles of Froissart (1337-1410) are one of thegreatest contemporary records of fourteenth-century England andFrance. Depicting the great age of Anglo-French rivalry from thedeposition of Edward II to the downfall of Richard II, Froissartpowerfully portrays the deeds of knights in battle at Sluys, Crecy,Calais and Poitiers during the Hundred Years War. Yet they are onlypart of this vigorous portrait of medieval life, which also vividlydescribes the Peasants' Revolt, trading activities and diplomacyagainst a backdrop of degenerate nobility. Written with the samesense of curiosity about character and customs that underlies theworks of Froissart's contemporary, Chaucer, the Chronicles are amagnificent evocation of the age of chivalry.

Edward Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empirecompresses thirteen turbulent centuries into an epic narrative shotthrough with insight, irony and incisive character analysis.Sceptical about Christianity, sympathetic to the barbarian invadersand the Byzantine Empire, constantly aware of how political leadersoften achieve the exact opposite of what they intend, Gibbon wasboth alert to the broad pattern of events and significant revealingdetails.

In recent years,more and more foreing personnel are showing a concern about Tibet.In order to meet their needs,we have compiled this book based on the academic monorgraph Comments on the Historical Status of Tibet published in 1995 by the Nationalities Press. Comments on the Historical Staqtus of Tibet expounds upon the close relations between the region fo Tibet and ancient China making use of rich and accurate historical materials,especially those showing that Tiber has been a part of Chinese territory since the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).It forcefully denies the entire ideological system of "Tibetan independence"and,for the first time,systematically answers the theories put forward by the Dalai clique.The Chinese edition of this work has attracted great attention in China and was granted the 1996 Excellent Book Award in China.

The Crusades were the bridge between medieval and modernhistory, between feudalism and colonialism. In many ways, thelittle explored later Crusades were the most significant of themall, for they made the crisis truly global. The LastCrusaders is about the period?s last great conflict betweenEast and West, and the titanic contest between Habsburg-ledChristendom and the Ottoman Empire in the fifteenth and sixteenthcenturies. From the great naval campaigns and the ferociousstruggle to dominate the North African shore, the conflict spreadout along trade routes, consuming nations and cultures, destroyingdynasties, and spawning the first colonial empires in South Americaand the Indian Ocean. Acclaimed scholar of Islamic history and author Barnaby Rogersonilluminates the Last Crusades in an accessible and skillful manner.He shows how, to this day, the disputed borders of the Crusades erastand as defining frontiers and dividing lines between languages,nations, and religions. From Constantinople to Fez, from Rhode

Indispensible biographies of major figures in Romanhistory. A mathematician and philosopher, Plutarch was also an acclaimedbiographer and historian. Bringing together nine biographies fromhis Parallel Lives series, Rome in Crisis examines the lives ofsome of the most important people in the roman empire- TiberiusGracchus, Gaius Gracchus, Sertorius, Lucullus, Younger Cato,Brutus, Antony, Galba, and Otho, a reckless young noble whoconsorted with the tyrannical, debauched emperor Nero beforebriefly becoming emperor himself. Each biography is preceded by aninsightful introduction by the distinguished historian ChristopherPelling. Taken together, these portraits provide a wonderfullycompelling picture of the ancient world.

A renowned historian contends "that the Americanwarrior, not technology, wins wars." (Patrick K. O'Donnell, authorof Give Me Tomorrow ) John C. McManus coverssix decades of warfare in which the courage of American troopsproved the crucial difference between victory and defeat. Based onyears of archival research and personal interviews with veterans,Grunts demonstrates the vital, and too often forgotten, importanceof the human element in protecting the American nation, andadvances a passionate plea for fundamental change in ourunderstanding of war.

Tacitus' "Annals of Imperial Rome" recount the majorhistorical events from the years shortly before the death ofAugustus up to the death of Nero in AD 68. With clarity and vividintensity he describes the reign of terror under the corruptTiberius, the great fire of Rome during the time of Nero, and thewars, poisonings, scandals, conspiracies and murders that were partof imperial life. Despite his claim that the Annals were writtenobjectively, Tacitus' account is sharply critical of the emperors'excesses and fearful for the future of Imperial Rome, while alsofilled with a longing for its past glories.

Edward Gibbon's six-volume History of the Decline and Fall ofthe Roman Empire (1776-88) is among the most magnificent andambitious narratives in European literature. Its subject is thefate of one of the world's greatest civilizations over thirteencenturies - its rulers, wars and society, and the events that ledto its disastrous collapse. Here, in volumes three and four, Gibbonvividly recounts the waves of barbarian invaders under commanderssuch as Alaric and Attila, who overran and eventually destroyed theWest. He then turns his gaze to events in the East, where even theachievements of the Byzantine emperor Justinian and the campaignsof the brilliant military leader Belisarius could not conceal thefundamental weaknesses of their empire.

