Many people have written biographies of Charles Darwin, but the story of his family and roots in Shrewsbury is little known. This book, containing original research, fills that gap. The key player is Charles' father, Dr Robert Darwin, a larger-than-life character whose financial acumen enabled Charles to spend his whole life on research unencumbered by money worries. Through Susannah, Charles' mother, we are introduced to the Wedgwood family, whose history was so closely interwoven with the Darwins. The stories of Charles' five siblings are detailed, and there is a wealth of local material, such as information on Shrewsbury School and its illustrious headmaster, Samuel Butler. The book is fully illustrated with contemporary and modern pictures, and will be of interest to anyone wanting to discover more about the development of Shrewsbury's most famous son.

A timeless approach to investing wisely over an investment lifetime

With the current market maelstrom as a background, this timely guide describes just how to plan a lifetime of investing, in good times and bad, discussing stocks and bonds as well as the relationship between risk and return.

Filled with in-depth insights and practical advice, "The Investor's Manifesto" will help you understand the nuts and bolts of executing a lifetime investment plan, including: how to survive dealing with the investment industry, the practical meaning of market efficiency, how much to save, how to maintain discipline in the face of panics and manias, and what vehicles to use to achieve financial security and freedom.Written by bestselling author William J. Bernstein, well known for his insights on how individual investors can manage their personal wealth and retirement funds wiselyExamines how the financial landscape has radically altered in the past two years, and what investors should do about itContains practical insights that the everyday investor can understandFocuses on the concept of Pascal's Wager-identifying and avoiding worst-case scenarios, and planning investment decisions on that basis

With "The Investor's Manifesto" as your guide, you'll quickly discover the timeless investment approaches that can put you in a better position to prosper over time.

The gripping history of Taiwan, from the flood myths of indigenous legend to its Asian Tiger economic miracle — and the present threat of invasion by China. Once dismissed by the Kangxi Emperor as nothing but a ‘ball of mud’, Taiwan has a modern GDP larger than that of Sweden, in a land area smaller than Indiana. It is the last surviving enclave of the Republic of China, a lost colony of Japan, and claimed by Beijing as a rogue province — merely the latest chapters in its long history as a refuge for pirates, rebels, settlers, and outcasts. Jonathan Clements examines the unique conditions of Taiwan’s archaeology and indigenous history, and its days as a Dutch and Spanish trading post. He delves into its periods as an independent kingdom, Chinese province, and short-lived republic, and the transformations wrought by 50 years as part of the Japanese Empire. He examines the traumatic effects of its role as a lifeboat in 1949 for two million refugees from Communism, and the conflicts emerging after the suspension of four decades of martial law, as its people debate issues of self-determination, independence, and home rule.

Getting to financial independence can seem like an impossible journey. What path should you take? How do you get started? What about bumps in the road? The good news is there are proven routes to freedom and wealth-and they're nearer and simpler than you think. To help you make your own way to true and lasting financial independence, acclaimed personal finance writer Jonathan Clements has brought together the inspiring financial life stories of 30 people, all told in their own words. Learn from the triumphs and disasters, the challenges and reflections of a wide range of real men and women just like you-and the surprising but repeatable ways they achieved financial freedom. From a chemical plant worker to an Army lawyer, a unitarian minister to a high-school teacher, a software engineer to a retired mutual fund manager-all have timeless wisdom and inspiration you can put into action right now, bringing you one step closer to your own financial freedom.

The modern nation of Finland is the heir to centuries of history, as a wilderness at the edge of early Europe, a borderland of the Swedish empire, and a Grand Duchy of tsarist Russia. And, as Jonathan Clements' vivid, concise volume shows, it is a tale paved with oddities and excitements galore: from prehistoric reindeer herders to medieval barons, Christian martyrs to Viking queens, and, in the twentieth century, the war heroes who held off the Soviet Union against impossible odds. Offering accounts of public artworks, literary giants, legends, folktales, and famous figures, Clements provides an indispensable portrait of this fascinating nation.This updated edition includes expanded coverage on the Second World War, as well as new sections on Finns in America and Russia, the centenary of the republic, and Finland's battle with COVID-19, right up to its historic application to join NATO.

