"A beautifully written and definitive history of Baghdad...opening the doors to the old city and letting its secrets spill out." (Library Journal) The "golden age of Islam" in the eighth and ninth centuries was as significant to world history as the Roman Empire was in the first and second centuries. The rule of Baghdad's Abbasid Dynasty stretche...more
A masterful blend of Christian scholarship and thrilling adventure, The Last Cato is a novel about the race to find the secret location of the Vera Cruz, the True Cross on which Christ was crucified, and the ancient brotherhood sworn to protect it. Holy relics are disappearing from sacred spots around the world—and the Vatican will do whatever ...more
A detailed work of reference and scholarship, this one volume Encyclopedia includes discussions of all the fundamental issues in Tolkien scholarship written by the leading scholars in the field. Coverage not only presents the most recent scholarship on J. R. R. Tolkien, but also introduces and explores the author and scholar's life and work within ...more
Abundant, newly discovered sources shatter long-held beliefs The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 revealed, among many other things, a hidden wealth of archival documents relating to the imprisonment and eventual murder of Tsar Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra, and their children. Emanating from sources both within and close to the Imperi...more
Physicist and polymath, 'father of the atom bomb' J. Robert Oppenheimer became the most famous scientist of his generation. One of the iconic figures of the 20th century and the embodiment of modern scientific man's Faustian compact, Oppenheimer confronted the moral consequences of scientific progress. Already a notable young physicist before WWII,...more
Featuring extensive revisions to the text as well as a new introduction and epilogue--bringing the book completely up to date on the tumultuous politics of the previous decade and the long-term implications of the Soviet collapse--this compact, original, and engaging book offers the definitive account of one of the great historical events of the la...more
14.5 Million copies sold to date The classic, startling, and perennially bestselling portrait of human nature-now available as a Premium Edition with a stunning new cover and re-set, easy-to-read text.
Offering an abbreviated, accessible, and lively narrative history of the United States, this erudite volume contains the essential facts about the discovery, settlement, growth, and development of the American nation and its institutions. Robert V. Remini explores the arrival and migration of Native Americans throughout the Western Hemisphere and t...more
THE GREATEST FANTASY EPIC OF OUR TIMEBilbo Baggins was a hobbit who wanted to be left alone in quiet comfort. But the wizard Gandalf came along with a band of homeless dwarves. Soon Bilbo was drawn into their quest, facing evil orcs, savage wolves, giant spiders, and worse unknown dangers. Finally, it was Bilbo–alone and unaided–who had to conf...more