In 1986, Charles Henderson first published Marine Sniper-theincredible story of Gunnery Sergeant Carlos Hathcock, whose 93confirmed kills in Vietnam have never been matched by any sniperbefore or since. Now, the incredible story of a remarkable Marine continues-withharrowing, never-before-published accounts of courage andperseverance. These are the powerful stories of a man who rose togreatness not for personal gain or glory, but for duty and honor. Arare inside look at the U.S. Marine's most challenging missions-andthe one man who made military history.

"Glorious, horrifying... D-Day is a vibrant workof history that honors the sacrifice of tens of thousands of menand women" - Time Antony Beevor-the man who "single-handedly transgormed thereputation of military history" ( The Guardian )-presents thefirst major account of the Normandy invasion and the liberation ofParis in more than twenty years. D-Day: The Battle forNormandy is the first book to describe not only the experiencesof the American, British, Canadian, and German soldiers, but alsothe terrible suffering of the French civilians caught up in thefighting. Beevor draws upon research in more than thirty archivesin six countries, going back to original accounts and interviews toproduce the consummate account of the invasion and the ferociousoffensive that led to Paris's liberation.

Writing at the time of Napoleon's greatest campaigns, Prussiansoldier and writer Carl von Clausewitz created this landmarktreatise on the art of warfare, which presented war as part of acoherent system of political thought. In line with Napoleon's ownmilitary actions, he illustrated the need to annihilate the enemyand make a strong display of one's power in an 'absolute war'without compromise. But he was also careful to distinguish betweenwar and politics, arguing that war could only be justified whendebate was no longer adequate, and that if undertaken, its aimshould ultimately be to improve the wellbeing of the nation.

With almost a quarter of the world's migrants, Europe has beenattempting to regulate migration and harmonize immigration policyat the European level. The central dilemma exposed is how liberaldemocracies can reconcile the need to control the movement ofpeople with the desire to promote open borders, free markets andliberal standards. Gallya Lahav's book traces ten years of publicopinion and elite attitudes toward immigration cross-nationally toshow how and why increasing EU integration may not necessarily leadto more open immigration outcomes. Empirical evidence reveals thatsupport from both elite and public opinion has led to the adoptionof restrictive immigration policies despite the requirements ofopen borders. Unique in bringing together original data on Europeanlegislators and national elites, longitudinal data on publicopinion and institutional and policy analyses, this study providesan important insight into the processes of European integration,and globalization more broadly.

Gr 9 Up-To read this title is to alter forever mythical perceptions of Viking heroes. The clearly written text avoids romanticizing, yet presents an engrossing, if not glamorous, picture of the Viking era. Hence, while readers may be impressed by the artistic skill, bravery, and determination of Norsemen adventurers, they also see their undeniable brutality. The volume presents not just facts, but riveting accounts of scientific discoveries and historic breakthroughs that have led to the determination of these facts. Thus, the painstaking work of salvaging ships and excavating burial mounds is clearly detailed, and full explanations are given when conclusions can be drawn from discoveries. Text and excellent-quality photographs display how a 10th-century skull, combined with 20th-century laser and computer technology, can bring us face to face with the eerie likeness of a man dead a thousand years. A heavily noted timeline, an extensive bibliography, and a full index add to the overall appeal.-Anita Palladino

Lawyer, philosopher, statesman and defender of Rome'sRepublic, Cicero was a master of eloquence, and his pure literaryand oratorical style and strict sense of morality have been apowerful influence on European literature and thought for over twothousand years in matters of politics, philosophy, and faith. Thisselection demonstrates the diversity of his writings, and includesletters to friends and statesmen on Roman life and politics; thevitriolic Second Philippic Against Antony; and, his two most famousphilosophical treatises, "On Duties" and "On Old Age" - acelebration of his own declining years. Written at a time of brutalpolitical and social change, Cicero's lucid ethical writings formedthe foundation of the Western liberal tradition in political andmoral thought that continues to this day.

Case one: A little girl goes missing in the night. Case two: A beautiful young office worker falls victim to amaniac's apparently random attack. Case three: A new mother finds herself trapped in a hell of herown making - with a very needy baby and a very demanding husband -until a fit of rage creates a grisly, bloody escape. Thirty years after the first incident, as private investigatorJackson Brodie begins investigating all three cases, startlingconnections and discoveries emerge . . .

This gripping account of Germany's notorious campaign combinessophisticated use of previously published firsthand accounts inGerman and Russian along with newly available Soviet archivalsources and caches of letters from the front. For Beevor (ParisAfter the Liberation, 1944-1949), the 1942 German offensive was agamble that reflected Hitler's growing ascendancy over his militarysubordinates. The wide-open mobile operations that took the 6thArmy into Stalingrad were nevertheless so successful that Sovietauthorities insisted they could be explained only by treason. (Over13,000 Soviet soldiers were formally executed during the battle forStalingrad alone.) Combat in Stalingrad, however, deprived theGermans of their principal force multipliers of initiative andflexibility. The close-gripped fighting brought men to the limitsof endurance, then kept them there. Beevor juxtaposes the grotesquewith the mundane, demonstrating the routines that men on both sidesdeveloped to cope with an environment that brought them to