The first of three epic instalments in director Peter Jackson's blockbuster prequel to 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy. Set in Middle-Earth 60 years before events in 'The Lord of the Rings', the story follows the adventures of Hobbit Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), who, at the instigation of the wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen), suddenly finds himself co-opted into joining a company of 13 Dwarves led by Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) to help reclaim the Dwarves' lost kingdom of the Lonely Mountain from the clutches of Smaug the dragon. After setting out on their quest from the safety of Bag End, the band of travellers soon find themselves pitted against a range of strange and fearsome opponents, in addition to a small, slimy creature known simply as Gollum (Andy Serkis).

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Do what you love. Love what you do...After a whirlwind courtship, Roisin Kelly ignored the sceptics and objectors and married aspiring novelist Brody Brady. Fast forward one year and Roisin's honeymoon is well and truly over. Brody has become her reclusive, freeloading lodger whilst he pens his masterpiece and she walks on eggshells. Working in the Council Planning office, Roisin dreams to escape the mundanity of her life. Her true passions are cooking and entertaining her family and friends but she lacks the confidence to take it any further. When a charity supper club is suggested by best friends Jools and Richard, Roisin has no choice and is reluctantly swept along to be head chef for the fundraiser. With the help of her friends, Roisin starts to believe that there is more to life that moody writers, hamsters and poor hygiene and that maybe she has a few dreams of her own. And that just when you think life has nothing left to give, your whole world can change. A compelling and emotional novel about love, family, friends and second chances. Perfect for fans of Faith Hogan, Patricia Scanlan and Lucy Dillon. Praise for the wonderful Sian O'Gorman 'Utterly irresistible and joyful - the perfect summer read!' - Faith Hogan 'A gorgeous story of friendship, community and starting over' - Jessica Redland 'A book with everything. A real 5 star read.' - Claudia Carroll "Delicious! An upbeat, witty read about friends, family and following your dreams." Gillian Harvey

This study examines how Tacitus' representation of speech determines the roles of speakers within the political sphere, and explores the possibility of politically effective speech in the principate. It argues against the traditional scholarly view that Tacitus refuses to offer a positive view of senatorial power in the principate: while senators did experience limitations and changes to what they could achieve in public life, they could aim to create a dimension of political power and efficacy through speeches intended to create and sustain relations which would in turn determine the roles played by both senators or an emperor. Ellen O'Gorman traces Tacitus' own charting of these modes of speech, from flattery and aggression to advice, praise, and censure, and explores how different modes of speech in his histories should be evaluated: not according to how they conform to pre-existing political stances, but as they engender different political worlds in the present and future. The volume goes beyond literary analysis of the texts to create a new framework for studying this essential period in ancient Roman history, much in the same way that Tacitus himself recasts the political authority and presence of senatorial speakers as narrative and historical analysis.

19th-century British imperial expansion dramatically shaped today's globalised world. Imperialism encouraged mass migrations of people, shifting flora, fauna, and commodities around the world and led to a series of radical environmental changes never before experienced in history. "Eco-Cultural Networks in the British Empire" explores how these networks shaped ecosystems, cultures and societies throughout the British Empire, and how they were themselves transformed by local and regional conditions.This multi-authored volume begins with a rigorous theoretical analysis of the categories of 'empire' and 'imperialism'. Its chapters, written by leading scholars in the field, draw methodologically from recent studies in environmental history, post-colonial theory, and the history of science. Together, these perspectives provide a comprehensive historical understanding of how the British Empire reshaped the globe during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This book will be an important addition to the literature on British imperialism and global ecological change.

Victorian Britain offered to the globe an economic structure of unique complexity. The trading nation, at the heart of a great empire, developed the practices of advanced capitalism - currency, banking, investment, money markets, business practices and theory, intellectual property legislation - from which the financial systems of the contemporary world emerged. Cultural forms in Victorian Britain transacted with high capitalism in a variety of ways but literary critics interested in economics have traditionally been preoccupied either with writers' hostility to industrial capitalism in terms of its shaping of class, or with the development of consumerism. Victorian Literature and Finance is the first extended study to take seriously the relationships between literary forms and those more complex discourses of Victorian high finance. These essays move beyond the examination of literature that was merely impatient with the perceived consequences of capitalism to analyse creative relationships between culture and economic structures. Considering such topics as the nature of currency, women and the culture of investment, the profits of a modern media age, the dramatization of risk on the Victorian stage, the practice of realism in relation to business theory, the culture of speculation at the end of the century, and arguments about the uncomfortable relationship between literary and financial capital, Victorian Literature and Finance sets new terms for understanding and theorizing the relationship between high finance and literary writing in the nineteenth century.

