Bøger udgivet af Pegasus Books

The American public's introduction to nuclear technology was manifested in destruction and death. With Hiroshima and the Cold War still ringing in our ears, our perception of all things nuclear is seen through the lens of weapons development. Nuclear power is full of mind-bending theories, deep secrets, and the misdirection of public consciousness, some deliberate, some accidental. The result of this fixation on bombs and fallout is that the development of a non-polluting, renewable energy source stands frozen in time.Outlining nuclear energy's discovery and applications throughout history, Mahaffey's brilliant and accessible book is essential to understanding the astounding phenomenon of nuclear power in an age where renewable energy and climate change have become the defining concerns of the twenty-first century.

"A meditative love letter to the sport of cycling which explores how the cultivation of a tangible skill can shed new light on age-old questions of selfhood, meaning, and purpose"--

A remarkable investigation into the hominoids of Flores Island, their place on the evolutionary spectrumand whether or not they still survive.While doing fieldwork on the remote Indonesian island of Flores, anthropologist Gregory Forth came across people talking about half-apelike, half-humanlike creatures that once lived in a cave on the slopes of a nearby volcano. Over the years he continued to record what locals had to say about these mystery hominoids while searching for ways to explain them as imaginary symbols of the wild or other cultural representations. Then along came the ';hobbit'. In 2003, several skeletons of a small-statured early human species alongside stone tools and animal remains were excavated in a cave in western Flores. Named Homo floresiensis, this ancient hominin was initially believed to have lived until as recently as 12,000 years ago possibly overlapping with the appearance of Homo sapiens on Flores. In view of this timing and the striking resemblance of floresiensis to the mystery creatures described by the islanders, Forth began to think about the creatures as possibly reflecting a real species, either now extinct but retained in ';cultural memory' or even still surviving. He began to investigate reports from the Lio region of the island where locals described ape-men as still living. Dozens claimed to have even seen them. In Between Ape and Human, we follow Forth on the trail of this mystery hominoid, and the space they occupy in islanders' culture as both natural creatures and as supernatural beings. In a narrative filled with adventure, Lio culture and language, zoology and natural history, Forth comes to a startling and controversial conclusion. Unique, important, and thought-provoking, this book will appeal to anyone interested in human evolution, the survival of species (including our own) and how humans might relate to ';not-quite-human' animals. Between Ape and Human is essential reading for all those interested in cryptozoology, and it is the only firsthand investigation by a leading anthropologist into the possible survival of a primitive species of human into recent timesand its coexistence with modern humans.

Telling the story of a man who stood against the overwhelming power of the mighty Roman empire, Hannibal is the biography of a man who, against all odds, dared to change the course of history. Over two thousand years ago one of the greatest military leaders in history almost destroyed Rome. Hannibal, a daring African general from the city of Carthage, led an army of warriors and battle elephants over the snowy Alps to invade the very heart of Romes growing empire. But what kind of person would dare to face the most relentless imperial power of the ancient world? How could Hannibal, consistently outnumbered and always deep in enemy territory, win battle after battle until he held the very fate of Rome within his grasp? Hannibal appeals to many as the ultimate underdoga Carthaginian David against the Goliath of Romebut it wasnt just his genius on the battlefield that set him apart. As a boy and then a man, his self-discipline and determination were legendary. As a military leader, like Alexander the Great before him and Julius Caesar after, he understood the hearts of men and had an uncanny ability to read the unseen weaknesses of his enemy. As a commander in war, Hannibal has few equals in history and has long been held as a model of strategic and tactical genius. But Hannibal was much more than just a great general. He was a practiced statesman, a skilled diplomat, and a man deeply devoted to his family and country. Roman historianson whom we rely for almost all our information on Hannibalportray him as a cruel barbarian, but how does the story change if we look at Hannibal from the Carthaginian point of view? Can we search beneath the accounts of Roman writers who were eager to portray Hannibal as a monster and find a more human figure? Can we use the life of Hannibal to look at the Romans themselves in an unfamiliar way not as the noble and benign defenders of civilization but as ruthless conquerors motivated by greed and conquest?

