It was a winter night, and the ground around Paris was covered with snow, although the flakes had ceased to fall since some hours.?Spite of the cold and the darkness, a young man, wrapped in a mantle so voluminous as to hide a babe in his arms, strode over the white fields out of the town of Villers Cotterets, in the woods, eighteen leagues from the capital, which he had reached by the stage-coach, towards a hamlet called Haramont. His assured step seemed to indicate that he had previously gone this road.?Soon above him streaked the leafless boughs upon the grey sky. The sharp air, the odor of the oaks, the icicles and beads on the tips of branches, all appealed to the poetry in the wanderer.??Through the clumps he looked for the village spire and the blue smoke of the chimneys, filtering from the cottages through the natural trellis of the limbs.?It was dawn when he crossed a brook, bordered with yellow cress and frozen vines, and at the first hovel asked for the laborer's boy to take him to Madeline Pi-tou's home.??Mute and attentive, not so dull as most of their kind, the children sprang up and staring at the stranger, led him by the hand to a rather large and good-looking cottage, on the bank of the rivulet running by most of the dwellings.?A plank served as a bridge.?"There," said one of the guides nodding his head to-wards it.?Gilbert gave them a coin, which made their eyes open still more widely, and crossed the board to the door which he pushed open, while the children, taking one another's hand, started with all their might at the handsome gentleman in a brown cloth coat, buckled shoes and large cloak, who wanted to find Madeline Pitou.?Apart from them, Gilbert, for such was the young man's name, simply so for he had no other, saw no liv-ing things: Haramont was the deserted village he was seeking.??As soon as the door was open, his sight was struck by a scene full of charm, for almost anybody, and par-ticularly for a young philosopher like our roamer.?A robust peasant woman was suckling a baby, while another child, a sturdy boy of four or five, was saying a prayer in a loud voice.?In the chimney corner, near a window or rather a hole in the wall in which was stuck a pane of glass, an-other woman, going on for thirty-five or six, was spin-ning, with a stool under her feet, and a fat poodle on an end of this stool.?Catching sight of the visitor the dog barked in a civil and hospitable manner just to show that he had not been caught napping. The praying boy turned, cutting the devotional phrase in two, and both females uttered an exclamation between joy and surprise.?"I greet you, good mother Madeline," said Gilbert with a smile.

This is not a book about writing or innovation, arts or craft but a guide to being more creative and to applying the creative process to everything. Orna Ross, award-winning and best-selling novelist, and founder of the global non-profit self-publishing association, the Alliance of Independent Authors, has gathered extracts from a selection of her books -- novels, poems and the Go Creative! series into this anthology of inspirations, aimed at helping you to be more creative in everything you do. Ranging widely across her work, this anthology is at once a memoir, a meditation on the creative process, and an eloquent companion to living life as a conscious creator: a creativist. At its core is the concept of creativism, the art of creating more of what you truly want in your life and less of what you don’t. Through a blend of stories from lore and literature, from science and psychology, from her students and from her own life, Orna offers enduring wisdoms about creative practice as it applies to life, love and the pursuit of happiness -- including how to foster flow, overcome self-sabotage and enjoy true creative living. Chapters include: "The Seven Stages of The Creative Process"; "How To Create Anything" and "Where The Law of Attraction Goes Wrong” but what makes this volume unique is the stories and poems. Extracts from Orna's novels illustrate creative principles in action in the lives of her characters. And inspirational poems ignite the state of creative presence as you read. The combination of ancient wisdoms and up-to-date creative research equips you for the creative age in which we now live. Guaranteed to inspire and ignite your own creative spark, this compendium is also an excellent introduction to the Go Creative! series, as well as a practical guide to being more creative at work, at home and in everything you do.

A fantastic resource for students and lovers of opera. This book contains a wealth of information about the works of the greatest opera composers. Includes information on the composers themselves, as well as discussions of the music and plot of the operas. Composers include Beethoven, Bizet, Mozart, Verdi, Wagner and many more.

Are you the world's biggest Cheryl Cole fan? Or do you want to know everything there is to know about the singer, X Factor judge and former member of Girls Aloud? If so, then this is the book for you! Contained within are 101 amazing facts about everything, from her upbringing to her huge success both in a girl band and as a solo artist plus much more. The book is easily organised into sections so you can find the information you want fast and is perfect for all ages!

Are you the world's biggest Arctic Monkeys fan? Or do you want to know everything there is to know about one of the biggest bands of the era?If so, then this is the book for you! Contained within are more than one hundred amazing facts about everything, from how the band got started in the music industry to their success in multiple awards ceremonies and much more. The book is easily organised into sections so you can find the information you want fast and is perfect for all ages!

Did you know that in medieval times dogs were known to have accompanied their masters into battle wearing suits of armour? Or that the Rhodesian Ridgeback was first bred to fight lions? This fantastic quick-read eBook featured over one hundred facts about dogs split into categories such as evolution, health, behaviour, record breakers and many more. So if you want to know who the heaviest dog ever to have lived was, or what the wagometer was invented for, then this is the book for you! Find the information you want, fast.

Are you the world's biggest One Direction fan? Do you know more than any other Directioner out there? Or do you want to learn some fantastic new facts about the biggest and most successful boy band of all time?If so, then this is the book for you! Contained within are more than one hundred amazing facts about everything, from how the boys got started in the music industry to their relationships, closely-kept secrets, media controversies and much more. The book is easily organised into sections so you can find the information you want fast and is perfect for all ages!