This is a fresh, contemporary translation of Sun Tzu's The Art of War for the 21st century. As well as its historical importance, it is one of the most influential political and business books of our era. This edition rediscovers the essential clarity of the ancient masterpiece, cited by generals from a dozen Chinese dynasties, international business leaders, and modern military field manuals. It also contains a full commentary on Sun Tzu, the man and his ideas, contemporary of Confucius and Buddha; and a critical guide to further reading. This is the perfect introduction to one of the world's best-known classics. This beautiful Macmillan Collector's Library edition of The Art of War is translated and edited by author and scriptwriter Jonathan Clements. Designed to appeal to the book lover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

There are those who think the goal of investing is to beat the market and amass as much wealth as possible, that street smarts and hard work ensure investment success, and that the road to happiness is paved with more of everything. And then there are those who get it. Want a richer, calmer financial life? Jonathan Clements, longtime personal finance columnist for the Wall Street Journal, is here to help. His goal: to provide readers with a coherent way to think about their finances, so they worry less about money, make smarter financial choices and squeeze more happiness out of the cash they have. How to Think About Money is built around five key ideas: - Money can buy happiness, but we need to spend with great care. - Most of us will enjoy an extraordinarily long life - and that has profound financial implications. - We are hardwired for financial failure, so sensible money management takes great mental strength. - We need to bring order to our financial life - by focusing on our paycheque, or lack thereof. - If we want to add to our wealth, we should strive to minimise the subtractions.

Japanese animation is at the nexus of an international multimedia industry worth over $23.6 billion a year, linked to everything from manga to computer games, Pokémon and plushies. In this comprehensive guide, Jonathan Clements chronicles the production and reception history of the entire medium, from a handful of hobbyists in the 1910s to the Oscar-winning Spirited Away and beyond. Exploring the cultural and technological developments of the past century, Clements addresses how anime’s history has been written by Japanese scholars, and covers previously neglected topics such as wartime instructional animation and work-for-hire for American clients. Founded on the testimonies of industry professionals, and drawing on a myriad of Japanese-language documents, memoirs and books, Anime: A History illuminates the anime business from the inside – investigating its innovators, its unsung heroes and its controversies. This new edition has been updated and revised throughout, with full colour illustrations and three new chapters on anime’s fortunes among Chinese audiences and subcontractors, 21st century trends in ‘otaku economics’, and the huge transformations brought about by the rise of global streaming technology.

Tokyo, which in Japanese means the "Eastern Capital," has only enjoyed that name and status for 150 years. Until the middle of the nineteenth century, the city that is now Tokyo was a sprawling fishing town by the bay named Edo. Earlier still, in the Middle Ages, it was Edojuku, an outpost overlooking farmlands. And thousands of years ago, its mudflats and marshes were home to elephants, deer, and marine life. In this compact history, Jonathan Clements traces Tokyo's fascinating story from the first forest clearances and the samurai wars to the hedonistic "floating world" of the last years of the Shogunate. He illuminates the Tokyo of the twentieth century with its destruction and redevelopment, boom and bust without forgoing the thousand years of history that have led to the Eastern Capital as we know it. Tokyo is so entwined with the history of Japan that it can be hard to separate them, and A Short History of Tokyo tells both the story of the city itself and offers insight into Tokyo's position at the nexus of power and people that has made the city crucial to the events of the whole country.

His grandfather was the bloodthirsty Mongol leader Genghis Khan, his mother a Christian princess. Groomed from childhood for a position of authority, Khubilai snatched the position of Great Khan, becoming the overlord of a Mongol federation that stretched from the Balkans to the Korean coastline. His armies conquered the Asian kingdom of Dali and brought down the last defenders of imperial China. Khubilai Khan presided over a glorious Asian renaissance, attracting emissaries from all across the continent, and opening his civil service to 'men with coloured eyes' - administrators from the far west. His life and times encompassed the legends of Prester John, the pinnacle of the samurai (and, indeed, the Mongols), and the travels of Marco Polo.

Before China's capital became a sprawling megacity and international centre of business and culture, its fortunes fluctuated under a dozen dynasties. It has been a capital for several states, including those headed by Mongolian chiefs and the glorious Ming emperors, whose tombs can still be found on its outskirts. And before all that, it was a campsite for primitive hominids, known as the Peking Man. A Short History of Beijing tells the story of this remarkable city, from its more famous residents - Khubilai Khan, Mulan, and Marco Polo - right up to the twenty-first century, as modern construction wipes out so much of the old city to make way for its twenty-million-strong population. Through his timely and intimate portrait of the world's most populous capital city, Jonathan Clements reveals the history of China itself. This first paperback edition includes a new final chapter, taking the history of Beijing up to the 2022 Winter Olympics and beyond.