A renowned scholar investigates the human crisis' that Albert Camus confronted in his world and in ours, producing a brilliant study of Camus's life and influence for those readers who, in Camuss words, ';cannot live without dialogue and friendship.'As Franceand all of the worldwas emerging from the depths of World War II, Camus summed up what he saw as the human crisis': We gasp for air among people who believe they are absolutely right, whether it be in their machines or their ideas. And for all who cannot live without dialogue and the friendship of other human beings, this silence is the end of the world. In the years after he wrote these words, until his death fourteen years later, Camus labored to address this crisis, arguing for dialogue, understanding, clarity, and truth. When he sailed to New York, in March 1946for his first and only visit to the United Stateshe found an ebullient nation celebrating victory. Camus warned against the common postwar complacency that took false comfort in the fact that Hitler was dead and the Third Reich had fallen. Yes, the serpentine beast was dead, but ';we know perfectly well,' he argued, ';that the venom is not gone, that each of us carries it in our own hearts.' All around him in the postwar world, Camus saw disheartening evidence of a global community revealing a heightened indifference to a number of societal ills. It is the same indifference to human suffering that we see all around, and within ourselves, today. Camus's voice speaks like few others to the heart of an affliction that infects our country and our world, a world divided against itself. His generation called him ';the conscience of Europe.' That same voice speaks to us and our world today with a moral integrity and eloquence so sorely lacking in the public arena. Few authors, sixty years after their deaths, have more avid readers, across more continents, than Albert Camus. Camus has never been a trend, a fad, or just a good read. He was always and still is a companion, a guide, a challenge, and a light in darkened times. This keenly insightful story of an intellectual is an ideal volume for those readers who are first discovering Camus, as well as a penetrating exploration of the author for all those who imagine they have already plumbed Camus' depthsa supremely timely book on an author whose time has come once again.

The intoxicating history of an extraordinary city and her people—from the medieval kings surrounding Berlin's founding to the world wars, tumult, and reunification of the twentieth century.There has always been a particular fervor about Berlin, a combination of excitement, anticipation, nervousness, and a feeling of the unexpected. Throughout history, it has been a city of tensions: geographical, political, religious, and artistic. In the nineteenth-century, political tension became acute between a city that was increasingly democratic, home to Marx and Hegel, and one of the most autocratic regimes in Europe. Artistic tension, between free thinking and liberal movements started to find themselves in direct contention with the formal official culture. Underlying all of this was the ethnic tension—between multi-racial Berliners and the Prussians. Berlin may have been the capital of Prussia but it was never a Prussian city. Then there is war. Few European cities have suffered from war as Berlin has over the centuries. It was sacked by the Hapsburg armies in the Thirty Years War; by the Austrians and the Russians in the eighteenth century; by the French, with great violence, in the early nineteenth century; by the Russians again in 1945 and subsequently occupied, more benignly, by the Allied Powers from 1945 until 1994. Nor can many cities boast such a diverse and controversial number of international figures: Frederick the Great and Bismarck; Hegel and Marx; Mahler, Dietrich, and Bowie. Authors Christopher Isherwood, Bertolt Brecht, and Thomas Mann gave Berlin a cultural history that is as varied as it was groundbreaking. The story vividly told in Berlin also attempts to answer to one of the greatest enigmas of the twentieth century: How could a people as civilized, ordered, and religious as the Germans support first a Kaiser and then the Nazis in inflicting such misery on Europe? Berlin was never as supportive of the Kaiser in 1914 as the rest of Germany; it was the revolution in Berlin in 1918 that lead to the Kaiser's abdication. Nor was Berlin initially supportive of Hitler, being home to much of the opposition to the Nazis; although paradoxically Berlin suffered more than any other German city from Hitler’s travesties. In revealing the often-untold history of Berlin, Barney White-Spunner addresses this quixotic question that lies at the heart of Germany’s uniquely fascinating capital city.

