F. W. Walbank was Rathbone Professor of Ancient History and Classical Archaeology at the University of Liverpool and a Fellow of the British Academy.

Tony Kitous arrived in London for the first time on August 6, 1988, aged 18, he spent his 1st night sleeping in Victoria coach station and spent the next fortnight living off chocolate. The self-styled Algerian “street boy” had just ?70 in his pocket and was meant to be on a holiday with a school friend. More than 29 years later, the now hugely successful owner of the Comptoir Libanais canteen and delicatessen chain has 24 branches in and London and around the UK, employing around 1000 staff. They are part of an empire which also encompasses three Shawa - Lebanese grill outlets, as well as prestige restaurants such as Levant on Wigmore Street and Kenza in the city of London.

MARCUS WAREING is one of the most respected and acclaimed chefs and restaurateurs in Britain today. Originally from Southport, Merseyside, Marcus began his career at the age of 16. An incredible talent, he started acquiring Michelin stars aged just 26 – one of only a handful of chefs to be recognised at such a young age. Over the last 30 years Marcus has been involved in the creation of many of London’s most iconic and celebrated restaurants, including his own restaurant group, Marcus Wareing Restaurants, which he founded in 2008. With two Michelin stars at his flagship restaurant, Marcus, in the Berkeley Hotel, he also owns and operates two other London restaurants, The Gilbert Scott and Tredwell’s.Alongside his Michelin stars, Marcus has also won numerous coveted awards. These include the Acorn Award, Chef of the Year with Caterer and Hotelkeeper, Tatler Restaurateur of the Year and GQ Chef of the Year. A familiar face on our TV screens, Marcus took on the new role as judge on MasterChef:The Professionals in 2014. Marcus lives in London with his wife and three children.

Nigel Slater is the author of a collection of best-selling books and presenter of BBC 1's Eating Together, Simple Cooking and Dish of the Day. He has been food columnist for The Observer for over twenty years. His books include the classics Appetite and The Kitchen Diaries and the critically acclaimed two-volume Tender. His award-winning memoir Toast – the Story of a Boy's Hunger won six major awards and is now a BBC film starring Helena Bonham Carter and Freddie Highmore. His writing has won the National Book Awards, the Glenfiddich Trophy, the André Simon Memorial Prize and the British Biography of the Year. He was the winner of a Guild of Food Writers' Award for his BBC 1 series Simple Suppers.

Maya Jasanoff is Coolidge Professor of history at Harvard University. Her first book, Edge of Empire, was awarded the 2005 Duff Cooper Prize and was a book of the year selection in numerous publications including the Economist, Guardian and Sunday Times. Her second, Liberty’s Exiles was shortlisted for the 2011 Samuel Johnson Prize (now Baillie Gifford). A 2013 Guggenheim Fellow, Jasanoff won the prestigious 2017 Windham-Campbell Prize for Non-Fiction. Her essays and reviews appear frequently in publications including The Guardian, The New York Times, and The New York Review of Books.

‘Urgently needed – rugs.’ That was the message that started everything. I was searching online for second-hand furniture, when I came across the plea for help. It was a Wanted ad placed by a woman who sounded desperate. I emailed her and was heartbroken by what I learned. She needed the rugs to cover her broken floor so her young children wouldn’t cut their feet. She was a single mum who had fled a horrifying domestic situation and was starting all over again with nothing. I wanted to help her, and I was sure that if others knew about her, they would want to help, too. So I spread the word among my friends and family, and household goods soon started pouring in.I delivered everything to her one afternoon – piles of bedding, furniture, kitchenware, clothing, toys and some gift vouchers. I will never forget the look on her face when she opened the door. She was in complete shock that people she didn’t even know would be willing to help her. This was a woman very much in need of kindness, and strangers helped her feel loved when she needed it the most.

Sue Belfrage lives in a cottage in rural Somerset with her husband and pet animals. A writer and artist, she draws inspiration from the land around her.

Erin Niimi Longhurst has always treasured the Japanese traditions that shaped her upbringing. She spends time in Japan every year and currently lives in London. Her blog Island Bell focuses on food travel and lifestyle. She currently works freelance as a digital marketeer.

