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A study of the land, people, and politics of Uruguay.
'Forget geek stereotypes. Parsons' life seems straight out of a
Hollywood thriller ... Pendle's book leaves us with a taste of
genius's energy and fragility' Los Angeles Magazine 'You couldn't
make it up' Physics World 'As a history of space travel, STRANGE
ANGEL is a cornerstone ... Highly recommended' Ray Bradbury
BRILLIANT ROCKET SCIENTIST KILLED IN EXPLOSION screamed the
front-page headline of the Los Angeles Times on 18 June 1952. John
Parsons, a maverick rocketeer whose work had helped transform the
rocket from a derided sci-fi plotline into a reality, was at first
mourned as a tragically young victim of mishandled chemicals. But
as reporters dug deeper a shocking story emerged. Parsons had been
performing occult rites and summoning spirits as a follower of
Alesteir Crowley. George Pendle tells Parsons' extraordinary life
story for the first time. Fuelled from childhood by dreams of space
flight, Parsons was a crucial innovator during rocketry's birth.
But his visionary imagination also led him into the occult
community thriving in 1930s Los Angeles, and when fantasy's pull
became stronger than reality, he lost both his work and his wife.
Parsons was just emerging from his personal underworld when he died
- aged thirty-seven. In Strange Angel, Pendle recovers a
fascinating life and explores the unruly consequences of genius.
ROCKET SCIENTIST KILLED IN PASADENA EXPLOSION screamed the headline
of the Los Angeles Times. John Parsons, a maverick rocketeer who
helped transform the rocket from a derided sci-fi plotline into a
reality, was at first mourned as a scientific prodigy. But
reporters soon uncovered a more shocking story: Parsons had been a
devotee of black magic.
George Pendle re-creates the world of John Parsons in this dazzling
portrait of prewar superstition, cold war paranoia, and futuristic
possibility. Fueled by childhood dreams of space flight, Parsons
was a leader of the motley band of enthusiastic young men who
founded the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a cornerstone of the
American space program. But Parsons's wild imagination also led him
into the occult- for if he could make rocketry a reality, why not
magic?
With a cast of characters including Howard Hughes,
L. Ron Hubbard, and Robert Heinlein, Strange Angel explores the
unruly consequences of genius.
The shocking new memoir from Death
At last, the mysterious, feared, and misunderstood being known only
as "Death" talks frankly and unforgettably about his infinitely
awful existence. Chronicling his abusive childhood, his near-fatal
addiction to Life, his excruciating time in rehab, and the ultimate
triumph of his true nature, this long-awaited autobiography finally
reveals the inner story of one of the most troubling, and troubled,
figures in history. For the first time, Death reveals his affairs
with the living, his maltreatment at the hands of the Four Horsemen
of the Apocalypse, the ungodly truth behind the infamous "Jesus
Incident," and the loneliness of being the End of All Things.
Intense, unpredictable, and instantly engaging, "Death: A Life" is
not only a story of triumph against all odds, but also a tender,
moving tale of unconditional love in a universe that, despite its
profound flaws, gave Death the fiery determination to carve out a
successful existence on his own terms.
DEATH was born in Hell, the only son of Satan and Sin. He was
educated in the Palace of Pandemonium and the Garden of Eden. Since
before the Dawn of Time, he has ushered souls into the darkness of
eternity. This is his first book.
Millard Fillmore has been mocked, maligned, or, most cruelly of
all, ignored by generations of historians--but no more! This
unbelievable new biography finally rescues the unlucky thirteenth
U.S. president from the dustbin of history and shows why a man
known as a blundering, arrogant, shallow, miserable failure was
really our greatest leader.
In the first fully researched portrait of Fillmore ever written,
the reader can finally come face-to-face with a misunderstood
genius. By meticulously extrapolating outrageous conclusions from
the most banal and inconclusive of facts, "The Remarkable Millard
Fillmore "reveals the adventures of an unjustly forgotten
president. He fought at the Battle of the Alamo! He shepherded
slaves to freedom on the Underground Railroad! He discovered gold
in California! He wrestled with the emperor of Japan! It is a list
of achievements that puts those of Washington and Lincoln
completely in the shade.
Refusing to be held back by established history or recorded fact,
here George Pendle paints an extraordinary portrait of an ordinary
man and restores the sparkle to an unfairly tarnished reputation.
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