One of the great "first novels" in world literature is now available in a complete, accurate English translation. Prepared by two of America's leading Verne scholars, Frederick Paul Walter and Arthur B. Evans, this edition honors not only Verne's farseeing science, but also his zest, style, and storytelling brilliance. Initially published in 1863, Five Weeks in a Balloon was the first novel in the author's Extraordinary Voyages series. It tells the tale of a 4,000-mile balloon trip over the mysterious continent of Africa, a trip that wouldn't actually take place until well into the next century. Fusing adventure, comedy, and science fiction, Five Weeks has all the key ingredients of classic Verne: sly humor and cheeky characters, an innovative scientific invention, a tangled plot that's full of suspense and surprise, and visions of an unknown realm. As part of the Early Classics of Science Fiction series, this critical edition features extensive notes, all the illustrations from the original French edition, and a complete Verne biography and bibliography. Five Weeks in a Balloon will be a prized addition to libraries and science fiction reading lists, and a must-read for Verne fans and steampunk connoisseurs.

Nicholas Rescher presents the first comprehensive chronology of philosophical anecdotes, spanning from antiquity to the current era. He introduces us to the major thinkers, texts, and historical periods of Western philosophy, recounting many of the stories philosophers have used over time to engage with issues of philosophical concern: questions of meaning, truth, knowledge, value, action, and ethics. Rescher's anecdotes touch on a wide range of themes—from logic to epistemology, ethics to metaphysics—and offer much insight into the breadth and depth of philosophical inquiry. This book illustrates the various ways philosophers throughout history have viewed the issues in their field, and how anecdotes can work to inform and encourage philosophical thought.

The Victorians are known for their commitment to materialism, evidenced by the dominance of empiricism in the sciences and realism in fiction. Yet there were other strains of thinking during the period in the physical sciences, social sciences, and literature that privileged the spaces between the material and immaterial. This book examines how the emerging language of the “imponderable” helped Victorian writers and physicists make sense of new experiences of modernity. As Sarah Alexander argues, while Victorian physicists were theorizing ether, energy and entropy, and non-Euclidean space and atom theories, writers such as Charles Dickens, William Morris, and Joseph Conrad used concepts of the imponderable to explore key issues of capitalism, imperialism, and social unrest.

Mirio Cosottini dedicates his book "Playing with silence" to everyone who loves silence and its multiple facets. In this volume, he advances a series of questions and exercises through which to set off on a path of enquiry into silence, shedding light on its multiple appearances and, at the same time, on what remains constant despite various transformations. In the first part of this work, Cosottini proposes a series of questions that invite readers to confront themselves with a silence that frightens. This silence is to be found in our bodies, enters our experience, and hides itself in the world. It can be cultivated, desired and listened to. In the second part, readers are invited to "play" with silence, turning it into a performative exercise: silence, here, is conceived as a tool for action and the fulfilment of a direct experience of silence.

One of London’s largest archaeological excavations took place at Spitalfields Market, on the north-eastern fringe of the historic city, between 1991 and 2007. This book presents an archaeological history from the 16th to the 19th centuries, reconnecting the archaeological assemblages with documentary evidence in order to describe the place, people and possessions of the early modern suburb of Spitalfields. Following the closure of the medieval priory of St Mary Spital in the 1530s and the construction of private mansions, the largely residential enclave grew into the suburb of Spitalfields in the 17th century as landowners built clusters of houses in the former fields and developer-builders constructed some of London’s first terraced houses in the 1680s over the former military training ground. Development continued piecemeal in all areas over the next centuries. Analysis of the artefacts – pottery, glasswares, clay tobacco pipes and other domestic items – and of the botanical and faunal remains discarded in the privies of these houses throws new light on the household economies and leisure activities of, in particular, the Georgian and Victorian residents, a number of whom were involved in the silk industry and who included Huguenot and Jewish families. A series of essays bring an archaeological perspective to wider historical themes such as the religious life, architecture, sanitation and administration of this flourishing post-medieval suburb.

In the 17th and 18th century well over a million men and a few thousand women made the long journey oversees to one of the many Dutch colonies of the Dutch East India Company or West India Company. How did these people live in the colonies, what do we know about their opinions on these exotic regions, what was their view of the local inhabitants? Were these travelers immigrants that were interested in other cultures? Did they understand the foreign religions and customs? Or were these people simply interested in trading and profit, every man for himself?This richly illustrated volume contains many interesting articles (in Dutch) about how the Dutch lived with and among the local inhabitants of the various Dutch colonies.In de zeventiende en achttiende eeuw hebben meer dan een miljoen mannen en een paar duizend vrouwen de verre reis gemaakt naar de koloniale vestigingen van de VOC en WIC. Hoe leefden ze daar en wat weten we eigenlijk van hun opvattingen over de exotische streken waar ze vertoefden? Hoe keken zij naar de mensen die zij ‘aan de overkant’ ontmoetten? Waren deze reizigers en emigranten geïnteresseerd in andere culturen? Begrepen zij iets van de andere religies, gewoonten en samenlevingen waarin zij terechtkwamen? Of ging het hen alleen maar om het najagen van het eigenbelang voor hun bazen of voor zichzelf.De Nederlanders die we in de bronnen tegenkomen brachten hun eigen opvattingen, ja, begrijpelijkerwijs, hun cultuur- en groepsgebonden oordelen mee. Die klinken vaak door in denigrerende of jaloerse opmerkingen. Maar gelukkig zijn er ook voorbeelden van waardering en samenwerking: plaatselijke informanten speelden bijvoorbeeld een belangrijke rol in de overdracht van kennis van andere culturen.Deze bundel levert een kostelijke verzameling verhalen op over de vraag hoe Nederlanders en ‘zij die aan de overkant leefden’ over en weer naar elkaar keken en elkaar de maat namen.

