Improving the quality of your writing starts with rethinking your assumptions and developing healthier writing habits. This book will help you do both.

Become a Better Writer: How to Write with Clarity and Simplicity is a practical guide for those who wish to write more clearly and concisely. Drawing on their extensive experience as writers and editors, the authors discuss tools and tips for making your writing accessible and meaningful to your target audience.

The book is readable and engaging, covering different kinds of writing (including reports, essays, emails, novels and speeches) across a wide range of subjects. The examples discussed are derived from real-world material and are particularly relevant to the African context. The book will be especially useful to writers of non-fiction.

Collection of eight action films produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and starring some of Hollywood's biggest stars, including Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage, Bruce Willis, Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie.

The Rock (1996)
The safety of San Francisco hangs in the balance when General Francis X. Hummel and his renegade squad of US Marines take over the abandoned Alcatraz prison and threaten to launch a poison gas attack on the city if their demands are not met. The FBI's response is to call in Stanley Goodspeed, a nerdy weapons expert, and John Patrick Mason, a former SAS man who has been in jail for the last 30 years, and send them together into the prison complex. Can this unlikely pairing prevent mass murder?

Armageddon (1998)
Planet Earth comes under threat from an asteroid the size of Texas. NASA's attempt to avert global catastrophe involves sending a motley crew of oil drillers, led by Harry Stamper, into space, where they will drop a nuclear bomb into the asteroid's core. Amongst Stamper's team is A.J., the headstrong suitor of his daughter, who waits on Earth alongside NASA chief Dan Truman for news of the mission's success.

Con Air (1997)
Former Army Ranger Cameron Poe is returning home on parole to his wife and child after serving eight years for manslaughter. The plane he is flying on is a special convict-only transport aircraft filled with some of the meanest and deadliest villains of them all. Once in the air the plane is hijacked by convict Cyrus 'The Virus' Grissom, who gets rid of the crew of prison guards at the first scheduled stop, picking up more convicts as he does so. But US Marshal Vince Larkin is already on his trail. Poe does his best to stop Grissom from escaping with the group of convicts, and just to complicate matters further his diabetic cellmate reveals that he will die if he does not receive his next insulin injection within two hours.

Enemy of the State (1998)
The National Security Agency is a covert organisation whose secret activities are protected by a state-of-the-art surveillance network operated by a team of first-rank techno-boffins. When a videotape proving their involvement in a recent political assassination falls into the hands of Washington DA Robert Clayton Dean, the agency do everything they can to encourage Dean's silence. But Dean is determined to reveal the truth, and teaming up with veteran anti-establishment surveillance expert Edward Lyle, he decides to play the government spies at their own game.

Crimson Tide (1995)
Combat veteran Frank Ramsey and his second-in-command Ron Hunter are the chief officers on board US nuclear submarine USS Alabama. They are heading for Russia, ready to intervene in an escalating crisis which could result in the outbreak of World War III. When they then receive orders to launch their missiles, Ramsay and Hunter clash over the validity of the command and mutiny ensues.

Deja Vu (2006)
When a ferry filled with crewmen from the USS Nimitz and their families is blown up in New Orleans, Federal Agent Doug Carlin is brought in to help with the investigation. He becomes attached to an experimental FBI surveillance unit that uses spacefolding technology to look back a little over four days into the past. While tracking down the bomber Carlin gets an idea in his head: could they use the device to actually travel back in time and not only prevent the bombing but also the murder of a local woman whose truck was used in the atrocity?

Gone In 60 Seconds (2000)
Legendary car thief Randall 'Memphis' Raines is forced to come out of retirement when his brother Kip ends up in debt to a ruthless mobster. Charged with stealing fifty cars in three days, Randall sets about reassembling his old team - including former lover Sara 'Sway' Wayland, mechanic Otto Halliwell and the silent but strong Toby - but faces further challenges in the form of rival car thief Donny and local detective Roland Castlebeck, who would love to put Randall behind bars once and for all.