A tale of passion and obsession from a philosophy professor who teaches himself to play Bach on the piano.

The remarkable story of Sol Lurie, a child survivor of six concentration camps during the Holocaust, who continues to be a beacon of hope.After a bucolic childhood in Kovno, Lithuania, Sol was just eleven when the Nazis invaded and he and his family were forced to move into the Kovno Ghetto. The Kovno Ghetto was one of the only ghettos to later become a concentration camp, and Sol was among just a few Jewish survivors from Kovno. In this inspiring story of tenacity, character, faith, love, and forgiveness, we follow young Sol through heartbreak and fear, torment and tortue. Through Sol's eyes, we learn the history of the communities in Eastern Europe, especially Lithuania, which has long been a gap in the wider history of the Holocaust. Along the way, we meet the righteous few who helped save young Sol's life. After being imprisoned in six other concentration camps for a total of four years, Sol was liberated from Buchenwald on his 15th birthday. To this day, he still joyfully celebrates every year the day he was born and liberated. Miraculously, Sol’s three brothers and his father also survived the Holocaust. Despite the horrors of youth, Sol never lost his determination to live life to the fullest. He embarked on a new life in the United States and would thrive as a husband, father, grandfather, business owner, and an inspiration for the thousands of schoolchildren and adults who have heard Sol share his incredible tales of survival and the positive lessons he has learned from the most horrific of experiences We can all learn from Sol at a time when divisiveness reigns. Despite all that he suffered and the death of his mother and nearly all his very large extended family, Sol’s courage and positive attitude continues to inspire as he actively seeks out and see the good in others. He wholeheartedly believes in bashert, a Yiddish word that means destiny, which gave him his “mission to educate others to love, not to hate.” Life Must Go On! is a moving and vital new addition to the history of the Holocaust and chorus of surivor stories that resonate throughout the generations.

From 1941 to 1953, director John Huston and actor Humphrey Bogart made one classic film after another, from The Maltese Falcon to The African Queen. Here is the story of their close but combative friendship that produced some of the best movies ever made. Every time they made a movie together, they made a classic—or so it seemed for star Humphrey Bogart and writer/director John Huston. Their six collaborations from 1941 and 1953 include many of the "golden age” hits from Hollywood’s fabled film legacy: The Maltese Falcon, Across the Pacific, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Key Largo, The African Queen, and Beat the Devil. At the same time, both men led fiercely separate lives—except when they were making pictures together. Sometimes they agreed and sometimes they argued, always keeping their eyes on the results. What did each man bring to the collaboration, and how did their six films together reflect their disparate personalities? Their friendship was as dramatic as any of their movies. It survived nine marriages, a world war, the blacklist, leeches, alcohol, and Jack L. Warner. Here is the story of these two legendary talents, their films, their lives, their foes, and their remarkable devotion to each other.

An atmospheric and dramatic novel set in mid-century Montana by the acclaimed author of Six Days of the Condor."Grady's style is loose, colorful, challenging and fun. I sometimes thought of Orwell’s novel 1984, sometimes of the Dylan song 'Desolation Row.'"—Patrick Anderson, The Washington Post For the teenaged Luc, his days are preoccupied with the daily dramas of high school. President John F. Kennedy's assassination seems a world away. But the winds of history find their way to his small Montana town as marijuana clouds rise in the hallways and the notices of neighborhood young men "Killed in Action" in Vietnam keep arriving at an increasing rate. Acclaimed novelist James Grady's American Sky brings to life the world of a young man who is caught in the nexus of vast social change. From blue-collar life in the heartland to Kent State and the Civil Rights movement, American Sky is a sweeping narrative that builds to a crime that threatens to tear Luc's world apart. Previously compared to Larry McMurtry, George Orwell, Harper Lee, and Bob Dylan, James Grady explores Bruce Springsteen's generation and has crafted an action-filled and timeless story destined to become a classic.