In her three previous, award-winning collections of blues poetry, Honorée Fanonne Jeffers has explored themes of African American history, Southern culture, and intergenerational trauma. Now, in her fourth and most accomplished collection, Jeffers turns to the task of seeking and reconciling the blues and its three movements - identification, exploration, and resolution - with wisdom. Poems in The Glory Gets ask, "What happens on the road to wisdom? What now in this bewildering place?" Using the metaphor of "gets" - the concessional returns of living - Jeffers travels this fraught yet exhilarating journey, employing unexpected improvisations while navigating womanhood. The spirit and spirituality of her muse, the late poet Lucille Clifton, guide the poet through the treacherous territories other women have encountered and survived yet kept secret from their daughters. An online reader's companion will be available.

In the autumn of 2010, the Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde launched a newly built eel-drifter (åledrivkvase), a type of fishing boat traditionally used on the waters between Zealand, Lolland and Falster. Inspired by similar North-German fishing boats, the so-called Zeesboote, the eel-drifter was designed by boatbuilders on the island of Fejø, north of Lolland.

Young, idealistic and eager for life experience, Andrew and his childhood friend, Eoin, leave Strasbourg, where they are both studying, to embark upon a summer hitch-hiking trip through Normandy and Brittany, escaping the political turbulence of the 1968 Student Revolution. Spending their days apart, Eoin and Andrew meet each evening to share their adventures on the road. The purpose of their adventure is the broadening of their world by engaging strangers in conversation, and listening to their stories. It is this opening that brings Eoin to his downfall, as he disappears one evening, only to be discovered dead, in a shallow grave weeks later, propelling Andrew on a climatic hunt to find his killer. In this fictionalized memoir, the drama of close friendship and the dynamic of young love between Andrew and his girlfriend Marianne, is played out against a traumatic murder mystery, where seasoned crime writer Andrew Nugent pens a strikingly tender depiction of friendship and self discovery.

Echobeat is the second book in the Echoland series, which features Paul Duggan, his Special Branch friend Peter Gifford and a cast of political and intelligence operators in Ireland during the treacherous days of the Second World War. France is under German control, Britain is in danger and the United States has yet to join the war. Ireland, meanwhile, has succeeded in staying neutral - so far. Reports of a British troop build-up in the North have raised fears that Ireland is facing an invasion by its neighbour. And German bombing of Ireland during the early days of 1941 suggests Berlin is trying to send Dublin a message. But what is the message? Paul Duggan and his colleagues in G2, the intelligence unit of the Irish army, have to find out fast. Any miscalculation could be fatal.

Twelve authors, twelve tales of love and travel - some sweet and touching, some bleak and disturbing. This collection includes stories by writers from Australia, Ireland, Kenya, Malawi, New Zealand, the UK, the USA and Zimbabwe. The authors have won or been nominated for prizes and awards including the Caine Prize for African Writing, the Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award, the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction, the Pushcart Prize and Kenya's National Book Week Literary Award. They offer the reader a meet-cute on the streets of Zimbabwe, a classic American road trip replayed with an elderly Jewish patient and his black orderly and an encounter between a withdrawn war veteran and his beautiful neighbor in Iran. They follow a couple from Malawi who endure an odyssey in search of a better future in Europe, a woman in New Zealand who has to make a choice when her husband decides to become a woman and others. These stories are about the power of love to heal us, give us courage and make us want to be better people. They are also about its power to harm us, deluding us into submitting to control, deception and abuse. The authors of the twelve stories in this anthology are Alice Bingner, Tendayi Bloom, Shirley Fergenson, Nod Ghosh, Tendai Huchu, Stanley Kenani, Lily Mabura, Jackie Davis Martin, Catherine McNamara, Marlene Olin, Barry Reddin and Gregory Wolos.

SaltWater is a collection of more than a dozen short stories, set in a sweep of coastal areas around the world, from Sherkin Island in County Cork to the faraway shores of New Zealand. Taking place against a backdrop of foam and brine, of shipwrecks and storms, the stories are often inspired by real events, both contemporary and historical. Veering between family tragedy, the excitement of teen love and short, sharp observations of daily life, SaltWater brings to life the rich tapestry of the human experience. Included in this collection are several stories that have been shortlisted for or have won fiction prizes. 'Catching the Tap-Tap to Cayes de Jacmel' won the Global Short Story Prize, UK. 'Dancing on Canvey' won the Fish Short Histories Prize, Ireland. 'SaltWater' was shortlisted for the HG Wells Prize, UK. This collection, SaltWater, was longlisted for the 2014 Frank O'Connor Short Story prize.