'From the Fury of the Northmen deliver us, O Lord.' Between the eighth and eleventh centuries, the Vikings surged from their Scandinavian homeland to trade, raid and invade along the coasts of Europe. Their influence and expeditions extended from Newfoundland to Baghdad, their battles were as far-flung as Africa and the Arctic. But were they great seafarers or desperate outcasts, noble heathens or oafish pirates, the last pagans or the first of the modern Europeans? This concise study puts medieval chronicles, Norse sagas and Muslim accounts alongside more recent research into ritual magic, genetic profiling and climatology. It includes biographical sketches of some of the most famous Vikings, from Erik Bloodaxe to Saint Olaf, and King Canute to Leif the Lucky. It explains why the Danish king Harald Bluetooth lent his name to a twenty-first century wireless technology; which future saint laughed as she buried foreign ambassadors alive; why so many Icelandic settlers had Irish names; and how the last Viking colony was destroyed by English raiders. Extending beyond the traditional 'Viking age' of most books, A Brief History of the Vikings places sudden Scandinavian population movement in a wider historical context. It presents a balanced appraisal of these infamous sea kings, explaining both their swift expansion and its supposed halt. Supposed because, ultimately, the Vikings didn't disappear: they turned into us.

'A galloping journey through thousands of years of Chinese culinary history . . . a timely reminder that the country's modern cuisine is the delicious fruit of a rich, ancient and perhaps surprisingly multicultural tradition' FUCHSIA DUNLOP, SPECTATOR 'A tasty portrait of a nation' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 'A splendid introduction to the complex history of China' GUARDIAN 'A terrific read . . . Jonathan Clements writes with erudition and humour' DAILY MAIL 'This book is itself a feast, each chapter a sumptuous course' Frederik L. Schodt, author of My Heart Sutra 'Witty and insightful' Derek Sandhaus, author of Drunk in China **************** The history of China - not according to emperors or battles, but according to its food and drink. The Emperor's Feast is the epic story of a nation and a people, told through one of its most fundamental pillars and successful exports: food. Following the journeys of different ingredients, dishes and eating habits over 5,000 years of history, author and presenter Jonathan Clements examines how China's political, cultural and technological evolution and her remarkable entrance onto the world stage have impacted how the Chinese - and the rest of the world - eat, drink and cook. We see the influence of invaders such as the Mongols and the Manchus, and discover how food - like the fiery cuisine of Sichuan or the hardy dishes of the north - often became a stand-in for regional and national identities. We also follow Chinese flavours to the shores of Europe and America, where enterprising chefs and home cooks created new traditions and dishes unheard of in the homeland. From dim sum to mooncakes to General Tso's chicken, The Emperor's Feast shows us that the story of Chinese food is ultimately the story of a nation: not just the one that history tells us, but also the one that China tells us about itself.

From a leading expert in Japanese history, this is one of the first full histories of the art and culture of the Samurai warrior. The Samurai emerged as a warrior caste in Medieval Japan and would have a powerful influence on the history and culture of the country from the next 500 years. Clements also looks at the Samurai wars that tore Japan apart in the 17th and 18th centuries and how the caste was finally demolished in the advent of the mechanized world.

His grandfather was the bloodthirsty Mongol leader Genghis Khan, his mother a Christian princess. Groomed from childhood for a position of authority, Khubilai snatched the position of Great Khan, becoming the overlord of a Mongol federation that stretched from the Balkans to the Korean coast. His armies conquered the Asian kingdom of Dali and brought down the last defenders of imperial China. Khubilai Khan presided over a glorious Asian renaissance, attracting emissaries from all across the continent, and opening his civil service to 'men with coloured eyes' - administrators from the far west. His reign began the glorious Yuan dynasty that ruled over China for only ninety years, but had a profound impact on Asian history, from international trade to cultural revolution. Jonathan Clements's insightful biography into the life and times of one of China's greatest leaders is a fascinating introduction to an important era, uncovering the man behind Marco Polo's mythic portrait.

The Silk Road is a route from the edges of the European world to the central plains of China. For thousands of years, its history has been a traveller's history, of brief encounters in desert towns, snowbound passes and nameless forts. It was the conduit that first brought Buddhism, Christianity and Islam into China, and the site of much of the 'Great Game' between Victorian empires. Jonathan Clements guides the reader through the trackless wastes of the Taklamakan Desert, its black whirlwinds and dead lakes, its shimmering mirages, lost cities and mysterious mummies, but also its iconic statues and memorable modern pop songs. He explains the truth behind odd tales of horses that sweat blood, defaced statues and missing frescoes, and Marco Polo's stories of black gold that seeps from the earth.

