Born the son of slaves in America’s Deep South, he escaped the stifling racism of his native land to pursue a dream of freedom, wealth and personal happiness that took him from Brussels to Monte Carlo, and from Moscow to Constantinople. Embracing triumph and tragedy and spanning continents, wars and revolution, his life story is as colourful as it is improbable. He is the ‘Black Russian’. Frederick Bruce Thomas was born in 1872 to former slaves who had become prosperous farmers in Mississippi. When his father was brutally murdered, the teenaged Frederick fled the Deep South and headed for New York City, where he worked as a waiter and valet. Deploying charm, charisma and cunning, he emigrated to Europe, criss-crossing that continent to find employment as a multilingual waiter in locations as diverse as London and Leipzig, Venice and Vienna, before settling in Moscow in 1899. There he married twice, acquired a mistress, and became one of that city’s richest and most fêted restaurateurs and nightclub impresarios. But then came the shock of the Bolshevik Revolution. Frederick and his family were forced to flee Russia for Constantinople, where, ever resourceful, he reinvented himself afresh, opening nightclubs that introduced jazz to Turkey. However, Frederick’s luck was finally running out: the long arm of American racism and his own extravagance landed him in a debtor’s prison in 1927, after which death came swiftly. Written with a novelist’s verve, The Black Russian is both the extraordinary story of the most engaging and unexpected of heroes, and a meticulously researched and richly characterized tour of the changing political and cultural landscape of the early twentieth century. Views: 71
The classic real-life story of the superspy whose vast intelligence network helped defeat the Nazis in World War II.A Man Called Intrepid is the account of the world's first integrated intelligence operation and of its master, William Stephenson. Codenamed INTREPID by Winston Churchill, Stephenson was charged with establishing—and running—a vast, worldwide intelligence network to challenge the terrifying force of Nazi Germany. Nothing less than the fate of Britain and the free world hung in the balance as INTREPID covertly set about stalling the Nazis by any means necessary.First published in 1976, A Man Called Intrepid was an immediate bestseller. With over thirty black-and-white photographs and countless World War II secrets, this book revealed startling information that had remained buried for decades. Detailing the infamous Camp X" training center in Ontario, Canada; the miraculous breaking of the Ultra Code used by the Enigma... Views: 71
AXE chief David Hawk has a brilliant plan to lure one of the agency's most dangerous enemies out of Russia, and into Nick Carter's hands. Nikolai Kobelev has been the diabolical foe in some of agent N3's most perilous cases and N3 has to stop him before he hatches another fiendish plot.
With a dead ringer for Kobelev's beautiful daughter as bait, it seems the KGB killer is as good as caught… until the tables are suddenly turned, and Nick finds himself locked in a deadly struggle to save two gorgeous American espionage agents-and himself — from certain death. Views: 70
A gripping unpublished diary from the bestselling diarist and biographer, covering Italy's descent into warIris Origo, one of the twentieth century's great diarists, was born in England in 1902. As a child, she moved between England, Ireland, Italy and America, never quite belonging anywhere. It was only when she married an Italian man that she came to rest in one country. Fifteen years later, that country would be at war with her own.With piercing insight, Origo documents the grim absurdities that her adopted Italy underwent as war became more and more unavoidable. Connected to everyone, from the peasants on her estate to the US ambassador, she writes of the turmoil, the danger, and the dreadful bleakness of Italy in 1939-1940.Published for the first time, A Chill in the Air is the account of the awful inevitability of Italy's stumble into a conflict for which its people were ill prepared. With an introduction by Lucy Hughes-Hallett, the... Views: 70
Emily Dickinson, probably the most loved and certainly the greatest of American poets, continues to be seen as the most elusive. One reason she has become a timeless icon of mystery for many readers is that her developmental phases have not been clarified. In this exhaustively researched biography, Alfred Habegger presents the first thorough account of Dickinson's growth--a richly contextualized story of genius in the process of formation and then in the act of overwhelming production.Building on the work of former and contemporary scholars, My Wars Are Laid Away in Books brings to light a wide range of new material from legal archives, congregational records, contemporary women's writing, and previously unpublished fragments of Dickinson's own letters. Habegger discovers the best available answers to the pressing questions about the poet: Was she lesbian? Who was the person she evidently loved? Why did she refuse to publish and why was this refusal so... Views: 70
Celebrity stylist and fashion icon Brad Goreski takes readers inside his whirlwind life, from his small-town Canadian roots to his worldwide successes, sharing a wealth of style tips, tricks, and photos along the way to help every reader look and feel their absolute best. Fans of The Rachel Zoe Project and It's a Brad, Brad World already know that there's no one on reality TV more fearless or savvy when it comes to style. But Born to Be Brad gives the world its first behind-the-scenes look at how Brad became the stylist he is. This is not just a how-to style book. It's a sublimely written, riveting life story with the power to take you to the top of your fashion game—right along with Brad. Views: 70
Letters from the Front: From the First World War to the Present Day Views: 70
Four future AFL stars under one roof!? Go back to where it all began with THE SELWOOD BOYS ... In the Selwood house, there's madness and mayhem every day - and footy, of course! Meet the Selwood boys ... There's the twins, Troy and Adam, pulling pranks and making mischief, then Joel with his sneaky, cheeky antics, and finally little Scott, who just does his best (or make that his worst!) to keep up. Can Joel finally get off the sidelines and onto the footy field to play with his big brothers? It'll be a battle royale that's bound to involve the whole family! Ages 7-12 PRAISE 'the perfect suggestion for readers of Specky Magee ... a fantastic tale for all young readers, aged seven and up, with a love for the game.' Books+Publishing, Four stars Views: 70
“Not just a terrific read, but an important life to have on the national record.” – George Negus“A riveting investigation of one of our richest businessmen, biggest philanthropists and greatest fast-talkers.” – Laura Tingle Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest is the public face of Australia’s once-in-a-lifetime mining boom. A swashbuckling entrepreneur in the finest West Australian tradition, Twiggy took on mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto at their own game – and won. Yet he has also been embroiled in two of the most heated debates in recent Australian history: over the treatment of Aboriginal people and the mining super-profits tax. In this unauthorised biography, Andrew Burrell traces Twiggy’s business triumphs and disasters to reveal the complicated man behind the myth. Why do his mining ventures attract so much controversy? And what do his philanthropic schemes tell us about him and his plans for the future? It takes extraordinary force of will, combined with boundless energy and cunning, to create enterprises on such a mammoth scale. With the value of iron ore now integral to the health of the federal budget, Twiggy’s business affects all Australians. This entertaining book gives a unique insight into one of the most powerful men in Australia today. “Burrell’s Forrest is the epitome, some would say a caricature, of the Australian self-styled capitalist risk-taker, utterly convinced that ‘what’s good for Twiggy is good for the country!’ But what if it’s not? He didn’t cooperate with the author, but Twiggy should read Twiggy. He might learn something about his methods, about his unapologetically mercenary manner and motivation, indeed about himself – the good, the bad and the ugly. Not just a terrific read, but an important life to have on the national record.” – George NegusAndrew Burrell has been a journalist for twenty years, covering business and politics in Australia, South-East Asia and China. He worked for the Australian Financial Review in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth before being posted as a correspondent to Jakarta and Shanghai. Andrew is currently a senior business journalist for the Australian in Perth, where he has covered the WA mining boom since 2006. He won the business prize at the West Australian media awards in 2006 and 2009. Views: 70
