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Books > Fiction > True stories > General
This giant collection includes a huge range of 20th-century
first-hand accounts of hauntings, such as the American troops who
repeatedly saw the ghosts of a dead platoon of men while on patrol
in Vietnam; and the witnessed haunting of a house near Tintagel in
Cornwall that led actress Kate Winslet to pull out of buying the
property. It covers the full spectrum of credible hauntings, from
poltergeists (the noisy, dangerous and frightening spirits that are
usually associated with pubescent girls, like the Bell Witch), to
phantoms (like the Afrits of Saudi Arabia) and seduction spirits
(such as the Lorelei, which have lured German men to death). Also
included are the notes of the most famous ghost hunters of the
twentieth century such as Hans Holzer, Susy Smith (USA); Harry
Price, Jenny Randles (UK); Joyce Zwarycz (Australia), Eric
Rosenthal (South Africa), and Hwee Tan (Japan). Plus essays by such
names as Robert Graves, Edgar Cayce, and M. R. James outlining
their own - often extraordinary - conclusions as to just what
ghosts might be; along with a full bibliography and list of useful
resources. Praise for MBO Haunted House Stories: 'A first rate list
of contributors ... Hair raising!' Time Out 'All we need say is buy
it.' Starlog
This is a classic real-life story of derring do on the high seas, complete with extreme risk, last-minute ingenuity and many near-misses.
Beginning in the 1960s, this book tells of the real life adventures of the author as a boy - a time of boarding schools, long holidays and an unbelievable (to today's parents) amount of freedom and danger. Encouraged by his parents (who lived abroad) to become more independent and self-sufficient, Peter decided to see how far he could get in his family's small open dinghy Calypso. Aged 16, he spent a winter restoring her, before pootling straight out into a force 7 gale and very nearly capsizing, after which he headed back to land to plan even more extreme adventures.
Calypso was a Wayfarer, a small (16ft) and very popular class of open dinghy; a boat designed for pottering around coastlines and estuaries during the day. But along with the occasional brave crewmate, Peter managed to sail her across the Channel, through the Bay of Biscay, down the French canals and into the Mediterranean, then up into the North Sea and the Baltic to Oslo, living aboard for three months at a time. These were some of the longest voyages that anyone had ever achieved in an open boat, where (as Peter says) you 'have to be like a tightrope walker, concentrating on balance day and night, fully aware of the consequence of relaxing your vigilance'. He survived huge waves, nine rudder breakages in heavy seas, dismasting, capsizes, and hallucinations caused by sleep deprivation. He also managed it on a tiny budget, working as a farm labourer, hitchhiking everywhere, and at times living on one meal of cereal a day, to save the maximum amount for his boat.
Charming, quite British in style, beautifully written and a lovely insight into a seemingly golden time, this is primarily a great read, but will be of huge practical use to anyone wanting to go that bit further in their dinghy. It also includes a lovely Foreword by world-famous yachtsman Brian Thompson.
Heard the one about the airline that has introduced 'corpse
cupboards' on new planes to cope with the number of people who die
in the air? Heard the story about the First Class air hostess who
got fired for sitting on the face of a passenger during a long haul
flight? Heard about the amount of knickers and false teeth that are
left behind in the body of the plane? Heard how pissed-off stewards
put laxatives in your drinks? Heard about the pilot who ran out of
runway? Heard of the disabled passengers who miraculously walk
again? No? Then you haven't read Air Babylon. Do you know the best
place to have sex on a plane? Do you know how to dress for an
upgrade? Do you know that one drink in the air equals three on the
ground? Do you know who is checking you in? Who is checking you
out? Do you know exactly what happens to your luggage once it
leaves your sight? Is it secure? Are you safe? Do you really know
anything about the business that you entrust your life to several
times a year? Air Babylon is a trawl through the highs, the lows,
and the rapid descents of the travel industry. It catalogues the
births, the deaths, the drunken brawls, the sexual antics, and the
debauchery behind the scenes of the ultimate service industry -
where the world is divided into those who wear the uniform and
those who don't...