Mark Reynolds is a freelance writer and designer. A lifelong Aston Villa fan, he still believes the current Stoke City manager is God.

The diversity of dogs is enormous. In height, they range from the gigantic Irish Wolfhound to the tiny Yorkshire Terrier. They include both the massive Newfoundland, weighing as much as a full-grown man, and the Chihuahua which, at 1 kg/2 lb in weight, is the smallest breed of dog in the world. Their coats vary too, from the smooth satin of the Boxer to the silky plumes of the Maltese and the long ‘cords’ of the Hungarian Komondor. At the other extreme, the warm, smooth-skinned Mexican Hairless Dog is almost completely bald.

Mongolian gerbils have been kept as pets in Britain only since 1964. The first breeding pairs arrived in that year, intended as laboratory animals, but their qualities as delightful pets soon became obvious. They rapidly became established as one of the most successful pets ever introduced into this country, especially for families living in homes which are not suitable for larger animals.

After service as a Royal Marine and as an intelligence officer for the UK security services, Paddy Ashdown was a Member of Parliament for Yeovil from 1983 to 2001, and leader of the Liberal Democrats from 1988 until 1999. Later he was the international High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2002 to 2006. He was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George in 2006.

One of the greatest science fiction and fantasy writers of all time, Ray Bradbury was born in Waukegan, Illinois, in 1920. He moved with his family to Los Angeles in 1934. Since his first story appeared in Weird Tales when he was twenty years old, he published some 500 short stories, novels, plays, scripts and poems. Among his many famous works are Fahrenheit 451, The Illustrated Man and The Martian Chronicles. Ray Bradbury died in 2012 at the age of 91.

Five miles from the coast at Arromanches, in the gently shelving valley of the River Aure, lies the historic Norman town of Bayeux. From a distance the medieval cathedral emerges first into view, a faint impression of towers and spires, which gradually falls into sharper perspective as you approach the fringes of the town. War has touched Bayeux, but not scarred it. A ring road circumscribes the old centre, like a protective wall, and within its confines lies a network of shadowy streets and old stone buildings; and here and there the late-medieval frontage of a half-timbered house protrudes into the sunlight, as if it had emerged unwittingly out of the past into the present. At the centre of the town rises the enormous cathedral, a Gothic masterpiece built upon a Romanesque shell, its stark western towers, completed in the days of William the Conqueror, still soaring above the family of little houses gathered closely around its base. But it is not the cathedral, remarkable as it is, that every year draws half a million visitors to Bayeux. They come to see one of the most famous, intricate and mysterious works of art that has ever been made. Signs directing you to this masterpiece are dotted around the centre of the town. They are marked with a single descriptive word, in French and in English: ‘Tapisserie. Tapestry’. Here, in Bayeux, anything else would be redundant.

It is 09.48 on a sunny Saturday; the scene of a typical club fourball, almost anywhere in the world. On the first tee, Doug and Brian have been loitering around for four or five minutes, swishing the odd club and talking sotto voce about share prices. With one eye on the clock, as their starting time is 09.50 (where on earth are Matt and Bob?) they are also wondering if they will finish the round in time for a leisurely drink. The ritual session at the nineteenth is indispensable for all.The ‘early birds’, an assorted bunch of club members who tee off often at first light (possibly because wives demand they are back in “reasonable” time for shopping, visits or even gardening) are well over the horizon. Moodily they watch the four in front criss-crossing the fairway in the mid-foreground at an agonisingly slow amble.

From a very young age Julian Holland has had a fascination with railways. He is a writer and photographer on many railway books, including the highly acclaimed and award winning The Times Mapping the Railways (2011), Exploring Britain’s Lost Railways (2013) and Great Railway Journeys of the World (HarperCollins, 2014). As well as being passionate about train travel, Julian is a leading commentator in the media on railways.

