Design a complete workflow with Blender to create stunning 3D scenes and films step-by-step! About This Book Give life to a character within a full animated short film by learning the rigging and animation process Make use of the powerful tools available in Blender to produce professional-quality 3D characters and environments Discover advanced techniques by adding fur to a character, creating a grass field, and fine-tuning a shot with post-processing effects to enhance your creations Who This Book Is For This book will give any beginner the necessary skills and knowledge to create own 3D projects with Blender. You don't need to have any previous experience in 3D modeling, but if you do, then this book is a great way get you started with Blender. This book is for anyone who wants to learn Blender by creating concrete projects. What You Will Learn Understand the basics of 3D and how to navigate your way around the Blender interface Create a 3D robot toy model from start to finish using the basic modeling tools of Blender Make a full alien character using the skin mesh modifier and the sculpting tools with an artistic approach Use re-topology techniques to create a clean 3D version of the previously sculpted alien Model a full haunted house and its environment using more advanced modeling tools and techniques such as the Array Modifier, Instance duplication, or Curves Discover the power of the texture paint tool in order to add color to the haunted house Get to know the Cycles render engine by creating different materials for the house and the environment In Detail Blender is a powerful tool, stable, with an integral workflow that will allow you to understand your learning of 3D creation with serenity. Today, it is considered to be one of the most complete 3D packages on the market and it is free and open source! It is very efficient for many types of productions, such as 3D animated or live action films, architecture, research, or even game creation with its integrated game engine and its use of the Python language. Moreover, Blender has an active community that contributes to expanding its functionalities. Today, it is used in many professional products and by many companies. Through this book, you will create many types of concert projects using a step-by-step approach. You will start by getting to know the modeling tools available in Blender as you create a 3D robot toy. Then, you will discover more advanced techniques such as sculpting and re-topology by creating a funny alien character. After that, you will create a full haunted house scene. For the last project, you will create a short film featuring a rat cowboy shooting cheese in a rat trap! This will be a more complex project in which you learn how to rig, animate, compose advanced material, composite, and edit a full sequence. Each project in this book will give you more practice and increase your knowledge of the Blender tools. By the end of this book, you will master a workflow that you will be able to apply to your own creations. Style and approach This is an easy-to-follow book that is based on four concrete projects, with increasing levels of difficulty. Each chapter will teach you how to create these projects step-by-step. New tools and techniques are introduced in a theoretical and practical way, so you can apply them in your own projects later.

Master the skills you need to develop portable, highly-functional Android applications using NDK About This Book Develop portable games using Android NDK and debug them on your desktop Familiarise yourself with different popular C++ libraries on Android and use them in your games Write multi-threaded code with graphics, sound, networking, and resource storage Who This Book Is For If you want to leverage your C++ skills in mobile development and increase the performance of your Android applications, then this is the book for you. Knowledge of C or C++ is assumed, including pointer manipulation, multi-threading, object-oriented programming concepts, and the basics of C++11. It would be an added advantage if you know how to develop applications without any IDE. What You Will Learn Explore popular C++ libraries and use them on Android Write portable, multithreaded native networking code Create portable audio framework using OpenAL Implement portable rendering framework using OpenGL ES 3 Debug mobile applications on your desktop machine Access resources from APK archives Render text with FreeType In Detail Android NDK is used for multimedia applications that require direct access to system resources. NDK is also the key for portability, which in turn allows a reasonably comfortable development and debugging process using familiar tools such as GCC and Clang toolchains. This is a hands-on guide to extending your game development skills with Android NDK. The book takes you through many clear, step-by-step example applications to help you further explore the features of Android NDK and some popular C++ libraries and boost your productivity by debugging the development process. Through the course of this book, you will learn how to write portable multi-threaded native code, use HTTP networking in C++, play audio files, use OpenGL ES 3, and render high-quality text. Each chapter aims to take you one step closer to building your application. By the end of this book, you will be able to create an engaging, complete gaming application. Style and approach This book adopts a step-by-step approach and each chapter is based on the material from the previous ones. The book focuses on putting to your knowledge of C++ use while you develop Android applications of your own.