Gustaf Mannerheim was one of the greatest figures of the 20th century. As a young Finnish officer he witnessed the coronation of the last Tsar and was decorated for bravery in the Russo-Japanese War. He spent two years undercover in Asia as an agent of the 'Great Game'. Crossing China on horseback, he stopped en route to teach the 13th Dalai Lama how to shoot a pistol; he also spied on the Japanese navy. Having escaped the Bolsheviks by the skin of his teeth in 1917, he commanded the anti-Russian forces in the local revolt and civil war and later, during Finland's darkest hour, he lead the defence of his country against the impossible odds of the Winter War. In this, the first major biography of Mannerheim for a decade, Jonathan Clements brings new material to light on Mannerheim's time in Manchuria and Japan. This is a fascinating appraisal of an adventurer and explorer who would go on to forge a new nation.

In the American mind, Finland is often swept up in the general group of Nordic countries, little known and seldom gaining prominence on its own. But as Jonathan Clements shows in "An Armchair Traveller's History of Finland," it has a long and fascinating history, one that offers oddities and excitements galore: from prehistoric herders to medieval lords, Christian martyrs and Viking kings, and the war heroes who held off the Soviet Union against long odds.
Clements travels the length of the country as he tells these stories, along the way offering accounts of Finland's public artworks, literary giants, legends and folktales, and famous figures. The result is the perfect introduction to Finland for armchair and actual travelers alike.

Commonsense investing truths for everyone, from a popular and critically acclaimed journalist In a world gone mad with bizarre credit derivatives, interest-only mortgages, and collapsing markets, we still need to manage our money, put our kids through college, and save for retirement. To the rescue comes Jonathan Clements-- the hugely popular Wall Street Journal personal-finance columnist--with 21 easy-to-follow rules that could help readers secure their financial future. Clements has spent almost a quarter century demystifying Wall Street for those on Main Street. Now Director of Financial Guidance for myFi, a new Citigroup financial service geared toward individual investors, Clements has a deep understanding of what real people need. In The Little Book of Main Street Money, Clements brings readers back down to earth with commonsense guidance that will put them on the path to clear and intelligent money management. From the big picture (your home, retirement, and life) to the micro (taxes and inflation), Clements offers readers clear-cut guidelines for taking control of their financial life and details the strategies needed to thrive in today's volatile economy. The 21 truths outlined throughout this book are a guiding light for everyone, young and old, just starting or soon retiring. Each chapter reads like a Clements column--clear, pithy, and feisty. From the obvious to the counterintuitive, each truth will either bolster returns or cut costs. Collectively, the 21 truths are a compelling guide to today's treacherous financial terrain. Renowned for his spirited writing and shrewd investment guidance, Clements is the sane voice investors need to keep them grounded in the midst of so much financial insanity. Jonathan Clements (New York, NY) is Director of Financial Guidance for myFi (www.myfi.com), a new financial service from banking giant Citigroup. Before joining myFi, he spent 18 years at the Wall Street Journal, where he was the newspaper's award-winning personal-finance columnist.

Togo Heihachiro (1848-1934) was born into a feudal society that had withdrawn into seclusion for 250 years. As a teenage samurai, he witnessed the destruction wrought upon his native land by British warships. As the legendary "Silent Admiral," he was at the forefront of innovations in warfare, pioneering the Japanese use of modern gunnery and wireless communication. Togo is best known as the "Nelson of the East" for his resounding victory over the tsar's navy in the Russo-Japanese War, but he also lived a remarkable life, studying at a British maritime college and witnessing the Sino-French War, the Hawaiian Revolution, and the Boxer Uprising. After his retirement, he was appointed to oversee the education of Emperor Hirohito.

This new biography spans Japan's sudden, violent leap out of its self-imposed isolation and into the twentieth century. Delving beyond Togo's finest hour at the Battle of Tsushima, it portrays the life of a diffident Japanese sailor in Victorian Britain; his reluctant celebrity in America, where he was laid low by Boston cooking and welcomed by his biggest fan, Theodore Roosevelt; his role in forgotten wars over the short-lived Republics of Ezo and Formosa; and the accumulation of peacetime experience that forged a wartime hero.

Jonathan Clements studied Chinese and Japanese at the University of Leeds before receiving a master's degree from the University of Stirling. He has written books on many prominent figures in Asian history, including Marco Polo, Chairman Mao, Confucius, and the Japan volume in the Makers of the Modern World series on Prince Saionji.