Darryl Telles's sexuality is as important to him as his lifelong
passion for his beloved Tottenham Hotspur, yet like other gay
football supporters, he has had to endure decades of abuse and
threats from homophobic fellow fans in a sport where homosexuality
is still so reviled that there is not a single `out' gay player in
the top four tiers of the Football League. This is the story of his
campaign against homophobia in the football world, his work with
the Gay Football Supporters Network (GFSN) and his attempts to
advance the cause through media publicity and TV interviews. "Most
of the crowd are white, so you stick out because of your brown
face. They're singing the sort of chants that make you feel
unwelcome, and not only because of your colour - they just can't
stand anyone who's a poof, an arsebandit, a queer or a raving
homosexual. And that's exactly what you are..."
Readers searching for courage and adventure will find just that and
more in the engaging prose of Jack Schaefer in this vintage
collection of Western vignettes. Exploring varied tales of life in
the West, Schaefer shares the stories of exceptional characters
conflicted with humanity as they navigate the challenges and
opportunities that can only be found on the frontier. From the
humor in "Cat Nipped" to the common concerns found in "Prudence by
Name," Jack Schaefer again places himself as the authentic voice of
the West. Other stories in the collection include "Something Lost,"
"Leander Frailey," "That Mark Horse," "My Town," "Harvey Kendall,"
"Out of the Past," "Old Anse," "Takes a Real Man," and "Hugo
Kertchak, Builder." Published throughout the early 1950s, these
stories have captured our hearts and imaginations as true classics
in Western fiction and will continue to do so time and time again.
The remarkable true story that became a viral news sensation.
Former Royal Engineer Sean Laidlaw was working as a bomb disposal
expert in Syria when he heard whimpering from the rubble of a
school that had exploded and collapsed. Upon further inspection he
found that the source of the noise was a tiny, abandoned puppy,
surrounded by her four dead siblings. A terrified Barrie initially
rejected Sean's advances - but he refused to give up. He made sure
she was safe and brought her food and drink, and cordoned off the
area to ensure it was safe from explosives. After a few days Barrie
grew to trust Sean and eventually the two became inseparable in the
three months he was in Syria. Sean had to return to the UK, leaving
Barrie behind. When his contract wasn't renewed he knew he had to
bring Barrie home. The two created an unbreakable bond and they
were reunited in emotional scenes that have made headlines all over
the world. Sean credits Barrie with helping him with his PTSD and
their story is a powerful reminder of the incredible bond that dogs
and humans have, and how both can save the other.
Chaos. Frustration. Compassion. Desperation. Hope. These are the
five words that author Wendy Welch says best summarize the state of
foster care in the coalfields of Appalachia. Her assessment is
based on interviews with more than sixty social workers, parents,
and children who have gone through "the system." The riveting
stories in Fall or Fly tell what foster care is like, from the
inside out. In depictions of foster care and adoption, stories tend
to cluster at the dark or light ends of the spectrum, rather than
telling the day-to-day successes and failures of families working
to create themselves. Who raises other people's children? Why?
What's money got to do with it when the love on offer feels so
real? And how does the particular setting of Appalachia-itself so
frequently oversimplified or stereotyped-influence the way these
questions play out? In Fall or Fly, Welch invites people bound by a
code of silence to open up and to share their experiences. Less
inspiration than a call to caring awareness, this pioneering work
of storytelling journalism explores how love, compassion, money,
and fear intermingle in what can only be described as a marketplace
for our nation's greatest asset.