Although her father is the acclaimed Music Hall performer, Keegan Kenway, his young daughter, Isla, who is ethereally beautiful, is never allowed even to go near the Music Halls, which were not deemed suitable places for a lady to be seen at. Now that her mother is dead, her father is close to bankruptcy and so desperate for the proceeds of a benefit show that, when his co-star is taken ill, he is reluctantly forced to allow Isla to take her place for the evening and he sings his famous sons Champagne Charlie and It was only a dream. After a supremely successful performance when Isla and he are acclaimed by an enthusiastic audience, Keegan Kenway disappears to a late night party and Isla, declining the invitation, goes home alone, where the party’s host, Lord Polegate, arrives to inform her that her father has collapsed and is still unconscious. In her dismay and anxiety, Isla agrees to accompany the persistent Lord Polegate to his country house, where she gradually realises that his intentions are very much less than honourable and she flees his house in terror. Lost and alone, she flags down a passing carriage on the main road and, to her immense relief, she is saved by the handsome and kind Marquis of Longridge, whose superb house is nearby. And already Isla is falling in love – But is it real or is it only a dream?

Dejected and jobless like so many other Servicemen after the end of the Great War of 1914-18, Tybalt Hampton escapes a ball in Berkeley Square and meets a delightful young girl who has also sought refuge in the little Temple in the nearby gardens because no one has asked her to dance. It is too dark to make out her face, but in an enchanted moment they kiss in the moonlight and a nightingale sings in the trees above as if just for them. Two years later the beautiful Aleta Wayte, the recipient of that anonymous kiss, and her brother, Sir Harry Wayte, are forced to let their beloved ancestral mansion to a millionaire American called Cornelius Wardolf, disguising themselves as servants in their own home and at their tenant’s beck and call. Of noble birth but penniless, Aleta still dreams of that handsome stranger. So, when Fate in the form of a road accident brings him injured to her door, her hopes are raised and then instantly dashed. In her guise as a lowly servant how can she reveal herself as Tybalt Hampton is now the fifth Duke of Stadhampton and anyway, because of his impoverished estates, he has been earmarked by Cornelius Wardolf to marry his attractive daughter, Lucy-MayIs it possible that Fate could be so cruel as to bring love so close only to snatch it away?

To afford the food and medicine her ailing mother needs, the beautiful Honourable Olinda Selwyn, daughter of the late Lord Selwyn, former Lord Chief Justice of England, is obliged to conceal her background to take employment with the Dowager Countess of Kelvedon as an expert embroiderer at the family stately home in Derbyshire. Taken aback to find that the ageing but still beautiful Countess is having a love affair with a dissolute young rake, Olinda sympathises with her estranged son, the Earl, who despises his mother for her loose morals. Drawn reluctantly into the Kelvedon family’s tangle of bitterness and resentment, Olinda finds herself gently advising the Earl – or as he puts it, inspiring him. But just as the love she has only ever dreamt of seems almost within her grasp, Kelvedon is rocked by a sudden and suspicious death – and, incredibly, the man she loves with all her heart stands accused.

Handsome, noble Lord Alistair McDonon’s gay life, as a denizen of London’s Beau Monde far, far away from his Scottish roots, comes to a sudden and abrupt end. When the tragic news arrives that his two brothers have drowned at sea, he is summoned to Scotland by his estranged father not only to take up his title of the Marquis of Kildonon and position of heir to the Chieftainship of the Clan but also to marry, Lady Morag McNain, in order to unite their Clans, who have been at war with each other for centuries. Horrified, Lord Alistair hastily proposes to his current lover, Olive Beverley – only to be refused and it seems that he is doomed to a loveless marriage in the windswept and distant Highlands. Suddenly, though, everything changes when he overhears a delicately beautiful young woman, called Arina, desperately begging the heartless Olive for enough money to pay for her beloved mother’s life-saving operation. Alistair steps in to help Arina, asking in return only that she accompany him to Kildonon Castle pretending to be his wife. So now no one can force him to marry Lady Morag – but little does Lord Alistair know that his demure ‘young pretender’ will soon be laying an irrevocable claim to his heart!

The beautiful Cassandra Sherburn has everything a young lady could possibly desire. Slender, flame-haired and alabaster-skinned and the heiress to her father’s immense fortune, her father has promised her hand in marriage to the dashing young Marquis of Charlbury, heir to the ancestral home and estates of the Duke of Alchester and she believes that she is in love with him. And over the years she has collected newspaper cuttings about him and pasted them secretly into albums. Now the Marquis’s father has died and he has become the Duke of Alchester. Yet Cassandra is not happy. Not only has she not set eyes on her ‘fiancé’ since she was a child, she has heard from a number of different sources that he is penniless. Is it just her money that he wants to marryWorse still, rumour has it that he has eyes only for the glamorous and seductive performers at London’s notorious Gaiety Theatre. Determined to find out for herself where his heart lies, Cassandra ventures to London in the company only of her disagreeable lady’s maid. She disguises herself as one of the racy actresses the Duke so admires and enlists the help of the celebrated Lily Langtry in order to meet him incognito. But little does she know of the perils that await an innocent young woman alone among the rakes and roués of London’s glittering lights.