The Little Prince [Le Petit Prince], is a novella and the most famous work of the French aristocrat, writer, poet and pioneering aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (1900–1944). The novella is both the most-read and most-translated book in the French language, and was voted the best book of the 20th century in France. After the outbreak of the Second World War Saint-Exupéry became exiled in North America. In the midst of personal upheavals and failing health, he produced almost half of the writings for which he would be remembered, including a tender tale of loneliness, friendship, love and loss, in the form of a young prince fallen to Earth. An earlier memoir by the author had recounted his aviation experiences in the Sahara Desert, and he is thought to have drawn on those same experiences in The Little Prince. Since its first publication in the United States, the novella has been adapted to numerous art forms and media, including audio recordings, radio plays, live stage, film screen, television, ballet, and operatic works. ? ?The Little Prince is a poetic tale, with watercolour illustrations by the author, in which a pilot stranded in the desert meets a young prince fallen to Earth from a tiny asteroid. The story is philosophical and includes social criticism, remarking on the strangeness of the adult world. It was written during a period when Saint-Exupéry fled to North America subsequent to the Fall of France during the Second World War, witnessed first hand by the author and captured in his memoir Flight to Arras. The adult fable, according to one review, is actually "...an allegory of Saint-Exupéry's own life--his search for childhood certainties and interior peace, his mysticism, his belief in human courage and brotherhood.... but also an allusion to the tortured nature of their relationship." ? ?Though ostensibly styled as a children's book, The Little Prince makes several observations about life and human nature. For example, Saint-Exupéry tells of a fox meeting the young prince during his travels on Earth. The story's essence is contained in the lines uttered by the fox to the little prince: On ne voit bien qu'avec le c?ur. L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux. ("One sees clearly only with the heart. What is essential is invisible to the eyes.") Other key thematic messages are articulated by the fox, such as: Tu deviens responsable pour toujours de ce que tu as apprivoisé. ("You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.") and C'est le temps que tu as perdu pour ta rose qui fait ta rose si importante. ("It is the time you have lost for your rose that makes your rose so important.") The fox's messages are arguably the book's most famous quotations because they deal with human relationships. ABOUT AUTHOR: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, officially Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger, comte de Saint Exupéry (29 June 1900 – 31 July 1944) was a French aristocrat, writer, poet, and pioneering aviator. He became a laureate of several of France's highest literary awards and also won the U.S. National Book Award. He is best remembered for his novella The Little Prince (Le Petit Prince) and for his lyrical aviation writings, including Wind, Sand and Stars and Night Flight Saint-Exupéry was a successful commercial pilot before World War II, working airmail routes in Europe, Africa and South America. At the outbreak of war, he joined the French Air Force (Armée de l'Air), flying reconnaissance missions until France's armistice with Germany in 1940. After being demobilised from the French Air Force, he travelled to the United States to persuade its government to enter the war against Nazi Germany. Following a 27-month hiatus in North America, during which he wrote three of his most important works, he joined the Free French Air Force in North Africa, although he was far past the maximum age for such pilots and in declining health. He disappeared over the Mediterranean on his last assigned reconnaissance mission in July 1944, and is believed to have died at that time.

About The Book It is a book about gender, race and media from a social science perspective. It is grounded in gender-role-acquisition theory, feminist theory and racial identity theory. It includes discussion of socialization forces other than media and chapters devoted to the coverage of women and minorities in various media and the experience of women and minorities working in media. The text is aimed at upper-level undergraduates and graduate students.

Lucrurile au fost dintotdeauna complicate ?ntre membrii familiilor Harte ?i Madison. Conflictul care i-a transformat ?n du?mani dureaz? de genera?ii ?ntregi. De?i se spune c? nunta lui Hannah Harte cu Rafe Madison va ?mbun?t??i situa?ia, la doar c?teva luni dup? fericitul eveniment, sora ei, Lilian, ?i fratele lui, Gabe, nu sunt deloc de aceea?i p?rere. Directorul executiv Gabe Madison a insistat s? devin? clientul agen?iei de matrimoniale a lui Lillian Harte, pentru a-?i g?si sufletul pereche. Dar Lilian ajunge rapid la cap?tul r?bd?rii, dup? ce cinci ?nt?lniri pe care i le aranjeaz? lui Gabe se dovedesc a fi ni?te e?ecuri r?sun?toare. Dac? nu s-ar fi hot?r?t deja s?-?i ?nchid? afacerea ?i s? se mute acas?, ?n Eclipse Bay, pentru a se dedica pasiunii sale de a picta, Gabe ar fi f?cut-o cu siguran?? s? se decid? rapid. C?nd ?ns? Lilian c?nd se treze?te cu el ?n pragul u?ii, cer?ndu-i s?-?i respecte contractul semnat, sc?nteile dintre ei se transform? brusc ?n atrac?ie necontrolat?. ?nc? o dat?, Eclipse Bay va fi martorul unui spectacol fascinant – dintre un Madison ?nc?p???nat ?i o irezistibil? reprezentant? a familiei Harte…