Since first learning to handle a Winchester .22 as a kid, Dan
Aadland has exulted in hunting-not as a sport but as a calling. In
this book he takes readers to Montana's prairies and mountains in
search of antelope, whitetail deer, moose, and the occasional
upland bird as he vividly describes the rituals and camaraderie of
hunting culture. In fifteen essays recounting a lifetime of
adventures, Aadland spins tales of a hunter whose years have been
enriched by pursuing game under Montana's big sky. He conveys the
drama of stalking elk in deep snow, when sometimes just the chance
at a shot is enough, and describes the tricks of bowhunting. He
tells how hunting with horses was "the real deal" planting one's
foot in the stirrup and sensing an affinity with great hunters of
the past. Underlying his memoir is a deep respect for wildlife and
appreciation for the West. Sometimes nostalgic, often humorous,
Aadland's book recounts the highs and lows of the hunt while
revealing why the pursuit of game remains so important to so many
people. The Best of All Seasons depicts hunting as an essential
part of the good life, suggesting that in our civilized age it yet
remains a fundamentally natural act. In allowing readers a glimpse
into that life, this book simultaneously shows that for Dan
Aadland, fine writing comes just as naturally. Dan Aadland's
writings about hunting have appeared in such publications as
Montana Outdoors and Rifle. A former teacher who now breeds horses
in Absarokee, Montana, he is the author of six other books,
including Sketches from the Ranch: A Montana Memoir.
The world as seen from a bike 'Understated, comic and
melancholic... It'll inspire you to get back on your bike.' Martin
Love, The Guardian 'One of the most entertaining sports books I
have ever read' Joe Short, The Daily Express In this award-winning
collection of cycling tales, Wilfried de Jong uncovers the true
soul of cycling - why we do it, why we watch it, why we hate it,
why we love it - stripped bare. With his distinctly comic and
melancholic charm Wilfried ponders life, love and death on his
trusted bike, chasing the essence of our existence against the
backdrop of major cycling events or while roaming alone in nature.
Whether he is describing being ejected from Paris-Roubaix, a
terminal incident with a bird while out riding, or explaining why
he is standing stark naked on Belgian cobbles with a tyre in his
hand, Wilfried unlocks a sport that involves so much pain,
punishment, and a high probability of failure, but that will always
liberate and inspire us.
***LONGLISTED FOR THE 2019 JHALAK PRIZE*** A leading new
exploration of the Windrush generation featuring David Lammy, Lenny
Henry, Corinne Bailey Rae, Sharmaine Lovegrove, Hannah Lowe, Jamz
Supernova, Natasha Gordon and Rikki Beadle-Blair. For the pioneers
of the Windrush generation, Britain was 'the Mother Country'. They
made the long journey across the sea, expecting to find a place
where they would be be welcomed with open arms; a land in which you
were free to build a new life, eight thousand miles away from home.
This remarkable book explores the reality of their experiences, and
those of their children and grandchildren, through 22 unique
real-life stories spanning more than 70 years. "The story of
Windrush, is, like any other, a story of humanity. Of life, love,
struggle, hope, misery, success and failure. It's one that is too
often neglected in our media ... but this volume acts as a remedy
to that failure of story-telling, which I ask you to both savour
and share." - David Lammy MP Contributors include: Catherine Ross,
Corinne Bailey-Rae, David Lammy, Gail Lewis, Hannah Lowe, Howard
Gardner, Jamz Supernova, Kay Montano, Kemi Alemoru, Kimberley
McIntosh, Lazare Sylvestre, Lenny Henry, Maria del Pilar Kaladeen,
Myrna Simpson, Naomi Oppenheim, Natasha Gordon, Nellie Brown, Paul
Reid, Riaz Phillips, Rikki Beadle-Blair, Sharmaine Lovegrove,
Sharon Frazer-Carroll.
For over ten years Jane Quinn has been sharing a cup of tea with
some of the biggest names in the music and entertainment world as
she has engaged them in a long running series of intimate
interviews that go beyond the public image to reveal the person
within. Originally appearing each month in The Beat magazine, this
is the first time the interviews have been compiled into book form.