Offering new historical understandings of human responses to climate and climate change, this cutting-edge volume explores the dynamic relationship between settlement, climate, and colonization, covering everything from the physical impact of climate on agriculture and land development to the development of "folk" and government meteorologies.

This book is a literary analysis of the language and style of Tacitus' Annals. The political context of first-second century AD Rome is also taken into consideration. In analysis of particular passages close attention is given to the structure of the Latin, which is fully translated. Issues relating to the study of narrative, Roman politics and theories of history are addressed in the course of the discussion.

For many years Ruskin has seemed, at best, a conservative thinker on gender roles. At worst, his lecture On Queens' Gardens fromSesame and Lilies was read as alocus classicus of Victorian patriarchal oppression. These essays challenge such assumptions, presenting a wide-ranging revaluation of Ruskin's place in relation to gender, and offering new perspectives on continuing debates on issues of gender - in the Victorian period, and in our own.

This is a wide-ranging study of electoral politics in England between 1734 and 1832. It analyses the control of the electoral system by the upper classes, the world of the voters, and the function of an election in the unreformed period. The history of the electoral system has been distorted by later emphasis on the extent of corruption in the constituencies. Dr O'Gorman takes us deep into the political underworld normally left undisturbed by historians; that of the committee men, agents, and canvassers who made the unreformed system work for as long as it did. Above all, this book is about the voters - their motivations, prejudices, beliefs and ideals, as well as their numbers and political behaviour. Frank O'Gorman has combined computer analysis with traditional historical methods to reconstruct the social and ideological world of the voters, and argues that an understanding of the electoral dimension is vital to a broader understanding of the Hanoverian regime and its popular acceptance. The interaction of the parliamentary parties at Westminster with the older political culture of the constituencies is traced in the final part of this book. The nature of Hanoverian politics and society have been the subject of much recent debate, and this far-reaching analysis of the electorate takes us to the very heart of that social and political structure.

Marketing Perspectives develops beyond the core concepts of marketing to introduce important points of view on contemporary marketing. Areas include some of the most significant and fast growing sectors of the developed economy, such as: * Digital marketing * The experience economy and services marketing * Co-creation and customer engagement This book also offers some interesting and useful perspectives on marketing that aren't so often covered, for example managing a marketing budget and an historical perspective on marketing.

Managing a global business introduces particular challenges; managers must decide whether to standardize and centralize or to devolve key decisions to local markets, how to handle performance management, talent management and a range of other concerns. In this core text a range of leading experts present an introduction to management in a global context. Covering the major management disciplines, Introducing Management in a Global Context provides an introductory overview of key topic areas and to glimpse the latest research in domains such as strategy, technology and change, economics and development, politics and the social world, marketing, ethics and corporate decision making. To help support their learning, readers have access to a range of online resources including chapter-by-chapter multiple choice questions which will enable them to assess how well they have grasped individual chapters. The text also features a range of supplementary readings, in text exercises and cases/examples to help bring concepts to life. Understanding the content and context of this book will help shape you as a globally oriented manager. Includes: * In text exercises and end of chapter review questions with ‘solutions’; * PowerPoint slide sets for each chapter, suitable for 2 hours teaching; * Exemplar papers for each topic area to encourage further reading and research * “Who to Read” summaries at the end of each chapter identifying leading thinkers in the field; * MCQs which could be used for class test or self-assessment purposes to enhance student learning. Kevin O’Gorman was formerly Professor of Management and Business History and Head of Business Management in the School of Languages and Management in Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. He trained in Glasgow, Salamanca and Rome as a philosopher, theologian and historian. His research interests have a dual focus: Origins, history and cultural practices of hospitality, and philosophical, ethical and cultural underpinnings of contemporary management practices. Using a wide range of methodological approaches he has published over 80 journal articles, books, chapters, and conference papers in business and management studies. Robert MacIntosh is Professor of Strategy and Head of the School of Management and Languages at Heriot-Watt University. He trained as an engineer and has worked at the Universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde. His research on the ways in which top teams develop strategy and on organizational change has been published in a wide range of outlets. He has a long-standing interest in research methods for business and management studies and has published on the relevance of management research using methods that include ethnography and action research. He has consulted extensively with public and private sector organizations and sits on the board of the charity Turning Point Scotland.