Pearl Harbor (2001)
Rafe McCawley is a gung-ho US pilot whose determination to fly against the enemy leads him to Europe and active service in the Battle of Britain. His girlfriend Evelyn is left waiting at the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii, and before long tragedy strikes, with the news reaching Evelyn that Rafe has flown off to the great aircraft hanger in the sky. Heartbroken, she is comforted by Rafe's best friend Danny, and romance soon blooms between them. Meanwhile, the Japanese are preparing their forces for the attack which will trigger the US entry into World War II.

The relationship between the practice of dance and the technologies of representation have excited artists since the advent of film. Dancers, choreographers, and directors are increasingly drawn to screendance, the practice of capturing dance as a moving image mediated by a camera. While the interest in screendance has grown in importance and influence amongst artists, it has until now flown under the academic radar. Emmy-nominated director and auteur Douglas Rosenberg's groundbreaking book considers screendance as both a visual art form as well as an extension of modern and post-modern dance without drawing artificial boundaries between the two. Both a history and a critical framework, Screendance: Inscribing the Ephemeral Image is a new and important look at the subject. As he reconstructs the history and influences of screendance, Rosenberg presents a theoretical guide to navigating the boundaries of an inherently collaborative art form. Drawing on psycho-analytic, literary, materialist, queer, and feminist modes of analysis, Rosenberg explores the relationships between camera and subject, director and dancer, and the ephemeral nature of dance and the fixed nature of film. This interdisciplinary approach allows for a broader discussion of issues of hybridity and mediatized representation as they apply to dance on film. Rosenberg also discusses the audiences and venues of screendance and the tensions between commercial and fine-art cultures that the form has confronted in recent years. The surge of screendance festivals and courses at universities around the world has exposed the friction that exists between art, which is generally curated, and dance, which is generally programmed. Rosenberg explores the cultural implications of both methods of reaching audiences, and ultimately calls for a radical new way of thinking of both dance and film that engages with critical issues rather than simple advocacy.

The last instalment of the teen vampire saga based on the bestselling books by Stephenie Meyer. After Bella (Kristen Stewart) is turned into a vampire by her lover, Edward (Robert Pattinson), she appears to be enjoying her new immortal life and the abilities bestowed upon her. But after Irina (Maggie Grace) mistakes Bella and Edward's child, Renesmee (Mackenzie Foy), for an 'immortal child' and tells the Volturi this, they vow to destroy the potentially threatening girl and the whole Cullen family for allowing her to be transformed. In order to protect themselves and Renesmee, the Cullen clan must enlist the help of other vampire clans from around the world, in the hope of convincing the Volturi of the false claims of Irina.

The secretary of state is headed to the region to seal the deal.

And Special Agent Marcus Ryker is leading an advance trip along the Israeli-Lebanon border, ahead of the secretary’s arrival.

But when Ryker and his team are ambushed by Hezbollah forces, a nightmare scenario begins to unfold. The last thing the White House can afford is a new war in the Mideast that could derail the treaty and set the region ablaze. U.S. and Israeli forces are mobilizing to find the hostages and get them home, but Ryker knows the clock is ticking.

When Hezbollah realizes who they’ve captured, no amount of ransom will save them—they’ll be transferred to Beirut and then to Tehran to be executed on live television.

In the fourth installment of Rosenberg’s gripping new series, Marcus Ryker finds himself in the most dangerous situation he has ever faced—captured, brutalized, and dragged deep behind enemy lines.

Should he wait to be rescued? Or try to escape? How? And what if his colleagues are too wounded to run?

This is the CIA’s most valuable operative as you have never seen him before.

The enemy is invisible and moving fast. The body count is rising. And time is running out.

Marcus Ryker has spent his entire career studying killers. One thing he knows for sure: a peace summit is the ultimate stage for an assassination.

President Andrew Clarke is determined to announce his historic peace plan from the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. But when senior American officials who support the plan begin violently dying, Clarke orders Ryker and his team of CIA operatives to hunt down those responsible and bring the killing spree to an end.