Sinker thrusts us into the story of Baker Forley. He begins the novel as a sweet, unassuming Irish man who is revealed to be a promising newcomer to the world's most controversial sport - professional drinking. Ambition fuels his talent as he strives to make something of his life, but he is plagued by worries that he could die from his job, through alcohol poisoning. Frequent fatalities occur, as players often drop dead during games. When his popularity lands him a spot at the infamous Bullfight competition in sun-baked Mallorca, Baker believes that his luck has turned. But when his drunken eye is drawn to a Saudi beauty, her bodyguard steps over and floors him. The bodyguard's boss - a Saudi oil baron - invites Baker to his magnificent, surreal, Gaudi-designed palace to hear an apology. Baker - joined by his over-ebullient coach Ratface - gets an offer he can't refuse: "Teach the crazy billionaire Sheikh to drink like a pro and in turn he'll make you rich." Later, as illicit lust flares between Baker and the oil baron's sober wife; he learns the real reason why he has been asked along. It's a set up, and he's about to be framed for killing a Sheikh. After three days of industrial-level drinking and dealing with Ratface’s random groping, can Baker break free?

"There are no days more full than those we go back to. All those Christmases collide into each other and my memory is decorated by a series of mirrors, flashing light into chambers of sound and color…the briquettes sparking red-layered on the fire, the crinkling of the ridiculous paper hats at dinnertime…and the laughter moving to deep silence at three in the afternoon when we leaned up against one another like old tires, full of turkey and gravy and trifle and God knows how many slices of plum pudding." From 'Every Christmas Morning now, Every Christmas Morning' then by Colum McCann. Packed with contributions from some of Ireland’s best-loved writers, including Roddy Doyle, Alice Taylor, Colum McCann, Sinéad Moriarty and John Boyne, among others, each of the author royalties from this collection will be donated to Aware, a charity that supports individuals and families affected by depression. Festive stories vary from vivid recollections of a childhood Christmas spent in Ireland to travels as far as modern-day New York. Each unique story captures the range of emotions that come bundled up with Christmas memories. Without a doubt, The Little Book of Christmas Memories is the perfect fireside companion for this season as well as an ideal Christmas present! Contributors: Sebastian Barry, Dermot Bolger, John Boyne, Giles Brody, Declan Burke, Mary Lys Carbery, Patricia Carr, Tony Clayton-Lea, June Considine, Carl Corcoran, Tony Corcoran, Mary Costello, Kevin Curran, Bethany Dawson, Roddy Doyle, Anne Droney, Christine Dwyer Hickey, Gabriel Fitzmaurice, Barbara Gibson, Virginia Gilbert, Kevin Gildea, Maura Gilligan, Liam Greene, Aidan Grennan, Linda Guerin, Antonia Hart, John Haskins, Sharyn Hayden, William Jenkins, Eileen Keane, Claire Keegan, John Kelly, Anna Laerke Byrne, Shirley Lanigan, Catherine Leon (née Dunne), Sandra Mara, Brian McCabe, Paul McDermott, John Montague, Seamus Moran, Colum McCann, John Montague, Sinead Moriarty, Joe Murphy, Kate Murphy, Breda Nathan, Tom Nestor, Senator David Norris, Lisa O'Callaghan, Deridre O'Mahony, Seán Ó Riain, Stephen O'Sullivan, Marie Smyth, Alice Taylor, Yseult Thornley, Michael Thurlow, Carol Tobin, Karina Tynan, Susan Virsano, Elizabeth Wassell, Elizabeth Waterhouse, Tara West, and Phil Young.

Thatchbury is a village much like any other, yet beneath the surface flows a stream of angst and superstition. The shadow of Thickets Wood creeps amongst its people like a primeval mist, bringing torment and desperation. Do Charlie Whitehall and young Tommy Tinkit come under its destructive power, driving their minds to despair, or is the darkness a consequence of their own guilt and fear? Thickets Wood is a compelling work of psychological suspense, and Rebecca Reid is an emerging writer to watch. Her self-published first novel, The Coop, was published in 2012 to much critical praise: 'Brilliant.' - Colin Bateman 'Original and disturbing. This is a beautifully written debut.' - Sue Leonard, Irish Examiner 'Great page turner!' - Marie-Louise Muir, Arts Extra, BBC Radio Ulster

This book offers the reader a tool to address the largely still uncharted territory of contemporary migration literature. In addition to presenting and commenting on the production of the prolific writer Helen Barolini, author Margherita Ganeri nurtures her ambition to investigate one of the questions running through the debate on the relationship between literary writing and socio-cultural groups: namely, the possibility to define literature, in particular Italian American literature, on the basis of ethnicity. The book includes a preface by Melania G. Mazzucco and an exclusive excerpt of Helen Barolini's forthcoming book “Visits”.