The Japanese delegation at the Paris Peace Conference did not have the Japanese prime or foreign ministers with them as they had only just been elected and had plenty to do back home. The delegation was instead led by Prince Saionji Kinmochi (1849-1940), the dashing 'kingmaker' of early 20th-century Japanese politics whose life spanned the arrival of Commodore Perry and his 'black ships', the Japanese civil war, the Meiji Restoration, the Sino-Japanese War, the Russo-Japanese War, the First World War, the Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles, and the rise of Japanese militarism. Unlike many of the conservatives of his day, Saionji was a man with experience of international diplomacy and admiration for European culture.Brought up in the days of the last Shogun, he became an active supporter of Japan's new ruling regime, after the Shogun was overthrown in a civil war, and a leading figure in the post-Restoration reform movement. In 1869, he founded the institution that would become the Ritsumeikan University - literally, 'the place to establish one's destiny'. He was sent to France for nine years to investigate Western technology and philosophy, and served for a decade as a Japanese ambassador in Europe. Returning to Japan, he served twice as Minister of Education and later became prime minister before resigning to become a revered elder statesman. Japan entered the First World War on the Allied side, seizing German possessions in China and the Pacific. In the closing days of the war, Japanese military forces participated in the Siberian Intervention - an American-led invasion of eastern Russia against Communist insurgents.At the Conference Saionji's presence was initially regarded by the Japanese as a sign that Japan had become a fully-fledged member of the international community and accepted on an equal footing with the Western Powers. His delegation introduced a controversial proposal to legally enshrine racial equality as one of the tenets of the League of Nations. The Japanese were also keen to grab colonies of their own, and went head-to-head with the Chinese delegation over the fate of the former German possession of Shandong. When Shandong was 'returned' not to China but to its Japanese occupiers, riots broke out in China. Despite Saionji's statesmanship and diplomacy, the Treaty of Versailles was regarded by many Japanese as a slap in the face. Saionji's influence weakened in his last years, while his party was dissolved and amalgamated with others.

Born in Shanghai and raised in the city's International Settlement, Gu Weijun, a.k.a. Wellington Koo (1887-1985) became fluent in English during his postgraduate studies abroad - he got a PhD in Law from Columbia in 1912. He was recalled soon afterwards to become the English Secretary to the newly formed Republic of China, and became ambassador to the United States in 1915. He achieved notoriety at the Paris Peace Conference where he sternly resisted Japanese attempts to hold onto seized German colonial territory in mainland China. In protest at their treatment, the Chinese were the only delegates not to sign the subsequent Treaty of Versailles. Koo was China's first representative to the League of Nations, and ended up as acting president of Republican China during the unrest of the period 1926-7.He subsequently served briefly as a Foreign Minister during the peak of the Warlord Era, before returning to Europe, first as a delegate at the League of Nations, and then as China's ambassador to France. With the Nazi occupation, Koo fled to Britain, where he became the Chinese ambassador to the UK until 1946. A founder member of the United Nations, Koo was instrumental in maintaining the position of Republican China on the Security Council - by this time, 'Republican China' was limited solely to the island of Taiwan, while the Communists proclaimed themselves to be the new rulers of China itself.Retiring from the diplomatic service in 1956, the venerable Koo went on to become a judge at the International Court of Justice at the Hague, rising to vice-president before his retirement, aged 80, in 1967. He settled in New York, where his final years were tormented by 'Republican' China's loss of its seat on the United Nations Security Council to the Communists, following Nixon's famous visit to China.

Japanese animation is at the nexus of an international multimedia industry worth over $23.6 billion a year, linked to everything from manga to computer games, Pokémon and plushies. In this comprehensive guide, Jonathan Clements chronicles the production and reception history of the entire medium, from a handful of hobbyists in the 1910s to the Oscar-winning Spirited Away and beyond. Exploring the cultural and technological developments of the past century, Clements addresses how anime’s history has been written by Japanese scholars, and covers previously neglected topics such as wartime instructional animation and work-for-hire for American clients. Founded on the testimonies of industry professionals, and drawing on a myriad of Japanese-language documents, memoirs and books, Anime: A History illuminates the anime business from the inside – investigating its innovators, its unsung heroes and its controversies. This new edition has been updated and revised throughout, with full colour illustrations and three new chapters on anime’s fortunes among Chinese audiences and subcontractors, 21st century trends in ‘otaku economics’, and the huge transformations brought about by the rise of global streaming technology.