A plecat din Paris s? se uite pe sine. Dragostea pe care o va ?nt?lni va schimba totul.Povestea lui Diane ?ncepe ?n mod brutal cu moartea so?ului ?i a feti?ei sale, eveniment care o arunc? ?n cea mai cumplit? depresie. Totul se opre?te ?n loc, ?n afar? de inima ei, care continu? s? bat?. Cu ?nc?p???nare. Dureros. Zadarnic.C?nd cel mai bun prieten ?i asociat ?n mica afacere cu o cafenea literar? la Paris, Felix, ?i propune o c?l?torie ca ?nceput pentru o nou? via??, Diane alege s? ?ndeplineasc? o mai veche dorin?? a fostului ei so? ?i se refugiaz? departe de lume, ?ntr-o mic? a?ezare din Irlanda.O ?nt?lnire nea?teptat? cu un b?rbat taciturn o face pe Diane s? vad? din nou lumea cu ?ncredere ?i cu for?? reg?sit?.?Aceast? poveste despre ?mp?carea cu sine con?ine dialoguri conving?toare ?i e spus? ?ntr-un stil simplu, nepreten?ios, av?nd chiar ?i accente de umor.“ – Le ParisienProfund ?i emo?ionant, romanul lui Agnès Martin-Lugand sondeaz? cu luciditate cea mai cumplit? tragedie din via?a unui om. O carte care te marcheaz?.“ – Susan Wiggs??n ?ntuneric, am mers pe urmele lor, ?n ?nc?perea ?n care ne reuneam. Colin venea spre mine, eu ?i desf?ceam cravata, el m? s?ruta, Clara ne desp?r?ea, cinam, Colin o culca pe fiica noastr?, dup? care r?m?neam am?ndoi, cu siguran?a de a o ?ti pe Clara la c?ldur? ?n patul ei, cu degetul mare ?n gur?.Am realizat c? apartamentul nostru nu mai exista, ?mi dorisem s? r?m?n acolo ca s? p?strez totul neatins, dar gre?isem. Nu mai erau dosare, zgomotul cheii ?n u??, alerg?turi pe parchet. Nu aveam s? mai revin niciodat? aici.“

O reputa?ie nep?tat? sau dragostea adev?rat?? Alegerea nu a fost niciodat? mai dificil?... R?mas? f?r? nici un venit – al?turi de familia sa care este pe cale s?-?i piard? c?minul din pricina datoriilor ?i icircntr-o stare de disperare crunt?, Kelsey Langton icirc?i d? seama c? doar l?sacircndu-se vacircndut? la o licita?ie poate salva viitorul surorii sale. Astfel, nobila macircndr? ?i dezn?d?jduit? intr? renumita Cas? a lui Eros, resemn acircndu-se s? devin? juc?ria favorit? a unui lord icircnst?rit ?i s? fie la dispozi?ia lui cacirc;t timp acesta avea s-o doreasc? iar Lord Derek Malory este b?rbatul care ofer? suma cea mai mare pentru a deveni unicul proprietar al farmecelor lui Kelsey. Un crai chipe? ?i un renumit burlac convins, Derek o atrage icircn curacirc nd pe senzuala ?i inocenta fecioar? icirc;ntr-o lume de pl?ceri neb?nuite ?i de rivalit??i primejdioase. ?i, ca vreunul din ei s?-?i fi propus, gra?ia, inteligen?a ?i frumuse?ea ei icircl ispitesc pe noul st?pacircn s? renun?e la via?a de huzur ?i pierzanie ?i s? parieze tot ce are pe dragostea adev?rat?.