The extraordinary story of the theft of priceless Chinese antiques around the world and the connection to crimes spanning more than two centuries—with present-day implications.For the past decade, the art world has been rocked by a series of very costly and elaborately planned heists at major museums. The first took place the night of August 6, 2010 at the Drottningholm Palace in Stockholm, Sweden – the official residence of the Swedish Royal family. Others in France, Great Britain and other countries in Europe followed. In Norway, masked men rappelled down from a glass ceiling into the prestigious Kode Museum on Bergen's picturesque central square, three blocks from police headquarters. In all of these break-ins, the thieves made away with ancient Chinese artifacts, most of which were originally displayed in the spectacular Old Summer Palace outside of Beijing nearly two centuries ago. In The Great Chinese Art Heist, bestselling author Ralph Pezzullo takes us back to the Second Opium War and the sacking of Old Summer Palace by French and British troops in 1860 and connects it to the current wave of heists that seem right out of a Mission: Impossible movie. Comprehensive, balanced, entertaining, and expertly balancing diverse cultural and political perspectives, Pezzullo links these looted artifacts and roots of colonialism to today's billionaires and triad gangs, international banks and drug cartels. The wounds of the past, which is still called the "Century of Humiliation" in China, remain raw. The Great Chinese Art Heist is a sweeping narrative filled with the voices of those who have lived it—art and art crime experts, and museum and government officials in China, Europe, and the US. In this riveting true crime, Pezzulo expertly grapples with the questions of ownership and cultural heritage, and embodies the words of art critic Holland Cotter—“The history of art is, in large part, a theft of history.”

From the New York Times bestselling author of Saban and Lords of the Fly comes an exquisite collection of angling stories that span the twenty-first century.The thirty pieces in Rivers Always Reach the Sea—essays, as well as profiles of some of the biggest names in angling, including Lefty Kreh and Andy Mill—take the reader from the rainforests of Chile to the windswept tundra of Russia, from the remote mangrove-choked basins of Florida’s Everglades to the congested littoral zone of New York City, and to many places in between. The quarry includes trout, Atlantic salmon, tarpon, bonefish and striped bass, but the real quest is for something else entirely. Told in a voice described by the novelist, Carl Hiaasen, as “funny, wistful, and wonderful,” the stories in Rivers Always Reach the Sea keep the focus on the “why” of the sport of fly fishing, and not the “how.”

The remarkable and little-known story of Henri Matisse and his groundbreaking time in Morocco, a fertile period that transformed his art and cemented his legacy.

When over seventy-five pieces of rare and intriguing 17th and 18th century Delftware are rediscovered in an historic Manhattan townhouse, decorative art advisor and writer Genevieve Wheeler Brown quickly recognizes that together these pieces tell an amazing story.

A warm and poignant narrative about the uniquely grinding life of restaurant families, the costs of “making it” as an immigrant, and a daughter’s attempts to connect with parents who have always been just out of reach.When she was three years old, Rachel Phan met her replacement. Instead of a new sibling, her parents’ time and attention were suddenly devoted entirely to their new family restaurant. For her parents—whose own families fled China during the Japanese occupation during the Second Sino-Japanese War and then survived bombs and starvation during the war in Vietnam—it was a dream come true. For Rachel, it was something quite different. Overnight, she became a restaurant kid, living on the periphery of her own family and trying her best to stay out of the way. While Rachel grew up, the restaurant was there—the most stalwart and suffocating member of her family. For decades, it’s been both their crowning achievement and the origin of so much of their pain and suffering: screaming matches complete with smashed dishes , bodies worn down by ever-spreading arthritis, and tenuous relationships where they love one another deeply without ever really knowing each other. In Restaurant Kid, Rachel seeks to examine the way her life has been shaped by the rigid boxes placed around her. She had to be a good daughter, never asking questions, always being grateful. She had to be a “real Canadian,” watching hockey and speaking English so flawlessly that her tongue has since forgotten how to contort around Cantonese tones. As the only Chinese girl at school, she had to alternate between being the Asian sidekick, geek, or slut, depending on whose gaze was on her. Now, thirty-one years after their restaurant first opened, Rachel's parents are cautiously talking about retirement. As an adult restaurant kid, Rachel’s good daughter role demands something new of her—a chance to get to know her parents on the trip of a lifetime. Bringing to lyric life the prism of growing up in a "third culture," Rachel Phan has crafted a vibrant new narrative of growing up, the strength and foibles of family, and how we come to understand ourselves.