Against her cousin Jimmy’s earnest advice, the hot-headed but beautiful Skye Standish is determined to go off on an exciting adventure in the strife-torn South American country of Mariposa. Rebelling against her wealthy British background and the tiresome social world of New York, she ventures into the remote heartlands of Mariposa where she is kidnapped by the followers of a revolutionary known to everyone as El Diablo –The Devil! Although furious and insulted at her capture, Skye at first assumes that he simply wants a ransom for her, which she can easily have paid. But then he announces abruptly that she is to be his wife, willing or unwilling. It is not her money he wants, it is her humiliation! Imprisoned in his network of secret caves in the mountains, she plots her escape from his clutches and to go back to civilisation and her elegant yacht and twice fails and then she has to face El Diablo’s terrible wrath. And her hatred of this cruel man is now complete. Yet observing his devotion to his impoverished people, she uncovers another, almost gentlemanly, side of El Diablo and the ominous phrase on the lips of those who fear him – ‘the kiss of the Devil’– takes on a passionate new meaning for Skye.

When a dashing young gentleman runs into Wentmore Hall bleeding from his shoulder and crying, “Save me! Save me! If you cannot hide me, they will kill me!” the quick-witted beautiful young Novella Wentworth hides him in the secret passage that was used centuries ago by Catholic Priests escaping from the wrath of Queen Elizabeth and later the Royalists and the Cromwellians. The young man, Vale Chester, has been shot by Novella’s neighbour, Lord Grimstone, who demands to search the house for his quarry. Novella’s father, a General fighting in the Duke of Wellington’s Army in Spain, never liked Lord Grimstone, so she is naturally suspicious of him and his motives. And sure enough she finds that Vale Chester is a Government agent who suspects Lord Grimstone to be the leader of a smuggling gang landing French luxury goods illegally in England and therefore a traitor, as the English are at war with Napoleon Bonaparte. Taking Vale’s top secret coded message to the Secretary of State for War, Novella finds herself a part of the plan to capture Lord Grimstone and his gang of smugglers and a terrifying adventure begins. Now her own life, as well as Vale’s, is at stake and, as love blossoms in her heart, she finds that it is for his safety that she cares most.

When her father, a famous archaeologist, died, he left young Zaria Mansford with little other than debt, poverty, the memory of his bullying and a useful knowledge of archaeology and Arabic. She is close to starvation from lack of money and there is nothing that could help her make her lonely way in the world. But then to her amazement she is informed by her father’s Solicitors that she has inherited her rich aunt’s fortune, including a sumptuous yacht, The Enchantress. The yacht she is told has been chartered by a wealthy American for a voyage to Algeria and he needs an assistant with a knowledge of archaeology and Arabic as he intends to start excavating a Roman site close to the City of Algiers. Soon Zaria finds herself secretly taking the place of the young lady employed for the job and, after meeting in strange circumstances the handsome Chuck Tanner, who is in desperate need of her assistance and she then becomes embroiled in a maze of subterfuge and deceit. Before long Zaria realises that she has fallen deeply in love with Chuck and, caught between murderous gangsters, the Algerian Police and Arab rebels she fears for his life even more than for her own.

Iro and Iona, two little bears who are best friends, live deep in the forest and spend their days playing happily with all the other little animals. But Iro wants some adventure and so she decides to take her friend Iona and set off on a trip to the mysterious Silver Mountain that everyone is so afraid of. This is the story of what happens when two naughty little bears disobey their parents and get themselves into all sorts of sticky situations. The Silver Mountain is an exciting place full of mystery and we follow Iro and Iona on their adventures in a magical world where in the end, goodness and bravery win the day. A great bedtime story with gorgeous illustrations for children aged 4 to 8 years old.

