In 1551, King João III of Portugal gave Archduke Maximilian an unusual wedding present: an elephant named Solomon. The elephant’s journey from Lisbon to Vienna was witnessed and remarked upon by scholars, historians, and ordinary people. Out of this material, José Saramago has spun a novel already heralded as “a triumph of language, imagination, and humor” ( El País ). Solomon and his keeper, Subhro, begin in dismal conditions, forgotten in a corner of the palace grounds. When it occurs to the king and queen that an elephant would be an appropriate wedding gift, everyone rushes to get them ready: Subhro is given two new suits of clothes and Solomon a long overdue scrub. Accompanied by the Archduke, his new wife, and the royal guard, our unlikely heroes traverse a continent riven by the Reformation and civil wars. They make their way through the storied cities of northern Italy: Genoa, Piacenza, Mantua, Verona, Venice, and Trento, where the Council of Trent is in session. They brave the Alps and the terrifying Isarco and Brenner Passes; they sail across the Mediterranean Sea and up the Inn River (elephants, it turns out, are natural sailors). At last they make their grand entry into the imperial city. The Elephant’s Journey is a delightful, witty tale of friendship and adventure. Views: 51
In 1986, it was unimaginable that death metal and grindcore would ever impact popular culture. Yet this shockingly fast and barbaric amalgam of hardcore punk and heavy metal would define the musical threshold of extremity for years to come. Initially circulated through an underground tape-trading network by scraggly, angry young boys, death metal and grindcore spread faster than a plague of undead zombies as bands rose from every corner of the globe. By 1992, the genre's first legitimate label, Earache Records, had sold well over a million death metal and grindcore albums in the United States alone. Choosing Death, featuring an introduction by John Peel, conquers the lofty task of telling the two-decade-long history of this underground art form through the eyes and ringing ears of the artists, producers, and label owners–past and present–who propelled the movements. Views: 51
This Halcyon Classics ebook contains twenty-five novels from the pulp era and the Golden Age of Science Fiction, spanning the 1930s to the 1960s. A few earlier important works, like THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON and MIZORA, are also included.Many of the masters of science fiction are here, including works by Leigh Brackett, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ray Cummings, Raymond Z. Gallun, Randall Garrett, A. Merritt, Andre Norton, H. Beam Piper, Ayn Rand, and H.G. Wells.This ebook is DRM free and includes an active table of contents for easy navigation.contentsGULLIVER OF MARSBy Edwin L. ArnoldTHIS CROWDED EARTHBy Robert BlochTHE LANI PEOPLEBy J. F. BoneBLACK AMAZON OF MARSBy Leigh BrackettMIZORA: A PROPHECYBy Mary E. BradleyTHE COLORS OF SPACEBy Marion Zimmer BradleyTHE MIND MASTERBy Arthur J. BurksTHE MONSTER MENBy Edgar Rice BurroughsTHE ULTIMATE WEAPONBy John Wood CampbellWARLORD OF KORBy Terry CarrEIGHT KEYS TO EDENBy Mark Irvin CliftonTHE BEST MADE PLANSBy Everett B. ColeBRIGANDS OF THE MOONBy Ray CummingsPOLICE YOUR PLANETBy Lester del ReyTWO THOUSAND MILES BELOWBy Charles Willard DiffinPAGAN PASSIONSBy Randall GarrettTHE LORD OF DEATH AND THE QUEEN OF LIFEBy Homer Eon FlintTHE PLANET STRAPPERSBy Raymond Z. GallunOCCASION FOR DISASTERBy Randall GarrettTHE MOON POOLBy A. MerrittSTAR BORNBy Andre NortonLITTLE FUZZYBy H. Beam PiperANTHEMBy Ayn RandTHE FIRST MEN IN THE MOONBy H.G. WellsThis unexpurgated edition contains the complete text with errors and omissions corrected. Views: 51
Samakri, an alien from Planet Zebda, can't feel human emotions--that is, until she meets Lionel Davidson, a human teenager who soon falls victim to her foreign touch. But, will Lionel be able to forgive Samakri for her dark past? Views: 51