The fascinating story of Vincent van Gogh’s two groundbreaking years in Paris, where he transformed himself from a provincial unknown into one of the world’s great visionary artists.

The definitive oral history of the battle that turned the tide of the Civil War that combines vivid first-hand accounts with rich historical narrative.

Private investigator Rainey Hall stumbles into a dark mystery from her past that embroils her with an underground society of artists, a dangerous new drug, and a string of violent deaths.

In this gripping and electric novel, the grim horrors of Nazis in America collides with the manufacturing of the suburban dream—by a brilliant new voice in crime fiction.

A fresh portrait of this iconic American—and the first to involve a Tubman family member since Harriet herself was interviewed in 1886.

An eye-opening and exceptional view of the Ford presidency by one of his closest and most-trusted advisors.

A moving and adventure-filled tale of one woman’s quest for the truth about endangered Asian elephants and their evolving relationship with humans. Delving deep into an intricate web of unlikely heroes, power struggles, and living legends, Elephants in the Hourglass takes readers on an extraordinary journey of discovery. In her extraordinary narrative debut, Kim Frank blends personal narrative, vivid descriptions, and meticulous research as she illuminates the ways we seek to survive on our rapidly changing planet. Like Jane Goodall or Diane Fossey before her, Kim is a female adventurer who found her life completely changed as she was drawn deeper and deeper into the plight of a remarkable animal. For Kim, once she learned about the unique plight of the elephants in North India, she was unable to rest until she had learned more. This was a world totally unknown to her. Up until that point, she was an ordinary middle-class mom. After a fraught divorce, she felt a need to recapture her own voice, and so she set out to the Himalaya with the goal of a National Geographic story. What Kim experienced would change her life. It is far from a black and white story where the good guys and bad guys are immediately obvious, not in this world of displaced habitats, exploding population growth and movement, and climate change which we cannot escape. Filled with unforgettable characters and encounters with one of the most sensitive, intelligent, and awe-inspiring creatures on the planet, Elephants in the Hourglass will inspire readers to pursue their goals and be a force for change in unexpected places.

An adventurer, firefighter, and jiu-jitsu practitioner embarks on a journey of a lifetime—a 1,000 mile voyage through the Canadian sub-arctic—after recovering from a life-threatening illness.

The final adventure of the greatest heroes in French literature takes the musketeers on an epic saga from the royal palace of Louis XIV to the dreaded dungeons of the Bastille.

The powerful story of a 1,000-mile healing walk—from the lochs of Scotland to England's southwest coast—in a remarkable evocation of modern-day Britain.Raynor Winn knows that her husband Moth’s health is declining, getting worse by the day. She knows of only one cure. It worked once before. But will he—can he?—set out with her on another healing walk? The Cape Wrath Trail is hundreds of miles of grueling terrain through Scotland's remotest mountains and lochs. But the lure of the wilderness and the beguiling beauty of the awaiting glens draw them northwards. Being one with nature saved them in their darkest hour years earlier—and their hope is that this experience can work its magic again. So Raynor and Moth embark on an incredible thousand-mile journey: from Scotland to the familiar shores of the South West Coast Path, from Northumberland to the Yorkshire moors, and from Wales to home again. As they map with each step the landscape of their island nation, they find themselves facing existential questions—about themselves and about their country—during this epic, inspiring odyssey.