This book offers a radical revision of modern economic theory. Its starting point is the existing body of both micro and macro economics, as developed in such textbooks as Economics by Begg, Fischer and Dornbusch and Positive Economics by Lipsey and Chrystal. Following a similar framework to these books, it adjusts the whole range of theory by introducing some new concepts and other earlier ones that have been much neglected in the economic thought of the past century. These are related especially to the fundamental part played by land, in it proper sense of all natural resources available on the earth, the significance of credit, especially through the banking system, and the crucial impact of the method of taxation. The resulting analysis yields a thoroughly revised version of the contemporary model of a capitalist economy, so that a genuine ‘third way’ is revealed. This is not a mere modification of the present system of absentee ownership confronting a market for labour, with all the attendant evils of unemployment, monopoly and maldistribution of wealth and income. Rather it is a system based upon natural law, exhibiting economic security for all, fair distribution of output and, above all, the opportunity for self-fulfillment through work. The ‘new model’ draws upon the masters of economic thought from Smith and Ricardo to Marshall, Schumpeter and Keynes, by highlighting concepts often omitted from current studies of their works; such as Ricardo’s analysis of scarcity and differential elements of rent, Schumpeter’s view of the role of banking and Keynes’s hints at a labour theory of value. Indeed this far-reaching revision makes bold advances upon the Marshallian theory of the firm and the Keynesian theory of national income determination, thus providing new insights into both micro and macro theory. It remains faithful, however to the tradition of these latter thinkers in explaining matters fully in words, and resorting to mathematics mainly through the use of diagrams intelligible to anyone with an elementary grasp of the subject. Whilst the book strives to avoid value judgements in the interests of social science, it undoubtedly carries strong implications about economic policy. These are bound up with the central notions of free land and free credit, which have been singularly ignored by policy-makers since a few valiant attempts to introduce them in the early twentieth century. Hence the ‘new model’ is offered to both theorists and practitioners of economics, to politicians and public servants, but particularly to those who, like the author, truly seek a new vision of the subject.

In the two and a half years since the first edition appeared (April 2005), events have unfolded as predicted. Then the consensus among forecasters was that the boom in house prices would cool to an annual 2 or 3% rise over the following years. In fact, in keeping with the ‘winner’s curse’ phase of the cycle described by the author, prices rose by more than 10% per annum in Britain. Harrison’s first book, The Power in the Land, predicted the early 1990s recession. Boom Bust, warned that investing in property is not always a safe bet, because the housing market is subject to a sharp downturn at the end of a remarkably regular 18-year cycle. The crash of 2007/8 occurred exactly as predicted. His forecast was based on a careful study of the evidence from property markets in many countries over the last 200 years. Gordon Brown’s claim, last made in his 2007 Budget speech, that ‘we will never return to the old boom and bust’ has been proved false. The reason for the instability, Harrison explains, is not the housing market itself but the land market on which all buildings stand. Land is in fixed supply ‘ as Mark Twain noted: ‘They’re not making any more of it’. Therefore, as the demand for land for new homes and offices rises with population growth and economic expansion, market forces, which normally increase supply to reduce prices, have the reverse effect: prices rise. This encourages speculation, with banks lending more against escalating asset values and reinforcing the upward spiral. Under existing government policies, the only way land prices can be brought back to affordable levels is a slump, undermining the banking system and causing widespread unemployment and repossessions. This is exactly what happened in America with the collapse of the sub-prime mortgage market. The run on Northern Rock showed the UK economy is not immune. The author reveals that the government’s monetary policy only has a marginal impact on land speculation, but as the Bank of England raises interest rates to curb house price inflation, the main victim is the first-time buyer and the productive economy, especially small businesses. The only way to neutralise the boom bust cycle in the housing market is through a reform of taxation, he claims. ‘This book is an important contribution to an overdue debate.’ Martin Ricketts, Chairman of the Academic Advisory Council of the Institute of Economic Affairs and Professor of Economic Organisation, University of Buckingham. Endorsing the thrust of Harrison’s argument, Prof. Ricketts goes on to acknowledge ‘that insufficient attention has been given by policymakers to the rent of land as socially the most efficient source of public revenue’, and that that will ‘have important practical consequences … for the stability of the economic system’. Economic stability is the objective of Gordon Brown and most governments around the world. Harrison explains how this may be achieved.

St Claire Bullock - a Professor of Philosophy, no less - in the intervals between pondering the great questions of life, turned his hand to penning light verse in the manner of Hilaire Belloc, Ogden Nash and Edward Lear. In rhyming couplets these wry and witty poems ponder the foibles and vanities of mortals. Some of these are captured in pen and ink drawings which caricature the subject of the poems. Each character is given an amusing name, beginning with Master Cecil Abercorn, through Clarence Castle, Serena Huff, The Marchioness of Mal de Mer, Major Houghton Reid and Thomas Tinkham Tattersall to Roland Washburn White. There are 70 poems in all of which 10 are illustrated. The illustration on the front cover relates to Rupert Ashe: 'The greatest pride of Rupert Ashe was his luxuriant moustache. He took great care to keep it groomed, And even, with restraint, perfumed. He brushed it upward every day, and it made such a grand display, that people who were not the wiser, imagined that he was the Kaiser.'