When the Palestinians denounce the American plan, the Saudis signal they may be ready to forge a historic treaty with Israel. Could the Saudi king’s support be the missing ingredient that will lead to peace at long last?

Ryker soon uncovers a chilling plot to kill the American president. A well-resourced international alliance is dead set against the peace plan. They will stop at nothing to strike a blow against the Americans and seize leadership of the Muslim world.

With all eyes on Jerusalem and the president in the crosshairs, it’s up to Ryker to eliminate the terrible evil that’s been set in motion. The fate of the region depends on his success. He has 48 hours.

This comprehensive Handbook takes a multidisciplinary approach to the study of parliaments, offering novel insights into the key aspects of legislatures, legislative institutions and legislative politics. Connecting rich and diverse fields of inquiry, it illuminates how the study of parliaments has shaped a wider understanding surrounding politics and society over the past decades. Through 26 thematic chapters, expert contributors analyse parliamentary institutions from various disciplinary perspectives (history, law, political science, political economy, sociology and anthropology). A wide range of approaches is covered, including the sociological study of members of parliaments, gender studies and the mathematical conceptualisation of legislatures. Exploring the history of parliament, the concepts and theories of parliamentarism, constitutional law, and the linkages between parliaments and the administrative state or with populism, this incisive Handbook provides a panoramic view of this institution. Chapters also map the main trends, patterns of developments and controversies related to parliaments, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of current research and identifying a range of promising avenues for further study. Drawing together international and comparative approaches, the Handbook of Parliamentary Studies will be a critical resource for academics and students of parliamentary politics, political science, political economy, public law and political history. It also provides a vital foundation for researchers of legislative and political institutions.

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.

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.

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.

Hood drama follows single dad trying to retrieve abducted son. Former gang-banging single dad O2 (Tyrese Gibson) is suddenly plunged into a do-or-die situation; trying to go straight for his son, Junior's sake, this recently paroled ex-con is forced to go back outside the law after his son is kidnapped in a carjacking. The resulting chase and shootout have left Junior in the hands of Meat (The Game), the vicious leader of the Outlaw Syndicate. O2's shady cousin Lucky (Larenz Tate) tries to mediate, but is torn between criminal and family loyalties. The only person willing to help O2 get his son back is wily street-smart hustler Coco (Meagan Good), whose path fatefully crossed O2's just moments before the kidnapping. When Lucky gets word to O2 that Meat expects $100,000 for Junior's freedom, O2 and Coco seize the opportunity to pit rival elements of the South Los Angeles underworld against each other. 'It's either all or nothing,' realizes O2. With the clock ticking down, the heat between O2 and Coco rises as they become a lawbreaking couple, on a tear through a range of Los Angeles neighborhoods. Can they outwit the underworld and save Junior and themselves?

A first novelty board book retelling of The Three Little Pigs, with push, pull and slide mechanisms.

Push, pull and slide the scenes to bring the classic fairy tale to life. First Stories: The Three Little Pigs is the perfect introduction for toddlers who like to play as they read, with gentle rhyming text and easy-to-handle mechanisms on every spread. This much-loved story has been beautifully reimagined for a new generation, with illustrations by Natascha Rosenberg.

Listen along to an audio recording of this story by scanning the QR code on the back cover.

Imagine having to leave the only home you've ever known because of rising prejudice against your ethnicity.

Eric Rozenberg grew up in Belgium, surrounded by rising anti-Semitism. In 2013, fearing for the safety of their children, he and his wife, Elsa, chose to leave everything behind and emigrate to the United States.

Before It's Too Late is Eric's love letter to his daughters. It details European events since the 1980s, the rise of anti-Semitism, the Rozenberg family's history, and how all of this led them to decide to leave Belgium for the future of their girls.

It is also a love letter to America. Well researched, compelling, intimate, and moving, this legacy book shares why Eric and his family consider their adopted home the greatest country on Earth—and why they are concerned about what they are witnessing in the United States today.