As throngs of humanity pack Rome's St. Peter's Square, all await the news from the Sistine Chapel as to who will be the next Pope. But no one is more anxious than Iraqi American Sami Yusuf, for he and one of the papal candidates share a well-kept secret. When it is finally announced that Cardinal Paul Rogan has been elected Pope, Sami knows the one thing about Father Rogan that no one in the crowd does-he is a humble shepherd who molests his unsuspecting sheep.

Many years earlier, while Sami was a Jesuit school student in Baghdad, he was molested by Father Rogan. Deathly afraid of revealing the abuse for fear of losing his family's honor, Sami eventually emigrated to the United States and joined the Air Force. Meanwhile, Father Rogan slowly moved up in the Catholic Hierarchy-while quietly ruining one young boy's life after another. Now amid sectarian mayhem and the occupation of Iraq, Sami must visit his ailing dad in Baghdad. But first he must fulfill his most important life's mission-to cleanse the honor that Father Rogan stripped from his family.

In this compelling tale that spans three continents, a vendetta drives an Iraqi American pilot into international dram that culminates with unexpected ramifications that change everything forever.

Birds are intelligent, sociable creatures that exhibit a wide array of behaviours - from mobbing and mimicking to mating and joint nesting. Why do they behave as they do? Bringing to light the remarkable actions of birds through examples from species around the world, How To Read a Bird presents engaging vignettes about the private lives of birds, all explained in an evolutionary context. Richly illustrated, this book explores the increasing focus on how individual birds differ in personality and how big data and citizen scientists are helping to add to what we know about them.

Eclectic Poetry presents a collection of author Ben Sheldon's best poems, conceived and written over several years. These verses cover many different moods and unique experiences. Sheldon presents them by topic, making them easily accessible based upon the mindset of the reader. They explore such topics as relationships, humor, personal thoughts, and the dark side of life.

Eclectic Poetry allows you to select a poem that suits that moment's experience and your needs at that time. From the starkness of "Death Row" to the sarcasm of "Remote Control" to the humor of "15 Minutes of Fame," Sheldon explores the wide range of human emotions in this poetry collection. Review Reviewed my life the other day;Unwound myself, rewound my thoughts, And relived again--fast forward, Like silent Charlie Chaplin movie, Pushing a cart uphill past rail tracks, While the train steams along closer.Charlie, playing me, nears top then slips, And rolls down over the rail road, Just missing the chugging engine.I've repeated that pointless effort, So many times in my life acrossRisky paths that looked deceptively safe.

The British Expeditionary Force sent to France in the late summer of 1914 has been referred to as the 'Best British Army Ever Sent to War' as it was one of the most highly trained and disciplined forces in the world. It was also the 'Best Birdwatching Army Ever Sent to War' for among its ranks were hundreds of both amateur and professional ornithologists. When not fighting, many soldiers turned to birdwatching as a way of whiling away the long hours spent on guard duty or watching over 'no man's land'. The list of birds seen by them serving in all the theatres of war was truly impressive, ranging from the common like sparrows, skylarks and swallows to the exotic like golden orioles, hoopoes and bee-eaters. It was not just at the battle front that birds found themselves in the firing line but also on the home front. For the Foreign Secretary, Edward Grey, who worked tirelessly to preserve peace but ended up convincing the House of Commons to go to war, birds were his hinterland. But as well as declaring war on Germany on 4 August 1914, the government also declared war on the humble house sparrow, farmers falsely accusing it of destroying Britain's dwindling wheat and oat supplies. From the outset the slaughter was opposed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds who eventually triumphed over the Board of Agriculture, becoming the powerful voice for conservation we know today. When the guns finally fell silent on 11 November 1918 and the Great War came to an ignoble end, a generation of birdwatchers lay dead. Among them were scientists, researchers, lords, librarians, artists, authors, professors, poets, lawyers, surgeons and explorers, many young men with great promise. Had they lived, the science of ornithology and the hobby of birdwatching would have undoubtedly been much the richer. In commemoration of their sacrifice a selection of them is included in the Ornithological Roll of Honour at the back of this book.

Eclectic Poetry presents a collection of author Ben Sheldon's best poems, conceived and written over several years. These verses cover many different moods and unique experiences. Sheldon presents them by topic, making them easily accessible based upon the mindset of the reader. They explore such topics as relationships, humor, personal thoughts, and the dark side of life.

Eclectic Poetry allows you to select a poem that suits that moment's experience and your needs at that time. From the starkness of "Death Row" to the sarcasm of "Remote Control" to the humor of "15 Minutes of Fame," Sheldon explores the wide range of human emotions in this poetry collection. Review Reviewed my life the other day;Unwound myself, rewound my thoughts, And relived again--fast forward, Like silent Charlie Chaplin movie, Pushing a cart uphill past rail tracks, While the train steams along closer.Charlie, playing me, nears top then slips, And rolls down over the rail road, Just missing the chugging engine.I've repeated that pointless effort, So many times in my life acrossRisky paths that looked deceptively safe.

As throngs of humanity pack Rome's St. Peter's Square, all await the news from the Sistine Chapel as to who will be the next Pope. But no one is more anxious than Iraqi American Sami Yusuf, for he and one of the papal candidates share a well-kept secret. When it is finally announced that Cardinal Paul Rogan has been elected Pope, Sami knows the one thing about Father Rogan that no one in the crowd does-he is a humble shepherd who molests his unsuspecting sheep.

Many years earlier, while Sami was a Jesuit school student in Baghdad, he was molested by Father Rogan. Deathly afraid of revealing the abuse for fear of losing his family's honor, Sami eventually emigrated to the United States and joined the Air Force. Meanwhile, Father Rogan slowly moved up in the Catholic Hierarchy-while quietly ruining one young boy's life after another. Now amid sectarian mayhem and the occupation of Iraq, Sami must visit his ailing dad in Baghdad. But first he must fulfill his most important life's mission-to cleanse the honor that Father Rogan stripped from his family.

In this compelling tale that spans three continents, a vendetta drives an Iraqi American pilot into international dram that culminates with unexpected ramifications that change everything forever.