The Marquis of Stowe is on the verge of a dreadful scandal that threatens to ruin both him and the lovely, but married, Lady Burnham. Knowing that their secret is out and that her husband will be plotting revenge, the Marquis casts about desperately for a way to avoid the scandal, which he knows is inevitable despite the wealth and good looks that have made him a darling of the Beau Monde. Seeing a perfect solution, he decides to offer marriage to the Duke of Dawlish’s daughter and leaves for the country. Surely the Duke will be grateful for his daughter to make such a matchThere is only one problem – marrying the Duke’s daughter might provide a way out of his current dilemma, but having met her the Marquis is dismayed by her dullness. Horrified at the sacrifice he would have to make, he suddenly realises that there is another way to put the cuckolded husband off the scent and preserve his freedom – as long as he can find a young woman happy to go along with his seemingly foolproof idea. Eager to renew his acquaintance with Ajanta Tiverton, the beautiful daughter of a local Vicar, the Marquis hurtles to the Vicarage to tell her his plan and the role that only she can play. Certain that this will get him out of immediate danger and sure that he can offer an attractive financial incentive to help the impoverished family, it seems that if their daring charade is successful everyone involved will benefit. All Ajanta has to do is play her part and all will be well. Swept into a rich luxurious world they have never known before, the Marquis sets out to charm the Vicar and Ajanta’s sisters. Delighted by their new surroundings and excited by the attention of the eloquent Marquis they cannot believe the happiness Ajanta has bought into their lives. But the Marquis is not the only one masking the truth – Ajanta too has a family secret she would prefer not to share and, as the deception continues and feelings run high, she cannot help but worry what will happen in the final Act of their play and where the curtain will fall.

When fog leaves the Duke of Marazion stranded at a bleak inn, he soothes his restless soul with a brandy, a book and a roaring fire. A glittering figure amongst London Society, the rich and handsome Duke has everything he could ever want – apart from true love. As he sits, determined to continue his journey as soon as possible, he cannot foresee the consequences of answering a late night knock at his door. Astonished to find a young woman alone and in distress, he naturally takes on the role of her rescuer. Calming her frightened tears, he discovers that lovely runaway, Ilitta, is not only a talented artist but also a perceptive girl whose judgment he can immediately trust. Offering his protection and an introduction into the coveted London art world in exchange for her instinctive response to his new business partners, they set off together. As refreshing as a spring morning in comparison to the worldly-wise beauties he usually spends time with, the Duke is amused and then enchanted by his unlikely new friend. Determined to discover the secrets behind Ilitta’s decision to run away, the Duke hopes that soon she will accept his sensible advice and return home. But just as the Duke discovers his true feelings, the seductive charm of a tempting Comtesse forces him to make a decision that will change his life forever.

The handsome and debonair Marquis of Raventhorpe is known throughout the Beau Monde as something of a ladies’ man until he falls under the spell of Society beauty Lady Sarah Chessington. But when he arrives at the Earl of Chessington-Crewe’s house to propose, he realises that Lady Sarah wants him only for his wealth and position and he leaves in a fury, vowing that he will never marry. By the wayside he encounters a young exquisite beauty utterly different from any woman he has ever met, in fact she looks like an angel who has just fallen from Heaven by mistake. She is the Earl’s niece and ward, Ula Forde, who is running away from her Guardian, who mistreats and beats her savagely. Outraged, the Marquis rescues her and plots to punish Lady Sarah and the Earl by making Ula the belle of every ball and the toast of London Society. It is only when the despicable Earl kidnaps the terrified girl that love for Ula blossoms in the Marquis’s heart. He must rescue her – if he is not already too late –