Managing a global business introduces particular challenges; managers must decide whether to standardize and centralize or to devolve key decisions to local markets, how to handle performance management, talent management and a range of other concerns. In this core text a range of leading experts present an introduction to management in a global context. Covering the major management disciplines, Introducing Management in a Global Context provides an introductory overview of key topic areas and to glimpse the latest research in domains such as strategy, technology and change, economics and development, politics and the social world, marketing, ethics and corporate decision making. To help support their learning, readers have access to a range of online resources including chapter-by-chapter multiple choice questions which will enable them to assess how well they have grasped individual chapters. The text also features a range of supplementary readings, in text exercises and cases/examples to help bring concepts to life. Understanding the content and context of this book will help shape you as a globally oriented manager. Includes: * In text exercises and end of chapter review questions with 'solutions'; * PowerPoint slide sets for each chapter, suitable for 2 hours teaching; * Exemplar papers for each topic area to encourage further reading and research * "Who to Read" summaries at the end of each chapter identifying leading thinkers in the field; * MCQs which could be used for class test or self-assessment purposes to enhance student learning. Kevin O'Gorman was formerly Professor of Management and Business History and Head of Business Management in the School of Languages and Management in Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. He trained in Glasgow, Salamanca and Rome as a philosopher, theologian and historian. His research interests have a dual focus: Origins, history and cultural practices of hospitality, and philosophical, ethical and cultural underpinnings of contemporary management practices. Using a wide range of methodological approaches he has published over 80 journal articles, books, chapters, and conference papers in business and management studies. Robert MacIntosh is Professor of Strategy and Head of the School of Management and Languages at Heriot-Watt University. He trained as an engineer and has worked at the Universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde. His research on the ways in which top teams develop strategy and on organizational change has been published in a wide range of outlets. He has a long-standing interest in research methods for business and management studies and has published on the relevance of management research using methods that include ethnography and action research. He has consulted extensively with public and private sector organizations and sits on the board of the charity Turning Point Scotland.

Frank Hahn's powerful critiques of current economic methodology and innovative reconstructions of economic theorizing have long challenged the views of practising economists. This is the first book-length study of Hahn's methodological writings, and is essential reading for any scholar with an interest in the philosophy of economics.

Being the fourth in the series on Stakeholder Management books, the current volume looks back at the beginnings of Stakeholder Management and how it has since developed into a fully-fledged system over the last 20 years. It also highlights the importance of a benchmarking database generated from several thousand case studies for comparing businesses.

Furthermore, international case studies look at the application of Stakeholder Management in a wide array of industries such as the automotive, public and hospitality sector as well as the consumer market. The reader benefits from a well-rounded account of articles that explain the entire process from data collection to implementation of actions derived from result analysis.

Series Information:
Routledge INEM Advances in Economic Methodology

The milestone text integrating the disciplines of social work and divinity! In everyday life, spirituality and the practice of effective social work are inseparable. As a result, professionals and social service administrators have in recent years felt a stronger obligation to attend to the spiritual needs of clients. Social Work and Divinity examines the potential of integrating the disciplines of social work with divinity to achieve positive results in practice while answering spiritual concerns. Internationally respected scholars from diverse religious and ethnic backgrounds discuss the academic as well as the practical issues involved in the establishment and growth of dual degree programs. Social Work and Divinity comprehensively explores both the theoretical and the practical foundations of joint professional education and practice for social work and divinity dual degree programs. The book provides suggestions that will guide educators, practitioners, administrators, and students to develop spiritually sensitive approaches to counseling people. Emerging human needs are explored, along with the challenges inherent in the multiple roles a counselor must adopt when developing an interdisciplinary approach. Well-reasoned, insightful, thoroughly referenced, empirically reinforced with tables, this is an essential text sure to become a choice educational reference. Social Work and Divinity discusses: the role of religion and spirituality in clinical social work the challenges for students integrating the curriculums of social work and divinity the collaboration to respond to the broader demands of emerging human needs the empirical evidence advocating the benefits of dual degree programs the challenges for educational institutions adopting dual degree programs in social work and divinity the formation of a professional identity in dual degree training and supervision the issues of teaching about organized religion in social work practical advice on integrating religion and social work the role of faith and spirituality in social work education Social Work and Divinity is a milestone textbook for graduate schools of social work and divinity and an essential resource for students and faculty involved in each discipline or in dual degree programs.