For those who just can't get enough of the Kardashians and the Jenners, this is the perfect book for you! With over one hundred facts about not just Kendall and Kylie but the rest of the Klan as well - including their father Bruce's transition into a woman - this is a great read which you can pick up and put down at your leisure. If you enjoy spending time reading the latest celebrity gossip, you'll love finding out even more about the legendary sisters, their family, fashion, fun facts and shocking moments! Easily organised into sections so you can find the information you want fast, this is an unmissable addition to any fan's bookshelf.

Are you the world's biggest Lionel Richie fan? Or do you want to find out everything there is to know about the former Commodores lead vocalist and one of the world's best-loved singer-songwriters? If so, then this is the book for you! Contained within are 101 amazing facts about how Lionel got started in the music industry, the numerous awards he has won, his family and much, much more. The book is easily organised into sections so you can find the information you want fast and is the perfect addition to any fan's bookshelf.

Did you know that the Latin name for the tree from which we get the seed that we turn into chocolate translates as 'Food of the Gods'? Or that eating chocolate can in fact help prevent tooth decay? Separated into sections such as chocolate through history, chocolate around the world, the production process and more, this interesting read contains over one hundred facts. Whether you are a complete chocoholic or you just want to learn more about a hugely fascinating subject then this is the book for you.

Between the years of 1586 and 1592 there is very little historical information on the life of William Shakespeare. This work tries to fill in that gap, although it does, like many other works on the subject, delve quite a bit into invention and conjecture.

Pointless conversations: a selection of daft, ridiculous and utterly pointless meanderings from the mind of Scott Tierney. If you've ever wanted to know the answers to why Superman is a coward; why Spiderman should technically be deformed; and if Superdog caused the death of Krypton, then these bite-sized comics will reveal all. The discussions may be insane, and most of what is said is rambling, but despite this, you may find yourself agreeing with most of what is said. It's a fair point: where does Spiderman store all that web?

The Renaissance,' a word which means being born again, or a new awakening, when men began to draw real pictures of real things and fill the world with images of beauty.Now it is the stories of the men of that time, who put new life into Art, that I am going to tell you--men who learned, step by step, to paint the most beautiful pictures that the world possesses.In telling these stories I have been helped by an old book called The Lives of the Painters, by Giorgio Vasari, who was himself a painter. He took great delight in gathering together all the stories about these artists and writing them down with loving care, so that he shows us real living men, and not merely great names by which the famous pictures are known. It did not make much difference to us when we were little children whether our pictures were good or bad, as long as the colours were bright and we knew what they meant. But as we grow older and wiser our eyes grow wiser too, and we learn to know what is good and what is poor. Only, just as our tongues must be trained to speak, our hands to work, and our ears to love good music, so our eyes must be taught to see what is beautiful, or we may perhaps pass it carelessly by, and lose a great joy which might be ours.So now if you learn something about these great artists and their wonderful pictures, it will help your eyes to grow wise. And some day should you visit sunny Italy, where these men lived and worked, you will feel that they are quite old friends. Their pictures will not only be a delight to your eyes, but will teach your heart something deeper and more wonderful than any words can explain.

A comprehensive guide to one of the greatest composers in history, Franz Joseph Haydn. This book covers the whole of Haydn's life and works.

Did you know that President Theodore Roosevelt had a guinea pig called Fighting Bob Evans along with many other hilariously named pets? Were you aware that a certain Brazilian Emperor didn't oppose a military coup because he no longer enjoyed his job? Brought to you by renowned trivia historians Jack Goldstein and Jimmy Russell, this eBook is full of facts that will make you laugh, gasp in amazement and possibly blow your mind. Find out what percentage of the world's wood is used just by IKEA, the unusual job Sylvester Stallone once had, who wrote the world's first knock-knock joke and much, much more.

The A-Z of Atari 2600 Games: Volume 3 features reviews of three different games for each letter of the alphabet. The games range from the very earliest releases in the 70s to the modern homebrew games of today. This book shows you just how diverse the library of titles is for the Atari 2600 and how it became one of the best selling consoles of all time.

Are you the world's biggest Rod Stewart fan? Or do you want to find out everything there is to know about one of the world's best-loved singers?If so, then this is the book for you! Contained within are 101 amazing facts about how Rod got started in the music industry, the numerous awards he has won, the beautiful women he has dated, plus many more. The book is easily organised into sections so you can find the information you want fast!

Are you the world's biggest Ed Sheeran fan? Or do you want to know everything there is to know about one of the most talented singer-songwriters of a generation?If so, then this is the book for you! Contained within are 101 amazing facts about everything, from how Ed got started in the music industry to his many tattoos, collaborations with other artists and much more. The book is easily organised into sections so you can find the information you want fast and is perfect for all ages!

Pointless conversations: a selection of daft, ridiculous and utterly pointless meanderings from the mind of Scott Tierney. If you've ever wanted to know the answers to why Superman is a coward; why Spiderman should technically be deformed; and if Superdog caused the death of Krypton, then these bite-sized comics will reveal all. The discussions may be insane, and most of what is said is rambling, but despite this, you may find yourself agreeing with most of what is said. It's a fair point: where does Spiderman store all that web?

The private letters to friends and family of one of history's greatest musical minds, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. A wonderful look into the personal life of the great composer.Translated into English and with full notes on names and phrases used in the letters.

Did you know that the dog who played Toto in The Wizard of Oz earned more money for the film than any of the munchkins did? Or that Jack Nicholson was considered for the role of Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs? If you enjoy going to the movies, you will love this book which contains over one hundred amazing facts about your favourite flicks. Organised into sections such as cameos, money, props and more, this is the perfect addition for any film fan's bookshelf.