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The Wizard of the Kremlin
Giuliano Da Empoli; Translated by Willard Wood
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R414
Discovery Miles 4 140
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Ships in 12 - 17 working days
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An acclaimed, bestselling novel - a stunning work of political
fiction that reads like a thriller, about the rise to power of
Putin's notorious spin doctor He was known as the Wizard of the
Kremlin. The enigmatic Vadim Baranov was a TV producer before
becoming political advisor to Putin. After his resignation from
this position, legends about him multiply, without anyone being
able to distinguish truth from fiction. Until one night, he tells
his story to the narrator of this book... This story immerses the
reader at the heart of Russian power, where sycophants and
oligarchs have been engaging in open warfare, and where Vadim, now
the regime's main spin doctor, turns an entire country into an
avant-garde political stage. Yet Vadim is not as ambitious as the
others. Entangled in the increasingly dark secret workings of the
regime he has contributed to build, he will do anything to get out,
guided by the memory of his grandfather, an eccentric aristocrat
who survived the Revolution, and the mesmerizing, merciless Ksenia,
whom he has fallen in love with. From the war in Chechnya to the
invasion of Ukraine, The Wizard of the Kremlin is a great novel on
contemporary Russia, and a sobering meditation on power, which
takes the reader behind the scenes of the Putin era.
We turn to Machiavelli at every tumultuous period in history - he
is the one who knows how to philosophize in dark times. In fact,
since his death in 1527, we have never stopped reading him, always
to pull ourselves out of a torpor. But what do we really know about
this man? Is there more to his work than that term for political
evil, Machiavellianism? It was Machiavelli's luck to be
disappointed by every statesman he encountered - that was why he
had to create his paper Prince. Today, the question that remains is
not why he wrote, but for whom - for princes or for those who want
to resist them? What is the art of governing? Is it to take power,
or to keep it? In this timely book, Patrick Boucheron undoes many
of our assumptions about Machiavelli, showing how his rich, complex
thought is key to understanding his time, and may be crucial to
interrogating our own.
She is famous throughout the world, but how many know her name? You
can admire her figure in Washington, Paris, London, New York,
Dresden or Copenhagen but where is her grave? She danced as a
'petit rat' at the Paris Opera. She was also a model, she posed for
painters and sculptors - among them Edgar Degas. Taking us through
the underbelly of the Belle Epoque, Laurens casts a light on those
who have traditionally been overlooked in the study of art, and
opens a space for essential questions. She paints a compelling
portrait of Marie van Goethem and the world she inhabited, in the
1880s; a time when art unsettled the hypocrisy of society.
Gaze toward the Nile from the desert hills of Mukattam, and the
vast city of Cairo unfolds before you, with its monumental
architecture, teeming populace, and thousands of years of rich
history. The extraordinary tapestry of Cairo's past and present
comes vividly to life in this magisterial study by Andre Raymond,
arguably the premier social historian of the Arab world. The most
deeply observed and historically nuanced account ever given of the
greatest Arab city of northern Africa, this book shows us Cairo
from the glimmer of its beginnings in the Arab conquest of Egypt in
640 through its transformation into the modern center of Middle
Eastern life today. Here are the Fatimids, the Mamluks, and the
Ottomans, the invasions, dynastic changes, and religious conflicts
that one after another altered and shaped Cairo's destiny. And
here, alongside rulers and religious leaders, are the merchants and
artisans who have given Cairene life its distinctive character over
time. Raymond depicts life in Cairo through the centuries,
chronicling the coming of European influence, the vagaries of
social evolution, and the development of economic structure and
urban design. His work reflects all facets of Cairo's historical
and social reality, weaving commerce, politics, religion, and
culture into a finely worked portrait of the foremost Arab city on
the continent of Africa.
With its splendid illustrations and maps and its meticulous
attention to the topography and archaeology of the city, this book
will prove as valuable to the serious traveler as to observers of
Middle Eastern history and society. It stands as the definitive
work on Cairo, unparalleled in scope, depth, and detail.
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Nadine Gordimer
Paperback
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R383
R318
Discovery Miles 3 180
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