Amidst the exciting preparations for the grand opening of Prince Albert’s prized Crystal Palace, a young orphan, Sorilda, is being forced into marriage by her recently cuckolded uncle, the Duke of Nuneaton. Having sheltered lovely Sorilda since the tragic death of her parents, the usually fair-minded Duke has been driven to jealous retaliation by his deceitful new Duchess. Suspecting his close neighbour, the Earl of Winsford, of ungentlemanly conduct with his beautiful wife, the Duke issues an ultimatum. The Earl must renounce the Duchess and marry the Duke’s flame-haired niece or face the public embarrassment of a scandal. Handsome, intelligent and fabulously wealthy, the Earl makes his choice and reluctantly marries Sorilda, his helpless bride. Angry at being pressured into such a union and aghast that he does not know, let alone love, his wife, the Earl remains distant and determined not to let Sorilda into his life. Enjoying the freedom from the miserable prison of her uncle’s home, Sorilda’s natural charm and positive nature soon force their way to the surface, despite the coldness of her bridegroom. Delighted by everything around her, it is not long before she has made her way into the hearts of everyone she meets. But, as London Society eagerly awaits the Great Exhibition, a spurned Duchess is busy plotting. Furious at being caught in a compromising situation, and filled with hatred for Sorilda, who has married the man she desires, she will not rest until she has her revenge.

The Marquis of Elvington, heartbroken to discover the woman he intended to marry has deceived him, decides to leave England and put as many miles as possible between them. Handsome, intelligent and a great favourite at the Court of King William IV and Queen Adelaide, the Marquis is used to the admiration of women and respect of men, so the duplicity of his intended wife strikes him a cruel blow. However, a thick fog makes it impossible for his yacht to leave Dover Harbour, so he is forced to remain on British soil another night. Anger swiftly chasing his sadness, he decides to visit a cheap quayside inn to escape the loneliness he feels and drown his sorrows. Sitting alone, his mind firmly fixed on how the woman he loved has betrayed him, he vows never to love or trust again. But Fate seems determined to challenge him as almost immediately he is forced to act as a ‘Good Samaritan’ to protect a young lady, Ola, intent on escaping the clutches of her hateful stepmother and dishonourable cousin. Blaming his act of charity on the vast quantities of brandy he consumed and against his better judgement, he offers to sail her in his yacht, The Sea Wolf, to Calais. Ola is brave, opinionated and daring – as well as possessing the most flaming red hair he has ever seen. From the moment she steps aboard, decrying men and their dastardly intentions, the Marquis is hard put to keep in step with her wild ideas and brave deeds. In turn admiring her free spirit and amazed at her lack of understanding of the ways of the world, they form a strange truce based on the fact that both vow never to marry. But Fate has not finished meddling yet and they are soon embroiled in incredible adventures, too fantastic for either of them ever to have imagined, that push their friendship to its very limits.

John Clare (1793-1864) was born at a time of great social upheaval, just months after the beheading of Louis XVI and the outbreak of war with France which was to last till the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815. He also lived through the upheavals of the land enclosure movement and agricultural revolution which changed the face of the countryside and the way of life in rural England. His father was a farm worker who managed to pay for his son’s schooling, though this was cut short as conditions worsened, but at least Clare had by then learnt to read and write so he could continue his own education, reading whatever books he could lay his hands on. At the age of sixteen he witnessed the social dislocation caused by the local enclosure Act and observed how the landscape was gradually transformed. Drawing on Clare’s writing, this extensively researched study gives the modern reader an appreciation of the divisive effects of these policies. Structured chronologically, this exploration of John Clare’s life highlights the socio-economic and environmental aspects of his observations and includes his reports on an insidious revolution taking place in the English countryside. Parliament, dominated by landowners, authorised the enclosure of large tracts of common land by private acts without considering the effect on those who had enjoyed rights of use and pasturage for centuries. Land enclosures, and the improved agricultural techniques which this permitted, was important in increasing food production at a time when the population of England was growing rapidly. While additional work was initially provided for agricultural labourers in the fencing and walling needed, this was temporary. The introduction of new, labour-saving machinery further reduced the opportunities for work. Insufficient attention, the author argues, has been given to the consequences. Those driven out of their homes in the country were left with no option but to migrate to the towns and sell their labour to whoever would pay for it. In effect, land enclosure created a market in land; landlessness created a market in labour. These are the foundations of our modern market economy. The author asserts that the harshness of the early years of the industrial revolution were the product of land enclosure which the welfare state has to some extent mitigated, although at the cost of creating a dependency culture in contrast to the sturdy independence of Clare’s parents’ generation of farm workers.

At the heart of this book is a carer's story. However, it is much, much more than that. It is a book about being human, about the ups and downs of life, about loving, about trying to make sense and work out, and around the things that life throws at you how you have to find a way of living without ever forgetting your loved one. Beautifully written with love and confidence about a poignant time in the life of a family. The Struggle to retain the self of a beloved husband and father and the harsh reality of living with dementia is all too clear.