With interviewees ranging from Leo Sayer, Steve Harley, Madeline
Bell, Micky Dolenz, Chris Montez, Don McLean, Pat Boone, Melanie,
Hazel O'Connor, Jackie DeShannon, Peter Asher, Petula Clark, and
Kiki Dee, this book captures a unique look behind the scenes of
many of the most extraordinary entertainers of the past 60 years.
The book contains eleven dramatic and often horrifying stories,
each describing the life of a different prisoner in the camps and
prisons of communist Albania. The prisoners adapt, endure, and
generally survive, all in different ways. They may conform, rebel,
construct alternative realities of the imagination, cultivate hope,
cling to memories of lost love, or devise increasingly strange and
surreal strategies of resistance. The characters in different
stories are linked to one another, and in their human relationships
create a total picture of a secret and terrifying world. In the
prisoners' back stories, the anecdotes they tell, and their
political discussions, the book also reaches out beyond the walls
and barbed wire to give the reader a panoramic picture of life in
totalitarian Albania.
'Brilliantly written. Very funny and heartbreaking.' Davina McCall
From one of Britain's most popular and prolific comedians comes a hilarious and deeply moving memoir of life lived under the rule of a Silverback dad.
The Silverback is considered the undisputed king, a creature whose authority is never challenged and who does not yield to compromise. He walks proudly, feeds greedily, grafts tirelessly, mates voraciously, swears constantly and is threatened all too easily. The Silverback is known to nestle in the misty peaks of central Africa but can also be found in Barking, Essex. Meet Dave Kane, the disappointed, steroid-ingesting, metal-wielding, bouncer father of slight, effete Gamma Male, Russell Kane.
SON OF A SILVERBACK is a story about fathers and sons, class and education and how one scrawny, sensitive, fake-tan-applying 'ponce' stepped out of his father's shadow and became a man - whatever that means.
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Exposure
(Paperback)
Robert Bilott
1
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R260
R205
Discovery Miles 2 050
Save R55 (21%)
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ERIN BROCKOVICH meets SILENT SPRING in this astounding true story
of a lawyer who spent two decades building a case against one of
the world's largest chemical companies, uncovering a shocking
history of environmental pollution and heartless cover-up. The
story that inspired the motion picture from Participant Media/Focus
Features, starring Mark Ruffalo, Anne Hathaway, Bill Pullman and
Tim Robbins, directed by Todd Haynes. In 1998, Robert Bilott was a
33-year-old Cincinnati lawyer on the verge of making partner when
his career and life took an unforeseen turn. He was taken by
surprise when he received a call from a man named Earl Tennant, a
farmer from West Virginia with a slight connection to Robert's
family. Earl was convinced the creek on his property, where his
cattle grazed, was being poisoned by run-off from a neighbouring
factory landfill. His cattle were dying in hideous ways, and he
hadn't even been able to get a water sample tested by local
agencies, politicians or vets. As soon as they heard the name
DuPont - the area's largest employer - he felt they were reluctant
to investigate further. Once Robert saw the thick, foamy water that
bubbled into the creek, the gruesome effects it seemed to have on
livestock, and the disturbing frequency of cancer and lung problems
in the surrounding area, he was persuaded to fight against the type
of corporation his firm routinely represented. With all the cards
stacked against him, Rob happened upon a stray reference in a
random memo to a chemical called PFOA - a substance he'd never
heard of that is used in the manufacture of Teflon. From that one
reference, he ultimately gained access to 110,000 pages of DuPont
documents, some of them fifty years old, that reveal decades of
medical studies proving the harmful - more often than not fatal -
effects of PFOA in animals and humans. And yet PFOA sludge had
still been dumped into rivers and landfill, endangering many lives.
The case of one farmer soon spawns a class-action suit and the
shocking realisation that virtually every person on the planet has
been exposed to PFOA and carries the chemical in his or her blood.
This is the unforgettable story of the lawyer who worked tirelessly
for twenty years to get justice for all those who had suffered
because of this chemical.
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